Chapter 13
<Wasn’t This a Strategy Game? Chapter 13>
Eden’s tongue froze at the gentle question. Asmun was staring at her, seemingly waiting for a response.
“Me…?”
“You said Tannir, right? The Priest.”
Asmun kindly repeated her words.
「On that day, the Commander of the Holy Knights was also covered in Tannir’s blood.」
Only then did Eden’s face turn awkward as she realized she had actually mentioned the word Tannir.
“Was that also something you saw in a dream?”
Asmun’s voice was soft, but there was a hint of mockery underlying it. It was clear he didn’t believe her words.
A stubborn look appeared on Eden’s face as she held her head high and nodded.
“Yes, that’s right. I saw it in a dream. So don’t worry. The oracle will come down soon.”
Asmun smirked a little at Eden’s determination.
“I see.”
After a brief silence, he opened his mouth again.
“But I still don’t believe what the Priest said.”
That comment made Eden a bit annoyed.
Come on.
She knew he was a suspicious character, but honestly, there was nothing more she could show him. She was completely out of ammunition. Hiding her anxiousness, Eden forced a gentle smile.
“You might feel that way. But soon you will come to believe it.”
“…Really?”
His crimson eyes stared at Eden. The indifferent expression devoid of any amusement sent a chill down Eden’s spine.
“The reason you can’t shake your disbelief, even after seeing the Priest’s abilities, is because, unlike you who is chosen by the deity, I’m just a lowly human who has never been close to the divine.”
His calm voice, reminiscent of confessing sins, stirred a faint sense of sympathy in her.
Eden was aware of Asmun’s background. He was born to a lowly second empress, suffering discrimination and contempt since childhood, growing up tormented by the cunning bullying of the 1st and 2nd Princes.
In the desolate Imperial Palace, where he had no one to protect him, he must have painfully realized that the only one he could rely on was himself. Those agonizing times likely made Asmun so cold and detached. His inability to easily trust others was, perhaps, understandable.
Just as Eden was about to offer comforting words, Asmun spoke first.
“So, please forgive me.”
The sudden statement made Eden look at him with bewilderment.
Forgive you for what?
“The potion you just drank is not an antidote.”
“…What?”
As Eden asked in confusion, Asmun pulled out another vial from his robe. It was identical in shape and color to the potion she had just swallowed.
Without giving Eden a chance to protest, Asmun uncorked the vial and downed its contents in one gulp, just like she had.
At the same time, Eden felt a chill engulf her body as she stared at him blankly.
“Ugh…”
She involuntarily shrank back from the unbearable coldness. Asmun looked at Eden with an expression that seemed unfazed by the bitter taste of the potion.
Soon, as he set the empty vial down, Eden sensed something was wrong.
“What is this?!”
“It’s the strongest contract created among the pacts crafted by the Magic Tower. It was quite a chore to get my hands on it.”
Asmun’s demeanor was calm. Eden continued to look at him with a perplexed expression.
A pact, you say?
But before she received an answer, Eden winced and let out a groan.
“Ugh…!”
It suddenly felt as if fire was igniting in her chest, a ruthless pain stabbing at her like needles. Eden clutched her heart in shock and fell to the ground.
“Hah…!”
The pain was so intense it felt like she could stop breathing, but it didn’t last long. Just as a sharp and heavy pain brought beads of cold sweat to the surface, a sinister premonition sent a shiver running up the back of Eden’s neck. The area around her heart, precisely on the left side, was still tingling.
Slowly, she lifted her head to look at Asmun.
“What did you make me swallow?!”
At that moment, Asmun, who had been patiently waiting for her to calm down, finally parted his dry lips.
“The potion you drank a moment ago is the Pact of Destiny. I too have just consumed the same that you did.”
At those words, Eden’s eyes widened. Whatever the Pact of Destiny was, she instinctively understood it was as dangerous as poison.
But the fact that Asmun had consumed the same thing…
“Now, Priest, you and I are bound by the same fate.”
His voice was chillingly calm. Eden’s expression twisted in fear. Bound by the same fate, huh?
“This is the trust I am showing you, Priest.”
As he said this, Asmun’s eyes glinted coldly. Eden felt a numbing cold grip her insides.
