episode_0137

Selena Drunkerd.

To summarize her actions in the original story, it was as follows: ‘A traitor.’ What more could be added or subtracted? It was all a choice she made herself. There was no coercion or burden in the process. The woman simply betrayed the academy for her goal, and ended up joining hands with those who should not be approached. They were none other than dark mages who worshipped slaughter and greed.

A path of endless destruction. Of course. She hadn’t decided to betray from the very beginning. Just as villains always have their own circumstances, the Drunkard had her own circumstances. Perhaps the woman could have become an even better educator. If only she hadn’t clung so foolishly to the past.

‘Memories, then.’

For adults, memories are lingering attachment, or alcohol. A void that makes life wander aimlessly. And this… was the foolishness and intoxication attached to the name Selena Drunkerd.

The time goes back to when she was very young.

“-Lianne! Look what your unnie brought!” “-It’s a loaf of bread that hasn’t even gone bad…! Today’s begging was a complete success!”

Selena had a younger sister, five years her junior. Lianne. A younger sister she raised like a daughter.

“-Unnie is the best, as expected!” “-It smells so savory! It must have been baked just now at the bakery!” “-Hehe… I feel like my mouth is already watering.”

They had no other family. Their parents had passed away in times too hazy to remember. As the older sister, Selena had to take responsibility for her younger sister. Though it was a life wandering through the slums, begging for others’ charity, the children never lost hope in their day-to-day lives. Because they had each other.

In a way, it was ordinary. There were beggars scattered everywhere in the slums. Their lives were no different from others. In difficult moments, they would briefly lean on a shoulder offered to them. Even in desperate, cold, and creeping hunger of winter… the girls survived, with their strong affection serving as their season. Along with their dependence deepening as they grew older.

“-I love Unnie the most in the world!”

A life at the bottom where not even a faint light could enter. A life constantly chased by misfortune. Yet, a life filled with hope. Was it a reward for the hearts of such children? Even on days covered in pitch black, the sun shone down.

“-You… have talent.” “-Would you like to learn magic under me?” “-I will take in your younger sister as well.”

One day, an old man appeared. He introduced himself as the head of a renowned educational institution, then offered Selena and Lianne to become his disciples. He had recognized Selena’s magical talent. The children hesitated, yet took his hand.

“-From today, call me Teacher-nim.”

An unforgettable moment. Afterward. Color was painted into the girls’ lives for the first time. New experiences accumulated one by one. A comfortable home, soft clothes, warm food, even a cozy bed. A miracle that came overnight.

“-Teacher-nim! Teacher-nim! Can you teach me the magic Unnie is learning?” “-Later, I want to become a cool mage too.” “-Like the sages in fairy tales!” “-Lianne… Teacher-nim said you’re weak and it would be hard for you.” “-Besides, it’s not really fun to begin with. Why would you willingly fall into the swamp of homework?” “-Yes! Unnie works hard too!” “-I want to become strong enough to protect Unnie!” “-So please teach me!” “-Hahaha. If you want to learn, there’s no reason not to.” “-It might be hard to be like Selena… but Lianne, I will teach you magic too.” “-Yahoo! Long live Teacher-nim!”

The children learned the meaning of peace. A smile that never left their lips. It was a life where they no longer starved, no longer cried in fear, and no longer shivered from the cold. The morning that arrived after a long dawn was so precious. That’s why they wished and believed that only happiness would fill their future.

However. “-You have three months left.” Misfortune did not let them go. When Selena turned twenty and Lianne turned fifteen… her younger sister was suddenly diagnosed with a terminal illness. The exact cause was unknown. They could only guess. That her body, weakened by life at the bottom, finally couldn’t endure and broke down. The tragedy shattered even their momentary dream.

“-Don’t worry.” “-Unnie will definitely make you well… somehow, by all means, I won’t let you die.” “-Teacher-nim is also looking into it. There must be a way.”

No. There was no such method. It was what they called an incurable disease. Every doctor they met frowned, priests shook their heads, and in the end, even her Teacher-nim put down his pen. The girl in the sickbed was simply slowly nearing her end. Holding her beloved older sister’s hand.

“-I’m sorry… Unnie.” “-I wanted to stay by your side a little longer… I wanted you to be by my side…” “-I’m sorry… I’m sorry I couldn’t stay by your side…”

Lianne mumbled with breaths that seemed about to give out. Emotions surged in her endlessly flowing tears and repeatedly apologizing voice. As if about to overflow at any moment.

“……” Selena was powerless. There was nothing she could do for her sick younger sister. She merely held the warmth in her hand tightly. Until the thin breath ceased… and even the body warmth that signified life grew cold. The older sister could not leave her younger sister’s side.

“-It’s a lie… it’s a lie.” A lump of flesh from which the soul had departed. The girl clung to what was once Lianne and wailed. The colorful world instantly reverted to black and white.

“-Lianne… please open your eyes.” “-We just started to be happy, why, why did this happen only to us…?” What your death left behind was only a cold world without you. Only after losing everything in her life did she realize. The light that had come to them was not a morning. It was merely a fleeting meteor that shone for a moment and then vanished. Happiness, for Selena, was such a vain and false concept.

