348th Episode
Lea approached her older brother cautiously.
Lea had hoped that her brother was just playing a mischievous prank, but she still felt uneasy.
So, she earnestly thought about whether she had made any mistakes that might have angered him.
But no matter how much she thought about it, Lea couldn’t recall doing anything recently to upset Ray.
“…”
Lea felt quite wronged.
She disliked the situation where, after her brother returned and she thought she could relax, she now had to be cautious again.
If this was her brother’s joke, Lea resolved to give him a piece of her mind once it was over. She clung closely to Bella.
Until then, Ray’s eyes had been fixed on the ground, focusing and unfocusing repeatedly.
“…!”
The dazed Ray startled when he sensed someone nearby.
Stepping back a few paces, Ray stood there blankly for a moment before pointing at any random mansion.
“Let’s… let’s talk inside.”
Anyway, all the buildings around here were empty.
The only people left in this area were those who were doomed to die and those watching them.
As Ray entered an empty mansion nearby and opened its door, Bella and Lea followed him inside.
Lea, clinging tightly to Bella as she stepped into the mansion, looked around with sparkling eyes at the expensive-looking items within.
Curiosity overwhelmed her, making her wonder if she should touch the things she saw.
While Lea tried sneaking glances to get permission, Jimy suddenly picked her up and carried her to a room slightly away from the others.
After Jimy and Lea moved aside, Ray walked forward, rubbing his temples, and approached the table.
Bella briefly glanced at the room Jimy had entered before sitting across the table from Ray.
“Our son…”
Bella reached out, grabbed Ray’s hand, and sighed in relief again.
She had worried a lot about whether Ray would return safely from the Demonic Realm.
Bella wished more for Ray’s safety than for victory or defeat, and fortunately, Ray had returned unharmed.
However, the returning Ray didn’t look well at all.
Looking at Ray’s face filled with fatigue and worry, Bella asked anxiously.
“Son, is there something you want to tell mom?”
“…”
Ray couldn’t bring himself to speak easily.
Bella wondered why Ray was hesitating like this.
Perhaps he was going to cut ties with her for future success.
Although it was shocking, Bella secretly felt sorry that her existence and status might have become a stain on Ray, so she was prepared for such a situation.
With a warm smile, Bella asked Ray again.
“Son? Speak up. Don’t worry.”
“A… uh… well…”
Ray stammered like someone lacking confidence.
“W… well, mom… uh… mom…”
After struggling endlessly,
Ray muttered absentmindedly without realizing what he was saying.
“Lea’s royal identity has been exposed.”
“…”
“…It’s okay. Even so, it’s okay. It’s really okay. If we just kill Lea, everything will be fine. Then there won’t be any problems. Everyone will be happy.”
“…”
Bella couldn’t immediately understand what Ray was talking about.
His voice reached her ears, but her brain couldn’t properly process the words.
He said that their identity had been exposed, so they must kill.
Kill…? Who…?
So… he said they must kill Lea.
Then everyone can be happy.
“A, son…”
Bella tightened her grip on Ray’s hand reflexively and asked in a trembling voice.
“T, that… what do you mean…?”
We must kill Lea.
If we just kill Lea, there won’t be any problems… everyone will be happy…
Bella thought she must have heard it wrong and shook her head.
“Son… no, right? Mom heard it wrong, right?”
Creak…
Ray stood up without answering.
Then he began walking briskly toward the room where Jimy and Lea had gone.
The cheap iron sword hanging at Ray’s waist swayed with each step.
Staring blankly at the swaying iron sword, Bella suddenly felt an overwhelming sense of unease and tried to stop Ray.
“Son…! Just wait…! Son…!”
When Bella tried to stop Ray, he ignored her and continued walking.
Overpowered by strength and size, Bella fell to the floor but quickly grabbed Ray’s ankle.
“Son! No! No! Ray!! You can’t do this!!”
Even as Bella screamed and held onto Ray’s ankle tightly, Ray dragged her along as he continued walking.
Realizing she couldn’t stop Ray, Bella desperately scratched the floor with one hand while holding onto his ankle with the other.
With an unpleasant screeching sound,
Bella’s nails broke and were torn off as they got caught in the grooves of the floor.
Her bloody hands kept slipping.
Still, Bella tried to hold onto something to stop Ray, but Ray ignored everything and kept walking.
“Ray!!!”
Crack…
Bella’s fingers gripping the drawer bent backward and started breaking.
