BXBX NOVEL Chapter 49 – Three-Way Confrontation (2)
Chapter 49 – Three-Way Confrontation (2)
Sis.
The sweet words that came out of Kyle’s mouth poured into Luna’s mind like a flood.
She couldn’t breathe.
Tears welled up in her blue eyes.
A stifled gasp escaped from her tightly closed lips.
Kyle, my kind little brother.
Why is he extending his hand to me in this situation, when I’ve been tormenting him since we were children?
Knowing that our relationship is not that of brother and sister, but that of strangers.
After hearing all those painful truths directly from the Duke’s mouth.
Kyle still.
Called me sister.
“….”
How much I tormented you, how I ruined your life.
For that, I’m still begging for your love.
So foolishly kind, so innocent…. That is why I fell in love…
In the end, you even embrace my vile inner self.
If it were me.
If I were Kyle.
I could never forgive.
I would have sought revenge to the end, making them pay dearly for ruining my life.
“I’m sorry… I’m sorry…”
Tears welled up in her eyes, streaming down her cheeks.
She wiped her eyes several times with the back of her hand to clear her blurred vision, but the tears wouldn’t stop flowing.
As Luna began to shed tears, Isabel flinched.
Then, she muttered in a defeated voice.
“You’re… going… together?”
Isabel’s eyes, filled with emptiness, trembled.
Isabel couldn’t understand the situation unfolding before her eyes.
“…Why?”
Why?
For what reason?
It was unbelievable.
No, she didn’t want to believe it.
Kyle’s figure, saying he would stay with her in a warm voice.
Luna, shedding tears uncontrollably due to her emotions.
“It’s absurd… It doesn’t make sense… ”
There’s no reason.
It shouldn’t be like this.
Especially after treating her so ruthlessly.
When she was locked up, he never came to look for her even once.
Anger grew in the depths of her heart.
She hated seeing Luna, who seemed closer to Kyle than herself.
I like you more, I love you more.
What does that woman have that sets her apart from me…
Why me… why only me…
“Haa…”
As Isabel lowered her head, her golden hair flowed down her forehead.
The profound emptiness that settled in her chest turned into a rotten darkness.
At that moment, the Pope, who had been observing the situation, asked in a dull voice.
“What should we do?”
A chilly silence descended.
In response to the Pope’s question, Isabel forced a smile that seemed broken.
Gone was her usual cold demeanor, and Isabel mumbled like someone whose mind had gone blank.
“…Bring them. Both of them.”
As the Pope casually nodded, the paladins and priests who were waiting stepped forward.
They walked briskly and reached Luna.
“Please stay still.”
Contrary to the fierce growl from earlier, Luna obediently allowed them to restrain her.
Then, with her eyes heavily reddened from crying, she glanced at Kyle and bit her lip.
“Thank you.”
“If you’re thankful, just stay still.”
Kyle sighed and warned her with an irritated tone.
Luna slowly nodded her head.
Tears welled up in her eyes again at Kyle’s considerate caution.
And.
“….”
Isabel glared at them with bloodshot eyes.
Simultaneously, she gritted her teeth.
After a moment, Isabel muttered in a voice so small that no one could hear.
“No…”
An indescribable emotion ignited in her chest.
Whether it was anger, jealousy, or love.
Isabel couldn’t tell at all.
A profound emptiness cleaved through her heart.
For a moment, she felt the impulse to break everything in front of her, but Isabel willingly restrained herself.
This was just a trial.
A trial to monopolize Kyle…
A trial bestowed upon me by the heavens.
So, it’s okay.
“I said no…”
There is still much to prepare for.
****
Luna quietly boarded the carriage.
Diana, under the guise of my escort, boarded another carriage with the paladins, and I, though I didn’t like it, boarded the same carriage as Luna.
“……”
“……”
A suffocating silence lingered inside the swaying carriage.
Luna kept her head down, staring at the floor all the while, and I watched her with my chin resting on my hand.
‘…Did I overdo it?’
But there was no helping it.
The situation just now was truly a moment of crisis.
If I had been even slightly late, Luna, with her temperament, would have swung her sword without hesitation.
If that had happened, the situation would have spiraled out of control, and I couldn’t guarantee Luna and Isabel’s lives.
I slowly lifted my head and gazed into the void.
[ Scenario Progress: 70% ]
‘That absolutely can’t happen.’
There’s still a long way to go.
It’s not clear what principle exactly causes the scenario progress to rise.
But one thing is for sure.
The rise in scenario progress is inevitably linked to the game’s heroines.
‘Right now, it’s to stick close to them.’
I’ve obtained the Elixir and the Holy Blood, and all that remains is the scenario progress.
In such a situation, there’s no need to delay the rise in scenario progress by avoiding Isabel and Luna.
The goal is clear.
Of course, it already hurts my head to think about squeezing in between these insane women, but it’s worth enduring.
