Chapter 40: The Original Sin of the Dragon part 1

“So you’re saying that because of that choice, the one that sent her to the Duke’s estate two months early and me to the Magic Tower, all of this happened?”

Fay already knew the answer.

‘No… No. A butterfly’s wings may cause a storm, but this is impossible. The return of Young Lord Kassel, whom I hadn’t seen in two years, the Crown Prince’s summons, the conflict between Marquis Hyante and Duke Orleans… and undoubtedly, things I am unaware of continue to unfold somewhere.’

She murmured slowly.

“…Why was time reversed in the first place?”

It had to be magic. Without a doubt, it was magic.

Since the end of the ancient era, the hands of the Supreme Deity had never touched this continent. He had declared that he would cease his intervention after reclaiming the ancient dragons.

Curious about the course of events, Fay scoured every magic book within the Magic Tower.

Magic capable of turning back time – not a single tome mentioned such a thing. Even if it did exist, it would be an immense and forbidden spell of at least the ninth or tenth circle, something only a dragon or a celestial being with divine blood could wield.

Even if such magic once existed, the spell would have been lost by now. It was far too dangerous.

Then… who could have accomplished such a feat?

“Lord Baroah… Was it you who turned back time? Did you do it out of pity, unable to bear watching the child you once saved with your own hands die so cruelly? Was it to make sure I lived with clarity this time?”

She carefully called out the name of the person who had just come to mind.

“You… the great Master of the Magic Tower, where are you? I once vowed to find you no matter what. So please, give me a hint, just like when you deliberately gave me both the names Morgana and Morgan le Fay.”

Fay curled her cold body up on the bed. There was someone else she wished to call besides Baroah.

“Sir Kassel, and Sir Leon, the knight who shares my blood down to its very essence. Even if you have nothing to do with Baroah… I still hope that you, Sir Kassel, are someone who remembers the past like I do. I wish to share this unbearable, crushing loneliness with you…”

If only I could weep freely in the embrace of someone who truly understood me. If only, for just one night, I could pour out all the pain and sorrow I had endured! If that person were you, Kassel. 

If the reason you, who had always been stationed at the Rozia border, returned this time was solely because of me. If, after realizing that time had been reversed, you sensed something amiss and came back… and in the end, you recognized me, Morgana, Tiana Marietta Klein, for who I truly was. Then perhaps I could finally let go of my resentment toward the Klein duchy. Not forgive them, no. Just let the bitterness flow away, like water departing from a receding tide.

Yes, I never had a reason to hate Kassel in the first place. It might sting a little to see him escorting Dott, the girl he believes to be his sister, with such kindness at the debutante ball in spring, but… I’ll simply turn a blind eye.

“…I’m greedy, aren’t I? I said I needed nothing, yet here I am, shamelessly yearning for your attention. Just like I did with Baroah, who saved me and then vanished like the wind.”

People change. They can become different.

Fay was realizing that herself.

“Did you know? Even if you never regain your past memories, I still hope you see me as someone special.”

Having finally voiced an impossible wish, Fay let out a lonely smile.

That was enough for today.

Talking to herself so much after being alone for so long made her feel a little self-conscious. Who did she think was listening?

She burrowed under the sheets of her bed. Before her eyes could fully close, a pale figure leaning against the door slowly straightened up.

‘You knew the flow of time had been twisted? Not just you, but that fake princess as well?’

Lucius had long been aware of Fay’s lineage, but he had never directly discussed it with her. He had only ever made vague guesses. He had assumed that she, who bore the strongest traces of Karon’s blood, was merely the illegitimate child of the Duke, her status tragically unrecognized.

But that wasn’t the case? She was the real one, and the girl who recently entered the Klein duchy was a complete imposter? Fay herself had called her a fake, so there could be no mistake.

As Lucius trudged along, he fiercely analyzed the words he had just heard.

‘So you have memories of the past. That makes sense, since our fates are intertwined. But even that powerless woman? Did my time-reversal magic turn out so unstable? True, I did cast it in the throes of death… but this is disappointing. Wait, and who is this Baroah?’

Kassel, at least, he knew. But Baroah… Baroah required investigation.

Yet, for some reason, the name felt oddly familiar.

Who are you?

Just as Lucius frantically searched his memories… 

“Lurulululu~”

“Hey, you.”

He heard the sound of Holtdayne’s whistling as the man passed by, carrying an armful of empty milk bottles. Lucius immediately grabbed him by the nape and bombarded him with questions.

“Do you know a mage named Baroah?”

Holtdayne, despite having his first love ‘stolen’ by Lucius, didn’t seem too displeased. After all, Lucius was superior to him in skill, and besides, something good had recently happened.

Thanks to drinking a bottle of milk every day, he had grown slightly taller! No one else might notice, but he did. A man who works hard will eventually claim victory in love. Pleased with himself, he grinned generously.

……

(T/N: Aww… Fay… don’t worry about me, I’m just sobbing here 😭

Holdayne is unexpectedly adorable hahaha)