231 Envy’s Apology
As Envy plummeted to the ground, shock and disbelief coursed through her like a torrential storm. Her friendship with Harry spanned more than two centuries, and the idea of betrayal was unfathomable. The pain she felt in her heart cut deeper than the physical injuries she had sustained. Her back wound and the magical burns that marred her body were painful, but the emotional agony was almost unbearable.
In that desperate moment, it was a cruel twist of fate that the Spear of Gungnir was on the verge of collapse just before it could pierce through her body. This cruel irony seemed to reflect the devastation of her trust and the shattering of a friendship that had endured for over two centuries. It was as if the universe itself conspired to save her life while simultaneously tearing her heart apart.
The dagger that pierced her lower back was reforged from a broken piece of Excalibur. This weapon, with its origins tied to the legendary sword, possessed an eerie power. It not only inflicted physical harm but also immediately sealed all of her magic. Since the true source of Envy's magical power came from the demon Leviathan, the power of Excalibur was more effective against her magical ability than against a normal mage.
Envy, who had already fallen to the ground, struggled to look into the eyes of her former student, butler, and confidant. Disbelief and reality-denial were evident in her gaze.
"Harry… The dagger, you were never good at handling blades and daggers. It was just a slip, right?" Envy asked, her voice filled with hope and a desperate denial of the harsh reality. She wished this were just a nightmare, a very bad one. She couldn't accept that her butler and the person she trusted the most, Harry Pembroke, would betray her. Envy had fallen into a state of denial.
"Claudia…" Harry looked at Envy, his expression a mixture of confusion, regret, anger, and self-blame. He wished he could turn back time and undo the terrible act, but even the most powerful mage in the Hightower couldn't perform such a feat. Now, all that remained were regrets.
"Well done, Mr. Pembroke," a haughty voice echoed from the stairs. A noble-looking man in a black and white suit and a white robe with a long yellow scarf appeared. He exuded an air of arrogance that befitted his station. He was Cyrus Ashborn, one of the Grand Councilors and the leader of the Path of Knowledge Faction. Following him was a figure in a white and gold-trimmed robe, their features hidden beneath a hood. This was Golden Scale, the leader of the faction responsible for overseeing the Hightower's laws and the enforcers of the Hightower.
"You… Cyrus… and Lord Golden Scale… I bet the Spear of Gungnir is your doing. If not for the stab wound in my back, your precious Spear of Gungnir wouldn't have harmed me." Envy spoke with a mocking smile, then shifted her gaze to Harry.
"Yes, that's exactly right. Thanks to Mr. Pembroke, our plan succeeded," Cyrus said as he patted Harry's shoulder, signaling their alliance.
At this point, Envy saw no hope. She accepted the painful reality before her, no longer denying what had transpired. It hurt deeply to be betrayed by the person she trusted the most. She had trusted Harry more than the fellow Witches like Wrath and Greed.
"Why, Harry? Why did you do this? Did I mistreat you in any way?" Envy asked, seeking an explanation. At the very least, she wanted to understand the reason for this ultimate betrayal before her demise.
"Mistreat? Heh…" Harry repeated, his voice laden with sarcasm. "Of course, you never mistreated me in terms of my quality of life or my workload. But you are a hypocrite! You said it's impossible between you and me! Fine! I understand! I'm weak, and you are the strongest witch in this damn world! It's impossible between us. I know, I understand, I really do!" Harry vented out his frustration, which he had harbored for more than 200 years. He continued, his frustration intensifying and clearly displayed in his voice.
"But what I don't understand is that damn Magitek!? The moment you met him, you couldn't wait to bear his child like a highschool girl on hormone overdose!" Harry roared loudly at Envy, releasing 200 years of pent-up anger from his unrequited love.
"Don't think I don't know what you went through after your first visit to Tessia Kingdom! You succumbed to your curse of envy after it hadn't relapsed for centuries. I saw the Nail of Christ wound on your arm, and I saw your hair turn purple. Your dormant demonic power was once again active, and you couldn't control it to keep it dormant.
I think I know what happened. You were envious of your student, Wrath. You were envious of her seemingly perfect life. She had everything you wanted: a lovely daughter, a good husband who trusted her. It was everything you had ever dreamt of! I've served you for more than two centuries. Don't think I didn't know who you really are under that facade of kindness you put forth. You hypocritical bitch!!" Harry vented all of his anger in one go. He panted, exhausted, and looked at Envy with a complex mix of emotions: hatred, sadness, and regret.
"I should be the one asking you… why… why have you changed? If you didn't change, I would still treat you like the goddess you are. That… that is what you deserve. An unattainable goddess, untouchable by anyone. That's who you really are… no, that's who you should be! I would have even died for you!" Harry shouted before slumping to the ground, his intense emotions leaving him drained.
