Despite how surreal the situation felt, I calmly asked, "You're... giving me flowers? After calling me your sister-in-law?"
"Yes to both. It is clear to me that you are someone very special to Reminick, so why shouldn't I call you my sister-in-law?"
I stared at the younger man for a moment, trying to process his unusual rationale.
"What's wrong? Should I address you by your formal title?"
"No, do as you please," I conceded, not caring either way.
Rigarez pushed the ostentatious bouquet toward me again as if to urge me to take them, which I did after another second of hesitation.
"But where is my brother?" the young prince asked. "How come he's not with you?"
"Why do you think? People won't leave him alone ever since they found out that he's a prince."
"What?! Who's been bothering him?!"
If he didn't know, I had no choice but to enlighten him. "Just about everyone in the world, including you."
Rigarez stopped breathing for a second, clearly shocked by my words regarding his long-lasting obsession with finding Tesilid. As he had an exceptional ability to be understanding when it came to his brother, he didn't even bother to argue.
Instead, he nodded and asked, "He doesn't remember anything from the past, right?"
"No."
"Is there anything you can do to help him recover his memories?"
The air around us seemed to thicken as I remained silent, for he was foolish to think that recalling their childhood would help rekindle their family bond. Tesilid wasn't avoiding Rigarez and Queen Laviosa because he lacked happy memories of them from his youth, but because he had too many horrible ones from his previous lives. To force him to remember more for Rigarez and Queen Laviosa's sake when nothing had truly changed would be unnecessarily cruel.
"It's not that simple, little prince," I muttered. I was about to walk away when a message from the gods gave me pause.
â¬The Cliché Gourmet licks their lips with the anticipation of a mother and son reunion.â
What? A mother and son reunion? No way... The implication in the message forced my legs to move on their own.
"See you next time, little prince!"
"Wait!" he shouted, but I rushed off, leaving him behind.
â¬The Cliché Gourmet advises that you should make the next right, then walk straight down.â
When I arrived at the location that I was directed to, the scene I had feared was already unfolding.
â
During the worship service, Tesilid had lost himself within the crowd to watch Ailette from afar. He felt quite conflicted when he witnessed her divine power rise to Tier 9. After all, God was his enemy, yet Ailette Rodeline was growing closer to Order and Goodness every day.
It felt like a wedge was being driven between them, as if she was being pulled away to a place he could not reach. Tesilid had long ago collapsed and now lived at his lowest point, inside the abyss he had been pulled into and never truly escaped.
Meanwhile, it seemed as if Ailette would rise and rise until she was allied with God Himself, standing at His side. Just thinking about it was suffocating. The church he stood in was so filled with divinity it felt like it was instead clouded with poisonous gas. That was why Tesilid was first to leave as soon as the worship service was over. He let his legs carry him out to the fountain in the backyard, yet it appeared it was the wrong place to come to for quiet and peace of mind.
"Reminick."
He flinched at the thin and shaky voice of a woman. Tesilid realized that he'd made a mistake when he instinctively turned his head despite being called by something that wasn't even his name. His left wrist burned as the stigma that was engraved on his body demanded he show kindness to the older woman. He reluctantly turned around, only to be startled when he saw it was the noble lady who was sitting next to him in the worship hall.
Queen Laviosa took off her veil and looked at him with longing eyes. Tesilid wasn't surprised. He'd recognized her voice when she had called to him just a moment ago.
"Reminick... It really is you," she said wistfully.
"What are you doing here without your guards?"
"Can you spare me... just a moment? I wish to speak to you."
"I am obligated to be kind as per God's commandment, so do as you wish."
It was a strictly matter-of-fact answer, one that was as unkind as Tesilid was allowed to be. Though, he felt risking the loss of divine power seemed to be worth it because the queen quietly gasped as if she'd been stabbed in the heart.
Forcing out a voice that ached with sorrow and anger, she asked, "Did the religious order make you this way? No, never mind. Don't tell me. I already looked into what happened. The way the Holy Kingdom of Elfenheim treated you... The things you would've suffered had it not been for the Divine Emissary... I heard it all. I cannot... I cannot forgive them for the life of me. If you want, I canâ"
"I'm fine now that the Divine Emissary is with me," Tesilid said shortly.
They both heard the sentence he left unsaid, loud and clear.
