To the Love Born in the Lowest Place

When Liv was staggering down the street, feeling dizzy as if she might collapse at any moment with her energy drained, a carriage stopped in front of her. The huge carriage had a castle wall and falcon crest carved on it.

“Duke Lartman…”

Liv, who recognized the owner of that crest, stopped walking. Normally, she would have immediately had a delighted expression, but today’s Liv couldn’t do that. She was a sinner who had just been kicked out of the temple.

‘He told me to be polite in front of His Majesty the Emperor…’

Perhaps he had come to dislike Liv now. If that happened, Liv would fail to fulfill her destiny and mission.

When the door of the carriage opened and Emmett stepped out, Liv timidly raised her head. Although she was afraid to even meet his eyes due to shame and guilt, Liv eventually bit her lip and raised her head to meet his gray eyes. Unlike usual, the gaze looking down at Liv contained a cold and stern air.

“Emmett…”

“What were you doing here?”

“I was trying to go to the temple…”

Liv answered in a dejected voice, hoping he would have at least a little compassion for her.

“But I ended up getting kicked out.”

“You were kicked out?”

“Yes, because I’m a fake Saintess.”

Then Emmett made a face as if he knew. Normally, he would have comforted Liv here, but now he was expressing his coldness towards Liv without hiding it. Liv was a little scared of that face, but she tried not to show it to him.

“Miss Liv.”

Emmett stared at Liv’s eyes.

“Do you know that you committed a great rudeness?”

“Yes, I know. But…”

Liv mumbled her lips and spoke as if making an excuse. She knew that no one could understand her… Yes, perhaps Liv was unconsciously wishing for someone to understand her.

“It’s hard to explain in detail, but my head hurt then.”

It felt like her head would burst at any moment due to the huge voices of the gods. It felt like she would faint at any moment, crushed by the tremendous pressure. At least that much wasn’t a lie.

“…Is it the same now?”

“I’m fine now.”

“…You didn’t know that people have duties, did you, Miss Liv? Even if our body is sick, it’s our duty to show complete loyalty to His Majesty the Emperor.”

“That’s my duty?”

“Yes, just as you, as a noble lady, must do volunteer work for those in lower places, you must be loyal to His Majesty the Emperor, who is in a higher position than you.”

“Umm, but…”

Liv recalled what the gods had said to her before.

“I’ve already been in a low place before.”

“…I know you had a difficult life before being adopted into the Hamelsvoort family, but aren’t you in a high position now, Miss Liv?”

“But why is this person called His Majesty the Emperor in a higher position than me?”

Liv asked a fundamental question. Is there someone in this world that she must be loyal to?

But as if Liv’s question was wrong, Emmett’s expression hardened.

“Miss Liv, that question is challenging the authority of His Majesty the Emperor. You must never ask such a question in front of others.”

“…I’m sorry.”

“It’s not a matter to apologize to me. But if you speak like that in front of others, you could be imprisoned. Perhaps you could even be imprisoned in Abgrund.”

As Emmett spoke as if scaring Liv, she flinched and asked back.

“Abgrund?”

“Yes, it’s the worst prison where the blessings of the gods don’t reach.”

When Liv didn’t answer with a face that looked like she was thinking something at those words, Emmett, who thought she hadn’t fully understood, sighed and said.

“Miss Liv, you know about sacred grounds, right?”

“Yes.”

The land blessed by the gods, the sacred grounds. Although other humans didn’t know, the sea where Liv had recently suffered from pressure was also one of the sacred grounds. There were several such sacred grounds in this world.

“Abgrund is a space opposite to sacred grounds. The blessings of the gods don’t reach there.”

“I see…”

“Interestingly, Abgrund is a forbidden land in all religions. Believers of the Holy Church, Lufahidism, Ishtainism, Eastern Teachings, Judaism, they all refer to Abgrund as a land where the blessings of the gods don’t reach. Whenever countries with different religions took over that territory, they always designated it as ‘forbidden land.’ Currently, Abgrund belongs to the territory of the Holy Hilysid Empire. Abgrund has been used as a prison to confine the worst criminals for generations.”

“You mean I can be imprisoned there if I don’t show loyalty to His Majesty the Emperor?”

As Liv made a frightened expression, Emmett finally softened his expression as if his heart had weakened.

“…I said that to scare you. You wouldn’t be imprisoned in Abgrund to that extent.”

“…Is that so?”

“You’re really strange, Miss Liv.”

Emmett continued with his eyes lowered as if he couldn’t resist anymore.

“If it were my usual self, I would never forgive this, but you make me weak, Miss Liv.”

“Those words…”

Liv, who saw hope in those words, raised her head and asked with sparkling eyes.

“Does that mean you’ll forgive me?”

“…It wasn’t something for me to be angry at you in the first place.”

“Then were you disappointed in me?”

“I wasn’t disappointed.”

Finally, her heart was relieved, and the tension left her body. The greatest misfortune Liv could imagine was if even Emmett, not someone else, gave up on her and couldn’t understand her, and only after that did Liv begin to shed transparent tears. The flustered Emmett carefully bent his knees and looked at Liv.

