RGS Volume 2 Part 23

As always, Norhox fulfilled his desires at the Regas Palace. After spending time with Erei, whom he had recently become infatuated with, and engaging in an intense session during the day, he lay languidly on the bed. Beside him, a white hand began to caress his body again. Norhox opened his eyes and met the still-greedy green eyes.

“Looks like you’re having a good time?”

Erei smiled and moved between Norhox’s legs. The more he saw this child, the more he liked him. Sometimes he felt interested in his shy appearance, but it was also stimulating to have someone openly express their desires like this child.

Norhox spread his legs to make it easier for Erei to settle in. Then, as if he had been waiting, Erei took the half-dead gen1tals into his mouth. He grabbed the lower part with his hand and sucked the upper part skillfully with his lips, causing Norhox’s head to involuntarily tilt back.

“Mmm.”

A pleasant moan came out of Norhox’s mouth. He kept his eyes closed and opened his mouth.

“Ah, something enjoyable is about to happen. That snake brat must have stumbled into the trap by now, not even realizing it.”

The thought alone made Nohox burst into laughter. Even an emperor weary of the numerous Regas who resembled Abel would surely be taken aback this time. After all, Norhox himself had been shocked when he first saw him. Anyone who had ever seen Abel, even once, was astonished.

Especially the record keeper who observed Abel closely was so shocked that he couldn’t close his open mouth. It was perfect this time. A person who perfectly resembled Abel from 12 years ago. Moreover, even his voice, awkward speech, and innocent his innocent gaze. Without intentionally teaching him anything, it was enough to make the Emperor suspicious. He even wondered if Abel has really been reincarnated.

Of course, it didn’t matter if he didn’t completely believe it. Just a bit of doubt was enough. He would step into the dangerous trap to verify his suspicion. This was certain. It had never failed. The Regas’ had always been successful when it came to the kings.

Erei was eagerly sucking his genitals, but Norhox’s hand, which firmly held the hair, pressed down harder.

“I will soon prepare a splendid mansion that will suit you.”

His mouth, which had slowed momentarily as if out of breath, quickened again. Erei took the erect pen1s deep into his throat, sucking vigorously, and a satisfied moan soon escaped from Norhox’s mouth once more.

⊹˚. ♡.𖥔 ݁ ˖ ⊹˚. ♡.𖥔 ݁ ˖

Thump, thump, thump.

His heart was pounding so hard that it was difficult to move. The sound was buzzing in his ears, making his head spin. Abel bit his lower lip until it bled as he tried to regain his composure.

I couldn’t afford to collapse. He took one step forward and muttered, then took another step forward.

The vibrations of his heart seemed to shake his entire body, but he managed to move and reached his destination. He approached Karas, who was standing at the entrance of the valley. And he raised his hand to grasp Karas, who was still facing forward. However, a sound from up ahead caught their attention first.

“Stay away, don’t come this way!”

A familiar voice reached Karas and Abel. Abel could only stand there with his mouth agape, astonished by his own voice coming from someone who looked just like him. Karas didn’t react at all, and while Abel was too surprised to respond, the person who had stopped in the middle shouted desperately again.

“I-I’m a bait! There’s a tr—” *grunt!*

An arrow flew from the enemy’s side and struck the bait’s leg. With a thud, the bait knelt to the ground, letting out a painful groan and the enemy king warned.

“If you’re not careful, next time I’ll aim for your heart! Just shut your mouth and stay right there.”

Even without the threat, the bait seemed too pained to speak due to the arrow piercing his leg. However, he continued to look at Karas and Abel with its green eyes. It was a gaze filled with desperation. The chills didn’t leave Abel’s body. It felt like looking into a mirror.

“Reincarnation, isn’t it interesting, Karas? And surprisingly, this person named Abel woke up to find that 12 years had passed. He was clearly dead 12 years ago, but now he was awake and in the current battlefield. And do you know what his first words were when he was captured by my soldiers?”

The voice of the enemy king echoed through the narrow valley. The laughter in his voice was now full of contempt.

“He said he had to go to the prince. And then, every time he opened his mouth, he shouted for the prince again and again. I wondered if he knew you were my son.”

[T/N: This part seemed confusing T-T I guess it meant as mockery to Karas by calling him ‘son’]

Even in the midst of agonizing pain from the wound, the bait looked up with a hint of sadness as his own story unfolded. Though far away, unable to discern the expression in his eyes, Abel’s heart beat faster. With every movement of the bait, he truly felt like it was him. No, it really was his own reflection.

