Ch.179Outside. Winds of Change (3)

“The treatment is better than I expected.”

This was the murmur of Millia, a pink-haired female knight, as she sat on the bed during her first day in the Duchy of Microssia.

She was accustomed to a wealthy lifestyle.

Although she had been worked hard during her time at the border command, she hadn’t exactly lived in a gutter. She had shared a room with Yuni, and her privacy was somewhat guaranteed. She wasn’t easily impressed by ordinary hospitality.

However, the benefits provided to her by the duchy exceeded her expectations.

The island where Millia and her party members were stationed was Cadeira.

It was the island that had been most severely ravaged by Bynessa of the Tetrad, and it was also the closest to Ibiza Island, which Gwon Heejin had purchased in the past. It was also a large island comparable to the size of a decent count’s territory by Empire standards.

The house provided to the former Hero’s party members was among the finest on this island.

A south-facing house with impressive white walls.

Considering that Millia had been Gwon Heejin’s lover, it was surprisingly good treatment. After all, the collapse of the nations and their eventual consumption by the Hero wasn’t entirely unrelated to Gwon Heejin.

I hope this doesn’t lead to disaster if it’s discovered later.

After pondering briefly, Millia spoke to the guide assigned to her locally.

“Um, I don’t know if you’re aware…”

“I know. That you were active in the former Hero’s party.”

“And you still treat us this well? …Considering what you all went through in the past, I wouldn’t think we’d be welcome.”

“No, you are welcome. Actually, there was quite a competition behind the scenes to bring you all here. We even begged the liaison sent from the ducal court. I can’t tell you how proud we are to have succeeded. Haha.”

“…”

They competed to receive us?

For a moment, suspicion arose, but it was resolved shortly after. They weren’t just treating them well out of pity.

“Miss Millia, you’re a knight. And one with considerable skill at that.”

“Are there no knights on this island?”

“Effectively, no. There isn’t a single expert or 4th circle or higher mage on this entire large island. …First, that Tetrad member killed almost everyone, and those who remained fled to the Empire to save themselves, only to be annihilated by His Majesty the Hero King, who was a count at the time.”

“…”

“You are valuable talents here. We’re providing the utmost courtesy because there’s much you can do for us in the future.”

The guide withdrew, saying that dinner was ready.

Millia stood dazed for a while, unable to continue speaking, affected by the lingering impression of being called a “valuable talent.”

She couldn’t even remember the last time she had received such praise.

Of course, the former Hero’s party could be considered high-level personnel in their own right.

The elf Silvina, despite her peculiar style, could be evaluated as having skills comparable to the scouts of the past Hero’s party, and Yuni’s firepower was excellent. Claire, though now an ordinary nun with average holy power, had once been a Saintess.

‘But that didn’t apply to me.’

However, now she felt no shame at being called high-level personnel.

After diligently honing her skills, she had recently reached the level where she could use aura strikes, meaning she was knocking on the door of upper expert rank.

Of course, not all upper ranks were equal, and a knight’s martial prowess wasn’t determined by aura alone.

But it was true that she had acquired skills she could be proud of anywhere.

Especially in a region where military power had completely evaporated, her rarity value was inevitably higher. During the period of power vacuum, the duchy had become a land plagued by criminal organizations and frequent conflicts. This was a problem that even the Beast King couldn’t solve.

“Here… Yes. I’m needed.”

It was a moment when something touching welled up inside her.

What Millia had originally craved wasn’t recognition from residents of a region where she had no connections. It was to somehow become a master and elevate the Neize family to the status of a prestigious family comparable to the Waynelight family.

But perhaps due to her self-esteem being worn down over the years?

Just having people who valued her highly and held expectations for her made her heart flutter. Of course, she would have to work hard to live up to those expectations, but she was already resolved to do so.

Yes. Let’s give it a try.

With firm determination, she headed to the dining room where she saw her friends who had already started eating.

The mage Yuni, who had changed her hobby from sightseeing to gastronomy, and the nun Claire, who kept talking to Yuni who was busy tearing into bread.

Honestly, neither of them was particularly mentally healthy. Claire especially suffered from severe depression, probably from living under coldness and hostility for so long.

But she wasn’t particularly worried.

While the former Hero’s party was merely an object of ridicule that anyone could freely mock in the Empire, they faced relatively less pressure in the duchy.

In some ways, there was even a sense of kinship. After all, the duchy had also been treated as a garbage state before being annexed by the Empire.

A land where the wounded gathered.

Thinking about it now, there was no more suitable place for a fresh start.

“Millia, what are you doing? Sit down quickly.”

“Yeah. Sorry.”

Right. I should eat.

She wasn’t sure if the duchy’s food—decent bread slathered with olive oil—would suit her taste, but she had to eat anyway. She needed to eat to gain strength to meet people’s expectations.

