Chapter 1 - The Dilapidated Shack (1)

Chapter 1 - The Dilapidated Shack (1)

The novel, 'Saintess-nim, Reverse Harems Are Impure!', was a blatant novel just like its title.

A mass-produced romance fantasy novel that was floating around the back alleys of the platform. It was a story that employed the typical reincarnation into another world cliché, where the unfortunate protagonist dies a lonely death and opens her eyes again as a saintess in a medieval fantasy world. Of course, the reincarnated saintess received confessions from all sorts of handsome men and formed a reverse harem.

Thinking about it now, it was a fairy tale-like novel. In a bad way.

There was a villain who seemed to have been born only to commit evil deeds, piling up corpses and blood. There was also a prince who was almost perfect in his competence and kindness, and the protagonist overcame her wounds and moved forward.

By the end of the novel, even the deep-rooted war between humans and demons had ended. The villains fell to the prince's sword or were executed after all their sins were revealed. And the prince and the saintess finally got married and lived happily ever after.

It was a ridiculously flat story. It was a sickeningly sweet happy ending. If I had to go into a novel and live, it would have been a pretty good choice.

If only I hadn't been the villain who was going to fall at the end of that final battle.

Me. Razen Vertus was the villain who had threatened the protagonist throughout the story. I was also the murderer who had taken the most lives before my heart was pierced at the end of the battle with the male leads.

The same went for my friends from the Illensia Grand Duchy, who had been with me since I was a baby. The eldest, Terion, went to study abroad and died of illness, and the second, Sirien, was captured and executed after plunging the empire into chaos with me.

Of course, I had no intention of dying like in the novel. I couldn't let my friends, who had always thought of me as their own flesh and blood, die either. I wanted to put my foot in that ridiculously sweet happy ending.

However, the moment I regained my memories was too late.

The day I regained my memories. The Demon King Eligose of the fifteenth seat invaded the Illensia Grand Duchy.

* * *

It was a night with a faint halo. When I inhaled, the cold and humid air seemed to soak my lungs, and the thick darkness was covered in fog. When the wind blew, the leaves rustled and made an eerie sound. Because it was contained in the night shade, it looked like a black shadow rippling in my eyes.

On such a night. There were those who ran along a path where they couldn't see a foot in front of them. It was an old wagon.

The wagon ran along the road like a ghost. It meant that they were all holding their breath without even a single ordinary lantern.

It was a sudden journey. The sound of the bell announcing the air raid was noisy, and the sight of the knights leaving with grim expressions did not leave my eyes. The sound of explosions from magic and magic colliding. A watchtower that melted away in a corner and poured out blue lava. A soldier whose neck was pierced by a flying javelin. The territory that had become a battlefield was not easy to forget.

The siblings in the carriage also had dark expressions.Even though I was barely ten years old, I could sense that the situation was dire.

How long had the silence lasted? A familiar voice rang out.

"Uncle, please tell us now. Where are we going?"

"I can't tell you anything yet."

"What happened to Father?"

"I can't tell you that either. It's for your own good."

How many times had I heard that question?

The elder of the siblings, Terion, looked impatient.

The handsome young man's face was deeply furrowed.

If he had been his usual sharp-tongued self, he would have been annoyed by now. But this time, his opponent was a formidable one.

Count Roxen, the siblings' uncle, was arguably the most trusted man in the Grand Duchy of Illensia. If Count Roxen said he couldn't tell them, then he truly couldn't.

That's why even Terion couldn't press him further.

Clatter, clatter!

"My lady, are you alright?"

"Yes, I'm fine. It's just that there's a bit of dust flying around."

"Just bear with it for a little while."

Perhaps the carriage wheels had hit a pebble. Every time the luggage compartment shook, dust flew up from inside.

I had thought it was the smell of old wood, but it turned out to be the smell of dust.

The young lady of the Grand Ducal family was not accustomed to such an environment.

Even though I covered her with cloths that I had gathered from here and there, she huddled up in the cold, and whenever dust flew up, she would invariably let out a pitiful cough.

The maid who was riding in the carriage with us gave me a pleading look. Fortunately, there was still some water left in the water bottle.

"Drink some water for now."

"I don't like the smell of leather in that water bottle. And I don't like cold water either."

"Just bear with it and drink it. It's not that cold."

"Ugh..."

The princess, Sirien, grimaced but took the water and drank it.

When I wrapped a handkerchief around her nose and mouth, her coughing subsided a little.

If we could just slow down the carriage a bit, things would be much better. But given the circumstances, I couldn't say anything like that.

On the contrary, I was grateful for the sound of the coachman's whip. I wanted to end this unpleasant journey as soon as possible.

