Chapter 280: Lainella's Fate is Decided by Lainella (73)
Chapter 280: Lainella's Fate is Decided by Lainella (73)
Meeting the boy was a matter of fate.
At least, that was what the young Ria believed.
The girl’s memories had been misaligned from the very beginning.
One day, she simply woke up to find herself in an unfamiliar mansion. Every memory prior to that moment had been erased, as if someone had intentionally wiped the slate clean.
Knowledge remained.
Language, mathematics, and social norms were already ingrained in her mind. She simply didn't know how she had acquired them; the process was a total mystery.
That fact terrified Ria.
She was surrounded by a strange environment and strange people. She understood her own name and her social status, but those labels felt hollow. The girl couldn't even truly feel who she was.
'Ria Percus.'
The name was nothing more than gift wrap. If she couldn't fill the shell with substance, it meant nothing. Ria even struggled to understand the concept of 'family.'
Whenever her parents looked at her, their faces were etched with pain. Or they would hold her with eyes full of pity and compassion. They were good people, and Ria respected them.
But that was all. They weren't people she could truly open her heart to.
However, there was one person who was different.
"Ria, have you eaten?"
The boy would always pop up out of nowhere and ask her so familiarly. The timid Ria couldn't even bring herself to meet her 'brother’s' eyes.
"Y-yes, I have..."
"Good. You’re still not used to the mansion, are you? I’ll show you around the territory for a while."
Ria’s first impression of the boy was the faint scent of sweat.
He swung his sword from morning until night. Swordsmanship masters from distant lands came to train him personally. He was always covered in dirt, his hands calloused.
He was often struck during sparring. His childhood friend, Celine, was a tomboy, and it was common for them to get hurt while playing together.
If it had been Ria, she would have burst into tears many times over. But the boy never once cried. Instead, he would only offer a bitter smile when he saw Ria fretting over him.
The boy always comforted her.
"...It’s okay, Ria."
It stayed that way for years.
He never once showed any sign of hating or disliking her. He never looked at her with those estranged eyes that others sometimes did. In fact, he even took on embarrassing roles just for the sake of the anxious Ria.
'The Knight' and 'The Princess.'
She thought he was treating her a bit too much like a child, but...
She loved it. All of it.
She loved the way her heart raced every time she met him. She was happy in her daily life—having her head patted, being praised, and even the occasional bickering.
Ria felt truly fortunate. Fortunate that she could be his younger sister, and that he was her older brother. She offered prayers of gratitude to the Heavenly God countless times, yet it never felt like enough.
But at some point, Ria realized that the pounding in her chest, the fluttering joy, and the deep sense of happiness she felt in his arms were wrong.
The realization came simply.
She realized that the emotions the boy felt were similar to hers, yet fundamentally different in nature. Before she knew it, he was pushing her away.
"Ria, no matter how close we are, siblings shouldn't..."
That day, a powerful question lodged itself in Ria’s mind.
Why?
The boy loved Ria, and Ria loved the boy. Shouldn't their desires align?
Ria wanted to close the distance between them. She wanted to be with him always and find happiness in his embrace.
But she wasn't allowed to. It was because Ria was his younger sister.
The life she had lived, which felt like a sweet dream, collapsed in an instant.
It was true. The emotions Ria harbored weren't sibling affection. Once she realized this, she was tormented by an agonizing distress.
Why, for what reason, and how?
It was cruel and mean. If he was going to push her away eventually, he should have done it from the start. He shouldn't have let an affection-starved child misunderstand and dream such dreams.
For days, she spent sleepless nights biting her nails and trembling. Ria tried to give up her feelings for him, but the first love she had nurtured for years would not easily subside.
It was a love that could never be realized anyway.
The boy’s feelings were clearly different from the girl’s, and it was wrong to trouble him using her feelings as an excuse. Because Ria still loved him, she wanted him to be happy, even if it wasn't with her.
But she couldn't do it. It was maddening.
She wanted to tear her heart into pieces and throw away only the parts that loved him. If she did, how much of her heart would she have to discard?
Seventy percent? No, eighty? It might even be ninety.
He was the only family and the only love the girl held in her heart. Those two irreconcilable roles tormented Ria endlessly.
Nevertheless, time heals many things.
Though her heart still stung from the love that could never be, Ria gradually began to overcome the wound. To be more precise, it would be more accurate to say she became an adult.
