Chapter 84 — The Black Day of Spades

Narrator

The gates of the Kingdom of Spades opened beneath the afternoon sun.

For a moment, the enormous walls seemed to swallow the royal procession whole.

Beyond them...

stood a capital unlike anything V had ever seen.

Tall stone buildings rose on both sides of the streets.

Banners bearing the emblem of Spades fluttered from towers.

Merchants called out from crowded stalls.

Carriages passed through wide roads.

Children ran between adults.

And somewhere above the city...

bells rang softly.

V stared at everything.

His eyes moved from one building to another.

Then toward the distant palace.

The capital felt enormous.

Alive.

Different.

He had seen villages.

Forests.

Castles.

But this...

was a city.

The royal procession finally came to a stop.

The King of Spades stepped forward to welcome them.

Brald stood respectfully beside V.

Tiami remained close to him.

The Queen and Princess were received by the royal attendants before being escorted toward the palace.

The Princess glanced back once.

Her eyes met V's.

V simply waved.

The Princess immediately looked away.

But the corner of her lips moved slightly.

It was almost a smile.

Almost.

Then she disappeared inside the palace with the Queen.

V watched them leave.

He turned toward Brald.

"So..."

Brald looked at him.

"So?"

"Are we staying outside?"

Brald nodded.

"For now."

V looked toward the enormous city again.

His eyes slowly brightened.

"Can I explore?"

Brald immediately understood that look.

"No."

V's expression fell.

Brald sighed.

"...Yes."

V's eyes instantly lit up.

"But."

V froze.

"Don't cause trouble."

"I won't."

"Don't wander too far."

"I won't."

"Don't challenge anyone."

"I won't."

"Don't climb buildings."

V looked offended.

"Why would I do that?"

Brald stared at him.

V looked away.

"...Fair."

Brald placed a hand on his shoulder.

"And come back before sunset."

V nodded.

"Promise."

Brald smiled.

"Good."

V turned toward the city.

Then stopped.

He looked back.

"Brald."

"What?"

"Can I eat something?"

Brald blinked.

"You just ate."

V nodded seriously.

"That was before I saw the food."

Brald stared at him for several seconds.

Then laughed.

"Go."

V immediately ran into the city.

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Tiami watched him disappear into the crowd.

Brald shook his head.

"That boy..."

Tiami's ears twitched.

"He has energy."

Brald smiled.

"Too much."

The city swallowed V's small figure.

And for the first time since entering the capital...

he was completely free to wander.

The streets of Spades were filled with unfamiliar sights.

V stopped at almost every stall.

A merchant selling fruits gave him one after seeing his curious expression.

"You want one?"

V looked surprised.

"Really?"

The merchant laughed.

"Take it."

V smiled.

"Thank you!"

A few streets later...

another shopkeeper handed him a small piece of freshly baked bread.

"Here, little one."

V stared at it.

"Why?"

"Because you look hungry."

V immediately accepted it.

"Thank you!"

He took one bite.

His eyes widened.

"This is amazing."

The baker laughed.

"You like it?"

V nodded seriously.

"I think I love this city."

A group of children nearby began laughing.

One of them pointed toward V.

"Look! He's eating for free!"

V looked at them.

"Are you jealous?"

The children burst into laughter.

V continued walking.

The streets grew busier.

A river appeared between two rows of buildings.

Small boats moved across its surface.

V's eyes widened.

"Boats!"

He ran toward the riverside.

A small wooden boat passed beneath a bridge.

V leaned over the railing.

"How does it float?"

An old boatman looked up.

"Because it doesn't want to sink."

V nodded thoughtfully.

"That's a very complicated answer."

The boatman laughed.

V remained by the river for several minutes.

He watched the sunlight break into pieces upon the water.

Every wave carried a fragment of the sky.

Every fragment disappeared.

Then another took its place.

V smiled.

The world felt enormous.

And for once...

he wasn't thinking about battles.

Or danger.

Or the things waiting beyond the forest.

He was simply a child seeing a new city for the first time.

Later...

V discovered the Adventurer Guild.

He stood outside the enormous building.

His eyes slowly moved upward.

"Whoa..."

Adventurers entered and exited through the doors.

Some carried swords.

Some wore armor.

Others carried strange weapons.

V stared with fascination.

"So this is the Adventurer Guild..."

He stepped closer.

Then stopped.

A group of young women walked past.

One of them glanced at V.

Then looked again.

"He's cute."

Another whispered.

"And handsome."

V heard them.

He looked around.

"Who?"

The girls immediately looked away.

V scratched his head.

"I wonder who they're talking about."

One girl covered her mouth to hide a laugh.

V continued walking.

Completely unaware.

His face remained innocent.

His mind was occupied by much more important things.

Like food.

And boats.

And whether adventurers were allowed to eat inside the guild.

As the afternoon slowly faded...

the sunlight changed.

Golden light spilled between the buildings.

The shadows stretched longer across the streets.

V finally remembered Brald's warning.

"Oh."

He looked toward the sky.

"I should go back."

He began walking toward the place where the royal group had stopped.

But before he reached it...

he noticed something unusual.

The streets ahead had become quieter.

People were gathering around an open square.

Black cloth hung from the surrounding buildings.

White flowers had been placed along the stone path.

At the center stood a large monument.

Ten thousand names were carved into it.

V slowed down.

The wind moved through the square.

The black banners fluttered softly.

There was no celebration here.

No laughter.

Only silence.

V looked at the monument.

"What happened?"

An old man nearby lowered his head.

