episode_0059

Father. Mother.

Now my parents’ faces are blurred and even their voices are hazy.

Your son has lived a life of shame.

An indecisive and weak-minded person grew into an adult who committed sins.

Maybe, because so many things had happened in such a short period of time, I hadn’t yet realized that I was an adult.

I lost something precious due to my incompetence and was toyed with by a tricky fate.

Even though my precious daily life has been ruined so many times, I can’t bring myself to express my anger.

How can I do it? How can I dare to blame others and give up on myself?

They say it has to be me. If I don’t, countless people will be unhappy.

When I recall that fate, I feel the heavy air pressing down on my resentment that has reached its critical point.

But still, I finally got it. The treasure that made me an adult.

I have something precious that I would not mind protecting for the rest of my life. A small hand held me tightly, as if I would fly away like a leaf if I lost my mind.

Perhaps, fate was decided here.

I am now willing to shoulder the burden of protecting it.

I want to be a proud parent like you.

Just as I looked at your backs as a child and thought of heroes, I hope that child will feel the same way when he looks at mine.

Even though I may not be a very good person, I will try to be a good father.

I have to go downtown tomorrow to get some winter clothes, so I’ll end it here.

I sincerely hope that you will forget your son, who is a stain on your life, and live happily.

-From the diary of the Arkaden Butler-

◇

The phenomenon occurred without warning.

One day, evil spirits came in like a meteor shower and destroyed all the symbols that reminded them of Arkaden. Arkaden’s mansion was completely unaware of this fact until they confronted them directly.

While a thousand knights galloped across the vast fiefdoms of Arkaden, seventy-two stars set foot on the Duke of Arkaden’s estate.

The gatekeeper guarding the gate opened his mouth, sweating profusely.

“Who, who are you? I haven’t heard of such a large number of visitors…”

“Hit it.”

The Holy See issued an unjust order.

Crunch!

As soon as the order was given, the two guards on either side of him cut off the heads of the two guards in one stroke.

Their cold black swords cut through the gates of Arkaden with such ease that they cut through rotten branches.

“From now on, we will carry out the extermination of Arkaden and the search for the witch. Be thorough and do not let even a single rat escape.”

“Yes! Okay! ”

Indeed, among the seventy-two holy works, he was the first. The power of the Holy Work of Neterto was great. The title of the brightest star of the empire was not a decoration.

Doo doo doo doo!

A legion far beyond human categories entered Arkaden’s mansion at once. The fear and awe emanating from the sudden intruders was more than a single servant could handle.

“Huh, huh…! Who… ugh.”

“Gyaaaah! The weird guys are invading!”

“The Knights? No, that’s…?”

Even in a chaotic situation, something that should not have been seen was reflected in the eyes of one attendant.

star.

The moment they saw the silver stars embroidered on their uniforms, the humans in the mansion lost their will to rebel. They were the transcendent beings of the Heaven and Earth who had assisted the current emperor in building a great empire in one generation.

Anyone who tried to leave the mansion was executed, but the servants who cooperated obediently were spared.

The holy men drove all the servants to the third floor. Arkaden’s servants, who had fallen to their knees without knowing what was going on, sobbed miserably. They were shaking with fear beyond their ability and rubbing their hands roughly like flies rubbing their forelegs.

“Is this all?”

“Yes, that’s right, except for the people who are out and about.”

“That’s enough. As long as you have the list, you can always kill the rest.”

The fingers of the Holy Knight gently brushed the upper part of the pommel of the sword.

‘It seems the warrior is not at the mansion.’

Towards the despairing and desolate Arkaden family, the Holy See asked:

“There will be an immigrant man named Baekryeon in this mansion. Tell me where he is.”

“I, I know!”

One of the maids raised her hand. Her eyes were filled with hope, as if she could escape alive if she just told them the whereabouts of the white lotus.

At this, when the Holy See’s chin clicked, the maid’s answer flowed out like a torrent.

