CH 147

Under the twinkling sunlight, people exchanged words with joyous voices, saying things like they were glad to be safe.

Winston’s shields rushed in to find Kyle and joined him.

With a grin, Chubby asked with a loud but hoarse voice.

“Master, are you okay? I heard you were mercilessly beaten up by a beast earlier.”

“…Weren’t you worried when he became fodder?”

“It’s more like I got carried away?”

At Kyle’s words, Number 19 laughed. Everyone was in a good mood.

There were even people of the tower running towards Heinrich.

“Ah, they’re coming to take care of me because I’m the prospective tower lord.”

Although Heinrich commented that they were just annoying, it seemed he was a little touched by their actions.

The wizards of the Magic Tower asked with excitement on their faces.

“Where did you get the material for the doll? This is a huge milestone in the study of magic!”

“How does the soul work in conjunction with the homunculus? Please publish your thesis in the World Magic Society.”

“Is one of the doll’s ingredients the essence of a red dragon?”

It was a riot of magic fanatics.

Heinrich shook his head, as if expressing ‘Me too, but you guys are quite awful, it’s awful’, and said,

“Crazy wizards…”

“It’s the essence of a red dragon, right?”

Meanwhile, I was worried about Sislin.

“You’re hurt, Annette.”

“Yes? …I’m fine.”

‘I don’t think that’s what a bloody-faced person would say, Your Highness.’

In contrast, there were only a few scratches on my arm. It was fortunate that I suffered only such injuries from the battle.

However, Sislin couldn’t take his eyes off of the scratches on my arm and sadly rubbed the surrounding skin

“You have to show it to the doctor right away.”

Right then, I felt it naturally. This feeling of a butterfly flying into my heart.

‘Maybe it’s love.’

Even if the world turned upside down and came back again, the sun would rise and light up a new day.

‘I have no choice but to love this person who is heartbroken by the scratches on my body instead of his own deep wounds.’

At this moment, I realized that I was in love.

“Sislin, I have something to tell you.”

“…….”

His red eyes looked down at me silently.

The time when I was afraid of those red eyes full of selfless concern and affection was now far away.

‘I guess falling in love makes you brave.’

The whole nation was afraid of him, but it’s not the same for me.

Confessions lingered in my mouth.

What should I say?

I accept your proposal? I like you too?

Aside from the numerous confessions floating around in my head, sincerity moved my lips a little more honestly.

“I want to marry you.”

“…….”

In an instant, Sislin’s movement stopped.

The confession was very clear and hot.

“…Now, I want you to be with me for the rest of my life.”

I want to wake up in the morning listening to your breathing.

I wish I was the one who always worries for you first.

All my life…

My whole heart…

‘I want to use it only for you.’

“…….”

A slight tremor and emotion passed through Sislin’s eyes. His large hand slowly wrapped around Annette’s cheek.

It was an irreplaceable moment.

No one would understand the emotions Sislin was feeling right now. Even Annette.

Right this second, the wind blew.

At first, it was a breeze, but then it became a wind as wild as to tear the earth.

There was the sound of the world breaking apart, the cracks forming in the solid ground and the ripping of the air.

“……!!!”

The Crevasse was opened between the man and woman.

It opened its mouth like a dark red black hole, threatening to swallow everything like crazy into a burning space.

“Ha… Ahahahaha…!”

Gerard, lying face down on the floor with numerous corpses, almost turning into one himself, laughed.

“When I failed… You didn’t think I’d prepared for that? It’s my revenge.”

Sublime eyes looked at the Crevasse that he had opened.

It was a spell that was designed in advance before the power was recovered. To open the door of the Crevasse if he failed.

In the reality that didn’t go his way, Gerard wanted to somehow ruin Sislin.

“If it cannot be mine, it’s better to be destroyed!”

Manically, he cackled.

“Everyone, be in a mess!”

“Shut up, you bastard. Don’t make a fuss.”

Puk! Pak!

Heinrich coolly stepped on the back of Gerard’s head.

The crack in the Crevasse grew in an instant. As if to try and swallow anyone.

“Get away!”

Kyle came forward and warned. Since the Crevasse was originally intended to imprison criminals, it was designed to target ‘someone’.

“Your Highness, please avoid it!”

If the one who activated it was Gerard, who had anger towards Sislin, Kyle could guess who the target would be.

―However, the Crevasse’s mouth changed direction as quickly as a living being, and finally headed towards Annette.

“Ah…!”

Gerard was now aware of how to make Sislin truly suffer in pain.

“…Sislin.”

Annette’s blonde hair and the collar of the outfit she was wearing fluttered madly.

