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LOS 3
Once, Giles had been a young master who enjoyed the abundance of love and happiness showered upon him by his family.
The Hessen family had acquired immense wealth during his grandfather's generation through the development of diamond mines. To put it bluntly, they were nouveau riche. Regardless, the family enjoyed days of opulence and were treated similarly to other nobles.
Giles's father moved the family to Ipswin to expand their business. He hoped his children would spread their wings in a new land. The possibilities in a strange, foreign country seemed infinite. Everyone agreed that Ipswin would usher in a second golden age for Beldam.
Giles's sister, Celeste, decided to become a writer. She had always loved daydreaming and showed a passion for writing.
Celeste wanted to meet a variety of people and hear their stories. She believed that a good story stemmed from the experiences and thoughts born from the actual lives of people.
The people Celeste was most proactive in seeking out were none other than the people of Ipswin.
His family tried to dissuade her. Although Ipswin existed under the shadow of Beldam, the resentment toward Beldamites could not be conquered. A Beldam woman traveling alone could easily become a target.
“The very fact that you're worried I might get hurt is proof that something is wrong.”
Unlike Giles, Celeste had beautiful blonde hair. She had her golden hair tied back tightly as she reviewed a manuscript she had written.
“If the reason they would harm me isn't a personal grudge, but simply my lineage, would anyone else be safe? This isn't just my problem.”
“Our parents are worried. And they have reason to be. Look at how you're dressed. Anyone would think you're the daughter of a wealthy family.”
“You're saying I'll be harmed because of my clothes?”
“I mean, you could be robbed.”
“I don't think that's what everyone is worried about. They think that, if things go wrong, I might actually be killed.”
Giles looked at his sister, who sat nearby under the light of a lamp, editing her manuscript. What was the manuscript about? Come to think of it, he had never once read Celeste's writing.
“They think that because I am a Beldamite, someone might want to kill me for that reason.”
“Do you think that's an absurd claim?”
“No, I completely agree.”
Celeste set down her fountain pen. As the scratching sound ceased, the room was filled with a cozy silence.
“The people here hate us. If they could, they would truly kill us without hesitation. I know because I've met them. In truth, we aren't unaware of that fact. We are barely suppressing their hatred with power. Look! We've invaded someone else's land and are living as if we belong here, all while treating them like slaves.”
“You're really sincere about listening to those people's stories.”
“I have to. At first, it was for the novel, but gradually I couldn't help but realize that this is a serious problem.”
At the time, Giles thought Celeste was just being eccentric as usual, but on the other hand, he felt he had listened to her words. Celeste's words were not baseless. She was talking about the future.
“Giles, what will you do once you enter the military academy?”
“I'll probably do what soldiers usually do. Follow the state's orders and protect the security of Beldam.”
“It would be nice if you only had to protect Beldam. You might be called back to the home country as soon as you graduate. Have you seen the newspapers? A great war will break out soon. One far larger than any war we've experienced so far.”
Giles also remembered the headline that had dominated the front page of the newspaper.
「‘World War’ - The Future Named by Chancellor Dosselberg」
Below the headline was a small subtitle: ‘Exaggerated bluff? Or a prediction of days to come?’
“If we lose... everything will change. You might regret earning someone's hatred. I mean it.”
Giles still remembered the look in Celeste's eyes as she stared straight at him. Like someone who had witnessed something others had not, she was full of conviction, yet... she looked melancholy.
“When that time comes, you'll have to make a choice. Whether to run, or to die.”
Someone might have told Celeste to just go to bed and stop talking nonsense.
However, the ominous prophecy became a reality before Giles even graduated from the military academy.
The aftermath of losing a global-scale war was immense. It was an opportunity for Ipswin. They had been absurdly lacking in the ability to control the situation within Ipswin.
It was, quite literally, a revolution.
Just as Celeste had said, Giles was placed at a crossroads of choice. His father had been missing for a long time. All paths back to the home country were blocked. And the new masters of this land intended to execute every person like Giles.
There was no longer a future as a Beldamite.
Giles wanted to live. Furthermore, he did not want his always-thoughtful sister to die.
So, for the sake of survival, he betrayed his country and stepped forward to help the Ipswin revolution. He shared his vast fortune with the revolutionary leadership and supplied weapons.
Above all, he took the lead in driving numerous Beldam dignitaries—people he might have exchanged greetings with at a banquet or passed by once—into the abyss.
