Beyond the light, Ezein’s eyes widened.

‘Will that truly be alright...? Of course, if it’s possible, it would mean more to me than I can express...’

Even without him finishing the sentence, his expression alone made the omitted meaning clear. He wanted to ask if it was truly wise for both the Cavalry Commander and his right-hand aide—two central figures of the Orr Empire’s power structure—to be absent at the same time, especially while mysterious rifts and disasters continued to erupt. If anything happened while they were away attending the coronation, responsibility could become complicated.

Kishiar gave a cool, confident nod.

“It’s fine. The Cavalry hasn’t been trained carelessly enough for a temporary absence by myself and my aide to cause problems. In fact, it might be a good opportunity to see the results of our efforts.”

‘If you say so... Understood. Then I must tell them to prepare to receive the Empire’s highest-ranking guests.’

Only then did Ezein’s smile return. It seemed he would continue speaking, but instead, the young Crown Prince suddenly went quiet and wore an expression tinged with nostalgia.

‘Hmm... I suddenly remembered something. That time, when I was desperately trying to escape the vast Sarain Forest as quickly as possible—and I realized the assassins chasing me might reach my friend before they reached me.’

That was during the few days Yuder had not been with them.

Assassins had pursued Crown Prince Ezein, tracking his movements to the stronghold of the Western Mage Union, which he had already left. Yuder, the only Cavalry member left behind on Kishiar’s orders, encountered the assassins as soon as they arrived—and effortlessly overpowered and imprisoned them. Ezein, unaware of the encounter, returned to Nellarun safely.

To Yuder, it had been nothing—just another day.

But it had clearly meant far more to Ezein.

‘As soon as I learned of it, I insisted on sending help. I was even prepared to return myself if necessary. But... the Commander clearly said there was no need.’

Because—

‘The one left behind is someone we can entrust with our backs even when we have no other means. What we must do is trust him and move forward—not return for unnecessary ⊛ Nоvеlιght ⊛ (Read the full story) reasons... That’s what he said. Do you remember?’

“Of course.”

Kishiar replied in his usual steady voice.

“......”

Yuder glanced sideways at the man who’d just spoken. Kishiar was calmly and elegantly smiling as he looked straight at the image of Ezein in the light—just like always. Had he worn that same expression back then too?

Ezein looked at Kishiar as if admiring something radiant, and murmured in wonder,

‘You trusted your subordinates to guard your back then... and you still do. I know it’s late to say this, but I find that truly admirable.’

“You’re being too generous. If anything, I should’ve been blamed for leaving during the most difficult and critical moment.”

‘No. To be honest... I didn’t understand that level of belief—no, that bond and certainty—at the time. But now I do. I’ve come to realize that what the Commander holds is precisely what I need most right now.’

Ezein let out a breath that sounded like a sigh, but was more like a laugh.

‘Since returning to Nellarun, every time I stood at a difficult crossroads, I remembered those words. I’ve truly come to feel how powerful trust can be. That’s how I’ve made it this far.’

In Ezein’s eyes—once described by Kanna as mystical—a new light shone: confidence. He looked at Kishiar and Yuder, then placed a hand over his chest and lowered his head in a formal royal greeting to honored guests.

‘I look forward to the day we meet again in Nellarun.’

“Hearing you say that makes me look forward to it all the more.”

Just then, the light illuminating Ezein flickered violently. His form blurred and returned again as he exhaled softly and furrowed his brows.

‘It seems Melvern is reaching his limit. We’ll have to end things here for today. In truth, I wanted to speak with the Commander and my friend about the Southern criminal captured here just yesterday... but I’ll leave that for tomorrow.’

‘A Southern criminal?’

Yuder’s eyes briefly darkened and then settled.

If it had only happened yesterday, then not even Melvern knew yet. He had a vague idea, but before anything more could be said, the connection ended. The light vanished, and Melvern let his hands fall, collapsing as though drained.

“Are you alright?”

“I’m al...right... huh...?”

Before Yuder could reach him to support him, Kishiar had already acted. Melvern’s body lifted smoothly off the ground and gently floated down onto the sofa. Though surprised, his reaction was sluggish and dull—completely different from before.

