Part 8: Alright (5)

— “Feels like I’ve been possessed by a ghost.”

The Ego Dagger muttered in disbelief.

It was a complaint directed at the master.

— “How can a person change so much in just a few months?”

— “I told you, didn’t I? Aiden has never failed a mission.”

— “If it were an assassination mission, I wouldn’t have expected him to fail either.”

The Ego Dagger realized that Aiden had become a completely different person.

The Aiden it had observed all this time had no light in his soul.

Aiden was darkness and death—nothing more, nothing less.

But now, there was a light flickering in his soul. And the longer he stayed with his master, the brighter it became.

It meant his soul had matured.

Yet, the fact that humanity’s ultimate weapon had begun to develop emotions didn’t feel entirely reassuring.

Being “human” had its advantages, but it also came with just as many weaknesses.

Perhaps even his master didn’t realize this—

That the only reason Aiden had survived all this time was, paradoxically, because he had chosen to be nothing more than a cog in the wheel.

— “The Chaos Realm is starting to get on my nerves. How do you plan to deal with it?”

— “Aiden said he’d handle it. We have to trust him.”

— “So the Coordinator is just going to sit back and be lazy?”

— “Would you be saying that if you were there too? That world wasn’t something I could manage with my abilities alone.”

At the master’s protest, the Ego Dagger fell silent.

It wasn’t entirely wrong.

Even if the continent’s strongest warriors had been thrown into that bizarre space, not a single one would have survived.

If Aiden hadn’t chased after them…

The master wouldn’t have made it out alive, either.

— “Still, I’m uneasy. If the continent is ever destroyed, I bet the Chaos Realm will be behind it.”

— “That’s highly likely. And I’m sure there’s something even stronger lurking in there than that creepy jester.”

— “Can Aiden really handle the Chaos Realm?”

— “You’re worrying for nothing.”

— “What do you mean?”

— “If Aiden can’t handle it, we all die anyway. Did you think I told him about the Rogue Master’s treasure for no reason?”

— “That was a good call.”

For once, the Ego Dagger agreed.

Aiden possessed an absurd ability—the power to absorb Death Qi.

On top of that, he had one of the Rogue Master’s Five Great Treasures.

No matter how hard it thought about it…

It couldn’t imagine anything or anyone being able to handle Aiden.

Not even whatever monsters lurked in the Chaos Realm.

After their conversation ended, the master started whistling.

Compared to when he had left the guild, he looked far more cheerful now that he had returned.

Aiden’s retirement had clearly had a major effect on him.

Whether that was truly a good thing, though…

The Ego Dagger wasn’t so sure.

*  *  *

After returning to the tavern, Aiden’s daily routine remained unchanged.

He went on his morning runs at dawn, without fail.

He made breakfast for Cheese and focused on his work as a server.

He enjoyed pecan pie.

And whenever he had time, he climbed the tallest spire in town to gaze at the view below.

Ever since he met the master, the scenery had changed.

Looking down at the world from above, he could now see things he had never noticed before.

The world was surprisingly small.

And it moved according to its own kind of order.

Perhaps that was why the master had taken an interest in “Coordination.”

The higher he climbed, the smaller the world appeared.

And the order within it became even clearer.

It was only natural to want to reach out and shape it.

But was Coordination really the right answer?

Was precise Coordination even possible in the first place?

That question still lingered in his mind.

After finishing his work, Aiden often listened to the music box the master had given him as a gift.

In the past, he had desperately wanted a music box.

But now that he finally had one in his hands…

The melody didn’t sound quite as beautiful as he remembered.

The music hadn’t changed. Aiden had.

More than the melody, he simply liked the music box itself.

Because it wasn’t something he had bought.

It was something he had been given.

“Thank you for coming back, Aiden.”

One day, Carl expressed his gratitude.

“You don’t have to thank me. I said I’d come back, and I kept my promise.”

“To be honest, I wasn’t sure. I figured you might return… or you might not,” Carl chuckled awkwardly, revealing his true thoughts.

As expected, Carl never had any trouble expressing his emotions.

