Chapter 29

Chapter 29. The First Hero (23)

Kosdal stormed down the castle corridor with heavy, furious footsteps.

The maid guiding him had shrunk under the pressure of his anger.

"You said demons caused this? Didn't they retreat?"

Kosdal had learned about the demon invasion and tried to join the battlefield late.

But before he could even arrive, the demons had already withdrawn.

No matter how many times he asked, the maid only repeated that the kingdom had become like this because of the demons.

She looked as though she was struggling even to walk properly, so Kosdal finally stopped questioning her.

Instead, he swallowed his anger.

What the hell were they doing for two years to let the kingdom end up like this?

Kosdal's anger hadn't faded at all since leaving the orphanage.

If anything, it had continued growing all the way to the castle.

"Master! I've been waiting for you! You have no idea how long Her Majesty has been waiting too!"

The maid's face brightened.

It was Nir, Serina's escort knight.

"What do you mean, waiting?! What were you doing while things became this bad?!"

Kosdal immediately unleashed his frustration on Nir.

"We asked you to come several times."

Nir knew Kosdal well.

She knew that if she spoke honestly, her master would usually control his anger.

His Majesty Daltan told him to come too.

His younger sister called for him, and even I told him I wanted to see my master's face.

The words of King Daltan urging Kosdal to travel together echoed through Kosdal's mind.

He pushed the thoughts aside.

"Forget it! What happened here?! Do you know what kind of rumors are spreading outside?!"

"Yes. I do."

Nir answered sharply and without hesitation.

No matter how angry Master gets, if I tell him the truth, he'll calm himself down.

Nir looked directly at Kosdal.

The maid watching the two suddenly sensed danger.

"I-I'll be leaving now."

She carefully looked toward Kosdal.

Still frowning, Kosdal gave a small nod of permission.

Tap-tap-tap-tap.

The maid quickly ran away.

Watching her disappear down the corridor, Kosdal spoke again.

"My sister knows the rumors outside too?"

"Which rumor are you referring to?"

Kosdal looked at Nir in confusion.

Was there another rumor besides the one claiming that the Rice Ball Guild had taken over the Terk Kingdom?

Were there even worse rumors?

"There's more than one?"

"Do you mean the rumor that His Majesty Haiman handed the Terk Kingdom over to Count Thornjer and the Rice Ball Guild while he spends his time relaxing?"

"He's relaxing?!"

"Isn't that the rumor you meant? Then are you talking about the rumor that Queen Serina enjoys cake and tea every afternoon?"

"My sister doesn't even know how the people of the territory are living?! I should beat her calves!"

"Does it make any sense for the first thing you say after coming back for the first time in two years to be that you'll beat the Queen's calves, oppa?"

Serina had come out after hearing the commotion.

Beside her stood Tern, Knight Commander of the Terk Kingdom.

Kosdal exchanged a greeting with Tern through their eyes.

Then he focused on Serina.

"I heard something on the way here. What does it mean that the Rice Ball Guild has taken over the Terk Kingdom?"

"Oppa, you finally come back after two years, and the first thing you say is that you'll beat my calves and start digging at my wounds. Did you even think about how hard I've had it?"

"You're the one to talk! You're the one who asked why I had to keep serving His Majesty Daltan and suggested I just live here in the Terk Kingdom with you instead!"

Kosdal's voice rose.

"I wasn't planning to stay away for two years. I was planning not to come back until you apologized."

Serina had once suggested that Kosdal stay in the Terk Kingdom with her.

She had asked why King Daltan mattered so much.

She had insisted that Kosdal could surely do that much for his younger sister.

Kosdal could still remember every word.

And after two years, Serina didn't seem to have changed at all.

She told me to abandon His Majesty Daltan and come to the Terk Kingdom.

She still doesn't understand how wrong that was.

Serina looked irritated rather than apologetic.

"If you had been here, my husband might not have lost his leg..."

She bit her lip.

"Anyway, oppa, why did you come? Are you here to apologize?"

Talking to a younger sister who had no idea which of them should be apologizing made Kosdal feel as though his insides were turning over.

He decided to go directly to the person he actually needed to speak to.

"Where is His Majesty Haiman?"

"Why?"

"I think it would be better if I spoke with His Majesty Haiman."

"No."

Serina's answer was immediate.

Kosdal glared at her.

As a Knight Commander, he didn't bother suppressing his presence.

Serina, a queen, met that pressure head-on without stepping back.

"If you apologize for what you said about His Majesty Daltan, I won't go find King Haiman."

"Why should I apologize? I said it for my husband."

"If you really care about your husband, do you know about the rumors currently spreading?"

Kosdal's gaze hardened.

"Judging by Nir's answer, it sounds like you do."

"Nir! What is he talking about?"

"Anyone who enters the castle can hear those rumors, can't they?"

"Even now you're taking oppa's side? You know whose escort knight you are, right? You don't actually believe rumors, do you?"

Nir couldn't immediately give her usual sharp answer.

Serina became irritated at her hesitation.

My husband is staying up all night drawing mana circuits, and no one even acknowledges how hard he's working.

Serina remembered Haiman desperately working.

She knew the outside of the castle had been in chaos for the last two years.

But Nir was her escort knight.

Serina didn't like her attitude.

"Nir!"

"If Master threatens you, I'll draw my sword."

"Why don't we stop here?"

Sir Tern stepped between Kosdal and Serina.

Their gazes crackled against each other.

Neither one's pressure weakened.