Giles did not regret that choice. He had never regretted it once. The state could no longer do anything for him. If Giles had not helped the revolution, he too would have died. He wouldn't have been able to protect Celeste.
Survival alone made all his choices worthwhile.
Loyalty to the state. Faith. Pride. What happened in the end to the nobles who resisted until the last moment, clinging to those things?
Beldam had lost its power and could not protect them. The nobles he had arrested all screamed that he was a traitor. A traitor who stabbed his own kin in the back just to save his own skin. Such accusations could do no harm to Giles.
In the end, the dead are silent, and only the survivors can greet the sun rising tomorrow morning.
Survival was the ultimate value.
He couldn't even conceive of another direction.
He had run while looking only in that one direction... but once the turmoil ended and the revolution entered a period of stability, the leadership that had promised him a future began to change their attitude.
Though he had helped the revolution, he was a Beldamite of landowning blood. That fact could not be changed. The leadership explained that they could not place a wealthy Beldamite in a key position.
Once everything was finalized, Giles had to take responsibility for his own fate. And the leadership decided they would no longer protect him.
Having lived through an era of upheaval, Giles learned that the cycle of hatred does not discriminate. It was obvious what kind of life a Beldam native would lead in this land. Once branded a traitor, he couldn't even return to his home country late in the game.
After the flames that had burned so terrifyingly had died down, only a pitch-black darkness remained.
Was it from then? Giles became slower and more indifferent. Once he realized that the future could not be changed, surprisingly, his heart settled. He felt far more peaceful than when he had been struggling to survive.
He had spent too much energy searching for a new exit. Now, he needed to rest a little.
Perhaps that was why he hadn't wanted to arrest Lily.
Giles felt a sense of kinship with her instead. A survivor who had been torn to shreds. Someone who had nothing left by the time they looked back at themselves.
If I cannot survive, what value should I pursue with the time I have left?
He was lost for a moment. He needed a guiding star. So he looked up at the sky, but for him, whose eyes had been blinded by the blazing flames, there were no stars twinkling with light.
He couldn't just sit still and wait. Perhaps because he had run without rest for so long, he became anxious when he stayed still. Stray thoughts frequently flooded his mind.
He had to do something.
And if there was still something he could do... he was ready to do anything.
Sitting alone in the driver's seat, tapping the steering wheel with his fingers, he soon started the engine. The black sedan drove along the country road.
It felt as if Lily's performance was echoing in his ears.
The fact that he could now take a leisurely outing in broad daylight meant that things had become that much more peaceful. At least it was different from the time when the people to be arrested were piled like mountains.
Giles had submitted a report stating that if the Solzburg mansion were appropriately renovated, it could be used as a government office for various purposes. An administrative office or a school... there were many uses.
Since it hadn't been long since he submitted the report, additional instructions regarding the building would likely come soon. Until then, he had a bit of time.
Even as he entered the mansion, he thought that Lily might have already fled. After all, Giles was a revolutionary agent who knew Lily's identity.
However, Lily was still at the mansion. Wearing the same white pajamas, with her untidy black hair hanging down. It was an obvious fact, but she was equally gaunt. How could the strength to play the piano come from such a body?
Lily looked a bit surprised, perhaps not expecting him to visit again. She then hurriedly tidied her clothes and hair, although the effect was minimal.
Her two hands were stained. When Giles's gaze landed on them, Lily blushed.
“This is... it's because I just picked some wild berries.”
It was clear she had been surviving that way until now. Giles took a sandwich out of his bag. Lily's eyes widened at the sight of proper food.
“Here, eat.”
“Is this for me?”
“Yes. I brought it for you.”
Lily expressed her thanks in a small voice and took the sandwich. As soon as the wrapping was removed, the scent of fresh food wafted through the empty space. It was a sandwich with thinly sliced ham, boiled eggs, and various vegetables.
“If you happen to have any allergies...”
By the time Giles spoke up, half of the sandwich had already disappeared. For a brief moment, Lily looked happy. When he saw life returning to her eyes... he felt as if he, too, had smiled for the first time in a long while.
“It's so delicious,” Lily said.
“I can't even tell how long it's been since I've eaten meat.”
“There are more in the bag, so take and eat as much as you want.”
“Thank you.”
Lily said nothing, focusing entirely on eating. One sandwich was far from enough to satisfy her hunger. The extra sandwiches Giles had brought vanished in an instant.
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