Sunday morning. Tyvlen, secret interrogation room.
Xavier leaned back in his chair. His single eye stared intently at the bound and exhausted Vorlag. The anti-lie artifact was still stuck to the nobleman’s forehead, gleaming faintly with sweat.
Autumn stood silently near the steel door, noting Vorlag’s forced answers in her small notebook. The stuffy room was filled only with the sound of Vorlag’s ragged breathing.
"Is that all the information you have, pal?" Xavier hissed, his voice flat and cold.
Vorlag trembled, his face pale. "Yes!... Yes! That’s all..." He gritted his teeth, fighting the artifact.
KNOCK. KNOCK. KNOCK.
A soft knock sounded on the thick steel door.
Autumn was instantly alert. Her hand moved to the hilt of her sword.
Xavier raised his eyebrows. He gestured for Autumn to open the door.
Autumn nodded and unlocked the heavy door.
A Guardian in a dark blue uniform stepped inside. He had messy blond hair and pale white eyes. He looked at Autumn. "You’re as beautiful as ever."
"Hah?" Autumn’s eyebrow twitched. Her hand shifted on her sword hilt, ready to cut the man down.
He then looked towards Xavier. "Morning, Captain." He gave a short salute.
"What is it, Raphal?" Xavier asked. "You’re interrupting."
"I guarantee this news will make you work overtime," Raphal said, his light tone vanishing. "We just got confirmation from the recon team in Stone Town. An hour ago." Raphal paused.
"Martis... is dead."
Total silence fell in the room. Autumn, who had been writing, froze. Xavier stared at Raphal. He tilted his head, processing the information.
"No. No, no, no, no. Impossible. No. Nooo!" Vorlag, hearing this, shook his head frantically. A look of pure, terrified confusion was on his face.
"How?" Xavier asked coldly.
"It’s not clear. He was found on his private balcony at dawn. The recon team found signs of a high-level magic battle. His study was destroyed. All of his elite guards in the corridor... dead."
Xavier was silent for a long time. He scratched his head in frustration.
"fuck."
He glanced at Vorlag, who was now staring back at him with a mixture of horror and confusion.
Xavier stood up. "Continue the interrogation," he ordered Autumn. "Dig up everything you can. I’m reporting to the Prince."
He walked out of the room.
Outgal Inn. Dawn approaching.
The soft, warm light of the morning sun began to filter through the large suite window, illuminating the dust motes dancing in the air. The faint sound of waves could be heard in the distance.
Fyar was sleeping soundly on the sofa. His head rested on Illya’s lap. His new black hair, still a little stiff, contrasted with his pale skin. His face, usually tense, looked peaceful in sleep.
Illya sat silently, her back resting against the sofa. She looked exhausted, but her eyes gazed at Fyar’s face with a soft expression. With her fingers, she gently stroked Fyar’s hair, brushing it away from his forehead.
He must have gone through some difficult days lately, she murmured.
Across the room, Zaefal sat in a chair, his eyes closed in a light, wary sleep.
Suddenly, from the streets below, a commotion was heard. Faint at first, then growing clearer.
"...DEAD! LORD MARTIS FOUND DEAD!"
"This morning! Found on his balcony!"
"LORD MARTIS IS DEAD!"
The shouts of the town crier and the murmurs of the citizens began to penetrate the suite’s silence.
Zaefal’s eyes snapped open. He immediately stood and walked to the window. After opening it, he shouted down.
"You!" Zaefal yelled at the town crier. His shout made several people on the street turn and look up. "Is what you’re saying true?"
The town crier nodded, cupping his hands. He shouted back at Zaefal, "YES! THE GUARDS AND THE GUARDIANS HAVE ALREADY CONFIRMED IT!"
Illya’s pupils constricted. She turned her head towards the window.
Martis... d-dead?
Zaefal and Illya exchanged a look from across the room. Confusion and disbelief were clear on their faces.
Who? The Guardians? But that fast? No. The connections and information Martis had were too valuable for that. Plus, it’s stupid to fight him openly right now.
Then who? Damm it. Something unpredictable again! Zaefal muttered inwardly.
He felt annoyed and confused by the current situation. Although logically, this was advantageous because it meant his mission was complete, the uncertainty and suddenness of it made it more terrifying for Zaefal.
On Illya’s lap, Fyar just shifted slightly in his sleep, too exhausted to be woken by the noise outside. Illya went back to stroking Fyar’s hair and gently rubbing his forehead, trying to keep him asleep and resting.
