Side Story – Final Battle [8]
[62]
A future that has now passed by.
In the lost history that Saria glimpsed from Eridanus, all that remained for her was the promise made with Ulte.
Saria tracked down dark wizards to ensure the safety of Resina, as requested by Ulte.
Meanwhile, Locust moved alone, abandoning his subordinates in pursuit of Luna’s presence.
After cutting down a few dark wizards, Saria discovered Locust’s trail and pursued him. Locust, rather than avoiding the sudden pursuer, aimed to decisively eliminate her.
Locust was confident that disposing of Saria would not be difficult.
It was a reasonable judgment, but ultimately, Locust’s neck was severed by Saria’s blade.
In the end, Luna was left alone.
Abandoned by her parents, she possessed an immense talent that only threatened her survival, leaving her isolated.
“…”
Johanna couldn’t easily understand or accept what the vision before her eyes implied.
Approaching Johanna, whose face still bore signs of bewilderment, Saria smirked.
“Have you never felt any sense of dissonance? Like how Ray, despite being born with extraordinary talent… could shine so brightly without any guidance while living at rock bottom?”
That wasn’t something possible merely because of possessing great talent.
Even with remarkable innate abilities, without the mentorship of a wise guide, one is usually eroded by their environment.
However, at an age when most people are ignorant of worldly matters and act on basic desires, Ray began to dismantle and rebuild his surroundings.
He restructured the social system and even continuously improved it, making it run smoothly without significant resistance.
This was possible because Ray carried memories from his previous life and had been an elite who received higher education in that life.
“Ray… he was both an apostle who received El-Lam’s revelation and an impurity in this world.”
A dark wave of light swirled around Saria as she swung the Sacred Sword.
Johanna helplessly got caught in Saria’s sword strike and sank deeper into the wave.
As the erosion intensified, Johanna began to dissolve into the waves.
Simultaneously, Saria faced scattered fragments of the ‘original history’ she had stolen from El-Lam.
“…?”
In the vision, a filthy child on the brink of death appeared.
Johanna didn’t immediately recognize that the emaciated child was her younger self.
The child survived numerous near-death situations thanks to its tenacious will to live.
However, surviving these crises did not improve the situation.
Johanna lived as a vagabond, stealing to survive purely out of instinct.
Phillips County was home to many kind-hearted individuals.
Jimy and Matthew, who had retired to the countryside, helped orphaned children within their means.
Count Philip was a relatively open-minded and compassionate noble among the aristocracy.
However, the good people of Phillips County were unable to lead any drastic societal changes, nor did they aim to.
Bestowing charity and dismantling deeply flawed systems are entirely different matters.
Neither Jimy, Count Philip, nor anyone else had a compelling reason to risk tremendous danger and loss to push for reforms.
Time passed, and Johanna grew increasingly accustomed to poverty, humiliation, and violence.
Life was miserable for Johanna, and indeed, for most abandoned orphans, life was terrible and tragic.
“…”
As Johanna collapsed under Saria’s assault, she continued to witness fragments of the bypassed history.
The Johanna in the vision was entirely different from the current Johanna except for the color of her hair and eyes.
There was no sparkle of vitality or hope in her green irises.
The Johanna in the vision was alive but merely existing.
Amidst this, the exile incident of Crown Prince Carinus occurred.
Although slightly different from the actual historical events involving Ropheiren of the Imperial Magic Tower, the Emperor decided to strip Crown Prince Carinus of his position as Crown Prince by fabricating another justification.
This incident led to severe tensions between the Empire and the Rubia Kingdom.
As a result, Phillips County suffered the most damage due to the intense conflict between the Empire and the Rubia Kingdom.
For Johanna, who was living as a vagabond, it was an exceedingly cruel time.
How wretched can a life of merely surviving be?
How terrifying a hell life would be without Ray’s salvation.
Johanna witnessed fragments of such a life through the visions.
“…”
Carinus accepted the Blessing of the Dark God and recovered from fatal injuries, resurrecting.
Although Carinus became a follower of the Dark God, he was not chosen as an apostle due to his lack of innate talent.
The conflict triggered by Carinus between the Empire and the Rubia Kingdom worsened.
The Empire confirmed Carinus’s survival and suspected that he had received the blessing of an illegitimate entity.
The Empire could not tolerate the disgrace brought upon its name by Carinus remaining as a stain on the empire.
Eventually, the conflict escalated to the level of full-scale war, and amidst the chaos, Johanna was lured and kidnapped by the promise of a few pieces of bread.
Despite realizing it was suspicious, Johanna, desperate not to starve, made the wrong choice and was captured by followers of the Dark God to be used as a ritual sacrifice.
“…”
Johanna was merely one of hundreds of sacrifices meant to die during the ritual.
But Johanna did not die.
Only Johanna survived the ritual conducted by the followers of the Dark God, who themselves perished in the process.
Johanna was chosen by the Dark God.
Recognizing Johanna’s potential, the Dark God gave her an opportunity.
With the Blessing of the Dark God, Johanna was no longer a powerless vagabond. The girl who had always been trampled violently by others began to reveal the violent desires harbored in her heart by trampling others.
