Chapter 191: Responsibility (8)
Translator: RaidenTL
Chapter 191: Responsibility (8)
Smack—
A vicious sound echoed as Lorraine's head snapped to the side. A searing pain followed, and her struck cheek swelled, turning a deep red. Lorraine could only press a hand to her burning cheek, unable to lift her head.
"Do you have any idea what you've done?"
"..."
"No answer. Lift your head."
Lorraine raised her head. Lorian's hand swung again.
Smack—
"Feel like answering now?"
"..."
"Speak. Speak!"
Lorraine flinched at Lorian's shout. Seeing her pathetic state, Lorian let out an irritated sigh.
Then, lowering his voice so as not to startle her further, he asked.
"When did you two start screwing? I'm asking when the hell you found the time to get it on!"
He tried to keep his voice down, but the emotion was impossible to contain. When she still didn't answer, he raised his hand to strike her again. It was then that she spoke, her voice utterly defeated.
"When we went to the Prona Kingdom last time..."
Their connection had begun right after the Behemoth was subjugated, but the day she became pregnant was when Lorian had visited the Prona Kingdom with a host of nobles.
Lorian's brow furrowed violently.
"So while I was suffering all sorts of hardships and humiliation, you were busy screwing that bastard."
This was rich coming from Lorian, who had tried to illegally occupy the Prona Kingdom's capital on a ridiculous pretext. But life isn't always logical or rational. Consumed by rage, Lorian saw Lorraine as nothing more than a loose-assed bitch who had betrayed him for pleasure.
A rotten wench who had betrayed him in his time of need.
Unable to stomach the surging sense of betrayal, Lorian grabbed Lorraine by the hair, yanked her head up, and began slapping her cheeks repeatedly.
He gritted his teeth as he struck her.
"No wonder my plans kept failing. It was because there was a traitor in our midst!"
"N-No! I didn't do anything like that!"
"Silence!"
His rage, born from betrayal, gave rise to a baseless misunderstanding—one that none of Lorraine's excuses could dispel. After the assault continued for some time, Lorian finally lowered his hand.
"Why... Why did it have to be him?"
"..."
Lorraine didn't answer. Lorian let go of her hair and muttered dejectedly.
"Frillite, and now you... Everyone wants him..."
Lorraine, who had been hanging her head limply, shot her eyes up at his words.
"What are you talking about? Why would Frillite be looking for Cloud?"
"Hm? Ah, you wouldn't know. Cloud and Frillite are engaged."
"Engaged...?"
"Yes. I heard they've even slept together."
"Ah...?"
That was the final blow. Her world collapsed. The hope that had barely sustained her vanished, and a vast darkness fell before her eyes.
She didn't even have the energy to be angry; her lips merely trembled.
Looking at the vacant Lorraine, Lorian couldn't even manage a hollow laugh. Both siblings had their lives twisted by Cloud. It was a situation where he couldn't laugh even if he wanted to.
"Why would you have a child with a bastard like Cloud..."
As he stared pitifully at Lorraine, who was now left high and dry, he realized something in his own words and his eyes widened.
"A child...? Yes, a child! You're carrying a child. Cloud's child!"
"..."
His furious expression vanished as if it had never been there, replaced by a wide grin. He beamed with delight, grabbing Lorraine's wrist and pulling her along.
Suddenly being dragged away, Lorraine asked in a weak voice.
"What is it? Where are we going...?"
"To Cloud. We're going to tell him it's his child."
"...What?"
Lorraine's expression hardened. She planted her feet, resisting.
"No. I won't go."
Seeing her resistance, Lorian narrowed his eyes.
"Didn't you say it's Cloud's child? He got you pregnant, so he has to take responsibility!"
"That's true, but... there's no way he'll acknowledge it!"
Cloud was engaged to Frillite—a woman from an Imperial ducal family, with a stunning face and figure, who was also a remarkable Hero.
...As much as she hated to admit it, Frillite was a far better woman than she was.
He had no reason to choose Lorraine now, not when he had a fiancée like that.
But Lorian shook his head as if none of that mattered.
"It doesn't matter whether he acknowledges it or not. What's important is making Frillite suspicious."
"...What?"
"Lorraine, listen carefully."
Lorian placed his hands on both of Lorraine's shoulders, his face serious.
"We're going to Frillite's room now. She and Cloud are there."
"Cloud is in the same room as Frillite...?"
"Let me finish. Once we're inside, your job is simple. Act pathetic and cling to Cloud. I'll take care of making a scene. Got it? Let's go."
"Huh...?"
Swept up in the moment, Lorraine was dragged a few steps before she came to her senses and resisted Lorian's pull.
"What are you doing?"
"What are you doing, Brother? You're telling me to make a spectacle of myself and my child! All for your own selfish reasons!"
