CH 3

“No, you know Novenium, the herb with the painkilling properties.”

I suddenly excused, while stepping back hastily. His brow seemed to furrow, so I bite my lip, and it tasted like herbs.

‘Yeah, you’ll believe me if I try it myself, right?’

I took out a few more roots of herbs and chewed on them lightly.

“Mmmm.”

I heard a deep groan. Maybe he was only keeping his eyes open, but he wasn’t really conscious.

“Wha….”

“Mmm?”

His lips moved, but I couldn’t quite make out the words, so I moved my ear closer. His hot breath tickled my ear slightly.

“Water?”

‘Was he thirsty?’

“Water, I’ll get it, I’ll get it.”

I repeated slowly, just in case he wasn’t listening. I could see the golden focus blurring and then sharpening.

I don’t know if he’s even aware of what’s happening around him. Well, maybe it’s okay, for a while. If he didn’t show anyone, but now, I glanced at Shane, then closed my eyes, pretending to climb up to where I’d fallen, and imagined myself in the woods. Where the birds had flown. The place where I’d found the herbs and my feet had fallen in….

When the heat from the tips of my feet reached my head, I opened my closed eyes again. The smell of damp air rushed into my nostrils. I was back in the place I’d imagined. Luckily, it had been raining, so the puddles were standing water. I plucked off a large leaf, filled it with water, and closed my eyes again, I imagined a spot a little distance away from the Male Lead, just in case.

“Can you drink water?”

When I returned, Shane was shaking his head again. I carefully lifted his face and poured the water from the leaves into his mouth. Unlike the herbs, the few drops of water made his throat move several times.

“That must hurt.”

It wasn’t a thought. It came out of my mouth reflexively as my eyes burned at the sight of his tormented body.

Thud, thud, thud.

Shane suddenly threw his head back. His body jerked as if he was in pain, and I wondered if my words had triggered it.

“Are you okay?!”

My mouth, will you shut up? Why am I asking someone who’s obviously in pain if he’s okay? Seeing him suffer like this alone, unable to moan or speak out loud, I felt even more sorry for what I thought as a reader.

‘A man should suffer some hardships after all…’

I wanted to stop myself from saying that, but when I saw the whole thing unfold before me, the pain… It was real. I even wanted to beg for forgiveness.

「… Slave, acknowledge.」

At that moment, I heard a harsh voice scratching my ear.

“Yes? Yes….”

I nodded without thinking. I was enslaved to the bone. Without even thinking about it, I had accepted.

「Name…」

(T/N: If you’ve read the prologue, I changed the MC name to Seth instead of Sez. Please take note of that. This is to avoid unnecessary confusion. )

“…Seth.”

My name came out reflexively. It was a different feeling than moaning. His voice was stifled by the pain, but his vivid pronunciation when he asked my name stuck in my mind. I was so focused on the fact that he had spoken that I didn’t even realize I’ve said it.

“Here… How….”

Shane, he’s talking to me now. I think I let that fact sink in for a moment. After a few moments of silence, I realize that he’s asking a question, and I blurt out an answer.

“Oh, I was digging for herbs and my foot slipped out from under me, and this is where I was.”

It felt so unnatural to spit it out, and I felt my muscles tense unnecessarily as I tried to keep a straight face. I felt a chill run down my spine as he asked me if I was a slave, asked me my name, and asked me how I got here.

In fact, if a slave was caught running away, at least a spanking was standard. If they were asking for your name so they could find you later, you were screwed.

“Cough, cough! Cough“

But apart from that, the man in front of me was in so much pain. It was dizzying to watch in real time as he gagged and gurgled and spewed out of his mouth.

I wondered if there was anything I could do to help. I knew he was coming to the salt island, but I never expected him to be chained up alone like this. I thought there must be a luxurious room somewhere that the slaves didn’t know about.

Even if they were terrified about the fact that his powers might run amok, why keep the heir to the imperial throne in chains?

The original story just said he’d run away, not that he’d have such a miserable time.

“I wish I could break these chains.”

“What…? Cough!”

Startled, he started coughing again. Clink, clink, the chains rattled along his body.

I quickly pulled the Novenium out of the cloth bag and popped it into my mouth. It wasn’t a thoughtful act.

Holding his face in one hand, I pushed the chewed Novenium herb into his lips.

I could feel the muscles in his jaw stiffen. Please, swallow all of this. I concentrated on feeding him the entire herb.

He stiffened, then parted his lips slightly and took it into his mouth.

Why did I only take this much herb? Should I travel through space and get more now, so it would be less painful?

“Seth.”

The harsh, ear-scratching voice seemed to soften a bit. Though it still contained pain. I listened to the next words with a bit of admiration, thinking that the day would come when I would be called by name by my Favorite Character.

“…Get out, now.”

With those words, the air seemed to crackle. The torch flame swayed precariously, as if it might go out at any moment.

“Ugh!”

