The shocked Rehir felt his body with trembling hands.
The back of his head throbbed at the feeling of thin bones through his thin clothes.
The firm muscles had disappeared, leaving only wrinkled skin.
‘This can’t be!’
It felt like he was having a terrible nightmare. Touching his sunken cheeks, he let out a silent scream.
‘This doesn’t make any sense!’
In a hurry to find a mirror, Rehir looked around urgently.
「Rehir! Where are you?」
Even in the midst of this, the innocent laughter of the spirits, as if playing hide-and-seek, could be heard.
That wasn’t all.
The water in the puddle on the floor lifted its head like a snake. It flicked its tongue and looked around.
Rehir froze, unable to breathe, fearing their eyes might meet.
Luckily, he managed to avoid the water spirit, but he couldn’t relax. Other spirits were constantly calling his name, wandering around. It felt like being trapped in a huge prison made of spirits.
‘Damn them. Their master is dying, what are they doing here!’
Even while cursing inwardly, Rehir felt like he was going crazy with fear.
‘Get lost. Please, just disappear!’
It was ridiculous that the great darkness was hiding here, afraid of mere spirits, but there was nothing else he could do. Trembling in the shadows for a long time, the noisy spirits eventually disappeared.
After a long while, Rehir came out, looking around with a scared face, and went into the nearest storage room.
‘Mirror. I need to find a mirror!’
He felt he could only accept reality by checking his condition directly in a mirror. His emaciated hands rummaged through the dust-covered belongings.
“Cough!”
His lungs felt like they were tearing as he coughed from the rising dust. Fearing the spirits might hear him, Rehir covered his mouth. Forcing back the cough made his insides churn, but he had no choice.
‘Found it!’
After much suffering, Rehir finally found the mirror buried under the pile of belongings.
Rehir gritted his teeth as he picked up the mirror with trembling hands.
His reflection in the mirror was horrifically ugly beyond words.
It looked as if decades had passed in an instant, and his once shiny hair under the sunlight was now dry and frizzy like cobwebs.
His wrinkled skin had lost its elasticity to the point where it would stretch if pulled.
His cheeks were covered with liver spots, with only his hollow eyes protruding.
Barely holding back a scream, Rehir threw the mirror and curled up.
He had to admit it now.
He had lost everything.
He had lost the fake saintess he had nurtured for decades, and the fake wings he had created by stealing the power of the goddess for centuries.
He had lost the power he had built up over a long time, and his body that could contain his power was soon to die.
He was alone.
No one could help him.
The minions he could summon with a flick of his finger were also gone.
Rehir hugged his body and shed hot tears.
“Ugh…”’
It was exasperating. The injustice made him feel like he was going to go crazy. He couldn’t let it end like this. It was then.
“Lady Leticia!”
A desperate voice was heard outside the broken window. Rehir jerked his head up. He staggered toward the window.
‘Has that woman finally died?’
Now, there was only one thing left for him.
To witness Leticia’s downfall.
To see her corpse and to see everyone she loved live in pain.
If he could just see that, he could live in hiding until his strength recovered.
So he thought.
“Lady Leticia! Are you hurt anywhere?”
The first thing he saw was the spirit of light illuminating the center of the garden.
Under the round light floating like a balloon, Leticia’s wings were walking urgently.
Among them, Noel Armos ran quickly. Rehir followed Noel’s gaze and swallowed hard.
‘Why is that woman still alive!’
Leticia, it was Leticia.
Leticia, who should have died with a burst heart, coughing up blood, was perfectly alive!
Noel, who ran to Leticia, urgently checked her condition.
“Lady Leticia, are you alright? Is the shield still intact? Oh, Goddess. I thought I was going to burn up inside.”
After confirming that she was alright, she burst into tears.
Leticia hugged Noel tightly and patted her back.
At the same time, she quickly looked around.
“Where is Dietrian?”
Although she did not show it, her nerves were on edge.
It was because Rehir had manifested the curse.
At the moment she was driving out Rehir’s darkness with the power of the Goddess, Rehir’s body suddenly began to age rapidly.
Surprised, she inadvertently released his hand, feeling a twinge near her heart.