So I don't need you. As Queen Laviosa understood the meaning of his words, the gap she felt between her and her son filled her heart with despair.
"Reminick."
"It's Tesilid."
"Right... Tesilid... I understand how you feel. You must've heard rumors about me, and the way we met... probably wasn't the most welcoming. I know... my words were harshâ"
"Words?" Tesilid unintentionally blurted out, his voice laced with confusion.
"I'm talking about... when I said I'd beat you."
"Oh."
It was an exclamation that sounded like a sigh.
"So that's why you think I'm acting this way."
Unfortunately, those "words" were not just "words" in Tesilid's experience. They had actually happened, the threats of beatings and far worse. This was a deceptive world that continued to reset every time he died, so all sinners were not just excused from punishment for their sins, but also from the knowledge of their sins entirely.
A truly impressive form of mercy from God. Of course, there was no way Queen Laviosa could understand this massive divide between them. All she could do was try her best to understand Tesilid for who he was.
"I know you're disappointed in me. It's true that I was cruel as the rumors say, and I was going to do horrible things to you, but I'm going to change from now on. I'll spend the rest of my life repenting for my sins, so please... Please, won't you give me a chance?"
Tesilid held his silence, which the queen took as an invitation to continue.
"I know you don't remember this, but there was a time when things were peaceful and lovely. We were a family. I swear on my life that we were a family that truly loved and cared for each other. You and Rigarez were my treasures. I couldn't have asked for better sons than you two. When the two of you smiled and jumped into my arms, the palace no longer felt like a hellhole but a bed of flowers for me. The two of you... Specifically you, Reminick... used to say it felt like it'd turned into a gingerbread house," the queen said, her eyes foggy with the memories of her children. "There was a time when that was our life, and I pray that you remember even just a little bit of it because they were such great memories. It would be a pity if they were lost forever."
Upon completing her story, Queen Laviosa removed something from her dress. It was a potion that glinted mysteriously in the sunlight.
"This is a special medicine I made using the Fruit of Memories. Drinking it will help you recall the happy moments of your childhood. I promise you it's safe."
Queen Laviosa looked desperate as Tesilid silently gazed at the potion. He also knew what it was, having accumulated enough knowledge over his countless lives to identify the potion. It was one of the precious treasures of the Golden Ivory Tower, known to be very effective with no side effects, but he'd never actually tested it out himself before.
"Let's recover your memories, Reminick. Things will change if you can remember."
Queen Laviosa was convinced that the beautiful memories of the past would bring her family back together. Her entire life had changed because of the deep love she had for her son, so she had every right to believe that this would work. The problem was that Tesilid Argente was a returner who'd been jaded and broken for a far greater time than she could easily comprehend. He despised humans and the world.
So after all that, I'm expected to cherish memories of my childhood? And recall family love? This wasn't pleasing to him at all. In fact, it was repulsive because it felt like the world that desperately didn't want to collapse was looking for ways to control him again. He didn't want the burden of any unnecessary memories, for he already had too many to carry. It was time all of this stopped. He just wanted to be left alone by everyone, with the exception of Ailette.
Please, please... He was the only one who had to live with these memories forever, so wasn't it cruel to expect that he remembered more when none of them could remember anything of the past lives he'd lived? He could barely stand the thought.
"What would you do if I told you that there are memories you have to recover, Queen Laviosa?" someone asked from behind them.
The interruption quickly refreshed Tesilid's mind, saving him from falling into the pits of his depressive thoughts. He turned his head toward the voice and was instantly greeted by the sight of Ailette, surrounded by flowers and shining more brilliantly than ever before.
"Take this, Your Majesty," said Ailette as she handed Queen Laviosa a large and extravagant flower bouquet, evidently trying to put a physical barrier between mother and son to create some distance.
The queen subconsciously stepped back as per Ailette's intention, but her mind was preoccupied with something else. "Divine Emissary. What did you mean by that?"
"I meant what I said."
"Are you saying that I have forgotten memories?"
Ailette remained silent to hint that she couldn't share more, so Queen Laviosa shifted her desperate eyes over to Tesilid and asked, "What does she mean? What else is there that I don't know?"
The way Queen Laviosa urged him to speak and Ailette merely stared at him triggered Tesilid's impulsivity.
Ha... What's the point of living in frustration? Tesilid made a decision that was very unlike him, admitting the truth for the first time in several thousand years.
"I'm actually a returner."