Charles Cross had spent his entire existence battling something.
He was born in a fortress whose purpose was to keep monsters at bay.
Even before he could grasp much, he trailed his father to the front lines and matured amidst the gore of monsters attempting to breach the fortress walls.
When his father passed on, when he inherited the Margrave's position, when he became the fortress lord at a tender age.
Every day, he fought monsters.
In truth, this was all he needed. Fighting monsters was his forte and the only thing he could genuinely comprehend.
Eliminate the foe trying to kill me.
The world was that straightforward and lucid.
'Greetings, my lord!'
Until she arrived in town.
'What are you intending to sell in this place?'
'Flowers, my lord.'
The female merchant who had applied for a business permit in the town center.
In her presence, Margrave Cross was stupefied.
'This is a monster frontline. We need swords and spears, arrows and shells here. What purpose do flowers serve? They'll just wilt promptly.'
'Exactly because they're futile, precisely for that reason! Humans require flowers, my lord.'
'...?'
'This transient beauty that fades so swiftly, that's why flowers are beautiful!'
He couldn't comprehend it.
So, initially, he was skeptical of her. He suspected she might be a spy from a rival nation.
Margrave Cross frequented her shop, brimming with flowers and grass, daily, seeking evidence of her espionage.
Each time he visited, she would beam and educate him about flowers.
She detailed their language and familiarized him with their fragrances and hues.
Margrave Cross learned to differentiate the colors and scents of flowers and memorized every kind of flower.
Yet, he still couldn't quite understand their beauty.
A year later, Charles Cross proposed to her.
And she accepted.
***
Clippity-clop, clippity-clop, clippity-clop-!
Margrave Cross, dressed in armor and brandishing a spear and shield, spurred his horse towards the fortress wall.
A lone rider.
Solo, without any escorts.
"What the hell... is he up to?"
He was atop a shabby horse, encased in armor that had not been maintained and had rusted, carrying a massive shield and cavalry spear that seemed incongruous with his lean physique.
And in that state, he was galloping solo towards the rats, still numbering in the thousands.
This wasn't some Don Quixote charging at a windmill.
"What are you thinking, Margrave! You're inviting death-!"
As if my cries fell on deaf ears, Margrave Cross continued his relentless charge.
"Aaaaaah-!"
A raspy battle cry erupted from behind the helmet donned by the old man.
One by one, the rats that were zealously trying to breach or burrow under the wall turned to look back.
The behavior of the monsters, as I had explained dozens of times, was straightforward.
- Eliminate the nearest human.
Squeak!
Squeak, squeak!
As the Margrave advanced, the rats glowered, their red eyes ablaze, their hostility palpable.
Yet, Margrave Cross didn't decelerate; he charged headlong.
With a resounding bellow, a giant lance plunged into the core of the rat horde.
And then,
"Turn your gaze on me, you rat bastards!"
He activated his Taunt, a wide-spread skill famously associated with Shield Knights.
He was unsure of the precise level of his taunt skill, honed through endless front-line battles.
But the sight of nearly a thousand rats, formerly attacking the walls, spinning around as one... It was too uncanny, too otherworldly.
"..."
I stood there, speechless, observing Margrave Cross.
What the?
What was he up to?
Our eyes locked - mine and Margrave Cross's.
From beneath the shadow of his helmet, his deep, mature green eyes glimmered faintly.
I attempted to decipher his motives, but I was utterly baffled.
Squeak!
Squeeeak!
The very next instant, a torrent of rats rushed towards Margrave Cross.
***
Time had elapsed since the pair wed.
Even after becoming a lord's wife, she continued to plant flowers and trim trees.
From seeds blossomed new life, delicate stems reaching for the summer sun.
Flowers blooming, fruits yielding, leaves falling, and then-
A daughter came into the world.
"Look, darling."
Weary from childbirth, the wife extended a bloody bundle.
"Your daughter."
It was a day the monsters chose to attack.
Charles Cross, having hastily returned without even a moment to cleanse the blood and grime, gently cradled the tiny bundle.
The baby was sound asleep.
So petite and fragile, it seemed she might break under the slightest touch.
"Evangeline."
The wife whispered the infant's name.
"Our daughter, isn't she as beautiful as her name?"
"..."
Baffled, Charles Cross didn't respond.
He still couldn't comprehend.
How such a small and brittle being, with a feeble warmth that seemed it could fade at any moment, could stir his heart so profoundly.
Just moments prior, on the front lines, there was nothing he didn't understand about slaying monsters.
Now, he was utterly perplexed.
