CH 50

I don’t want to do it because I regretted it before.

It’s just like back then.

I don’t want to stay silent and do nothing.

That’s why I’ve prepared myself.

“Drink this!”

“Oh… Nee-sama?”

“This is an antidote potion that I created! It can cure any poison!”

I was particularly cautious about poison.

There is no potion that can cure all types of poison.

That’s why I made it.

So that no one dies from poison.

I learned from a major mistake in the past.

“But… I…”

“Just drink it! You regret it and want to make amends, right?”

“..Yes.”

“Then you have to live and make amends! No one will praise or be happy if you die alone! If you really want to make amends, Celica has to use her power to help lots of people!”

“My…”

That’s how I live.

I will keep living like that, carrying my unending regret and moving forward.

I hope she lives the same way, facing forward.

Not just as a senior who has gone ahead.

As her… sister.

“Stay alive, Celica!”

Without waiting for a response, I poured the antidote potion into her mouth.

It wasn’t the best thing to do, but if I had waited, time would have run out.

As she drank the potion, the poison vanished, and Celica’s complexion began to improve.

The heat slowly returned to her cold skin.

“Onee-sama… I…”

“Aria is right.”

“Yuren-kun.”

He sheathed his sword and smiled.

“Do not make amends in the wrong way. If you want to atone, do it in a way that only you can.”

“Only I can…”

“You’re a Transmutation Master, aren’t you? Then there’s someone around here you can learn from. It’s not too late to start now. Learn little by little.”

Even at a time like this, he wore a gentle face.

Even though he could be angry, it was as if he had already forgiven her.

“Then someday, contribute to my country.”

“Yes.”

And thus, a fate was sealed.

◇◇◇

One week later.

After the post-processing was completed, Yuren-kun and I visited that hill.

The wind blew through elegantly, and our hair waved in the breeze.

“It feels nice.”

“Yeah, the weather is great too.”

Since then, Laurus was put in a special underground prison.

He doesn’t recognize his crime as a crime, and no words can reach him since he doesn’t think of himself as doing wrong.

Now that he is no longer a prince of a neighboring country, he can be judged by the law of this country.

The verdict was to live alone and painfully until death.

Killing him doesn’t make up for the sin.

If he is set free, he will accumulate more sins.

So he will suffer until the end.

“I wish he could be born as a decent person in his next life.”

“Yeah…”

If his birthplace had been different, he might have had a different way of life.

That’s what I try to think.

“Fusaki-kun is also feeling better.”

“Yeah. He was the most seriously injured, but it’s surprising how calm he is.”

After I was put to sleep, Fusaki-kun apparently defeated the remaining bandits.

It’s amazing that you were able to move with that injury, let alone defeating three bandits. I can’t believe it.

Being able to maintain consciousness in pain worked out well, and ultimately, it gave Yuren-kun and the others my whereabouts.

I owe him my gratitude.

And then…

“I wonder if Celica is also doing her best.”

“She’s doing her best. She’s Aria’s sister, so once she decides to do something, she won’t hesitate.”

“I hope you’re right… “

She’s now working at a store in the capital city.

Regarding this incident, she was only threatened and used by Laurus.

It seems like she was also producing poison and other chemicals, but none of it was her own will.

If she had resisted, as a woman, her future would have been bleak.

At first, she seems to have followed out of fear, but gradually her spirit wore down, and she couldn’t think of anything.

She wanted to atone for her sins.

She wanted to do something that only she could do, as a Transmutation Master.

She couldn’t work at the Royal Palace, so I asked for the help to get her a job in the city.

I plan to go and check regularly if she is truly working hard.

“I’m really… I’m glad I could help.”

“Yeah, me too.”

To prevent tragedies from happening someday, we always need to be prepared.

Thanks to the sad and painful past, there are lives that have been saved like this.

“Hey, Yuren-kun.”

“Hm?”

“Do you think I’ve made some progress?”

“——Yes, I can guarantee it.”

I swore an oath here before.

The next time we came here, both of us would have grown.

Everyone knows that Yuren-kun is moving forward every day, not just me.

Whether or not I’m making progress, Yuren-kun is watching over me.

If he says so, then I must be making progress.

“Well, then we have to work harder next time.”

“Yeah, we both know what we want to do.”

“Yeah.”

Yuren-kun’s dream is to make this country a better place.

My wish is to support his dream.

Both of us are looking forward to it.

Thinking about a new tomorrow in a new place.

Crossing the country, surpassing our positions.

We are connected and we will progress step by step.

Eternal Darkness

“Ku, damn it! Let go!”

He was grabbed by strong men and forcefully taken into the darkness.

Even if he resisted, the power difference was clear.

Struggling was pointless, and he was led down a dark staircase.

What awaited him was an iron cage.

There was only one light and one room.

There was no one else.

The men opened the iron bars and threw him in.

“Guh.”

He fell down and when he got up, the iron bars were closed.

He grabbed the bars and shouted.

“What the hell are you doing?! Get me out of here!”

Even if he tried to force it open, he could not move them alone.

Pulling, pushing, and hitting could not open them.

“What are you doing? Who do you think I am?”

“——A convict?”

In front of him stood the king.

The one who ruled over the Salem Kingdom.

“The King of Salem…”

“Long time no see. No, is it the first time we’ve met like this? Mayquin’s former prince.”

The two glared at each other.

When Laurus was a prince, they had a friendly relationship.

But that was only on the surface.

Laurus had failed in his attempt to use him before.

The king also realized his intentions and kept his distance.

They both refrained from interfering with each other and didn’t even make efforts to exchange opinions.

“I had a feeling it would come to this. You underestimate others. You only see them as convenient tools.”

“Well, of course. I am a prince. It is the commoners’ place to serve the prince, they are just tools after all.”

“That’s why you couldn’t see their hidden fangs.”

“…”

The king speaks to Laurus, who cannot retort after being hit with a dead-on remark, while touching the iron bars.

“This was once a prison used to manage those sentenced to death.”

“Are you planning to sentence me to death? That would become an international problem.”

“What are you talking about? You are no longer a citizen of any country. If you are a convict, our country can judge you by our laws. Besides…I never said anything about sentencing you to death.”

“…What do you mean?”

The king lets go of the iron bars and starts to walk away, turning around.

“Wait, where are you going?”

“No one visits this place. The food is there. If you ration it correctly, it will last you a month.”

“Y-You don’t mean to say that I should stay here like this…”

“I won’t sentence you to death. You will live until the end. All alone, without any connections, facing your final moments in a dark cell.”

That was the punishment he was given.

He played with the lives of others for his own greed and took their lives.

Even if he paid with his life, the suffering of those who died will never be lifted.

So, at least he will be driven to the extreme, suffering in loneliness until he dies.

That’s how he will be purified.

So that mistakes like him won’t happen again.

“W-Wait a minute!”

“You went too far. You laid your hands on the benefactor of my country, and on those who serve the palace. Not just once, but twice.”

Anger.

The anger that the king kept inside as a person and as a king.

He could not forgive it.

“Rot away in the darkness.”

“Wait——”

The door was closed.

The door leading to the underground would never open again.

Without anyone knowing, he will spend his entire life alone.

His mistake will thus be extinguished.