Lellia slowly opened her eyes.
As soon as she regained consciousness, intense pain washed over her.
Her neck hurt as if it had been beaten.
"Ugh..."
"You're awake."
Lellia let out a painful groan as she checked her surroundings.
In the dark room were the four men she had encountered earlier.
Lellia looked down at herself.
Her hands and feet were tied to a creaking chair.
'Was I kidnapped?'
But something was strange.
'...What is this?'
Things that normally only appeared when she pressed the jewel on her necklace were simply visible.
A settings button at the bottom right, and craft, inventory, quest, and so on.
Small icons were floating before her eyes.
Ding ding.
Just then, the speech bubble that always appeared with alchemy tools floated in the air.
[Optimized for Special Affinity UI Mode, Master! Try raising special affinity by proceeding with hidden quests! ٩(๑•̀ㅂ•́)و When you completely finish the quest, you can receive a special recipe as a reward!]
'...What is this?'
Special Affinity UI Mode?
Ah. But my head hurts so much.
Lellia lightly shook her head and looked up at the men glaring at her.
Then she noticed things that hadn't been visible before.
The images floating right above their heads.
[!]
Above the men's heads floated exclamation marks glittering in gold. It was the image that appeared when a quest was unlocked in the game.
And below that, small letters were written... looking closely, they all said [–999].
Rattle.
Just then, a man dragged an old chair and sat down heavily in front of Lellia. It was Romeo.
"Your name is Lellia Auroria, right?"
"......"
Lellia slowly nodded.
Her heart pounded fiercely.
The fact she couldn't believe until just moments ago started to sink in through her skin.
Friends.
The beings who let Lellia live. Those who had become the final destination of her life, more precious than anything.
Friends were right in front of her eyes.
Recognizing this fact, her eyes instantly grew hot.
She never imagined they would reunite like this.
She was planning to undo the Gold Word Magic and go find them. She never thought she'd see them again this soon...
"Are you crying because you don't want to die?"
Romeo, sitting across from her, spoke mockingly.
With his still biting tone just like in childhood, Lellia felt the tears receding.
No... but then again...
'Why on earth are these guys... me...'
"Looking at the tower you were staying in, it was quite luxurious."
The brown-haired man, Griffith, spoke.
Perhaps these children knew of her existence.
She was confused, unable to understand the situation.
Perhaps her confusion showed on her face, as Griffith let out a hollow laugh and spoke again.
"Before Crown Prince Leo died, he left your name as a message to us."
"......"
"And Leo was poisoned to death. He always urged us. That someone was trying to kill him, that the throne was being threatened."
No, wait.
"Why did you kill Leo?"
"......"
Lellia's expression went blank.
She thought she misheard earlier...
'These guys right now...'
Do they think I killed Leo? How? Why?
"Do we need to wait? If we cut off your fingers one by one, you'll open your mouth soon enough."
Oscar, who was standing in one corner, spoke in a cold voice. Lellia averted her gaze slightly.
It couldn't be Oscar...
"Was there someone who ordered you to kill Leo? Or was it simply your greed to become emperor?"
Griffith poured out questions in succession.
Lellia opened her mouth for the first time with a trembling voice.
"Um..."
"......"
Romeo sitting across from her, Calix and Oscar with their fierce eyes in the corner.
And Griffith standing next to Romeo.
Their eyes turned toward Lellia.
"There seems to be... some misunderstanding."
The quest marks and [-999] floating above their heads were bothersome, but first, untying the ropes binding her hands and feet was the priority.
For now, they didn't seem to have noticed that she was Leo.
They knew Lellia as her true identity itself.
'If I'm not careful, it won't be my fingers but my neck that gets cut.'
Lellia continued speaking before their patience ran out.
"I... I didn't kill Leo... Leo oppa."
You idiots, right? At that time, she was ten years old. How could a ten-year-old kill someone?
"Then why did Leo send your name as a message before he died?"
"That's..."
That was... just in case...