"Black Day."

V looked at him.

"What's Black Day?"

The old man's eyes remained on the monument.

"The day ten thousand soldiers died."

V became quiet.

At that moment...

the sound of horns echoed through the streets.

People turned.

A royal procession approached.

The King of Spades had arrived.

Behind him came several officials and soldiers.

The crowd stepped aside.

The King walked toward the memorial.

V watched.

He had never seen so many people become silent at once.

The King stopped before the names.

He lowered his head.

Flowers were placed beneath the monument.

The ceremony began.

But V noticed someone standing a little away from the crowd.

A boy.

Around his age.

He wasn't looking at the King.

He was looking at the names.

His hands were tightly clenched.

His eyes carried something V couldn't understand.

V slowly walked toward him.

"Are you okay?"

The boy looked at V.

For a moment...

he said nothing.

Then his eyes returned to the memorial.

"Do you know what today is?"

V shook his head.

"Not really."

The boy looked toward the King.

Then quietly said—

"Black Day."

V looked at the monument again.

"Because ten thousand people died?"

The boy shook his head.

"No."

V looked at him.

The boy's eyes remained fixed on the black banners.

"That's not why it's called Black Day."

He took a slow breath.

"It's called Black Day because ten thousand people gave their lives for the wrong kingdom."

V's expression changed.

The boy continued.

"People remember the number."

"Ten thousand."

"But nobody remembers the people behind that number."

V remained silent.

The boy's fingers tightened.

"Some were fathers."

"Some were sons."

"Some had wives waiting at home."

"Some had children who believed their fathers would come back."

His voice became quieter.

"And some children waited..."

"...until they finally understood that the footsteps they were listening for would never come."

V looked at him carefully.

The boy finally turned toward him.

"My father was one of them."

V's eyes widened slightly.

The boy looked back at the memorial.

"I was seven years old when he died."

Silence settled between them.

The wind passed through the square.

A single white flower rolled across the stone ground.

The boy watched it move.

"The kingdom remembers this day every year."

"But did it ever remember us?"

"Did anyone come to our home?"

"Did anyone ask my family how we survived?"

"Did anyone return what my father gave us?"

He smiled.

But there was no happiness in it.

"Nothing."

V didn't interrupt.

The boy looked toward the King.

"Look at them."

"They stand there every year."

"They lower their heads."

"They place flowers."

"And everyone calls it respect."

His voice trembled.

"But I don't see respect."

"I see a ceremony."

V looked at the King.

The King remained before the memorial.

His expression was solemn.

The boy's gaze hardened.

"He doesn't remember those ten thousand people."

V looked at him.

"Then why does he come here?"

The boy answered without hesitation.

"Because his wife and daughter died that day too."

V went silent.

The boy continued.

"If they had survived..."

He paused.

"...I don't think this day would exist."

The words hung in the cold evening air.

The boy lowered his eyes.

"I don't hate the dead."

"I hate that their deaths became something people could use to look noble."

He looked toward the names carved into stone.

"My father didn't die to become a number."

"He died believing he was protecting something."

His voice cracked slightly.

"And the saddest part?"

V waited.

The boy clenched his fists.

"He never got to know whether what he protected was worth dying for."

V looked at him.

For several seconds...

neither spoke.

Then V quietly asked—

"What's your name?"

The boy looked at him.

"Kael."

"Kael..."

V repeated the name.

Kael nodded.

"And yours?"

"V."

Kael studied him for a moment.

Then gave a faint smile.

"You don't look like someone who belongs in a place like this."

V tilted his head.

"Why?"

Kael looked at V's innocent face.

"Because you still look like you believe people can be good."

V smiled.

"I do."

Kael looked away.

Perhaps...

he wanted to believe that too.

The ceremony ended.

The King slowly turned away from the monument.

The crowd began to disperse.

Kael remained where he was.

V looked at him.

"Are you going home?"

Kael nodded.

"Eventually."

V pointed toward the memorial.

"Will you come here again next year?"

Kael looked at the ten thousand names.

"I don't come here for the King."

"Then why?"

Kael touched one of the flowers beneath the monument.

"For my father."

V nodded.

"I understand."

Kael looked at him.

"You really do?"

V smiled faintly.

"I don't know."

"But I think..."

"...sometimes remembering one person is more important than remembering a thousand."

Kael stared at him.

For the first time that evening...

his expression softened.

"Maybe."

The two boys stood beneath the fading sky.

Neither knew what the other would become.

Neither knew how far their paths would eventually cross.

And neither knew that this small conversation...

would someday carry a weight far greater than either of them could imagine.

V finally returned to Brald.

Brald was waiting near the royal residence.

He looked at V.

"You are late."

V stopped.

"...A little."

Brald folded his arms.

"How little?"

V thought.

"Very little."

Brald sighed.

"Did you cause trouble?"

"No."

"Did you climb anything?"

V hesitated.

"...No."

Brald narrowed his eyes.

V smiled innocently.

Brald shook his head.

"Come on."

V walked beside him.

Tiami followed quietly.

The capital was beginning to glow beneath the evening sky.

Lanterns were being lit one by one.

The river reflected their golden light.

Behind them...

the Black Day memorial remained beneath the darkening sky.

Ten thousand names.

Ten thousand lives.

And one boy who still remembered only one.

Narrator

A kingdom may carve ten thousand names into stone...

but memory does not live in stone.

It lives in the hearts of those who still whisper a name when everyone else has forgotten.

And sometimes...

the smallest voice in a silent crowd is the one carrying the deepest truth.