She learned to compromise with reality.
Yes, even if we can't be together that way, we can still live together.
They could never be lovers or a married couple. But perhaps one day, she could spend the rest of her life with him, just the two of them.
Every footprint Ria left was stained with the boy’s colors.
Her dream of independence through a merchant guild. Using the profits from that guild to pay her Academy tuition. Everything she did was for Ian.
She planned to use the debt she created to one day buy Ian’s future.
That ambitious plan ran aground before long. Ria was left stunned by the unbelievable reports of the boy’s exploits that reached her one after another.
"...This makes no sense."
But the truly nonsensical event occurred shortly after.
Thuck. The sensation of a blade piercing flesh.
Ria stared blankly down at her hands. They were stained with blood.
The blood of her beloved brother.
"No..."
It was a lie. This couldn't be reality.
Just as she shook her head, trying to deny the truth before her eyes—Thuck. The sickening sound echoed once more.
Tears streamed down Ria’s cheeks. The sensation of stabbing someone was far too vivid.
"No, no, no... this can't be happening..."
And finally, one last Thuck.
Ria’s devastated eyes turned toward the boy. He looked as if he wanted to say something, but only a surge of crimson blood spilled from his lips.
Before his trembling hand could even reach the girl, he collapsed and lost consciousness.
Like a corpse.
The girl screamed.
"A l-lie... it's a lie. I... how much I love you, Brother... Me? Why me? No... No, no, no! NOOOOOOOO!"
Ria opened her eyes immediately after.
Her body was drenched in a cold sweat from the horrific nightmare. With trembling eyes, she curled into a ball, shivering.
It had to be a dream. No reality could be more cruel than that. How could she stab her beloved brother with her own hands?
It was a terrible sin, and through the murky guilt, a pair of eyes came to mind.
Golden eyes that looked at her as if she were a monster.
It felt as if those eyes were denying the only bond that connected Ria and Ian. It felt like proof that she truly was a monster.
How could a monster stay by a knight’s side? The place beside a knight belonged to a princess. A monster was something to be subjugated by a knight.
"I-I'm sorry. I'm sorry. I'm sorry... N-no! I was... hic, I was wrong... P-please don't hate me. Don't abandon me..."
Ria huddled in a corner somewhere and cried for a long time.
She only came to her senses when a certain thought suddenly crossed her mind.
What happened to Brother?
Only then did Ria’s tear-blurred vision clear. The musty smell unique to old wood brushed against her nose. It was a space without a single window, but Ria knew.
She was a merchant, after all. This was the inside of a carriage.
Furthermore, Ria’s hands and feet were bound by restraints. She was being treated literally like a monster.
But Ria didn't have the luxury to care about that now. She scrambled across the floor and threw her entire body against the carriage door with a thud.
"Open the door! Open it right now! W-what happened to my brother? Is he alive?"
Her mouth felt bone-dry. Even if she met him, Ria might have avoided him and hidden away. Even so, she had to know if he was safe.
No sound came from outside.
Growing more frantic, Ria threw herself against the door again and again. Over and over, until her desperation reached its peak.
She continued until the bolt of the carriage door suddenly shattered, allowing Ria to breathe the outside air. It was a feat of superhuman strength she would normally never possess, but Ria didn't even realize it.
She simply gasped for air and looked around.
Even though Ria had escaped, no one paid her any attention. They were all staring blankly at something.
Ria stumbled to her feet and followed their gaze. And then, she could only catch her breath.
The scene before her provided the answer she had so desperately sought.
Thunder and lightning crashed down.
With every flash of light amidst the thunderstorm, a colossal figure made of countless corpses let out a roar. A massive army was locked in a bloody battle with the corpse.
The sheer aftermath of the clash was enough to clear the surrounding blizzard.
Several individuals, their swords wreathed in Aura, were confronting the giant.
And among them, one man stood out the most.
"...Brother."
Every time a sword or fist was exchanged, the giant’s limbs were invariably blown apart. The giant staggered backward.
Uwoooooooo—!
The roaring echoed in her ears, loud enough to make her head ache.
Looking at that sight, Ria could only realize one thing.
The boy who would enjoy a simple happiness with just the two of them was gone. He had already grown far too large.
That realization sliced through Ria’s heart like a cold blade.
The girl quietly clenched her fists.
She didn't even notice the blood seeping from her palms.
The battle was entering its final stage.