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25-1. Kasia’s Side Story

A man in his mid-thirties lay with a haggard appearance. Although he had just entered middle age, he was prepared for death.

“Dad! I’m here! I brought your medicine, so please take it quickly.”

“…”

A girl with a bright smile burst into the shop.

She is my daughter.

My only, and the most beautiful daughter in the world. The daughter my beloved wife entrusted to me until the end.

“Dad, here’s some water.”

He struggled to receive the water.

He had brought a chamber pot into the room because it was challenging to go to the bathroom, but he wasn’t unable to hold a cup of water. It was simply that his hands felt heavy with guilt.

“Drink it quickly. You need to get better.”

His daughter urged him to take the medicine and the cup of water.

It had been over half a year since he fell ill and lay in bed. Nevertheless, this kind daughter had not abandoned her sick father.

How did she even manage to get this medicine? Must he keep taking the medicine that his daughter brought while he could barely stay upright?

In the end, he succumbed to his daughter’s insistence and forced the medicine down.

His daughter emptied the chamber pot full of waste and gently wiped his body with a wet cloth. This was now an utterly embarrassing daily routine.

After cleaning him, his daughter watched over the shop that was attached to the front of the room.

Though it’s a shoe store, no customers came. No one would want to buy shoes made by a shoemaker who was sick.

He knew his daughter had set up a small bed in the shop and pretended to watch over it while taking short naps.

His daughter went out somewhere every night. Although she tried to be careful not to wake him, he had known for a long time.

He chastised his poor, collapsing body with guilt but nothing changed.

Did she go work in a bar? But are there bars open in the middle of the night?

Perhaps in Oberg, there could be. He, who had spent his life making shoes without any lifelong friends, was sure there were places he didn’t know.

He wanted to hold onto that belief.

He thought of his wife. His wife had been beaten to death by thugs in an alley while trying not to let them take their money. Whether it was the wrong place where she was hit, she had died right on the spot, and he heard she kept saying to take care of their daughter.

To a stranger, until her last breath.

‘I must die.’

He tried to take care of the daughter who lost her mother, but soon he fell ill as well and collapsed.

Since he lay down, his daughter hadn’t shed a single tear. The child who cried several times after her mother left now hid her tears in front of him.

She even kept secret what she was doing.

“Dad. Eat and get some rest.”

It was dinner time again. Even with nothing to do, his miserable body demanded two meals a day without fail. A meal that wasn’t even worth eating.

His daughter had cooked porridge and placed it in front of him. He really didn’t want to eat it, but otherwise, his daughter would worry.

He ate the porridge with trembling hands.

“Lately, it seems there’s a commotion in the Conrad Kingdom down south.”

His daughter shared a story she had heard somewhere, fearing he might be bored.

“Eric de Yeriel? Is that right? Anyway, there’s a prince who’s mobilizing soldiers to eliminate his half-siblings.”

He nodded silently.

“How can he do anything about being pushed down in the line of succession? The real nobles seem to have no blood or tears. They’re their siblings for heaven’s sake.”

His daughter shook her head in disbelief.

In the end, he had wished to leave a few words to his daughter before he died.

“Ultimately, there’s no news about those expelled siblings, whether they were killed or not, and he was finally recognized as the heir or something like that. To go that far for the throne…”

In the end, he couldn’t bring himself to say anything and the meal ended. He feared that if he opened his mouth, he might inadvertently blame her, question her, or make her cry.

Night fell.

His daughter, pretending to sleep, slipped out quietly.

It was difficult for him to lift his body and crawl to a small chair.

Low ceiling. It was the place where he had spent his life making shoes and sleeping. A place he had shared with his beloved wife and raised his beautiful daughter.

And ultimately, it would be the place where he would hang himself.

He had fallen off the chair several times trying to set up the noose, but he eventually managed to hang it.

For a moment, he lay on the bed and took a deep breath.

He had woken up early yesterday morning.

He heard his beloved daughter come in late that day. She confirmed he was lying down and began cleaning herself in the shop.

Through the narrow gap in the door, he watched as his beloved daughter repeatedly wiped between her legs.

The knot hanging from the ceiling beckoned him.

‘I must die.’

The father, unable to move, pushed his daughter into a pit while shamelessly swallowing the medicine she brought.

Whatever words he left for his daughter would hold no meaning. Lying down and receiving food and medicine while relieving himself, any advice would be light.

Would his daughter truly want to do such things?

If he died, his daughter would stop.

She would find her own life.

She was a smart child. Smarter than he was.

Is dying like this a cowardly thing? If only he could write, he would have left a letter.

He quietly hung himself.

‘Kasia… I’m sorry. You must be happy. You must… live well.’

25-2. Childhood Friend – Priest Event

‘Kasia. That damn girl!’

Leo suppressed his anger inside. Despite the new scenario beginning, his fury didn’t easily dissipate. But with Lena chattering next to him, he had to put his frustration aside.

Right. Let’s focus on the Lena of now.

“Something that Priest Leslie said, you know~”

The third childhood friend scenario began.

Initially, he had married this Lena. Back then, he had no idea it would repeat like this; he thought that was all there was to his happiness.

