Ch. 210 Lucille (1)
by AfuhfuihgsChapter 210 – Lucille (1)
The sky at sunset is dyed crimson.
The drifting clouds looked like the blood-soaked feathers of a goose.
Where exactly are those clouds drifting to?
Leaning against the windowsill, she blankly watched the sun sink below the horizon.
It was one of the few hobbies the girl had.
Another day has come to an end, she thought.
She gazed endlessly at the scene of the dark curtain enveloping the world.
Tomorrow, the sun will rise as usual.
At noon, it will occupy the center of the sky.
By evening, the sun will finish its work and set, giving way to night.
And then, day will come again. Night will fall. Dawn will break, and the morning light will rise.
Every day repeats.
Just as the sun rises and sets.
The girl’s life also repeats without change.
“Lady Lucille.”
Lucille didn’t respond to the maid’s call.
She looked out the open window at the remnants of the red sunset.
The maid, who had approached without a sound, spoke again in a polite tone.
“The God of Healing has departed, and the God of Justice has arrived.”
Why not just say that autumn has ended and winter has come?
Why make it so complicated?
Lucille sighed and glanced at the maid.
“I know.”
“The weather is getting chilly. I’m worried you might catch a cold, Lady Lucille.”
“I’m strong. You know that, right?”
A little winter wind won’t make me sick.
I’ve never been ill before.
But the maid shook her head slightly and said,
“Even so, caution is always necessary. Lady Lucille is the church’s…”
“The saintess? The church’s treasure, so I need to take care of my health? Yeah, I know. I know, so can you please be quiet?”
Lucille gave the maid a sidelong glance. The maid seemed to have a lot to say but kept quiet for now.
However, Lucille knew from experience that the silence wouldn’t last long.
Before the nagging could start, she acted first. She tapped the maid’s forehead with her index finger.
A brilliant light briefly illuminated the room before fading.
“I’ve ‘healed’ you.”
“…”
“What? Do you want to get even younger?”
Her tone was gentle, but it was essentially a dismissal.
The maid rolled her eyes for a moment, then bowed slightly and retreated.
Lucille watched her go, narrowing her eyes and clicking her tongue in her mind.
Cunning, isn’t she?
My personal maid has always been like that.
She picks on trivial things and nags endlessly.
Until I get fed up and chase her away.
And the way I chase her away is always by casting ‘healing’ on her.
Before that, no matter what I said, she wouldn’t leave.
“Do you hate aging that much?”
Muttering to herself, she leaned back against the windowsill.
Despite being past her forties, the maid looked young.
You’d believe her if she said she was just in her early twenties.
Of course.
How many times have I cast ‘healing’ on her?
Lucille looked down at her hand.
The ‘blessing’ she had just performed with this hand healed all wounds.
The scope of that healing included ‘aging’.
If she wished, she could make others ageless.
With consistent healing, one wouldn’t age, and even if they did, they could regain their youth.
That was why she was called the saintess and why she lived confined in this small room.
The blessed saintess, Lucille.
The church’s treasure, favored by the Four Seasons.
They cherished her so much that she had never been allowed to go outside.
At most, strolling through the well-kept garden was her only form of outing.
“What lies beyond there?”
Today, too, Lucille looked out the window at the world.
The view through the square window was the only world permitted to her.
A truly tiny, minuscule world.
◆
Lucille’s earliest memory was of the church’s high tower.
She would blankly gaze out the window from the highest floor.
From the tower that seemed to touch the sky, she observed the world’s scenery. The city’s outskirts. No one could approach the tower guarded by the church’s Sacred Knights. The only friends she had were the birds that flew by.
And that remained the same even now.
Her days never changed.
While time flowed on, she remained stagnant.
Confined to her room, she read the holy scriptures.
She bestowed blessings upon the church members who visited.
Most of them were high-ranking figures who occupied important positions.
The saintess was responsible for their youth and health.
Occasionally, she would bestow blessings as rewards to those who had achieved great deeds for the church. Lucille had no way of knowing what those deeds were. She simply did as she was told.
