Why is the prince here…?
That very same question seemed to cross Ressas’ mind as well. Just as he was moving to check on the safety of the mother and child, his eyes landed on Seiyad, and his expression stiffened with a start.
“T-Thank you….”
The woman glanced between the two men and finally managed to express her gratitude. She was still clutching the child tightly in her arms, unable to stand. Ressas looked her over, then turned his gaze away from Seiyad. Slowly approaching the woman, he extended his hand.
“Are you hurt anywhere?”
Bathed in the bright moonlight, the woman caught a clear glimpse of Ressas’ face and instantly lowered her head in shock. Even the child, who had been sobbing incessantly, seemed to sense that they were now safe and fell quiet, gazing up at Ressas with wide eyes.
“We’re okay… But my husband went to help the other villagers… I don’t know if he’s all right.”
The woman finally seemed to regain her composure and explained the situation. Seeing the anxiety on her face, Ressas spoke gently.
“My knights are assisting the others. Things should calm down soon. When I passed through, no one appeared to be gravely injured.”
“Oh! Thank you so much. Thanks to you, we—”
Seiyad had been silently listening and now fully grasped the situation. He still didn’t know why Ressas and his knights were here, but for now, there didn’t appear to be any major casualties.
Having confirmed all he needed, he turned his back. He knew his departure would help them regain a sense of calm. Though Ressas glanced briefly in his direction, Seiyad didn’t notice.
Just as he was silently making his way into the village, a small voice called out to him.
“Thank you, mister knight.”
Seiyad didn’t think the words were meant for him and didn’t turn around. He kept walking, but then came the sound of footsteps dashing toward him, and a small hand grabbed the hem of his fur-lined cloak.
“Mister knight, are you hurt?”
Only then did Seiyad look back. A tiny girl, so small he had to lower his gaze to see her, was staring up at him with round, shining eyes. Streaks of tears stained her cheeks, yet she smiled as if she had never been crying at all.
“Judy! Y-You can’t just grab the Lord’s clothes like that…!”
The woman let out a stifled scream. She must have recognized who Seiyad was after witnessing him use his powers. Stumbling over with a terrified look, she pulled the child back into her arms and bowed her head deeply toward him in apology.
“I-I beg your forgiveness, my lord. My ignorant child knows no better. Please, have mercy!”
She looked about ready to drop to her knees. Seiyad’s voice came out cold.
“Don’t make a fuss. Step aside.”
Her face drained of all color, the woman frantically nodded. Instinctively stepping back toward the man she perceived as safer—Ressas—she hugged the child tightly to her chest. But even then, the little girl squirmed and fussed.
“But the knight saved us! Can’t we invite him to our house?”
“Judy, the Lord is very busy. He doesn’t have time for that.”
Seiyad glanced down at the cloak where the girl’s hand had been. It felt as if a mark had been left there. As he stood staring, his eyes met Ressas’, who had been quietly watching him. Those beautiful violet eyes furrowed with curiosity. Seiyad opened his mouth, as if to speak, but stopped. He remembered that morning—how the boy had recoiled when he approached. The memory sealed his lips shut.
“Your Highness! We’ve completed the sweep. All the wolves have been taken care of—!”
Two knights suddenly came sprinting from deeper within the village. They were headed Seiyad’s way, their voices strong and confident as they called to Ressas—until they spotted the man standing in the center of the path. They froze.
“Huh…?”
One of the knights, caught mid-shout, let out a dumbfounded noise, his eyes blinking in disbelief. Wasn’t his name Vine? He’d been the one fighting the bear alongside Ressas earlier.
“T-The Duke… What are you doing here…?”
“You idiot! You greet him first!”
The brown-haired knight behind Vine smacked the back of his head and quickly bowed alongside him.
“We greet His Grace the Duke. We are escort knights in service to His Highness Ressas—”
“Why are escort knights absent from their post? That’s not your assignment, is it?”
At Seiyad’s pointed rebuke, Vine’s face twisted in indignation. But the brown-haired knight seemed quicker on the uptake, pulling Vine back and trying to smooth things over. Just then, Ressas stepped forward.
“That was by my order. Eliminating the wolves took precedence, and I am capable of defending myself. Do not reprimand my knights.”
The sharpness in Ressas’ reply made the knights glance at him uneasily. Clearly, they still hadn’t adjusted to this side of him. A tense silence descended. Startled by the unexpected mentions of “Your Highness” and “the Duke,” the woman’s face went completely pale, and she kept her head bowed low.
