4 – 4. Putting a foot on the crossroads.
How long has it been since she sat still, quietly watching the rising sun?
How many times has she anxiously wiped her chapped lips with her dry tongue?
If you ask if she is waiting for her call, she would say no.
“The story has changed… Why? Was it even a game to begin with?”
What can one person understand about the game in just one try?
Even if they were a “shush”, those old-timers who would go on and on with explanations,
Hidden cheat items, shortcuts, level-up tricks.
You can’t become someone who breaks through linear game structures and spreads power throughout the world in an instant.
Trapped in this incapable body, I can only think about how to survive and escape from this game –
That’s all I think about.
Once again, I opened the window at the end of my field of vision.
“Quest: The Beginning of Fate”
– Fulfill the marriage with Irene Melvus.
– Reward: Next quest – “Married Life Pursuit”
– *Failure will result in annihilation.
– A message has arrived.
..What message?
“You have acquired *Fate Points.”
Ah, right.
I remember someone mentioning that my emotions were considerably worn out.
But it was difficult to say that they were worn out.
Like a few strings cut off, like a young child unable to hide their emotions,
I thought I had hidden them perfectly, holding them tightly, tightly, forcibly hidden –
But they slipped from my hands, and just by flowing out, it was clear.
And these points were the proof of that –
“You currently have 50 Fate Points.”
…But I have no idea how I obtained them, or when.
There is not even a hint of how much she likes me.
What the hell –
Stop talking.
Anyway, when will she contact me?
But I couldn’t just leave the room on my own.
His subordinates –
Wait, there was a maid.
As I thought about it, intense fear rose in my chest.
He won’t tolerate this.
Maybe he’ll dispose of me quickly.
To use her, the sword of the Melbus family, and leave me with just my life –
Just before reaching a more horrifying imagination, I heard a knock.
“Um, excuse me… Are you Lepti Gail?”
She arrived at my room in person.
With dark circles under her eyes, but gently illuminating me with a reddish light.
*
“I’m sorry. So, um… The maids and servants just wouldn’t listen to me…”
The corridor was filled with silence.
All the maids and servants were staring at her, walking by my side.
She didn’t care about them, trying to meet my eyes or repeatedly blushing and bowing her head,
I was different.
The air felt heavier than ever before.
Fatigue was pressing hard on my shoulders.
And the fleeting glances of the servants passing by busily,
Those glances that met my eyes repeatedly, were all chillingly cold.
Clearly, undoubtedly, he must have been keeping an eye on my every move.
And one thing was certain –
I was going to be killed by him.
From the very beginning, I came to this place because of my position as my father’s son,
And because I was an important “thing” to him, the king’s close friend and right-hand man.
To him, his daughter was an important tool, a woman bound tightly to his will.
Because Lepeti cut those ties, one by one – whether by his own will or by the flow of a fixed story –
He was dealt with in that way. Along with the countless filth flowing through the city sewers.
So, in this situation, I had to consider three things.
How much does Irene Melvus know, and to what extent does she have “favor” towards me?
And how far can Irene protect me from Lord Lambeau?
He would kill me and do anything to use Irene as the vanguard of the kingdom’s downfall.
The reason Lepeti died that day was to keep Irene from wavering any further.
And above all – there was no reason to keep her alive in the first place.
When she turned her head abruptly in surprise,
it was clear that she loved Lepeti.
“Irene Melvus”
– Lepeti Gail’s fiancée.
– She seemed to have feelings of admiration for Lepeti.
From Noble mtl dot com
– Her face was flushed.
Of course, with this useless technique, nothing can be known.
As expected – through conversation, I can only try to deduce with my inadequate intellect.
“We’ve arrived. Please, sir.”
As she stood in front of the door, in the moment she reached out to touch it –
“Where do you think you’re going?”
It seems like he repeats it several times, but yes.
He repeats it several times to emphasize that feeling.
A bone-chilling cold pierced my skin like a needle.
*
“Ku, kuh…”
The pitiful, shrinking air forced its way out through his open mouth.
From his mouth.
His face was pale.
So pale that it almost had a bluish tint.
He looked at my father and sat down in that spot.
With trembling eyes, as if he had seen something he shouldn’t have.
In that moment, I realized.
That was “fear”.
The old woman had taught me…
And what he felt in our last meeting, that was it.