“M-Miss Liv?”

“I was surprised… I thought you might come to hate me…”

“…Well, I don’t think that will happen.”

“Don’t hate me.”

Looking at Emmett with tear-filled bright pink eyes, Liv tightly grasped his hand. Emmett looked flustered but didn’t shake off Liv’s hand.

“You really make me become a different person, Miss Liv.”

“Is that so?”

Although she didn’t know why, such words made Liv’s heart pound. It felt like a small whirlpool was swirling in her heart, but feeling that it wasn’t so unpleasant, Liv smiled faintly.

“By the way, I’ll be scolded terribly when I go home. I actually snuck out.”

“You snuck out?”

“Yes, I was locked in my room, but Hildegard helped me.”

Emmett suddenly became serious and carefully asked Liv.

“Miss Liv, then will you come with me?”

“What?”

“Invite me to the Hamelsvoort family’s mansion. Then you’ll be able to avoid the Count and Countess’s anger.”

Liv’s expression instantly brightened. Inviting the person she liked to her place was really a joyous thing, and Liv had always had the desire to show Emmett where she currently lived.

“Alright.”

Emmett extended his hand as if escorting, and Liv took that hand. And they boarded the Duke Lartman’s carriage together.

As the sophisticated, state-of-the-art carriage moved with less shaking than the Hamelsvoort’s, Liv suddenly had a question.

According to what the gods said, the Emperor seemed to be a wicked person, but Emmett said he was indebted to the Emperor. Could the Emperor actually be a good person?

“Emmett, can you tell me exactly what kind of grace you received from His Majesty the Emperor?”

“That’s not a difficult matter.”

Despite asking a quite serious question, Emmett opened his mouth in a calm tone.

“As I told you before, my parents, the previous Duke and Duchess, passed away when I was fifteen. It was a carriage accident.”

“Ah…”

“Relatives took advantage of that opportunity and fought to inherit the Duchy and obtain the wealth for themselves. Shamefully, I couldn’t do anything then because of the shock of losing my parents.”

“It’s only natural to be unable to do anything when someone you love dies.”

At those words, Emmett smiled with a strange face, but he didn’t seem to fully believe Liv’s words.

“Thank you. Anyway, the one who helped me when I was powerless was none other than His Majesty the Emperor. His Majesty the Emperor personally sent an envoy to comfort me and helped me inherit the Duchy according to the imperial decree. But more importantly than that…”

At that moment, Emmett’s face stiffened as if he was reluctant to bring up the story.

“He uncovered the truth hidden in my parents’ deaths.”

“The truth?”

“Yes, His Majesty said that since the Lartman Ducal family is the Empire’s greatest military power, a thorough investigation into the deaths should be conducted. He must have thought that foreign enemies might have harmed my parents. But an unimaginable truth was revealed.”

Instinctively feeling that a twist would follow, Liv gulped and focused on Emmett’s words.

“Surprisingly, it was one of the collateral relatives of the Duke who murdered my parents.”

“What?”

“They had plotted it in order to aim for the Duchy.”

“But… can they do that even though they’re family?”

“Sometimes, in the face of wealth and power, people can become more evil than anything else.”

Harming family for one’s own benefit was a way of life that no god had ever taught Liv. There were things in this world that could never be trusted by following only the gods’ ways.

“Was there clear evidence?”

“Yes, evidence was found that they had bribed the coachman. Thus, the relatives were punished and exiled from the country.”

“Ah…”

Somehow, Emmett’s expression as he said that looked sad, so Liv tightly grasped his hand. Emmett had lost not only his parents but also his relatives due to that incident. In the end, he had lost all his family at such a young age.

“It must have been… really hard for you.”

Liv could now understand why Emmett was loyal to the Emperor. Not only did he help him, but by uncovering the secret that he might have never known for the rest of his life, he was able to resolve the resentment of his parents. To Emmett, the Emperor was truly a great benefactor.

‘I guess the Emperor isn’t necessarily a bad person.’

Liv nodded, thinking that she shouldn’t blindly believe the gods’ words.

* * *

When Liv arrived at the Hamelsvoort House, she could see the Count and Countess standing at the entrance with surprised faces.

“Li-Liv…”

As Liv got off the carriage first without being escorted and with still lacking noble etiquette, the Count and Countess looked at Liv with eyes demanding an explanation.

“What’s going on? You suddenly left, and why are you coming from the Duke Lartman’s carriage…”

“Miss Liv, you should get off while being escorted when alighting.”

At that moment, a man who drew everyone’s attention got off the carriage, so the gazes of everyone present moved to that man, Emmett.

“Duke Lartman?”

“It’s a pleasure to meet you, Count Hamelsvoort. Countess, have you been well?”

“Wh-What brings you here…”

“I happened to meet Miss Liv in front of the temple and came to accompany her. I thought it would be dangerous for her to return home alone.”

Then they alternately looked at Liv and Emmett with a dumb expression as if gauging the situation.

“I apologize for the rudeness of coming without notice, but would you invite me to the mansion? I’d like to spend a little more time with Miss Liv.”