Episode 100

[My lady, you have Lisbeth disease.]

I was first diagnosed by my physician when I was five years old.

After barely surviving a fever so painful it felt like dying, regaining consciousness only to receive such devastating news was too cruel for a child.

[This can’t be…]

Nella had fainted on the spot, and my father had grabbed the physician, his voice rising in panic.

[What are you saying?! Lisbeth is an incurable disease!]

Amidst the chaos in the room, I had simply lain on my bed, staring at them with wide eyes, unaware of what was happening.

Even though I had essentially received a death sentence, I had been too young to understand it.

Do I remember what happened before the illness first appeared?

No, I don’t.

The fever that nearly killed me erased all my memories before that.

Even now, if I try to recall anything, my mind turns completely blank.

“……”

Seeing me remain silent, Robert spoke in an understanding tone.

“It happened when you were very young. It’s natural that you don’t remember.”

He then picked up a piece of paper from the table and handed it to me.

On it was a drawing of a fruit—at first glance, it resembled a raspberry.

However, unlike a raspberry, it was an unnatural shade of gold.

“This is based on Sharon’s recollection. The ancients called it the Fruit of Betrayal.”

“Why was it called that?”

“I don’t know either. It seems to be connected to some ancient myth, but Queensbury wasn’t able to fully translate the text….”

I stared at the illustration of the fruit.

No matter how much I looked at it, I had no memory of ever seeing such a thing.

“This fruit slowly releases its toxins over time, ultimately leading to addiction. The numbness you sometimes feel is actually one of the symptoms of poisoning.”

Robert opened the ancient book before us.

“And here, it also describes an antidote.”

“An antidote?”

If my illness truly stemmed from this fruit, then a cure would mean complete recovery.

“Yes. The antidote itself isn’t difficult to make… but the problem is acquiring the ingredients.”

“What do we need?”

“The root of the Fruit of Betrayal.”

Robert pointed at the drawing.

“In the end, we need to find this fruit.”

“……Do you think that’s possible?”

A fruit from ancient times—one that grows deep in the mountains.

And since it closely resembled common berries, it would be even harder to identify.

“We have to find it. No matter what it takes.”

Robert spoke with absolute certainty.

“But at least we know which mountain to search. Both my wife and Sharon discovered the fruit in the same place.”

“The Deiorsa Mountains, right?”

“That’s correct.”

The Deiorsa Mountains were located right beside Tesaposa Mountain, one of the most prominent mountains in the South.

The two peaks stood side by side like twins, often called the Brothers’ Mountains.

But the problem was…

‘It’s ridiculously massive.’

Searching for a single fruit there would be harder than finding a needle in a haystack.

‘…Still, I have to try.’

If I had given up when things got difficult, I wouldn’t have made it this far.

“Alright. I’ll go and find it.”

At my words, Robert nodded.

“When you go, take Sharon with you. She’s a smart girl—she may not remember the exact spot, but she has a rough idea of where she found the fruit.”

Right at that moment, Sharon peeked into the room through the door, a mischievous smile on her face.

“You were listening, weren’t you, Sharon?”

Robert let out a helpless chuckle, and Sharon quickly ran over to me.

“Sharon, will you help me?”

“Yes! Please take me with you!”

Her eyes sparkled with determination.

She, too, was suffering from Lisbeth disease.

Despite her young age, she understood her condition well and knew how important this opportunity was.

“Alright. I’ll stop by here before heading to the South to pick you up. Be ready by then, alright?”

“Yes!”

Sharon beamed, filled with hope for the first time in a long while.

Seeing her like that brought a faint smile to Robert’s lips as well.

“I couldn’t save my wife,” he murmured, his voice tinged with emotion. “But the research I dedicated my life to back then… it may now save a child who feels like family to me. It’s a strange feeling.”

His eyes seemed slightly red.

“Thank you for giving me this chance, my lady. If I had simply stood by and lost Sharon too, I wouldn’t have been able to go on living.”

“I should be the one thanking you for your research. I’ll bring back the fruit as soon as I find it.”

“I’ll be waiting.”

Robert saw me off as I prepared to leave.

Just before I stepped into the carriage, his voice called out once more.

“My lady.”

“Yes?”

“I believe in you. This won’t be easy, but you can do it. Don’t forget—the hardest thing you’ve ever done was convincing me in the South. Finding a fruit is nothing compared to that.”

Robert smirked playfully, and I couldn’t help but laugh.

“That’s true. Convincing you was incredibly difficult. This should be much easier in comparison.”

When I had first thought about it, the uncertainty had felt overwhelming.

But hearing Robert’s words, I suddenly felt like I could do it.

As the carriage took me back to the estate, I opened the ancient book Robert had given me and began to read.

The ancient book was filled with details about the fruit’s appearance, properties, and its connection to various myths.

Scattered throughout its pages were occasional translated notes from Queensbury, but I didn’t need them.

A reincarnation buff that only lets me read ancient languages?

‘It’s still ridiculous, but I guess it’s useful at times like this.’

[When the world stood on the brink of destruction, two saints, Rosette and Tias, appeared. Rosette wielded the power of healing, while Tias could command the spirits of old. Together, they stood against the monsters that sought to destroy the world.]

“Huh?”

I had seen this passage before.

‘It was in that ancient book I found in Karsian’s prayer room….’

Robert had called it mythology, but this was an actual historical event from the Dark Century.

“Is it connected to the Fruit of Betrayal as well?”

The saint who could wield healing powers, Rosette, was likely an ancestor of the Selber family.

And the saint who could control ancient spirits…

[My child—she must have been from the Diselle lineage.]

A sudden voice rang in my ears, making me clutch my chest in shock.

“Spirit?”

[I was wondering what you were up to—you were reading. How admirable.]

The spirit spoke as if I were a grandchild it was doting on.

“Please don’t startle me like that.”

[Oh? Did I frighten you? How fragile you are.]

I let out a deep sigh.

“You really did return quickly this time.”

[I keep my word. Though I can’t stay long—I’m worried about your health.]

Whenever the spirit appeared, it felt as though there was a warm presence beside me.

“You came at the perfect time. Do you know who the saint that controlled spirits was?”

[……Tias Diselle. A name I’ve longed to hear again.]

For the first time, the spirit’s voice carried a trace of longing.

“So that means everything written here is true, isn’t it?”

According to the book, after being crowned as Emperor, the two saints eventually clashed and waged war against each other.

And in the end, one of them perished.

The book described it as Rosette betraying Tias.

[During the war, Rosette ultimately killed Tias. Where Tias’s blood seeped into the earth, a single flower bloomed. That flower soon bore fruit, and later generations came to call it the Fruit of Betrayal.]

‘So this is the legend behind the fruit….’

How deep must her resentment have been, for a fruit to grow from the place where she died, filled with poison?

Tias and Rosette—their names lingered in my mind.

Just then, I felt my breathing grow ragged.

“……!”

A pain so intense that my vision turned white.

“Ah… haah…!”

[You—what’s… happening…?]

The spirit’s voice faded abruptly.

The symptoms had struck without warning, severing my connection to it.

Oblivious to what was happening inside, the carriage continued speeding forward.

A moment later, I collapsed to the floor with a heavy thud, my vision flickering in and out.

 

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