‘Bwaaa, brother! Don’t go! Let’s just live here together!’

‘Brother, do you really have to leave?’

The voices of his younger siblings trying to hold him back rose in his memory.

‘...Like I wanted to leave.’

Rotting poverty.

Ever since he was sold to his parents at ★ 𝐍𝐨𝐯𝐞𝐥𝐢𝐠𝐡𝐭 ★ the age of two, Bale had worked in the mines—so early that he didn’t even remember being a child.

That was where he met the younger ones.

The overseer was one of the worst.

The moment he showed even the slightest disobedience, he was shoved into narrow, dangerous tunnels.

‘If it weren’t for the kids, I would’ve run away long ago.’

Bale’s eyes darkened.

The overseer quickly realized that Bale cared for the other children like family.

So he started using them like a leash tightening around Bale’s neck.

‘What the hell... Why is this all I get?! How am I supposed to live for a whole week on this?!’

‘Blame yourself for not meeting your quota, you brat.’

‘I didn’t meet it?! My cart was full yesterday! More than anyone else’s...!’

‘What are you even talking about? It’s enough for them to meet their quota. Not for you.’

‘What?’

‘Do you think anyone else would treat slaves as kindly as I do? Yvon and Rodjek—who do you think’s covering for them until they’re old enough to work the mine?’

‘......’

‘Listen carefully, Bale. Either you work for them too—or you stop protecting them.’

‘......’

‘Got it? Huh? I asked if you got it.’

The disgusting touch of being slapped on the cheek.

But that was still bearable.

More bearable than watching the children grow thinner from hunger.

More bearable than seeing them cough up blood near the mines.

Bale worked like a dog.

He worked until his body gave out.

He crawled through low tunnels all day, deliberately pushing into the most dangerous places.

More than once, he came close to death when the exits collapsed.

Then the larger workers began targeting the rare, high-quality stones he brought back.

At first, he gave them up.

After a shift, he didn’t even have the strength to fight.

But it happened once... twice...

And when it became clear there was nothing left to give—

the only option left was to fight.

It wasn’t easy.

Everyone was bigger and tougher, and he was the smallest and youngest.

He was beaten half to death, and every time he returned to the mines the next day with a throbbing body, he thought.

How to hit more effectively.

Where to take the blow—and where to aim.

Day by day, everything changed.

From someone beaten to death—

to someone who could kill.

‘W-what the hell is this bastard... Who are you?!’

When he pressed a sharp shard of stone to the throat of the cruelest worker,

the atmosphere in the mine changed.

‘He’s crazy...! His eyes are completely insane!’

‘You’re only noticing that now? And you’re still talking?’

Bale smirked, one eye swollen shut.

‘Don’t touch me. If you do—I’ll kill you.’

From then on, no one touched his cart.

But others came.

‘I’ve heard rumors, kid. They say you nearly killed Dilton.’

‘Get lost. Can’t you see I’m busy?’

‘If you hear me out, you won’t say that. You’re the one taking care of the slave kids, right? You even pulled some sick ones out of the mine.’

‘...Who are you?’

‘So. Have you checked on them lately?’

It felt like being struck in the head with a hammer.

Were they alive? Were they well? Had things gotten better?

He didn’t know.

Because he often didn’t even return to the barracks—his shifts ended too late.

And so—

When he snuck out of the mine and headed for the barracks.

When he realized the overseer had been intercepting all the food and money.

And when the youngest, weakest child—who always ran to him shouting “Bale!”—was—

‘Brother, hic... why are you so late... I told them to tell you... hic... I even came to the mine... I wanted to see you...’

When he realized that child had already become a star in the sky—

‘Ysha called for you... when he was sick... he kept... wanting to see you... sob...’

The world spun.

Everything before his eyes turned so red it felt like he was standing in flames.

‘Think about my offer.’

It was a poisoned apple.

‘You’ve got talent. You’ll earn far more in this line of work than in the mines, and your siblings will live better...’

But it was too bright.

Too tempting.

‘The world’s full of dirty work. But at least we’re the kind that rots a little less.’

‘......’

‘Isn’t it better to do something a little less filthy? And get paid for it?’

At first, he refused.

But after seeing Ysha’s grave, everything changed.

A small, low grave that could be wrapped in one arm.

Dry soil with no grass, and only a few wildflowers.

‘What kind of grave is this... why is it like this... why does Ysha have...’

He knelt in front of it, repeating those words again and again.

Even though it wouldn’t bring his sibling back.

‘I’ll do it.’

Unbearable loss pushed him into the shadows.

The desire to protect turned into the ability to destroy.

‘By the way, your name suits you. It’s like you were born for this.’

Bale became an assassin.

Starting with revenge on the overseer, it became easier and easier to stain his hands with blood.

‘Bale! Why are you looking at me like that? We’re not killing innocent people, are we? The world needs a certain kind of evil. You could say we’re just doing the dirty work for others.’

‘...Who said that?’

He pretended it didn’t matter.

He deceived himself.

But for some reason, he couldn’t tell the younger ones.

‘Bale! Come taste this!’

‘...Yvon, you’re cooking? You didn’t before.’

‘What are you saying! I love cooking! We just didn’t have ingredients before.’

‘......’

‘You know how much better things are now that you have work? I’ll grow up and help too! Have you seen Rodjek? He’s gotten so chubby!’

‘Bwaaa, brotheeer! Bale! Janna hit me!’

‘I didn’t! Brother, really, I didn’t!’

So what if his hands were a little dirty.

As long as the children could laugh in the light.

But the world never followed his wishes.

‘...Tell me. Is it true?’

The tomato stew Yvon had made spilled across the floor.

It looked like blood pouring from a severed artery.

‘Is it true?! You really did that because of us?!’

Only sobbing filled the cramped room.

For the first time since joining the assassin guild, he felt fear.

‘I...’

He wanted to run.

But he wasn’t sure he had the right.

He thought the younger ones would leave him first.

But what happened was nothing like he expected.

‘...It’s okay. We’ll fix it.’ 𝐟𝐫𝕖𝗲𝘄𝚎𝗯𝕟𝐨𝕧𝐞𝚕.𝕔𝕠𝐦

Time seemed to stop.

Yvon didn’t call him a monster.

Didn’t run away screaming.

She just walked up and hugged him tightly.

‘Nothing in our family will change.’

‘......’

‘That’s why you always had wounds... that’s why... sob...’

He couldn’t see it, but he could feel it.

Yvon was crying as she patted his back.

Then the others came too.

‘Brother, we didn’t spend all the money! Yvon saved a lot!’

‘Brother, did it hurt a lot?’

‘We’re sorry you had to keep doing dangerous things... sob...’

It became hard to breathe.

He had never felt anything like that.

Only once more, later.

Caldenbein Ridge.

‘Did it hurt a lot? I’m sorry, Tie—I’m the squad leader, but I came to save you so late...’

When Tie cried, looking at his bandaged hands.

When he saw Astie in her—the echo of the Ysha he had lost.

"Bale. Are you going to invite your siblings? Right?"

Bale came back to himself.

Tie was smiling in his arms, blinking up at him.

He loosened his grip on the gold coins in his pocket.

"...Yeah."

He ruffled her hair and smiled.

"I can’t go myself just yet."

In his pocket—

among the gold coins—

was a letter, worn soft from being read too many times.

It began with warm, familiar words:

[Brother, we’re doing well here. You’re doing well too, right?]