LIGHTNOVELONLINE The Nerd Turned Out To Be The Tyrant
Chapter 117
“Oh my, Miss, are you okay?”
As the tension eased, the headache pressed down even more heavily. The pain, like needles piercing her head, was so intense that Luce couldn’t even muster a short reply. Instead, she just waved her hand and staggered out of the mansion. Not knowing where she was going, she wandered aimlessly until she found herself leaning against the wall in an alley where the mansion was no longer visible. Luce, knowing from the start that it was a headache the medicine couldn’t relieve, habitually chewed and swallowed the pills anyway. ‘Red hair.’ She thought it was strange. The people of Xenon village who were amazed by the color of her hair that she had seen since she was young, the words of the boy who said that she looked like a cherry even though she didn’t have any red hair, the mysterious man who had chased the red-haired child and came all the way to the capital’s workplace. The pieces of the mystery came together, and Aloise’s words formed a framework. A chill ran through her. Luce shivered and thought. ‘Since the day I went to the Duchy of Ximel, my hair color has changed without me knowing. It didn’t stop at the changes, but even the memories were manipulated, not just mine, but the memories of everyone in Xenon and Rodante…’ With her face buried in her knees, Luce tried to figure out where her memories had started to go wrong. The first strangeness she encountered was the dinner at the Duchy of Ximel. Luce, who was explaining the situation when she had saved Aloise, didn’t say why she was so sure that the culprit was at the concert. She couldn’t say anything because, although she remembered receiving advice from someone, she couldn’t recall who had spoken to her. Mrs. Plum said that the memory was blurry as a form of self-defense mechanism due to the shock. There was no other explanation. In general terms. ‘But what if my memory was manipulated back then? What if that’s why I forgot?’ The second strangeness Luce found in her chaotically jumbled memories was the time of her first possession. ‘When I first possessed this body, I wanted to know where I was. I wasn’t curious about who the person talking to me was or what their relationship to me might be. It was someone whose identity didn’t need to be verified. The one who gave me the hint that this world is 《The Cruel History of the Vladin Empire》.’ Luce groaned as she tried to piece together the fragmented memories that seemed to have been cut and torn away. ‘Rev, how did I meet him? I saved Rev when he was being bullied by Vincent. I told the kids who were teasing him about his red eyes that they shouldn’t do that because my hair color is red too. Didn’t I say something like did you think that way when you looked at my father…!’ “You don’t know other people’s lies very well.” As soon as she recalled the word “father,” the dream she had at the duchy suddenly unfolded before her eyes. The words spoken by the tall man with red hair echoed tormentingly in Luce’s ears. Luce, Luce. You really don’t know when others are lying to you. Gritting her teeth, Luce continued her thoughts and then realized something. ‘Dreams are part of my subconscious, so they couldn’t be altered like my memories. This isn’t something that can be done with drugs. Someone selectively cut out specific parts of my memory… A wizard was involved. That person did it.’ He was the only person in this world capable of wielding power beyond human comprehension. A name that had been mentioned countless times yet remained shrouded in mystery, the last wizard, Radanum. Why did he manipulate her memories? Why go so far as to manipulate the memories of an entire village for just one girl living in a rural town? What had I been trying to protect if I couldn’t even protect my own memories? Is there anything real among my memories? There was no end to the headache. The more she dwelled on her thoughts, the more it felt like she was being sucked into a swamp along with the pain. A bitter taste rose in her throat and she felt nauseous. It was when Luce, wiping her eyes that were soaked with tears, tightly closed her eyes again, which she had no choice but to close. Even though her eyes were closed, her vision suddenly turned blue. The pendant glowed. “Luce!” A familiar voice was heard along with urgent footsteps. With a dizzying vision, Luce saw Rev. How did he know to come here? Was his memory also manipulated? Peripheral questions were swallowed, leaving only the primal. Luce asked Rev, who was desperately calling her, in a trembling voice. “…Are you really Rev?” Now I couldn’t even believe what I saw with my own eyes. Luce’s vision went black. She closed her eyes to the long, horn-like wail of an auditory hallucination. “Don’t believe it.” Luce couldn’t hear what he said. Rev laid the unconscious Luce on the bed and covered her with a blanket, then looked at her forehead covered with cold sweat. He almost touched her forehead but slowly withdrew his hand. His hands were cold and wouldn’t help Luce to calm down at all. Instead, with a tense, pale hand, he placed a wet cloth on her forehead. Then, he willingly sat on the floor where he could clearly see her face. Tilting his head, he noticed his hand was close to hers. The only warmth he possessed was in his lips, so Rev