Chapter 118: Chapter 121: Reason For Life

Chapter 121 – Reason For Life

Drinking hot tea did not warm her inside.

“Our shop’s carrot cake is excellent. Try it.”

Bwen’s wife, Hera, held out a cake to Bella. The familiar taste after a long time—even though she was tired of it—evoked nostalgia.

“So, did you meet Kiehl?”

“…I met him.”

“Really? That’s a relief. I’m married and live a happy life though Kiehl doesn’t seem to be like that, so I felt sorry for him.”

“….”

“The last time I saw him, I was really worried because he looked so precarious.”

Hera glanced at Bwen and shrugged her shoulders.

“My husband is very nosy. It’s the first time I’ve ever seen someone care so much about his first love rival.”

‘…First love?’

At that, Bella wondered and raised her head before she met Hera’s eyes.

“Oh, didn’t you know? This person’s first love is Miss.”

“…What?”

When Bella was so bewildered, Hera also looked at Bwen.

“It’s… not this Miss? The girl that the handsome young man likes is your first love, right?”

“Uh… That's right, but—”

“Then, wasn’t the handsome young man looking for someone he likes?”

“Well, Bella. If you don’t have a place to sleep, there’s an empty room so you can sleep here. Ooh, it’s late, so we’ll go up first.”

Stabbing Hera in the side, Bwen quickly spoke and pulled his wife’s arm as Bella nodded her head puzzledly.

‘The girl that the handsome young man likes…’

Were they talking about Kiehl?

“Hey, I didn’t say anything I couldn’t say.”

“Honey, you said something you couldn’t…”

Bella let out a small sigh as the two of them grumbled at each other.

‘… I’m envious.’

Once upon a time, she dreamed of something like that as well… if she never sent Kiehl to the Imperial Palace and kept him by her side. So, before he went on a trip to look for the holy relics, she wandered in front of the Imperial Palace, hoping that the novel might change.

However, the novel seemed to follow the original story anyway. Returning with disappointment gave her the idea that it was fortunate that the novel went as it was in the original.

It was not a place where she could afford the rest of her life.

When she closed her eyes, the screams and disgusting smells she always heard in the underworld seemed to still linger under her nose.

After a while, Bwen came down again.

“Hey… well.”

Bella asked with a mischievous smile as she tried to suppress her negative mind.

“Was I your first love?”

“Haha… You didn't know though…”

“But?”

“At that time, there were a lot of kids who liked you. You… passed it on so casually.”

Bella raised her eyebrows slightly.

“I thought I knew that little ones are pretty.”

“There are things like that, but… because Kiehl blocked it so much.”

“…Kiehl blocked it?”

Bwen smiled as he remembered his childhood.

“If I wanted to talk to you, he told me to fight against him and win first.”

“…Haha.”

“If I want to be a little closer to you, he’ll stare scarily.”

…Kiehl?

“In the past, I brought you this and that to impress you.”

Did he?

“I heard that Kiehl’s secretly spread rumors that I gave you that because it was to open a restaurant later.”

Bella was a little dumbfounded, so she laughed dryly. Ever since he was little, although she had noticed that he was clever,the Kiehl Bwen was talking about was the Kiehl she didn’t know.

He fiddled the back of his head in embarrassment.

“How is Kiehl? You said you met him.”

Bella remembered the last time she saw Kiehl.

— “Please don’t go…”

Her expression hardened in an instant. It was hard for her to smile.

“He was doing well.”

Still, she didn’t think he would be doing well anymore.

— “Disgusting.”

She was too harsh. On the contrary, it seemed that Bwen didn’t notice the change in her atmosphere, as he got nosy for no reason.

“Then, can I just wait for the news that the two of you are getting married?”

Was he fanning fire or what?

“I will make the wedding cake for you. I have done it several times.”

What was so exciting about that?

As Bella stared at him, Bwen scratched the back of his head shyly.

“I’m so glad. Kiehl asked me to keep it a secret that he was looking for you, so I was wondering what to do.”

“When is that?”

“Hmm. That was four years ago, maybe?”

It was when he set out on a journey to collect holy relics.

“He has been looking for you ever since.”

Since everyone was talking nonchalantly, she thought Kiehl had discovered Iwer’s potion by accident.

“Since when did he start planning this…”

Bella’s head was pounding. And then, Bwen had a hunch that something was going on between the two. He spoke cautiously for his old friend.

“Well… I actually didn’t like Kiehl because he interrupted me.”

She stared at him.

Even in this situation, she didn’t want to hear bad words about Kiehl.

‘…Because Kiehl didn’t like him very much either.’

“The last time I saw him, he was very pitiful.”

‘My Kiehl isn’t pitiful enough to be pitied by you…’

“I guess I will understand when I get older.”

Considering the experience from her past life, Bella was much older, so she had much more experience.

“He even lied because he was afraid you might like me.”

“….”

“When I was little, I wondered why he was so gloomy and depressed.”

Bella let out what she was only thinking in her mind.

“What’s so gloomy and depressing about Kiehl? The gloomy one is Zanbar.”

“Well… anyway.”

Bwen finished his words, slightly avoiding Bella’s glare at him.

