CHAPTER 25: EVA’S SHOCKING REVELATION

Night came. "Ugh," Ard, who was asleep, looked restless again. He turned his head, looking right and left. He heard loud screams all around him, the heartbreaking shrieks of many people at the end of their lives.

"Noooooo!"

"Don’t... don’t... please... aaargh!"

"Please don’t... at least don’t kill my child... hgggh!"

"It hurts... it hurts... it hurts... please stop... wahhhhh... ugh!"

"Crack... crack," the sound of something breaking. The sound of fire burning something was also heard.

Slowly, Ard opened his eyes. He saw his surroundings burning. In front of him, countless demons in black armor, horned, red-eyed, and dark-skinned, were slaughtering humans. He realized he was in a burning city. Scream after scream echoed in his ears. Ard looked completely confused and didn’t understand what was happening.

"W-What is this?" he asked in his heart.

Ard lifted both his hands. His eyes widened as he saw himself holding Exgrandal with a blood-soaked black blade, and his other hand was black—fingers like claws, skin a pale black, covered in blood. Then, he saw a woman split in half lying right in front of him, along with a man whose body was pierced, and a little boy split in two from top to bottom, the wounds still leaving a residue of dark element.

"W-What... what... what did I do... what is this," Ard muttered in his heart.

Ard turned to look at a glass pane in a burning house window. He gasped instantly, seeing his reflection: he was wearing large, majestic armor like a king, with pale black skin, red eyes, long black hair, two horns on his head, and one lightning-bolt-shaped horn on his forehead. "Clang," Ard released Exgrandal, letting it fall to the ground. He touched his blood-soaked face.

"W-What is this... what is this... a-am I a demon? N-No... no... nooooooo!" Ard screamed in terror.

"Crack," the world immediately fractured again, and not long after, "Smash," the world shattered like a destroyed mirror. Hysterical, Ard fell into the darkness toward a growing point of light.

***

"Huaaah," Ard woke up in his bed. "Snore... snore," he heard Geoffrey snoring below. He was panting, and his body was covered in sweat. His face looked as if he had just witnessed a terrible terror. Both his hands were clenched and trembling, gripping the blanket.

"A d-dream... but it felt so real... w-what was that just now," Ard muttered in his heart, but Ard didn’t have time to process the dream.

"Thump... thump," Ard turned his head, hearing a sound at his window. Ace, who was hiding in Ard’s shadow, came out and flew in circles on the ceiling. After that, Ace pulled the window curtain back a bit. Moonlight streamed in, and a faint, small white griffin could be seen tapping on the glass. Ard immediately climbed down from his bunk bed, then walked to the window and opened the curtain.

It was true—a small white griffin was flying right in front of his window. He opened the window and looked down. Eva, wearing pajamas layered with a dressing gown, was below, waving her hand. Ard looked up; the moon was still high, indicating it was still the middle of the night.

"Huh... what does she want coming here in the middle of the night," Ard said in his heart, wiping away his sweat.

Ard signaled to Eva to wait a moment. Then he put on his shirt and slowly walked out of the room with Ace perched on his shoulder. As soon as he got out of the dormitory, Ard ran to the side to approach Eva, who was standing beneath his window.

"What’s wrong, Princess? Why are you out so late at night?" Ard asked, confused.

"Eva... not ’Princess’," Eva replied, pouting.

"Ah... right... Eva. Why are you here? Couldn’t sleep?" Ard asked.

"I wanted to talk to you. We can only meet at night, right? We’re busy all day, and... there are too many distractions," Eva answered, giving Ard a sharp look.

"Oh... hahaha... sorry. And... what did you want to talk about?" Ard asked.

"Let’s go to the garden first," Eva replied.

They walked to the garden together, their pets retreating into their shadows. After that, they entered an available pavilion there. When Ard sat down, he was surprised to see Eva sit right next to him, not across from him, and slightly pressed against him.

