In the evening when the moon had already begun to rise and the sun had set, the interior of the dining room was bathed in the soft glow of candlelight set on silver candle sticks that were hung amongst the elegant wall decorations.
Under the long dining table, spilled red wine was dripping down the edges of the table staining the carpet red. Amidst the eerie silence, only the sound of someone’s gasping and the occasional wheezing echoed.
“Ugh…!”
The maid, who was scraping at the floor with her nails in anger, trembled one more time, then collapsed, limp. As the chilling sounds of the maids struggles disappeared, the room became silent, but the surroundings still appeared chaotic.
There was a corpse lying on the floor in a strange position, a white table cloth stained with wine and blood droplets, cutlery lying strewn everywhere. The man sitting at the dining room table looked down at this scene with cold eyes, clicking his tongue.
“Damn. She took her own life.”
His gaze was emotionless as looked upon the corpse on the floor. The man leaned back against the chair and gazed around indifferently. Finally, his eyes landed on the now cold food and the wine glass that was still slowly rolling back and forth on the table.
The evening meal for the man had contained a poison, lethal enough that even a beast would have fallen in only an instant.
At that moment, a woman with light blond hair standing next to the man spoke calmly as she watched the lips of the corpse turn blue.
“It looks like there was poison hidden in her mouth.”
“Well, I suppose she swallowed it as soon as she was discovered.”
Hearing the grumpy tone in the man’s voice, the red-haired man squatted down in front of the maid’s corpse and sighed.
“…Was it sent by them again?”
“Its possible. Considering how they were able to cut ties so cleanly like this, its wouldn’t be strange.”
“Every time… They never get tired of sending these assassins, even if it’s the same result every time. It’s almost impressive.”
“What’s so amazing about it? Its always been like this. It’s nothing new.”
The man crossed his legs as he raised the corner of his mouth. The cynical smile on his delicate face made him look even colder.
Thick hair, blacker than ebony. Red lips, curved gracefully beneath the straight bridge of his nose. Sharp eyebrows, with distinct lines as elegant as his lips, but made him appear slightly harsh. But, the most striking feature was his vivid irises. A beautiful purple color that could not be found among any ordinary humans.
The man’s exceedingly beautiful face bore a striking resemblance to the ‘witch’ who had terrorized the kingdom 20 years ago.
“I see…”
The red-haired man looked at the face of the man seated at the table and smiled bitterly.
Son of the deceased former Crown Prince. Duke Killiard. The new monarch of Killiard, who revived the once dying land they now stood on within five years. A rare genius who became a swordmaster at the age of 16, commander of the Knights of Philres.
But, of all the names he is known by, he was most widely referred to as ‘the witch’s son’. Asher de Phillion.
People thought of his name as a curse and pointed fingers at it, treating him as a monster. He was a feared figure, a reminder of the massacre that took place 20 years ago and, at the same time, he was the perfect target for the victims to pour out all of their anger and hatred onto.
The tragedy of 20 years ago. The so called ‘Seveka incident’.
In just one night, so many terrible things happened: a city was completely wiped out by the hands of just one person. The incident resulted in numerous victims and remains as an indelible fear in people’s memories.
Even those who didn’t directly experience the events couldn’t help but show fear at the mere mention of the witch’s name. In contrast, the gazes directed toward Ash were mainly contempt and disdain. However, there were still many who feared him. Especially when they met his gaze, the same purple as the witch’s eyes, they unconsciously recoiled in fear.
The dead maid, unlike the others who trembled and cowered every time they saw Ash, was different. She had looked at him in a friendly manner and asked about his well-being. This made the red-haired man feel even more sorry. He thought that there was now one more person who looked at their Lord with unbiased eyes, but it was all just a façade. The maid had ulterior motives.
Perhaps she was somehow connected to the Seveka incident as well.
The incident had resulted in countless victims and gave rise to the resentment and anger of countless people. The resentment of the innumerable people became a blade that was always lurking in the dark, ready to stab Ash if he ever let his guard down.
The dead made is just one example of the many blades that have attacked Ash bearing a grudge against the witch. Although, there seemed to be someone in the shadows who was controlling these unending blades.
The blond woman who had been silent for a while began to speak again.
“I’ll tell the kitchen to prepare some new food.”
“No, It’s fine.”
Ash shook his head and stood up.
“I’ve lost my appetite.”
After he said that, with his bloody sword, he walked outside. At his retreating back, the knights bowed in silence.
In the dining room where he disappeared from, all you could hear was the faint sound of footsteps on the marble floor, slowly disappearing into the distance.
***
“20 years… 20 years…”
Elaine kept muttering the same thing blankly, over and over.
Even though she had checked the calendar, she still couldn’t believe it. She had since then left the store and was wandering aimlessly through the streets. A 20-year gap that had appeared out of nowhere. She had hoped it was just a prank, but after wandering around the village all day, all she got was confirmation of the cruel reality.
She had no idea how long she had walked, but when Elaine came to her senses, she was standing in front of a small inn. Without realizing it she had walked until it was the middle of the night and air was thick with darkness. She was so shocked and absorbed in her thoughts all day, she didn’t even notice the passing of time.
