Chapter 87 - Cadet William

The man who introduced himself as William slowly explained.

"We are farmers serving under Duke Yurei's territory. As you know, since the Grand Council, Duke Yurei has collected excessive taxes, increasing the number of those who have abandoned their hometowns."

"I am well aware. Nearly 100 people like you have already come in."

"We also came to the far east for a dream."

"Does that dream include ambushing and killing a merchant's carriage?"

"Of course, I believe that is a matter you could easily misunderstand, Regent."

One wrong word, and his head would fly.

William swallowed hard, putting a pleading tone into his voice.

"I swear, we have absolutely nothing to do with that ambush. The only reason we even found that carriage was because someone told us about it."

"Someone told you?"

"Yes."

William explained the incident.

"Someone approached us on our way to the Grand Duchy's territory. Their appearance was similar to ours, but they were armed. We were on guard, thinking they might be bandits trying to steal what little we had left, but they weren't. Instead, they showed us kindness."

"What kind of kindness?"

"They told us they could give food to the hungry."

Ferda tilted his head.

"You don't look stupid enough to believe that."

"Would you believe me if I said we were just that desperate?"

What wouldn't a person do when desperate?

He decided to understand.

"Keep talking."

"Anyway... the place we arrived at was that gruesome scene you saw, Regent. People were dead, fresh food was rolling on the ground, weapons to protect oneself were lying around, and there were even precious gems."

Ferda saw through the intention in those words and asked directly.

"Are you bringing up the gems to claim your innocence?"

"But as I mentioned earlier, we are hungry refugees. We were just starving at that moment, and you can't eat gold. That's why we didn't touch it."

"For saying that, you certainly took things you couldn't eat."

Ferda recalled the missing weapons and asked.

"We took the weapons because we needed a means to protect ourselves on the rest of our journey. Since an ambush like that happened, there was no guarantee we wouldn't be attacked."

"You gathered the food because it was clearly going to rot, and you needed the weapons to protect yourselves. Is that what you're saying?"

"That is correct."

Ferda laughed, finding his demeanor ridiculous.

"Alright, let's say those reasons hold up. Then what about that gold coin you took?"

"Pardon?"

"Did you take it just in case we turned away refugees?"

"What do you mean by that...?"

"Don't play dumb. How do you think we found you and came all this way?"

William looked like he genuinely had no idea what was going on.

It was hard to tell whether he was simply being brazen or if this was truly the first he was hearing of it.

"Sir Ferda."

Just then, Isabella abruptly interjected.

"That gold coin wasn't taken by this man named William."

"Then who?"

Isabella pointed to one of the refugees bowing their heads.

The exact spot her finger pointed to wasn't entirely clear, but she could be certain because one of them was trembling noticeably more than the rest.

"William. Call that little rat over and bring him here."

"Yes."

William pulled up the man Ferda had pointed out.

The face of the man who had kept his head down was revealed.

The guilty thief was dripping with cold sweat.

William looked at him and pressed him.

"Turn your pockets inside out."

"..."

"What are you doing? Hurry up and show him!"

The man turned his pockets inside out with trembling hands.

CLINK—.

What popped out from inside was a single gold coin.

Ferda picked up the gold coin.

It was unmistakably the gold coin used as currency.

"Isn't this quite a large sum of money for refugees to have?"

William grabbed the man by the collar with a look of betrayal.

"Evans! I clearly told you not to touch the valuables, didn't I!? Didn't I say that recklessly touching the treasures of the dead would bring disaster!?"

"I-I'm sorry. But opportunities like this are rare, and we don't know when we'll get another, do we? So I thought just one gold coin would be fine..."

"You fool! Do you have any idea how bad this situation is because of—!"

"Enough."

Ferda cut off their argument.

"Cut the farce and kneel."

William and the man knelt once again.

The man called Evans trembled, while William rattled off the things they had done and pleaded.

"Regent. Please generously overlook this mistake born of foolishness."

"Why should I?"

"Though we couldn't bury them for fear of hindering the investigation, we collected all the bodies and held a funeral for them. And knowing that the carriage was heading towards the County of Concillus, I personally went there to report it. If you take me there, they will recognize me."

"So you reported it and held a funeral, and you're asking me to turn a blind eye to what you did because of that?"

"Please forgive the deviation of these foolish people and give us a chance. They have God in their hearts."

William appealed with a voice full of conviction.

However, the eyes of Ferda looking down at William were boundlessly cold.

"As long as you laid hands on the treasure of a merchant affiliated with the Grand Duchy's territory, I have no intention of viewing you as mere refugees. You are rats trying to sneak into the Grand Duchy's territory, and you are people who do not deserve mercy. How can you guarantee you didn't participate in the murders?"

"..."

"Even if you cleaned up to honor the souls of the dead, the fact that you stole money from a merchant's pocket remains unchanged. Claiming it was because you were hungry is just an excuse. If you become desperate again, you'll just steal and steal again. Am I wrong?"

It was a statement he couldn't bring himself to flatly deny.

