Chapter 228

Chapter 228

***

There was no place that welcomes a retired soldier. Even if he fought on the battlefield risking his life and sent money to his hometown, there was actually no one who welcomes his return.

There exists no person in the world who will save a soul suffering from ruthless violence, murder, nightmares, and PTSD.

Captivated by the illusion that family or old friends will save them, the moment they were betrayed by that they end up falling into the abyss of despair.

Those who have been in hell for a long time know. That heaven ddid not exist. And so good deeds done to go to heaven become meaningless.

Nevertheless, doing good deeds despite knowing that was resisting this hell-like world.

It's fine if heaven doesn't exist. It doesn't matter if the world was hell. I am not a demon. I am human......

It was a room where incense was burned. That was dried mugwort for medical treatment, making the tip of the nose tingle, it was known to have the efficacy of washing the soul.

There were many guest rooms in the Adelorn Royal Castle, and in one of them Maters lay on a bed unconscious. He wouldn't die because high-grade potions were used, but time was needed for the cut off wrist to heal.

Looking down at him, Rickart felt a strange sense of kinship. Exactly like emptiness and a sense of guilt being relatives.

Someone behind Rickart spoke. It was Raimund who had followed Rickart since the days of the Flame Knights. Now he was the Royal Standard-bearer, Commander of the Royal Guard, and Military Officer.

"We barely found it with difficulty. It is an Adelorn indigenous thieves guild, he was a member of the White Bone Brotherhood. He has no family separately, and his nickname back then was 'Steel Tearer' they say. It seems his grip strength was amazing compared to his gaunt body. Whether he had conflict with the organization he left the organization and worked alone, and sometimes gathered colleagues to work they say. He mainly robbed tax transport carriages or attacked gambling houses. The peculiar point is he hated pimps that much they say. They say whenever he made money he paid off prostitutes' debts and sent them back to their hometowns so he always suffered from hunger himself. While doing so the Adelorn civil war broke out so he wandered here and there, and around the time the King was ending the civil war a report came into the Knights Order so we arrested him and sent him to the mine. The crime is cannibalism as you know."

"Hmm, so he wasn't a riffraff-like robber who robbed ordinary people."

"But his foundation is a robber. Even if you say you will save him where would you use him?"

"Well, coming down to it I'm a robber too stringently speaking. Driving the army to wage battles and winning didn't we always rob wealth. It's just the difference between a big robber and a small robber."

"How can you say such, the King is a peerless hero."

"Hahaha, Ray, I didn't say such words to demean myself. It's good not to have such great expectations or pride in oneself. Because it clouds your view. That's just it."

"Still......"

"I'm not saving Maters to do something with him. I just want to watch."

"Speaking of what?"

"Speaking of him trying to save himself. Wasn't Ray wandering once too? Due to a sense of guilt towards a young girl."

"......"

"I think if you save one person with the heart to save the world, that is precisely the path to saving the world. I think saving one person who committed a sin is ten times, a hundred times more valuable work than killing 10 wicked people. Might leaving a flock of 99 sheep to set out to find one lost sheep mean that. Ray you too, the other knights of the Knights Order too, me too, everyone was a criminal. Perhaps even now that might be the case."

At the King's words Raimund felt a solemn feeling. The philosophical King's anguish was deep and deep, it wasn't at a level an individual like him dared guess.

"A farmer sows seeds and harvests, a woodcutter cuts trees, and a fisherman catches fish from the lake. Technicians work at the industrial complex built by the merchant group, and there are those who make a living with the money they spend. Conflicts with outsiders, fistfights, accidental murders, things like that there are many people besides me who can solve them. In a world with no more war there is nothing for me to do. I don't want to reign and enjoy. However if the Kingdom needs me I will gladly dedicate myself again."

Adelorn was enjoying peace. It had been 10 years since the war ended, and although they were busy doing this and that in the early days, now everything was well settled and running well.

The King couldn't personally pay attention one by one to just such trivial crimes.

In the first place Adelorn was a somewhat isolated region, and had conservative and closed characteristics, but now conversely too many innovations and reforms had been accomplished.

There was nothing more to add here, and nothing to subtract. In short, whether Rickart kept his position as King or not there was no great disruption happening in daily life.

Achieving was difficult, but folding was harder. A person who knows how to fold when it's time to fold was a truly great figure.

That didn't mean Rickart was stepping down from King or anything like that. Because if that happens that could cause confusion in itself.

Because even if there's no big change in daily life, the people of Adelorn rely a lot mentally on Rickart whether they know it or not. The belief that peace was guaranteed because he exists.

"Ray you take my proxy. Since the Emperor is Marie anyway, if there's a difficult or hard matter to decide you can just tell her anytime. Even if I die the next master is decided so there's nothing to be anxious about either. Billy is a good kid. His nature isn't bad and his intelligence is high too. Although he's still young in age well, I probably won't die until he becomes an adult."

Raimund listened quietly to Rickart's words then suddenly smiled faintly.

"How people's hearts are truly cunning is, even though we gained the peace we wanted that much sometimes we miss the battlefield. Just, the King always goes beyond that."

"Haha...... well......"

"But please know this at least. Meeting the King, being able to serve the King is too great a fortune and salvation for me. The brothers who are now aging in their respective territories are the same, and many others besides are like that. At least to us you are the brave warrior who saved the world."

