Morning came.
The sunlight slipped through the curtains of Levi's bedroom.
The room was quiet.
For once, there were no urgent knocks on the door.
No guards reporting unusual activity.
No documents waiting to be signed.
Just silence.
And a certain lord who had absolutely no intention of waking up anytime soon.
Unfortunately...
That peace wouldn't last.
"...Mmm."
Levi slowly opened his eyes.
He stared at the ceiling.
For several seconds...
He did absolutely nothing.
Then he blinked.
Once.
Twice.
'...My room?'
He slowly turned his head.
His familiar furniture.
His wardrobe.
His bedside table.
His bed.
He looked down at himself.
He was wearing the same clothes from last night.
'...'
His expression gradually changed.
'How did I get here?'
He tried to remember.
The documents.
The candle.
The office.
And then...
Nothing.
"...Ah."
He covered his face with one hand.
"I fell asleep."
He sat up.
Immediately, a wave of exhaustion reminded him that his body hadn't fully recovered.
Levi paused.
"...Right."
The battle.
The enormous expenditure of mana.
The fight against Eyeless.
And the light that had consumed the entire battlefield.
He stared at his hands.
They were steady.
But his body still felt heavy.
'So much for being careful with my mana.'
He sighed.
Then...
He threw the blanket aside.
Time to work.
Or so he thought.
The moment he opened his bedroom door...
"Good morning, my lord."
A guard stood nearby.
Levi nodded.
"Morning."
He took one step forward.
"Where is Gaius?"
"Lord Gaius is in the dining hall."
"Good. Tell him I"
"No."
Levi stopped.
"...What?"
The guard remained perfectly straight.
"Lord Gaius instructed us to inform you that you are to eat breakfast before returning to work."
Levi stared at him.
"...He did?"
"Yes, my lord."
"And if I refuse?"
The guard hesitated.
Then answered with the solemnity of a man delivering a royal decree.
"He said he would personally drag you back to the dining hall."
Levi closed his eyes.
'That bastard.'
"...Understood."
He walked toward the dining hall.
At least he could still move around his own castle.
Probably.
---
The dining hall was already occupied.
Gaius sat at one end of the table, eating breakfast while examining a few reports.
Beside him were several documents.
Of course.
Even during breakfast, the man was working.
Levi approached.
"You're one to talk."
Gaius didn't even look up.
"Good morning to you too."
"You ordered the guards to stop me from working?"
"Yes."
"Why?"
Gaius finally raised his head.
He stared at Levi.
Then...
He slowly put down his spoon.
"Do you remember what happened last night?"
"I fell asleep."
"In your chair."
"Apparently."
"With your neck bent at an angle that would make a physician weep."
Levi looked away.
"...It wasn't that bad."
Gaius stared at him.
"Your arm was hanging off the chair."
"..."
"Your papers were on the floor."
"..."
"And you were so exhausted that I had to carry you to your bed."
Levi sat down.
"...Thank you."
Gaius raised an eyebrow.
"You're welcome."
A brief silence followed.
Then Levi reached for a piece of bread.
Gaius watched him.
"Eat properly."
"I am eating properly."
"You've taken one bite."
Levi took another.
"There."
Gaius sighed.
"You're impossible."
"And you're annoying."
"Good. At least you're awake enough to recognize that."
For the first time that morning...
Levi smiled faintly.
It didn't last long.
But Gaius noticed.
He returned to his breakfast without commenting on it.
Sometimes...
That was enough.
---
After breakfast, Levi attempted to return to his office.
Attempted.
Because Gaius was waiting outside the dining hall.
Arms crossed.
Expression unimpressed.
Levi stopped.
"...Seriously?"
"Seriously."
"I have work."
"So do I."
"Then go do it."
"I am."
Gaius gestured toward a nearby window.
"Your work today is to sit down, recover, and let the people you've appointed do their jobs."
Levi frowned.
"They can handle the routine matters. But the Black Church-"
"Will still be there tomorrow."
Levi's expression hardened.
"You don't know that."
"No. I don't."
Gaius stepped closer.
"But I know that if you collapse again, you'll be of no use to anyone."
