episode_0036

Cattlena leaves Rosebetta’s room, wiping away her tears, and arrives at her study.

Then her eyes began to catch sight of the man who had been waiting in the study to report on the situation.

“What happened, Zero?”

“Yes.. From what I saw from a distance, I believe Princess Elios obediently accepted the aura.”

“Really? That’s fortunate. If I had resisted, something really annoying would have happened.”

“No matter what, isn’t it the Duke’s order? Even Princess Elios can’t do anything about it…!”

At that moment, Zero’s expression suddenly hardened.

Katlena also looked perplexed at his appearance and asked.

“Why…Why? What’s going on, Zero?”

“This is…something strange. This energy…and this power is definitely..!”

-bang!-

The next moment, an explosion is heard.

At the same time, Zeros immediately stretched his arms forward and released his magical power, and immediately afterwards, countless piles of rocks began to fly towards where they were standing.

“What is this..”

“Go.. Princess! Over there!”

“!”

Katlena is shocked by the unexpected turn of events.

Immediately afterwards, her face began to harden as the scene began to appear through the shattered wall as the dust cleared.

“What.. What is this..”

What appeared before my eyes was the castle of Hagia Sophia, with smoke rising and pillars of fire rising.

This place, which had been peaceful just a few hours ago, now resembles a war zone.

The residential area was surprisingly quiet, but the area centered around the palace was rife with fire and screams.

“Where on earth did those troops come from..”

“Those are the representatives of the demon tribes in the surrounding area.. And that flag..”

Zeros was pointing somewhere urgently with his finger. At the end of it was a flag that Katlena also knew very well.

“Se.. Prime Minister Celeb? Could it be that guy is rebelling?”

Prime Minister Celeb, a founding father of the duchy and a renowned loyal subject.

Princess Catlena looked incredulous at the fact that he was participating in this rebellion.

Meanwhile, looking at the battle situation before his eyes, Zeros quickly made a decision and spoke to her.

“Princess, I think it would be best to evacuate quickly for now. The defense is clearly being pushed back. If we continue like this…”

“How.. How could this happen all of a sudden..! Seriously.. No way.”

The next moment, a thought began to appear in Katlena’s mind.

Her gaze immediately turned to the courtyard of the castle where Elios’s restraint was taking place.

The scene she saw immediately after that was…

“Ouch!”

“… ”

Standing there was a woman with her characteristic silver hair fluttering in the wind, escorted by the guards that had appeared at some point.

Katlena’s older sister and the real leader of this rebellion.

Helios Northhellat Dragona.

She held a sword in both hands and slowly looked this way with her blood-red eyes flashing.

and..

“Hoohoohoo..”

Elios begins to show a cold smile on his lips.

Immediately after that, she seemed to slowly walk towards me.

and..

“Your Highness!”

“Ouch!”

-Trash!!!-

The next moment, the study window shatters in an instant.

Katlena, who had been standing there until a split second ago, was able to dodge narrowly thanks to Zeros’s response.

But now that she had barely escaped with her life, an even deeper fear began to take hold on Katlena’s face.

The reason is…

“There you are. Our cute little brother!”

“Uh..Sister..”

Princess Elios stands in front of the shattered bars with an eerie smile on her lips.

-Crackle!!-

Then she started to tear off the broken window with her bare hands, and seeing this horrifying sight, Katlena was so terrified that she couldn’t even think of getting up from her seat.

“You must avoid the princess. Hurry up!”

Zeros urges Katlena to wake up.

So she forced herself to move her trembling legs and got out of there.

Immediately after that, Elios tore off the bars and slowly entered the room.

However, Elios, who entered the room, did not immediately chase after Katlena.

As soon as she entered the room, her gaze was drawn to the nameplate on Katlena’s desk.

Elios began to read what was written there in a voice filled with cold ridicule.

“The next duke of the Dragona Duchy, Catlena Sophia Dragona.. Hehe.. Seriously. It’s not even a funny prank. ”

With those words, Elios slowly reached out his hand towards the nameplate.

Then she clenched her fists with magical power.

Then…

-Crack!-

A nameplate made of iron that is just crumpled and thrown away.

Princess Elios slowly began to leave the room, leaving the thing on the floor, which was so distorted that it was difficult to even read the letters.

*

“Oh my gosh!”

“Kaaaak!”

Defenders dying with miserable screams.

Seeing that sight, Zeros, who was leading the way, had no choice but to stop walking.

“This won’t work either. It seems like all the exits to the outside have been taken over.”

