Chapter 146
Chapter 146
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Translator: MadScientist
Chapter: 146
Chapter Title: The Weight of a Changed Past
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Victoria took a calm breath as she looked at the two figures before her.
If she wasn't careful, the current Victoria would not look like Astal's lover, but rather like a suspicious person in revealing attire trying to seduce a young boy.
'I have to appear as harmless as possible.'
Victoria hid her fidgeting hands behind her back and put on the friendliest smile she could muster.
Don't panic.
Wasn't this act of wearing a mask and deceiving people something she'd done countless times back in the Holy Kingdom of Aurelium?
"...Hello. My name is Victoria Everhart."
"......"
No friendly response came to Victoria's gentle greeting. Instead, suspicious gazes approached.
p>Of course, that was natural.
Victoria's current outfit was so blatantly revealing that no one could possibly think she was a Saint.
Yet, she couldn't just say she'd come from the future and that this village would be destroyed in a week.
She'd be treated as a complete lunatic. And then, the chances of finding a way back to the present would be slim.
"I was fighting monsters and got hit by an attack, so I ended up falling into this rural village. The person beside me saved my life."
Victoria paused to steady her breath, then let her shoulders droop, putting on a weary expression.
She hadn't lied.
Victoria had indeed come here after the battle with the Romulus, and Astal had saved her life.
There was also the option of gaining trust through lies first, then rallying the villagers to prepare for the Demon King's army's attack.
'Lies only grow bigger the more you tell them.'
Victoria chose not to use such extreme measures. Deceiving people with lies would eventually be exposed.
She thought it was more important to maintain a sincere attitude, even if her story might sound absurd.
Besides, the people she was facing were Astal's parents. She was confident that if she showed her sincerity, they would eventually listen.
"That's right! This noona was unconscious and collapsed on the hill behind the village at first!"
As if reading Victoria's inner thoughts, the young Astal grabbed the tip of her finger and beamed brightly.
His touch was cold. But it was the touch of a boy with a kind heart.
As the familiar sensation she had always relied on surfaced, Victoria nodded with a composed expression.
"Is that really true? Oh my, was there really such a strong monster on the hill behind our village...?"
"It doesn't seem like a lie. There are scratches all over her body, and her clothes are torn as if bitten by a monster."
I'm sorry. The clothes were deliberately altered.
Victoria swallowed the words rising to her throat and watched the exchange between the two.
If she were deemed suspicious and driven out of the village here, she would have nowhere to go.
It had been a long time since she left the continent, so she had no usable currency on hand. Even if she went to the Holy Kingdom of Aurelium, it was before she was chosen as a Saint.
Moreover, from what Victoria knew, this was a time before the Demon King had reappeared.
No matter how much she preached about the dangers of the Demon King's army, her words, dressed like a temptress, would carry no weight.
It would be a miracle if she wasn't accused of being a witch and burned at the stake, or arrested for spreading false rumors to overthrow the empire.
"I was fighting with my comrades, and when I came to my senses, I found myself stranded in a place like this..."
Victoria choked up and poured out her sincerity. This was the result of things going awry while facing Romulus, the last of the Four Heavenly Kings in the Demon Realm.
If only Astal had acted more cautiously, or hadn't tried to sacrifice himself on his own, she wouldn't have ended up in the past.
"Oh my, then come to our house. At least you need a place to stay until you find your comrades, right?"
At that moment, Selene Caisaros, Astal's mother, grabbed Victoria's hand firmly and responded.
Selene's hands were rough and calloused, perhaps from hard farm work, but to Victoria now, they felt warmer and gentler than anything—a gesture of goodwill.
It was proof that even in this lonely past where she could trust no one and had nowhere to lean on, there were still people who would help her.
"Honey, even so, bringing a stranger into our house recklessly..."
"She's not a stranger. She told us her name, and more importantly, she's someone our proud son brought home."
"That's right! I don't think she's a dangerous noona...!"
Claude Caisaros had a disapproving expression toward Victoria, but he had no choice but to acquiesce to what his son and wife were saying.
