Ch.131Ill-Fate

“Yes. You remember well. It remains a secret from others in the future. Understood?”

Elisabeth handled the situation calmly, and Kain finished his recording despite his trembling. The priest mumbled as if dreaming, as if talking in his sleep.

“Of course. I won’t tell anyone.”

“Good. But I’m curious about something. Why does your ‘master’ focus only on the ‘Black Fire’? It’s all about hatred and revenge.”

At Elisabeth’s question, the priest straightened his posture like a boastful child.

“They say there are too many wronged people in the world. Too many to count. Nothing gets better, only worse, so we must take revenge. We shouldn’t trust anyone. They only think about deceiving, stealing, and killing. We can only trust ourselves, the shadow, and the darkness.”

“What do shadow and darkness mean to you?”

“Light finds us and kills us. They tie us to posts, set fires, and whip us. But in darkness and shadow, everyone is respected.”

The priest continued speaking rapturously, as if describing a fantasy land.

In darkness, no one can be distinguished. Every word from the darkness is respected equally. Everyone is the same. Everyone is equal.

And everyone wants revenge. Retribution. Anger. Hatred. Overthrow. The priest declared firmly.

“The bad ones must all die. They need to suffer. We need to show them what we’ve been through. We need to teach them that we are… people too. So no one will look down on us.”

* * * * *

The conclusion was the same. They stamped each report page with ink and collected hair strands stuck to the priest’s clothes. The priest collapsed and fell into a snoring sleep.

After calling the guard to drag the priest away, Elisabeth slumped. Kain caught her, startled.

“What? Going to kiss me?”

“You look unwell…”

“Let’s get out of here. It’s stifling.”

Kain supported Elisabeth outside. They headed to the garden behind the prison. Befitting a monastery where water was scarce, there were few plants or trees, but there were well-polished stone benches and a magnificent two-headed eagle statue. It seemed like a place of prayer for those seeking solitude.

Even here, pigeons wandered about. Elisabeth traced her finger in the air, and two pigeons approached, hopping. She tied Bördem’s hair to one and the priest’s hair to the other, then sent them flying.

“A moment of respect for the innocent sacrifices.”

Elisabeth bowed her head. One would die today, the other tomorrow. They would receive the curses placed on Bördem and the priest.

“Wait here a moment.”

Kain headed to the dining hall. He asked the monastery’s food steward for watered-down wine, a handful of dried fruit, and a piece of cheese. When he mentioned it was for the Inquisitor, they readily provided it.

Elisabeth accepted gratefully. She took small bites, chewing slowly as if trying to memorize the taste.

“Aren’t you eating?”

“I’m fine.” After eating and resting a bit, Elisabeth’s complexion improved noticeably. But Kain’s relief was short-lived when Elisabeth suddenly thrust her face forward.

“Why are you doing that?”

“Wipe off the crumbs.” Elisabeth laughed at Kain’s confusion. There wasn’t a speck of dust on her face, but Kain carefully wiped her face with his sleeve.

As he was about to lower his hand, Elisabeth grabbed his wrist.

“You’re the one who looks terrible.”

“It’s a shocking story.” Kain tried to gather his confused thoughts.

“A handsome boy, perhaps once a White Blood Knight apprentice, set out on a crusade against the Demon King with a childhood friend, a girl from his hometown.

The Demon King could summon shadows and all kinds of monsters that drew out fear and terror just by looking at people.

The weak-willed broke early, and as the advance stalled, the crusade eventually mobilized even children. They thought innocent children… might be able to break through.

But in the end, it was that ‘handsome boy’ and his childhood friend who went to the front lines. How could I tell such a story with a smile?”

Kain couldn’t bring himself to tell their ending. The handsome boy became a monster. Riding a ghostly monster ship floating in the air, he became an avenger wielding a scabbard, appearing before those who yearned for revenge.

Perhaps to avenge the girl who was said to be beautiful. The girl who had the Demon King forcibly sealed inside her, had her limbs cut off, and was buried alive.

Heroes follow different paths. Some went into seclusion, some fled because they couldn’t face what they had done, but some… tried to make the Demon King’s magic their own.

Roberta did. Hans did.

But how? How could they take and wield the Demon King’s power? Magic, or…

“…Elisabeth.”

“Yes?”

“What happens to hatred that isn’t circulated?”

Elisabeth closed her eyes. Rocking her body slightly back and forth, she looked like a sage reciting inherited wisdom.

“It stagnates and rots. Hatred never fades. Hatred is a hungry beast with fierce teeth that will devour everything until it’s satisfied.”

“…Can hatred be passed on?”

“Family enemies. Sworn adversaries… hatred can be passed down through generations. And hatred that’s passed down grows stronger.”

