Chapter 51: Spirit (2)

Arin had been talking about spirits for quite some time now. Even Adele, who had been enthusiastically engaging with her, was starting to look a little tired.

Abel already knew that once she started talking about spirits, there was no stopping her. So, while she rambled on, he continued processing the paperwork.

Even the spirits, who had been playfully showing off for a while, now seemed exhausted, occasionally letting out yawns.

Abel stamped the budget management document and passed it aside. Just as he was about to process the last document, he suddenly noticed Adele’s gaze on him.

Arin, who had been talking nonstop just moments ago, also seemed to have realized this and promptly closed her mouth.

Had she gone too far? She muttered under her breath and scratched her cheek, looking a little awkward. Abel couldn’t help but chuckle.

Of course, it wasn’t because Adele was upset with her.

‘Does she want to be alone with me?’

After spending months together, he had learned to read her thoughts just from the way she looked at him.

Abel gestured to Arin, signaling her to leave the room. Catching on immediately, she nodded without hesitation.

“I’ll take my leave first, Your Grace.”

She saluted with crisp precision before opening the door and stepping out.

It was almost hard to believe that the same person who had been chatting so energetically just moments ago could be this composed and disciplined.

Her strict distinction between work and personal matters was something worth respecting.

Adele silently observed the door as it opened and closed. She waited until Arin was completely gone before turning to face Abel.

“You have something you want to say.”

“Yes.”

She nodded, her expression serious.

Adele rarely visited the office in person unless it was necessary.

For her to come all the way here despite that meant it was something important.

Abel set the last document aside and locked eyes with her.

In her gaze, he could see a firm resolve.

“I want to get stronger.”

Adele clenched her fists tightly as she declared it.

It wasn’t an impulsive statement made on a whim. It was the result of long contemplation over the past few days.

After nearly dying at the hands of the Emperor, she had realized something crucial.

She had grown too complacent, relying too much on her regression ability.

Whether she was poisoned, assassinated, or killed in any way, she had always believed she could simply reset everything through regression.

Even if she died helplessly, she thought she could always turn back time.

‘How foolish.’

When she possessed Adele’s body and tried to persuade the household members, it had been the same.

Even if she made mistakes, she never hesitated to use regression to erase them.

Through regression, she learned more about the people around her and successfully won them over.

Thanks to that, she had gained allies like Lily.

Even the Crown Prince’s assassins had been easy to deal with through regression.

When she first met Abel, she had used the same method to form a contract with him.

At the auction house, she had saved Lily from an unknown knight using the same means.

At the library, she had wagered her life like a coin to personally eliminate the Emperor’s hand.

But when she faced true death in Arc, she finally realized one undeniable fact.

‘I’m weak.’

She had no choice but to be helpless.

There had been a time when she lost not only herself but also Lily to the Crown Prince’s assassins.

At the library, she barely managed to deal with the Emperor’s hand while suffering through the agony of death.

And then…

She had ultimately failed to save the old woman who had once saved her.

She had been blinded by the arrogance of thinking she could always save people with regression.

She had relied on the false comfort that as long as she could turn back time, she didn’t need to be strong.

And in the end, she had nearly been killed by the Emperor himself. If not for her contract with Abel, she would have died there.

If he hadn’t suggested a new contract first, she would have undoubtedly perished in that place.

Grit.

She clenched her teeth unconsciously.

‘Regression… it’s better to use it sparingly.’

Louis had warned her about it before. She couldn’t afford to depend on this power recklessly.

This wasn’t just about the consequences—

She had been blindly relying on regression, making her far too complacent.

‘That’s why I need to become stronger.’

At Adele’s heartfelt declaration, Abel closed his eyes for a moment.

He set down the pen he had been holding and leaned back in his chair.

The Adele standing before him now was completely different from the helpless girl he had first met.

Back then, her lifeless eyes had been devoid of hope, her gaze trembling with fear, and her whole body had been consumed by despair.

Now, however, her eyes were filled with determination.

She was still afraid—but at least, the defeat and resignation that once clouded her gaze were gone.

