Chapter 33: Epilogue
The first light of dawn seeped through the window.
Turning his head, Dale saw Charlotte sleeping peacefully beside him, her breath soft and steady, lost in a deep slumber.
Without a word, Dale reached out and gently placed his hand on Charlotte’s delicate shoulder.
Her golden hair slipped through his fingers like grains of sand.
“You’re up early, Dale.”
Sensing his presence, Charlotte awoke and smiled warmly at him.
“Did you sleep well?”
“Well, not really. You kept me up all night,” Dale teased.
Charlotte chuckled, her smile full of mischief, and reached out to touch his cheek.
“I’m happy.”
“Truly?”
“Yes. And you haven’t forgotten, have you?”
Charlotte’s smile widened as she reminded him, “We promised to have a son and a daughter.”
“Yes, we did,” Dale replied, covering her hand with his own, his face slightly flushed.
“What if we have another son next time?” Charlotte asked, a hint of concern in her voice.
“Well…” Dale trailed off, knowing it was a difficult question.
In the grand castle of the Saxon family, the Black and Gold Sovereign and his wife Charlotte made their appearance, and the countless nobles of the empire bowed their heads.
After the so-called “Great Purge,” no one dared to question or oppose the Black and Gold Sovereign.
Just as people once did before the god of futility, even if it was a human, not a deity, standing there.
Between the two thrones sat a child.
A boy with hair as dark as midnight.
“Look, Alan,” Dale said calmly, standing before him.
“This is our empire, these are those who are loyal to us, and one day, it will all be yours to rule.”
No longer the gentle father he was in private, but with the solemnity befitting an emperor.
“Yes, Father,” Alan II replied, bowing with the appropriate decorum.
The era of monsters had ended. With the goddess asleep, a time was coming when neither sword nor magic could bring peace.
In a world ruled by the Black and Gold Sovereign and the couple known as the Divine Sword, no one dared to oppose them.
But as the monsters faded into history and the true “Age of Humans” dawned, the throne Alan II would inherit would not be the same.
He needed to be taught.
Not to rule with force and violence like the strong of the old era, but to govern his empire wisely.
To develop the insight to see the truth without needing to peer into the shadows.
It wouldn’t be easy. Even Dale had ultimately seized his empire through the power of a monster.
In those days, it was common sense. A world governed by the law of the jungle.
But the new era’s leaders would not be those who crushed their enemies with swords or magic. Knowing this, Dale and Charlotte worked tirelessly to build an empire for Alan.
An empire that would stand unchallenged, even after their time had passed.
As Alan II grew day by day, Dale and Charlotte watched with pride.
Sometimes they scolded him sternly, other times they embraced him warmly, teaching him the responsibilities of a ruler and the weight of the crown.
And when Charlotte’s belly swelled with new life, a new happiness blossomed between them.
Soon, the new lives came into the world.
Twins—a boy and a girl.
“Look, Dale.”
“A son and a daughter.”
Charlotte smiled quietly as the cries of the newborns filled the room.
Father Alan and mother Elena lovingly embraced the two children, and Alan II smiled at his siblings.
It was a family filled with happiness, the kind found anywhere.
As Alan and his siblings grew, the layers of time continued to build.
Around that time, Dale’s mother, Elena, fell ill.
She was neither a strong figure of the old era nor anything else, just an ordinary human, frail and delicate.
Her youthful beauty faded with the years, yet she remained a kind and wise mother and grandmother, smiling gently.
Accepting the inevitable fate that awaited her.
“Elena.”
“Don’t worry.”
Alan of Saxon called her name with concern, sensing the time was near.
Birth and death, the pain of parting.
Yet Elena smiled.
“I remember when you first confessed to me.”
”…”
Elena spoke of the time when she was terrified and burst into tears at the proposal of the Duke of Saxon, the feared and revered Black Duke.
“Even though I was scared, there was something strangely familiar about you, standing there unsure of what to do.”
Dale couldn’t even begin to imagine what she saw.
“When the elders of the Black Tower appeared at our wedding in white attire, I honestly thought I would burst out laughing.”
“I was quite embarrassed myself.”
He had made the wizards of the Black Tower abandon their colors and wear white. Yet none of them dared to defy the Black Duke, their leader.
