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I was standing in front of the execution stage, now familiar with its grim presence.

Vivian stood before me, taking my hand in hers.

“Hurry up and end this.”

“Got it.”

We exchanged glances for what felt like an eternity.

It was that way until the execution began.

Both of us would likely feel different emotions today than usual.

It marked the end of a long relationship and a past filled with darkness.

To put it more dramatically, it was the day we severed our nightmares with our own hands.

No matter how much Vivian tried to act strong, I knew she had been sleepless from the fear of death every night.

I might have been training every day because I was facing a similar fear.

In the end, I understood.

My swordsmanship was the last resort for preserving our lives.

Until Vivian grew stronger, I had to be the one to hold on.

Maybe that’s why today felt even more intense.

Yeah, that must have been the reason.

I had a prickling sensation at the back of my head, like something ominous was about to unfold, but I chalked it up to lingering discomfort from tying up the past.

I turned away from our prolonged gaze.

There stood Robert Rondore, glaring at us with a gag in his mouth.

His eyes never left us, not even for a second.

As if to say he would remember us until the very end, he couldn’t tear his gaze away.

As the crowd gathered, I sighed and readied my two-handed sword on my shoulder.

Vivian slowly ascended to the prepared platform and quietly said,

“Start.”

Balron, Willas, and Martin brought Robert forward at her signal.

Robert’s body seemed smaller than I remembered.

Once, other adults, including him, seemed so much larger.

So did Baelor and countless vassals.

But now, none of them looked that frightening.

“Ugh… Father!”

“Ugh! My love…!”

I turned my gaze toward the source of the sounds.

There was Robert Rondore’s family.

His son looked older than me, while his daughter seemed younger.

Their family, along with Robert’s wife, knelt in fear, bound by ropes.

“Vivian, do we really have to make them watch?”

“We need to instill fear to maintain control. Nerumport must be ruled by his son anyway. So, to ensure he won’t rebel against me again… it’s better to engrave fear into his eyes. Honestly, sparing him is already my mercy.”

“…”

Vivian wasn’t wrong in her reasoning, but in the end, the sword would be in my hands.

I also wanted Robert to die, but doing this in front of his family felt like a heavy burden.

It wasn’t so much fear of their resentment, but a human sympathy. Who would want to watch a family member die before their eyes?

…Even if Robert’s crimes were significant enough to warrant it.

“…Huh.”

I let out a sigh, shaking off my foolish thoughts.

Then I noticed Nesto approaching me with a document in hand.

At the end of the document, the Rondore sun was sealed.

I began to read through the document.

“This sinner has instigated the assassination of the lord of Roktana, head of the Rondore family, and his sovereign Vivian Rondore. He has directly committed three offenses: once through poisoning, twice through arson at the castle, and thereafter he threatened Vivian Rondore’s life by stirring and bribing the vassals of the Rondore family in both direct and indirect ways.”

“Guh… Ugh…”

Robert Rondore knelt there, handcuffed, and seemed to lack the strength to hold his head up, drooling as he did.

But beneath his weakness, countless emotions stormed across his face.

The redness in his eyes vividly revealed all those emotions.

I paused reading and looked down at him.

Then I turned to Vivian.

She was sitting on the chair placed on the platform, gazing at the scene with a fixed expression.

Her gaze was chillingly cold, and her pupils were icy.

“…Ugh… Ugh…”

I turned back to Robert.

Suddenly, I wanted to hear his words.

Releasing the gag was typically only allowed just before the execution, but now I wanted to hear the genuine feelings of a man groaning between laughter and tears.

I slowly removed his gag.

“Hah!!”

Robert gasped for breath, trying to steady himself.

In that moment, there was a strange mania in his demeanor.

“Do you have something to say?”

I asked.

Robert twisted his lips into a ghastly grin.

He was definitely laughing. It wasn’t just my imagination.

“Hehe… No… I admit everything.”

As soon as he finished speaking, a furious barrage of accusations erupted from those around.

“That beast!!”

“Blinded by greed, he tried to kill his own nephew!! You scoundrel!!”

But Robert Rondore continued to laugh as if he didn’t hear their shouts, with strange sobs mixed in.

“Ugh…! Ugh!! Ugh!!”

It was a grotesque sight.

“What’s so funny?”

I could no longer contain my annoyance and asked.

But Robert didn’t stop.

