Chapter 731
“What do you wield your sword for?”
A flat voice echoed inside his mind. Who had asked that? Captain Jaret? No.
“Why do you strive to become so strong?”
It was Tweller. This was Tweller’s question.
Ten years ago, when Beric was chasing ever stronger opponents and vomiting blood in the training grounds, Minister Tweller had quietly looked down at him and asked this.
Beric hadn’t answered. He didn’t want to, and more than that, he sensed no genuine curiosity in Tweller’s question. It was merely a prompt for enlightenment.
Beric lay sprawled out, utterly disgusted.
“…Get lost.”
He was already itching to punch the old man, and that tone only made his anger flare.
Tweller glanced faintly at the bloodied Beric and his sparring partner, shaking his head.
“If you don’t know that, you’re only making things harder for yourself.”
“Get lost!”
There is only one true purpose in raising a sword: to protect.
Whether it’s to protect yourself or someone precious, that is the fundamental reason. If you wield your sword with any other intent, it will inevitably turn back and cut your own throat someday.
Tweller knew this well. So he didn’t turn away.
“I’ll tell you one thing.”
“Why? Are you sorry? Well, damn it. Thanks to you, Ian left like that.”
“…I am a warrior, so I do not wish to be the target of your resentment. But I can offer a small kindness—if the recipient is you. Beric, this is your chance.”
Beric raised his eyes from the ground, clearly debating whether to get up and punch him right then and there.
“If you want to stay in the palace, you must now draw your sword solely for His Majesty the Emperor. Let go of Lord Ian, who belongs to the past, and start anew. If it’s too hard, begin by focusing on yourself. You can survive even through upheaval.”
“What are you saying? Seriously, won’t you just get lost?”
“One thing to remember: while serving in the palace, do not harbor anyone else in your heart. The mages are enough.”
Beric stared blankly at Tweller, then slowly raised his middle finger. Tweller smirked and turned away, as if his duty was done.
At the time, Beric didn’t understand. He dismissed the old man’s words as nonsense. How could he have known that the old man’s words carried the weight of years, that they were history and human nature itself?
Beric lay there for a long while, rubbing his eyes. It was a spring day when cherry blossoms drifted into the training grounds on the breeze.
Tweller looked on, puzzled.
Beric’s odd behavior wasn’t new, but the movements of the palace guards and Captain Jaret alongside him also seemed off. They had unleashed their magic power, causing a great tremor.
Jin, watching quietly, muttered softly,
“Beric looks like he’s trying to protect the enemy.”
“…My apologies, Your Majesty. I see it that way too.”
At their conversation, Barsabe flinched. She couldn’t see what was happening and had no idea what was going on. What? Beric trying to protect the enemy? Was he crazy?
As she opened her mouth in disbelief, Jin asked,
“Why would he do that?”
Beric was rough and difficult, but not incomprehensible. They trusted that he would carry out orders in some way. If he was acting like this, there must be a reason.
“Your Majesty.”
At that moment, the palace guards who had been listening carefully reported cautiously. By opening their magic senses to the maximum, they had caught fragments of a surprising conversation.
“Speak.”
“My apologies. From what we can hear, the person seems to be Beric’s sister.”
“Who? That reckless bastard’s sister?”
“Yes. The explosion was so loud it’s not certain, but it seems so.”
Jin’s eyes widened in shock. Tweller’s too. He had heard Beric had no family—his sister? And here, of all places?
Learning the truth, Tweller frowned lightly with sympathy.
‘This is a problem.’
A palace guard who does not obey the imperial command is worthless. Worse, they become a threat and must be eliminated.
The guards and Captain Jaret, while obeying the emperor’s orders, were also trying to kill this person to protect Beric.
‘What will you do, Beric?’
Tweller’s sigh scattered silently.
He had known this day would come. One body cannot serve two masters. Eventually, it will be torn apart.
This was no metaphor. Especially in the palace, such things happened all too often. He hadn’t expected Beric’s sister to suddenly appear and cause this, but it was a fate foretold.
“Your Majesty.”
Jin stood and looked up at the battle between Beric and Jaret. The emperor’s mind seemed troubled.
“……”
Like a crossroads opening before Beric and the palace guards, countless choices spread out before Jin as well.
He didn’t know about the others, but one thing was certain: if that sister died here, Beric could no longer live as a palace guard. He would come to resent Bariel itself and leave. Even if his body remained in the palace, his heart would scatter like the wind, lost and aimless.
‘…Even with Lord Ian?’
Jin flinched in surprise at the question that had come so naturally. Thinking about it, it was maddening. Even his subconscious seemed to acknowledge that Beric belonged to Lord Ian.
Jin pressed his forehead with his hand as his attendants approached to support him.
But he roughly brushed them off and exhaled sharply.
A palace guard who does not follow cannot exist. But demoting Beric would be a clear fault of Bariel’s. Especially in a war like this, Beric’s strength was essential—to both Jin and Bariel.
