My Uncle is the Strongest Dark Mage

Chapter 26

Countless people urgently pushed open the door and rushed inside.

Laila, startled by the noise, hugged her smartphone tightly.

"Noona! Are you okay!?"

Kyon, who entered with the bodyguards after opening the door, rushed to her side and checked her condition.

Her hair was messily torn, and she was wearing an unfamiliar coat soaked in blood.

The walls on both sides were heavily damaged by some impact, and one side of the wall was especially stained bright red with someone's blood, exuding a strong metallic scent.

"What on earth happened here......."

A scene not easily encountered even during his security work.

Glancing at the shaken bodyguards, whose eyes seemed to tremble with shock, Laila spoke to Kyon in a slightly trembling voice, as if she hadn't completely calmed down yet.

"You came faster than I expected. I didn’t think it’d be this quick after I called."

"Of course! But why did you contact us so late!? No, what is going on here? What exactly happened!?"

Unlike Laila, who was trying to stay composed, Kyon bombarded her with rapid-fire questions like a rapper, his concern and panic obvious.

Seeing this, Laila scratched her cheek awkwardly, as if at a loss.

"Well."

To be honest, she hadn’t expected to be able to contact them again.

She had fallen into despair, convinced this time it was truly over.

If he hadn’t come to save her again, what would have become of her by now?

Thinking of the hair that had been in the frame, her face turned pale once more.

"......."

Clenching her smartphone tightly, she tried to force herself to forget that memory and instead recalled what had just happened.

"Alright, that’s enough."

The man forcibly pried Laila off, saying that if she was late for the concert, it would make his rescue efforts pointless.

"It’d be troublesome if that guy died from excessive blood loss, too."

Saying that, he glanced at Fred, who was sprawled on the floor, seemingly too weak to even scream anymore, before turning his gaze back to Laila.

Still not fully composed, Laila clutched the coat he had draped over her and looked up at him.

He briefly glanced at her slightly trembling arms before reaching into his pocket.

"Here. This is yours, right?"

What the man handed her was her smartphone.

It was unmistakably the same device she had thrown at Freddy in the dressing room, complete with the visible cracks from the impact.

"I can’t personally take you back for certain reasons. I’ve turned on location tracking, so tell your manager to come pick you up using that."

If he were to escort Laila back and end up meeting the Master face-to-face—

Ugh, just the thought of it made his knees feel weak.

"Then I’ll take my leave."

Approaching the collapsed Freddy, he lightly tapped the man’s body with his foot.

As if by magic, the bleeding stopped instantly.

The man had been on the verge of dying from severe blood loss.

As expected of a high-ranking magician, he had managed to hold out for quite some time.

He figured that in this exhausted state, Freddy wouldn’t struggle when being taken away.

Thinking that, the man lifted Freddy as if handling filth, using only his thumb and forefinger to minimize contact.

"W-Wait a moment!"

Seeing that he was about to leave, Laila urgently grabbed his arm.

"Why? I told you, you really need to go."

He had mobilized the Dark District.

News of her kidnapping likely wouldn’t even make it into the press.

Since he had resolved the incident fairly quickly, her fans probably wouldn’t have noticed anything.

In other words, as long as she returned quickly, everything would be fine.

With no concern for the trembling Laila, his thoughts were solely on the concert and the smiling Young Lady who would be watching it.

Carefully, Laila extended her smartphone toward him. "Please, at least give me your number. I’ll repay you later."

"Not necessary."

She was undoubtedly one of the most famous stars currently in the Elemental Kingdom.

If he wanted, she could offer him an astronomical amount as compensation.

But as someone who amassed wealth from the underworld, money wasn’t something he desperately needed.

In fact, money was something he had in excess, no matter how much he spent.

"W-Wait!"

It’s a rare experience for anyone.

Being saved in a moment of crisis.

Once might be dismissed as coincidence, but if it happens twice, it can only be described as fate.

For Laila, she didn’t want to let go of this opportunity.

She hesitated for a moment, wondering what to do.

"I’m still a bit shaken up... I don’t think I can go through with the concert like this. But I feel like I could calm down if I could at least text you...."

It wasn’t a lie but a fact.

Every time she felt nervous, holding onto the shoes he left behind had a similar effect.

Holding onto something of his overlapped the memory of him saving her with her trauma, making her believe he’d come to save her again.

"......."

What now?

The way she said it made it hard for him to refuse outright like before.

Didn’t it sound like a threat that she’d ruin the concert if he didn’t give her his number?

To think she’d threaten the person who saved her like that.

This is why entertainers are like this.

"Why is she so desperate to get my number?"

