Densetsu no Yuusha no Densetsu

"... And?"

Luke Stokkart quietly said.

Unsuitable for his still young age of twenty-five years, he had a calm and composed expression.

Gentle, light green eyes, and as if it"d lost all its colour, white hair.

Those calm eyes gazed into the darkness.

The back alley of the night.

While gazing into the darkness of that back alley where moonlight didn"t reach,

"... Who was it that demanded that you all come for me?"

However.

"......"

From the still darkness, there was no answer.

Luke shrugged at that, and,

"If you don"t wish to respond, it doesn"t ma..."

He began, but then.

Something that was lurking in the darkness replied,

"... Milk Callaud is in our custody."

At those words.

Luke narrowed his eyes that were staring straight into the darkness.

And with a calm and composed voice,

"Hoh... and?"

Then six men appeared from within the darkness.

Without any sense of unity, each of them wore clothes that looked like they could"ve been sold anywhere...

"......"

From only the way they carried their feet, Luke knew immediately who they were.

They were likely soldiers who"d received training here in the Roland Empire.

Furthermore, they had a considerable amount of physical capabilities.

There was no pointless movement.

There were no openings.

And in a low, intimidating voice, one of them spoke.

".. You are to come with us, Luke Stokkart."

"Hmm. If I refuse?"

"... Milk Callaud"s safety cannot be guaranteed."

Luke smiled wryly at that.

Their words.

The way they appeared.

After all, Luke... had predicted all of it.

Captain Milk"s disappearance.

Luke had already realized it.

Earlier, when he"d paid her room a visit to ask if she"d like to play somewhere tomorrow, she wasn"t there.

However, without obtaining permission from Luke and the others, she"d uncharacteristically gone out in the middle of the night like a misbehaving daughter.

She was diligent, brave, and kind...

No... W-Well, putting that aside...

It wasn"t like her to go out in the middle of the night on her own initiative like that.

In addition to that, she and Luke had promised to train together tonight.

Nevertheless, she definitely wouldn"t do something like break that promise without a word.

Thus, as to why she"d broken that promise and wasn"t in her room, a few possibilities had come forth...

1 - She"d gotten caught up in some kind of accident.

However, that wasn"t it. An adorable, honest, and good child like her who, in all honesty, possessed high capabilities...

No... Well, putting that aside again.

At any rate, judging from her true strength, it wasn"t likely that she"d gotten into some kind of unforeseen accident.

In that case, the next possibility.

2 - That suspicious, unknown Ryner Lute had led her astray to somewhere.

This was... the most likely possibility.

The eternally cheerful, obedient, and intelligent Captain Milk only lost herself when it came to that man, Ryner Lute.

If she by chance saw him, she would go chasing after him... the chances of that weren"t none...

"......"

But as he thought, that was unlikely.

Ryner Lute"s whereabouts were always being obtained.

After all, that was Luke"s true task.

In the middle of the night, Ryner Lute rushed out of the inn he was staying at, and headed over to the Eris house with a somehow urgent expression.

He"d gotten a hold of his movements up until then.

During that time, he hadn"t encountered Captain Milk.

In that case, the next possibility.

3 - She"d been abducted by someone.

However, for what purpose?

There were three possibilities.

First, as bait to lure out Ryner Lute.

Second, as bait to lure out Luke Stokart.

Third, as bait to lure out the highest-ranking member of the Taboo Breaker Pursuit Squad, Rahel Miller.

Now then, which one?

There was no need to think too much over the third one. Luke understood Miller-senpai"s competence better than anyone else. Even if he ignored it, things would resolve on their own, one way or another.

The worst case was the first one.

It was the case where Captain Milk was kidnapped for the sake of luring Ryner Lute out.

There was the chance that such a case would advance to where Luke"s eyes couldn"t follow at all.

That was why...

Then, Luke looked behind him, at a simple, or more so, dirty one-house inn.

The inn where Ryner Lute was staying.