“Your Majesty, are you well?”
“Do not worry. We will go and knock some sense into that Beric bastard immediately. So please, calm your anger.”
“I once saw Beric drink and cry out his sister’s name. It was a long time ago, but… it seems there’s a deep story behind it, Your Majesty. Please…”
The palace guards approached, pleading with the emperor. They had fought alongside Beric for over ten years. They had come this far together; they could not simply cast him aside. They knew and respected his contributions all too well.
“Your Majesty, you must not revoke the order.”
At that moment, Tweller’s sharp words cut through the room. He was composed, as if he had expected this situation. He had anticipated conflict centered on Lord Ian, but this was no different.
“The emperor’s command is solemn and weighty. It is as high as the heavens, worthy of reverence. But if you revoke the order for the sake of one palace guard’s personal affairs, what will the soldiers of Bariel think?”
Only then did Jin notice the soldiers inside the camp. They looked confused and glanced around nervously.
“The imperial command must apply equally to all. But now, Beric is putting personal feelings above it. You must not revoke the order.”
“But Minister Tweller, you know as well as I do that Beric is indispensable in this war.”
“Your Majesty, he is but a palace guard. How many captains have fallen on the battlefield? We have won without them, and even now we stand deep in enemy territory. Do not overestimate him. You have grown too close, and so he seems greater than he is.”
“I—”
He did not want to lose him. The emperor’s eyes said as much.
Tweller nodded slightly toward the back, where Xiaosi stood.
“Have you forgotten what happens when someone not of Your Majesty’s choosing infiltrates the palace? It was only ten years ago. And Lord Ian’s warning was not long ago either.”
It was Ian who had personally explained how the emperor’s downfall had come about. Jin had heard firsthand how easily Bariel could crumble, thanks to that man named Crony beside Ian. Could he ignore that advice, knowing all this?
Jin’s fingertips trembled lightly. Please, Beric. Calm down…
“May I say something?”
A clear, pure, and earnest voice. Jin immediately recognized the speaker.
“I apologize for the intrusion, but I feel this is not a matter to be cut off so simply. Please allow me to add my thoughts.”
It was Eirin. She had just arrived to report on what had happened at the Masantar Temple. The situation was so chaotic that no one had noticed her.
Tweller glared at Eirin. She bowed her head and apologized again.
“I apologize. Please forgive my rudeness.”
She was a mere foot soldier, yet dared to interrupt the emperor and minister’s conversation. Such insolence was punishable immediately.
Eirin knew this well, but she could not remain silent. The emperor seemed to trust Beric and did not want to lose him. Above all, Beric was a comrade who had fought alongside her at Masantar Temple, risking his life. If she could even slightly shift their perspective, she would speak.
“Paladin Eirin, there is a hierarchy in speech.”
“I understand. But I feared I might regret my silence, so I chose to endure this. Your Majesty, Minister, I took up the sword for Bariel. It is for our homeland, and ultimately, for Your Majesty. Yet, at the deepest core of my heart, the true meaning lies in serving the divine.”
At Eirin’s bold words, Tweller raised an eyebrow. He couldn’t deny she wasn’t wrong—holy knights were typically affiliated with the temple, after all.
“But does that mean I am not Your Majesty’s servant? I have risked my life for the Emperor himself.”
Jin and Tweller grasped her point.
She was speaking of direction. As long as she pursued the divine purpose, the Emperor would inevitably be part of that path.
“Some say Beric follows Lord Ian too closely, but when you consider who Lord Ian truly is, there’s no cause for concern. The Ian I know cares for Bariel more than anyone else. So, in time, Beric will become a swordsman who protects Bariel above all.”
“Eirin.”
Though her words were sound, they lacked nuance. Tweller was about to cut her off, but he fell silent at what she said next.
“The life of one palace guard equals that of thousands of Bariel’s soldiers. It’s not about which is more precious. It means that with Beric, thousands of lives can be saved. Your Majesty, even now, you grieve for those few citizens who have lost their lives. Could you bear to watch more die without acting?”
Eirin’s gaze drifted toward the distant rear, where Beric stood, panting heavily, his attack halted. Then, tears slipped from his chin, falling silently. He nearly collapsed forward, howling in anguish.
“This is an opportunity, Your Majesty. A chance to make Beric truly yours. And to raise the morale of the troops.”
“Eirin, the Emperor’s command is absolute!”
“Yes, there’s no need to rescind it. We only need to interpret it differently.”
Tweller hesitated at her reply.
“What do you mean?”
As long as the soldiers see no contradiction, it will be fine. If we separate the agitated parties for a moment and give them time, Beric will decide on his own—more calmly, more rationally.
“The core of the Emperor’s command is to save the people of Bariel. If you are Beric’s sister, then you too are part of the people of Bariel, aren’t you?”