At that moment, Jimy burst through the door, saw the scene, and quickly pulled Bella away from Ray after noticing the trail of blood leading to her.
Struggling and shouting, Bella tried to shake off Jimy’s hands.
“Ray!! No!! Ray!!!”
“Bella, calm down for a moment!”
Jimy tried to calm Bella, who appeared overly agitated.
But it wasn’t easy. Bella exerted incredible strength in her struggles, even troubling Jimy.
Had she been a sturdy knight, he could have subdued her easily, but pressing too hard on an ordinary person might cause serious injury, leaving Jimy perplexed as he tried to restrain her.
Meanwhile, Lea, who had been following behind Jimy, met Ray at the doorway.
The cries of her mother and her father trying to stop her, along with her brother staring down at her, created a chaotic scene.
Terrified, Lea stretched out her hand towards Ray, seeking help.
“Brother…?”
Whap!
Her vision spun.
A thud echoed, and she felt her breath being cut off.
After coughing for a moment, Lea struggled to exhale the blocked air and fumbled around on the floor.
Before she realized she had been kicked, Lea painfully raised her head.
The gleaming blade was pointed at her neck.
Though it was a cheap iron sword, it was sufficient to split human flesh.
Lea stared blankly at the cold blade and belatedly looked up at Ray’s face holding the sword.
In Ray’s eyes aimed at Lea, there was undeniable hostility.
Memories of the terrible experiences she had forcedly buried resurfaced in Lea’s mind.
The grotesque faces of the villains who had tried to harm her overlapped with Ray’s face.
This isn’t my brother. It’s a fake. A villain pretending to be my brother.
Lea turned pale instantly and trembled.
Seeing this, Jimy was once again bewildered.
“Ray, just wait…!”
Jimy understood that they had to let go of Lea.
By sacrificing Lea, at least some people could survive.
However, the separation Jimy envisioned wasn’t supposed to happen this way.
He knew it was nauseatingly hypocritical, but he wanted to leave Lea with happy memories until the end.
Playing with her, feeding her delicious food, putting her to bed peacefully… and then letting her go gently.
But Ray’s actions were far beyond what Jimy had anticipated.
Confused, Jimy finally released Bella, who had been wriggling in his arms.
Bella rushed over and hugged Lea, who was struggling to breathe.
“Our daughter…! Our daughter…!”
Hugging Lea tightly with her bloodied hands, Bella’s body shook violently.
Lea, who had been trembling, finally burst into sorrowful tears upon being embraced by Bella.
Her cries filled the room.
Watching this, Jimy stood there half-stunned, covering his face with his hands.
All the while, Ray continued to point the knife at Lea.
Bella crawled towards Ray while holding Lea in her arms.
Grabbing the sword aimed at Lea in her bare hands and pushing it aside, Bella grabbed Ray’s arm with her already blood-soaked red hands.
And then she pleaded with tears streaming down her face.
“Son… she’s your sister, right? Your sister… There must be another… another way…”
Bella repeated this several times.
But seeing the coldness in Ray’s eyes, she eventually burst into sobs.
“Son… I… I can’t live without our daughter…! Our daughter…! Our daughter…! Son, please… Mom will beg you… Whatever happens to me, it’s fine… But not our daughter…”
“…”
Ray pondered.
Who is this middle-aged woman crying and begging persistently for something absurd?
Looking at Bella, Ray felt unfamiliarity.
They had lived under the same roof, shared meals, and built memories together for so long.
Because of this, Ray momentarily felt estranged looking at Bella.
But even so, tracing the wrinkles at the corners of her eyes brought back distant memories of her voice.
Even after losing everything he had while enduring all kinds of insults…
That day, she whispered to him—let’s start anew today… because of you, my son, I’ve achieved my wish…
That day, Ray clenched Bella’s finger with his weak baby fist and swore.
Yes, for you alone… I’ll try to prevent the destruction…
“…”
For your life, and to genuinely gift you happiness without deceit, I risked my life.
Yet… what am I giving up to protect now?
Ray looked at the child cradled in Bella’s arms, who had become everything to her.
Standing there for a long time, Ray finally shook his head.
“Don’t do it.”
“…”
Luna, who had been hiding in the corner of the room and sharpening her mana currents, looked at Ray.
Luna’s silver eyes flared with emotion as her lips moved.
“Ray, stop talking nonsense.”
“Luna.”
Ray gazed out the window at the sky with hollow eyes, then dropped the sword he had been holding.
“Don’t.”
The First Oath (8)