Why he felt that towards my father, I couldn’t understand right away.
As if I had learned so much through our conversations, surely,
If only a little more time were given, I could understand why he was “afraid”.
So, at this moment, my father, who was interrupting, might not have known that he was “bad”.
And the moment I had that thought, without even realizing it, my body trembled.
Was that fear?
No, it wasn’t.
Was it sadness?
No, it wasn’t.
Was it joy?
No, it wasn’t.
Love?
Definitely not.
It was just something stronger, something that collided forcefully with my heart,
It was a momentary pause in her own thoughts.
To the father she had followed her whole life,
In the days of obedience, short or long, that she had never refused for 20 years and 4 seasons,
It was the shortest encounter in her life, but in the longest conversations,
I furrowed my eyebrows at my father.
My father, who was very brief,
Just like the expression I showed to the man I ‘love’.
*
“What are you doing now?”
His voice struck my ears forcefully.
Like a broken limb,
Like a pitiful child pushed out into the cold without any clothes in winter,
Overwhelmed by overwhelming fear,
I could only watch my body trembling.
Is this – is this what I’m feeling?
Or is it my body trembling from the moment of death it longed for?
Thump-thump – thump-thump –
I could only look at this delicate body, trembling vision,
that was forcing out shallow breaths.
There should have been light pouring in through the window.
But in that place where I leaned, where I exhaled, only coldness filled the air.
“What are you doing?”
I had to answer.
If it wasn’t a satisfactory answer,
Could I have given a satisfactory response in the first place?
He was a man who couldn’t even find any value in me from the beginning.
So, was it Le Petit? Or was it my own choice?
Either way, I couldn’t do that.
But if I could avoid the current situation even for a few words,
It seemed like I could avoid his blade for now.
That’s why I tried to open my lips,
But the person in front of me didn’t let go.
“Please, please…!”
When his grip finally loosened a bit,
I was surprised and rolled my tongue,
“I was trying to have a conversation, Father.”
What came out was not my voice.
It wasn’t even my tongue that moved.
It was Irene, who stared straight at Lord Lambert, blocking my path.
…Clearly, the story was flowing differently from what I knew.
To confirm that again, my vision suddenly darkened and went blank.
When I woke up again, it was a morning with sunlight streaming into the room.
The room – unfortunately, it still had an interior that reminded me of cold and gloomy things.
Even the wallpaper was a dark one, with shades of gray and white. Isn’t it a bit too much?
The same went for the view outside the window.
The sky was clearly clear, but it was hard to find any blue around this area, unlike where I came from.
Just by looking at the mansion of Gailga, surrounded by a garden and trees, and the scent of grass flowing in, it was clear that it was close to nature.
I could understand why Lepeti was pessimistic about his situation.
The sun was still hanging above the sky.
As far as I remember, when that happened, the sun was on the left –
…
A slight chill ran through me.
So, now it’s closer to the right,
Perhaps, it hasn’t been a day yet.
Thinking that way, I felt even more amazed at my perfectly fine self.
Clearly, on that day, I felt overwhelmed by the overwhelming fear that I was about to be “handled” –
Once again, my body trembled.
“Hmm…”
And then, an unexpected voice reached my ears.
A black-haired woman lying on the ground, with her leg cut.
“Irene Melvus”
– The fiancée of Lepti Gaill.
– She is asleep.
– I have been by Lepti’s side for two days, while she fainted.
* 2 notifications are pending.
– “Observation Lv. 0” -＞ “Observation Lv. 1” Level up!
“* You have gained affinity points.”
“The current affinity points you possess are 110 points.”
“She seems to have a favorable impression of you.”
…It seemed like various favorable conditions were overlapping.
Now, not only can I obtain unknown information through “observation,” but I can also receive a message that she has a favorable impression of me.
A favorable impression.
However, the reason why that situation doesn’t feel pleasant at all is obvious.
Lamber Melvus, that man was still here.
And as long as I am in his clutches, I can’t even decide how to live or which direction to take.
As long as Irene shows a favorable impression towards me, I don’t know if he can act recklessly, but –
Still, it was as clear as day that I had no control over my own life.
Carefully settling back into place, making sure she doesn’t wake up.
For now, I decided to sleep a little longer.
*
“A new notification has arrived.”
– For someone inexperienced with emotions, expressing their feelings can be difficult.
– They may struggle to control their immature emotions.