RGS Volume 2 Part 14

“The search will resume at dawn. Try to get some rest, even if it’s just a little.“

Ashler gave instructions to search the bodies on the battlefield and waited for any possible news. Then he spotted Melmond. He came back and forth in front of the barracks and hurriedly asked Ashler.

“Do you have any news?”

When Ashler shook his head, his face turned back to worry.

“Sigh, I’m worried because Abel is weak and must have collapsed somewhere.”

“……”

“It would be better if someone finds him and helps him, but if that someone happens to be His Majesty….”

Melmond trailed off the end of his words and asked cautiously.

“His Majesty will definitely wield a sword against anyone who impersonates Abel, right?”

“……”

“Sir Ashler?”

When Melman called out as if something was amiss, it was only then that Ashler opened his mouth.”

“Why do you believe that Abel has been reincarnated?”

Although he asked the question, he had some expectations for the answer.

He would provide evidence that it’s truly Abel. Perhaps he would mention something only he knew or reveal other proofs.

But Ashler’s guess was off the mark. Melmond’s answer was none of those.

“He felt like Abel.”

When Ashler’s expression strangely changed, Melmond scratched his head as if confused.

“Even if a stranger I had never seen before showed up and presented me with evidence claiming to be Abel, I had no intention of believing it. I couldn’t believe him when he told me something that only Abel and I knew, but, well, it turns out it was him.”

Melmond stared at Ashler with serious eyes.

“I know I sound crazy saying this. But Ashler, you’ll find out when you meet him too. Maybe not in your logic, but in your heart, you’ll be certain. He’s Abel.”

“……”

After a moment of silence from Ashler, he chuckled and added.

“I’ve only seen one guy who giggles and laughs and spouts nonsense behind people’s backs, and that’s Abel.”

Ashler barely managed a faint smile at those words. After all, he had been caught off guard by that person in the past. Should he believe in even a little bit of futile hope? As Ashler was thinking to himself, one of the soldiers, who had been ordered to search the bodies, approached hastily.

“Captain Ashler, I found something important.”

The soldier handed him a small map, saying that he found it on the bottom of the corpse’s shoe. There was a marked point on the map that seemed to be important. Ashler tightly gripped the map and gave orders to the soldier.

“Find someone who knows the geography of this area well. Right now!”

⊹˚. ♡.𖥔 ݁ ˖ ⊹˚. ♡.𖥔 ݁ ˖

On windless days, one can hear the sounds of the forest well. Lying on a soft blanket, if you listen closely for just a moment, various sounds can be heard.

Rustle.

The movement of insects. The movement of insects. The distant cry of a bird sounded like a whistle. The sound of grass gently rustling as it sways in the light breeze. He held his hand and always wandered through the forest from early morning. Lunch was mostly eaten in the field connected to the forest. He would lay out a blanket on a slightly sloping hill and unpack his lunchbox.

“Wow~ The bread tastes even better today! Isn’t it, Your Highness? Ahh! Please try this too, it’s really delicious!”

When he heard his exclamation while eating, the bread really did taste better. Even if he ate messily, with food smeared on his small hands, he would receive praise if he finished up his lunchbox neatly.

“Hahaha, it’s really nice to see the prince eating well. You must eat well to move around energetically. There’s still so much to do in this forest.”

Just listening to his words made his heart race. Every day was enjoyable. Following him around made even trivial things feel extraordinary. Even things that he didn’t usually pay attention to, like insects or trees and flowers that he didn’t look at closely, all became special.

However, as they sat down after eating and listened to each other’s stories, drowsiness would come over him and his eyes would involuntarily close. He would try to keep his eyes open, wanting to continue walking with him, but his head would start nodding involuntarily. Even if he rubbed his eyes with his hands, he couldn’t resist the overwhelming sleepiness. That’s when he would make him lie down.

“Your Highness, you’ll have more energy if you sleep and then wake up. So please take a short nap. Then you can move around more in the afternoon, and it will be even more fun. I’ll be right here next to you. Oh, hold onto my clothes with one hand while you sleep.”

Following his words, he tightly held onto the long hem of his clothes and closed his eyes. Even when he slept, he held onto the proof that he was by his side, feeling reassured as he fell into a deep slumber. And when he opened his eyes, his mind was clear and his body felt light. His voice was always the first thing he heard.