He couldn’t help but smile at the drastic change.

“So, you want to become stronger…”

The first time he had seen Adele, she had looked like a fragile child.

A child who had tumbled off a cliff, wounded and struggling desperately to climb back up.

Even now, looking at her gave him the feeling of watching a vulnerable child standing by the water’s edge.

It reminded him of himself as a child—thrust into the treacherous path of nobility with no guidance.

Perhaps that was why he felt such a sense of familiarity with her.

Maybe it was because she, like him, was originally from the modern world.

Otherwise, there was no reason for him to be this concerned about her.

‘…But she’s not the same as I was back then.’

Her answer was far better than the one his younger self had chosen.

Because back then, all he had done was run away.

“Alright.”

At his response, Adele’s face lit up.

But she couldn’t simply rejoice just yet.

Becoming strong wasn’t something that happened overnight.

It required relentless effort, day after day.

She would have to walk a path filled with thorns.

“Are you prepared for that?”

Abel asked seriously.

Adele swallowed hard.

She knew he was right—this would not be an easy path.

But it was still a hundred times better than sitting around in complacency.

With that thought, she straightened her posture and nodded with unwavering resolve.

“Yes. Absolutely.”

“Good.”

What Must Adele Do to Become Stronger?

In his past life, whenever he read The Villainess Turns Back Time Again Today, a particular thought always crossed his mind.

If only Adele had been stronger, wouldn’t most of the episodes have played out much more easily?

However, there was always one major obstacle preventing that outcome—Adele’s utterly miserable lack of talent.

She was far too physically weak to become a knight who could wield aura. No matter how powerful aura might be, it was meaningless if the body that contained it was fragile.

The Crown Prince was a prime example. Because he had wasted himself on luxury and alcohol instead of training properly, he suffered defeat over and over in the original novel.

At this point, it was far too late for Adele to train her body from scratch. Besides, aura was incredibly difficult to awaken unless one started training from childhood.

What about becoming a mage…?

The situation was just as bleak.

While she had a decent amount of mana, the most crucial trait—her sensitivity to mana—was absolutely terrible.

When she formed her second contract with Abel, she had entered his subspace without even feeling the slightest dizziness. That alone proved how poor her mana perception was.

Even in the original novel, Adele had suffered from an inferiority complex due to her lack of talent. That said it all.

But…

Descendant of an elf, was it?

If that were true, then there was one possibility.

A path she had never even considered before suddenly emerged in her mind.

“Arin.”

At his call, Arin flung the door open and stepped inside.

The sudden reappearance startled Adele, making her flinch.

“You called, Your Grace?”

Abel nodded slightly before giving her an order.

“As a Spirit Knight, you will teach Adele spirit magic.”

“…Excuse me?”

Arin furrowed her brows and asked again.

He already knew what she was concerned about.

Most spirits in this world had already departed to the Spirit Realm and never returned.

Even Arin’s own spirits spent most of their time there—proof of how much this world had deteriorated.

However, things would be different now.

Because he had that item—the one Louis had gifted him.

Abel reached into his subspace and retrieved it: a music box.

A wooden cylinder with an antique-style handle on the side.

The moment she saw it, Arin let out a small gasp.

As someone who had reached a certain level as a Spirit Mage, she immediately recognized the significance of this music box.

“Will you be able to do it?”

“Yes. It’s more than possible.”

At Abel’s question, Arin nodded firmly.

“I’ll leave Adele in your care, then.”

“I will do my utmost.”

She knelt on one knee and gave a solemn vow.

Meanwhile, Adele, still struggling to grasp what was happening, tilted her head in confusion.

“So… am I becoming a Spirit Mage?”

Abel nodded in response to her question.

A Spirit Mage route that had never existed in the original novel.

If Louis hadn’t given him the music box…

If he hadn’t learned that Adele was a descendant of elves…

If he hadn’t taken Arin in as a child…

None of this would have been possible.

How nostalgic.

To think that all the changes he had made to the original story had led to this.

Life was unpredictable, indeed.

– – The End of The Chapter – –

 

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