“Why is that?”

“Because it’s not one’s own hatred.” Elisabeth opened her eyes. They were filled with bleakness.

“It’s easier between the actual parties involved. They can kill or forgive each other. But learned hatred is different. It doesn’t disappear even if you kill the original party. Inherited hatred takes root again, grows, and stains the heart with darkness…”

“How can such hatred be eliminated?”

“It’s difficult. Very difficult.” Elisabeth took a deep breath.

“You must question yourself as the one who hates. Or burn everything so there’s nothing left to hate. And decidedly, the second option is easier.

Just as a person cannot cut off their own flesh and blood, hatred that has become part of oneself doesn’t easily get cut away. And as you can see from that priest…”

Elisabeth weakly pointed toward the priest.

“Those already captivated by hatred are easily triggered. It’s like overflowing water. Water gathers to form rivers, and a flooded river won’t stop until it breaks the banks. That… Hans person probably handled this skillfully.”

“…You seem to know a lot.”

“Hatred is always the same.” Elisabeth coughed softly. “Anger can at least be vented and released, but hatred is something you accumulate and store… which makes it worse…”

Her voice lost strength, and her eyes closed. Elisabeth needed rest. Kain hesitated. If she wanted, she could rest sufficiently and wake up with a clear mind.

But she had already made a difficult decision. It wouldn’t be right to tempt someone who had already made up their mind. Finally, Kain made his decision.

“You need to rest. Let me escort you back.”

“Wait.”

Elisabeth stopped Kain as he was about to stand up.

“Yes?”

“Will you really go all the way?”

Elisabeth’s eyes were calm. Serious without any trace of playfulness. Kain nodded.

“Yes. Even if it costs me my life, I won’t stop of my own accord.”

“Since I might not get another chance, I’ll be honest. I understand their feelings. I too have been persecuted by the Empire and the Order, and I hate them. But you work for the Empire, don’t you?”

Kain became a little anxious. He couldn’t read her intention in suddenly bringing this up.

“…Yes, that’s right.”

But Elisabeth merely stretched her arms behind her back, as if trying to push away her drowsiness for a moment.

“Watching your journey, I’ve been very curious. You’ve been greatly disappointed in the Empire. And in the Order too. After today… do you really think the Empire is worth protecting?”

Kain couldn’t answer easily. Elisabeth asked an even harder question.

“The more you walk, the more things will change. You’ll face more disappointment and frustration, and as the truth comes to light, people will weep and grieve. Because it’s different from what they’ve known. By what right do you try to shatter everyone’s fantasies and hopes?

Surely you don’t believe happiness awaits at the end of this?”

“…I have no such expectation.”

The more he uncovered, the more filth overflowed. The more he knew, the deeper his disillusionment grew. The disgust Kain had felt toward the Empire so far was nothing compared to what was to come. Elisabeth reached out and stroked Kain’s chin and cheek with the back of her hand.

“And yet, you intend to continue?”

“Yes.”

Kain bowed his head. Elisabeth cupped his face with both hands.

“Look up. Don’t lower your handsome face. Look at me and tell me. Why do you want to continue?”

After hesitating, Kain answered.

“…It’s embarrassing, but I… I’m not great enough to consider things like the fate of the world or the corruption of the Empire one by one.”

Elisabeth nodded as if encouraging him to continue. Kain went on.

“Honestly, I don’t even know what I’ve been doing with my life until now. That’s why I set out on this journey. I wanted to know what meaning my actions had, whether they truly helped the Empire… and what meaning they had for myself.”

“So, how about now? Have you found your answers?”

“Some things I think I understand, but others I’m still not sure about. You told me before. Why look for meaning outside myself? I…”

What should he say? Kain felt lost. Language faltered on his tongue. His wandering gaze fell on the monastery’s main building.

The top.

“…I’m just moving toward the summit. Perhaps from the peak, I’ll be able to see what I’ve done and what it all meant. But right now, I don’t know.”

Elisabeth embraced Kain.

“Kain. Poor Kain… Whether good or evil, if you’ve influenced the world in any way, you’ll receive an answer in return.

The reward for good deeds isn’t always good. It might even be worse. Conversely, evil deeds sometimes return as good.

Even if balance is eventually found… no one knows whether it will happen in your lifetime, or when. Can you bear that injustice?”

“I’ll regret it,” Kain confessed. “I think I’ll regret it. Why didn’t I do things differently then, why didn’t I run away then—I think I’ll regret it. No, I definitely will. Because I always have.”

“You can still run away.”

The witch whispered in his ear.

“You’re practically struggling alone. Is there really no one else in this vast Empire besides you? Don’t you feel resentful doing thankless work that no one appreciates?”