It wasn't the spectacle she was resisting.
She would gladly play the fool if it meant getting her child's father back.
But that wasn't what this was.
Lorraine imagined bursting into Frillite's room and causing a scene. In that chaotic moment, what kind of expression would Cloud have?
He'd probably be bewildered.
He wouldn't know what to do at first, wondering what on earth was going on.
But once the situation settled down, and this incident drove a wedge between him and Frillite, how would he change?
Wouldn't he look at her as if she were some annoying nuisance?
Lorraine had never seen such a look from Cloud, and she never wanted to.
Lorian tried to reason with the struggling Lorraine.
"How is this for my selfish reasons? You need to make Cloud take responsibility, too."
"I don't need it."
"What?"
"I said I don't need that damn responsibility!"
The Cloud Lorraine wanted was the playful one who smiled so easily, not one who would find her annoying and irritating.
"So let me go. Let go!"
Lorraine pulled, trying to free her arm. Lorian's expression soured. Deciding to give up on persuasion, he began to drag her by force.
Overpowered, she started to get dragged across the floor.
"I won't go! I said I won't go!"
Twisting her body to resist, Lorraine saw the door getting closer. Once I go through that door, it's over. The thought shattered her composure.
"That's enough!"
Lorraine stopped resisting and let his momentum carry her forward. Then, adding her own strength, she slammed her body into Lorian.
"Gah!"
"Aah!"
Lorian crashed into the door first, and Lorraine slammed into his back. The two of them fell to the floor in a tangled heap. Lorraine quickly recovered her senses and scrambled backward, putting distance between herself and Lorian.
She drew a dagger and aimed it at him.
"I-I'm not going. So don't try to drag me by force. I won't take it anymore...!"
Lorraine knew better than anyone that the dagger would be of little help against Lorian. But she couldn't let herself be dragged away so easily; she had to fight back, even if it was just a desperate struggle.
But then... things took a strange turn.
Lorian didn't get up. No, he was trying to, but he couldn't.
He would start to push himself up, only to stumble and fall again. After several attempts, he finally managed to sit up, leaning his back against the wall.
"...Brother?"
Realizing something was seriously wrong with Lorian, she slowly approached him. She could see his lips moving, saying something, but his voice was too quiet to make out.
She had no choice but to close the distance, moving right in front of him.
"Say that again—"
"Cough!"
Lorian coughed, spewing blood. Lorraine's mouth fell open at the sight of the blood soaking his clothes.
"Huh...?"
Blood...? Why was he coughing up blood...? And so much of it...
She looked up at Lorian again. His face was deathly pale as he took shallow, wheezing breaths, clearly struggling for air.
It was clearly the face of a dying man.
"Wh-What? What's wrong? I... I just bumped into you...?!"
The moment Lorian hit the door, his already cracked rib had snapped. When Lorraine collided with him, the broken bone pierced deep into his lung.
With his lung impaled by a rib, Lorian felt an excruciating pain with every breath, as if his lung was being torn apart. To make matters worse, blood was filling his lung, making it even harder to breathe.
He didn't even have the strength to lift a finger.
Unaware of this, Lorraine could only panic, thinking it was all her fault.
"Wh-What should I do? A potion... Yes, I need to get a potion..."
As Lorraine rambled incoherently, Lorian grabbed the back of her hand.
He mouthed the word.
Cleric.
"Ah! A cleric! An Imperial Palace cleric could heal you! Wait here. I'll be right—"
—So while I was suffering all sorts of hardships and humiliation, you were busy screwing that bastard.
Lorian's furious voice suddenly echoed in her mind. Lorraine, who had been about to dash out of the room, froze.
'My brother hates me.'
It was partly due to the misunderstanding, but fundamentally, he resented her for sleeping with Cloud.
—Must I really tell Father? That you conceived a child through an illicit act?
'He'll hate my child as much as he hates Cloud.'
—It doesn't matter whether he acknowledges it or not. What's important is making Frillite suspicious.
'The moment he found a use for me, he tried to exploit me again. Without a single thought for what would happen to me afterward.'
All sorts of negative thoughts about Lorian flooded her mind. Her head slowly turned back toward him.
Even now, Lorian was slowly dying.
Looking at him, Lorraine thought.
Do I really need to save this man? This man who only brings harm to me and my child?
The Lorraine of the past, who used to follow Lorian around like a puppy, would never have imagined such a thought. But this wasn't the past. She was too disappointed in him, too exhausted, to follow him blindly anymore.
She was pushed to the edge of a cliff.
As long as she had this child, the entire world was her enemy.
Her own brother, Lorian, was no different. No, in fact, he was the most vicious enemy of all.
He had tried to use not only her but her child as well.
She remembered how Lorian had tried to drag her by force even when she said no, and her resolve hardened.
