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[Translator - Tangrine ]
[Proofreader - Seeker ]
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Chapter - 37: Three Wheels
Nova slowly returned the suffering she had once swallowed back to the people.
Some suffering was too cruel to return all at once, so it had to be given back little by little—just enough for them to endure and overcome it on their own.
"Doctor! My daughter has a fever...!"
"It's alright."
"Sorry?"
"Children grow stronger by overcoming illness on their own. There's no need to worry.
Just... hold your child's hand, and stay by her side all night so she won’t be afraid. That is the role of a parent."
"Ah! Yes! Understood!"
That day, one child suffered from a high fever.
Her father held her hand and prayed through the night.
One noblewoman regained her beauty.
Because her disgrace had already become public knowledge, all her betrothals were broken.
So she had to find a new suitor within high society.
Someone else injured their leg.
They would have to lie in bed for several days, unable to work.
Another clutched their chest and collapsed.
Fortunately, someone nearby came to their aid, and the injury wasn’t serious.
"Mother! Are you alright?"
"Of course. I feel better than ever."
"Hehe. That’s a relief."
Each time, Nova grew a little weaker. And yet, her mind was clearer and sharper than it had ever been.
Though she had always suffered from headaches and nightmares that kept her awake, for several nights, she was able to sleep peacefully.
"...I can't hear anything."
"Sorry?"
"Nothing. I was just thinking how nice it is to spend time with you, Charlotte."
"Hehe. I feel the same way."
She gave up all her duties.
She let go of all her privileges.
Even the Saintess’s power slowly faded.
Now, she was nothing more than an ordinary doctor.
"Ugh! There are so many unruly patients today!"
"Hoho. That’s true."
"It’s awful! They shouldn’t treat Mother like that!"
She was no longer revered by all.
Her good deeds no longer received praise.
Those she had treated sometimes even hurled insults at her.
Receiving reward for good deeds— that, too, was one of the powers she had received from God.
And for good to be rewarded, it was something that required divine power to begin with.
Ingratitude.
Most people forget kindness easily, but remember their wants all too strongly.
"Charlotte."
"Yes!"
"I’ll go on house calls alone today, so please take care of the hospital."
"Understood!"
She no longer received the boundless love of God.
But still, she remained kind.
She was diligent in her duties, respectful toward others, and helped those in need.
Only when her heart moved her to do so.
Nova stepped out of the hospital for a house call, and once the building was completely out of sight, she took out a handkerchief and covered her mouth.
"...Cough."
Blood and an unidentifiable lump of flesh stained the handkerchief.
She folded the handkerchief neatly and placed it into a small box inside her bag.
There were already a few more handkerchiefs like it in the box.
She planned to burn them all together with the box.
- "Noappy. Wouldn’t it be better to spend more time with Charlotte?"
"I’d like to check up on the patients to whom I returned their suffering. Once I’m done with that… you’ll have to be returned to your original owner as well, won’t you, Gigachad? Somehow… that feels a little sad."
- "There’s no need to feel sad. I’ll always──"
"Be closer than my own heart. Because you are my heart…"
That evening, everything came to an end.
"…It feels strangely empty. I guess I relied on you more than I realized."
Nova quietly stared into the air.
It wouldn’t be surprising if Gigachad suddenly jumped out of the sky, flexing those strong muscles of his and offering a cheerful greeting.
"……."
Her heart hurt.
A part of her chest felt hollow.
As if her heart had been split in two, and the pain of coughing up a piece of it left her with a terrible sense of loss.
But she did not regret it.
The reason loss is painful… must be because the time shared with that person was just that precious.
"I may be a doctor, but I still don’t think I’m very good at diagnosing myself. Maybe I still need you."
If it were Gigachad.
If he were by her side—
What would he say right now?
She could recall it easily.
["Noappy. You already know. I’m the you inside yourself. Anything I can say to you… is something you can say to yourself."]
The thing that truly matters is becoming yourself.
["You’ve already become a better person. Trust yourself. Move forward. Do what you need to do."]
There isn’t just one path to happiness. Every path holds happiness.
["A miraculous day is waiting for you."]
Even if she were to stumble along that road,
Even if she never reached the destination—
She would still have become a better person.
"Mother, you must be exhausted. I made you a delicious soup!"
Doing one’s best at this very moment.
That alone is the only way to truly live.
“Thank you, Charlotte.”
“It’s nothing! Helping you is my greatest joy, Mother.”
“To have such a kind daughter… I must be a truly happy woman.”
“Hehe. I love you, Mom.”
“I love you too.”
.
.
.
No matter how strong the soul, the body’s illness will eventually bring a person to their knees.
“Mother, how are you feeling today?”
“I’m sorry, Charlotte.”
