My Past Life is Riddled With Many Sins - Chapter 104
Regina knew that thinking on an unchangeable past was akin to torture, so she tried to push thoughts of her previous life aside. Regrets wouldn’t save her in the present.
Now, she was faced with the reality of spending a day and a night with her husband from her past life. Her mind felt clouded. To make matters worse, there was another man who had been her husband in a past life, even if they weren’t in the same group…
‘What was the relationship like between Friedrich and Prince Iskanda?’
The answer was obvious. The seven guardians didn’t get along well at all. However, the animosity between Friedrich and Prince Iskanda wasn’t quite as intense.
As far as Regina knew, Friedrich had particularly despised Skyler. She wasn’t sure about the Prince’s feelings, but it could be Skyler or Lennon. So it wasn’t the worst combination. They probably wouldn’t give each other a second glance.
‘As long as I don’t provide them with a reason.’
The moment one side exploded, the other would surely follow. Regina resolved not to ignite any fuse between them.
The students boarded carriages and headed off somewhere. During the ride, Jonas Schmidt, a third-year student, shared his past experiences.
“In my first year, we did courage training, and in my second year, we played tag with the professors. Last year, Mia Weiss and Fathom Leroy also experienced tag as first-years, right?”
“Don’t remind me, senior. I had nightmares for a week after Professor Luisa whispered, ‘Found you, Leroy!’”
Fathom shuddered, and seeing Mia Weiss’s pale complexion, it seemed they had a tough time. Tobias Sefer, a first-year student, looked increasingly pale as he absorbed the upperclassmen’s reactions.
Each group consisted of three swordsmanship students and two magic students. In this case, the two wizards were Mia Weiss from the second year and Tobias Sefer from the first year.
“Did anyone get seriously hurt?”
“Well… there was a classmate who almost lost a leg, but thanks to the priests’ timely intervention, everything was fine. He recovered completely without any lingering effects, so don’t worry too much, Sefer.”
Jonas Schmidt flashed a bright smile as he kindly replied to Tobias Sefer’s question. With his healthy tan skin, muscular build, and dazzling white teeth, Jonas seemed to embody the very essence of the word ‘charmer.’
‘But I feel like I’ve seen him somewhere before….’
Noticing her gaze, Jonas turned his attention away from her.
“When you awaken to the beauty of muscles, come join our club, Regina Heather.”
His grin, reflecting the sunlight streaming through the carriage window, was almost blinding. Regina pressed her forehead, feeling overwhelmed by his radiant smile.
‘No wonder I felt a sense of deja vu.’
He must belong to the ‘Muscle Morning’ club. She decided to avoid making eye contact as much as possible.
The carriage continued for quite a while, even after leaving the Ultima region. Given the early morning assembly time, she had expected the journey to be long.
As her legs began to ache from sitting still and the constant jolting made her stomach churn, the carriage finally stopped.
“Where are we…?”
Regina’s eyes widened in surprise as she recognized the familiar scenery.
If the ownership hadn’t changed in the past 200 years, this was the imperial hunting grounds. Animals were usually stocked here for hunting events, but at other times, it was a peaceful clearing with grass and a few herbivores.
Were they planning to hunt? Would they score points based on the types of animals caught, competing to see which group could earn the most?
“First, let us express our gratitude to His Highness Crown Prince Fabian Gustav Villarperosa Lee Enfield for graciously allowing us to use the imperial private estate.”
As people presumed to be from the imperial family looked on, a professor wearing an eye patch spoke in a deep voice.
“Your groups will conduct monster hunting.”
In summary, the professor explained that they would rotate the groups for monster hunting, grouping them into batches like 1, 6, 11, 16 for the first round, and 2, 7, 12, 17 for the second. This arrangement was made for the safety of the students.
Since one priest was assigned to each group from 1 to 5, it would be challenging to respond immediately if multiple injuries occurred in a sequence like 1, 2, 3, 4… Therefore, they had devised a strategy to group them in such a way that the priest would oversee fewer students at once, like 1, 6, 11, 16. However, this meant the priests would have to make multiple trips.
For Regina, this was good news. It meant she wouldn’t have to be with Valen except during the second round. While she rested with her group in 17, he would be involved with the first round, which included group 16, as well as the third round with group 18, the fourth with group 19, and the fifth with group 20.
‘If I can just endure the second round.’
With the other group members around, he wouldn’t bring up stories from their past lives. Suddenly, Regina felt a wave of affection for her 17th group members.
‘My human shields.’
As she scanned them with a fond expression, her gaze met Fathom’s. He trembled as if in a fit.
‘Such a timid guy.’
She couldn’t understand why he was acting that way when nothing had even happened yet. She beckoned him over with a finger, and Fathom approached with a grim look.
“Uh, Junior, why are you calling me…?”
“Stay as close to me as possible during the monster hunt.”
“Uh?”
His response was a garbled mix of sounds, neither an ‘uh’ nor a ‘huh.’ Regina frowned at his awkwardness.
“Don’t let there be a situation where Friedrich and I are alone together.”
“Your ex-husband, Elden… Senior Valen?”
“Exactly.”
Fathom looked at her in surprise, as if he had just discovered that a seemingly heartless beast actually had a conscience.
This realization sparked a subtle anger in Regina, but remembering Fathom’s usefulness, she decided to let it go. As long as he was in good shape, he could effectively serve as a mobile shield.