episode_0282

My memory? Or was it simply Eve’s memory that I was witnessing?

Time passed more quickly than I felt. Or perhaps it flowed more slowly. Like watching the scenery from afar on a train, the passage of time didn’t affect me at all.

The man moved as usual. Hunting monsters in the dungeon, returning to the guild to settle quests.

He had no particular complaints. That was the meaning of his life, his joy. But even a small stimulus can feel significant in a repetitive life.

The woman also moved as usual. She scoured the quest board for any means to become stronger. Powerful monsters, powerful magic, powerful items.

She desired nothing else. She could only trust herself. But the happiness of an irretrievable past, the loneliness of an inescapable present, stirred her gaze.

A small butterfly’s wings beat, and they met in the lobby of the Livris Adventurer’s Guild. The man and woman recognized each other for the first time. That was enough. With their limited range of activity, they were bound to meet again someday.

One day, they ended up taking a quest together. It was a simple quest to eliminate the numerous monsters infesting a dungeon. The number, however, was staggering.

Fortunately, they were both quite powerful adventurers. At first, they hunted in separate areas, but as they frequently encountered each other during battles, they decided to hunt together.

Always acting alone, the two often clashed. They had learned how to end a monster’s life before they’d learned how to consider others.

“Excuse me…! You’re reaching my area, I can’t see!”

“…You move to the side.”

“This is my break time. What are you doing? Quickly stop those monsters!”

“…My mana’s depleted.”

The man sighed deeply. How utterly hopeless. He regretted deciding to hunt together.

But despite his grumbling, he did what needed to be done. He pulled a mana potion from his pocket and threw it to the woman.

“Drink that and hurry up!”

“…Thank you.”

“I’ll deduct it from your next break time… remember that.”

Seeing the woman actually sit down for five minutes before getting up to hunt again, the man felt another wave of guilt.

‘It’s not like… she’s being forced, she enjoys hunting too.’

Even thinking that, he ended up hunting monsters more diligently to ensure her break time. It wasn’t physically demanding; it was just a matter of adjusting his mindset.

“Hey, there… my territory…”

“Haah—Alright—!”

Grumbling as he returned to his original position, the man thought his efforts were in vain. But they weren’t.

*Fwt-*

A wildflower seed drifted into the barren landscape of the woman’s heart. The tiny seed, without wilting, safely burrowed into the soil.

The sprout that suddenly emerged was too small to be seen, but size wasn’t the issue. It was destined to grow larger.

. . .

“…Name.”

“Huh?”

“…What’s your name?”

“You still didn’t know, Eve Istar?”

It had been half a year since I first met Eve. The fact that I still didn’t know her name made me question our closeness, but her asking directly was a significant improvement.

“My name is—”

“…Yes, I remember.”

Eve was like a wounded wild animal.

While she might seem listless and passive to others, I knew better. She was a passionate person who relentlessly pursued her goal.

She had fits of temper. When she was backstabbed by a monster, when her clothes tore, when she was covered in mud. Her occasional displays of irritability suggested she was quite sharp and easily angered.

But I know. Both of those aspects are masks. Deepest inside Eve is fear. She has an extreme fear of losing something.

If a quest involved someone’s life being in danger, she prioritized it, regardless of the reward or efficiency. She’s innately meddlesome. If she saw someone injured on the street, she’d cast healing magic. Though, if they mentioned payment, she’d flatly refuse.

At first, I thought she disliked people because she avoided interacting with them. But her actions proved otherwise.

It’s fear. Fear of forming a relationship and losing it. Yet, she couldn’t abandon her kind nature of helping others. Short, concise, and to the point—that was Eve’s basic approach to others.

“…Why do you fight so aggressively?”

“Me? What do you mean?”

“Judging by your armor and weapons… you’re an assassin type, focused on quick strikes. But your actual fighting style is more like a warrior: You love to trade blows.”

“Ah… this? I wrongly allocated skills—no, you wouldn’t understand that. I learned it wrongly from my teacher.”

Eve frequently asked me personal questions. In these moments, she showed a childlike curiosity, eager to learn new things.

Our relationship had grown close enough for such conversations. Eve always kept her distance, pretending to be uninterested in others.

But there was still a distance. While her interest was welcome, Eve didn’t share much about herself. I understood. It was clear she carried a dark past.