Levi remained silent.
Gaius continued.
"You fought through the night. You used more mana than you should have. And you barely gave yourself time to recover before burying yourself in paperwork."
"..."
"You defeated Eyeless, Levi. That doesn't mean you have to defeat the entire world before lunch."
Levi looked away.
For a moment...
He had no response.
Because Gaius was right.
And that was precisely what made him irritating.
"...Fine."
Gaius blinked.
"Fine?"
"I'll rest."
"Without secretly returning to your office?"
Levi gave him an offended look.
"Do you think I'm a child?"
"Would you like me to answer honestly?"
"...I hate you."
Gaius laughed.
"Go outside. Get some fresh air."
Levi reluctantly turned away.
Behind him, Gaius called out.
"And don't train!"
Levi raised one hand.
"YES, FATHER!"
Gaius's expression darkened.
"WHAT WAS THAT?"
Levi walked faster.
For the first time in days...
The castle halls were filled with laughter.
---
The training grounds were quiet.
The morning sun illuminated the scorched earth.
Some sections had already been cleared of debris, but the marks left by the battle remained.
Cracked stone.
Burnt grass.
Deep grooves in the ground.
And in the center...
The broken sword.
It remained exactly where Levi had planted it.
Untouched.
The guards had obeyed his orders.
No one had moved it.
No one had attempted to repair it.
No one had treated it as scrap.
It stood as a memorial to the warrior who had fallen there.
Levi approached slowly.
His footsteps echoed against the stone.
He stopped before the blade.
For a while...
He simply looked at it.
He remembered the great sword Eyeless had carried.
The dark mana.
The relentless attacks.
The way he had continued fighting despite everything.
And finally...
The moment when the darkness inside him had broken.
Levi lowered his gaze.
'You were strong.'
There was no denying that.
Eyeless had pushed him further than almost anyone else.
His endurance.
His instincts.
His mastery of mana.
Even without his sight, he had fought with terrifying precision.
But that wasn't what Levi remembered most.
It was the final moment.
The moment when Eyeless had finally understood.
He didn't need to be the strongest.
He didn't need to keep fighting.
He didn't need to live for the sake of a lie.
He only needed to be himself.
Levi slowly reached out.
His fingers stopped just short of the broken blade.
"...You fought well."
The wind passed through the training grounds.
The grass swayed.
For a moment...
Levi thought he could almost hear the clash of swords again.
Then the memory faded.
He withdrew his hand.
"I hope you found what you were looking for."
He turned away.
But before he could take another step...
"My lord?"
Levi looked over his shoulder.
One of the children stood at the entrance to the training grounds.
It was Elias.
The boy hesitated before approaching.
"Are you... alright?"
Levi studied him.
Then he smiled faintly.
"I'm fine."
Elias looked toward the broken sword.
"...Is that his?"
"Yes."
"The man you fought?"
Levi nodded.
Elias lowered his head.
"I heard the guards talking about him."
Levi waited.
"They said he was really strong."
"He was."
"And that you had to use a really powerful attack to defeat him."
Levi glanced at the sword.
"...I did."
Elias was quiet for a moment.
Then he asked the question that had been troubling him.
"Was he a bad person?"
Levi didn't answer immediately.
He could have said yes.
Eyeless had attacked the castle.
He had hurt people.
He had nearly killed Levi.
There was no point pretending otherwise.
But...
Levi remembered the spirit.
The chains.
The years of manipulation.
And the expression on Eyeless's face when he finally broke free.
"He did terrible things," Levi said.
Elias looked up.
"But I don't think that means he was always a terrible person."
The boy tilted his head.
"What do you mean?"
Levi crouched slightly so they were closer to eye level.
"Sometimes, people lose their way. Sometimes, they make terrible choices. And sometimes, other people take advantage of their pain."
He paused.
"That doesn't make their actions right."
Elias listened carefully.
"But it doesn't mean we should stop trying to understand them, either."
The boy looked at the broken sword again.
"...So he wasn't always like that?"
"I don't know what he was like before everything happened."
Levi stood.
"But I know that, at the end, he chose for himself."
