Early dawn.

Those who were to be executed at daybreak were trembling in fear as they waited for the time to come.

Among them were those like Hister, who had been overcome with evil and exhausted themselves in a frenzy, and those like Lundberg and Rockford, who had let go of everything and were blankly awaiting their execution.

Leila Aswald was closer to the former, if one had to decide.

“……”

Inside the damp underground prison.

Leaning against the wall, staring only at the iron bars, Leila was biting her nails with a very tense expression.

‘Is it really all over like this…?’

Leila, who had been sitting silently, had fierce eyes.

‘No way. What did I do so wrong that I deserve this, why on earth!’

Unfortunately, Leila still did not know what her fault was. No, even if she knew, she would not have wanted to admit it.

From Leila’s point of view, looking back on everything that had happened so far, there was only one person who had done wrong.

Elaina Aswald.

‘Even that bitch is still alive, so why!’

If only I had killed Elaina with my own hands, no matter what it took, when she was caught in the castle back then. Then I wouldn’t have been so angry!

Not even realizing that blood was flowing from the tip of her bitten finger, Leila muttered incessantly, filled with anger.

And the peak of that anger was right in front of her.

The moment she faced Elaina, who was quietly walking towards her.

“Elaina!”

As soon as she appeared, Leila jumped up from her seat and began to shout loudly, just as Hister had done.

“You! How dare you bring me, me, to this state…!”

Elaina showed no reaction. She just limped over and quietly stood in front of Leila.

Then, looking straight at Leila, she slowly parted her lips.

“You still blame me, Leila.”

“Who else is to blame if not you! You damn bitch!”

Leila shouted loudly, going berserk.

“It’s all your fault. If it weren’t for you, our family wouldn’t have fallen, Father and Mother wouldn’t have passed away like that! And I wouldn’t be in this state!”

“……”

“You ruined my life. No, you ruined all of us. How dare you, after we raised you and fed you, you couldn’t even repay the kindness!”

“Kindness?”

Elaina said with a laugh.

“You gave me food that was about to rot, and the whole family used violence against me every other day. Verbal abuse was very common. You don’t treat even livestock that way, Leila.”

“What?”

“But I don’t really know what to say to you who calls that kindness. You’re much more brazen, wretched, and irresponsible than I expected.”

There was no emotion in Elaina’s eyes as she looked at her. Unlike herself, they did not hold anger, resentment, or hatred. In fact, Elaina’s voice was extremely calm.

So Leila was taken aback without even realizing it.

“Melvin died because he was involved in the rebellion, and Melissa died because of a sudden illness.”

“None of this would have happened if you hadn’t brought down our family in the first place!”

“No, that’s completely wrong. That’s not my fault either. Do you still not realize it was Melvin’s fault for brazenly trying to sell me off and gain favor with Duke Hank?”

Elaina continued with an expressionless face.

“It’s very easy to blame others, but on the contrary, it’s very difficult to look at yourself. If you had made a different choice than Melvin, you wouldn’t have ended up in prison like this.”

“You damn bitch, what kind of crazy nonsense is that!”

Leila shouted with all her might, shaking the iron bars, but Elaina was not shaken at all.

“I still remember it vividly, Leila.”

Instead, she spoke in a very quiet voice.

“When Melvin started using violence against me, not you and Melissa. The expression on your face as you watched me being beaten.”

“…What?”

Leila flinched greatly at Elaina’s words, which she had never even thought of.

…Elaina was right. At some point, Melvin had started beating only Elaina to death, not Melissa and Leila.

The reason was simple. He was worried that people might notice what he had done to Melissa and Leila, who had to participate in social life.

“At that time… you were secretly hiding and watching me being beaten to death in the hallway. And Melvin didn’t know that.”

“……”

“You kept sobbing and staring at me like that for a long time, and in the end, you left that place. As if you had done something very wrong, you ran away in a hurry.”

“What… what’s the point of that now? Do you want to blame me for that?!”

“No.”

Elaina shook her head and replied.

