"Aish! Anyone can tell that's a lie!"
As Reshia pounded her chest in frustration, Eugene tilted his head, seemingly confused by her reaction.
"I told you, no matter what you say, Reshi, I'll believe it."
"I appreciate that you trust me, but there's no need to believe something that's obviously a lie. Really."
"But if Reshi lies to me, I believe there must be a reason for it. I trust that reason."
It meant that he had unwavering faith in Reshia herself, believing deeply that she would never harm him. Reshia found that trust both heartwarming and embarrassing, so she averted her gaze and coughed awkwardly. Watching her, a faint smile appeared on Eugene's lips.
"The one thing I hope isn't a lie is this very moment."
Unsure of what he meant, Reshia looked at Eugene. Still smiling, Eugene slowly scanned their surroundings before fixing his gaze back on her and speaking again.
"You know, like in those stories... where it turns out I'm just dreaming."
"A dream?"
"Yes. In reality, I never escaped this nightmare of a mansion as a child. I'm still trembling in fear under my so-called father's abuse, and I’ve gone mad, creating a splendid illusion like the one I’m living now… just a dream like that."
"What are you—"
Reshia's words, meant to dismiss his absurd statement, were left unfinished. Eugene had gently embraced her, as if confirming she truly existed before him. The warmth of their contact was undeniable, but Eugene’s hands, which held her, were so cold that Reshia couldn't react immediately. Only after lightly patting her back with his cool hands did Eugene let out a long sigh of relief.
"Everything about Kreutz is overwhelming. The mere thought that that man's blood flows through me makes my very existence burdensome."
"Why would you say something like that?"
This time, Reshia firmly expressed her own stance. She gently pushed Eugene away, meeting his gaze with unshakable eyes, and spoke resolutely.
"Blood is nothing. It's just one of the many things that make up a person."
"Is that so? Doesn't everyone place importance on bloodlines?"
"If that's the case, then I'm the biggest mix of them all. A father and a brother with not a drop of shared blood, even a nephew... and on top of that, I don't even know who my real parents are."
As she folded each finger, recalling the faces of Duke Elpinard, Axel, and Noah, Reshia shrugged her shoulders.
"And it's not just in this life. I was the same in my past life, too."
"Past life?"
"...Yeah."
Reshia nodded cautiously and spoke in a low, whispering voice.
"To put it simply... I’ve reincarnated. And I remember everything from my previous life."
At her straightforward confession, Eugene, who had been calmly listening, widened his eyes in surprise.
* * *
I told Eugene everything—who I was in my past life, how I ended up reincarnating, and all the things I’ve gone through since.
Before speaking, I had considered how honest I should be. But I instinctively felt that if Eugene, who could accept the absurdity of me being a man, was ready to believe that, then I could tell him everything.
'Besides, if I tried to lie to someone as sharp as Eugene, I'd get caught right away.'
Even the slightest inconsistency would trigger his sharp mind, sorting truth from lies. Rather than live forever with the anxiety of having my secret discovered, I thought, 'Let’s just come clean and shed some light on everything while I have the chance.'
"...I see."
Despite trusting me, I didn't expect Eugene to believe something as outlandish as "reincarnation" so easily. But surprisingly, his reaction was calm.
I closely watched Eugene's face, wondering if he was just pretending to brush it off, but he showed no such signs.
Feeling both relieved and a bit flustered, I lightly punched his chest.
"Is that all you’ve got for a reaction? No suspicion? Aren't you curious about anything?"
"To be honest, I think I had an inkling. There were always 'those people' around you, Reshi."
Eugene didn't list who "those people" were, but the names were obvious even without saying. My legal brother Axel, Bael who recognized me as a saintess, and on top of that, Kirke the emperor and Count Servian Kol who all hovered around me...
"No matter how much of a saintess or the daughter of Elpinard you are, I thought it was a bit too much of an extraordinary network. But if your past life was the 'Archmage of Despair,' that makes more sense now."
Eugene stared straight at me as he mentioned the embarrassing title, "Archmage of Despair."
Though I had heard that nickname countless times from others, hearing it from Eugene's mouth somehow made me feel even more self-conscious.
"I get that you're curious since it's your first time meeting someone who's reincarnated, but if you keep staring at me like that, it's going to start getting a little awkward..."
As I cleared my throat and tried to push his face away, Eugene dodged my hand with a playful grin.
"I'm not staring out of curiosity."
"Then why?"
"Because I think it's cool."
"...What?"
"I just realized that you're an even more amazing person than I had imagined."
"...Amazing?"
Caught off guard and unable to find the right words, I just kept repeating what he said. In the end, Eugene burst into laughter.
"The Reshi from the future knew all the answers. But the Reshi standing here doesn’t know anything, does she?"
Eugene mumbled to himself, bending down to meet my eyes at the same level. His face was suddenly so close, and his expression was so serious that I couldn’t help but feel the weight of the moment.
"After hearing about your past life, there’s something that worries me."
"What is it?"
"Even though Reshi has reincarnated and has all the memories from her past life, you’re still just a kid now. And right now, I'm more of an adult than you."
"Well, that’s true..."
"Are you trying to be treated like an older brother all of a sudden?"
Blinking in confusion, I tried to grasp Eugene’s sudden change in tone, but before I could react, he playfully bumped his forehead against mine.
“So, stop thinking of me as some little kid. That's the only thing I'm worried about."
* * *
"I didn't expect it to be this rotten."
Axel clicked his tongue as he stared at the mountain of documents piled high on the desk. It was hard to believe, but all of them were the results of investigations into the Kreutz family’s corruption and criminal activities.
With the arrest of Duke Kreutz on charges of murder, a thorough investigation had been possible, something unimaginable while he had the former emperor as a powerful shield.
“What’s going to happen to Duke Kreutz?”
I casually flipped through the dense legal documents and asked Axel, but he only shrugged, showing little interest.
“That’s entirely up to Kirke. There’s no one left who can challenge his imperial authority now.”
With the former emperor gone and the support of a saintess recognized by the gods, Kirke was wielding power freely, completely unconcerned with the troublesome nobles. Those who had previously sided with the former emperor and ignored Kirke were now trembling, fearing they might be next on the list, just like Duke Kreutz.
‘If they’d done nothing wrong, they wouldn’t have anything to worry about.’
It seemed a lot of them had skeletons in their closets.
“Besides, the Kreutz family has bigger problems than just the duke. The entire house is on the verge of collapse. We might even witness the unprecedented revocation of a noble title.”
“Has something like that never happened before?”
“If it had, it wouldn’t be unprecedented, would it?”
“Well, it’s about time, then. That duke always wanted to make a name for himself, right?”
Considering it would have been impossible for someone like him to make a name in a good way, maybe this was his shot at achieving his dream on the opposite end of the spectrum. I couldn’t help but wonder what expression the duke would wear at the moment his "wish" came true.
Then, Axel spoke up.
“You should be thinking about your own name, too.”
“Me?”
Axel narrowed his eyes at me.
“Now that you’ve revealed your true identity to that guy, don’t you think it’s time to clear your name from the past as well? You’re not planning on just letting that go now that you’re a ‘new person,’ are you?”
“As if I could.”
The name of Greslin, falsely branded a murderer. It was, of course, a name that I had to reclaim.