NOVEL WEB
Chapter 28 – Pursuit (1)
[Translator – Peptobismol]
Chapter 28 – Pursuit (1)
“…Ugh.”
My whole body creaked as if it were broken.
I barely managed to swallow a groan amidst the assaulting pain.
My vision was blurry, and my head was pounding.
I struggled to sit up, but even the strength to do so seemed elusive. Slowly, I turned my head to look around.
It was an ordinary guest room in the palace.
It seemed like someone had moved me into the room after I lost consciousness.
I tried to piece together my fragmented memories.
Truth serum.
Mana outburst.
And…
“…Luna Winfred.”
Just because I drank a truth serum, my mana went haywire.
If it weren’t for the situation I found myself in, even I wouldn’t have believed it so easily.
“Haah…”
A sigh escaped me at the unexpected turn of events.
How much time had passed since I lost consciousness?
Diana must be wondering what happened to me by now, left alone in the mansion.
My mind was in turmoil, rendering me speechless.
There’s no time to waste here.
As I tried to get up from the bed, something caught under my foot.
When I glanced down, I saw Luna lying on the bed, face down.
“…”
What’s going on with her?
How long has she been like this?
I stared at the sleeping Luna, feeling a sense of bewilderment.
As I looked at her rather pale face, it seemed it was quite a shock as I collapsed before her, vomiting blood.
I couldn’t understand it.
The woman who despised Kyle more than anyone else, now clinging to him with obsession.
Simply inheriting memories from the previous run wasn’t enough to establish a causal relationship.
There must be something hidden that I’m not aware of.
Or it could be another trick of this damn system.
Yeah, there must be a reason.
But…
“…What do I care.”
I’m not curious.
I don’t want to know.
There are other pressing issues at hand.
[Scenario Progress: 35%]
Already 35%.
I wish I could just erase the progress rate from my mind altogether, but that’s impossible.
If the progress reaches 100% before obtaining the Relic, I can’t predict how things will turn out.
Tsk—
I clicked my tongue as I was about to get up from the bed.
“Kyle?”
Perhaps she sensed my movement.
Luna, who had awakened, was now looking at me with an indescribable expression.
“Are you feeling better?”
“…”
“Can you hear me? Can you see properly?”
Luna asked me anxiously.
“Please… say something, anything…”
Enough, move aside.
Just as I was about to snap at her sharply.
“Cough—!”
There was a trace of blood on my hand.
It seems like the aftereffects haven’t completely subsided yet.
It’s okay.
This is a problem that will resolve itself with a little rest.
However, Luna’s face as she looked at me was drained of color, as if she had seen something she shouldn’t have.
“Just a moment. Just wait. I’ll call a doctor right away.”
“I wish you’d just leave me alone.”
“Now that you’ve regained consciousness, you need to take medication…”
“There’s no need.”
With a strained voice, I interrupted Luna’s words.
“My mana is just a bit tangled inside.”
“What?”
“A few days of rest will fix it, so just leave me alone.”
“…”
A sense of refusal surged within me for a moment.
Why does she keep appearing and annoyingly pleading?
Calling a doctor right now wouldn’t be of any help in the current situation.
There are no noticeable signs of internal damage due to the mana outburst.
There’s no way a proper diagnosis can be made with a routine examination.
Moreover, occurrences of mana outburst itself are extremely rare.
One of the basic conditions for mana to go haywire is the amount of latent mana within the body.
In other words, with a moderate amount of mana, an outburst wouldn’t even be noticeable.
“Kyle’s mana stat was insane.”
Moreover, the phenomenon of mana outburst itself has not been properly researched yet.
Calling a doctor would just result in empty words about organ damage or incurable diseases.
[Translator – Peptobismol]
Of course, it’s all nonsense.
If I eat well and rest properly, and stabilize my mana, everything will be fine.
That’s when it happened.
“…Lies.”
“What?”
“You’re telling me you collapsed while vomiting blood just because your mana got a little tangled? Do you expect me to believe such a ridiculous excuse?”
Luna asked, her voice tinged with despair.
“…I know I’ve done unforgivable things.”
Her desperate voice trembled.
“Even this incident… and everything from my childhood.”
Luna knelt down.
“Everything…”
Luna Winfred.
The woman who was more sharp and ruthless than anyone else in the Winfred family.
“Everything, I regret it all.”
She apologized to me with a fragile voice as if she would collapse at any moment.
