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Chapter 122: Academy Heroine's Right Diagonal Back Seat

Chapter 122



A long time ago, in a time so distant it has almost faded away.


A girl woke up in a forest.


With her black hair and red eyes, the girl sat blankly staring at the sky and wondered.


Where am I?


And who am I?


The girl had no memories.


The girl had no purpose.


The girl had nothing.


And so, she spent her days doing nothing, idly passing the time without end.


Then one day, while the girl was sitting idly as usual, she encountered another being for the first time.


A girl with sleepy eyes and dark violet hair and eyes.


The girl with the dark violet hair found the girl sitting idly and asked with a tilt of her head.


"Hey, you. I can sense something similar about you and me. Who are you?"


The girl couldn't answer that question.


The girl didn’t know who she was, either.


The girl with the dark violet hair asked the unresponsive girl.


"...You seem alive at least. Can you understand what I’m saying?"


This time the girl nodded.


Then the girl with the dark violet hair muttered to herself as if she had realized something, watching the girl for a moment.


"...I see. I wonder if this is how it felt for me at first. Being born in a place where there’s nothing, it’s only natural to feel empty. Maybe it’ll be interesting to see how this turns out..."


The girl with the dark violet hair smiled faintly and said to the girl.


"You know, I’ll give you a gift since you have nothing. Now, repeat after me: Evangeline."


"...Evangeline?"


"Yes, Evangeline, which means 'good news,' because I want you to become something that lessens my boredom. From now on, that’s your name. Just like that name, make sure you entertain me from now on."


"...My name is Evangeline."


The girl quietly murmured the name she was given.


The girl who had nothing now had a name.


And so, the girl became Evangeline.


---


From the day she received her name, the girl began to change a little.


Things that had always seemed ordinary to the girl who spent her days idly began to appear new to her.


The clouds drifting in the sky, the tall trees, the flowing streams, and the blooming flowers.


The girl began to wonder if these things, like her, had names.


It would be a shame if they didn’t have names.


The girl had been overjoyed when she was given a name, and she wanted to share that joy with others.


So the girl asked everything she saw.


"What is your name?"


And to all the things that couldn’t answer her question.


To the clouds, to the trees, to the streams, to the flowers, the girl gave names.


Hoping they would be as happy as she was, the girl gave them simple names, sounds she could make with her mouth, like Ah, Oh, Eee, Ooo, and so on.


Then one day, as the girl was wandering the forest and giving names to the things she met.


"Oh? A human? In a forest this deep?"


"You, name?"


"Huh? My name is Liru, but..."


"My name, Evangeline."


The girl met someone who answered her question for the first time.


"Oh, I see... So your name is Evangeline. Evangeline, where is your family? Where do you live?"


"...?"


"...What’s this? Are you really living in the forest alone without a family? No, it can't be... Oh, did you lose your memory in some accident and end up wandering around? Hmm, my dad said to help people in trouble..."


The young elf named Liru grabbed the girl's arm and said.


"Hey, Evangeline, would you like to stay at our house?"


If she followed her, maybe she would encounter more things that had names.


The girl found the existence called Liru intriguing and decided to follow her.


"Evangeline, this is the village where I live."


"...Village."


Following Liru, the girl arrived at a place called a village, something she had never seen before.


"Yes, and that’s where our house is."


"...House."


There were many large, square structures in the village called houses.


"Liru? Who is this young human? I told you not to bring strangers into the village carelessly."


"Oh, Dad. It’s just, I found her wandering in the forest without any memory... She seems to be about my age, and I felt sorry for her, so... Could you please let her stay with us until she gets her memory back?"


"...Hah, alright. I’ll have to speak to the village chief.”


And inside those houses lived many large and small Lirus.


"My name, Evangeline. You, name?"


"...You really don’t have any memories, huh. Alright, Evangeline. I am Arun, Liru’s dad."


"Dad, Arun."


"I’m Liru’s mom, Luna. Nice to meet you, Evangeline."


"Mom, Luna."


The biggest Liru was dad, Arun.


The second biggest Liru was mom, Luna.


"Unga."


"Name, Unga?"


"No, this is my little brother, Eru."


"...Little brother, Eru."


And so, Evangeline came to live with Liru, the littlest Liru, and her brother Eru.


