Hitogami's Suggestion

I heard the news from a maid after I returned to the Prodia Family villa.

The official story was that Saulros had taken responsibility for the disappearance of Fittoa Territory. As the lord of Fittoa Territory, he could hardly escape the blame, so he had been sentenced to death.

But rumor had it that Saulros had wanted to use all the family assets he had left for the reconstruction of Fittoa Territory.

His son, however, had not wanted that to happen, so he joined hands with the Notos family and pinned the responsibility for Fittoa Territory's disappearance on Saulros.

James? He was certainly capable of it. I remembered again the scene that night, when James had come out of my grandfather Darius's study. Perhaps this scheme of joining forces with Notos was not one he had come up with himself.

At that moment, I thought of Eris. How was she? Her uncle probably would not treat her very well.

I immediately grabbed my weapon and headed toward the Boreas ancestral residence.

I had only made it halfway when I heard the sound of fighting up ahead.

When I got closer, I saw a girl in red fighting several guards.

Although the girl's swordsmanship was extremely fierce, she could not withstand being outnumbered.

I did not show myself, nor did I use magic. Either would have been far too obvious.

I observed the area and saw a squad of patrolling knights on the neighboring street. I pulled up my hood and ran over.

"Sir knights, this is bad, this is bad! There are several thugs attacking a girl over there. Please hurry and help her."

After the patrolling knights heard what I said, they were all furious. In broad daylight, under a clear and righteous sky, villains actually dared to attack a little girl in the noble district right on the street. They were simply treating the knights as if they were nothing.

One after another, they drew their weapons and charged toward the thugs on the neighboring street.

Very soon, the two sides clashed. Taking advantage of the chaos, I used magic to pull Eris out from the crowd and brought her to the safe house I had prepared in advance.

"Who are you people? We are guards of the Boreas household. Just now, a thief stole property from our family."

"Hmph. You say you're from the Boreas household, so that makes you from the Boreas household? All I saw was a group of you surrounding and attacking a girl. Stop your sophistry. Lay down your weapons and come with us to the Patrol Knights. If your identities are correct, we will naturally let you leave. If you continue resisting, that is resisting arrest, and then whether you live or die is no concern of ours."

That voice came from behind me.

Eris, held in my arms, looked at me and said, "Dolin, did you know Grandfather was arrested? They're going to execute Grandfather. And that uncle of mine wants to marry me off to some noble I've never even met. What should I do? I didn't want that, so I ran away from that house."

I stroked her head with my hand and said gently, "Don't worry. Your grandfather is still in the dungeon for now, and he is innocent. Come with me to a safe place first. When night falls, we'll go rescue him. Don't bother with that uncle of yours. He can't be trusted at all. The urgent matter now is rescuing your grandfather and your parents."

After taking a little time to settle Eris down, I brought her to the safe house I had prepared in advance. Once I had gotten her situated and confirmed with her the plan to rescue her grandfather that night, I left the room. Plans could not keep up with changes, and there were still a few things I needed to arrange ahead of time.

I first went to the royal palace to see Ariel. It was still in that same garden as before. I confirmed the specific situation at the refugee camp with her.

Thanks to the preparations I had made in advance, the refugee camp was currently operating normally. A small number of particularly lucky Fittoa citizens had arrived at the refugee camp and found their children, but their homes had already been destroyed. They had not immediately returned to Fittoa; the exact process still had to wait for the country to carry out disaster relief.

While I was communicating with Ariel, I noticed a white-haired woman wearing black sunglasses standing behind her. It seemed Sylphie and Ariel were getting along very well. However, I did not go up and greet her. For now, it was better not to make contact.

I discussed what would come next with Ariel, and hinted that if there was an opportunity recently, she could go study abroad. She was also very clear about the meaning behind my words and nodded softly.

"I may not be able to send you off, but heaven has already sent someone to escort you.

Be sure to make preparations in advance. Prepare the routes along the way as thoroughly as possible. Crossing the national border will be especially dangerous, particularly at the Red Dragon Upper Jaw, so make contingency plans ahead of time.

You can act early and catch the enemy off guard, like the last time I went out. As for the official notice, it can wait until after the people have already set off.

Wait for me in Sharia. I will come find you."

Seeing how concerned I was about her, Ariel was no longer angry about why I was not going with her. She only nodded firmly and said softly, "Okay."

The other attendants, watching us speak in riddles, were completely baffled.

After that, I made a trip to the Water God Style dojo. I visited Isolte and Master Reida Reia, and mentioned obliquely that I might be going out soon. Master Reida Reia said nothing.

She left the space to me and Isolte. Seeing no one around, I pulled Isolte into a bear hug. At first, she resisted a little, but after a while, she quietly nestled in my arms.

"This time, going out won't be too dangerous for me, and it won't take very long either. Once the time is right, I'll come find you. Don't wait for me in Ars. Stay by Master Reida Reia's side and improve your swordsmanship faster. Don't worry. Even if you're at the ends of the earth, I'll find you."