“Thank you. You spared me the trouble.”

“It was nothing.”

Yuder knelt down beside Melvern to examine him more closely. The envoy didn’t resist or fidget. The moment he sank into the sofa, his body went limp and his eyes closed as if he were simply a man drunk and dozing off.

“He says he’s fine, but we should check him just in case.”

“Have you ever seen a power that causes immediate recoil like this after use?”

Kishiar lowered his voice as he asked.

Yuder checked Melvern’s pulse and nodded.

“Yes. But not in this era.”

“I see.”

Shortly before Yuder’s death—when he was around thirty—Awakeners had become so common that one in ten people walking down the street seemed to possess powers. At that time, it wasn’t rare to see abilities that caused immediate aftereffects like this. The most frequent were physical transformations like Melvern’s, but the symptoms were so varied it was difficult to classify them.

Because Awakeners had become so ubiquitous, such phenomena were largely overlooked. But in areas with high anti-Awakener sentiment, it could have sparked violent purges.

Yuder gently ran his fingers over the black scales covering Melvern’s wrist. Cold and hard to the touch, but beyond that, he felt nothing unusual.

“His forehead. I think I see slight changes around the hairline too.”

Kishiar, who had been watching alongside him, spoke. As he brushed aside Melvern’s hair, black scales were indeed visible along the forehead and scalp.

“Hmm... If even his face transforms, it’ll be difficult for him to use his ability outside. While he’s staying here, we’ll need to find a way to delay the backlash as much as possible.”

The best option was to increase the duration for which he could maintain the ability through rigorous training.

If his body could endure the power, the recoil would naturally lessen. It was the most reliable method.

“Are you planning to train the envoy too?”

Kishiar laughed.

“Yes. Since he’ll be staying with the Cavalry, it benefits us both.”

No one in the Cavalry would bat an eye whether Melvern wandered around with a scaly face or not. For Melvern, this was a golden opportunity.

“Still, we should ask the Crown Prince for permission. Let’s bring it up tomorrow.”

“The prince will be grateful and regretful.” 𝘧𝑟𝑒𝑒𝘸𝘦𝘣𝑛𝑜𝘷𝑒𝓁.𝘤𝘰𝓂

Kishiar responded with confidence.

“He did say he wanted your advice to improve his abilities.”

“...Oh. That’s right—he did mention that.”

Yuder had completely forgotten amid all the later conversation.

‘Still, he seems to be doing just fine without my help. Does he really need my advice?’

In his previous life, Ezein had become an extraordinary Awakener without guidance from anyone. Judging from the progress he showed earlier, anything Yuder said now might only interfere. Just like Kishiar, who also developed his powers flawlessly on his own—Yuder had never given him unsolicited advice either.

Melvern still hadn’t regained full consciousness. After finishing his examination, Yuder left him to rest a little longer and brought up Ezein’s final remark.

“About that Southern criminal Crown Prince Ezein said was caught yesterday. What do you think?”

“You’re wondering if he might be the same type of radical as Aton or the Shuden merchant imposter, right?”

Kishiar read Yuder’s thoughts precisely.

“Yes.”

“We can’t be certain yet, but I think that’s very likely.”

Kishiar replied as if stating the obvious.

“They wouldn’t have targeted only the Orr Empire.”

“I thought as much.”

Radicals with hands in many places.

And the moderates trying to stop them.

Yuder recalled the faces of the Cat’s Whiskers caravan, who by now had likely returned to the Southern Nation.

Just then, Melvern groaned softly and opened his eyes. The two of them stopped speaking immediately.

“Did I... fall asleep? What a terrible lapse... I’m so sorry!”

Melvern, flustered, tried to sit up—only to sway dizzily and slump back down.

“It’s alright. Are you feeling okay?”

“Yes, yes! Like I said, it doesn’t hurt...”

Outside the window, the sky had turned red with dusk. The sun would have set by the time they returned to the Cavalry.

Kishiar smiled as he watched Melvern fumble to put on his gloves.

“Well then, shall we head back?”