Chapter 6
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He screamed, raged, grieved, and with each repeated life, he grew numb.
The comrades who once laughed and joked with him slowly began to be perceived as mere background, not even human.
He no longer felt vengeful towards the enemy who had once plunged him into despair.
No matter what he cut down, he no longer felt guilt.
He did not know how to stop.
He repeated death and failure thousands of times, all to protect one person.
He would start again when he died, rise again when he fell, desiring only one ending.
A future where Odelia lived.
"......"
Odelia watched his endlessly repeating life.
"Please stop......"
All the memories he had experienced washed over Odelia like a tidal wave.
It was an overwhelming amount of memories that she could not possibly handle.
Even though she was clearly still watching his memories, the amount of information was so vast that she could not understand most of it.
Odelia was simply overwhelmed and speechless before one truth.
A man who lived for her, who died for her.
A man who looked only at Odelia, from the beginning to the end of every timeline.
Hundreds of failures.
Thousands of deaths.
He died and died again, rose and fought again, and did not stop even after losing everything.
Repeat, repeat, and repeat, invariably repeating.
The Gem of Regression grew smaller and smaller.
The ring he never took off his hand, even as he repeated regressions.
It tightened so much that her heart could not beat, and her vision slowly darkened.
Love, hatred, compassion, devotion, regret, anger, madness.
Each and every one of those emotions tore Odelia's mind to shreds.
"......Stop it!"
Odelia reached out her hand without realizing it.
Towards him, who was drawing his sword again in the memories that continued without end.
"Please stop now, please......"
Even though she knew it was a time that had already passed.
Even though she knew better than anyone that you were no longer in this world.
"You've done enough. I'm fine. I'm fine. Why do you have to go this far for me......"
But before Odelia's outstretched hand could reach him.
Ludville died.
Finally 'truly' died.
Saving Odelia.
He fell into eternal rest.
She thought it was strange.
Even right before the divorce, his body was gradually weakening, and he seemed to be just waiting for the day he would die.
But from some point on, he regained his energy and felt like he was coming back to life.
Enough to be able to work as a healer in the newly settled village.
She thought a miracle had happened.
But, in fact......
"It was a miracle you created."
He accomplished something that even God could not do, with a human body.
She squeezed her eyes shut and clenched the ring tightly.
The blue light emitted by the Gem of Regression was now so faint that it seemed about to go out.
As if to announce that Ludville's memories, no, his life, had ended.
"......"
Odelia unconsciously prayed.
If there was a next life.
If such a thing really existed.
She hoped that he would live only for himself.
"......Without getting involved with someone like me."
Please be happy.
At that moment, light burst forth from the ring on her hand.
And......
Crack―
The Gem of Regression cracked, then scattered into countless fragments.
"......!"
The blue shards adorned the void like a galaxy.
The lights rushed towards Odelia in an instant.
At the same time, everything changed as if caught in a whirlwind.
Light blurred, sound twisted, and time reversed.
And darkness.
"......Huh!"
The next moment, Odelia gasped for breath and opened her eyes on the damp floor.
'Where is this......'
Damp stone walls.
The rough, cold stone floor beneath her knees.
The Cardel family's underground, secret room.
"Cough......!"
Her stomach twisted roughly.
Something crawled up her esophagus.
Blood.
Hot, sticky, and fishy taste filled her mouth.
Red blood flowing from the corners of her lips stained the hem of her white dress.
It was a familiar pain.
At that moment, the ground vibrated slightly.
Soon after, explosions rang out one after another like fireworks, and shouts and cheers echoed from afar.
"Long live the Cardel family!"
"Long live the Descendants of the Dragon, the blood of heroes!"
"Glory to the Luminere Empire!"
The signal of that day, repeated every year.
"......I've returned."
To that day six years ago, when Ludville came and proposed a contractual marriage to her.
Odelia took a ragged breath and briefly looked down at the ring loosely fitted on her thumb.
The ring she had been with Ludville for a long time since the Gem of Regression was embedded in it.
In the center, the gem that had barely maintained its shape was completely gone, leaving not even dust behind.
Giving Odelia one last chance.
"......Why."
Clearly, she had wished for him to be happy without getting involved with someone like her......
What kind of twist of fate was it that she had returned to this point in time?
Clang―
At that moment, she heard the sound of the lock turning.
Odelia unconsciously half-raised her body.
Had she unknowingly harbored expectations?
The look in her eyes quickly turned cold as she confirmed the other person's face.
It was Gawain.
The eldest son and official successor of the Cardel family, Gawain Cardel.
He was Odelia's brother from the same womb, but he was 'luckily' born without any abilities.
Thanks to that, he was called the messenger of God and was able to become a hero representing this empire.
Odelia's lifeblood was the stepping stone for his glory.
"You shouldn't think about resting just because the ceremony is over. It's just the beginning. There's a mountain of things you need to Purify."
Odelia listened to his words without really paying attention, and continued to look towards the door.
All her nerves were focused on Ludville.
Then Gawain snorted and let out a sneer.
"Why? Do you think someone will come to save you?"
"......"
"Don't be selfish. If only you endure, the entire empire will live. Bearing that heavy responsibility is what a Purifier is."
Gawain slowly moved his steps and looked around the room, which was heavily stained with the smell of blood.
His tone was endlessly calm, but it contained a chilling cynicism.
"For the sake of the family, for the sake of the empire...... If you don't want to abandon the sacrifices of dozens of ancestors who have devoted their lives so far, drop the nonsense."
"......"
"The moment the Purifier fails to fulfill her role, this empire, you, nothing will be left."
At those words, Odelia openly let out a hollow laugh.
Gawain's face froze in an instant.
"What's so funny?"
Once, she believed.
The mission that Cardel spoke of, the fate of the Purifier.
But not now.
The current Odelia had all the 'memories from before the regression' and 'Ludville's memories.'
There was no way she wouldn't know that they were glorifying sacrifice and packaging obedience as a duty.
"The empire will collapse because of me alone?"
"Yes, so......"
"That sounds like you can't do anything without me. Even though you're the empire's hero."
"......"
"It seems you're admitting that you have no ability yourself."
Sparks flew from Gawain's eyes.
Displeasure, embarrassment, and wounded pride were mixed together and burning fiercely.
"......How dare you."
He gritted his teeth and glared at Odelia.
"How dare you evaluate me with that filthy mouth?"
His footsteps heavily resonated on the floor.
Gawain, who had come right in front of Odelia, whispered in a low voice like a snake.
"Don't be mistaken. You are the most insignificant being in the world. Unlike me, the successor, you are just a tool in this family."
He grabbed Odelia's collar tightly and lifted her up.
"Someone like you can be killed and buried, and that's the end of it. Then the next Purifier will be born. Just like it's always been....... What do you think that means?"
He twisted the corners of his lips upwards.
It was an arrogant and sharp smile that only someone who didn't know the word defeat could make.
"It means that God is always on my side."
Odelia suddenly had such a thought.
She had lost her life, had her lifespan stolen, and had even been deprived of the minimum rights as a person.
She had been deprived of everything, but she had never once taken revenge on them.
'......I see.'
Finally, the one and only opportunity to break free from the shackles of the past and make her own choices had come.
Having made her decision, she slowly tilted her head and quietly asked back.
"Is that so? Then prove it."
