Reincarnated in the Same World for the Nth Time - Chapter 4

Yuzelia gripped the handle of the watering can tightly.

She looked as if she couldn’t make sense of the situation at all.

It was obvious that she was thinking, ‘How can these things, which are nothing more than tools for gardening, be the most important things for the antidote?’

Though it seemed like she was agonizing over the fact that he wouldn’t be joking around with his own life on the line.

“I… um?”

Yuzelia was about to say something again, but then she shut her mouth.

Then, as if some thought had struck her, she began to closely examine the little shovel and watering can as though they were some kind of extraordinary artifacts.

The shovel was small enough for even a child to use and fit perfectly in Yuzelia’s hand, and the blue watering can with a dainty flower engraved on it

He didn’t know where she had gotten these tools, which looked more like children’s toys than gardening tools, but Aquila shook his head at the sight of her looking at them as if she was appraising jewels.

“Those are just ordinary watering cans and shovels.”

“Ha. No…”

Yuzelia was momentarily upset, but she quickly swallowed her rising emotions.

Judging by her earlier temperament, she likely intended to curse him out.

Taking a deep breath to calm herself, she brushed her brown hair back and, now with a slightly calmer expression, set the shovel and watering can down before speaking seriously.

“Young master. This is not child’s play. As I have said repeatedly, the curse will continue until it has burned your body to the point of withering it.”

“I know.”

“No! You don’t understand! I…”

Her face was no longer filled with mere anxiety but a fear.

“I’ve seen people die from the Curse of Deadly Poison. They all screamed, begged to be saved, but there was no way to help them! And when their vocal cords melted and they couldn’t even scream anymore…”

Yuzelia, trembling as she recalled the grim fate of those cursed, turned pale.

“I remember their bodies, endlessly twisting on the bed. It was, it was just…”

With that, Yuzelia couldn’t finish her sentence and bowed her head low.

Standing nearby, Shen took a sharp breath as he listened to her words.

This servant was probably imagining his young master withering away, as his expression kept changing at every moment and his face turned just as white.

In the heavy silence that followed, no one could easily speak.

No one except for Aquila.

“Do you know how the Curse of Deadly Poison is cast?”

Aquila, with the same calm voice as before, picked up the blue watering can placed in front of him.

The watering can with the dainty pattern was quite heavy.

Yuzelia shook her head with a miserable face.

“…No. I’ve heard rumors that it takes a long time to cast, but the exact method hasn’t been revealed yet.”

Aquila nodded in understanding.

Since the method to remove the curse hadn’t been made public during this time, it was natural that they wouldn’t know how to cast the curse.

To cast the Curse of Deadly Poison, you must grow a flower.

A moonflower, which is known to grow only at night, and is known to have been blessed by the God of the night.

Translator’s Note: The Moonflower (달맞이꽃 / Dalmajikkot): The moonflower, or “flower that greets the moon,” is a symbol of darkness in this story, directly linked to the Night God and the Curse of Deadly Poison. It represents how beauty can be twisted into an instrument of malice, and shows the Evilion that exists in the world. It is both a tool for the curse, and part of the unlikely cure that Aquila will be using.

The process begins by burying the curse’s necessary items around the seed in soil, watering it daily for fifteen days without fail, and nurturing it with nothing but malice directed at the intended target.

This is the first step of the curse.

And once the flower blooms.

‘Ask a priest to offer the flower to the God.’

The Curse of Deadly Poison is essentially a divine curse fueled by human malice.

That was how the most powerful curse that humans could inflict on other humans began.

While relying on a God.

That’s why the help of a priest was necessary for the curse.

The day this was first revealed, the religious order had completely turned upside down.

The reason why it had to be a moonflower was also because it was a flower that was often offered as a tribute to a certain God.

Aquila looked at Yuzelia without a word.

It wasn’t the priests of the Sun God with their white robes like her, but the priests with black robes who had a strong connection with those who cast the Curse of Deadly Poison.

The priests of the God of Night, Helitica.

And in time, the God of Night would become the Evil God the final boss of this world.

Aquila touched the area near his chest where he had been pierced by the spear with the hand that wasn’t holding the watering can.

Perhaps the God of Night had been evil because humanity’s malice tainted even the divine.

‘It’s not surprising at all.’

He shook his head, dismissing the memory of the monstrous final boss he once faced.

While Aquila had stopped talking and had fallen deep in thought, he felt Shen’s worried gaze.

Yuzelia, realizing her mistake, quickly changed her expression and grabbed Aquila’s hand.

“You’re the one suffering, young master, but I was the one saying such things, I was so thoughtless. I’ll do my best so that you won’t even have time to feel the pain…”

When he didn’t answer, she seemed to have thought that Aquila was either in despair or had given up.

She had been talking about the pain of a person who had been inflicted with the Curse of Deadly Poison, even though that person was in front of her.

As if she was trying hard to wipe away her gloomy mood, Yuzelia held his hand tightly with both of her hands.

And then slowly, she sent her divine power through their joined hands.

It was a warm and comfortable energy.

“…I, I will also be by your side until the end, Young Master! So, don’t worry, okay?”

Shen quickly followed up her words.

This servant was devastated by the fact that his Young Master might wither away, but he was barely holding back his tears.

While he was sobbing, Shen placed his hand on top of Yuzelia and Aquila’s joined hands, as if making a vow.

Yuzelia nodded her head.

Shen, looking at her, nodded as well.

It seemed as though a bond had just been forged between the two of them.

Of course, Aquila’s expression showed nothing but bewilderment at the sight.

Though he understood their unease, given that the method to dispel the curse wasn’t common knowledge, Aquila had no intention of dying so easily.