Waiting here as an ambush, he"d thought there was a chance that Captain Milk"s abductors would appear, so he came here, but...

"... It"s me they have business with..."

Saying that, Luke felt slightly relieved.

If it was Ryner Lute they were trying to contact, then Lear Rinkal, who"d received the task of constantly observing Ryner, would have to deal with the abductors on his own.

But.

"......"

Luke again stared at the several men before him.

Quickly gauging their power... It seemed they would be a somewhat heavy burden for Lear alone.

However competent he was, the other party wasn"t an opponent that could easily be handled without any preliminary information.

All in all, they were strong.

Because of that, they didn"t move arrogantly. There were no openings whatsoever.

To be frank, in a fair and square fight, Luke would be killed by them in an instant.

They were also aware of that.

That was why the men, while approaching him,

"Now, come with us, Luke Stokkart. Resistance is futile..."

They began, but only made it that far.

The men moving towards him stopped.

And they stared down at their feet, and then looked at him with surprised expressions.

"... R-Ridiculous. This is..."

Then, Luke smiled sweetly and spoke in a calm tone.

"Yes. It"s a magic trap. Ah, I"d recommend not moving. If you lift a leg, not only will you lose it, you"ll be blown away without a trace."

However, with a still incredulous expression, the men continued.

"T-That can"t be. W-Why would you set these..."

But without listening to those words, Luke looked over his shoulder.

At a separate group.

Looking at the rooftop of the inn where Ryner Lute was staying, where three men aimed knives at his back,

"Ah, those over there shouldn"t move either! After all, each of you would be blown away with the inn roof."

"Wha..."

With startled expressions, they stopped their movements. They stared at Luke.

Luke nodded at that, and with a smiling face,

"Ah, I"m glad you listened. According to my investigation, there aren"t any customers staying in the second floor of the inn today... Nevertheless, if the roof were to be destroyed, they wouldn"t be able to carry on their business. If that were to happen, they wouldn"t be able to cover the cost of the damages, wouldn"t they? However..."

He said, and again looked at the still men on top of the magic traps on the ground, before speaking.

"Let"s not waste our taxes on that. You and I... as fellow people servants of Roland, for the future of this country, hmm?"

Saying that, he laughed.

At that, the men now trembled in fear.

"... Y-You b.a.s.t.a.r.d... How much do you know..."

But Luke shook his head, and,

"Nothing. But I have my guesses. The one above a strong private army like you... who abducted Milk Callaud... and who wishes to make contact me would be..."

From what Luke knew alone, there were a few candidates.

From within the n.o.bles, four people.

From the upper bra.s.s in the military, two people.

Then, within that...

Luke took in a small breath.

Then,

"... Miran Froaude?"

In that instant.

The men"s faces paled.

Luke smiled at that.

"Correct, am I? I see. Marquis Froaude"s son. As he does things in a flashy manner, his movements were obvious... Well, though I understand what it is that he wants to do..."

However, regarding Froaude"s abduction of Captain Milk...

Luke slightly tilted his head.

And staring at the men,

"Then, His Excellency Lieutenant General Froaude is calling for me? Not Major Rahel Miller, but me? Even though Major Miller is presently the leader... he"s requested for me?"

The men nodded.

"... We have been told to bring along Luke Stokkart."

"... I see."

With that, Luke"s thoughts began to whirl around once more.

There was a reason for calling not Miller-senpai, but Luke Stokkart.

"... It seems that it would be best to discuss this, doesn"t it?"

After letting out a quiet sigh, Luke spoke.

"Incidentally, the magic traps underneath your feet are fakes, so it"s fine to move already. That you so obediently believed you were trapped from the beginning and informed me of various things was quite a good thing for me."

At those words.

The men moved their legs; however, the magic circles underneath their feet had no effects whatsoever, and upon understanding that they were indeed fakes, they glared at Luke with hateful looks.

In return, Luke gave them a mischievous smile, and,

"Ah, I"ll keep the aforementioned matter a secret from Froaude, so don"t worry,"

He said that.

