“I’m not in the mansion, I’m in... this is the Ost Republic!” I frowned. “What am I doing here?”
Looking around, I noticed this was the building where the Aberis embassy was placed. Faeyna was there, humming to herself, looking exactly as I last remembered her like not a single day had passed since we last saw each other. As she hummed, she was cleaning the room vigorously. As for me, I was behind another invisible wall, keeping me from approaching the scene. The door burst open, and a familiar face walked in. It was Raissa.
“What are you still doing here?” She asked.
“Cleaning for Master...” She responded, although her voice sounded slightly off.
“You... you’re his slave too... you should have felt it.” Raissa declared, her tail slouched.Trace the roots of this material to n0v★lbin
“What of it?”
“Master... he’s dea- he’s dead...” It took her two tries to get the words out, her ears down and her head lowered in defeat.
I began to understand where I was in events. This was right before the mansion was ransacked by the Ost Republic. However, this seemed to be one of those situations where the lore wasn’t perfect. Nova had told me he had already captured the girls before my soul was pulled into the Illusory Sword Dungeon. I supposed during such an emotional time, those kinds of events all blurred together.
“There is no point in surviving if he won’t be there with me.” Faeyna declared, spinning away.
I reached out instinctively, and my hand hit another barrier. Raissa stared at her helplessly for a moment, and then touched her stomach, her expression growing resolved. Faeyna had her back facing Raissa, clearly not willing to talk any more.
“Well, you may not wish to continue to live, but I have to continue for his sake!”
After a few moments, Faeyna turned around, but Raissa was already gone. Her expression looked somewhat hesitant, but then she went back to cleaning.
“Why won’t she go?” I asked.
“Because, Master, you are her everything. She had decided that. Her heart had been closed for so long. The day you gave your life for her, the day you turned things around, and in an impossible situation where death was certain you saved her and survived, you became her life.” Elaya was speaking through the Slave Communication now. “Remember, the Faeyna you first met chose to leave you when given her chance. It took her seeing how the other slaves loved you and seeing how you put yourself out for her even when she spurned you for her to finally open her heart again. Then, only two months later, she found herself alone again.”
That was right. It had only been a few months for Faeyna. It wasn’t like we had spent a ton of time together. I had formed relationships with most of my slaves. Perhaps Faeyna was waiting for her turn, but it never happened. Just as she opened her heart, waiting for me to take it, I disappeared, and she was alone again.
I finally figured out what the darkness in her heart was. It was me. As for why I was here, this was the day she killed herself.