The Sleeping Devil

"Now, let me introduce today's highlight product!"

In the vast underground hall where neither day nor night can be distinguished,

Amidst the pitch-black darkness, only the stage is illuminated by magical lamps.

'Ah, so this is the Dark Auction.'

'Am I really going to be sold as a "slave" after all...'

"We present to you an incredibly rare young girl with white hair. Although she is only three years old, her uniqueness lies not only in her hair color! She never cries, her manners are impeccable, and she's a top-grade product without any use of drugs!"

I am currently in the midst of the Dark Auction, being bid upon.

However, I wasn't surprised by this turn of events.

Because I have memories of my past life.

It doesn't matter now, but even now I can't forget the sensation of dying.

My last memory was the moment my life as a 27-year-old, single, female, freelance programmer came to an abrupt end.

The bloodshot eyes of a man amidst the slowly flowing cityscape.

Three years of a life called "remote work" as a shut-in.

On the day I ventured outside after a long time, by chance or perhaps by fate, I encountered the person I least wanted to meet and was pushed onto a busy main street.

At the moment when I thought, "This is it, I'm going to die..." My mother's face, the source code before committing, the latest episode of the anime I had been looking forward to, a mixture of anger resembling a murderous intent, fear, regret, and various other emotions raced through my mind, almost boiling over.

Perhaps my head really did explode.

And so, I found myself being born in an unfamiliar place.

However, the commotion of reincarnation ended with just a mild surprise, like, "Wait, shouldn't I be dead?"

From a few months after birth until the day I remembered my past life, I had been constantly seeing "memories of the future."

"...Let's start with one small gold coin. Skipping the silver coins, one, two, three, skipping, five... two small gold coins! As expected, you understand! Three small gold coins..."

The voice of a man resounded through the venue, accompanied by flickering symbols in the darkness, creating an eerie excitement.

Perhaps to protect the privacy of the attendees, the seating area was pitch black.

As a result, the faintly glowing small symbols could be seen clearly even from a distance.

The auctioneer, his sweat still flowing, exclaimed, "Let's move on to the medium gold coins!"

I gazed at the numerous glowing symbols, realizing that it wasn't going to end anytime soon, and started retracing my first memory.

◆

"Sheriel Beriard, I hereby annul our engagement today."

A man who clearly appeared to be a prince, with wavy golden hair swept back, raised his voice from the stage.

He was the second prince of this kingdom and my fiancé, Prince Alphonse.

"As you all know, I was engaged to this woman for the sake of the kingdom. However, this woman was not just lazy and incompetent. It is well known that she has been subjecting Maria, who is present here, to numerous acts of harassment."

The auditorium trembled with murmurs. The atmosphere was not so much one of astonishment but rather akin to hyenas waiting for their prey.

"Harassment... huh."

In reality, it was the young ladies over there who were smirking that were the ones engaging in petty harassment. I knew that Maria repeatedly subjected her to petty harassment simply because she didn't like her, and then dumped it all on me, the bothersome one.

"So, Sheriel Beriard was indeed a member of the demon clan."

"Even if she's a demon, if her abilities are average and only her temperament is demonic, then it's just a useless curse, isn't it?"

I was the illegitimate child of the Marquis family known as demons. That's me, Sheriel Beriard.

Listless and emotionless. An incompetent noble lady of slave origin.

The Beriard family is considered harmless as long as there is no curse, but Sheriel didn't even possess a curse, let alone magical powers.

Inconsistent beings like me, who are unable to fit into societal norms, are often despised by people and tend to be suspected of false accusations.

Living like a puppet, I was nothing more than a tool as the fiancée of the second prince of this country.

---That's the story up until today, at least.

Being restrained by the palace knights, enduring the pain of a dislocated shoulder, I glare at the two before me.

In front of me, there is the mocking Prince Alphonse and Maria Balkan, whose eyes are tainted with hypocrisy.

"Prince Alphonse, I'm sure if you talk to Sheriel-sama, you will understand. But, well, it's because of my existence that she has been cornered..."

"Maria is not at fault! It's the foolish woman who misunderstood her position who is to blame. It was a mistake to engage with a defective demon like her."

Despite that, I was burdened with inconspicuous tasks like research and speech preparation, among various other administrative duties.

"That's not all! This woman, taking advantage of her position as the fiancée, was leaking state secrets to the rebels. Therefore, she will be officially punished by His Majesty the King. Well, the death penalty is certain!"

With a face intoxicated by self-righteousness, he reveled in having brought justice to evil.

...Well, the part about being involved with rebels is actually true.

Since my family is somewhat unique, it is inconceivable for me to be punished as a rebel and for any collective punishment or dissolution of the family.

Both of my parents died a few years after I was taken in, leaving only my half-brother Didier.

Didier, standing next to Prince Alphonse, had a faint smile as he looked down on me.