"I'm sorry, Harry…" Envy uttered a heartfelt apology. She knew she had wronged Harry by not being forthright with him, out of fear of hurting him and losing a valuable ally like him. She recognized her own hypocrisy and regretted it deeply. Upon hearing Envy's apologies, the woman who had been the object of his unrequited love, Harry found himself in a state of profound shock. He wrestled internally with a profound dilemma: should he continue with this betrayal, flee the situation, or come to Envy's aid?
All of Harry's emotional turmoil played out beneath the scrutinizing gaze of the two Hightower Grand Councilors, Cyrus Ashborn and Golden Scale. They observed closely, eager to see if their gamble on Harry would pay off.
When they initially contacted Harry and persuaded him to cooperate with their plan, offering enticing benefits and persuasion, they were well aware of Harry's unwavering loyalty to his master. Within the Hightower, Harry was infamous as the ultimate simp.
In truth, both Cyrus and Golden Scale viewed this situation more as a high-stakes gamble than a mere investment. If their plan succeeded, they could avoid resorting to their personal trump cards to subdue Envy. Every mage guarded their trump card as a closely held secret. Ideally, when a mage deployed their trump card, they ensured their enemies would not survive to tell the tale.
Revealing a trump card risked exposing its secrets and negating the element of surprise. Mages typically prepared spells and counters for a wide array of scenarios. If their trump card was revealed, there was a high likelihood it would fail, as opponents would have prepared countermeasures. Therefore, if possible, the two Grand Councilors preferred not to unveil their trump cards in public.
Envy observed Harry's expression and understood that he must be torn between the choices of betrayal, escape, or assisting her. Being one of the three Grand Councilors, she comprehended the thought process of Cyrus and Golden Scale well. If Harry were to prove a disappointment, they would not hesitate to end his life. In this moment, Envy let out a smile, considering it the last thing she could do for her butler, a way to make amends for the wrongs she had committed against him over more than two centuries.
At that instant, Envy's expression contorted. She allowed a portion of her demonic power to surface from her heart, where she had sealed it. She feigned this as a consequence of her injury and the loss of her mana, making it appear as if the residual demonic energy inherent in every witch's power was manifesting.
Her eyes began to glow with a purple hue, and her hair started to rise as the demonic mana of the Leviathan began to take form. Fortunately, the dagger forged from a piece of Excalibur remained lodged in her lower back, rendering Envy unable to exert her full strength.
"Ha! Harry, you ungrateful fool! As if I would admit that! You betrayed me because you sought the truth! But when I revealed the truth, you couldn't handle it, throwing tantrums at me like a two-year-old child! Who do you think you are? Your magical abilities are weak! Your magical talents are mediocre! Your origin element is nothing more than a common fire element! There are hundreds of thousands of mages like you! What sets you apart, other than your unwavering loyalty and unconditional worship of me, which made you stand out from the crowd!
Now that you've betrayed me, you're just like any other of the hundreds of thousands of mediocre mages in the Path of Knowledge who view people as resources to exploit! Hah! You thought you could outsmart me, use me, exploit me, but you've discarded the one thing that made you stand out from the rest—your loyalty!" Envy's venomous words were like a knife plunged into Harry's heart.
Fueled by anger and hatred, Harry's emotions buried his self-doubt, guilt, and regret. In this moment, only deep-seated anger and hatred remained. With vigor, Harry rose to his feet, drawing a second dagger reforged from Excalibur, and thrust it into Envy's abdomen. He wanted to end her life, but the agreement stipulated that she must live, as the two Grand Councilors still needed Envy for their upcoming ritual.
"Argh!" Envy cried out in agony as the dagger pierced her abdomen. Its power immediately sealed all of her mana and demonic energy reserves. Blood seeped from her wound onto the ground.
Envy began to feel fatigued, and her eyelids grew increasingly heavy. In her final moments, within the blind spots of both Cyrus and Golden Scale's observation, she offered a sweet smile to her betrayer, Harry, and unleashed her mana reserve from her heart to perform her last spell.
[The Contracted Transference.] Envy transferred all of her worldly possessions to Harry, including her castle and lands in Somerset, along with all the invaluable artifacts and relics she had collected throughout her life. She was confident that Harry had not followed her previous orders.
All of these assets and powerful magical trinkets would serve as a guarantee, ensuring that Harry had many bargaining chips for his future, as Envy knew her own death was imminent. Harry's role as the instrument of her betrayal had been fulfilled. In the eyes of the two Grand Councilors, keeping someone who had betrayed their master, like Harry, would not be an option, especially since he had outlived his usefulness and possessed no other redeemable qualities or exceptional magical abilities.
This was the last gift and a token of apology Envy could offer to her loyal friend and butler, Harry, who had faithfully served her for more than 200 years.
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