172. Childhood Friend – Nuts

“What happened to Lena?”

Reb took a moment to breathe. Instead of answering the question, he nodded and moved to get up.

Leo de Yeriel followed Reb without a word. The sun was almost setting, and it was time to enter the royal castle, but that no longer seemed important.

The two headed to a nearby restaurant in front of the castle. It was late, so they couldn’t go in, and they began to talk outside.

“You don’t have to worry about Lena.”

“…That’s a relief.”

Leo let out a sigh of relief. Perhaps feeling less guilty, he ran his fingers through his hair and stared into space before asking.

“Then what happened to me? No, more importantly, what about you… Minseo?”

Reb hesitated. He rolled his eyes up as he thought and then answered.

“No.”

It was a denial, but it didn’t sound confident. Two months had passed since the childhood friend scenario began, and Reb knew Minseo’s presence still lingered.

But that didn’t mean he could boldly proclaim he was Minseo.

Realizing he had asked a useless question, Leo de Yeriel leaned against the wall and sat down. He tapped the floor next to him, gesturing for Reb to sit, and then spoke.

“Well… It’s nice to meet you anyway. We still haven’t introduced ourselves.”

The two young men sitting on the street shook hands. Despite being strangers, they knew each other too well.

“So, will you tell me what happened to me? And also how Lena has been living?”

Leo asked. Reb, not good with words, shared bits and pieces of the past as it was.

“You… died.”

+ + +

Despite being prepared for it, Leo felt his legs tremble as he entered the royal castle. He declared himself to the Knight Commander and, while following the Chamberlain to meet the King, fidgeted with his sword sheath so much it looked almost frantic.

How treacherous is the human heart?

He had resolved to help Minseo and leave some mark in this round, but thoughts like, ‘It’s not too late. Run away.’ and ‘Why do I have to go this far?’ gnawed at his resolve.

Leo persevered. He believed his choices were not wrong and that he would surely be of help someday.

The vast royal palace felt cramped.

It didn’t seem like he had walked much from the dressing room, yet he had long since passed the ‘Hall of the Skies’ and had climbed up to the ‘Emperor’s Ascent.’

Above the Emperor’s Ascent lay a wide lobby. It sparkled with so much gold it could be mistaken for gilded. In the center stood the grand door to the King’s chamber.

“Sir Noel requests an audience.”

The intricately carved doors swung open left and right. Despite having expected this, Leo was left speechless.

Red. Bright red.

Through his {Divination} ability, Leo saw it. Countless unreadable red symbols were densely engraved on the walls, floor, and ceiling, surrounding the throne where the King sat.

And the King seated on the throne… was not an Apostle.

He was the Child God, in his very essence.

[ Achievement: King 3/7 ]

“Gah.”

Facing the King with blonde hair and golden eyes, Leo took a deep breath.

While the King appeared somewhat benevolent on the outside, a cubic reality of crimson divine power swirled within him. Leo felt an unnameable dread.

“Leave.”

The King ordered the Chamberlain to kick everyone out. Boom— the grand door closed, leaving only Leo and the King.

“I’m glad to see you again.”

Caroman de Tatalia, or rather, the distant ancient ‘beast’ smiled. Crunching a handful of almonds, he opened his arms wide to welcome Leo.

“Come here. I’ve been waiting for you… but you returned in another’s arms. You rascal. Breaking promises again.”

Leo did not move closer.

Kneeling respectfully below the throne, he spoke.

“I have the honor of meeting you, wise ruler.”

“…Indeed, you probably don’t remember me. There’s no one else here. So let’s be honest. What brings the Apostle of Barbatos to me?”

– Clack.

The King stepped down from the throne. As he descended each step, Leo thought he briefly saw scaly hooves.

Blinking, the hooves disappeared.

“Barbatos asked me to inquire.”

Leo spoke up.

Struggling to avoid eyeing the creeping fear, he hastily threw out a question to salvage the situation.

“Why is Lord Astroth silent? It’s been 16 years since he ascended to his exalted position. Why does he cling to the royal castle? If there are any difficulties, Lord Barbatos has readily offered his assistance.”

“Barbatos, how naïve.”

Caroman de Tatalia looked down on him. Yet, he extended a brief, faint kindness as if to say Leo had the right to ask questions.

