"His name was Edgar."
Sylvia voiced Edgar's name for the first time in a long time while looking into the Sword Demon's eyes—eyes that looked similar to her husband's for some reason.
"H-he was…"
She thought she would be fine with how much time had passed, but her heart ached as if a sharp spike had pierced it as soon as she mentioned his name.
She felt her nose burning, and she was about to get teary before she knew it, but Raon quietly grabbed her hand.
She slowly calmed upon feeling her son's warm, calloused hand.
"We first met inside a Cameloon pub. I was in my worst condition because of endless missions."
Sylvia closed her eyes and remembered the past.
'Those were boring and painful days.'
His father wasn't interested in her at all as he repeated training and wars one after the other, her siblings ignored her as if she didn't exist while the executives kept trying to find a way to take advantage of her. That was why she traveled outside the house and only carried out the missions she was given.
She wanted to give up because of how painful it was, and that was when she met him.
"I was drinking on my own on the second floor while hiding my identity, but a fight broke out on the first floor. I didn't pay any attention because it was a fight between drunkards that could happen anywhere."
She didn't do anything even though she saw that the fight was making a huge mess. She was mentally exhausted and had convinced herself that they would stop before it got too serious, and she simply kept drinking.
However, both of the drunkards were apparently successors from influential martial houses. The fight between individuals expanded into a war between groups, and the entire pub turned into a battlefield.
"I was about to leave because it looked annoying when a man interfered with the fight."
Sylvia narrowed her eyes and stared at the Sword Demon's face.
"He neutralized the warriors from both sides with a single sword in his hand. He defeated them with nothing but swordsmanship, without any pressure nor aura."
"Nothing but swordsmanship…"
"Do you know what was even funnier about that? After defeating them, that idiot made them sit down and started preaching at them. He blabbered on for a long time about how they were troubling the manager by fighting inside the pub, how terrified the citizens were, and that their swords should be used for a different purpose."
"..."
The Sword Demon lowered his gaze with a serious look on his face and stared at the shaking surface of his tea.
"It was definitely pointless to do so, but he preached at them with such a serious face. I was about to return while thinking that he was an idiot, but the warrior who was the first to faint was trying to stab him in the back."
She'd thought that he would notice with his aura perception because his swordsmanship was as good as hers, but he unexpectedly wasn't aware of the movement behind him at all.
She contemplated whether she should leave them alone since it was none of her business, but she unconsciously threw her fork on the table to pierce the attacker's shoulder. She probably did that because she found him interesting.
"That was when I met his eyes for the first time. His eyes were as sharp as a blade, but I could feel the warmth from his blue eyes."
He didn't even kill the one who tried to stab him from the back, he preached at him instead before coming to the second floor.
"He bowed to me, thanked me for saving him, and told me that he would repay the favor no matter what. I told him that I didn't need his gratitude but wanted to ask a question."
The first question she asked was why he'd preached at them. She was curious about the reason because it was clearly pointless to do so.
"He was also aware that it was pointless against most people. However, he said that his words would be helpful to them if even a single person among them was willing to turn over a new leaf. He said that it was also how he learned it himself…"
Sylvia smiled while reminiscing about the first time she'd seen Edgar's smile.
"As a second question, I asked him why his aura was so weak despite his excellent swordsmanship, and he simply responded that 'it just ended up that way' with a bright expression on his face."
She told them stories about what happened with Edgar one after the other while looking at the Sword Demon's complexion turning darker and darker.
* * *
"In short, Edgar was the type of person who loves to act up despite being a weakling. He meddled with everything as if he were a master. However, I have never seen anyone with that personality in Zieghart, or I should say, anywhere in the world. I was unconsciously attracted to him."
"…I see."
The Sword Demon Rector smiled faintly while listening to Sylvia. However, his mind was turning into ash that seemed to scatter into pieces.
'You never changed, Edgar."
His foolish son didn't change his name even after he left the Alliance.
He kept using his name despite how much he hated his father and the Alliance, which made him think that he was exactly the son he knew.
'Same goes for how you kept that frustrating personality of yours.'
Unlike the warriors of the Alliance, Edgar had a good-natured and righteous personality. He would've become famous as a chivalrous warrior if he belonged to a normal faction.
'However… He couldn't live like that.'
People sometimes have to do what they don't want to, but Edgar was an excessive case. He never managed to understand how they could kill or save people for their benefit without any grudge.
It was pretty much the same as forcing a sword onto a child who should've been holding a pen, and Rector was heartbroken every time he saw him.
