My Past Life is Riddled With Many Sins - Chapter 25
Even after being reborn as Regina, the same was true.
After witnessing a few occurrences, her parents naturally adopted the mindset of ‘If it’s her, she’ll somehow manage’. They took every incomprehensible situation in stride.
Whether it was their daughter, who had never learned swordsmanship, knocking down a former mercenary. Or their daughter, who had never formally studied, passing the entrance exam for the Imperial Academy.
Having lived receiving such treatment and then seeing the innkeeper couple surprised by her passing the exam felt odd to her.
Having cleared up the minor misunderstanding with the innkeeper couple, Regina decided to stay at the inn and help out with work until it was time to move into the dormitory. Serving food and occasionally engaging in not-so-enjoyable doll plays with Garnet passed the time quickly until the day of the Imperial Academy’s entrance ceremony arrived.
Regina, wearing the uniform she had acquired from the academy the day before – or rather, put on credit for the equivalent amount – turned her body in the outfit. She wasn’t twirling like a lady holding the hem of her skirt but rather testing how freely she could move her arms and how much vigorous activity it could withstand without revealing what was underneath her skirt.
The uniform was quite practically designed. While not extremely comfortable, it was made so that one could exert up to 70% of their full combat potential should the need to fight arise.
‘Not that I’ll need to fight at the academy.’
She wasn’t lacking in common sense to genuinely pick fights with the kids.
Having lightly packed her belongings to take to the dormitory, Regina left her room.
“Thank you for everything.”
“Regina! You, you’re going like that?”
The innkeeper’s wife was shocked to see Regina loaded with a huge pile of belongings. She looked more like a strong peddler than an academy freshman.
“Yes. I have to take everything since I’ll be living in the dormitory from now on.”
Nobles might not carry their luggage themselves and would have servants for such tasks, but Regina was a commoner. Even though well-off commoners could afford servants, Regina was not in such a position, so she had no choice but to carry everything herself.
“This won’t do. Let me get him to help carry this. Honey! I’ll take care of the inn, so you help Regina with her luggage!”
“Got it. I could use a bit of exercise…heup!”
Responding to his wife’s call and rolling up his sleeves, the innkeeper grabbed Regina’s luggage. Then he immediately clenched his teeth from the unexpected weight. His arms trembled unknowingly, and a rush of blood to his head made him dizzy.
How could she carry something this heavy so effortlessly?
Upon witnessing the innkeeper’s face turn pale in an instant, Regina took back her luggage. The innkeeper, who had been desperately trying to hold on, finally seemed to lose strength in his legs, staggering before collapsing onto the floor.
He looked down at his still trembling hands, noticing they felt numb.
“Honey? What’s the matter with you all of a sudden? What happened?”
His wife rushed over, concerned about his state. He couldn’t bring himself to confess that Regina’s luggage was too heavy and that he had embarrassingly fallen because of it.
“N, no, it’s just…”
“It seems Mr. Innkeeper isn’t feeling well today. I’ll just carry this myself. It looks bulky but it’s not really that heavy.”
“If you were feeling unwell, you should have said something! Go rest upstairs.”
“Uh? Oh.”
He responded vaguely to his scolding wife and watched in disbelief as Regina effortlessly carried the luggage by herself and exited through the door. The reality of the situation left him muttering to himself in wonder.
* * *
“Am I dreaming right now?”
“Isn’t that the Imperial Academy uniform? But what’s with that huge bundle on her back?”
“Why is she carrying so much stuff? Isn’t it heavy?”
“Is she really an academy student?”
Regina, with her enormous bundle of belongings walking to the academy, shocked many onlookers, including current students of the academy.
A male student looking bored inside a carriage spotted Regina from the window and nudged his companion.
“Rupert, look at that. Isn’t that kid carrying a massive load wearing our school uniform?”
The student opposite him, Rupert, craned his neck for a better look and grimaced.
“What’s with that? Is she a peddler? Is she going to sell stuff at the academy? Wow, I’m embarrassed to be attending the same school as that.”
“Don’t just say things like that. Look at her strength. You wouldn’t stand a chance against her in a fight.”
“What are you talking about, Iskanda? As if I’d lose to a girl.”
“Well, who knows? The only way to find out is to face her. Have you ever beaten her in the past life?”
“Hey! That’s a monster you’re talking about. At least I didn’t end up being dragged off by that woman to become her concubine like you did, Iskanda.”
“At least I didn’t end up being a dartboard. And technically, you didn’t become a concubine not by choice. But because you were rejected for not meeting the beauty standards.”
“Oh, really? So, did you enjoy being dragged off to become a concubine because of your pretty face? The famed beauty, the prince of the fallen kingdom, the first concubine?”
Rupert’s sarcastic jab was met with a calm response from Iskanda.
“You, keeping her portrait in your bedroom had a different meaning, didn’t it?”
“What nonsense are you spouting?”
“If it was just for darts, you would have hung it in your office. What man hangs a portrait of a woman he dislikes in his bedroom? What a bad dream. You actually…”
“Uwaack! Shut up! Stop talking about past lives. Let’s live in the present, Darien, ung?”
“Alright, Fathom.”
They concluded their conversation by calling each other by their current names.
Darien and Fathom, uniquely, retained memories from their past lives. Iskanda and Rupert were the names they had used back then. After cross-verifying their memories, they became something akin to friends and attended the academy together.
Unlike Fathom, who turned his head away, Darien continued to gaze out the window, feeling uneasy about leaving a girl, even if she was a commoner, to carry such a heavy load by herself.