Chapter 60

Raul, who miraculously survived while holding Layla’s corpse, was in a pitiful state.

With a wretched appearance that wouldn’t be strange if he died at any moment, Raul muttered incomprehensible words before eventually collapsing to the ground, repeatedly banging his head until he passed out.

For three days and nights, he wept tears of blood and had seizures. He thrashed so violently that Camilla, who tried to stop him, got hurt, and they had to use a large amount of anesthetic to put him back to sleep.

“….”

Eventually, he lay there like a corpse with open eyes, refusing to eat or drink, staring into the void for four days.

“Raul, you should at least eat something…”

His subordinate, Kyle, desperately tried to persuade him, bringing a bowl of soup.

“…Take it away.”

“Raul, if you keep refusing to eat or drink in this state, you’ll really die…!”

“Layla hasn’t come. If she comes, then I’ll eat.”

It was essentially a declaration that he wanted to die.

But Kyle understood him. They had always eaten, slept, and breathed together. How could he stay still when one of them was gone?

Raul wanted to starve himself to death. To die as painfully and miserably as possible.

“Raul…”

“Move aside.”

Suddenly, someone entered the tent.

“Your Highness…?”

First Prince Asel, one of Raul’s closest friends…

He shoved Raul’s face into the bowl of soup.

“It’s sad, isn’t it? We can’t hide this sorrow either. Penelope tried to hang herself, blaming herself for Layla’s death. Even Camilla is drowning her shock in alcohol, staying up all night. Damn it, really…”

“…”

“Fuck you, you bastards. Do you think Layla will come back to life if you die? No, Layla is dead. That won’t change. If Layla saw you all thinking about how to die, do you think she’d applaud? The Layla I knew would have smashed your heads first, you damn fools.”

He was deeply annoyed by Raul’s attitude of holing up in the tent and doing nothing after Layla’s death.

No, to be precise, he didn’t like that Raul was trying to die like this.

“What you need to do isn’t think about how to die, but how to fight forward.”

“But Layla…”

“Did Layla die the way she wanted? Now eat the soup you’ve got your face in. If you keep wasting food, I’ll kill you myself.”

Raul, lifting his face, tremblingly grabbed a spoon and started eating the cold soup.

He couldn’t taste anything. He just swallowed desperately to survive, to not die.

“…If you’re done eating, I’ll give you an imperial order, my friend.”

Now Layla was gone. There was no good or evil in that war, but they needed to know. The meaning of taking away Layla, who was their leash.

“Make an example.”

“Is there any doubt?”

They had done something irreversible.

They massacred the surrendered demon soldiers and set fire to the temple they held sacred.

Even if it would lead to fiercer resistance and invasion in the future, it didn’t matter. They just needed an outlet for their anger.

And they wanted to give Raul an outlet for his anger too.

“The land of the giants isn’t too far away.”

“…How many do I need to kill?”

“Hmm?”

“They took half of me… Shouldn’t they pay a price beyond that example?”

It was a chilling statement, but the prince didn’t scold him.

“If we add our anger, we should annihilate them completely.”

Raul, having emptied the bowl, gave an order to his subordinate Kyle.

“Gather all the troops under my command.”

“Yes.”

“And bring plenty of oil and gunpowder.”

A few days later.

The king of the giants was horrified when he saw the imperial army finally reach them.

He knew they wouldn’t pass unscathed, but he didn’t expect Raul Berze, who was practically Layla’s lover, to be sent.

The king immediately went out with his guards to meet the imperial army.

“There were deep reasons for why we withdrew our army that day…!”

“…”

“They kidnapped my only daughter and held her hostage. They said they’d return her if we just withdrew our troops…”

“…So you’re not here to fight?”

“We came to propose a deal beneficial to the empire. If there’s any treasure or wealth you desire…”

“Do you have a treasure that can bring the dead back to life?”

Such a thing couldn’t exist.

The king despaired at the strong-willed response that showed no intention of negotiating.

Meanwhile, the king’s beloved princess stepped forward, prostrating herself before Raul.

