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Right in front of where William was standing, the floor of the duel arena was deeply gouged as if slashed by a sharp blade. The power behind it, unbelievable for a wooden sword, overwhelmed not just me but everyone present.

The exquisite part was that Kyle’s strike had stopped just a few centimeters short of William’s toes.

This must be Kyle’s true strength.

What kind of effort had he put in to reach such a near-miraculous level? And how much had he struggled? I couldn’t help but feel a surge of ‘jealousy’.

“William. Why are you suddenly provoking me?”

Kyle quietly lowered his sword as he spoke.

From him, no sense of hostility or fighting spirit could be felt anymore. He simply looked at William with an expression that was neither smiling nor crying.

“Sorry, brother.”

William, as if he had anticipated this situation, bowed his head in apology to Kyle.

“Actually, before the surgery, I wanted to have a real duel with you one last time. I really wanted to see the brother who was once known as the ‘Sword Demon of the North.'”

“That’s…”

“But it seems the rumors about the Sword Demon of the North weren’t unfounded after all.”

“……”

“In the end, I couldn’t win even once. Ah, I want to become like you someday, brother.”

“William…”

“Of course, unlike you, my body is weak. The chances are slim… But still…”

“…Why?”

“Huh?”

“William. Why do you want to be like me?”

At Kyle’s quiet question, William tilted his head. The answer didn’t take long.

“Well… You’re the hero that people praise, right? The hero who built a castle in the North and protects the empire’s people from the cold and monstrous beasts…”

“……”

“And if I could become a hero like that… Maybe I could change the perception of our family…”

So, William had been thinking like that all along.

The fervent look in his eyes, worrying about the family’s future, was a stark contrast to the cold, inhuman demeanor I had seen in Tristan’s past.

“Hmph… I won’t be fooled by that guy’s act.”

Luna, who considers William her mortal enemy, is trying hard to deny reality, but she seems quite bewildered. During this period, William was, by anyone’s standards, a diligent and upright young man.

And it seems Luna wasn’t the only one who couldn’t hide her bewilderment at seeing William like that.

“I’m not a hero, William.”

Kyle spoke with a face full of complex emotions.

“In the process of protecting the North, I’ve killed too many ‘people.'”

“Brother? But those were the demons who attacked first.”

“I know. I had no choice if I wanted to survive. Even if I went back in time, I would have done the same. I would have continued to wield my sword to defeat countless demons and protect the North, the people of Northern Garden.”

Even Kyle, known as the hero of the frontier and the Sword Demon of the North, had his own anguish. Seeing the worries and pains that come with the title of hero, I saw him not as weak but as a man with a righteous heart.

At the same time, having such a man by his side might be why William has such an innocent face.

“Just… I want to say that I’m not the hero people praise me to be.”

“No.”

William shook his head.

“As far as I know, you are the real hero.”

“What?”

“You fought to survive, but in reality, you fought for the people. You always acted for others.”

“……”

“Do you remember when I first came to the North? If you hadn’t helped me, I might have spent my whole life as a bookworm in my room. I might never have even held a sword… I might not have faced our family properly either.”

Feeling a bit awkward, William scratched his head.

“If it weren’t for you, I wouldn’t have been able to decide to have the surgery. So, you are my idol and a true hero.”

“William…”

“Here you are.”

A black-clad gentleman suddenly appeared between the two.

“Father?”

“The carriage to the hospital is ready. Let’s get going.”

“Now that I think about it… William’s surgery is today, isn’t it?”

“That’s right.”

Aidan Ruelberta smiled softly.

“If this surgery is successful, William will be able to regain his health.”

“Yes. William will surely pull through.”

“Thank you. Hearing that from my son’s benefactor, I feel somewhat reassured.”

William, who had been observing, spoke up.

“Ah… So, what I wanted to say earlier is that I’m really grateful to you, brother. I don’t know if we’ll meet again alive… But I’d like to spar with you again then.”

“After all that bravado… You talk as if it’s the last time.”

“No. I mean…”

“Of course, we’ll meet again. Next time, I won’t go easy on you, so be prepared.”

Kyle chuckled and patted William’s shoulder. The two looked as close as real brothers, just as Ariel had said.

“Oh, right. Sir Kyle, will you join us at the hospital? My wife is also admitted there, so you should visit her.”

“Ah, yes. Thank you.”

Aidan, William, and Kyle boarded the carriage.

The Ruelberta family’s carriage was as luxurious and large as ever. There was plenty of space even with the three of them inside.

“By the way, Sir Kyle.”

Suddenly, Aidan spoke as if he had just remembered something.

“Don’t pay too much attention to His Majesty’s words. As you know, His Majesty dislikes demons greatly. The North is fine as it is, but he insists on unnecessary stubbornness.”

“That’s not it. It’s all my fault.”

“Nonsense. It’s not you who’s lacking, but His Majesty.”

