The snow fell without stopping.
Deon Hardt arrived in front of his mansion hurriedly through the snow without any intention of putting on his hood, which had fallen backwards due to the strong wind. He was spotted from afar and stopped in front of the noisy gate.
"The Marquis is back...?!"
The gatekeeper could not finish his sentence.
Deon Hardt's knee buckled. He fell to his knees as if collapsing. The situation was not directed at a specific person, but simply occurred because the body could not withstand it.
Even though he knew that, he couldn't help but feel embarrassed. One of the gatekeepers, startled, was about to approach him in a hurry when Remember, who he did not know when he came out, passed him and approached Deon.
"Marquis."
The old butler, who was also kneeling because he did not dare to look down at his master, let out his usual old voice. It was a normal voice, but it made him nervous for no reason.
"Can you hear me? Wake up. It's cold."
"... Remember."
"I will take you to the mansion, so please forgive my rudeness."
Remember, who had reached out to support him, paused for a moment as he felt the sudden heat.
He pretended not to notice for a moment and tried to support him, but his attempts were thwarted by his actions of holding on to both shoulders and almost clinging to him.
'...'
The white hand that was tightly grasping the butler's shoulder trembled painfully. The tremors that started in his hands gradually grew, and soon his whole body began to tremble.
The desperate calls continued, like a helpless child clinging to its only adult.
"Remember, Remember..."
"... Yes, Marquis."
"My, I...!"
A suppressed cry, not knowing whether it was a scream or a sob, came out with difficulty.
He thought there was nothing more to break since his spirit was already broken after going through all the trouble in the Demon King's Castle, but it seems that wasn't the case.
Funny enough, he was finally starting to realize it.
'I killed my family.'
He killed his innocent family members.
Maybe it's the heat or the emotions that were too much to handle, but his head was spinning. At the same time, the direction of the accident jumped out at random.
Now he understood why he asked the emperor 'why' at that time. He was hoping for an excuse.
It's not like a petty feeling of betrayal. What kind of idiot would trust a monarch who was supposed to be for everyone in the first place? At least it wasn't Deon.
Just...
'If you say you were swayed by someone's intentions from the beginning.'
The Emperor's affirmation was an affirmation of the Duke's actions as informed by the Demon King.
In other words, it was an affirmation that they calculated and intended to use him thoroughly from the beginning.
'I'm becoming so miserable.'
There was a difference between using something just because the situation happened to be right and using it intentionally by creating a situation from the beginning.
Participation in the Eight Year War, among numerous other 'situations'.
Thinking that it was not someone else's calculated situation, he chose to 'exterminate his family' and moved on.
'What kind of life have I been living...?'
Maybe that was someone's intention.
His fingertips were cold.
In a seemingly precarious and dangerous situation, Remember stopped watching him and patted his back with one hand, aimed at the back of his neck with the other hand and lifted him up.
"...!"
Amid the silent astonishment of the gatekeepers, Deon Hardt's eyes slowly closed.
At some point, Remember, who had lost his strength and was supporting the collapsed body, cast his gaze towards Dan, who was watching the situation nearby.
"Take him to his room."
"... Yes."
Despite the confusion in his eyes, he strode over and hugged Deon.
Remember watched him enter the mansion, then turned his head again and saw the gatekeepers, who were dumbfounded by the situation.
... There's still some work to be done. He could not kneel down and cry in this open space.
"You... haven't seen anything today. Do you understand?"
"Yes... yes!"
***
Deon Hardt locked himself in his room. He didn't even eat food.
The food that Remember had carefully brought inside hadn't been touched, and had dried out and had to be collected again, as it was never touched. At times like that, where the stamina came from, the sound of breaking things resonated violently throughout the mansion, putting the mood of all the occupants on thin ice.
He even strangled himself and pointed something sharp at his body, and Remember often had to rush in to stop him.
It was like that today too.
"Marquis, this is enough, right? Stop hurting this old man and stop now."
"Huh huh─."
After receiving a call from the monitoring device attached to Deon Hardt, Remember immediately rushed in and overpowered him who was about to strike a piece of glass on his forearm.
His body, weakened by complete lack of food and drink, was unable to resist properly and was held powerless.
"Marquis..."
He knew that he only targeted non-vital parts because he couldn't bear to die, but as a butler, he couldn't just sit by and watch his master get hurt. Remember took the sharp piece of glass from Deon's hand and let out an inaudible sigh.
"This old man does not know what the Marquis has seen, experienced, and learned."
"..."
"But we can't keep doing this forever. You can't die."
He didn't know what bound him to life.
Most likely, something he saw or a truth he learned made him want to die and at the same time held him back from dying.
"So, come to your senses now. You have to live."
"..."
Dan, who was watching this whole scene from the hallway outside the open door, was silent.
The state of Deon Hardt, who was devastated and who he had no idea what had happened to him, was truly a sight to behold. It was a shock.
'I came to follow the disaster.'
Which aspect of this was a disaster?
He thought that a mental shock would reveal the disaster, but the current Deon Hardt was just a weak human being eroded by emotions and struggling, and the appearance of a 'disaster' was nowhere to be found.
'Did I guess wrong?'