“I deeply apologize for the tragedy that occurred because of me. My father cherished me more than his own life, so…”

“You cherished her more than your own life… Hmm…”

“Yes. We will accept any condition the empire demands, so please turn back…”

The princess of the giants couldn’t finish her sentence as her head exploded.

Raul had instantly closed the distance, grabbed her head, and crushed it.

“Good. I can return the despair I felt.”

Raul at that moment was in a state devoid of reason. He was practically insane from the pain of losing half of himself.

Seeing this, the king of the giants reached out toward his daughter’s corpse, but his hand was met with Raul’s staff and exploded.

“…I will be the catalyst for the tragedy you will experience today. Just as you did to me.”

The example of betrayal. That was just one of many reasons. The most fundamental reason was revenge for Layla’s death.

“You’re insane… You’re insane… Just for one person, you’re doing this…”

“You still don’t reflect. Thanks to that, I can handle this with peace of mind.”

As Raul slammed his staff down, the ground began to shake violently. The land of the giants was already prone to earthquakes.

But this was abnormally massive, causing the giants to panic.

The structures the giants had built over long years began to collapse, and landslides buried them.

And Raul didn’t miss the chaos, taking the lives of the giants. Earthquake, landslide, and Raul’s army. The giants couldn’t withstand the three disasters Raul brought.

“Leave not even ashes or dust behind.”

Countless giants died. Half the population fled, and their nation, with its glorious history, was reduced to ashes.

In the midst of the flames, Raul expressionlessly killed giant soldiers to vent his anger.

No matter how many he killed, his anger wouldn’t subside. He could fill rivers with blood and pile mountains with corpses, but he couldn’t fill the void in his heart.

The deaths of those traitors who betrayed them over a mere hostage couldn’t soothe Layla’s death. He knew it was meaningless, but he still swung his staff.

“…More. More. I endured the shame of surviving to reach here. I came to hold you accountable, so swing those disgusting bodies of yours…”

Raul expressed his endless anger by crushing a giant warrior’s heart with his staff.

As Raul’s blind rage burned endlessly, a fallen giant warrior shouted at him.

“You crazy demon bastard!!!”

“Curse all you want. It won’t reach my soul.”

“How are you any different from the Demon King!!”

At that moment, Raul froze.

“What…?”

“You lost one lover and vent your anger by taking countless lives! How are you any different from the Demon King!!!”

Raul couldn’t answer.

Only his bloodstained hands served as evidence to his question, but even those hands couldn’t cover his own face.

“I…”

“The Demon King started a war because he lost his wife, and you’re no different! An example of betrayal? If you think about it, isn’t your emperor the root cause of this war!”

“True. You might be right… No, you are right.”

“Be cursed! You two, who started this madness over mere love, will be punished! You will be betrayed by those you love! Your devotion will never be rewarded!”

He cursed until his last breath and died.

“…No different from the Demon King… Truly. This emotion is truly foolish.”

Raul placed a hand on his chest and laughed bitterly.

“I will never love again. I will never make anyone my other half again. I will never harbor that foolish emotion again. Never…”

Pure tears began to flow from Raul’s eyes.

Tears not of anger or misery, but of pure sorrow. He threw the ring he had intended to give Layla into the flames.

“I will never feel this pain again.”

That day, Raul fully understood love and simultaneously decided to forget it.

It was too painful, too sad, too miserable.

He carried both a lifelong regret and an undying hatred.

Meanwhile, Kyle approached him and asked.

“The pursuit preparations are complete. If we chase the fleeing giants now…”

The giants were not a numerous race to begin with.

If they pursued them now, they could erase the giants from the world.

“No. We’re going back.”

“But…”

“I forgot to offer flowers to Layla’s body. That’s all.”

That day, Raul’s empty heart was filled with regret and tears of blood.

A giant tree grew, nourished by Raul’s tears of blood and regret, and Raul buried his love beside that tree.

And so, Layla’s death turned Raul into a living corpse.