“I think he thought his life would end without you.”

“I’m not everything in Kiehl’s life. He’s mistaken because I’m the only woman…”

“Yes… that’s what Kiehl said, too.”

“….”

“You would reject him like that.”

She bit her lip and glanced away from Bwen.

“So when I meet you, to say that Kiehl was looking for his missing sister…”

She scolded him for not making the right choice. Bella didn’t want to hear it, especially with someone who already had happiness.

She stood up silently for a long time.

“I’m leaving.”

“Are you going out tonight? It’s been bad recently. You can just go to sleep.”

“I’m okay.”

However, Bwen ran to the door and blocked Bella’s way out.

“These days, a lot of wild beasts die. Everyone is saving themselves, saying that the Empire is on the verge of ruin.”

The fact that the wild beasts were dying is probably because of her.

“That’s okay, too.”

“It’s true. The Empire is cursed.”

“Why is the empire cursed?”

Looking at Bella, who didn’t know anything, Bwen asked rather curiously, “Don’t you read the newspaper? The emperor is on his sickbed, and the Crown Prince is missing.”

“…What?”

“They say everything happened while the Crown Princess went to another world.”

As Bwen pointed his chin at the table, Bella turned back and opened the newspaper.

[ Is the Empire in ruins? The disappearance of the Crown Prince, who went to the hunting contest. ]

‘What happened? Disappeared…’

She wondered if he had escaped from the Imperial Palace to find her.

“That’s why people say that the empire is on the way to ruin…”

“Wait. What day is it today?”

“You don’t even look at the calendar. October 28th.”

Bella crumpled the end of the newspaper with her hand.

Then, Kiehl went missing three days ago.

It was the end of August when she came out of the imperial palace. She thought it only took about two weeks for her to get here.

If the promise between the demons were broken, a corresponding disadvantage would come because she broke the oath she made with Iwer, not to take out the heart without Kiehl’s consent… Maybe she would return to her most hated punishment.

Letting go of one’s reason

“I… I have to go now.”

* * *

It didn’t take long for Bella to return to the palace.

She was bound to be much faster than when she used to run as a cat, for she spread her wings and flew all day. People who saw her during the day made a fuss, saying, ‘It’s a demon,’ though that didn’t even come into her mind.

Even now, it upsets her to think that Kiehl deceived her all along. She was so mad she wished she didn’t care what happened to him.

‘Please…’

Her worries cover it all up. Did he disappear? Did he run away?

— “I don’t mind if you hate me… Just stay by my side.”

She bit her lip and swallowed her tears.

— “I don’t even want… to see you now.”

‘…I want to see you right now.’

When Bella arrived at the Imperial Palace, everyone in the imperial palace was shocked to see the black wings.

“Lord… Lord Rohan, that demon…”

“What are you talking about? She’s from the Animal Kingdom, so she must have wings.”

With the Empire in jeopardy due to the Crown Prince’s disappearance, it was Rohan who welcomed her the most. Even though she was a little puzzled to see Rohan, Bella asked about Kiehl first.

“Where is Kiehl?”

“He went to a hunting contest and went missing. It’s a forest near the capital, and I’ve been searching all over, but I haven’t found him yet.”

“…How did you escort the Crown Prince?”

“Then, why are you here now?”

She wanted to reprimand him right away, but that wasn’t the urgent thing.

“Where is that forest?”

Bella flew over the forest based on Rohan’s words. Apparently, Kiehl’s horse was alone in the forest.

‘If he were going somewhere, he would have rode the horse.’

Since it would be difficult to get out of this mountain without a horse, if that was the case, it meant he fell off the horse somewhere.

‘The place people searched for will be somewhere that people go.’

There was a good chance that he was still in a place untouched. In her previous life, she would have formed a search party from the bottom of the mountain and narrowed down the search.

Bella quietly closed her eyes and followed the smell of blood. There were also wild beasts where she followed, in addition to that, there were also small creatures like a rabbit also lying on the ground after being hit by an arrow. So, she followed her senses at the tip of her nose as they guided her.

His scent felt thick inside the entrance of the little cave, and she could see some gold tint wriggling in it.

She remembered the first time she met Kiehl. The wing of the butterfly that caused this huge tidal wave was crushed and collapsed.

She should say sorry first.

“Are you doing this on purpose?”

Seeing how hurt he was as she slowly approached him, it broke her heart.

— “I think he thought his life would end without you.”

Bella calmly inspected his whole body with her eyes. She couldn’t even touch him because she thought it would hurt so much if she just touched him anywhere.

Just looking at the dried bloodstains was exhausting.

“…I hate you doing this.”

Did he have to do this to get hold of her?

…And yet she still couldn’t hate him.

‘Why did you ruin me like this…’

‘Why do you keep making me the reason for your life?’

His clear, shining eyes suddenly lost their light and closed.

Drop.

Seeing his hand fall limply to the floor, Bella quietly called his name.

“…Kiehl?”

She was a bit scared.

“…Open your eyes.”

Don’t fall asleep like this.

— “I hate you doing this.”

‘…Don’t fall asleep remembering those words.’

__

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