Chapter 78:

Chapter 78: Seeds Sown

It had been a while since he walked this path.

Ascal made his way to the Haven Training Facility, reminiscing about the past.

The first time he bought a sandwich from Eileen, the saintess of the original work. The times he sponsored the orphanage in preparation for the future. The support was so overwhelming that Eileen…

Up to this point.

“Director Eileen has embarked on a long journey.”

“…You mean she’s dead?”

“No. She has left on a pilgrimage to reflect on her past actions. She mentioned she would be serving the poor in a distant region.”

“Be careful with statements that could be misleading.”

Upon arriving at the Haven Training Facility, Ascal immediately had an audience with Sirius.

Since he was visiting officially as the ‘Minister of Evaluation’, the gates of the facility opened with a high pass.n/o/vel/b//in dot c//om

“By the way, how is the facility? Is it running well?”

Ascal felt a pang of guilt.

After those events, he was so shocked that he cut off his support. If the Haven Training Facility had fallen into poverty because of that, his conscience would ache a bit.

“Yes. Take a look at this.”

Sirius pointed to a certificate hanging on the wall with his finger.

Award for Outstanding Academy of the Year – Haven Academy

Ascal nearly spat out his tea.

That spam mail even had its claws here?

“The facility has been recognized as an academy now. Thanks to that, we receive support from the Empire.”

“That’s fortunate.”

“There are many talents here. Would you like to take a light tour?”

“Hm.”

In place of Eileen, Sirius had taken on the role of acting principal of the academy.

Despite his young age, he was highly respected and talented, and above all, he was a true blood of Haven—an orphan—which made it possible.

Ascal adopted the minister’s signature pose, walking around with his hands behind his back, observing the academy students.

Somehow, the faces seemed familiar.

They were the faces he had seen in his dreams.

They were younger and still had baby fat, but they were undoubtedly the future core members of the anti-Empire forces.

“Haah—!”

The young man fiercely thrusting a spear over there was Bandy, who would become the vanguard leader.

He was remembered for his unfortunate demise, charging at an ancient dragon without fear, only to die from a single breath attack.

“That young man is Bandy. He is very skilled with the spear.”

“It seems so.”

“10 gold coins. Would you like to buy him?”

“…?”

“Just kidding.”

The next place Sirius guided them to was the magic training ground.

“The next one I’ll introduce is a child named Crina, who is very adept at magic. She received a scout offer from the Mage Tower but chose to stay here, a commendable kid.”

A glint appeared in Ascal’s eyes.

Crina, he had seen her when he visited the orphanage before.

The future archmage and deputy leader of the anti-Empire mage guerrilla unit.

She had mentioned wanting to become a musician.

“She originally wanted to become a musician and joined an ensemble, but she was returned after a month for lack of talent.”

“Such a sad past…”

“Hey! Who’s digging into someone’s painful past, Sirius? And who is this uncle…?”​The girl with crimson hair, Crina, locked eyes with Ascal. Immediately, her eyes welled up with tears.

Then, she approached, grabbing Ascal’s arm and not letting go.

“You’re back, uncle...? We’re sorry. We must have done something wrong, right? I’ll be a good kid now. Please, don’t leave.”

She held his arm tightly with both hands, hugging it close to her chest, making it nearly impossible for him to escape.

“W-Wait. What happened while I was gone? Sirius, please explain.”

Ascal looked to Sirius with pleading eyes.

However.

Sirius had a peculiar smile on his face.

Sirius glanced at a framed picture hanging on the wall. Ascal’s eyes followed.

“Uncle Carl”

When he had visited the orphanage before, the children had drawn pictures praising the mysterious benefactor, Uncle Carl.

Of course, since they didn’t know his identity, the pictures varied widely. It was a tradition for each child to draw their imagined version of Uncle Carl――

“That’s me?”

The picture was undeniably of Ascal.

It wasn’t an imagined figure, but a precise depiction of Ascal himself.

He thought only Sirius knew his true identity.

But even that wasn’t a certainty.

‘What on earth happened…’

Sirius slowly approached.

“Uncle Carl. You were our hope and guiding light. All the children at the orphanage adored you. We drew strength from the support letters you sent.”

Ascal broke out in a cold sweat.

Although he had sent the donations, the accompanying letters were written by Lia.

This is a misunderstanding.

“If Eileen was our mother, you were our father. But one day, the support stopped.”

“The despair we felt was like being abandoned by our parents, perhaps even worse.”

“Was it because we were lazy? Because we were picky eaters? Because we overslept? Each of us reflected on our own wrongdoings.”

Regret filed the room.

And then.

One by one, boys and girls started to enter the magic training ground.

That one is Stephan.

That one is Rusanna.

And that one…

They were all original members of the orphanage, the core members of the anti-Empire forces.

Crina spoke up.

