Cursed System-Chapter 102: The realization and hidden story

RAGNA POV...

It was as though my answer had been enough to satisfy their curiosity for the moment, a thin layer of tension peeling away as they shifted the topic and began recounting their own experiences, and I remained silent, listening carefully while pretending to be nothing more than a mildly interested companion.

Gradually, I noticed Reiner becoming chattier again, his voice regaining that strange rhythm as he described the various places they had been taken to and the things they had seen after their captivity, and it was unsettling how quickly his earlier sadness dissolved into that perpetual, exuberant energy of his, the corners of his lips stretching into that familiar smile that never quite reached his eyes.

Sometimes he would say something that only he seemed to understand, then burst into laughter loud and unrestrained, as if the world itself were a private joke made solely for his amusement, and every time he did, a faint chill would creep along my spine despite the otherwise calm atmosphere of the cabin.

By the time I casually glanced around, I realized we were the only ones still awake, the dim lanterns casting long metallic reflections along the walls while the steady hum of the moving carriage filled the silence between our words, and it struck me that we had become so engrossed in the conversation that we had nearly forgotten it was already bedtime.

After bidding me farewell, the two of them headed toward their sleeping quarters, their footsteps fading gradually until the corridor swallowed the sound entirely.

The moment they disappeared from sight, something stirred within me so abruptly that I almost failed to contain it, my expression tightening before a slow frown settled across my face as I watched the empty hallway where they had just stood.

This was bad news.

As a curse child, I had always believed cursed children were meant to be anything but positive beings, that our instincts—sharpened by abandonment, survival, and a world that despised our very existence—would naturally mold us into creatures more sly and calculating than the government trying to bury its own sins, more mistrustful than stray dogs fighting over scraps.

Hatred, suspicion, self-preservation—those were traits I thought were unavoidable.

And yet, after observing other Cursed children, I found that ideology beginning to fracture.

Even more confusing was the fact that although our instincts were supposedly meant to make us despise the Holy Shrine, it almost seemed to have the opposite effect on them, as if something about that place had not instilled fear or hatred, but something far more complicated.

I found them suspicious—not merely because of my instincts, but because our very first interaction had been odd.

Reiner’s unusual politeness, especially, had felt rehearsed in a way that was difficult to pinpoint. It was as though they had been testing me from the start, probing subtly to see how I would respond, and whether that test would lead to something beneficial or disastrous remained unclear.

But my gut told me one thing.

They were dangerous.

Reiner, in particular, unsettled me. His eyes were always narrowed into thin slits beneath that cheerful smile, and no matter how harmless his laughter sounded, I could never shake the impression that he was constantly measuring the room, calculating variables behind that playful exterior.

He interacted with others far too easily for someone who had been captured and displaced. No hesitation. No guardedness. He had even revealed their secret to me without a moment’s pause, as if trust were disposable or perhaps part of a larger strategy.

That kind of personality reminded me of a wolf draped in sheep’s wool—approachable, warm even, until you realized the fangs had been there all along.

In contrast, Berthold seemed less immediately threatening, though that in itself might have been misleading. His expression barely shifted unless something truly surprised him, his face composed and almost indifferent, but there was a quiet awareness in his gaze that suggested he was observing far more than he ever voiced.

If Reiner was the one who spoke and laughed, then Matthew was the one who watched and remembered.

He struck me as the type who would decide whether someone was friend or foe long before revealing that conclusion, and once he made that judgment, it would not easily change.

After they left, no one else came to disturb me, and I found myself strangely grateful for the solitude.

Leaning back against the cold metallic plank wall, I closed my eyes, though sleep was the furthest thing from my mind as my thoughts began moving restlessly, circling around what I had just learned.

For the first time since arriving in this world, I had encountered something that genuinely shook me.

Not only were there other demons who possessed Systems, but they could also complete quests and gain rewards, just like I could. Yet according to them, such demons were rare—even among our kind.

Which led to an unsettling possibility.

Did that mean they had reincarnated as well?

If other cursed children with Systems were reincarnators like me, then those who were gathering cursed children might already be aware of it, and if they were aware, then there was a reason for collecting us instead of killing us outright.

A purpose.

I had engaged in conversation not out of companionship, but because information was more valuable than comfort.

In this place, fragments of truth were scattered everywhere, and even if I had not learned anything about the Steel Knights or the Holy Shrine directly, I had gained something perhaps more important—a broader understanding of other demons and the hidden structure of this world.

Everything seemed to point back to the Holy Shrine... or perhaps to something even deeper, like a reincarnation crossroad hidden behind its facade.

After sorting through the chaos of my thoughts, I recalled what the System had once said about achieving friendship.

Perhaps I should attempt it.

If nothing else, forging connections might yield advantages, and if betrayal came, then revenge would be served cold and without hesitation.

I let my breathing slow as I kept my eyes shut, though my mind remained alert.

There was no escaping the fact that I possessed a System. If the Holy Shrine had any method of detecting users, then hiding would be pointless.

The destination we were heading toward must be far from ordinary human settlements, hidden from prying eyes. The Steel Knights did not seem like demons, yet they did not resemble normal humans either.

If my guess was correct, their duty was to collect and safeguard demon children until we reached our final destination.

And perhaps they were unaware that some demons possessed Systems... or perhaps they simply did not consider us a threat worth isolating. I had walked past them several times without drawing suspicion, and if they had noticed anything strange about me, they had not shown it.

Still, according to the legends whispered among villagers, cursed children taken into captivity were executed immediately by the Holy Shrine, branded as death gods—devilish and cruel beyond redemption.

If that were true, then why were we still alive?

That contradiction lingered in my mind long after the carriage fell silent, and even as my body remained still against the cold metal wall, I knew one thing for certain.

Something about this journey did not align with the stories the world had so confidently told.