The Saintess Returned to the Emperor’s Arms Chapter 115

Everything Riella Lost 

 

It was an unprecedented famine.

 

Not that this cursed land had ever seen a good harvest anyway.

 

“It’s all just trash. Tsk. Let’s just go back.”

 

Hank had just entered a village that had been ravaged by a plague, along with his companions.

 

He was hoping there might be something to eat, but there was no such thing.

 

That was when Fabian suddenly started whining, saying nonsense.

 

“Come on, kid. There isn’t even a single rat. Where are you saying there’s a person?”

 

“There’s someone in here! Really! Hurry up and save them, or Sir Hank, you’re a dummy!”

 

Half-believing him, Hank moved some collapsed walls in the corner of an alley.

 

If someone really was there, he was already calculating how much reward he could demand for saving a life.

 

However.

 

“She’s a kid. And she’s a girl.”

 

“Ugh, what bad luck. Let’s just go!”

 

The others quickly lost interest in the girl, who didn’t seem to be of any value.

But Hank was the one who helped her up.

 

“Kid. What’s your name?”

 

“Riella.… Riela Blinite.”

 

Terrified, the girl managed to say only her name between sobs and hiccups.

The others started to question Hank with puzzled expressions.

Are you really thinking of taking that child in?

 

“Everyone, open your eyes and look at that kid’s outfit.”

 

Only then did everyone’s eyes light up.

 

Underneath the dust, the child’s expensive clothes and shoes.

 

What particularly caught his eye was a blue jewel necklace that looked like it belonged to some great family.

 

“She’s definitely not an ordinary kid. If you find her parents or something, wouldn’t you be able to get a reward?”

 

Hank snatched the necklace from the child and put it around his own neck.

 

“Kid, this looks way too heavy for you, so I’ll take care of it.”

 

The child nodded obediently, of course not knowing what those words meant.

 

* * *

 

It wasn’t an easy task.

 

Finding the family of a child who can’t remember anything except her own name.

 

Above all, Hank’s crew needed to make a living, and as they got distracted with other things, the girl kept growing.

 

“Hank! Guess what? I learned how to sew from Aunt Rose today!”

 

Riela, clueless about everything, always followed behind with a bright smile.

Hank found her increasingly annoying.

 

Just when Hank was thinking about abandoning that annoying child, regretting having taken her in,

Fabian, who had grown quite a bit, was standing there guarding Riella.

 

‘Tsk. I have nothing left to sell, and this is the only one left.’

 

The blue necklace he had taken from Riella had become a part of Hank.

 

It was a talisman—a charm infused with the belief that someday this girl would bring him a fortune.

 

“Oh. That looks like a valuable item?”

 

“Yes. Do you know where this item is from?”

 

In search of clues to Riella’s origins, Hank visits a mansion.

 

The owner was a noble—some kind of count, but also known for dealing in stolen goods behind the scenes.

 

“Well, I’m not sure about that. If you want to sell it, I’ll give you a reasonable price.”

 

“Well, it’s just that…”

 

But that visit also led to nothing.

They offered a high price, despite not recognizing the necklace—but that just made Hank more reluctant to sell it.

 

This was his last chance to turn his life around.

 

‘Anyway, this time it was a waste of time again. Tck.  What if this thing’s actually worthless after all?’

 

Spitting in frustration, Hank left the mansion—only to find Riella inside the mansion’s fence.

 

“No, that kid! Hey. Didn’t I tell you not to come in and to wait quietly outside the gate?”

 

He yelled, already thinking he needed to get rid of this girl—even if he had to sell her off with Fabian.

 

As he was cursing, the Count suddenly ran towards the fence.

 

“Oh! Kyle? How did you get out here? Huh?”

 

The shout drew the attention of everyone in the mansion, and they all rushed outside.

 

Only then did Hank see the pale boy whose hand Riella was holding tightly.

 

Come to think of it, the youngest son of this family has been terminally ill since birth and has been lying in bed day after day.