“He went downtown early this morning. He said he was going to stop by a clothing store. If you patrol the central shopping district, you’ll find him right away…!”

The maid didn’t end her words there. She chewed on the lotus flower excitedly, as if trying to please them.

“Did that foreign man do something wrong? I knew it. You were already angry and said you couldn’t control him! Just give us the order and we’ll catch that man and hand him over!”

The servants began to increasingly agree with the maid’s argument.

“Yes, that’s right! We will step forward. Your nobles, don’t dare get your hands dirty!”

“I didn’t like it from the beginning. A foreigner is the head of the household. This is the end of the world.”

“I will catch you even if I have to throw my body. Just give me one chance!”

The atmosphere was instantly filled with hope.

If you sacrifice one of the black-haired, black-eyed, ominous foreigners, everyone will live. That kind of formula or calculation method that had no formula at all was spreading as if it were mathematically correct.

At that moment, the Holy See of Neterto slowly raised his hand. It was a revelation to keep his mouth shut.

Then he chuckled.

“Capture it? You guys, that’s it?”

It’s not even funny.

Even though he’s rotten, he’s the one who caught the king of demons. That means he alone has the talent to take over the border of the empire.

How could such small creatures dare touch it?

It would have been neat if they had caught him in the mansion, but it didn’t mean that the mission was disrupted. The mission was supposed to stir up the city as Arkaden’s fiefdom needed ‘organization’.

Now all that’s left is…

“I have one more question. Where is the eldest daughter of this family?”

It was the witch’s extermination.

Although the Holy See had only asked briefly, the servants quickly betrayed their master.

“4th floor, it’s on the 4th floor!”

“I’ve never come down from the 4th floor in all the time I’ve been here!”

“That, that is, that child is a dirty child created by a conspiracy between a dirty foreigner and a duchess! Please punish him for insulting the nobles!”

The last accusation was quite refreshing.

He had an affair with the Duchess.

Certainly, the Duchess of Arkaden was one of the most beautiful women of all time. If that foolish man had been fooling around with the Duchess, it would explain why he was fighting the witch.

The Duchess was kept a secret because she was his lover, and the legitimate daughter was kept a secret because she was his child. Isn’t this a truly reasonable conclusion to logic?

“Isn’t the search on the 4th floor over?”

“That must have been the case… I’ll take another look and come back.”

“The mansion is large, so don’t just glance over it. Even if you combined the main palace and the annex, it wouldn’t be this large. ”

“I will correct it. Your Majesty, Neterto.”

After that, more than thirty men ran up to the fourth floor and searched the rooms as if they were searching for them. The size of the mansion was the target for now, but it was only a matter of time before they were discovered.

That prediction was not wrong.

After several dozen minutes, a loud noise rang out.

“Found it!”

The place where Letia was found was on top of a bookshelf that was far taller than an adult’s height. It was a place where it was questionable how a child could have climbed. Even with such a large number of people, the search was likely to be delayed.

Soon, Letia was revealed to everyone, dangling from the hand of a saint. And as soon as he saw Letia’s black hair and black eyes, Neterto became convinced. Baekryun’s betrayal was indeed due to her obsession with women.

“I, His Holiness Neterto.”

“What is it?”

“This kid is an idiot. It seems he can’t even speak properly.”

“What does that mean?”

“How about presenting it to His Majesty first and then deciding what to do with it? It’s still young, so it won’t pose much of a threat. So who knows if it’ll be useful?”

“… That makes sense.”

In this situation, he neither cried nor laughed. He was different from ordinary children.

It must have been close to a person with limited intelligence who did not even have the ability to judge the situation.

So, it is judged that there is no threat yet.

The Netherto statue turned its back towards the stairs.

“What should I do?”

“Dispose of the rest immediately.”

“I will accept it.”

At that moment, a hellish scene unfolded behind the Netherto Castle. Abigail decorated the interior, dyeing the floor and walls red. A thick scent of blood dominated the space, symbolizing death.

