episode_0290

Eve, having lived countless lives, was no longer Eve. After her ninth reincarnation, the pain stopped; after her ninety-ninth, her emotions dried up; and after her nine hundred and ninety-ninth, she abandoned hope.

Her parents’ gaze also changed. Now, the morning after each regression, they ask her who she is the moment they see her face. Yet, she felt no sadness.

She lives a life of repetition, not knowing which morning it is. She cultivates her power, fulfills her duties as a princess, and searches for Adam across the continent. Eve’s will is completely absent from this process; she merely acts mechanically.

Whether flowers bloom in the garden, the weather is pleasant on her days off, or countless people die before her eyes, Eve feels nothing.

Her senses have dulled to the point that she can’t even taste food. Eating is merely an act of survival. No matter how exquisite the food provided by the royal household, it could not restore Eve’s clouded vision.

Haup-

“…”

That’s how it should have been. Over time, she had to let go of many things, and her sense of taste should have been completely lost. The ice cream she impulsively bought and ate should have been tasteless.

‘But… why, why is it so sweet?’

Tears welled up. Hadn’t she given up already? Hadn’t she become nothing more than an extra, endlessly wandering through a repeating world, assisting the antagonist, and dying alone?

The sweetness spreading through her mouth was happiness that shouldn’t have been allowed to Eve. Or so she thought. Every time she died and started over, the world only took away from her.

‘Should have…? What should have?’

A fresh shock caused her mind to awaken again. For the first time in tens of thousands of years, an unnamed emotion bloomed in a corner of her heart.

It was a tiny spark. In a world where everything was frozen by an endless ice age, a faint spark ignited in Eve’s heart.

The spark slowly blazed, burning through everything that had hardened and setting it in motion again. It did not yield to the severe cold. As long as the ice age had lasted, so too was the intensity of heat built up in the flame.

Suddenly, a memory surfaced.

‘The fact that I mainly used ice magic… it was all because of you, Adam.’

From the flames burning within her heart, she felt the faint echo of first love. She recalled her senses, revived her memories, and rekindled her emotions and will.

Eve’s heart became a raging inferno.

…

…

…

One fact she had overlooked all this time: As Eve prepared and grew stronger to confront Duke Darius, so too did the Duke.

The moment she had considered the optimal timing was when her physical body and mana harmonized, reaching a certain level of mastery.

But that was too late. Duke Darius was also researching forbidden magic, gathering sacrifices, and continuously producing troops. He grew stronger with each passing time.

‘The necessary conditions… aren’t unique to me.’

She had to strike quickly before the Duke’s power grew further. In this 31998th reincarnation, Eve finished only minimal preparations before engaging in the decisive battle, causing changes to the fixed scenario.

Eve formed a mercenary group, including the person she believed to be the antagonist. Their purpose was to eliminate Duke Darius, who carried out sinister plans involving the study of black magic and human experimentation.

“Third Princess… I never expected you to strike so soon.”

“I was the Fifth Princess when I entered… have you already eliminated two more princesses?”

“Indeed. Care to witness my masterpiece?”

Duke Darius extended his hand, and from the shadows emerged a naked woman. Eve’s eyes widened; it was the Fourth Princess.

The naked Fourth Princess blinked her eyes twice and looked around, like a newborn marveling at everything.

“Now, let’s get to work. Your name is Persona, .”

“…”

She realized something was amiss. Duke Darius’s experiment, which had always failed for tens of thousands of reincarnations, had finally succeeded.

Persona, soon rose to her feet, shrouding herself in shadows. Her killing intent spread across the areas the shadows touched.

Phaaat-

Yet, Eve did not stop. She had to quickly deal with this newly created monster. Her mercenary unit followed her, and a battle ensued where death was unavoidable.

The result was close to victory for Eve and her party. They minimized casualties and eliminated all troops in the mansion except Duke Darius.

Chichichit-

A sharp ice magic sword pointed at Duke Darius’s neck. Since she had suppressed him using mana, he shouldn’t be able to use magic either.

“…This is the end.”

“No! You can never finish this. That’s why I prepared this trap today…!”

Kugugugu—

The Duke gave a signal, revealing a hidden device. Inside a glass tube was a naked man, and Eve almost gasped upon seeing him.

How could she forget that face? Even after eons, he remained in her heart; her most painful and most fervent memory.

“A…dam…?”

Why? How? Amidst the countless questions flooding her mind, Eve more quickly processed the situation before her.

It was exactly the same. Not similar. Even with mana-enhanced vision or the [Memorize] spell, the man before her was identical to Adam. He was Adam.

To be precise, it was Adam’s body. Eve immediately understood the implications. The Fourth Princess whose personality had been shattered and resurrected, Persona, . And Adam’s body before her.

Thud-

Eve immediately knelt.

“Please… give me a chance.”

“Ca…Captain? What are you doing? Get up quickly…!!”

“Captain—”

Once Eve sheathed her magic sword and showed complete obedience, Duke Darius immediately spat blood.

Chwaaaak—!

Countless amounts of blood that had been sprinkled throughout the mansion surged upwards. Not some of it; all of it was within Duke Darius’s control.

All mercenaries except Eve exploded with fountains of blood, turning into pieces of meat. All signs of life disappeared, leaving only Eve and Duke Darius in the mansion.

“Then… take off your clothes.”

“…”

“Let me warn you beforehand, I’m not interested in your body. This is to engrave a mark of submission.”

Eve’s beauty was such that any man would desire her, but she was outside Duke Darius’s interest. He prioritized the freshness of the body over beauty. By that standard, Eve was unremarkable.

And she plays a very important role in the Duke’s plan. There is no need to overly stimulate her since her neck is already firmly in his grasp.

Eve undressed. She stood before Duke Darius, completely naked. She felt extreme shame, but such things didn’t matter in the slightest.

‘For Adam… I’ll do anything…’

Duke Darius placed his hand on Eve’s lower abdomen. The virgin’s body reacted sensitively. Soon, something of a different caliber emerged from beyond the Duke’s presence.

An eye. One eye emerging from the darkness.

Eve felt exposed before the giant eye. She was actually naked. The unknown gaze scanned Eve’s every inch.

It wasn’t just her body. The eye observed Eve’s memories, soul, and every trace of her life. It was a terrifying experience. Crushing under the immense pressure, she couldn’t move an inch. An eternity passed, during which she could have died tens of thousands of times.

She opened her eyes again. Time hadn’t moved at all. Magic had accumulated in Eve’s body, slowly gnawing at her soul. She had become Duke Darius’s puppet, but the anticipation of meeting Adam again was greater.

Eve put on her clothes and looked up at Duke Darius.

“I… will fulfill your dreams. So please… return him.”

“Adam… you said. Well, he’s actually half-dead.”

“…!!”

“It’s up to you. As you saw with your own eyes, reviving him is easy for me. You work for me, and I work for you. Simple, right?”

Eve knelt and bowed her head. Unlike the Duke’s words, the urgency felt by the two was not the same. Both knew. Eve was just a slave.

Eve moved as Duke Darius wished. She eliminated his enemies, gathered magic from monsters, and cultivated her strength according to the Duke’s ‘guidance.’ When her control became difficult, he infused the spirit of a demon to suppress her.

Once Eve reached adulthood, she received a mission.

“Nifrantz Academy…”

“Yes. I’ve already sent my eldest daughter, but you have to be trustworthy. You can assist him or act alone.”

She had no objections. She went to Nifrantz, secured a room, took the academy entrance exam, and became a freshman with top scores.

And she met a student. A woman who was strong enough to be considered the antagonist, and as strong as she was willful.

Narias Philbrogue caught Eve’s attention.