Like that, Luke was captured by the men and entered a prison...

And then the span of one month went by.

♦

Within the darkness, a light burned.

And inside the prison, a radiant light shone.

No, it was perhaps too nice to be called a prison.

There was a table, bed, and bookshelf, in which several interesting books were lined up.

The place felt a bit like a hotel.

Furthermore, there was also a simple kitchen-like area, where he could whenever he wished to eat, where he could eat whatever he wanted for breakfast, lunch, and dinner, without need for anything else... It was a most gracious situation.

However, the door to his room wouldn"t open.

The door wasn"t a normal one either.

First was the iron lattice.

Second was that it was an iron-plated door.

And on each of the seven was a lock... It couldn"t be opened from inside.

No, there wasn"t a handle from the inside part.

There was strictly no disturbances.

In the end, it was a prison...

Then.

The door to the prison opened, as one man entered.

That man spoke.

"... Seeing as how you didn"t put out the light, I a.s.sume it"s effective?"

A cold, indifferent voice.

Luke lifted his head at that.

Before him was a strange man.

Long, pretty, and jet-black hair. A tall and slender body. A long finger with an unusual ring.

And demon-like eyes.

Cold, dark blue eyes that seemed as if they were frozen.

"......"

Ah, this is amazing, Luke thought.

Eyes that held all of the despair in the world.

Eyes that hoped for nothing.

Looking at something far away from his figure, this was...

"... Then you are His Excellency Lieutenant General Miran Froaude?"

Luke said, to which Froaude nodded.

Then, with those sharp, cold eyes that seemed to be looking down at all of the entire world gazed at him, and,

"My apologies for my tardiness, Sergeant Luke Stokkart. Despite moving a piece, I took a bit too much time."

Piece...

That was what Froaude said.

At that, Luke slightly inclined his head.

"Piece, hmm... that would be regarding Ryner Lute?"

At those words, after making a somewhat surprised face, Froaude smiled.

"... This is, this is... as one would expect. I"m glad to be able to discuss this with someone with a sharp mind. In that case, the reason I called you here...?"

The reason.

The reason he called not for Rahel Miller, but for Luke Stokkart.

No, even without thinking over it, it was simple.

Luke stared at Froaude, and,

"Then I... am to kill Ryner Lute?"

Again, Froaude smiled cheerfully.

"... You truly are wonderful."

Affirmative.

In other words, that was why Froaude called for Luke.

However, Luke"s expression trembled at that.

And he recalled the contents of the order that he had received from Sion.

First.

Search and collect any Heroes" Relics that the Alpha Stigma bearer, Ryner Lute, overlooks.

Two.

Observe the Alpha Stigma bearer, Ryner Lute.

Three.

Should the Alpha Stigma bearer, Ryner Lute, go berserk outside of Roland or show any traitorous behaviour—

Erase him...

That was why Luke had constantly observed Ryner Lute.

But at the same time, he also understood the form of the order.

Countermeasures for if Ryner Lute"s existence was leaked out to others.

Countermeasures for if the fact they were keeping what was considered an Alpha Stigma monster, despised as taboo, was leaked out.

And countermeasures for the case where Ryner Lute betrayed the Roland Empire...

But anyhow, he understood that Sion didn"t honestly believe that he would have to kill Ryner.

At least, not right now.

However, Froaude was saying to kill Ryner Lute.

And Luke also understood the reason why.

That was why,

"... I don"t quite think that"s in good taste,"

Luke said with a trembling expression.

But at that, Froaude easily—

"Regardless of taste, this country won"t move."

"Certainly, that"s true, but... the mindset that to save as many as possible, it can"t be helped that there are sacrifices, more or less, is rather..."

However, at that, Froaude again easily said,

"Only Ryner Lute"s life alone can I see no worth in being pained over. From the beginning, there was no worth in keeping him alive."

Luke frowned further at that.

"... That way of speaking is a bit..."

But then Froaude interrupted him, and,

"A bit... what? Or, Sergeant Stokkart, do you believe that Ryner Lute should be allowed to live?"