The girl had found a place to stay in the home of the four Lirus.


"Evangeline, from today onwards, you are a member of our village."


And so, the girl had found a place to belong.


---


The days the girl spent with Liru were a continuous learning experience.


The girl learned many things while staying with Liru.


She learned that what she had called Ah, Oh, Eee, and Ooo were actually called clouds, trees, streams, and flowers, and that Liru was not just Liru but also an elf, a member of a species.


"Evangeline, try this. It's baked potatoes, and they’re delicious."


"...Fire, it hurts."


"Wha?! Why would you put your hand into the fire? It’s really hot! Are you okay?!"


"...It hurt, but now it's okay. Ah... Potatoes are delicious..."


"Phew, I’m glad you’re okay..."


She learned that fire was hot and painful but also that potatoes roasted over a hot fire were delicious.


"Liru, are you going out to play with Evangeline again today?"


"Yeah! Hehe, today we're going to catch fish in the pond!"


"Alright, just don’t go anywhere too dangerous!"


She learned the joy of playing with Liru.


"I caught a bunch of fish with Liru. This is a present for you, sir, for protecting the village."


"Haha, thank you. These are some apples the villagers just picked, would you like to take one?"


"Thank you for the delicious apple. I promise to repay you with even tastier fish later."


She learned the joy of repaying kindness with kindness.


And more than she learned, the girl gained a lot.


"Liru, why do you only play with Evangeline? Evangeline is unfair! You used to be best friends with me!"


"I want to be friends with Failyn too. If Liru, me, and Failyn all play together, it’ll be even more fun."


"...Oh? Really...?"


She gained new friends.


"Liru, I read in a book that I don’t have a mom and dad. Does that mean I... don’t have a family?"


"...Don’t worry about it. No matter what anyone says, Evangeline is my family."


"...Family. Liru and I are family."


She gained an irreplaceable family.


The girl was grateful to the world.


The world that gave her such precious things.


That’s why the girl was happy.


She thought such happy days would last forever.


---


Time passed, and the girl learned to speak like others, and Eru, who had once been small, grew to be about the size of Liru when she and the girl first met.


"Today, we’re all going into the forest to find a birthday present for you. We’ll get you a gift that will surprise you, so stay at home today. Okay?"


"Eru is also going into the forest to make a bouquet as a present for Evangeline! Hah, that was supposed to be a secret!"


That day was the girl’s birthday.


More accurately, it was a day to commemorate the day the girl first met Liru and came to the village.


The day all the children the girl’s age left for the forest in the morning to find a birthday present for her.


A great commotion erupted in the village.


The children who had gone into the forest in the morning hadn’t returned to the village by nightfall.


For an elf to get lost in the forest was unthinkable, so something must have happened.


All the villagers searched for the children throughout the night but couldn’t find them. The girl, unable to sleep, prayed for everyone’s safe return.


The next morning, the village's fastest vigilante brought grim news.


"...We found traces of the children’s bodies, no, signs that the children had died."


It was the moment when the girl’s happiness was shattered to pieces.


The girl, Evangeline, wanted to get along with all the children in the village.


All the village children were her friends.


That’s why all the village children went into the forest to get a gift for her birthday.


And they all died.


Even the slightly dishonest Failyn, the teary Nia, the brave Erica, and the cowardly Ronan.


Even Eru, who always followed her well, and Liru, her most cherished friend and family.


All of them.


Death was the saddest thing


 the girl knew.


When the village chief, the wisest and kindest person, died, the girl shed tears.


But now, she couldn’t even cry.


Amid the world-crumbling sadness, the girl heard the voice of the vigilante.


A beast, believed to have devoured all the children, was heading toward the village.


The girl had read in books about how powerful the beasts controlled by witches were.


And she knew that with the village’s strength, they could never defeat such a beast.


But the villagers who had lost their children shed endless tears, even at the vigilante's warning that they should flee immediately.


At that moment, from the other side of the village,


**[■■■■■■■■■■■■!!!!]**


A monstrous roar echoed.


The girl realized it.


If things continue as they were, all the villagers would die.


She knew that a greater sadness would come than what she was feeling now.


So the girl stood in front of the giant monster that had approached the village with its heavy footsteps.


And she shouted:


“These people are not your prey. Go back immediately.”


