Chapter 114: Adrian’s Past

After Roderick left the commander’s office, Ethan and the others were already back at their quarters.

They had just finished resting when a soldier came looking for them.

"Are you the students who were assigned to Captain Roderick’s patrol team?"

Ethan turned towards him.

"That’s right. Is something wrong?"

"The commander has made some changes to the patrol arrangements. Your group will be transferred to another team starting tomorrow."

The soldier didn’t explain further. After delivering the message, he left.

Victor looked surprised.

"Another team? Why are we being transferred?"

"Probably because of what happened during the patrol," Ethan replied.

Victor turned towards Adrian.

"Of course. What else could it be?"

Adrian didn’t respond.

"We were doing just fine until someone decided to ignore the captain’s orders. Now the entire group has to suffer because of him."

Bran, who was sitting nearby, also looked displeased.

"I don’t understand why he had to wander off on his own. We were there for an assessment, not to show off."

Adrian remained silent.

Victor shook his head.

"Now we have to start all over again with another team. We had already spent time getting used to Captain Roderick and his soldiers. Who knows what kind of people we’ll be assigned to now?"

Ethan listened to them for a while before speaking.

"What’s done is done."

Victor looked at him.

"Ethan, are you seriously going to let this go?"

"What else do you want me to do? The commander has already made his decision. Complaining won’t change anything."

"We’ll just have to get used to the new team," Ethan added. "We still have an assessment to complete."

Bran frowned.

"Still, this wouldn’t have happened if he had followed orders."

"Maybe," Ethan replied.

Victor was still unhappy, but he didn’t say anything else.

Adrian remained quiet.

Ethan got up from his seat.

"I’m going to get some rest. We have no idea what kind of work the new team will give us tomorrow."

He left the room and walked further down the corridor. He had only gone a short distance when Adrian caught up with him.

"You’re not curious why I sneaked away to deal with those Laughing Fiends?"

Ethan stopped walking and turned towards him.

"Should I be?"

Adrian gave him a strange look.

"Most people would have asked me that by now. Even Roderick was angry enough to question me several times."

"Well, I wasn’t there when he questioned you."

"That’s not what I mean."

Ethan waited for him to continue.

Adrian sighed.

"I thought you would at least want to know why I did it. You saw what happened, didn’t you?"

"I did."

"And you still have nothing to ask?"

Ethan shook his head.

"You have your own reasons for doing what you did. I don’t see why I should force you to explain them."

Adrian looked at him for a while.

"So you’re just going to leave it at that?"

"If you want to tell me, I’ll listen. But if you don’t, that’s fine too."

Adrian lowered his head a little.

"When I was still a child, my village was attacked by beastfolk. I was living there with my parents at the time."

Ethan listened quietly.

"It happened so suddenly. They just came into the village and started killing people. Nobody was spared. They killed the men, women, and even the children. There was blood everywhere."

Adrian’s right hand tightened into a fist.

"My father was a Gunslinger. He tried to fight them, but there were just too many. In the end, he had to get me out of the village."

A tear slipped from beneath the cloth covering his eyes and ran down his cheek.

"He knew he wouldn’t be able to escape with me, so he stayed behind. He told me to keep running and not look back."

Adrian paused before continuing.

"I did what he told me. I kept running until I was far away from the village. But he never came back."

Ethan didn’t say anything.

"Those beastfolk weren’t Laughing Fiends. I know that very well. But whenever I see beastfolk, I remember that day. I remember what they did to my family and everyone else in that village."

Adrian wiped the tear from his cheek.

"I know I shouldn’t have left the group, but when I saw those four Laughing Fiends, I couldn’t just leave them alone."

He turned his face towards Ethan.

"I don’t care which beastfolk I come across. If I get the chance to kill them, I will. I won’t let any of them escape."

Ethan looked at Adrian for a while before speaking.

"So that’s why you went after them."

Adrian nodded, his expression still carrying some of the pain from his memories.

"I know it was reckless. But when I saw them, all I could think about was what happened to my village. I couldn’t just walk away and pretend I hadn’t seen them."

Ethan had heard this story before, back in his previous life. He already knew what had happened to Adrian’s family, but hearing him talk about it again still brought back memories of their previous life.

"But you left without telling anyone," Ethan said. "You were part of a group, Adrian. The others had no idea where you went, and we ended up searching the forest for you. Roderick wasn’t just angry because you ignored his orders. You put everyone in a difficult position."

Adrian said nothing. His hand was still clenched, and the tear on his cheek had not completely dried.

"I know you have your reasons for hating them," Ethan continued. "I’m not asking you to change how you feel. But you can’t keep putting yourself in situations like that, especially when other people are depending on you."

Adrian turned his face away.

"I know what I did was wrong," he said. "But I don’t think I can promise that I’ll just walk away the next time I see them."

Ethan didn’t argue with him. He already knew that Adrian wouldn’t easily let go of his hatred. Trying to convince him otherwise wouldn’t accomplish anything.

"What do you say we go hunting for some beastfolk?"