He remembered his father’s words.
‘There is no success without sacrifice. Take this to heart.’
He understood that to achieve fame, one must inevitably endure sacrifice.
Just as one must put in the effort that feels like flesh is being torn away to improve their skills, they must also risk injury to hunt monsters.
His father had also paid a price for his success.
‘Though I earned the title of Dragon Slayer after hunting a Red Dragon, …I inflicted an irreparable wound on you. Every time I saw you moaning in pain, my heart felt like it was being torn apart.’
Success had come, but at the cost of a deep personal failure.
Whether as a Dragon Slayer or a Mana Master, what did it matter?
He had gained overwhelming fame, yet he felt like a failure as a father.
He believed he would trade all the fame he had built up for his daughter’s health without a moment’s hesitation.
The curse of resentment left by the Red Dragon was a bitter reminder of that.
‘It hurt so much. At night, it felt like my body was burning, and even a little warmth made it impossible to be outdoors.’
Instead of her beloved dolls, special devices were created in the magic tower to cool down her room. While other children played with friends, she had to converse with the wizards sent to lift her curse.
Naturally, she had no childhood memories to cherish.
‘Yet, when the curse didn’t improve, my father considered a last resort.’
There was a limit to how much they could lower the room temperature, and the curse showed no signs of breaking.
Eventually, Celia’s father, Bastelron Wignoron, had no choice but to make a decision.
“He sent her to the estate of his friend… that was the Volkanov territory.”
He thought that the harsh climate of the northern regions might suppress her curse, even if just a little.
Moreover, with other children her age living there, it would be good for her social relationships.
Although parting with his sick daughter was a sorrowful affair, he felt it was necessary rather than leaving her to suffer in the burning heat.
Celia headed north with worry, but fortunately, it wasn’t as terrible as the rumors suggested.
‘My memories in Volkanov were good. The northern climate helped to suppress the curse, and Ian was there.’
For the first time, she felt a sense of happiness.
The fear of the impending burning pain dulled, and above all, she was grateful to have a friend who understood her suffering.
Celia and Ian, the eldest son of the Volkanov family, shared a commonality of being loners, forming a unique bond of understanding each other’s pain.
‘They were always together. Lying in a field of hyacinths, wandering through the forest.’
Although some unfortunate events occurred along the way, those memories were precious to Celia.
They were memories that could never be exchanged for a fortune.
Ian was extremely important to Celia, and even at her young age, she found herself thinking about a future with him.
“If I’m with Ian… I think I could endure the burning pain.”
That was the moment when a new emotion was born within her, filling the void.
From that day forward, Celia made an effort to get closer to Ian. They spent time together practicing swordplay and spear techniques.
How long had it been since she prayed to God that this happiness would never end?
She began to experience changes in herself.
‘A few days later… while searching for Ian in the mansion, I met Ariel.’
After knocking on doors with no response, Celia wandered the mansion… recalling that moment, a shy smile crept onto her face.
Up until that time, she hadn’t known that Ian had a younger sister.
She had heard about it in passing, but she had only focused on Ian and hadn’t considered anyone else.
It was more fitting to say she had been too preoccupied to notice.
The sudden onset of the burning pain had thrown her into disarray, leaving no room to welcome anyone else.
So, naturally, when she met Ariel, she hadn’t paid much attention to her.
She had intended to let the encounter pass like a fleeting stranger.
‘But Ariel was different. She was cheerful and tried to befriend me.’
Ariel smiled while holding onto Celia’s arm.
“Are you Celia, the one who came from Wignoron? Wow! I’m Ariel! Ariel Volkanov!”
With a bright smile, she immediately began to show Celia around the mansion.
Though Celia wanted to politely decline, saying she had to find Ian, she found herself unable to speak.
‘To know where Ian was, I needed to learn the layout of the mansion… but I wasn’t familiar with it since I had only wandered around with Ian.’
The places she knew were limited to Ian’s room or the dining area. At most, she was led by maids to bathe, so she couldn’t help but be unfamiliar with the mansion’s structure.
By receiving Ariel’s help to learn the mansion’s layout, she thought she could also find Ian.
But that wasn’t the only reason.
‘I don’t know why, but the moment Ariel held my hand, I felt the curse within me dissipate.’
The curse of “Resentment of Fire” inherited from killing the Red Dragon.