“Besides… you possess three rare mana types, yet you only properly use fire…”

“That… that’s also because of… a bad teacher. Sigh, Akastos doesn’t have proper tutorials…”

“Huh?”

“Nothing.”

This unfairness, in a way, is a truly amazing game. My present is the result of every choice I’ve made from my past until now. It’s chillingly realistic. So I’m making new choices to break through this unfairness.

I unlocked the trait of gritting my teeth to withstand enemy attacks with my frail body. To compensate for my lack of utility, I focused on firepower. I strived to be sufficient, even if not outstanding.

Silently muttering something, Eve nodded. She clenched her fists and looked at me.

“Then… I’ll study water and wind attributes diligently to use ice magic.”

“…What?”

“You’re a fire-attribute warrior type. So if I become an ice-attribute caster…”

“Do you need to go that far? Do you want to… keep taking quests together?”

Eve stared blankly at the void. Then, as if understanding my meaning, her face reddened.

*Whizz-*

Her light blue hair fluttered as she turned her head.

“I, I can learn quickly… it’s not a long-term goal, but something I can achieve right now.”

“I see. I’ll look forward to it.”

“…Yes.”

Perhaps even this world couldn’t fully express the expression Eve made at that moment. But it remains in my memory. A shy smile, the faint smile of a shy person with slightly upturned lips.

My heart burned intensely.

It was time for settlement, so I gently stroked Eve’s head and got up.

“Ah… um, there…”

“Yes? What is it?”

“Whoa, Wangdo… Ah, Ice… No, nothing.”

“Let’s go. The receptionists will be leaving soon.”

Surprisingly, Eve listened to me. Even when captivated by her pretty face, seeing her obediently following behind made me feel like I was raising a little puppy.

. . .

I awoke from my dream, thrust back from the memories of my past life.

It was similar to logging out of the game and returning to reality; the emptiness of having to temporarily part with a happy second life, and at the same time, the anticipation of meeting Eve again tomorrow.

But I couldn’t be swept away by the tide of emotions. Stronger than the swelling in my heart was the instinctive warning etched in my mind.

Why was my immersion in Eve’s memories broken? There’s only one answer. A significant event is approaching—an event that will completely twist Eve’s life far more than these peaceful days.

The perspective of the memories shifted back to an observer. Eve left the Naifrantz Kingdom and walked through the capital, looking unfamiliar.

Now I know. Iberista von Ubiet, the First Princess of the Ubiet Empire. A fact I could never have known back then.

Eve’s soft cheeks, relaxed during her adventurer life with me, hardened again. Hiding the true desire to regain happiness, she wears the mask of a sorrowful devil, burning only with revenge.

“Duke Darius, what brings you here today…”

“Ah, you’ve arrived. We’ll postpone the magic lesson for a while; I need your company for a moment.”

Duke Darius, her magic teacher, had a different atmosphere than usual. Eve sensed it instinctively. He was revealing his true intentions, hidden until now.

Following the Duke, she entered the basement of a building near the imperial palace. The air was damp and fishy, an unpleasant space.

“—!!”

Reaching the innermost barred cell, Eve covered her mouth.

“Ugh, ggh…”

The chunks of meat before her were clearly not human. Yet, a human face was laid upon them. The body, which should have continued below the neck, was torn to pieces, its original form unrecognizable.

“Ah, it’s nothing. Even if not blood-related, she’s still your family.”

“The First… Princess?”

“Yes. Compared to you, a genius, she couldn’t follow my guidance at all. She even had an inappropriate relationship with other noble children. So I disposed of her.”

He glanced to the side. This time, a completely pulverized piece of flesh, including the head, was spasmodically wriggling.

Eve unconsciously recoiled.

“I… I’m sorry. A gruesome sight, isn’t it? But it couldn’t be helped. I had to show you this, Fifth Princess.”

I doubted my ears. Wasn’t Eve the First Princess? If she’s the Fifth Princess, it means at least four others were above her, yet I’d never heard that the Empire had that many princesses.

My question was quickly answered, as Duke Darius approached Eve with a leisurely stride and whispered.

“You… will follow my guidance properly, won’t you, Fourth Princess?”

“…Yes. I will ascend to the Imperial throne and rule this country.”

The scattered clues came together. Like puzzle pieces, they fit perfectly, revealing the unknown answer.

Eve’s tragedy wasn’t over.