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"Fox Mask?"
"You recognize me?"
"Even if we didn't before, after you saved Lesser Lord Kusanali, who in Sumeru doesn't know you… You and Dehya are both heroes. With your help, our odds improve. But you know who we are, and you also know what we're about to do, right?"
The one asking was Idrisi, someone who had joined the Dakan Al-Ahmar long ago. Without a doubt, he had once left an unforgivable record within the Deshret's Relics.
It must have been a crime so severe that even he himself and the leader of the Deshret's Relics deemed it unforgivable—only then would it be enough to serve as leverage and proof of loyalty.
Can merits and sins truly cancel each other out?
Victor Wang had already thought this through when facing Scaramouche.
If there are those who have died, they can never again say, "I forgive you," so the perpetrator can only choose to accept punishment.
Whether it is blood for blood, tooth for tooth, or bearing the weight of sin and atoning with the rest of one's life, the most important thing is first having the awareness that one has done wrong.
Victor Wang said, "Dehya has told me everything. Let me hear your answer—are you aware of your crimes?"
Idrisi smiled calmly. "Of course. We are people steeped in sin. Precisely because we know we don't deserve the freedom the Captain seized for us, we've come this far, and we've come here today."
It was the expected answer. That was why; despite having committed unforgivable crimes, this group of mercenaries didn't give off an unpleasant impression. It was just unclear how far Scaramouche—who would only learn the truth after hundreds of years—could go once he awakened…
Victor Wang nodded. "I will help you."
Idrisi smiled again, seemingly reminded of old memories by the earlier question. He looked at Dehya and said with emotion:
"The Captain loved those old, cliché hero stories the most—sacrificing oneself to save the world and all that. We used to laugh at him, but he actually did it…
We are the dirtiest of lives, unqualified to become heroes.
But aren't stories always like this? The protagonist's spirit inspires those he saves, and more and more people step forward.
Maybe we kept laughing, laughing… and then fell into it, all wanting to act out this story with him to the very end…
Sorry, sorry, Dehya. You already thought this was embarrassing when you were little. Just treat this as me talking nonsense."
"…Let's move out."
…
"It's right ahead. the Deshret's Relics no longer has the ability to monitor or defend the outer perimeter. They didn't even notice us getting this deep. We just don't know how many are still holed up inside. Doesn't matter how many there are. Just capture them all."
"Still be careful. The closer we get to the end, the less we can afford to be careless—especially this final battle… Brothers, are you all ready?!"
"Hey, hey, didn't you just say we should be careful?"
"This is the final battle already, what's there to be careful about? Charge with me! We can't disgrace the Captain!!"
Dehya couldn't help but sigh. She exchanged a glance with Victor Wang and followed the aggressive the Dakan Al-Ahmar into the final hall of the Deshret's Relics.
Along the way, stone gates descended, trying to separate everyone, but stone pillars that erupted from the ground held them firmly in place. Only after everyone passed through did the gates finally fall… Passing through the winding corridors, the people of the Deshret's Relics appeared ahead.
Judging by numbers alone, they still had over a hundred people left. the Dakan Al-Ahmar had no numerical advantage, yet there was not the slightest trace of fear on their faces.
The leader of the Deshret's Relics, Mishal, hid in the rear, loudly spouting meaningless rhetoric. In the end, it all amounted to one thing—fighting to the death.
The battle was about to erupt.
"Charge! Let them witness the gifts Lord Deshret left for us!" The people of the Deshret's Relics rushed forward with their final assets.
"Omen Armaments? Be careful, those are the most troublesome opponents among the Eremites!" a veteran mercenary from the Dakan Al-Ahmar shouted.
"Attack without worry. You have help too..."
Victor Wang called out softly, enveloping all of the Dakan Al-Ahmar in a layer of Jade Shield. This was their revenge. He had no intention of intervening too much, but an unbreakable defense alone was enough to turn the tide.
Dehya also lifted her claymore and charged toward the enemies wielding the spirits of omen. "Leave these guys to me!"
The battle ended swiftly.
The victor was naturally the Dakan Al-Ahmar.
After suffering heavy losses, the Deshret's Relics completely lost the will to fight and surrendered.
Idrisi shouted toward the now-isolated leader of the Deshret's Relics, "It's time to settle the score, Mishal."
"You think I'll give you that chance? Let me be buried in the yellow sands together with this fading radiance!"