slowly pressed them against Luce’s fingertips. “It’s me, Rev… It’s Rev.” Your Rev. The owner of my name. Rev suppressed his words and kissed her fingers. He knew that kissing someone’s hand symbolized obedience or a vow, but since he already belonged to her, he had nothing to be afraid of. He felt that it would be fine to lower himself even more, as long as he could stay by her side. So, he hoped that she, who had him, would smile. He wished for many joyful things to happen to her, so he could always see Luce with her bright and gentle smile. But Luce now seemed unhappy. Do the red eyes that bring bad luck still remain visible even when they are covered by her light? Is she in pain now because he took on her light, and unfortunately chose that color? The person who loved him, his mother, was dead. She left for a distant place without even showing her face, leaving only a few words of farewell. She said she didn’t want to become his weakness. The words etched in the young prince’s memory suddenly resurfaced, twisted and distorted. Back then, he was powerless and lost people. If he became strong enough that a few weaknesses didn’t matter, wouldn’t he be able to gain people? If he became strong enough to erase his father, stepmother, and half-siblings, wouldn’t weaknesses become insignificant? Is it because I’m still weak that you’re unhappy now? 「Did you say… appearance?」 「Your hair color. It was originally red, but you changed it, didn’t you?」 Or is it because there are many people who give you a hard time? At that moment, Luce’s heart began to race. The pendant, detecting an abnormal reaction, transmitted the coordinates along with the surrounding sounds. This was a feature added when the pendant was repaired, though he had hoped it would never be needed. However, he hadn’t anticipated that Princess Aloise would speak in such a way. It was closer to the point where he didn’t know that she would say irrational things that would do no good to the princess. He was the one who erased the memories, but talking recklessly with the intent to use Lucie was another matter. Of course, the princess didn’t know the details and spoke without malice, but sometimes ignorance is worse than malice. The Princess should keep her mouth shut. ‘I erased the memories for Luce’s sake.’ However, her heart felt rough, as if she were stuck in quicksand. It felt like she was missing something very important. ‘Was it for Luce?’ Did Luce want it? The situation he learned about through his conversation with Chelsea was something he had never shared with Luce. He thought it was better for Luce not to know about Chelsea’s twisted family affairs and the faked death, and he still felt the same way. But what if Luce’s thoughts were different? What if she wanted to know everything, even if it was difficult for her? Hadn’t everything started because of his own selfish desire not to see Luce struggle…? However, his thoughts never reached his heart. Rev stared at the dark window. He saw his own crumbling and distorted reflection, but the deep abyss shrouded in darkness remained silent. Looking at his own face, he murmured to himself. “Aurelio.” That name is not who he is. It is a discarded name, a name he abandoned. He turned his head and looked at Luce. And muttered again. “Rev.” I can do anything for the sake of the name you call me. He repeated this to himself over and over, as if trying to brainwash himself. Rev deeply kissed the back of Luce’s hand one last time, then looked around the room. His gaze brushed past the black cat with closed eyes and landed on the star-shaped magic tool. It was blood-red in color. Since he was here, the change in color was meaningless. It needed to be compared to when someone without magic touched it. Rev put down the magic tool and took a moment to look at Luce. He left the room without glancing at the window. The room was silent after he left. As the presence disappeared, the cat opened its eyes and leaped towards its resting owner. The cat with reddish-brown eyes examined its owner’s face and shook its head almost like a human. 「Poor thing.」 The cat, which had placed its front paw on Luce’s cheek, muttered softly. 「Father and son are the same in this regard.」 The cat laughed a little. “…cette? Lucette?” Luce woke up to the feeling of someone shaking her. The wet towel slipped off and fell away. “Aide Yohan?” “I came by because you didn’t show up at the meeting place and I was worried something might have happened… Why do you look like this? Did you fall into ice water or something yesterday?” “Oh, is it already that time? I’m sorry.” “You don’t have to feel sorry for me! Phew, never mind. I nearly had a heart attack when I saw you lying there without making a sound. Are you feeling really sick? Just lie down.” When she woke up, she felt much better. It seemed that Nox had stayed by her side the whole time. Luce, lying down and listening to Johan’s ramblings without having any time to think, looked up at Nox while stroking it. “Yesterday, you said you were going to check on how Lord Franz is doing.” “Yes, I did.” Yohan took a deep breath and said briefly. “I heard he quit his job.” “…Yes?!” Hello! You can also buy the advanced chapter in Ko-fi now, just click the ko-fi button and look for the title of the novel in shop. 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