Cut off the heads of those who give up, cut off the limbs of those who resist, and stab the chest of those who run away.

It didn’t take five minutes for the one-sided massacre. Countless lives were lost without leaving behind any value.

The mansion collapses.

It burns brightly and covers the history of prosperity with a red light.

The huge treasure trove that was praised by architects is now being shattered into pieces.

Afterwards, the seventy-two Counts discussed their next course of action in the manor of the mansion. Meanwhile, Count Neterto kept his eyes on Letia, who was hanging from someone else’s hand.

‘Not a bad opportunity. I got a chance to explore the truth about witches.’

He is so immature and foolish that he has no ability to resist. If we do it well, we can brainwash him into becoming subservient to the royal family.

It was truly a great harvest.

It would be a profitable deal to obtain the witch in exchange for the destruction of Arkaden.

Yeah, it’s a good deal. It’s worth paying.

Everyone was thinking that.

Until, outside of consciousness, a desperate scream was heard.

“…… Ugh, groan, euaaaah…!!!”

Someone at the back cried out in pain.

Red blood soaked into the grass, and the fresh scent of blood tickled my nose.

“My hand…my hand…!”

The man stared at his hands, which were dropped on the grass, with boiling eyes and sobbed.

He was holding the holy grail as if hanging Letia.

In response to the sudden change, everyone looked around and raised their alert level.

“… Letia.”

The sorrowful voice cracks.

The man suddenly appeared as if he had been there from the beginning, hugged the girl, covered her eyes, and covered her ears with both hands.

It was quite funny to see a young girl wearing her winter uniform over her shoulders.

Letia tilted her head, enveloped in the warmth of the clown.

“Ahh… Ah-ap─daddy?”

“It’s not scary. Nothing happened.”

“Letia. Don’t be scared─Anaa─.”

“Right.”

Next, Baekryun whispers.

“This is a game. Letia closes her eyes tightly, covers her ears tightly, and counts sheep in her head.”

“Ke─im. Letia, good─love─you.”

“The more sheep you count, the more Letia wants…”

Baekryeon bit her lip and stopped talking. But that was only for a moment, and she soon continued talking as if nothing had happened.

“I’ll listen to you more… Can you do it?”

“Woof!”

“… You’re a good person, Letia.”

Baekryeon put the girl’s uniform on Letia’s shoulders and covered her head.

“This is just the beginning, Letia.”

“Arat─Sure.”

Letia answers forcefully.

Then, an innocent voice, with a strange beat, leaked out through the thick hem of the child’s uniform.

“Hanaaaa. Duuuul. Yeseeet. Umm… Seeet?”

While Letia clumsily listed the numbers, Baekryeon stepped forward.

Tears flowed from her pitch-black eyes, rolling down her cheeks and falling fleetingly onto the swaying blades of grass.

The foreigner’s true feelings, which had been suppressed for a long time, were fervently longing for the outside world.

He says.

“There was only one thing I wanted.”

I hope I don’t lose anymore.

I hope that the happiness I have barely caught doesn’t slip away like fine sand between my fingers.

That’s all I wanted.

“I did not hate the absurdity and irrationality of this world.”

It was just a visit from necessity.

He believed that both he and this world were just misfortunes that he had encountered after trying to figure out how to survive on his own.

“Ignored the fact that it was hypocrisy and a wrong answer.”

Otherwise I wouldn’t have been able to bear it.

Because somewhere along the way, it felt like I was crossing a path from which I could never return.

“Now I will face reality.”

It was the last chance.

A worthless life. The last bastion found at the end.

He was a miraculous child who became a family to the lonely ghost.

“Take up your sword.”

I’m informing you softly.

“I will seek justice on the place where seventy-two stars fell.”

It is irreversible.

This time I’ll protect it for sure.

What is there to be afraid of?

I would gladly cut down even a cursed fate to protect the small life behind me.

“I am a warrior.”

11:00 AM, November 1st, Year 508 of the Imperial Calendar. All Saints’ Day.

The advent of the warrior.