“…”
Regret.
That short word echoed in my mind.
‘What is she doing?’
Looking at Luna out of the corner of my eye, she was more sincere than ever before.
Even if I couldn’t bring myself to spit out words of anger to her right now.
Even if I were to turn my back on her in frustration.
Perhaps, under the guise of repentance, she would endure any pain steadfastly.
Shocking.
The situation unfolding before me.
“So.”
I paused, then slowly spoke.
“What do you have to say?”
Luna tightly closed her eyes.
Dark circles appeared under her eyes.
“…At first, it was to protect you.”
“To protect me?”
“Yes.”
Luna managed to steady her trembling breath.
After a moment, she slowly began her story.
“While walking through the corridors of the mansion, I accidentally overheard the Duchess’s conversation. I heard about their plan to assassinate you the next day.”
“…”
“I was scared. At that time… you were the only one for me.”
“…”
“So, I had no choice but to propose another solution.”
To save Kyle.
At least it would be better for him to be alive than to die senselessly.
In the process, Luna, who was caught for a ridiculous reason, was eventually stripped of her position as a successor candidate.
Forced to her limits at a young age, Luna committed an irreversible mistake.
The story was cliche.
So much so it almost made me yawn.
– …Misunderstandings.
– Back then, I was young too, and there were reasons why I had to do what I did.
Luna’s voice faintly echoed in my ears.
I see.
So that’s why she clung to Kyle.
Because of regret from the past.
Wanting to escape from boiling guilt.
And because Kyle was all she had left after losing everything.
“…Ha.”
Laughter escaped me.
I couldn’t help but laugh.
“It must have been tough.”
“…”
“Having gone through such a disaster just to try to save me, you must think I’m terrible.”
“…Kyle.”
Luna called me with a choking voice.
I sharply retorted without caring.
“I feel the same way.”
“…”
“Just like you did, I hated you. To a terrible extent.”
As I grumbled, Luna’s complexion turned pale.
“Why now?”
If she had told me sooner, Kyle wouldn’t have been so twisted.
“I would have rather you let me die.”
If that had happened, I wouldn’t have been transmigrated.
Luna’s face turned shocked.
I know it’s a meaningless outburst.
Neither my possession of Kyle’s body nor being trapped in this damn world has anything to do with Luna.
That’s why I’ve lived forgetting the past.
I’m not really Kyle, and delving too deeply into the suffering Kyle endured would only ruin my soul.
But what can I do?
All the pain I’ve experienced through Kyle’s body, all the loneliness and despair, feels like mine at this moment.
Why did I end up in Kyle’s body?
Why was Kyle born with such a damn fate?
“A mistake made when you were young.”
“…”
“Because of that mistake, my life was ruined.”
Kyle is already dead.
I know that everything I’m saying now is pointless.
However, at this moment, the despair and loneliness I experienced through Kyle’s body felt like mine.
Tears welled up in Luna’s reddened eyes.
She stood still, breathing heavily as if in a daze.
“Luna Winfred.”
Luna’s startled face trembled roughly.
“Just looking at your face makes me sick.”
Tears slowly fell from Luna’s eyes.
She couldn’t speak and clutched her chest.
Whether she said anything or not.
I moved to leave the room.
Leaving Luna, who was sobbing, behind, I threw one last remark.
“So live your life now.”
Because I’m leaving this world.
* * *
I left the palace as it was.
Most of the materials for making the Elixir were planned to be procured from the Royal Family, and on my way out, I exchanged light greetings with Rudine.
It’s been a full 5 days since Diana was ordered to wait at the mansion.
There shouldn’t be any problems, but I couldn’t help worrying about Diana.
After finishing my business, I hurriedly returned to the mansion.
It took me a while to find the mansion as it was located in such a remote place, but it didn’t take long for the mansion to become clear as the distance shortened.
But…
“Oh, open the door!”
“Outsiders are not allowed to enter without Master’s permission.”
“What are you talking about? The owner of this mansion is not your Master, it’s me!”
“That is not important.”
A woman squatting in front of the gate, presumably Diana, was heard arguing with someone.
“Huh?”
After a moment, I met eyes with the woman who was making a fuss about opening the door.
The face was familiar.
“Aren’t you a bit late?”
Corrupted Priest, Merlin Trivia.
She waved her hand playfully with a smile on her face.
“Stranger.”
[Translator – Peptobismol]
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