episode_0023

“So, what do you mean by ‘you know’?”

After entrusting Anna with Eric’s escort and watching her quickly disappear, Cecilia immediately pressed Christine for answers.

“I told you to wait. I’ll explain.”

“Christine, do you know everything?”

“Well, I know what state my brother is in right now. But if you ask me why, I don’t know that either.”

“It doesn’t matter. Just tell me what you do know.”

“Hmm…”

Christine hesitated for a moment before speaking.

“First, let’s properly establish my brother’s condition. It’s the most important fact. He doesn’t remember anything from the previous world.”

“Don’t bullshit me.”

“If you don’t believe me, test him yourself. Here.”

Christine locked eyes with Cecilia’s pale, golden gaze.

“Eric Grave cannot remember anything from the previous world.”

“……”

“What do you think, Cecilia?”

“That’s impossible… Are you serious?”

Cecilia’s dazed eyes flickered back to their golden hue.

“Why would I lie about something this important? But let me elaborate a bit. It’s not that he can’t remember—it’s that he won’t.”

“What does that mean?”

“If my brother wanted to remember the past world, he could. But he chooses not to.”

“Why?”

“Don’t you remember, unnie? What he gave us at the very end.”

“The Regression Artifact…! You mean it’s because of that?”

“Yes. I can’t explain the exact reason, but when he first obtained that artifact, he transferred ownership to us. I can only guess that’s what destabilized the regression.”

“What do you think, Elia?”

“What do you mean, ‘what’?”

“What Christine just said. Does it sound plausible?”

As if forgetting how she had glared at Elia moments ago, Cecilia turned to her.

“I don’t know. Don’t assume I understand every kind of magic. But it’s a reasonable enough theory. Regression is an artifact of immense power—it wouldn’t make sense if there was no price to pay.”

“So what is the price?”

“I don’t know.”

“What?”

“I’m not my brother—how would I know? If I tried to dig into it, I might just end up scrambling his memories. I don’t want to repeat the same mistake twice.”

“Hey, what was that just now?”

“What was what?”

“You said ‘twice.’ That makes it sound like you’ve already tried before.”

“Of course. How else would I know this much?”

Whoosh—

In the blink of an eye, Lucilla’s sword was at Christine’s throat.

“Choose your next words carefully, Christine. What happened to Eric?”

“Anemia and unexplained hemoptysis, mostly? I’ve been monitoring his condition, so don’t worry… Not that you’d believe me anyway.”

“As if I’d—”

“I believe you.”

Christine blinked at the unexpected response.

“Elia unnie? That’s surprising.”

“If you didn’t know the price existed, it’s a plausible enough action. He finally regressed and reunited with us—it’s only natural he’d want to make things right. And as far as prices for breaking a contract go, this is relatively mild.”

“Thanks for understanding~”

“Don’t misunderstand. I only sympathize because I might have done the same in your place. But I will interrogate you later about what you did to Eric.”

“Yeah, yeah. So where were we?”

“The part where you turned a perfectly healthy man into a blood-coughing wreck?”

“Ha… You think Cecilia unnie wouldn’t have done the same? It just so happened that my brother was at the Grave mansion, so I begged for forgiveness. Don’t be ugly with jealousy. You’re making me not want to explain further.”

“Fine. You’re asking to be beaten until you talk, then?”

“Oh, how scary. If this keeps up—”

“Please continue your explanation. I’d appreciate it.”

Elia let out a small sigh.

Though she would one day rule as empress, managing countless talents, she often thought that being emperor would be easier than handling the three women before her.

“Not remembering the previous cycle.”

“What?”

“This is what I think my brother’s price is. He mustn’t recall his memories of us. But he already remembered me, and his body broke down because of it.”

Christine continued.

“My brother and we can’t have the same relationship as before.”

“What do you mean, ‘the same relationship’?”

“You know. Fetching all kinds of elixirs, trying to keep him from meeting trash… Basically, doing everything to protect us like he did back then.”

“Christine, and Elia. I have a question.”

“What is it?”

“This ‘price’… It’s a concept mainly used in magic and artifacts, correct?”