Mishal sneered, seemingly about to take his own life using some method, but soon he realized he was tightly bound by suddenly sprouting vines. Even his mouth was sealed shut, leaving him unable to swallow poison.
Idrisi, Bashar, Tikriti… Several of the earliest followers of Kusayla rushed up to inspect the situation, then thanked Victor Wang.
Idrisi added, "Dehya, didn't you want to see the archive room the Captain burned down? I've been there once and know the location. Come with me."
Glancing at Mishal being escorted away in another direction, Dehya could roughly guess what awaited him, but in the end she only nodded.
"Let's go."
…
"This is the place the Captain burned down back then. Other than ashes, there's nothing left."
"This is where… How did he do it? Limping like that, avoiding the guards, sneaking in to start the fire? Don't you think that if he was that agile, even after the fire started, he could have escaped?"
Idrisi closed his eyes and shook his head. Victor Wang could only respond with silence.
Dehya let out a self-mocking smile. "Sorry. If only that were true. Let's look around and see if anything remains."
…
"There's a cane here."
"It's Captain Kusayla's…!"
"This is…" Dehya blankly took the cane from Victor Wang's hands. After gently stroking it, she pulled out the handle. Inside was a toy sword. "So that's how it is…"
"I hereby… declare victory… There are no evil dragons anymore, old man…"
After Dehya's emotions calmed slightly, Idrisi said, "Next, we'll escort the people of the Deshret's Relics to Caravan Ribat and turn ourselves in. There are relics Captain Kusayla left behind in our camp. After we surrender, everything there will definitely be confiscated. Dehya, go take them."
…
"In the blink of an eye, it's just the two of us left… Thank you for accompanying me on this trip."
"Don't mention it. You helped me too. Let's see what your father left behind."
"He would spend money on indulgence whenever he had it—drinking, eating meat, that sort of thing. It's hard to imagine he left anything meaningful…"
Hesitating, Dehya finally opened the box she brought back from the Dakan Al-Ahmar's camp.
"Handwritten storybook, round iron pieces, razor, buttons, a wooden assembly doll… A scarf, looks like it's for women… He really was that kind of person. He probably treated this box like a trash heap, throwing everything inside… But there are even empty wine bottles. One, two… Do you think a normal person would keep this kind of thing?"
"Indeed. Wait… There seems to be something inside this bottle?" Victor Wang reminded her.
"A piece of paper? Let me see… 'After finishing this bottle of wine, I suddenly felt like writing a letter. After writing it, I put it in the bottle. If I forget about it, then so be it… Written to Dehya.' It's written to me?"
"Read it quietly."
"It's fine, I'll read it out loud—"
Dehya read the contents of the letter:
"Lately my body has been getting worse and worse. Forget going out to have fun, I even need a cane to walk. I probably don't have many days left… If you can see this letter, I should already be gone.
When you were little, you were so adorable. Everyone liked you. Whether you cried or smiled, everyone was happy. But once you grew a bit more sensible, you weren't as cute anymore. That must be Idrisi and the others' fault for not teaching you properly…
No, no, back to business. The reason I wrote this thing is to tell you that if you end up knowing everything, don't be sad for me, because I… actually am not your father…?"
Dehya's voice faltered, sorrow mixed with sudden panic.
"W-What does this mean?"
"Keep reading?"
"Ahem… When I was young, I was amazing. I could go anywhere, do anything—one hundred times stronger than that famous 'Crimson-Mane Lion.' I felt like if I worked a little harder, I could take the entire desert for myself.
Then one day, I was drinking alone in the desert and saw you, still a baby.
You were lying there, so small, so tiny that the wind and sand could have buried you if they blew a bit longer. But your crying was especially loud, so loud it annoyed me. Thinking back, it really was a life full of vitality.
Then I told Idrisi and the others that I'd made a small mistake outside. They didn't even doubt me. I lied to them for an entire lifetime. I really am sorry about that.
But I had no choice. I was their leader, after all. I couldn't exactly tell them I suddenly wanted to be a father… I almost threw up the wine I'd just drunk, hahaha.
Alright, Dehya. You possess the freedom and kindness we've always dreamed of. The rest of your life—choose it yourself…"
Victor Wang said with certainty, "It seems Kusayla wasn't joking. Blood ties aside, he was a good father."
Dehya fell silent, digesting this information.
"…Honestly. Even at the very end, he still treated me like a child."
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