Circumstances of a Fallen Lord - Chapter 141

Chapter 141

“I’m asking because I truly don’t understand–what are you thinking? Why are you chasing me?”

Before regression, the Death Knight continuously pursued Luisen. The man was always so present, that the one-armed pilgrim’s assertion that the knight was Luisen’s delusion was somewhat unconvincing.

“You were on the count’s side. Why did you appear before me, last we met? Did you help me?” As Luisen talked, he couldn’t help but recall the frustration he felt; he teared up.

[Go back, intruder. No one may pass this point.]

The Death knight repeated himself like a parrot.

Luisen frowned, ‘Am I really able to communicate with him?’

Morrison said that the monster could have a conversation, but Luisen felt like he was talking to a rock. “I know what kind of commands you receive–why don’t you answer me, instead? You can understand me, right?”

Frustrated, Luisen stepped forward.

Clank–!

The Death Knight swung the sword; Carlton pulled Luisen back. The large blade narrowly passed before the young lord’s eyes. The floor incurred a deep gash–as if a line had been drawn–in the aftermath.

[Kill any intruders. That’s the command I have received. Go back. If you cross that line, I will have no choice but to obey my command.]

The Death Knight warned sternly.

“It’s strange,” Carlton whispered into Luisen’s ear. Luisen nodded, agreeing. The knight acted threateningly, but he didn’t make any decisive attacks. Though he acted as if he wouldn’t spare anyone, he still warned them to turn back.

Luisen felt like he knew the reason behind this strangeness. “You… You don’t want to kill me, right?”

[……]

The Death Knight remained silent. 

Luisen had been with Ruger for a long time. If the Death Knight’s core was actually Ruger, this silence was a positive sign.

“I think I can understand a little now.” Luisen was certain. Ruger probably wanted to spare Luisen’s life–even long before the current events. The knight who had kicked him out of the count’s mansion before the count returned must have been Ruger. If Luisen remained in the mansion, he may have died; so, Ruger had chased him away. Perhaps that was the incident that had transformed him into the Death Knight in the previous timeline.

And, even after regression, Ruger made similar decisions. The demon worshippers asked Ruger to kill Luisen in Viscount Boton’s mansion, but Ruger had refused.

“That’s why you became the Death Knight.”

The key to the birth of a Death Knight was ‘betrayal.’ Ruger had chosen Luisen just before Ruger died; he betrayed his father and his lord: Count Doubless.

“Even back then… Even now… You chose me and betrayed the count.”

[……]

“What about now? Right now you want to stand at my side, right?”

[……]

The Death Knight brokered no responses. Luisen felt a twinge of pity and melancholy; he couldn’t believe the man had followed him even after degenerating to this state.

“Then, just be on my side. From now on.” Luisen said, sincerely.

At that point, the Death Knight seemed agitated.

[…Don’t you feel resentful towards me?]

For the first time, the response had nothing to do with the knight’s given order. The knight sounded as if he was sure Luisen resented him.

Luisen thought about it seriously. Was he resentful towards Ruger? Of course–his kneejerk response was to feel angry and betrayed. Just the thought of being played like a fool fanned the flames of Luisen’s anger. He had promised to make Ruger pay the price for his actions.

However, as he uncovered more about Count Doubless and Ruger’s strange sincerity, the fire that burned in his head subsided, and the young lord grew calm. 

What was left for Ruger after he tricked and deceived Luisen?

Wasn’t he enslaved after death, failing to follow the people he truly wanted to follow; for the rest of his unnatural life, he would be used. Furthermore, the one who doomed him to this existence was his own father. He was cursed, unable to be free after death; yet, lingering emotions drove him to circle around Luisen.

“No, I don’t resent you. Right now, I… I feel pity for you,” Luisen said.

Although Ruger had committed many sins and was arrogantly staunch in his class prejudice, he had already paid for those wrongdoings with death. His sins were not so great that he must continue to pay for them even after death.

Meeting a father like Count Doubless was truly his life’s greatest tragedy. To Ruger, his innate status and lineage was everything. Even Luisen found following the second prince quite natural due to their relation–the prince was the son of his mother’s younger sibling. In this era, it was natural to follow one’s birth status. It took someone peculiar and exceptional like Carlton to reject his innate fate and live outside of some preconceived destiny. Therefore, it was understandable that Ruger couldn’t escape from his father’s shadow.

“Even despite all that, you tried to help me. I won’t nitpick about each of our wrongdoings,” Luisen took a step closer.

