My Past Life is Riddled With Many Sins - Chapter 89

To protect her family from the devilkins that might invade the Middle Realm and to ensure her own safety from the person who killed Yekarna in her previous life, she needed to become stronger.

The reincarnation of Skyler, the Swordmaster, and the former Prince Iskanda, now the Master of the Magic Tower, also stirred something within her. A childish pride whispered, ‘I was the strongest in my past life…’ and a fierce determination to not fall behind them.

Lying down in bed to sleep, she eventually jumped up and grabbed her sword again.

* * *

As the weekend arrived, the Crown Prince summoned Regina as if he had been waiting for it.

“Before we start inspecting the outside, we should check the inside. We’ll visit all the knight orders in the palace first, and then inspect the attendants and maidservants. You just need to follow me pretending to be a guard.”

“Understood.”

Receiving the outfit to disguise herself as a guard, Regina suddenly remembered something.

“Previously, the head of the Magic Tower presented a magical elixir that can distinguish between demons and humans. If we use that to identify who is a demon…”

“The production is limited due to material supply issues. Besides, are we supposed to test each person one by one with their blood and the elixir?”

The Crown Prince’s tone implied that he would never have called her if he had considered such things. Frustrated by the Crown Prince’s rebuttal, Regina felt stifled.

Indeed, testing every individual in the palace would require an enormous amount of the elixir. In contrast, using her would involve no additional material costs and no expenses—just the exploitation of her labor.

‘Smart guy.’

At least he wasn’t going to bankrupt the palace’s finances.

Dressed in the guard’s outfit, she received a practice sword instead of a real one. It was clear they couldn’t afford to arm someone of uncertain identity with a real weapon. Since she had no intention of stabbing her descendant, she accepted the practice sword and followed the Crown Prince.

After being dragged around all day, sniffing out the magic like a detection dog, she finally detected the presence of demonic energy.

She signaled, and the knights quickly apprehended the suspect. When they tested the blood with the elixir, the initially red blood turned black. The devilkin, revealing its true nature and attempting to flee, was swiftly captured by the knights.

“Quite useful.”

Regina’s mood soured momentarily at the Crown Prince’s evaluative tone, but her expression softened like melting ice when she saw the pouch handed to her by the attendant.

“This is for your efforts. It’s late, so I’ll have a carriage prepared for you. Take it and head home.”

Climbing into the carriage and opening the pouch, she found it contained 5 mina—equivalent to the prize money awarded to the winner of the swordsmanship tournament.

“Oh.”

Regina let out a short whistle. It wasn’t a bad amount for a day’s work. If she received this kind of compensation every time she was summoned, she wouldn’t have to worry about the fees for requests to the information guild in the underworld.

The best outcome would be to leave the Empire without receiving any payment, but if she had to be in this position, getting paid was better than nothing.

‘Perhaps I should get a proper sword.’

Even if it’s not one that can handle the full power of a Mana Blade, it would be good to have a sword that won’t break easily when used carefully.

Thinking this, she returned to her dormitory, only to be startled by a rattling window. It wasn’t just the wind.

After looking closely, she saw Bliss knocking on the window.

Curious about what was happening, she opened the window and felt a gust of night air rush in. Backlit by the moonlight, he extended something to her.

“A gift.”

It was a sword. Regina felt a slight shiver at the perfect timing.

“You’re not going to refuse something I give you after accepting gifts from others, are you? I heard you made quite a fuss about the earrings and ring.”

“Uh…”

With no rebuttal coming to mind, Regina simply looked down at the sword. The blade, partially unsheathed so she could check the edge, was clearly not a mass-produced item from a weapon shop but a custom-made piece.

It was crafted from high-quality steel, capable of withstanding a Swordmaster’s Mana Blade. It would be impossible to whip up such a sword in a day or two; it must have been commissioned long ago.

The sword, while designed with practicality in mind, was aesthetically pleasing as well. Regina appreciated that it lacked any unnecessary decorative jewels. Such embellishments might look nice, but they can get in the way when holding the sword or add extra weight to the scabbard.

As a swordswoman herself, she knew this well, so the simple red and green patterns were just right.

“I made them together. Yours has colors matching my hair and eyes, and mine has colors matching yours.”

Bliss said, pointing to the sword hanging at his waist. The scabbard, a blend of dark and light brown, was identical in design to the one he had given her. It was clear that they were a matching pair.

Regina quickly made a mental note.

‘I will never use this in public.’

Especially not around Bliss, as it would certainly lead to gossip about them being ‘a pair of identical swords’ which could spark unwelcome speculation.

“You can wear it as a bracelet normally. To switch to the sword form, use the activation word ‘Release’.”

Bliss explained and demonstrated as the blue mana wrapped around the sword transformed it into a bracelet, which then rested on his palm.

It was also a magical tool. The price of such an item was beyond her imagination, and she felt a creeping discomfort. Bliss continued speaking.

“To change it back to a sword, use the activation word ‘Draw.’ As you know, you’ll need to speak the word while infusing it with mana. Try it yourself.”

He handed the sword, now in its original form, to Regina. She cautiously infused mana into the sword and said.

“Release.”

The sword, enveloped in a faint golden light, transformed into a bracelet with red and green patterns. Bliss fastened the bracelet onto her left wrist.

Although Regina could have done it herself, she let him do it because he seemed eager. Bliss, seemingly satisfied with having left his colors on the bracelet and continued to fidget with it on her wrist before finally stepping away with a lingering, regretful gesture.