Elaine hesitated for a moment in front of the inn, then, slowly pushed the door open and entered. Along with the bright light from inside, a friendly voice came her way.
“Welcome!”
The innkeeper who was working at the counter saw Elaine and greeted her warmly. With excitement shining in her eyes, she continued to speak.
“Are you coming to stay overnight?”
“Ah… yes.”
Elaine still felt dizzy and confused, but she had nowhere else to go. She was also a terrible mess. Now that it was dark, it was okay to walk around like this, but once daylight came, she would be mistaken as someone unsavory and the guards would be called.
Elaine nodded slowly. She still had a few coins left in her torn pockets.
After paying the money and entering the room she had rented for the night, Elaine washed her body with cold water. She had wanted to cool her spinning head, but she couldn’t. She changed into the clothes that had been provided by the inn and sat down on the bed, still tense.
She didn’t feel like sleeping and just stared blankly into space.
Elaine had lost everyone she loved and had no place to go now. The 20 years that had passed by were also difficult for her to accept.
She felt hopeless and empty. She sat there helplessly, unaware again of how much time was passing.
‘What should I do in the future?’
As these thoughts filled her head, Elaine suddenly felt stuffy. She felt around on the nightstand, but the cold water in the glass had already been emptied. She slowly went downstairs holding the empty cup.
“Oh my, are you unable to sleep?”
A scarlet lamp was flickering on the first floor. The innkeeper who was organizing some books in the late night, approached Elaine and spoke to her. She looked at the empty cup in Elaine’s hands.
“Would you like me to bring you some more water?”
“Yes, some cold water if you wouldn’t mind.”
The innkeeper quickly poured more water into the cup and handed it back to Elaine while continuing.
“Is there anything else you need? Do you feel hungry at all?”
“No, it’s okay. I’m not really sure…”
“Are you sure you’re okay? Your complexion doesn’t look very good.”
The innkeeper kept examining her and when she asked Elaine if she was sick, Elaine replied that she was fine. The innkeeper continued with no room for argument.
“Well, that’s good… However, if you eat something warm, you will be able to sleep much better. I will bring you something to eat shortly. Please have a seat here and wait for a moment.”
Before Elaine could stop her, the innkeeper disappeared into the kitchen. It seemed like it was second nature for the innkeeper to be taking care of someone. Even though she really had no appetite, Elaine sat at the empty table and waited.
After a while, the innkeeper returned serving a delicious smelling lamb soup. As she put the food down on the table, she continued speaking.
“Are you a traveler? I don’t think I’ve seen your face around here before.”
There was nothing Elaine could say, so she just answered ‘yes’ vaguely. The innkeeper nodded as if she had already known the answer.
“As expected. Actually, business had been really slow lately. Its been a while since we’ve had a guest here.”
It is said that when Seveka became a den of monsters, travelers stopped coming to the surrounding villages. As a result, many nearby inns had been closing down. Now that Elaine thought about it, from the moment when she had first entered the inn until now, she hadn’t seen any other customers. The innkeeper, perhaps giddy at having the first customer in a while, began to tell stories without stop.
“…So, my son said he didn’t want to take over a dying inn in a remote corner of the country so, he went to Killiard.”
The innkeeper, now sitting in front of Elaine, kept chatting.
“Was it the Knights of Philres? Anyways, it’s already been a month since he packed his bags and left to join the knights there. He kept saying the salary of their knights is very high or something.”
The innkeeper shook her head excitedly.
“He’s still immature. I don’t know where he heard the rumor that if you became the dukes knight…”
Elaine who had been sitting silently, eating her soup, suddenly spoke.
“The duke?”
“Asher de Phillion.”
“Who… Wait, what?”
In response to her question, the innkeeper spoke with a puzzled look on her face.
“If you are the duke who currently sees over Killiard, it would be natural to refer to him as Lord Asher, right?”
The spoon fell from her hand. Elaine froze in a daze, not even thinking of picking up the fallen utensil on the floor.
‘Ash…’
The innkeeper was startled and made a fuss when she saw the soup splattered on the floor and Elaine’s clothes. But her voice didn’t reach Elaine at all.
‘Him and my child… Protect Ash’
The words took over her mind as the face of Bella, begging Elaine to take care of her child as she dies, came back to haunt her.
‘He’s still alive… He’s still alive…’
Elaine held her face with trembling hands. She never could have dreamed that she would survive that disaster. She wasn’t even sure if Espel was still alive, so how could she have thought that small child could survive.
I didn’t think so, but he’s still alive. They were still living under the same sky.
Her breathing became heavy and her shoulders shook. She couldn’t tell if it was from joy but, she was beginning to cry. It was overwhelming to finally find a light shining in the deep darkness she had been living in recently. For the first time since she had woken up, she felt grateful to be alive. Elaine began to laugh, with the tears still in her eyes.
The innkeepers face turned pale at the sight of Elaine suddenly shedding tears in front of the table, then suddenly laughing. Elaine, who had been muttering to herself, returned her face to its calm appearance from before and asked stiffly.
“You said the Duke resides in Killiard, correct?”
When she asked that question, her eyes were unwavering.
Bella’s last request. She will not fail to protect him this time.
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