novelraw Chapter 188: Childhood Friend - Twenty Photos
Chapter 188: Childhood Friend - Twenty Photos
188. Childhood Friend - Twenty Photos
“Oppa!”
Following Sir Iron, Rev also vomited blood. The blood vessels on both cheeks stood out in a bluish hue, and his lips turned purple. His head convulsed as he clutched his throat. Surprised, Lena tried to approach Rev...
“Eek!”
Someone yanked her hair roughly.
“Hahaha! Come here, pretty...”
It was a barbarian soldier. He grinned as he tried to hug Lena.
“What are you doing?”
But then, there were piercing golden eyes. Lena turned her head. As she glared at the brute who dared to touch the princess's hair, the vile barbarian froze. The lust that had twisted his features fled at the sight of her noble gaze, dignified nose, and furious lips.
“Oh... um...”“Let go.”
The soldier released her hair in a fluster. Just as Lena was about to catch her breath,
“What are you doing? How can you let such a pretty girl go?”
Another barbarian soldier grabbed Lena from behind. Disrespectfully, he wrapped his arm around her waist and groped her chest with his other hand. He was a warrior of the Norangdeu tribe. Lena struggled, but he did not budge. Rubbing his cheek against her ear, he spoke.
“Hey, Cesar. We can do whatever we want with her, right?”
- Thud.
A swarthy man, slightly smeared with blood, gestured with his chin. Having pushed aside the youth with the dagger in his chest, Hatu, he turned to Rev.
“Oh~ Captain.”
He smiled brightly. Cesar pulled out a small cloth bag from his pocket.
“How do you like it? I've never tasted it myself.”
Rev, clutching his throat, lifted his head. Through his blurry vision, he saw the bag Cesar was holding.
A new pattern skewered on a skewer.
The design on the bag was the same as the tattoo of the 'Dorf Family' thugs.
Drugs and the slave trade go well together. Nothing silences resisting slaves like drugs, and slaves are perfect for testing manufactured drugs. The Dorf Family, based in Nevis, made drugs and the slave trade their main source of income.
“You... you bastard...”
Blood bubbles gushed from Rev's mouth. Sticky blood dribbled messily down his chin.
The soup was hot, and he only had one spoonful. Yet, he felt his intestines being shredded, the poison quickly eating away at him.
“Haha. Can't handle hot stuff, can you? I have a question, Captain. You seem to have seen the map I made... where did you see it?”
Cesar approached.
He kicked Sir Iron, who was writhing on the floor, then squatted in front of the tree stump used as a table.
“You know the barbarian tribes well, Captain. But strangely, you know exactly the same things I lied about. Where did you see it? Did the thug boss of the Dorf Family show it to you?”
A map showing the locations of the barbarian tribes.
In the chapter where Rev was the apostle of Barbatos, he annihilated the Dorf Family.
It began much earlier when he tortured and killed the thug boss who kidnapped Lena in a previous chapter, from whom he obtained the map.
The Norangdeu tribe, the Dwina tribe, and others were detailed on the map fittingly for the Dorf Family involved in the slave trade.
In his fading consciousness, Rev realized. The map, with its crooked handwriting as if written on a palm, contained more wrong information when he personally visited the barbarian tribes... Cesar, the peddler, had made it. He usually wrote letters on Sinis' back.
“Since you're going anyway, tell me where you saw it, Captain. Did that bastard show it to you... Wow!”
- Swoosh!
Rev's sword slashed through the air. His vision blurred, and he struck in the wrong direction. Cesar took a couple of steps back, whistling.
“You're amazing. Just smelling this stuff would knock most people out.”
“Why... why are you... Ugh!”
Rev spat out blood.
What he vomited now was no longer foam. Torn pieces of his organs came out mixed with black blood.
“Actually, I didn't want to do this either. When I first met you, Captain, I found it a bit ridiculous, but I thought you were worth following.”
