episode_0043

I definitely saw it.

A part of Sorshei, who lost his head, seeps into my body. Why did Sorchei seep into my body?

“Sihyeon! Why on earth are you doing that?!”

Jules, feeling cold, lowered his ears and frowned.

Only then did I come to my senses.

Almost all the Lamia and Lexia were looking at me.

······It was obvious that if I showed it, I would be treated as a mental patient.

“No. What── I suddenly wanted to scream?”

Even in my opinion, this is an insincere answer.

For a moment, Jules looked at me with a sullen expression. I went ahead first.

“Let’s go.”

“You have to leave the key back.”

“I will return it to you tomorrow.”

Jules grabbed my hand.

“You seem very tired, get some rest.”

Jules’ hands were soft, but so strong that he couldn’t push them away.

It’s worth it. Because I did some crazy things today. He must have looked like a psychopath. Thinking about it makes me feel embarrassed. As I walked, my shaking heart calmed down. Instead, my thoughts boiled over like an explosion.

Who on earth is that voice?

Since I was supporting Sorshei, I couldn’t see who it was.

From the point where Jules didn’t realize it in the first place, it was obvious that he was the same type of person as Sorshei.

Is it a reaper?

Since there are no ghosts, there can be no death. From arrogant hypotheses to nonsense thoughts. My mind is too complicated.

I will leave this town tomorrow.

······Is this a problem that will pass as is? This is an issue that we do not want to forget and move on from. I will never forget today. That’s why it had to end.

Before I leave town, I want to put an end to this incident by asking and answering questions from Julias. On the one hand, I was hesitant. Is it okay for me to say this?

Now even the ghost has disappeared.

If I just shut up, it will be over. Wouldn’t it be wiser to just bury it? It’s my heart, but I don’t know.

What answer do I want to get from talking to Julia? Do you want to see Julia pray and repent? I don’t have that kind of taste, so will he admit his mistake?

you’re welcome. She can’t do that.

“I want to have a conversation with Julia.”

“Do whatever you want.”

“···Can’t I steal it this time?”

“I really want it. What do you want me to hear?”

“I’m covering my ears.”

Jules sticks out one of his fangs and shakes his head.

In the center of the village, Lamia gathered around to warm themselves or grill fish. I was worried that he might shake me again, so this time I walked with my head down to the floor, avoiding eye contact.

“I have a question.”

“What is it?”

“What happens to someone who dies unjustly due to a misjudgment?”

Now Jules’ eyes turned to me.

“Compensate to the family.”

“What if you don’t even have that family?”

“There is no way to compensate. That ghost you saw died unjustly and became a ghost?”

“Yes.”

Jules was the first to shake his head as if he was hitting a player.

I wasn’t really going to ask you to solve it.

“There is no evidence. If it’s my case, I can figure it out somehow, but this case isn’t mine. I don’t even know what happened in the first place.”

Thank you just for saying that.

Because Julias is Jules’ friend. If it had been anyone else, I would have dismissed it by telling him to get hit or not talk nonsense.

“That’s right, right?”

“Yes.”

Of course.

I don’t know who stole the pigment, and I don’t know when it happened. What should I ask Julia? It would be best to ask his name first. If you still don’t remember, mention the medical accident, and if you still don’t know…

Can not help it.

We have no choice but to ask Julias’ conscience.

In the end, I decided to ask what my emotions told me to do, but my reason was busy mocking my emotions, saying that asking this itself was stupid.

What do I want Julia to do?

Before I knew it, my sinking heart had become as muddy as mud. Julia’s residence, seen from afar, was shabby. The building itself is quite old and looks like it will collapse at any moment.

It’s really just a place to sleep.

Should I rather say that it resembles a stable?

“Are you here?”

The queen of the stables welcomed me with her eyes closed.

I thought I came in quietly… but surprisingly, I fell asleep brightly.

“Yes. I’m back. Did you wake up because of me?”

