<Episode 56>
Eveline <Rubellite Croppers> quickly spotted Elkais rushing outside and raised the long stick he / she was holding.
“Ugh…!”
But she <Eveline> hadn’t expected this. She was only on guard against Rubellite attacking her.
“Elkais…”
She didn’t expect him to hurt her <Rubellite Croppers> .
“Elkais!”
Elkais was running toward her, screaming as if in agony.
“Elkais! This is…! Ugh…!”
Eveline’s breath was cut off as Elkais grabbed her by the neck with one hand and lifted her high. <Eveline in Abels body>
“Grr…!”
“You dare pull such a stunt?”
“Hng… Elkais… it hurts…!”
The imposter <Rubellite Croppers in Eve’s body> quickly rushed over and grabbed Elkais’ other hand, which was filled with rage.
“Abellard, you will die here.”
“E-Elkais, ugh…”
The grip on her neck tightened, making it hard for Eveline to even struggle.
“Hey! You bastard!”
It was Abellard who attempted to attack Elkais. < Abel in Coppers body>
Despite not being familiar with Rubellite’s body, he had grabbed a gun and was aiming it at Elkais.
“Let go of Eve right now! Or I’ll use this!”
“Your Highness, do you even know how to use that?”
“Do you think I can’t?”
Eveline felt a strange sense of unfamiliarity as Elkais, filled with rage, glared at her.
He was barely restraining himself from snapping her neck right then and there.
“D-Don’t do this… He’s my brother…”
The imposter cried as she tried to stop him.
She seemed unaware that the blood dripping from her shoulder was running down her hand and touching him, almost as if seducing him.
“He hurt you, Eveline.”
“Ugh…!”
“It was an accident. I just fell…”
“I saw Abellard holding a stick as if he was about to stab you.”
“He needed it as a cane!”
The imposter, flustered, spoke up quickly before hugging Elkais’ waist and sobbing.
“I remembered that he’s my brother. Don’t kill him. Please?”
As she trembled while holding onto him, Elkais slowly lowered Abellard to the ground.
Once Eveline’s feet touched the floor, she coughed, clutching her neck with her hand while looking at him.
“Ugh, seriously…!”
She was even more frustrated by the tears streaming down her face, a physiological response she couldn’t control.
“Why can’t you believe… ugh…!”
She tried to shout, but her throat hurt too much, cutting off her words. But when she saw Elkais’ expression, her anger subsided.
At first, he seemed angry, but now he looked scared.
“It would be best for you to leave.”
At his words, Eveline, still holding her neck, looked at him.
“Yes, let’s go.”
Abellard responded, grabbing Eveline’s hand to help her up from where she had fallen on the ground.
“Let’s go, Eve.”
As the pain in her neck subsided, Eveline briefly let go of Abellard’s hand and looked at them.
The imposter clung to Elkais, crying as if she was terrified, while Elkais looked confused and frightened because of her.
Unable to hold back, she spoke.
“I’m the real Eveline, Elkais.”
“……”
“And that’s… ugh… the Grand Duke Croppers.”
“Abellard.”
“I’m not even Abellard’s sister.”
After finishing her words, Eveline turned toward the cave by the beach and sighed.
“Figure it out yourself. I don’t know anymore. And don’t let your guard down because she’s likely planning to kill you too.”
Eveline didn’t think Rubellite Croppers would kill Elkais right away.
“What are you saying…?”
“The one who switched bodies is the Grand Duke Croppers. He’s probably planning to use Elkais to kill us.”
“Elkais…”
Seeing the imposter’s face trembling with fear as she cried, Elkais fell deeper into confusion.
“Still, be careful. She might try to kill Elkais before finishing off all of us.”
Eveline said this before starting to walk.
Abellard, noticing how upset Eveline seemed, consciously held her hand as they walked. He tried to channel his divine power unconsciously, but since the body he was in lacked any, he could only hold her hand.
* * *
They walked in silence for a long time until they reached the cave by the beach, and it was already midday.
“Eve.”
“…Yes.”
“You’re upset.”
“I’m not upset with you, Brother.”
“It’s uncomfortable, isn’t it, with the bodies switched?”
“…Yes.”
Eveline felt sorry again as she watched Abellard smiling awkwardly, trying to lighten her mood.
She didn’t want him to feel like he had to be on edge around her. He was already someone who was overly cautious.
“I want to go back to my own body. Are you really okay with this, Brother?”