[Acheivement: Master-Servant Relationship - '953', As long as loyalty remains unshaken, those who swear loyalty believe and follow Leo.]
A message appeared. The count that had been falling steadily rose by one.
“Rebellion. Hahaha. If it succeeds, we can enjoy wealth and glory. Money is the best, right? But,”
[Acheivement: Master-Servant Relationship - '952', As long as loyalty remains unshaken, those who swear loyalty believe and follow Leo.]
“It's ruined, isn't it? This is very troublesome. But I still wish for things to go well. I like you, Captain.”
[Acheivement: Master-Servant Relationship - '953', As long as loyalty remains unshaken, those who swear loyalty believe and follow Leo.]
Cesar squatted again. He stared intently at Rev, who was twitching, sprawled over the tree stump.
“But now there's no choice. I've worked for you for so long... I need to get my money's worth too. You understand, right?”
[Acheivement: Master-Servant Relationship - '952', As long as loyalty remains unshaken, those who swear loyalty believe and follow Leo.]
“If I say I captured the general, there will be a reward. Anyway, farewell. As a token of my gratitude, I'll occasionally offer a sacrifice. Thanks to you, I even got the princess.”
Lena!
Rev turned his head with difficulty. A thorn protruding from the blood-soaked tree stump scratched his cheek.
Beside him, Lena was grappling with a Norangdeu tribe warrior.
Lena struggled desperately, but her frail arms could not overcome the warrior's strength. The Norangdeu warrior threw her to the ground. Pinning her arms, he tore at her clothes with his other hand.
“Let go, let go!”
“Stay still!”
The majesty of royalty was powerless. Bound arms, a belly, and legs pinned down made her shouts meaningless.
Lena realized that nothing she learned from the Marchioness of Guidan was of any use.
The cooking and politics she learned only had meaning when the ingredients were prepared, and the Marchioness never taught her how to prepare them. Even the Marchioness used ingredients prepared by maids.
“Lena! Let go of my sister...!!”
He couldn't hear her.
Rev got to his feet. Staggering, he clutched his now incredibly heavy sword. But it was only his thought; barely gripping it, his grip no longer listened to its master.
Death was near. His body was rapidly becoming uncontrollable.
“Oppa, save... Ugh! Let go of me! I said let go!”
“Let... let go of me... Hahaha! That's funny. If you stay still, I'll... Ouch!”
Rev threw himself. His foot caught on the tree stump, but he somehow raised his sword. Holding the sword, he struck down with his falling body.
- Thud.
The sword. Pierced the chest.
But the person hit was not the Norangdeu warrior. Between the torn clothes, Lena's bare chest was pierced by the cold metal.
It was no accident.
[Forced End: Lena Killed 2/3]
Rev collapsed. Falling over his sister's body, the sword in her chest cut into his chin and lips.
“I'm... I'm sorry...”
His sister's bare chest touched his chin, tormenting him. He tried to lift himself, but his body wouldn't move, so he turned his head.
In his fading vision, beyond his dying sister's face, he saw the sweetly swaying chamomile.
*
[ Leo has died. ]
[ You have died. 5/5 - The player shares life with Leo. ]
[ Achievement: Fifth Death - The speed at which the player assimilates with Leo slows down. ]
[ Thank you for playing Raising Lena. ]
The dead sister, the betrayers surrounding them, the overturned bowl of soup, the blood-soaked tree stump, and the summer-scented forest rapidly receded.
And darkness fell.
In the darkness, Minseo shuddered.
He was glad to be a spherical form; otherwise, he would have torn the flesh from his face. He would have gouged out the eyes that saw his sister’s chest and ripped every piece of skin that touched her from his cheek to his chin.
He wanted to do that.
‘...!!!’
Minseo screamed silently. He loathed himself for killing his sister and cursed Cesar and the betrayers with all his might.
He hated this game and the supreme god who surely created it, but that hatred turned back on him.
