Reunion
I could not believe the sight unfolding before my eyes.
She was not wearing a high school uniform this time, but a formal uniform instead.
Still, there was no way I could ever forget that face.
Black hair was extremely rare in this world to begin with, so my eyes were drawn to her whether I liked it or not.
Mixed in among the church dignitaries entering the banquet hall, she looked exactly like the bitch who had drowned my first life.
Just a lookalike, right?
There's no way it could be the same person.
Yeah. There can be people who look alike even in different worlds.
The timing doesn't make sense either, does it?
Years have passed since I died.
There's no way that bitch would appear in front of me at the exact same age, looking exactly the same.
Hahaha.
But it did not take long for my hopeful wishes to be smashed to pieces.
The moment the church party entered, the noisy atmosphere of the banquet hall that had been stirred up because of me settled, and all attention shifted to them.
"You must have had a hard journey, Pope."
"Greetings, Your Majesty the Empress, and Your Grace the Grand Duchess."
"Welcome, Tenesa."
Unlike other worlds, this empire had no power struggles or infighting among those at the top.
The Empress, the Grand Duchess, and the Pope.
The relationship between these three was excellent.
They were the same age and had studied and spent time together since childhood.
Thanks to that, the empire ran smoothly without any discord.
"There is someone I would like to introduce to the two of you today."
"Oh? You mean the one standing beside you?"
"Yes, Your Grace. She is one summoned from another world…"
What did she just say?
"…the Hero, Lee Hye-yeong. Hero, please greet the two of them…"
"Lee Hye-yeong."
Fuck.
Even after the Pope introduced her, the Hero did not bow her head even slightly toward Elizabeth or Camilla. She simply stated her name in a short, clipped tone.
That voice. That curt way of speaking. That dark atmosphere.
It was her. The bitch who had ended my first life. The one who had drowned me.
"Haha… Since she comes from another world, she is not yet accustomed to our etiquette. Please forgive her."
"Haha, it's fine. But a Hero, you say…"
"If there is a Hero, does that mean the Demon King has appeared once more?"
Hero and Demon King.
I had heard of them while studying the history of this world as a child.
In the distant past, a Demon King suddenly appeared in the world and threw everything into chaos.
The Demon King was not only powerful; even if he was somehow brought down, he was an unknown existence this world had never seen before. No being in this world could truly destroy him.
That was also why the dragons vanished.
The dragons, who had been the guardians of the world's peace, struck down the Demon King in order to fulfill their duty.
Yet even after they clearly defeated him, the Demon King revived from somewhere and began to pick the dragons off one by one.
The surviving dragons joined forces with humans, elves, and dwarves and brought him down again.
But once more, the Demon King revived from somewhere, and the reborn monster continued to destroy the world.
The dragons resisted to the very end, yet in the end they were annihilated by the Demon King's hand.
Even the Goddess who maintained the peace and balance of this world had no means of dealing with the situation.
Even the Popes, Saints, and Holy Knights who received her blessings and protection could defeat the Demon King, but they could never destroy him.
At that point the Goddess made a grave decision and delivered an oracle to the Church.
No existence belonging to this world could ever destroy the unknown Demon King.
They would have to seek out a being from another world who could truly annihilate him, and make a bargain.
That method was the Hero Summoning.
The Goddess searched countless worlds and dimensions and summoned a special individual of outstanding potential as the Hero.
After many trials, the selected and summoned Hero defeated the Demon King.
And as the bargain, the Goddess granted the wish that had been promised.
Nothing precise was ever recorded about that wish, but based on the fact that no descendants of the Hero remain in the records, historians and many others believe the Hero returned to their own world.
Right.
It was an ancient history, a fairy-tale-like story.
But…
That's her? That crazy bitch?
Aren't Heroes supposed to be righteous people?
And why the hell is the Demon King reviving now of all times?
Even when I had been trying to convince myself she was just a lookalike, my entire body had been crawling with goosebumps from sheer terror.
But the moment I heard Lee Hye-yeong speak her own name, the fear went far beyond mere fright. My body locked up completely.
"Ed?"
"Ed?"
"Haa… haa…"
Ah, fuck.
I really do have trauma, don't I?
Suddenly I could not breathe.
Lilith and Charlotte, who noticed the change in me at once, called my name, but my throat was so tightly closed I could not answer.
So this is what true terror feels like.
"My Lady! Something is wrong with Ed!"
"What? Edward!"
Seeing me unable to move at all, Lilith called for Camilla.
"Your Majesty! Please ask the Pope to examine Ed!"
"I am truly sorry to trouble you the moment you arrive, but the Grand Duchess's second son seems to be in a strange condition. Would you take a look, Pope?"
Charlotte also called out to Elizabeth, requesting that she ask the Pope for help on my behalf.
When it came to holy power, the Pope was the highest authority, after all.
But no.
Don't call her.
"Oh dear! He does seem unwell. I shall examine him!"
She herself was fine, but…
No.
If this happens…
Even more attention would focus on me.
The Pope approached me.
"I shall examine your condition. Excuse me."
