NOVEL NEXT Chapter 30: Dream (1)
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I had a dream about the novel I read; what the world would have looked like if I hadn’t transmigrated unfolded in front of my eyes.
“Forgive me just once!”
The head of the Benthrock family was kneeling and begging. Initially, he was full of dignity, but in the end, he had no choice but to be subservient to save the life of his son, Kyle Benthrock.
The same person who told me about Keirsey’s lies and backstabbing.
In the dream, as Kyle was digging up rumors and secrets of the Academy, he was discovered by Keirsey.
He followed the twins in the novel, giving useful information to the protagonist, Eric Endra, but… he soon fell into the twins' hands.
Kyle had already been tortured and lost consciousness.
Count Benthrock glanced at him and begged Keirsey.
A few days after Kyle’s following was discovered, the soldiers of the Pryster family came and took him away.
Of course, it was against the rules of the Academy, but the Prysters made the impossible possible.
In the original case, the Academy would arbitrate and come up with an appropriate negotiation plan. But Keirsey captured him and sent him to the Pryster's estates to imprison him, so the rules of the academy became irrelevant.
From the Benthrock family’s point of view, they had no choice but to pray to the Pryster family or retake their son through war, unfortunately, they had little chance of surviving the war.
“…Do you know what your son did to me?”
Keirsey asked coldly.
It was a dream, but the very life-like figure of Keirsey stood haughtily. I couldn't believe she was the same girl who always smiled cutely in front of me.
“..I know! I heard he was behind your secrets..! really..! I’m really sorry..! It will never happen again…!”
The head of the Benthrock family banged his head on the floor, begging for forgiveness.
However, Keirsey looked at her nails with a gloomy face.
“…if he only did what you said, I might have forgiven him.”
“….Yes?”
“…Instead, he touched my hand.”
Keirsey spat out in an unpleasant tone as if spitting abusive language.
“….Yes?”
Count Benthrock doubted his ears.
But Keirsey spoke again.
“He dared to touch my hand.”
“…No…I mean…”
Count Benthrock couldn’t hide his confused expression. He couldn’t believe Keirsey wanted to take his son's life for such a ridiculous reason.
“…What? Didn't you hear what I said?”
“…..”
Not getting any response again, Kirsey let out a smirk.
“It seems my words aren't important enough for you to pay attention.”
“…no…! no..! I’ll pay attention…!”
“No one can touch me. Even now, when I think of that lowly touch, I get nausea.”
“…..”
Count Benthrock gritted his teeth.
Not many people would be able to stand it when they hear that their son is of low birth. But for the sake of his son’s life, he endured all the disgrace.
“…Then let’s do this.”
Kirsey said.
“…I will forgive him if you bring me that hand of your son which touched me.”
“…What?”
Count Benthrock asked in disbelief.
As Keirsey snapped her fingers, the soldier holding Kyle threw an axe.
-Tang!!! Tang!! Tang!
With a terrifying sound, the ax fell in front of the Count.
“…which hand it was? You guess it. If you bring the right one, I will spare his life.”
While Keirsey was spitting out such words, another person ran into the space.
“Keirsey Pryster!!”
It was Eric Endra – the protagonist of the novel.
Keirsey sat down leisurely and asked.
“…Ah. Eric. How did you get in?”
“Keirsey, what is this?”
“Nothing. I was just chasing one of the rats who was digging behind me.”
“…this is too much. Forgive him, and release Kyle.”
Kirsey laughed.
“…my actions might be too much from your point of view. But for me, it's not good enough.”
“Keirsey…! I’m sure you’ll regret-“
“–Don’t touch us.”
Kirsi cut off Eric Endra.
Immediately after, she continued coldly.
“Count Benthrock. Don't say that I didn't give you a chance.”
As soon as her words finished, the soldier behind Kyle Benthrock raised his axe high...
.
.
.
“…Ugh...”
As I moaned, the dream changed.
This time it was Asena.
She was slowly walking into the Hexter’s auditorium.
It was a spacious and beautiful space, but all members of the Hexter family were on their knees, at the mercy of the soldiers of the Pryster family.
It was the act Asena had ordered. She told them to prepare an environment that could take life with a single word.
Only Count Hexter's neck was not touched by anyone.
But he was on his knees waiting for Asena.
“…it’s ready.”
Without even looking at the kneeling Count Hexter, Asena passed him. Then as she sat in the empty seat of Count Hexter, she spoke:
“Kill them all.”
There were no other words like if they swore allegiance, she would spare them, or any other procedure.
