May Every Wound Be Fatal - Chapter 38.2
The rebellion, which had started in a small village where a few Dochioin had survived the massacre, was expected to be quickly suppressed by Leonard’s soldiers.
However, contrary to everyone’s expectations, it escalated into a civil war.
There were forces supporting the Dochioin. They could not be attributed to a single person.
Previously, Leonard had killed two kings and five princes, and all those who had followed them. As if fearing any consequences, he had spared no one, neither the elderly, women, nor children.
Yet each time, a very small number survived.
The deeper Leonard’s crimes became, the more enemies he clearly had.
They were aiding the Dochioin.
When Diegor struggled against the Dochioin, Leonard had no choice but to take the mercenaries stationed in Elmaril and return to Kaldirac.
Meanwhile, as civil war broke out, pirates appeared in the south, and battles erupted along the previously quiet borders across the rivers.
It was then that Elizer, who had been quietly waiting for the right moment, finally moved.
The young king allied himself with the old nobles, who had been holding their breath under the duke’s authority, and personally led his forces to the battlefield.
The kingdom of Eldamar had originally been home to four ducal families.
However, over the course of two reigns, two of the ducal families were annihilated, leaving only the Dazbel and Winble families.
If Leonard held the pinnacle of power as the king’s chief advisor, then Duke Alberic of Winble was the commander defending the southwestern border.
At the time Leonard gained power, Alberic seemed entirely uninterested in central politics and had secluded himself in his territory of Darmor, quietly guarding the border.
In the meantime, his hair had turned completely white, and deep wrinkles lined his face. Yet he had not forgotten his ambitions.
Therefore, Elizer chose Alberic.
And Alberic, who had quietly waited for decades, did not miss the opportunity presented to him.
Leonard, who regarded the king as his pawn, was furious when he heard the news.
“I knew he was insane, but I did not expect him to be this foolish.”
He opposed the king going to the battlefield, since his daughter Reyna had not yet conceived a prince.
Leonard hurriedly sent people to Elmaril, attempting once again to control the king by holding his sister-in-law hostage. It was useless.
“Your Highness.”
Reyna visited him every day.
Yet Elizer did not meet her even once, leaving for the battlefield.
He had to atone.
***
The war could have ended quickly, but Elizer delayed until he found Priscilla.
During that time, knights swore loyalty to him. It was also then that he saved the dying Lyman and took him as his shadow.
After two full years of searching, Elizer finally located Priscilla.
During those two years of exile, she had safely given birth to Cassian’s child. It was undoubtedly a miracle. And the one who had made that miracle possible was Marius Percy.
Marius had long lost one eye and an arm, and had deep wounds on his abdomen, yet he was still alive when Elizer found Priscilla.
“…Marius.”
Elizer felt a moment of joy that he was alive, but seeing the once-strong man now as fragile as a twig, waiting for death, he could say nothing.
No joking words or grim expressions were exchanged between them.
Instead, Marius, with a dazed face, suddenly asked,
“Of my wife and children, did anyone survive?”
Elizer bowed his head and wept silently.
“I see. I understand.”
As if expecting this, Marius did not shed tears. He just stared blankly into the air, and after a long while, moved his lips again.
“I am sorry, Elizer.”
“……”
“…No more.”
Marius wished for death. He had been holding on with the single hope that his family might still be alive. Elizer could not ask him to endure even a little longer.
That night, Marius Percy passed away.
Priscilla seemed completely dazed, overwhelmed by the death of the knight who had protected her all this time. Her child squirmed uncomfortably in her arms.
The boy, like Elizer, had platinum hair and blue eyes, showing his royal blood. He walked well and, thankfully, appeared healthy.
That child was Lucian. In his smiling face, one could see Cassian.
“I will somehow restore everything to its rightful place.”
Elizer knelt before Priscilla and Lucian and vowed,
“I will devote my life to protecting Your Highnesses.”
The young Lucian became his lord.
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