At those words.

"......"

Luke fell silent.

"There is no worth in keeping Ryner Lute alive."

Froaude had said something along those lines.

And the reason was,

"As a dangerous Alpha Stigma bearer despised by everyone as taboo, there is no worth in keeping Ryner Lute alive."

In his words, there was none of the usual, simple discrimination.

No, to say nothing of the fact that Froaude had evaluated Ryner Lute"s worth more so than anyone else.

That was why he understood that much.

That was why he"d specifically gone through all this trouble to call Luke here.

That was Ryner Lute"s only worth.

That was... the only worth in his life.

Staring at Froaude,

"... And the benefit that will be gained if Ryner Lute dies... what does His Excellency Lieutenant General Froaude think it is?"

Luke said that.

Froaude gazed at Luke with cold eyes that were like death, and,

"Have you not thought about it?"

"......"

Luke didn"t answer that.

But Froaude went on.

"No, not only you. Major Rahel Miller as well—you and he have thought about the same things as me... or are our thoughts different from one another?"

"......"

Luke didn"t respond to that either.

Silent like that, his thoughts started to go down a different path.

The situation right not wasn"t good at all.

More than was expected, the inside of Miran Froaude"s heart was being exposed.

Though he"d thought that he"d only be able to probe into the stomach...

Coming here to contact him upfront, this situation was...

"... I see. Roland"s situation is to that extent..."

Froaude nodded at that.

"...If nothing is done about this..."

His words stopped there.

But Luke understood what the rest was.

They"d be destroyed.

They"d be invaded by other countries.

That was why Froaude had contacted Luke in such an earnest manner.

"......"

In an earnest manner.

Earnest... is it?

Luke spoke.

"I respectfully decline."

But Froaude gazed at Luke with dark blue eyes, and,

"You should know very well that you can"t decline."

"Why?"

"We"ve taken a hostage. Milk Callaud"s life is the prerequisite to ensure that you will listen to our demands..."

He began, but Luke interrupted him, shaking his head.

"That"s not it, Your Excellency Lieutenant General Froaude. After killing Ryner Lute, you intend to kill Milk Callaud as well."

At that,

"......"

This time, it was Froaude who didn"t reply.

Instead, he only stared at Luke with cold eyes.

But Luke continued.

"In our present case, that would be quite effective. Isn"t that correct? In order to crush Sion-san"s heart all at once, so that his naivety will disappear... Along with Ryner Lute, it would benefit you to kill Milk Callaud as well. Am I wrong?"

"......"

Froaude still didn"t respond.

However, Luke stared straight into Froaude"s eyes, and,

"And so, first of all, the guarantee of Milk Callaud"s life... if I cannot receive a vow of that, I have no reason to listen to any of your demands. Any discussion can continue after that."

"......"

At those words, Froaude made a slightly troubled face. After dimly furrowing his brow,

"... Hmm. I see. I understand what it is you"re saying. Very well. I promise that I shall not kill Milk Callaud."

Luke smiled wryly at that, and,

"Isn"t that a lie?"

Froaude easily nodded.

"Correct. It"s a lie. Perhaps I"ll kill her, perhaps I won"t... but regardless, you won"t believe what I say. After all, either way, Milk Callaud is a hostage within my hands."

Then, furrowing his brow further as if deep in thought,

"... However, that you aren"t a fool who wouldn"t understand such a thing is something I understand from this conversation up to this point... And so, by what means shall you ensure Milk Callaud"s safety from me?"

At that, Luke easily—

"In exchange for your life... by something such as that?"

Like that, he looked around the room.

Right now, Luke was standing by the bed, away from where the room"s entrance was placed.

And Froaude was at that entrance.

The distance between where they were standing was about six long, adult-sized paces.

And that was...

The distance was such that if it were Luke, he could lunge across and kill Froaude in one go.

Then.

Froaude made a further troubled face, and,

"... In other words, if Milk Callaud"s safety cannot be guaranteed, you shall kill me?"

