<Chapter 121>
The uninvited guest, who had been silently listening to the entire story, was visibly shaken, his eyes clouded with confusion.
“You seem bewildered. But there’s no need to hesitate. This is all merely an illusion—nothing more than a crime committed for the sake of our continued prosperity, stealing the Spirit King’s relic and offering it to Arkane’s altar.”
The Spirit King’s relic… What exactly was it?
Ashmed recalled a rare moment from his memory long ago, an instance when Arkane, usually composed, had let a hint of underlying anger show.
[How audacious. To obtain his approval and then devise such a wretched scheme… There’s no need to see the culprit to know who it must be.]
What emotions had been reflected in those eyes, hidden beneath that white mask?
Ashmed had no way of knowing.
[…If that relic were to fall into human hands, would my brother be in danger?]
Reading the uncharacteristic anger and the undeniable trace of distress in his always gentle brother, Ashmed felt a creeping unease as he spoke.
[…Ah, Ashmed. I’ve spoken thoughtlessly before you. No, there’s no need to worry about me.]
Pale lips parted slightly in surprise, drawing in a breath, before curling into a soft smile.
[No matter what happens, I will never leave your side.]
The Spirit King of Darkness pulled his younger brother into a warm embrace.
[I will always be with you.]
From the moment of his birth, he had been held only by this one, singular existence. Sinking into that familiar comfort, Ashmed slowly closed his eyes.
[And to ensure that, I will use any means necessary.]
A fleeting whisper passed by, but at that moment, he failed to grasp its meaning.
[Could it be… that the reason the human nations possessing the relic kept falling into ruin…?]
Ashmed murmured in shock, seized by a sudden realization.
“You claim that the people were spared? Nonsense. Since the founding of our nation, we have used the power of Sak, and in return, to avoid the side effect of our flesh rotting away, we have taken the citizens of fallen royal families and sacrificed them as living offerings. Ah, and let’s not forget this as well.”
There was no real need to demand a price for granting some of his powers.
After all, his brother alone, out of all beings in this universe, held a status so exalted that even ‘He’ had acknowledged him as a rightful King.
So why did he impose a price on those who followed him?
[Even though I have bestowed such grace upon you… if your lives become too peaceful, if you feel no desperation, you will inevitably begin to neglect my commands. Therefore, I shall add a small condition.]
It was merely a way to tame beasts into puppets, ensuring that the idea of defiance never even crossed their minds.
“To allow Annushka’s priestess to divine with greater accuracy, we slaughtered more people, draining their blood for the ritual.”
“…”
“The politeness, the goodwill, it’s all an act. If these truths were ever exposed, the entire continent, which has so far merely observed from the sidelines, would undoubtedly unite to bring about Nisha’s destruction.”
The moment Ashmed fully grasped the confession, his emotions wavered between shock and doubt.
Had his brother hidden all of this from him?
It wasn’t that he felt sorrow for the insignificant creatures who had perished.
He clenched his hands, wrapped in thorns, his expression darkening.
But if they were so insignificant, then why go out of the way to destroy them?
He understood why the relic had to be removed, it was created specifically to bind his brother in chains.
But the senseless massacre of so many humans, as if it were merely a form of amusement… That was something he could not comprehend.
“…Utterly monstrous.”
The woman’s dazed murmur echoed exactly how Ashmed felt.
It was excessively cruel.
[ If they are nothing but meaningless creatures as you taught me…, then why do you harbor such deep hatred toward them?]
Ashmed whispered his unanswered question.
At last, an incomprehensible, purposeless hatred had begun to take root in his heart.
[…..]
With trembling eyes, Ashmed turned to look at Rose Hacardella.
Her expression was blank, her face deathly pale. Yet somehow, it seemed to pierce deep into his core.
He needed an answer.
At the end of his confusion, Ashmed made his decision.
I will go to Arkane and ask: Why have you been so cruel to the people who follow you? Why do you harbor such hatred for life itself?
Only by finding the answer could I truly define this emotion I now felt.
With a resolute expression, Ashmed left his place.
***
“…So if you simply hand over the Water Relic, you can free yourself from this endless suffering. No one will pursue you or your sister any longer.”
Khalid, his head lowered, murmured softly, gripping my hand tightly.
“Please, I beg you. Give up the Water Relic and run far away… live in peace.”
His gray eyes, filled with desperation, reflected only me as they shone.
“If you plead with the Spirit King, even a fragment of the Source fused into your body can be separated again. I can—”
“No.”
I could no longer grant his request.
“I will not hand over the Water Relic.”
With firm determination in my voice, I withdrew my hand from Khalid’s grasp.
“Even though my nation was destroyed by your kind, even though my own people abandoned me, the Water Relic is the very spirit of the Duchy of Hacardella. It is something that must be protected at all costs.”
For a moment, his dazed expression twisted into fierce anger. Khalid opened his mouth to speak.
“…How could you have understood my words—”
“Take me with you, then. Expose your savagery for all to see and try to threaten me if you must.”
His agitated voice came to an abrupt halt.
“If I must trade my ancestors’ relic just to survive in disgrace, then I would rather not live at all.”
Looking directly into his widened, dark pupils, I declared with certainty:
“The Water Relic will never fall into your hands.”
“…Why?”
His beautiful face twisted under the weight of despair. In a voice scorched with agony, Khalid murmured, his eyes filled with countless unspoken words as he looked at me.
“…The person I have come to know you as.”
Meeting his gaze without wavering, I spoke.
“You have always shown hesitation when it came to taking the Water Relic from me.”
“…!”
His moonlit eyes trembled.
“That is why you are speaking this way now, isn’t it? Because you cannot bring yourself to take me by force, you are trying to persuade me instead.”
What a foolish and cowardly man.
With a steady heart, I watched him waver.
Even now, unlike your kind, who have discarded every shred of human decency, you have neither let go of your morality nor turned against your people.
You continue to suffer, caught in the widening chasm between duty and conscience.
“Set aside the king’s command, the obligations of royal law. Speak only with the voice of your true self.”
At the end of this long road of truth, I made my decision.
“The truth is… you do not want to take the relic of Hacardella. You do not wish to be part of its destruction, do you?”
I will pull you from the endless labyrinth you wander in.
“The Einar royal family has ruled Nisha for generations. You, too, had no choice but to obey the king’s orders, staining your hands with sin.”
And so, you now face the reality of what that means.
“But do not forget—you are also of Nisha’s royal blood. Your ancestor was Ilkai, the brother of Einar, his equal.”
I will bring you to my side so that together, we may overthrow this rotting kingdom.
“I…”
Khalid’s face turned pale.
I did not wait for his rebuttal.
“The prosperity your country seeks is nothing more than a fragile tower built upon atrocities. Arkane will never protect you. And once your usefulness ends, your final fate will be a tragedy greater than the sum of all your past sins.”
“What… are you trying to tell me…?”
As if unable to bear hearing more, Khalid squeezed his eyes shut and asked.
“Do not stand by and merely grieve for your country as it walks the wrong path. Stand against it yourself and stop your homeland from sinking deeper into sin.”
For that is the only path that will lead to the future I once knew.
“Overthrow the tyrant and take the throne yourself.”