He had even shown her he could tear off someone’s arm.

Normally, she should be trembling in fear, wishing for him to leave as quickly as possible.

Thinking that, he ran a hand down his face and finally realized the reason.

It must be because of this handsome face.

Damn narrative causality.

"Sigh."

Well, what could he do?

She claimed she couldn’t perform the concert without his number.

For the Young Lady’s happiness, sacrificing something as trivial as his number wasn’t a big deal.

Snatching her smartphone, the man effortlessly unlocked it and input his number before handing it back to her.

"Don’t share it with anyone else. And don’t contact me too frequently—I have work these days."

"......Okay!"

How he knew her passcode didn’t even cross her mind.

She was only overjoyed by the fact that he had given her his number.

"Um, could I ask for your name, by any chance...."

As she grabbed him one last time, just as he was about to leave, he turned his head with an openly annoyed expression and said.

"I threw away my name long ago. Just save it however you want."

With that, he leapt back over the broken wall the way he came.

Rushing to the spot, she looked down to see the daunting five-story drop.

And his figure was nowhere to be found.

"I was lucky."

Returning to the present after the recollection ended.

That was the only way she could respond to Kyon, who kept bombarding her with questions.

Kyon stared at her intently, as if momentarily at a loss for words.

Then, with a trembling voice, he placed his hands on her shoulders and bowed his head deeply.

"I’m glad. That you’re safe."

"......Thank you. For worrying about me."

Despite everything that had happened, she felt that her fortune with people wasn’t so bad after all.

Her boss, who didn’t hesitate to give her an expensive artifact when she faced trouble.

And her manager, who worried so much for her like this.

'Above all.......'

There was even someone who dramatically appeared to save her every time she was in danger.

Now, holding the smartphone with the man's phone number recorded in it, which would soon replace her shoes as part of her new routine, she quietly closed her eyes.

It was a fascinating thing.

Because just that alone was enough to calm her pounding heart.

"I guess I have to hurry. If I need to redo my hair and change into a new outfit."

And then, as she opened her eyes again, she smiled softly and spoke.

At those words, Kyon flared up and shouted.

"Is the concert the issue right now? Go to the hospital first!"

"It's fine. I'm not hurt anywhere."

Above all, he was looking forward to her concert.

That alone was reason enough for her to ensure this concert went on.

"I feel a bit sorry for the fan I was supposed to meet beforehand. Could you tell them that if it's okay after the concert, we can meet then?"

"No, is that really the issue right now?!"

"There's no time to get mad. We're already pressed for time."

No matter what, this concert was going to be completed perfectly.

The slight tremor in her body subsided in an instant, and a resolute determination settled in her eyes.

"Absolutely."

* * *

The dazzling lights.

The explosive sound effects.

Laila's sweat and passion as she sang on stage spread to the audience, making their hearts race.

"......Is she really okay?"

The fans, completely unaware of the kidnapping incident involving Laila before the concert, cheered and applauded fervently for her performance.

However, Arina, who knew about the incident, couldn't just watch the current performance with pure joy.

"She'll be fine. Someone took care of it."

Despite having a terrible personality, his skills were undeniably exceptional.

He was incomparable to a manager who merely stomped his feet helplessly when his charge vanished.

"Was it Uncle who resolved it?"

At Cain's words, Arina looked up at his face intently.

If it was true, she could feel slightly reassured.

From what she knew, her uncle never made empty promises.

"Well, I didn't handle it myself, though."

"......?"

"Anyway, you just enjoy the show without any worries. A kid like you shouldn't concern herself with the affairs of adults."

Now then, how should he deal with this thunder-naked brat?

Thinking that, Cain's gaze turned toward the ceiling lit by the stage lights, beyond which he stared.

-The concert's starting, so I'm heading off! Make sure to watch!

The rooftop of the Elemental Art Hall Center Grand Theater.

Sitting there, feeling the faint vibrations of the sound from beyond the wall, the man pouted his lips in dissatisfaction.

"I told you not to contact me so often."

Even though he'd replied curtly or ignored her most of the time, she still rambled on endlessly by herself.

For today, he let it slide, thinking it might be her way of easing her nerves, but if this continued, it would become extremely tiresome and bothersome.

"It's not like I'm teasing her or anything."

Without a ticket, he couldn't even enter; what was there to see?

Of course, if he set his mind to it, he could probably get in, but he had no desire to go through such a troublesome effort just to watch.

Above all, the Master was inside.

"If I get caught, it'll be a disaster."

Saying so, the man roughly shoved his smartphone into his pocket and looked up at the night sky.

