PMEVBO 6

The relief of being alive was short-lived. Suddenly, I began to question the identity of the child I was holding. I had no way to check the child’s face at the moment. My body, still under the control of the “Discernment” skill, refused to move as it held the child’s head against my chest.

However, I already knew about the power to heal others through physical touch. That was Isabelle’s special ability. It was called the “Power of Life.”

‘Wait, so this child in my arms is Isabelle?’

That didn’t make sense. Isabelle shouldn’t be in this castle right now. The timeline of Lucariel’s house arrest at Hayut Castle overlapped with the period Isabelle stayed at the capital mansion. That was how Isabelle alone survived the Hayut Massacre in the original story.

I’d even confirmed through the servant, Paf, that the Isabelle of this world was currently at the capital mansion as well. Therefore, it was impossible for the child I held to be Isabelle.

Even if I conceded and assumed she was in the castle, the current Isabelle shouldn’t be able to use the Power of Life yet. In the original novel, her power didn’t manifest until after the Hayut Massacre.

‘Then who is this?’

Suddenly, a long strand of hair slid out from my arms and caught my eye. It shone under the sunlight filtering through the open window. The color was a lovely pink.

That was exactly how the original story described Isabelle’s hair. No, wait. Was this really her?

Luckily, a moment later, the opportunity to discover the truth presented itself.

──────【 Discernment 】──────

‘Player Survival’

Accomplished!

────────────────

──────【 Skill 】 ──────

Skill ‘Discernment’ casting has been completed.

────────────────

“Gah!”

It was pain that reminded me that control of my body had returned to me. An intense, searing ache surged from the area where I had made contact with the child.

I hastily pulled away from the child. Only then did the pain, which felt like thousands of needles were stabbing my entire body, subside.

That agony was the Power of Life? It hurt more than coughing up blood after eating poison. The original story certainly didn’t describe the Power of Life this way. It used keywords like #Comfort or #Refreshing.

In the original story, anyone who touched Isabelle, regardless of age or gender, regardless of age or gender, felt at ease and refreshed. Even the original Lucariel became so captivated by this comfort that he grew desperate for her touch.

Based on the effect alone, this power certainly seemed to be the Power of Life. However, my physical condition hadn’t returned to how it was before I consumed the poison. My chest still ached, and my HP was only 10. However, compared to the agony of the poison spreading through my veins, the pain I felt now was like a blessing.

My survival was a forgone conclusion. Once I realized I was out of death’s reach, my eyes naturally moved to find the benefactor who had saved my life.

Immediately, my gaze met with those blue eyes that resembled a clear autumn sky.

“Holy…”

What was this? Was he an elf?

Lying limply, his red lips gagged, he resembled some spring fairy. His features were so distinct and beautiful that they felt distant, like a figure from a dream.

I could say with absolute confidence that I’d never seen such a beauty in my life. The term “peerless beauty” was likely invented for a face like that.

The original Isabelle was also described as a rare beauty. If not for the mole on his right cheek, I might have been convinced this child was the heroine.

The story never mentioned a mole on Isabelle’s face. In the world of fantasy novels, it was a golden rule to emphasize a character’s mole during descriptions, especially if it belonged to the female lead of a romance.

Perhaps I stared too rudely for a first meeting. Beneath his long, pink eyelashes, like stamens of a flower, I saw the corners of his eyes lift in displeasure.

Ding!

At that moment, a new status window appeared with a cheerful notification sound.

────【 Sub-Quest 】────

Praise ‘Iser Hayut’!

(0/3)

D-10 (240h)

Reward: Skill Draw Ticket (x1)

────────────────

Three praises? The difficulty level had suddenly spiked.

Regardless of that… Iser Hayut? It was a name I couldn’t possibly ignore.

He was Isabelle’s “sore finger,” the younger brother who became a victim of the horrific massacre at a young age. The heroine’s only sibling was indeed named Iser Hayut.

Coincidentally, a child with the exact same hair and eye color as Isabelle was right here.

“Is it you? Are you Iser Hayut?”

The boy who had been staring at me briefly showed signs of agitation.

I stepped closer to confirm. When I’d approached the servant Paf, the status window had flagged her as a target for praise, so it should work the same way now.

I crouched down in front of the child I assumed to be Iser and slowly reached out my hand. As the shadow of my hand touched his pale face, he flinched.

I only wanted to get a bit closer; I didn’t actually plan to touch him. From his perspective, however, it might have looked different. I hurriedly hid my hand behind my back.

Ping!

────【 Sub-Quest 】────

‘Iser Hayut’ has appeared!

Complete the mission by praising ‘Iser Hayut’.

────────────────

A friendly status window confirmed the identity of the child before me. In that short span of time, however, the look in Iser’s eyes had changed.

I rested my chin on my knees and let out a small exclamation. His eyes, unblinking, glared at me with the ferocity of a beast. The flinching he’d shown just moments ago was gone.

But no matter how fierce his gaze was, he posed no threat in his pitiful state, bound tightly by iron chains.

‘What’s the point of trying to scare me? You’re the one who’s most terrified right now.’

I stared at the sub-quest window and thought for a moment.

D-9 (23h 58m 59s)

The time limit was about ten days.

‘Good. Ten days means the fire isn’t under my feet just yet.’

Since the time wasn’t as tight as it was with Paf, I had something else I needed to do.

I shook myself off, stood up, and walked with solemn steps. Thanks to the cramped space in the room, I quickly reached my destination.

‘Are you dead or alive…?’

I looked down at the child abuser stretched out on the floor. Since I survived, this bastard had to be alive too. That was the only way I could avoid a murder charge.

I leaned down and placed my hand under the nose of the man with the prominent brown mustache. I felt a hot, damp breath.

“…He’s alive.”

It seemed I had escaped a life behind bars for murder.

Wait, just who the hell was this guy, bringing the duke’s son here and whipping him? And in the duke’s castle, no less.

At that moment, the ring on the fainted man’s right index finger caught my eye.

It was an ornate gold ring with an exquisitely engraved fox.

The original story described a ring just like that, the only item Isabelle cherished after she lost her family and became indifferent to worldly greed. That ring was an heirloom of the Duke of Hayut, her father’s signet ring. Why was such a meaningful ring on this bastard’s grubby finger?

The Hayut Massacre hadn’t happened yet, so the Duke should still be alive and well. As one of the founding families of the Levana Empire and its only Ducal house, the prestige of the Hayut family was sky-high at this time.

In that case, what kind of crazy person would wear a matching couple’s ring with Duke Hayut? And a signet ring, at that. You would need a liver the size of a pumpkin to even try such a…

“Oh, you’ve got to be kidding me…”

So, this child abuser was Duke Hayut?

My original plan was to find the Duke. I intended to snitch on the “son of a bitch” who had dared to imprison and assault his son.

‘But that son of a bitch is the Duke himself?’

I gritted my teeth and roughly brushed my hair back. How could a father be the one to abuse his own child?

When a child’s guardian, whom they desired to love and be loved by, was abusing them, they would experience immense grief and suffering. It’s said that even animals cherish their young. An animal was not as bad as this man.