He looked exactly like Able, even wearing his own clothes. It was clearly the same outfit he wore when he carried the prince and fled into the forest just before dying. Just as Abel felt his heart racing to the point of collapse, the enemy king shouted again.

“Well, what do you think? I brought you here to show you this on purpose because it’s so amusing. Do you think this person’s words might be true?’”

With a gesture from him accompanied by a question, another arrow flew towards the bait. Startled, the bait flinched and huddled down. Fortunately, the arrow landed on the ground nearby, seemingly meant as a warning. While Abel felt relieved at the sight, his heart tightened once again. The king’s booming voice continued.

“Abel!”

Even though he knew the name being called was that of the bait, it felt as though he himself were being called, leaving Abel feeling suffocated. The king’s subsequent command felt as if it were directed at him, piercing through him.

“Speak clearly with your own mouth! Who are you, and did you really reincarnated?!”

The eyes that had been fixed on the king turned towards the bait. Exhaustion was evident on his face as he spoke, his mouth opening with a sigh.

“My name is… Abel. I am…”

Whoosh!

The arrow flew threateningly towards the bait once again, followed by the king’s warning.

“Louder!”

Struggling to sit with wounds, the bait closed his eyes tightly and raised his voice.

“I, I am Abel! Hah, I, I died next to the Spring of Prayer twelve years ago, but I, I came back to life!”

A mocking laughter echoed through the air. The enemy king and his soldiers chuckled and laughed, shaking their shoulders. Some pointed fingers at the bait, while others mocked him as a lunatic. The only ones not laughing were Karas and Abel, who stood facing the bait from afar. Desperately, the bait looked at the two of them and shouted amidst the laughter of the enemy.

“It’s true. I don’t know what happened either, but I definitely died, carrying the prince and escaping to the Dragon Forest, next to the Spring of Prayer. But I opened my eyes again. The last thing I remember was holding the feverish prince.”

The more the bait spoke, the more their laughter continued. However, no one could blame those who laughed. Even the enemies who captured him as a bait couldn’t help but doubt and refrain themselves from laughing. In this situation, those who didn’t laugh were the ones who looked strange.

However, Abel couldn’t understand why Karas next to him wasn’t laughing.

He just felt his breath being choked as if suffocated. He knew that the bait’s words were something anyone would say given the circumstances. Yet, his already startled heart responded even to the slightest words.

“You don’t have to believe me. I don’t even believe it myself. I can’t believe that the last wish I prayed for at the Spring of Prayer was granted. I can’t truly believe that my prayer to remain by the prince’s side has been fulfilled.”

It felt like his own thoughts were coming out through the bait’s mouth. He even began to doubt if the bait was truly another version of himself. His following words also sounded truly genuine.

“However, if you are on our prince’s side, please don’t come. Leave me and just go. This place is a trap…! Ugh!”

This time, the arrow hit the bait’s body. Whether it hit his injured leg again or not, the bait bent his upper body towards his leg.

“I told you what would happen if you mocked me so recklessly, didn’t I?! If you want to see the prince so badly, then shut your mouth!”

The enemy king turned back from the bait after issuing his threat, then shifted his gaze to the unsmiling Karas.

“Well, what do you think? Isn’t it truly interesting? This person truly believes that he has been reincarnated and even gets shot with arrows for your sake. Oh, I didn’t mention anything about the prince’s true identity, so that this person can have a surprising reunion with the prince.”

He stopped speaking and twisted his lips while looking at Karas for a moment. And then, he shouted slowly with a voice filled with generosity.

“So, I will give you a special chance to confirm up close. If you have the courage, come closer. Or run away like a coward over there.”

Abel felt his heart quieten down as if it had been hit by cold water in response to the king’s provocation. Instead, what shook him internally was his own laughter. Abel had not realized how long the 12 years he had not experienced were. He had simply thought that time had passed by hearing stories of changing circumstances around him.

So, what Abel still felt was only a few months of time. Just a few months since he had parted ways with the little prince. But suddenly, a sense of reality rushed in. It came with a chilling sensation, almost horrifyingly as it was told.

