Rather Than The Son, I’ll Take The Father

“Yes, Monica. Come here and sit down.”

Monica shook her head.

“It’s comfortable this way.”

Standing precariously as if it wouldn’t be strange if she collapsed immediately, Monica insisted.

I’ll have to tell her what to say first.

“What do you want to say?”

A light sigh echoed through the room.

Monica muttered, avoiding my gaze.

“I really hated you. You must have known.”

“…….”

“It’s not your fault but it took me a long time to admit it.”

“…….”

It was a confession that bewildered me. Was this what you wanted to say?

Monica laughed bitterly.

“I have no choice but to. I am a bad kid.”

It had a different meaning because it was a self-reflection of Monica Elaine and no one else.

Compared to the villain in 〈Esmeralda’s Crescent Moon〉, Monica today is nothing more than a gentle sheep. Still, she was reflecting on her past mistakes.

Something like in the novel in which she committed a crime with determination never happened.

Perhaps, among the characters in Esmeralda’s Crescent Moon, Monica is the one whose personality has changed the most. I was even more curious.

I desperately stopped Regen from waking up the beast by running away, but I didn’t do anything special for Monica. Still, she was overjoyed to receive my attachment doll as her birthday present, and she didn’t show off her pride blindly.

I stared at her carefully, knowing that Monica wouldn’t bow down even in front of her own parents.

There must be a reason for her to visit and talk like this.

“Well, Monica?”

Monica’s lips stiffened.

“You don’t mean to say I’m not polite, are you? The person who I bullied the most persistently was you, Maevia.”

“It’s not Charlie?”

“Charlie also told me to stop bothering Maevia. I harassed you with all my might, but in Charlie’s eyes I was just annoying to you.”

“…….”

…… Monica started the fight, so why do I sound like a bad person?

Monica didn’t like me from the start, because she was the villain in the original novel. I, too, tried to change the flow of the original novel and ignored her intentionally.

However, like Regen’s run away case, she also had a turning point.

But I didn’t say anything to Monica, so I’m guessing she changed her mind on her own.

It seems very likely that the reason has something to do with me, though.

As I was searching for my memories, I suddenly remembered that Monica had grabbed me by the hair. It was the day of a party hosted by my parents, and Monica was also present as a VIP.

It happened when I was resting by the lake, near the end of the party.

Monica had followed me out of necessity and was as sarcastic as usual, and she couldn’t resist and grabbed me by the hair.

I let her experience the cold January lake water.

As I later found out, there were several other Ladies who witnessed the incident besides Charlie at the time. But I was the only one whose image was ruined.

She’s Monica. But I have been known to cause trouble since I was five years old, so I’m the only one at a loss.

-I’d rather you laugh at me like any other bastard at the party. Tell me I’m a murderer, I’m creepy, you don’t even want to go near me!

It was the first party held since Ludrin Elaine’s funeral.

Because of that, Monica would have grabbed someone’s hair if it wasn’t for me.

Although I changed a lot after reincarnating as Maevia, Ludrin was born with internal organs damaged, so even I, who knew the flow of the novel, could not use my hands.

So I took into account the circumstances and added words of consolation to Monica.

…… Could it be because of that?

What exactly did I say then?

As I was trying to recall that day in earnest, Monica continued.

“You know, Maevia.”

“…….”

Like a typical villain, the red-haired woman looked at me and made a sad expression on her face, and I was speechless.

As if trying to hold back tears, Monica’s eyelids trembled.

“If…… If I had lived a little kinder, if I hadn’t been greedy for the successor position, would I have not been stigmatized as a murderer?”

In 〈Esmeralda’s Crescent Moon〉, the inner situation of the Elaine family was not described in detail.

It was only written that of the three generations, the Elaine family was the most closed, and that Monica had ambitions to become the empress.

It may be less than the novel, but even now, the Elaine family had a lot of secrets.

It was the first time Monica had revealed her own personal history, when she nearly drowned in a lake.

— I didn’t kill Older Brother. It was already late when I arrived. How am I supposed to save that guy?

— Then why don’t you explain it?

— Because I don’t want to give in to such nonsense.

— Then you don’t have to give in, right?

― But what should I do if it’s unfair?

— Well, just do one thing.

Well, it’s a no-brainer memory that I don’t have to worry about being better over time.

I felt a sense of relief for some reason and comforted Monica.

“Anyone is greedy for the heir position, and you didn’t kill Ludrin Elaine. Well, aside from bothering me.”

“You really think so…… ?”

“How are you going to bring someone back to life, who was already dead before you even arrived?”

