Ch.163Aftermath (5)

Persuasion was an incredibly difficult task.

It wasn’t just because of my inadequate speaking skills, but also because everyone had their own reasons for rejecting Rie Hejedia.

Just as it’s extremely difficult to open the heart of someone who has cut off communication with the outside world, persuading people who have already made up their minds was laborious and had a low success rate.

Especially since if you mess up one persuasion attempt badly, you might not get a second chance.

I carefully waited for the right opportunity.

I gathered my thoughts until Rie Hejedia withdrew and Huey claimed a spot on my lap.

I observed everyone’s reactions while contemplating how to phrase my words.

Perhaps because the silence had stretched on long enough, Melody let out a groan.

“You don’t need to go that far. Sometimes even Luwellin acts like a child.”

What is she talking about now?

“I wasn’t planning to oppose anyway. There are some unfavorable rumors about Rie Hejedia personally… but she has enough skill to overcome them.”

Of course, having seen her life, I knew this better than anyone.

She lost both parents in a flood, leaving only her young self and a trading company stripped of all resources and personnel.

Normally in such situations, one would either fail or embrace glory while drowning.

But remarkably, she succeeded in rebuilding.

Not only did she revitalize the company, but she also created a swordsmanship style capable of standing against nature, and transformed her company into the empire’s finest trading company.

It took her just 10 years to accomplish all this. These weren’t achievements a mere 15-year-old child should have been capable of.

I could certainly acknowledge her abilities.

“One could say she has excellent judgment as well.”

Though it felt like I was gilding my own face, it was the truth.

[Reputation: Rising Star]

The fact that she chose to follow me—a rising star according to my reputation window, not a setting one like the Emperor—proved it.

Indeed, she had the discernment of a great merchant. She was incredibly wise.

Plus, she was as humble as I am, not stepping forward even when given the opportunity for self-promotion.

Even without having seen Rie Hejedia’s life, recruiting her was worth considering.

And my sister, born of the same blood and possessing the highest intelligence, would surely understand this.

I turned off my magic eyes and looked at my sister, who was deep in thought with her arms crossed.

“Esha.”

“Yes, my lord.”

“Kill her if she tries anything suspicious. Keep watch.”

“Certainly.”

Wait, this wasn’t what I expected.

I looked at my sister in confusion, but she remained firm.

“It’s just a minimum safety measure. Sejin is kind, so you’ll understand, right?”

This seemed separate from kindness, but I didn’t voice that thought. I’ve always had a condition that makes it difficult to refuse my sister’s opinions.

While I don’t think there’s any possibility of betrayal, there’s no harm in being cautious.

When have things ever gone exactly as I expected? I quietly nodded, and only then did my sister’s expression soften.

“I’ve been holding back since it’s not particularly relevant to the situation.”

As my sister and I made eye contact, someone spoke.

A dignified voice with a hint of timidity underneath. It was Elder Mourner.

He picked up Huey, who rushed toward him as soon as he opened his mouth, and said:

“What is your relationship with the Imperial Guardian?”

“I was curious about that too. I don’t remember programming such instincts when I created you, yet you two regard each other as siblings, don’t you?”

The gazes suddenly shifted toward us. In that moment, my sister and I were both taken aback.

Oh, had we never properly explained this?

Sure enough, even Isla, who had been resting her chin on Lorian’s thigh, spoke up.

“That’s right. I wanted to ask but felt it would be awkward, so I’ve been waiting.”

A skilled hunter knows when to wait, they say. Isla kept her gray-blue eyes fixed on me.

“Come to think of it… Sister never mentioned having a sibling. But as soon as she met Luwellin, she called him her brother, and it’s clear she truly sees him that way, so it was a bit confusing.”

Even Melody, leaning on her Estoc staff, turned her face toward me.

The thick eyelids beyond her closed eyes trembled slightly.

“Of course, your names are similar… but didn’t you choose your own names? I don’t think Ortemilia gave them to you.”

“Hmm, that’s correct. I don’t remember giving them names.”

That’s true. The name Lucilla originated from what my sister used in the game, and Luwellin, which has become my new name, was taken from a movie I once saw and my sister’s character name.

I had hoped that when my sister heard my name, she might make the connection.

I never expected it to come back like this. I broke into a cold sweat as I glanced at my sister.

She seemed equally flustered. Worse, the golden opportunity for explanation was quickly passing.

I gathered my thoughts and scanned everyone’s faces.

Lorian, staring at me intently.

Isla and Ortemilia, observing my sister and me.

Melody, who couldn’t see but gripped her Estoc handle tightly with visible anxiety, and Eshatherna, who seemed oblivious as she gazed at the passing clouds.

Each had a different reaction as they observed my sister and me.

What should I do? I pondered as I checked my sister’s expression.

She was deep in thought.

It didn’t seem like she was simply deciding whether to reveal the truth or not.

Rather, it felt like she was touching on something deeper. I found myself staring at her with a hardened expression.