***
"Quickly regroup! Now!"
I hastily relayed the command.
The rats that had penetrated the walls and the interior were all disposed of, mainly because there were no reinforcements.
The rats were all pushed back beyond the wall. Singlehandedly, standing tall and robust, was Margrave Cross.
"Don't deploy cannons or ballistas! Margrave might get hit. Use only crossbows and bows, aim for the rats on the outskirts first!"
"Yes, sir!"
The archers assumed their positions and began eliminating the rats one at a time.
"Lilly! Is the flame-throwing artifact prepped?"
"It's ready to go!"
"Char those within range!"
While the activated artifact was incinerating the rats near the wall, I hollered to Lucas on the first floor.
"Lucas!"
"At your service, sire!"
"Round up all soldiers proficient in hand-to-hand combat and storm the castle gates! We must save Margrave."
"No, Your Majesty. It's not a rescue."
Lucas, having adjusted his helmet, sparkled his bright blue eyes.
"It's an ambush on those rat bastards from behind. We can wrap this up in one fell swoop. We'll wipe them out and return with Margrave."
"...Make it happen. And make it quick."
"Yes!"
Ka-thunk.
The gates swung open, and Lucas, perched on his steed, hoisted his sword high.
"Charge! Slay those bastards and rescue Margrave!"
Roar!
Like a mighty wave, the soldiers gushed out in unity, bellowing at the tops of their voices.
Veteran warriors, who once served under Margrave, spearheaded the assault.
'Don't be late!'
I tightened my grip on my fist.
'Please, don't be late!'
***
"Arghhhhhhh!"
Margrave Cross bellowed.
Each time his massive cavalry lance sliced through the air, about a dozen rats spewed blood and rolled on the ground.
Yet, an army of rats far outnumbering that gnawed at his flesh.
Even though his armor was worn out, it was top-notch gear. His personal skills also focused on boosting defense.
Despite all this, damage piled up relentlessly.
Even amidst the torment of being chewed all over, Margrave continued his outcry, brandishing his cavalry lance.
'I can't grasp it.'
Margrave Cross failed to understand why he was in this predicament.
Why he had chosen the city again when he had resolved to meet his end beside his wife.
Lured by something about this damned city... Why he was battling again.
'I just can't fathom.'
Even at his advanced age, the world remained an enigma.
The fleeting beauty of flowers, the warmth of existence, the allure of the world.
Even his own heart.
Despite devoting his entire life to understanding, Margrave simply remained clueless.
...But, there was one thing he understood too well.
"Ugh, Aaaaaah-!"
Flowers, his daughter.
Those frail and fleeting entities- He had to shield them from these beasts.
And he excelled at slaughtering monsters.
"My daughter resides behind those walls."
That's why he waged this war.
"A world where my daughter exists."
Because he knew nothing else but to fight, he had to endure this foolish existence, this desperate struggle.
"Not one will breach, not a single one...!"
Margrave howled again, striving to fend off one more beast from the wall.
Dozens, possibly hundreds of rats simultaneously lunged at Margrave.
Unable to resist, Margrave staggered back.
His helmet, smeared with monster blood, hindered his vision.
His aged arms could no longer muster strength. His legs, which had long since pushed past their limits, refused to budge.
"Argh...!"
I knew it.
Regardless of how fiercely I battled alone in the orchard.
Regardless of how many monsters I vanquished here.
Those days would never come back.
The wife, now gone, the daughter had left, the happiness lost, all of it was beyond recovery.
"Ah, ah, ah!"
But the man who knew no other way to exist but to battle, stubbornly hoisted himself up, brandishing his spear again.
And that marked the end.
The moment he rose, swung his spear, and thrust his shield forward.
Snap.
Something within Margrave Cross gave way.
He felt nothing in his body, swallowed up with the armor. The pain that had exceeded its limits no longer registered in his brain.
His sight was fading.
Margrave Cross sensed his demise.
'Just one more...!'
To escort his last comrade on his final journey, Margrave Cross clenched his teeth and held on.
...
...
...But, it was tranquil.
No more rats assailed him.
Margrave Cross was perplexed.
Why had the monsters stopped attacking him?
Could it be, was he already deceased?
"Margrave Cross."
Then, a clear voice rang out.
It was the voice of the youthful knight who had been trailing the new lord.
"We have vanquished all the monsters. The battle is over."
"..."
"You can... rest now."
At those words, the cavalry spear clutched in his hand tumbled to the ground.
Then, like a puppet whose strings had been severed, Margrave Cross collapsed forward.