Pope Tenesa, with her kind face and devout air, came close and looked me over.
Her touch was warm; under any other circumstances it might have calmed me.
"…"
But that was impossible, because the Hero—the damned bitch who had drowned me—was following right behind the Pope.
No.
I absolutely must not meet her eyes.
My appearance in this life was completely different from my previous one, so it should be hard for her to recognize me.
This is exactly that kind of flag, isn't it?
The crazy bitch recognizing me even after my face has changed…
No, still—there's no way she could recognize me at a glance when I look completely different, right?
Stay calm. Stay calm.
She won't know… she won't know…
Please… please…
"Hyeonwoo?"
"Hyeonwoo!"
Fuck.
"Oh? Does the Hero know him?"
Tenesa, who had been healing me with holy magic, asked Lee Hye-yeong, who was clearly recognizing me.
I don't know her! I don't know that fucking bitch!
"Hyeon… Hyeonwoo, right?"
No, seriously, how the hell did she recognize me?
"Hyeonwoo!"
Until a moment ago her face had been completely lifeless, showing no interest in anything. Now light began to bloom across it.
The fact that I was suffering and receiving healing from Tenesa did not seem to register with her at all.
This was the same bitch who had drowned me while spouting nonsense without even asking a single question.
As if someone like that would ever look at me carefully or show consideration just because I was in pain.
She was not reaching out because she was worried about me. She simply wanted to touch me.
Ah, please just fuck off.
Someone, anyone…
Just as her hand was about to touch my body—
Thwack!
"Uh…?"
The expression that had been filled with joy at the thought of touching me instantly twisted into confusion and bewilderment.
Someone had violently slapped her hand away.
It was my sister, Lilith.
"What do you think you're doing?"
"…"
It was a gaze more terrifying than any I had ever seen from her—even more frightening than when she had been angry with me.
Lilith was staring at her with eyes that were ice-cold and blazing with fury.
I had only ever seen her smiling, so even the angry face she had shown me recently had felt unfamiliar…
But this time her expression was so terrifying that I almost wondered whether this was really the same always-smiling sister I knew.
And yet…
So what if she's scary?
She's my sister.
She had stepped forward right now to protect me. She was my savior.
That single fact left no room for doubt or any other thoughts.
"Your Holiness. Why is this person trying to touch a man's body without permission, as she pleases?"
"Ah, Princess Lilith, there seems to be a misunderstanding. Isn't that right, Hero?"
"Hyeon… Hyeonwoo…"
When Lilith grew angry, Tenesa tried to mediate, but that damned bitch paid no attention to the atmosphere around her and tried to approach me again.
"Do not come any closer!"
"Young Master!"
This time Grace and Emma stepped in front of me and blocked her.
"Who the hell are you people?"
Lee Hye-yeong twisted her face into a bizarre expression as she looked at the women standing in her way.
Yeah. That's the exact face she made when she stabbed me.
"You! And Your Holiness! Isn't this far too rude?!"
"Haha… This is rather… The Hero has not yet adapted to our culture…"
At Lee Hye-yeong's sudden outburst, Charlotte now raised her voice in anger, scolding both Lee Hye-yeong and the Pope.
Before Tenesa could even finish the words she had begun in an attempt to smooth things over again—
"Who are you people? Who are you people?"
Lee Hye-yeong repeated the same words over and over with a contorted face.
"H-Hero! Please calm down!"
"Who are you people? Who are you people?"
"W-What is wrong with this person?!"
"Is she really the Hero?"
Murmurs rose all around.
Tenesa tried to restrain her, but it was clearly useless.
The strange spectacle of someone called a Hero acting this way made not only those near me but every guest at the banquet begin to whisper.
Yet she paid no attention to the surroundings at all. Looking at her face twisted with madness only made my breath catch even more tightly in my throat.
"Haa… kuh…!"
"Ed!"
"Young Master!"
Ah.
I feel like I'm going to die.
I had not even been stabbed by a knife.
Just the fact that that bitch had appeared in front of me again.
Just the reality of seeing that face once more.
It was already too much for me to bear.
"Hyeonwoo, are you okay?"
Only now did she seem to notice my strange condition, calling out to me with what sounded like concern.
Fuck off.
Why are you worrying about me now of all times?
Even while I was bleeding out and dying, you just—
Kyahahaha!
…You fucking bitch.
You think I'm going to acknowledge you?
Even breathing was agony, but I forced my mouth open.
"Kuh… haa… My name is Ed…"
"Hm?"
You've got the wrong person.
"My name is Edward Frigid."
So get lost.
"Wh-What?"
Are your ears broken?
"Edward Frigid. I believe you have mistaken me for someone else, Hero. Haa… haa…"
I squeezed out every last bit of strength I had left and told Lee Hye-yeong the name of the life I was living now—not the name from my previous life.
I could not see a mirror, so I had no idea what expression my face was making, but I forced a smile, trying to look as natural as possible.
You've got the wrong person!
You bitch.
So could you please just fuck off?
Of course, that wish of mine—
"Lie."
—was never going to come true.