The suffering will be brief.
And when the goal is achieved, I can end it all by taking my own life.
However.
‘Isabel’s face doesn’t seem normal.’
Isabel, standing silently and watching over me.
Her pupils were literally dead black.
Come to think of it, she deliberately avoided me even when boarding the carriage.
I can’t even grasp what she’s thinking.
At that moment, Luna, who had been keeping her head down, hesitated before speaking.
“…Are you okay?”
“What?”
“Kyle, you used to get severe motion sickness when you were young. Whenever you rode a carriage, you always suffered from intense nausea.”
Was that so?
If that’s the case, motion sickness would be the only thing ‘Kyle’ and ‘I’ have in common.
I also go crazy from motion sickness every time I ride a carriage.
“It’s bearable.”
I replied with a gruff voice.
The carriage from the Holy See was quite luxurious, which made it actually bearable.
Luna’s face darkened slightly upon hearing my response.
After barely meeting my gaze, she cautiously spoke up.
“…I’m sorry.”
A strained voice.
At the same time, her bright blue eyes were fixed on me.
“And… thank you.”
She stared at me as she spoke.
The trembling in her voice gradually subsided.
“You don’t need to worry.”
“…”
“Kyle, I’ll definitely protect you.”
Protect what? What could she possibly protect?
I’m destined to take my own life in the near future.
I swallowed the words that rose to the tip of my tongue.
Then, maintaining a smiling face, I casually spat out a plausible reply.
“Thank you, that’s reassuring.”
For a moment, Luna’s pulse raced.
The area around her ears turned slightly red.
Once again, a frozen silence descended.
Luna, to hide her flushed face, turned her head back and forth before finally burying her face in her hands, which were clasped around her knees.
I gazed out the window again, lost in thought.
‘This is definitely strange.’
The scroll the Pope had unfolded.
At its end, unmistakably, was the seal of the Empress’ Palace.
‘The Empress and Isabel, what are they planning together?’
Without any evidence, they couldn’t just arbitrarily execute Luna.
So why confine Luna to the Holy See and resort to such desperate measures afterward?
And one more thing.
— Kyle, you knew you weren’t my child.
— Pretending not to know won’t work.
— The Princess, who couldn’t bear to see your situation, revealed herself that she had already conveyed all the facts to you, Kyle.
Rudine Eckhart.
She lied to the Duke, saying I knew all the truth.
Rudine, who obsesses over me.
And Isabel, plotting with the Empress.
And the weak point found in Duke Winfred.
In an instant, a possibility struck me like lightning.
‘Could it be Duke Winfred…?’
I swallowed a deep breath.
It’s absurd, but the possibility is ample.
This world wasn’t one where common sense prevailed in the first place.
At that moment.
Whirr—
The landscape passing by the window began to slow down.
And before long, a familiar building came into view.
‘The Holy See.’
The center of faith.
And the place where Isabel and I held our engagement ceremony in the previous run.
“…”
Damn it.
Of all places, I absolutely didn’t want to come here.
****
Moonlight illuminated the dimly lit store on a late night.
Returning to the store after a long absence, Merlin absentmindedly stared at the ceiling, passing the time.
The store was quiet in the middle of the night.
No sound could be heard, and the night air seeping through the cracks was excessively chilly.
‘I wonder if he’s doing well, that guy.’
Was it Lee Seung-jun?
Although he seemed reliable in handling tasks, there was an oddly strong sense of familiarity whenever I saw him.
‘There’s something suspicious about the movements of the imperial family.’
With Isabel expanding her influence throughout the Empire, the Empress gradually began to broaden her scope.
But that’s not all.
The Holy See, which should remain neutral, seems to be quietly collaborating with the imperial family.
They even went to the Duke’s mansion to take Luna Winfred to the Holy See?
Everything is a mess.
‘Ha, how annoying.’
It’s all my fault.
A makeshift world like this should’ve been destroyed long ago.
Merlin let out a sigh.
The tranquil silence was broken by the ticking of a clock.
And then.
Clang—
Someone opened the door of the store.
A woman and her escort knights entered the store.
“…”
Merlin’s eyes narrowed slightly.
And after a moment.
Confirming the identity of the newcomer who entered the store, Merlin’s eyes shook roughly.
“Oh, finally found it.”
A noble voice echoed in the air.
The woman who entered the store began to explore the interior as if it were fascinating.
“Really… Do you know how hard it was to find?”
Rudine Eckhart.
The Princess of the Empire had come to the store.
“Just by recalling the scene I saw briefly, it was such a headache to find the exact location…”
Cold sweat ran down Merlin’s spine, tingling.
The air in the store suddenly felt heavier.
“Well, anyway, since we found it, it’s all good, isn’t it?”
Rudine smiled broadly.
“Information merchant, Emily”
She added.
“I’ve come to buy some information.”