“Wow, Your Highness, you woke up just in time! Look at this, I….”

His voice faded faintly. This was one of his sealed memories that he deliberately kept closed and avoided thinking about. The solid door that had been intentionally closed to keep it from his mind opened and gently let the memories flow into his dreams. Karas slowly woke up, returning to reality.

In front of him was a handsome young man with clean blonde hair, much cleaner than yesterday. He had a boyish face, pure fair skin, large eyes, and a cute smile. His eyes were dazzlingly bright. However, no matter how exceptional his appearance was, it didn’t impress Karas, except for one thing. As warm, green eyes sensed the awakening Karas, he moved. The moment their eyes met, he broke into a wide smile.

“Wow, you woke up just in time! Hahaha~ Look at this. Guess what, I found this over there!”

Although his body was sore from sleeping on the hard ground, Abel’s physical condition wasn’t too bad. Whether it was due to the lingering effects of the powerful medicine, which was only supposed to be taken two or three times a year, or the fact that yesterday’s exhaustion had completely disappeared, he wasn’t sure. Moreover, his fainting had also contributed enough to his rest.

Perhaps because of this, when he woke up early at dawn and moved his body, his stamina wasn’t too bad. Moreover, he had an unexpected harvest nearby. Abel took it off from his clothes and showed Karas the things he had collected. Karas, who had just opened his eyes, was slowly getting up.

“There are a lot of mushrooms growing in the world. Although they look like this, they have a light and delicious taste. And look at this. Hahaha~ I found a duck’s nest! Can you believe it? So I brought two eggs. Look at this big duck egg. Just eating one gives you a burst of energy…”

Abel was bragging about his harvest when he stopped talking after seeing Karas’ face. Although his eyes were as terrifying like yesterday, there was something different. The gray eyes, bathed in bright morning sunlight, appeared lighter almost to the point of transparency. That’s why it might have looked different from yesterday. However, the weight of his gaze, staring motionlessly, was definitely different. It was heavy enough to suppress Abel’s excitement. Then, something suddenly crossed his mind.

“Commander-in-Chief, do you feel unwell? Commander-in-Chief, last night, you suddenly lost your appetite and threw away the roasted meat. Are you feeling sick, Commander-in-Chief?”

That’s right, Karas lost his murderous intent along with his appetite and threw away the roasted bird meat yesterday. And Abel picked up the bird meat he threw and ate it all. He believed it was because of the effect of the brown bottle that he had an abundance of energy, but it was actually because of the bird he devoured until his stomach burst at night. However, Abel, who believed that Karas lost his appetite for some unknown reason, continued to express his concern.

“Commander-in-Chief, if you feel even the slightest discomfort, please let me know. If you are unwell, it would be best to cease the pursuit and return to your original quarters, where you usually take your medicine. Or do you happen to know the reason?”

It was his own fault. However Abel, oblivious of this kept using the term ‘Commander-in-Chief‘ four times, pressuring him since early in the morning. Even with a calm voice, the title ‘Commander-in-Chief‘ had the magical effect of making the situation more irritating. But unlike last night, there were still remnants of the dream in Karas’s head. It quickly disappeared like ice melting under the sun, but the feeling remained vivid in his heart. Karas asked Abel, who was sitting in front of him, with a dry voice.

“Who are you, really?”

Blink, blink.

Abel, with a blank expression, replied after a while.

“I don’t know exactly, but I seem to be an idle young master.”

Abel answered honestly, but seeing the other person’s cold expression, he felt that he had answered incorrectly and his heart sank. However, he had nothing to say to clarify it. Since he had heard from Melmond about the fake ‘Abel’, it seemed even more important not to reveal it if the other person was the emperor’s close aide. He also wondered if he would believe it even if he told him.

Abel looked up at the sky for a moment, as if thinking about the words to explain, and then opened his mouth.

“I’m not a bad person.”

He scratched his head, thinking that what he said was out of the blue. But it was the best thing Abel could say. He looked into Karas’ eyes and continued speaking calmly.

“I just… want to help His M… Majesty. I happened to meet the Commander-in-Chief by chance and ended up here, but I’m so happy that I can help His Majesty in any way. I know the Commander-in-Chief might find it troublesome because of my weak physical condition, but I still want to help as much as I can.”

