The capital of the Holy Kingdom of Millis.
Milcion remains bustling, the cobblestone streets bathed in the warm orange glow of the setting sun, and vendors still calling out their wares.
Knights patrolling nearby moved through the crowd, their armor clanging crisply.
The church spire rose high in the distance, and the bells rang out slowly and steadily; everything seemed peaceful and orderly.
Today, the three of them arrived at the city gate.
The three of them were Rudeus, Rujierd, Eris.
Perhaps because they had traveled for a long time, all three of them looked somewhat tired.
Rudeus, in particular, walked at the very back of the group, looking utterly haggard... like a soulless shell.
His eyes were lifeless, his steps were unsteady, and the guilt on his face was so thick it was almost impossible to dispel.
Even the occasional glances from passersby made him subconsciously lower his head, as if he were running away from something.
Although Rujierd, who was walking at the front, didn't say anything, his steps were heavier than usual.
Even the usually lively and active Eris didn't look around. Instead, she would occasionally glance at Rudeus behind her, her brows furrowed, as if she was enduring something.
Rudeus is clearly a magician, yet he carries a sword.
To be precise, it's a broken sword, specifically the sword of the Demon Sword King, Luo Ge...
" Phoenix Elegant Dragon Sword "
At this moment, the Phoenix Dragon Sword, one of the seven famous Sword God the Phoenix Elegant Dragon Sword, had already lost its edge during the battle with the Dragon God and was completely broken into two pieces.
This sword is proof that Rudeus, Rujierd, and Eris painstakingly searched for over a month on the snowy mountain.
They didn't find the person, but instead found the destroyed Phoenix Elegant Dragon Sword among a pile of rubble.
As long as the sword is there, the person is there; if the sword is gone, the person is gone.
Although Luo Ge's body was not found, the outcome of the battle was already quite clear the moment the broken sword was seen.
The final result of that battle, without a doubt... was that the Dragon God won.
As for Luo Ge, he's most likely long gone, his remains lost to time.
So, persuaded by Rujierd, Rudeus finally left the snow-capped mountain, heartbroken.
The three of them originally planned to pass through the Red Dragon's jaws and escort Eris back to her hometown.
But with this incident along the way, Rudeus had lost all interest in anything else, and the three of them could only return to the Holy Kingdom of Millis to tell Paul about Luo Ge.
The closer Rudeus got to the capital, the heavier his heart became.
After all, Luo Ge is dead.
And then... the thought of meeting Paul left him unsure how to react, or even how to tell Paul this cruel truth.
That's too cruel.
Rudeus desperately wanted to escape and avoid facing this cruel reality, but now he was in a bind.
Luo Ge died tragically at the hands of the Dragon God while trying to save himself...
He could imagine Paul's fury upon hearing this, Paul rage, Lilia's disappointed look, and the bewildered expressions on Norn and Aisha's faces.
It's all because of him... because of his incompetent older brother, Luo Ge was implicated.
If he had been stronger, if he had sensed the danger sooner, would none of this have happened?
Fortunately... he had the company of Rujierd and Eris along the way, otherwise Rudeus would have been completely devastated.
" Rudeus..."
"I know how you feel, because I've experienced the feeling of losing a loved one before... but people always have to face it, and running away won't solve anything." Rujierd gently patted Rudeus's shoulder; he hadn't actually said much along the way.
As for Eris, being a military commander, she was not good with words. After hesitating for a long time, she finally managed to squeeze out, "Good luck, Rudeus!"
Rudeus looked at his two companions, finally nodded, took a deep breath, and mustered his courage to step into the strange yet familiar city.
Milision.
The capital of the Holy Kingdom of Millis.
The old tavern is still there, but the signboard is a bit old, and a lot of the paint on the door has peeled off.
But as soon as I pushed open the door, that familiar smell of alcohol and wood rushed over.
Rudeus remembered that he had met Paul here last time, and they had a big argument, but in the end the father and son made up.
Back then, it was Paul who took the initiative to meet with me to admit my mistakes and apologize, but now, less than half a year later... the tables have turned.
This time, when Rudius took the initiative to meet with Paul, he was the one filled with guilt; Rudeus had ultimately become the very thing he hated most.
Rujierd and Eris did not follow them in; they stood guard at the door, one on the left and one on the right, like two silent guardians.
Rudeus sat alone at the back of the tavern, head down, his face full of dejection.
There weren't many people in the tavern.
Occasionally, there were clinking glasses and guests chatting quietly, but those sounds seemed to be muffled by a layer of noise to him.
The wait wasn't actually that long.
But for Rudeus, waiting for Paul to arrive here... felt like being on trial... every minute and every second felt like an eternity.
... I don't know how much time had passed, but finally, I heard footsteps outside.
It was Paul's figure.
Rudeus froze, his fingers unconsciously clenching the cloth on his knees and the broken sword wrapped in cloth.
As Paul drew closer, Rudeus felt more and more like a judgment was about to be handed down.
He desperately wanted to escape this place, to run away as fast as he could... to run as far away as possible and find a place to hide.
But in the end, he forced himself to hold back.