Asmun had realized, not only to trust her words, but that he must absolutely not let her go. That terrifying instinct was obviously clear.
“If either of us betrays the other…”
The chill that had enveloped her body began to lift, but Eden felt another shiver from the piercing gaze of his crimson eyes fixed on her.
“You will die.”
The blunt delivery of such a horrific statement was infuriating. Without even realizing it, Eden covered her mouth with her hands.
Asmun smiled faintly at her shocked expression, as if saying not to worry too much.
“If you don’t plan to betray me, there’s no need to worry, I won’t cause you any harm.”
Eden was at a loss for words as she faced the disconcertingly composed 3rd Prince. She should have been angry, but she couldn’t find the strength to be so. His calm gaze was too unsettling.
“You promised to make me the Empress, didn’t you?”
As if this was merely a necessary step for everything to exist beside her.
“……”
She heard some commotion outside. It seemed Priest Mobrin was returning from his business. Asmun seemed to have caught the sound too, rolling down his sleeves and slowly rising from his seat.
Eden couldn’t bring herself to follow him, frozen in place as she locked eyes with Asmun, who was looking down at her.
“Oh, just to mention…”
“……”
“If the Priest is unable to make me the Emperor, that too would count as a betrayal.”
Those eyes, burning like a sunset, stared intensely at Eden. A chill ran down her spine.
It was true. The very fact that a prince like Asmun was standing in front of her was precisely why.
In other words, if she failed to make Asmun Emperor, it meant death.
It seemed she had completely fallen into Asmun’s trap. Asmun regarded the pale-faced Eden with an utterly relaxed expression.
“Then I will.”
He smiled chillingly.
“From now on, I will only trust you, Priest.”
『<Potion of Pact>
A contract potion created by the mages of the Magic Tower for an unbreakable and unforgettable strong pact. The types are as follows:
– Pact of Promise
– Pact of Love
– Pact of Loyalty
– Pact of Destiny
Those who share this potion will be bound by an unbreakable contract, and as evidence of the pact, a mark will be inscribed on their bodies.
A curse will befall the one who breaks the pact, and to annul the pact, one must consume the potion of annulling in the same manner. However, the Pact of Destiny cannot be broken by the potion of annulling.
The Pact of Destiny is the strongest among the four pacts, and breaking it will result in a horrific death. Conversely, the only way to break it is through death itself.
Creating the Pact of Destiny requires magical power of 7 circles or more along with rare and dangerous materials, and due to numerous cases of abuse, it is currently forbidden. 』
“This is insane.”
Eden totally forgot she was in the library as she cursed out loud. Luckily, no one was around, but even if there had been, she wouldn’t have been able to hold back her words.
It wasn’t until she returned to her room that Eden realized why her chest felt like it was on fire. Right over her left breast, precisely where her heart is, the ‘mark’ had been inscribed.
The reddish glowing symbol looked like some sort of summoning circle or a jumbled contract.
It was a tiny mark, no bigger than a thumbnail, but unmistakably a sign. In the blink of an eye, she had confirmed its existence with her own eyes, yet she couldn’t bring herself to believe Asmun’s words.
Therefore, Eden rushed to the library the next day and searched every single book related to potions. Finally, she came across one discussing the potion of pact that Asmun had made her drink. The information was horrifying.
In essence, Asmun had given her a potion that would kill her brutally if she broke it, which was even illegal. Moreover, he had also consumed that same potion.
“H-How would one die? Isn’t that a vital detail to include?!”
Frantically flipping through the next pages didn’t reveal how someone who broke the pact would perish.
A horrific death, huh? Various brutal scenarios flooded her mind, sending prickles of cold sweat down Eden’s arms.
Though she was mentally prepared for the possibility of dying and resetting, there is a world of difference between just dying and dying a ‘horrific’ death. Even if she might reset again, she didn’t want to go through something like that. Her instincts were leaning more towards believing that there wouldn’t be a reset at all.
If there’s no reset, all that’s left is death.
“……”
Of course, she never intended to betray Asmun from the start. However, there was a huge difference between clearing this under her own will and being tied down to forcibly act in his favor because of him.
“That crazy bastard…”
Cold sweat began to bead on the palms of Eden’s hands. What was truly chilling wasn’t even the curse of the potion Asmun had made her drink, but Asmun himself.