“Why?”

“Yes?”

Surprised by the question, Karas spoke in a cold voice.

“Why do you want to help His Majesty?”

“Because we are in war.”

Abel replied, adding in a subdued voice.

“I’m sure he’ll not be happy.”

The other person’s face hardened at those words, but Abel didn’t notice as he turned his head to the side. He surveyed the wide field where he had just picked mushrooms and discovered a duck’s nest.

“This place seems to have been a cultivated land. The grasses grew quickly and covered all traces, but there are signs that there was a waterway that supplied water to the pond and field a little further. Perhaps people left because of the war. They must have been sad to leave their homes behind. Especially those who fought with swords would not be happy. They had to witness their comrades dying and take their lives, even if they were enemies. His Majesty would not approve of that.”

“You’re wrong.”

When Abel turned his head at the sharp voice, he saw his emotionless gray eyes.

Karas indifferently added, tilting his head slightly to the side out of habit.

“His Majesty enjoys the war.”

“……”

“Because he can’t feel sadness.”

“Th-that’s……”

“Do you know His Majesty well?”

“……”

“Then keep babbling.”

The warning, sounding as if it were coming from boredom itself, seemed to sink in, leaving Abel unable to speak. He had no words to refute. When he thought about it, the emperor Abel knew had barely spent a few months with him twelve years ago. Just a few months out of the emperor’s 20-year life. Therefore, Abel couldn’t claim to know him well. Even though the memory of the little boy who used to hold his hand tightly and go into the forest was as clear as yesterday.

“I’m sorry.”

After a while, Abel bowed his head and apologized. The gray eyes still had a cool light, but Abel didn’t avoid his gaze. Instead, a serene voice flowed out along with a seemingly sad smile.

“I see. So His Majesty enjoys the war. I didn’t know that. However, that’s why I want to help end the war. Because he might come to know that there are more enjoyable things once the war is over.”

For the first time since meeting Abel, Karas revealed his expression. Although very faint, one side of his lips twisted and rose. He couldn’t possibly entertain such nonsense.

“What could possibly be more enjoyable?”

No matter what answer he heard, Karas could firmly deny it. There couldn’t be such a thing. So, he thought that the answer that would come out of that guy would commonly be love or pleasure, which is considered enjoyable.

But again, he closed his eyes and opened them, and with a bewildered face, he answered as if it were obvious. Unexpectedly, trivial things that fell far short of his expectations flowed from his mouth.

“Just lying on the grass and rolling around comfortably. Picking fruits and catching fish in the forest. It’s also a pleasant thing to sit quietly in the forest and listen to the sound of the wind. Even without glory or power, one can be happy. Living comfortably and freely.”

“……”

“Ahh, I’m sorry. I unintentionally went off topic.”

Abel bowed his head again and began to clean the end of the mushroom he had picked. He worried that he might get scolded for speaking nonsense without knowing anything. However, Karas’ monotonous voice, which was characteristic of him, was not heard until Abel finished preparing the mushrooms.

Abel turned his head slightly, thinking that Karas might have calmed down a bit.

“Uhmm…”

“……”

“Please have some mushrooms….”

“Do you want to help?”

“Ahh, yes.”

As soon as Abel nodded, Karas blurted out dryly.

“Prove it. At the Crimson Valley.”

There was no further explanation, but Abel couldn’t ask what he needed to prove. Since he mentioned the Crimson Valley, Abel thought that they could go there together feeling relieved, thinking that he could be of more help to the prince. And he hurriedly called Karas, who was about to turn around.

“Commander-in-Chief, wait a moment!”

When Karas turned around, his eyes narrowed for a moment, but Abel was too busy to hand him what he was holding.

“Have a bite of this energizing duck egg…”

Thud.

The tip of Karas’ sword hit Abel’s hand causing him to drop the duck egg to the ground. The white shell cracked instantly, and its contents spread on the floor.

“……”

When the bewildered Abel looked up, he saw Karas tilting his head to the side. Sigh. Abel quickly hid the remaining duck egg behind his back.

“Ha, hahaha… it seems Commander-in-Chief doesn’t like duck eggs…”

As Karas slowly raised his sword, Abel closed his mouth quickly and stepped back.

And he clearly noticed Karas turning his body and lowering his sword.

He’s a picky eater.