Chapter 3

Episode 3. It Just Happened Like That

The preparations for the battle with the Queen were progressing more smoothly than expected. It was all thanks to his subordinate, Maknun.

“Brother, you said fighting the Queen isn’t for Sephira’s sake, but let’s make the official reason revenge for the House of Sephira. That sounds better. Surely, allies will come forward.”

Keter also began honing new techniques to kill the Queen.

The skills he learned and mastered in Ruquer were all raw. While they were excellent for killing humans, they were unsuitable for fighting a divine being like the Queen.

To confront the Queen, Keter chose archery. It was the legacy left by Basil, the head of the Sephira family and his father. The secret archery of Sephira, the Zodiac Twelve Bows, was the reason.

Although Keter was learning archery for the first time in his life, it didn’t take long. He was already a master of throwing techniques, and above all, his talent for combat was unparalleled.

Keter didn’t train. He learned his skills in real battles.

There were plenty of opponents to fight. The entire nation was his enemy. Every soldier ran around, sweating, trying to find and kill Keter.

Keter fought the pursuers who came after him. Sometimes, he sought them out before they could find him. There wasn’t a day he didn’t fight, and every day was a bloody battle.

As if proving why he was called the “Madman with Clear Eyes” in Ruquer, Keter enjoyed life-and-death battles.

Keter acted alone, and Lilian couldn’t catch him at all. It was strange. How could the kingdom not handle just one man, Keter?

It was all thanks to the just cause of avenging Sephira. The Sephira family was annihilated overnight on the charge of “treason against the state,” which lacked solid evidence.

Naturally, there were nobles who harbored resentment, and there was also the covert help of factions hostile to the Queen.

Thanks to this, Keter grew by walking a tightrope of life and death, eventually becoming able to kill a Swordmaster in one strike and defeat dozens of Swordmasters in battle.

So, was he closer to his goal of killing the Queen?

Not really.

Though he started boldly, Keter realized he was a frog in a well.

The stronger he became, the more he realized that the pinnacle a human could reach, “Prime,” was not the end but just the beginning.

Keter first felt the wall when he encountered one of the “Four Great Lords.”

The Four Great Lords, the Queen’s confidants and the pillars of this nation.

To kill the Queen, Keter had to kill these Four Great Lords first. He sought out one of them and challenged him to a fight.

The Lord of the East, Dayal, who cuts the sky.

True to his title, he possessed swordsmanship that could cut the sky.

After fighting him, Keter couldn’t help but laugh.

“Who came up with that nickname? They got it wrong. He doesn’t cut the sky; he splits it.”

The aftermath of Keter and Dayal’s battle changed the terrain itself. Endless holes and long canyons were the results of the battle between two human-shaped beings.

The result was Keter’s defeat.

Dayal was severely injured, but Keter suffered a fatal wound from Dayal’s sword strike.

Dayal, gasping for breath, said,

“You’re the first human to push me this far. It’s a pity. If you weren’t of the Sephira bloodline, you could have become a new Lord.”

“Hey. Just answer me one thing. How much stronger is the Queen compared to you?”

Even though he was dying, Keter calmly asked. It was an action born of no regrets. He had done his best in the fight. Thus, even in defeat, he felt no resentment. In fact, he felt relieved.

He felt like he was facing the Queen, but he also felt like this battle wouldn’t end.

There was a limit to what he could do alone. Though there were factions helping him covertly, it wasn’t decisive.

Keter, now middle-aged, fought the Lord of the East to achieve a meaningful result before his body aged further.

Though he lost, it was a fight without regrets. It was a mindset possible because he had no confidence that more time would allow him to kill the Queen.

The question he asked now, before death, was to satisfy a fundamental curiosity.

Dayal pondered for a moment before speaking.

“Keter. You should consider dying by my hand a blessing. The Queen is incomparably stronger than me. Even if all the Lords combined their strength, they couldn’t harm a single finger of the Queen.”

“Is that also thanks to Ain’s power?”

At Keter’s words, Dayal’s eyes widened.

“Did you figure it out on your own? Truly astonishing and regrettable. If you had realized it a bit earlier, the outcome of this battle might have been different.”

“It’s no big deal. Ain is just the fusion of Aura and Mana.”