In that blink of an eye, Sislin recalled the pain he had suffered in the Crevasse; of his arms and legs falling off and his whole body torn apart.

Rather, the times that made him beg for death.

Just before the Crevasse swallowed Annette, Sislin quickly pulled her away and threw himself in as a sacrifice.

Shoo-woo-woo-ook!

After swallowing the sacrifice, the Crevasse disappeared like a lie.

Only the voice of Annette calling for Sislin resounded through the earth.

━━━━⊱⋆⊰━━━━

After many sacrifices, the battle was finally over.

In the midst of a meeting among the ministers over the crown prince’s vacancy, one conclusion was reached.

—It was the death of the crown prince, Sislin von Axelferion.

The opinion of the attending doctor, who knew the Crevasse and Sislin’s situation better than anyone else, played a major role.

The doctor remembered the warning he had given Sislin last time.

“If you go to the Crevasse again, you will definitely go wild. No, actually…”

“…….”

“I can’t guarantee you’ll ever come back alive.”

The current opinion was not much different.

“Even the Crevasse that opened this time is different from what His Highness has been through. That ‘dark red thing’ is used to kill people.”

Perhaps there were not even bones left in it now. The attending doctor shook his head.

The country that lost its crown prince mourned, but it was only temporary.

Government affairs had to resume, and the chief ministers took over.

Today was the day the new magic tower lord was elected.

All those who had the right to vote in the 28th magic tower lord election voted unanimously.

Grand Duke Heinrich Hyacinth.

He became the new ruler of the tower.

In addition, Belsac Valentino was arrested on charges of using ‘paralyzing poison’ on the former tower lord and trying to help Gerard harm Annette.

The whistleblowers of Valentino’s magic researcher, Annette’s testimony, and Heinrich’s blood helped uncover the allegations.

“—Sister.”

Heinrich called towards Annette’s back.

“You’re at the river again. I feel like you’re here every day.”

“…….”

Tun, tun.

Heinrich walked over to her.

The sun was setting on the clear river bank. In the wind that flew through her cold hair, there was the smell of the fishy, bitter river water.

“What were you doing?”

“Just, I was thinking about the old days.”

Smiling faintly, Annette answered Heinrich’s question.

She stood by the hawthorn, surrounded by tiny flowers like white snowflakes.

Both the flower tree and the woman looked fragile, as if they would break if brushed against.

Heinrich looked at her with a bit of pain in his eyes, but soon he fixed his expression and smiled.

“Sister! I’ve finally become the master of the tower~”

“Good job, that’s great.”

“Right? You should have seen my biological father turn over, Sister.”

‘Ah, how refreshing it was.’

Heinrich trembled and placed his hand on the back of his head.

“Also, Gerard is being questioned. Well, the death penalty is almost certain.”

Since he had already become a walking corpse, it was difficult to even interrogate him.

In fact, it was probably more painful to be alive.

“Are you going to the trial?”

“Yes.”

Annette answered, still gazing at the river.

“I will see with my own two eyes as he receives judgment for his sins.”

In the end, she did it her way.

Heinrich thought so, and smiled quietly next to her.

‘I hope you’ll feel a little better too.’

These days, Annette spent all day looking at the river alone by the hawthorn.

She didn’t leave until the sun went down and it was night.

‘Staring at the river all day, what are you really looking at in your heart?’

As Heinrich tried to understand Annette’s mind, she quietly opened her mouth.

“Heinrich, I have a favor to ask you.”

“Anything! Just say it! If it’s Sister’s request, I’m okay~”

With glassy eyes, Annette requested.

“Tell them to delay Sislin’s funeral a little.”

“…….”  

Everyone in this empire was saying that Sislin was dead.

But it wasn’t completely ‘everyone’.

Until the very end, there were people who believed that Sislin was still alive.

“Sislin will return.”

One of those people whispered; she turned, firm eyes looking straight at Heinrich.

When the whole world gave up on him, Annette didn’t give up on him.

“I believe… He will definitely come back.”

Ame: I wanted to write some nonsense after Sislin got swallowed up and see who would be duped, but I changed my mind >_> felt like I shouldn’t taint the story lmao

And for those wondering why am I not kicking and screaming and crying— I’ve been doing so much of that the past 20 episodes that my eyes are all dried up by now TT_TT

Tassie: IT WAS SO ROMANTIC AND THEN THE AUTHOR WAS LIKE NOPE!!! IT FELT LIKE I WAS ENJOYING SOME ICE CREAM AND SOMEONE JUST RUN UP TO ME, GRABBED MY ICE CREAM, THREW IT ON THE GROUND, STOMPED ON IT AND THEN KICKED ME IN THE BALLS!! AND I DONT EVEN HAVE BALLS!!!