She thought Romeo or Griffith, who were quick to notice, might figure out her identity.
But looking at Romeo and Griffith's eyes now, it was a huge misconception.
'Now that I think about it, it makes sense to suspect...'
It might have felt like a dying message with the culprit's name. At that time, she was too urgent to even imagine it.
"Lies. You aimed for the throne and killed Crown Prince Leo. You probably didn't calculate that a rebellion would occur. So you ran away."
"Only my friend died unjustly..."
At Griffith's words, Romeo muttered as if responding.
The two people across from her seemed to firmly believe Lellia was the culprit.
That was understandable since Lellia looked very suspicious in their eyes.
Since the day the four first reunited and guessed the culprit, they had determined in their hearts that Lellia was the culprit.
The prejudice that had solidified over several years was not easily erased.
Lellia was speechless seeing Griffith and Romeo, who she thought would be quick to notice and figure it out, acting like this.
'What should I do. I can't tell the truth either...'
Lellia quickly thought. To persuade those eyes full of prejudice...
Shing.
Just then, Oscar, who had been silently watching from afar, drew his sword again and slowly approached.
Lellia instinctively sensed the killing intent. He couldn't hold back and was finally trying to kill her.
Lellia desperately shouted to survive.
"I really didn't kill him! The culprit who killed Crown Prince Leo was executed directly by the Emperor at that time! 'Count Heter' was the culprit!"
"How can we believe those words?"
"No..."
Oscar's blade approached Lellia's neck. Her soul felt like it would be sucked out by the demonic energy emanating from the sword.
"......!"
Just then, a way to escape this situation suddenly came to mind. A sharp pain washed over her neck where the blade touched.
Lellia desperately shouted.
"M-My birthday is the 27th of the month of Celes!"
"......"
The surrounding air froze.
Griffith's expression was particularly distorted upon hearing those words.
The day before the date Lellia mentioned, the 26th, was Griffith's birthday.
And the 27th was the birthday of the person Leo said was 'a very precious person,' a day they all celebrated together every year.
An old conversation passed through the four people's minds.
"By the way, whose birthday is it? A secret girlfriend?"
"What girlfriend! It just is. A very precious friend."
"More than... us?"
"How could that be... hmm. Maybe it could be. Since I've known them since I was very young. But you don't need to feel slighted. Oscar, you're also a precious friend to me."
Lellia quickly read their expressions.
The blade that seemed like it would cut her throat at any moment slowly lowered.
The silver-haired man had a confused expression.
As a way to explain came to mind, Lellia spoke immediately without thinking.
"Y-You're Leo oppa's friends, right? I was very close to Leo oppa. S-So I heard a lot about you all."
"......"
Griffith glared at Lellia with sharp eyes again. It was a look that said he absolutely couldn't believe her.
"Then what about the fountain pen? Why do you have it?"
Romeo asked.
It hurt to lie again in front of her friends, but she couldn't help it now.
'First, I need to survive.'
"Leo... oppa gave it to me before he died. The rabbit doll too!"
"......"
At Lellia's words, Griffith, Romeo, and the silver-haired man's expressions became subtle.
Just then.
Calix, who had been in the corner and hard to see, walked over.
He narrowed his eyes and glared at Lellia.
"......"
Lellia stared blankly at his entire face, then gazed into Calix's eyes.
'So it ended up like that.'
In the original work, Calix lost both eyes in a battle with the mad dragon. This time was no different.
"Calix..."
When Lellia murmured his name with pity, surprise filled their expressions.
"How do you know my name?"
"...That's."
Lellia explained while holding back tears that felt like they would burst.
"Leo... oppa told me. About his friends. After returning from the temple, he talked about those times every day."
The real Lellia couldn't tell anyone the truth.
But if she had someone to talk to, she would have held onto them and only talked about those days.
Like someone who lives their whole life with memories of those days.
Lellia slowly looked at their faces and called their names.
"Calix, Romeo, Griffith, and..."
