An only child, she called him dad.
Just the thought of it made him smile.
It wasn’t like that at first.
She had crimson eyes with long flowing silver hair, a radiant glow in her white face—a creature resembling him but was different entirely.
‘No, was it strange when others say she’s adorable for not acting like me?’
Never had he imagined that he would love someone else other than himself.
How did she become so important to him? He couldn’t imagine why she mattered so much to him.
Whenever his child, who resembled himself, ran into his arms and hugged him, he felt a strange feeling take over him. Like it really was his child. It was only after Ria’s birth that he accepted her as his child.
He felt an unfamiliar feeling when he was with her, something he never experienced, that creature which was weaker than he would always be there.
Ria, who seemed like she would crumble with just a little force, was always an assassin’s target.
That small body…
That small body which could have been ruined by a single mistake done unknowingly.
That small body grew; from her tiny mouth came words which made no sense; her eyes began to recognize things until she could run over and hug him.
How could one express that feeling? It was like a miracle.
Sometimes he would be upset for not ending her, but he was shocked at how he couldn’t get himself to lift his hand on her. He would always hold his emotions and wait for the child to approach him.
He had no one stand by him.
He never knew that a small hand that would hold him would end up getting caught in everything.
Probably why, when he felt that hand missing, it felt like his world would collapse.
Realizing Ri’s absence, he couldn’t get himself to believe it; that couldn’t happen.
He couldn’t get rid of the confusion in his mind, so he pulled on the sword, but he couldn’t calm himself no matter what he tried. Since he wasn’t good with such things, he turned to someone who could help him.
Ferdel. Caitel was outraged when Ferdel entered the room with something.
An invitation from the sixth prince.
No, it was a threat, saying that Ria would be killed if Caitel didn’t visit him.
Seeing that threat, he knew it. He knew where Ria was. As long as he knew that, nothing else mattered.
“Nobody can snatch my daughter from my hands.”
If he attacked Caitel, Caitel would kill him.
However, he couldn’t risk hurting Ria; she must survive.
He would do everything to save her.
It seemed good to take a hostage for a price. After all, the prince wouldn’t merely give Ria back.
He didn’t feel angry anymore. Her anger and sadness for Ria’s escape were surprisingly faint now.
‘That smile…’
‘Damn it.’
“What will you do alone?”
A familiar voice captured his fading consciousness.
The familiar face came into view.
Something like this always happened, so he wasn’t shocked anymore. He looked up at the one smiling down at him with a heavy breath. Caitel wanted to hit that smiling face.
“Why did you come?”
“To watch.”
Dranste, with his finger on his lips, spoke.
An unpleasant gaze. Dranste was more confident than necessary when it came to checking on others’ conditions.
He could easily make others feel uncomfortable.
In the six years he spent with Dranste, something like this happened constantly. If Caitel hadn’t killed everyone on the battlefield or injured, Dranste would be there to collect his body.
Dranste was the one who taught him how to fight, how to survive, and gave him a secret weapon, yet he didn’t like Dranste.
Dranste was the only one that Caitel disliked unconditionally.
Like a shadow, Dranste followed him everywhere.
From that day…
His terrible mischief began.
It was annoying, but he never felt resentment towards him.
Crack.
It was the sound of an explosion and wood cracking somewhere. The mansion would collapse at any moment.
“You seem hurt. Gonna die soon?”
The fed-up voice spoke as if it saw something interesting.
Instead of responding, Caitel turned away.
Although he was visible with one eye, the flames around him began to approach him.
When he reached out his hand, he saw the fire coming close. It sent peace in his mind. Somehow, his death seemed a lot calmer than he imagined.
An end like that?
“Shall I help you?”
“Get lost.”
He didn’t hesitate even at such an offer. Caitel knew that his end had come. A chance at life would shock him more than death.
Although Siorn was stupid, he wouldn’t just let Caitel off, especially since the sixth prince had killed Caitel once. Caitel threatened Ferdel and took Siron’s mother and used it, but he wasn’t sure if the plan would work. He was glad it went well for a while.
Dranste laughed at it.
Dranste laughed for quite some time; Caitel wasn’t even sure why he was laughing.
The last thing Caitel would see before death was a man laughing hysterically.
He was better off dying alone. Annoyed. Dranste seemed pleased with the situation.
“This reminds me of when we first met.”
He couldn’t forget that day even when he tried to; just the mention of it was enough to shock Caitel.
Looking back into the past, Dranste spoke.
“You were in the same state back then, maybe not as horrible as this, but the surroundings were brighter then.”
He was in the middle of a house fire; obviously, it was bright. Just like then, everything was bright around Caitel.
That day.
Right, the day fire engulfed everything.
His body was covered with blood, and he had to save himself. The sound of someone’s scream fell on deaf ears. Caitel frowned at the thought.
“What do you think of my suggestion back then? Remember it?”
A quiet voice.
A small gap was all he needed, and he would immediately possess everything.
Evil bastard.
How much blood and tears had he taken because of his sweet-talking?
Meanwhile, the noise in the mansion ran loudly—his last moments.
When his mind and body began to feel numb, Caitel took heavy breaths; then, the devil whispered, ‘Give me your soul, and I will save you’.
An earnest desire to get a soul, a sweet offer anyone would accept right away, but he refused. He had no soul to give.
The devil smiled.
‘And I survived.’