Chapter 46
"Are you ready?"
"I'm always ready."
Lucia clenched her small fists and nodded solemnly.
"The heart demon may come for you along the way. Use your own judgment, and wake me if you think I'm about to lose to it."
I repeatedly instructed Lucia on how to serve as my guardian, emphasizing the heart demon in particular.
"If I fail to escape the heart demon, I'll die. I have to defeat it or forcibly shatter that world. But you must never wake me the moment I fall into it."
The battle against a heart demon was a tightrope walk between life and death.
If she woke me by force while I was trying to defeat it, all my efforts would be wasted.
She had to intervene only when she judged that I was certain to lose, which was obviously no easy task.
"Ugh...... It's difficult."
"It is very difficult. That's why having a guardian is important. I'm sure you'll manage it, Lady Lucia."
To explain it in terms of my past-life self, it was like having a spotter for a bench press.
If you barely managed to lift the barbell just before it crushed you, you'd set a new personal record and build muscle.
But if the spotter couldn't bear the anxiety and lifted it immediately, they would only get in the way.
The spotter was there to lift it when you were pinned.
The difference with a heart demon was that once you were pinned, you would die a few seconds later.
"May I ask you one thing?"
"Please, go ahead."
"Why a Sun Ring of all things? Most knights choose the Mind Path these days, don't they?"
Solar had tremendous destructive power, but it was far too dangerous to handle.
It was an attribute even most Sword Masters avoided, so why did I keep forging rings with it?
I couldn't exactly tell her the truth—that Luna was a puppet dangling from an Outer God's nameless strings.
That wasn't the only reason I had forged rings in the first place.
"Because of the hardship."
"Hardship?"
"It's something I always tell knights. True strength, I say, is forged by danger."
That alone was enough for Lucia to understand.
Lucia was the one who would eventually forge seven rings.
She had chosen the Mind Path for now, but she would soon change her mind.
"I knew I had a good eye for people."
Lucia gave a playful, smug smile. Her reaction was so like her that a quiet chuckle escaped me.
"I noticed it too. Since you have such a good eye for people, that must be why you chose me at the Founding Festival."
"……."
Lucia subtly averted her gaze.
For an instant, bluish mana rippled around her body.
She dampened the carriage's swaying so I could concentrate completely and tuned the minute mana in the air to block external repulsion.
To think that Lucia, the future eight-star mage, was personally acting as my guardian.
There could be no more luxurious environment for training.
"Before we begin, let me say this. Anywhere besides my back is fine, too. If physical contact makes you flustered, it could affect me as well, so place your hands wherever you're comfortable."
Lucia seemed to ponder for a moment, then reached out with both hands.
I felt the soft touch of her skin at the nape of my neck.
"Is the back of your neck all right?"
"Yes."
Apparently, she had no problem wrapping both hands around my nape, even though touching my chest embarrassed her.
I quietly closed my eyes and sank into my inner world.
I immediately drew Solar's mana toward my heart and began heating the pulsing ring.
As a result, the air inside the carriage gradually grew hot.
Luna seeped in softly like water, naturally forming a path.
Solar was the exact opposite.
It was like crushing a heated lump of metal with bare hands, without even a hammer.
Molding it into a round ring was practically an act of madness.
It was a hardship I could never grow accustomed to, no matter how many times I endured it.
Cold sweat ran down my spine, and the fabric of my clothes clung to my skin.
I drew in a quiet breath. Excruciating pain swept through my entire body, as though boiling lava were being poured into my veins.
Solar refused to remain quietly inside my core.
It rampaged in every direction as if ready to tear through my skin and burst out, rebelling against my will.
―!
A suppressed groan forced its way between my teeth.
It felt like squeezing blazing wildfire with my bare hands.
The real ordeal had not even begun yet. The heart demon had not come either.
Compression. Then more compression.
There could be no compromise if I wanted to forge a high-density ring.