Kain took Elisabeth’s arms. He gently pushed her away. Kain wasn’t angry. Elisabeth’s questions were calm. It felt relieving, as if she was asking on his behalf all the things that had been troubling his mind.

“I don’t feel resentful.”

“Really?”

“Somewhere in this vast world, there must be people who dedicate themselves to others. I just don’t know them. I don’t think I’m suffering alone. It’s just…”

Countless people flashed through his mind. All those ordinary people he had met so far. People who did their best in their own way.

People like Albin who took wrong paths but didn’t cross the final line. The Holy Grail Knights who, despite being bewildered by Maria’s authority, tried to do their part in a chaotic city.

“How would this vast and chaotic world function without such quiet people? So I simply believe. That there are many people like me. But my eyes are narrow, my ears are dull, and my thoughts are biased… so I just don’t know.”

Kain gazed steadily into Elisabeth’s eyes. The witch’s clear, transparent eyes were there.

“Yes, I still believe it’s worth fighting for. Even if the world isn’t beautiful.”

“The Empire and the Two-headed Eagle will certainly pay the price.”

The witch solemnly declared.

“They’ve accumulated too much karma and committed too many sins. The suffering of the Empire now is the return of those past sins. Having taken what wasn’t theirs, they must pay back an equal price. You’ve caught a bad wave, Kain. But…”

Yet the witch smiled brightly.

“Yes, tragedy is always grandiose. It turns people upside down like the night sky. What overcomes such things isn’t a sun as thick as a pillar, but small moments of laughter like starlight. Don’t you agree? Without those small, sparkling, trivial things, who would light up the night sky? But…”

Her hand stopped. Sadness settled on the Great Witch’s face.

“There are certainly those who have never experienced even a moment of such things. Even if they exist, there are those whose hearts the light cannot reach. Those who close their eyes themselves and whom the world doesn’t shine light upon. Like that priest child.

That child is just returning to the world what he received from it. He doesn’t believe in future possibilities. Because he hasn’t seen or experienced them so far.

That child who has become Black Fire… will only know resentment and revenge. And the people you must face are such people. People who grew up differently from you. People who weren’t as fortunate as you.”

“Tell me.”

Kain’s arms tensed.

“What should I do?”

“Do as you did with me.” Elisabeth’s voice grew thinner. It was like a fading spring breeze. It was so faint that Kain had to embrace her to hear.

“Don’t try to understand them. Just as they can’t understand you, you can’t understand them. But you can show them.”

“Show them what?”

“The will to be good. Even when insulted, defiled, and mocked, just walk as far as you can. It’s okay if you get tired and collapse along the way. Someone else might be able to go further than you did. You’ve already done that. You gave me courage. The courage to choose righteousness over happiness.”

Elisabeth closed her eyes. The standing trees seemed to wave goodbye.

“…Thank you for playing along with my teasing.”

“Thank you for everything you’ve done.”

“…Have pity on all the wastelands of the world. Like people starved for affection, they’re never satisfied with just one bowl of love and keep begging… all those lands…”

“I will remember.”

“Especially. The northeastern wasteland.”

Kain looked at Elisabeth with slightly puzzled eyes. The northeastern wasteland? The birthplace of the Demon King and the land of shadows. A useless place abandoned since ancient times. At least that’s what Kain knew.

But Elisabeth continued to whisper. Confusion and shock crossed Kain’s face, but eventually he nodded silently.

“You understand…?”

“Yes.”

“It’s a very old story. Even for me, it’s from the distant past of my grandmother’s grandmother’s grandmother… but it definitely happened. The sin and karma of the Empire and the Order… when light and shadow were divided in two… it might be meaningless. But I hope… it helps…”

Kain was also somewhat puzzled. The story Elisabeth told was from so long ago. A story from the early days of the Empire, when it was establishing itself.

But it was also a story no one else could tell. A tradition passed down only through the mouths of those who had disappeared into the shadows of history, those whose roots had been cut off—the oral tradition of the defeated.

Kain accepted it calmly. Whether it was true or not could be judged later. For now, it was enough to know that such a story had been passed down.

“Now, will you lay me down? I think it’s time for me to go.”

Elisabeth quietly closed her eyes. Kain gently laid her on the bench.

Just as her head touched the bench, Elisabeth suddenly opened her eyes and kissed him on the cheek. It happened before the startled Kain could react.

“…Ah.”

Elisabeth burst into laughter.

“Lips are for lovers. A kiss on the cheek is fine, isn’t it?”

“…Are you teasing me again?”

Kain’s voice was flustered.

Elisabeth burst into laughter. A refreshing laugh like the joy of a young bird, as happy as a parent facing a beloved child, a sparkling laugh solely for this moment. Just for now, this moment.