252. Conditions for Happiness
Kirhas was staring blankly at the night sky.
The Castle of Bülrang was an ancient fortress, a masterpiece of imperial construction techniques. And cat-type beastmen prefer high places.
These two conditions aligned, allowing Kirhas to sit at the highest point of the castle and gaze at the moon.
To other beastmen, her position on the balcony, occasionally catching glimpses of the Chieftain, symbolized their dominance over this grand and beautiful castle. It was an opportunity to satisfy both personal desires and political gains.
It was also a chance to hide her expression. A rare moment alone, free from the service of others.
Politics and Diplomacy, Military and Domination.
The only time she could set aside her duties as the Chieftain and be alone.
“Haa…”
Thick cigarette smoke lingered at her lips. The Golden Mask, reclaimed upon her reinstatement as Chieftain, clattered softly at that moment.
[He’s here.]
Kadán’s voice echoed in her mind. The Jackal God chuckled.
[Your master has arrived.]
“…!”
Kirhas’ tail shot up briefly before drooping. With a cold expression, she placed the mask on the table by the window.
“A Chieftain doesn’t seek out subordinates first.”
[Your smoke has increased?]
“That’s a sign of diminished authority. And Your Excellency will come to me directly.”
[Your patience has grown too.]
“Because Your Excellency still needs me…”
[Your self-loathing has also increased.]
Kadán laughed, cutting off Kirhas’ words. When Kirhas glared at the mask, the Golden Mask clattered again.
[Why not just knock him down? You’re the Apostle of the God of Hunting. One of the most powerful warlords in the Material World, and the first beastman to ever conquer a castle. How long will you act like a docile housecat waiting for prey to fall?]
“What have I achieved?”
[Huh?]
“What have I accomplished on my own, Kadán? What I’ve seized… most of the titles before my name are medals bestowed upon me by Your Excellency.”
[Defeatist.]
“No. This is what’s called loyalty.”
Kirhas stepped off the balcony and walked into the room. Slumping onto the sofa, she stroked the surface of the Golden Mask.
“Apostle of the God of Hunting? No. Kadán, you and I are partners. I don’t submit to you, and you don’t demand my submission. We joined hands for the same reason: ‘Freedom for Beastmen.’”
[So?]
“If I have a religion, it’s not the Temple of the Gods or the Scales of Hunting dedicated to you. My religion is named Sernerd. My master is Fernandez. From that distant day in the underground waterways of ‘that’ city…”
-I will not submit to the Inquisition Office.
-I pledge my loyalty to you, Fernandez Sernerd.
From that moment. To the young man who took her in during her powerless childhood, when she was nothing but a slave. Even if he needed her as a tool, that was enough.
She poured whiskey from the bottle on the table into a crystal glass. The amber liquid flowed down the glass. She swirled the glass once and called out toward the door.
“Is anyone there?”
“Yes, Chieftain!”
“If Pernin enters and seeks me, let him in immediately, regardless of the time.”
“…? Yes, Chieftain!”
She would endure until the time came. Even so, impatience was inevitable. Kirhas sipped the whiskey and closed her eyes.
She intended to count every second until he arrived.
* * *
Around that time, Fernandez was meeting an unexpected guest. Piel, the Archangel of Wisdom and Truth. She stood in the middle of the road leading to the city center, waiting for him.
Fernandez’s eyes gleamed with interest. He knew beastmen grew quickly, but Piel’s growth was astonishing. Was this truly the manifestation of an Archangel?
With long, jet-black hair and a pristine white dress, she gazed at him with shining golden eyes.
“Were you waiting for me?”
“I knew you’d come today.”
“I advised you not to look into the future.”
“I didn’t look into the future. I read the past.”
Piel’s gaze briefly touched Fernandez’s abdomen. She twitched her fingers and carefully handed him a medicine.
“It’s a good remedy for the liver.”
“Medicine doesn’t work on Diemonica’s body.”
The line between medicine and poison is paper-thin. It’s an artificial influence on the body. Diemonica was immune to almost all toxins in the Material World, which meant resistance to almost all medicines.
Well, everything has its pros and cons. Fernandez smirked and walked on. Piel followed beside him.
“I read your past.”
“I doubt you saw anything pleasant.”
“Not just your current life, but your previous one as well.”
At that, Fernandez stopped. Could information reflection transcend dimensions? As far as he knew, it should be impossible. But for an Archangel, and reading the past of a being who transcended dimensions, it wasn’t entirely impossible.
“What did you see?”
“From your birth to your death.”
“I see. You’ve realized.”
“Yes, I read about my sisters’ situations and everything about this world.”
“The cost?”
“My lifespan. I have less than ten years left.”
Piel said it as if it were nothing. Fernandez looked at her face and chuckled.
“Ten years is enough.”
“Does that mean you’ll achieve your goal by then?”
“If you read my last two years, you’d have seen. I’ve eliminated two Great Demons, saved two Archangels, and about half of the Material World’s civilizations are cooperative with me.”
“…Indeed.”
“Hey. I think I understand why dealing with you in my past life was so tricky.”
Piel smiled faintly. The conversation between the two, who had always tried to kill each other in their past lives, flowed warmly under the tropical summer night.
“You were kind of annoying back then.”
“Of course. The lesser ones always saw me that way.”
“That’s why you were annoying.”
