episode_0048

Decades ago.

Thump-

With the last one falling, all the guys who tried to ambush us were down.

Tap- tap-

“Whew, what a hassle.”

After tucking his gladius into his waist and shaking his hands for a moment, Agape looked at Kara, who was trembling behind him.

It seemed she still wasn’t used to seeing people die; her trembling like a frightened rabbit was rather cute, yet it also made him smile bitterly.

“Anyway.”

With such a weak heart, how would she live in the future?

Thinking this with a bitter smile, Agape extended a hand to the trembling Kara.

“It’s all over, Princess-nim.”

“……?”

Only then did Kara peek up, looking at him.

Unlike when she was a child, she wasn’t crying from fear, but she was still clearly scared, looking up at Agape while crouched down.

Flick-

Agape removed his hand from his knee and extended his right hand to Kara.

“Take it.”

“…….”

At his words, Kara gently took his hand.

Whoosh!

“Gasp…!”

As soon as she took his hand, he pulled her up with a swift motion.

Though she let out a small sound of surprise, she seemed bewildered, looking at Agape with a momentary expression of ‘what just happened?’.

Seeing this, he patted her head as if pressing it down, and said.

“Let’s go. Roland will start worrying soon.”

Thud. Thud.

“Um, Agape.”

“Hm?”

“Aren’t you scared, always risking your life fighting someone?”

“Why are you suddenly asking that?”

“Well…”

I trailed off for a moment, recalling the scene of Agape fighting earlier.

“…….”

Blood splattering, stabbing, being stabbed, and stabbing many more times.

Avoiding vital spots, muscles being cut, deep gashes tearing open.

Bleeding and bleeding, and even amidst a dizzying mind, he never let go of the sword in his left hand.

Always gripping the sword tightly, gripping the gladius in his left hand, he swung it to feed and protect me, to protect us.

‘It must hurt a lot.’

Even for me, just a needle prick from a sewing machine would often hurt so much it felt like I’d cry.

That’s why I wanted to ask.

How he could risk his life and fight every day.

I felt like it was a life I couldn’t endure for even a day, so how had Agape managed to withstand such a life every single day?

Thinking that, I answered the question Agape had just asked.

“Because I don’t think I could ever fight, risking my life every day.”

“Because you’re scared?”

“Yes.”

Tremble-

“…….”

I looked at my trembling hand.

For just a moment, I only imagined what it would be like if I lived a life like Agape’s, but my body, regardless of my will, trembled, declaring its fear.

“Coward.”

“…No, I’m not!”

Seeing Kara’s sulky expression, Agape involuntarily burst into laughter.

Then, as if he found her quite cute, he quietly stroked Kara’s head.

“…It feels like I’m being treated like a child.”

“Aren’t you a child?”

“We’re going to be adults soon!”

“You don’t even know your own age.”

“…Anyway, you never lose an argument.”

I pouted and grumbled.

“So, Agape, are you scared?”

“Scared of what?”

“Risking your life to fight.”

Firmly.

I gripped Agape’s hand tightly and said.

“If it were me, I think I would have collapsed without lasting a single day.”

“…….”

Did he sense my seriousness? Agape’s expression gradually grew serious, and he began to look forward again, speaking calmly.

“Because this is the only thing I can do.”

“The only thing?”

“…….”

I asked Agape again, but he remained silent for a long time.

He just looked forward silently, his eyes deep in thought, as if recalling a distant past, a very distant past before he even met Roland and himself.

“At first, I said I wanted to be a knight, a hero who saves the world like my father.”

It was the first thing he said after a long silence, but somehow, it didn’t seem to be directed at me.

It was too quiet for that, more like a murmur, as if he was chewing on his own words.

“Yes, at first it was like that…”

He said again in a small voice.

After a short time, his thoughtful eyes returned, and the murmuring voice he had used for himself also returned.

Agape then turned back to Kara and said this:

“You asked if death was scary, right?”

You asked if fighting, risking my life, was scary.

“I’m scared too. To be precise, a very long time ago, I was scared.”

A very long time ago.

He didn’t tell me the exact time, but for some reason, I felt like I knew when that was.

“But once I tasted a nightmare worse than death… no, a terrible hell—”

Agape gave a bitter smile.

“From a certain point, I stopped being afraid of such things.”

So now, I’m not scared.

When others ask what’s scarier than death, they’d probably say there’s nothing.

But at least for me, there’s one thing right now that’s far scarier than death.

Firmly.

As if never to let go, I held his hand tightly.

“…….”

Why was it?

Especially today, my gaze kept falling on his hand.

It was the same hand as always, and it wasn’t the first time we’d walked hand-in-hand, but my gaze was particularly drawn to his right hand.

And as I looked at his right hand,

my gaze naturally shifted to his left hand.

“…….”

His hand, blackened by extensive charring, bore countless scars, the blood of those he had killed, and calluses from gripping his sword.