The second time, he had aimed to make Lena a princess, but that ended when he got kidnapped by thugs.

‘What should I do this time…’

No clear solution came to mind.

His swordsmanship skill hadn’t significantly changed since Lena was kidnapped. What he gained from ability had to be trained again to fit his body.

In terms of strength, he could take on two or so thugs. If he had a dual sword.

He did gain the technique of {Pass} in the last engagement scenario, but that’s meaningless without someone to fight alongside.

And now he had received {Teleportation}…

His anger towards Kasia flared up once more. There was no way he could use something like this effectively.

‘This is frustrating…’

He lacked information. {Rules of the Alley} was merely a general knowledge, not detailing what he should do.

From the last childhood friend scenario, he had learned only that the two princes of the Orun Kingdom were trash.

What must he do to make this Lena of this small town a princess?

‘Should I take Lena and leave again?’

He had sufficient travel funds.

The {Starting Capital} had filled his pocket as expected.

And if he showed his hunting skills to his father and claimed he would set off with Lena, he could receive a considerable amount of money, allowing him to once again gather information during their travels.

Just like last time…

Lena was her usual lively self, chattering cheerfully next to Leo.

“Saint Azra used to be an ordinary farmer, you know? But one day, he left the land he had farmed all his life to go to the capital of the Acaian Empire…”

It was a story he had already heard many times.

There weren’t many stories to gather in a remote village, so most of what Lena talked about was her own thoughts mixed with tales she had heard at church.

Her stories consistently contained a longing for the monastery and its priests.

Suddenly, he felt sorry for Lena. He had blocked the events that could have led her to the monastery—a place she longed for—twice.

Once because he wanted to live happily with her, and once to make her a princess so they could escape.

‘Should I send Lena to the monastery?’

If so, she would become a priestess.

Lena’s dream would come true.

But then he would be stuck repeating the same painful dilemmas.

He couldn’t spend an infinite time living like this. A thousand lifetimes making Lena a priestess? No matter how happy, it would be just like hell. Lena would surely think the same.

In any case, he had to make her a princess.

‘This time, I’ll send her to become a priestess, and I’ll travel alone to gather information.’

Leo made a realistic compromise. He neither knew how to make Lena a princess nor did it seem possible at the moment.

If he had to collect information anyway, he supposed it better to roam around on his own without Lena.

Then Lena would be happy, and he could look forward to a future.

Besides, the monastery was in the holy kingdom’s capital, Lutetia. Perhaps while studying at the church, Lena might meet a prince.

It was uncertain whether she would choose a prince over wanting to become a priestess, but one never knows.

Leo steeled his resolve and repeated internally.

‘I’ll send Lena away and I’ll travel. I’ll send Lena away and I’ll travel. I’ll send Lena away and…’

When Minseo’s mind became slightly clearer, he etched the general outline of this scenario.

Lena scolded him, asking what he was mumbling about to himself.

*

The weekend arrived.

“Leo~”

“Hey! Just a moment! I almost finished eating!”

Lena hadn’t gone to the church for the first time.

That early morning, while pulling weeds and putting aside her dream of becoming a priest, she naturally sought Leo’s home.

‘Today, I should go collect mountain mushrooms. There’s something I want to tell Leo…’

Lena hovered at the door, thinking of Leo.

Recently, Leo’s gaze had changed. It was difficult to pinpoint exactly, but he seemed to look at her with a certain tenderness.

‘Did he notice I’ve given up?’

If it were Leo, that could be true.

Because he was a friend.

If he had sensed it already, then perhaps it would be easier to tell him that she was quitting her studies to become a priestess.

What would Leo say? Would he encourage her not to give up? Or would he be pleased?

Since the day she confessed she wanted to become a priestess, a distance had grown between them. It seemed she had let go of the hand she used to hold tightly then. Perhaps it was because priests couldn’t marry.

At that time, she had been so absorbed in her dream that she couldn’t see Leo’s feelings.

Young Leo must have been quite disappointed…

“Lena! What’s going on this morning?”

Leo emerged with a wide grin.

He had that look on his face like he knew something she didn’t.

“Hmm~? You’re looking suspicious. Are you planning some prank?”

Noticing something, Leo’s left ear twitched. It was a habit that only Lena knew, showcasing his embarrassment.

“If you do something weird, I won’t let it slide.”

Lena threatened him.

Doing so would keep the good Leo from pulling pranks.

Today was serious. Leo was such a fool!

“No, I’m just happy to see you…”

“Really? But if you prank me today, you’re dead!”

She waved her fist threateningly. Leo’s briefly defeated expression was adorable.

“Alright… But what’s up?”

“What are you doing today?”

“I’m free today. Shall we go somewhere together?”

“Yeah! Let’s go collect mountain mushrooms.”

“Sure. Wait a moment.”

Leo went inside and quickly came back out.

As if he had been prepared.

“Wow, you’re really quick!”

At the twitch of Leo’s left ear, Lena’s eyes narrowed.

“You’re hiding something, aren’t you?”

“What? What? There’s nothing!”

“That’s not true. You’re definitely hiding something. Hand over the bag.”