“I should be able to sleep because I’m curious about what the ghost said, right? Don’t open the door and stand there, come inside.”

Jules was looking this way from afar.

······If there is a problem, I will save you. I closed the door and went inside the house. A snake wrapped in cloth on top of a small cabinet is particularly noticeable.

“Sit down.”

Where should I sit? I don’t know. I sat in front of Julia at a slight distance away. Julia lay on the floor, cupped her chest, rested her arms, and looked up at me.

“Jules said he would give me the key directly tomorrow morning.”

“That’s it. More than that, what did that ghost say?”

It’s an exciting voice.

Normally, I would dismiss it as nonsense.

“It was a complaint. Actually, he didn’t even complain, but I dug into him and asked him. What are you doing, why are you here… things like that.”

“It’s different from the ghost I thought it was? I thought I would ask for revenge or attack someone at all costs.”

Julia smiled with her eyes closed.

As she said, Sorshei almost attacked Lamia. When I think about it now, that voice actually helped me.

I don’t know who it was, but if it wasn’t there, it would have been a big problem.

“Do you believe me?”

“Yes.”

Does Julia really remember?

An elf who was stripped naked and his body was rotting away. I hope you remember.

“Do you know an elf peddler named Sorshei Dag?”

“No?”

···Are you pretending not to know?

no. He is the one who killed over 8,000 people. It must be difficult to memorize the names of each death row inmate.

“Do you remember the young female elf who died from a medical accident a long time ago?”

“I don’t know.”

My heart went cold.

…Isn’t this something we as medical professionals shouldn’t know? He died because of your mistake? Killing an innocent person by mistake is something that only a few people will never forget.

Especially if, as a doctor, you kill someone due to a medical accident, you will never forget it, whether it is a moral aspect or a chilling experience that could end your life.

Unless you are a doctor who views humans as trash, medical accidents can be a lifelong trauma.

“Really? You really don’t remember?”

“Yes.”

My heart grew cold.

And the chill soon turned into passion and disgust.

Julia, who ruined other people’s lives, cannot even remember their deaths. How should we accept it?

“Why did you conduct human experiments on prisoners?”

“Because they are going to die anyway. That’s why they gave meaning to death.”

Is that the reason?

“Why did you start studying Germany?”

“To suppress my power.”

Is it possible to kill 8,000 death row inmates using maruta for that reason?!

“Did you have any other purpose? Announced to the world, helping others, making and selling medicines and poisons.”

“Nothing.”

It was a concise, evasive answer.

Only simple disgust lingered in my heart. It was right not to ask in the first place.

If I had, I wouldn’t have been so upset. In the end, I made my final move. Have a go at it!

“Do you know the peddler who first brought the purple pigment?”

“Oh, I know that. Was it around 90···92 years ago?”

90 years?

“In the few weeks since then, several Lamia have been bought from elf vendors.”

what?

You bought it from an elf?

Julia stretched and let out a strange moan, then opened her eyes awkwardly. Then he adjusted his posture and leaned his back against the wall.

“Originally, purple pigment was made several times, but it had a strong odor and was sticky, so it could not be used.”

Julia rolled her eyes.

“Something like that came out as a pigment and disappeared quickly, but it had no smell and the color was more vivid. When I asked where I got it, they just said that an elf sold it.”

“In those days… wasn’t there a young girl who died from a medical accident?”

“There is.”

No, then why are you pretending not to know?

“But the one who died then was not an elf but a ramrat?”

“···Yes?”

“A young Ramrat died.”

What does this mean again? Ramrat, not an elf?

“Ah, I remembered. I heard that that child collapsed after drinking water from a wetland.”

It’s the same as Sorshei said.

But Sorshei was clearly an elf. No matter how much I conceded, it was never Ramrat. It is more likely that Julias lied to me.

······You’re not joking, are you?

“I didn’t know you were an elf. That Ramrat was a girl.”

“So?”

“It seemed like I got infected after drinking water. I gave it the right poison, but it turned out that it wasn’t an infection. What that child drank was poison.”