This was a village so small it wouldn't even appear on a map. If someone was pretending to be stranded to commit theft or robbery, they would have targeted a more prosperous village.
"...For now, let's feed her and hear her story before we decide."
Claude scanned Victoria up and down, checking to see if she was carrying any weapons that could harm people.
Given that Victoria's current outfit was so revealing that no one could possibly believe she was a Saint, it was inevitable she would be suspected like this.
"Thank you for your kindness."
Victoria inwardly sighed with relief and adopted a respectful attitude to avoid suspicion as much as possible.
- Victoria, what are you doing right now?
A voice echoed in the mind of Victoria, who was clasping her hands in reverent prayer.
The Heavenly God Lumina.
Having revealed her presence after a long time, she spoke to Victoria, who had drifted into the past.
◇◇◇◆◇◇◇ The house where Astal lived as a child was surprisingly ordinary. Cosmos flowers bloomed profusely in the yard, and on one corner of the wall, there was a cute doodle Astal had drawn with charcoal.
Thanks to the hospitality shown by the Caisaros couple, Victoria, for the first time in what felt like ages, filled her stomach with food from the continent and even took a refreshing bath.
While eating cabbage soup, she considered bringing up the topic of the upcoming Demon King's army, but it was obvious she'd be immediately labeled crazy if she said such things.
- So, you were fighting Romulus and ended up drifting into the past, ten years ago?
'Yes. That's why I'm wondering what to do.'
- About whether you should change the predetermined future, or just pretend you don't know and let it be?
Heavenly God Lumina spoke in a tone that suggested she found the current situation somewhat interesting.
- If you change the future, isn't there a high probability that the very point of connection where you and Astal meet will disappear? Wasn't his motivation for honing his magic all this time to avenge his parents?
'......'
At Lumina's reasoning, Victoria's heart grew as heavy as lead.
Change the past, and the future changes too.
Wasn't that a simple, clear proposition?
If Victoria prevented Dullahan's invasion here and kept Astal's village safe, he would live a life far removed from magic.
Originally, Astal's heroic saga began only after he lost his parents and hometown and took refuge at the Blue Magic Tower.
'Why didn't you answer me before? You must have some idea about the Demon King's goal.'
Victoria, resenting Lumina for speaking so nonchalantly, first brought up the subject of how the goddess hadn't answered her about the message Memoria had conveyed.
Heavenly God Lumina was a deity who had guided not just Victoria but previous Saints as well. There was no way such a being wouldn't know the Demon King's true goal.
- Even if I tell you the Demon King Ergothum's true goal, there's no way for you to stop it as you are now.
...What?
At the completely unexpected answer, Victoria almost let out a gasp of surprise.
Victoria was currently spending time in a room with the young Astal.
The young Astal watched with interest as Victoria maintained her pious posture of prayer.
If she showed any sign of agitation or of hearing the goddess's voice here, it could cause misunderstanding.
'Isn't that something we can only know by trying? No matter how powerful the Demon King Ergothum is...'
- You know that Demon King Ergothum is the one who destroyed multiple parallel worlds, right? The only hint I can give you, Victoria, is this.
Heavenly God Lumina let out a deep sigh, as if crushing Victoria's naive hope.
Then, did that mean that in those parallel universes, there was also no future where Demon King Ergothum was defeated?
- Well, the choice is now entirely yours. Either wait quietly here for Astal's hometown to burn just as it did in the original history...
Or there was no choice but to achieve victory against Dullahan, one of the Demon King's Four Heavenly Kings, and his forces.
Even if, due to altering the past, the point of connection where Victoria and Astal meet completely vanishes.
"Lord Astal, do you believe time travel is possible?"
Victoria closed her eyes for a moment, lost in thought, then posed a question to the young Astal.
If this were the Victoria before meeting Astal, she would have made a unilateral decision on her own.
"...If a girlfriend from the future came to save someone from your childhood, what choice would be the right one?"
But now, it was different.