It might be a bit overwhelming, and she might have to swallow some insults occasionally, but that was fine. It was nothing compared to the difficulties she had endured so far.

****

A report came in from the duchy.

“Your Highness. I’m informed that Gwon Heejin’s women have safely arrived in the duchy.”

And a few hours later.

“Um, His Majesty wishes to see you privately. Would you agree?”

The Emperor requested a meeting.

…

That evening, I headed to the main cathedral of the imperial diocese.

“Gwon Heejin. It’s been a while.”

These were the words I spoke after meeting with the old priest for official business, when I stopped by Gwon Heejin’s burial site.

Although there was no tombstone, I knew exactly where Gwon Heejin was buried. After all, I was the one who had presided over the funeral procedures.

Usually, I just trampled over it. I didn’t have enough time to chat with bone dust.

But today, I had something to tell him.

“Gwon Heejin. The women you kept around have been sent to the duchy. Given the circumstances there, they’ll likely all take on important responsibilities. It’s still a mess since the system collapsed once. If they just make an effort, they can live respected lives forever.”

“And since they’re still relatively young despite being fully grown, they might meet new men and start families. No, if they don’t reject advances, there will probably be many men who court them first.”

It seemed like a better environment for those women than the imperial capital. In the capital, performances satirizing Gwon Heejin and his women were still rampant. I heard that for the past few months, they’d even been using pig’s blood as props to depict torture scenes. They also said derivative works twisting the political history had appeared.

Gwon Heejin had fallen to that level of existence.

I wasn’t particularly mocking him. After all, he wasn’t even worth mocking.

Besides, I was the one who had paired Gwon Heejin with a good match in Iclit.

Iclit of the former Tetrad. Although she was infinitely far from the virgin that Gwon Heejin preferred, her face was not inferior compared to the four members of the former Hero’s party. Her character was also similar to Gwon Heejin’s, so they would be a compatible match in many ways.

There was one more piece of information I had to tell Gwon Heejin.

Matthias, Gwon Heejin’s only business partner.

I heard he had completely broken down about a month ago. Apparently, he had continued working silently even after getting a fork stuck in his face while feeding a mentally ill patient. I didn’t find this out myself; it was news that the Emperor had quietly informed me when he summoned me.

– “At that point, wouldn’t further punishment be meaningless?”

I could still vividly recall the Emperor’s face as he cautiously probed my thoughts. He seemed to have aged rapidly despite having relinquished control of governance.

It seemed the Emperor wanted leniency for Matthias, so I readily agreed.

In any case, next year there were plans to establish a facility for the disabled under the Crown Prince’s supervision. It seemed reasonable to allow Matthias to spend the rest of his life confined there. After all, there was no one left who harbored hatred toward him anymore.

From the former Hero’s party to Matthias’s current situation.

Although I had some drinks with the old priest, I wasn’t rambling because of intoxication. Nor was I updating Gwon Heejin on his acquaintances’ situations because I was worried he might be bored.

Rather, upon receiving these two pieces of news, I had a new realization.

“There aren’t many people left who remember you, Gwon Heejin.”

This might sound like nonsense given the popularity of plays and musical dramas featuring Gwon Heejin’s party.

However, it was hard to believe that the actors performing in those plays or the enthusiastic audiences specifically understood the impact Gwon Heejin had on humanity.

Just a pathetic and evil Hero who stole money, told lies, and was punished.

To most people, Gwon Heejin was just that kind of figure.

Not many people knew that their own rapidly vulgarized temperaments were due to the germs Gwon Heejin had spread. No, even if they were told, they probably wouldn’t empathize. So they would continue to freely mock Gwon Heejin and enjoy themselves.

Now that I had removed Gwon Heejin’s lover and business partner from sight, the number of people who remembered his harmfulness would decrease day by day.

I couldn’t help but feel a strange sentiment.

It wasn’t that I suddenly felt wronged; I just found myself curious. What kind of world would this rapid change triggered by Cordana create?

It might seem irresponsible for me to say this as the one leading this change, but I truly didn’t know. No matter how much I thought about it, it didn’t seem like it would develop in the same way as the world Gwon Heejin lived in. Perhaps it would develop in an extremely bizarre manner.

But it wasn’t as if I could stop now; I had no choice but to move forward into the unknown.

‘Watch from there, Gwon Heejin.’

I spat on Gwon Heejin before turning away.

On my way out, I noticed a statue of the Goddess. It looked extremely shabby and ugly. Graffiti requesting lottery wins was scattered here and there, and there were even traces of lottery numbers engraved with blades.

I briefly looked at that miserable sight and then just ignored it.

It was because I didn’t have the luxury to care about trivial matters like the desecration of the Goddess statue. I was busy enough just handling the tasks assigned to me.