Eliya cried in the enemy’s arms like a child.
She heard what he had just said.
That he loved her.
Could it really be true?
Why was he still saying such things?
She shouldn’t believe him.
His goal couldn’t be to kill her.
But embarrassing as it was, she wanted to believe him.
She just wanted to believe it without thinking.
With her eyes closed and ears shut, she wanted to dive into faith and just become a fool.
But that couldn’t be.
She rationally argued that such a thing was wrong.
Unbeknownst to her, her reason had become paralyzed.
Sometimes, humans are like that.
They believe they’ll be able to assess everything with a cold, steely reason, regretting only practical judgments without hesitation, and making objective decisions.
But reason is merely the rider holding the reins of raging emotions.
Unaware of being swayed by her feelings, she firmly believed she was a rational person.
Caught in her self-assurance of being rational, she couldn’t see the reality that she was, in fact, not rational.
Eliya was no exception to this.
“…Are you trying to use me without killing me?”
“Not at all, Miss. Though my past was like that… I will never do anything to harm you.”
“…Really? Why? I don’t understand…”
Eliya muttered blankly to herself.
The confusion in Judah’s mind only deepened.
He had no key to resolve this situation.
All relationships had already been woven into a tragedy.
He desperately tried to think of a topic to persuade her, but no answers came.
Only the sincerity of his heart remained as the only method.
Even that had an uncertain outcome.
“I value you too much… No matter what happens, I will protect you. I know I’m a bit late…”
At that moment,
A status notification arrived as if mocking his effort to remain calm.
[‘Twisting of Fate, The Beginning of Causality’ has been completed.]
[The quest ends as ‘Discovery of Fate, Completion of Causality’.]
[Discovery of Fate: You are destined to kill Eliya de Bevel.]
[Completion of Causality: You have failed to betray destiny and kill Eliya.]
[You have faced a twisted fate with a new ending to causality.]
[According to the new causality, special rewards for the main quest are being offered.]
[Special Reward: One-time dimensional gate opening pass.]
[Opening Dimensional Gate: Through the dimensional gate, you can move anywhere and become or achieve anything.]
[Example: You can return to your original world and enjoy the life you desire.]
‘…….’
As she stood there dazed, Eliya quietly detached herself from his embrace.
“I’m sorry. I could handle dying at your hands, but I don’t want to be used.”
She staggered to her feet.
Her downcast eyes were hollow yet resolute.
As if she had made some kind of decision.
“I’m tired now.”
“Miss?”
“…Goodbye.”
At that moment.
-Thud!
“Miss-!”
The office door burst open.
Ria rolled in.
She must have rushed over because she was panting heavily.
Eliya and Judah both turned to watch Ria, startled by her sudden intrusion.
“Eliya, Miss… Just a moment…”
When Eliya had used magic against Judah, Ria had hurriedly come over upon hearing the commotion from the bedroom.
Though she didn’t catch everything, she somewhat understood why it had escalated to this catastrophe.
In essence, it was her fault.
So she had to fix it.
“Miss… No, Eli.”
“…?”
Eliya blinked blankly at the nickname she hadn’t heard in a long time.
Ria took a moment to catch her breath before calming down.
“…Eli. Ten years ago, your mother did not die.”
Eliya found Ria’s voice both unfamiliar and familiar.
Different from her usual business-like tone, it was gently coaxing.
That was, ten years ago…
“I’ve deceived you all this time without any shame, and I feel no sense of worth. I’m truly sorry.”
Ria deeply bowed her waist in apology.
Eliya stared blankly at Ria.
At her crown.
The roots of her hair were black.
Ria had always had red hair from the beginning…
“Eli.”
“……”
“I am a cowardly person who has concealed the truth all this time, using excuses of being weak and having nothing I could do for you.”
“……”
“It’s an undeserving title, but…”
Ria lifted her head.
Eliya met her deep black eyes.
A sad smile appeared on Ria’s face.
“I am your mother.”
“……”
Eliya’s consciousness drifted far from reality.
It felt as if she were thumbing through the past like a flipbook—ten years ago.
Her mother, assassinated by Narcissi.
A burned scene.
A funeral held without a body.
Ramek. They would certainly notify her of the consequence of their actions.
They assassinate targets with deadly poison.
Dying in a fire was unimaginable…
“……”
As dazed as Eliya was, Judah was just as confused.
‘Maria… didn’t die?’
Then what about the documents he saw?
What about his own past?
There was no time to ponder.
In the moment, a prickling sensation surged through his fingertips.
‘…Someone is targeting here.’
A heavy killing intent pressed down on all of his senses.
And it wasn’t just one.
It was countless.
A survival expert was slowly warning from all directions.
‘The target is Eliya? Me? Ria? All three of us?’
Slowly, he placed his hand over the grip of his weapon.
Ready to draw at any moment.
‘Nine of them. Can I take them all out at once?’
Nervously, sweat began to bead from the palm resting on the grip.
Ria took a step closer to the dazed Eliya.
“Eli. Judah is not guilty. I’ll explain.”
“……”
“I wasn’t going to say anything, but I couldn’t just watch you both end up like this. So let me tell you what happened…”
“Attack-!”
As Judah called out urgently, the ceiling and windows shattered.
Dozens of assassins in black clothing stormed in from all sides.
Eliya’s consciousness was half-immersed in the past.
She was mentally busy retracing her memories.
The alert magic she usually obsessively carried was also deactivated, which was why she just stood there, dazed, as the assassins arrived.
‘This is insane…!’
Judah quickly pushed Eliya down and swung his sword.