At Asena's order, dozens of Pryster soldiers raised their swords one by one.
“Duchess Pryster!”
All the soldiers stopped at Daisy Hexter's authoritative voice. Then Daisy tried to sound a little soft to appease Asena.
“No… Asena. Don't be like this.”
“…Daisy.”
Asena, who looked colder than usual, rolled her eyes and looked at Daisy. However, Daisy spoke first.
“...You are doing this only because of what I did. Kill me; the grudge is between us. But leave my family alone.”
“…”
No one could tell what was going on under Asena’s hardened face.
“I lost. Stop it now. There are many people who depend on our family. If you kill us all…they won’t survive either. You can punish me; torture me or whatever. We’re not the only ones dying with this order…! Even a lot of small children will. Please...”
Daisy asked Asena with a firm expression.
Daisy, who was famous for not being broken, finally surrendered.
“I lost…because I lost…”
Asena turned her head. She was not agitated.
She still spoke in the same mechanical voice.
“Execute them all. Leave no survivors.”
.
.
.
“Ugh…! Ugh…!”
I woke up with a burning thirst.
My throat hurt, and my mouth was stuffy.
I even had nightmares, so the bed was rough.
I got out of bed with a maddening thirst, grabbed the kettle that was full of water, and poured it into my mouth.
It was only after a series of cold water soaked my throat that I was able to come to my senses.
“Paha…”
I wiped my mouth and sat down at the desk.
I tried to remember the nightmare but soon shook my head.
Thinking about a future that will never come true was meaningless.
But some thoughts came thanks to the dream.
Have I completely prevented that future? Have the two of them really changed?
✧ ✧ ✧
“Hello, Judy!”
I greeted Judy, who was standing at the training ground in the same way today.
“……”
But she didn’t respond.
Maybe something bad happened, her expressions were very cold.
“….What’s going on?”
Judy sighed, exhaled, and spoke in a voice that seemed to give up.
“…just. I feel like all those were fake words.”
“Yes?”
“Even though we belong to hostile families, let’s be friends – those words.”
I bowed my head and looked more carefully at Judy’s expression.
“I don’t know because it happened for the first time… but if your friend doesn’t even say hello at such an event, what’s the use?”
“…Ah. At the prom?”
“…”
As she said, I didn’t even say hello to Judy at the prom.
Come to think of it, it was a sad thing to do.
But I had my own circumstances.
“There’s something going on, Judy. But after Daisy Hexter, I wanted to look for you.”
“…And why you didn't?”
“But the twins took me.”
Judy turned and looked at me.
“…Yeah, both of the twins looked angry back then, what was that?”
“We were going to stay quiet and come out, but our plan was ruined when I asked Daisy to dance.”
“…But why did you try to stay quiet and come out?”
It wasn’t very pleasant to explain, but I had to tell Judy.
She always approached me as a friend, and I couldn’t even greet her and wave my hand asking if she was having fun. Besides, it wasn’t the first time I got help, so there was a debt in my heart.
Judy was also able to tell for the first time how I was being treated by the twins, what no one else was able to see.
“…Tell me. Why did you three try to stay quiet and come out? And why were only you sitting behind the twins drinking alcohol throughout the prom?”
A worried look began to appear in her eyes. She, too, seemed to realize instinctively that it was a matter of our position within the family that we had in common.
“…Okay. The twins wanted to hide me. At first, it was a strategy for the family, whatever…. But I heard it later. They said they’d just leave me at the Pryster estate if they could.”
Perhaps she was angry for me instead, Judy gave a short snort.
“…I told you; Prysters are dirty.”
“…I told you not to swear at Prysters in front of me.”
“…do you still like them? Aren’t you stupid?”
“Phew. It's complex...”
I looked at Judy.
And for the first time, I revealed my true intentions.
“...I want to leave the family.”
“….What?”
Judy looked at me in disbelief. Then it turned to compassion for me, then worries, then blessing, Judy's face showed several emotions in just a few seconds.
“Didn't you tell me you would have left in my shoes? Why are you surprised now?”
“…..ah..”
She opened her mouth but couldn’t speak.
Both she and I knew the choice to leave the family was not an easy one.
I had already made up my mind though.
“…I don’t think there’s any reason to stick with the twins. I can't hate them, but it’s hard to stick with them. The twins are ashamed of me anyway...”
“……”
“I just have to be strong from afar. So, Judy...”
“…uh?”
Judy didn’t seem to be able to follow what I said now. Perhaps she was feeling complicated by substituting herself with me.
I asked:
“What if... I became the vassal of the Ice family?”
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