A mountain of corpses and a sea of blood.
Mountains piled with my bodies, oceans formed from my blood.
How many more times do I have to die?

I stopped thinking.
If I looked back even a little, it felt like I would truly collapse.
Instead, only a beast-like instinct remained, focused solely on killing just one more.

‘If I create even a little distance, the mages on the wall start casting spells.’

So I deliberately stuck close to the Imperial soldiers.
That prevented them from using magic.
The Imperial knights tried desperately to stop me, but each time, I widened the gap.
Ironically, the Imperial soldiers themselves were becoming shields that protected me.

"Lord!
We’ll help too!!"
"Huh?
Uh… sure?"
"Soldiers of the Sandui County!
Pick up your swords and fight again!!!"

I thought I would fight alone until the very end this time as well.
But someone joined in.
At first, the face looked familiar.
It was Thomas, the captain I had met at the castle gate before.
Thomas and the one hundred guards under his command suddenly turned into allies.

"R-Reinforcements!
The enemy’s reinforcements are here!!"
"There are enemies on the wall too!!"
"D*mn it…!!"

Thanks to that, the already-flagging momentum of the Imperial Army completely collapsed.
Not only below the walls, but even on top of them, guards began their ambush.

"Retreat!!
Fall back!!!"

In the end, the Empire was forced to retreat, abandoning even the supplies they had prepared in the county.
When the Imperial Army started fleeing and leaving their supplies behind, victory cheers erupted.
But the battle wasn’t over yet.
There was still one beast left to hunt.

"Lord!
It’s our victory!!"
"When the Empire fully withdraws, seal the gates and wait."
"What?"
"I’m going to hunt a beast."

Whether by luck or misfortune, Baron Dermus failed to retreat with the Imperial Army and was left behind.
Unable to escape in time, the baron began to flee, and I chased after him.
Absurdly enough, the place he ran to in the end was a warehouse I recognized.

"H-How do you even know about this place…?!"
"……"
"L-Listen, Baron.
Calm down a bit.
I’m a fellow noble too.
Under the kingdom’s law, nobles have the right to a trial—"

My blood boiled.
After committing acts too vile to even speak of, he talks about a trial now?
I wanted to kill him on the spot.
But would that really be the end of it?
After what he had done?
No.
That would be far too humane.

The moment that thought reached me, I didn’t hesitate and punched the baron in the face.
Thud!!
With a crisp sound, the baron collapsed to the floor.
I didn’t kill him.

"It seems you already have an appointment.
Unfortunate, but what can I do?
I’ll yield."

When I returned carrying the unconscious baron over my shoulder like baggage, I saw a familiar face.
I looked around.
Not only the soldiers, but even the residents were cheering.
Seeing that, I realized something anew.
The count had been a far better lord than I thought.

"Lord, pardon me, but the person on your shoulder is…?"
Thomas immediately recognized the baron I was carrying.
I nodded and replied.

"It’s Baron Dermus.
I heard he betrayed Sandui County and opened the gates."
"…That is correct.
But since he is a noble, we must swiftly prepare a trial—"
"What are you talking about?"
"Pardon?"

I answered as I dropped Baron Dermus from my shoulder onto the ground like a sack.

"The battle with the Imperial Army was excessively fierce, and in the process, we had no choice but to execute the traitor Baron Dermus."
"…!!"
"Do you understand what I mean?"
"…Thank you.
Truly… thank you."

The looks in Thomas’s and his subordinates’ eyes turned vicious.
Even I flinched for a moment.
The guards secured the baron with astonishing speed and headed off somewhere.
And throughout the process, Thomas kept bowing deeply to me until he was out of sight.

‘It’s better to let people with deeper grudges settle their own hatred.’

At first, I wasn’t sure, but after seeing their eyes, I felt it was the right decision.
The fight was over.
The Imperial Army had completely withdrawn, and Sandui County was fully reclaimed.
But the work wasn’t finished.
We had to bring the refugees back, and also recover Count Sandui’s body and prepare his grave.
There was more work than I could count.

"…Come to think of it, they said there were nobles imprisoned who followed Count Sandui to the end."
I should meet them once.

Splash!
"Ghuu—?!?"

The moment cold water hit him, Baron Dermus screamed and barely regained consciousness.
As soon as he opened his eyes, the first thing he saw were his hands and feet bound, his freedom taken away.

"W-Where is this…?!"
"You slept quite a long time, Baron."
"Y-You’re Thomas…?"
"Yes, that’s correct.
First, allow me to apologize for the rudeness.
There was simply too much to do."

Thomas bowed deeply with exaggerated gestures.
Anyone who wasn’t a fool could easily tell it wasn’t sincere, but mockery.
Naturally, Baron Dermus wasn’t stupid enough to miss that.

"How dare you insult a noble like this.
Before I hold you accountable, untie me at once!"
"It seems the baron isn’t quite ready for a conversation yet?"
Thud!
"Ugh—gh?!"

