Chapter 19

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Chapter 19 – Original’s Arranged Fate (1)

The novel’s title, which rules the world where Evelyn was born, was 《At the End of the Journey》. If there is a story that must be known to understand the flow of the original plot, it’s the background of the current Emperor of the Hereos Empire. The late Emperor of the Empire had a total of seven sons and three daughters, and the current Emperor, the fourth Prince, ascended to the throne after a fierce battle with his siblings. The current Archduke of Fedora was the 6th Prince of Hereos and supported his older brother, the 4th Prince, during the political conflict, and was given the Grand Duchy as a reward. The other princes and princesses were defeated in the war along with the families that supported them, and were mostly purged after the current Emperor ascended to the throne. Among them was the family of Cesar, the male lead of the original story. The Arangis Duchy, which was already extinct twenty years ago.

The Arangis family had originally supported the second prince and was destroyed after being sentenced for treason two years after the fourth prince ascended to the throne. According to the plot, Cesar was the sole survivor of the Arangis Duchy. Cesar’s mother had managed to escape from the scene of the slaughter and died while giving birth to him. After that, he was raised by his nanny and other vassals who fled with his mother. Thanks to this, he vowed to take revenge on the Emperor from a very young age.

The background of the original novel was also the reason why Ethan was now being carried on a stretcher while covered in blood. Taking the droopy Ethan from the carriage, the knights stopped in front of the Castle.

“Ah… ”

The moment she found him covered in blood, Evelyn’s face paled. Her eyes, which had hardened, saw the sharp cut on Ethan’s stomach. Scarlet liquid dripped down and wet the Great Castle’s ground. Evelyn couldn’t keep her eyes on it, so she lowered her gaze to the ground. What greeted her this time was an arrow baptised in blood. One, two- the arrows increased in number one by one. Because Fedora’s knights were pulling arrows from Ethan’s back.

Feeling dizzy, Evelyn shut her eyes tightly. She couldn’t tell if the agitation she felt was due to Ethan, who was gravely injured, or because of the original plot she tried so hard to deny. One thing was certain: Evelyn didn’t wish for today to happen.

She bit her lip and blamed herself. She was so lost in her thoughts that she didn’t even know Ethan had left the castle. She spent her time in her office without knowing anything, as she had even prohibited all of the servants from entering the office.

And here was the result.

Ethan was attacked as in the original story and returned to the castle with serious injuries that put his life at risk. The fact that he was attacked also meant that he had ignited the fuse of revenge that Cesar had been preparing for a long time.

The main story had begun in earnest.

There were no reports of arrival from those she sent to Heros.

Nevertheless, it began.

‘Soon, the Imperial Capital of the Hereos Empire will burn and the Emperor’s head will be cut off.’

Targeting Ethan is an incident that Cesar planned for the starting point of the big event. This was because only by killing him outside the territory of the Hereos could Cesar minimize the chaos that will arise after he ascends to the throne. He’s trying to cut off Ethan’s head so that he doesn’t try to get revenge as he did.

Ethan’s maternal grandfather, Duke of Orman, who lives in the Imperial Capital as the current commander of the Imperial Knights, will also die with the Emperor. Sylvia and Prince Orman were also missing, but the original story stated that they were later found dead. From Ethan’s point of view, isn’t it more than enough to promise revenge?

The Duke of Orman was a loyal follower of the current Emperor, so it was a family that had to be eliminated to usurp the throne. And the current Emperor’s biological younger brother, Archduke Fedora, must also be included in the target’s list.

It was highly possible that the Archduke, who was returning to the castle, was also attacked.

‘You knew it.’

Evelyn knew that this day would come. Still, drunk with Ethan’s warmth, stupidly…

She felt terribly pathetic and hated herself.

Now that Fedora’s bloodline was threatened, the original heroine must be by Cesar’s side. Ignorant of the victims of the sword of the man she would fall in love with.

Evelyn thought she was once more suited to the role of a Princess than a heroine who knew nothing. Because she loved Fedora, where she was born and raised, and tried to stop anyone who was trying to break through the family for revenge. In fact, Evelyn in the past tried to eliminate Cesar over and over again. However, no matter how carefully she prepared her sword, he always escaped.

The original never allowed the main character to die. The result was only failure, and the only thing she learned from those efforts was to give up.

When she saw the day had arrived, she couldn’t help but drop her head helplessly. Don’t turn a blind eye to past enlightenment and comply. It would have been nice if she had given up calmly instead of hoping for useless things because she was swept by vain emotions.

If she had done that, she wouldn’t have experienced the dizzying feeling that dragged her down to her feet.

‘Ethan didn’t even go near the hunting grounds.’