Unlike the Great Nature Yggdrasil or the Hwan Empire, the night sky of the Elemental Kingdom was hidden by the city's lights, leaving no stars visible.

The only thing faintly visible was the lonely glow of the distant moonlight.

"It is certainly beautiful."

Seeing that moonlight reminded him of Laila, who was energetically singing below.

Surely it was because she was an entertainer.

Whether it was due to good camera work or natural beauty, she had a much more attractive appearance compared to the average person.

The fact that someone with such high standards for beauty like him made such an evaluation indirectly spoke of just how striking Laila's appearance was.

"Should I peel off her face later?"

No, forget it.

She's the entertainer that the Young Lady likes.

If by any chance it made the news later and shocked the Young Lady, that would be unacceptable.

It seemed he would have to completely give up on taking Laila's face.

"So it really was you, Jealousy."

It was then.

From amidst the complete darkness, a distinct voice reached him.

"......."

Until the voice was heard, he hadn't sensed a thing.

But the moment it spoke, an overwhelming presence bore down heavily on the man, as if targeting him alone.

The man, who could effortlessly dominate even a 5-star magician, began to break out in a cold sweat, visibly freezing in place like a frog before a snake.

And then, with a stiff, creaking motion like a rusty hinge, he turned his head.

What came into view was a black shadow, darkening the night even further by swallowing the moonlight.

Though it took the form of a wraith, a mass of spiritual thought crudely bundled together, its aura was unmistakable.

The atmosphere, which seemed to halt time within the surroundings, emanated an overwhelming sense of vastness.

"That distasteful hobby of yours remains the same."

One of the Seven Deadly Sins of the Dark District, 'Jealousy.'

The pettiest, most narrow-minded, and unpredictable villain in the Dark District.

A narcissist who loved adorning himself with all sorts of expensive items and flaunting them.

Moreover, when it came to things he desired, his obsession surpassed even Greed, driving him to inevitably make them his own.

One of his hobbies was peeling off the faces of beautiful men and women to craft masks.

In the Hwan Empire, they were known as 'Infi Masks,' a tool for assassins to disguise themselves, and befittingly, he was renowned as the best assassin in the Dark District.

"......A person can't change overnight, Master."

Of course, even Jealousy trembled and knelt before the Death King.

'Haha, I'm screwed.'

He never imagined he'd run into the Master like this.

What excuse should he make?

Jealousy's mind raced quickly.

But Cain wasted no time on pleasantries, immediately cutting to the chase.

"I saw traces of you in the dressing room."

"......."

That one sentence was enough.

Though he usually feigned indolence, the Master's insight was razor-sharp.

For him, deducing an entire situation from a small clue was a trivial matter.

'Was it when I picked up the smartphone?'

Before Cain and Arina arrived at the dressing room, Jealousy had already discovered Laila's kidnapping and was greatly startled.

Perhaps that was why.

Although he usually left no trace whatsoever, his attention to detail had slipped slightly this time.

"Were you lingering around Arina?"

The best assassin in the Dark District.

In other words, a specialist in infiltration and reconnaissance.

The only reason he would go out of his way to come here and save Laila, someone he had no connection with, was clear.

"The timing is likely right after the Grant Department Store incident. Judging by how well you've avoided my eyes, it seems you've been focusing on the Academy. What, are you posing as a professor or something?"

"......."

You figured it out all the way to that point.

As expected of the Master.

"Was it Oman who ordered you? I’m certain I warned you not to loiter around and cause trouble."

True to their Dark District origins, they were full of people who never listened, no matter what they were told.

"Haa, fine."

Clicking his tongue at that fact, the wraith summoned by Cain sighed and vanished beneath the building.

Even after a long time had passed, the punishment he had been waiting for never came.

Jealousy, who had been gazing at the spot where Cain had disappeared, hesitated and mumbled while twirling his well-kept, lustrous hair.

"Is this silent permission?"

Or perhaps, a silent warning telling me to get lost since I’ve been caught.

Judging by the atmosphere and the feeling, it strongly seemed like the former—an acceptance to do as I pleased, since he had given up.

After pondering briefly, Jealousy finally let out a sigh of relief, shook his head, and plopped down on the spot.

"Phew. I thought I was going to die."

I thought my heart was going to burst.

If there was one consolation, it was that now that his identity had been exposed, he no longer needed to follow the Young Lady while nervously worrying about getting caught by the Master.

Thinking that he could provide a more relaxed escort from now on, Jealousy felt as though he had shed all his burdens in an instant. He gazed at the music echoing from behind him and the moonlight pouring down as he sank into the night.

Until the moment a text came from Laila, asking if he had enjoyed the concert after it ended.