Episode 15
My father always praised Karzan as a crown prince with the qualities of a wise ruler who only appears once in a millennium. Because of that, the people could do nothing but wail as if the world had ended when he died.
Even if I can’t be his wife, I must prevent his death. I have to keep the promise I made with the princess who vowed to set everything right.
And if something happens to him while he’s with me, it might repeat what happened in my past life—I might end up as the one who killed him again.
He couldn’t even overlook this small monastery in the slums of a minor city, and although I admired his resolve, reason told me I had to stop him.
“No. Don’t go. Let’s just find somewhere else for today, stay awake all night if we have to, or figure out another way. We shouldn’t step into somewhere that feels off.”
“But I still want to check it out.”
He tried to move again, and I desperately clung to him.
So, I wrapped my arms tightly around the crown prince.
He could report me as a woman who dared to touch royalty without permission. If that was the price to stop him, I was willing to bear it.
He was clearly so flustered that he froze in place, stumbling over his words.
“You… right now, how… how dare you… whose… body…”
He was probably about to shout, How dare you lay a hand on my royal person?
I was ready to hear that scolding anyway.
“You can’t go in there.”
A boy’s voice, gentle and boyish, broke in. I turned my head and saw a boy around Karzan’s age standing nearby.
“That place is off-limits right now.”
Hearing the boy’s words, I let go of Karzan.
“Why is the monastery off-limits?”
“The monks all got sick and died recently.”
“They died from sickness?”
“They ate diseased pork. All the dead bodies are still in the monastery, so it’s off-limits now. You’d freak out if you went in.”
This must be referring to the plague incident from my previous life. There was a plague that started at a monastery, resulting in nearly fifty deaths. Back then, Rosalie came here during her local inspection tour but had to leave with nothing gained due to the outbreak.
“I see.”
“There are lots of empty houses in this town. You can sleep wherever you want.”
“Why are you out at this hour, though?”
“My little sister said she was hungry, so I came out to fetch some water.”
“She’s hungry, and you came to fetch water?”
“Drinking water helps fill your belly a bit.”
“Wait.”
Karzan pulled out a pack of hardtack from his bag.
“Hardtack. It’s dry and tasteless, but it does the job if you’re hungry.”
“You’re giving it to me?”
“Do I look like I pulled it out just to show it off? Take it.”
“Why are you giving me something like this…?”
The boy didn’t look touched. He wasn’t suspicious, either. It was more like he didn’t know how to react—probably the first time he’d experienced something like this.
“Think of it as a small token for the information.”
Though he stared at us in confusion for a moment, he was well-mannered. The boy led us to his home.
It was a small brick house with two rooms and a kitchen, where a 17-year-old boy lived with his 16-year-old younger sister.
Their mother had died giving birth to the girl, and their father had died after eating the diseased meat handed out by the monastery.
“Are you travelers?”
The girl seemed more excited to see us—travelers she’d never met before—than about the hardtack that could soothe her hunger. I looked nothing like a traveler, but to these innocent siblings, that’s how we appeared.
“Wow! I’ve never seen a traveler before! I thought travelers would look like amazing adventurers…”
From the way her words trailed off, it seemed our ordinary appearance disappointed her.
“Janie, didn’t you say you were hungry? Eat the hardtack.”
“Okay.”
After her brother scolded her, she began nibbling on the hardtack. But for some reason, her name didn’t feel unfamiliar. I looked closely at her innocent face.
A girl with purple hair and purple eyes named Janie. She felt familiar. I turned my gaze to the boy’s face—he too had purple hair and purple eyes.
A pair of siblings with purple hair!
I was pretty sure I knew the boy’s name.
“Janie, you haven’t even thanked him yet.”
At his words, Janie glanced at Karzan shyly and said,
“Oh, sorry. Thank you. I’ll eat it well.”
Karzan handed the boy another hardtack.
“You eat too. Looks like you haven’t eaten all day.”
