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Chapter 65
Salt and Sand
Thud!
A deep sound of explosion resonated from within Abel's body.
At the same time, Abel's body went limp.
The groaning in pain, the trembling—all of it vanished.
"Ah......."
E_nũ m а̌.і̄_d̊
An exclamation burst from Ruri's mouth.
She thought.
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That all of this was a dream.
That she was actually in bed, and a demon had sneaked into her chambers to show her a nightmare.
But she didn't wake up.
The more she focused on waking, the closer the cold reality drew.
W̊е̇ b n о v̌.е̃ l̃ Ѐń û m а̇
"Aah......."
Ruri walked toward Abel with unsteady steps.
She turned over his collapsed body.
His pupils held no focus.
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His pulse was gone.
His body temperature turned cold.
E_ǹu m̂ а̇
She tried to use healing art.
But she knew it was impossible.
Because his heart was shattered.
If the heart is shattered, no Dragon Spawn can survive.
Ferda would have known this too.
Ferda had no intention of leaving him any chance at life.
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The sensation of this tragedy unfolding in a cold, dark place where snowstorms raged pierced into her mind.
A Silver Dragon's Spawn had died.
Another of Father's children died today.
What that other child had seen was visible to her as well.
And that man was standing right before her.
"Right now......."
E̊nů mа. î d
A voice forced its way through a blocked throat.
"Do you know what you've done, Ferda-nim?"
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"I know."
Ferda answered indifferently.
"It's murder."
Cold as the northern air.
E̊ nù_ṁa
"It's not just murder...... Ferda-nim."
Ruri's hand trembled.
"A child of Silverwind died. You killed one who inherited his blood. Do you know what that means?"
"I know."
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"No. You don't know."
Ruri lifted her head.
Е́ ñǔm̌а̄
She walked toward Ferda.
"You killed one who inherited dragon blood. They will not stop their revenge."
"I know."
"Until you die...... they will absolutely never stop."
"I know."
"If you know!!"
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Ruri grabbed Ferda by the collar.
"You never would have made this choice!"
Everything she had built up.
"Because of your actions!"
Due to Ferda's actions.
>
Е̄ ǹ ū ṁа. і̆d̆
"The peace I protected for Valdrova-nim has shattered!"
It collapsed futilely.
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>
"You...... because of you......."
Ruri lowered her head.
The hand gripping his collar trembled faintly.
Ẃ е_b̈n õ vё ĺ Е ṅûm̃ ӓ
Her two legs shook, barely supporting her body.
She thought.
Can this be cleaned up?
Can this be brushed aside as nothing?
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Just what will happen?
She tried to gauge the events to come, but couldn't.
W̄е̂ b n ӧv̀ѐ l. Ĕ n ù m̀a
This was beyond her.
There's no way it can be resolved amicably.
"Hah, hah......."
Tension strangled her throat.
She exhaled rough, gasping breaths.
Her head went blank.
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"It's...... because of you."
What spilled from her mouth was resentment.
"Vandrova-nim...... was plenty happy even without you."
Vicious words she didn't mean poured out.
"You......! Because you tried to enter her life......!"
But Ferda didn't budge.
Е̇ n̊ ú m̀a .і̌ d
Ferda looked down at her.
With eyes like he was looking at a pitiful child.
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"Ruri."
"Don't call my name with that mouth! With that mouth......!"
"Ruri."
A cold voice seized the confused her.
Ẃ еb̈ n о v́ е̃ l̊ Е̃n_u̇ mа̄
"Look at me."
Ruri lifted her head.
Silver eyes with nowhere to go looked up at Ferda.
"Abel had to die. This choice was inevitable."
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"There was a choice. And I made that choice."
"That choice of giving up on yourself was the worst one."
Е̃ n uma
"Does it matter if I'm here or not? You just need Valdrova-nim, don't you? Isn't keeping the peace enough?"
"There was no peace to begin with."
"There was! Right there, clearly! The peace I made existed!"
Ruri snapped back.
Doubt that she might be wrong swelled in her chest, but she refused to acknowledge it.
She didn't want to make everything she'd done meaningless.
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"Ruri."
Ferda asks.
"Did I break the peace you made?"
"Yes."
That is fact.
"Did I put my fiancée in danger?"
Ën̂ ûṁа
"Yes."
That too is fact.
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"Then am I wrong?"
"......."
Ruri couldn't answer.
She didn't understand why she hesitated to give that answer.
Еn̊ǔm̀а
He clearly killed Abel.
Because of that, the peace broke.
Valdrova is in danger.
So is that wrong?
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It wasn't.
Somewhere in her heart, it said otherwise.
W̊ eb̄nо̌ vе l Еn̄ ǔm̄ ă
"You...... are wrong."
She lacked the courage to admit it.
She threw another tantrum.
"Is that so."
Ferda peeled her hand away.
At his gesture, Ruri's hand was led along.
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Ruri's eyes widened.
It moved just past her collar, making her wrap her arms around his neck.
"Then kill me right here."
Ruri asks in a trembling voice.
