RGS Vol 8 Part 10

“Your Majes—no, I meant Lord Karas. Over there, over there, that’s the skewered meat I was talking about. Ahahaha!”

Abel pulled Karas’ arm, leading his way through the crowd. Nani, who was guarding nearby, quickly followed, not wanting to lose them. Behind them, Melmond and the butler leisurely walked, enjoying the festival as much as Abel and Karas did, taking in the surroundings.

However, the three commanders mingling among the crowd were keenly observing their surroundings, ready for any potential threats. Technically, this wasn’t their job, given their high-ranking positions. Even when Karas left the palace to see the festival, it wasn’t necessary for them to follow him.

If there was work to be done, their duty should have been to stay behind in the palace and manage the state affairs in the emperor’s stead. Yet, they couldn’t possibly trust anyone else to follow Karas. It was frightening and unsettling. They were among the very few who knew that Karas could freely wield the power of the forest.

This meant that the peaceful world could one day be overturned upside down by Karas’ whims. Therefore, they needed to be right beside him to prevent any such catastrophe. The only person who could influence Karas was Abel, and without Abel, a terrible disaster might befall them. Thus, the only ones capable of properly guarding Karas were these four people who knew the truth.

To make matters worse, the news from the northern lord had further made them even more anxious. They were hoping, as Ashler suggested, that Abel could persuade Karas, but there were doubts about whether that would actually happen. Moreover, while Abel was a valuable person capable of influencing Karas’ heart, he was also a potential source of danger. Just as he was now.

Thud!

“Ouch.”

Abel accidentally bumped shoulders with a young man passing by, causing him to drop the skewer he was about to eat. It would have been better if that was the end of it, but beside the young man was someone who appeared to be his guard. Judging by the sword at his side, he seemed like an ordinary low-ranking knight. When the young man frowned, the low-ranking knight immediately began cursing at him.

“Where the hell are your eyes on, you filthy b*stard pig?!”

In the alley, filled with smoke from the fireplace, the chatter of people, and the sound of singing from somewhere, the low-ranking knight’s curses didn’t seem to bother anyone.

Such minor confrontations were common in crowded places. Moreover, just as the knight’s insult suggested, Abel did appear somewhat dirty. He was dressed in simple clothes with black hair and soot on his face, looking much like when he previously worked at the Marquis’ house.

Though it was unfortunate that he dropped the skewer on the ground, Abel himself didn’t mind. Only Melmond and Nani, who were right next to him, seemed slightly startled. Naturally, the three commanders, who were guarding them, instinctively tried to reach for their swords at the same time, but it wasn’t a situation where they could draw their weapons in a crowded place.

All Kin and Clara merely planned to do was to remember the face of the knight and create an unforgettable experience for him in the back alleys. However, their resolve became unnecessary. Just as Abel bent down to pick up the fallen skewer and was about to say, ‘Haha, if we brush off the dirt, we can still eat it!’, a sudden piercing scream tore through the air and echoed.

“Kyaaa!”

The sudden, shrill scream acted like an invisible barrier, causing the crowd to instantly scatter. Within moments, the once bustling area transformed into an empty space, now sprinkled with splashes of crimson blood, as if it had rained with it. At the center of it stood the low-ranking knight, with a dazed expression while his master lay sprawled on the ground. The man’s torso was precisely split in half.

Even in his last moments, as if unaware of his impending death, a sneer lingered on his face. The low-ranking knight, drenched in blood and standing dumbfounded, looked down at his now-deceased master with eyes in disbelief before looking up. Aside from the screams of the woman who had been watching nearby, there was only an eerie silence.

Everyone turned their gaze from the gruesome sight of the man’s mutilated corpse to a single person. The low-ranking knight’s eyes also settled on him. It was Karas, who had somehow already drawn his sword and held it low enough to drag along the ground. Beside him, Abel stood frozen, still holding the skewer and halfway bent over.