Suddenly, something came to mind.

What the heart had said to my sister about betrayal.

And her acknowledgment of it.

Along with how she completely shut down any possibility of dialogue.

I instinctively realized that those events were connected to the present situation. My sister’s gaze swept over me, and she let out a long sigh.

“Should I tell the truth?”

As everyone’s attention turned to my sister, I knew that question wasn’t directed at them.

It was meant for me.

My sister met my eyes, hesitated once more, then spoke.

“We are siblings. Blood siblings.”

Normally, Ortemilia might have objected, saying she didn’t create us that way, but there was something in my sister’s voice.

A certain stoic resolve that comes with revealing a long-hidden truth.

“To be precise… our souls came from another world.”

My sister had taken a seat. Her gaze was directed at the sky, as if reminiscing, with the heavens flowing through her eyes beyond the glass ceiling.

*

I hadn’t expected her to reveal it so suddenly.

My sister’s explanation unfolded with ample time and leisure.

It was the story of siblings who had lived on Earth, and also the story of two homunculi who became the Imperial Guardian and the Immortal.

While it was the story of Yoon Sejin and Yoon Sea, to those listening, it sounded like the story of Lucilla and Luwellin.

That made sense. In terms of actual content, the focus wasn’t on the unfortunate orphaned siblings Yoon Sejin and Yoon Sea, but rather on the reunion of siblings who had fallen into Netel.

Talking too much about “Earth” would only cause confusion. I could understand that.

What mattered wasn’t our previous lives anyway. The only important thing about our previous lives was the fact that we were originally siblings.

She also didn’t mention that this world was a game or anything like that.

Around that point, I realized something: my sister might not have a status window.

I have a status window, so I vaguely thought this might be a game…

But if she didn’t have one.

Then I would surely have considered this world separate from the game world.

I still don’t know what kind of miracle this status window is or what entity granted it.

But there was no time to dwell on these thoughts.

My sister’s story had already reached its core amid the silence of everyone present.

“This entity called Netel isn’t a stranger to me.”

As she tucked her hair behind her ear while speaking, everyone quietly exchanged glances.

Me too. I waited for my sister to continue at her own pace, and even the dog Huey, sensing the atmosphere, remained quiet without whining.

That was the mood.

“I actually met it before. No, I’m not sure if ‘met’ is the right word. I was too confused at the time.”

She said this with a smile in her eyes, but no one was smiling.

“It said it would fulfill what I wished for… and I accepted. I just didn’t know it would turn out like this.”

She didn’t specify what she wished for. But I had a vague feeling I knew what my sister had “wished for.”

And it seemed I wasn’t the only one. I glanced at Melody and saw her standing with a hardened expression.

It was certainly strange. To someone who knew the truth, it might seem like an unforgivable taboo.

Melody also seemed shocked and disturbed by the fact that blood siblings, especially an older sister, harbored one-sided lust and affection for her younger brother.

Her lips were tightly pressed together and trembling slightly, and she frowned while fidgeting with her sword hilt.

I too felt something similar fleetingly.

“So when I opened my eyes, I was here. If I had known it would be like this, I would have woken you up to come together.”

My sister’s gaze turned to me. People with less perceptiveness, like Elder Mourner, might have interpreted it as sibling affection, love, or responsibility.

But I knew better. It was regret over not having exclusive possession.

While there might be some guilt, the dominant emotion was clearly possessiveness.

But at the same time, I had similar thoughts.

What if.

What if I had fallen into this world together with my sister.

Wouldn’t that have been much better than now?

I don’t know what kind of relationship we would have had, but…

My feelings were complicated. As I remained silent, my sister closed her eyes and smiled.

“I didn’t know what price Netel was trying to take back then… but now I think I understand.”

Rie Hejedia hadn’t simply left.

Before that, she had revealed all the information she knew, including the fact that the Emperor and I were siblings and that she was the first homunculus.

So naturally, my sister’s gaze rested on me.

“Netel intended to bring you here from the beginning.”

There’s no logical reason for this. It’s clearly my sister’s intuition.

But my sister’s intuitions are usually accurate. They always have been, and she probably has several facts she hasn’t revealed to me.

“And as the ‘price’ taken from me… it created the Emperor.”

Time becomes intertwined.

The future I’m heading toward and the past when my sister fell into Netel.

And the creation of the Emperor in an even more distant past.

Events that should have come first chronologically were pushed to the end, and Netel targeted me as if foreseeing the future.

I interpreted my sister’s words like this:

Netel is either a being that transcends time, or perhaps exists simultaneously across all time periods.

Perhaps because the conversation was so serious, we each returned to our own tasks after it ended.

And the next day, only after seeing Rie Hejedia surveying supplies around the temple did everyone realize something.

Because we had heard such an enormous story, we naturally missed the opportunity to reject Rie Hejedia’s joining.

The conversation had naturally ended as a story between my sister and me, with no chance to add any objections.

I knew this was my sister’s own form of consideration.

As expected of her.