"You'll feel better soon. It'll be stuffy, but bear with it."

"Thank you. What about you, Razen? I have a handkerchief too."

"I'm fine. The armory of the Order of Knights is dustier than this. I don't get thirsty much anyway."

That was a lie.

I had been in training until I was summoned here. I was both hungry and thirsty.

But I had to conserve water as much as possible, because I didn't know when I would be able to refill the water bottle. I couldn't say such things to that girl.

The situation was dire, even at a glance.

The Demon King Eligo's offensive was unusually swift and fierce.

As a result, the immediate family of the Grand Duke of Illensia was hiding in a baggage wagon with only a handful of escorts.

I, who was supposed to gain some real-life combat experience soon, was not sent to the battlefield.

'Either way, it seems like the worst possible interpretation.'

The first is that we are being pursued by an enemy that is so threatening that escorts are meaningless.

It would be better to choose not to be noticed from the beginning rather than to attract attention by attaching escorts.

In other words, if we are caught, it's over.

The second is that the war situation is extremely unstable. Despite everything, I was the successor of a major vassal. Although it was not as direct a blood relative, I was treated with respect. As such, I was not sent to just any battlefield. I could not be sent to a battlefield that was too dangerous or disadvantageous. In other words, it meant that the current war situation was very disadvantageous or dangerous.

As expected, Sirien also seemed to have mixed feelings. Her gaze towards the corner of the carriage was empty. Although she often played pranks, Sirien was the smartest among us. Perhaps she had grasped the situation even faster than I had.

Soon, her mouth opened.

"You know, Razen."

"What is it?"

"I wonder if my other siblings are okay. I'm a little worried."

No. She was much better than me.

The Grand Duke and Duchess had only two children. So the 'siblings' Sirien was referring to were somewhat distant relatives. She must have been referring to the children of the collateral or vassal families who lived together in the Grand Duke's residence. Even in a situation where her own life was in danger, Sirien was worried about them.

I had never seen a girl around ten years old act so mature. I had to refresh my memory of the girl's name.

Sirien Illensia. The illegitimate daughter of Grand Duke Illensia, the Shield of the Empire. A young lady who always had a gentle smile on her lips and was kind to her siblings and servants alike.

However.

There was a high possibility that her siblings had become bait. Although this was a reasonable deduction, I had to erase it from my mind for now.

"Don't worry about them. The Grand Duke and my father are there. All the seniors have also gone there."

"But that's..."

"I know what you're thinking, but no matter what, the most important thing right now is you. We don't know what else might happen in the future, so get some sleep while you can. I'll wake you up."

"Uh-huh. I understand."

It was really not the time to worry about others. Right now, I didn't know when the Demon King's army would catch up, and the future I knew from the novel was bleak.

It's been 10 years. Only 10 years were left until the original novel's heroine was reincarnated and became a saint.

'Sirien 10 years from now and Sirien now are completely different people.'

The Sirien I knew from the original novel was a villain who seemed to have stepped out of a painting. I couldn't find any trace of the kind and innocent appearance she had now. The same went for her concern for her other siblings.

After all, Sirien's first act in the novel was to purge her blood relatives with her own hands. She had personally sent many collateral relatives to the execution block and confirmed their deaths.

The problem was that I had no idea what Sirien and I would go through during these 10 years. That damn novel. No, that ruined novel didn't have a single thing about us in it.

Worst case scenario. It wouldn't be strange if the current Sirien had died long ago, and the Sirien in the original novel was her replacement. Thinking about it carefully, this was actually more natural. If the Sirien in the original novel was a replacement, then I could understand why she killed her blood relatives. She wouldn't have wanted to leave anyone alive who knew her true identity. It was a much more plausible story than the idea that the kind-hearted girl had suddenly gone mad one day.

'I don't know yet. I don't have enough information right now.'Other reincarnators had an advantage from the beginning because they had memorized the world view and the hidden stories of the characters. On the other hand, I had a dead end from the beginning, far from having an advantage. I remembered every single word of the original content, but there was nothing that could help me.

If I had to pick one piece of information that I know right now, it would be that Count Roxen likes cookies with Lamyris petals. The Lamyris flower is a flower that grows abundantly in the west of the empire, and it is said that when the petals are baked, they have a sweet and sour taste. What can I do with this knowledge? I don't know, no matter how much I think about it.

If there is no answer to a problem even after thinking about it, there is no reason to worry. Let's start by getting out of this situation for now. If possible, I planned to prevent Terion's death by taking good care of his health.

Sirien... I have no choice but to watch over her as much as possible. Even this alone could change a lot of things. For Sirien, and for me.

By chance, Sirien spoke softly.

"······Thank you. I will count on you then."