The monster looked down at the girl for a moment, then turned around and disappeared to the other side of the village.


The girl felt relieved.


At least this way, the remaining villagers would survive.


At that moment, one of the villagers who had been watching murmured.


“Evangeline ordered the monster...”


And someone else whispered, “Witch.”


The murmur spread among the villagers.


Witch, witch, witch. She’s a witch!


The murmur turned into a shout.


In the villagers' eyes, the girl saw an emotion other than sadness overflowing.


The villagers who had been so warm now glared at the girl as if they wanted to kill her.


“That bitch is a witch! It’s her fault our children died!”


“Evangeline commanded the monster to kill the children!”


“We treated you so well; why did you do it?!”


“It’s not true!” the girl shouted, but her words were drowned out by the villagers' cries.


The villagers’ rough hands seized the girl.


She screamed that it wasn’t true, but the villagers didn’t listen.


“Revenge! Burn the wicked witch to death!”


“We’ll return the pain she caused the children a thousandfold!”


“Witch hunt! It’s a witch hunt!”


The girl was tied to a stake by the villagers’ hands.


Wood was piled at the girl’s feet.


Oil was poured over her body.


“Burn her!”


“Burn the witch!”


“Burn her to ashes!”


The girl screamed that she was innocent, but the villagers didn’t listen.


The flames rose.


The flames spread across the girl’s body.


The flames were hotter and more painful than the girl had ever known.


But more painful than the flames was the villagers’ attitude.


They were her precious people.


The dead children were also her dear friends and family.


The girl was also saddened by the children’s deaths and only wanted to prevent further sadness.


Then why were they treating someone who grieved like they did, someone just like them...


So cruelly?


Why? She asked, but no one answered.


They only shouted to burn her.


Why? She asked, but no one answered.


They only shouted for revenge.


The girl realized.


They were so sad, they were angry.


They were looking for someone to blame.


The girl felt saddened by this.


Because she was no different from them, her sadness soon turned into anger.


That emotion, called anger, was as hot and painful as fire.


Red tears, the same color as that emotion, flowed from the girl’s eyes.


Her hair turned red, just like that emotion.


For the first time, the girl hated the world that had caused her such heat and pain.


She wanted revenge on the world. She wanted to give this heat and pain back to the world.


She wanted to burn it all down.


The people cried out.


The witch, revenge.


And so, the girl became a witch.


And so, the girl took revenge.


Nothing was left where the flames had burned.


Just like there should have been nothing left for the girl, too.


The girl looked around at the world she had once been so grateful for.


As she burned, she cried and laughed.


She still had so much left to burn.


At that moment, a girl with dark violet hair riding a huge beast appeared before her.


“Ehee, poor Evangeline. You’ve been through such a terrible ordeal.”


The one who had given her the name Evangeline.


The girl realized that she was a witch.


“It was all my fault, actually. The foolish people don’t even know that.”


She was the bad witch who had taken everything from her.


“Oh? Wow, what a huge fire. Playing with fire sounds fun. You want to burn me, right? Then let’s play hide-and-seek. All the way to that big tree over there. Got it?”


The girl decided.


She would burn the witch, the cause of everything that had been taken from her, and the world that had caused her pain.


Burn everything, and in the end, burn herself.


---


**[Ding-ding-ding~ Good morning~ Ding-ding-ding-]**


As I regained consciousness, my head hurt like it was splitting apart.


I wanted to hit myself in the head as usual, but my body felt somehow unresponsive.


Was I having a sleep paralysis?


As I thought this, I frowned and opened my eyes, realizing that my whole body was restrained by something.


Could it be that I’ve been kidnapped again? As soon as I thought that, the bed-like thing restraining me was raised, and I saw a large crowd of people gathered.


The sight seemed familiar, as the high-ranking city officials who stood with me on the podium during Yoon Si-woo’s hero ceremony were now looking at me with cold eyes.


There were familiar faces like Teacher Eve, Sylvia, Yoon Si-woo, and Martina.


What is this situation? Am I dreaming? Just as I tilted my head in confusion.


“It looks like you’re awake. Then let’s get started right away.”


One of them opened their mouth.


“Answer truthfully, Scarlet Evande. Are you an enemy of humanity?”



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