Chapter 287: Lainella's Fate is Decided by Lainella (80)
Chapter 287: Lainella's Fate is Decided by Lainella (80)
Those who cannot trust anyone become lonely.
Distrust was a kind of curse.
To the extent that one cannot believe in others, their self-overconfidence only grows stronger.
A person who cannot offer their back to another can lean on no one. Thus, they must bear all the burdens of life alone.
Even if they are eventually broken, unable to withstand that weight.
In the end, they trust no one and slowly die in that manner.
That was 'Pride,' the first sin sired by Delphirem.
Pride gave birth to the cause of death known as 'suicide.'
It was a paradox: because they believed only in themselves, they ended up killing themselves.
Therefore, suicide was the loneliest death, yet there were occasionally those in the world who found themselves in even more miserable straits.
Humans who could not even trust themselves.
Their lives were closer to hell.
It meant they lacked even the minimum certainty required to sustain a life.
The same was true for the girl who once thought of herself as 'Ria Percus.'
She could no longer believe in anything.
She didn't even know who she was anymore.
The starting line of the nightmare was always the same.
Squelch. She felt the sensation of a blade sinking into flesh.
It was a touch so vivid it made her skin crawl. With trembling eyes, Ria stared at the blood on her hands.
The shabby traces of sin.
The hands of the monster that killed her beloved brother.
"No, it’s not..."
As she breathed out a desperate cry, she saw golden pupils growing dim.
It was the only thread connecting the girl to her first love, and the hue that symbolized the obstacle between them.
'Blood ties.'
What a cruel fate.
And so, Ria's sin became even clearer.
For she was the woman who had stabbed her first love and brother to death.
"No, no, no... It's a lie..."
Muttering only words of denial, Ria buried her face in her brother's chest. She could still feel a thumping heartbeat and a faint breath.
It wasn't too late yet.
Suddenly, it felt as if a light was shining through the pitch-black darkness.
Ria clutched at that thread of hope and lifted her head.
However, the nightmare was only beginning.
Through a vision crumbling into pure white, a new scene was revealing itself.
It was the reception room of the Percus Mansion.
There, a woman with a pained expression could be seen.
Though her complexion had grown wan over the past few days, her beauty still shone.
She was a beauty with hair that seemed woven from silver thread and eyes as clear as pearls.
She was the woman the world called the 'Saintess.'
Her mouth, which always uttered benevolent words, was tightly shut. Her pursed lips showed no sign of opening.
At a glance, she almost looked stubborn.
She was responding with silence to a truth she never wanted to acknowledge.
Of course, it was a futile resistance.
Since the eyes of everyone present were fixed on her, even the Saintess could not hold out for long.
The Saintess, who had been silently avoiding their gazes, finally opened her mouth.
A trembling voice leaked through the gap.
"...We cannot rule out the worst-case scenario."
The language was euphemistic, but the intent was clear.
A chilling silence descended upon the reception room.
Arthur, the Administrator of the Empire, adjusted his glasses while breaking into a cold sweat. Reynold let out a deep sigh with his arms crossed, and Viscount Percus hung his head low.
As for Lady Percus, she seemed to be losing consciousness. Aaron, standing beside her, was barely supporting her to keep her upright.
Surprisingly, the rest of the group remained silent.
Perhaps it was because they simply couldn't believe it.
Because everyone tried to maintain the silence, someone had to speak up.
The one who took on that role was Reynold.
"By the worst-case scenario, you mean...?"
The Saintess hesitated for a while, then let out a wet sigh.
She carefully added her words.
"...It means he may have to return to the embrace of the Heavenly God."
The reality, confirmed once more, was excessively cruel.
Sighs and lamentations broke out from all sides.
Celine and Seria were dazed, and Elsie was glaring at the Saintess with tearful eyes.
The only ones maintaining any semblance of composure were Reto and Yuren.
Reto asked point-blank, as he always did.
"Which side is more likely?"
The attention of the room focused on Reto.
Regardless, he merely asked back with a somewhat urgent air.
"Survival, or death... which probability is higher, speaking dispassionately?"
The Saintess lowered her gaze once more.
It was an ominous sign by any standard.
The faint-hearted Lady Percus squeezed her eyes shut.
In the end, it was the Saintess who could no longer endure the silence.
A faint sob began to color the woman's voice as she answered.
"...The, the latter."
"By roughly what margin?"
The look in Reto's eyes as he asked was almost fierce.
His attitude was like a predator that had bitten into its prey.
The man's eyes had already sunken deep.
It was a declaration that he would not let her go, no matter how much she tried to avoid answering. The Saintess, who had dealt with all sorts of people, could not have failed to realize this.
A painful sigh escaped the Saintess's lips.
Eventually, she covered her face with her two slender hands.
"I-it's still early in the treatment... so we have to wait and see, but at this rate, there is a s-seventy percent chance or higher that..."
"...Don't be ridiculous."
It was a tearful, stuttering answer.
But before she could even finish, there was a girl who let out a growl.
It was Elsie Lainella.
