When Lamia defiantly pushed out her chest and lifted her chin, asking what Karla was going to do about it, Karla slowly bent her waist toward the child. She extended her white, slender hand and gently stroked Lamia’s bright blue hair.
As she touched the deep blue hair — a spitting image of her own father’s — the child’s face flushed with shock. Lamia had always been intimidated by Karla, so this kind of contact was unprecedented.
When Lamia’s eyes brimmed with surprise and her pale cheeks flushed a rosy pink, Karla spoke in a calm tone, as if she had just eaten bread for lunch.
“You really are a naughty child.”
“W-what?!”
Leaving only that one phrase behind, Karla turned her back decisively. Lamia, snapped out of her daze, quickly regained her composure and, with a sharp voice, stopped Karla’s footsteps.
“Hey, don’t walk away! What did you just say?! Did you call Lamia a naughty child? Hah, who do you think you are!”
“‘Who do I think I am?’”
“Yes, who do you think you are! You said you were sick, but are you out of your mind? What if I tell grandmother about this?”
‘Who does she think she is, talking back to me?’ Karla was a burden thrown here by the duke’s household, even given money. She was naturally stupid, didn’t know how to do any work, and was a lazy parasite who just ate meals at home.
Even after six years of marriage, she was a defective product who didn’t know how to bear children, and if she got kicked out of here too, she had nowhere else to go. That’s why Karla should never have dared to talk back to me.
She was supposed to take whatever verbal abuse came her way, endure any anger, and bow her head obediently. That’s what the nanny and grandmother who raised her since infancy always said.
“Go and tell her.”
“Huh? What?”
“Go and tell your grandmother, and talk bad about me until your hearts are at peace. I have somewhere to be.”
But contrary to expectations, Karla did not tremble at her words. She just glanced back at Lamia with ice-cold eyes and walked away as if nothing had happened.
“What’s with her? Did she lose her mind from falling down the stairs?”
Lamia was so stunned she could barely speak. And those eyes! She had never once looked at her with such chilling coldness.
“You shouldn’t treat Lamia like that.”
“You shouldn’t treat me like that.”
Lamia stood there, muttering to herself several times. Unfortunately, this seven-year-old child, spoiled and pampered all her life, was not mature enough to reflect on what she had done so far.
—
—
“-It’s become a forest.”
Karla, leaving the duke’s mansion, headed to the old manor from her days as a great mage. Fortunately, after a long time, the once united empire had split into three, but her homeland, Castaros, kept its name and capital unchanged.
The castle that came with the dukedom from the first emperor, Rudvalt, was also in this capital. It used to be the best location — close to the city but quiet — but now, no one knew when it had been swallowed by the forest.
“Well, if I go there, I can see if I really remember my past life or if I’ve gone mad.”
No matter how clear Asmoph’s memories were, or how certain she felt about her past life, it was still just a suspicion. As an alchemist who had lived her whole life with logic, she could not believe anything without solid evidence.
“It’s strange that my name isn’t remembered as a traitor despite what I did. It would have been better if they had hanged my dead body already.”
The founding story of Castaros was almost a legend now, and hardly anyone believed in magic anymore, but stories about the great mage Asmoph were recorded without fail in every history book.
He was a loyal servant who led the continent’s conquest as the emperor’s right hand. What a joke — even a passing dog would laugh.
But there was no mention anywhere of Gilford or Eddie. Over time, descendants even remembered Asmoph as a man.
“Is this revenge? After losing Gilford and Eddie and taking my own life, did I erase their existence so I alone would be remembered?”
She didn’t think Akali had any kindness left for her. Nor did she dare hope.
“Yes, ‘dare’ is the word to use here.”
Karla smiled, recalling the little girl who had dared to claw at her. Before, she had tolerated the bratty tone, since she was still a stepmother. These children were probably the only kids in her life, and she was the only one who could be a mother to them.
‘Madam, I no longer want children.’
When had she heard those words? Karla tried to recall vague memories. It was probably not long after marriage, when she was staying alone at the estate.
Rubyderf, who came to the estate for work, had joined the party and returned heavily drunk. She followed her husband like a stray dog, helped him take off his coat and wash, and got carried away by the mood and spent the night together. In the morning, the husband showed clear regret.
“You bastard.”
In her heart, remembering Gilford, her ideal lover, contempt for Rubyderf had already taken root.
Yes, he hadn’t married her out of love. He probably felt miserable for having sold himself like a dowry for two million gold. But if so, he should have treated her well.
To keep his pride, even if it was a deal, he should have at least pretended to be happy about the marriage. Then he should have acted like an extremely lucky man who got financial support and a beautiful wife.
Rubyderf suggested they be ‘friends,’ but they had never been friends even for a moment.
In her eyes — holding the alchemist’s nature deeply — Rubyderf was a damn bastard who never acted like a husband, even though he was paid.
“Ah.”
Angry over this unfair past, she found herself in the middle of the forest. Familiar scenery came into view.
The main gate was firmly shut, but through the sharp iron bars, a path leading to the garden was visible.
It was definitely the Rudvaltberg Castle.
Although rusted, moss-covered, and swallowed by ivy vines, its grandeur was just as she remembered.
Karla instantly forgot her painful memories of her father, family, and husband’s household. Instinctively, she reached out to reclaim the happiness that should have been hers.
“Gilford, Eddie… maybe, like me, they have returned.”
Seeing the castle that wasn’t recorded in history books, she discarded all doubts about herself. A small hope blossomed in her heart.
She had never lived kindly even as a polite lie. She had taken many lives in war and never showed mercy to enemies begging for their lives.
If she somehow earned forgiveness and a new life, then her kind husband and angel-like baby would have long since returned to where they belonged.
<Stop.>
Just as she reached to touch the iron gate with a hopeful heart, the ground trembled, her feet shook, and a huge pile of stones rose up from below.
Wearing indoor slippers, Karla lost her balance and fell, but the floor continued to rise.
<No one who is not permitted may step inside the castle grounds.>
It was a grand voice echoing as if from inside a cave.
Slowly lifting her head from the dust storm, Karla saw large red eyes in the blurry view.
When the dust cleared, she faced a human-shaped figure made of huge rocks.
Standing on its palm.
“-You are…”
<Blond hair, red eyes. Features I have never seen before… You are not a guest of the master. Leave.>
“Andion?”
Karla was truly surprised to see him. This ‘thing’ was the alchemy doll ‘Golem’ she had created to guard the manor.
It was designed to run on mana and wasn’t given an operational time limit, but countless years had passed since then. She thought it would have deteriorated or been destroyed by other alchemists…
Unable to speak in surprise, Andion flashed the red light in his eyes and leaned his face close to hers.
“Have you been here all this time?”
<I am Andion, the guardian of Rudvaltberg Castle. Since my ‘birth,’ I have never left this place.>
Andion showed strong hostility toward the suspicious visitor who had come after a long time.
The master left, many people visited, but only for a few years. Andion only allowed guests with prior permission and firmly prevented anyone from removing the castle’s property.
After some time, humans stopped coming altogether. It was uncertain, but the elf forest bordering the castle had grown and blocked human approach. But how did this small, fragile human come here? And furthermore…
<How do you know my name?>
Hearing Andion’s question, Karla was surprised a second time.
She had never given Andion a self that could ask questions unrelated to his mission. She only programmed a manual to distinguish intruders, guests, and family, and respond accordingly.
But over time, gathering much information, a self-awareness had emerged within him. As an alchemist who explores universal truths, she found this phenomenon very interesting.
Also, she felt proud and pitiful for this huge, threatening golem who had guarded the place alone, obediently following her orders.