Monica’s eyes widened.

“What I said then…… Did you remember?”

Did I even have to try..….

“For the first time in my life, someone grabbed me by the hair, how could I forget?”

Monica bit her lips tightly and let go.

Soon she took a deep breath, as if she had made an important decision.

After struggling for a long time and making a decision, the word that came out of her mouth was only my common nickname.

“Eve.”

“Are you going to call me by my nickname now?”

“…….”

I wrinkled my nose.

There was blood on the lips that Monica had bitten. It also looked very bad.

“…… Are you sure you don’t want to get that treated?”

“All the time.”

I stood up and took my handkerchief, ignoring Monica who spoke.

“Thank you for treating me with indifference all the time.”

“Is that an insult?”

“It’s a sign of gratitude. Because I’m a mean person who can’t take favors straight-forwardly. I would never have been able to open my heart if you hadn’t made me fret.”

What was she talking about?

I approached Monica and held out my handkerchief.

Monica reached out her hand, but did not take the handkerchief.

“I worked very, very hard.”

There was an unusually strong force in her arms that embraced me.

I got frightened as soon as I felt a ruthless grip that could never be that of an ordinary person.

“…… Moni, ca.”

Whoop, the sound of the blade digging into the flesh felt unrealistic.

The pain came a bit late.

But Monica wouldn’t let me scream.

Monica whispered to me, twisting the blade on my shoulder and pushing it deeper.

“Yes, I’m Monica. A real Monica who shares the past with you.”

“…….”

“So, don’t call the spirit.”

Thinking about it, it was strange.

The spirit was treated as a being in a fantasy. The fact that I signed a contract with a spirit is an open secret in Cyclamen Castle.

But how did Monica know that the spirit was there when she came in?

Not only that. Even the elaborateness where she did not give me time to think because she was telling the story of the old times.

…… Monica had come here alone.

“Sarah…… Ugh, what about Sarah?”

“It’s okay. Everyone except you and me.”

Monica answered by closing me and her together.

My dress was dyed bright red.

Tears fell from Monica’s eyes as she saw the rapidly seeping blood.

“Eve, why am I doing this? I can’t move as I want.”

I repeated my thoughts, barely pushing Monica with the arm that didn’t get pierced on the shoulder.

Monica looked down the window in the office and was the same as usual.

The problem arose after that.

What if the bird she saw in the garden wasn’t Raven?

What if Aedis didn’t come back?

…… He brainwashed Regen to follow Gilbert.

There was no way that it wouldn’t be possible for anyone else.

“…… Ah, haa.”

Monica’s and mine were bloody. Eventually, I couldn’t stand the pain and fell to my knees, as Monica violently grabbed my arm. As if she wasn’t completely brainwashed, she cried incessantly.

That is why her actions were several times more vicious. It’s really that X-ing bastard. The sudden bleeding was distracting, but I continued to talk to Monica.

“I mean, you put a lot of effort into it. Where were you originally going to stab?”

“The heart.”

At least I could say I’m glad I didn’t die immediately…….

“That was the last blow. Now I can’t even move my fingertips by my own will.”

I reassured Monica as I tried to keep my consciousness even by relying on the pain.

“Thank you for not stabbing my heart. And I’m sorry. You must have decided to go to the North purely because of me, but because of me, you had to go through something like this.”

“…….”

“Don’t cry too much because I know you worked so hard.”

“Are, are you saying that now?”

Monica’s body and mind were moving separately. She must have been manipulated by him at least in some part, and she dragged me to the terrace.

Bloodstains were terrifyingly spattered across the floor.

I forcibly gripped my trembling consciousness. Even if I couldn’t whistle, if I shout loudly, I’ll be able to reach Paimon.

But Monica will be harmed instead of me.

“Eve, run away from me.”

“Monica.”

“…….”

“Answer.”

“…….”

“Hey, don’t just nod your head, say it. It’s hard for me to look at you right now.”

I managed to get an answer from her in a mixture of slander.

“I, will.”

“I will make you forget this memory.”

These words came to mind when Aedis threatened to erase my memories when we were in the midst of divorce.

However, it was a problem because I didn’t have the energy to explain everything.

“How…… How could I forget?”

“I don’t die that easily…….”

The terrace door swung open and the curtains inflated.

Monica swore as she lifted me up with her arms, which didn’t go her way.

“I have no idea what it is. But I can swear.”

“Wait.”

“When my body is free.”

“No, don’t.”

“At that moment, I will jump down with you.”

“Don’t do that……!”

Monica threw me over the railing.