Maximilian von Adelheit, he remembers.
In his life, during a time that was like a barren desert.
Adelheit Ducal House. A noble family that laid the foundation of the Empire and has produced countless renowned archmages since its establishment.
From such a family, Maximilian was born and raised as their one and only child.
He inherited Adelheit’s golden magical talent and was a child who knew how to utilize his quick-witted brain. A nobleman with outstanding potential.
That was the evaluation of Maximilian. And to the young Maximilian, it felt very natural.
Thus, while bearing everyone’s expectations, Maximilian felt boredom. It was an added burden that his emotional development was slower than that of other children.
He simply lived with the words, “It worked when I tried it,” on his lips, unable to understand the emotions of love and empathy that rose deep within him.
The society of aristocrats was cold and detached. While their authority was not as sky-high as in the medieval era, the aristocrats still constituted the upper class of society.
Born as the firstborn of a ducal family standing at their peak, everything about Maximilian’s future had already been decided long before his birth.
Maximilian was engaged to the noble daughter of a prominent marquise family. He knew nothing about her—what she liked, what she looked like, what hobbies she enjoyed, or what she typically did.
However, he followed the words of his ancestors. As the only son to carry on the lineage of the Adelheit Ducal House, he thought it was only natural that things would go well.
And in the year he came of age, the year he graduated from the Academy.
Maximilian’s grand wedding ceremony was held.
And on that day, Maximilian was able to meet his bride.
The person who would become his wife, Emma. Emma von Palts.
Though they had met at the Academy before, it was that day that they faced each other up close for the first time.
Even while the Bishop of the Diocese was giving a speech and while he exchanged vows with Emma, promising a lifetime together.
Maximilian felt no emotion at all. He simply accepted it as it was.
After the wedding ceremony, Maximilian immediately succeeded to the head of the family. This was an unavoidable situation since he was born quite late.
He took care of the territory. He had to mind the affairs of the Imperial Palace and handle his duties in the defense force, where he was stationed after graduating from the Academy.
And then, there was the matter of an heir.
Maximilian felt the necessity of a successor. He hadn’t necessarily desired to have children.
It was simply necessary. Nothing more.
Thus, driven by need, their child finally came into the world.
Emma, who lived a life forced by duty like him, showed tears for the first time before him.
With a weary face, holding the child in her arms. In a daze, tears naturally brimmed at her eyes. With that face, she looked at Maximilian.
Those bright eyes. They sparkled with the same red hue that Maximilian possessed, deeply inheriting Adelheit’s blood.
“Oh, oh….”
As if it was a blend of Maximilian’s eyes and Emma’s features…. After crying out loudly, she gradually calmed her sobs while gazing at Maximilian.
“Your name will be Laura. Laura von Adelheit….”
At that moment, the emotion maximilian felt was… so profound that it was inexpressible. It was entirely opposite to the cold feelings he always carried.
Maximilian’s trembling hand grasped that small, cute, delicate hand.
“That name would be wonderful….”
Maximilian would likely never forget that memory for the rest of his life.
*
“Father… what you have done is truly the worst….”
Maximilian von Adelheit questioned his ears. His lips and eyes were trembling uncontrollably.
“L, Laura….”
As if he had heard something he should not have. As if he couldn’t believe this situation.
In truth, he could have rebutted Cesar’s words in many ways. For instance, he could have brought up the irreparable damage inflicted upon him as the scars of war.
If he had calmly tried to talk, perhaps he could come up with words to persuade Laura.
But, but….
“Why… do you look at me… with such… eyes…?”
The way Laura looked at him. That gaze.
Her expression, tone of voice, and the tiny movements of her facial muscles….
The bright red eyes that so closely resembled Maximilian’s. Those beautiful and enchanting Adelheit eyes, so red and deep.
“Are you looking at me…?”
The flame of resentment burned in her gaze, directed at Maximilian.
Maximilian, instead, could not say a word. Seeing those eyes he never imagined facing from his precious and beloved daughter left him speechless.
Maximilian’s lips moved, but no words came out. The tears welled up in Laura’s eyes as she looked at Maximilian resentfully.
“It’s truly the worst….”
Finally, tears trickled down her cheeks. One, two drops, and eventually it became a rain. Laura’s eyes contained dark clouds.
He didn’t know. How painful it was to lose the love received from others, to lose the warmth of feelings exchanged.
That sharp pain made Maximilian clutch his chest. It felt as if the cold, cutting winds of winter surged in his heart like his favorite cold magic.
“Guh….”
It was then that a sinister laughter rang in Maximilian’s ears. He unconsciously lifted his head.
“Now do you understand my feelings, even just a little? Maximilian von Adelheit.”
The one who informed Laura of that fact. The worst man who cunningly fanned their discord while stirring his tongue between Laura and Maximilian.
And the man still pointing a gun at Laura’s temple. Cesar Li.
Seeing Cesar, who wore a smirk while looking at him, Maximilian’s lips trembled.