Elias thought about that.
Then he nodded slowly.
"...I understand."
Levi smiled.
"Good."
A moment passed.
Then Elias looked at him suspiciously.
"Are you really resting?"
Levi froze.
"...What?"
"Lord Gaius said you weren't allowed to work today."
Levi stared at the boy.
'That old man has been telling everyone?!'
Elias folded his arms.
"You're not going to work, right?"
Levi looked away.
"...I was just taking a walk."
"Really?"
"Really."
Elias narrowed his eyes.
Levi narrowed his eyes back.
They stared at each other.
Then...
Elias smiled.
"Good!"
He grabbed Levi's hand.
"Come on! The others are waiting!"
"Wait. Where are we going?"
"Outside!"
"...Outside where?"
"The gardens!"
Levi barely had time to respond before the boy started pulling him along.
He glanced back at the broken sword.
For a brief moment...
His expression softened.
Then he followed Elias.
Perhaps...
He really did need a break.
---
The gardens were filled with children.
Some were playing.
Others were helping the servants water the plants.
A few were sitting beneath the trees, talking about the strange light they had seen during the battle.
When Levi arrived, they immediately gathered around him.
"My lord!"
"You're awake!"
"Did you really defeat the scary swordsman?"
"Was that light magic?"
"Can you do it again?"
Levi stared at them.
One question.
Then another.
Then five more.
He slowly raised both hands.
"One at a time!"
The children quieted.
Mostly.
Levi pointed toward the nearest bench.
"First, yes. I'm awake."
A few children giggled.
"Second, yes. The battle is over."
More questions threatened to erupt.
"And third..."
He paused.
"No, I'm not going to demonstrate that attack."
Their faces fell.
"Awwww..."
Levi smiled.
"That kind of magic isn't something you should try to imitate."
The children nodded.
Some more reluctantly than others.
One of them raised a hand.
"Then how do we become strong like you?"
Levi looked at the children.
For a moment...
He remembered the battlefield.
The moment he had nearly exhausted himself.
The moment he had realized that raw power wasn't enough.
Then he smiled.
"By learning."
The children blinked.
"Learning?"
"Yes. You learn how to control your mana. You learn how to use your weapons safely. You learn how to understand your opponents."
He paused.
"And you learn when not to fight."
The children exchanged glances.
"But isn't being strong about winning?"
Levi shook his head.
"Not always."
He looked toward the castle walls.
"Sometimes, being strong means knowing when to protect someone. Sometimes, it means admitting you need help."
He thought of Gaius.
Then sighed.
"...And sometimes, it means listening to an extremely annoying old man."
The children burst into laughter.
From the distant walkway...
Gaius sneezed.
He frowned.
"...Someone's talking about me."
Back in the gardens, Levi continued.
"Remember this. Strength isn't just about how hard you can hit."
He looked at each of them.
"It's also about what you choose to do with that strength."
The children listened quietly.
Then Elias raised his hand.
"So... when are we training again?"
Levi stared at him.
"...You people are relentless."
The children laughed again.
And this time...
Levi laughed with them.
---
Later that afternoon...
A rider arrived at Ravenholt's gates.
His horse was exhausted.
His clothes were dusty from the road, and a sealed document was fastened securely inside his coat.
The guards immediately escorted him to the castle.
Gaius received the messenger in the main hall.
"Report."
The rider bowed.
"My lord. I bring a report from the eastern border."
Gaius accepted the document.
He examined the seal.
Then broke it.
His eyes moved across the page.
Once.
Twice.
His expression gradually grew serious.
"...When was this discovered?"
"Three days ago, my lord."
"And you only arrived now?"
"The roads were difficult, and we were instructed to deliver the report directly to Lord Ravenholt."
Gaius folded the document.
"Understood. You may rest."
The messenger bowed and departed.
Gaius remained in the hall.
For several seconds...
He didn't move.
Then he turned toward the staircase.
He already knew Levi would hate what he was about to do.
Unfortunately...
That was no longer his concern.
---
Levi was sitting in the gardens.
For once, he was actually resting.
He had even managed to convince himself that the quiet afternoon was a good thing.