Sometimes, important guests of the church would visit. She would bestow blessings upon them as well.
Though called a saintess, she was essentially nothing more than a convenient tool.
Lucille was acutely aware of this fact.
Yet, she accepted reality.
Even though she could escape anytime she wished.
If she truly decided to leave the church, no one could stop her.
Who would dare stop her, a blessed individual favored by the Four Seasons?
Moreover, Lucille was incomparable to other supernaturals.
A child loved by the Four Seasons.
A saintess blessed by the gods.
Simply by sharing a portion of her blessings, she could grant immortality.
“I want to leave.”
Lucille truly thought so.
She wanted to escape this tiny world and step into the vast one beyond.
She could. If she only decided to. Yes, if she only mustered the will, it was possible at any time.
“But I can’t.”
Because I don’t know anything about the world beyond this small room.
What could I even do if I left here?
I’ve heard that people need something called money to live. What is money? What can you do with it? How do you get it?
People need a place to stay. Where would I live if I left here? Do I have a place to rely on?
‘I don’t know. Because I don’t know’, Lucille couldn’t make any decisions.
The chains the church had placed on her could be broken at any time.
Even if she declared she would leave right now, there was no way to stop her.
But the strongest chain of all was ignorance.
The church taught her nothing.
Nothing about the outside world, nor how to live in it.
Ignorance breeds fear.
Because she didn’t know, it felt vaguely terrifying.
Because she couldn’t understand, she hesitated.
————————————————————————————————————————
“It’s been a while, Saintess. I hope you’ve been well.”
A familiar face. His hair, which had been thinning before, now flowed luxuriously. He was a cardinal of the church. He rambled on, but none of it reached her ears. She knew it was all empty words, so there was no reason to listen.
Lucille simply hadn’t been taught.
That didn’t mean she was foolish or stupid.
Observing people and piercing through their true intentions wasn’t difficult for her.
“I’ll bless you.”
Lucille smiled gently as she spoke.
A warm light enveloped the cardinal’s body.
Time seemed to pass him by, and his eyes remained sharp.
————————————————————————————————————————
“Oh, the grace of the Four Seasons!”
The woman spoke in an exaggerated tone. Her face, once wrinkled, was now smooth.
Who was she again? Some high-ranking noble from a certain country, I think.
I can’t remember. I probably could if I tried, but I didn’t feel like it.
Lucille smiled softly. She clasped her hands together and offered a prayer.
“I’ll bless you.”
————————————————————————————————————————
A man dressed in modest clothing visited.
He was said to be royalty from some nation.
Lucille smiled gently.
“May you be blessed.”
————————————————————————————————————————
Many people came to see her, but no one came just once.
Once they experienced her blessing and regained their lost youth and health, they all fervently worshipped the saintess.
No, not the saintess.
They groveled before the church that possessed her.
Lucille had overheard things too.
Everyone was careful with their words around her, but people make mistakes.
Whispers often reached her ears.
“I’m a goose.”
The church’s goose that lays golden eggs.
I’m not sure exactly what it means, but I heard someone say that.
Her life was a monotonous repetition. She bestowed blessings upon important church figures or guests.
She gazed out the window from her room until she fell asleep.
She woke up, bestowed blessings, and looked out at the world again. She slept, woke up, bestowed blessings, slept…
It was like a wheel turning, the same day over and over.
‘It’s boring’, she thought.
‘I want things to change’, she also thought.
But Lucille always remained by the windowsill.
Beyond the window lay an endless world.
If she just took one step, everything would change.
“But…”
Could I really belong to that world?
What lies beyond there?
I’ve lived my entire life in the church.
Even if I left now, could I really adapt?
People said it. The pope, the cardinals, they all said it. The outside is dangerous. There are many insolent people who covet the saintess’s grace from the Four Seasons.
Lucille readily agreed with them. Looking at you, I can see that’s true. There must be plenty of people like you out there. So, even if I leave, nothing will change, right?
The world outside the church is a dangerous thorny path, and it might be easier to just stay here.
Lucille knew.
What she needed was a little courage.
Just a small amount of courage to move forward.
