By Zephyria 
“I won’t ask difficult questions. Judging by your appearance, you probably don’t know the full story anyway. I’m just curious about a few simple things.”
This was true. If I needed as much information as possible, I wouldn’t have killed Ralph in the first place.
Since I really didn’t have much time, I got straight to the point.
“Did you guys take care of the traveling merchants? Did you also spread the ridiculous rumor about magical creatures appearing?”
He kept his mouth shut, lowered his gaze, and didn’t even look at me. Sweat gathered on his chin and dripped down. It seemed that reason was still prevailing over fear for now.
“……”
Ralph’s determined gaze suddenly flashed in my mind. I was annoyed as soon as I saw his face, and it was similar this time.
In fact, from the moment I saw the letter from his family, I had planned to use it to threaten him.
I’ll take you around and find every single member of your family. I’ll gather everyone, even your in-laws and the dog you raised, and slaughter them all in front of you, building a tower with their flesh and guts. After that, do you think I’ll give you a nice death? No, we’re going back to the beginning. Did you kill the traveling merchants?
If he still didn’t listen after I said all this, I would have no choice but to inflict physical harm. Judging by his mental state, he would probably cry and confess everything to my questions after I cut off just a few fingers.
But somehow, I didn’t feel like it.
After a little hesitation, I took out the letter I had put in my pocket. As soon as he saw the letter in my hand, his face turned pale.
“How many times have you done this that you’re so used to it, casually carrying around personal belongings that can identify you?”
“……”
“Did you act all pathetic like you did with us, and then attack them under the cover of darkness when they showed you kindness? Ah, the merchants probably weren’t as numerous or armed as we are, so you might have just killed them as soon as you found them.”
How many people had to die for the fear to be so great that even the natives decided to leave? Despite that, the people who couldn’t leave might not have been staying to protect the village, but perhaps because they had nowhere else to go.
The grimy faces of those who had eaten all their livestock and were enduring the cold flashed in my mind, making my stomach churn.
Was this really the only way to protect secrets they didn’t want to reveal to outsiders?
I didn’t understand, but just in case my assumptions were wrong, I spoke again.
“I already know there are no magical creatures in this mountain range, so don’t make me listen to nonsense and answer me straight. What was your motive for killing the merchants and using the magical creatures? Is it because of that bracelet? Because of a Relic you found somewhere in the mountains?”
“……”
His eyes shook violently, as if an earthquake had struck. But he still kept his mouth shut. It was as good as hearing an answer, but I persistently asked.
“Is what you’re hiding worth that much?”
“……”
“What great cause is there in massacring merchants who left their hometowns and traveled far to make a living? You fed your family with the money you made from killing innocent people, so you must have been a good provider.”
I scoffed, and the man finally looked at me. Fear was still present, but there was also resentment beneath the surface.
“You should have killed us all today to earn tuition for your son who will become a knight in the future, but it’s a pity. You also had to buy toys for your daughter and give living expenses to your wife who is raising the children alone. Who will feed your family now? How unfortunate.”
“I was just doing as I was told!”
The man, who had been sighing deeply, suddenly shouted. I was so dumbfounded that I raised my hand and slapped him across the face.
With a sharp crack, his face turned to the side as if his neck would break.
“Be quiet, it’s annoying.”
The man groaned, blood streaming from his mouth and nose. His chest heaved with every rough breath.
“That’s why you’re tied up naked and being slapped by a man younger than you. Because you just did as you were told without any doubt or thought, answering ‘yes, yes’ like a fool.”
“……”
“If you’re not just using your head as a decoration, try thinking a little. Didn’t the merchants you killed have children? Didn’t the investigator who died today for no reason and had his guts eaten by wild animals have a wife? Did the investigation team member who lost his precious life because you guys were making such a fuss over a single missing bracelet not have parents?”
“……”
“They all had families waiting for them at home. Just like you.”
I took the letter out of the envelope and read it again. The contents, filled with the growth and daily lives of his children, were touching and, in a way, very common and ordinary.
“What are you so resentful about that you’re glaring at me like that? Did this stupid, bug-like behavior help your kingdom that much? You crazy bastards, judging by your eyes, I’d think you were patriots saving the country.”
As I spoke, I got angry again and hit him on the head once more. The man’s face became even more red and purple than before. He looked like he was about to vomit blood because he was so angry. Not wanting to get blood on myself twice today, I subtly stepped back.