"Ahaha, you, from the Beriard family, with no talent, being able to meet such a grand demise like this! How fortunate!"

He laughed as if celebrating.

That's the kind of person he is. Whether I live or die, I am nothing more than a source of boredom or amusement for him.

The only person I trust in this world is my teacher.

The one who needs me, the one I should serve.

In a lonely and stifling life, they were the only person who acknowledged me.

If it's for my teacher, I have no regrets even if it leads to execution.

However, I am certain...

As Alphonse's voice continues to drone on and becomes increasingly grating, I hear familiar footsteps approaching from behind.

"Teacher..."

At the same time as the restrained screams of the young lady, I am convinced by Alphonse's flustered state.

The teacher, who never shows themselves to others, has come to this lecture hall.

Due to being firmly held down on the floor, I cannot turn around.

With the footsteps and faint presence of my teacher getting closer, my heart pounds in my chest. Could it be that they have come to rescue me?

"Why... Why are you here, teacher?"

Crown Prince Alphonse steps back to protect Maria.

The knights simultaneously create a wall in front to shield Alphonse, but the teacher's voice remains as calm, pleasant, and clear as ever, saying, "Oh my, what a spirited remark. Did I disturb something?"

Could it be that the teacher is here to help me...?

"Is this as far as it goes?"

As his gentle voice resounds, my breath stops.

With a momentary delay, my core heats up like fire, and I realize that the red liquid spreading before me belongs to me.

"T-Teacher...?"

Unable to even lift my head as the sword pierces through the center of my body, I feel the presence of the teacher behind me. The sensation of something being lost from within me and the drowning sensation of pain contort my face in a way unbecoming of a noble.

Ah, yes. I am going to die here. Knowing that, I never understood the meaning of living... If I can be of use to the teacher, at least... that alone... would be... fine.

As my consciousness fades, I can no longer discern what the teacher is saying...

...Eventually, I awakened.

◆

"Uwaaah!"

I wake up and scream at the top of my lungs with my disabled body.

Then a woman gives me milk, takes care of my needs, and does nothing else, but it's enough for a baby.

In my hazy vision and hearing, I repeat only this dream of death.

The same scene, the same lines, the same ending.

Gradually, it nurtures my thinking ability.

But even if I vaguely understand this "life," when I wake up, I can't recognize people's faces or the details of events.

And whenever I try to think about something, my head buzzes and I immediately fall asleep.

I was mostly in a dream. It seems that babies sleep for a long time.

And...

...It seems like I was born into a place where slaves are looked down upon, and this is probably where they hide slaves.

So, I see, I'm going to die like that.

At just a few months old, with the thinking ability of an adult, I accepted my own death.

I was "Sheriel," living like a doll, scorned, discarded like a useless tool.

Hated by my stepmother, neglected by my father, celebrated with death by my stepbrother, killed by the only person I trusted.

That life had become so familiar to me that this wretched environment, this disabled baby's body, and the humiliating care didn't bother me.

I have died many times already, so it doesn't matter what happens to me now.

And so, I lived the life of a slave with a feeling of completely digesting my existence.

However, that abruptly changed more suddenly than a summer shower.

"...!?"

*...Huh? I should be dead, right? A dream? I died, but was born again? Reincarnation? Then it's not strange to have memories of my past life."

 [Initialization error?] "Bug? What's going on?"

A vivid flood of memories.

Like flipping a switch, my previous life comes back to me in its entirety.

It's not a vague dream when I wake up, but a sensation of having just died a little while ago.

I remember my parents' faces, the faces of those who caused my death, and even the nonsensical source code I wrestled with until the early morning of that day.

I remember everything, and that's why I'm confused.

My hands are small, my tongue is tangled, and all my senses are dull. Unfamiliar stone walls, straw, wooden boxes, and worn-out hemp cloth.

If I desperately move my neck with my limited range of motion, I can see children sitting still with vacant eyes.

It's definitely not the world I know. I think, "Huh?" and find myself in a familiar sleeping place.

...No, I am Sheriel Beriard. I'm a slightly unusual baby who dreams of dying at the age of sixteen every day.

I remembered myself. Me. Sheriel Beriard.

The dreams of death that had been repeated every day to the point where I didn't know which one was reality stopped after that day.

However, I sleep a lot. Because I'm a baby.

I sleep so much that it feels like I haven't been awake for several hours in a day.

...It's not so bad.

In my previous life, during the last three years, I was a shut-in at home.

I worked completely remotely, relying on online shopping for everything, living a hikikomori (social withdrawal) life.

Movies, anime, manga, novels... As long as I had those, I thought I could live as a shut-in forever.

But I never expected to actually spend my whole life like that.

I scratch my temple with my squishy little meatball-like arms.

After that, I ponder over those dreams of death that make up my existence.

Even with a head filled with scientific knowledge, I couldn't bring myself to dismiss them as just dreams.

Because "she" knew that she would die at that time.