“You really must get better soon…”
Nova could no longer walk.
Her muscles had lost all strength, and she vomited most of the food she ate.
“Ugh, if only I had studied harder, I could have helped you more…”
“Just having that heart is enough to make me happy. It’s my fault for not taking better care of my body, so don’t blame yourself.”
“Still, today the priestess from the Pantheon temple came to the village! Maybe there’s someone who can heal you.”
“The priestess…”
In this world, there were sometimes priestesses or heroes who possessed the power to heal others.
But Nova knew that this disease was incurable.
Because she was the disease itself.
She had been born with this body from the start.
To heal this disease would be no different from killing her.
“I see. I look forward to it.”
Yet Nova nodded and smiled.
Though she knew it was impossible, her daughter’s worry was so precious and so full of love.
“I’ll ask them right away!”
Charlotte hurriedly rushed out of the hospital.
And after a few minutes, the sound of the door opening could be heard.
Soon, two girls entered— a blind girl holding a staff, and another girl with a bright smile holding the blind girl’s hand and guiding her.
Nova bowed her head in greeting, still sitting on the bed.
“Are you the priestess? Thank you for coming. Please forgive my rudeness—I’m unwell and cannot stand to greet you properly.”
“Huh? Priestess?”
The blind girl tilted her head at Nova’s greeting.
“...Weren’t you the priestess Charlotte called for?”
“I’m not sure who Charlotte is, but that’s not entirely wrong. We are a priestess and a hero, you see.”
“Oh, I understand. Please forgive my mistake.”
“It’s alright. We came without permission, after all.”
“What brings you to this small hospital? If you’re here for treatment… As you can see, with a body like mine, I’m refusing medical care.”
The blind girl smiled and nodded.
Then, gently stroking the hair of the girl standing beside her, she spoke.
“It’s alright. The illness we bear is of the heart.”
“Pardon?”
“We came thinking we could be companions… but with a body like that, it would be difficult. Sorry for causing trouble. I can find the way, but I can’t know everything in detail.”
The blind girl muttered something incomprehensible, then took the other girl’s hand and turned
away.
“Let’s go, Zara.”
“Yes, sister!”
“...Zara?”
Then, from the blind girl’s lips, an unbelievable name slipped out.
Nova hurriedly stopped the blind girl.
“Wait a moment!”
“Hm?”
“Did you just say… Zara?”
Zara.
A name she could never forget.
“Hm? You know Zara?”
“Wait, wait. Could you come closer, please? I beg you.”
“Ah, it’s not difficult after all. Zara, are you alright?”
“Yes!”
The blind girl and the other girl came closer.
Nova looked at the girl and took her hand.
She gazed into eyes that held all the misfortunes of this world.
She was very young, but... this was the same Zara Nova knew.
“My goodness... That can’t be... This is impossible. That person, your mother has already…”
Nova had no father.
This was not a metaphor—Nova was truly born and breathed life from a virgin.
In other words, Nova had a mother.
A mother who suffered extreme misfortune because of that very illness.
“What?”
“Oh, heavens. Father. How cruel a fate you have dealt to her...”
Zara is unfortunate.
She is the most unfortunate in this world.
This is no metaphor.
She is the scapegoat who atones for all the world’s misfortunes.
“How many times have you suffered misfortune?”
And, to bear the weight of a world, is a single human life not too short and fragile?
“This shouldn’t be happening…”
Zara loses her kind father to death.
She is abandoned by her cultured mother.
She earns the resentment and hatred of everyone in this world.
And dies alone.
This is Zara’s fate.
The most profound misfortune in the world.
Yet, how could a single loss atone for all the sorrow in this world?
Misfortune never ends, and all things in this world are suffering.
“Have we met somewhere before? Hehe.”
“Ah──.”
“For some reason, I dislike you, but at the same time, it’s a strange feeling where I don’t completely hate you… It’s weird! My chest feels heavy.”
Reincarnation.
The wheel never stops turning. The highest peak of the wheel, after being crushed to the
ground once, returns to its place.
Because there is no reason for being born or dying, the wheel of life spins endlessly and aimlessly in place without pause.
“Why now── why of all times now? Why is everything always like this…”
Just like there are two misfortunes for a child to lose a parent.
There are two misfortunes for a parent to lose a child too.
“I’m sorry, Mother. I’m sorry……”
One is when the child abandons the parent.
The other is when the child dies before the parent.
At this very moment, Nova is dying.
“I… I caused your death. It was a mistake. Back then, I didn’t know. I didn’t know what it meant for a person to die. I didn’t know what death was.”
This was shortly after Nova had taken on a human form.
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[Translator - Tangrine ]
[Proofreader - Seeker ]
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