Chapter 217: Endless suffering
Evangeline paused as she heard the elderly woman’s answer.
’For the sake of the kingdom and the citizens...does that mean this is a rebellion? Is Lilias the one in the wrong?’
Considering that she had used Vox Imperium to force the answer out of her, the old woman was most likely telling the truth.
’I need the details. I don’t have enough context yet.’
She opened her mouth.
⪡"Elaborate. Why is it necessary for the crown to—"⪢
But before she could finish, the floor beneath their feet cracked due to the battle between Lilias and the burly man. Both she and the old woman fell down below.
Lilias had a speed that was unmatched by even the burly man, despite both of them being Phase Four. Maybe the golden energy enveloping her body had something to do with this.
Even though they were using mana for their infusion art, their clash was purely physical in nature, yet the devastation caused by the shockwaves alone was on the same level as the spells Evangeline normally used.
But suddenly, someone else joined their fight. It was a lean man with long bronze hair tied behind his neck. He was using two short blades covered in flames, moving as though he were dancing.
The fight that seemed one-sided moments before now looked even as Lilias fought against two opponents attacking her from two sides. But even in two against one, Lilias seemed to be holding her own.
Evangeline slowly stood up from among the debris. Her body was too resilient after having reached Phase Three for her to receive any significant injury from such a fall.
’I need to get answers!’
She hurriedly walked through the rubble to reach the old lady lying just ahead. But as she reached her and was about to ask once again, Evangeline suddenly froze.
There was a sword sticking out of her chest.
"-Guh?!"
She coughed up blood before she could understand anything.
She slowly turned around, only to find a young man standing behind her with both his hands gripping the sword that was stabbed right through her.
His face was twisted in anger as his intense gaze met hers.
He gritted his teeth and spat.
"I don’t know who you are, but how dare you try to harm Master? You must be an enemy. Die!"
He suddenly pulled out his sword.
"-Ughhh!"
Evangeline’s body fell to the ground covered in rubble. Moments later, a familiar cold feeling gripped her with its icy claws as she lay there motionless. Slowly, that cold feeling spread through her entire body as she experienced a numbing sensation.
Not long after, her world turned dark.
∞∞∞∞∞∞∞∞∞
"Aaaghhh!!!"
Evangeline opened her eyes with a scream, only to find a ceiling before her eyes.
"Huff... huff..."
She pressed her hands to her chest, trying her best to calm her wildly beating heart. Her body became drenched in sweat moments later.
’A-Ah...’
The memories and experiences of her final moments on Earth surfaced in her mind. Those memories and experiences combined with the sensations she had experienced moments ago.
Her breathing grew rougher with every passing moment, and her entire body trembled like a leaf caught in cold winds as she hugged herself tightly.
’I-I... I j-just died.’
***
Lilias stared at the girl curled up on the bed, shaking while hugging herself tightly. There was a look of absolute terror on her face.
She sighed.
’Poor thing. It must be her first time experiencing death.’
In the previous loop, Lilias had seen the girl’s corpse lying amidst rubble. There had been a stab wound on her stomach and no other injury aside from that, so she was guessing that the girl’s death had been swift.
Seeing her now, Lilias was reminded of the time she had experienced her first death. Her state had been just as bad as the girl’s, if not worse. Moreover, since that was when she had discovered the loop in the first place, she had suffered from utter terror and confusion at the same time back then.
’Well, I do feel bad for her, but I have other priorities that take precedence.’
The girl was not going to die. It would take her a few loops, but she would adapt to the sensation of death at some point.
But as she was about to stand up from the bed, she suddenly felt someone grab her hand from behind. Turning around, Lilias saw the girl grabbing her hand with an utterly desperate look on her face.
She spoke in a pleading voice.
"P-Please... h-help me..."
Lilias paused as her old memories suddenly resurfaced.
During the first few cycles, she remembered feeling helplessness. She remembered reaching her hand, desperate for someone to grab it and take her out of this never-ending hell.
But no matter how much she had cried or screamed, nobody came to save her. Everyone she saw just wanted to kill her. Every person looked at her with animosity in their eyes.
Back then, she had felt just so alone.
Lilias gritted her teeth.
’Useless girl...’
There wasn’t much time left.
’Ah, looks like this loop is going to be wasted.’
She hurriedly lifted the girl and ran out of the room. Exerting her authority over the castle, she made sure all doors and windows were closed and applied a barrier to them for increased security. Running through the empty hallways, she jumped down below and entered one of the hallways on the side.
She navigated the path with practiced steps, having taken the same route several times.
Finally, she arrived in a particular room and locked the door from inside.
After that, she removed the mattress and the tile from the floor, revealing a secret underground path. This was a safety shelter that was made for the royal family to hide in and survive during a crisis.
She used to come here often and hide during the beginning of the loops. It was a pretty good place to hide, and nobody ever found her until sunset. It had been like a safe shelter for her in the pits of hell.
’Of course, I have come to learn that hiding is only going to prolong my suffering.’
She hurriedly entered the underground path with the girl and made sure to place the tile from above, covering it back.
After climbing down the stairs, she arrived in a small room. There was a torch on all four sides, illuminating the interior completely. A small bed was in one corner, a few sacks filled with grains in another corner, and a large tub covered with a lid, which she knew was filled with water.
She laid the trembling girl down on the bed and sat down beside her.
After hesitating for a bit, Lilias caressed her head and spoke in a soft tone.
"It’s okay; nobody is going to hurt you here. We will stay here until the start of another loop."
The girl only trembled in response. But slowly her trembling died down, and her breathing stabilized. But even then, she remained quiet for some time.
Seeing that the girl had regained her senses, Lilias sighed and lay down on the bed as well.
’I think I’ve been feeling tired for a while now. Using a loop for rest isn’t a bad thing.’
The only sound that could be heard in the room was the rhythmic sound of their breathing. But then, the silence was broken as Lilias heard the girl speak to her in a weak voice.
"How many times... have you experienced this?"
’How many times, huh?’
Lilias hesitated for a bit, then slowly opened her mouth.
"...I don’t remember."
All she could remember were the loops in the beginning as well as those that were important for her to remember. It was not that she had truly forgotten them. It was just that she had experienced too many memories that were similar to each other, making them hard to organize.
The girl’s voice came again.
"I don’t understand. If you are the ruler of this kingdom, then why is nobody here to protect you? And the people attacking you, just what did you do for them to want you dead?"
She opened her mouth to answer, but no words came out. In the end, all she was able to manage was...
"I don’t know..."
She was indeed vaguely aware of the reason, but in the end, she didn’t know for sure. They wanted her dead because they believed that her death was necessary for the prosperity of the kingdom. But...
"I, or any of the previous rulers, have never done something that could’ve made the people or the kingdom suffer. If anything, my mother had loved this kingdom dearly and had wanted to make it prosper even more. But for them to come after my life despite all that...
There could be nothing more ungrateful than that. It was despicable.
It was evil.
She gritted her teeth.
"You asked why there is nobody here to protect me? How could anyone be here to protect me? The ones who were supposed to are the ones leading this attack in the first place."