~Chapter 47~
My thoughts froze. I couldn’t think.
But Ailins kept talking on her own, not caring about my state.
“The Empire wants to believe that magic came from the gods,” she said.
“They want to prove that Carpea was the chosen nation by the gods, so they can stand tall before the world.”
I barely managed to lift my head. Ailins had come close to me and was now smiling with a childlike innocence.
“But… that’s not the truth. There are no gods in this world. Magic, that damned thing, was created by a human.”
She blew across her palm.
A small breeze turned into a powerful wind, and a vivid vision appeared in front of me.
“Ailins’s influence among the people is growing every day!”
“At this rate, she’ll steal the nation from us!”
“Magic? That’s just a demonic power that woman invented!”
The crowd cheered wildly as Ailins entered the palace on horseback. But it didn’t take long before that cheer turned into screaming.
“Ailins, confess your treason.”
Then, I saw Ailins on her knees before the Emperor, whose face was hidden behind a veil.
“If you give up your name and surrender, we will make you an eternal hero.”
Suddenly, Ailins’s face in the vision jumped out at me.
“This—this was the result of everything!”
“…”
“I was sealed inside Dremokan, and now they use me like a battery, draining my magic for people’s comfort!”
Ailins grabbed my shoulders and shook me hard.
“And now, they’re so afraid I’ll gain my name again that they even hid the existence of Dremokan and made a whole new religion!”
She laughed like she’d gone mad.
And in that moment, I realized something—
The curse of Dremokan was real.
Its depth was far beyond anything I could imagine.
The Imperial family clearly knew Ailins would resent Roygin for what happened.
…And yet they still handed her over to my grandfather.
Ailins finally stopped laughing and let go of me, her voice sharp and sarcastic.
“You just compared your misfortune to my tragedy, didn’t you?”
“I didn’t,” I said quietly.
What good is it to compare pain? It changes nothing.
I tightly closed my eyes.
“…If I made a promise to you, that must mean there’s a way to end your tragedy, right?”
“Yeah, that’s right,” Ailins said, shrugging lightly.
“But before that, I’ve got something I’m curious about.”
“Go ahead. I’ll answer honestly.”
“You knew I wasn’t the real Bianca. How?”
She fell silent.
But from her pause, I already had a feeling—
My reincarnation or possession wasn’t just some coincidence.
Ailins frowned and struggled to find the words, opening and closing her mouth several times.
“You know, I really hated Bluea.”
Her words suddenly carried weight, making my grip tighten.
“If Carpea had lost the Mage War, I would’ve been free.”
“…!”
“But Bluea and Harness ruined everything.”
I had something to say to that.
The Magic War had lasted ten years and cost countless lives. Even now, the Empire still carries the pain of that war.
But I couldn’t say that to Ailins, someone who had been drained of her magic for countless years.
No. I couldn’t.
“It’s karma. That’s why I don’t regret anything.”
But… was that really karma?
…No matter how hard I thought about it, I couldn’t figure out what exactly my grandfather had done wrong.
Maybe I’m just being selfish.
“Then one day, I met Bianca.”
She must’ve meant the original Bianca.
“It was a coincidence, really.”
…Coincidence?
Didn’t they meet in Dremokan?
Her wording was vague, but I decided to let her continue.
“She told me something,” Ailins said.
“She said there was a boy who hated her… but she wished he would like her someday. That it had been her long-time wish.”
…No way.
As if confirming my suspicion, Ailins gave a deep smile.
“She asked me if I was a mage, and when I said yes, she begged me to grant her wish.”
“…And what did you do?”
“Of course, I ignored her. But as you can see, my body is already being dragged around by magic against my will.”
A wave of anxiety washed over me.
“Magic must’ve wanted to fulfill her wish. But Bianca died not long after… and then you entered her body.”
“…”
“So? Do you think her wish came true?”
I couldn’t answer.
Because if I did, it meant I could understand Ricardo.
Ailins lifted the corner of her mouth like she could already see the answer in my silence.
“Yeah. It was just Bianca’s obsession.”
…So you’re telling me that I ended up in this world just because of that?
Everything I couldn’t understand about him—It all made sense now.
Because of something so small, like wanting to be loved by someone…
All the things I had struggled through suddenly felt meaningless.
I felt like I could collapse at any moment, but I barely held myself together.
“Why me?” I asked.
“It was an accident. So there’s no reason. You just had bad luck.”
That was something I had told myself so many times before. But hearing it from someone else made it sound even more cruel.
“Maybe… you’ve been cursed worse than Bluea.”
…I came here to break Grandpa’s curse, but I ended up learning an even darker truth.
I’d always wondered why.
What great reason justified everything I was going through?
But now that I knew, not even a bitter laugh would come out.
“But you don’t need to worry. There’s a way,” Ailins said.
“…Haha. That’s a relief.”
Even I didn’t know what I was going to say next, so I just forced a laugh. Hoping it would make me feel even a little better.
Ailins lightly chuckled and tapped her chains with her fingers.
“If my seal is broken, it’ll be fine.”
How is that connected…?
“All the magic that’s been used recklessly without my consent—If I get my name back, that magic will return to its original place.”
I blinked, stunned.
Ailins spread her arms proudly.
“The world will fall into chaos. I’ve been stuck here for a long, long time, and a lot of magic has been used.”
“…”
“You entering this world? That will be undone too. Like nothing ever happened.”
That was what I’d wanted so desperately.
But if her seal is broken, the world might truly fall apart.
I didn’t even want to imagine it.
“…And after that?”
“Hm? What do you mean?”
“When the seal is broken—there must be something you want to do most, right?”
As soon as I finished speaking, Ailins’s face turned cold.
“I don’t know what you’re trying to say.”
“I-it’s just a question! You said you’d answer anything I ask…”
Her sudden seriousness made me shrink back.
“You already know, don’t you?”
“…”
“What I’d want to do first.”
Yeah, I did know.
If I just listened to her words, it wasn’t hard to guess what would happen next.
…Most likely, revenge.
But what scared me was that I had no idea just how far her revenge would go.
“If I’m unsealed, Bluea will be healed. He’ll get the peaceful death you wanted for him!”
Ailins started listing things she thought I wanted.
But all of them would mean nothing… if I returned home.
After a long pause, I asked:
“What exactly do I have to do?”
“Nothing.”
That was an unexpected answer.
No, I had heard that before.
‘No matter what you learn from now on, don’t do anything.’
That’s what Brandon said too.
