Reader’S Regeneration Life [EN]: Chapter 117

117―――――

Northern Lands, Land of the Barbarians

Before the stigma activated, Trisha was just an immature 18-year-old girl.

You could say she craved attention and affection, wanting to be noticed, and at the same time, she was armed with a black dragon persona to avoid getting hurt, wrapping herself up tightly.

But the current Trisha was different from before.

Flames and lightning flowed into her, and now Trisha, though incomplete, somewhat resembled the power and personality of Saik described in the novel.

You could say she had adopted a mindset of breaking, burning, and killing anyone who touched her things if things didn’t go her way.

‘Of course, the core of Trisha hasn’t changed, so she still shows a weak side to those who give her attention and affection.’

Previously, it was her brother Jimmy Faker, and now it was Zion himself.

With her personality slightly altered by the stigma, Trisha was armed with the thought, ‘Jimmy will inevitably leave me someday, but Zion doesn’t have to, so I’ll make him mine no matter what,’ and she lingered around him.

To be precise, it wasn’t lingering, but rather watching to make sure no other women stole what was hers.

“Sit down.”

Zion brought a chair and told her to sit in front of him.

Then Trisha walked over with steady steps.

Thud!

“···?”

She sat right on Zion’s lap with great confidence.

Even though she was a woman, she wasn’t a child, but a fully grown 18-year-old.

Of course, he couldn’t help but feel the weight.

“What are you doing?”

As Zion muttered, Trisha huffed once and opened her mouth.

“You told me to sit.

So I sat.”

“The place I told you to sit was over there.”

“I listened to your words to sit, so I’ll decide where to sit.”

It was hard to tell whether she was going to listen or not.

Zion was momentarily troubled about what to do with this woman, but he decided to let it go.

After all, he was the one who made Trisha this way, so it was right to gently overlook this much.

‘Actually, considering what I did, I should listen to even more tantrums than this.’

Trisha’s own power was one thing, but he forcibly awakened a normal woman who was living quietly, so it was natural to take responsibility.

“···So.

Why did you call me?”

Even while confidently occupying Zion’s lap, Trisha asked, trying to avoid his gaze.

Unlike her spirited actions, she now looked embarrassed.

‘Hmm.’

After pondering for a moment, Zion decided to soothe her heart, which had been shattered and barely pieced back together.

He leaned back slightly, lifted his knees slightly to prevent Trisha from falling, and then gently wrapped his arms around her waist.

“···What are you doing?”

“Hugging you?”

“Do you think I’m your 5-year-old sister?”

“No.

I know you’re a grown woman.”

“Then why···.”

“I just want to hold you a bit.

Is that not allowed?”

At Zion’s words, Trisha flinched and turned her head, trying to avoid the man’s gaze.

Even so, she stealthily moved her hand and carefully stroked the back of Zion’s hand with her fingertips.

“Was it hard?”

“What?”

“The Squire training, I mean.”

“···Hmph!

It wasn’t hard at all.

I told you several times that it was too easy? Besides, I can take down that Lishikida knight right now.”

“If you hurt Lishi, I think I’d be in a lot of trouble.”

He was saying it indirectly, but it meant that if she hurt Lishikida, he wouldn’t be able to hold her like this anymore.

Trisha wasn’t stupid, so she quietly shut her mouth.

“That’s why I’m saying this.

I want you to continue working as Lishi’s Squire.

Trisha.”

“···Are you saying that seriously right now?”

Trisha’s eyes began to burn with anger and resentment.

She had awakened with negative feelings towards Lishikida in the first place, but now she was being told to go back under her, so she couldn’t help but feel absurd.

“You’ll understand if you hear the reason, right?”

“Tell me.”

“That’s how you can stay by my side.”

At Zion’s words, the flames that were burning subsided in an instant.

The woman blinked her eyes for a moment and opened her mouth in a subtle tone while turning her head.

“···In detail.”

“There are too many guards around me right now.