 

Then Riella spoke.

 

“We are friends.”

 

“What?”

 

“We decided to be friends starting today. I explained the flower to him.”

 

Hank glared at the blue-haired boy who was holding Riella’s hand tightly and looking up at him with stern eyes.

 

The count tilted his head and explained.

 

It had been a year since Kyle had last gotten out of bed on his own.

No matter what they tried, his condition never improved—until this girl showed up. This girl seems to have brought him good luck.

 

‘Luck? What nonsense. She’s not even worth any money.’

 

“Hey, will you come over often and be Kyle’s friend from now on?”

 

“We’re already friends.”

 

“Yeah, yeah. What a good child.”

 

The Count, who had been patting Riella and his son’s heads for a while, soon handed Hank a bundle of money.

 

“If Kyle improves again tomorrow, I’ll give you more.”

 

Hank snatched the money and fled the mansion like he was running away.

Luck or whatever—he didn’t believe in that kind of crap.

Still, he couldn’t completely ignore the weird feeling that lingered.

 

“Now that I think about it, didn’t Fabian used to be sickly before he met Riella?”

 

“It’s true that things have been going well for us since we started taking Riella with us.”

 

“What if she’s… you know, a witch or something?”

 

Still unsure, Hank brought Riella back to the mansion a few days later.

That day, the count handed him a bag full of money.

 

Kyle’s condition was critical for a few days, but as soon as he saw Riella, he started talking and standing up again.

 

‘What, really? Is she really a witch?’

 

From then on, Hank and his crew stayed in that village and frequently visited the mansion.

 

On days when she’d been playing with Kyle, Riella would be unusually exhausted, but that wasn’t Hank’s concern.

 

He was simply satisfied with making a little money.

 

Then one day, the entire family of that mansion suddenly disappeared in the middle of the night.

 

“What the hell? Where did those bastards run off to!?”

 

Hank was furious that his source of money had disappeared overnight, and he even grabbed Riella’s collar.

 

“You know, don’t you? Where did they go? You were always with that precious young master, so you must’ve heard something.”

 

“I don’t know… Kyle didn’t say anything…”

 

“What do you mean you don’t know? Weren’t you trying to run away with them? Huh?”

 

“No! I was with you and the others…..”

 

Tears welled up again in Riela’s big, trembling eyes.

 

Hank felt really sick every time he looked into those red eyes.

 

“I thought it was worth the money for the meal! Damn it!”

 

What happened after that was hell.

 

Once he got used to easy money, going back to hard labor felt unbearable.

 

“That young master or whatever—he was probably a scammer, right?”

 

“What would he scam us for? It’s not like we lost anything?”

 

“But since they disappeared overnight, it’s suspicious.”

 

“Hey, Riella. Do something. Aren’t you supposed to have some amazing ability? Bring good luck or something? Was that all a lie?”

 

Riella, who had no idea what was going on in the face of the adults’ resentment, just lowered her flower-like head heavily.

 

“I’ll make money! I’ll become super rich and take care of everything, so don’t be mean to Riella!”

 

“What? You little punk. You’re just talking nonsense!”

 

On the day Fabian stood up for Riella, Hank finally lost control and decided to sell the necklace.

 

“Hank, come on… You can’t sell that. It’s the only clue to finding Riella’s real parents..”

 

“So what? We’re about to starve to death! If we haven’t found them by now, her parents are probably dead somewhere!”

 

Hank shoved off his protesting companions and got up.

 

That day, Riella followed him.

 

She always followed behind Hank like a shadow.

 

“Hank… You’re selling that? You really treasured it….”

 

Riella had even forgotten that the necklace was hers, stolen by Hank long ago.

 

‘What do you know to be worried about me?’

 

Hank scoffed at her concern.

 

“Get out of my way and stop caring about my business, you punk.”

 

“…….”

