Chapter 106
Chapter 106
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Translator: Ryuma
Chapter: 106
Chapter Title: 33. The Remaining, The Forgotten, and the Returned (3)
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Dawn had broken.
The darkness that had visited Winter Castle during the night vanished with the first light. Yet its traces lingered all the same.
Bodies littered the ground everywhere.
The soldiers of Winter Castle gathered the corpses. Limbs torn asunder stayed torn; those charred by fire remained blackened. They piled them up in the open space before the gates.
And set them ablaze.
The remains of warriors buried under snow for centuries, unrecovered, now burned with acrid smoke billowing skyward.
No one spoke a word. The rangers and knights simply watched in silence.
I stood with them atop the walls, watching the corpses burn. Watching four centuries of resentment scatter into the air.
The flames did not die until dusk.
"We have plenty of wounded, but no fatalities."
Perhaps because the knights had joined the fray from the start, we miraculously suffered no deaths. Or maybe the undead, trapped in frozen corpses, had grown sluggish.
Thanks to that, we only had soldiers bearing wounds from undead teeth and claws—no fatalities.
"Take good care of the men."
"You can count on us."
Vincent finished his report but didn't leave. He seemed to have something more to say.
"What is it?"
After a long hesitation, Vincent spoke.
"Better late than never—congratulations."
"On what?"
"You're the kingdom's youngest Swordmaster."
Vincent flashed a grin.
It was a belated congratulations—very belated.
Then again, we hadn't exactly had time for celebrations lately.
I chuckled and told him to go rest, but Vincent still lingered, words unspoken on his tongue.
"And... I'm sorry."
His sudden apology caught me off guard.
"Whatever sacrifice Your Highness made, Ballerhard will never forget it."
His face was full of regret, but I had no idea what he meant.
"I'll grow stronger. Me, Winter Castle—we all will. So you'll never have to bear the burden alone again."
I started to ask why, then closed my mouth.
Vincent's expression was resolute, his vow earnest.
Whatever the reason, I didn't want to undermine that determination.
So I simply said I looked forward to it.
After Vincent left, the High Lich arrived.
I told her about the Death Knights' final moments.
"They must have had some unfinished resentment."
"All duties imposed on them four hundred years ago are fulfilled. There's no reason for loose ends."
"Don't be so hasty. You'll learn the truth when the time they spoke of arrives."
I found myself nodding at her words without thinking.
Knights who hadn't forgotten their upright hearts even in death wouldn't harm the kingdom now.
My only concern was Gwain and the knight candidates.
I'd seen the vanishing wraiths seep into their bodies with my own eyes.
"As long as they don't forcibly seize control, it won't be a problem. They just needed a place to rest for a while."
Fair enough—Gwain and the candidates had bodies well-suited for Death Knights to inhabit.
Blind loyalty to the king, the same Mana Hearts. Their soul wavelengths and inner energies matched perfectly.
"I see."
I glanced at her, then picked up my glass.
I didn't care for alcohol, but tonight it felt necessary—even just a little.
I emptied my glass in remembrance of the soldiers and knights who fell on Frost Mountain four centuries ago.
Then again for Ballerhard's spirits, finally laid to rest.
"To the loyal knights."
And one last for the faithful knights who, even in death, lived only for their king.
Three days passed since the battle with the undead.
"Unsettling rumors are circulating in the castle."
"Ghosts sighted, shadows lurking in the dark."
The wounds inflicted by the undead ran deeper than expected.
Even hardened men who stood firm against horrific monsters were now whispering childish tales unfit for ghost stories.
"They saw wraiths wailing and corpses rising before their eyes. Hallucinations aren't surprising. But time will fade even this."
Such baseless rumors would vanish with time, I thought.
Until I ran into them while wandering the castle at sunset the next day.
I'd been kicked out by Ophelia again—said I disrupted her focus.
Still moody from the recent events, I wandered aimlessly.
Deep into the night, with only the guards awake. One corner of the fortress buzzed faintly.
Rustle, rustle.
Crunch, crunch.
I followed the irritating sounds to the kitchen.
"Hm?"
Familiar faces were there.
Gwain and the candidates.
They'd been training late and gotten hungry, I figured, turning to leave—until they spotted me and bowed.
"Finish your meal."
I waved them off and turned, then froze.
I turned back.
Three men, devouring kitchen supplies like ravenous beasts, paused and stared.
"Care to join us?"
Gwain—eyes locked on mine—shoved a dripping hunk of meat into his mouth as he asked.
A commonplace pleasantry. Nothing special.
If they weren't secret royal knights who'd once been desperate to devour me whole.
Men who'd taken up the sword out of hatred and grudge against me.
After their trip to the capital, they no longer openly antagonized me. But our relations hadn't thawed enough for them to greet me first.
Yet here they were, addressing me casually.
It was odd. Incomprehensible.
So I asked.
"Who are you?"
Gwain replied innocently.