In the past, Aiden used to think people who wore their hearts on their sleeves were immature.

But not anymore.

Now, he knew—

People who could openly show their emotions were actually the bravest ones of all.

“Did you ever feel tempted to go back to the Thieves Guild?”

“It’d be a lie to say I wasn’t. I became friends with my master, after all.”

“Unbelievable. You always move fast, don’t you? Then why did you stay at the tavern?”

“Because, for now, I like being here with you more.”

“…Is it okay to confess like this?” Carl burst into laughter.

Aiden laughed too.

He no longer had to force a smile.

“The outside is getting noisy.”

“Hm? I don’t hear anything.”

“The soldiers are returning.”

Aiden moved toward the entrance and opened the door.

Moments later, dozens of exhausted, wounded soldiers passed through the main road.

The townspeople were already gathered, watching them in silence.

“So the Orc Subjugation Force has finally returned,” Carl stood beside Aiden and muttered.

“The Orc Subjugation Force?”

“Right before you arrived at the territory, a group of soldiers was deployed. There’s a place called Palette Forest at the edge of the land. Orcs have settled there. There was intel that they were heading south, so the soldiers were sent to eliminate them.”

“…Looks like they failed their mission.”

The soldiers’ morale was as low as the weapons they dragged across the ground.

All they left behind was an air of gloom.

“Yeah, it sure looks that way.”

“Is the territory’s military weak? Or were there just too many orcs?”

“Who knows? We’d have to hear the details.”

After their conversation, the two of them shut the entrance and returned to the counter.

Just then, Lyra stepped out of the kitchen, her expression unusually serious.

“Aiden, I need to talk to you for a bit.”

“Alright.”

Aiden followed her into the kitchen.

Lyra crossed her arms and remained silent for a long moment.

“I usually don’t pry into personal stuff… but today, I need to ask. You and my husband have your little secret conversations, and I’m feeling left out. Like that time you went out together.”

“……”

“Aiden, what did you do before coming to the tavern?”

She got straight to the point.

Aiden hesitated.

Carl was a mercenary, so it hadn’t been too difficult to admit he was a former assassin.

After all, both of them had been in situations where they had no choice but to kill people.

But Lyra…

Probably wouldn’t see it that way.

She might end up despising him.

Should he tell a white lie?

Or should he tell the truth?

The decision didn’t take long.

“I was an assassin.”

“…An assassin?”

“Yes. I took on missions to kill people. After I retired, I was looking for a place to stay… and that’s when I met Carl.”

Lyra’s eyes widened.

Her body stiffened on the spot.

Just as Aiden started thinking that hoping for understanding had been too much—

Lyra suddenly strode up to him and grabbed his wrists.

“Wait. Are you from the Thieves Guild?”

“Yes.”

“Have you ever heard the name Thoth?”

There was a desperate, almost sorrowful look in her eyes as she asked the question.

That was unexpected.

“You’re not surprised to hear about my past?”

“It was unexpected, sure, but now that I know, I actually feel relieved.”

“Why is that?”

“My older brother left home when we were young, saying he was going to join the Thieves Guild.”

At last, the mystery unraveled.

All the strange behavior Lyra had shown until now—there had been a reason for it.

“Your brother’s name is Thoth, then?”

“That’s right. Since you’re from the Thieves Guild, I thought maybe you’d know him.”

“I’ve never heard that name… I’m sorry.”

Aiden shook his head.

If Lyra’s brother left home when she was young, there was likely a significant age gap between him and Aiden.

If he were still alive, he would probably hold a high-ranking position within the guild.

And yet, Aiden had never heard his name.

Which meant… Thoth was—

“I just wanted to know how he’s doing… if he’s even alive. Sorry, I’ve been talking about myself too much.”

“There is a way to confirm whether your brother is alive.”

“Really?”

“But the result might not be what you hope for.”

“It’s okay. I can handle it.”

“Then take this.”

Aiden reached into the inner pocket of his coat, connected to his subspace.

What he pulled out was the last remaining use of Kato’s Compass.

“Hold this in your hand and think of your brother.”

“That’s all? Seems too easy.”

