Chapter 190

Lefil Seriburns.

If one had to sum up the old man's path in a single word, it would be this.

‘Traitor.’

There was nothing else to add or take away.

Everything had been the old man's own choice.

There had been no coercion or pressure involved.

He had simply been desperate, and in the end, he had made an irreversible choice.

“Father!”

The old man had a young daughter.

A daughter he had taken in late in life.

She was not his biological child.

After all, he was a man who had even turned his back on marriage.

He had devoted his entire life solely to the royal family.

Lefil had always placed loyalty above all else.

“Lefil, you truly never change. I'm grateful for your devotion to the royal family, but shouldn't you live a little for yourself as well? Work is good, but you should tend to your own life too. Having a dependable companion wouldn't be such a bad thing.”

“If you dislike marriage, then at least adopt a daughter. It must be terribly lonely with no one by your side.”

Even the former king had nagged him about it often.

That was how cold and rigid the old man's life had been. Yet even such a stubborn old man had a chance to change.

It came when he adopted a daughter.

“What? You adopted a daughter?”

“Haha, well done! At last, I can worry a little less!”

At first, he had not thought much of it.

The former king kept nagging him, so he had taken in a child just to put an end to it.

He had not even gone through any particular selection process.

He had thought it would be enough to take any child from a nearby orphanage.

Yet the child he took in turned the old man's world upside down.

“You worked hard again today.”

“If you're all right with it, Father, may I give you a hug?”

She was mature for her age and remarkably obedient.

A girl who always wore an angelic smile. No, perhaps she had been an angel who smiled like a girl.

‘Riel Seriburns.’

That was the name Lefil gave her.

A name he had chosen without much thought. Yet the girl had been happy as though she possessed the whole world. She treasured her name as well.

“Thank you, Father.”

“I'll become a daughter who brings no shame to either the name Riel or the Seriburns family.”

The old man did not pay much attention to the girl.

He had adopted her, but that had only been a way to avoid the former king's nagging. He had never intended to sincerely devote himself to Riel. His heart already belonged to the royal family.

“Father? What brings you home at this hour...?”

“What? You came home early because it's my birthday...?”

Of course, that did not mean Lefil neglected his role as a parent.

Even without affection, he fulfilled his basic duties.

“Thank you... Today is such a happy day.”

“I'm glad I'm Father's daughter.”

“Ugh, I'm so happy I'm crying...”

Riel was always fond of Lefil. Yet she never became a burden.

She wanted to be with the old man, but whenever he left for work, she never held him back or whined.

She simply saw her father off quietly.

She rarely threw tantrums, either.

She did not often say she wanted something or wanted to do something.

“A birthday present? There isn't anything in particular that I want...”

“Um, then... would it be all right if Father and I went out together one weekend?”

“Of course, if you're busy, it can't be helped! I-it's not that I want it that badly, it's just that if you have time...”

Sometimes, all she wanted was time with her father.

And Lefil could not bring himself to ignore such a wish.

There was nothing special about the time he spent with the girl.

The old man simply sat there and listened to her.

Riel chattered about the little things in her life, asked him a few questions, and sometimes hugged him.

At the end, she always told him she loved him.

“I love you, Father.”

“Becoming Father's daughter was the greatest fortune of my life.”

Her shy expressions of affection.

Though she cared for Lefil so deeply, whenever he looked tired, she would quietly excuse herself.

She was a clever child.

Even Lefil, one of the most exacting people in the kingdom, could not find a single thing about her that bothered him.

So Lefil thought of Riel as an adopted daughter worth taking in.

“Father!”

The old man believed the girl would never become special to him.

Yet the years piling up could wear down even the old man's barren heart.

The two lived as father and daughter for several more years.

One year passed, then five, and eventually more than ten.

The days that passed one by one became woven together, then bloomed.

“I came first in the academy exams again this time.”

“I'm still lacking, but someday, I want to become a great figure who supports the royal family, just like Father.”

Before long, Riel was seventeen.

The once-cold old man often found himself smiling as he looked at his daughter.

“What? Going out to celebrate my placing first? But I heard you've been busy lately...”

“I, I would love to! I want to go! I really want to go!”

“There are so many things I haven't been able to tell you!”

The girl soon became the old man's life.

Her chattering became the meaning of his life, and the moments when she hugged him tightly became the strength that kept him going.

“See? What did I tell you? Adopting a daughter was the right choice.”

“You made it so obvious that you hated the idea back then, but now you act as if you can't live without Riel.”

“It's good to see. It feels as though one of my lingering worries has been lifted.”

“Over the past few years, even that stiff expression of yours has softened quite a bit.”

The former king spoke as though teasing him.

Still, the former king was not wrong.

For the first time in his life, Lefil loved someone other than the royal family.

A life bound only to loyalty broadened when it came to hold a father's love.

That was likely the happiest period of the old man's life.

‘But.’

Misfortune overturned that happiness and came crashing down upon him.

“She has three years left.”

Riel was suddenly given a terminal diagnosis.

The exact cause was unknown.

It was an incurable illness whose name could not even be identified.

The girl grew weaker and weaker until she collapsed.

