Chapter 71: “I Want to Learn”

Will hadn’t expected that after he agreed, Treya would grab his hand and start pulling him through the banquet hall.

Her hand, like her usual poker face, was cold to the touch.

“Come with me.”

She was…

Very firm and assertive.

Or perhaps…

She seemed to lack any sense of boundaries, treating someone who had angered her just hours ago as someone she could trust unconditionally.

It was almost childlike, the way she grabbed his hand and dragged him along like a playmate.

She didn’t stop until they had crossed the entire banquet hall.

At the edge of the hall, she finally halted and turned to pull open a curtain.

It was…

A balcony?

The cool breeze from outside blew in, lifting her silver hair slightly. Upon closer inspection, Will noticed a few strands of her hair were stuck together with sweat from her earlier sword demonstration.

Ah, the balcony—a classic location.

At noble banquets like this, there was always a hidden balcony, perfect for discussing business secrets…

Or just for some fresh air and a smoke.

“This place… it’s hidden behind the curtain, so it’s just the two of us.”

She stepped onto the balcony, motioning for Will to follow.

The moment he stepped outside, the fresh air hit him, washing away the heavy scent of alcohol that had permeated the hall.

“Miss Treya, why did you call me out here?”

Treya leaned against the wall, staring down at her shoes—she hadn’t even bothered to change back into her crystal heels, still wearing the training boots from earlier.

“Eugenie… she really is just like you said.”

Her voice grew quieter and quieter, her head lowering further until her silver hair obscured her face.

For someone who had trusted her sister her entire life, this was a devastating blow.

“So you’ve finally seen her true colors? You’re not stupid. Look, even her mother didn’t catch on. You’re already doing better than most.”

“I… I know… the truth is right… right in front of me… I can understand it…”

Hearing Treya’s voice grow increasingly shaky, Will leaned closer to check on her.

And then…

He saw her face beneath her silver hair. Though her expression remained calm, her nose was red, her eyes were rimmed with tears, and droplets were falling from her silver lashes.

She looked utterly pitiful.

“No way… are you actually crying?”

Treya crying was an extremely rare occurrence.

“I… am I crying?”

She sniffled, speaking through her tears, and quickly wiped her eyes with the back of her hand, attempting to fix her hair.

“S-sorry, I came to talk to you about something important, but…”

“Take your time. And… you don’t have to call me ‘sir.’”

“But it’s a polite honorific.”

“Well, it makes me sound ten years older than I am. I’d like to enjoy my youth, thank you.”

“…?”

Treya’s eyes were filled with confusion.

She took a deep breath, wiping her tears again, and finally seemed to calm down.

Watching her, Will couldn’t help but think she looked like someone crying for the first time in her life. Her eyes, her nose, her sniffles—everything was out of control.

Treya had truly embarrassed herself in front of him.

Revealing such a vulnerable side of herself… even in the original story, this was something that only happened at the very end, when she became a “loser heroine.”

“So, what did you want to talk about?”

Will leaned against the wall beside her.

Treya turned to him, her expression serious and respectful.

“I want to apologize! You were right! I shouldn’t have lost my temper with you earlier.”

Before she even finished her first apology, she lowered her head and continued:

“And you’re not a bad person. Thank you for helping me out there. I need to find a way to repay you.”

“No… no need to be so formal. Look, we’re… we’re practically engaged, right…”

Will took a nervous step back.

“So… Will… I want to learn!”

“Hmm? Learn what?”

“I want to learn how to become someone like you, someone like Eugenie… someone who can wear the ‘black cloak’ you mentioned.”

“What?!”

Did he hear that right?

Was the sun rising in the west?

The “loser heroines” he had dealt with over the past few days had either been subtly influenced over time or forcefully taught using strange tools—there was always some level of resistance.

But this one…

She…

She was asking to learn on her own?!

[Task 86: Make Treya doubt her sister, doubt her father, and even doubt herself. Change her perspective forever.]

This task had been completed so quickly.

Will had thought that, given Treya’s slow processing speed, it would take her at least a week to come around.

“Will, why do you look so surprised?”

“I’m just… deeply moved. It’s my first time seeing such an eager student.”

“…?”

“But, Treya, what made you decide this?”

Will sipped his orange juice, watching her.

Treya was truly a peculiar character. During these moments, she seemed impossible to figure out…

But…

“Because today, I felt the pain of being betrayed by someone I trusted, and… the fear that I wouldn’t survive if I didn’t change.”

Once she expressed herself, her thoughts were remarkably straightforward.

“I’m so confused… Why is the world… so different from what I imagined?”

“I’m curious about what the world is really like. Is it not as bright and colorful as I thought?”

“I’m scared. I don’t know who I can trust anymore… Until I learn these things, can I trust anyone at all?”

“And… what is this feeling?”

She touched her chest.

“It feels so suffocating. Just hearing Eugenie’s name makes it worse… My blood feels like it’s rushing faster, my fists clench tightly, and when I think of her… I can’t see her warm colors anymore. I only see endless black…”

Nothing had changed.

As Will listened to her, he realized…

She was still learning to understand her emotions, to feel them, to process them.

Though she was taller than him, emotionally, she was like a child.

This wasn’t due to her environment. It was likely the result of her mixed elven and human bloodline—especially given the Entark royal family’s reputation as “demonic bloodlines.”

For example, in today’s situation…

Treya had simply cried, trembling, without even realizing it.

That wasn’t normal.

In terms of emotions and self-awareness, she was like a toddler learning to walk—falling, standing up, and figuring out how to move forward.

“It’s the purest form of anger, Treya.”

“Anger?”

“Listen carefully, Treya. You need to understand emotions. That’s the first lesson: anger.”

He looked into her innocent eyes.

“You were betrayed, framed, and nearly destroyed by someone close to you…”

“So you have every right to be angry.”

“You should feel suffocated, furious, and blood boiling. You should grip your sword tightly, curse her, punch her in the face, and make her kneel to lick your boots and beg for forgiveness.”

Treya nodded.

“Yes. But isn’t that a bit extreme? I don’t think someone like Eugenie would ever kneel to lick my boots.”

“Exactly. Wait—no, that was just a metaphor. Don’t take it literally.”

“I understand. I’ll go threaten her in her bedroom tonight.”

“Uh-huh—wait, no, that’s not right!”

“Why not? I’m very angry right now.”

“That doesn’t mean you should completely throw away your sense of reason!”

“Hmm, you’re right.”

Treya rested her chin on her hand, nodding thoughtfully.

Will realized she had incredible potential—and it was terrifying.

Sometimes, innocence and purity were the scariest foundations for “blackening.”

“So, Will, what do we do next?”

Will smiled and pointed at her sword.

“Didn’t she teach you a fake swordsmanship technique? Well… we’re going to learn the real one.”

“The real one?”

At that moment, Will revealed the plan he had been preparing for.

“Yes, the real Entark Demon Swordsmanship.”