“You must have also realized that it’s impossible with a human body and mind. You also used Ain’s power, but because you had a human body and mind, it was incomplete.”

“It wasn’t easy. I wish I had a bit more time.”

“If you wanted more time, you shouldn’t have opposed the Queen in the first place. You had plenty of chances to run away.”

“That’s not my style.”

“…If there’s a next life, live compromising with reality.”

Originally, the Queen ordered the Lords to capture Keter alive.

But Dayal pointed his sword at Keter’s neck.

Once, he too had been confident he would kill Queen Lilian, so out of respect for Keter, who had injured him with the archery he had underestimated, Dayal showed mercy by preventing Keter from becoming the Queen’s puppet like himself.

‘It’s over.’

Facing death, his conviction didn’t change.

‘There’s no compromise in my life. Even if I’m reborn, I’ll kill you, Dayal, and the Queen.’

Swoosh.

Dayal’s blade cleanly cut Keter’s neck.

* * *

Is there a world after death?

Keter had never deeply pondered it.

But now, he had no choice but to think about it.

‘What’s this?’

His consciousness flickered and returned. His vision was blurry, but he could clearly feel he was alive.

He touched his neck. It had been cleanly cut by Dayal’s sword, but it was perfectly intact now.

His blurry vision also returned. An unfamiliar scene came into view.

This place is…

“Young master, are you feeling unwell?”

He silently shook his head and looked around.

He was inside a carriage.

The scenery outside the window rushed by. The carriage was quiet. It wasn’t lavish, but it exuded tranquility and elegance.

The ceiling and walls, made of thick, sturdy oak, had soft curves. Richly colored monochrome fabrics added subtle accents.

Hardness and softness. The ceiling of this carriage, embodying two incompatible qualities, bore a familiar painting.

A giant tree connecting the earth to the sky.

On each branch, arrows hung like fruit.

The emblem of the Sephira family, a renowned archery house.

And in front of me, a familiar middle-aged man was worrying about me.

I realized the situation.

This carriage is heading to the Sephira family, a renowned archery house. This middle-aged man is Jacques, my assigned personal attendant.

So, to summarize…

I have regressed decades into the past. To the most boring and uneventful year of my life. The starting point of that one year I could have forgotten without consequence.

I know how absurd this is. I thought I was dead, but now I’ve regressed.

Moreover, it’s just before entering Sephira, which doesn’t feel like a coincidence.

Who, why, how?

‘It just happened like that.’

Even though I’ve regressed, I decided not to think too deeply about it.

Once, I thought everything had a reason. But living taught me that some things just happen.

It might not be the case, but for now, I decided to think, ‘It just happened like that.’

There’s no point in overthinking when there’s no clue. The truth will come out eventually, even if I don’t want it to. There’s no need to struggle to find out.

So, I just need to be faithful to this reality now.

Having quickly concluded, Jacques the attendant spoke at the perfect moment.

“Young master, would you like to look outside? From here, it’s the territory of the Sephira family.”

Jacques gave a signal, and the carriage slowed down. The scenery that had been rushing by became clear.

A vast plain and a stream flowing through it shimmered with a faint silver light. Well-maintained roads lined with lush trees cast shadows, swaying as if welcoming the carriage’s passage.

Mountain paths, hills, and mansions revealed between the trees were like part of nature.

Seeing the intact mansion and territory, my emotions were mixed. Misinterpreting my troubled expression as admiration, Jacques smiled contentedly and said,

“Young master. Do you see that small hill in the distance?”

It wasn’t the first time I’d heard this question. I silently nodded, predicting his next words.

‘He’s going to ask if I can see the mountain range over there.’

With a proud face, Jacques said to me,

“Can you see the vast mountain range beyond that?”

As expected, Jacques repeated the same words I’d heard in my past life.

I nodded the same way, and Jacques concluded with a proud expression,

“From here to that mountain, it’s all the territory of the Sephira family. Two hundred knights. Two thousand soldiers. Including their families and the servants working for the family, eight thousand people live here.”

In my past life, I had been slightly impressed as Jacques hoped, but having experienced that life and returning, I could only laugh.

“It’s humble compared to other noble houses.”