Since it was practically impossible for Edgar to leave the Alliance, he tried various methods in order to change him, but he remained firm to his convictions—probably because of what his mother had taught him.
'And you ended up leaving the Alliance on your own.'
While Rector went outside to deal with the request of the Alliance's head, Edgar passed the head's trial and left the Alliance with his own abilities.
He was competent enough to try becoming the next union head, yet he ended up leaving the union with an injury that could never be recovered.
Rector finally regretted that he hadn't understood his son faster and deeper.
'You are such a bad son…'
He remembered the last letter his son had left behind at the corner of the room by the time he returned from the union head's request.
[I want to become someone that me and my family won't be embarrassed about. Please understand me, father.]
Edgar left the Alliance while leaving behind a short letter that expressed his sincere feelings.
Rector had thought that not looking for his son was the last kindness he could have offered his son, yet he ended up encountering the people he'd left behind.
"He was always happy no matter what he did. Even in poverty and difficult situations, he always smiled. His eyes looked a bit scary, but he was as bright as the sun."
Sylvia smiled gently while looking at the tree in the garden shaking to the wind.
"I changed a lot thanks to him. I used to be cold-hearted and didn't know any kindness because I was raised in Zieghart, but I finally understood what being human was all about thanks to him."
Her eyes deepened. She seemed to be thinking about the days she spent with Edgar.
"The reason I told Raon to wield his sword for the sake of the people was because of Edgar. I wanted him to become a person who could wield the sword for the sake of the world with a happy smile on his face, just like my husband. Hmm, I'm not sure about the second wish, but I think my first wish was granted."
Sylvia touched Raon's cheek while murmuring that she wanted him to smile a bit more.
"It's true. The swordsman Raon's righteous heart is well known throughout the continent."
The Sword Demon agreed with Sylvia, his fingers trembling.
'Edgar, you've achieved what you've wanted. This place reflects your life.'
When Raon had told him that his father had died, Rector had thought that Edgar had died in vain.
He thought he'd injured himself and died like an idiot when he could've been called the Sword King once the closure ended if he'd stayed with the Alliance.
But that wasn't the case.
His son's will still remained and stayed with the two people in front of him.
Just like the name Edgar's meaning, which signified creating happiness, his happiness remained in that place.
'Hmm…'
He bit his lip tightly because his nose was stinging and his eyes were hurting. He felt like tears were about to fall if he didn't use his aura to suppress his emotions.
The Sword Demon clenched his hand under the table while watching Sylvia, who was telling him about how happy her life was when she was with Edgar.
'Her life must've been difficult.'
She purposefully didn't talk about her life in Zieghart, but she must've had a difficult life.
Since he was well aware of how people ended up once they left a house of warriors, he could feel the pain in his heart.
"Once we left Zieghart, we settled inside a small village northeast of here. We didn't have to worry about our livelihood because the villagers were kind and there was a mountain and a river nearby. However…"
Sylvia's bright voice turned heavy and quiet.
"Eden's demons recognized my face and attacked us…"
She bit her lip to the point of bleeding as she said that the first daughter born between her and Edgar was lost because of Eden.
"D-daughter? Raon wasn't the only child?"
The Sword Demon was too surprised by the fact that they had a daughter and called Raon by his name.
"Yes. He had an older sister with a small difference in age. However, because of Eden, she and my husband were both…"
She couldn't finish her sentence and closed her eyes tightly. The tears she'd been suppressing flowed down from her eyes and drew a thin line.
Creak.
The Sword Demon bit his tongue and clenched his fist. He inflicted pain on himself to force himself to suppress his power because he felt like his energy was about to explode if he didn't force it.
'I even had a granddaughter?'
His chin trembled violently as he looked at Raon. His heart tightened to the point of bursting upon realizing that he even had a granddaughter on top of a daughter-in-law and a grandson.
'I should've looked for him earlier! No, not visiting him might've been the better choice, but I should've looked into him at least.'
He thoroughly regretted it. The fact he'd lost his son and even his granddaughter as he kept doing everything wrong was so painful that he felt like his heart was tearing apart.
"Can you tell me which member of Eden attacked you?"
"It was the Twin-Headed Demon."
The Twin-Headed Demon was a monster who'd inherited the power of Ettin, who was a monster of the highest rank. However, his strength didn't even matter.
The fact that he'd killed his son and the granddaughter who he'd never even seen enraged him.
"I see."
The Sword Demon forcibly suppressed his emotions and nodded.
"Thank you for telling me such a painful story."
He politely lowered his head at Sylvia.
"Erm…"
Sylvia put down the teacup she held with her fingertips and swallowed nervously.