Her two clenched fists were trembling violently. It was impossible to tell how such strength could come from those thin arms.
However, a single teardrop had already formed at the corner of the girl's eye.
As if she could never accept it, she raised her voice and shouted.
"Y-you've kept him alive just fine until now! But now you're saying he might die?! He's alive... he's still breathing! You said you were the Heavenly God's most beloved virgin!"
Every time Elsie took a step forward and burst out in anguish, the Saintess flinched and sobbed.
It was the first time the Saintess had shown tears in front of the group.
That was why Elsie disliked the Saintess even more.
She wanted the Saintess to stand against her with her usual confidence and haughtiness.
To tell her that she could save him, to just wait and see.
But the Saintess could not even dress up words of mere comfort.
Because life was something that precious.
A surge of heat flashed through Elsie's mind.
Staggering, Elsie took another step.
Her eyes were filled with desperate emotion.
"Save him..."
It was a pleading voice.
It was vomited out with a faint sob that had been burning in her throat.
"S-save him... You, you can do it..."
Elsie could not take another step past that point.
She collapsed to her knees, tears streaming down her face.
"I'll do anything, anything... please? O-our! Just save our Lord Ian. You can kill me! So, hic, sob... p-please..."
The momentum of the girl who had been so full of rage vanished in an instant.
Instead, she was now in a state where she would grab the Saintess's ankles and beg.
Unable to bear the sight of his niece's tears, Reynold closed his eyes with a sigh.
The atmosphere grew even more somber.
The one who broke that silence was the Saintess.
"...I."
Choking up, the Saintess stood up.
Her pale pink eyes glared venomously at Elsie.
"Do you think I don't want to save him?! I-I've tried every means... I've done my best! But he was attacked by a subordinate of the Demon God, of all things... T-that's why I've been praying for three days and nights without sleep! If only doing that could bring Ian back to life!"
There was no answer from Elsie.
Only her despair-filled blue eyes were turned toward the Saintess.
The girl was biting her lip, trying her best not to cry. She didn't even realize that doing so only made her look more pitiful.
The Saintess had stood up, relying on her anger.
But with the target of her anger in such a state, there was no way the Saintess could find any more strength.
Eventually, the Saintess's knees gave way.
Supporting herself on the floor, the Saintess spoke in a sobbing voice.
"I-if only he could live..."
She would do anything.
That was the Saintess's unvarnished truth.
If only the enemy Ian had faced hadn't been a subordinate of the Demon God, the Saintess would have been able to save his life.
But the power of the Evil God neutralized the effects of divine power.
The same was true for the power possessed by the Corpse Giant.
Every time a blow landed on Ian, the power of the Evil God had been seeping into him.
This was the result.
Ian's life could only be left in the hands of God.
The Saintess began to pray from where she knelt.
"...Lord, please."
For now, that was the best she could do.
In that bleak landscape, the atmosphere in the room became suffocatingly heavy.
Tap, tap, tap.
Only the sound of someone tapping on the armrest of a chair echoed repeatedly.
The person responsible for that noise was Arthur, the Administrator of the Empire.
He moved his index finger with an uneasy expression, then suddenly stood up.
"I have nothing to say regarding this matter... However, Young Master Ian's heroic struggle will be recorded and remembered forever."
"He isn't dead yet."
The tone was murderous.
Startled, Arthur turned his gaze toward the owner of that voice. There, he found amber eyes burning with a faint rage.
Celine Haster.
Recalling that name, Arthur let out a hollow laugh as if he had made a mistake.
"Of course, that is only a hypothetical. The Sword Duke gave orders to spare no support to save Young Master Ian. The Empire will provide treatment befitting his status... However, there is one problem remaining, is there not?"
Celine's brow furrowed slightly.
The Arthur she had seen so far was not a particularly trustworthy person.
He was faithful to his duties and relatively diligent, but he also possessed the traits of a commoner.
And the reaction of a commoner faced with an unbearable responsibility was generally consistent.
Shifting the blame.
"There is still a monster created by the Dark Cult here. And perhaps... a being who is also responsible for Young Master Ian's death."
Several scenes flashed through Celine's mind.
Arthur had been excessively submissive to Ian. He might have known the truth behind the Dragon Blood Runes Ian possessed.
And the death of a possessor of Dragon Blood Runes carried immense responsibility.
Even if the cause lay entirely with the possessor of the Dragon Blood Runes, it was the same.
That was the nature of the Imperial Household.
But if they could capture a scapegoat, the story might change a little.
Celine's eyes filled with contempt.
"...Are you seriously."
"This is my opinion. It was glossed over because the situation was so urgent, but..."
Before Celine could even finish her sentence, Arthur brought up the main point at an exquisite moment.
His hand pointed somewhere.
Only then did Ria suddenly become aware of her own existence.
In a dark and secluded corner, she saw her own miserable self, trembling while listening to the Saintess's words.
"...Let us hold that monster accountable. She must pay the price for stabbing Young Master Ian with a blade!"
At those words, Ria's breath caught in her throat.