CH 48

Chapter 48 Ravens(2)

Translator: BaeBae Editor: BaeBae

Dilmond spoke to Anya.

“Annabelle. Your reasoning for getting involved is this child?”

Anya slightly hesitated then nodded her head.

“Considering Lars’s nim current state and how the southern region is being carefully monitored by the church at the moment…….in truth I was the one who went against your actions the most.”

“Dilmond kyung, I’m…..”

“I still cannot wholly agree with your decision. But now, I can understand why you did it.”

Anya was wearing mixed expressions. Both she and Juan chose to stay silent.

Diamond stretched out his hand and motioned towards the path.

“Lars nim is currently sleeping. You won’t get a chance to talk today so it would be best if you meet him tomorrow. We’ll stay above and keep an eye out on the white crow knights.”

Anya nodded her head then took Juan and Heretia to the hidden hideout down in the dungeon.

Dilmond watched on until their backs disappeared. One of the knights beside him asked.

“That child, do you know him sir?”

“No. First time seeing him.”

“Then why….?”

“Because for a second, he reminded me of the emperor. His majesty was also black haired and used a flaming sword. I thought I had forgotten with time, but the way the kid talked made me remember that the emperor talked just like him as well. He didn’t care for formalities when he was with his brothers.“

“Sir? Isn’t it well known that the emperor’s hair is bright golden like the colour of the sun?”

One of the knights asked in confusion. Dilmond made a face as he turned and looked at the knight.

“A misinterpretation of the majesty’s description. It’s one of the aftermath of the church trying to fabricate him as some divinity. Maybe it sounded better if his appearance was described that way. They also had to consider that every black haired folks had come from beyond the borders……..But yes, the truth was he was black haired.”

“Then what could be that kid’s identity………”

“Don’t know.”

Dilmond wore a complex expression.

“A new southerly breeze is about to blow through the empire. Whether that wind is going to bring hope or misfortune, no one knows.”

*****

“Hey, Juan?”

“What?”

“Can I ask what that conversation was about?”

Anya trotted up beside him after contemplating. As he turned around, he saw Heretia was also looking at him with curiosity on her face.

Juan, who considered answering truthfully, recalled Sina Solbein’s face. Even though Juan showed her enough proof that he was the emperor, she’d never admitted it till the end.

Saying, his return as the emperor was crushing the hopes of many throughout the empire.

Juan didn’t want his light reply to create the same saga he had with Sina.

“I was just a little happy that I met someone I knew in the past.”

To be honest, he’d only met him once in the past, but he was still happy to see someone he’d encountered before.

Maybe he met him at a formal address or a consecration but Juan couldn’t remember him from his memory.

Juan made it clear that he didn’t want to talk about this any further.

Anya looked as if she had many more questions but didn’t pry further.

More than anyone else, he was a child that loved the feeling of sunlight.

So it was hard to believe currently that child was staying in a place of darkness.

“Juan, meet Lars Raude nim.”

Anya spoke from behind. Juan silently gazed on as the door in front began to open.

Completely surrounded in darkness, a small ray of light from the ceiling was coming through.

The morning ray of sunlight was thin and shallow like a string. The back of someone’s hand stopped the light from reaching the floor.

“Lars.”

The person squatting down, slowly lifted his head.

He was wearing a thick auburn robe and a white mask.

The sword strapped on his waist moved around making a clanging noise. A smell only found on sickly patients was radiating from him.

Clutched In one of his hands was Indeterminate polyhedron.

Juan turned and looked at Anya.

“Give us some privacy.”

“What? But…..”

“Please.”

Anya made a surprised look at Juan’s plea. She never thought of him to be a person who knew how to use the word ‘please’.

Anya looked back and forths at Juan and Lars. Then once Lars started to slowly nod his head, she backed out.

Now they were alone, Juan spoke up.

“I can still remember when I first met you.”

A pair of lifeless eyes gazed back at Juan. The eyes beneath the mask didn’t show any light, spirit but only darkness.

“It was at the god of death’s temple, Nigrato. Nigrato had already suicided once to empower his strength. And his followers repeatedly offered children to him as sacrifice.”

Taltere enjoyed madness while Nigrato enjoyed a slow death. Someone who indulged the skulls of the dead.

This was natural as the desert was his home.

“You were brought as an offering. Then buried alive at Nigrato’s dungeon altar. God knows what thoughts would have passed through your head while you were down that eternal darkness. But you fought back, choosing to live rather than become Nigrato’s prey by eating the others and licking puddles of urine.”

He saw Lars drop the Indeterminate polyhedron fall from his grasp. His white bony fingers were shaking. Juan continued his talk.

“I brought the temple down and dragged you out. But not once have I thought that I saved you. You saved yourself. Your heart was too strong for someone like Nigrato to engulf.”

Lars had already half stood up. Between the ripped areas on his robe, white bones could be seen beneath.

Seeing rotten spots on his bones, Juan’s throat tightened.

“You were never the one to talk a lot. Compared with your siblings, you had a much smaller body and your eyes weren’t good either. Likely because you’d been in darkness for so long. The others liked to swing swords but you preferred books. The others made fun of you for your gloomy personality, but more than anyone else you liked that spot inside the library, where a ray of sunlight shined brightly.”

Before he knew, Lars was already walking towards Juan.

Lars’s height was almost 2 metres, but his footsteps were extremely quiet.

“You were more knowledgeable than anyone else. Your understanding of magic was exceptional. I know you may think I didn’t get to know you or the time we shared was too short for me to remember anything but……there are some things that can’t be forgotten. The concentration on your face everytime I taught you new magic, the expression you had when you figured out how to create light in darkness is something that I’ll never forget. Lars.”

Lars got on his knees. Even on his knees, Lars was a full head taller than Juan due to his tall stature.

Lars bent further down as if to not allow even the slightest bit of him to be higher than Juan.

His shoulders lightly shook.

He slowly raised his hands and placed them on Juan’s face. Juan decided to let him do what he wanted.

Lars’s hand was cold and hard.

Juan slowly extended his hand and placed it on Lars’s mask.

“Lars. My son.”

Lars froze up. But he couldn’t refuse Juan..

Juan slowly took the mask off.

Behind the mask, a white human skull was revealed. His youngest son had become a dead man.

[Father.]

Lars buried his head at Juan’s feet and began to sob.

His face that had lost every bit of skin wasn’t able to produce any tears.