“Yes. It’s the term for everything sacrificed in exchange for obtaining something.”

“Why? Lucilla unnie, were you interested in magic too?”

“No, not exactly. Christine, did Eric start coughing up blood the moment he saw you?”

“No. We met a few times before, and he seemed fine then. It was right after I broke down and apologized to him that it happened.”

“Then what if this is the case? Eric Grave obtained an artifact with the power of regression. But instead of using it for himself, he wanted us to have it—and he bore the entire price himself. And what he paid was—”

“His own memories.”

Lucilla nodded at Cecilia’s words.

“Exactly. But when Christine stood before him, full of regret, his memories of her resurfaced too vividly—and as a result, he suffered internal injuries as part of the price… That’s my theory.”

“The cleanest hypothesis. The memories of regression are a privilege reserved for the regressor. More than enough to pay as a price.”

“For my brother, giving them up might have been a mercy.”

“Then what do you mean by ‘Eric will die’?”

“He told me himself after coughing up blood. He said my words brought back some of his memories.”

Christine envied them.

They would never understand what a blessing it was to believe Eric had simply lost his memories.

For her, every day since realizing he remembered her had been hell.

Hell wasn’t painful. But it was placed right before heaven.

The conversation continued.

“But… then how are we supposed to save him?!”

Cecilia’s voice rose sharply.

“Eric can’t remember us? Then he’ll just do the same things all over again! Because that’s the kind of person he is!”

“Cecilia, Eric—”

“You all know it too! That idiot will try to save us again, get rejected by everyone again, and die again! Without even realizing he already failed once… And we’re just supposed to watch?!”

“…It can be done. A way to follow his advice without letting him remember us.”

Lucilla ran her fingers along her sword as she spoke.

“We all deceive him. Exactly as he wishes, exactly as he wants. Whatever memories Eric has of us, they must be fragments at best. To him now, we’re strangers. So if we act the opposite of what he faintly recalls, the chances of his memories returning will be even lower.”

“What about me?”

“Didn’t you say Eric doesn’t remember Christine perfectly either? Use the same excuse. In the end, we are the ones who regressed—Eric has no choice but to believe us.”

“So we’re splitting the sin four ways? Taking back the burden Eric carried alone?”

Lucilla nodded.

“Hahaha! For a plan coming from the Hero, that’s awfully selfish.”

“Are you opposed?”

“Hardly. If anything, I’d gladly take it if it means staying by his side.”

“I’m in too. Honestly, the fact that we’re even here talking like this is a miracle, isn’t it? I don’t care why or how it happened.”

“That’s…”

“Are you giving up on atonement?”

“What’s wrong with that? In the end, even apologizing to my brother is just for our own selfish comfort. He’s alive, he’s with us—isn’t that enough? Do we really need repentance or regret?”

“Isn’t that too detached?”

“I never knew anything about my brother before. Who am I to judge? I’ve only just realized my place.”

“Always bringing artifacts without understanding them. And now the one person who could explain them ends up like this.”

“I’m not confident in acting, though.”

Clap!

Christine clapped her hands.

“Let’s call it a day for now. Arguing like this won’t get us anywhere. My brother will officially return for the second semester in a few days. We can discuss the details then.”

“Can you promise that?”

“What good would lying to you all do? We already know who Eric is—hiding things now would just make us suspicious of each other.”

“‘Suspicious’?”

“Yeah, suspicious. If you want to visit the mansion, feel free. But please refrain from meeting my brother.”

“Because of memory triggers?”

“Just meeting him isn’t a problem. But if someone like me loses control of their emotions in front of him… If he remembers, he’ll die. Do any of you want to have his blood on your hands twice?”

“That’s… but still…”

A faint fire burned in Cecilia’s eyes as she spoke.

But no one present was dull enough to miss it.

“Throw a tantrum if you want. But the moment you endanger Eric, I’ll drag you to the gallows myself. Remember that.”

“So we have no choice but to wait and see.”

“For now, yes.”

“Let’s save the depressing talk for later and disband! Disband!”

As if waiting for Christine’s words, everyone quickly scattered in different directions.

If they stayed any longer, the weight of the situation might have crushed them.