“Do not underestimate the humans appointed by the Lord. They are complicatedly intertwined and sometimes even peculiar.”

The King reached out his hand.

He reached out his left hand, requesting Leo to show his right hand bearing Barbatos’ mark. Leo, with his head bowed, pretended not to notice and continued questioning.

“So did you move the princess? Were you trying to stir up a crack by touching the Swordmaster’s son?”

It seemed he hadn’t caught the attention he sought. The King bent down to grab Leo’s right hand, causing Leo to rush his words.

“Then, you intended to lay hands on the son of Marquis Tatian as well?”

“Huh?”

The King kneeled in front of Leo with one knee, expressing surprise. This was an unheard-of Child God. — He thought, scrunching his nose.

“Yeah. That guy is a bit of a nuisance.”

A peculiar human. Astroth found Marquis Tatian unsatisfactory.

How many humans in the world would he find pleasing? But Marquis Tatian was considered one of the most annoying ones in Astroth’s long history.

Sixteen years ago. On the day of the coronation when he had to endure the pouring hot holy water on his head, Marquis Benard Tatian approached. It seemed he liked the King who had killed his two brothers alongside him to seize the throne, as he hovered around constantly.

The Marquis would always notice something was about to happen and request an audience, irritatingly acting as if he knew everything.

– “The crown suits you well.”

Though he lacked the blessing of the deity, he looked perfectly identical.

– “The weather has turned cold. Please accept my humble gift.”

It was just the day after he snuck out of the castle to see where to prepare the altar to gather divine power.

That interesting expression.

It was one that said he was dying to know what Leo was thinking and what he was planning, which irked the King so much that he squeezed what little divine power he had to cast fear at the Marquis.

But it failed. The Marquis succeeded in piercing through the holy relics he was adorned with, showing no sign of change. He was an abnormal human devoid of fear.

“Damn those gods.”

Astroth realized the filthy deity had interfered yet again. He had been holed up in the palace quietly waiting for the time to come, and finally, that day had arrived.

Duke Astroth took Leo’s hand. Erasing the trivial trumpet symbol, he intended to retrieve his first love, his first contract partner, who had returned through the blood of the royal family after thousands of years.

But then,

“This… this…!!”

Astroth suddenly stood up.

Shaking off Leo’s hand, he shouted in a rage.

“This filthy thing! You’ve become a toy of the gods!”

Barbatos was not the issue. The first love, who had changed his name and returned as a completely different person, already had a master.

[ Player: Minseo ]

He could no longer possess him. Unable to contain his boiling anger, Astroth stamped his foot, and at that moment, Leo drew his sword.

– Swish.

The sword swung like a storm. Leo was certain he had sliced through the King’s legs, yet the King melted away like mist. As if he had never been there, he appeared from behind, opening the grand door and shouted.

“Traitor! Kill this dog!”

“Your Majesty? What do you…?!”

The royal guard, who had been guarding the lobby, was stunned upon seeing Leo with his sword raised. He had been somewhat indifferent towards Leo but shouted for the Chamberlain to call for support while drawing his own sword.

“That is not the king! It is an evil god!”

– Clang!

“What nonsense is this! This crazy guy… I had felt something was off since hearing the prince barged in! The same goes for the princess!”

– Clang!

Realizing words weren’t getting through, Leo tightened his grip on the sword.

The King was disappearing with a face filled with indignation, occasionally glancing back, and he had no choice but to chase after him.

“Gah… ugh.”

[ Quest: Duelist 976/1000 – {Swordsmanship} level increases by one. ]

After exchanging a dozen blows, Leo’s sword pierced through the heart of the royal guard. Without even having time to appreciate the blood soaking into the blue uniform, Leo hurriedly dashed out.

Suddenly, he noticed that the number in the quest had increased by one since his childhood friend round, but he thought Leo Dexter hadn’t killed anyone.

“Sir Noel! What is the meaning of this?!”

At the base of the Emperor’s Ascent, royal guards and knights were converging. Knight Commander Hamlet looked perplexed as he pressed Leo.

Next to him stood the royal guard who had been Leo’s mentor, adding to Leo’s dismay.