Luke nodded.

"Well, something like that."

But in response, a thin smile arose in Froaude"s face.

A cold smile.

Within Froaude"s expression, there was an even deeper coldness than before.

He gently moved his left hand towards his right hand and began to stroke his strange, black ring.

And he spoke.

"... Sergeant Luke Stokkart. I understand your strength well. You were a central figure in the previous revolution... as well as someone with great power who rivals Crimson Fingered Claugh Klom."

Luke shook his head at that, and responded in a joking manner.

"No, no, if I were to fight with Claugh, I"d be killed in an instant."

And that was the truth.

Magic skill.

Hand-to-hand combat skill.

Reflexes, body strength, speed...

Claugh surpa.s.sed Luke in all of them.

The one time he"d fought with Claugh...

"......"

It was a rather depressing memory, and so Luke stopped.

At any rate, Luke didn"t feel as if he could win if he fought against Claugh.

He was a combat genius.

In comparison, Luke"s level was that of somewhat above the average person.

But.

Froaude gazed at Luke and spoke.

"However, you possess a different talent. Your ability to grasp the situation stands above all else... No, those words don"t quite convey it. Even just from the data I gathered, you"ve been undefeated in twenty battles. Furthermore, all in disadvantageous situations that should have spelled certain defeat.

This is abnormal. Creating miracles, strategy—one could say that you are a genius at tactics..."

"... You flatter me. However, you"ve done impressive research. Even though in most of those battles, I never gave my real name... but if you understand that much, then for a short while, complying with..."

He began, but Froaude shook his head.

And during that period, he continued to stroke his ring.

His black ring.

While stroking that black ring,

"You may be a genius, but... you cannot kill me. After all, a human like you... is not my enemy."

As he said such a thing, Luke tilted his head.

"Hoh? Your choice of words makes it sound like you aren"t human at all... Oh, could it be that you aren"t human?"

But in response, Froaude—

"No, no, I"m human. But a human such as yourself is unable to kill me."

"... Saying such a troublesome thing again... You"re human but can"t be killed by a human..."

Luke began, but stopped, and then,

"... Well, that"s enough with the pointless chatter. First of all, if I can"t provide proof that I can kill you, then this discussion can"t move forward."

"As I said, you are not capable of such."

"We"ll see. Well, at any rate, in order to test that..."

It was when Luke said that.

Froaude laughed.

He held up his right hand high in the air.

His right hand with that black ring.

And,

"... Let there—"

It was the instant he spoke.

Froaude"s entire body emitted unbelievably strong pressure.

Killing intent.

Demonic intent.

There were various ways of describing it... At any rate, the signs of something dangerous filled their surroundings.

Furthermore, it wasn"t just one thing.

One, two, three, four...

Steadily, steadily they increased.

"... This is—"

At that, Luke"s eyes raced around the room.

But the signs had no figure. Even so, the room was br.i.m.m.i.n.g with them...

Then, Froaude spoke.

"... be darkness."

In that instant.

The shadows at Froaude"s feet began to take form.

Black shadows leapt through the air and took the form of beasts.

"......"

Luke stared at that.

However, he didn"t move.

He immediately understood the situation.

Black shadow beasts.

It seemed that somehow, that was Froaude"s ability.

Perhaps it was the power of that ring.

With that ring, he could freely manipulate the beasts, or perhaps freely manipulate the shadows" form...

"... E-Either way, this isn"t the time for that."

Saying that, Luke took a step back.

However, regarding that,

"It"s already too late,"

Froaude said, moving his finger slightly.

Luke didn"t know what order he was giving to those beasts of darkness with that movement, but the beasts responded and moved to attack him...

It was all over.

Immediately, something, glittering with light, seemed to fall from the ceiling...

Gyuushuu—!

With an undecipherable sound, the black shadow beasts were torn to fine pieces and destroyed.

"... Wha—"

A voice spilled from where Froaude was.

But like that, Luke began to run.