"Hmph, all you know is running outside to pick flowers and provoke grass. I should be the one saying that. If you don't come find me, then once I advance to Water Emperor, no matter where you hide, even at the ends of the earth, I'll come find you. When that time comes, hmph hmph, don't you dare beg me to let you off."

"Fine, fine. Then give me a kiss now, or I won't be able to kiss you for a while."

"No. Mm— Where are you putting your hands? There are people passing by here, don't touch me randomly. Ah, no. Mm—" she said, panting. "Go to that room over there. There's no one in that room."

After a round of hand and tongue massage, I left the Water God Style dojo and returned to the Prodia Family villa. I prepared the necessary luggage, then told the maid I was going to sleep and rest.

Once the room had quieted down, I picked up my prepared luggage, opened the window, and flew toward the safe house where Eris was.

After Eris and I changed into night clothes, we headed together for the prison in Ars where important criminals were held.

The prison was underground, and its defenses were extremely tight. Saulros was probably being held in the innermost layer of the prison.

But no matter how difficult a prison was, it could not hold us back. I directly used earth magic in a clump of trees not far from the prison to dig downward. After digging more than ten meters, I dug toward the prison. Once I reached a place with bricks, I dug downward, until I could no longer see the bricks in front of me, then kept digging inward. After finding a corner, I figured this should be the deepest cell.

I opened a small hole in the bricks and looked inside.

I found an elderly man with hair that was still fairly neat, wearing normal noble clothing. It was Saulros.

I crushed the bricks by the wall, forming a hole. Eris immediately crawled through, and I followed close behind.

"Grandfather, seeing that you're all right is truly wonderful. Dolin and I came to rescue you."

Saulros was exceptionally excited when he saw Eris, and pulled her into his arms at once.

"Eris, my precious granddaughter. I wasn't mistaken—it really is my precious granddaughter. To see you at the very end of my life is truly wonderful. This old man can die without regrets."

Eris was being held by Saulros so tightly she could barely breathe.

"Grandfather, don't say such foolish things. Didn't we come to save you? You won't die. Our whole family still has to stay together, complete and whole.

"We'll rebuild our home in Roa. We'll still be together after that, all right?"

Saulros loosened his hold on Eris a little and looked at her with grave eyes.

"Eris, my precious granddaughter, though your grandfather may not live to see your fifteenth birthday, I believe you've already grown up.

"Someone must step forward to quell the people's anger over this disaster. My death is unavoidable. I am already an old man of over seventy.

"At such an age, there's not much worth clinging to life for. If my death can calm the people's rage, if my death can keep the Boreas family's prestige from falling into ruin, then I am gladly willing to accept such a death."

"My greatest regret is that I won't be able to see your fifteenth birthday, nor the sight of you marrying and leaving as a bride. But for the heavens to let me see you again here is also a blessing to me, I suppose."

"No, Grandfather. Father and Mother are already no longer by my side. I don't want to leave you. I don't want to lose you again."

At that moment, Saulros looked toward me.

"Dolin Prodia Greyrat, though I very much dislike your grandfather, I still admire you. Your abilities are the most outstanding I have seen in all these years. Can you shoulder the responsibility of protecting Eris? I beg you."

For a moment, I was somewhat tongue-tied. I didn't know what to say.

"What sort of disgraceful dithering is this? Are you willing to protect and take care of Eris or not?"

"I am. I'm willing to take care of her."

"Good. Eris, whether your parents are still in this world or not, your grandfather will decide this. From now on, Dolin will protect you. Follow him from now on. He will keep you safe.

"If your parents are no longer in this world, then he will be your only family from now on. You need not avenge me. My greatest wish is that you can live on happily."

After that, Saulros placed Eris's hand into mine. Eris cried with her grandfather for a while longer, and then we were driven out by Saulros.

Though neither of us spoke along the way, Eris never once let go of the hand she held in mine.

We returned to the safe house. I did not go back to Prodia's villa, and instead rested in the room together with Eris.

I had only just lain down on the bed. Eris lay beside me, but we were both sleeping in our clothes. I had originally wanted to say something, but suddenly my eyes closed and I fell asleep.

My consciousness switched over seamlessly. The instant I opened my eyes, I found myself in an entirely white space, and there was nothing here at all.

Seeing this white space, a Gordon in my heart felt utterly terrified, but I still had to pretend I knew nothing and looked extremely curious. Then a voice rang out.

"Hi, should I say this is our first meeting? Good evening, little brother Dolin."

I knew perfectly well where this was and who this person was. But I had to put on a terrified appearance, and I could not let him discover that I knew his situation like the back of my hand.

"Hello, where is this? Who are you? Why have I appeared here?"

"Oh, so many questions. But it's fine, I can answer them one by one. This is the realm of god. I am Hitogami, and you were summoned here by me. Don't worry, I only summoned your consciousness here. Your body is still sleeping in place."

