Chapter 75 - The Girl Wants to Be M*rdered

< Chapter 75 > Chapter 75. A Heated Argument. * * * ** ─Swoosh. "....Then, I'll be heading inside." Saeli gently cradled the sleeping Alice and carried her into the adjacent room. Given her claimed inability to breathe the same air as 'Anna Akaia', I'd expected her to explode in anger. However, her unexpectedly calm and respectful demeanor was surprising, even to me. I had imagined she would be the one to shatter the ice under our feet at any moment, so my astonishment was doubled. "....You!?" "........" But just as Saeli turned to enter the room, I noticed the tremor in her eyes—an unfocused gaze indicating that the fire within her had been forcibly extinguished. Her fiery red eyes, which should have been expressing anger, looked instead like the ashes of wood that had already burned itself out. Was it a feeling of hatred towards her kind? Or perhaps it was self-loathing. As the only one who knew her past, I could understand that fragmented part of Saeli's mind. Alice, who would have quietly died in a cold winter river without Saeli. It was Saeli who saved Alice, but simultaneously, it was also Saeli who devoured Alice's arm. The act of kindness could not erase the malice that had been done. The fact of saving someone could never be her absolution. The only two people who could forgive and absolve her were Alice and Saeli, herself. But because of that, Saeli must carry her guilt forever. Knowing that the day she forgives herself will never come. Truly. It's pitiful. "....Oh, alright." "....Take care." Knowing the weight of that fragment, all I could do was nod. Personally, because she was one of the closest individuals to me, I wished she would stay by my side, but Saeli appeared distressed, so it couldn't be helped. Besides, hearing that Alice threw herself caused her to tremble uncontrollably, and considering when Alice would awaken, having Saeli beside her seemed like a good decision. It would consider the emotions of both of them. For now, I hope she finds peace by stroking Alice's head in the room. "...Phew." Now then, the problem is on this side. Tap, tap! "─I can't accept it! Why would you let this person into my dormitory!? Have you lost your mind!?" "........." I... need some calm too, but the problem tormenting me shows no signs of resolution, and I haven't even picked up the pen to begin. An endless, daunting mountain peak. Before me was a one-sided display where it seemed someone perceived the other as their mortal enemy. "........." One person, hastily bandaged wounds scattered over her body, quietly looking down at the ground. The culprit of the current situation, Anna Akaia and— "Get out! Get out now!!" Remi Akaia, who expressed her discontent by thumping the floor. If not for my intervention keeping them apart, it felt like their previous skirmish might have resumed. Come to think of it, the person who lost it when I said I'd let Anna Akaia in wasn't Saeli, but Remi Akaia, who was connected to her by blood. Having likely witnessed Anna Akaia stabbing Alice, her actions were understandable. I raised both hands to signify calming intentions and slowly spoke to her— "Now, now. Try to calm down, Remi Akaia. Let's talk it over—" "─Shut it!!" I got scolded. And quite severely at that. "What is there to talk about with this person! Didn't you see those wounds on Alice's stomach?!" "..........." "She stabbed and stabbed and stabbed again... How many times she stabbed! I witnessed it all before my eyes! Yet, you want to talk─?" Slowly, she rose from her seat. In a dimly lit place where sunlight barely reached, a pair of eerie eyes gleamed within the shadow. What monstrous creature lurked within that burning flame? Even without wielding a sword, I faintly sensed the murderous intent. I was convinced that their relationship could never return to what it once was. Like soybean flour sprinkled around rice cakes, these two had inherently incompatible natures. A perfect example of a completely dysfunctional family. ─Bang! "No conversation, none." "..........." Her fist struck the wall. The ominous atmosphere directed at me, when I was about to chide her for waking Alice with the noise and vibrations, made me close my mouth. Even without a sword, she could definitely kill. Her fists, her fingernails, her canines, they seemed ready to come at you. As if to say, Remi Akaia declared that the story between her and Anna Akaia ended two years ago when she stabbed Alice's stomach and cast her into the flowing river. It was essentially her own form of a threat, telling me not to bring up Anna Akaia again. Truly. "Ugh..." "........" Faced with such vehement opposition, I couldn't dare intervene. Anna Akaia, who kept her head down and hadn't uttered a word since earlier, also seemed unlikely to be of any help. Her feelings were understandable too. Honestly, even I, back then, would have thrown