In the uncomfortable silence, Ferda spoke again.

"However, there is one way."

William raised his head at the single ray of hope.

"What is it?"

"The one who committed the sin must receive their due punishment."

Ferda threw the sword resting beside him in front of the man named Evans.

"Wash away your sin with your blood."

"W-What does that..."

"Were my words too difficult? I'll put it simply."

Ferda said, making a motion of slitting his throat with his index finger.

"It means kill yourself."

The color completely drained from Evans's face.

"If you die, the rest live. Isn't that a fair trade?"

"I, I..."

"Regent!"

William interjected.

"He may be a fool, but he has a good heart. He merely risked his life for his comrades in this bitter winter. Please, show mercy."

"I won't. Hurry up and finish it."

Ferda acted firmly, but William was persistent.

"I am the representative of these refugees. Could you please take one of my arms and quell your anger?"

"One of your arms?"

Ferda made a displeased face.

"You spout such nonsense."

"If that isn't enough, something else..."

"Didn't I tell you? You are rats. Do you think chopping off the mother rat's arm would satisfy me when a young rat robbed the storehouse?"

What reflected in his eyes was disgust.

"Mother or pup, leader or subordinate, a rat is just a rat. A life for a life. If you want to take Evans's place, it will have to be your life."

His life.

William cast a quick glance at Evans's face.

He was trembling in terror.

He didn't want to die.

It was only natural for a human.

William closed his eyes and thought for a brief moment.

"Understood."

William meekly accepted that fact and pulled the sword resting in front of Evans toward himself.

At that, the refugees who had been bowing their heads protested.

"W-What!"

"You can't do that!"

"After everything you did to bring us here...!"

BANG—!

"Aaaah!"

An explosion from Ferda's hand silenced the commotion.

"There won't be a next time. If you want to die instead, keep making noise. Like I said, a rat is just a rat."

No one could open their mouths beyond that.

They knew their own lives were more precious than others'.

When there was no response even after a few minutes, Ferda spoke mockingly.

"This man stepped up for you, yet you don't even have the courage to step up for him."

Ferda pushed the sword in front of him aside.

Instead, he placed a hand on his head.

"I will personally finish you off without pain. Do you have any last words?"

Facing death, William spoke with a trembling voice.

"If you can safely take these people to the Grand Duchy's territory, I will have nothing more to say."

"Understood."

Mana gathered in Ferda's hand.

A shockwave of mana struck his head.

THUD!

With a loud impact, William's body collapsed limply.

* * *

William was originally not a common farmer.

Nor was he someone who needed to become the leader of refugees.

He was a knight cadet, a man who stood out among his peers.

He understood honor, and he never neglected the duties of those with privilege.

His martial prowess was also outstanding, having built up military achievements in the war against King Hudret.

Everyone had no doubt that he would become a knight.

However, his path was not smooth.

It was the day his knighting ceremony was not far off, precisely when he had only one trial left before becoming a knight.

On that day, the war fought against King Hudret was brought to an end at the Grand Council.

The end for those who suffer defeat is always miserable.

That was especially true for the residents of Duke Yurei's territory.

A reparation of 60,000 Golden was imposed on the defeated Duke Yurei.

For a noble in peacetime, it would have been a trivial amount, but for Duke Yurei, who had already spent his wealth on this war, 60,000 Golden was an impossibly large sum.

And it was already too late to borrow money from someone else.

He ultimately began to squeeze the surrounding villages dry in order to pay the debt.

Because of that, the number of refugees abandoning their villages grew.

There was no way Duke Yurei would just let that happen.

Population is national power.

Duke Yurei tracked down the refugees, capturing them all and turning them into slaves, and brutally executing some to set an example.

Tyranny under the guise of unity began.

William too had to participate in those missions.

He was assigned to slave tracking as his final trial to graduate from cadet to knight.

William led the soldiers and ultimately succeeded in tracking down the refugees.

Up until he received the mission, he was full of righteous spirit.

Refugees were a menace.

When the territory was in turmoil, he couldn't forgive citizens who ran away instead of helping.

They were troublemakers, forces of evil, villains who absolutely deserved to be punished.

However, what laid before his eyes was a complex reality far different from his ideals.

No, it wasn't even complex.

While he had built up book knowledge and honor, he had failed to see what truly needed to be seen.

Those accused of throwing the duchy into chaos were haggard and powerless.

Only skin and bones remained, and a baby that should have been plump was merely gasping for breath, lacking even the strength to cry.

All they had were fire pokers and shovels.

All of them were desperately standing against an armed military.

The reason was simple.

Because they wanted to live.

At that moment, William thought about what he ought to uphold.

Subjects serve their lord.

A king exists by working for the people.

What is left of a king who does not work for his people?

Within that simple yet grueling mission, William agonized.

The final one.

If he just acted blindly this one last time and pretended not to know, his life would unfold smoothly.

He ultimately made his choice.

The sword meant for the refugees was turned toward the soldiers following him.

William inflicted sword wounds on his own soldiers to make it look like they were betrayed, then sent them away.

