The Villain’s Aide Has Run Away

Passages from novels kept resurfacing in Leslun’s mind, fueling his imagination.

After all, this world was originally that of a fantasy novel. There might exist bizarre methods of torture that even he didn’t know of.

“A mortal sin. You have so many that I hardly know where to begin.”

The Crown Prince let out a hollow laugh as he skimmed through the documents he had brought.

For Leslun, it meant there was no hope of survival anywhere.

“But really, what would be the point of charging you with all of them? You only have one life.”

It was like breaking off one branch after another from the many sprouting off a single tree: execution for this crime, execution for that one. Yet Leslun had no spare lives to be taken piece by piece.

“I’ll ask about the gravest offense. You kidnapped Lady Miroi.”

Had she made it back safely? Instead of answering, Leslun blinked and lowered his gaze to the floor.

“The Count’s list of crimes is quite extravagant. From extortion to tax evasion—you haven’t left anything undone.”

“A mortal sin I have committ—”

“If you’re only going to give the same answer, then keep your mouth shut.”

Though his tone carried no rise or fall, Leslun’s body flinched as if struck by a whip.

Having already incurred Kailos’s wrath, there was nothing more he could do. With the weight of his crimes heavy upon him, he bowed his head humbly.

If nothing else, he wished the end would be quick. A clean beheading would be fastest.

His nose stung. If there had been a past life, perhaps there might be a next one too. That was fine, but leaving this world without saying farewell to those he cared for was a pain that split his heart.

No, realizing his past life only made it worse. He had thrown away countless chances at survival, scattering them like dust in the air.

An unbearable swell of emotion rose up inside him. Was this truly to be his fate?

“If you have nothing else to say, I’m growing bored.”

At the Crown Prince’s icy voice, cold enough to make the hairs at his nape stand on end, Leslun bowed his head even lower. He felt that if he dared raise it, something dreadful would happen, yet the emotions surging within dragged him further down.

If only… if only I had realized a little sooner.

No matter how he tried to endure it, his throat felt as though it were burning away; he couldn’t draw breath properly. Ensnared by despair, he realized his eyes were growing hot.

…No. Is this really the end?

He clenched his fists so tightly his knuckles went white. Was there truly no chance left to cling to life, even a little longer?

At the very least—shouldn’t there be a chance to beg for his family’s lives?

“A final chance—”

“I should be the one grateful.”

Their voices overlapped.

“What is it you’re grateful for?”

“Not me—Your Highness should be grateful to me.”

Ha. A scoff fell from the Crown Prince above Leslun’s bowed head.

And this, this jumbled phrase dragged out of a haze of half-remembered novels, was all he could manage to say. Leslun bit his lip hard.

“Quite a bold claim.”

At least he had piqued Kailos’s interest. Where that interest might lead him, he couldn’t yet know.

“In time, Your Highness truly will thank me.”

It wasn’t a lie. Though it hadn’t been his intention, by saving Miroi he had kept the Crown Prince from fastening the first button on the path to ruin.

“You speak as though you’ve known me for years.”

“If you would give me a chance to explain—”

It was then—

“And why should I?”

The Crown Prince cut him off.

“I was curious what sort of man the Count’s aide would be. It seems you’re nothing more than a braggart.”

Even if he claimed to know Kailos’s future, would it be believed here? The impulsive words he had let slip felt instead like a noose tightening around his throat. For a moment, he couldn’t breathe.

“Raise your head.”

But fear had locked up his body, leaving him unable to move.

“Do you know what happens when you disobey an order…?”

Kailos reached out and forced his chin upward, only to halt.

Large eyes rimmed with precarious tears, lips trembling despite desperate restraint, the unexpected sight made the Crown Prince’s brows knit faintly.

His voice wavered slightly as he continued, his head tilting just so, eyes narrowed in hesitation.

“…Must I tell you later, then.”

The Crown Prince’s thumb brushed across Leslun’s damp cheek. Only then did Leslun realize he was crying. And knowing it only made the tears fall harder.

“So you cry like this just to make me look at you.”

The words came again, but tinged now with a trace of confusion.

Even the hand gripping his chin lost its strength. With nowhere else to put it, Kailos stroked his jaw briefly, his expression knotting into something complicated.

“It might have been amusing. But that face of yours spoils the mood.”

Yet even as he said it, his eyes remained fixed on Leslun, unblinking.

And seeing the troubled Crown Prince so close before him, Leslun, for all his dire plight, could not help but find it strangely fascinating. Absurdly enough, the tears vanished in an instant.