“And what kind of wealth and glory are you hoping to enjoy by doing this kind of thing that you made a family? You’re out of your mind, you crazy bastard.”
“If you’re of low status, are you not allowed to make a family as you please? What do you know, born as royalty and living in luxury!”
At those words, I slapped the man across the face again.
“I told you to be quiet. If you raise your voice one more time, I’ll cut off your wrist, so keep that in mind.”
He shut his lips tightly, blood streaming from the corners, and glared at me. Looking at his ugly face, I clicked my tongue.
“How can your life be smooth after harming so many innocent people? You killed innocent people, yet you thought the innocent people around you would be safe? If I were just a little more insane, I would have brought your family, who know nothing, and torn them apart. Then you wouldn’t even think about glaring at me so insolently like you are now.”
At my words, the man’s face was filled with despair. Fear, anger, and shame, which could not be expressed in a single word, were intertwined, forming a thick mass.
As if driven mad by fear, the man shouted.
“Don’t you dare lecture me, Actan who invaded Calderia! Who is it because of that we ended up like this? The reason we had no choice but to do this is all because of you!”
It wasn’t worth responding to, but I opened my mouth anyway because I thought he wouldn’t understand if I didn’t tell him.
“So, you’re saying you had no choice but to kill innocent merchants because of the Actan? Don’t try to obscure the essence with such a ridiculous logic. If you were really angry, why did your sword point at the people instead of me?”
“Who declared war on a country that was living well in the first place and invaded like rats?”
“Don’t try to justify your actions by bringing up something that happened over 100 years ago. It’s disgusting, I can’t listen to it.”
“Does invasion become nonexistent after 100 years? That’s a convenient thought!”
I didn’t know what to say to such shameless words. I was greatly embarrassed because I had never seen such a brazen and insane fool.
I stared blankly at the man for a while, feeling a bit dazed, and then reluctantly opened my mouth.
“I’m not saying that invasion becomes nonexistent as time passes, but that you shouldn’t use old events that you didn’t even experience as an excuse for your crimes.”
I thought I had met all kinds of crazy people while wandering around, but this guy was unique among them.
“Surely there are many people like you who are still angry at the invaders. Someday, one of them will succeed in taking revenge and exterminate the Actan imperial family.”
As I spoke, I remembered that I had similar thoughts in the past. When I was very young, I often had such fantasies while rummaging through Forbidden books, hiding from Mahir’s eyes.
“Then I’ll be the one sitting naked in that chair.”
“Your Highness.”
At that moment, Abyss, who had been quiet all along, called out to me in a low voice. I took my sword and approached the man, continuing my words.
“But the one who can put me in that chair will at least not be someone who has massacred innocent people like you.”
“Don’t try to teach me, you invader! Who is it because of that I ended up like this? What do you know, you who have never gone hungry, don’t talk nonsense!”
Completely out of his mind, the man spat and screamed. I stared blankly at his eyes, which were already half-turned and dilated, clicked my tongue, and swung the arm holding the sword.
“It’s because of you! It’s not my fault! I didn’t kill them, I just did as I was told, it’s all because of you……”
Even at the moment his head fell, the man endlessly blamed me. The fallen face rolled on the floor and stopped in the corner. The man, who died without closing his eyes, was glaring at me with tears of blood.
Was it because of the guilt I had been trying to ignore? It seemed that he had finally lost his mind because I kept pushing him in a state where his mental strength was already greatly depleted due to fear.
Since I had no intention of keeping him alive in the first place, it wasn’t a big problem whether he went crazy or not.
“……”
But my mouth kept feeling bitter. What was certain was that it wasn’t because of his nonsense. There was no logic in the man’s words. He was just stubbornly making excuses like a child, not wanting to admit his mistakes.
But strangely, my heart kept pounding slowly and heavily. I focused on that beat for a moment and handed the sword to Abyss.
“Let’s go back now. Gather all the corpses and throw them to the beasts as food.”
“Understood.”
As soon as I left the tent and went outside, I felt the cold, refreshing air. Just as I was about to take a deep breath, I was startled by something I saw to the side and lowered my head.
“……”
“……”
Aska, who had been sitting next to the entrance with a tree branch, was seen. On his eyes, triangles, squares, and circles were drawn crookedly.