 

Hank ended up selling the necklace for a pittance to an unknown merchant in town and used the money to buy meat and alcohol.

 

Even then, his uneasiness kept him from sleeping, tossing, and turning through the night.

 

Then, a small figure quietly crept into his tent.

 

It was Riella.

 

‘Why is she here…’

 

Pretending to sleep, he felt her fidget near his bedside, leaving something behind before tiptoeing out.

 

A gift for Hank, who must’ve been heartbroken after selling his beloved necklace.

 

It was a cheap item sold at a folk’s store, but it was a necklace that Riella would have had to empty her pockets to buy.

 

* * *

 

“Y-Your Majesty, please… spare… me”

 

Ugh. Ugh.

 

Hank, whose neck was grabbed by the Emperor, gulped as if he was about to suffocate.

 

His head went blank from lack of air, and he lost all sense of time.

 

Fortunately, the Emperor eventually loosened his grip and stepped back.

 

Hank gasped desperately for air and quickly began defending himself.

 

“I admit, I was a little rough with Riella because times were hard. But! I really did raise her like my own daughter—Argh!”

 

Hank couldn’t continue speaking as the knight next to the emperor struck him in the back with the back of his sword.

 

‘Damn it.’

 

So appealing to emotion wasn’t going to work.

 

That left only one option: to strike a deal.

 

“Shouldn’t Riella find her real parents to become a proper empress? I know, so I will do my best to help you—”

 

“No. You don’t know.”

 

“Yes…?”

 

A cold sweat ran down Hank’s spine.

 

He slowly looked up, only to meet the Emperor’s monstrous, emotionless gaze—full of absolute certainty.

 

“You wouldn’t know. You sold all the belongings left by Riella’s parents.”

 

Hank’s mouth dropped open, forgetting even the pain.

His chest tightened.

The Emperor stepped forward again and grabbed Hank by the jaw.

 

“How do you know that….?”

 

‘Have you done any background checks on me?’

 

‘But even with that, how could he know that?’

 

‘Oh, the others have already said it!’

 

“I’m sorry, but you’re all wrong. I don’t have time to investigate you, and your colleagues all died without a trace.”

 

Hank’s eyes widened at those words.

 

The emperor’s answer was so natural that Hank was confused as to whether he had spoken out loud or not.

 

‘How on earth?’

 

‘How do you know what’s on my mind?’

 

“You want to know how I know your filthy thoughts?”

 

—Crack.

The Emperor’s grip crushed his beard-covered jaw.

 

“The real witch is me, not Riella.”

 

Hank just stood there dumbfounded, not understanding a thing.

 

Herhan glared at the stupid man, then threw him to the floor and backed away.

 

There was no need for that piece of trash to understand everything he said.

 

And certainly didn’t deserve to.

 

“Get rid of him. Asion.”

 

Herhan staggered out of the prison. What he had just seen was over 20 years of memories.

 

In every scene in those countless memories, Riella was unbearably beautiful—and heartbreakingly pitiful.

 

‘Riella.’

 

Herhan was desperate to find her, but there was something more urgent.

 

“Jess.”

 

“Yes, Your Majes—wait, are you alright?!”

 

Herhan clenched his teeth and slapped away the arm that was hastily reaching for the stethoscope.

 

“There’s something you need to find right now. I’ll tell you what it looks like, so start searching immediately.”

 

Jess immediately noticed the urgency of the situation in Herhan’s expression.

 

This might be even more important than the Emperor’s health.

 

Jess listened intently to Herhan’s explanation, taking notes and drawing pictures.

 

“It’s a necklace that looks like this, right? With an oval-shaped blue gem in the center. I’ll have to call the craftsmen in the palace first.”

 

Herhan nodded, enduring a terrible headache.

 

“By the way, may I ask what this is?”

 

Herhan closed his eyes tightly and swallowed his answer.

 

Riella’s family. Time. Worthiness.

 

Everything Riella should have had, but lost.

 

* * *