Chapter 120
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Chapter 120
The sun had set.
'It seems he won't be coming today either.'
Liman, who had been watching the Estate's gate shrouded in darkness, nodded to the Gatekeeper who was looking at him.
Just as the Gatekeeper was about to close the gate, the sound of hoofbeats echoed from afar.
Both Liman and the Gatekeeper, who had turned their heads in that direction without much thought, were startled.
"Lord Dain."
Dain dismounted and handed the reins to the Gatekeeper, then approached Liman.
"You haven't forgotten my face, have you?"
Perhaps from the hardship he'd endured, Dain's facial features seemed sharper than before upon his return after so long.
Liman, who had hesitated for a moment, responded with relief at Dain's characteristically playful greeting.
"I nearly forgot. You've been away from the Estate for far too long."
"If I stayed home, I'd just end up as a lazy good-for-nothing lounging around under my sister's shadow. Has anything happened while I was away?"
"Miss Vivian has been waiting for you very much."
Dain, who had been stepping into the Estate's entrance, paused upon hearing about Vivian.
"She said that when you return, I should restrain you and keep you here, even if I have to tie you down."
A bitter smile crossed Dain's face at that, but he quickly composed himself and asked.
"Vivian hasn't returned from the Duke's Residence yet, has she?"
"She should return before dinner. Have you finished the task you were assigned, Lord Dain?"
At that question, Dain blinked slowly for a moment before answering.
"...Not yet. I need to go out again later."
"Then I should send word to the Duke's Residence immediately. Miss Vivian asked me to inform her right away when you returned."
"Yes, please do."
Dain headed upstairs to his room, leaving Liman behind, and murmured to himself.
"...At least I can share one last meal with her."
In the afternoon, Orpen had summoned Dain to the Imperial Palace.
[We're leaving for the Demon Realm tonight, so go home, prepare, and return.]
[...Have you finished preparing to completely breach the Barrier?]
[Yes. Now that I've made enough reagent, the Barrier should break at that level.]
I had anticipated that I would depart for the Demon Realm soon while monitoring the state of the Barrier, but I hadn't expected it to happen so suddenly.
However, Orpen asked as if he had read Dain's heart.
[If things go as you say, you'll be back quickly, so there's no need to drag things out unnecessarily, is there?]
The Emperor, who had committed many sins in his lifetime, was fearful. And his suspicions were not easily laid to rest.
Even now, after deciding to go to the Demon Realm himself.
But Dain had no intention of botching things at this point.
[I will return.]
This was my plan.
Everything was flowing smoothly according to plan, and I had already made my resolve long ago.
Or rather, it would be more accurate to say I had been waiting for this day.
The day I would plunge my blade into the heart of the enemy who drove my beloved to death.
'If there's one thing I regret....'
Dain arrived at the door and opened it without thinking.
In that moment, something wedged in the door frame fluttered down to his feet.
It was a note.
Dain picked it up.
The round, adorable handwriting on the note resembled that face he could never forget, even in death.
Dad, wake me up when you come home while I'm sleeping. Okay? I miss you.
Dain's expression as he stared at the note twisted between laughter and tears.
He stood motionless, gazing at the note until the bathwater was prepared.
For quite some time.
* * *
"Vivian waited so much for her father. The timing isn't great."
Only Igraine was waiting for Dain as he descended to the Dining Room after bathing.
Vivian still hadn't returned.
"Well, it should be about time, so she'll come."
Dain gave a small nod at Igraine's reassuring words and took his seat.
Igraine, who had been studying Dain's face while sipping her aperitif, spoke first.
"It's been hard to see your face lately."
"I'm greatly contributing to the family's honor by continuing the will of our ancestors."
"Dain."
Dain tried to brush it off with his usual glib manner, but Igraine called his name with a somewhat firm tone, showing she wouldn't let it slide.
"You're already a father to be proud of."
"...."
"So you don't need to strain yourself like this."
Though she spoke playfully, she said it knowing his words about wanting to be a father Vivian could be proud of were sincere.
Orpen hadn't directly killed Vivian's Mother, but she was a demon nonetheless.
From Dain's perspective, working again as Orpen's knight—the one who drove him to war and commanded the annihilation of demons—could hardly be something he'd embrace willingly.
"You can stop that work."