Originally, the raid should have taken place when Ethan visited the hunting grounds. Archduke Fedora, who went to the hunting ground with him, was also injured. This creates a situation where only Evelyn is left to give them a blood transfusion to save them.

Now, the two of them didn’t even go to the hunting grounds, but the original was trying to lead the story to its predetermined ending.

‘In the end, it’s like this.’

When Evelyn opened her tightly closed eyes, she heard an urgent voice as if they had been waiting for it.

“Princess, we need a transfusion!”

Ethan was covered in red blood and breathing faintly, while Philman had lost consciousness.

From Fedora’s knights, who brought them to the Castle, to the busy physician and servants.

It seemed as if only Evelyn’s time had stopped in such a chaotic place.

“Princess!”

However, the urgent call made her come to her senses. Even at the moment of realizing the omnipotent existence of the original again, she had to move instead of despairing.

“Take the Young Master to his bedroom. We are also preparing for blood transfusions.”

‘Thank God.’ Her voice didn’t shake at all. Taking a deep breath, Evelyn tried to comfort herself.

It wasn’t surprising at all. Didn’t she know not only the original story but also her own future from an early age?

Although she wavered at the last minute but …

She already knew it, there was no reason to feel hurt again.

Instead of collapsing miserably, she just had to stand with her back upright and leave this place without a fuss. While Evelyn struggled to comfort herself, Ethan on the stretcher passed her.

An unusually cold hand grabbed her wrist.

“E…”

She felt like she was about to cry as she looked into Ethan’s gold eyes, so blurred that he couldn’t focus properly. She was uncertain whether it was because the person who had been infinitely affectionate to her was in danger, or because her own future had arrived. Whatever it was, she had to control her desire to cry for the time being. Ethan lost consciousness in the meantime, and his hand dropped. Immediately afterward, Evelyn’s hard voice followed.

“What are you doing without moving?”

The servants hurriedly moved Ethan to the bedroom. As she stepped through the long blood-stained hallway to his room, Evelyn saw Ethan lying like a corpse in bed. For a moment, she stopped breathing. She thought he was already dead.

‘I know he doesn’t die, but why?’

“Princess, the- the blood transfusion…”

Before Evelyn’s emotions had solidified into a proper form, a physician who brought a magic toolbox connected to a needle approached her. Leaving her scattered thoughts and emotions behind, Evelyn rolled up her sleeves with a calm expression on her face.

‘My blood might not be used, but the result will not change even if I try to change it.’

Even if she tried hard to hide it, if the original doesn’t allow it, it’s a meaningless action. In the end, the original will somehow reveal her identity when the necessary moment comes.

‘If it’s going to happen either way, just do it now.’

She couldn’t stop worrying about when her identity would be revealed, nor could she stop being shaken by hopes while wasting her emotions.

The brief hope she had in Ethan’s warmth was the last for Evelyn. The last thing she had held in her grasp crumbled, leaving nothing behind. Evelyn had already been exhausted for a long time and did not reject the original plot, which was right in front of her.

“Hurry up.”

Then, they will know Ethan’s and her blood types are different. When she realized the absolute existence of the original work again and was crushed by it, she chose to comply instead of resist, as the stinging pain climbed up her forearm.

The concept of blood transfusion existed in this world and the technology that made it possible also existed. It was thanks to the research of a wizard in the Kingdom of Yutra who discovered the concept of blood types four years ago. The concept spread across the continent in less than a year.

Since then, magical tools for transfusion had also developed rapidly. Of all things, it became possible in the era of Evelyn’s birth.

‘The origin of medicine is very different from the medicine of my previous life, and the kind of blood type is also different.’

In this world, blood has properties and characteristics. Properties can be seen as the concept of blood type, and characteristics can be said to be evidence of blood kinship. It is impossible to have different characteristics between blood relatives. If the characteristics of the parents are different, one of the two will be inherited, yet Evelyn didn’t possess any of the characteristics of Archduke Fedora or his wife.

So, it couldn’t mean anything else but being the characteristics of someone else.

‘Probably my paternal characteristics.’

The original work stated that Evelyn had nothing to do with the blood of the Archduke. Thanks to this, Ethan was in danger of dying, but…

In case of emergencies, quite a number of employees of the same blood type as the direct line of the Archduke were employed. Of course, the safest way was to receive blood from blood relatives. Because for one in ten, there were cases of seizures and death even after transfusions of blood of the same type. The only way to avoid side effects is to transfuse blood from direct relatives with the same characteristics.

This was the main reason the Castle’s physician asked for a blood transfusion from Evelyn.

Red blood flowed out through the transfusion tool brought by the physician.

Evelyn watched it silently and closed her eyes remembering the wizards and physicians she had bought herself four years ago.

‘I should’ve given up then.’

If I had, I would be resting comfortably somewhere else by now.

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