Chapter 207
Chapter 207
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Translator: penny
Chapter: 207
Chapter Title: Even If I Lose the Light 2
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"Are the stars beautiful to you?"
The one who made Azadin find the stars beautiful was Aldis.
The myths and legends she taught him, the devotion and love she showed him.
That was why the stars were beautiful.
Those small flickering lights in the night sky were not mere lights—they were memories, longings, and faith.
"I don't know anymore. But why ask me that now? If you want to mock me..."
A flash of resentment colored Azadin's voice before it faded away.
"Hah. Do whatever you want."
It was an attitude of utter resignation, as if he had given up on everything.
"Please answer. I deserve to hear it, Azadin."
Who decided that?! He nearly retorted, but Azadin remembered that Midiam truly had the right.
Yes. He had professed his faith to this girl.
The girl clearly had the right to question him.
"I don't know."
"What?"
Ismail exploded in anger at the response.
Azadin wasn't supposed to give that answer.
What had they gone through all this hardship for, coming all the way here?! To see Azadin, having lost all hope in life, broken and despondent?!
Midiam held back the outraged Ismail.
"Then, is protecting the innocent people beautiful?"
"That's..."
Once upon a time, those were Azadin's words.
But now, Azadin had lost faith in his own words.
Yet the girl who had once empathized with them gazed at him with innocent eyes, filled with profound admiration, sympathy, and love.
"Azadin."
The girl opened her mouth.
"The stars might not be beautiful. The desire to protect the people might not be beautiful either. But... the person who believes the stars are beautiful is surely beautiful."
"!"
Is there value in this world beyond eating, fighting, and ruling?
Does that cluster of insignificant twinkling lights in the sky hold any worth?
It might, or it might not.
But the faith of the person who believes so is undoubtedly more beautiful than the stars themselves.
This girl had returned to Azadin the faith that had once been his voice.
"Yes. That was once my belief. I suppose I must take responsibility for the words I spoke to you. That's quite a heavy burden."
"You're doing it again..."
Ismail snapped at Azadin for mentioning responsibility, but suddenly a hot gust of wind began to emanate from Azadin.
"Huh?"
Intense heat radiated from Azadin, who had moments ago seemed no different from a living corpse, and powerful vital energy filled his body.
Azadin had regained his faith.
*********
The Etar Bloodline had long dominated and protected the boy's bloodline.
Thus, the boy had to swear to protect the girl.
He had to devote all his talent and ambition to her, so he came to adore her.
He had no choice if he wanted to endure it.
He would continue to live like this, deceiving himself from now on.
But one night, the girl called the boy.
An ambitious plan to challenge a notoriously one-sided herald and seize his position.
It was an absurd request for him to hear it out.
The boy knew it was impossible.
Even a low-ranking herald from a lesser house was formidable.
They possessed strength beyond measure, which was why they had become heralds.
Perhaps if his body matured later, but with his and the girl's current youthful power, there was no way they could defeat an active herald.
Yet because he had to adore the girl, he decided to grant her reckless wish.
"As expected of Ismail. Thank you. Is there anything you want? A fine sword? Or a good bow?"
"No. Nothing. But for a long journey, good boots and a mountain goat would be necessary. A horse might be better for hot regions, but mentioning one would draw suspicion."
"Heh, no greed at all. It'd be easier for me to repay you if you had some material desires."
"You don't need to repay me, miss. The Etar Bloodline has bestowed great favors on our house for a long time anyway."
"But..."
"Hm?"
"I still want to give you something. Ah, right."
The girl unfastened the necklace around her neck and handed it to him.
"Keep this. If you're ever questioned later, show it."
"This is..."
It was a small jade tally.
Proof shared among the captains of the five ships that brought the Aragasas to this land. An amnesty token guaranteed by the chieftain to prevent the lineages of the five houses from being severed for crimes.
"I can't accept this."
He could not dare to take it, nor should he.
But the girl was insistent.
"It's my most precious possession, so I'm giving it to you. If it feels weird to accept, just hold onto it for me."
"Hold onto it?"
"I lose things easily."
With that, the girl smiled.
*********
That girl was crying.
"Ah."
Midiam covered her face with her hands.
Tears flowed.
She had tried to act composed, but she had been afraid too.
Seeing Azadin reduced to a wreck, having lost his faith and shattered, had hurt her heart.
Even so, to return what Azadin had given her, she had acted as calm as possible, conveying the most precious thing in her heart.
Thank goodness.
Thank goodness he accepted it.
And thank goodness Azadin had lived up to her expectations.
As relief washed over her, the anxiety she had suppressed came pouring out as tears.
"Midiam."
Azadin looked at the crying Midiam with a complicated expression.
"Did I drag my feet too long? Alright, shall we make up for lost time? But first, I'm starving."