"Argh, so fucking noisy! Hahhh!" A hoarse voice came from the other sofa. Rasie slowly sat up, rubbing her eyes. Her red hair was a complete mess.
"What’s wrong? Who died?"
She then gasped, seeing Illya on the sofa across from her. Illya was stroking the forehead of a strange black-haired man in her lap.
Rasie’s mouth formed an "O" shape. She pointed at Illya. "Illya... you?? You?!"
She immediately jumped to her feet and shouted, "Wh-Who is th-that Motherfucker sleeping in your lap?! Oh no, Illya! You... you! You’ve been defiled?! No! Tell me what happened in the eight hours I was asleep! Oh no, don’t tell me I slept for more than a day and you I..."
Illya startled, shocked. By reflex, she immediately covered Fyar’s ears with both hands. "Ssh! Rasie! Don’t be so loud! It’s Fyar!"
Rasie pointed at Fyar repeatedly, her expression confused. Her mouth formed an "O"
again. She then looked at Zaefal, who was bandaged and covered in wounds. "what the fuck happened right now!?"
The Streets of Tyelven.
Chaos swept Tyelven. Citizens gathered on street corners, whispering frantically. Town criers shouted, announcing the biggest news in a decade: "THE SHADOW KING HAS FALLEN! LORD MARTIS IS DEAD!"
Guardian patrols now moved openly in the streets, trying to maintain order. The power vacuum left by Martis felt like a black hole, ready to swallow the entire city.
In a quiet, grimy bar in the harbor district, far from the chaos, Nila sat alone at a dark corner table. She hadn’t slept all night. Her eyes were red and swollen. Her face was stiff, expressionless. She had been waiting. The time Martis had set.
After ordering Wilas to go to Vorlag’s place, Martis had taken Nila to his secret vault to burn all his contracts. He had only taken one: the contract with the Dragon race. He ordered Nila to hide until dawn. And if she heard bad news about him, Martis told her to open the letter he had prepared.
He knew. He knew, Nila thought. He knew they would betray him.
Her trembling hand slowly reached inside her cloak. She pulled out two items: the original sealed contract between Martis and the Dragons, and a sealed personal letter.
"Open this only if I don’t return. Don’t ask questions." Martis’s last command echoed in her ears.
With stiff fingers, Nila broke the letter’s wax seal. She opened it.
Martis’s handwriting was rushed, but clear enough to read.
’Nila,
If you are reading this, it means my intuition was correct. And I am dead.
You are probably hearing the shouts of people spreading news of my death right now.
You are probably sitting alone reading this, holding back your tears, and blaming yourself for not managing to persuade me to stop this path I chose.
You probably blame yourself for not forcefully asking what my last order meant.
I’m sorry, Nila..
After Wilas’s death, I didn’t want to lose someone else precious to me.
Don’t blame yourself for feeling too weak.
Don’t hold a grudge against the people who killed me.
This was my game, and I accept the result. I knew the worst risks of choosing a path like this.
I have lived my life without regrets, chasing my dream, just like I always told you at the orphanage.
I am happy. I am happy
I lived my life fully.
So, Nila...
Live your life without vengeance. Make a new start. Find your new purpose in life, and live it until you die.
Enjoy your life. This is my request for you.
Enjoy your life.
I have prepared emergency gold in my private room. Only you and Wilas knew.
Now, I have one last task for you. This task is dangerous, but I trust no one else. Use that Dragon contract. Go to the Guardians, find a man named Xavier. Trade it for your protection. Do not let the Dragons’ betrayal go unpunished. Do not let them win cleanly.
Live, Nila. Live for yourself.
I’m sorry I couldn’t say it directly.
I’m sorry if I was too harsh.
I’m sorry if I was too cold.
I’m sorry I sometimes didn’t listen to your advice.
I’m sorry I never got to hold you and say it directly that...
I love you.
-Martis
Nila stared at the letter. Her hands were shaking violently. Her calm mask shattered. She bowed her head. Quiet, choked sobs began to be heard in the quiet corner of the bar. It was the pained sound of someone who had just lost the only foundation in her life. She crumpled the letter tightly in her fist.
"Idiot... Martis, you idiot... Why didn’t you run... idiot... idiot... idiot... why... why... Martis... Martis... Idiot!"
"You left me alone!"
Thud!
Nila slammed her fist on the table. Glasses in the bar rattled slightly. Her lips trembled uncontrollably. She buried her head in her arms on the table and finally let herself cry, her sobs echoing in the empty bar.
The End Of Arc 2
ONE MORE ARC BEFORE THE END OF VOL1,
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