Chapter 45
From the moment we started riding the carriage from the royal city until we reached the destination Russell mentioned, the presence of people gradually faded.
Reaching out my hand toward the window only amplified the sense of unease. It was clearly broad daylight, yet the air was cool and humid.
Beyond mere silence, there was a stillness so deep it made every hair on my body stand on end.
“This is it.”
The slum known as the Darkness of the Territory, the place I remembered.
“We’ve arrived.”
“Get out.”
Click.
As the carriage door opened, the cold air pressed against my lungs. I gripped Russell’s hand with trembling fingers.
Stepping down from the carriage, even without seeing it, I was certain.
Where there is brilliant light, shadows always lie beneath. The slum was the darkness of the Territory itself.
Why did we come here?
Could he have sensed in my previous life that I had been a mere rat in the slum? That was impossible. No matter how perceptive Russell was, there was no way he could know that I had been reborn with memories of my past life.
Then the reason he brought me here must be…
The one possibility I had thought of before.
As my mind was consumed by confusion, Russell spoke.
“I was born and raised in the slum.”
The fevered heat in my head cooled instantly. I had expected this, but hearing it directly still shocked me.
Russell had grown up in the same slum as me?
“My mother was a priestess of the church that worships the goddess Ligor. The church’s laws were strict. But my mother committed adultery with His Majesty the Emperor… and that’s how I was born.”
“Ligor… the goddess of the bitter cold, right?”
“Yes.”
The church that worshiped Ligor, the goddess of bitter cold, wielded tremendous influence in the Empire. Even the high priest who recited prayers during the covenant ceremony had been a member of this church.
“Goddess Ligor is mentioned in the founding myth of the Empire. But she was also the lover of the founding king, Flamma.”
“That… I’ve never heard before.”
Ligor and Flamma as lovers? I had never heard of this in any life.
He let out a self-mocking laugh as he continued.
“Right? I also discovered it while investigating why my mother had been expelled from the church and fled to the slum.”
Russell continued his story.
“Before meeting Ligor, humans couldn’t use magic. It was just considered the delusions of children. But… when Ligor fell in love with Flamma, she taught him magic to control fire and iron, which allowed humanity to prosper.”
“Just because they were in love… she taught him magic?”
Russell shook his head slightly.
“No one really knows her intentions. Some say that Ligor, with magic powerful enough to freeze anyone who approached her, only passed it on because she didn’t want the courageous Flamma to be frozen.”
Whether it was a momentary whim or love, Ligor passed on her magic to her only lover. Humanity prospered from that moment on.
“Even after Flamma ascended to the throne, he loved Ligor. But one day, she disappeared… and Flamma spent the rest of his life longing for her.”
The love between an immortal god and a mortal human ended in tragedy.
Russell recounted the aftermath in a bitter tone.
“After that, the church claimed Ligor’s disappearance was because the emperor kept a goddess as his lover while keeping an empress by his side. Over time, the church decided to strictly punish those who committed adultery.”
So they believed the god was angry and no longer visited humans.
Russell’s mother, having committed adultery, was expelled from the church and chose the slum as a place to hide with her child.
“I spent most of my childhood in the slum. That’s also where I met Prater.”
“…That can’t be… possible…”
I pulled my hand away from Russell and took a step back.
My mind was in chaos.
“…Fiana?”
Perhaps he was equally perplexed. There was suspicion in his voice as he called me, though he had no way of knowing me or my past life.
If he had grown up in the slum, it would be strange if I didn’t recognize him. A blond, golden-eyed child in the slum would have stood out anywhere.
My thoughts were tangled like a skein of yarn. If he didn’t remember the slum, what was the meaning of those words I had heard so often?
“Even if you have no power, with courage you can take a step forward.”
Who had said that? It had been a phrase spoken by someone precious to me, always repeated like a habit.
Why did I only realize now that memory could be so vague?
When I parted my lips, my voice trembled so much it was barely recognizable as my own.
“Russell. I….”
I had to say it.
I remembered my past life and that I had been a mere rat in the slum. And that I had never seen him as a child.
But what if my memory is incomplete?
It had been over twenty years since I had been reborn and entered the slum. Yet Russell was only in his early thirties.
Did Russell originally handle a sword well?
Not originally. You began wielding it later.
That’s unexpected. I thought you had handled a sword since childhood.
I only took up a sword before adolescence, so it could be considered late or early depending on perspective.
The conversation I had had with Prater suddenly came to mind. Russell had started wielding a sword relatively late.
I felt short of breath.
The overwhelming sense of loss and dissonance from forgetting an essential memory hit me.
Just like when I first discovered the gravestone in the northern forest.
“Fiana, it’s okay…”
“Would you like a bite?”
Suddenly, a warm, comforting voice reached me. Someone must have approached during my panic, standing between me and Russell.
Otherwise, I couldn’t explain not noticing someone so close.
It smells warm and delicious… soup, maybe?
Why would such a smell exist in the slum? Any food here would be snatched immediately.
“I came because your complexion looked terrible… hope I’m not intruding.”
“No, it’s fine. By the way, if you have time, could you show me around the slum?”
“You young master has peculiar tastes. Then follow me closely!”
I heard the footsteps of the man carrying the soup recede. I gripped Russell’s hand again, my neck damp with sweat.
“Fiana. I don’t know why you feel this way… but I want you to see the slum for yourself.”
“…Alright.”
After a moment of hesitation, I followed Russell.
Tap, tap.
The sound of a walking stick hitting the ground echoed. The warm, appetizing aroma grew stronger. The farther inside we went, the less cold it felt, and the sound of multiple footsteps reached us.
“Russell… this is….”
Russell held my hand tightly and replied in a firm voice.
“The slum has changed from the old days.”
“Line up, please! Wait calmly, and we’ll serve everyone!”
“Next! Next person, come forward!”
A food distribution?
In my past life, distribution had been no different from a battlefield, but now there was complete calm. Laughter came from the children waiting in line.
“Mom! Can I eat the bread you got today?”
“Of course. Have plenty of soup too.”
“Yay! I want it quickly~”
The slum I remembered no longer existed. The Empire’s darkness, where the strong exploited the weak, had vanished without a trace.
What had once been a nightmare for me was now a place full of life and warmth.
Russell held my hand firmly without letting go and spoke.
“The first petition I submitted after being recognized as part of the royal family was to provide relief for the slum.”
“So… that’s why it was able to change.”
“Yes.”
Having grown up in the slum and experienced the suffering of someone dear, he could not ignore the weak.
So the slum has changed completely from my memories.
Russell’s small act of kindness transformed the slum.
I, reborn into a ducal family, had done nothing.
What can I do here in the slum?
As I pondered this, a sharp scream pierced the air.
“Kyahhh!”
“What’s happening!”
“Run! Head to the shelter!”
The clatter of soup bowls falling to the floor mixed with screams and cries.
What on earth was happening? What could I do in this situation?
“Fiana, you—”
“Russell…”
Russell placed his palm over mine, which was gripping the stick.
“You can do it.”
There was a firm resonance in his voice. I steadied my breath and struck the stick to the ground three times.
The scan function activated. A clear ringing sounded in my mind, and the surroundings appeared in silhouette.
In an instant, I understood what was happening.
“This…!”
The color drained from my face.