He ran straight towards Froaude.

Froaude scowled at that, and,

"d.a.m.n it... let there..."

He said, holding up his hand...

As a small sound rang out, light wrapped itself around his hand.

And Luke—

"Move your finger any further and both it and your hand will go flying."

At those words, Froaude looked at his arm and scowled even more.

"... Threads...? But this is..."

He began, but his words ended there.

Luke grabbed Froaude"s collar, and like that, slammed him against the iron lattice.

"Gah..."

As Froaude moaned, Luke stopped.

After withdrawing a concealed knife and holding it to Froaude"s neck, he spoke in a low, dark tone that was entirely unlike him.

"... Just try to lay one finger of that filthy hand on Milk Callaud... I"ll kill you on the spot."

At those words.

Froaude, pushed up against the lattice, could only look at Luke.

"... Hmm. So when it comes to Milk Callaud, even you, as usually composed as you are, would kill me even without gain or loss. Is this act for the sake of conveying that to me?"

Luke smiled sweetly at that.

A calm expression.

With that calm expression, he firmly began to dig the knife in. Blood began to spill from Froaude"s throat, and yet he didn"t stop.

If Froaude didn"t move his body away, his artery would likely be cut, and yet Luke still pressed the knife in further...

However, with a smiling face, Luke spoke.

"... It"s not an act. We show no forgiveness to those who meddle in our family. Unless you wish to be killed, you shouldn"t carelessly lay a hand on us. If you understand, blink once and only once. If you have any complaints about that, then we can resume this battle. In that case, I"ll kill you."

At that.

"......"

Froaude blinked only once.

After confirming that, Luke moved the knife away from Froaude"s neck, and,

"... My deepest apologies. Did that hurt?"

His voice again returning to its usual tone, he said that.

Though Froaude"s artery wasn"t cut, he touched his bleeding neck with his finger and then looked at that blood.

"... I see. If this is the amount of power that you possess... then certainly, that concludes this deal. You would kill me... However, you wouldn"t kill me as long as I do not lay a hand on Milk Callaud... is that how it is?"

Luke nodded.

"That is."

At that, Froaude narrowed his eyes and looked around.

"... Then, the tool you were using before was... threads?"

"That is correct."

"... Is it a type of one of those Heroes" Relics that Ryner Lute wrote about in his report?"

Luke nodded again.

"As he forgot to retrieve it, I"ve been given the chance to use it."

"That relic"s ability is?"

At that, Luke discarded the knife, and then went back into his pocket, withdrawing a thin, small needle.

A thin needle that one couldn"t see unless they concentrated their eyes on it.

After holding it up so that Froaude could see, he explained.

"Its ability... There isn"t much to speak of. Anyhow, in spite of its thinness, it cannot be broken. The threads from this needle extend indefinitely... they are also durable to the point that they cannot be cut. However, that is its only ability."

Luke"s guess was that previously, this needle and its threads likely weren"t meant to be used as a weapon. A convenient sewing tool... That was likely its level.

But.

Froaude repeated Luke"s words.

"However, that is its only ability... Depending on its user, it can become this powerful..."

He looked up at the ceiling, and then turned his gaze to the room"s light, and,

"... The reason you didn"t put out the room"s light was to hide the threads you placed on the ceiling."

Continuing, he looked down at Luke"s feet.

"... Furthermore, you pretended to be surprised by my Shadow Beasts, taking a step back during the fight so that you could prepare to invoke your trap. By kicking the needle you"d stabbed by your feet, you invoked the trap of the threads at the ceiling... Is that the truth of this fight?"

To that, Luke stared at Froaude with a fed up expression.

"... I don"t feel like it"ll be my victory next time."

But Froaude"s expression didn"t change at those worlds at all.

With a dark, cold expression, he said one more time:

"... In the right hands, Heroes" Relics can become such a powerful weapon... Thus, there isn"t any time."

"... Because of Gastark, you mean?"

"......"

Froaude didn"t answer. No, he had an expression that said You should already know.