I desperately gathered the fiery energy trying to scatter in every direction.
Even as I forced it into the area around my heart, it thrashed as if it would explode.
Before long, the raging energy began to take the shape of a round band.
The third Sun Ring.
It felt as though my bones were melting into molten iron and my organs had turned to lumps of charcoal.
I endured it with my teeth clenched so hard they felt ready to break.
Less than a handspan remained until completion.
At the very moment when physical pain broke through its limits and the boundary of consciousness grew thinnest,
a horrifying sense of alienness began to crawl over me.
It forced its way through a tiny gap in my mind.
The heart demon had come.
***
The air currents inside the carriage had grown hot.
Lucia regulated her breathing and watched Astin closely.
His entire body was drenched in sweat. His veins stood out, and the muscles in his jaw were rigid.
'What a fool.'
Lucia clucked her tongue inwardly.
No matter how arduous a knight's path was, she had never seen anyone drive himself to such an extreme.
And people called a man like this a wastrel.
The Astin known to the public and the Astin Lucia saw were utterly different.
That only made him seem more pitiable. Why on earth was he pushing himself this far?
Lucia focused all her attention on the hand wrapped around his nape.
I have to make sure this man doesn't get hurt.
A guardian's role was to prevent Solar from flowing backward or running excessively wild.
She had to read his vital rhythms and know exactly when to intervene.
'Not yet. It's rough, but still under his control.'
She held her breath, afraid that even the sound of swallowing might distract him.
Astin's breathing, his physical reactions, and the flow of Solar—nothing had yet escaped her senses.
Before long, the framework of the third ring took shape. Lucia clearly sensed it.
It was too early to celebrate. The slightest disturbance could put him in danger.
'Just a little more. Hang in there a little longer.'
Lucia pressed her lips tightly together.
She was tense to the point of choking, as if this were her own ordeal.
At that moment, Astin's tightly shut eyes flew open.
His golden eyes were fixed on empty space, but they were unfocused.
Heart Demon (心魔).
Astin's breathing and heartbeat quickened noticeably. Lucia inhaled sharply without realizing it.
This was the most dangerous moment.
'I have to trust him and wait.'
Lucia suppressed her growing impatience.
Whoosh—!
Astin, who had not moved at all, suddenly thrust both hands toward her.
Her ruby-colored eyes wavered with bewilderment. His rough hands clamped around Lucia's arms.
Those who fell under a heart demon lost control of their bodies while fighting their inner selves.
It was extremely rare for them to move their physical bodies directly.
'Dangerous.'
A bodily reaction like this was a red flag.
Was he about to lose control of his body to the heart demon? The flow of Solar had grown unstable as well.
His cloudy golden eyes were turned toward Lucia, but he was not looking at her.
They reflected something beyond the empty air—or perhaps someone the heart demon was showing him.
Now?
Should I wake him now?
Just as Lucia was about to decide what to do,
"I didn't know."
His quiet voice trembled precariously.
Lucia abruptly froze.
"That none of it was your fault. That it was all my responsibility."
His voice was steeped in guilt and remorse.
That tone was not unfamiliar to her.
For an instant, the image of him on the terrace overlapped with the man before her.
"……I'm sorry I realized it too late."
The hands gripping Lucia's arms trembled faintly.
A torrent of emotion passed through his grasp.
While Lucia stood dazed, a clear light returned to his cloudy golden eyes.
The eyes that had lost focus found it again.
Rustle—
Astin released Lucia's tightly gripped arms.
The two pairs of eyes met in a steady gaze.
Astin had overcome the heart demon himself and returned to reality.
His pupils were clear, but traces of regret remained.
"Did I do anything strange?"
Lucia, who had been staring blankly, suddenly straightened. Then she slowly shook her head.
Strangely, no words came out.
"That's a relief."
Astin pressed a hand to his forehead and drew deep breaths.
The hand that had been rubbing his face came to rest near his heart.
"Thanks to you, I forged the third ring."
