I Escaped the Exile Story Only To Find It Was a Regret Trope

50 – 10# No matter how much you prepare, it’s never enough (3)

It’s not just that Beris is very unpleasant.

And all the various problems that arose because of it are the third issue.

The addition of Beris to our ranks could be seen as a positive move. Even a rotten fish is still a fish, and she was once the saintess of the most powerful Order of Light on the continent.

Though she had left the Order to gain her freedom, she somehow still retained her divine powers. In fact, she seemed even stronger than during her days with the Hero’s party.

While this could be considered a fortunate turn of events, the timing was problematic.

Already under suspicion, Beris’s arrival was the final nail in the coffin. Consequently, an unexpected hearing was held at Yushin’s house.

Naturally, Yushin was the subject. The topic was his true identity.

Fortunately, Yuri and Hayoung still recognized him as their brother and childhood friend. After all, who would suspect that a person’s soul could suddenly change?

But once doubt begins to sprout, the story changes.

The first step is always the hardest, but once it starts, it spreads uncontrollably. Especially doubt, which is like a wildfire that, if not extinguished early, spreads massively.

‘For the battles ahead, I must clear up any misunderstandings.’

An incompetent general within one’s own ranks is more frightening than an invincible enemy general. Internal enemies bring unforeseen damage and consequences.

Luckily, the worst had not yet come to pass.

“Brother, are you really the brother I know?”

This was bad. The worst had happened.

Yushin’s greatest fear was the doubt of his existence. As mentioned earlier, the first step is always the hardest. Once it starts, it spreads like wildfire.

If not suppressed immediately, it could later come back to haunt him. At least, that’s what Yushin thought. Because he had already learned from past experiences, which had not ended well.

It was related to his bandit brother.

His brother had a woman he was close to. However, his brother, burdened with many scars, always kept secrets, leading to frequent quarrels with his lover. This was understandable.

The desire to know more about the one you love.

And the desire to hide one’s own scars.

Perhaps, in peaceful times, they might have overcome it somehow.

But, unfortunately, it was far from a peaceful era. Their relationship spiraled into disaster. Accumulating doubts created invisible enemies and fostered hatred.

As a result, his brother lost his life.

Betrayed by the one he had sworn to love forever.

Having painfully learned from this precedent, Yushin was trying to find a way to avoid suspicion. But no matter how much he thought and thought again, no answer came.

‘I can’t tell the truth, this is driving me crazy.’

“I will answer on behalf of the Hero.”

Beris stepped forward to defend Yushin, who was in a disadvantageous situation. Naturally, Yushin wore a very disdainful expression. Beris, you defend me? You, of all people?

I’d rather ask a passing dog.

Yushin, who had suffered so much at the hands of Beris, naturally had no trust left. But Beris didn’t care and shouted confidently.

“Yushin here is actually a hero summoned from another world!”

“Another world? Summoned??”

“That’s nonsense. My brother has been in the hospital all this time!”

The straightforward argument came out immediately. Of course, it had to be, as Yuri had taken care of Yushin devotedly from beginning to end. But to make such an excuse in front of her.

Just get lost.

I’ll handle it myself.

With that feeling, he tried to step forward, but Beris’s turn was not over yet. She continued with a confident expression that matched her brilliantly shining blonde hair.

“That’s exactly it! In fact, Yushin was only summoned in spirit!”

“Summoned in spirit?”

“Yushin must have been unconscious for a long time. Am I wrong?”

“That’s true, but…”

Beris cleverly twisted her words to create a plausible argument. And indeed, to someone hearing it for the first time, it sounded convincing. Of course, it was close to fantasy.

At least, it was a more reasonable explanation than saying Yushin’s original soul disappeared and another possessor took over his body, and that person was a hero.

Beris, with her skillful speech that seemed to have tempted many with words, continued to persuade with all sorts of fancy rhetoric. And the struggle to resist her as much as possible continued.

“So, my brother went to your world in spirit form?”

“Yes, that’s correct.”

“Because time flows differently, while my brother was hospitalized for a few months, ten years passed in your world?”

“That’s right.”

Yuri and Ha-young didn’t seem to fully believe it. Of course, they couldn’t, as it was a story that seemed to come straight out of a novel. Who could believe it right away?

But that wasn’t the important part.

What mattered was that the suspicion directed at Yushin was completely erased. Now, Ha-young and Yuri were drawn to Beris, completely erasing their previous doubts.

Anyway, they recognized Yushin as their brother and childhood friend.

However, thanks to Beris, Yushin barely avoided the worst situation. But for some reason, he had a sour expression. Yushin frowned and thought.

‘Damn, of all people, I had to get help from her.’

Thinking of the hardships he had endured with her during his active hero days, the last person he wanted to owe was Saint Beris. But he owed her.

And unfortunately,

Yushin was not the type to shamelessly ignore a debt. This time, thanks to her help, he avoided the worst, and that was a fact.

“What do you want?”

Yushin asked Beris directly. From the beginning, she hated being bound by anything. Given her past, he understood that.

But is there really a reason to come all the way here?

Of course, she is undeniably one of the members of the hero party. Even Yushin, who hates Beris, has to admit that. The important thing is her intention.

“I still can’t say it because I’m too embarrassed.”

This guy, seriously, till the end.

* * *

The Order of Light.

An order founded by believers who follow and worship the gods of light. True to its name, the Order of Light has outwardly performed many good deeds. But who would have known?

The order, which was thought to be the light for the powerless, had already become a monster consumed by desire. However, Beris had known this for a long time.

Under the pretext of preparing for the future, the Order of Light takes in numerous children and educates them. But calling it education is just a nice way of putting it; it’s practically abuse.

[Follow the gods. Entrust everything to the gods.]

[Desire is a sin. Control and suppress yourself.]

[If you commit a sin, you must bleed to be forgiven.]

No matter how you think about it, whipping a seven-year-old child with an iron whip until their back skin is literally peeled off is not right.

The priests called it the teaching of hardship.

They said that only through pain can one realize the value of the teachings. And through that realization, they would spread faith and light to the world. Honestly, Beris still doesn’t understand what that means.

It just hurts terribly.

Maybe that’s when Beris started to desire freedom. A life where he wouldn’t be whipped anymore, where he wouldn’t be forced to do things he didn’t want to do.

Perhaps that’s why he chose the goddess of justice.

The goddess of justice is a virgin goddess.

In other words, if he just lost his virginity, he would surely be expelled from the order.

Of course, in the worst case, he could be imprisoned or burned at the stake. But that wasn’t so bad either. After all, a life of confinement had no meaning anyway.

[The weakest hero?]

[Yes. It seems the Pope is going to politely decline this time.]

[That’s strange. I thought the Order of Light taught that everyone is equal.]

[Well, that’s…]

Most heroes are very strong, and they are usually busy boasting about their own arrogant or self-righteous sense of justice. But the weakest hero, what a contradiction.

Naturally, Beris was intrigued by the weakest hero.

However, at that time, Beris had no idea. He never imagined that he would fall so deeply for someone else, and that it would cause him such heartache…

He couldn’t even dare to imagine it.

Leaving the world he had originally lived in.

To the extent of stepping into an unfamiliar world following him.