This time, a gagging sound came out of my mouth. My stomach churned and my shoulders felt crushed. My entire body shuddered with primal fear. I felt as if my very existence would be crushed. Light began to leak out of the characters carved around the space.

Boom, boom, boom!

My feet jerked backward and I slammed into the stone wall, unable to lift a finger. I barely lifted my head, which kept drooping, and looked up to see him holding onto the chains, his face tilted back.

My strength was wearing off. It was beginning to dawn on me that I could die here. My whole body was drenched in sweat.

Clang, clang, clang!

The clanking of the chains grew louder. Like a gust of wind, my whole body floated away and moved to where I had fallen. It was hard to tell if I had used my powers unconsciously or if some intangible force had chased me away.

“Ha, ha.”

I stepped out into the woods and slumped down. I scrubbed my face with both hands. Seth, the voice called. The clinking of chains. The golden eyes staring straight at me. I felt dizzy as they all mingled together.

『A monster was born.』

The words of his biological mother, the Empress, echoed in my head, the words I had read as mere words, stabbing painfully through my brain like thorns. My Male Lead, unloved by even his own parents, bearing it all alone…

“Wake up.”

I slapped my cheeks with both hands several times. In this original, I was just another slave. My most important task was to avoid the explosion and somehow survive. I was grateful to have met the original Male Lead, and since he gained more power every day he was born, I would probably meet him again next year.

That is, if the island still existed by then.

⚘

“Shane Kuh Sharkani.”

The name sounds even more noble in the gentle voice of a priest, but I must be mistaken. A few days after meeting him, I sought the priest out, I was wide-eyed, in the wee hours of the night when everyone else was asleep.

Even though I knew it was a fictionalized version of the story, my heart was pounding all day long after meeting ‘him’ in the cave. My body was tired, but if I closed my eyes, I could clearly see him in chains. It was as unreal as when I realized I possessed a slave.

Had I really met him? I pinched the back of my hand for no reason. Then I realized that I needed to hear about Shane objectively to feel better.

“He’s a hero of the Empire, still fighting demons for us.”

But… it didn’t sound objective at all.

There was a small chapel on the salt island. The slaves were officially allowed out of the caves once a week to worship. Of course, they had to line up in a single file under the supervision of an overseer.

One unusual man who applied himself to this small chapel for a job that had nothing to do with honor was Priest Ferren. He looked like a bandit, but his eyes were faithful and clear.

“I will give you this salt to help me escape.”

When I suddenly possessed a slave’s body five years ago, I bribed the only person who seemed trustworthy. It was a time of despair and insanity. “Seth. You and I are both men of God after all. No matter where I go, that doesn’t change. God’s will exists even here.”

He soothed the child with such abstract words while not taking the salt in her hands. In reality, I was not a child, but in his eyes I must have looked young even now.

“Seth, but why did you come to me at this time of the night and suddenly ask me about the crown prince.”

He was always gentle with me, even when I sneaked out of the cave late at night to visit the chapel.

“I’m suddenly interested in learning more about the crown prince, priest. Do you happen to have any books on His Highness?”

He did not help me escape, but instead committed an act of lawlessness. He taught me, a slave, to read. It must have seemed a bit much partly because I figured I’d be on this island for the rest of my life, so there was no point in learning.

“There’s a book about how he fought so well in the battle against the demons.”

It must be a book full of praise.

“Wow. A book of the crown prince’s battles.”

I clasped my hands together, showing my envy for the crown prince. I could smell the awkwardness from my stiff tone, but fortunately he didn’t seem to notice as he pulled out the book.

Ferren was a bookworm and a devotee of magical studies, so he had so many books on the subject.

There was a hint of pride in the way he carried the book carefully and set it down on the table in front of Seth. As if to say, I have books like this.

“Ah.”

As I absentmindedly picked up the book, I noticed I forgot to wash my hands, which were very dirty from working all day.

I was sure I was going to leave a mark on this precious book.

“Oh, Seth. Give me your hands.”

The priest took a white cloth and wiped my hands. I was impressed that he didn’t seem to mind the odor.

“I’m sorry, I haven’t washed them.”

“Seth. Physical dirt is nothing. It’s more important to cleanse your mind so you can keep your faith.”

It was a flaw, if the only flaw was his faith.

“Father, do you have….”

“What? Tell me.”

“I… I wonder if the Ephiro… are they really extinct? Is there really not a single one left?”

“Seth.”

He wiped my hands dry and gave me a stern look.

“They have committed sins that cannot be washed away. Considering how much blood has been spilled, and is still being spilled, I don’t think even the gods will forgive them and let them live.”

There was a coldness in his normally gentle eyes.

“…Yes.”

I suppose that Epiro is alive and well, Father. I didn’t do anything wrong, I just accidentally possessed an Ephiro. I can’t say that, so I opened the book he handed me. It was a lot of effort, but the priest’s eyes were so excited to see how much fun I was going to have, I couldn’t bring myself to betray it.