All the sounds were stuck in his throat, and Tarber almost wanted to vomit his internal organs in a fit of dizziness.

It wasn't the corpses at his feet that scared him - not all. In the light of the fire, which suddenly dimmed after an instantaneous surge, he clearly saw the figure that appeared at some point, standing silently outside the light, in the darkness.

He couldn't see his face at all...... But he seemed to be able to feel the light blue eyes that had not changed in the slightest and were staring at him quietly.

It was a figure he couldn't have mistakenly recognized. Standing posture with the right hand resting on the sword...... He was more familiar with his back, the man he had looked up to and followed in those short years of knowing and pursuing true glory......

“...... This...... Kort ......"

The trembling sound drifted in the breeze, almost inaudible. Tabor's fingers spasmed into the rough, cracked bricks, suspecting that he was in a nightmare.

But no matter how hard he tried, he still couldn't wake up.

The figure in the darkness moved, approaching. The paladin who has been dead for nearly ten years...... The man he had dragged into the incinerator stood in front of him, stepping over the torch that was still dying.

-- That's really Scott Crieses.

The faint light of the fire cast his shadow in front of him, a face as young as ten years ago with heavy anger, the same short blonde hair, the same short beard...... The only difference is that his eyes are more golden, with a hint of aqua blue. It may have been a hallucination caused by the faint light of the fire.

He was so close that Taber could almost feel his breath - it was the living Scott. And not some angry ghost.

But for Tarbor, it was more terrible than the soul that lingered because of hatred.

There was an uncontrollably short gasp in his throat, like the last struggle of a dying man. Immobilized, Tabor was so desperate that he wanted to burrow into the incinerator - if death would allow him to escape the punishment of this moment. He would rather die.

Scott's gaze didn't linger on his face for long, though to Tarbor, the brief time seemed like a frozen eternity.

The paladin, who should have been dead for a long time, looked down at the ground. Lowell's naked upper body was dazzlingly white on the black dirt, but his expression was still serene.

Scott silently took off his coat and fell to one knee over the corpse of his former companion.

When he stood up and looked at Tabor again. Instead, Tarble calmed down.

His soul seemed to split in half, half screaming and begging for forgiveness or relief, half still reluctantly seeking answers...... and a glimmer of life.

“...... You shouldn't be here. He whispered. "You shouldn't be alive. ”

Scott looked around, his gaze resting on an incinerator closer to the edge of the heath.

“...... There you burn my body. He said, his tone frighteningly calm.

But Tabor could see the surging anger and burning hatred in his bright, fire-like eyes. For a moment he felt like his body had burned under Scott's gaze, turning to ashes little by little. Like he stood there ten years ago. Hot and cold, shivering, almost dazed, watching Scott's body engulfed in flames......

But Scott didn't turn to ashes, never.

No, as he told Ante, it turned to ashes, scattered in the wind, and fell into the river, leaving no trace.

He remembers it well. The flames never took long to extinguish, exposing the charred corpse beyond recognition. It was as if to make him see his sins again and again, and deep in his soul.

He tried again and again in despair, but no matter how much he threw in something flammable, poured oil on it, sprinkled it with wine...... All to no avail.

Finally, in a fit of rage, he dragged the body out and threw it from behind the incinerator. Behind the incinerator is a steep slope and below is the moat that surrounds Lockburg, connected by an aqueduct that leads to the Vinez River.

He was eerily calm as he listened to the muffled sound of the corpse falling into the water. At that time, he had not even thought about the destruction of corpses, the orders of the future king, the power and glory that had been promised...... He was simply angry.

It's not all his fault, why should he be left to face it all alone?

Then he went back to his room and fell asleep, not even washing the black and grease off his hands.

That night he slept so deeply that he didn't even have a dream. When he awoke, he calmly awaited the wrath of the goddess Nyo, and any punishment that came down from heaven—anyway, if the gods had seen this, someone would have been punished more cruelly than what awaited him.

But nothing happened.

He stood in the crowd as he watched Ante Bofford be crowned king, with a solemn and humble expression, as if he had a just, courageous, and holy soul as the most devout devotees of the gods had been sung by the bards.

Right beside him, the paladins who had fought alongside Scott clapped their hands and cheered.