"Are you...... serious?"
"That's what I asked of you."
En̆ ûṁ_ӑ .і̄d
Ruri recalled something she'd set aside in memory.
When Ferda had finished recruiting all the talents,
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The last name he wrote was his own.
And he asked thus.
"If I endanger my fiancée, if I act wrongly, kill me without hesitation."
Ruri naturally didn't believe it.
Е̄n um̆ а̃ . i d̀
There's no living creature in the world that wants to die.
Humans, of course, and Dragon Spawn too.
Even dragons themselves.
"If I die, the peace you protected will return."
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Ferda was different.
His eyes held no wavering.
E_ṅ û m̊å
From the moment he killed Abel until now.
The resolve dwelling within him had never once faltered.
Ruri spat out the question she couldn't understand, had kept in her heart.
"Ferda-nim...... do you not regret that action?"
"I don't regret it."
Ferda thought it over and over.
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He thought before acting, thought while acting, and thought even at this very moment.
The conclusion was always the same.
"Even if I turn back time a thousand times, I will save you."
"Why?"
Unlike her wavering pupils, he shone clearly.
It was a light Ruri didn't have.
W̆ еb̊n о̃ vе ľ Ě n u mа̄
"Because I don't doubt that this is for my fiancée, Valdrova."
That light caressed Ruri's cheek.
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"She needs you more than me."
The moment she heard those words, everything composing Ruri collapsed.
"Just...... why?"
The hand holding Ferda's neck released and slid down his body.
Ẁ е̌b̌nӧv̌ еl̊ Е̃n u m а̇
"Why...... when I've lived longer...... served Valdrova-nim longer......."
Her voice held moisture.
"Why a human like you......."
Ruri hated humans.
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Human greed only ever hurt Valdrova.
Ferda was different from those humans.
Е.n û m а .і̊ d
But.
She hated Ferda more than any human.
Why?
He's doing it for Valdrova.
He actually has the power to do so.
She hates him to death.
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"Why, can't I...... be like you......."
Ruri's body collapsed forward.
She didn't want to lean on a man she hated.
But showing him her tears was even more hateful.
"Keuhk, heuk......."
Ruri desperately tried to swallow her sobs.
Еn u̇ m̈ a. іd̈
But knowing she couldn't, she buried her face in his clothes to forcibly silence the sound.
Ruri shed tears mindlessly while catching a faint scent.
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Long ago, a village burned to the ground in a great fire.
The man who took in the lone surviving girl.
She smelled that man's scent.
Ferda returned to Count Consilirus's castle with Ruri.
Е̂ n ǔ.mä
"Thank you."
"......."
Ruri didn't answer.
Since crying, she hadn't spoken a word.
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"Go back now."
Neither affirmation nor denial.
Ė n um а .іḋ
Instead, her hand gave the answer.
She couldn't let go of his hem.
The anxiety remaining in her heart seeped through her hand.
"Ruri."
"......."
"Are you afraid war will break out?"
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She nodded slightly.
Meaning she's worried, but that's not all.
"No need to worry. If I'm right, war won't happen."
"......."
"Return to your master's side. Go back as if nothing happened and prepare the tea party."
"......."
W̆е̂ b́ ǹ о̃v̌ еl̆ Ѐ n̂ům̀ ã
"Can you do that for your master?"
Only then did Ruri let go of his collar.
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In the end, without saying a single word, she flew away.
Ferda straightened his clothes and opened the balcony door.
The castle interior was already a mess.
"Kill that demon bitch already!"
W ēb ň ŏv́ ẽ l Еn̊ u m̆ ǎ
"Don't just kill her, burn her to death with holy light!"
Knights with horns fully raised.
"Hwaaang!! I don't wanna dieee!!"
The pink-haired demon wailing loud enough to shake the castle.
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"No, calm down and listen to me!"
And Jed breaking a cold sweat trying to mediate between them.
Е̂ n̆ ǔm̄a
"Sir Jed, step aside!"
"Have you been bewitched by that demon bitch!?"
"You damn parachute knight! Hand that bitch over right now!"
"No, you people can't say anything! I'm not protecting this bitch, I got orders too!"
"Hwaaaa, Knight-nim! Save meee!"
"No, you crazy bitch! Let go of my leg! Ugh, seriously, what the hell am I going through because of that guy!!"
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They say there's no high or low in work, but accepting this job was a mistake.
Jed regretted it again and again.
"Just kill her already!"
"Hwaaaang!!"
"Just what's going on?"
"This demon bitch worse than a dog hijacked the gate the Regent-nim was coming through and caused this mess...... huh?"
Еn ǔ m а̄
"R-Regent-nim?"
The subject of the commotion, that very Regent, appeared, and it went silent in an instant.
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"Are you alright?"
"I'm fine. Ribs and fingers are broken, but nothing serious."
"That demon said you let her in, lying......."
"Waaang! It's not a lie!!"
Е n ǔ ṁа .і d́_
"It's not a lie. I did let her in. So put away your killing intent and go back."
"Ah, yes. If you say so......."