It was a disrespectful remark that no subject should dare utter, but Aidan muttered it without a care.

“I have no intention of indulging in such foolishness. Don’t you think the same? There’s no need to provoke the demons for no reason.”

“……”

“Ah, that must have been a difficult question for you. My apologies.”

“Not at all. If it weren’t for your help back then, I don’t know what would have happened…”

As the two conversed, a strange change suddenly occurred.

‘Huh?’

The surroundings began to blur as if fog had rolled in. Now that I noticed, William was dozing off by the window. Perhaps it was because of the duel with his weak body.

Beside him, Aidan and Kyle continued their conversation.

“So, there’s something I’d like your help with…”

“Please tell me. I owe you a great debt, so I’ll help with anything I can.”

“Oh… Is that so?”

At Kyle’s positive response, Aidan’s face lit up.

But something was strange.

As I watched Aidan, I couldn’t help but think of something I shouldn’t.

A chilling, eerie sensation ran through my body.

“Thank you very much, Sir Kyle.”

“Not at all… If my help is needed…”

Kyle yawned, seemingly sleepy.

Seeing this, Aidan smiled kindly.

“Actually, your help is desperately needed.”

And as I saw that smile, I ironically…

Felt fear.

“You’re just the ‘right person’ for it.”

The carriage door closed with a sound.

Then, everything around us was plunged into darkness as if the lights had gone out.

*

Snip.

“…What’s this?”

Luna looked around with an uncomfortable expression.

There was nothing.

The corridor we had walked through, the door, the Ruelberta family’s carriage—everything had disappeared.

“Where is this…?”

Ariel looked around but found nothing.

The atmosphere was somehow unsettling.

Snip.

In the pitch-black space, the only sound was the eerie snipping of scissors.

It was an extremely terrifying situation.

At times like this, only one person comes to mind.

“Wendy.”

“Eek!? Y-yes?!”

Wendy trembled with a face that looked like she was about to burst into tears. The cowardly crybaby would be in trouble if I didn’t take care of her.

“Calm down and stick close to me.”

“Y-yes…”

Wendy, trembling with fear, clung tightly to me. Meanwhile, the sound of scissors snipping continued.

Snip.

Snip.

Snip.

How many times had that sound been heard?

Suddenly, the lights came on, illuminating a single room in the darkness.

A sterile, all-white room. There, a man stood.

“The Vittelak tree is a very high-maintenance tree.”

Aidan stood in front of a small sapling with scissors in hand.

Snip.

“If humans don’t prune it like this, the Vittelak tree will quickly wither and die. Strictly speaking, it’s a tree that can’t survive in nature on its own. But if you prune it well…”

Aidan took out a glowing green gem from his pocket.

“Such a unique gem can grow.”

“Father…?”

This was a hospital room. William, lying on a white hospital bed, looked up at Aidan with a drowsy expression as if he had just woken up.

“Do you understand, William? Only one branch of the Vittelak tree bears gems. To make that one branch grow well, you have to cut off an average of 300 branches a year.”

Snip.

Aidan neatly stacked the fallen branches to one side.

“The interesting thing is that the branch that will bear the gem is predetermined from the start. As you can see, there’s always a branch that looks like it will be the center. So, if you just avoid cutting that one, a beautiful gem will grow a year later. Just like human life.”

“No… Father.”

William weakly shook his head and looked up at Aidan.

“Humans don’t have such predetermined lives. There’s no life set from the beginning.”

“Oh, William. Do you really think so?”

“Yes…”

“Superior and inferior humans are determined from birth, and the signs show from the start.”

“No. Father… You’re wrong.”

“Hmm… That’s a shame. To think that you, who will lead the Ruelberta family after me, think like that.”

“……”

William had no response to Aidan’s words. Instead, he asked something else.

“Is the surgery… over?”

“Yes. It was a complete success.”

Aidan put down the scissors.

Watching this, we somehow couldn’t speak. His voice had a strange compelling force that made it hard to bring up other topics.

No, the atmosphere itself was somehow off.

A feeling of tightness in the chest and suffocation.

[Your sensitivity level is 30%.]

Without realizing it, my sensitivity level had risen to 30%. What’s going on? Why is the sensitivity level increasing? My doubts were brief as William coughed and asked.

“Cough… How much time has passed?”

“It took three weeks for you to wake up.”

“Three weeks?!”

“Yes. It was a major surgery, so it took that long to recover.”

“Then brother Kyle must have left long ago.”

“…Hmm.”

Suddenly, Aidan’s expression darkened. Sensing the unusual expression, William tilted his head.

“Father?”

“Actually, I heard some confidential news a few days ago…”

“Confidential…?”

“Yes. A few days ago, His Majesty’s army secretly headed north.”

“What?! Why would His Majesty’s army do that?”

Aidan delivered the news with a deeply regretful expression.

“Sir Kyle, who returned to the North, has started a rebellion with the demons…”

 

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