NOVEL WEB Chapter 13
Chapter 13
—–CROW—–
* * *
The humid summer sea breeze ruffled his white hair.
It had already been 30 minutes.
Livan, who had left the cabin without a word, was standing on the deck, just staring at the sea, and I hesitated from afar, debating whether or not to approach him and offer comfort.
“Leave him alone. He must be in shock.”
Ryan, who was beside me, said.
“He said they took him in as an orphan when he was young and raised him like their own child.”
“The professors?”
“Yeah. Among them were his adoptive parents who even gave him their last name. They were good people, he said. Imagine how shocked he must be to hear they were involved in human experimentation.”
“But, do you believe everything I said?”
“Honestly, I have no choice but to believe it.”
Ryan sighed.
“There were too many things that didn’t add up. Those professors, even as they were unjustly dying, they should have cursed Duke Vasenberk to death or something, but they were strangely calm.”
“…….”
“If what you say is true, everything falls into place. Father, who usually calculates his crazy acts, openly destroyed a whole territory. There must have been a reason compelling enough for him to do that.”
Ryan looked at me and added,
“And since you know the details of something that happened before you were even born, the only explanation is that you overheard something within the family.”
I nodded. Ryan stared intently at me.
…He must be suspicious, right?
“You’re suspicious of me, aren’t you?”
“Yeah.”
“…….”
“There are a lot of things I want to question you about right now. But I’m not going to. Do you know why?”
“Why?”
“Because it’s cowardly to pressure a young girl.”
Wow. That’s a very thoughtful statement….
“Using my size to intimidate you or threaten you to force you to talk would be no different from child abuse, so I won’t do it. I can’t handle going back to prison.”
“Yes.”
I chuckled softly.
From the beginning, I had spoken with the belief that Ryan wouldn’t grab me by the collar and threaten me.
“Please continue to take me with you. Then I’ll tell you everything slowly….”
Actually, the smart thing to do would be to keep my mouth shut from now on to avoid being questioned.
‘But there’s no time for that.’
Since we decided to be on the same side, there was a lot of information we needed to share. Also, if he happened to be thinking of getting rid of me, that wouldn’t do, so I had to reveal as much information as possible to show my usefulness.
“What? Were you scared I’d abandon you?”
“…….”
“Don’t worry. I plan to keep you by my side and watch you. No matter how I think about it, you’re suspicious and you know too much. I’m sure you’re Father’s spy.”
“Huh?”
As I was taken aback, Ryan scratched his forehead.
“…More than that…”
He said with a slightly embarrassed look.
“Actually, the Bless you possess, I desperately need it right now.”
“Ah.”
“How desperate was I? Desperate enough to consider kidnapping my third sister, who possesses that Bless.”
“That’s a crime…”
“I know. But my unexpected daughter showed up in front of me with that Bless, of her own volition.”
“…….”
“It sounds too cold to say I’m using you, so let’s say we’re helping each other out as father and daughter. I’ll take responsibility for my young and powerless daughter, and you’ll fulfill your filial duty to your father. How about it?”
“Huh? Okay! Sounds great!”
“Then, deal?”
Ryan grinned and held out his fist, palm up. I made a fist and bumped it against his.
“Deal!”
Wow.
Plan A
Pretend to be powerless and get kicked out of the family → Success!
Meet Ryan and follow him → Success!
Figure out Ryan’s true intentions → Success!
Form an alliance with Ryan → Success!
I finally succeeded in the last stage of Plan A!
I laughed for a while, then asked cautiously,
“But back at the inn…. You asked me if I was a mutant, right?”
“Yeah.”
“Blesses don’t overlap.”
That’s what Ryan had said.
Even after witnessing the healing Bless
‘No, it wasn’t suspicion, it was almost certainty. Definitely.’
I was curious why he was so sure.
“Um, since Dad wouldn’t know because he’s powerless, I’ll tell you about my experience. One day, I suddenly realized, ‘Oh! I can use esper abilities!’ That’s how I found out.”
