When one of Zayden’s knights asked how he would keep an eye on James, Ren looked at the general, waiting for his answer.
"Of course," Zayden turned towards Ren.
The young servant narrowed his eyes in confusion, wondering why Zayden turned his way.
"My attendant will keep an eye on James."
Ren’s jaw dropped slightly. How could he even suggest that?
Having killed Cael, he already felt guilty—and he hadn’t even recovered properly from the last expedition where alpha pheromones suffocated his lungs. Now, his master assigned him another task—to deal with a traitor.
"You wouldn’t refuse if I offered you another five hundred shirings, would you?" Zayden grinned, his eyes glimmering with amusement. He had found a perfect solution to keep Eiran away from this man—assigning him a task that would require more energy than handling a child dragon—constantly analyzing James’ movements.
Ren exhaled before shaking his head.
"You may just command me, My Lord. I ought to obey," he bowed.
Zayden clapped his hands, turning to his soldiers.
"It seems we can release James from my mansion’s basement. Finally, the ’dungeon’ I arranged was used after all these years."
The knight scowled, but waved the white flag before their general, yielding. They could only trust his judgment, wait for him to be proved wrong.
"Attendant, why don’t you go there and release him?"
"...Shall I bring him here?"
"No, stay with him until I return to the mansion. As for the keys..." Zayden pulled Ren by the shoulder, whispering against his ear. "I put it under my study table."
Ren didn’t flinch, nor appeared surprised by the general’s action. He simply bowed. Standing before the door, he turned towards the general one last time. He couldn’t help but wonder what he was thinking—sending James’ companion’s killer to keep him in check.
Exiting the meeting room, he stepped out of the building.
Hearing the familiar voice, he turned.
The owner of the voice, Yusha, was one of the knight’s attendants. After Cael’s incident, Ren had sworn to himself he wouldn’t interact with anyone outside of the mansion. But over the past few months, Yusha broke all his vows.
Yusha, unlike the general, was not talkative, just like Ren.
Yet, the young man’s kindness, the occasional sharing of meals and drinks during the quests left Ren speechless. How could someone be so kind? He didn’t ask anything in return from Ren, or any other servants he helped.
The weight of indebtedness grew, and Ren slowly returned that kindness—gradually befriending him.
"Take my horse," the long dark violet—haired man approached him, pulling his horse’s reins.
"No, I cannot," Ren refused without a second thought.
"If you don’t listen to me, I fear I will tag along," he smiled, knowing that Ren wouldn’t refuse. "I know your feet pain you a lot from walking back and forth every day. Let’s not forget that you fainted during the last quest. I was so worried! You have to be more careful!"
Ren shut his eyes. One thing he surely disliked was Yusha’s constant nagging.
"Alright, I will..." He sighed, mounting on the chocolate brown horse.
"Get home safely!" Yusha grinned, waving his hand at Ren who mirrored him before turning, looking the road ahead.
Soon, he drifted in the greenery, even his shadow disappearing.
"You care a little too much for him, do you not think?"
A voice asked from behind.
Yusha flinched, promptly turning towards the person to whom it belonged—his master, Liam.
"... I’ll retrieve the horse before morning," he bowed, his gaze wandering everywhere but towards the man standing before him.
"I did not mean that... Use another horse. What I cannot understand is... how can a servant have such a perfect speech?" Liam muttered, almost to himself.
For the past century, education was accessible to commoners but not everyone had access to it. They had to pay a huge amount of fees only for registration.
"Although the king is trying to control the fees lately..."
How can a commoner, a beta, and a human speak so well?
Yusha hesitantly spoke, hearing nothing from his master.
"Ah, right," Liam coughed to clear his throat. "It is alright. Do not worry too much. I am not upset," he smiled brightly.
Yusha looked up at him in silence.
Hearing footsteps approaching, James rose from the ground. A shadow stepped closer, and his face brightened.
"You decided to—" the smile on his face faded once he saw the stranger’s face.
The small lantern hung on the wall lit the young man’s flawless features: a sharp jawline, a bony neck, a pair of broad shoulders.
"Y—you?" James frowned, stepping back. He scoffed, "Don’t tell me he said to kill me."
He laughed, but his voice trembled. He was afraid, in pain, or something more—something Ren couldn’t analyze.
"He sent me to set you free."
Upon hearing the soft, gentle voice, James turned to Ren—the man appeared like an angel for conveying the message itself. He knew the risks of returning to the general, and knowing that now, he had a chance, tears dripped from his eyes.
"Why are you crying?" Ren pulled out the keys he had brought from Zayden’s study room, opening the iron padlock.
Although the general told him where to find it, he never specified which corner—right, left, front, or back.
James chuckled as if Ren had told a joke.
"They’re happy tears. You’ve never cried out of joy?" Wiping his tears, he took the keys from Ren, unlocking the chains wrapping his ankles.
Ren stiffened, following the man closely with the eye. Anything could happen. This wasn’t Hianshu, where people who used magic were limited. In Revhara, he learned that almost everyone had a mana core, allowing them to learn magic from an early age. Even Eiran, who grew rapidly due to his inhuman blood, began taking magic classes.
"I can’t use magic," James said as if he had read Ren’s mind, placing the keys back in the young man’s palms, closing them.
James walked ahead in the dark corridor while Ren followed closely. His eyes didn’t leave the man before him even for a moment.
"You can stab me with a knife at this point."
Ren looked away, caught off guard. He never ’kept an eye’ on anyone. He was the one always monitored, always kept in a darker room than this place the general called the dungeon.
Even his ’dungeon’ looks luxurious. It would not be bad if he would lock me here instead of sending me back to Hinashu... If he ever learns of my true identity...
"You haven’t answered me. Were you never happy enough, so much that you cried?" James turned, fingers intertwined behind his back.