"Let's not say embarrassing words among ourselves, Ray."

"Understood. I won't anymore. I shall take my leave."

Raimund bowed his head and walked out step step. Rickart sat in front of the small table in the room and looked out the window.

The full view of Adelorn's capital Adelun was seen. The noise of life echoing from the Old City and New City was heard. Hammering, soliciting customers, sound of laughter.

Rickart spent time looking at such things. He wasn't meditating, nor was he immersed in contemplation.

Then by the time the color of the sky gradually changed darkly, Maters woke up. From the change in breathing sound Rickart could know immediately that he had woken up.

"The court physician said it will take three or four days for there to be no disruption to daily life. For it to heal completely more than a month must pass."

Maters opened his eyes and looked somewhat confused somewhere. It wasn't the messy appearance from when they first met, but his beard was shaved neatly and his hair was also in a groomed state.

He had short black hair, and seeing his beard shaved he looked to be an age similar to Rickart. Perhaps due to suffering in the mine various marks remained on his skin, but unexpectedly he had an impression with good natured eyes.

Maters raised his upper body and looked around the room, then saw Rickart and was greatly surprised, coming down from the bed and prostrating on the floor. His cut left hand was wrapped in bandages.

With his face planted he trembled rattle rattle and said.

"Wow, w-w-w, I see the King."

"What meaning is there in being polite coming now? And I don't really like things like etiquette in the first place. The important thing is an honest heart. I have already seen your honest heart, so do you intend to close it again now?"

"Yes?"

Maters spoke keeping his prostrate state and only raising his head.

"Let's go to the Eastern Frontier. I originally intended to go."

"Yes?"

"If you have equipment you need, say it. One needs good tools when setting out on a rugged path."

"......I, I don't quite understand."

Rickart sighed and spoke clearly and articulately.

"I, go, Eastern Frontier, you, also, go together. Understood?"

"Why would the King...... you mean?"

"What do you mean why? Because I'm saying I'll go. Do I have to get permission from you or something? And get up and sit comfortably. Because I'm uncomfortable. I don't like cheeky bastards, but I don't like excessive politeness either."

A commoner prostrating before a King wasn't excessive politeness. It's just Rickart personally disliked it.

Maters blinked his eyes blink blink, then wondering if his chest calmed down and reason returned at least somewhat he slowly stood up from the floor and sat awkwardly beside the bed.

Rickart looked at Maters calmly. Maters's pupils were black, and two gazes of different colors met in the air.

"Steel Tearer, right? I heard you're a quite skilled fighter."

"......That's a matter of the past."

"The road going to the Eastern Frontier is dangerous and hard. Can you handle it?"

"If I may dare to speak, working in the mine for 10 years would be far more dangerous and hard."

"It was a foolish question. But why did you do that, paying off the prostitutes' debts instead and sending them back to their hometowns?"

It could be a very sensitive question, but the King didn't ask catering to the other person's mood. Handing questions if curious, if the answer was unsatisfactory one could die. That was Q&A with a King.

Of course Rickart didn't threaten people putting forth his position like that and did such things. It was purely out of curiosity, and Maters had no sign of feeling bad about it either.

"It wasn't because I had a great intention. Because maybe, my mother might be among them."

"Do you not resent the mother who abandoned you?"

"Everyone lived miserably. Mother too must have been hard enough to have to abandon her child. In doing so she herself would have been more pained and sad, I just only regret not being able to offer words of comfort. Saying I am fine. Please do not be sad."

"......"

Maters's answer was somewhat shocking to Rickart. Because it hadn't been long since he met Bori's mother, he thought, one could also think like that.

Rickart asked again.

"Why do the prisoners call you martyr?"

"It's nothing much. While working there are times when one commits a fault and receives punishment, and sometimes when a person's body and energy has weakened if they receive punishment it looks exactly like they would die no matter who looks at it. On behalf of such people I often took the blame and got beaten. Telling if that's why they called me martyr."

He was a rarely seen good-hearted person. That was innate, and a character as precious as, or more precious than pure talent. However this gruesome world had ended up making him a robber.

Nevertheless he didn't resent the world. He was looking back at his own faults and regretting.

Rickart turned his head and looked out the window again. The setting sun reached out its hand to Rickart and dyed his blonde hair reddish.

"This is something I'm curious about too, will there be salvation for you in the Eastern Frontier? If there isn't?"

"I believe there will be. But even if there isn't well, being betrayed is familiar so it will be fine."

"......Rest. Let's leave as soon as your wound heals and you recover your energy."

Rickart stood up from his seat. And left the room. Left alone Maters wondered if he was dreaming right now. To him right now was truly a dream-like time.

Until just yesterday he had worked in the pitch-black mine shafts. Doing so the touch of the soft blanket brushing his skin or the clear air not mixed with dust, the soft sunlight of the setting sun, everything felt like a dream.

And the meeting with the King too. Maters faintly felt a feeling that the King was a similar category to himself. Actually because the King's calm eyes seemed exactly to have seen hell and returned like himself.

However he soon dismissed it as a useless thought.

The Eastern Frontier was a place where belief in salvation lingered for someone, and a place that was hell a long time ago for someone. One headed towards salvation, and one wanted to head back to hell.

What would be waiting for them was unknowable.

Chapter 46 - Prisoners of Hell. End.