“Hmm. Yeah, that’s right. I heard that’s how most people awaken.”
…Pretending not to know.
“I also naturally knew that my Bless was healing-type and how to use it.”
“Yeah. That’s how it would be.”
“I knew my third sister had the same Bless as me, but I never thought it was strange….”
I glanced at Ryan cautiously and asked,
“But is that strange?”
“…….”
Ryan, who was silent for a moment, stroking his chin, looked at me and said,
“Yeah. It’s strange to me. Blesses can’t overlap.”
“Could I ask… why you’re so certain?”
“Curious?”
“Yes.”
“Hmm.”
Ryan nodded and gestured for me to come closer. I approached nervously.
Ryan bent down and whispered in my ear.
“…If you’re curious, five hundred gold.”
“Ugh.”
* * *
August 5th, Imperial Year 922.
A rainy dawn.
The fifth son of the Vasenberk family, 12-year-old Ryan, suddenly awoke from a deep sleep.
“Ah!”
A short gasp. And exhilaration.
The boy sat up abruptly, laughing as he exhaled roughly.
‘I too…’
He trembled, repeatedly turning his shaking hands over in front of his eyes.
‘I too was an esper.’
That was the fact that Ryan learned like a lightning bolt that dawn.
“Blesses just manifest suddenly one day.”
“What your Bless is, how to use it, how strong it can become if you train it… you just… instantly understand all of that.”
His uncle’s words were true.
His uncle, the only person who still treated Ryan kindly, even though he was increasingly ostracized by the family for not manifesting esper abilities by the age of twelve.
What he taught was true.
Moreover,
‘It was the same esper ability as my uncle’s!’
If he revealed this fact, Ryan would be welcomed back into the family.
His father would no longer ignore or get angry at him, but welcome him.
The boy ran with a heart full of excitement.
I’m going to tell everyone. That I’m also an esper. That I’m not my father’s shame.
“Father…!”
Ryan froze.
His father, who had said he was going on a territorial inspection, had already returned. With his two older brothers.
For some reason, covered in blood, and stepping on something…
“Ah.”
What was sprawled out tragically on the floor was none other than his uncle’s corpse.
“Aaaack!”
Startled, Ryan fell back on his bottom and trembled.
His father looked at him like an insect, as he always did.
“Why, why, why did you kill Uncle…?”
Ryan asked.
“Why did you kill him…?”
It was a truly foolish question.
As if he didn’t know what kind of person his father was.
“Brother. Why do you always upset Father with useless questions? Can’t you tell just by looking? It’s because Uncle kept disobeying Father’s orders.”
His second oldest brother, Elliot, answered for him.
Leaving the shocked Ryan behind, his father and two brothers continued their conversation casually.
Ryan stared blankly, wide-eyed, at his dead uncle.
Then.
‘Ah.’
He realized, very instinctively.
‘It was because Uncle died.’
The law of espers.
‘That’s why I was able to manifest my esper abilities.’
Why did his esper abilities, which had been dormant for 12 years, suddenly manifest that dawn while he was sleeping?
Why was the manifested esper ability the same type as his uncle’s?
There was only one answer.
‘Blesses don’t overlap.’
Ryan instinctively came to that conclusion.
Esper abilities, an unknown power whose origin and nature even the espers of the family themselves hadn’t fully grasped.
It seemed to be passed down in a form of ‘succession.’
If his uncle hadn’t died, Ryan would have continued to live believing he was powerless.
“By the way, Father, destroying Conrad without justification will make the aftermath a bit complicated.”
“That’s right. Only espers could do something like that. We need an excuse for killing all the residents too….”
His two brothers were having a conversation he couldn’t understand.
“Ah, don’t worry.”
And his father.
He pointed at Ryan, who was sitting there pale-faced, and said,
“Everything that happened today will be blamed on him.”
—–CROW—–