"Did you summon me for something? What can I do for you?"

"Haha, don't be so formal, little brother Dolin. I'm a very understanding god. I didn't ask you here to help me do anything. I'm only offering you advice. Whether or not you carry out the specific advice is entirely up to you. I won't force you to do anything."

"Thank you very much, Lord Hitogami. Please generously give me your advice. I will work hard to complete it."

I acted fearful and reverent, not showing the slightest doubt toward anything he wanted me to do. Because I knew that in the eyes of someone like him, who had future sight, none of my actions could escape his gaze.

"Very good. I know you are with your female cousin, and that you need to search for her parents.

"Dolin Prodia Greyrat, listen carefully. My advice is to head to the Conflict Zone. Your female cousin's parents are over there."

After the advice was finished, white waves like spray appeared before my eyes. As the waves struck my body, my consciousness returned to my body as well.

Eris was speaking beside me. "Dolin, did you hear what I said?"

My consciousness had only just recovered.

"Sorry, I was too tired just now. I accidentally fell asleep all of a sudden. What did you just say?"

"Hmph, I said so many things to you, and you actually fell asleep. I don't like Dolin anymore."

My hand was pinched again. Sigh, why did women like pinching people so much? I used my hand to hold that slightly cold little hand again. With my other arm, I directly pulled Eris into my embrace.

"Dolin was wrong. Next time, I'll listen to you properly. Hurry and tell me what you said just now. I have good news to tell you."

Eris squirmed a little, then stopped moving. "Hmph, what I wanted to say was, should we go see Grandfather off on his final journey tomorrow? I want to bury his body."

"All right. We'll go together tomorrow. I'll handle this matter. Also, Eris, I have news about your parents. Do you want to hear it?"

After I said that, Eris trembled in my arms.

"I want to hear it. Even if it's the worst news, I still want to know."

"It shouldn't be that bad. Your parents should have been teleported to the Conflict Zone. But I'm not sure what condition they're in right now. After we finish dealing with Grandfather Saulros's matter tomorrow, let's go find them, all right?"

"Really? Then good. We'll set out tomorrow."

"Fine. Starting tomorrow, it'll be a long journey. You can't keep sitting on my horse the whole time. You have to learn how to ride. It'll be very hard on the road when the time comes. Sleep early today."

"I know, Dolin."

Eris fell asleep in my arms just like that. Though we were both children, I could still feel Eris's potential. As expected of Hilda's daughter.

After Eris fell asleep, my mind began to think about Hitogami.

Though I had kept avoiding it, I had always made contingency plans for being targeted by Hitogami.

First of all, Hitogami had future sight, so whether I accepted his advice or not, it was useless.

Because he definitely knew what would happen if I didn't accept his advice, the moment he gave me a suggestion, my refusal to accept it was actually part of his plan too.

Take the advice he gave when Rudeus went to save his mother, for example. Rudeus was definitely going to go, so even if Hitogami advised him not to, he surely knew full well that Rudy wouldn't accept his advice.

Under those circumstances, aside from matters involving contact with the Dragon God, which he couldn't predict, everything else fell within the scope of his predictions.

Fortunately, he couldn't know what I was thinking. So as long as I didn't show that I knew the future, there was no way he could know that I knew it.

And he could only see the futures of three people at once. Right now, aside from me, there should also be Rudeus. That meant the only pawn he could still move should be one more person.

No matter what rotten water he was hiding in his belly, all I could do was lie low in silence, pretend to accept his goodwill, and wait for a chance to break free of his control.

Fortunately, aside from that final harmful move, the advice this guy gave beforehand was always a great help to people.

This time, he told me to go to the Conflict Zone. In that case, Eris's parents should be there. And I felt that their safety definitely wasn't a problem.

Otherwise, if they were gone by the time we got there, it would be completely meaningless. Hitogami wouldn't make such a stupid suggestion.

The next day, Eris and I went together to witness Saulros's execution. Though Eris didn't say a word and didn't shed a single tear, the hand she clawed until it throbbed with pain told me that she definitely wasn't as calm as she looked.

Through Ariel's connections, I recovered Saulros's body. Then I chose an auspicious piece of land in Ars's noble cemetery and buried Saulros's body there.

And with earth magic, I made an extremely hard gravestone.

Epitaph:

He was born into Boreas, where schemes and power wove together, yet with a beastlike roar he tore false kingship to shreds.

He witnessed his family topple in the wake of the Displacement Incident, yet with a broken body he propped up the shattered heavens.

Now he sleeps forever in Ars, witness to betrayal and rebirth, Leaving later generations to judge:

Was he a fierce hero whose wrists were bound? Was he a madman weeping blood?

Only the tattered banner still snaps in the wind, Telling of a lord whose spine never bent, even unto death.

A lion of his age sleeps here: Saulros Boreas Greyrat

After that, Eris and I left this city and this country together.

We headed down the road to salvation.