Piel’s footsteps stopped. She looked up at Fernandez with soft eyes. Slowly, she opened her mouth.
“In my past life, that was definitely true. But not now. You know? You’ve already changed.”
“…What are you trying to say?”
“What do you want?”
Piel looked at Fernandez’s abdomen, where the red flesh was still visible. It wasn’t a small wound. It had barely missed his organs, but it wasn’t something that could be brushed off so casually.
No matter how durable Diemonica’s body was, he was still a man made of flesh. Piel looked at Fernandez and spoke.
“Your actions. Your thoughts. They’re not just the mindset of a dark mage solely focused on a goal. People change, but your actions are almost unpredictable. So, is what you desire really the same as before?”
“I don’t want to answer that.”
“Do you still want to save your son’s soul? Do you pity his life? What about your late wife? Do you want to be her lighthouse again?”
Fernandez’s eyes burned. It was anger. The kind of anger a dragon would show when its reverse scale was touched. But Piel didn’t avoid his gaze and looked straight at him.
Eventually, Fernandez turned his gaze away.
“I’m not worthy.”
“Why not?”
“Because I don’t deserve to live a peaceful and serene old age. I don’t deserve to drag Aria into that life again. Aria deserves to be happy. Unlike the past when she had no choice but to choose me, she should live a simple, fulfilling, and warm life.”
“You’re annoying.”
Piel chuckled as she said this. When Fernandez glared at her, she continued in a soothing tone.
“You’re being yourself. That habit of judging others’ emotions hasn’t gone anywhere. Faijashi Wildcast. You’ve never been happy. How dare you decide someone else’s happiness?”
“What?”
“Do you know about happiness? Were you happy when you were with Aria? Guilt, debt, responsibility, and pity. That’s not happiness. But unlike you, Aria was happy back then.”
Piel shrugged her shoulders as she spoke. She slowly walked away down the alley.
“After all this is over. I hope you find your own happiness too. Don’t just run, sometimes walk. The world isn’t just ahead of you; it’s beneath your feet, above your head, and behind you too.”
And next time, listen to the opinions of the people involved, you annoying guy. Piel smiled warmly as she said this.
“It’s a relief. You’ve completely shed Faijashi’s shadow. You’ve become Fernandez Sernerd now.”
“Your expression of joy at redeeming a villain is really irritating.”
“I’m genuinely happy. My sisters were right. I was honestly half-doubting it.”
Piel shrugged and disappeared. Fernandez didn’t chase her. He laughed softly and walked towards the city center.
* * *
“Chieftain, Lord Fernin has arrived.”
“Let him in.”
At the guard’s words, a lazy voice came from behind the door. Fernandez slowly opened the door and entered the room. Despite the balcony window being open, the room was filled with cigarette smoke.
The ashtray was piled with cigarette butts, and empty liquor bottles lined the table. Fernandez felt a heavy pressure as he slowly approached her.
“Kirhas.”
“……”
Kirhas didn’t respond. Her tail twitched, drooped, stood stiff, and drooped again in a repeated motion.
“Kirhas?”
“7,314.”
“What?”
“7,315.”
Kirhas’s voice was cold. Fernandez cautiously approached her. With each step he took, her tail swayed and moved.
“7,316.”
“What are you talking about?”
“Two hours, one minute, and fifty-seven seconds. The time it took for Your Excellency to come to me after entering the city. Based on the last day, it’s five days and fourteen hours, Your Excellency.”
-Creak.
The chair squeaked as it turned. Her turquoise eyes sparkled.
Fernandez stood still and looked down at her.
Soon, a soft laugh erupted. Kirhas looked at Fernandez’s face and smiled like a flower. As he looked at her face, Fernandez also smiled back.
“I’m back.”
“You’ve been through a lot, Your Excellency.”
Kirhas stepped forward and hugged Fernandez. The blood hadn’t dried yet, but Fernandez gently pushed her away. Seeing her ears twitch, he stifled a laugh.
The position of Chieftain was something he had forced upon her. Unlike in her past life, she wasn’t ruling over the beastmen by her own will.
Day by day, she must have felt like she was being forced to wear clothes that didn’t suit her.
Day by day, she must have been barely enduring the pressure and burden.
A twenty-year-old girl suddenly becoming the leader of a race. No matter how much she was born with the qualities of a hero, the current Kirhas was a completely different person from her past life.
‘Just like me.’
Being different from the past. For Fernandez, that sentence was closer to fear and burden. Events that didn’t happen in the past. Unexpected variables. Uncontrollable factors. Strategies that had to be constantly revised under tension.
But putting all that aside. Being different from the past… might mean salvation. Even if the future is dark, the enemies unpredictable, and the situation always unfavorable.
Because it’s different from the past. The world won’t be destroyed. Because it’s different from the past. He can be saved.
Because it’s different from the past. Maybe he has the right to pursue happiness.
Perhaps, someday. He might even earn that right.
Is it selfishness, arrogance? Hypocrisy? Self-justification?
Even if he puts all that aside.
“You’ve been through a lot too, Kirhas.”
I want to be happy. At that moment, for the first time, Fernandez thought that.
Kirhas twitched under Fernandez’s thick hand covering her head, then took a deep breath.
Their gazes briefly crossed.
After a short silence, Kirhas’s tail wrapped around Fernandez’s leg.
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