SOTBW - 43

“What exactly did Najane do wrong?”

Jacob muttered in a confused voice, clearly struggling to accept the situation that had unfolded so quickly. It wasn’t just Jacob who was disturbed; the other knights were equally unsettled.

The only one who remained calm was Belshua. She gazed in the direction of the private quarters and coldly spoke as if it was none of her business.

“Don’t try to understand the captain. It’s pointless.”

“What?”

Daniel, who had been wearing a serious expression, replied irritably.

Belshua spoke again.

“You’ll never understand him. Not now, and not ever.”

Belshua spoke as if she knew Maximón Elgort very well. Daniel looked at her suspiciously. Had Belshua always been this talkative?

Come to think of it, before Maximón and Didina had even appeared, it had been Belshua who signaled to the guards to capture Amelia. Frowning, Daniel quickly stood up from the dirt floor.

“...You knew from the beginning, didn’t you?”

Daniel muttered with a tone of certainty. Belshua did not deny it.

“If I had known it would turn out like this, I should’ve stopped the captain. Or at least prepared for it!”

For the first time, Daniel shouted at Belshua. Startled, Jacob tried to intervene between the two. At that moment, Belshua faintly smiled.

“That’s impossible.”

Belshua answered coldly. Maximón’s love for Najane, or his eventual hatred for her, was something that had been destined. It was something that had been planned for thousands of years.

How could she explain to humans a fate so inevitable, a flow that could never be reversed by human power? No matter how kindly she explained it, Jacob and Daniel would never understand.

Maximón and Najane’s meeting was not a mere coincidence. Belshua had allowed the Serith beast to cross the city walls so that they could naturally meet, placing a practice sword where it would inevitably fall. She had also made sure not to release the curse that would allow Najane to escape, ensuring she would have to rely on Maximón.

This was all foreseen from the moment Serith had awakened from its ancient seal. Belshua had waited eagerly for Maximón and Najane to meet, hoping they would fall in love, only for one to eventually kill the other.

The Serith beings’ release from their seals wasn’t a sudden misfortune.

It was, after all, Belshua who had orchestrated the destruction of that seal.

From the deeply asleep Serith, Belshua had stolen their most precious possession.

She had done it so that when they awoke, they would be filled with rage and wander as if blinded, trapped in an endless cycle of slaughter without being able to make any judgments of their own.

“The one who first killed a human, the one who doubted the universe and stole the truth by massacring the innocent, the one who betrayed your kin and gained an eternal life where your soul decays... You will find no peace until the day those horrible monsters perish. Watch as the beautiful world falls in the place where the fire has gone out. Your foolish actions have foretold the end of the universe...”

The words of the Dragon Lord, who had cursed her long ago and died, made Belshua laugh involuntarily. It was clearly a mocking laugh.

Belshua was not afraid of the world’s destruction. Even if she were the last one left in a universe where everything had vanished, she wouldn’t care.

How long had she hated this world? She had wished for all humans to flounder in pain and burn. If she could not understand the reason for her birth in this world, and if she was destined to be used as a support holding up the world only to disappear one day, she thought it would be better to just kill all of humanity.

She envied and despised humans who had the power to carve their own fate and change the course of the world. It didn’t matter if she would never be forgiven. If everyone else could feel the loneliness and misery that she felt...

“If we meet again thousands of years from now, run away from me. No matter how much I beg you, no matter how much I cling to you, never… never do my request.”

At that moment, the voice buried deep in the abyss cooled Belshua’s mind, which had been burning with hatred and frustration toward humans.

Belshua swept her palm over her eyes, nose, and mouth in sequence.

She knew exactly how many lifetimes Najane had gone through. Belshua had watched from afar, witnessing it dozens of times.

Najane, who never met Maximón, lived a short and pitiful life before dying. To escape from a wolf pack, her parents had thrown her, a helpless infant, as bait; she had been burned alive before turning ten simply for being born a twin; and at times, she had even been used as a sacrificial offering to the gods.

In all her previous lives, before being Najane once more, she had been killed by someone, or endured a hopeless life until she couldn’t bear it any longer and took her own life. But Belshua had never interfered in Najane’s life. There were times when she felt the urge to help, but she could not.

Staring alternately at Jacob and Daniel, Belshua spoke calmly.

“You two should escape before it’s too late. If you get caught up in this between those two, you will definitely die.”

“Speak so we can understand! We need to know something if we’re going to help the captain or Najane!”

Daniel shouted again. Belshua gave a bitter smile.

“Help? You? How could you?”

“Belshua… Please, tell me what I can do. Anything, just please. You know how hard Najane is working in the field. You know she’s trying to save even one more person! The captain is emotionally manipulating her. We need to stop him. Najane deserves better, she’s a knight worth treating with respect!”

“Daniel.”

Belshua’s eyes glinted coldly.

For just a moment, her usual brown eyes glistened strangely.

“I’m telling you this because you’re both good people. Stay out of the captain and Najane’s business. Especially don’t pity Najane.”

The tragedy she had to endure was just beginning.

Belshua closed her mouth, almost letting the words slip. Daniel, frustrated, ruffled his hair violently.

“What did Najane do wrong? Do you think she fought so hard on the field for nothing?”

Belshua didn’t answer anymore.

At that moment, Maximón returned from the direction of the private quarters, wearing an unusually dark expression.

________________________________________

The rumors that Najane was confined in the captain’s private quarters began to spread silently through the various knight orders, but no one dared to ask Maximón if it was true. However, since Najane, who had always supported the child soldiers from the rear and often solved problems with the sacred relics, had disappeared, everyone seemed to believe the rumors were true.