“You, you b*stard, who are you?! Do you think you’ll be fine and can get away with this?! Killing someone for no reason all of a sudden! Do you even know who this person is…?”

Drag.

With the sound of the sword scraping against the ground, Karas took a step forward. A sound that, to those who knew him, signaled an impending death. Melmond and the butler turned pale and flinched as they instinctively stepped back. With an expressionless face, Karas took another step towards the knight and spoke.

“Karas.”

“Gah!”

The low-ranking knight screamed and looked at his shoulder in disbelief, where his arm had been severed.

Thud.

He couldn’t even see when the sword had been swung and it wasn’t until he heard something hit the ground that he realized his arm had been cut off.

When on earth did he swing his sword?

The other person was still standing with his arm hanging down, holding the sword with its tip touching the ground.

“Ugh.”

As blood poured out onto the ground, the pain hit him like a delayed shockwave, causing him to hunch over. However, his body gave out before he could control it, collapsing to the ground. It was because one of his legs, which had been severed from the thigh, could no longer support his weight.

“Ugh!”

This time, realizing his condition much faster than before, the low-ranking knight let out a horrifying scream. As he struggled around in the pool of blood, flailing his body, missing one of his arms and one of his legs. Karas’ mouth opened again.

“Yes, I’ll be fine.”

Only then did Abel and the others understand that this was Karas’ answer to the lower-ranking knight’s earlier question. To emphasize his point, Karas slowly raised his sword this time, ensuring everyone could see and step forward.

Squelch, squelch.

He took two steps forward on the blood-soaked ground. He placed the tip of his sword against the neck of the pale low-ranking knight and gave his final response.

“Who’s a person?”

The sword slowly penetrated the knight’s throat. The knight, with his eyes wide open, trembled in pain until his last moments of death, and then finally collapsed. As Karas withdrew his sword after killing two people in an instant, the onlookers flinched in horror and backed away.

The only one who hadn’t moved from his spot was Abel. He stared at the blood-soaked Karas with eyes wide open, full of complex emotions, while Karas seemed unfazed as he asked.

“Anything else?”

Abel, still in shock, could only stammer out a vague ‘Huh?’ Karas slowly glanced around, reminding him of the reason why they had come to this place.

“Festival.”

Oh, right.

The reason he came here with Karas was because of the festival. Just moments ago, the alley they had run through, as he excitedly held Karas’ hand was just behind them. They had been at this very spot, where Abel had proudly shown Karas a wooden toy he’d received from a child. There were still plenty of things to do at the festival.

However, Abel couldn’t respond, only looking down at the skewer which was now covered in dirt. When he stood there unable to answer, Karas grabbed his hand and led him forward. From the beginning, Karas hadn’t shown any interest. He had only followed Abel around because Abel seemed excited, with no expectations of experiencing that joy himself.

Rather, his eyes even showed boredom as he looked at the people. Still, the fact that he was there and mingling with people at all was a relief. At least with Abel by his side, Karas was able to blend in with the crowd to that extent. The one they were concerned about was Abel. He must be in shock.

Seeing Karas use his sword was not new but witnessing someone get dismembered so senselessly because of him must be terrifying. They pitied him but this sympathy also led to another worry.

What if he got scared and ran away?

The three commanders, following Karas and Abel, shared the same thought, their faces darkening. The sight of Abel’s appearance, being dragged helplessly by Karas, seemed to indicate his hopelessness. Karas’ indifferent voice, echoing in their ears, strengthened this notion even more.

‘Who’s a person?’

The words, spoken lightly, carried no weight. It was as if they represented Karas’ usual thoughts.

Is the only way to control Karas was for Abel to stay by his side until Karas dies?

The heavy silence from those following Karas cast glances at Abel.

He was walking with his eyes cast down on the ground, still not over the shock. If there was only one solution, perhaps it would be better to return to the safety of the palace immediately. Just as everyone was thinking this, Abel suddenly stopped, putting strength into his legs, and grabbed Karas’ arm.

“Skewers.”