“There.. you see.. Ma.. If escape is impossible, wouldn’t it be better for us to just surrender to my sister like this?”

Katlena asks in a voice that contains a hint of resignation and a hint of anticipation in a desperate situation.

To her words, Zeros answered with a complicated voice.

“Perhaps… It would be better to leave that as the last option. They will most likely try to kill Katlena right after that.”

“Ha.. But. Still, she’s my sister. No way she would do that..”

“They are the ones who started the rebellion. They would not want to spare the princess who is likely to be a trouble in the future. Above all… Didn’t you see Lady Katlena just now? Princess Elios’ face…”

“! Ugh..”

Katlena finally remembered the sight of Elios smiling with a menacing expression while looking at her.

Accordingly, she had no choice but to accept the harsh reality that even if she surrendered obediently, as Zeros had said, it would be difficult for her to survive if she was captured.

“So what do we do now? The exit is blocked and there is no way to escape. So does this mean I have no choice but to die?”

“… Hmm..”

Zeros hesitates for a moment in a dilemma.

Frankly, he even thought about risking his life to break through the siege and get the princess out.

However, even if he were to sacrifice his life, it would never be easy, and above all, considering the existence of Elios, who would be searching for them with his eagle eyes even at this moment, the possibility of success was infinitely close to zero.

At that moment, when Zeros was at a loss as to what to do, a thought suddenly crossed his mind.

“Now that it’s come to this… there’s only one choice left.”

“What…what is it?”

Katlena asks with some anticipation.

To her, Zeros began to tell her the plan he had come up with.

In short, it was a call to take refuge in the bed of the sick Duchess Rosetta.

Although she was lying in bed, Zeros thought that she was the only one who could change Princess Elios’s mind, and that Princess Elios would not be able to act recklessly in front of her mother who was in pain.

“!…”

Realistically speaking, this is the only possible story in the current situation.

But immediately after that, upon hearing his story, Katlena’s face suddenly began to harden and turn cold.

“? Your.. Princess?”

“… .I see..so..so he grabbed me and said that..”

The truth that I finally realized only then.

At this, deep sadness, despair, and regret began to rise on Katlena’s face in an instant.

However, regardless of her mood, the encirclement was closing in without hesitation, and Zeros urged his master in an urgent voice.

“First of all, you have to hurry. Enemies will arrive here soon. If you keep going like this, you will be caught halfway before you can even get there.”

“… Yeah.. I guess so.. Let’s go.. Hurry up..”

Katlena answers in a voice that sounds like her soul has left her, unlike before.

Then she began to move carefully along the hallway with Zeros, but even as she did so, the events that had just occurred were still lingering in her mind.

‘You knew.. that if I.. touched Sister Elios, this would happen. That’s why you stopped me until now.. and held me until the end. You told me not to leave this place.. that if I went out, I would be in danger.. Without knowing that.. I told Him..’

Katlena moves while feeling so guilty that her heart feels like it’s going to burst.

But at this moment, the will to live in her head wasn’t that strong.

Her extreme sadness and regret made her think that it might be easier to die.

But, despite that, she started running as best she could.

To meet that person again by any means necessary.

To apologize to the person who, contrary to his foolish misunderstanding, tried to protect him until the end.

‘I’m sorry… I’m sorry… I’m really sorry, Roseveta… No. Mother… My mother.’

Katlena moved forward while deeply apologizing to her mother.

at that time..

“! Ugh..”

Zeros suddenly stops in place.

At the same time, Katlena also stopped moving forward.

What they see before their eyes is her blocking the road with soldiers..

It was the appearance of Princess Elios Northhelat Dragona.

“Welcome, my dear brother.”

*

Katlena slowly opens her eyes.

It seemed like it was still a long time before dawn, but she couldn’t sleep any longer.

‘Is this… that time?’

A dream I still have occasionally about the last day of my past life.

Although it had been repeated quite a few times, it still vividly reminded Katlena of the fear, despair, and guilt she had felt at that time.

‘I was really stupid. That guy named Nara…’

Katlena slowly turns her head to the side while thinking about that.

There was her, who had loved him unchangingly in his past life and in his present life.

The person who loves her more than anyone else in this world.

A person who always tries to give the best for her.

And.. even though she was overcome with doubt and abandoned that favor.. the person who tried to protect that foolish daughter until the very last moment.

Seeing her like this, Katlena quietly kissed her mother’s cheek and said once again,

He silently recited the words of apology that he had repeated countless times since his return.

‘Thank you. And.. I’m really sorry. Mother.. my beloved mother.’