It was raining that day, when it happened. It wasn't even planned. Not by anyone, not even him.
Kimiko came home that night, her eyes bruised from exhaustion over the past days of simply not sleeping. She didn't sleep because she just kept...thinking. Thinking about the future, her family, her lost social life.
When Kimiko was alive, in her own body, she had a boyfriend. They've been together for maybe a few years now by then. He wasn't bad, well, Kimiko washed that thought onto herself. In her new life, she has time to think. To really think during her monotonous work she set up for herself. To the far more healthier bedtime she placed on her body, and the scheduled eating times as well that were now placed with real, healthy food and not cheap store food.
Her boyfriend, wasn't all that good after all.
Kimiko never thought she'd actually admit that to herself, even at the end of her life. But she ended up doing so. Love was a fickle thing. It could make you blind to everything and anything.
Like the one time when he raised his hand at her. Well, Kimiko always viewed as her own fault, but because of her new time to think. Maybe it wasn't.
It was a petty thing. They were settling on a date together after school and work, where she thought they were finally able to be happy and settle around each other. He was moody however, while she was cheerful. Kimiko barely remembered what happened. She was talking about school, and then it went onto some guy she knew helping her with a project.
Kimiko knew he was ignoring her until his eyes perked up to the topic of said guy. He questioned it, to which Kimiko explained he was just a guy helping out. It gotten heated from there. Gods, Kimiko was happy nobody was around to see what happened next.
He started accusing her of cheating, to which Kimiko denies. He went into harsh insults. It kept going until she felt a heavy impact against her face.
She barely realized what happened, and she went home to her apartment that day worrying about how to cover up the nasty bruise swelling by the minute. The bruise went away after a week or two of blemish and a scarf, but the warring thought of being cautious of her boyfriend never did.
Sure, he apologized maybe once or twice, but always turned it back to her starting it up. Kimiko believed him, and actually apologized to him.
But that wasn't even his first time messing with her. In fact, he did many other things beforehand to hurt her.
He actually made her own friends avoid her after the hitting. Family was long gone after. They warned her, of course. But she didn't listen. Kimiko didn't know why she didn't at first.
Love was very blinding.
Soon enough, Kimiko was isolated in school and her part-time job. People ended up just...not talking to her anymore. Of course, Kimiko knew it was because of her boyfriend.
But she didn't stop him at all. It was her cautious mindset at the time.
He was on the phone, calling everyone she knew and telling them she didn't want to talk to them anymore and to leave her alone.
The worst one was the call to her parents.
Kimiko wondered how they were doing now, if anyone even came to her funeral. Did she even have one yet? Will she ever?
Did they even find her body yet, or knew of the culprit?
Kimiko didn't know, and she didn't think she ever will.
Yes, on the day it happened, it was raining.
She was in her apartment, alone and watching a cheesy rom-com show. Her boyfriend came that day. She didn't remember why. But all she remembered was screaming. Angry, vile screaming. Lots of insults directed at her.
Then came the knife.
Gods, the knife.
She tried to run, she really did. But she was pinned down and all she felt was increasing pain of a jagged metal cutting into her multiple times on the ground. And the screaming didn't stop until her mind was filled with nothing but the black water that invaded her until she went into the next world.
Is that really how her last life went? Did a god feel so much pity for her that they gave her another chance? Did she even deserve it? It almost wasn't fair. She had to repent for someone after being killed by someone for their own actions.
It wasn't fair at all, but Kimiko would be damned if she let the chance slip by anyway.
~|~
Now here she was, setting up a trap in a wee hours of the morning for a group of human beings armed to the teeth and ready to fight against bigger, more dangerous creatures of the land.
It was almost time for them to walk in even.
Yes, Kimiko planned it out well.
The chief would be there, pretending to hand over the tax money that they have to lure them all out without suspicion. The rest would be hiding in plain slight; on trees and in trenches.
It was too late for the humans to even recognize an ambush when it happened. The flying arrows, and the quick disarming of weapons on the humans. Kimiko had no training with a weapon, especially in Valeria's body. She held back with barely a dagger in case things did go wrong.
It was 15 men today, luckily. And now they were disarmed along with their boss. They were eating dirt now as Valeria came up to their bodies on the ground. The nobleman recognized her immediately, oddly enough.