“I just thought. Ah, Leila is feeling sorry for me. But Leila must have been very scared too. Leila has also been beaten by her father, by Melvin. So I have to understand. Maybe it’s a good thing that I’m the one being beaten. Because I’m tough.”

“What…?”

“But your actions were different from what I expected. From the very next day, you started tormenting me to death along with Melvin and Melissa.”

“That’s…!”

“I’m not trying to blame you for not helping me back then, Leila.”

Leila flinched, as if it was an unexpected statement.

“I know very well. The fact that tormenting me was, in a way, a means for you to survive.”

“……”

“But you could have made a different choice. Yes, other than laughing at me, hitting me, and tormenting me with Melvin and Melissa.”

Elaina made a slightly sad expression.

“We used to get along not too badly before that.”

Sometime long ago that she couldn’t even remember properly now.

Even before Melvin targeted only Elaina with violence, he used to torment her. Melissa was the same.

But Leila would sometimes talk to Elaina, glancing at her parents, and come to her saying they should play house together.

Of course, it had all become a thing of the past now…

“……”

Leila, who had been shouting loudly as if she was about to rush at Elaina at any moment, stared at Elaina with a blank expression without even realizing it.

…Leila didn’t know how to smile brightly like Elaina, and had never known how to have hope.

But Elaina was different.

Elaina, who smiled as brightly as the sun no matter what violence she suffered, and never lost hope. Elaina, who sparkled like a star, cute and beautiful like a fairy.

From that moment on, Leila’s feelings changed their name.

The guilt she had briefly harbored towards her turned into an inferiority complex, and that inferiority complex had somehow turned into anger.

So every time she saw Elaina persevering and surviving, she began to think like this. That those were not feelings that child should have…

So sometimes she tormented her even more than Melvin, making her suffer more. To personally teach the stupidly dense Elaina a lesson.

But Leila also instinctively and intuitively felt it. The fact that no matter what she did, she could not break the heart of someone like Elaina.

Perhaps that was why she hated Elaina even more.

“But Leila, I’m not so generous that I would ask to spare your life when you tried to kill me.”

Elaina spoke again after a while.

“I didn’t come here to see you in a miserable state, or to mock you. I just wanted to say these things to you at least once.”

“…I’d rather you mock me.”

“What?”

“I’d rather you laugh at my pathetic state and curse at me! Saying it serves me right!”

“……”

“Be honest with yourself. In the end, this is what you wanted too, isn’t it! Our family ending up like this!”

“Leila.”

Elaina spoke in a low voice.

“I’m not so generous, but on the other hand, I’m not as terrible as you, Melvin, or Melissa to simply enjoy someone else’s downfall.”

“Elaina!”

“The dawn will break soon, and you will be executed. I plan to watch everything with Sinclair. Because that’s all I can do.”

Having finished speaking, Elaina stared at Leila quietly for a moment, then slowly turned around.

However, as Elaina limped away, leaving Leila behind, she suddenly turned her head.

“Goodbye, Leila. Farewell.”

And then, she bid her final farewell.

* * *

Hister, Lundberg, Rockford, Leila.

And some of the nobles who had been involved with Hister were put on the execution platform as soon as the day broke.

As Sinclair had said, the Imperial Palace was briefly opened, and the people of Edenbell, who had heard the news, swarmed in like bees.

Contrary to what Elaina had thought, the execution was carried out in an instant.

Lundberg and Rockford meekly accepted their deaths, having given up on everything.

Leila was the same. She unexpectedly quietly and without much resistance ascended the execution platform.

Elaina quietly watched her die. Feeling the warmth of Sinclair firmly holding her hand.

And Hister made a commotion and shouted until the very end, but nothing changed no matter what he did.

Until Hister’s life was cut short, some of the imperial citizens threw stones and hurled curses at him, telling him to go to hell.

In the midst of this, Hister glared at Sinclair as if he would kill him until the very end, but Sinclair did not even flinch.

Elaina just silently held his hand tightly. Just as Sinclair had done for her.

Thus, all those involved in the rebellion were executed…

Sinclair and Elaina also bid farewell to the terrible past.

At the same time, preparing to face the peaceful days that awaited them.