The Gap Between You and Me - Chapter 85

But no matter how much he regrets it, the past won’t change.

“He is not my king. Because my king and my master are separate.”

Edwin looked at Seronach with cold eyes.

“The King of Brimdel is dead. And those who are said to have inherited the lineage of the first king of Brimdel were also caught and killed.”

“…….”

“Brimdel will never be able to rebuild forever.”

“Your will will be done. But that will put the blood of many on your hands.”

Seronach said with a sigh.

“You always had a clear energy, but now there is only a cloudy and heavy energy.”

“Is that how you say ‘go to hell’?”

Edwin muttered with a short laugh and continued.

“It does not matter. The world I live in right now is like hell to me.”

Whether he opens his eyes or closes them. It didn’t matter whether he was asleep or awake. No matter where he was or what he was doing, the same thoughts always came to his mind.

Why is she not with him now?

Why does she no longer exist in this world?

Why does the world, this world without her, run so smoothly as if nothing had happened?

And above all, Edwin himself, why is he still breathing and living in this empty world without her?

The sense of loss radiating from losing a most precious person aroused deep regret. And that regret became guilt. Guilt became denial. Finally, denial became an uncontrollable anger.

For whom or what is the anger? His heart was boiling hot like lava, and it was suffocating him.

He hated it to the point that he was starting to lose his mind, and he hated it again. At the same time, he couldn’t understand. That such a precious and important existence has disappeared, but no one but himself recognizes the fact.

“Even though I came to Brimdel as a knight of the enemy country, you don’t seem too surprised.”

“As you said, I am a prophet.”

“If you already knew everything, why didn’t you run away?”

Edwin asked.

True to her words, Serenach never tried to escape from this castle. Even while everyone was running around in panic, Seronach remained in her room. Furthermore, perhaps she had waited for the soldiers to come and catch her, she hadn’t even locked the door.

“There is no reason to run away, is there?”

Seronach answered calmly.

“I am also God’s chess piece. We just move forward slowly, step by step through the fateful procedures set by God.”

God’s chess piece.

Edwin narrowed his eyes. She could have said that she was a representative or messenger of God, but she referred to herself as a chess piece. Edwin thought her words were a little surprising.

“Then…… You know what I’m going to do from now on.”

Edwin said, straightening his body that had been leaning against the doorway.

“You know why I came to you.”

Edwin slowly moved his steps toward Seronach.

One step. Two steps. As if playing with a prey he had caught, Edwin’s gait was infinitely leisurely. His eyes, like those of a beast, flashed ferociously.

Edwin’s limbs were tingling with murderous energy. It would be a wonder if there was even a strong military commander who could dare to stand face to face with him now. However, there was no sway in Seronach’s posture, who had a slender body.

“Do you resent me for making such a prophecy about your family?”

“I’d be lying if I said I never did.”

Edwin said with a cold smile.

“But as a result, your prophecy is not wrong, so should I honor you as a great prophet?”

As in other countries, in Brimdel, the title of nobility was inherited as a legacy to the next designated heir. The moment the inheritance takes place is when the breath of the former generation stops.

There was no need for a succession ceremony as long as they had formally followed the procedure for designating a successor in advance. In a time when wars often broke out, it was made so to fill the position of the head of the family who might die at any moment.

Because of this, the very moment Iorn was executed under the king’s orders, Edwin automatically inherited the title and became the new Duke Redford. Although no one, not even Edwin himself, realized the fact because of the relentless tragedy, Edwin himself was the last Duke Redford right before the Redfords were stripped of their status as nobles. Duke Redford, the one who was said to destroy Brimdel and lead it to ruin.

Could it be a coincidence? Or was it intentional?

But Edwin soon corrected his thoughts. Seronach couldn’t have known. If she had foreseen the really distant future, she couldn’t have let Duon save Edwin’s life. She would have done everything in her power to end Edwin’s life.

Before long, Edwin stopped in front of Seronach. Seronach was about two heads shorter than Edwin. She seemed too dwarfed and insignificant to be called a person who controlled the fate of the country and destroyed the most powerful family in the kingdom with only words.

“…… I will not ask for forgiveness.”

“I never wanted it. I am not going to ask you for forgiveness either.”

Edwin answered without hesitation towards Seronach. His gaze was on her. The shadows cast under the hood were pitch black and cavernous.

She was the subject of much speculation. Some said she was not human, others said she was an illusion created by the royal family. Wearing a robe with a large hood, Seronach hid herself under it, not revealing any flesh. It made him wonder if even the king had ever seen her face.

Edwin slowly reached out. Then, he grabbed the hood that Seronach was wearing.

He was always curious. What kind of ancient creature, what kind of monster is hiding its face under that hood? He wouldn’t be surprised if it was a shapeless shadow.

By his touch, the hood slid down. Then Seronach’s face, hidden in the shadows, was revealed in front of him.

“…….”

Seronach’s face was reflected in Edwin’s eyes. Her face, illuminated by the shimmering lanterns, was dyed orange like the setting sun.

“So…… this is what you look like.”

Edwin, who looked at Seronach for a moment, muttered quietly.

The prophet Seronach, who was said to be wiser and greater than anyone else.

The reality was a monster that was thought to have been hidden tightly in a closed closet.

“I’m about to laugh.”

Edwin laughed weakly and let go of Seronach’s hood.

“What on earth have I been afraid of?”

Years later, when the closet was opened again, there was nothing in it. When reality was revealed, there was no reason to be afraid. Vague fear and awe of the other person. Where did they really come from?

“Seronach. You were also just an extremely ordinary human being.”

Edwin’s eyes darkened.

* * *

“Did everything go well with your plans?”

Someone spoke to Edwin as he walked out of the room. Edwin glanced up and checked the other person’s face. A young woman was standing there. Although she was a woman, with her restrained posture, she was as tall as a grown man, and she wore the uniform of a knight of Kustan.

Lionelli Bahat. She was the one who stayed by Edwin’s side and assisted him throughout the period of invasion and destruction of Brimdel.

Most countries had an atmosphere that restricted women from entering the political or military world, but in Kustan, where superiority and inferiority were determined only by the size of strength and ability, the fact that she was a woman was not a problem.

“Yes.”

Edwin averted his gaze and answered insincerely. He handed his sword to one of the apprentice knights waiting by his side. It meant to wipe off the blood on the sword before it hardened and caused trouble.

“Dame Lionelli. What happened to the work entrusted to you?”

“There is no need for concern. Lord. It worked out smoothly.”

“That’s a relief.”

Contrary to him saying ‘relief’, his expression was dry. Lionelli thought that even if she gave the opposite answer, the reaction of the man in front of her would not be very different from now.

He was a capable and intelligent man, but he was as dry as the bottom of an empty well. He was like a well-made doll, unable to feel the joys and sorrows that humans should normally feel.

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