“I didn’t eat bread for a whole week, hehe. I cried every day in the corner until there were no more tears left. You know how there’s a limit to how many tears you can produce in a day? I surpassed that. Isn’t it funny?”

Desolation.​Crina gave Ascal a meaningful smile.

“After that, we all agreed to find out Uncle Carl’s identity. There was a chance he wasn’t disappointed in us but had unavoidable circumstances, right?”

“Sirius never told us, even if it killed him.”

“We tracked the letters, analyzed the gifts, ah, it was so hard because they were washed so many times.”

‘As expected of Lia. Even in such circumstances, you were still working hard…’

“But we finally found out. Uncle Carl was an even more amazing person than we thought. A minister of the Empire, a nobleman, someone everyone in the Empire knew by name.”

“But what’s the big deal? To us, Uncle Carl is just Uncle Carl.”

The children, now teenagers, slowly approached Ascal.

“We believed you would return one day. That you hadn’t abandoned us.”

“Now, stay with us forever...”

“My dear Uncle Carl...”

Now it was obsession.

“L-Lia, I’m here! Save me— Mmmp!”

But his cries did not reach.

Even with the experience of a Sword Master, Ascal could not withstand the group of future anti-Empire core members piling on him.

It felt like being attacked by ten large Golden Retrievers.

They rubbed their cheeks against him, hugged him, causing a commotion.

Amidst the chaos, Ascal’s hand reached out from the crowd, as if pleading for help.

Sirius turned away.

Eventually, the series of regret, desolation, and obsession that had been growing without Ascal’s knowledge was temporarily put on hold after a dramatic negotiation.

1. Ascal would resume his support for the academy—amount didn’t matter, but he had to include a handwritten support letter.

2. He would visit the academy at least once every three months—it was originally supposed to be once a month, but it was adjusted after tough negotiations.

3. He would teach the students as an instructor for a week—the salary was ridiculous, so Ascal barely managed to negotiate it down to minimum wage.

“Kids. Could you step aside a little?”

“No. You’re going to run away again, aren’t you?”

“This is the best spot.”

Even while stamping the agreement, the human Golden Retrievers clung to his arms and legs.

It felt like being a person holding delicious treats in a dog café.

“Karma, isn’t it?”

Lia gave a simple review.

While Ascal was held captive, Lia was taking care of other tasks.

“You’re an accomplice too. How on earth did you write those letters...”

“By the way, didn’t you come here for a purpose? Lord Ascal.”

Lia changed the subject.

​****

“In a few years, an ancient dragon will appear and ravage the Empire? There’s no evidence, though.”

“Yes.”

“So you’re gathering capable individuals to preemptively strike the dragon? Again, no evidence.”

“That’s right.”

“In any case, you want me to join the dragon subjugation because you think I have exceptional talent? No evidence, but yes.”

“Exactly.”

Sirius nodded.

“Very well.”

“Aren’t you accepting this too readily?”

Sirius smiled.

“To believe someone’s words, several factors are necessary. Whether the words are credible, whether there is supporting evidence, and most importantly, ‘who’ said them.”

In case they didn’t believe him, Ascal had prepared a mesmerizing illusion show to convince them, only to find it unnecessary.

“Then, I’ll be waiting, Uncle Carl.”

Sirius bowed deeply.

Ascal felt an odd sense of responsibility.

He shook his head slightly.

‘Just catch the ancient dragon and retire. Absolutely.’

****

“Come on, try to catch it!”

“Ugh, I can’t catch the ice cream.”

“Haha. Here it is.”

A man performed tricks with the ice cream before handing it to the customer. The onlookers, impressed, began to line up.

‘Even a mouse hole gets sunlight sometimes.’

He had saved money from working part-time at a steakhouse to open a small ice cream stand.

Capitalizing on the lack of such shops in the area, his business unexpectedly boomed.

‘At this rate, a comeback might not be impossible...’

Sometimes, the man would look into the distance.

He had left too much behind.

“I miss them.”

He was surprised at his own words.

They had come out unconsciously.

As the weather grew dim and the sun began to set, the man started to close up shop.

Then, he saw a notice on the ground.

“Looking for the Prince of the Night. If you have seen him or if you are him, please report to the authorities. Generous rewards will be given.”

“…Prince of the Night? What a pretentious name.”

“Oh. Are you interested in that too?”

A regular customer, eating ice cream, spoke up.

“But you should be careful. Many people claim to be the Prince of the Night, and countless have returned from the authorities beaten. Hanson next door couldn’t walk for a week.”

“Foolish people. Haha. Do you think they would impersonate someone so recklessly?”

“True. Well, the Prince of the Night is a sensation in the allied nations these days. Sometimes, people get so obsessed that they start believing they are him. Hahaha.”

“Hahahaha!”

As the regular customer left, the man’s expression turned serious.

He crumpled the notice and tossed it aside carelessly. His journey was far from over.

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