#109

The feeling of death being cast over a face that had been innocently smiling was unpleasant. After accepting the group as companions and acknowledging his emotions, Cullen defined his feelings for her. He was worried about Kihelene. Whether it was because she was family, or because she resembled his mother, he didn’t know the exact reason, but he was worried nonetheless.

“Can Kihelene die?”

“With the fragment beside her, the possibility is low. Even if she doesn’t command it, I will be summoned the moment she feels threatened.”

Despite this, a lingering anxiety remained. Kiyen’s power was overwhelming, yet something felt unsettling. It was likely due to Zarkas’s unknown roots. Cullen fell into thought. Then, one thing came to mind.

“Then… what happens to me?”

Kiyen gazed at Cullen. It was silent.

“If you too are in danger, then I will come. You have a small power I planted within you, do you not?”

He had always appeared in time to save Cullen. So he trusted him. But what if…

“What happens if both I and Kihelene are in danger at the same time?”

Ever since Kiyen mentioned his clone’s power weakening, this was the anxiety Cullen had felt. All Larkans were said to be protected by Kiyen, but his mother had been attacked while heading to the temple, leaving Kiyen behind.

What if, from then, or even before, he had prepared for such a situation?

But his appearance was unknown to everyone, wasn’t it? Even Cullen himself.

“Then you will have to choose.”

Kiyen lowered his eyelashes.

“I am great, but I cannot be everywhere at once. That is the work of a god.”

Kiyen closed his mouth after speaking. It seemed he too had something to contemplate.

Cullen could not ask him what he was thinking. No matter how much Kiyen had opened his heart to him, no matter how close they had become, he would never like Larkans. The actions taken against him in the name of Larciel would not disappear.

Therefore, Kiyen would certainly feel no regret, at least, about this situation. He didn’t want to confirm that. That to Kiyen, Helen’s life and his own were of similar value.

That the salvation he had provided thus far was merely an act of obligation.

Even though he knew from the start and fell in love, Cullen, cowardly, kept wanting something else from Kiyen. Even while certain he didn’t love me, he nurtured hope every day.

And so, in the end, didn’t he get hurt alone again now? Even though he gave a perfectly rational and predictable answer, Cullen imagined different words.

Cullen hoped for Kiyen’s answer that he would stay for me. Because he thought Kiyen might at least value him more than Kihelene.

He felt nauseous at the selfish thought he conjured himself. How could it be this disgusting? It was utterly hypocritical that, even after admitting he was worried about Kihelene, he wanted Kiyen to prioritize him.

Overwhelmed by self-loathing, Cullen moved a little away from Kiyen. He finally felt the gazes of the party members observing the two of them in their serious mood.

“Are you okay? What’s wrong?”

At Ulli’s question, Cullen dismounted. Their overlapping hands separated. He felt Kiyen’s gaze on the back of his neck but deliberately didn’t look. It was to avoid showing a sad face.

“Nothing is wrong at the moment, but I believe the future will be problematic.”

Having said that, Cullen scanned the faces of the party members one by one. Stopping his gaze on Lasano, Cullen spoke.

“Lasano, in your prophecy, the goddess said this: ‘If the ancient guardian of the Empire does not stop this, the continent will face destruction.’ Who is that guardian?”

The weight of the prophecy, spoken aloud after a long time, pressed down on his shoulders. Lasano was silent for a moment. His red eyes fixed on Cullen. Or perhaps they were fixed on Kiyen behind Cullen.

“Prophecies are bound to change depending on the situation and the interpreter. I am merely the messenger. The interpretation is up to you, Cullen.”

Lasano replied calmly. His voice, unusually calm, also sobered Ulli and Arne.

The prophecy, which he couldn’t fully grasp at the time, was quite ambiguous after their journey. It was unclear whether the continent meant the Empire or the land itself, and who the guardian was.

“As you know, from now on, it is Zarkas’s domain. And as you’ve experienced, they are beings with powers that are difficult for even me to contend with.”

If what they had experienced so far was only a part, the power they would face next would be even more dangerous. Lasano had already narrowly escaped death. Cullen acknowledged the group as companions, but because of that, he didn’t want to see them in danger.

“Ulli, although you and I have a contract, there’s no need for us to complete this entire journey together. You’ve told me everything you know, and I will handle Count Linden regardless of our deal. So, you are free to leave.”

Ulli’s eyebrows shot up. Cullen then spoke to Arne.

“Arne, you can settle down anywhere as long as it’s not Exion territory. We weren’t bound by a deal in the first place, so I think it’s best for you to leave. Dangerous situations may arise that neither I nor Kiyen can attend to.”

As he was about to speak to Lasano as well, Lasano voiced his intention first.

“As when we first traveled together, I have a duty to uphold the goddess’s will. So, you can skip me.”

As soon as Lasano finished speaking, Ulli approached. She hesitated, then slowly looked up at Cullen.

“You idiot, why are you suddenly saying that? We’ve been together this long. If I didn’t like danger, I would have left long ago. As you know, I don’t cling to my life. Besides, it hasn’t been that long, but I… I like you guys.”

Cullen flinched at the direct statement. Taking advantage of the moment, Arne chimed in.

“Me too, Cullen. I was going to die anyway. It’s true I’m not much help, but if it’s okay with you, I want to stay. We’re… like family.”

When he glanced up slightly, Arne’s eyes were glistening. He seemed very surprised by the suggestion to leave. Ulli continued.