"M-Miss Donovan! You're here?!" Valeria nodded, staring down at him. "You're under arrest for tax impersonation and corruption." She spoke out. "B-But, it is I, Henderson the 3rd! Viscount! W-We should be good friends!" "A friend doesn't steal from another and send a whole group of people starving for it!" "W-Well, its not all like that now..." Henderson whimpered on the ground with his knights struggling to escape.
"So then Henderson," Valeria scanned over all the men on the ground, sniffling and crying softly in fear of the beastmen above them. They were held down by their necks and their weapons taken away to a hidden location.
"I know you're not the only one. Where are the other nobles?" "H-Huh? Other nobles?" It was quiet until Valeria slammed her heel into one of his hands. The sound he made was enough to break ear drums. "Don't play damn stupid with me, scum! The others that were with you when you butchered and murdered tribe members! I have no time for this, so make my day!"
"I-I'm sorry, mistress!" Henderson cried. His face was soaked with salty tears by now. "So tell me!" Henderson was so quick to squeal, much to Kimiko's favor. She shoved her heel further into his hand again to keep him talking. It was only one last stomp that made him sing his final guilty plea.
"P-Please let us all go now, M-Miss Donovan! We won't harm you any longer! T-The booklet of taxes! They're in my baggage!" "Thank you." Valeria turned to shift through the bags and pulled out a giant book with tax paper and receipts inside.
He wasn't lying about the names then. She took it and moved to the beastman chief. "I have it now, what do you wish to do with them now?" "What we always did. Punishment in equal terms." "W-Wait, we had no part in the massacre!" A knight called out in panic. "Aye, maybe not, but you kept your mouth shut in exchange for measly coin instead of reporting misconduct against a beastmen tribe. You all let these beastmen suffer repeatedly. If all was honest, I'd have you lot burned alive in oil. But I am not allowed by law..."
Valeria smiled largely, "But under the beastman treaty act, any crimes committed on their approved land renders them absolute rulers on punishment enacted." She moved away to read the tax book in hand as the knights and Henderson began screaming and crying.
Was it cruel, doing what she did? Kimiko had enough thinking over the time she stayed up working on enchanting the armors and weapons for the beastmen. She was exhausted in thinking, but the answer came clear to her as her mind kept going back to the fact that Valeria's family's neglect of the beastmen were the cause of everything bad happening to them. From the murder of their kins, to the cruelty of over-taxing and stealing from their already drained souls.
Kimiko tried to keep those thoughts in mind as she heard the rip and tear of human flesh and cracking bones from behind her.
She took a while to finish concluding the exact damage amount to the beastmen. With a horrid expression, wrote down over a million gold coins.
That bastard deserved more than what he was dealing with now, dead and mutilated.
~|~
Beastmen don't eat meat often. If they do, it was that of monster, not animal. The only species to be able to consume such mysterious, evil entities. So there was that reason why Valeria was able to obtain makeshift coffins and send the remains that could be saved and given back to families. Kimiko worried if the families will attempt revenge on the beastmen, or even her own family.
Until she got back letters thanking her for the return of the remains, even if they weren't desired from each family connected to the deceased.
Luckily enough, even their own families did not want them. Which gives Kimiko the idea that they were desperate for coins and picked on the weakest to get it to survive on their own.
Very well, one problem solved.
Now there was another one as the damn prince himself was yet again in Valeria's home, staring her down from the other side of a tea table. She still didn't get an approval of termination to their marriage. Kimiko was already pissed off to the bone with him.
"You're not following through with our agreement, my prince." She made it obvious of her annoyance, drinking the tea she had up to her lips. Ares looked down at his own tea with a grimace. "Where..." He began, making Valeria tilt her head in confusion. "Where is this man? Is he not real?" Kimiko nearly choked from shock and ended up having Valeria laugh. Ares flinched and watched her in disbelief.
"Why would my special someone make himself public when his so-called rival is the prince himself? Besides..." Valeria made a large, sinister smile. "He likes to make himself known during night time duties when he tells me to say his name loudly each time." Kimiko was enjoying this too much, and knew she should feel bad in a way.
But the man was cheating on her with a commoner for no reason than spite.
He'll be fine.
