Chapter 1: Chapter 1

In the Asteria Kingdom, located east of the continent’s center.

In a small room on the right side of the second floor of the Count Palatio’s residence in the southern region.

“……Did you successfully carry out the order?”

“Yes, that is correct.”

The knight, standing, lowered his head in response to the man sitting on the bed.

“As you commanded, I rescued the orphans in the small village in the eastern part of the kingdom… No, rather, the orphans in the facility for human experimentation.”

“And did you ensure the orphanage was properly managed?”

“Yes, just as you instructed, I left the orphanage in the hands of a girl named Yutia.”

“…Did you finish the discussion with the baron’s family managing that village?”

“Yes, as soon as I showed them the documents related to the human experimentation, they obediently accepted all our demands, including the entire castle.”

With that, the knight, Evan, pulled out a leather pouch from his chest and placed it in front of Alon’s side table.

“Good.”

Alon opened the pouch and smiled with satisfaction as he looked at the gold coins inside.

“Young Master, if I may ask one thing…?”

After a moment of silence, Evan spoke.

“What is it?”

“You said the reason you attacked the human experimentation facility in Baron Alfon’s territory was to save that girl, Yutia, right?”

As Alon nodded, gesturing for him to continue, Evan spoke further.

“…Indeed, she was extraordinary. I’ve lived a long time as a mercenary myself.”

Evan paused as if to gather his thoughts, then continued.

“But it’s hard to understand why such a powerful girl was locked up in that facility.”

“And?”

“…Why did you just leave her at the orphanage?”

Alon remained silent in response to the question, which carried a tone of slight incomprehension.

In truth, Evan’s question was entirely reasonable. Rescuing a girl like Yutia without making use of her in any way was an act that brought no benefit.

But that was only from Evan’s perspective. The situation looked quite different from Alon’s viewpoint.

‘I removed one of the world’s destruction flags, and that’s enough for now.’

Yutia.

Her real name was Yutia Bludia.

In 10 years, she would become one of the Five Great Sins, the “Sin of Wrath,” and wipe out two of the five allied kingdoms from the continent, causing hundreds of thousands of casualties.

If someone were to ask how Alon knew what would happen 10 years later, it was because he was a person who had been reincarnated. Moreover, he was aware that this world would be utterly destroyed in 10 years as a dark fantasy RPG game called “Psychedelia.”

“Sigh.”

Alon clutched his throbbing head as he remembered the moment he first regained consciousness two months ago and let out a deep sigh.

‘At first, just realizing that this was a fantasy world made me bedridden for three days, and then discovering that it was 10 years before the main plot of Psychedelia started made me sick for ten more.’

Initially, when Alon thought he had merely reincarnated into a fantasy world, he despaired for about three days. However, as he began to adapt to the world, the situation didn’t seem so bad.

Surprisingly, being a noble was quite manageable.

The life of a noble was incredibly comfortable. He could wake up whenever he wanted, sleep whenever he wanted, do whatever he wanted, and eat whenever he felt like it.

Although he was the third son of a count and held no real power, he was in a position where he could fully enjoy the pleasures of life without responsibility.

That’s why, at first, he was somewhat happy.

For someone who had worked 78 hours a week at a low-paying job, the life of a noble was unbelievably luxurious.

Of course, not being able to access the internet, the pinnacle of modern civilization, was a severe drawback. Still, the life of a noble was satisfying enough to overlook that.

But that only lasted for a while.

Alon’s mood darkened rapidly once he realized that this continent was named Ampelan.

…And even more so when he recalled that the noble family he had reincarnated into was the Count Palatio’s family.

Ampelan was the name of the continent in Psychedelia, the game he had played during his sparse free time while slaving away at work.

And the Count Palatio’s family was briefly mentioned in one of the game’s quests.

Moreover, the despair he felt upon realizing that this was 10 years before the main plot of Psychedelia began was as crushing as the time when his paycheck had been delayed for three consecutive months.

The world of Psychedelia was one where all living creatures, whether nobles or commoners, would be mercilessly ground to dust in 10 years.

Among the most doomed was the Asteria Kingdom, to which the Count Palatio’s family belonged. In any game route, the moment one of the Five Great Sins appeared, the kingdom was wiped off the map.

In other words, it was destroyed.

The kingdom would disappear. The nobility would vanish. Cities would be obliterated.

In short, Alon’s noble life as the third son of the Count Palatio family would inevitably come to an end in 10 years.

Thus, if Alon wished to continue enjoying his peaceful noble life, he would have to eliminate all Five Great Sins, who were destined to become human-killing machines in the future.

And what he was doing now was part of that plan.

“Well… that’s it.”

