Thirteen years ago, the last world ...
"Glory to King Duum – the Great Unifier of the world! Glory to the young Crown Prince Glau!"
The warlord took off his helmet and knelt down. Opposite-sat a man and a young man.
"Glory to the King!" the thunder of a million voices resounded. The soldiers in the same clothes, with masks of benevolence, greeted the "loving and noble lord".
"A humble servant has come to report on the state of the army. Here are the best warriors of the kingdom, ready to show the glory and power of the Great Node."
The chief military commander chose the most worthy ones from the army. Twenty young, strong people bowed to the king. And small competitions began.
Six rounds have passed. Very harmless competitions – no one died, but five people had to be taken to the infirmary. However, no one, not even the king himself, showed any distress.
[ Injuries happen. Thank Dralu, I took care of elite doctors. I hope there will be no victims today. Except for one thing, el-ludas, there are always sacrifices and God's mercy, this is not a reason to grieve, Duum. ]
A young soldier with red hair knelt down.
The General clapped:
"A great fight! Even in peacetime, our soldiers are ready for battles, and it does not matter whether it is riots or a war with an enemy from the Horizon of the Galaxy. Well done, Captain Norau!"
"I am glad to serve Noda", the kindest and brightest Empire in human history. Even if I have to sacrifice my own life and those of my subordinates, I will protect my homeland.
[ To his own and subordinates... a good soldier, obedient and humble. Will it remain so in the future? ]. The King smiled, hiding deep emotions.
"Congratulations, Captain Norau. You have proven your skills in the arts, I am delighted. Now ... let me give you a special privilege."
"I will accept it with great joy and honor," Captain Norau bowed deeply.
"Bring me Kirla Norau."
"What?!" the captain raised his head and bulged his eyes "Father, why are you in handcuffs?!"
"I'm sorry, son."
"Father..."
"He is convicted of sabotage. The punishment is death."
Norau's eyes were red.
"But I can commute the sentence if your father comes out of the darkness of delusion. You are his son, he will listen to you."
The captain took a couple of steps:
"Father, you raised me and took care of me, did many good deeds. But why? Why did you go against Noda?!!"
"Noda is a hell deprived of freedom. I tried ... kmh! Kirlu coughed, holding his throat."
Prince Glau chuckled to himself: [ Don't even try to blurt out too much. Your tongue belongs to me! The soldiers do not need to know about your good intentions for the release of juvenile criminals. ]
"Noda is the country of slaves, Norau."
"No! Father, you don't know what you're talking about! You're confused!"
"Norau ... kmh!"
"Father, the inhabitants of our empire live in prosperity and joy!"
"Norau… Noda must fall."
The captain paused.
The King watched from the side. He saw the soldier's hysteria. The young man tried to "reason" with his father, but he remained steadfast, without giving any arguments.
[ I wish this performance would end soon. I am now looking at a kind man in shackles and a loving son.
El-ludas! Oh, Dral, but they are dangerous... they went against me. And to keep the Garden in order, you need to get rid of weeds and pests. Yes, it destroys life. Yes, it's harsh. Yes, I deserve to die more than anyone else. So what?!
I don't see an alternative. ]
"That's enough! Your father's delusions are too deep. And he doesn't want to let them go. I'm sorry."
The King pointed to Norau's saber. The captain turned gray.
Captain Norau, I order you to carry out the execution.
There was a smell of decay among those present. The soldiers stared at the elevated terrace where the King was sitting. Norau's subordinates were barely breathing.
"No, no, no. No! I cannot."
"OK. I understand."
The King looked at the old rebel.
"Kirlu, let me ask you again in front of these brave and brave warriors, is your decision unshakable? I am ready to commute the punishment if you admit your mistakes."
Kirlu looked at his son-sighed and spat on the king's expensive clothes.
[ Vile child killer! To burn like this in the abyss until the end of time! ]
"Ahem! Kha!" the rebel coughed, tearing his throat.
Glau pursed his lips in quiet contempt. [ A fool with an excessive sense of justice. ]
The King raised his hand.
"No, Your…"
Whoosh!
"...Majesty, " the head rolled down to Norau's feet, and the young man covered his face. "Father…"
On the terrace, everyone was silent. The general watched Norau, holding his sword. Glau was melancholically admiring the red sky, thinking about something. The king looked at the soldier from under his brows.
The captain broke the silence first:
"I'm sorry, Your Majesty… I'm sorry that I couldn't carry out the order, " Norau bowed.
"You're going to pay for this, you filthy Sharon. Not today, not tomorrow, but sooner or later!"
[ Hmm, you can't tell from his face that he's angry. Nevertheless, I feel it. The avenger is standing in front of me. Such people should be removed immediately. ]
"You have shown your irresponsibility three times, Captain."
"What?"
"You didn't notice your parent's fall. They showed the highest negligence to their neighbor. You are the direct cause of his death."
Norau clenched his fists until they cracked.