Poison? You didn’t get infected by drinking wetland water?

“After I realized it, it was too late. I started convulsing due to the synergistic effect of the poison. The child drank poison in the first place, but do you think it makes sense to lie and say that he collapsed after drinking water? And then he blamed me… I felt bad and kicked him out.”

I was out of breath.

This is definitely Sorshei’s story.

Thinking about it, Sorshei spoke in passing. His daughter was not a pureblood and was not cared for by the village! That meant a pureblood Ramrat!

“Didn’t Ramrat pay the money at that time? Why couldn’t the treatment be done sooner? At that time, I would have had the opportunity because I had free time.”

“Until then, I didn’t know that the child was poisoned. If you had told me straight away, I would have treated you first.”

There was a doubt in Julias’ eyes.

That look in your eyes as if asking why you know that. I don’t understand the current situation either. Why bother trying to prove the innocence of the ghost whose head was cut off by the Shinigami?

If you keep your mouth shut and move on, no one will know.

“Then why didn’t you receive the money?”

“It’s a long time ago, but do you know when the Southerners came together and formed the Union Alliance?”

I learned this.

“Isn’t it 100 years ago?”

“It was exactly 104 years ago. At that time, it had been less than 15 years since its founding. At that time, the Union currency was worthless. Ramrat and the elf printed money and played with money.”

Ain, who played the prank, asked for treatment using the money from the prank. From Lamia’s perspective, there is no way she would accept it. So, you asked for the actual pigment.

“Then how did you know that the ramrat had pigment?”

“Because I had a sample item tied to my waist that I had set aside. Depending on the color, pigments often deteriorate when exposed to a lot of air. So, I save a little bit and show you a sample.”

that’s right.

Even in modern times, purple pigment began to become popular only a century ago. Previously, all color-producing materials had to be obtained from nature, and the characteristics of pigments were different depending on the color.

“But wasn’t it too cheap to just receive a sample?”

“What should you do when Ramrat’s father is begging while banging his head in the mud? They even gave me treatment in exchange for sample pigments and useless money. In the end, I couldn’t find it.”

With this, the circumstances became clear.

But why did Sorshei, who was an elf, become Ramrat?

“A month later, Ramrat’s father came to me because he had been severely tortured. He looked at me in a bad way, so I mixed hallucinogenic poison, nerve paralysis poison… and this and that and gave him peace of mind to euthanize him. I died like that in my sleep.”

So Sorshei didn’t know he was dead.

“Was that Ramrat there?”

“······There was an elf with the same story.”

“That’s amazing.”

Sorshei and Julias were innocent.

The moment I realized that, I felt completely refreshed. Julia extended her hand to me. The hand holding me was extremely cold.

“I wanted to sleep holding Juyul, but it wouldn’t be bad to sleep holding you.”

“Didn’t you hate sleeping with Jule?”

“Because it was warm, I hugged it and slept, but the next day I almost got beaten to death. I got cramps because the blood wasn’t flowing.”

······Was Lamia a cold-blooded animal?

“I won’t do that.”

“Then I won’t hesitate.”

As Julia pulled, I fell into Julia’s arms.

The lower body that touches it is cool and soft.

“Even ghosts have misunderstandings.”

Julia’s tail tangled as she lightly snorted.

“So, what happened to that ghost?”

“The grim reaper jumped out and cut off his head.”

Julias laughed.

It’s not a lie, but it still looks like he doesn’t believe it. The fact that you believed me in the first place was unreasonable. A slave said he had seen a ghost and asked about his secrets. Who would reveal his secrets?

No matter how credible it is, it is usually normal to not believe it or ignore it.

Why does Julia trust me?

“I have one more question. Is it okay?”

“What is it?”

“Then, did that young El── Ramrat die from some kind of poison?”

According to what Julia said, the primary culprit is an elf.

It must have been copied by stealing Sorshei’s pigment.

