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Chapter 117
Chapter 117
Chapter 117 – Force Majeure (1)
‘Duke Serin, you truly are a pitiable person.’
I meant it.
The weak suffer because they lack power.
I couldn’t help but feel pity for someone who could only view the world from that perspective.
‘Even though I understand how you feel, I just can’t agree with what you said.’
There are people in this world who, no matter how hard they try, can never attain power on their own.
Haven’t I seen it firsthand in the people around me?
Harun, born the son of a poor serf, yearned to become stronger, but was held back by his environment.
If fate hadn’t brought him to me, he would still be living as a slave to some noble family.
What about Winley and her siblings?
Though born of noble blood, they were on the brink of losing their father to a force far greater than theirs.
That’s just how relative ‘power’ is.
And Andy……
‘……He was killed by those in power before he even had the chance to become strong.’
Yes.
That’s why I can’t agree with the Duke’s words.
“……Heheheh.”
Andy didn’t suffer because he lacked strength. He suffered simply because he had the misfortune of being born to a pitiful father, withered before being able to bloom.
This is what you would call a ‘force majeure’—an irresistible force.
Something that no amount of personal effort could ever change, much like a natural disaster.
After all, no matter what you do, you can’t change your parents.
“So, let me ask you again. Can you dismiss what happened to me or to you as something beyond our control?”
Duke Serin had been assaulted at the age of nine. Not much younger than I am now.
“Or ‘Since I endured it, so should you. Tough it out.’ Is that what you’re saying?”
“……”
“And yet, as an adult now, don’t you feel ashamed of saying such things?”
Duke Serin stared at me with a sunken gaze.
“……The world is a place where you live alone. It’s a cruel world where even parents can’t be trusted.”
A fitting response from someone who had been assaulted by his parents and siblings.
“Surely, you can relate, Your Highness?”
“That’s exactly why I’m saying this.”
“Pardon?”
“Because I went through that pain. If I ever have children, I will make sure I never become that kind of parent.”
Duke Serin visibly flinched.
“Wouldn’t it be heartbreaking if my child grew up like us—blaming the world and their parents, filled with resentment for the rest of their life?”
“……”
“Because I suffered, I want to create a better world, at least for my children.”
“……”
“It all comes down to the environment. Children who grow up loved behave and think differently from people like you or me. Adults say it all the time, don’t they? That’s why they tell you to find a partner from a happy family.”
“……”
“If I ever have a daughter, I’ll make sure she never marries someone like us, whose soul is stained black.”
That last remark was meant as a joke. And perhaps it worked, because Duke Serin let out a faint chuckle.
“So, you’re fourteen this year, right?”
“Something like that.”
“You don’t even know your own age?”
“When life wears you down, you tend to forget things like that.”
“Hahaha! You’re something else. Everything you say is so out of place for your age. You’ve thought about things I’ve never even considered……”
Duke Serin trailed off, but a gentle smile crept onto his face.
“……You’re quite amusing, I must admit.”
His voice was as soft as a whisper. Soon, Duke Serin’s usual expression returned.
“Now, tell me honestly. What really happened up there?”
“It was as I said.”
“……I didn’t realize Count Kaiman was such trash.”
For a fleeting moment, contempt flickered across the Duke’s face.
“Then, Your Grace, would you help me get rid of that deranged molester?”
Duke Serin’s smile deepened.
“Tough it out, Your Highness.”
“……Tch.”
As he threw my own words back at me, I clicked my tongue. Clearly, my words weren’t enough just yet.
Meanwhile, at the Arsene estate.
“Phew……”
In the grand training ground, thick beads of sweat dripped from the tip of Harun’s chin.
“Harun is seriously relentless.”
“Out of all of us, he’s probably the most tenacious. I thought I was pretty hardworking, but I’m nothing compared to him.”
“……I agree.”
Kirian, Winley, and Jan muttered in turn as they watched from the sidelines. Indeed, Harun was the most diligent in his training among the four of them.
Though everyone was working hard, Harun’s intensity was unmatched.
“……He told me something like this before.”
“Huh?”
The others turned toward Kirian.
“He said that since he started from a different point, he has no choice but to work harder than we do.”
Kirian and Harun were the same age, and despite the difference in their social status, they had become friends.
As such, they often had honest conversations like this.
“Harun said something that mature……?”
“Are you talking about me?”
Winley flinched at the familiar voice. Unnoticed, Harun had finished his training and approached them.
“Harun, aren’t you pushing yourself too hard? At this rate, you’ll catch up with me in no time.”
Winley joked, wearing a sheepish expression.
“……Honestly, I was frustrated.”
“Huh?”
“Frustrated that I couldn’t even follow Master and was treated as nothing more than a burden.”
“……”
The air grew heavy.