Having regained his will to live, the hunger he could endure before now surged upon him.
"They're heavy anyway, so eat them all."
Ismail pulled rations from his backpack and let out a sudden sigh.
His hand had touched the necklace at the bottom—the 'Amnesty Token.'
'Ah... Am I free now?'
No longer did he need to pretend to adore the girl while suppressing his own ambitions and freedom.
He had already turned against the chieftain anyway. He was in no position to uphold loyalty to the Etar Bloodline.
Yet why did his heart feel so heavy?
It was something he had wanted, surely.
He too had desperately hoped this girl's heart would reach him.
'In the end, I wasn't entirely heartless. How arrogant of me. Afraid my pride might be bruised, afraid it might be hurt, I even observed my own feelings from a distance...'
It was then, as Ismail suppressed his complicated emotions.
[All done?]
Unnoticed, a bird watching Azadin, Midiam, and Ismail had appeared. A large eyeball was embedded in the bird's body.
[If you're done, let's meet. Follow the nearby river northeast, and you'll find a port. Wait there—I'll come find you.]
It was Araelle's voice.
*********
Waiting at the rendezvous point were Araelle and her subordinates: the Four of Flower, Bird, Wind, and Moon; Jenis, the younger sister of Flower's Dimia; and their ten servants.
Azadin counted them and clicked his tongue.
The once-mighty Araelle tribe was in shambles.
'Excluding the Four and Jenis, there are no heralds left. As expected, once the chieftain showed his true colors and Corasaur fell, everyone jumped ship?'
With the reclusive chieftain Hatir revealing himself and the council of elders realizing their ambitions, most in Araelle's tribe had turned their backs.
Only these five and their servants remained loyal to the end. And among them were two familiar faces to Azadin.
"Captain! Glad you're safe."
Scott and Shati were with Araelle's group.
"What are you doing there?"
"Well, since I'm such a talent, places keep calling me over. It's tough living up to everyone's expectations."
"Don't get the wrong idea—he got caught. He tried to run and they nabbed him."
Shati corrected him.
"So. Why'd you want to meet?"
Azadin asked Araelle.
"Because we need to combine forces. Here—this was yours, right?"
Araelle tossed something to Azadin. It was his saddlebag.
Inside, the head of the aquamarine steel axe-spear, 'Azure Executioner,' the gold coins—even the emperor's gold—were all intact.
But the copies of the True Chronicles of the New King were gone.
"How'd you find it?"
"We raided Amon-Zadek."
"Hm? You didn't kill him, did you? A guy like that was still needed to rally and command the refugees."
"Defending the bastard who locked you in prison and left you to die. Still the same as ever."
"I've received favors from the Golden King, so killing that guy outright feels off. But I doubt you killed Amon-Zadek either, Araelle?"
Araelle was no bloodthirsty murderer.
Even if she had personal grudges against Amon-Zadek giving her reason to kill, in this situation, wouldn't she hold off?
Once the chaos settled, Amon-Zadek would lose power anyway.
He had once boasted immense prestige as the official heir, but based in Brutuma, his support base had taken a severe hit.
Meanwhile, Darhan-Zadek, the Golden King's other son training armies in the north, would preserve his. So even without Azadin seeking revenge, Amon-Zadek's path ahead would be perilous.
In such circumstances, if Araelle had any sense, she wouldn't kill him and stir up more chaos.
"Right. We only took the True Chronicles copies."
Araelle spread her hand as she spoke.
Pure white letters of mana rose above her palm. A sphere of countless languages of light danced there.
The True Chronicles of the New King—incomplete, with gaps here and there, but untainted and unpolluted, a powerful grimoire of white mana.
"That's?"
"The copies I gathered, yours, and ones the council transcribed long ago, all combined. Insert this into Brutuma's Royal Throne, and it will purify the throne the chieftain defiled. Then I become Brutuma's New King."
"......"
An astonishing achievement. Who knew Araelle could pull this off.
If she had shown this to the tribe before Aldis claimed Corasaur, they might have praised her and rebelled for her sake.
But now, with Hatir and Aldis holding Corasaur and having conquered even Brutuma, its significance had faded.
"You must've gathered a ton. But showing it off like this— is this all you've got...?"
Azadin glanced at the Four of Flower, Bird, Wind, and Moon, and Jenis.
"Most are powerless before the order the council has inscribed over long ages."
"They're people who've lived as slaves for generations. Some lowborn ones sympathize with Lady Araelle's ideals, but they don't want to resist the five houses or the council."
The Seraph of Birds and Aleph of Wind vented their frustration.
Hearing that piqued Azadin's curiosity too much, so he asked,
"What's the concrete difference between what Araelle's trying to do and what the council wants?"