Riel eventually fell unconscious. The sudden tragedy shattered even their fleeting dream.

“Don't worry.”

“No matter what it takes, I won't let you die...”

Lefil murmured before her sickbed.

An angel sleeping in white garments.

His wrinkled hand gently stroked her white-jade skin.

Though his breathing trembled, the old man continued to murmur as if reassuring the unconscious girl.

“The royal court's finest physicians are putting their heads together.”

“They're even searching ancient texts for a cure.”

“There will surely be a way.”

No.

There was no way.

An incurable illness, they called it.

The physicians furrowed their brows, the sorcerers shook their heads, and even her attending doctor eventually gave up.

The girl in bed simply continued to slowly approach the end of her life.

“...”

Lefil was powerless.

He was called the kingdom's finest swordsman, yet before his sick daughter, he was a failure who could do nothing.

All he could do was tightly hold the warmth in his hand.

The old man blamed himself as he endured those hellish days.

“Sir Lefil. I believe you should begin preparing yourself.”

“At most, she has one year left.”

Two years passed.

During that time, Riel could not even move a finger in her bed.

The longer her unconsciousness continued, and the closer the promised time drew, the more anxious Lefil became.

The former king also did his utmost to save Riel, inviting renowned physicians from every nation and importing rare medicinal herbs, but every attempt came to nothing.

As those hellish days repeated themselves, a man came to the sickroom where Lefil remained.

“Are you holding up, Lefil?”

“I think I may be able to help.”

Galeoros Blandir.

The former king's younger brother and Carmilla's uncle.

With a sinister smile, he extended a hand to the desperate Lefil.

“I'll save your daughter.”

“In exchange, you'll help my plan just a little...”

Treason.

A plan to overthrow the existing dynasty and wage war against the humans.

Lefil could not contain his contempt and rage at that vile whisper.

Yet the medicine Galeoros offered crushed his reason.

“Don't decide too hastily.”

“You'll surely regret it.”

“That medicine is something only I can make on the entire continent.”

Lefil could not bring himself to push away the vial.

His desperation was choking his wrinkled throat.

After agonizing over it for a long time, his hand finally pulled the cork from the vial.

He injected its contents through her IV.

Then something incredible happened.

“Fa... ther...?”

Riel, who had been unconscious for the past two years, regained consciousness.

It had only lasted ten short minutes, but Riel had clearly recognized Lefil and spoken with him.

That alone was enough to shake Lefil to his core.

“As I told you before, I'm the only one who can supply that medicine.”

“To completely cure her, it must be administered continuously.”

“So, what will you do?”

“If you let this opportunity pass, your daughter will never wake again.”

Lefil had to make a decision.

His daughter's life, or his convictions and loyalty to the royal family.

“...I'll do as you say.”

“So please, save at least my daughter.”

Lefil only gave his answer after agonizing over it for three full months.

Galeoros greeted him with a chilling smile.

“A wise choice. In just a few years, the world will belong to us vampires.”

“Once everything is over, I'll cure your daughter completely as well.”

“Until then, I look forward to your cooperation.”

In the end, Lefil chose to become their puppet.

His mind held only one thought, that he had to save his daughter.

The old man became a part of the tragedy.

On the night Galeoros attacked the royal family and began the rebellion, Lefil slaughtered the close retainers alone and swept away the reinforcements rushing in by himself.

“Is this why he's called the kingdom's finest swordsman? To think he wiped out our elite assassins alone...”

“As a reward for your efforts, I'll send you a box of medicine.”

“Heh heh. I expect you to do your part when we conquer the Human Realm as well.”

The old man was used without end.

As the New Kingdom's hunting dog, he endured every hardship.

Then, during the Blue Night, Lefil nearly met his end through self-destruction.

‘They must have ordered him to go offer his life in exchange for treating his daughter...’

Lefil likely had no way out.

Even as I turned those stray thoughts over in my mind, I soon met the old man's gaze.

“...”

“...”

Beyond the iron bars was a bound traitor, or perhaps a victim.

Only a cold silence lingered in the solitary cell.

Soon, a calm voice spoke.

“That is all I have to say. I have told you everything about my circumstances.”

“I see.”

I nodded.

Inside my head, the tangled story was falling into place, volume by volume.

“I understand everything.”

The old man's story had been brief, yet long.

Just as I expected, Lefil's betrayal had been forced upon him by circumstance.

I touched my neck out of habit.

After steadying my breathing, a meaningful smile spread across my mask.

“Sir Lefil? I have a special proposal for you...”

“...A proposal?”

“Yes, a proposal. A very special proposal.”

“Proposal or not, if the story is over, just release me.”

“Just hear me out for a moment.”

My plan began now.

A plan to obtain a two-Javert-class tactical weapon.

“What if I treated your daughter's illness for you?”

In this world, an illness was simply a status effect.

I fiddled with the Balloon Knife inside my clothes.

Ding!

[You have discovered a new Misunderstanding.]

-Misunderstanding Name: Status Effect-Parrying

-Description: A status effect inflicted upon a specific target is treated as an ‘attack.’ When the system user performs a ‘parry,’ the status effect can be removed from the target.

Now.

Let’s go, Status Effect-Parrying.

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