Feeling a bone-chilling loneliness, he looked around. The King had already stepped across to the opposite side, climbing the prince’s stairs. Perhaps lingering for a moment, he stared at Leo before disappearing into the prince’s office.

“Sir Noel! I can’t just drop my sword! If you are still a knight, act honorably…”

“There’s no need for that!”

The Swordmaster jumped out. Perhaps he had still been with the prince after the ball, Count Hermann Forte burst out of the office where the King had entered, shouting.

– Bang!

Count Forte jumped from the railing. He roughly pushed through the gathered royal guards and stomped up the Emperor’s Ascent.

This was rather good. Leo thought as he drew his sword. He moved up the stairs to gain an advantageous position and rekindled his grudge against the Count.

This was the guy who killed my younger sister. He was also the one who killed Leo Dexter and Lena Ainar.

Honestly, it seemed hopeless, but for the sake of future revenge, it would be good to confront him at least once…

– Thunk!

The Count’s sword was unsheathed ‘without any warning.’ Not realizing whether he had slammed into the stairs or what, in an instant, he lunged forward to deliver a powerful blow.

Narrowly managing to block the sword, Leo slid down.

A recollection of the time when Leo Dexter had been attacked during a guard shift resurfaced. Back then, Lena Ainar had helped him, yet he had still ended up with a broken nose and split lip.

‘It seems he prefers to strike first like this… Wah!’

The Count’s sword lunged at him. It narrowly grazed his waist, and Leo realized this wasn’t the time for analysis.

– Clang!

“Ugh!”

The Swordmaster’s body spun! Still in the stabbing stance, he spun around to hammer down on Leo. This is really…

‘That’s cheating!’

How could one openly rotate like that? Thanks to the scenario rewards, Leo had gained expertise in swordsmanship, but he gritted his teeth at the audacious attack.

Big movements like spins come at a cost. It was only to be executed when one could afford it without the risk of being hit in the back of the head during the spin, using that temporal advantage when the opponent couldn’t react.

However, that was not the case just then. Even if his stance had faltered to avoid the thrust, he shouldn’t have had the leeway to execute a spin.

Count Hermann Forte had arrogantly utilized his ‘ignorance of forewarning swordsmanship.’ He had unknowingly prepared to spin as soon as the thrust was completed, so perhaps he can’t even be called arrogant…

The Swordmaster looked surprised. But then, looking at Leo with terrifying eyes,

The sword blazed white-hot. Perhaps intending to end the fight quickly, he didn’t wait for the Oblivion Blade to form and swung his sword again.

Leo snapped to attention.

Until he saw it with his eyes, he could not predict where the attack would come from. How would it strike — any expectation was impossible, forcing him to defend with a half-beat disadvantage.

The Swordmaster’s attack was a horizontal swing. Leo barely set his sword to block, but as the Oblivion Blade clashed with Leo’s sword (Bound Item), Count Hermann Forte looked like he swallowed a whole apple.

Just as his mouth was about to open, Leo seized the opportunity.

He reversed the grip on the sword’s hilt, took a step forward, and lifted the blade that met the Count’s sword.

At that moment, the sword’s tip, turning naturally around the Count’s blade, thrust powerfully towards the Swordmaster.

It worked! But at the same time, it felt regretful.

The sword didn’t strike the abdomen as originally aimed but merely grazed the Count’s thigh. Still, it went deep enough to slip a couple of fingers through.

That was sufficient enough damage…

‘Huh?’

At that moment, the palace tilted. The castle was spinning rapidly.

Was I the one who just fell? He thought for a moment, but felt nothing beneath him.

– Splash!

As the ceiling came into view, Leo definitively realized he had fallen. No, that wasn’t the precise expression. Only his ‘upper half’ had fallen.

From his right shoulder to his left hip, he had been cleaved in two. The Swordmaster had focused on killing Leo rather than dodging, and the Oblivion Blade sliced through Leo’s body with merciless precision.

As Leo de Yeriel fell to the ground, he saw his own legs still standing. His still beating heart kept him alive.

But that was short-lived. Leo’s vision hazed over, and along with the sound of someone shouting, “The Count has been injured! Call the priest immediately!” a message appeared.

[ Leo has died. ]

It was a futile, empty death.