Lishi is an upper-level knight, and Kim Yoohyun is practically acting as my guard knight.

Plus, there’s Lilith-nim, who’s disguised as a mage, and Lucia, who’s a real mage, and even Ria of the Myo Eun clan.

Even though I’m the successor of the Frontier Count, there are too many people.”

“So?”

“So, officially, I’m keeping you as Lishi’s apprentice knight, not as my person.

That way, you can follow me under the guise of assisting Lishi.”

At that, Trisha quietly fiddled with the back of Zion’s hand and pondered.

She didn’t want to get involved with the woman named Lishikida any more than necessary.

She no longer thought that she had stolen Jimmy, but when she thought of how harshly she had treated her during Squire training or how she had been chatting affectionately with Zion, she was filled with anger.

‘But, if I stay by her side, I can be next to Zion-nim at the same time.’

In this case, Trisha had a lot to consider.

Should she stand on her pride and come up with another plan, or should she put aside her pride and go under Lishikida?

Whirr―.

‘···Should I just throw a tantrum and say I absolutely hate it?’

It was a pretty good plan.

She wasn’t completely oblivious, and Trisha knew that Zion wanted to keep her by his side.

That’s why he saved her in the first place, and that’s why he was holding her in his arms like this, wasn’t he?

If she said she absolutely couldn’t do it and even threatened to die, he wouldn’t be able to do anything and would have to come up with another plan···.

“If you throw too much of a tantrum, I don’t know how I’ll change then.

A woman’s whining can be charming, but if it’s excessive, it’s just annoying from a man’s perspective.”

“···.”

“It’s true that you’re special, but there are many other people by my side who are just as special, right?

So Trisha, I think you need to work harder to shine even more among them.”

As expected, that was just a nice way of saying it, but in reality, it meant, ‘If you don’t listen, I’ll get rid of you, who’s just like everyone else.’

It was a shame, but there were many people here who could replace her.

‘···It’s too much.’

It would be a lie to say she wasn’t upset.

She was only looking at him, but he wasn’t only looking at her.

She had vowed to get rid of any existence for his sake.

Even if the opponent was the Celestial race, the source of this power, she had sworn to burn them to ashes···.

“So.”

“Huh?”

The man, who had been holding her lightly as if she were a child, suddenly hugged Trisha tightly as if she were a lover.

The woman, sensing the change, panicked and didn’t know what to do, so Zion grabbed her chin, turned her towards him, and forced her to look at him.

“Le, let go! Wha, what are you doing···.”

“I don’t want to.”

“I told you to let go! If you don’t let go···.”

“If I don’t let go, are you going to burn me too?”

Trisha froze.

It was nonsense, why would I do that to you?

Not anyone else, but why would I do that to you?

There’s no way I could do that, no, there’s no way I would even think of doing that.

‘I can see what you’re thinking, I can see it.’

Fortunately, it didn’t seem like she had reached the point of ‘If I can’t have it, I’ll break it.’

If Trisha had rolled her eyes and said, ‘Yes, that’s great. Even if Zion-nim hurts me, I’ll burn everything!’ he would have really been in trouble.

“···Don’t say things like that.”

“What things?”

“Stories about harming Zion-nim.

I don’t do that.

I never do that.

How could I do that?

Zion-nim is my person, how could I harm someone like that?”

She was pretending not to be, but it was clear at a glance that she was really sulking.

As if she was thinking that he thought of her as that kind of woman, she pouted her lips and even struggled to be let go.

Letting go here is really the act of a moron.

Even Kim Yoohyun wouldn’t··· maybe he would have let go.

“So Trisha, let me treat you as preciously as I treat the others.

Just bear with it a little, whine a little less, and wait a little longer.”

“···Until when?”

“Until you yourself can confidently say to others, ‘Only I am the woman who deserves to be by his side.’”

After saying that, Zion gently grabbed the woman’s chin again.

This time, without any violent resistance, Trisha met his eyes again.

···Whirr―.

A small flame flickered and whispered to Trisha.