Instead of pulling his hand away from theirs, he lightly shook them.

Their teary eyes, now brimming with emotion, turned toward him.

“As I’ve said before, there’s a clear way to break this curse.”

Aquila roughly glanced at their teary eyes and placed the watering can in Yuzelia’s hands, and the small shovel in Shen’s hands.

Then, pointing to the window overlooking the garden, he said,

“Shen. Take a moonflower and transfer it into a flowerpot. And priestess, put your divine power in the water, and then care for the flower while watering it. Depending on the situation, but if you care for the flower with sincerity for at least a day, the flower, which has absorbed the divine power of the Sun God, will glow yellow.”

As he repeated the instructions, he pushed them toward the door.

It wasn’t a forceful push, but Shen and Yuzelia moved as he had pushed them without saying a word.

“Then, after offering that flower as tribute and having Priestess Yuzelia pray to the Sun God, I simply need to brew the flower into a tea and drink it. That will break the curse.”

“That easily…?”

“Yes, it’s that easy.”

Even if he had been cursed by the God of the night, who had abandoned him, he could neutralize it by praying to the Sun God, whose nature was the opposite.

That genius alchemist had expressed it this way.

The Sun God is an exceptionally merciful deity.

Instead of explaining the mercy of the Sun God Rasphallara in front of the Sun God’s priestess, Aquila opened the door to the room.

“The great dragon also has an outstanding ability to see the future, so…”

Aquila intentionally sweep off before smiling.

“Surely, the dragon prepared a way for me to survive. I swear by the dragon’s name that my words are true.”

Aquila’s calm tone as he added that vow caused Yuzelia to look surprised.

In this world, ‘oaths’ have a special meaning.

Because there were so many great beings, oaths made in their name were treated as sacred vows.

That belief did not differ depending on rank, and it was a fact known to all living beings in this continent.

An oath was absolute.

So, since he had said these words, they would not doubt that Aquila had lied.

‘It’s really a good excuse to use.’

Aquila thought with a smile still on his face.

This world had so many great beings that he’d exploited their names time and again across numerous cycles. All he needed to do was swap out the name depending on the situation.

He felt no guilt about it.

He was about to die right now, and he had no intention of taking the long way around when there was a simple solution available.

In the first place, those great beings were likely aware that the world was heading toward destruction, so they would understand this much.

Aquila naturally sent Yuzelia and Shen out of the room.

“It must also be by the mercy of Rasphallara that a priestess of the Sun God is here by my side. Please help me, Priestess.”

Yuzelia was still suffering from the fact that she couldn’t save the person who had received the Curse of Deadly Poison in the past.

A good person cannot ignore the pleas of those who are suffering.

Just like Ark Batchel.

If Yuzelia was anything like Ark, Aquila knew she wouldn’t be able to turn away from his request.

As if he had said those words on purpose, Yuzelia’s face was blank for a moment.

Various emotions such as doubt, sadness, pain, anger, and hope flashed across her face all at once.

She closed her eyes as though swallowing down the tangled mess of emotions.

“Okay. I will try it as you have said, Young Master.”

She nodded with a determined face.

Though the sight of her holding a watering can made her look as if she was heading out to play house, her determined face was no less serious than that of a warrior marching toward battle.

Shen stood next to her and also held the handle of the shovel tightly with a resolute expression.

Yuzelia shouted confidently, “Let’s go, Shen!”

“Yes! Young master, please rest and don’t overdo it. We’ll be back soon.”

Shen bowed his head and gestured to Yuzelia.

The two of them looked as though they were heading to a battlefield.

Aquila watched their backs as they walked away, and then he quietly closed the door.

‘Okay, that’s done.’

Aquila immediately erased his smiling expression and approached the window.

Outside, the expansive garden came into view, with its lush grass, trees, and vibrant flowers.

After some time, Yuzelia and Shen came into view.

Aquila watched them for a while as they searched for the moonflower.

He carefully examined their figures, deep in thought.

There was something he hadn’t told them.

Specifically, the items needed for the curse.

To make a moonflower bloom, the curse required the target’s hair, nails, and a small amount of blood to be buried in the soil.

That was because the target of the curse could only be confirmed if those items were buried in the soil and the flower was bloomed.

In other words, someone who was close enough to Aquila Reshenhardt to obtain those items must have been involved with the Curse of Deadly Poison.

Aquila shifted his gaze and looked at Shen.

Shen was diligently walking around, looking like he was doing his best to search the garden.

Was he the one who cast the curse?

If not, could he be an accomplice?

‘The problem is his loyalty to me doesn’t seem like an act.’

Still, that didn’t mean he could trust Shen.

Aquila didn’t have enough information about him.

There had been far too many who planned betrayal while hiding behind innocent faces.

Perhaps feeling his gaze, or perhaps it was just because he was worried about his young master, Shen looked up at the window.

Aquila quickly pulled the curtains halfway closed, blending into the shadows.

“Hoo…”

The second stage of the curse involved offering the flower to a deity, but completing the Curse of Deadly Poison required fulfilling all three stages perfectly.

The last step was to offer the caster’s lifespan with the flower.

A life for a life.

That was the price that the God wanted from the one who had begged a God to cast a curse that would steal a life.

And a backlash from that was unconditionally manifested in the caster’s body.

‘I need to look for someone who has suddenly started to get sick around here.’

There was too little information to determine the truth.

Aquila shut the curtains completely, turning away from the window.

And then, after looking around the quiet room a few times, he brought up the system window with a familiar gesture.

While Shen and Yuzelia were gone, there was something else he needed to look into.

【Stolen Divine Power (Minor): Grants partial access to the power of darkness.
— Engraved on the soul. Permanent.】

“It’s this power right here.”