Silver Lining Yesterday - Chapter 32
She could barely manage a lap around the barracks without her cane, and on days she walked for too long, she would suffer from a fever and spend the whole night in pain.
“She was captured in some rural area in the South and dragged to the capital. They made her walk from the city gates to the gallows, saying she had to be an example. Every time she collapsed along the way, they lashed her…”
“……”
“It was before I was born, so I didn’t see it firsthand. But since it was done publicly, it must’ve been widely reported at the time, whether through articles or testimonies… There’s plenty of documentation, so if you doubt it, you can look it up yourself.”
Nix clearly seemed to want to avoid speaking much, but the brief explanation he gave only served to reveal the gruesome details of Miranda’s final moments.
Jean’s pupils trembled vaguely.
The fingertips, the only thing visible through the curtain of her hair, twitched. Each word from Nix felt like it was carving into her heart.
The image of Miranda, ragged and struggling to climb a hill, slowly took over her mind.
Even in such a dire situation, that girl had always kept her strong will, and now it felt as if she was crying out in pain.
It was all your fault.
Jean Rohrbach, it was you who ruined the revolution and brought me to this pitiful end.
“Miranda Valentine didn’t blame you.”
At that moment, Nix’s firm voice pulled Jean from the abyss threatening to swallow her consciousness.
“Instead, she waited for you. Even as she stood on the gallows, about to be executed, she said this.”
“……”
“Soon, the morning star of Riholm would rise, and everyone should not lose hope.”
“They say it’s the darkest before the dawn. If that’s the case, then the morning star that brings hope in the bleakest of times must be the greatest being of all. The one who showed us, who had been doomed to fail, our first taste of victory, just like you, Jean.”
Her clenched teeth began to tremble.
Her fingers, gripping strongly they turned white, scraped along the floor.
Jean exhaled a wet, coughing breath and clutched her chest. It felt as if her heart, or perhaps something deeper inside her, was burning away.
Nix’s words weren’t wrong.
It was something she started, something she stirred up. Countless people, drawn out by her voice, faded away like moths to a flame.
It had been a noble sacrifice, but if this continued, it would just be a pointless death.
Jean could not let their sacrifice, those who had believed in her, especially Miranda who had waited for her, be reduced to a meaningless death.
Only she could now prove that their sacrifice had immense value.
Breathing heavily, Jean swallowed hard, struggling to stand. Dizziness spun around her, and her legs trembled, but she forced herself to stand up.
Nix was staring at her in surprise.
“…I’ll make it right.”
Nix barely moved his lips in shock.
Jean spoke firmly, with eyes reddened in determination.
“I’ll expose the truth and bring down Lipton. As for Gemma… she will face trial and receive her due punishment. The revolution is not obsolete. This time, a great nation, one that doesn’t oppress its people, will emerge.”
The revolution she started with her own hands, she will also finish with her own hands. The dream she planted as a seed, which grew through countless sacrifices, will finally bloom beautifully.
She will no longer run away, abandoning her mission.
As he carefully looked into her face, Nix furrowed his brow and asked.
“…How?”
Jean was taken aback by his cold response.
No one had ever shown such doubt when she expressed her ambitions.
When she first proposed the revolution, even the cynics who mocked her as a dreamer were taken aback when they realized her sincerity.
After all, it was Jean Rohrbach. Perhaps she could make it happen.
The ‘Morning Star of Riholm’ who could summon storms over the distant seas and change the flow of even the mightiest rivers. Maybe, just maybe…
Ah.
A thought suddenly crossed Jean’s mind, and she sighed. She hastily grabbed Nix’s collar and began asking in a rush,
“Hey, Nix. Do you know where my Atrox went? It was hanging around my neck just before it was sealed… Could Lipton have taken it? Of course, it doesn’t have to be that Atrox, but still—”
“I know. You’re particularly picky about Atrox.”
No matter how great a wizard, without Atrox, they couldn’t use magic.
Nix, who had been rubbing his furrowed brow, glanced at her suspiciously.
“But… you think that if you just had any old Atrox, you could do everything?”
Of course! Jean was about to reply quickly, but she froze mid-sentence.
Nix’s narrowed eyes seemed to confirm the impossibility, as if he was certain it couldn’t be done.
“You?”
He even scoffed.
“With that body?”
Jean hesitated, unable to meet his mocking gaze and lowered her head.
She might be skinny, but (with Atrox) she could surely stand on top of the highest peak of the Aisendor Mountains.
She had never lifted anything heavier than a fork, but (with Atrox) she could take on dozens of swordsmen.
And (with Atrox) she could make Nix kneel and kiss her in submission.
The legendary genius who had once toppled a kingdom with sheer effort felt a wave of dizziness at Nix’s incredulous expression.
She was about to scold this young one’s arrogant attitude for the first time, but suddenly she felt a warm, wet sensation trickling down.
Confused, Jean wiped her nose, only to find blood on her fingers. She lifted her head, puzzled, and saw Nix’s face contorted miserably.
She was about to call his name when a wave of dizziness hit her, causing her to stagger.
Nix rushed to catch her and shouted toward the door,
“Doctor! Get the doctor right now!”
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