“Remember what Your Highness said before? That we need to become stronger if we want to repay Master. Otherwise, we’d only be a hindrance.”
“……Yeah, I did say that.”
Winley nodded with a solemn expression.
“The truth is, I’m a firm believer in fate.”
“……All of a sudden?”
“I’ve always thought that a person’s fate is determined at birth. Early fortune is dictated entirely by one’s parents. Even if I were born with talent, if I were born the son of a serf, my whole life would be spent farming. If not that, I’d become a bandit or maybe a war mercenary—a meat shield, at the end of the day. That’s how everyone lived back in my village. We just worked to get through the day, and the next.”
None of the others could truly empathize with Harun’s words.
“Then, I was captured and sold into slavery. At the time, I thought, ‘This must also be my fate.’ It was beyond my control—something no amount of effort could change.”
Harun gazed up at the sky.
“I resented the world. At times, I even resented my parents. As I lived each day like that, I slowly lost all attachment to life.”
“……Harun……”
“And then, I met someone—an extraordinary benefactor, the kind you meet only once in a lifetime.”
At the mention of this ‘extraordinary benefactor’, both Jan and Kirian flinched. They’d never heard Harun speak this way before.
“I will repay him for what he did. He gave me the chance to dream again, to imagine a future that wasn’t bleak and hopeless. He gave me hope. To me, he is like a god.”
Harun’s gaze landed on Winley.
“So I’ve been thinking.”
“……About what?”
“Your Highness said that becoming stronger is just a means, not the goal itself. Getting stronger won’t particularly benefit Master.”
“Yeah. I did say that.”
“So, I’ve made up my mind.”
Harun placed his fist over his heart.
“My dream is to become a knight. I told Master that from the beginning. Now that Master is on his way to becoming a lord, I’ll become his first knight. I’ll devote my life to repaying him.”
“……That’s a pretty amazing dream.”
At Winley’s response, Harun looked around with a grin.
“Since I’ve set my heart on it, I’m not going to give that position to anyone else.”
***
“Well, until next time.”
As soon as their descent from the mountain was complete, Duke Serin returned to his grand mansion.
“Ugh, I really can’t stand that guy.”
Marquis Foltaine clicked his tongue as if he’d been waiting for Duke Serin to leave.
“Let’s head back and rest for the day.”
“Yes, I must be getting old. This simple hike up the mountain has worn me out.”
With that, Duke Herman and Marquis Foltaine began to make their way home as well.
“What are you standing around for? Let’s go, you fool.”
But my gaze remained fixed on the path ahead.
“……I think I’ll postpone going home for now.”
“Huh?”
The two turned to follow my gaze. Beyond the dark road—
Thud. Thud. Thud. Thud.
—The faint sound of heavy footsteps echoed through the ground.
“……What is that?”
“From their attire…… They look like royal knights.”
At the mention of ‘royal knights’, a bitter smile crept across my face.
“……It seems that crazy Count and Duke Serin aren’t done with us yet.”
Soon, a group of knights appeared before us, led by a man with a muscular, bald figure—Duke Kairos.
“We’ve been looking for you.”
“……You’ve been looking for us?”
Duke Herman stepped forward, and Duke Kairos nodded.
“As you know, there was a fire at Twilight Palace. We’d like to ask for your cooperation in the investigation.”
“What?”
Duke Herman furrowed his brow.
“We only just returned to the capital. We weren’t even there when the fire broke out. What kind of investigation is this?”
“We don’t have the luxury of knowing everyone’s individual circumstances.”
“……Duke Kairos, surely you’re not trying to eliminate political rivals with such underhanded tactics?”
Duke Herman’s voice dripped with icy contempt. If not for Duke Herman holding him back, Marquis Foltaine would have likely charged at Duke Kairos.
“You misunderstand. The investigation concerns one person—Prince Andrew von Meeke, and no one else.”
“What?”
Marquis Foltaine bristled with fury.
“Don’t be ridiculous. The prince was with us the whole time. He was struggling through the northern mountains, as you know, when the fire broke out!”
“And that’s exactly what we aim to verify.”
“What nonsense……!”
Duke Kairos continued without missing a beat.
“When did he leave for Black Swan? When did he arrive? Who accompanied him? Where was he when the fire broke out? Or…… Did he even travel with you at all?”
“……What?”
“That’s what an ‘investigation’ is—a thorough process to clarify the facts.”
With that, Duke Kairos turned his gaze toward me.
“So please cooperate. If your alibi holds, you will be released immediately. There’s no need to worry, Your Highness.”
A crooked smile curled on my lips.
‘They’re not waiting for an opening to hammer a nail in—they’re hammering the nail to make an opening.’
Yes.
This is politics.
And I’ve already stepped into this world.
***