"Sir Rector, do you know Edgar by any chance?"
His heart throbbed violently upon hearing that. It wasn't just Sylvia. Even Raon seemed to have noticed something and was staring at him.
Their gazes seemed to be certain about something.
'That's understandable.'
Since Edgar was his son, their faces looked similar, especially their eyes.
It wasn't that strange that they would notice since he'd also noticed his son's face in Raon's flashy appearance.
He wanted to disclose the truth.
He wanted to shout that he wasn't a simple acquaintance, but he was their father-in-law and grandfather.
'However… I can't do that right now.'
He was affiliated with a faction that was bound to be Zieghart's enemy.
He couldn't reveal his identity unless he finished that matter from there. He couldn't leave another scar on the people who were already living with one.
"That's not the case."
The Sword Demon swallowed the word 'yet' and shook his head.
"I-I see."
Sylvia smiled awkwardly with an extremely disappointed expression on her face.
"I'm sorry for disappointing you."
The Sword Demon pressed his hand with his fingernail and closed his eyes.
"Not at all! I also feel better after telling those old stories that I couldn't tell anyone."
"I'm glad to hear that."
The Sword Demon closed his mouth tightly while looking at Sylvia and Raon's smiles.
'This foolish grandfather of yours is going to protect you from now on.'
"The guards that my father had sent fortunately arrived in time and we managed to survive. I returned to Zieghart after that and have been raising Raon."
A sentimental smile appeared on her face as she brushed Raon's hair back.
"It must've been difficult…"
The Sword Demon lowered his eyebrows. He seemed to understand how her life would've been in Zieghart.
"It's okay. He helped us out a lot when I think about it now."
"He helped?"
"Yes. He sent us to this annex building so that we wouldn't encounter my other siblings and the executives. I thought at first that he didn't acknowledge me, but that wasn't really the case. I think my father was being considerate in his own way."
Sylvia smiled, saying that Glenn used his authority to allow her to lead a comfortable life in the annex building.
"That does seem to be the case."
The Sword Demon nodded in agreement.
Raon also nodded while looking at Sylvia's faint smile.
'That's true.'
He'd previously thought that Glenn was showing his consideration despite how cold-hearted he was when he'd heard that Sylvia was sent to the annex building after she returned to the house with her previous maids.
'He's certainly different from how he looks.'
The fact that he rewarded accordingly regardless of the recipient being a member of a direct line, collateral, or someone from the outside, and the fact that he personally made a move if the name of the house was stained both implied that the warrior called Glenn Zieghart was a thoughtful man despite his cold-hearted appearance.
Raon gathered his hands while looking at the Sword Demon, who kept listening to Sylvia attentively for hours.
He was pretending that he had his composure, but he couldn't hide the slight trembling in his eyes.
'Is that regret?'
He wasn't too sure because human emotions were too complicated for him, but he felt like he saw regret in his eyes.
"Oh, by the way, you became a division, right? The Light Wind division!"
Sylvia looked like she'd suddenly remembered as she clapped her hands and turned her head.
"We are now the Light Wind division. I wanted it to be the Mad Dog division though."
"That's such a degrading name…"
She murmured that the name should never be used with a trembling chin.
"Anyway, you managed to become a division! Let's hold a party to celebrate! Let's call your division leader too…"
"Ah, he can't come right now."
"Huh? Why?"
"I think he won't be able to move for a while. Or…"
Raon shook his head while murmuring that he might be already dead.
"Th-then we should do it between us. Let's hold it in two days, since we need some preparations. Please join us, Sir Rector."
"I haven't done anything though…"
"You can celebrate us as a guest!"
"Hmm, sure."
"Thank you!"
Sylvia nodded at him and went to the annex building while saying that she needed to notify the maids.
Raon narrowed his eyes while probing the Sword Demon's eyes, which were staring at Sylvia's back.
'He said he wasn't related to my father…'
Sylvia was convinced when she asked him whether he was related to his father, but he responded with a no.
'I also heard it before. It was slightly different though.'
He'd asked the same question in Habun Castle, and the Sword Demon had responded with a negation. However, he'd added another word after it.
'He said yet.'
Not knowing an already dead person yet was such an awkward thing to say.
'The Sword Demon knows my father. I'm sure about it. Moreover, he was rather close.'
The Sword Demon seemed to not realize what expression he was making, but it was plain to see when he saw him from the side. He was definitely related to his father.
Raon licked his lips, while looking at the Sword Demon pick up the empty teacup.
'He's either indebted to my father, or…'