The silence was broken by the village representative, who had just returned after sorting out the aftermath.
“Ah! There you are, knights. Thanks to you, we’ve taken care of the wolves. Some buildings were damaged, but….”
The middle-aged man came running, but he stopped dead in his tracks the moment he saw Seiyad. Eyes going wide, he immediately bowed low, voice trembling with fear.
“My lord…! It is an honor to see you…!”
The face was faint in his memory, but familiar. One of the many who visited each year to deliver reports on the estate’s conditions. Just one among the countless forgettable faces—yet Seiyad found himself wondering why he remembered this particular man.
Then, one vivid memory resurfaced.
A moment so harrowing it had etched itself into his soul—only to be deliberately erased.
“How can a demon like you be our lord?! A lord who doesn’t protect his land is no lord at all! If it weren’t for you, everyone in this village would still be alive!”
A middle-aged man who used to come to the castle daily, pleading with him to send at least one knight because wolves kept appearing near the village. Perhaps the timing was unfortunate. It was during the height of the deep winter, and Seiyad had mobilized every available hand to patrol the forest that had been behaving erratically. Not even a single knight could be spared.
The walk from the village to the castle took half a day on foot. The man had begged again and again, insisting the villagers were powerless to fend off the beasts on their own. Kellaran, moved by the man’s desperation, had even pleaded with Seiyad a few times to make an exception—despite the risk of overstepping.
The incident broke out not long after.
Just after sunset, as the sky turned dark, a pack of wolves attacked the village. Larger and more aggressive than usual, the beasts mauled through the men first—the few able-bodied villagers who stood their ground were slaughtered. The wolves then trampled over the corpses and tore through the defenseless.
The man survived only because he had been away at the castle again, making yet another futile appeal. By the time he returned, the village had already been ravaged.
In the aftermath, the man—driven mad—stood in Seiyad’s path just as he was heading toward the forest. He hurled stones at the lord, screamed curses, and eventually charged with murderous intent.
“Give me back my family!”
Those were the man’s final words.
Seiyad had no choice. The man came at him with his full weight and fury, and Seiyad killed him with his blade. The knights hadn’t even had time to intervene. With a sword driven through his chest, the man died in a way that made it look like he had been struck down by Seiyad’s own power.
The knights stirred with unease at the sight of such a tragic death. But Seiyad turned away from their pitying eyes and rode off to kill Nir’a.
The knights buried the man in the village. Not long after, the place was abandoned—only the graves remained.
Including the one beneath Seiyad’s feet now.
A sharp sting, like a thorn prick, spread through his fingertips. A tightness clamped down on his chest, and for a moment, he couldn’t breathe. He looked down at the man who bowed before him, then glanced at the woman and child beside him.
The dead were gathered all around him.
Lives he could have saved. People whose deaths he had allowed through his neglect. From the castle gates to the village outskirts, death had followed him.
The realization was unbearable.
Even though he had always known, coming face-to-face with the evidence made him want to die from the weight of it.
“…Gilliam, wasn’t it? I remember. Each year, you offered that wine made from frozen grapes.”
The man flinched in surprise and lifted his head. His wide brown eyes were gentle now, utterly unrecognizable from the man who had once hurled curses at Seiyad.
“I-I’m honored, my lord. I never imagined you’d remember someone like me…”
“Any casualties?”
“Thankfully, no. Thanks to the knights who arrived just in time. D-Did Your Grace send them…?”
“No. You’re alive today thanks to His Highness Ressas.”
Ressas looked like he was about to step in—perhaps to deflect the attention—but Seiyad spoke first. He knew better than to take credit for any part of this. Nothing that happened today could be called his doing. Had Seiyad never existed, these people would still be alive.
“Y-Your Highness…?”
“Offer your thanks to the Light of Solias.”
At Seiyad’s command, Gilliam quickly bowed low. The woman, who had been holding her breath the entire time, followed suit with the child in her arms, pressing herself flat against the ground. Ressas, visibly uncomfortable, moved to stop them.
“That’s enough. There’s no need for unnecessary ceremony. You’d do better to assess the state of your village.”
“Thank you, Your Highness! Truly, if you hadn’t come, many would have died.”
Gilliam’s voice trembled with emotion as he bowed to Ressas repeatedly. Though visibly flustered, Ressas offered a gentle smile. He placed a hand on Gilliam’s shoulder, reassuring him.
“It was only natural. There’s no need to thank me. Anyone else would’ve done the same.”
But Ressas was wrong again.
Not everyone saves people as if it were natural.
Seiyad himself was living proof of that.