“Ugh!! You… Hah!! You wouldn’t understand, Kyle Allen…! How funny this all is…”

“Kyle!!”

In the distance, Vivian rose from her seat.

Her eyes looked even redder, whether from emotions or something else.

“…Kill him quickly.”

She commanded.

I felt something strange, yet I also didn’t want to delve deeper.

It was like I wanted to ignore whether it was a curse… and wanted to keep this issue vaguely tucked away.

I gripped my sword.

“Hahaha!!!”

Suddenly, Robert could no longer suppress his laughter and burst into a loud laugh.

Even those who had been criticizing him were left speechless, gazing at him.

I was at a loss for words too.

The only question I could muster was,

“…Are you out of your mind?”

“You’re the insane one… Ugh…!”

But Robert quickly responded to my question.

“Look at how you instantly gripped your sword at a single command to kill…! You must be curious why I’m laughing… at the sight of a dog wagging its tail on account of a witch’s command!”

It was probably coincidence, but the moment he called Vivian a witch, my thoughts froze.

But now I couldn’t suppress my curiosity any longer.

The feelings that had whispered not to ask were fading away.

“What are you talking about?”

“Kyle!!”

Vivian urgently called my name from beside me, but Robert spoke first.

“Do you have no regrets, Allen? Do you have no regrets for having protected that girl all this time?”

“If I were going to regret it, I would have done so long ago.”

“Hah…! You must be proud, huh? That you could protect Vivian, who had to stand alone. That you get to see her grow this much! That you feel your guilt lessened!”

Robert’s lips twisted grotesquely.

“But you idiot. You keep going on about guilt and responsibility towards Vivian… what the hell are you talking about?”

“…”

“Ugh! What? The sins of the parents? That Vivian is left alone because of your family’s crime? Hey, the former duke and… Lois Rondore are!!”

“Kyle!!”

Robert smirked.

“I killed them.”

I couldn’t hide my shock at his expression.

“…What?”

“All this time, you…! You’ve been held prisoner in this land for no reason, you idiot!”

****

Vivian knew how much Kyle sometimes longed for his hometown.

Especially during his childhood, she realized that longing was even stronger.

Kyle was always a strong presence, but he had also been a child when he was first dragged here.

He was still someone who needed his parents’ embrace.

He would often stare blankly at the flow of the river by the bank.

It seemed like he was reminiscing about something, unraveling the stories from his heart in his own solitary world.

Vivian had always understood his solitude. She missed her family too.

She remembered when he had a fever, calling for his mother in his sleep.

When his mother passed away, he had been in great pain, and when he heard that his father was unwell, he was also greatly impacted.

His face lit up when his younger sister visited remained vivid in Vivian’s memory.

Kyle was a master at hiding his sadness and pain, better than anyone.

However, Vivian knew that it was all for her sake, not for himself.

To provoke her, Kyle had worn a mask all this time.

He’d pretend it wasn’t hard and prodded Vivian along.

But even without words, Vivian always understood.

Knowing how much suffering Kyle had endured, sharing the same pain as he.

But in the past, her feelings had been more hatred than sympathy, so she had brushed them aside.

But now, she couldn’t ignore it.

“Dragging me here without knowing a thing…! Ugh! Taking care of a person with no responsibility while getting all the blame…! Thinking that he was the one in the wrong and feeling sorry…! Growing up rolling around with commoners in enemy territory!! Unable to even be present at his mother’s deathbed!!”

Robert’s merciless accusations laid Kyle’s pain bare.

Vivian too felt a pang of pain in her heart at Robert’s words.

Watching Kyle, who couldn’t move, staring down at Robert, Vivian was frozen in fear.

“So how can I not laugh? Hahaha. In my entire life, I’ve never seen a more ridiculous clown than you. A kid who has committed no sin suffers beneath the weight of guilt… it’s nothing short of hilarious! To live for the bastard who shoved his life into the shitter!! And such an idiot blocking my path, how could I not laugh?”

Robert turned his body to face Vivian.

“Vivian, what did you do to Kyle? Ah, my informants told me. The constant slander and torment. The choice to throw the eldest son of the renowned Allen family into a Punishment Unit! Even though his life was saved multiple times, he never returned once! The tenacity with which you tortured someone like this… is a skill. Ah, I never imagined you two had a good relationship!”

“Hah… Hah…”

Vivian felt her breath quickening.