They ruined the lives of the two women by even using poison just to take the purple pigment. I’m going to dye those clothes purple!

“Yes. It’s an unreasonable poison.”

It seems like Julia somehow believes it too.

Will Julia believe you if you tell him about pigments?

···I do not know.

“It may seem absurd, but can you believe me?”

A cool hand strokes my head.

“I’ll listen and judge.”

“90 years ago, that purple pigment belonged to the Ramrat that Julias killed.”

“Really?”

“The pigment and horse disappeared, so they were reported to the village, taken away, and tortured before coming here.”

I felt Julia’s body tremble.

“······Are you saying he was an innocent person?”

“Yes. He was an innocent person. He said that as he entered the prison, he saw Lamia’s clothes dyed purple. So I misunderstood. Julia uttered an unspeakable curse, saying that she had killed her own daughter.”

“···This, this is quite interesting.”

Julias laughs mischievously.

“Do you believe me?”

“You came here to find out something that happened 90 years ago, when the paper it was written on would have rotted away and disappeared, right?”

“So, you came here after hearing the words of a ghost. Do you think it makes sense?”

“There are many truths in the world that are more difficult to believe than ghosts. There are many things scarier than ghosts.”

Why do you believe me?

Why… When I looked up and saw Julia’s face, I couldn’t open my mouth to ask. In the end, I told everything to Julia, and by coincidence, he understood my appeal.

What reaction did I want from Julia? Do you want Julia to feel guilty? After learning the truth, was Julia guilty?

“Forget it.”

“Sin does not disappear with time. I remember everything. Who is the Lamia who was wearing clothes made of purple pigment?”

I regretted speaking aggressively without fully listening to the situation.

Instead of just throwing out what I wanted to say like a sentence, I had to say it gently.

Thanks to this, I gave Julias a sense of guilt.

There are two main reasons why people who kill people count their dead. People who remember the people they killed as a souvenir, and people who count because they can’t forget what they did.

Now I can see it.

Julias is the latter.

“What are you going to do?”

“Let’s find out the truth.”

I want to pick it up.

But as always, spilled water has no choice but to be wiped away.

“You’ve all forgotten or won’t remember. Maybe he died because his lifespan was over?”

“Lamia and the elves live for over 200 years. If you live long, you can live into your late 200s. A century is not that long a time for us.”

I couldn’t empathize with the vast sense of time that didn’t make sense to me.

One century is when World War I broke out on Earth. At least for humans, it was longer than a lifetime.

“There is no evidence to punish.”

“You could at least give the criminal poison to confess.”

“Wouldn’t it be punishable because it’s so old?”

“If it comes out like that, Yunaira and I will be in trouble.”

Are you going to fight the country alone?

An alchemist who doesn’t even know how to make alcohol disinfectant?

Yulias’ face, looking into space, showed sadness rather than anger.

“Are you angry?”

“Yes.”

Now, things are consistent and a conclusion has been reached.

Since ancient times, executioners have been looked down upon and feared by everyone, regardless of era or stage. Even to the bastard himself who cut his own throat. This is why in Korea, Mangnani has an image similar to alcohol.

It is said that most idiots are filled with guilt and have been addicted to alcohol all their lives. Such people have their own beliefs to avoid guilt.

“Everyone who came to the prison cried. I said the same thing. That he was not guilty or that it was self-defense. In the end, I killed them all.”

Julia’s hand holding me and pulling me became heavy.

“Those who deserve to die die by my hands. But at least there shouldn’t be an innocent person among those who die at my hands.”

I touched the devil’s disgust.

Julia will be a sure criminal. With very high probability.

“Why are you looking at me like that? Of course I won’t kill you or watch you.”

“······Really?”

They look like they’re going to go and kill them all.

“Huh? Do you see me as that kind of person?”

“Wait, it was just for a moment.”

“Hey! Just because you’re an executioner doesn’t mean you just kill. I am also a doctor who saves people?”

Just as Jules said, Julia felt compassion for people.

To the people he killed.