Upon hearing the story, Olkoni immediately visited the Romsoa Order but was turned away at the door. He considered telling Taylor, but the Recheo Order was effectively led by Olkoni, and Taylor, at times, had to take sleeping pills due to the pain and paralysis that would sometimes keep him awake.

Mentioning anything about Maximón and Najane might make Taylor worry…

From the start, meddling in the affairs of other knight orders was dangerous. Especially if the person involved was Maximón—no matter how obvious his wrongdoing might seem, it was wiser to avoid him. As a result, no one dared to help or rescue Najane.

Even the knights of Romsoa avoided mentioning Najane. Maximón was unusually on edge and was directing his emotions toward the Serith. However, there was no guarantee that today’s knights wouldn’t become targets of his rage.

Only Didina was allowed to enter and exit the private quarters. Surrounded by a tall wall, the private quarters were guarded by over ten soldiers day and night. Everyone was curious about what Najane was doing in there, what she was thinking as she passed each day, but as Maximón’s presence grew more terrifying, people gradually lost interest.

The only one who dared to linger near the private quarters was Daniel. He often circled near the walls but would reluctantly leave whenever the soldiers gave him a look, fearing he was being a nuisance.

It had already been four days since Najane declared she was leaving the Romsoa Order. Didina prepared meals with dishes she thought Najane would like, but Najane didn’t seem to want to eat anything. She would just sit in the empty room, staring out the window. Even when Didina came, Najane didn’t acknowledge her, and there was no conversation.

Many were curious about what had happened between Maximón and Najane, but most assumed that he had confined Najane after failing to monopolize her swordsmanship. Some even whispered that he had imprisoned her out of jealousy, seeing that she was clearly destined to become a sword master.

Of course, no one knew the truth. Even Didina had no idea why Maximón had changed so suddenly. Jacob and Daniel, too, fought against the Serith with complicated feelings, unable to understand Maximón’s actions. The only one who remained unchanged was Belshua.

“Dame Schnicks, I’ve brought lunch.”

Didina knocked on the door. There was no response, but she opened the door anyway.

Najane was sitting on a worn leather sofa, staring blankly out the window.

Didina wanted to know what Najane was thinking. While understanding her feelings wouldn’t immediately help, Didina wanted to do something for Najane, as it was because of Najane’s choice that Amelia was safe. She felt a strong desire to help in any way she could.

“I’ve prepared a chicken dish roasted in the Elgort style today. I hope this dish suits Dame Schnicks’ taste.”

Didina stood beside Najane, dismantling the chicken. It was obvious that Najane would show no interest, but still, she had to be fed something.

As Didina gently tore the chicken that had been roasted in the mud, coated with butter and spices, Najane turned her gaze toward her. This was the first time she showed any interest in the food.

Didina quickly placed the meat onto a plate and offered it to Najane. However, Najane didn’t take it, only staring at Didina.

“…How can I leave here?”

It was her first words in four days. Didina, surprised, set the plate down. Najane looked up at her with a pained expression.

“There’s someone I need to find before it’s too late… Please help me leave here. You can help Amelia, right, Lady Maid? Or at least, when that person leaves for battle at night, let us leave… please…”

“That’s not possible. If that happens…”

The soldiers guarding the private quarters would lose their lives. Didina, unable to look at Najane’s desperate gaze, continued preparing the food, repeating her refusal, but feeling guilty for it.

Najane looked at Didina for a moment before lowering her gaze. She soon resigned herself. As Didina carefully separated the bones from the meat, she spoke softly.

“…Tell the captain that you love him.”

“….”

“If you do that, Dame Schnicks might allow you a little bit of freedom.”

“Do you think that person loves me?”

“…Maybe.”

Didina spoke hesitantly, and Najane let out a bitter laugh.

“I already asked him if he loved me. He said no. He said it wasn’t love… And he was right. If Maximón Elgort loved me, he wouldn’t be doing this. No one would call this love. No one would call this kind of imprisonment love.”

There was anger in Najane’s voice.

Didina, pouring wine into an empty glass, spoke politely.

“He’s colder than anyone, but sometimes, he can be emotional like a child. Marquis Elgort insists he raised the captain like his own son, but I often find myself questioning whether that’s true. If he had been raised with love like an ordinary boy, he would know how to love someone in return. But he knows nothing about it. It’s as if he’s never experienced love before. Maybe his heart is more twisted than ours. Or maybe… he’s just too scared, and he’s running away.”

“What’s he running away from?”

“Perhaps from being abandoned or rejected by the person he loves.”

Najane slightly furrowed her brows.

“You want me to understand Maximón Elgort.”

“…I apologize if my words upset you. But if you want freedom, the only way is to cater to the captain’s wishes…”

“What about Amelia?”

Najane, her gaze fixed once more on the window, asked in a tired voice.

“Is she safe?”

“Yes, she’s still working as a maid.”

“…I’m glad.”

With those words, Najane fell silent.

Didina left the private quarters with the unfinished meal. After a while, she realized that she had represented only Maximón’s side in the conversation, leaving Najane’s situation unheard.

But there was no way for Najane to gain freedom in this situation. All she could do was say what Maximón wanted to hear or show him the actions he desired.

Didina sighed and rubbed her face with a guilty expression. The soldiers had been glancing at her for a while, perhaps noticing how long she had been staying.

Reluctantly, Didina left. A fierce cold wind blew toward the private quarters, making it almost impossible to breathe. No one knew how long this cold wave would last. Everyone could only hope that nothing would happen before winter ended.