"But I was merciful, as merciful as I could be, and I gave you one last chance for salvation. And you missed this chance too. People tend to make mistakes, however, mistakes have a limit. Your mistakes killed your father, Norau."
"Shut up!" Norau jumped without thinking.
The general drew his sword.
Whoosh! The sword was unnecessary.
The king pulled the spear out of the captain's head. The young man fell like a bag of sand.
The eyes of Norau's subordinates turned red for a moment – the soldiers tried to hide their sadness in their guts: incorrigible criminals should not be mourned.
The king went down the steps of the terrace, straight to the numerous soldiers.
"Each of you! – What is it? " he thundered, striding between the shelves. "In response! For your neighbor! If your brothers, sisters, parents or children commit a sin – you are responsible! But I am ready to forgive your error on condition of repentance. I love Noda like no one else in the whole world. And it pains me to punish you, "my children".
The King put his hand on the soldier's shoulder. He tensed.
"I'm not your enemy: relax, boy," the old king smiled sweetly.
The soldier smiled back.
"You all live in a beautiful country: there is peace here, everyone is in their place and the highest justice flourishes. The only thing that is required of you in return is to comply with the laws, be kind and honest. How much do I ask? Not at all."
The King returned to the terrace.
"Things are going well in the army. Great news to end the day. Share dinner with us! the king was smiling."
At the same time, his dark eyes made the military commander shudder slightly: "Venerable Dral! Does he know?! No, otherwise I wouldn't be breathing..."
"As always, you are generous with praise, Father."
"The more reasons, the more rewards, hehe."
***
Dinner was over. The duum became sluggish, so he went to sleep.
Fatigue. A sound sleep. Before plunging into darkness, the Duum heard the voice of a familiar friend.
"Duum! Duum! I need help! Help me!! It's cold here!"
The dead man held out ghostly hands. He was crying. He asked me to come to the rescue.
The sleeping king panted and sweated until his heart stopped beating.
***
It's dark, cramped, stuffy. A strong rope was wrapped around the Duum's neck. The king took it with weak hands. It didn't unravel. Attempts to call for help failed. "Am I a cart?"
"Die! Die! Perish, monster of another world! " - a distorted growl pierced the water. Then the Duum was pulled down. The "rope" tightened even more.
"Are my fingers so weak that they can't handle the pathetic rope? Good! Very good!"
The Duum put his fingers under the rope to prevent her from finishing him off. [ No, there are no forces at all. We need to come up with something urgently. Bite through with your teeth? Stop! My teeth?! ] the king ran his tongue over his bare gums, [ These are sick lunatics! They pulled out my teeth!! ]
Muffled voices of people were heard. A jerk. The body was sprinkled with light and cold. For a couple of seconds, the Duum lost its orientation in space. Then came the pain. The "rope" was cut off.
***
The Duum rolled his eyes in surprise. [So I was born again? Are you sure this isn't a dream? No, I've traveled through dreams before. And it doesn't feel like a dream. Is there any truth in the Tales of Dral?! Apparently, yes. I wonder if I was reborn in my native world?].
Thin, pale arms were wrapped around the Duum. A woman with reddened eyelids was rocking a baby and saying something. [The language is not like any one I know. He is absolutely alien to my world!]
In addition to the tired woman, there was an energetic, strong man who chattered incessantly.
Seeing the excitement of his "parents", the Duum could hardly restrain himself from laughing. [Hehe, is this what it's like to be born again? Quite strange.]
"Henry, he's got your nose. Your sharp, elegant nose."
"Supreme! Susannah, you barely survived the birth!"
"It's all right, dear. I..." the woman wanted to object, but a red-hot pain pierced her side.
"And what was this lousy doctor thinking about! He left the village for so long and left a pregnant woman unattended. And he knew! I knew that our previous attempts to have a child," Henry broke off in mid – sentence.
The newborn son looked at him in silence. The bad emotions were put aside. Henry squatted down.
"Hello, baby! I'm your dad! Listen, Susannah, he really has my nose, and the rest of his face is from you. Except for the eyes. His eyes are black. Blacker than the darkest pitch. Are you sure it's only from me? Come on, admit it!"
Henry had forgotten the last time he had laughed so carelessly.
"What shall we call him, dear?"
"Maybe The Dark-Eyed Killer Yoroi? Hey, don't look like that. I'm kidding! You know, my baby looks like a guy from a Comedy by Kela named Romula. What's wrong again? As for me, Romula lived a decent life."
"Yeah, and he died at the age of thirty."
"Not quite true, because he was reborn in a family of ordinary tramps who could not have children. Susannah, don't you think that the Supreme has sent us one of his fallen warriors?"
Susannah was silent for a long time, looking at the long-awaited child. Her heart was filled with warmth and anxiety. She was afraid that this time would end badly. [Supreme, have I really earned your mercy? Me?]
"Romulus, my glorious warrior, who fought his way to life. Perhaps you don't know it yet, but now you have accomplished a real feat."