a punch rather than nod approvingly if someone had suddenly asked, 'Would you like to sit down and have a one-on-one chat with Anna Akaia, who did that to Alice?' I too, at one time, resented her upon hearing Saeli's words. In my heart, I chewed over the image of her I couldn't recognize. In all honesty, I was shocked at how composed I could remain amidst such a situation. Instead of anger, I felt an oddly overwhelming concern. Instead of hatred, there was an unexpected sympathy. While grappling with such contradictory emotions bubbling inside me, an unfamiliar voice reached my ears. "─Aris." "....?!" Anna Akaia, who had remained silent until now, continued speaking as if my surprise was of no consequence to her. Her words were slow and trembling, yet relentless. "Is... Aris... alive?" "....You?! You bastard?! How dare you speak Aris’s name?! Of all people, you?! Are you even human?!" "Hey... hey...!! Hold on, control yourself, I said!!" The first words out of her mouth addressed nothing other than Alice's fate. Her voice, cracking intermittently as if choked up, only incited Remi Akaia to raise her voice once more. I did my best to restrain Remi Akaia, who threatened to kill Anna if she dared mention Aris's name again with her filthy mouth, and I said, ".....Yeah. Um... she's alive." "Ah... aaah...." A strange sound echoed through the room. It was unmistakably the sound of something striking the wooden floor. Gradually, the floor grew damp in small circular spots. I found it impossible to accept the reality before my eyes. After all, 'Anna Akaia,' as we knew her, was someone who epitomized the pinnacle of malevolence. A person blinded by jealousy, one who tried to kill her talented younger sister. An infamous parricide who attempted to murder her sister indiscriminately. It made sense that Remi Akaia wanted to swiftly remove Anna Akaia from Alice's side. Who knew what she might do if she learned her sister was alive. A cold-blooded psychopath. Those were the words I’d always associated with her. But what was this? Is this truly the 'Anna Akaia' I know? ".....Really... truly..." ─Drip. What flowed down her face as she lifted her head was undoubtedly a single stream of tears. Her eyes shed tears profusely, yet her lips wore the most beautiful smile ever seen. With Anna Akaia presenting a smile for the first time instead of wearing a remorseful or hardened expression, I couldn’t bring myself to speak the complete truth. About the wounds Alice sustained when she was first found. How Alice survived the past two years. And that moments ago, hearing your voice prompted her to attempt suicide. There were countless things I wished to accuse her of. "Thank goodness..." ".........." "Truly, truly thank goodness....." But that bright, joyful face. That smile, like someone who had finally been saved, unmarred by any shadow of darkness. It mirrored so incredibly the way Alice once smiled brightly at me. "....Damn it." I realized why I held back from blaming her. ** "─Does it seem like I'm going back?" Anna Akaia's unexpected visit. She purportedly came to ask Remi Akaia if she intended to return to the Kingdom of Tesilia. Remi Akaia, whose mind had been shattered after Alice disappeared, had been sent abroad for some temporary studies, and there was no binding contract on royal family members between empires that would require her to remain here. Incidentally, it took a full thirty minutes to hear her out. Holding back Remi Akaia, who was itching to dash out, and preventing Anna Akaia from knocking her head into the corners of the room as she spewed one sentence after another. But the response was a succinct, cold ‘refusal’ to match the effort it took to listen. Though understandable, wasn’t it too harsh a rejection? "I'm not going back to where you are. Nor is Aris. Just disappear, as you are." "...Hey, but she's your sister—" "─Say another word, and I'll rip your tongue out." I cringed. Oh right, Remi Akaia was royalty, after all. I had grown accustomed to the airheaded, oblivious demeanor she showed since meeting Alice, so I had lived until now forgetting her royal status. Faced with the charisma of Remi Akaia as a royal, which emerged for the first time in a while, all I could do was cower and bow my head. I thought she was of the same ilk as me, seeing how she shrank from Tesa's nagging. Of course, she was likely speaking in jest, but it felt momentarily believable. "Ugh, maybe I should just convict her of treason and behead her... then live only with Aris." ...She’s joking, right? Surely, right? We’re friends, after all. Like this, time dragged on, each second feeling like an hour. Thinking by now much time had passed, I looked up at the clock, only to see that it was just past 1 p.m. "─Anyway, get that person out of here quickly." "..........." The day was long and far from over. I despaired. "Ugh." What more can I do here... ** * * *