" Rudeus? Oh... long time no see?"
Paul pushed the door open and came in, immediately seeing him with a smile on his face, as if he had encountered something interesting on the way.
He took a few steps closer, but as he got closer, his smile slowly faded, clearly noticing that Rudeus's expression was off.
" Rudeus? What's wrong? Are you sick? You look terrible!"
"N-nothing... Father."
" Rudeus? Hmm?"
"What's wrong? What happened to you?"
Paul frowned and looked him over, also noticing the unusual behavior of Rudeus. His first thought was that something had gone wrong while escorting Eris.
But glancing at the doorway, weren't Rujierd and Eris both perfectly fine?
What's wrong with Rudeus?
Paul sat opposite Rudeus, poured a glass of wine for both of Rudeus, then took a sip and said, "Hey! Rudeus... get this straight, weren't you supposed to be escorting Eris? Why are you suddenly back?"
After finishing his drink, he didn't forget to scrutinize Rudeus in front of him, who was almost a completely different person from before.
Rudeus, looking haggard, remained silent for a moment before saying in a low voice, "Father, this isn't the place to talk. Let's find somewhere else."
"Also... call Miss Lilia, Norn, Aisha."
"I... I have something very important to tell you all."
Is that so?
Paul's smile vanished. He stared intently at Rudeus for a few seconds, then didn't press the matter further.
He simply nodded at him, then asked someone he knew nearby to help call for help. Seeing that Rudeus was in a really bad state, he took the initiative to accompany Rudeus back to the hotel.
A dozen minutes later, the father and son arrived at the hotel they were staying at.
Along the way, Paul tried to get information out of Rudeus, asking if something had happened on the road.
Rudeus remained evasive, trying to avoid the topic.
Paul gradually fell silent, his pace quickening, clearly realizing that something ominous had occurred.
Not long after... Greyrat convened this family meeting.
Despite being called a family meeting, the first people to arrive were actually Roxy and Nanahoshi, two outsiders.
Roxy stood by the door, her hands clasped in front of her, holding half a piece of bread from last night's leftovers.
She looked at her disciple from afar, her expression equally filled with worry.
Several times she wanted to ask Rudeus about his condition, but she held back in the end.
As for Nanahoshi, he leaned against the wall with his arms crossed, adopting an attitude of indifference.
But for some reason... she suddenly had a bad feeling, and even... Nanahoshi already had a vague guess in her heart.
Time passed slowly, and the sun set.
People gradually arrived.
The last person to arrive was Lilia, the maid who had gone to pick up Aisha and Norn from school.
The total number of people who arrived at the scene were Rudeus, Paul, Lilia, Norn, and Aisha.
There were even four people listening in: Nanahoshi, Aisha, and Rujierd and Eris, who had secretly followed along because they were worried about Rudeus.
The small room, which was almost packed with people, was eerily quiet at this moment.
Almost simultaneously, everyone's attention fell on Rudeus.
He remained dejected and looked utterly dejected.
As darkness gradually fell outside the window, the lights inside the room remained off, and the dim light made everyone's expressions appear particularly somber.
" Rudeus? Why did you gather everyone here?" Finally, Paul, as the head of the family, couldn't help but break the silence.
Rudeus took a deep breath, looked around, and glanced at everyone present. He knew that this time, there was no way to escape.
After all, he couldn't keep it a secret from his family forever, could he?
... The scene of what happened on the Red Dragon's jaw suddenly flashed through his mind—the moment when Luo Ge saved him... and ultimately stood in front of him.
That foolish little brother, umm... died in battle protecting him.
"I'm sorry... I called everyone here today because I felt obligated to tell you something very important."
"I'm sorry... I'm so sorry... It's all my fault about what happened to Luo Ge... I didn't protect him properly... he..."
" Luo Ge... what happened to him?"
Paul clenched his fists, and suddenly his voice turned somber.
Everyone finally realized something was wrong, and their eyes all fell on Rudeus.
... Lilia unconsciously placed her hand on Aisha's shoulder, and even Norn looked at Rudeus.
Roxy held a piece of bread tightly in her hand; it was still the leftovers she had left over from last night.
Nanahoshi subconsciously looked away, the only one who didn't look at Rudeus. She was smart... as if she had already sensed that what was about to be said wouldn't be pleasant.
Under the watchful eyes of everyone.
Rudeus's shoulders trembled slightly, and his whole body shook.
He kept his head down the whole time, his eyes red... and finally his voice became so dry it sounded like it was being squeezed out from deep in his throat.
"Feel sorry..."
" Luo Ge died protecting me."
The moment those words were spoken, the atmosphere in the room seemed to explode.
Everyone wore expressions of disbelief.
For a moment, no one spoke.
The room was deathly silent.
The silence was oppressive, suffocating, as if even the wind outside the window had stopped.
Rudeus kept his head down, filled with guilt... He didn't dare to look up at anyone's face, or even make eye contact with anyone there.
He knew that anger, questioning, and everything he would have to bear were coming.
But at this moment, the deathly silence was more unbearable to him than any anger.
Rudeus is now a sinner; he has no face to face anyone.