Chapter 65
Chapter 65
-----------------------------------------------------------------
Translator: MadScientist
Chapter: 65
Chapter Title: Prelia Forestian
-----------------------------------------------------------------
“G-Goddess...?”
Ariana gazed up at the sky like an abandoned puppy.
Her eyes trembled in disbelief.
“Saintess. It felt like you were trying to pull something on me... I'll let it slide this once.”
To be honest, I was extremely displeased, so I glared at her with eyes full of hatred.
In response, Ariana collapsed to the ground as if deeply hurt.
“T-This can't be...? Mother, why...”
Ariana stared at me with hollow eyes.
For some reason, it felt satisfying, so I shot her a mocking sneer.
“Kuh...”
Was it the final blow? Ariana clutched her chest and toppled backward.
“Hah, serves you right.”
I let out a scoff at her sorry state, then brushed past her toward the stairs.
As I climbed the stairs, I ran into Blind for some reason.
He had definitely left saying he had business... Did this bastard lie?
“What?”
“This voice... Sir Is?”
He seemed to recognize me by my voice and smile, but suddenly his expression hardened.
Belinda beside him did the same.
She even began channeling mana, preparing to cast a spell on me.
"Twisting Sensation!" "Chaos in the Mind!" “Urk! Fuck, what the...!”
Even I couldn't resist spells cast simultaneously by Blind, the Mage Tower Lord, and Belinda, the Vice Tower Lord. In the end...
“I... curse you...!”
I lost consciousness and collapsed.
***
Blind and Belinda, who had knocked Is out.
The Mage Tower Lord Blind asked Belinda with a grave expression.
“Belinda, Sir Is...”
“Yes, he's been hit by black magic. You can tell just by looking—his hair and eye color have changed.”
“I see... This seems serious.”
Belinda called other mages to carry the unconscious Is away.
Then, as the two descended the stairs...
“Hic, ugh... sob...”
“...”
They came upon Ariana crying as if she'd lost her country and Prelia frozen in place.
“Are you both alright?!”
Blind rushed over urgently.
Belinda hurriedly followed behind him.
Seeing Blind head to Prelia, Belinda went to Ariana to check her condition.
“What happened in the short time we were gone...”
“I-Is... Is...”
“!! What did Sir Is—”
“He kept his distance from me...”
“...?”
“The Is who always treated me more preciously than anything... Waaah...!”
“I... see. Calm down first, let's go inside.”
Belinda thought to herself, 'That's all it takes?', but she didn't dare say it aloud—who knew how even a saintess might react? For now, she took Ariana to the duty room.
And on Prelia's side...
“...Sister Prelia.”
“...Ugh, urk...!”
“Sister!”
Prelia retched and staggered.
Blind couldn't see her face, but he could guess her state and reached out to support her.
“I-I'm... urk! Fine...! I...”
But Prelia insisted she was okay and refused Blind's help.
Instead, she placed a hand on his shoulder and caught her breath for a moment.
“...Sister, Sir Is—”
“I know. He's a victim too. But... those memories buried deep in my mind from that day... even this much is enough to torment me.”
Prelia took several deep breaths.
When she lifted her head again, a smile was on her face.
“Alright! Let's go catch the wicked black mage who did this to our Is and turned the Hero into a woman!”
“Yes, let— Wait, what did you say about the Hero?”
“Oh, you didn't know? The Hero got hit too!”
Prelia shouted it with an innocent smile.
“...This is bad.”
Blind's expression turned deadly serious as he urgently grabbed her shoulders.
“Sister, if even the Hero was targeted...”
“I know. It means they've gotten stronger than back then. But... I kinda expected as much!”
“...The Reverser.”
-Flinch.
Prelia shuddered at the name she hadn't heard in ages but had never forgotten.
“So it came back after all...”
“...It was inevitable.”
Prelia patted Blind's shoulder reassuringly.
“For now... we met Is, right?”
“Yes. We knocked him out for the time being.”
“I'll talk to him. We need to know what happened.”
“A-Are you sure you'll be okay, Sister?”
Blind voiced his concern for Prelia, who would have to face painful past memories, and she...
“I'm fine. That child was my last chance from the start... If I can't face him, it's all over.”
Seeing her already resolved expression...
Blind could only nod.
And so, Prelia headed to the room where Is lay.
“Hoo...”
Prelia steadied her breath, steeling herself to confront the remnants of the Reverser.
She lowered her gaze to look down at Is.
His hair had changed from light gray to a near-black shade, and he lay bound tightly to the bed with special reinforced ropes.
“Poor thing...”
Prelia gazed at him sadly and gently stroked his cheek before closing her eyes and chanting a spell.
"Awakening Mind." -Whirr...
Mana flowed from Prelia toward Is's head.
As it seeped in, he soon opened his eyes.
“...What the fuck.”
Is rolled his eyes, trying to grasp the situation.
His gaze landed on Prelia.
“...Ah, the first thing I see when I wake up...”
He grimaced as if he'd seen something he shouldn't have.
Prelia clutched her chest at the sight of him shifting from an innocent puppy-like smile to looking at her like filth.
'Calm down. I can't avoid this forever.'
Prelia took another deep breath.
Forcing a smile once more, she spoke.
“Is. I know you're really pissed right now, but could you just answer my questions?”
“Fuck why should I.”
Though he was using polite language out of courtesy, his tone dripped with irritation.
Prelia poked his cheek with her finger.
“Ow...”
Is turned his head away irritably.
If he hated it that much, he could've bitten her, but it seemed it wasn't that bad—he stopped there.
'He doesn't like me that much. Just that much.'
Truly 'reversed,' she thought as she continued fiddling with his cheek and asked.
“Is, do you remember how this happened to you?”
“Huh? Why the hell would I tell you?”
“Hmm...? Is that so?”
Prelia's eyes gleamed coldly for a moment.
“Then I guess I'll have to torment you until you talk.”
“What?”
Prelia grinned slyly like a cat spotting a mouse.
She immediately pounced.
“Come here!”
“Argh!”
Prelia clung to Is atop him.
Unable to shake her off with his whole body bound, he struggled for a while before giving up.
“Haa... fuck. What are you doing?”
“Just answer my questions? You wouldn't know, but... I have someone I need to get revenge on!”
“What, the Reverser?”
-Halt.
“...How did you know?”
“Well, with the Black Knight's info and the gender-swapped Hero, it's obvious.”
“I... see.”
Prelia's expression darkened briefly.
“Is. Then won't you tell me? I need any info I can get on the Reverser.”
“Why?”
“I told you. Revenge.”
“Kill them?”
“I want to. But... hmm...”
Prelia pondered whether to reveal her secret.
After much thought, considering it was Is, she decided to tell him.
“Um, Is? This is a secret only Blind knows...”
“What.”
“Actually... I was once reversed by the Reverser.”
“Oh, really?”
“Huh...? That's a lukewarm reaction...”
“Should I be surprised?”
“Well... no. Anyway, the thing I got reversed on was my 'emotions.'”
“Yes.”
“Back then, I was super timid and gloomy? Holed up in my room studying magic, screaming 'Kyaa!' at the mere sight of sunlight?”
“Yeah, yeah.”
“But even I had one merit: I loved my family more than anything.”
“Yes.”
“My dad was human, mom an elf, so we weren't looked upon kindly by society, but I never once resented my parents. Not when Dad the hunter failed a hunt and we ate porridge for days, not when Mom could only teach me beginner magic.”
In truth, her family had little, but they loved each other more than anyone.
But disaster strikes without warning.
“Then one day, the Reverser appeared.”
And that day, our family fell apart.