Stained by char and covered in wounds, his left hand immediately showed me how hard his life had been until now.

In contrast, his right hand was different.

Though it also had calluses from touching a sword, the charring hadn’t spread, and its fair skin remained, making the calluses practically non-existent compared to Agape’s left hand, as he was left-handed.

‘Right.’

Thinking about it, Agape seemed to strictly differentiate his use of his left and right hands.

If he primarily used his left hand when gripping his sword,

unlike his right hand, his left hand had rarely… no, never, touched someone he cherished.

‘Is there a reason for this?’

I didn’t know the exact reason.

But looking at that hand, I could tell how much he had dedicated himself to us all this time.

How much he had strived to protect us.

How desperately he had lived to protect what was precious.

‘Risking his life to protect something.’

Something I couldn’t endure for even a day.

How long Agape had been doing such difficult and arduous work.

I didn’t need to ask; looking at that hand, I knew.

…Why, of all times, am I thinking of that moment now?

The sword clutched in his right hand created a perfect sword path.

Clanggggg────

As soon as she saw the trajectory of the perfectly drawn sword path, Kara hastily blocked his sword.

“Cough…!”

Unlike a normal knight, her body was using aura, so she could easily block the knight’s sword, which was swung slower than she expected.

But.

Hummmm──

The sword vibrated.

Tremble tremble tremble…

Her hand trembled.

It wasn’t a strong blow.

Even though the sword wasn’t imbued with aura, and his body wasn’t even enhanced by aura, a feeling of burden pressed down on her sword and hand.

‘Why.’

With a body not using aura…

With an unenhanced body, how could this be happening?

Her questions didn’t last long.

────!

Clang─!

“Ugh…”

The sword was swung again.

Not fast, but not entirely slow either.

It was a speed invisible to ordinary eyes, but to the eyes of knights with superhuman physiques, it was easily visible and manageable.

And the strength as well.

Clannnnng───

It wasn’t that strong.

No, it was incredibly strong.

Unlike herself, who used aura, her opponent was swinging his sword with pure brute strength, without any aura enhancement.

It was so strong, she wondered if his pure physical strength could even rival that of Rinaldo or Bradamante, who were the strongest in the knight order.

But compared to herself, who used aura, it wasn’t quite that.

No matter how great his pure physical ability, it couldn’t compare to a knight whose body was enhanced by aura.

So, while the knight’s strength was considerable, it couldn’t be compared to her own aura-enhanced power.

But even so-

Tremble tremble tremble tremble.

Her sword and hand couldn’t hold out.

As if unable to absorb all the force, her hand trembled like an aspen whenever she parried his sword.

Hummmm──

As if being hammered and broken, the sword repeatedly vibrated, signaling the continuous pressure it was under.

‘This is impossible…’

She couldn’t believe it.

She had Master-level aura.

Her swordsmanship was trained by Sir Nemo himself.

Her strength, which had easily pushed back even the legion commanders of the Death Host, was being pushed back by the sword of a knight who wasn’t even using aura.

Clang─ Clang─ Clannnnng───!!!!

Drawing a perfect trajectory, perfect openings, and a perfect sword path.

As if completely dominating this fight, he, with a body not using aura, was thoroughly creating cracks from her weak points and then shattering them.

Drawing a perfect sword path that reminded her more of Sir Nemo… no, perhaps even Uncle-nim Orlando.

Drawing a sword path that was fatally beautiful, yet simultaneously destructive.

Without a moment to react, she, who had toppled countless enemies with pure swordsmanship alone, was being overwhelmed.

Clannnnng───

“Cough…!”

She realized instinctively.

The appearance of the perfect sword path, to her, a knight and hero, was madly beautiful.

But she realized this sword was made to thoroughly destroy and kill someone.

No matter who the opponent was, no matter how they defended. She realized this sword was meant to destroy and kill the opponent in unimaginable ways.

A sword for destruction and death.

I will die.

As she was overwhelmed by the devastating swordsmanship, that sentence flashed through her mind.

And the fear of death, which she thought she had overcome early in her career as a hero, began to creep up on her.

“Aren’t you scared, always risking your life fighting someone?”

Agape.

I’m scared.

Thump-

Finally falling backward, she looked up at the knight approaching her.

His brilliant golden armor made him look like a sacred guardian of the continent.

Shiiing─

But the sword he held seemed to literally embody death.

Remembering the fear of death she had forgotten, Kara recalled the face of the man who always protected her.

His face, the one she loved more than anything, the one who must not be absent from this world.

‘Agape….’

I tried to live desperately… with the same heart as you….

I’ve done my best to live until now….

Creak─ Creak─

Somehow, I wanted to be as brave as you….

‘I…’

I don’t think I can be like you.

Whoosh────

“It’s all over, Princess-nim.”

Agape.

Save me.