The Death Knight flinched. The young lord had not yet crossed the line. But, if he crossed…

‘Kill the intruder.’

The command planted deep within his head forced him to move. The Death Knight adjusted the grip on his sword, ready to swing it at any time. He looked at the intruder.

However, the intruder was Luisen. The young lord kept approaching. His foot crossed the line that the Death Knight had drawn, and the young lord stopped right in front of the Death Knight.

The Death Knight’s eyes shone red. As he had been commanded, all intruders that crossed that line should be killed. But Luisen’s subsequent words shook him.

“Ruger, I forgive you for everything you’ve done to me. Therefore, this time, you should follow your heart.” Luisen looked at the Death Knight. 

There was no fear nor resentment left in the young lord’s eyes–the irises were as clear as the summer sky. Luisen’s soul–strengthened by all the hardships he had suffered–could be glimpsed in those eyes. 

The Death Knight stared blankly into those eyes. His command couldn’t even interfere at this moment. The Luisen in front of him was so beautiful–this beauty that the Death Knight had loved so much in life was captured well.

Just before he died, he recalled the emotion that so intensely gripped his soul. For a long while, Ruger had only thought of Luisen. The time he spent with this man were the brightest, most beautiful moments of his life.

He loved this person….enough to throw everything else away.

[I…]

He couldn’t kill this person.

[…But… The command…Ahhh…]

The command that had seeped deep inside his head was ordering him to kill the intruder immediately.

However, he wanted Luisen to live.

The command was absolute.

Nevertheless…

‘Even in this situation…. I can’t kill him.’

[Ahhhhh!]

The Death Knight shook his head violently. His agonizing scream pierced through the air. For a moment, Ruger’s face appeared and disappeared inside the empty helmet.

Then, suddenly, the Death Knight raised his sword.

‘Did we go wrong somewhere?’ Carlton was prepared to fight back, and he hid Luisen behind him.

However, the sword was not aimed at Carlton or Luisen, but, rather, at the Death Knight himself.

Clank–!

With a loud noise, the large sword penetrated the knight’s body.

“!” Both Luisen and Carlton looked at the Death Knight in surprise. The wound would have been fatal to an ordinary person, but the Death Knight casually turned his body around. The blade protruding from his back made the scene seem even more eerie.

The Death Knight gave them a slight nod before moving forward.

“It seems he wants us to follow him.” Carlton said.

“It’ll be alright, right?”

They couldn’t understand what the Death Knight was thinking, but they could somehow tell that, as of now, he was on their side. The sword that plunged through his own body was symbolic.

Luisen and Carlton followed the Death Knight while holding each other’s hands tightly. When it became clear that the two were following, the Death Knight gradually increased his speed.

The rapid pace was a bit challenging for Luisen; he exerted all his strength. The fog was so thick that he couldn’t see even an inch ahead, and it felt as if he were walking through a palpable void. The young lord dared not look down at his feet–doing so would only make him dizzy; he kept his eyes from straying as he mindlessly ran after the Death Knight.

The darkness in front of him created the instinctive fear that something might pop out at him, but the young lord didn’t hesitate because of Carlton’s encouraging grasp on his hand. Whenever Luisen’s steps slowed down due to exhaustion, Carlton would push his back, encouraging him.

Until he had met the one-armed pilgrim, Luisen had been on the run from the Death Knight. He could not rest and settle down because he was afraid of being captured.

However, now he wasn’t afraid of anything.

The Death Knight showed him the way, and Carlton gave him the strength to follow. The two beings that Luisen had feared the most in the world had now enabled him to run.

The unknown was scary–but uncovering the truth had killed that fear. Now, the young lord thought, ‘if you face something head-on, things will work out.’ Life was unpredictable, the saint said. And, as always, the saint was correct.

***

After running for a long time, they came to a door leading to the 5th-floor banquet hall. Perhaps the cult placed all their faith in the Death Knight–no one was guarding the door.

[This is as far as I go.]

The Death Knight disappeared without another word, intentionally decisive as if he were cutting off any lingering emotions. Luisen belatedly remembered other questions he had wanted to ask, but it was too late. “He’s gone.”

“That was wise of him. It wouldn’t help us if the demon worshippers regained control over him.” Carlton grumpily added that Ruger had better judgment than when he was alive.

“Let’s let others know about our location first.” 

Carlton and Luisen installed something that they had received in advance. The device ensured that the Paladins who would follow later would not wander about and would come straight here.

Then, the two looked at the door to the banquet hall: a huge, splendid blue door.

Beyond this door would be the site of their last battle.