Her guilt crashed down on her all at once.

She couldn’t even muster a rebuttal. It was all true.

And at that moment, Kyle, hearing the words, remained frozen, and so Vivian was paralyzed as well.

With a single wrong move, everything they had built could crumble away.

Robert then looked around and said,

“I killed them!!”

The crowd was speechless at the weighty truth.

“I killed the duke and his heir!! I did it, with my hands!! Nesto!! You traitor, you know it too! Spread the word to everyone!! Let them know who did this.”

Nesto nodded as he felt the eyes on him.

The crowd took a deeper breath.

“What’s it like, everyone? You all must’ve tormented Kyle Allen all this time… he who was dragged into this land for no fault of his own, as a child.”

Robert couldn’t stop chuckling.

Though tears rolled down his eyes, they carried more satisfaction from revenge than sorrow.

He turned back to Kyle.

“So, what do you think, Kyle Allen? Do you understand how I… ruined your life? The cozy growth you should have had in your parents’ embrace… you were dragged here because of me. Huh? And to think you strutted around like a winner…! Hahaha!!”

Kyle remained frozen.

And Vivian was more frightened by his stillness than a hundred words.

“Oh, my mistake. I didn’t ruin your life alone. That over there, the one who bears the most responsibility, is watching over you. I’m so curious. How does it feel to realize that everything you’ve done your whole life was in vain?”

Only Robert could see Kyle’s face.

And Vivian knew Kyle’s expression must have been unsettling from the simultaneous feelings of fear and relief mixing in Robert’s eyes.

“How does it feel to know that the one responsible for ruining your life has been close by all along… what does it feel like—”

-Boom!!

Kyle’s reaction came suddenly and violently.

It was as if he could no longer endure Robert’s taunts, viciously stepping into his back.

“Ugh!”

Robert gasped, collapsing onto the execution stage.

Vivian couldn’t breathe, overwhelmed by the raw emotion flooding from Kyle.

Though I stood far off, it felt like all that fury was directed solely at me.

There wasn’t even a moment for Robert to scream as he lay on the stage.

-Thud!!

Kyle’s two-handed sword fell like a guillotine, cleaving Robert’s neck in two.

His family screamed in anguish, their cries echoing as the only noise in the courtyard.

Kyle, for a while, stood there like a broken puppet, just catching his breath.

No one dared to speak to him.

Even his closest friends remained silent.

A silence that felt eternal lingered.

Those who knew how much Kyle had suffered maintained their silence all the more.

-Swoosh…

Kyle, who had been standing still, slowly turned his body.

Vivian flinched at the movement.

She couldn’t bear to look at his face.

She was terrified of what words Kyle would speak upon learning the entire truth.

What should I say?

How should I apologize?

How could I ever give him back the life he lost?

How could I repay him for the humiliation, torment, and pain he had to endure?

Kyle’s face, soaked in blood, was filled with exhaustion.

It was the demeanor of someone who had poured all their strength into a single act of bloodshed.

In that moment, Vivian felt like they were alone in a world just for the two of them.

Like they were in her room, facing each other.

“…Vivian.”

He called her name in the tender tone he always used.

The tenderness of that voice tightened Vivian’s heart further.

She felt like tears might spill, but nothing flowed.

It could have been a survival instinct.

If she shed tears here, it felt like Kyle would truly leave her.

“…Did you know?”

He asked.

Vivian frowned, burying her face in her hands.

She knew she could no longer lie if she wanted to.

This wasn’t something that could be hidden.

No matter how much she wanted to flee from fear, she couldn’t escape it. She had to bear it as it was.

“…I’m sorry.”

She whispered.

“…I’m sorry, Kyle.”

People inhaled quietly.

“Ugh…!”

This time, it was Kyle who began to laugh.

“Ahahahaha!”

In place of the dead Robert, his laughter resonated throughout the courtyard.

He laughed long and hard.

The unexpected reaction left everyone in shock, caught off guard, glancing at each other.

But Vivian trembled at that laughter.

She knew that laughter didn’t sound like laughter, especially not to someone who had grown alongside Kyle.

To her ears, it wasn’t a laugh at all.

It was a cry.

“Ahahahaha!!”

Kyle’s laugh was the culmination of pain and rage he had suppressed for years.

It was the cry of all the grievances he had stacked up.

That echo endlessly rang in Vivian’s ears.

 

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