"Um... Eva," Ard said.

"It’s fine. No one will see us," Eva replied.

"A-Alright, so what did you want to talk about?" Ard asked. "The problem isn’t whether someone sees us or not... I’m uncomfortable, you’re the person who killed me nine times, understand," Ard said in his heart.

"I... want to tell you about my brother," Eva said.

Ard nodded, ready to listen. Eva explained that her brother used to be different. He was kind and loved her, and they often played together. Until one day, when they were both ten years old and playing in the palace library, in order to protect Eva, who had climbed a bookshelf to get a book and then knocked many thick books down, Edmund covered Eva. A heavy book hit his head, knocking him unconscious with blood coming from his head.

Since then, after he recovered, Edmund’s attitude completely changed. He seemed like a different person to Eva and began seeing her not as his sister, but as a woman. He started flirting and rambling on about their future together, even asking the Emperor to marry him to Eva, who was actually not the Empress’s biological child but the daughter of one of the Emperor’s concubines.

Of course, the Emperor strictly refused, because even though Eva’s mother was a concubine, she was still the Emperor’s child and still related by blood to Edmund. But when Eva turned fourteen, the Emperor suddenly summoned her to his room. The Emperor immediately said that Eva was to be engaged to Edmund, who was already seventeen. Eva was naturally shocked and asked her father why he had decided that a sibling marriage was permissible.

But her father did not answer Eva’s question. Eva finally swallowed her heartache and began observing her father, the Emperor. She saw her father begin to act strangely, not just toward the family, but in his governance. His decisions seemed to align with Edmund’s and benefited Edmund in all areas.

"Up until now... I’m still investigating what happened, and I need your help, Ard," Eva said. "Even though I already know what will happen from my nine previous lives where the events were always the same, maybe this time will be different because I’m with him," Eva muttered in her heart.

"Hmm... what kind of help? If possible, don’t make it too difficult," Ard said cassualy.

"If, one day, I am forced to kill my father and my brother, I want you by my side. Or, if I have to run away from the Empire... I want to run away with you," Eva replied.

"Jolt," Ard’s head felt like it had been struck by lightning. His previously relaxed face became tense in an instant, and his mind went completely blank. Ard fell silent. He stared at Eva’s face, which looked extremely serious and full of hope for him—a face he had absolutely never seen and never believed existed on the cold ice queen who incited war everywhere.

Ard opened his mouth, then closed it again, because no answer came out. After a moment, Ard finally opened his mouth.

"Why me?" he asked.

Eva opened her dimensional box and pulled out the sword Exelion, giving it to Ard, who held it casually without thinking much and examined it. Eva smiled, looking at Ard.

"You... Ace... Asthon... Azroth and... Prince Arden Larsen Fredonia... right?" Eva asked, smiling.

"Huh... w-what do you mean... I-I’m not,"

Eva covered Ard’s mouth with her finger, stopping him from speaking. Then Eva hugged Ard.

"I’m the one who asked Irwin to investigate you... of course he reported back to me," Eva said.

"B-But my hair isn’t red... the entire Fredonia royal family has red hair," Ard countered.

"True, but you are the exception," Eva said. "Everyone in the palace knows that when you were born, you had black hair and your father asked the royal wizard to use magic to make your hair red. When you used magic to disguise yourself, you accidentally neutralized the magic’s effect and returned to your original color... that’s what Irwin said; he has a friend who works in the Fredonia palace," Eva explained.

"Huh... i-is that true?" Ard asked. "So... my hair is naturally black... this can’t be possible," Ard muttered in his heart, shocked.

"Finally we meet. I’ve been waiting for you... for nine lives," Eva said.

"W-What? N-Nine lives?" Ard asked, shocked. "S-So she’s repeating too? No wonder she’s strong... I thought... I was the only one repeating... what does this mean? I don’t understand at all," Ard said in his heart because of the panic.