CHAPTER 21 –
“Revilla does not see people as people.”
It was a voice that sounded as though it had given up on everything.
The moment words long buried inside finally slipped from his lips, Isaiah let out a pained groan.
“They toy with human lives as they please… and if you try to escape for the sake of freedom, they simply kill you.”
“…”
“They call them traitors.”
At Isaiah’s words, Asilia wore a confused expression.
Though not often, occasionally, traitors did appear in Revilla.
They rejected Revilla’s ideology and claimed it exploited human lives.
And there were always those who carried out the Emperor’s direct orders to deal with them: the Emperor’s Special Execution Squad — the unit Asilia belonged to.
They received and followed only the Emperor’s commands.
Their role was to manage the knights of Revilla, to ensure none betrayed the cause. Asilia observed them, and they observed her.
“You must have seen more than anyone else… knights who died because of betrayal.”
“…”
“But all of them were from within Revilla. Traitors from the homeland. So then, what do you think happened to those overseas?”
Only those with the strongest loyalty were chosen for foreign missions.
And Isaiah had been one of those fiercely loyal knights.
“They either killed themselves or were murdered by fellow traitors.”
“…”
“Not a single one left behind.”
Asilia quickly responded, almost as if to refute him.
“I heard they all chose to end their lives rather than return to their homeland.”
Isaiah shook his head, denying it. He gave a bitter laugh, mocking Asilia for still believing it to be true.
“You believe that? What kind of fool escapes from Revilla only to want to go back?”
“…”
“You must have seen it too — how people here treat each other like actual people, laughing and talking together.”
“…”
“This is what it looks like when real people live. It’s not that Moria is special… it’s that Revilla lacks this entirely.”
Asilia listened quietly, slowly balling her fists.
She understood what Isaiah was trying to say.
But there was one thing that still bothered her:
He was speaking from the perspective of a traitor.
“Have you always thought of Revilla that way?”
Isaiah, who had been more loyal than anyone and frequently sent on foreign missions. Was this what he had concluded after everything he had seen and heard?
“No matter how much you try to ignore it, if you’re capable of thought, you can’t help but realize it eventually.”
“…”
“That Revilla is a country that… cough, cough!”
Isaiah broke into a violent coughing fit. It sounded as if his lungs were being torn apart. Eventually, he vomited blood.
“Ha… hahaha!”
Seeing the blood, Isaiah laughed like a madman. He clawed at his throat and gasped before suddenly sucking in a deep breath.
“Ggh…!”
Unable to exhale, he clenched and turned his head to glare at Asilia.
“I… don’t want to die…”
But he never finished his sentence.
His once clear black eyes lost focus and started to blur.
He staggered, rising to his feet, and grabbed a decorative sword hanging on the wall.
“For the glory of Revilla. By His Majesty’s order, I shall assassinate the Emperor of Moria.”
A flat voice.
Devoid of all emotion.
Muttering like a trance, Isaiah, blood dripping from his mouth, tried to leave the room.
“Sir Hisclear!”
Sensing something was wrong, Asilia stepped in front of him, and his head twisted unnaturally.
“I am carrying out His Majesty’s orders. Step aside.”
“You know you can’t kill him right now. Get a hold of yourself!”
“I am carrying out His Majesty’s orders.”
Her words didn’t reach him.
It was as if he could think of nothing else but the command.
“If you interfere, Asilia Lestantis will be designated a traitor. I repeat, step aside.”
With that, Isaiah raised the sword and took a combat stance.
Asilia could barely breathe.
She knew what he had become.
Someone who no longer responded to words, only following commands.
“He went mad from loving Revilla too much. How could I blame them?”
“What part of that… how… how is that loyalty?”
Could such a state even be called loyalty?
Asilia bit her lip.
When she refused to move, Isaiah charged straight at her.
The blade, moving without hesitation, came down toward her—
Snap!
A sharp sound, like fingers snapping, echoed. Isaiah’s movements froze.
“Ugh…!”
The dull blade stopped just before piercing her chest.
“I don’t know what this is about,”
A low voice spoke from behind her. A large hand gently wrapped around her shoulder and pulled her into an embrace.
“But I can’t allow anyone to harm my wife.”
Creteth muttered softly, bending down to stare into Isaiah’s eyes.
There was no will, no awareness in them.
With another wave of his hand, Isaiah dropped the sword and collapsed.
“Are you hurt?”
Asilia couldn’t answer.
What had she just witnessed?
“That didn’t look like Sir Hisclear at all.”
“…”
“He looked… like he was possessed by something…”
Renoa’s words came to mind.
Brainwashing.
Yes, that’s what it seemed like.
Like someone brainwashed — with nothing left but the compulsion to carry out the command.
If it really was brainwashing, and he had tried to resist the order, which caused the breakdown…
“If we leave him like this, he may die soon.”
Asilia looked up at Creteth.
“Please, put Isaiah to sleep. For a while.”
“What are you planning?”
“I need to find a way to undo it.”
If it was brainwashing, there must be a way to break it.
So far, no one had tried. But if she could just find a way — and someone to help — it might not be impossible.
“All right. I’ll do as you say.”
“…Renoa.”
“…”
“I need to see High Priest Renoa.”
Even as she murmured the name, Asilia was still out of breath.
Her heart pounded and her mind was a whirlwind.
She didn’t know if she was making the right decision.
She didn’t know if helping Isaiah like this was the right thing to do.
If Isaiah had been brainwashed, then she too could be at risk of the same fate.
“Asilia.”
Still gasping, clutching her dress, she was drawn into Creteth’s arms.
His thick arms wrapped around her waist, and one hand gently stroked her head, helping her calm down.
“I’ll support whatever you decide to do.”
“…”
“So don’t try to carry it all alone.”
He whispered, then gently took her hand.
Only then did she realize how tightly she had been clenching her fists. Her pale hand was marked with deep nail indentations, blood seeping from her palm.
“Let’s treat that first.”
“I want to move Isaiah… first.”
Creteth sighed softly at her words.
But he nodded, and helped her anyway.
Her thoughts were a mess.
Flashback
Money!
Give me money.
Then I’ll sell out my family, my country — everything!
That was what Isaiah Hisclear used to think.
“Isaiah, don’t say things like that. What if someone hears and reports you?”
“Can’t I even speak my mind? What is the Emperor, some tyrant?”
Isaiah grumbled, unable to hide his discontent.
But those had been happy days.
They didn’t have much money, but he lived peacefully with his parents and sister — a family of four.
Maintaining the needlessly large mansion left by their ancestors was a simple joy.
Until one day…
“Are you Isaiah Hisclear?”
Misfortune arrived.
“Did you really spout nonsense about our great Emperor being a ‘tyrant’?”
His legs gave out and he collapsed.
His parents’ heads were already on the ground, lifeless. His sister, still alive, had a sword held to her throat.
“His Majesty, in his mercy, has decided to give you a chance.”
“…”
“Become a knight and take responsibility for your words. In return, your family will be spared from complete annihilation.”
That was the beginning of his misfortune.