“-It was all a lie.”

After the death. The girl wandered endlessly. As if she had given up on everything. The light vanished from her pupils. Her expression gradually hardened. She drank alcohol she didn’t even like straight from the bottle, and the time she spent intoxicated grew longer by the day. It felt as if being sober was rare.

“-Lianne…” Even though she had shed her youth. Even though she was called a woman instead of a girl. Selena lived, replaying only her memories. Buried in the happiest moments of her childhood. As those meaningless days continued.

“-Would you not join hands with us?” Some figures approached. They were none other than cultists. Planning to use the wandering Selena, they whispered an offer she, as an older sister, could never refuse. It was the devil’s whisper that they could resurrect her dead younger sister.

“-Do you not want to meet her one more time?” “-Your beloved younger sister.”

The woman could not refuse. Her mind was not sound enough to make proper judgments. She simply wanted to meet the departed girl one more time.

Ultimately. Selena decided to become their puppet. She even had a mana contract placed on her heart. Perhaps she was truly drunk. Her mind was filled with only the thought of saving Lianne. The woman, having killed her emotions, ended up participating in all those tragedies.

“-You only need to follow our instructions properly.” “-Beyond that… we will take care of it ourselves.”

Their demands were simple. To periodically hand over the academy’s secrets and information. For Selena, who was the dean’s top disciple and held the position of head professor, it was not a difficult task. She was also the one who delivered the map of the underground passages to the cultists.

“-Wait for me, Lianne… certainly.” “-When that time comes, will we be able to be happy again…?”

The woman knew she was cloaked in evil. Yet, her precarious steps did not stop. Like a truck with broken brakes, her shattered thoughts drove blindly forward. Selena drove her life like a drunk driver.

However. “-Th-this… what in the world.” Even a drunken stupor, no matter how messy, eventually wears off. Once consciousness returns, one must face it. All the tragedies one has brought upon oneself.

“-Roooooar!” A ferocious dragon roared. A disaster stood tall, centered around the collapsed academy main building. Hot flames and death poured down like rain. The surging hatred seemed intent on destroying the entire world. Corpses were scattered everywhere. Students she had taught. Fellow faculty members who always annoyed her. It was a place that had once been a home to her, but now, the term ‘living hell’ suited the scene better. The choices the woman made caused countless lives to be buried in the sand and earth.

“-Ah.” The woman realized, belatedly. About her foolishness, and the sins that stained her because of it. “-Wh-what, what have I… done.” “-I didn’t intend for this, I, I just… one more time, that child…” “-No… I didn’t wish for this!”

All that remained in the despair-ridden grounds was nothing but pools of blood and flesh. And the emptiness that overflowed even beyond those pools. Screams, sorrow, terror, pleas. Selena watched the crimson, burning landscape. Sitting blankly where she was. “-It was all… a tragedy I brought upon myself.”

Tears streaming down. Just as she was lost in thought. *Thrust!* Something pierced through the woman’s chest from behind and burst out. It was none other than a sword.

“-You’ve worked hard until now.” Turning around, she saw. The cultist figure she had been cooperating with stood there. He wore a vile smile, plunging the sword into Selena’s heart. As if this had been his intention from the beginning.

“-A card that has served its purpose… it’s only right to dispose of it now.” “-As you can see, the plan is a success.” “-Only now can we hasten His resurrection.”

The Drunkard fell, spitting blood. She stopped her wretched breath along with the burning academy. Perhaps it was a fitting end for a traitor.

‘…The details revealed later were even more shocking, though.’

Selena Drunkerd. According to the settings revealed later, it was discovered that she, too, was merely played by the cultists. Lianne, who suffered from an incurable disease of unknown origin… the cultists were behind her death. A spiderweb spun from beginning to end to draw Selena in. Her younger sister’s death was thoroughly manipulated, and the promised resurrection in exchange for cooperation was also a lie. The woman could not escape her fate.

‘In the end… it was a story where no one found happiness.’

A utterly bleak ending. I cleared my thoughts and met the gaze of the woman before me.

“……” “……”

Sitting on the sickbed was either a traitor or a sacrificial lamb. Only a chilling silence filled the hospital room. As I slowly chewed on the gloomy atmosphere, the woman, who suddenly smiled bitterly, asked a question. Her voice was subdued.

“……Since when was it?” “Hm?” “You realized my betrayal, I mean.”

“Well. Shall I say, it was just a gut feeling?” “A gut feeling… I see. Student Yuda keeps many secrets.” “Besides, isn’t it a meaningless question now?” “That’s true, too.”

The conversation flowed smoothly. It was similar to usual, yet different in a way. Shaking off that sense of incongruity, I spoke. “There are many stories I want to hear. And many I need to hear.” “……”

A complicated expression returned. What emotions are you feeling right now? Resignation? Despair? Sorrow? Loss? Or perhaps…

“……Do you regret it?” A question that hesitated, unlike me. As if in response, her red eyes wavered. I quietly waited for the woman. Only after hearing her answer… would I be able to choose what action to take next. I waited for you. ‘Please.’ Hoping that you are different from me.