Lyra took the compass in her hand.

She brought it to her chest, clutching it tightly.

Then, she slowly opened her palm.

The compass needle didn’t move an inch.

And that night, the food Lyra made was unusually salty.

*  *  *

That midnight.

Aiden sat alone at the bar.

There weren’t many customers left.

A large group had just left, taking the noise with them.

The tavern fell into silence.

The remaining patrons were quiet.

Scratch. Scratch.

Aiden wrote in his journal with a feathered pen.

When he first started journaling, he used to write down every detail of his day.

But now, he had learned to focus only on the most memorable events.

And today, his journal entry was undoubtedly about Lyra.

Speak of the devil—

Lyra, who had been upstairs, descended to the first floor.

Since Lucy had left, Lyra had been the one to bring life into the tavern.

But tonight, she looked noticeably downcast.

“A beer, please.”

“Of course.”

Aiden poured her a drink and handed it over.

Lyra took a deep gulp.

“I reached out to the guild. It’s confirmed—your brother was once part of it.”

“I see… What did he do there?”

“He worked as an assassin.”

“So, just like you?” Lyra let out a bitter chuckle.

“What’s it like, living as an assassin?”

“Do you want me to be honest?”

“Yeah.”

“It’s hell. The training is brutal, and if you don’t kill, you die.”

“He lived in hell, then. I just… hope he found peace, even if it was in death.”

Lyra bit down hard on her lip.

The compass Aiden had given her had a special function.

If one held it and thought of a person, the needle would point in their direction.

But the needle hadn’t moved.

The meaning was clear.

“What kind of person was your brother?”

“He was bright and kind. I loved my oldest brother the most.”

“Then why would someone like that become an assassin…?”

“It was probably because of the lord.”

And so, Lyra’s story unfolded.

Her father had been a wealthy landowner in a certain territory.

But the lord had falsified documents and seized his land.

In a single day, their family was left destitute.

“My father took his own life, and my mother and younger brother were sold into slavery. Only my eldest brother and I managed to escape.”

“……”

“My brother left me at an orphanage and said he was going to join the Thieves Guild.”

When Lyra finished speaking, the magic lantern hanging from the tavern ceiling flickered.

Outside, the wind howled, rattling the entrance door.

Droplets of condensation slid down the surface of Lyra’s refilled beer mug.

Aiden gazed at her long eyelashes.

The shadows they cast seemed deeper than ever before.

Shadows he had never noticed before.

“Years later, when I was older, I went back to that land. They said the lord was dead.”

“Yes. I heard that your brother killed him. And in the process…”

Aiden swallowed the rest of his words.

In the past, he might have mocked Lyra’s brother’s incompetence, criticized his emotional decisions.

But now, he couldn’t.

Humans weren’t gears in a machine.

They couldn’t always follow a set path.

“Do you think your brother was happy after getting his revenge?”

“I don’t know.”

“I hope he was. He left me behind to pursue that goal, after all.”

“Do you resent him?”

“A little.”

Lyra downed the rest of her beer in one go.

She wiped the foam from her lips with the back of her hand.

“Sorry, Aiden. I wanted to hear about you, but I ended up rambling about myself again.”

“It’s fine. I was curious about your past anyway.”

“In my room earlier, I was thinking… Maybe, in a way, you came to find me in my brother’s place.”

“……”

“Don’t you think it’s strange? My brother was an assassin from the Thieves Guild, and so were you.”

“Maybe so.”

“I don’t have any issues with what you were. Let’s just get along from now on. But promise me, you’re done with that life.”

“I am.”

“Good.”

Lyra smiled weakly.

She stood up and headed toward the stairs.

Tonight, her shadow stretched long and dark.

Aiden glanced around at the other patrons.

They all had shadows, too.

Of course, Aiden had one as well.

No one was without a shadow.

Scratch. Scratch.

Aiden resumed writing in his journal, but then, his gaze shifted to the entrance.

A new customer had walked in.

A middle-aged man with an unkempt beard.

One of his sleeves was empty, fluttering limply by his side.
 

To be continued

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