Certainly, there was no need to specifically answer.

The situation was already quite bad.

According to their intelligence, it seemed that Gastark was using a great number of Heroes" Relics and invading other countries, one by one.

But there was the central continent in between them and the north... It was a discussion about the far off north...

For the Roland Empire that was seated all the way on the southern edge of the continent, there didn"t seem to be any real connection...

But there was a significant connection.

One country was moving.

The entire world was starting to move.

They were headed towards war.

No, even if it were Roland, they were already dealing with the flames of war.

After subjugating the Kingdom of Estabul whom they"d warred with for many years, the Roland that"d become a superpower in the southern continent would next be thinking about unifying the southern continent.

Even though temporarily, this country"s king, Sion Astal, didn"t wish for that...

The neighbouring countries of Runa and Nelpha wouldn"t believe that.

Afraid of when Roland would become an enemy... They"d begun to prepare for that.

Before Roland could become an enemy, they had to ally with other countries to oppose it.

Before Roland could become an enemy, they had to invade and destroy it.

Before Roland could become an enemy.

Before Roland could become an enemy...

Once the cogwheels were moving, they wouldn"t stop.

So that they wouldn"t be engulfed, they had to continue moving and ride on those cogwheels.

And for the sake of riding on those cogwheels...

Luke recalled what Froaude had said when he entered the room.

"Despite moving a piece, I took a bit too much time."

The meaning of those words.

"... Then, was the piece [Ryner Lute][1] leaving Roland part of your plot?"

After laughing cheerfully at that, Froaude—

"No... That event went beyond my plot. It seems that he went along with a new Alpha Stigma bearer and betrayed Roland."

"......"

That was the reason why Froaude had been late in contacting Luke.

But that matter was inconsequential.

That Ryner Lute had gone with someone and betrayed Roland... In that case, the order that Luke had received from Sion to erase him was invoked.

Froaude went on.

"His Majesty will likely return in a week. Please depart this country before then. By that point, it will be too late to withdraw those orders."

Luke nodded at that.

Correct.

If he were to kill Ryner Lute, he had to depart this country before Sion returned.

With that, suddenly, Luke recalled a pa.s.sage in the report that Ryner Lute had written and that Sion had shown him.

People hate dying.

They hate killing, too.

They don"t like making others cry, or crying themselves. What would it be like, not being able to choose your own life?

What if your family died?

How about the person you love?

No one ever wants that, and yet the world hands out that sorrow for no reason, laughing all the way.

I"ve never had any burning desire to change something. But it would be sad without change, and I don"t want to lose anything else, so...

It sucks, but...

I think it"s about time we move forward. I"ve averted my eyes until now, but if I have to, I"ll take a hard look at my own past."

And,

To achieve a world where n.o.body ever loses anything.

One that doesn"t make that child or Kiefer cry, one where Tahile, Tony, and Fahle don"t die, one where Sion doesn"t have to brood.

A world where everyone can smile and just take afternoon naps all the time.

- Ryner Lute

He thought that that seemed wonderful.

It truly seemed wonderful.

A world where n.o.body ever lost anything.

A world where everyone could smile.

If it was to create that sort of world, he would lend all of his strength.

If everyone could smile with that.

If he could protect Milk Callaud"s smiling face with that...

If it was to create that sort of world, he would give up his life.

But.

In reality, such a thing didn"t exist.

In this world, such a thing didn"t exist.

An illusion.

An illusion everyone dreamed of once.

No, if one"s ability was high, then it was high.

If power existed, then there was a deep hole to fall into.

By chasing that illusion, n.o.body could save anything.

And so, he had to be killed.

Ryner Lute"s existence...

"... He... could destroy Sion-san"s heart..."

Froaude smiled in satisfaction at that.

"It"s truly rea.s.suring to think that someone like you is here in Roland."

But Luke didn"t answer.

Instead, with only a somewhat sad expression,

"... I understand. I shall kill Ryner Lute,"

He said quietly.