"......"
"Um... Oscar... isn't it?"
Lellia asked cautiously.
The silver-haired man glared at her without answering, then abruptly left the room.
Bang!
Lellia shrank her shoulders at the sound of the old door slamming roughly.
Griffith snorted at Lellia and muttered.
"You could have heard the names anywhere. Now anyone can know those names."
"True... but more importantly, why did Leo send your name in a letter?"
Romeo asked, looking very suspicious. Lellia explained earnestly.
"...Maybe it meant to ask you to take good care of me?"
Actually, she had trusted Griffith and Romeo...
Lellia continued speaking.
"Leo... oppa said that even when he was at the temple, he always celebrated his friends' and my birthdays together. That's how much he cherished me..."
Lellia's words had sufficient credibility. Romeo and Griffith's furrowed eyebrows twitched a little.
The fact that they celebrated that birthday together every year was a story only the five friends knew.
If Leo hadn't told her, she could never have known.
Lellia glanced at Calix.
'It doesn't seem like his eyesight is completely gone yet.'
Calix closed and slowly opened his eyes as if in pain. He seemed to be struggling from the sudden pain in his eyes.
"How can we believe your words? Then tell me. Why exactly did that guy die. Who, why, killed him. Where is that culprit now."
Calix spoke with tension in his jaw, barely pushing through the pain.
Lellia slowly traced her memories. She had to tell only the truth as much as possible.
She recalled what she had heard from her grandfather and uncle belatedly and spoke.
"Count Heter... had a grudge against Emperor Laidios. So he poisoned Crown Prince Leo, and Emperor Laidios, knowing this, brutally slaughtered Count Heter. Right after that, the rebellion occurred."
"...Poor guy."
Calix covered his face with his palm as if in pain.
Seeing that, Lellia's heart ached sorely.
"I still can't believe your words."
Romeo said, distorting his eyes. Lellia thought again.
What words would make them believe this?
"...Leo oppa told me everything about his time at the temple. Almost dying from wolves on the mountain, learning to swim together, everyone calling Leo oppa 'Captain'."
"......"
Their solid doubts began to crack.
Even Oscar, who was sitting outside the door listening.
"...He told you about what happened on the mountain?"
Calix asked.
"...Yes. That the one who sent the wolves was the Emperor of the Ascard Empire, too. And that they agreed to keep that fact secret."
The day wolves appeared on the mountain and they almost died.
What happened that day was a secret only the five knew.
"Why did Leo tell you such stories?"
"...Because I was very close to Leo oppa, and we were precious cousins to each other."
Of course, it was a lie.
In reality, Leo used to run at Lellia whenever he saw her, saying he'd practice his kicks on her.
But the lie had an effect.
Now they seemed to somewhat believe Lellia's words.
"Then you're saying that sending your name really meant to ask us to take care of you?"
Griffith still seemed suspicious.
Lellia nodded uncomfortably.
"Probably..."
"...You didn't somehow find out Leo's secrets and then kill him?"
"......"
"Count Heter? The fact that we haven't been able to find out that name while investigating all this time, doesn't that mean you're lying?"
Lellia sighed deeply.
"Only some high-ranking nobles would know about Count Heter. Since an implicit gag order was issued about everything that happened during Laidios's time as emperor, everyone would have avoided speaking about it."
Lellia's words were true. Even after arriving in Auroria, the four couldn't uncover exactly what happened back then.
Moreover, Emperor Perseus killed all of Laidios's people without a shred of mercy.
It was safe to say that almost no one knew specifically about what happened then.
"...Then what's the probability that Emperor Perseus is the culprit who killed Leo?"
Griffith asked.
"...That's not likely. Count Heter was not at all Perseus's person. It was because of his grudge against the former Emperor Laidios."
What Lellia was saying was all true.
It was a story she heard from her grandfather's mouth.
Perhaps Lellia's words were persuasive. Before long, the ropes binding her hands and feet were untied.