“I just want to fulfill what you want, Eve. I’m fine with whatever state I’m in. Still, if you’re an Omega, I’d like to be an Alpha, and if I’m an Alpha, I’d like you to stay an Omega.”
“Why?”
“Because then it would feel like destiny.”
Eveline let out a small laugh at Abellard’s silly comment.
“Brother.”
“Yes?”
“Come to think of it, you know how to purify, right?”
“Oh! Right! Purification!”
Abellard, excited, grabbed Eveline’s hand and turned her around. Seeing her expression improve, he continued enthusiastically.
“If we purify, we might be able to return to our bodies.”
“Are you sure?”
“Yes. That’s what purification is originally for. There are monsters that possess others, right? We expel them through purification.”
Eveline, thinking that purification might be the only way, squeezed Abellard’s hand tightly.
“Eve?”
Abellard’s heart raced as she held his hand tightly, causing him to chuckle nervously without realizing it.
“Please help me use divine power.”
“Huh? Sure. But…”
Abellard hesitated, frowning slightly as he considered his words.
“But if I help you use divine power, you have to grant me one wish.”
“Brother, you seem to have a lot of things you want from me. You’ve mentioned wishes before.”
“It’s really important. So just one wish. You have to fulfill something I really desire.”
“Alright.”
Though she felt uneasy, Eveline agreed, thinking that Abellard wouldn’t wish for something that would harm her.
Abellard’s bright smile helped melt away much of her earlier anger.
“Then, first… let’s have a meal…”
Bang!
Eveline fired at a tree nearby with the hand Abellard wasn’t holding.
“There’s no need to worry about food now.”
What she shot was a caiman, a type of crocodile, hitting it squarely in the head.
“I stole this.”
Abellard smiled as he revealed what he had hidden on his back—Elkais’ sword.
“Well done. He’d wield a sword even without one anyway.”
“Did I do well?”
“Yes.”
As if asking for a pat on the head, he leaned in, but Eveline pushed his head away, saying,
“Get it after we return to our original bodies. It feels a bit… uncomfortable now, since it’s someone else’s body.”
“Alright!”
They then prepared the caiman and started a fire. Despite lacking divine power, Abellard managed to strike sparks with the sword and stones he had brought, starting the fire.
They had to settle for brunch.
* * *
After the meal, Eveline sat by the beach as Abellard instructed. The sunlight was warm, but the shade of the trees made it bearable.
“Hold my hand.”
Without suspicion, she took his hand.
“And say that you love me.”
“Are you going to keep acting like a con artist?”
Eveline pointed the gun she brought at his chest. Abellard, however, just laughed as if he found it amusing and scratched the back of his neck.
“Hehe. You know I’m joking, right?”
He lowered her gun with his hand and tried to compose himself.
“Eve.”
“Yes.”
“My heart is racing so much I can’t think straight.”
“Then I suppose you need to calm down to think.”
“Hahaha.”
Eveline took the gun out of his hand again and aimed it at him, but Abellard’s expression remained unchanged.
“This won’t work. I know you won’t hurt me.”
At his words, Eveline lowered the gun.
“It feels unpleasant to react to someone else’s body.”
“Did you react to your own body, Eve?”
“Yes. I think I can understand why Alphas do what they do.”
“I see.”
Abellard responded, determined that he would have to kill the Grand Duke Croppers.
“Do I just keep holding your hand like this?”
“Well… When I first manifested divine power, it was when you got hurt.”
“I know.”
“I thought about wanting you to get better, and it seemed like that wish turned into power.”
Eveline knew from the original story that he had hidden his divine power. She had thought it was because of her, due to the situation in the mansion, that he had to use it.
“Was it the day I fell from the mansion?”
“Yes.”
Eveline recalled that day, the first day she was possessed.
“Before that, I used to torment you a lot.”
“You did. That’s why I resented you, but when I saw you hurt, I realized that there was more than just hatred in my heart.”
Eveline met his gaze without flinching.
“I don’t see you as a romantic partner, Brother. I don’t think that will change now or in the future.”
“I won’t force you. I’m just saying it because I want you to know.”
“……”
“For now… let’s focus on being able to use divine power.”
“Yes.”
As Abellard smiled wryly, Eveline felt a strange tightness in her chest.
At the same time, she couldn’t help but feel an urgency to return to her original body, worried about whether Elkais was truly alright.
TL/N: IM SO SO SORRY IF THIS WAS A MESS!! I TRIED EVERYTHING TO M+MAKE IT NOT SHITTY IM SOO SOO SORRY