“I don’t know about that smarmy High Priest… Cullen, we’re all left alone, aren’t we? That Dragon, you, me, and even this crybaby priest here. I like that we are. That people who were left alone gathered and became us.”

She took Cullen’s hand. Arne’s hand too.

“So let’s stay together! If you’re okay with it.”

“Please!”

Arne hugged them both tightly. As he was suddenly embraced by Arne, Cullen hesitated. The unspoken feelings he hadn’t managed to express earlier spilled out.

“……I don’t want to lose someone precious.”

With those words, Cullen gazed at Kiyen. Kiyen was his most precious person, but as Ulli said, the companions had also become precious to Cullen. At his words, Ulli laughed.

“We just have to not die! We have a super strong lizard, don’t we?”

“That’s right!”

Kiyen stared at them for a moment, then turned his head towards the castle.

“If you keep talking like that, I’ll leave you to die.”

Arne finally laughed at his quietly added words. Cullen watched Kiyen, who was looking at the castle, for a long time, and finally laughed.

My Kiyen was always like that. Terribly insensitive, yet inherently kind. Since even this pain was gained from loving Kiyen, Cullen willingly accepted the sadness with joy.

With a more solidified atmosphere, the group planned to enter the castle. Ulli seemed to regret the choice not to destroy the castle, but seeing Cullen’s expression, she conceded.

The method of entering while disguised didn’t work. From observing from afar, anyone wearing a hood or a robe was invariably caught by the guards. It was natural to check, given the wanted posters.

“We have no choice but for the two of you to go in, scout the interior, and create an opening for us to enter. We’ll use Kiyen’s lizard to communicate with Arne temporarily.”

Cullen made the decision. It seemed most feasible for Cullen to go in after scouting the internal security structure and creating a gap.

“Pantal is too conspicuous,” Lasano pointed out. Ulli’s portrait on the wanted poster was strange in every other aspect, but Pantal, carried on her back, was drawn accurately.

“But it’s dangerous to go without Pantal. Besides, Pantal doesn’t react to anyone but me. You probably can’t even carry him?”

Ulli seemed unwilling to compromise on that point. Then Kiyen offered a solution.

“Then, cook, you carry the woman.”

“……What?”

“Wouldn’t that be enough disguise? If you carry her, claiming she broke her leg, there shouldn’t be any particular objections.”

It was a method that seemed like it might work. Ulli recoiled.

“You want me to be carried by Arne? No way! I hate that sort of thing.”

“I… I don’t particularly want to carry Ulli either….”

Arne’s assertion made Ulli glare at him.

“What? You should consider it an honor, what are you saying?”

With her fierce demeanor, Arne quickly changed his tune.

“It might be unpleasant for you if I carried you.”

“Can you even carry me, being so scrawny? Pantal is quite heavy, you know?”

Arne wore a shocked expression. Given his height, second only to Kiyen, and his sturdy build, he didn’t look scrawny at all, so it was understandable. He seemed provoked by Ulli’s description.

“I… I can even carry two sacks of potatoes!”

Kiyen looked at them with a look of pity. Ulli and Arne bickered for a few minutes, then finally decided to follow Kiyen’s method. Arne, mounted on a horse, managed to embrace Ulli precariously. The luggage slung over his shoulders concealed Pantal to some extent.

“Pantal is… really… heavy,” Arne said, his face instantly weary. Cullen lengthened the reins so Arne could drag the rest of the way, and Lasano began wrapping a fake bandage around Ulli’s ankle.

“The combination looks unsettling just by looking at it,” Lasano said, scanning Ulli and Arne with a doubtful gaze. It was an understandable sentiment, but the preparations were complete. The lizard, which had always stayed close to Cullen, climbed onto Arne’s shoulder and then disappeared. Arne, with a precarious gait, led the horse towards the castle walls.

Cullen, shielding his eyes with his hand, looked ahead. Lasano stood beside him. He saw Ulli and Arne being questioned.

“Do you really intend to follow the prophecy, Cullen?”

Perhaps due to their suspicious appearance, Ulli and Arne were held by the guards for quite a long time. Cullen replied, watching them.

“Yes.”

“That’s unexpected.”

However, they couldn’t find anything else, and Ulli and Arne safely entered the castle. Cullen, having watched them go, turned his head. Lasano met his gaze.

“Actually, I thought you would leave the Imperial Palace as you were, Cullen.”

“Do I look like that kind of person? You said that before.”

“No.”

Lasano gave a strange smile. Even while smiling, his face looked angry.

“It’s because the Empire has done nothing for you. Most of the citizens are like that. They receive no protection from the nobles or the country, and are merely exploited.”

He asked as if to confirm something.

“If I were you, Cullen, I wouldn’t care if the Empire that did nothing while my loved one was dying was destroyed. The lord of the manor did nothing even when my family burned to death. Do you want to protect such a place?”

Cullen frowned. It was certainly possible to think that way, but…

“But if that happens, many innocent people will die. I don’t want that.”

As he had thought before, Cullen didn’t want more people like himself to be created. Lasano fell silent at Cullen’s firm answer. He slowly turned his head, looked at the castle walls, and then nodded.

“Indeed, the Emperor’s mettle is different.”

A faint smile returned to his face. Lasano lightly bowed his waist.

“The goddess, in this regard at least, seems to have excellent judgment.”

Lasano, having said something cryptic, soon returned to his usual self. As Lasano walked towards Kiyen, who had been watching them converse, Cullen suddenly realized one fact.

He had never told any of them that his family had burned to death.