He laughed out loud during the meal, but everyone thought it was because of irrepressible joy. Only Ante gave him a deep look and said nothing.

What would have happened if he had stood up and spoken out loud about the truth at that time?

After all, he chose to be silent after all, and chose to accept everything that Ante had reciprocated with peace of mind, burying that terrible memory deep in his heart.

Decade...... He had almost believed what Ante had told him in a trembling voice, "The gods are dead." ”

- But the gods are not dead. The person standing in front of him is the best proof of this.

"It's not my fault. He spoke with a sluggish expression, calm and desperate, "I'm just doing what I'm told." ”

The contempt in Scott's eyes made him embarrassed, but he still muttered and insisted, "I'm just doing what I'm told......"

Scott leaned over to pick up Lowell's body, took one last look at him, and disappeared into thin air in the blink of an eye.

The torch was completely extinguished, and in the darkness, Tabor was still clinging to the incinerator, staring blankly into the void in front of him, repeating over and over again: "I am only doing what I am told......".

The night dispersed, and the stars disappeared. At dawn, the light of the sky, which looms from the bottom of the water, is gentle and changeable, from reddish to golden, and gradually becomes lighter and brighter......

With a slight wave of his arms, Scott stepped out of the water and squinted in the bright sunlight.

Even if he is no longer a knight of the god of water, lying under the water can still calm him down. Iss had inadvertently mentioned that Ed had the same habit...... That can probably only be explained by blood.

When he saw the corpse under the tree not far away, the anger that was carried away by the flowing water erupted from the bottom of his heart again.

He had never expected another paladin to suffer the same fate—if it weren't for the fact that he had seen the fire in the wasteland outside the east gate as he left Lockburg, and suddenly wanted to find out uncontrollably, another crime would have been hidden in the night...... He didn't know if Lowell's soul would be able to accept it all in peace.

At least, he can't.

He should have killed Tabor. It's not just because of what Tabor has done and wanted to do...... Even if too many people already knew that he was alive, it would still be too early for Ante to know the news. But when he saw the fear and pleading in Tabor's eyes, he suddenly felt disgusted...... and a hint of mercy.

He is not worth his hands at all.

Maybe it's time for the truth to be exposed to the world - he wasn't ready yet, but he could feel that everything was like a summer flood that was approaching, moving faster and faster, and the more uncontrollable it became, and it might be better to go with the flow.

The last time he infiltrated Lockburg, he helped Rosa and the Elven Sword Dancer, though it wasn't clear why they had fallen into Lockburg. He had other urgent matters, and he didn't have time to delve into them. It was only in the tense atmosphere of Tonbutch City in the past few days that he realized that things might not be simple.

Although he is getting better at hiding and transmitting, secretly listening to news or something, it is still not what he is good at. Perhaps he should go back and ask Copass, who was much better informed than he was, even if he was far away.

What made him even more uneasy at the moment was whether Lowell's death had something to do with it—had he ever had a chance to save him from death?

He didn't know Rowell very well. At that time, Rowell had only been a paladin for less than a year, and he seemed to keep his distance from everyone, consciously or unconsciously, only Philip, who had a big grin and never knew what "distance" was, could say a few words to him. He didn't know exactly why Lowell died...... However, this is clearly related to Ante.

Ante Bofford - Every time he thinks of the man he once considered a friend, Scott always has a hard time controlling his desire for revenge...... But now is not the time.

He even began to feel that it didn't matter if he could get revenge, as he had more and more things to worry about. He who should be destroyed is destined to be destroyed...... What should be passed away is destined to pass away.

Strength flowed through the blood, like some kind of seductive call. Scott walked over to Lowell's corpse and crouched down, hesitating.

He could bring him back to life - he knew he could do it, but was that right?

As he watched his body be stuffed into the incinerator like garbage, and began to twist in the flames, the anger and hatred were so intense that he gave up the peace he could have gotten and chose another path...... He doesn't regret it, but does he have the right to make decisions on behalf of another soul?

The deceased have a destiny, and the living cannot be forced......

After a moment's hesitation, Scott picked up Lowell's body again - for the clergy, the shell of a lost soul doesn't matter...... But it still deserves a better home.

(To be continued......)