Deciding to Change the Ending
Although the novel The Beloved Saintess mentioned Askan escaping from the lab, it never explained that he lived as a slave in the Brelov household.
‘Did I miss something?’
I quickly searched my memory, but nothing came to mind. Then I realized that The Beloved Saintess was not a completed novel. Unless I was the author, there was no way I could know all the details.
‘Unbelievable…’
My mind was in turmoil. I had intended to search for Askan, who had escaped to the Arwen Empire, but I couldn’t determine whether his sudden appearance before me was a good thing.
While I stood there frozen and silent, Askan bowed slightly and spoke first.
“If there is nothing else you need, may I leave?”
“Y-yes.”
There was no reason to keep him there. I needed time to think. Askan left the room quickly, as if escaping before I could change my mind.
Click.
The sound of the door closing signaled Askan’s departure from my sight. One of the maids, who had been watching, spoke with a puzzled expression.
“Huh? Miss, you’re letting him go so easily?”
“Hmm?”
What was this about now?
Seeing my confused expression, the maid hurriedly explained, thinking she had made a mistake.
“Oh, it’s nothing. It’s just that you usually keep Askan longer.”
“Did I?”
“Yes. Don’t you remember?”
Of course, I didn’t remember. It had happened before I possessed this body. Moreover, since The Beloved Saintess focused on the protagonist Noxia, there was no way to know what Thanasia did when she wasn’t featured in the novel.
“Why would I do that?”
Seeing my genuinely puzzled expression, the maid answered with a worried look.
“Miss, are you still unwell?”
“Oh, yes. Everything else is fine, but my recent memories are a bit fuzzy.”
“Oh dear, maybe you hit your head when you had that riding accident. Should I call the doctor?”
“No, there’s no need. Instead, tell me what you were saying earlier. What did I do to Askan?”
The maids hesitated, glancing at each other, unsure if they should speak the truth.
“Whatever you say, I won’t get mad. I need to know to help regain my memory.”
“Well… You’ve always hated Askan from the beginning.”
Not just hated—hated him intensely?
It didn’t make sense. Another maid, seeing my confusion, added more details.
“You often said you couldn’t stand the sight of his black hair. You would call him to do unnecessary tasks, just to keep him busy.”
“Did I?”
“Don’t you remember? You frequently whipped Askan.”
“W-whipped him?”
I couldn’t help but react. Askan wasn’t the only one with black hair. I also had jet-black hair.
‘Could I have taken out my frustration over my hair being different from Noxia’s on Askan?’
It was something I hadn’t considered. At first, I thought I just needed to stop being a villain. I planned to live my life without getting involved in unnecessary matters. But it seemed a death flag had already been planted.
‘Is that why Askan killed me?’
One thing was certain, Askan had always despised his time in the Arwen Empire.
Could it really be because of me?
The reality in front of me made it hard to deny. It felt as if the future where Askan approached me with a sword was becoming a certainty.
The new revelations were enough to make me feel faint, but the maids continued with their accounts.
“You also made him fetch your bathwater daily.”
“I made him do that? Why, when we have running water…”
I trailed off as a thought struck me. The maid’s earlier comment about creating unnecessary tasks came to mind. I had done everything possible to torment Askan.
In essence, I had been digging my own grave.
‘Could I have sent Askan back to the Kalua Empire myself?’
Askan’s story was that he was captured and taken back to the Kalua Empire after escaping to the Arwen Empire. I vaguely remembered a reason, but it wasn’t clear. Since his time in the Brelov household wasn’t detailed in the novel, it wasn’t surprising that the process wasn’t explained either.
I just hoped I wasn’t involved. I had to ensure I wasn’t. I couldn’t give up on my life here.
I clenched my fists without anyone noticing.
One of the maids spoke up, seeming to remember something.
“Miss, did you mention going to the slave market? Should I schedule the visit for tomorrow?”
“No, cancel the trip to the slave market.”
They say if you keep your wits about you, you can survive even in a tiger’s den. I couldn’t just sit and do nothing. I had to think of a plan.
*** *** *** *** ***
That night, I dreamed for the first time since falling into this book world. I dreamed of finding Askan in the slave market.
In the dream, I immediately recognized the ancient script engraved on his neck. Not only that, but I also noticed the dozens of magical formulas carved into his body.
They were the remnants of experiments forced upon him to turn him into a human weapon.
To an ordinary person, these might look like rare tattoos, but I knew exactly what they meant.
In the dream, I realized something new and shuddered.
‘If I could have Noxia’s abilities… people would see me differently.’
I had lived my entire life in comparison. One thing Thanasia could never surpass was the family’s near-extinct ability to control water.
If I could decipher the ancient script and magical formulas on Askan’s body, I might be able to copy Noxia’s water control ability.
I bought the slave Askan and began secret experiments at home. Whether I succeeded or failed, it was never a legal method, so everything was done in utmost secrecy.