That man is handsome.

‘I know.

So shut up.’

Forcibly shoving down the whispering flame, Trisha focused on the man in front of her.

Although she had no idea when that time would come, he had clearly told her that ‘the day she could confidently demand it’ would be the time when she could finally monopolize the man named Zion Klauzen.

It wasn’t exact, but it would probably be after she had cleared out all the Celestial race threatening this world.

“Really?

Really, if I become qualified to make that kind of demand, then you can throw everything else away and become mine alone, right?”

“Of course.”

Whether that would really be possible or not.

Zion didn’t say the rest out loud.

Saik was one thing, but the Succubus Queen was also an incredibly powerful woman.

Knock, knock―.

At the sudden knock, Zion opened his mouth to ask who it was, and a maid working inside the castle opened her mouth.

“Young Master, the Heiness Merchant Guild has just passed through the castle gates.”

“Ah.

Is that so?

Okay.

Thank you for letting me know.”

The Heiness Merchant Guild had arrived at the Frontier Count’s territory again after a month, carrying goods for trade.

Helen wouldn’t have accompanied them this time, but she would definitely have delivered some news that he was waiting for.

As he was about to get up and meet them, Trisha, who was sitting on his lap, deliberately added more weight, preventing Zion from getting up.

As the man underneath looked at her as if asking what she was doing, the woman, reminiscent of a bright red flame, once again brought up her demands in an indifferent voice.

“I, I’ll get off, so just give me a kiss.”

“···A kiss?”

It had been a while since he had heard that word.

So not a kiss, but a peck?

“Just.”

“Just lightly on the cheek.

It’s, it’s not like I’m asking for it on the lips, but···.”

Smooch―.

Zion lightly matched his lips to Trisha’s red lips, muttering that even lips weren’t that difficult.

If he could ease this woman’s mood with this light kiss, it wouldn’t be enough to do it a million times.

“Ugh?”

Meanwhile, Trisha, whose face was flushed red, fiddled with her lips.

It was obvious that she wanted to scream, ‘Ugh! Ugh!’ but she was barely holding it in.

“I granted your wish, so why don’t you get off now, Trisha?”

At Zion’s sly voice, Trisha only let out a whimper, then silently got up from his lap and walked quietly towards the sofa.

Then suddenly, she collapsed there with a thud!

She was dazed for a moment, and then she waved her arms around wildly, and even kicked her feet so loudly that it sounded like she was stomping.

“···.”

Zion, who was dumbfounded by the sight, shrugged his shoulders once, got up, put on the uniform he was wearing over his shirt, and opened his mouth.

“I’m leaving, so when you’re done stomping, close the door quietly and leave.

Don’t think about hiding somewhere and eavesdropping again.”

There was no answer.

However, Trisha’s hand was waving wildly as if telling him to get lost.

Swish, swish―.

Zion chuckled, then got up and recalled the news that the Heiness Merchant Guild had arrived, and moved his steps to the reception room.

And as Zion expected, one of the members of the merchant guild who had entered the lord’s castle had personal business and was waiting for him in the reception room.

“Young Master Zion Klauzen.”

As Zion entered, a young man bowed politely.

At first glance, he looked like a clueless young man, but seeing the sharp light in his eyes, he seemed to be one of Helen’s few subordinates.

“It’s an honor to meet the war hero of Hispania in person.”

“Enough with the embarrassing greetings.

I’d like to get straight to the point.”

“As expected, you don’t like formalities.

You’re different from other nobles.”

The young man smiled and carefully took out a letter from his chest.

Zion received it and immediately checked the contents.

‘Normally, there would be extremely ceremonial greetings or something like that.’

Like a merchant who prefers efficiency, Helen had written the contents very simply.

―As a result of confirming the situation as you said, the northern border has been uneasy for some time.

―Barbarian tribes are rampant.

―

“···.”

It seemed that this destination would be even further than the royal capital.

―――――――Author’s Notes―――――――

7 consecutive chapters?