After standing there for a moment, Tern gave up and stepped back.

"I've survived on dry bread."

Serina clenched her fists.

"I'm doing everything I can not to interfere with my husband's work!"

"So did you take care of the people?"

"Oppa, is that really what's important to you?"

"No."

Kosdal wanted the people of the Terk Kingdom to live well.

But that wasn't why he'd mentioned them.

She knows I'm criticizing King Haiman for failing to care for his people, and yet she's still reacting like this.

Kosdal knew Serina wasn't stupid enough to misunderstand something so obvious.

"No? Then what is it?"

Whenever the matter involved Haiman, Serina's judgment seemed to become clouded.

Kosdal shook his head.

Then he answered.

"What's important is hearing my younger sister apologize for telling me to abandon His Majesty Daltan and come here."

When it came to King Daltan, Kosdal never backed down.

Even after hearing how difficult and painful things had been for his sister, he still refused.

That was the entire reason he hadn't come to the Terk Kingdom for two years.

"Then if I apologize, you won't meet my husband and you'll train the knights instead?"

"They aren't training?"

Kosdal turned toward Tern.

Tern met Serina's eyes.

Then he sighed.

Kosdal didn't like the sigh, but he needed to hear the answer.

So he only frowned.

"This isn't something we should explain here. You'll understand once you see the training."

In other words, the knights' training condition was so terrible it couldn't properly be described in words.

Kosdal nodded.

Then he turned back toward Serina, who still looked dissatisfied.

"The guards weren't performing their duties properly either. I'll train them too."

"Oppa, do you really need an apology that badly? Can't you just do this for your only little sister?"

"Go ask Father."

Serina's lips moved.

He knows if I tell Dad, he'll destroy half the Terk Kingdom!

She bit her lower lip so hard that it was obvious how much she hated saying what came next.

But she thought about her husband.

Then she spoke.

"I'm sorry. I didn't understand how you felt, and telling you to come live in the Terk Kingdom was too careless of me."

"Say, 'I was careless. I'm sorry.'"

Kosdal immediately corrected the wording that sounded as though she were trying to soften her responsibility.

Serina let out a long breath.

Then she spoke again.

"I was careless. I'm sorry."

Had Serina ever said the words I'm sorry before?

Come to think of it... no.

Kosdal was genuinely shocked by the realization.

Serina had grown up showered in their father's love within the Hart family.

Whenever Kosdal pointed out something she'd done wrong, Serina would simply tell their father that her older brother was bullying her.

Then their father would take her side.

For the first time in his life, Kosdal had received an apology from Serina.

"This still doesn't feel like enough, but it was a conversation between the two of us, and His Majesty Daltan never heard it."

Kosdal nodded.

"We'll end it here."

"Keep your promise."

Tears began falling from Serina's eyes.

She wiped them again and again with her sleeve, refusing to look defeated.

But the tears wouldn't stop.

Serina had grown up under the protection of the Hart family without lacking anything.

Her hatred of losing probably made it worse.

Serina hated losing to anyone.

Instead of apologizing, she always preferred proving herself through achievement.

Now that Kosdal had finally forced an apology out of her, he decided to offer some consolation.

"Little sister."

"What?!"

"Being able to apologize for someone else's sake is proof that you're strong. It's not something you need to cry about in frustration."

"You don't get to say something cool after forcing your little sister to apologize and pretend that changes anything! You could've just helped me!"

"Should we go to the training ground?"

"Oppa, don't ignore me!"

"Yes, I'm leaving."

Kosdal headed toward the training ground with Tern.

Smoke rose from the cauldron meant for intermediate-grade monsters.

The Rice Ball Guild's training ground was packed with people.

Some sat at tables.

Others stood in line, waiting for their turn.

Hae-reun and the orphanage children carried bowls of Wild Pig Soup in exchange for money.

They worked together surprisingly well.

"At first they spilled the soup, but they're doing well now."

"I asked them about it. Apparently they were so focused on trying their hardest for the Director that they rushed and spilled things."

Seongchan listened to Na-ye and Hae-reun talking.

They made mistakes constantly at first.

The children had moved because they wanted to help Hae-reun.

It was their first time serving food.

Whenever they made a mistake, they immediately stood back up.

They watched Hae-reun clean the mess and apologize.

Then they learned to apologize with her.

Eventually, they learned how to properly carry the bowls.

Seongchan had watched the entire process.

"Even their impatience is adorable."

"Right?"

As their conversation ended, Seongchan reached toward his high-grade subspace pouch to pull out Wild Pig meat.

Then he stopped.

"We used it all."

There was no Wild Pig meat left.

He looked at the crowd of customers and the cauldron of boiling Wild Pig Soup.

Then he made a decision.

"We'll accept only twenty more customers."

"What happened?"

"We're out of meat."

Na-ye asked curiously.

The moment Seongchan said there was no meat left, the children's expressions stiffened.

Hae-reun looked almost exactly the same.

They seemed unable to hide their disappointment.

To them, it sounded like the end of several happy days.

"Why are you all making faces like that?"

"We'll need to leave for a while to get more Wild Pig meat, right? I think that's why."

"You don't need to worry about that."

A voice rang out.

"I expected this, so I brought Wild Pigs in advance!"

Seongchan looked toward the speaker.

Park Seokdu stood there with a sly expression.

It was the face of someone who had waited a long time for everything to unfold exactly according to plan.

I've been waiting for this day.

Park Seokdu was excited.

He believed he was about to win one platinum.