She could break free from this small prison and reclaim her freedom.
But even that small amount of courage was something she didn’t have. She wasn’t raised to have it. She was raised this way. She lived this way.
From the earliest moment she could remember, until now. It was too late to change the direction of her life; the weight of her past was too heavy.
Every day, Lucille stood by the window and smiled bitterly at herself. She was pathetic for not being able to take even a single step.
Today was the same as yesterday.
Tomorrow will be the same as today.
Watching the setting sun, she muttered.
The same words she said yesterday, and the same words she said today.
And tomorrow, without a doubt, she would say the same thing again.
“Are you the saintess of the Four Seasons?”
One day.
Suddenly.
Without warning.
A boy sitting on the windowsill spoke to her, but nothing changed.
“It was hard to find you. The church hid you so well, it was such a hassle.”
Even as he rambled and reached out his hand, Lucille’s tomorrow remained unchanged.
“I’m Yoo-seong.”
He scratched his hair, as dark as the night sky, and smiled confidently, but what difference did it make?
“I’ll get straight to the point.”
Even if he dirtied the well-kept room with his muddy shoes… it would still be clean tomorrow.
“Become my companion.”
No matter what he said.
No matter what nonsense he spouted.
Nothing would change.
It couldn’t change.
The days would just repeat.
That’s how I’ve lived until now.
I yearn for the outside world.
But I’m just as scared as I yearn.
Did you come to use me too, like everyone else? Do you also want eternal youth? Do you want health that never fades?
Everyone was the same. You’re no different. So don’t reach out your hand. Just quietly disappear.
Do you think you’re the only one who’s said that to me? Everyone just wanted to deceive and use me.
“I need your help, Saintess.”
It was a refreshing smile.
There didn’t seem to be any ulterior motives.
A pure and clean smile.
A bright smile she was seeing for the first time.
“You… need my help?”
“Yeah!”
“What do you want from me?”
“If I came all the way to find you, it’s obvious, isn’t it?”
She was about to chase him away but decided to give him a chance.
Let’s at least hear what he has to say.
At Lucille’s question, Yoo-seong clenched his fist.
He stood up energetically and confidently declared.
“World peace!”
…What is this, is he an idiot?
Lucille stared at Yoo-seong with a blank expression before realizing.
This guy… he’s serious.
There was no deceit in those sparkling blue eyes.
She sighed unconsciously. It was better not to associate with fools. Getting involved with them would only lead to trouble.
But Lucille couldn’t bring herself to tell him to leave.
The words got stuck in her throat and wouldn’t come out.
Was it because she didn’t want to see his hopeful expression turn to disappointment?
Or was it because the aura he gave off, despite being a fool, felt unusual?
Or maybe…
“Pfft.”
Lucille’s shoulders shook as she burst into laughter.
Yoo-seong looked at her with a puzzled expression.
What, does he not realize how ridiculous he sounds?
Is he insensitive, or just stupid… ah, probably the latter.
“Well, maybe?”
Ah, how long has it been since I laughed like this?
Come to think of it, I’ve never laughed like this before.
Lucille brushed back her golden, shimmering hair and spoke.
“Shall we work together? For world peace.”
At least he’s a fool.
He probably doesn’t have the brains to deceive or use me.
And for some reason, I feel like it’s okay to be fooled by this boy.
My heart is racing, and my ears feel hot for some reason.
It’s strange. Ever since I met Yoo-seong’s gaze, my heart has been aching.
“Alright, I’m counting on you from now on!”
She took Yoo-seong’s outstretched hand.
His palm was rough and calloused.
It was the first time she had felt the warmth of another person.
Author Note
A/N (Author’s note):
The current Yoo-seong has experienced too much of the world’s bitterness and has changed a lot since then.That’s only natural, after experiencing all sorts of things over the past 150 years.
The past Yoo-seong was more optimistic, insensitive, and foolish than Eugene.
Translator Note
T/N (Translator’s note):
It does suck that not a lot of people really give self-harm a chance due to its premise.I really do genuinely believe that it’s one of the best GBs out there despite its flaws, you know?
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