A painful groan escaped Baron Dermus’s mouth as he had been shamelessly shouting.
A guard’s trained fist had landed squarely in his abdomen.
The pain was overwhelming.
It showed plainly on his face, while Thomas wore a satisfied expression.

"Y-You think you’ll get away with this?
You’re just a commoner—how dare you lay hands on a noble body?!"
"The battle to retake the castle was far too intense, and in the process, we had no choice but to execute the traitor Baron Dermus…"
"…?!?!"
"It’s a story Lord Blackguard told us.
What do you think?
Not bad, is it?"

Realizing the intent, Baron Dermus’s face turned pale with terror.
Unable to answer, it was the soldiers who spoke in his place.

"We think it’s an excellent story, Captain."
"I’ve never heard such a moving and satisfying tale."
"L-Listen, calm down and hear me out.
I actually have a lot of money hidden away."
"Hahaha, money.
That d*mned money."

Thomas let out a hollow laugh.
There was a time when he believed money was everything.
If you paid him, he would do anything.
Extortion, even violence.
His misconduct had been so severe that the count himself had come to see him.

[A life as a mere thug is too much of a waste for you.
Have you ever thought about becoming my subordinate?]
[Are you out of your mind?
You want someone like me, who’s committed so many crimes, as a subordinate?]
[Don’t worry.
It won’t be as easy as you think.
And…]
[And?]
[Shouldn’t you clean up the mess you made yourself?]

The count’s words were no empty boast.
His training was brutally harsh.
Whenever Thomas acted like a delinquent, the count personally beat him under the pretense of correction.
Once, he was beaten so badly that he ran away.
In the end, he was caught again.

[You’re a count.
Do you really have time to care about a thug like me?]
[Yes, you’re a pathetically worthless hooligan.
But at the same time, you’re one of my people.]
[…]
[If you can’t even change one person of your own land, how could you ever handle the affairs of a nation?]

Though he had been born here and never once left,
he could easily tell that the count was a peculiar lord.
Abandoning the thought of merely leeching off others, he showed sincerity for the first time in his life.

A life even his parents, and he himself, had given up on.
For the first time, he saw it again.
The thug Thomas had become Captain Thomas, respected by all.
If not for His Excellency the Count, he would still be living the same life now.

[Surrender peacefully.
You have no duty or obligation to throw away your lives.]
[No.
We will fight with Your Excellency to the very end.]
[You still don’t listen worth a d*mn.]

Even when the teeth-grinding betrayal occurred, Thomas had intended to fight to the end.
At the very least, he would die alongside the lord who saved his life.
If the count hadn’t disarmed and knocked him unconscious, that’s exactly what would have happened.

[Heart hot, head cold.
Did I not teach you that?]
[Your Excellency… why…?]
[As long as you live, opportunities will come someday.
I believe in this kingdom and its people.]

When he regained consciousness, everything was already over.
The count had fallen in battle.
The county had been taken by the Empire.
Surprisingly, they had not been disarmed.
The Empire had seen how they fought alongside the count to the end.

[We have clearly seen your loyalty.
Therefore, we will not disarm you or take away your work.]
[What if we betray you?]
[The tide of war has already turned.
The east will soon fall into the Empire’s hands, and the capital will not last much longer.]
[…]
[The Empire needs people like you.
That is why we are giving you this chance.
Do not waste the life the count saved.]

A warning where arrogance and consideration coexisted.
That warning pierced deep into Thomas’s heart.
The county had fallen in an instant.
In other words, the entire east had been lost.
Yet even then, no help came from the capital.
What did that mean?

The answer was obvious.
We were abandoned.
Or they simply had no leeway.
If, in such a situation, he raised rebellion with barely a hundred men, what would happen?
They would be crushed with ease.
And there would be no death more meaningless.

‘Your Excellency.
It seems it’s time to wake from the dream we briefly shared.’

He had dreamed.
A dream of protecting this county together and making it a happy land.
It was an extravagant dream for a former thug.
And now, he woke from it.
The reality he faced was so cold that he lacked the will to live.

"C-Captain!
Look over there!"
"What is the commotion?"
"Look toward the gate!
Someone is coming alone!!"
"…What?"

But at that moment, from a life pushed to the brink of surrender, he saw it.
A man holding the greatsword of his fallen lord, standing proudly and fighting alone.
Why did he see the dearly missed Count Sandui in that figure?

"I am Cain Blackguard.
Who will receive my blade?"

In that instant, Thomas snapped out of his thoughts.
From the day the county fell until now,
his sworn enemy, whom he had ground his teeth over day after day, stood right before him.
Thomas drew a dagger and slowly began cutting off Baron Dermus’s ear.

"Aaaaaaah!!!"
"You’re quite dramatic.
Don’t worry.
There’s a herbalist and even an executioner waiting outside."
"Just kill me!
Kill me already!"
"How could I let you die so easily.
You killed someone loved by all, so you must leave with just as much hatred."

The moment he heard that emotionless reply, a familiar voice echoed in the baron’s ear.

[My old friend.]
I pity you.

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