"Oh, was that too vulgar?" Sol was in the background shaking like a leaf in the corner from how passive her mistress was. "Pardon my manners, your highness. Now, about the annulment-" Valeria didn't have time to register the man standing up and jumping her immediately on the spot, sending them both down onto the ground. "M-Milady!" Valeria waved a hand out in time to stop Sol from turning aggressive with her own claws.
Sol kept on guard, however.
"Who are you?" Ares coldly questioned, holding Valeria down by her neck. Any more pressure and she'd be choking. "Valeria always drank her tea with her left hand. Never her right." Kimiko froze in shock, forgetting how intelligent the prince was in recalling memory. But to think he paid enough attention to Valeria that he knew which hand she uses to drink tea...?!
Kimiko breathed out, hurrying to think up something to defend herself against a man over six feet in height on top of her with military experience. Kimiko never bothered to look much whenever she did see him, but now besides observing his beauty, she began to notice how one of his eyes were lightly dull in color and there were scars slowly creeping up from his neck that she was sure his clothes were covering the rest.
"And bothering to work out on economic issues involving your family? You amuse me. I wonder why the fish seems to taste better now coming from the tribe." News travel fast, it seems. She still wasn't done catching the nobles.
"D...Decided to commit to new changes now, your highness." Valeria breathed out. "When you...drink with your right, you increase memory. T...The gossip says so." There, something petty and dumb that Valeria would do! "To...To think you actually even worry about the way I drink tea...I...I'm touched your highness."
The silence was almost too deadly, but Kimiko never felt so much relief from fear as Ares picked himself up from Valeria and forced her up with a quick pull of arm. "So, you were pulling my leg this whole time because of jealousy." He was blunt with his words. It was far from the truth, but Kimiko rather not deal with him any longer than necessary.
"You never wanted to break it off, did you?" Valeria licked her dry lips, attempting to hold back her nervousness. "Does this mean you won't break it off, your highness?" Valeria made a gesture that her former self would've done long ago; a flirty expression. Sol was confused by now, but Ares took the bait.
"...The papers will be in for you by tomorrow." Was all he said as he left the room. Valeria stood quietly, waiting for the sound of his feet to disappear until she sighed in relief. "M-Milady...!" Sol breathed out. "...He almost caught on."
Valeria flinched and stared at Sol in horror, "I-" "Milady, you don't have to worry. Your aura...it is different since you came back from the meet-up between you and the nobles. It was why I learned to trust your words back at the tribe." "I apologize for lying to you, Sol." Sol shook her head as she put her claws away.
"Don't. In fact, this is good. Prehaps the gods finally heard our prayers." "Prayers...?" Sol grabbed Valeria's hands. "You were blessed by the gods, Milady. During a time of plead and anguish. To be reincarnated...into the mistress. It is a warm change for us all." Kimiko was confused. This wasn't in the book at all.
"B...But what caused you to...?" Sol frowned, "I...Milady, Allya...the girl the prince favors, of course, was the first to approach. And..." Sol stopped. "Well, back at the time when maids get together to finish work for the nobles...the maids spoke of...well, the things Allya was doing."
Now Kimiko was really confused. In the novel, the prince approached her first. That's what caused Valeria to turn on the girl. "What was she doing?" "Well, uh...she would spread rumors around. The maids would hear them as she spoke to other nobles. You ended up confronting her for it and..." Sol rubbed her face. "I...I suppose she told the prince and whatever she said ended up causing him to be...very oppressive in authority against the Donovan household."
What? Valeria's house should've always been in shambles as it is, right? It was why they took the offer so quick when the prince asked for Valeria's hand in marriage.
Kimiko paled.
Allya's role changed. What if...?
"Sol, please have the rest of the day off. Thank you for your work." Sol paused, but decided to bow anyway and leave the room. Kimiko sighed and sat down at the tea table. "Well, it was absurd to think I was the only one to...but, then...if not just me. And Allya, could there be others?"
Kimiko didn't know how the world worked anymore. It keeps changing and venting into a new, horrid creation that Kimiko has to defeat in order to survive from a horrid future.
Kimiko didn't like the idea, but if necessary, she may have to confront Allya and see for herself whether or not it was all purely consequence due to Kimiko's reincarnation in the world.
Whatever it is, Kimiko just hoped she can bypass it.