“…What have I done?”
It was not words born from anger. Nor were they words born from a sense of loss.
“What did I do to deserve this?”
Rather, it was close to a desperate struggle. With his bright red eyes fixed on Cesar, Maximilian continued.
“I… I did my best. I used all my capabilities to work day and night to find the maximum effect with the minimum damage…”
Days spent on the battlefield. It was a torment for Maximilian as well.
“Was it the deaths of the soldiers that were the problem? Was that the issue? Did you think I treated you merely as a number, enjoying a game of soldiers? Absolutely not….”
“A loose tongue, indeed…”
“That was war! You foolish man!”
Cesar’s mouth was silenced. His one remaining right eye trembled faintly.
Laura was similarly affected. The reflection of Maximilian in her eyes was no longer that of the caring, warm, sometimes strict wise father she had known.
“Cesar Li! Do you really not know the weight of the word ‘war’?! What else should I have done to try harder?!”
Maximilian’s roar echoed against the rooftop. Everyone standing there looked at Maximilian in astonishment.
Maximilian was accustomed to being the center of attention. However, facing such gazes all at once was a first for him.
“I was a soldier of this Empire and a commander responsible for thousands of soldiers—not just dozens or hundreds! I was not a caretaker to tend to the whining of soldiers or sergeants like you! I was a commander who had to think only of how to minimize your sacrifices and end this war as quickly as possible!!”
A deep plea filled Maximilian’s eyes. It was a plea against resentment, a plea against the piercing hatred that returned to him like a boomerang.
“And I ultimately succeeded! I played a decisive role in minimizing soldiers’ sacrifices, breaking the enemy’s offensive, and ending that damned, dreadful war! What else was I supposed to do?!”
In Cesar’s eyes, complex emotions were reflected. Maximilian thought he saw confusion in his eyes as he listened to him, and he pressed on even harder.
“Indeed! After the great war ended, I received all kinds of honors and medals, just as you said! I met His Imperial Majesty and enjoyed the honor of being promoted to Colonel! Why? Because I was the one taking responsibility!!”
The position of taking responsibility was not a weighty phrase that could be carelessly uttered. There was gravity in Maximilian’s words.
“If that operation had failed?! If that operation had failed and the enemy had turned the tide of war based on it?! Who do you think would be responsible for that?!”
The horrifically cruel weight borne by those who were responsible.
“I devised the operation that would yield maximum effect with minimum damage, as commanded by the headquarters, and yes! I took responsibility! How could I possibly take care of each soldier’s life after the war?! Should I personally guarantee all your futures?! Don’t you understand that everyone has their role on the battlefield?!”
“……”
“Damn it! At least try to say something…!”
“…Huff.”
Suddenly, Cesar burst into uproarious laughter. Everyone, including Maximilian, looked at him in confusion.
“Y-you took responsibility…. Hah, ha-ha…! U, uh-hah…! Ha-ha-ha—!”
Cesar’s mouth opened wide. His grotesquely contorted face looked up at the sky, and the heavily clouded sky looked down on him.
That laugh filled with madness and resentment continued for 5 seconds, 10 seconds, 30 seconds….
“Hah…! Hah…! Uhh….”
The laughter that had come forth until he was almost out of breath slowly subsided, eventually transforming into a wailing cry.
“If you took responsibility…. Then you need to return everything I lost due to your momentary decisions—!!!”
Status, honor, wealth, power—.
Such things were all unnecessary.
The self that had been cut down on the battlefield. The self who died three years ago. The self still lingering in the tattered scars of the past.
Our hopes that were extinguished in the searing flames because of your schemes.
“Return all of that to me….”
“……”
Maximilian’s mouth was tightly shut. Cesar found that sight so appalling that he couldn’t help but burst into a ridiculous laugh.
A hollow laugh. It was a laugh deflated of hope.
The past was a pit. An indeterminate, sticky pit.
As if slowly sinking into that pit while being bound tightly, an inescapable reality from the powerlessness of the past. That drove Cesar insane.
Revenge? That was merely a fantasy from the start. A very tough and lingering fantasy.
“Hah, hah….”
Cesar continued to laugh uproariously. When you think about it, yes. It was funny. When did he ever have a choice?
The choice. It had not been with Cesar since the moment he realized it. Cesar did not know this and only realized it too late when it was already out of his hands. In the abyss of the past, the only path given to Cesar was to move forward.
The moment he realized that. The moment it struck him.
“Ah.”
He soon understood. The cruel reality.
Did I have anything else to lose?
The corners of his mouth, which had been brutally torn, drooped down, and his mouth closed tightly with a look of malice.
“Right. There is no way they can return. You can’t bring those back.”
So, for that reason….
“What you bore as responsibility was never there in the first place….”
Cesar’s teeth gritted tightly. In that look of bitter hatred, his sorrow showed a sharper thorn than anything else.
Maximilian simply remained silent.
To Cesar, it was ultimately closer to a comedy.
…Tragically so.