Instinctively trying to protect himself, he attempted to slander Rev and Prince Leo but quickly calmed down. In the empty darkness where the ending credits rolled, the only one he could blame was himself.
[ Lena ]
[ Final Job: Priest ]
[ Marriage Partner: Unmarried ]
[ Rev ]
[ Final Job: General ]
[ Marriage Partner: Engaged to the chief of the Norangdeu tribe ]
[ Childhood Friend Ending: Wandering Priest ]
- Lena, born in Demos Village... (omitted) ...claimed that even priests could marry and that God granted His creations the right to choose, becoming a priest at a young age. She traveled the continent as a missionary all her life, refusing Veronian's request. After her death, Lena was venerated as the eighth saint. -
- Rev, born in Demos Village... (omitted) ...became a general and led Prince Leo de Yriel's rebel forces but fell into the schemes of Prince Athon and Prince Elzeor de Lognum. He fled with Princess Lena de Yriel at Leo's urging but was poisoned by his lieutenant. -
[ The Beggar Sibling Scenario Ending has been changed. ]
[ Lena de Yriel ]
[ Final Job: Unemployed ]
[ Marriage Partner: Unmarried ]
[ Leo de Yriel ]
[ Final Job: Rebel Commander-in-Chief ]
[ Marriage Partner: In a relationship with Jenia ]
[ Beggar Sibling Ending: Rebellion Failed ]
+ Lena, born in Lutetia Castle, had an unhappy childhood. Dragged along by people... (omitted) ...she persuaded many nobles to help her brother. However, the rebellion failed, and Lena fled Nevis with General Rev at Prince Leo's strong insistence. She was killed by General Rev on the run, betrayed by his subordinates. +
+ Leo, born in Lutetia Castle, had an unhappy childhood. Dragged along by people... (omitted) ...raised an army with the help of Guidan, the Marquis of Drazhin. Despite a desperate siege defense in the capital Nevis, he was defeated and executed. His head was sent to the Conrad Kingdom. +
Guilt tore Minseo apart. He didn't know how to handle the boiling anger but habitually read the ending credits.
The ending photos came up.
One was of a serene country road, an elderly priest sitting in the back of a carriage. Despite her age, she had a certain freshness; she was undoubtedly Lena.
One foot dangled below the carriage, the other tucked up as she sat. Her white priestly robe was stained, but she didn't seem to care.
In her hands was a cup he had seen somewhere before. Lena held it with both hands, gazing far into the blue sky.
The other photo was of his sister Lena. Torn clothes, a sword in her chest, and the fallen Rev. There was nothing special to note. But Minseo stared intently at one corner of the photo.
Cesar.
No matter what, he would kill him. No, he would destroy him.
It was a relief to have someone to take out his anger on. Without it, he wouldn't have been able to bear it. Minseo mumbled for a while, and text floated in front of him.
[ You have failed to clear Raising Lena. ]
[ Leo, you have been betrayed. As consolation, the 'Master-Servant Relationship' achievement is enhanced. ]
[ Achievement: Twenty Photos - Lena occasionally weakly recalls the past in dreams. ]
[ Starting over. ]
A video unfolded of the northern Astin Kingdom. The scene moved toward the castle of Avril.
Minseo's view soon arrived at a snowy clearing, and another message appeared in front of him.
[ Achievement: '17th Leo' - The speed at which the player assimilates with Leo slightly increases. ]
[ 17/22 ]
[ The true name is unknown. ]
But this didn't matter much.
Lena Ainar turned around.
Straight eyebrows and confident eyes. Lena Ainar, his lover and fiancée, looked back at Leo Dexter.
“Leo! Are you listening to me?”
“Aaaah!”
Minseo clutched his head and screamed. Cruelly, his heart pounded with emotion.
His mind was not the same. The guilt of killing his sister had not disappeared! His heart and body belonged to Leo Dexter.
He felt love for Lena Ainar in front of him, happy to see her again. The sorrow of her death in the last chapter washed over him.
He felt like he was going insane.
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