However, there was no way he could explain all this to Evan.

“It’s just that the time hasn’t come yet.”

“…The time hasn’t come?”

“Yes. Anyway, make sure this matter doesn’t leak to the outside, and continue supporting the orphanage as requested. Oh, and one more thing.”

Alon pulled out a letter from his chest and handed it over.

“Deliver this letter to her.”

“…This letter?”

Evan asked curiously, and Alon replied.

“Yes.”

Strictly speaking, it was something important.

The letter contained a phrase that always appeared in a mandatory event when encountering the Sin of Wrath in the game Psychedelia.

‘The suffering of the dark, the enlightenment of the light. A single despair and belonging.’

This phrase was uttered by a slightly suspicious archbishop NPC from a certain holy country, who would accompany the protagonist and attempt to calm the Sin of Wrath. However, the moment he spoke, the archbishop would turn into a pile of blood, and the Sin of Wrath would, with an irritated expression, say, “It’s too late,” before the battle began.

The reason Alon now chose to use this phrase was because the current time was what the Sin of Wrath referred to as “the past” during the game.

He had seen the phrase repeatedly while playing the game over and over, labeled as a “spell that could befriend the Bloodline,” as stated by the archbishop NPC.

‘Of course, it’s ridiculous to think that reciting one spell would turn you into a friend of those insane creatures who make pacts with Cthulhu and wield power… But considering these are people who worship such beings, it oddly makes sense.’

It was impossible to predict the thoughts of those whose minds bordered on fanaticism.

As Alon watched the mercenary knight bow respectfully and leave the room, he shrugged and thought to himself.

‘Now that I’ve removed the first landmine, it’s time for the second.’

***

A few days later.

“Here’s the letter.”

Evan, having received Alon’s orders, arrived at the orphanage once again and handed the letter to her, unable to hide his unease.

It was understandable, given that the girl, Yutia, standing before him, was strange.

Her red eyes, in stark contrast to her white hair, held no emotion whatsoever.

No, not even a trace of emotion could be detected.

Complete apathy.

The girl, who looked as if she regarded every being in the world as mere objects, extended her hand and accepted the letter with the same expression she had when Evan first rescued her from the orphanage.

Rustle, rustle—

Yutia silently began to open the letter.

Evan’s expression remained puzzled, unable to comprehend why she had been confined in such a facility.

Although he hadn’t reached mastery, Evan could manipulate mana, and with that came the ability to sense the energy of others.@@novelbin@@

Moreover, Evan’s talent for sensing mana was significantly superior to that of other knights, allowing him to perceive it with far greater accuracy.

That’s why he could tell.

‘No matter how you look at it, this doesn’t make sense.’

The girl standing before him was far too formidable to have been locked up in such a place.

And as Evan pondered this, another question arose in his mind.

It was about the third son of the Count Palatio family who had hired him a few months ago at a tavern.

During his time as a mercenary, Evan had heard that the third son of the Count Palatio family was treated as a virtual outcast, the typical untalented bastard child of a noble house.

Additionally, there were rumors that, due to his timid nature, he was often bullied by his notorious elder brothers, who were known as scoundrels.

So how did such a third son of the count know about the secret human experimentation that the baron’s family was conducting in that hidden facility?

‘I don’t understand at all.’

As Evan was lost in thought, his eyes suddenly widened.

The reason was…

The expressionless Yutia, who had been standing there until a moment ago, now had a broad smile on her lips.

No, it was more than just a smile.

‘Her mana… is becoming visible to the naked eye…?!’

Displaying a skill that could only be shown by those who had reached a certain level of mastery, she was doing so effortlessly.

And then…

“The person who sent this letter… was it Sir Alon?”

As Yutia spoke, her vertical pupils, characteristic of the Bloodline, similar to a reptile’s, gazed directly at Evan.

Even with that mere glance, Evan, who had reached the rank of an expert, felt an instinctive warning from his senses, and though he silently gasped in shock, he quickly composed himself and replied.

“Yes.”

“Why didn’t he call me?”

Yutia’s question.

Although the thought crossed his mind that he didn’t know, Evan refrained from saying it carelessly.

His instincts told him it would be a bad idea.

Instead, Evan recalled a casual remark Alon had made and responded.

“…He said the time wasn’t right.”

“I see.”

A short reply.

But it was the correct answer, as evidenced by the long, curved smile on her lips.

She…

Yutia Bludia—no.

“…I understand.”

The first daughter of the Bloodline, Yutia Bloody Queen, moved her enchanting red lips and said,

“I understand his will.”

With the letter containing a secret phrase known only to her master held close, she twisted her lips into a bizarre smile.