Then Gaius appeared.
A document in hand.
Levi looked at him.
"...No."
Gaius stopped.
"I haven't said anything."
"You have a report in your hand."
"Very observant."
"And you're looking at me like something happened."
"Something did happen."
Levi sighed.
"Of course it did."
Gaius handed him the document.
"The eastern border."
Levi's expression changed.
He broke the seal and began reading.
At first, his expression remained neutral.
Then...
His eyes narrowed.
The report described unusual activity near an abandoned settlement.
Several travelers had reported seeing people dressed in dark robes moving through the surrounding woods.
A local patrol had investigated.
They found strange symbols carved into trees.
Black markings on stones.
And traces of a ritual circle that had been hastily abandoned.
No bodies.
No clear evidence of what had taken place.
But the symbols...
Levi recognized them.
He had seen them before.
In the forest.
During the night he discovered the Black Church's ritual.
The same symbols that had surrounded the altar.
The same markings that had preceded the appearance of the words that had haunted him ever since.
'HE IS THE VESSEL.'
Levi slowly lowered the report.
The sounds of the gardens seemed to fade.
Gaius watched him carefully.
"...You recognize them."
It wasn't a question.
Levi nodded.
"The Black Church."
Gaius's expression hardened.
"Are you certain?"
"Yes."
Levi read the report again.
"They're moving near the eastern border."
"Could it be a remnant of the group you encountered?"
"Possibly."
He paused.
"But I don't think we should assume that."
Gaius folded his arms.
"Agreed."
Levi looked toward the castle walls.
The battle with Eyeless had ended.
The threat had been defeated.
At least...
That was what he had wanted to believe.
But the Black Church had waited fifteen years.
They had sacrificed people.
They had prepared rituals.
And they had called him their Vessel.
A single victory wouldn't erase any of that.
Levi clenched the report.
"...How many people know about this?"
"Only the border patrol and the officials who handled the report."
"Keep it that way for now. I don't want rumors spreading among the people until we understand what's happening."
Gaius nodded.
"I'll arrange a discreet investigation."
"Send experienced scouts. No one approaches the site alone. If they discover anything related to the Black Church, they report back immediately."
"And if they encounter the cultists?"
Levi looked at him.
"They withdraw. We don't know what they're preparing."
Gaius studied him for a moment.
Then he smiled faintly.
"You're learning."
Levi raised an eyebrow.
"Learning what?"
"That you don't have to fight every battle yourself."
Levi stared at him.
"...Don't ruin the moment."
Gaius laughed.
"Very well."
He turned to leave.
But Levi stopped him.
"Gaius."
The older man looked back.
"Be careful."
Gaius's expression softened.
"You too."
Then he departed.
Levi remained seated.
The report rested in his hands.
The afternoon sun continued to shine over the gardens.
Children laughed nearby.
Servants moved through the walkways.
The people of Ravenholt continued with their lives, unaware that something might be stirring beyond their borders.
Levi looked at them.
At the castle he had rebuilt.
At the people he had promised to protect.
Then he looked down at the report once more.
'Not again.'
He folded the document and placed it beside him.
He wasn't going to let fear dictate his decisions.
He wasn't going to rush into battle without understanding the enemy.
And he wasn't going to make the same mistake of carrying everything alone.
The Black Church had begun moving again.
Fine.
Let them move.
Ravenholt would be ready.
---
That evening...
Levi returned to the training grounds.
The sky was painted in shades of orange and red.
The broken sword stood in the center of the scorched earth.
He approached it one last time.
For a while...
He remained silent.
Then he looked toward the distant horizon.
"Whatever you're planning..."
His hand rested on the hilt of Azhir.
"...I'm not going to let you take anyone else."
The wind swept across the training grounds.
The broken blade remained motionless.
Levi turned away.
Behind him, the last rays of sunlight fell upon the sword.
And for a brief moment...
The light reflected from its fractured edge.
A reminder of the battle that had ended.
And the battles that were yet to come.
After darkness, light.
But even after the light returned...
The darkness had not disappeared.
It was simply waiting.
Recovering.