When he saw this, confusion came to him.
In the meantime, Remember, who had laid the calmed Deon down on the bed, quietly closed the door and came out.
Even with Deon Hardt out of sight, Dan couldn't move easily.
Until Remember, who couldn't wait, urged him to get out of the way.
***
The confusion was resolved sooner than expected.
The Deacon's words had an effect, as a few days later he gathered himself and came out of his room.
"Are you alright already? You aren't resting anymore."
"..."
Deon passed by Remember, who was worried about his health, and stood in front of Dan.
A gaunt face with deep dark circles, as if weight had been lost. In addition to the completely different atmosphere from usual, Dan flinched at the extremely dry expression. For a moment, Dan tilted his head as if he had something to say.
"Marquis...?"
"..."
Remember, who was looking at the two in turn, quickly found a nearby room suitable for a private conversation and guided them, and Dan, who was rolling his eyes here and there in the space left alone, couldn't overcome the awkwardness and opened his mouth.
"You're feeling better..."
"What am I to you?"
"..."
Deon, who was quietly looking at him, spoke.
"Why are you following me?"
He knew that Dan's purpose was to follow him. The person he wanted him to be was not a gentle person, but a rough one.
However, since he had no idea what the reason was, Deon decided to make a different decision based on his answer, so he waited for Dan's answer.
"..."
Dan looked at Deon's sunken eyes and fell silent for a moment.
After following him and learning various things here, Dan realized that he had a talent for speaking. So, he could have come up with an answer to this question in a fancy way, but...
... He just didn't want to do that.
"The person who ruined my life."
He gave a raw answer. Dan smiled softly at Deon, who was silent for a moment as if stunned by the unexpected answer.
"And the person who will achieve my goal, and the goal itself."
He resented him, but at the same time, he liked him.
He knew he was not guilty. He knew very well that what was wrong was the shaman grandmother who spoke the wrong way, the village people who were swayed by her words, and ultimately, some evil adults who wanted him dead due to a future yet to come.
'But without you, my life would have been pretty easy.'
He would not have appeared in the future predicted by the shaman grandmother.
That's why he felt resentful, but he was also glad that it was him who was the one who could give the mean adults a proper blow. It couldn't have been better because during the short time followed him down and set up the guild, he encountered all kinds of dirty people.
'Disaster? It's good. Very good.'
Let this dirty world be destroyed.
"... Come with me."
Deon, who had been silent, held out his hand.
Dan was neither the Emperor's person nor the Demon King's person, but he was the only person who had followed him solely for Deon Hardt. It wouldn't be a bad thing to have at least one person like this. Dan, who saw the bright red eyes, smiled faintly.
Instinct was speaking. That's the 'disaster' he wanted to see..
'In the end, no matter how many excuses I make.'
He was destined to serve him in the end, just as the shaman predicted.
Yes, in fact, any reason he came up with was quite weak as a basis for following the 'disaster'. Looking at this, it seems like fate really existed.
Otherwise, he wouldn't be overwhelmed by the sight of him right now.
He grabbed his hand.
Deon pulled up the corners of his mouth and drew a dry smile.
He was going crazy alone in his room, and after coming to his senses after hearing something from Remember, he was worried the whole time.
'What should I do?'
What could he do to atone to him, Cruel, even just a little bit?
A way to atone for his brother and suppress the desire to die right now. After thinking about it for a bit, the answer came quickly.
'Revenge.'
You have to live.'
Let's get revenge.
He was going to kill them all.
***
Deon Hardt asked.
"You've met me in the past, right?"
Dan nodded.
***
In the early part of the Eight Year War.
Dan was moving with the village elders following the instructions of the shaman grandmother.
Did she say that this village will soon become a sea of fire, so they needed to move the village quickly? Young Dan only remembered 'having to move' and ignored the rest.
And they took a short break during the trip.
Dan, who had curiosity and great stamina like the other children, quietly got up and walked around.
Because he was an orphan who lost his parents at a young age, it was not difficult for him to secretly leave his place as there was no guardian who would notice and pay attention to him even when he was away. After walking through the grass for a long time, not far from where he started, he came across a boy covered in blood.
"..."
"... Cough."
He was vomiting blood.
Instead of opening his mouth carelessly, Dan carefully examined the other person.
White hair and red eyes. Extraordinarily white skin. He thought his eyes resembled those of a cat, but as if he were really a cat, he was glaring at Dan with his fur bristling and snarling.
"... Who?"
"..."
Yes, there was no way he could answer...
Instead, he lowered his gaze and looked at the other person's clothes. It was hard to see because it was covered in blood, but he was able to figure it out right away without having to wait too long. This was an outfit he once saw from afar while traveling.
The uniform of regular soldiers in the Imperial Army.
The moment Dan realized this, he blurted it out without even thinking about his age.
"A soldier? A child like this?"
"..."
The child's eyes narrowed with embarrassment and irritation.
"Do you want to die? Go away."
"... You have a foul mouth."
"You want to know what a real foul mouth is? Fuck you, you little bastard, if you don't go away right away, I'll cut off your limbs and rip your head off..."
"Stop it! I'm sorry, I was wrong."