Everyone thought it was his duty, and Dain himself had taken it for granted as something he must do—so Igraine's statement was entirely unexpected.
"...If I don't maintain the Barrier, innocent people could be endangered. War might even break out. Are you still okay with that?"
"Of course I'm not okay with it. But someone else will do it if you don't."
"Asking me to shirk my duty and step back by passing it to others—that doesn't sound like you, sister."
"It's not just your duty."
Igraine added, looking at the bewildered Dain.
"It's 'our' duty."
It felt as though I'd been struck on the head out of nowhere.
"People think heroes are beings greater than human—but they're just humans who are a bit stronger."
"...."
"You don't have to do everything alone, nor do you need to."
Igraine saw Dain simply as an ordinary human, as her brother.
Not a hero.
"You don't need to do anything. Just stay by Vivian's side. That's what she would want."
Hearing Igraine's words, Dain smiled bitterly.
If the only issue were preventing war, he might have been swayed by her words.
But this matter held far greater significance for him than merely stopping a war.
Revenge.
An opportunity to finally close the chapter on a goal he had buried in his heart for half a lifetime.
Still...
"Thank you, sister. For saying that."
My heart felt lighter.
As long as Igraine stood firm, the world Vivian would inhabit would be safe.
Just as the two finished their conversation, a knock sounded and Liman entered.
He delivered the news with an awkward expression.
"The young lady has not returned since going out with the young duke. It seems the two of you will need to dine together."
* * *
After finishing his final meal with Igraine, Dain returned to his room and took out writing paper.
He needed to write a letter to leave for Vivian.
My beloved treasure, Vivian.
As I wrote carelessly about being grateful that she was born as my daughter, I suddenly realized something and tore the letter, burning it in the fireplace.
'I shouldn't be announcing that I'm walking toward my own death.'
I also tore up and burned the version where I pretended ignorance of the future and promised things we would do together upon my return.
If I died while promising a future together, it would become a regret that would never fade from that child's heart for the rest of her life.
'What words would hurt her the least?'
Holding the quill, I pondered for a long time before finally resolving to write something.
It was a brief letter, but even after finishing it, I sat motionless for quite some time.
Caught between expressing my heart and not causing pain to my daughter.
After taking a long time to complete the short letter, the faint sound of the grandfather clock chiming the hour drifted through.
It was time to leave the Estate soon to meet Orpen at the appointed hour, yet Vivian still had not returned.
Dain thought of the culprit keeping Vivian out at this hour.
'It doesn't sit right with me...'
Still, he felt grateful that Lahedis was by Vivian's side.
If there was someone beside her who loved her so deeply, his absence would soon be forgotten.
Dain waited long after the grandfather clock chimed.
Reading and rereading the note Vivian had left in the door.
[Dad!]
Then, suddenly recalling Vivian's face as she had come to find me with bread she had made, I rose from my seat.
Wanting to see that child one more time was my lingering attachment and greed.
Since the last memory of her would be a smiling face, that was enough.
Leaving my room, I slipped the letter I had written into the gap of Vivian's door and turned away.
I'll be back soon, princess. I love you. I love you.
After much deliberation, the short letter I had labored over lay wedged in the door gap, its edge fluttering gently.
* * *
Dain urged his horse forward at a rapid pace.
Being slightly late to his appointed meeting with Orpen wouldn't be a problem, yet he drove the horse onward regardless.
He feared that any further hesitation would ensnare his feet in the mire of lingering attachment.
The winter wind scraped across his cheeks with brutal force, sweeping away the tangled thoughts in his mind.
Just as he arrived at the Imperial Palace.
Boom—!
A sudden thunderous sound halted his steps.
The explosion echoed from beyond the Forest within the Imperial Palace, near where he stood.
'That direction... it's toward the Abandoned Crown Prince's Palace.'
Yet whatever transpired within the Imperial Palace held no bearing on him, and with so many knights already stationed there, there was nothing to concern himself with.
The Emperor's command took precedence.
It was the moment Dain, who had briefly gazed toward the Forest beyond, turned back toward the Imperial Palace.
Rustle.
A presence stirred from the Forest, and a voice that shouldn't have been here reached his ears.
"...Curtis Rohan."
The voice of that child—his only lingering attachment.
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Brought to you by Valir Scans! To support our team and enjoy the latest releases, please read directly on our official site: valirscans.org
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