CH 7

Episode 6 – Unfinished Tales (2)

The castle was in chaos.

The knights had swept through the dining room where Edelis had spent her happy hours, the dance hall where she practiced dancing, and now the study where she was.

In the video, the study was empty, so the knight came in, looked around, and left immediately, but when he passed by her seat, Edelis couldn’t help but kneel down, hold her breath, and tremble.

『Kkyaaaaak! Sa,save me…』

The screams of the people continued.

Before they could finish asking for help, the knights passed by, unmoved, as if they had not heard them.

“Anne! Noel! …Lisa!”

They were people whom Edelis loved.

Edelis, who could no longer watch, closed her eyes and covered her ears.

Even though her hands were covering her ears, the screams of the people hit her eardrums as if they were shouting in her ear.

Among them, there would be people who had been with her since her childhood, like Anne, and people who would spend time with her in the future.

When she thought about it, she couldn’t bear to open my eyes.

When Edelis first opened the book, she thought she should not miss even the smallest clue so that she could get a clue to how she would survive in the future.

But now, all of those vows were meaningless. She wanted to run out of the study right away. 

However, her legs were too weak to move, so she could only sit down and close her eyes tightly.

Finally, when the screams died down, Edelis removed her hands from her ears. 

And when she opened her eyes with difficulty, the emperor was leisurely walking one step at a time through the open door.

His face was blurry and could not be seen well, but she knew he was the emperor by the gorgeous drapes attached to his clothes.

With every step he took, the screams died down. Now there was no one left to scream.

Finally, when the screams stopped and completely disappeared, a bloody man was dragged in front of the emperor.

The man who was dragged out was forced to kneel on the ground with his shoulders crushed by the knights.

He gritted his teeth and raised his head.

“Fa,father…”

Edelis could immediately recognize the bloodied man. It was her father, Earl Brill.

『You could have kept your life if you had just stayed still.』

Her father snorted at the emperor’s words.

『What is the point of a father who has lost his only daughter, and a man who has lost his only family, keeping his life?』

His eyes were filled with tears mixed with blood.

Edelis’ tears also flowed down her cheeks.

Now she finally understood why her father had committed such a reckless rebellion.

‘Because of me…’

He loved me since I was young, and he had his difficulties along the way while raising me by himself.

After Edelis’ mother passed away, they only had each other left.

When she was stabbed to death by the emperor’s sword, her father drew his sword to avenge his daughter.

‘Father, I’m sorry…’

Edelis felt like a rock was placed on her chest, even though nothing had happened yet.

If Edelis hadn’t seen the book, she would probably have never known how much her father loved her until she died.

Edelis felt her throat tighten even more as she learned her father’s feelings.

『What’s the point of committing a failed rebellion?』

However, the emperor mocked the earl’s words by repeating them as if they were ridiculous.

The earl shouted in anger.

『History will remember you as a bloodthirsty tyrant who killed his own wife!』

However, the father’s anger could no longer be sustained in the face of the emperor’s words that followed.

『Open the grave of Agnes Brill.』

『N,no…』

『Kill all members of the Brill household. Immediately strip Joern Brill of his title of Earl. He will be imprisoned in the underground dungeon of the Imperial Palace. In one week, gather the nobles and execute them. Those involved will also be executed, so catch them. Throw Joern Brill’s body and the body of the former Countess Agnes Brill into the field.』

Her father’s angry scream filled her ears.

* * *

The book burst into light again, and the study looked like nothing had happened.

However, Edelis knew that nothing was the same.

She thought it would be boring and unnecessary to know; as the story she was reading was about her life after she died.

However, it was a content that was as shocking as her death.

Edelis felt stuck, as if something had been stuck in her heart.

‘Is this… I can’t believe this is my future… my family’s future…’

Edelis felt suffocated. She clenched her fists and pounded her chest, but her anger and frustration would not go away. 

The stories she had read in the book were now etched in her mind, and they felt like a weight pressing down on her chest.

‘Father, Father…’

Edelis couldn’t even cry properly. She could only sob helplessly. Then, she felt a warm presence on her face.

It was Lehan, who had come in without her noticing. He was wiping her tears away with his handkerchief.

Lehan looked at Edelis with a worried expression.

“Is something wrong?”

There was. And there would be.

But who would believe her? That she had seen a vision of her own death, stabbed to death. And in that vision, her father had raised a rebellion in her name.

There was no proof. It was obvious that anyone would think it was a vain delusion. So Edelis shook her head.

When she saw Lehan wiping away her tears with a worried expression, her emotions overwhelmed her.

“You’re saying there’s nothing wrong, but you’re crying.”

Edelis didn’t know what to say to Lehan, who was speaking in frustration.

Then Edelis looked at the book and thought that Lehan might see it differently than others because he is one of the main characters.

‘Wouldn’t it be okay to talk to Lehan about this?’

‘I saw this book and knew you were in the arena, so I came to get you. You are the evidence. So can you help me not to be stabbed to death?’

“Lehan, have you… seen… that book?”

“The book?”

Lehan’s hand reached for the book at the end of Edelis’ gaze.

However, Lehan’s words were far beyond her expectations.

“The book is blank.”

His words were like a fuse, and Edelis began to cry out loud.

She was sad because she had such a future.

She was ashamed because she wasn’t aware of her father’s innermost feelings about her.

She was powerless because she hated the emperor so much but couldn’t do anything about it.

She was frustrated because she didn’t think anyone would believe her.

“Don’t worry, it’s going to be okay, my lady.”

Lehan was surprised to see Edelis suddenly burst into tears, but he first tried to comfort her.

Lehan was wondering how to comfort her. He remembered when he was struggling with whether to keep living in the arena or to die. He needed someone’s warmth then.

So, Lehan gently put his hand on her shoulder and pulled her into his arms.

He comforted her by patting her back. Edelis’ thin arms wrapped around Lehan’s back.

Luka: My heart goes out to Edelis. She witnessed the people she grew up with, formed memories with, and loved, die and be punished because of her. This is understandably a traumatic experience that will stay with her for a lifetime. No wonder she is so adamant in refusing to even see the emperor, let alone marry him in the present timeline (episode 1 and first half of episode 2).