Looking at it, Melmond’s words were true. Someone who looks just like him is appearing and claiming to be him. There were dozens, hundreds of Abels who had imitated him by the prince’s side for the past 12 years. Abel bit his lip to keep the boiling laughter inside him.

Instead, hot tears threatened to well up, so this time he held his breath. Melmond didn’t explained clearly, but it’s possible that the prince had been deceived by those who resembled him or acted similarly, causing him numerous wounds. No, he must have been wounded for sure.

And the wounded heart would have been a continuous source of pain for the prince. Abel finally realized. His early death had been a poison to the prince for twelve years. But then he was reincarnated. Being glad to be alive to see the prince was truly selfish. He shouldn’t have come back to life.

Abel looked down at his weak body, which was difficult to stand properly. At first, he simply felt fortunate to have such a body. Even if he were to die soon, he didn’t harbor any greed for the new life he had gained, knowing that he would be able to meet the prince again.

But it was a wrong thought. What if he met the prince and it was revealed that he was the real Abel, and he died again just like that? Then the enemy would have one more weapon to use, and the prince would be hurt again. Waiting while expecting that Abel, who had been reincarnated once, might get reincarnated again.

Abel felt like all the vitality in his body had disappeared. Coming here before meeting the prince felt like the will of God. It was as if he was told to rid himself of the poison he had created.

Despite becoming accustomed to those who resembled him and maintaining his vigilance, Abel found the bait so strikingly similar to himself that he was taken aback, unsure if he could react naturally. No, he didn’t even know if he would resist succumbing to the enemy’s provocation, knowing it was false. Just like Karas, who took a step forward beside him.

Thunk!

Abel gripped onto the moving arm of Karas tightly. Slowly, Karas, who had been steadfastly watching the bait since its appearance, turned his head. His gaze, though cold, seemed to warn him against his interference, but Abel held onto him even tighter.

“Commander-in-Chief.”

Barely opening his mouth to call him, the next words came out relatively easily. In fact, it came out so easily that the tears he thought had stopped started to burn his eyes again.

“There is no such thing as reincarnation.”

Abel clenched his teeth again, closing his eyes tightly to prevent tears from falling, then raised his eyes.

“Reincarnation. That’s impossible.”

Karas, who had been facing forward, turned his body halfway towards Abel and simply looked down at him with emotionless eyes. Meanwhile, Abel repeated his words while looking at the bait in pain and bleeding.

“So, you shouldn’t believe it. That person is not Abel’s reincarnation. It’s just a bait. You shouldn’t go there.”

Each time he spoke, it felt like a lump was stuck in his throat, but his voice flowed calmly.

“There is no such thing as reincarnation.”

“……”

Abel turned his gaze to the suffering bait, groaning in pain. As he realized the reality, he became surprisingly calm.

“So, you shouldn’t go in. Commander-in-Chief should stay here and confirm that that person is just a bait, and then go back to inform His Majesty.”

Looking up at Karas again, Abel faintly smiled.

“You shouldn’t be deceived. There is no such thing as reincarnation.”

However, the other person showed no reaction. His eyes were hazy, as if he were drugged, making it impossible to discern his thoughts. He simply gazed down at Abel. It was only when the enemy king continued to taunt, calling him a coward, that Karas finally spoke up.

“I know. There is no such thing as reincarnation.”

He said it coldly, as if spitting it out, and added in a low voice.

“Prayers naturally don’t work either.”

Along with his murmured words, Karas slowly turned his head towards the enemy. Despite the enemy king’s loud shouts, strangely, Karas’ gaze turned towards somewhere other than the king. Although he was buried among the soldiers behind the king, there was definitely a foreign presence.

The person, whose face was not clearly visible because of the deep hood, quickly lowered his head and hid behind the soldier when he realized that Karas’s gaze was on him. Now, only the end of the black hood was visible, but Karas still kept his gaze fixed. In that state, he commanded Abel in his usual voice.

“Go in.”

Although it was a word without any explanation, Abel understood and nodded his head. He stepped forward without hesitation and looked up at Karas one last time.

“Please survive, Sir Karas.”

And confidently, stepping forward, Abel shouted towards the bait. It was his self-introduction before the question of who the enemy king was even asked. It was an astonishing introduction that left the listener’s mouth agape.

“Abel? Ah, I see, I see. Then, you should recognize me. I am indeed your prince!”

T/N: This chapter just broke me T-T 

Only one chapter left before Volume 3~