It was obvious that he was only pretending to be calm.
Lucia forced her lips into a smile.
"Congratulations, Young Master."
Astin smiled with satisfaction and turned his gaze toward the window. His profile was utterly serene.
It was hard to believe he had seemed so different only moments ago.
Lucia's eyes slowly settled.
Her gaze remained on Astin, but her thoughts were still in what had just happened.
A heart demon scraped up the deepest part of one's heart and gnawed at the soul.
The most painful memory a person possessed.
The longing they could never let go of.
The regret that could never be washed away.
Astin's eyes had clearly not been looking at Lucia.
The person he had seen was perhaps the one he had mentioned at the Founding Festival……
A woman who might have been the lover he had lost.
"……."
Lucia silently gazed into Astin's eyes.
This man had merely defeated the heart demon. He had not escaped the ghost of his past.
An inexplicable bitterness soaked through her.
―I can't apologize.
The dead never age; they remain only as memories.
This pitiable man was bound to an unchanging past.
He had kept an apology he could never deliver buried inside him.
―It was all my responsibility. I'm sorry I realized it too late.
What must this man have felt when he finally said those words aloud?
How much effort must it have taken him to regain his reason?
Swallowing the questions circling her throat, Lucia opened her mouth.
"Young Master."
Her eyes met Astin's.
Lucia smiled faintly and forced out words she did not mean.
"The weather is lovely, isn't it?"
"……It is. The breeze is cool, too."
Lucia cast her gaze out the window. It was almost an act of evasion.
Astin's gaze also fixed itself outside.
Lucia glanced sideways at his profile.
This man was certainly strong. Lucia had never seen anyone stronger than him.
If so, how immense must the regret he carried be……
I wish this man would never have to suffer again.
That thought suddenly occurred to Lucia.
***
The carriage's vibrations finally ceased, and Cardenos's Grand Ducal Residence came into view outside the window.
I hopped out of the carriage first.
I politely extended a hand toward Lucia as she followed me out.
"It must have been a long journey. Thank you for your hard work."
Lucia smiled brightly and carefully took my fingertips.
I escorted her into the residence through the main entrance.
The first thing to greet us was a din that assaulted our ears.
"Hurry, hurry! The food-supply carts have already arrived! Clear out the warehouses first!"
"We're short on tents in Zone 3! We'll bring in more from the nearby merchant guilds for now!"
Hundreds of household staff were running around in a panic.
It was my first time seeing such a bustle outside rather than indoors.
"Young Master!"
The head butler, who happened to spot me, came rushing over with a pale face.
"You've returned safely!"
"What a commotion. Is everyone gathered at the training grounds?"
"Yes. It's packed with people who came after seeing the notice. There seem to be about three thousand of them. They're still coming through the Western Gate......"
As I listened, I stroked my chin.
Four days.
Only four days had passed since the notice was published.
Considering the time it took to travel from various places, the three thousand were either people who had been staying near the western region—or lunatics who had whipped their horses onward day and night.
How many would gather once the rumors spread further and people began arriving in earnest?
'Could we gather more than ten thousand within a month?'
Naturally, the more people, the better.
We had secured more than enough food and equipment for them.
Paying them now would be difficult, but I had specified that they would be paid only after the expedition ended.
When the time came, we could distribute the resources extracted from the Ashen Forest.
"Let's go. Would it look good for the host to be late when his guests are waiting?"
I led Lucia toward the training grounds.
For some reason, Lucia was unusually quiet.
I had expected her to be shocked when she heard the number three thousand, but she seemed to have nerves of steel.
A boisterous din reached us from far away.
Along with the cheers, the ringing clang of colliding metal echoed through the air.
'Now, let's separate the wheat from the chaff.'
Uncertain Survival. Honor and Glory.
I believed there wasn't a single small fry among the warriors gathered here.
Among them, I would select only the genuinely skilled—the ones with the madness to dance along the line between life and death.