And Johanna eventually obtained the Command Blade once owned by Carinus.
In the bypassed history, Johanna reflexively reached out to correct her own misguided actions.
Already nearly incapacitated, Saria crushed Johanna beneath her.
CRACK!!!
Overwhelmed by Saria, Johanna briefly passed through several incomprehensible visions.
Then, Johanna encountered a younger version of Saria in the vision.
The young Saria in the vision was being dragged away in chains.
“…”
Due to the exacerbation of the issues surrounding Crown Prince Carinus, the emperor in the diverted history decided earlier than in the actual history to finalize the successor issue.
Ernst, the Empire’s Swordmaster, was involved in the death of the second prince.
Although Ernst didn’t personally cut off the second prince’s head, evidence of his involvement in the prince’s death was easily discernible.
The Emperor covered up Ernst’s sins for the greater good and appointed Poibos as the successor.
Then, the Papacy and the southern forces led by Alexander moved, capturing royal family members and kidnapping Saria.
The plan was successful, albeit imperfectly.
However, a variable arose afterward.
At the time, Saria had already achieved her second enlightenment.
Thanks to the second enlightenment, Saria identified one of the masterminds behind the capture of the royal family and her own kidnapping: the high-ranking demon ‘Eridanus.’
Saria boldly requested assistance from Alexander, the Margrave of the Empire and Cardinal of the Holy Order, as well as a great Swordmaster.
Saria angrily rebuked Alexander, and the young girl’s arrogance was not dismissed lightly.
As a result,
Alexander succeeded in destroying Eridanus’ physical form.
They were played by the demon.
That was a critical flaw for Alexander and the South.
Politically speaking, concealing the matter should have been considered appropriate.
However, Alexander was not someone who failed to properly assess the gravity of the situation.
After informing the royal family about the appearance of the high-ranking demon, Alexander returned Saria’s custody to the Prizzran Clan.
Of course, there were political deals involved in this process.
In exchange for Alexander and the Southern faction not publicly addressing Crown Prince Carinus’ betrayal, the Central Empire also overlooked the almost treasonous actions taken by the South.
That was the core of the deal.
Such transactions were possible because many in the upper echelons of the Empire recently felt a sense of crisis over the continuous occurrence of ‘illegitimate incidents.’
And their judgment was sufficiently wise.
Meanwhile, ‘Lea’s existence was uncovered much earlier than in the actual history.
Since there was no powerful authority to protect Bella and Lea, it was naturally impossible for an ordinary civilian to conceal the existence of royalty for a long period.
CRACK!!
Johanna, thrown aside, rolled through the elaborately adorned visions in her battered body.
Johanna sat up and looked around.
The audience hall of the imperial palace came into view.
[What do you intend to do?]
In the vision, Ernst knelt respectfully and asked for Poibos’ intentions.
Poibos, having ascended to the throne earlier than in the actual history, fell silent for a moment in contemplation.
The bloodline of the first prince was discovered.
By that point, all commoners involved in the case, including Bella, had been secretly executed in secret.
Many who were unaware of Lea’s existence also ‘disappeared’ to silence them.
It was for the sake of secrecy.
For the Empire, the very fact that a lowly prostitute bore royal blood was an intolerable insult and an unforgivable crime against the state.
This was not a matter where showing mercy could even be considered.
Lea’s background was neatly dealt with.
Bella, the other children she raised, and those who helped her were all erased.
What remained was the disposition of the young child who couldn’t fully comprehend her mother’s death.
Of course, even so, she was still royalty.
No one except the Emperor could arbitrarily decide Lea’s fate.
Poibos finally spoke after much deliberation.
[… I wish to bestow mercy.]
Lea was a being who could claim no legitimacy.
Due to the failure to resolve the situation early, the scandal of the first prince was already widely known across the continent.
Being the offspring of the first prince could no longer serve as proper legitimacy.
Moreover, if we consider whether her mother was of proper standing—she was born of a prostitute.
No sane noble would find legitimacy in Lea.
However, if, by some chance,
If a hero of unparalleled greatness emerged from her lineage, achieving countless feats and safeguarding her legacy, then it might become a serious problem.
But such a scenario was nothing more than an impossible fantasy.
Keeping Lea alive posed no risk for Poibos to bear.
Therefore, as a human being before being an emperor, Poibos could extend minimal compassion and mercy to Lea.
Poibos’ decision was partly influenced by the late emperor.
In recent years, the late emperor had suffered greatly due to the succession issue and was known to feel affection for the daughter of his deceased son, despite his short remaining life.
Thus, Poibos did not remove Lea.
Ernst also followed Poibos’ order without expressing even minimal opposition, knowing that Lea could pose no threat to imperial authority.
Lea grew up without knowledge of her past.
She was only granted minimal cultural education.
There was no opportunity for her to learn magic or swordsmanship.
Nevertheless, Lea’s teachers noticed her exceptional talent.
Poibos heard reports about Lea’s talent but paid little attention to it.
Even the most beautiful flower will not bloom without water and sunlight.
Managing her like this would cause no problems.
However, not long after,
Poibos made a different decision.
Because an extinction-level crisis was approaching the Empire and the continent.