It wasn’t just about being engulfed by the burning pain. The pain would occasionally flare up like a seizure, and even in normal times, she suffered from high fever as if she were in the middle of a desert.
That high fever, which had always tormented her… the curse that even experts could not find a solution for… disappeared the moment she held Ariel’s hand.
For Celia, it was something difficult to accept.
‘It was both wondrous and new.’
Was this what life was like without a curse? Something that had pressed down on her all day vanished, and the world appeared incredibly beautiful.
It felt almost overwhelming, as if just breathing in astonishment brought such happiness.
Yet, hadn’t he always said that there was no success without a price?
Celia had to remember those words that her father had repeated endlessly.
‘Since that day… I believed Ariel was the one who lifted the curse, and I began spending more time with her than with Ian.’
Except for the times she slept or bathed, unlike before when she clung to Ian, this time she spent her time with Ariel.
She no longer stepped into the places filled with memories of Ian, instead beginning to create new memories with Ariel.
In the room filled with cute decorations and dolls, they shared laughter, and eventually, she stopped looking for Ian.
How much time had passed? After confirming the improvement of her curse, she returned once more to Wignoron.
‘The memories with Ian were happy… but Ariel was my benefactor. She was the one who lifted the curse.’
Before she knew it, the figure of Ian began to fade from her heart, and Ariel started to take his place.
Even after returning to Wignoron, she always sent letters to Ariel.
Whenever she had a moment to spare, she begged her father to take her to Volkanov.
‘And then… when Ariel awakened as the Hero… I resolved to defeat the Demon God together.’
Yes, it had to be that way.
Ariel was her benefactor and the partner she promised to walk into the future with.
If they defeated the Demon God, a happy future would follow… they promised to illuminate that place together.
Since Ariel had lifted the curse, it was only right that she repay her for it.
However, the memories Celia was witnessing… began to shatter that illusion.
‘What do you mean, taking the curse away… Ian…?’
Ian spoke, staring blankly into space. As Celia looked at him, she suddenly checked the calendar in the room.
The date was April 14, Year 220 of the Empire. Celia could never forget this day.
‘The day I first met Ariel? No… that can’t be… it’s a lie…’
It was the day when the “Resentment of Fire” that had tormented her for her entire life had finally vanished.
He had always said that there was no success without a price.
Celia deeply felt the meaning of those words.
‘Ah… Aaaaaah!’
The curse had been lifted, but in exchange, she lost Ian in that moment.
***
Even as Celia screamed, the memory continued to flow.
After speaking, Ian waited a moment before letting out a hollow laugh and looking back into space.
“Don’t look at me like that. I’m fine. And at the very least, she shared my loneliness and pain… so doesn’t it make sense for me to pay the price for that?”
‘No… don’t, Ian. Please…’
Seeing his face, which tried to smile as if he were fine, felt like her heart was being torn apart.
It was a misunderstanding.
The one who had lifted the curse was none other than Ian. Accepting the fact that she had believed it was Ariel who deserved the credit was terrifying.
So, Celia covered her eyes and ears and screamed, but sadly, the Ian from the past could not hear her voice.
“Transfer the curse that torments her… to me.”
‘No! You can’t do that! Ian!’
Celia, in despair, lunged forward, reaching out her hand to stop him.
Swish!
“Ah….”
It was impossible for her to interfere with the past.
“Ugh! Ugh!”
‘No… No!’
Her outstretched hand passed through Ian’s body, and the memory began to flow on.
Ian, burdened with the curse, swallowed a scream and clutched his chest. Before long, he was drenched in cold sweat, gritting his teeth.
That marked the end of the memory.
Her vision began to narrow again, and soon, Celia found herself in a dark, empty space.
“Ian… I’m sorry… I didn’t even know that. I’m so sorry…”
Tears streamed down her face endlessly. She wondered if there had ever been a day in her life when she had cried this much.
The enormity of the misunderstanding that had grown beyond her control terrified her.
She wanted to believe that it wasn’t too late even now. But every time she thought that, she was reminded of the moments when Ian was with someone else.
From the time in Haley Miler’s class when he held Eri’s hand.
“I… Ian?”
When Lia Hurst was in danger, and he rushed in to choke Dias by the neck.
“Squad Commander?”
‘Ah….’
Finally, to the moment when Ian embraced Eri from behind.
The implications were simple.
‘Am I nothing to Ian … anymore?’