And for the Black Duke to go to such lengths, Elena must have been incredibly dear to him.
Even if it had all been a scheme orchestrated by the blue curtain from the start.
Elena, as she was now, would not remember that.
“I was so afraid. Could I really be happy with this man? Could I trust the monster ‘Black Duke’ that people talked about?”
”…”
“But when Dale was born, I still remember the happiness we felt.”
Elena smiled.
“It was the same when Lise was born.”
Beside Dale, Lise bit her lip quietly.
“I’m truly glad I could have you as my lifelong partner.”
“I feel the same.”
Elena spoke, and Alan nodded, as she remembered the ‘Black Duke’ she once knew.
Surrounded by her beloved, her son and daughter, and her grandchildren, Elena smiled.
“Mother…”
Lise started to speak but then bit her lip.
Beside Elena were those who had long transcended life and death, even the laws of nature. Just as Lise had once done, it wouldn’t be difficult to postpone Elena’s death.
But they couldn’t do it. No, they didn’t want to.
This was the natural order they had to accept, and the era of monsters was coming to an end.
Alan silently held Elena’s hand.
Alan, too, silently held Elena’s hand.
“Dale, and Lise. My beloved children.”
Even then, Elena called the names of her beloved son and daughter. Dale couldn’t say a word.
“I’m so happy to be with you all.”
Dale and Lise silently held Elena’s hand.
Their hands overlapped with their father Alan’s.
“Please don’t be sad about my death.”
Elena said.
“Whenever you think of me, who enjoyed such happiness in life, I hope you all smile.”
With those words, Elena smiled.
Alan of Saxon smiled.
Until the very end.
And when Alan wept like a child in his wife’s arms, Elena would never know.
Time flowed on.
In the passage of time, the moment came for the man who was once the pinnacle of the Black Tower and known as the ‘Black Duke’ to depart.
He did not meet his end on a bed.
No, like a rock that refused to erode in the storms of time, the man’s presence never faded.
He was the pinnacle of the Black Tower, a monster of the old era who could wield death itself, and one of the leaders of those monsters.
Thus, the man quietly understood that his time had come.
”…Father.”
His son called his name, and Alan smiled wryly.
“Our era has ended, and my time to leave has come.”
“Must you really go?”
Dale asked. His father smiled wryly at the question.
“One day, you will understand.”
With those words, the man rose. The feathers of a raven danced and settled around him.
“Duke of Saxon!”
And beside him, Sir Helmut Blackbear and the Night Raven Knights stood at attention, just as they had when Dale was a child, facing the Black Duke who ruled the castle.
“Sir Helmut. And the knights of the Saxon family.”
The Black Duke spoke with a smile.
“I cannot express enough gratitude for the sacrifices you have made for our Saxon family.”
”…”
“I owe an immeasurable debt to you, who have remained loyal to me despite my countless sins and wrongdoings.”
“That is not true, Your Grace!”
Sir Helmut Blackbear knelt down, his voice rising with emotion.
At the pinnacle of the Black Tower, the Black Duke stood, a figure beyond doubt.
Behind him loomed the wings of a raven, a creature that commanded death itself, forcing even the mightiest of the old empire to bow before him.
It was because of him that Dale could exist as he did now.
In his youth, when Dale was nothing but a bundle of inexperience, this man had shielded him, supporting him so he could pursue his dreams.
“Father…”
Dale started to speak but then fell silent.
“Thank you.”
Dale bowed his head, and Lize followed suit.
Those who must leave, and those who must remain.
Even if they awoke from an eternal slumber, nothing would change.
For a fleeting moment, he wished to claim the title of a god of this world and change everything.
To awaken the sleeping goddess, to plead with the ancient mother of darkness, to reverse all this pain and tragedy, and to dream of a world of ‘unawakened happiness’ with his sister Lize.
But it was not to be.
“Dale, my proud son.”
“Father, no, I…”
Before his father’s words, Dale could only remain silent, his head bowed.
“Lift your head.”
Yet the Black Duke, Alan, smiled. He understood Dale’s pain, just as he understood his daughter Lize’s, and he blessed his children and grandchildren.
At the same time, the raven’s wings enveloped the man.
As they wrapped around him, the raven’s wings transformed into black feathers, scattering into the air.
And within the swirling feathers, nothing remained.