Chapter 7

Sooner or later, her aunt and her husband will propose a marriage of convenience. Her aunt’s unique nasal voice went around her head. It’s a voice that only comes out when she asks her a difficult favor.

“Ha…”

Christa is a person who doesn’t show much emotion. But for now, she couldn’t help laughing. The whole thing was funny.

“Hahaha…”

Unbearable pain and nausea came, but the strange sound coming out of her mouth was the sound of laughter. Christa caressed her face. She can feel her fine skin without a scratch.

She looked at her slender fingers. Not a nail was missing and not a finger was cut off. It was a normal hand that wasn’t even burned black. The clean hands reminded her that her regression was not a lie.

She felt like she was having a terrible nightmare. At this rate, the terrible pain will be repeated again. She will get married, she’ll kill people, she’ll become a monster…….

“I want to die.”

Indeed, it was what Christa wanted.

She got out of bed and pulled her sword out of its sheath. A well-brushed sword appeared. She inflicted a deep wound on her thin, white forearm that was cut by a blade. However,  little blood flows out and soon stops.

“Damn it…”

She frowned. The pace of recovery is faster than usual. Seeing that she recovers so quickly, if she measures her ability now, she will definitely get a grade F or higher, maybe a grade C or higher.

If it was a grade C or higher, it was necessary to take inhibitors or to continue guiding. With inhibitors alone, withdrawal will come quickly. All she needed was a guide. The fact seemed to wring her neck.

The increase in ability means that there is a risk of her power running wild. In addition, the higher the grade, the greater the rebound if she uses her ability. Her head throbbed and her ears rang, perhaps because she used her regenerative ability.

It was then that she saw an unprecedented trace on the back of her hand.

“What the hell is this….”

It wasn’t in her previous life. It’s more like a tattoo than a wound. It looked like a small red dot. She rubbed nervously and scratched it, but it was useless.

“Well, who cares?”

What can she do to the extent that something strange has occurred the moment she regressed?

Christa flung her sword and lay down on the bed again. It was her personal experience that she could not die easily thanks to this regenerative ability. She survived the torture and burning at the stake after all.

She tried lying down, but the throbbing headache didn’t go away. She turned her head with a frown on her face. A paper bag decorated with luxurious gold is placed on a table next to the bed. It was an invitation to the banquet.

She was not interested in group activities or banquets, so she looked through them once and threw them randomly.

Then an idea crossed my mind.

“Holy Sword Alisar.”

For the sword awarded to Duke Argonod, the Knight Commander of the Order of the Golden Knights, the first contributor to imperial unification, by Emperor Pelias I of Cassidenia at the end of the war banquet.

There was a shudder through her body. The sword was known from ancient times as the sword to destroy demons.

It is known as the sword used by the saint Zenaba, who appeared 300 years ago to fight off evil, but no one knows its exact origin. But Christa knew.

‘It was the sword that struck me in the neck.’

The sword that gave her body the last goodbye, which could not be harmed by ordinary things.

The holy sword, which is usually managed under strict surveillance deep in the palace, was to appear at the upcoming banquet to commemorate the end of the war. It was a kind of symbol of harmony given to the Duke of Argonod in the War of Unification because he was highly regarded by the imperial family.

“If I have it.”

It may be possible to end her life in a moderate way. She can end this pain.

She can get a dignified death. For Christa, every moment of her life was just a pain.

“The Holy Sword…”

Christa quietly put the word into her mouth. It was necessary for her moderate and benevolent ending.

The pain she felt when her airways burned became black, and the touch that the cold silver sword gave me, came to mind. Christa touched her neck without realizing it.

Her mind was filled with ways to get the sword. And she shook her head quickly.

She was not confident that she could beat Argonod’s power in an ordinary way. Christa knew her limitations well as a soldier.

“No matter how much my abilities are out of Class F, it’ll still be hard to raid the Captain.”

The Duke of Argonod. A man called the Great Lord of the North and the Mencius of the Battlefield.

The northern territories of Argonod were the Surrey Giant to the north, the Union Tribe of the Eastern Archipelago to the east, and the Military Boundary and Border Region infested with dangerous beasts to the west. Born as the successor of Argonod, who ruled Wiscious, he learned the family’s sword skills from a young age and has already stood on the battlefield at the age of 12.

Youngest Knight Commander, the title of the youngest Sword Master was just one of his numerous titles.

He excelled not only in swordsmanship, but also in horsemanship and hand-to-hand combat. Even as a tactician, he has outstanding resourcefulness. He was an experienced commander  with hundreds of victories.

Christa knew Ragnar well because she had watched his feats on the battlefield many times. There was not a single exaggeration in his skills and reputation. His battles were always won by him.

Besides, he is an excellent guide. Officially, he was recorded as an S-class guide, and the number of A-class guides was ranked in 10 in the Empire, and there were no S-class guides.

Many Esper, like Christa, became a soldier, mainly taking advantage of his ability, and wandered around the battlefield. However, due to the lack of absolute number of guides, there has never been a Knight’s Corps that fully utilized an Esper’s ability.

The Golden Knights, formed by Ragnar, became the first Knights of Awakening to be led by an S-class guide and gained the highest reputation.

This was a very happy thing for Esper, who was previously despised. Since there has been no proper research data, awakening people have been known only as dangerous beings. However, their treatment changed since the proper Knights were established.

The Knights, led by a senior guide, became a haven for Espers. Just being around him makes her calm down. In particular, the scope of guides above the S-class was different. Christa, who was only in the F-level, also felt stable when she was near Ragnar.

Above all, Esper couldn’t defy the guide. Going against the guide’s will itself was an act against their instincts. This was a characteristic that stood out as the class gap widened. It was very difficult for her to raid Ragnar, who is only a Class C awakening at best.

But there was one thing she remembered. It was the great saga of Ragnar Argonod, who was famous in the capital.

It’s not about his militant prowess, it’s about the reputation of his lower body.

Ragnar Argonod, the duke who likes to play around.

Following his handsome appearance, promiscuous rumors, and family background, women continued to flock around him. He was known for his temperament, which never resented women. And by not dating the same woman for a long time.

“He didn’t get married for that…….”

He lived alone in the northern territories until the end of his life after the war.

Even before his return, his marriage was always a hot topic. This is because there was no successor to the northern territorial waters of Wiscious. Therefore, Christa, who was insensitive to such rumors, vaguely remembered.

“……that’s not important.”

What was important to Christa was the Holy Sword Alisar. There is a saying that a person who decides to commit suicide cannot see or hear anything else. That’s how Christa is now.

‘I should seduce him.’

He was not an opponent whom she could overpower one-on-one. Fortunately, he was the playboy Ragnar. Isn’t it said that he’ll be happy with anyone wearing a skirt? It was considered fortunate that her gender was a woman.

It won’t be difficult. Probably. After spending a night with him, she’ll take the sword while he is asleep. In her head, she pictured herself with the Holy Sword.

Christa looked at the old mirror without saying a word. She saw her body that was like a skinny wooden stick.

She hurriedly lowered her sleeve and covered her thin wrist, but it was useless. Her face was pale and sunken. She could see herself with a shabby look and dead eyes.