Afterward, William slit the throat of the horse he had ridden in on and fed its meat to the refugees.

He could no longer become a knight, but William didn't regret it.

Having no doubt that it was the reason he had taken up the sword, he didn't consider even this present death to be in vain.

* * *

"Gah!"

William bolted up like someone waking from a terrible nightmare.

Because he was certain he had died, there should have been no waking up again.

He groped his own body and muttered.

"Is... is this the afterlife?"

"It's the living world."

"Gah!"

William was startled once more.

The voice that had insulted and despised him came from right beside him.

He turned his head to see Ferda there.

"You were passed out for an hour."

What he had seen in his eyes before could no longer be felt.

He truly wondered if he hadn't crossed into another world after all.

"Am I... not dead?"

"Of course you're not dead. What hit your head was just a common stun magic."

"Why didn't you kill me...?"

"It was merely a waste to kill a well-trained knight."

William's eyes widened.

Ferda looked at him with pathetic eyes.

"Did you think you hid it well? It was so obvious I could practically cry."

"I see..."

In a way, it wasn't surprising.

After all, he was wearing half-plate armor and even carrying a sword.

"But I am no knight. Even giving me too much credit, I'm just a lowly knight cadet."

"Even for a knight cadet, mixing in with refugees isn't an ordinary occurrence."

"It is not."

"In that case, it seems you betrayed your lord."

William offered a bitter smile at those words.

"I did something worthy of death. To think a knight would betray his own master..."

It was unequivocally treason, and William didn't deny it.

"It doesn't matter. Didn't you say you were just a lowly cadet?"

"That is true, but..."

"Since you weren't officially knighted, there was no betrayal to begin with. You are simply just a common deserter."

Ferda knew this well because he came from a knightly family.

"There is something I want to ask you, who just narrowly escaped death."

"Please speak."

"Was it worth it?"

Ferda turned his head.

Over there were the refugees.

They were all happily sharing and eating stew.

"You sacrificed yourself for that man, but none of them sacrificed themselves for you. Even so, was it worth sacrificing yourself for them?"

William also remembered what Ferda was talking about.

Right before facing death, he had told anyone willing to die in his place to break the silence.

But no one broke the silence.

It was something one could easily feel betrayed over.

"No one wants to die."

Despite it all, William smiled.

"That is exactly why I lead them."

He betrayed his lord, but he did not betray his convictions.

"I see."

Ferda looked at him with satisfaction before turning his head.

Beside him sat the man kneeling on the ground.

It was Evans, the man who stole the one gold coin.

"Was it Evans?"

"Pardon? Yes, that's right!"

The kneeling man nodded vigorously.

"This man shouldered the blame in your stead for your foolish actions. What do you think that means?"

"I-I owe him."

"You owe him a life, nothing else. Therefore, from now on, you will become William's loyal servant. If he dies, I will show you what a truly wretched life looks like. Understood?"

"Yes, yes! Understood, sir! I will engrave those words into my heart!"

Having finished what he had to say, Ferda stood up from his seat.

"I shall see you later then. Sir William."

"Yes, have a safe trip back."

At the moment he sent him off, a single-syllable word lingered in his ears.

"Sir...?"

Sir.

A title that only knights could possess.

But William was someone who had failed to become a knight.

Or did Ferda simply attach it by mistake?

Or did it mean he was properly acknowledging him as a knight?

For the current William, it was a question that ended as an unanswerable riddle.

* * *

It seemed time would pass without any significant findings regarding the carriage ambush incident.

Just as Ferda was about to return to the castle with Luri, Isabella called out to him.

"Regent. There are some people who might serve as witnesses from our inquiries. I believe you should hear their story."

Her tone suggested they were fairly important figures.

Standing next to her were a woman and a child.

Ferda asked the woman.

"Do you have something to tell me?"

"I apologize, but it's not me, it's my child who knows something..."

The person he had to converse with was a snot-nosed six-year-old.

"What is your name?"

"I'm Ian."

"Hey, you have to be polite. I apologize, Regent. The child is still immature, so..."

"I don't care about petty titles. Ian, do you have something to tell me?"

The little boy nodded.

"It was when the grim reaper mister and the knight mister were talking to each other."

"The grim reaper mister?"

The woman answered on his behalf.

"He said it looked that way because he was wearing a black robe over his head."

"I see. Keep talking."

"Yeah. So as the grim reaper mister got on his horse and was leaving for somewhere, I saw him drop something there. I don't think anyone else saw, so I secretly tucked it away to give it to my mom."

"What did he drop?"

"T-This is it."

The woman who had been holding onto it took something out and showed it to Ferda.

It was a scarf.

The scarf, made of green fabric, didn't seem to have any abnormalities on the surface, but his thoughts changed when he saw the shape of the crest embroidered in the corner.

'This is...'

Ferda narrowed his eyes.

If he wasn't seeing it wrong right now, this distinct scale-shaped crest was the crest of House Pascal.

'And the one with two swords in the background...'

Without a doubt.

It belonged to the Pascal mercenary company.