The boy scratched his short hair and said,
“Th-thank you. Oh, right. I haven’t even introduced myself. My name is…”
Raika.
“My name is Raika.”
Raika Hamils.
Raika Hamils and Janie Hamils—in my past life, they both joined the royal knight order and were knighted. Later, they caught Karzan’s eye and became his personal guards.
I’d occasionally seen Sir Raika when I went to meet Karzan. He had a dignified air and a gentle smile like a shy young boy.
But behind that, he had fearsome swordsmanship skills. Even during our short conversations, he always treated me with the utmost respect, like a loyal vassal to his lord.
Dame Janie, too, was more suited to social banquets than training grounds—graceful, shy, and modest.
After Karzan’s death, Sir Raika, Duke Ducro, and Dame Janie did everything they could to help my family escape. Eventually, they died trying to protect us.
Seeing the two knight siblings who had once died because of me in their pre-knighthood days brought on strange emotions. And to think I’d meet them like this…
I couldn’t take my eyes off them.
“What’s your name?” Raika asked Karzan.
Karzan rolled his eyes for a second before answering.
“Kar. Just call me Kar.”
He must’ve decided not to give his full name. Kar was the nickname used by the Emperor and Empress.
I guess he uses it when traveling incognito.
“Nice to meet you, Kar.”
Now Janie was looking at me. That meant it was my turn to give a name. Until now, I hadn’t even told Karzan.
I glanced at him briefly before replying.
“Tasha. Call me Tasha.”
“That’s a pretty name, Tasha.”
Janie smiled sweetly, and I helped her spread out the bedding.
“I gathered some firewood this afternoon, so it’ll be a bit warm tonight.”
Karzan slept in Raika’s bed, and I slept in Janie’s. It was our third night in an unfamiliar place, and yet again, I fell asleep quickly.
Despite it being my first time sharing a bed with someone, I didn’t feel the slightest discomfort. It was an unexpectedly peaceful sleep.
“I said no! I told you already!”
Maybe because I finally had a comfortable night’s rest, I hadn’t noticed the morning light until someone’s loud shouting woke me.
It was Raika’s voice, echoing loudly outside.
Karzan and Janie also woke up, rubbing their sleepy eyes.
When we went outside, we saw Raika facing off against a middle-aged man.
“Raika, stop being so stubborn and listen. If you two keep living like this, you’ll starve. Just send Janie to work as a maid for the Viscount Bilhemurton—”
“I said no! Don’t you think I know? If Janie goes there, once she grows up, they’ll either make her a concubine or sell her off to some other noble! How can I send my sister to a place like that?! Just how much are they paying you to keep bothering us like this?!”
“What are you talking about?! Sending her off as a maid or servant is just to help you get jobs! Who said anything about selling her?! Where’d you hear that nonsense?!”
“Anyway, I said no! Don’t ever bring this up again!”
Raika, though still only seventeen, stood proudly, his head held high against the much larger man.
He was no longer the innocent rural boy from last night. He now looked exactly like the Raika Sir I had known in my past life.
Dignified, brave, and strong—Raika Hamils.
“They’re going to reclaim your father’s leased land soon. Then what are you going to eat?!”
“I’ll do the farming. I’ll get permission and do it myself! So please, just leave us alone! We owe you nothing—so don’t come back to this house again!”
“If your dad can’t pay the rent this fall, you’ll be thrown out of this house! You’ll be out on the street! I’m trying to help you, and this is how you act?!”
“I don’t know how much they’re paying you to sell out Janie, but we don’t need that kind of help! Just leave!”
Raika, only seventeen, was already so resolute.
The middle-aged man, silenced by Raika’s pointed words, fell quiet for a moment. But then, he revealed his true nature.
“What?! You disrespectful brat!”
The man raised his hand—larger than Raika’s face—and swung it down hard at him.
“Brother!”
Janie screamed, her eyes wide like a rabbit’s. I quickly covered her eyes and shut mine tight.
