Turning Chapter 1005

Chapter 1005

Nahan opened his eyes.

He found himself in a grand building with a high ceiling, far removed from the familiar styles of the Orr Empire. Among the noisy crowd, a woman's face, staring directly at him, captured Nahan's attention.

She was a beautiful middle-aged woman, her features as finely sculpted as a piece of art. Her face bore a striking resemblance to Nahan's own reflection in a mirror. Specifically, it mirrored the unscarred half of his face.

As Nahan quietly observed her through his blurred vision, the woman raised her hand and extended two fingers.

"Can you tell me how many fingers I'm holding up? Blink in response."

Nahan blinked slowly twice. A complex, yet clear sign of relief briefly crossed the woman's face.

"So you have regained consciousness. Finally..."

The woman, who had silenced the previously loud crowd, sat down and spoke again once the surrounding noise had died down.

"You fell into our trade guild's midland, closer to death than to life. Luckily, I was there and recognized you immediately."

"..."

"You must be my sister's son, 'Asazan', right?"

Nahan's ears rang with a name he hadn't heard in a long time. Unfamiliar, yet painfully familiar.

Yes. Nahan knew that name.

It was his original name, the one he had before he declared himself Nahan. It reminded him of all the detestable experiences he had endured due to his southern land blood. Strangely, the intense anger and chill he usually felt when recalling these events were absent.

In the strange sensation of his chest feeling empty, as if it had always been filled with boiling emotions, Nahan tried to use his power, which was like his own limbs, to probe his insides. However, similarly... this time too, he couldn't grasp anything.

‘...’

Even with his head that had been dully stiffened as if to block out the pain, Nahan felt an indescribably deep sense of loss and a strange feeling of futility at that moment.

Observing Nahan's reaction, the woman closed her eyes tightly and then opened them as if affirming something.

"I am Rauma Asan Roel, the owl's wing on the highest tree. I am your mother's younger sister. Have you heard of us?"

Calm eyes objectively examining the state of the unfamiliar foreigner. However, the strange warmth embedded within them was so unfamiliar and strange that it made Nahan feel unbearable. He eventually slowly parted his lips. After several attempts, he managed to let out something resembling language, albeit with great difficulty, amidst his wheezing breath.

"How... am I..."

Still alive.

The woman seemed to easily guess the meaning and answered.

"At first, it was a condition where it was strange that you didn't die. But the most excellent healer of our tribe succeeded in saving you. Of course, as with all things, a price was required..."

"..."

The woman exhaled softly and continued.

"The healer said that there was no desire to live felt from you at all. But at the same time, traces of power similar to what they possessed were also felt. We sent people to the north to find out what had happened... Those searching for the escaped wanted person were describing someone with the same appearance and attire as you. So we didn't approach any further than that."

"..."

"In these chaotic times, when we pondered whether to open our doors to the wolves who claimed that an ancient faith had finally responded and provided answers, your arrival from the north and miraculous survival must hold some significance. The owl's wing embraces everything impartially."

"..."

"You can rest for now and we can talk more after you recover further."

The woman, murmuring words Nahan couldn't comprehend, stood up and walked away, leaving him alone.

The pain assaulting his entire body. The disappeared power. The thick medicinal scent that made his head ache.

Amidst that, he slowly looked back on the last memories he had experienced before he opened his eyes.

The hail that beat his body. Shouts. Anger. Hatred. Vengeance. Murderous intent. Calmness. Boredom.

The thin voice that called out to him while crying. The apologetic voice that trembled yet somehow flowed out. The grim reaper-like voice that coldly sentenced him to death. The smell of blood.

Among all those jumbled voices, Nahan focused all his attention on the particularly familiar and thin voice. The voice that had been blurry gradually began to come back to him after a long effort.

…

“...Young Master wouldn't know. Some time ago, there was a person who came from a southern trade company and told me to come find them there if Young Master ever went south…”

“I knew the name of the place... It was a tribal trade company where I had briefly lived as a child... Everyone said it was a good place…”

“I thought that person might be someone connected to Young Master's mother... I should have sent you there long ago... Even if I thought it wasn't Young Master's wish, I should have sent…”

“Why am I always like this... Stupid and stupid. I always regretted that choice back then…”

“But still... Still, I... I will be of use…”

“It's not over yet…”

“I will send you there…”

“I can do it. I can…”

The rambling that sounded like a madman, yet at the same time, so desperate.

At the end of that rambling, the voice said this.

“There, please... the dream you wished for in the past…”

An explosion.

And the pain that felt like eternity.

Nahan opened his closed eyes again. The unfamiliar ceiling still greeted him.

He stared at the empty sand-colored ceiling like that for a very long time.

—

Finally, the day to leave the Cavalry's Southern Branch was just one day away.

While the remaining members, excluding those who would stay at the branch, were each busy, Yuder also spent time finishing up his work.

"Hello, Commander. Commander’s Assistant. I came to report the trial results that came out yesterday."

The first person to visit the Commander's office, where the luggage that had increased was now almost gone, was Cyregina. Once a member of the Nukijo gang that operated an illegal fighting ring, but now free from there and having regained her original name, her face was calm and composed as always.

"Originally, I would have received the death penalty or a long sentence of exile and hard labor like the other Nukijo members... But thanks to the value of the information I provided during the investigation and the efforts to save people during the Day of Hail and the Blue Wall of Despair, my sentence was reduced."

The secret ledgers of Nukijo and other top-secret information voluntarily provided by Cyregina were of great help in cracking down on the rampant illegal organizations in Charloin. It effectively halted attempts to smuggle drugs and led to the closure of all illegal fighting rings, ensuring that the South would not succumb to the corruption of entertainment like in its past.

As a result, Cyregina was ultimately sentenced to 7 years of hard labor while receiving protection and supervision from the Cavalry and utilizing her abilities as an Awakener. There was no dissatisfaction felt on Cyregina's face as she delivered the news.

"I see. So that's how it turned out."

"When I was on trial, several new members of the Southern Branch testified for me. In addition, I heard that the Cavalry also considered my circumstances in many ways and conveyed the intention that there is no possibility of me committing the same crime. So... I wanted to personally greet you before you return to the capital."

He remembered being quite surprised when he heard that fellow Awakeners had voluntarily come forward as witnesses at the trial.

'But it's not thanks she's offering, it's a greeting. She really hasn’t changed.'

People like her do not turn a blind eye to the crimes they have committed. They do not use the excuse that they were in an unavoidable situation with their friends being held hostage, but they know that they would do the same if they went back.

"The oath of someone like me may not be necessary for you two... But since I have been given a second chance to live, I will live up to it and for the path the Cavalry is taking. That's all I can do. Please stay healthy."

Cyregina bowed deeply. Kishiar, who had been staring at her, asked with an inscrutable smile.

"Did you happen to tell Reneve that the sentence was confirmed like that?"

Cyregina blinked as if perplexed and shook her head.

"...No."

"Then, how about going and telling her directly as soon as you leave here?"

"Pardon? But..."

"Didn't you just say that you would live for the path the Cavalry is taking?"

"That's right, but..."

"Then do that. And I'd like you to repeat exactly what you just said to me and the Assistant. It's not an order, but, hmm. Yes. Let's call it a recommendation."

Cyregina was silent for a moment. But she didn't say she couldn't do it.

The fact that she accepted that recommendation was evident enough through Reneve's tear-stained face that appeared not long after.