"How can you not recognize your own subordinates?"
I chuckled.
Gwain claiming to be my subordinate? Even a stray dog would laugh.
"Don't talk nonsense."
Gwain and the men exchanged glances.
Then a strange ripple touched my senses.
A transmission of will beyond human perception—clearly a soul wave.
I suddenly knew who they were.
"Reveal yourselves."
"What do you mean...?"
Gwain's feigned innocence felt familiar.
"Eus?"
Gwain—or rather, the Death Knight wearing Gwain like a mask—flinched.
I turned to the others: one with eyes squeezed shut, the other staring awkwardly.
"Ekion and Edar."
The moment I spoke, soul waves erupted.
『I told you not to do this.』
『What? You agreed at the time.』
『This is a disaster. A total disaster.』
They were seriously rattled.
Their thoughts overflowed, leaking even to me.
『Should we bolt?』
『Better to play dumb till the end.』
『Or knock him out and run?』
『He already saw everything. Pointless now. And considering his prowess that day, subduing him is impossible.』
『He doesn't have a sword. We're three. We have knives.』
『Butcher knives count as knives, sure.』
Their conspiracy reached my ears perfectly.
Listening further might turn it into a murder plot, so I bellowed.
"Knock who out?!"
『He heard that?』
『Sounds like it.』
"Of course I heard—shut up!"
The Ekion brothers' telepathic exchange cut off abruptly.
I rubbed my forehead, eyeing the three awkward men.
Now I remembered.
The Ekion brothers had reached the pinnacle of excellence among Royal Knights—top-tier, with the brightest futures.
The youngest in the order.
They'd fallen on Frost Mountain at twenty for Ekion, nineteen for Eus, eighteen for Edar.
Prime ages for mischief, skill aside.
Yeah. They'd given me headaches back then too.
Recalling the past, I eyed Gwain rolling his eyes dramatically.
"Eus. This was your idea."
The instigator had always been the overly cheerful second brother, Eus.
"No, it wasn't."
I shook my head at Eus's lame denial.
To the loyal knights, my ass.
Troublemakers through and through. I clutched my head.
『We just felt too wronged to sleep quietly.』
Gwain—no, Eus in Gwain's body—rambled excuses.
Having a body again was too tempting. They craved what they'd missed without flesh.
"And that was just eating?"
『We couldn't help it—the hunger. Laugh if you want, but it's serious for us.』
Unlike Eus's words, I didn't find their desires laughable.
I understood completely.
When I'd gained this human body, my first indulgence was food.
It alone made being human worthwhile.
Even if they didn't remember fully, as long-starved wraiths, their hunger surpassed mine.
They hadn't stolen bodies outright or drained life force.
Nor devoured others to sate themselves.
Just a nighttime stroll while the hosts slept.
"Restrain yourselves—as long as it doesn't harm the hosts."
『We swear we never harmed them.』
『We even performed rites to prevent fatigue.』
『You really understand?』
No need to "understand." I occupied another's body—who was I to judge?
Besides, would they behave if I scolded them?
I shook my head.
No chance.
I set boundaries for the headaches.
"One hour a day. And only when no one's watching."
They nodded vigorously. I chuckled.
"Using honorifics now, huh?"
『We have positions to respect, after all.』
Eus replied slyly.
"Quick on your feet. Good."
Emboldened, Eus pressed on slyly.
『And our presence benefits them—no harm.』
『Mana fragments unused in this body are scattering. A form I've never seen—shattered pieces embedded everywhere. Must hurt circulating mana.』
『Impossible short-term, but with time, no more pain during rites. Lucky, they might absorb it all.』
『Fair trade for the bodies, right?』
Their frantic thoughts stunned me.
I knew those mana fragments: the destroyed links they'd lost years ago, due to this body's original owner.
Three links' worth of power, melted into Gwain and the candidates.
I looked at the Ekion brothers.
『Still, using living flesh without permission is wrong. We'll restrain our...』
"No."
I cut off Ekion mid-apology, head bowed like a criminal.
"No need to hold back. Just don't cross the line. Keep at it."
I added, eyeing them.
"Tell the others too. Help the knights absorb those fragments—it'll be even better."
The ruined knights might regain their former prowess faster than expected.
I laughed.
Not my sin, but my karma to bear.
A way to atone—even partially. How could I not laugh?
Though it wouldn't repay their wasted years.
『You'll really look the other way?』
"I'll pretend not to notice from now on."
Not my body, no harm done.
No reason to waste the opportunity.
Three more days passed since meeting the nightly prowling Ekion brothers.
I finished preparations to leave the castle, leading only a handful of my knights toward the capital.
Winter Castle's crisis was over. The king's test complete.
All that remained was settling accounts with Mirror Lake.
We rode without rest.
Finally reaching the capital, I sought the king at once.
He greeted me with a stern face.
"I've come for the promised reward."
I smiled pleasantly at the king.