A thin ivory-hued afterimage simultaneously severed the necks of the assassins.
However, he couldn’t take out all the assassins at once.
An unavoidable gap emerged.
One remained alive.
A very brief moment.
‘The most important thing here is Eliya.’
Judah decided to take the hit instead of letting her take it.
He would think of the following actions then.
Dying wouldn’t matter much.
That’s the point of an escort knight’s existence.
However, the lone surviving assassin was aiming for someone other than Eliya.
Not Judah either.
“Guh-!”
Ria was stabbed with the sword.
The blade slipped out, cutting through her side.
“…Huh?”
Only then did Eliya begin to recognize reality.
She looked at Ria.
Ria’s body lost strength.
Her face.
The expression shown to her.
A reassuring smile as if to say not to worry.
Judah quickly pushed the assassin away and beheaded him, but it was a moment too late.
Ria had already been stabbed.
“Ah, ah…”
Eliya crawled towards Ria.
She supported her fallen head and propped her up.
Blood gushed from her mouth and body without restraint.
Even with Eliya’s healing magic.
No, with any priest’s divine power, the critical wound where her upper body was torn apart couldn’t be undone.
Even so, Eliya desperately tried to use her healing magic.
But the magic didn’t activate properly.
“Ah…? Ah, ugh…”
No magic could be used at all.
A sense of déjà vu washed over her.
Ten years ago.
The day she received the news that her mother had died.
Judah noticed that something was wrong with Eliya.
He dashed to the window and shouted outside.
“Gale and Mei! Get the two doctors and Wizard Bolse! Anyone quickly-! There’s a serious injury!”
Without magic or medical knowledge, that was all he could do to help.
In that moment, a single method flashed through his mind.
‘…Wait. Could that help save her? But could it work for such a serious injury?’
Meanwhile, Ria raised her trembling hand as she leaned against Eliya.
That sight felt familiar to Eliya.
Once, Judah had tried to reach out for her when he was nearly dying.
Just like back then, Eliya placed Ria’s hand against her own face.
The blood-soaked red hand touched her cheeks.
It was sticky.
Ria, who had been coughing up blood, smiled wanly through the haze.
“Eli… I’m sorry…”
At that moment.
-Bwooow!
A horn reverberated from outside.
‘Ambush alert?’
Speculating possibilities, Judah hurriedly turned his head.
Riding towards the mansion gate was someone on horseback.
It was Hermis.
She was blowing the horn until her face turned red.
Starting from her, the warning spread, shaking the entire mansion.
-Booow….
Judah cast his gaze far away.
Beyond the sprawling grounds of the mansion, human figures began to rise.
Waving platinum flags.
In the center was a golden symbol—the sun.
The sign of the Imperial Army.
All the soldiers beneath the flags were heavily armed.
The royal knights, dressed in golden armor, were sparse.
The ones clad in platinum armor were the elite guard.
The Imperial Army had invaded.
It was no coincidence that they launched a surprise attack at this moment.
It was undoubtedly an intentional situation.
Judah gritted his teeth, chewing on the name of the enemy hidden behind them.
‘Johan…!’
*
“Ahem…”
Johan, the Emperor of the Helios Empire, frowned displeased and shook his head.
“What a pity. Was it far more serious than I anticipated…?”
Johan had predicted the current events and had half intended them.
However, it hadn’t completely gone according to plan.
This is how the circumstances unfolded.
Once Eliya started digging into Judah’s past, Angra and the royal family had thoroughly concealed Judah’s information.
They prevented Eliya from catching on in advance.
But as time passed, Eliya fell for Judah before she even realized who he was.
Judah had also developed feelings for Eliya.
Johan found this phenomenon truly peculiar.
The relationship had optimally culminated for an assassination, yet Judah had no such intention.
It was baffling how things had come to be while also being so clear.
Is it rare for a man to neglect his profession, enamored by a woman?
Even if that target happened to be his sworn enemy.
At first, it was perplexing, but eventually, the situation changed.
If his feelings were that strong, he could turn it to his advantage.
Johan intentionally leaked some of Judah’s hidden information.
While hiding the source, he ensured it reached Eliya’s ears quietly.
He designed the scenario for Eliya to crumble and waited.
The unrestrained power of the sun, unable to be governed by reason, would run amok, leading both herself and the surroundings to destruction.
But aware of the truth, Eliya did not engage in self-destruction.
Only some slight gaps began to arise.
What a pity, but he had a countermeasure.
Johan employed a number of skilled assassins, plotting to simultaneously target Eliya.
Originally, that ambush was meant for Eliya and Judah, both to die.
However, Judah’s response was far sharper and faster than anticipated.
Instead, an unexpected harvest emerged.
“Well, this should suffice. This is no longer a crucial issue. After all, she won’t be able to get back up again.”
Ria, the maid closest to Eliya.
She was Maria.
Eliya and Judah survived, but Maria was killed.
As a result, Eliya’s power was sealed.
When Maria died.
Eliya became disillusioned with her own power and was unable to use magic.
“I expected that Maria would be alive…. But I never thought she would be so close.”
Again, the same scenario recurred.
Eliya was brought down.
For the time being, she would be unable to use magic.
And Johan was confident that this war would lead to the complete eradication of the weakened Eliya.
“What an unexpected stroke of luck. How fortunate. Speaking of which, it would have been better if she hadn’t known the truth… Tsk, human curiosity is truly irrational yet useful.”
He chuckled derisively and gave orders to Geist, the head of the royal wizard order.
“Bring me the Sun Symbol. I will usher in a new era.”
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