The first thing I did was discover his abilities.
‘You can’t hide it. Show me your hidden power. With those formulas on your body, you’re no ordinary human.’
Askan remained silent. Having risked his life to escape the lab, he wouldn’t reveal his past easily.
I did everything to make him talk.
It was true I hated his black hair, but there was another reason for tormenting him.
Whip crack!
A long mark appeared on Askan’s bare back where I struck him.
Crack! Crack!
After dozens of strikes, something unexpected happened. His body showed no signs of injury.
I approached the writhing Askan and touched his uninjured skin.
It was hard. Like steel.
I first realized Askan’s ability and smiled maniacally.
‘So, this is it?’
He could turn his entire body into steel. Without wielding a sword, his body was a weapon, impervious to most attacks.
One person with such power was formidable, capable of cutting down dozens or hundreds.
That was the true nature of the human weapons being developed by the Kalua Empire.
Although I had read about it in the novel, I never imagined the story’s Thanasia knew this as well.
In the dream, I was filled with delight, but in reality, I was horrified.
‘What is this? I want to wake up now.’
My body wouldn’t move, like being in a nightmare. I struggled desperately. At first, my body wouldn’t budge, but gradually, I started to regain control. Once I managed to move a finger, it became easier.
Eventually, I snapped awake and saw the bright morning sunlight.
“Huff, huff…”
I was panting like I had run a marathon.
I realized the bed was soaked with sweat.
‘What did I just see?’
It wasn’t just a simple dream. It felt too vivid to dismiss as an illusion.
Until now, I had only imagined scenes from The Beloved Saintess. But what I experienced felt like peering into Thanasia’s past. It was as if I was becoming one with the novel’s Thanasia.
‘What’s going on?’
There were too many hidden stories in the novel I didn’t know about. This is why I shouldn’t have read an unfinished novel! But it was too late for regrets. My reality was too desperate to sit and lament my fate.
‘If this is true, I didn’t just torment Askan. I practically experimented on him like the Kalua Empire did!’
If I had tormented him this much, it would be nearly impossible to change my image. In other words, the probability of the future where Askan beheads me becoming reality was very high.
‘What kind of situation is this? There are traps everywhere!’
I initially thought it would be enough to stop tormenting him. But I had not only tormented the final villain Askan, I had also secretly experimented on him.
‘I’m really screwed.’
The death flag wasn’t just planted; it was so solidly fixed that avoiding it seemed impossible.
I had been in denial, but it seemed clear that Askan’s horrible memories of the Arwen Empire were because of me.
If the story followed its course, I might have even been the one to sell him back to the Kalua Empire’s lab.
‘At least it hasn’t come to that yet.’
Everything was terrible, but I clung to that small solace. Although I hadn’t caused it, what had happened couldn’t be changed. To survive, I had to somehow deal with Thanasia’s endless misdeeds.
For the first time, I resented possessing Thanasia among all possible characters, but I couldn’t dwell on the irreversible. I sprang out of bed. The maid who entered the room noticed me and greeted me cheerfully.
“Oh, Miss, you’re up already?”
Without a word, I walked to the place I saw in my dream.
I turned the painting on the wall to the right, revealing a hidden space. Unaware, the maid approached to tidy the bed.
“Why are you so sweaty? Are you alright… Kyaa!”
The maid screamed upon discovering me.
Inside the hidden space were various whips of dreadful shapes used for torture. I had used these to beat Askan in my dream. This proved that what I saw wasn’t just a dream.
“M-Miss.”
The maid called out in a trembling voice when I picked up a whip, fearing I might use it on her.
I shuddered at the feel of the whip and quickly put it back in its place.
“Get rid of all of these.”
“Pardon?”
“Throw them all away. I never want to see them again.”
I would never use a whip on anyone, as I had in the dream. I urgently needed a survival plan. I couldn’t trust anything in this world.
*** *** *** *** ***
Askan looked at me with a strained expression when I unexpectedly sought him out. His face still showed little emotion, but somehow, I felt I could now read his mood.
“Do you have another task for me?”
His words might have sounded polite, but they carried a hidden meaning. Of course, he would be wary of me, given how much I had tormented him. But things would be different from now on.
“Well, it’s nothing special. But I think you need to move your quarters.”
“My quarters?”
Askan looked puzzled. Behind him, I saw the dark, cramped room where several slaves lived together. Even from a distance, I could see the mold on the walls and smell the stench. It was a glimpse into the hard life he had endured as a slave.
“Don’t worry about anything from now on. I’ll take good care of you.”
“I don’t understand what you mean.”
“I mean, your misfortunes are over, and happiness begins now.”
The Beloved Saintess was not a finished novel anyway. So, I decided to change the ending to my liking.
“From today, you will be my attendant.”
I would ensure a happy ending, no matter what.
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