Let him die.
It's an accident, anyway. I didn't kill him intentionally, so it can't be considered murder.
'I'll wait a little longer, and when he's almost dead, I'll go find a cleric.'
What if I bring a cleric, thinking he's dying, but he's still alive? What if the cleric saves him?
'...I'll just go find one after he's dead.'
What if someone heard the commotion and comes before he dies? Could I play it off? Wouldn't my awkward acting just attract more people?
'Then what should I do?!'
What do you mean? There's a simpler way. A way you know well.
'...'
Lorraine placed both hands on Lorian's neck. In that moment, she saw his pupils tremble. Lorian grabbed Lorraine's arms as she flinched.
Unlike when he had grabbed her wrist before, there was no strength in his grip.
He didn't even have the power to resist.
Nothing stood in Lorraine's way.
All she had to do was kill him.
But her trembling hands wouldn't obey. She couldn't put any strength into them. After a moment of just trembling, she bit her lip hard and spoke.
"Th-This is all your fault, Brother. If you had just been good to me, this wouldn't have happened. But you weren't, were you? So this is all on you."
This was self-justification.
She was creating a reason to kill him, convincing herself it was right.
A little strength entered her grip on his neck.
"Y-You should have treated me better. If you had done just half... just half of what I did for you..."
Emotion began to seep into her self-justification.
"No, if you had shown me even a quarter of the kindness you show that Frillite woman! This wouldn't have happened..."
Her emotions grew more intense.
"Do you know? I used to love you. Not as family, but as a man. But I gave up. Because we're family. Because we share the same blood. I thought it was enough to be by your side as your little sister. But why? Why, why, why were you never interested in me?! Why did you take my devotion for granted?!"
The sorrow that had built up for so long finally exploded. Tears streamed endlessly down her face, mixing with the blood on the floor. She lifted her head, which had been hanging limply, and met Lorian's eyes.
"You know something? The attention you never gave me... Cloud gave it so easily."
When they were alone, Cloud focused solely on her. It should have been a given, but it made her feel incredibly happy.
"Thinking back on the last decade or so felt so empty... But being with Cloud made me forget all that. At some point, I even started to enjoy myself."
I hate to admit it... I really do...
"But I have to. I think I love Cloud."
She smiled, a rare, radiant smile.
But that beautiful smile slowly faded.
"Brother, I've been thinking. The last time I was with Cloud, he definitely didn't have a fiancée. But now he does?"
Timing-wise, Cloud and Frillite got engaged after she and Lorian had left the Prona Kingdom.
"You wouldn't know, but things were good between us then. If things had gone well... if we'd had a little more time, we could have become official. But you ruined it."
Blood trickled from her tightly bitten lip. At the same time, her hands squeezing his neck tightened with all her might.
"You ruined everything. You ruined my life! Take responsibility. Take responsibility and die!"
"Gack... Gack..."
"Die. Just die and get out of my life!"
Veins bulged on her arms as she strangled Lorian with all her strength. With his throat constricted, blood welled up and completely blocked his airway. Lorian's pupils glazed over, and then the light faded from them completely.
The hand gripping her arm fell away, and his pale face slumped forward.
Lorraine released her hands.
Freed from her grip, Lorian didn't move.
"He's dead... He's really dead..."
Lorian was dead.
Her brother was dead.
The Hero of the Kalita Kingdom was dead.
It didn't feel real.
Perhaps it was a defense mechanism.
She knew, subconsciously, that if Lorian died, she, who had come to the Empire with him, would not be safe either.
And yet, she had killed him.
The realization hit her anew. She tore her gaze away from Lorian's corpse.
She took off her bloodstained dress.
There was blood on her bra as well, but she didn't think to take that off.
Wearing only a fur coat over her undergarments, she left the room and walked down the hall. When she reached Cloud's room, she opened the door without knocking.
The room was empty.
He'll be back eventually.
Lorraine sat on the edge of Cloud's bed and waited.
Before long, the door opened, and he walked in.
"Lorraine?"
She walked toward him, his expression one of clear surprise. As she moved, she asked herself.
Why did I come here? I know nothing will change, even if I do.
'...Maybe I just want to end it all.'
Let my last hope, Cloud, turn his back on me, so I can give up on everything with a clean heart.
That seemed to be her intention.
Accepting this, she shed her fur coat without hesitation.
His eyes, which had been filled with confusion, now widened in shock.
Yes, that's the reaction I expected.
It's okay. I understand.
"Cloud."
Since I understand, let's just get this farce over with.
With empty eyes and a voice devoid of all expectation, Lorraine continued.
"I'm pregnant."
The moment he heard those words, Cloud pulled her fiercely into his arms. Her eyes widened like saucers as he gently stroked her back and said.
"It's okay. I'll take full responsibility."