Leo struggled for a while to assuage her suspicion.

‘Ah man… I should’ve just done nothing. She’s too sharp.’

The Lenas he met from different scenarios had completely different personalities.

The childhood friend Lena was clever and witty, the fiancée Lena wasn’t that smart, but she was a strong warrior and stubborn.

The beggar siblings’ Lena was young and hadn’t received any education, so she was hard to evaluate, but she had outstanding talent and was somewhat lazier than the other Lenas.

The other Lenas were so diligent that it made her look worse by comparison, but Little Sister Lena definitely slept longer.

Was it because she was young or perhaps because she was pretty?

‘I have to be careful moving forward.’

Childhood friend Lena, somehow seemed to be smarter than even Minseo, who was in his late twenties. She just lacked education and information but had excellent reasoning skills.

Even during the last trip to Nevis, she had vaguely sensed that life there wouldn’t be easy even without any information.

Eventually, Leo and Lena arrived at the foothill, and the progression from there was almost the same as before, with Lena’s stories while collecting mushrooms changing only slightly.

They collected mushrooms and settled down.

“Ah~ Do it.”

“Ah~~~”

“Chew, chew…”

“Chew, chew…”

Now Lena would say she was considering quitting her studies to become a priestess.

Leo waited.

“I think I might quit studying to become a priestess. I can’t even go to the monastery, and it costs money for training… They say they’ll feed, house, and clothe me, but I will need a little living expense right?”

Lena stretched out her legs and adjusted her seating. She pretended to yawn.

She was cute. It was an act to hide her embarrassment while opening up.

Leo couldn’t help but like her.

Simultaneously, Leo’s body tensed.

“I don’t want to leave Mom and Dad alone… I want to be able to wander through the forest with you for now… Do you want me to go to become a priest? Or not go?”

Knowing the future, his heart burned bright.

Leo liked Lena.

He couldn’t hold back his fluttering heart at her confession.

He was glad he had prepared words in advance.

“W-well… um, not going and staying with me is g-good, but I hope you won’t give up.”

Leo’s face flushed warm, and he bowed his head, scraping at the unfortunate mushrooms just like last time.

“Really~? Why~?”

As Lena playfully asked, his jaw stiffened, and he forgot where to put his arms.

“Why… why is there a ‘why’? Why do you keep asking that?”

Sweet feelings swirled around.

Get a grip. He had to part ways with Lena.

But when Lena’s hand touched his hand that had been lost, the reason to let go completely flew away. He couldn’t pull his hand back.

*

As the heat wave passed, Leo became troubled. By the time summer came to an end, the priest heading to the monastery would probably arrive.

During that time, Leo avoided hunting and spent as much time as possible with Lena.

Sometimes, Lena would grab his hand tightly. Each time, Leo’s heart would leap, and their long-standing friendship was on the verge of developing into romance.

One day, after gathering food in the fields with Lena, they returned to find a priest and Priestess Leslie waiting at the village entrance. A female priest and an old man were also there.

Leo shook in fear.

The moment had come.

“Lena! You’ve finally arrived!”

“It’s done! It must be a blessing from God watching over you!”

Priest Leslie brightly exclaimed and rushed toward Lena.

Leo closed his eyes.

‘I have something I must do. I have to send Lena away and travel…’

The female priest smiled benevolently at Lena and asked if she would like to join them.

“Is this a dream? Le…”

When Lena turned to Leo with a blank expression, a moment of silence fell.

In the past, Lena had rejected this event to give up her dream for Leo.

If he stays silent, the same result will unfold.

Swallowing his disappointment and lament, Leo opened his mouth to send Lena away. However, what came out was something entirely different from his original plan.

“Can’t I go along?”

Wasn’t he going to gather information in the Holy Kingdom anyway? It couldn’t be better than going along. He could comfortably reach Lutetia with Lena and study together there.

The monastery did not only cultivate priests. They nurtured paladins who would become the church’s sword and shield. Leo had {Swordsmanship} skills.

God?

If he could be with Lena, he would believe, wholeheartedly believe, and sing praises for the grace that allowed him to meet Lena.

“My theological studies are still lacking, but I will do my best. Also, I have learned quite a bit of weapon skills from my father. I want to become a paladin. I have some savings. Surely that can work?”

Leo desperately pleaded.

“Leo…”

Leo’s family revered hunting as sacred, so he too wished to become an excellent hunter like his father.

Lena felt her heart tug at the sight of Leo sacrificing himself for her, holding his hand tenderly.

The middle-aged female priest, Priestess Ophelia, who intended to take Lena, looked at the two youth before her.

She could sense the type of relationship they shared.

‘Reminds me of old times…’

On the day she left to become a priest, Ophelia had also parted from a friend with whom she shared a subtle emotion.

Through the years of studying to become a priestess, she had longed for that bond and poured that feeling into God.

Now, after so much time, it had become a bittersweet memory.

Ophelia had grown generous.

It wouldn’t be difficult to take one more person in the carriage, and if they had such a strong desire, they would likely grow into excellent paladins.

“It’s alright…”

“I forbid it.”

The gruff old man next to her spat out.

All eyes turned toward him.