“Yes, that’s… what?”

‘Noble houses’ are the core of this nation’s military power.

In the kingdom ruled by Lilian, there are seven noble houses, and the Sephira family has the fewest troops.

Even the ‘Mejai’ family, which has the second fewest troops after Sephira, has three hundred knights and six thousand soldiers. Moreover, over thirty thousand territory residents live in their lands.

Just by the numbers, there’s a threefold difference, so it’s no wonder Sephira is considered the weakest among the noble houses.

How do I know this so well?

Because I annihilated that family. The Mejai family was the most active in hunting down the Sephira bloodline.

Anyway, even the weakest noble house has a scale comparable to a small nation.

At my unexpected reaction, Jacques couldn’t hide his embarrassment and made an excuse that wasn’t really an excuse.

“Well, that’s true. But our roles are different. As you know, the Sephira family practices archery, which is much harder to master than swordsmanship. And also…”

I tuned out Jacques’ words and looked around at the approaching Sephira mansions.

They were spacious and open, with many diverse buildings, but there was no trace of extravagance. The garden, a symbol of wealth, and the mansion, a symbol of power, were both plain.

This wasn’t because Sephira lacked wealth but because they practiced an uncharacteristic frugality for nobles.

Clatter, clatter.

The carriage entered the garden.

The garden was surrounded by four large mansions.

Of course, I knew the purpose of these mansions. The head of the family resided in the south main building, the east building housed the vassals, and the west building was for the Sephira bloodline.

To the north of the garden, I glimpsed the dormitory buildings for servants, soldiers, and knights, and the training grounds.

The carriage seemed to head towards the west building where the bloodline resided but suddenly turned and stopped in front of a place that looked like a secluded warehouse.

This would be my residence from now on.

‘At first, I was shocked.’

A residence made from a remodeled warehouse. As if I were some luggage.

Anyway, as I got off the carriage, I could feel the gazes focusing on me. The curious looks of patrolling soldiers and servants doing chores.

But among them, no one came to greet me.

It was a moment that made me acutely aware of my regression. In my past life, no one had come to greet me either. Back then, my feelings were hurt, so I repaid them with the same indifference.

‘Now, the story is different.’

If I leave this family alone, the same events as my past life will happen.

The Sephira family will fall, and I’ll be caught in a chain of guilt, forced to fight Lilian indefinitely.

I have no intention of repeating the past. I’ll actively intervene to change the future. Not for the sake of a doomed family, but for my own comfortable life.

Intervening doesn’t mean I want to become the family head. Why would I seek such a troublesome position?

What I want is a position like the Grand Duke of Ruquer. A position where I can command loyal subordinates who would die for me, just by showing a bit of dignity.

Of course, it will take tremendous effort to reach that position, but once I’m there, my life will be all about enjoying myself.

So, saving the Sephira family isn’t enough. I need to grow the Sephira family into the greatest house on the continent. I’ll become the power behind that great house.

I won’t be bound by the Sephira family, but I’ll fully utilize its power.

Ultimately, I’ll kill Lilian.

For the crime of trying to kill me with that damn chain of guilt.

And now, another crime has been added.

The crime of actually killing me.

An eye for an eye. A tooth for a tooth.

In my past life, that woman ruined my life and ultimately killed me, so I must repay her.

For that, I’ll grow the family’s power and build my influence.

It’s not a grand plan. There’s no need for a big fuss.

I’ll just show them.

How I survived and thrived in Ruquer, I’ll show it here in the Sephira family.

“Young master? I’ll guide you through the family grounds later, but for now, let’s go to your residence. Rest from your journey, and then you can tidy up.”

I stopped walking and looked at the main building. Jacques grabbed my sleeve and said,

“Wait a moment.”

“Ah, that’s the main building where the family head resides. You shouldn’t go there recklessly. Especially on your first day, you need to be more careful…”

“I know.”

“Huh?”

“What’s wrong with a son wanting to see his father?”

Before Jacques could stop me, I headed towards the main building’s front door.

I should have done this even before regression. The proper greeting I avoided out of spite for being ignored.

“Father! The abandoned bastard has returned!”

At Keter’s bold action, not only Jacques but everyone passing by widened their eyes in shock.