It was the precursor she always experienced just before the manifestation of the curse in her past life.
So shocked, she couldn’t catch Rehir as he escaped.
Fortunately, unlike the past, the precursor quickly dissipated like ink in water.
Confused about what was happening, Leticia soon realized the truth.
Rehir.
That selfish being had finally lost all patience and tried to hasten the curse by sacrificing his power.
Contrary to Rehir’s intention, the curse could not harm Leticia.
Although there was a twinge near her heart, it soon subsided.
‘The power of the dragon absorbed the curse.’
Dragon Sigmund, the child in the womb.
And Dietrian. Those with the power of the dragon had shared the curse.
Because of this, she was worried about Dietrian.
He had decided to take on the power the child couldn’t handle.
While she was anxiously waiting, she saw Dietrian walking out from behind the castle.
Leticia called his name like a sharp cry.
“Dietrian!”
Dietrian paused at Leticia’s call but quickly quickened his pace.
Before she could call him again, his strong arms wrapped around her.
Leticia closed her eyes tightly, inhaling the familiar scent.
Hugging his broad back tightly, Leticia buried her face in his shoulder.
“I’m fine.”
Knowing exactly what she was worried about just by looking at her expression, Dietrian whispered softly.
“I was a little late because I was making sure to eliminate Rehir’s minions.”
When Dietrian arrived at the castle, Rehir’s minions were rampaging everywhere.
At first, he was startled, thinking Rehir’s power had grown stronger.
Despite all the preparations, he feared something might have gone wrong and Leticia might have been hurt.
However, contrary to appearances, Rehir’s minions were pathetically weak.
When he raised his aura and cut them all down, they disappeared with screams.
Thanks to that, he realized.
Leticia had perfectly deceived Rehir.
Leticia had purified Rehir in a moment of carelessness.
The wings moving with him assured him that Leticia’s power had grown even stronger.
“Did Rehir manifest a curse?”
The reason Leticia was so worried was obvious. There was only one.
“…Yes. But don’t worry. I’m fine.”
Just as he had expected, Leticia looked up at him with a desperate expression.
“You and our child are fine. So where did the curse’s power go? Lord Sigmund said he couldn’t intervene in my affairs for a while. There are no other descendants of the dragon…”
Leticia stopped speaking. Her face turned pale.
“Leticia.”
“This can’t be.”
Leticia urgently clung to Dietrian.
“It was Julios.”
“My brother? My brother bore the curse? How is that possible? He lost his memory, how could he…”
“He regained his memory.”
“…What?”
“Lord Julios regained his memory long ago. He knows about the child too. He must have borne the curse alone to protect me, you, and our child! We must find Lord Julios as soon as possible. Please!”
At Leticia’s plea, the spirits laughed and spread throughout the castle.
「Don’t worry! Ahaha!」
Leticia watched the departing spirits anxiously.
The power of the goddess continuously drained as she moved the excited spirits.
The more it happened, the more strongly Leticia infused her power into the spirits.
If she missed this chance, she might lose Julios forever.
In other words, this was the only chance to get Julios back.
“We will also help in the search.”
Knowing how important Julios was to Leticia, the wings’ atmosphere was solemn.
The grand castle was filled with the energy of the wings.
Among them, the wings from the Principality were particularly noticeable.
At the news that Julios had regained his memory, Banessa and Julia were completely determined.
“Lord Julios has regained his memory. We must make sure he meets Madam Mano.”
If anyone stood in their way, they were ready to cut them down by any means necessary.
The determination of the two was truly a matter of life and death.
Seeing their comrades’ desperation, the other wings also became serious.
“Lord Julios! Where are you?”
“It’s me! Banessa!”
Voices searching for Julios echoed throughout the castle.
The castle was vast, and the dark energy was so thick that the search was not easy.
If it were ordinary people, they would surely have failed.
But Leticia and the wings were not ordinary people.
Leticia, the true agent of the goddess and the one who had acquired eight wings, decided to draw upon the goddess’s power.
The wings also searched the castle desperately. Countless spirits of light quickly dispelled the darkness.
Hundreds of rooms were instantly illuminated by the light flowing in from the windows.
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