Just as Celia had replaced Ian with Ariel in her heart, it meant that she no longer held a place in Ian’s life.
‘Then I…’
The broken relationship was now beyond repair.
At that moment, when she was drowning in sorrow over that reality…
– It’s okay… I’m okay. Don’t look at me like that, Ian…
A tender female voice began to flow into her consciousness.
‘What…?’
Why was this voice suddenly ringing in her ears?
What did she mean by being okay?
It was incomprehensible, but the past was not kind enough to reveal everything to Celia.
Of course, whether she was bewildered or not, the voice continued to flow into her.
– You know… if you really… regain that.
The poignant voice gradually turned into one filled with tears.
– hen will you… accept me as your…? I would be content with just that…
With that, the vision came to a complete end.
When Celia opened her eyes, the dark space was nowhere to be seen.
“Ah… where is this?”
As soon as she recognized that it was her own room, tears streamed down her cheeks.
***
“Ugh… sob…”
Having returned from the vision, she cried for a long time.
She could have cried because she had narrowly escaped death, but for Celia, that didn’t matter at all.
To be honest… she thought it would have been better if she had died.
‘After everything, how could I…?’
Not only had she transferred the curse, but she had also practically abandoned Ian, who had sacrificed so much.
If she had even an ounce of conscience, the thought of wanting to live should have been impossible.
Celia felt the same way.
“What should I do now…?”
She felt sorry. She wanted to apologize immediately.
She wanted forgiveness not only for the wrongs she had committed in her childhood but also for the terrible things she had done as she grew up.
Among those, the biggest wrongdoing was undoubtedly abandoning him during his tough times.
Yet, it wasn’t as easy as it sounded.
‘Setting aside the apology… do I even have the right to go to him?’
In her heart, she longed to rush to him and kneel, but she questioned whether she deserved to meet Ian.
Though she had long abandoned her pride, she knew that Ian would likely feel uncomfortable with her.
Without a justifiable reason, visiting him would only bring him more pain rather than comfort.
It would be insane to add to his suffering when she should be doing everything to alleviate it.
‘If there’s no justifiable reason… I wouldn’t know what to do even if I went…’
What could she do? What approach could she take to face Ian without causing him more distress?
Just then, a sound interrupted her thoughts.
Knock. Knock.
“Miss? Are you awake?”
“Um… Elin?”
A worried voice came from outside, and as Celia responded, the door opened to reveal a familiar woman.
Elin, a maid from the Wignoron family, looked to be around the same age as Celia and immediately rushed to her side, fussing over her.
“Oh my! You’re awake! Is there anywhere you feel uncomfortable? I’ve been so worried…”
“I’m… I’m fine…”
“Do you know how surprised I was to hear the news? They said you were caught in the imp’s explosion. You came back covered in blood.”
Elin, a maid from the Wignoron family, had spent much of her childhood alongside Celia.
It wouldn’t be an exaggeration to say that she had spent most of her time with Elin when she wasn’t with Ariel.
So much so that she conversed more with Elin than with her own brothers and sisters.
They were so close that it was natural for Elin to worry excessively.
“The Lord was also very worried… just a few hours ago, he was by your side and sighed before leaving.”
“I’m sorry… for making you worry.”
“But I’m so glad you woke up. After all the effort put into this, I was worried that you wouldn’t wake up in time.”
“Wait? What time are you talking about?”
Seeing that Celia didn’t understand Elin’s words, she tilted her head in confusion.
“What do you mean? Before this mission, you were in such a frenzy preparing a birthday present for Ian Volkanov. You’ve worked so hard, and now you’re still sleeping on his birthday…”
“Birthday… Ah!”
At Elin’s words, Celia suddenly sat up straight.
‘That’s right. Ian’s birthday is today.’
She hadn’t anticipated that the mission would extend this long, but once it was over, she had intended to present the gift and apologize.
In that moment of realization…
‘It’s his birthday… then…’
She instinctively felt that this was her only chance to meet Ian now that their relationship was shattered.
Of course, Celia couldn’t let this opportunity slip away.
“Elin! Where’s the gift right now?”
“Huh? It’s in my room… should I bring it?”
“No, that’s fine. I’ll get it! I’m going to Volkanov territory right now. Please prepare a carriage.”
“Ah… Miss?”
Elin looked at her with concern as Celia hurriedly stood up.
But Celia didn’t care, quickly dressing and leaving the room.