Everyone doubted their ears and looked at Abel. However, Abel only looked around until he found what he was looking for, then pointed somewhere and spoke to Karas.

“I didn’t get to eat the skewers.”

Even though a person had died over the dropped skewers, he still wanted to eat them?

It was perplexing, even frustrating, but Abel dragged Karas along.

“P-Please try it. You’ll be surprised at how good it is.”

Though there was a smile on his face, it was tense as if forced. Moreover, his hands were shaking even as he pulled out the money to pay the vendor. Thus, the sight of Abel with several skewers in his hands, forcing a smile as he turned to look at Karas, was pitiful.

He didn’t need to act so cheerful. Perhaps he was doing it to please Karas. Melmond and the butler could barely hold back their sighs. Unaware of how the others were viewing him with such thoughts, Abel continued his act of feigned joy.

“It’s really, really delicious. Whenever I come to festivals, I always buy these first.”

As he spoke, Abel suddenly turned his head to the side, pointing somewhere else.

“Ah! That over there is really delicious too.”

As he held the skewers, unable to eat them all, Abel started walking in the opposite direction from Karas, seemingly to get something else to eat. However, before he could take two steps, he stumbled.

Everyone was startled, going “Oh? Oh?” but Abel somehow managed not to fall. Instead, he tried to continue walking forward with his twisted legs. That was when Abel’s act began. First, he stumbled and collided into the wall of a house.

Thud.

“Ahh―!”

Thud.

One of the skewers fell to the ground, and Abel staggered again, this time hitting his head on a protruding pillar. Another thud.

“Ahh!”

Thud.

Two more skewers fell. Everyone almost shouted in unison, ‘You idiot, just give up on the skewers!’ Even Roster, who had suspected Abel might actually be an idiot, started to mutter ‘Id…’ out loud before he could stop himself. Even in this situation, Abel didn’t seem to realize he was staggering even more because he wouldn’t let go of the skewers. This time, he turned around and bumped his face directly into the festival’s flagpole that was set up to announce the celebration.

Thunk.

“Ugh!”

With a shortened groan, it seemed his intelligence was dropping as well. Sure enough, two more skewers fell to the ground once again. Without any chance to intervene, Abel, who had already collided and turned around after being hit three times in a row, staggered once more before his legs finally tangled and he tumbled to the ground. Although someone could have run to help him, everyone was too stunned by the absurdity of his collisions to react.

“Ow, that hurts.”

Finally, with all the skewers fallen to the ground, Abel muttered as he propped himself up. The butler, who had finally come to his senses, quickly tried to rush over, but Melmond urgently grabbed his arm.

Why, what’s the matter?

The butler looked back, but seeing the serious look on Melmond’s face, he kept his mouth shut.

Only one person looked at Abel, whom everyone else saw as a fool, with cold eyes. Even as Abel brushed off his clothes and approached him with a silly smile, Karas’ eyes didn’t change. It was then that people realized there was a purpose behind Abel’s seemingly foolish actions.

Perhaps Abel simply wanted to show a situation where he bumped into something again. To show that Karas couldn’t kill everything Abel bumped into. Karas, having noticed Abel’s intention, just watched him coldly.

People thought Abel’s attempt wasn’t bad, but it was regrettable that it had no effect.

Wouldn’t this just provoke Karas’ anger even more?

As if to confirm their unease, Karas coldly asked Abel as he approached.

“Should I destroy both the walls and the pillars for you?”

His mockery was evident. But Abel just scratched his head awkwardly and pointed to the ground with his finger.

“No, please buy me new skewers.”

“……”

“That’s all I’ve lost.”

A faint, comfortable smile returned to Abel’s lips.

That would be enough.

The pain would soon disappear, and if he could just hold the skewers in his hands again, he’d return to his previously cheerful mood. Even a small change could restore everything to its original state. Those who saw his smile could also sense the meaning behind it. After a while, Karas tilted his head to the side, as if responding to the smile.

“All you need is the skewers. Then I’ll just kill the skewer vendor.”