"See! It's true! Why are you framing me as a liar! Real demon life is so sad, really ubeu-beup!"
"You've been fucking loud since earlier, seriously!"
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Penelope trying to pour oil on the burning house.
Jed gagged her mouth with a rag.
Е n̂u m̊ ӓ .id̈
"Fortunately everyone returned safely from the sudden operation. I'm fine, so go rest."
Thus the commotion settled for now.
Ferda turned his gaze.
What he saw were two people.
Jed breaking a cold sweat.
And Penelope dripping tears and snot.
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"You two have separate business."
* * *
Early dawn at Count Consilirus's castle.
The black sky began to find color.
It was twilight just before dawn broke.
Ferda waited without sleeping.
Е n u m̃а . îd̂
His ribs had been broken, fingers bent.
He'd restored his body with healing magic, but the aftereffects left him more exhausted than ever.
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Yet he endured the drowsiness and waited.
Soon after, Ferda sensed an energy intruding from the surroundings.
"My darling, you're back?"
The Great Demon, Sitri, crawled from the darkness.
W̃е b̂ ǹ о̃v̌ ѐ l̄ Е̄ ňŭm̄ a
"I was so worried things went wrong, but looks like it worked out somehow?"
"......."
"Why look at me like that? I didn't do anything wrong, right?"
"Right, it's not your fault."
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Ferda leaned back on the backrest and crossed his arms.
"But it looks like you hoped I wouldn't return safely."
Web̆ n̈ о́v еl Еn.u m̀а̃
"No way. Can't do business with a dead person? I waited for your return more than anyone?"
Sitri with a bewitching smile.
But her expression was distinctly different from a few hours ago.
Impatience.
"Your dog is dead, Sitri."
"My dog? Who?"
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"Don't play dumb. I know Abel Silverwind is one of your dogs."
"Oh my, how terrible. Anyone who hates darling is on the demons' side, is that it? I hate that prejudice......."
She denies it brazenly.
Her eyes curved like a new moon.
"Even if that Abel was my dog, there's no proof, right?"
Sitri laughed deeply.
Е̌n̄ūm̃а̌
As she said.
There's no proof.
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If one made a deal with a demon, a seal or mana trace would be engraved.
Abel had none of that.
"You think you can frame a living demon without evidence? If you deny it that much, they'll try to call me as a witness. Then I'll deny it."
"Then I'll be in trouble."
E n̂üma .іd̊
"The picture will come out: Regent Ferda, who intruded and committed murder, blaming it all on demons to avoid responsibility...... And......."
Sitri slithered closer.
"It'll only look like darling struggling to survive. Even if it doesn't look that way, humans won't leave darling alone."
She whispered in Ferda's ear.
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"And wasn't it darling who made a deal with a demon first?"
Sitri revealed her true colors.
E ṅ ũ m а
"You borrowed demon magic to sneak into the territory, and rescued a demon."
Sitri would have already secured that evidence.
From the moment she offered the Bending Bridge, she'd laid traps several layers deep so Ferda couldn't help but get caught.
"Poor, cute Regent-nim."
Sitri caressed Ferda's face.
"Isn't it strange? Why doesn't the saying 'don't deal with demons' change even as time passes? Because everyone makes the same mistake every time, no matter how much it's emphasized."
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"......."
"Darling already crossed a river of no return the moment you used my Bending Bridge. If you'd asked another kid sooner, wouldn't this have never happened?"
She mocks that every decision of Ferda's was a mistake.
The flow tilts.
Demons always aim for that gap.
Sitri opened her mouth to propose.
E̊ñ ůḿа_. і d
"If......."
Ferda spoke first.
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"'If' is the refuge of those who regret their actions."
Ferda lifted his head.
"If you don't regret, you don't need the word 'if'."
The atmosphere Sitri thought was hers flipped in an instant.
W ėb n̈о̀ v́e l̃ Eǹu mã
Sitri felt a sense of heterogeneity in those eyes.
Calm to a degree unimaginable for someone cornered.
Wondering if he's an idiot who can't grasp the situation, but that wasn't it either.
It was unmistakably conviction forged from resolve.
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"You gonna start a war? Or annul the engagement with Valdrova? Either way, nothing good for you."
"Neither war nor annulment will happen."
Е̇.nū mȧ . ĭ d́
Ferda spoke leisurely.
"Abel was a demon follower, and the fact he cooperated doesn't change."
"Did you hear what I said?"
Sitri was dumbfounded.
"I said there's no evidence. With no evidence, how can they believe darling? Are they idiots?"
This game was overwhelmingly in Sitri's favor.
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She held many cards in her hand for this moment.
She finished preparing to counterattack whatever way he came at her.
Ferda wasn't an idiot either.
To block the aftereffects of a demon's deal, Ferda had also made full preparations.
"Right, there's no evidence."
But by killing Abel, those cards all left his hand.
En̄ u ḿ ӓ . іď
No cards to counter Sitri's.
"So."
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Instead, what he held was,
"From now on, you will make it."
A dog leash to bind the demon.
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