Up until that moment, Yuder had been just another member of the Cavalry—a gloomy and inscrutable figure, albeit a powerful one. However, after a certain incident, he began to be recognized as someone reliable, someone who could step forward on behalf of the group in times of crisis.
In a unit of 300 members, all too busy adapting to their new reality to worry about ranks, a figure emerged whom they thought would be suitable to tacitly take on the role of a leader.
With Commander Kishiar ardently siding with the non-noble Cavalry members, their training mindset had become significantly more comfortable, and their sense of camaraderie grew exponentially as they found some spare time.
Previously, they had only been friendly with their roommates or colleagues they got along well with. But starting two days ago, they began to freely interact with one another, even if they didn't know each other's faces or names well—as long as they were part of the Cavalry. This was proof of their growing unity.
Gender or previous social status no longer mattered. Beneath their identical black uniforms, they were all equals.
Yuder wasn't aware that the Cavalry members had begun to think this way, but he did notice a change in the way they looked at him.
For the first time, he saw a sense of equal camaraderie in the faces of the Cavalry members looking at him—not a competitive spirit towards a strong man, nor a helpless dread.
It was a peculiar feeling he hadn't known until he returned.
"Whew. Every time I try to come back, they keep asking me to dance one more time. I'm sorry, Yuder."
After dancing with various partners three times, Gakane finally returned, wiping the sweat off his forehead, and flopped down in front of Yuder, gulping down his drink.
"How is it? The party isn't that bad, right?"
"Yeah."
"I thought so."
Gakane, who was grinning, began to chatter, using the stories he'd heard while dancing as the topic.
"I heard that all the expenses for tonight's party are being covered by the Commander. He said the members needed more time to bond. He's really a remarkable person."
Kishiar? Yuder hadn't known that.
'If I think about it... Renting out an entire place would have cost a considerable amount of money.'
It might have been a significant amount for the members, but it probably didn't even tickle Kishiar's pocket. Yuder recalled that during his days as Commander, he had been asked several times to prepare meals and drinks with his own money to boost the morale of the members. But he only provided the money and was absent from the events, simply because he didn't want to attend.
Would the members back then have interpreted Yuder's intentions positively, like they did with Kishiar? He was slightly curious, though it was something he could never know now.
"Yuder! Do you know how to dance?"
Just then, Ever, slightly flushed, appeared and asked.
"He can't dance! He can't dance!"
Gakane desperately tried to shield Yuder, but it was futile against Ever's determination. With just a light push, Gakane was quickly sent flying out beyond the table.
"Ouch!"
"I wasn't asking you, Gakane! I asked Yuder. You're so noisy."
"I know how to dance," Yuder replied calmly as Gakane was being rescued amid the laughter of the other members in the distance. "But I don't feel like dancing right now. I prefer just sitting like this."
"Really? That's a pity. I really enjoy dancing." Ever flashed a bright smile. "When I first arrived here, I thought I'd never again have the chance to dance and converse so freely with someone. But I'm pleased to realize I was wrong. This is all thanks to you, Yuder."
"..."
"If you hadn't stepped forward back then, we wouldn't have believed we could enjoy ourselves like this now."
Yuder set down the glass he was holding. "That's not true."
It was true that he had stepped forward in front of the knights, but his motives were not as pure as Ever made them out to be. In fact, his actions had been reckless enough to incur resentment from the noble-born knights, as he had stirred up unnecessary conflict.
"I didn't have some grand goal in mind when I stepped forward, and even if I hadn't, someone else would have eventually. If my actions helped in some way, that's good, but don't credit it all to me."
The reason Yuder had stepped forward was simple. He felt that at that moment, in that place, the only one who wouldn't hesitate to take the lead was himself, having already experienced that era once and having grown accustomed to leading as a Cavalry commander for nearly a decade. It was no more and no less than that.
Now, he had no desire to strive for a higher position and was content to live as just one of the members. Still, his time leading them remained within him like an obligation, like a debt.
He hadn't appreciated each of them individually before. He thought he could handle everything by himself and was always on guard, erecting walls.
But when it came time to die, he finally realized it. Perhaps those who could help Yuder were not the powerful Emperor, the nobles, or even himself, but other beings possessing the same power.
"No matter what happened, it would have ended up like that."
Yes, even without Yuder, the Cavalry members would eventually realize that they were much stronger than the Imperial Knights or the Pearl Tower mages. They deserved just compensation and treatment for the work they did for the country.
Yuder's actions were merely an effort to reduce the trials they would have to endure before that future came.
In order to correct a misaligned button, he had to straighten out this Cavalry first.
Those who had been the core of the Cavalry and could have been its future were lost too early on due to ignorance and petty discrimination.
Furthermore, Commander Kishiar, who could have been a much greater asset than Yuder, died as soon as he established the framework. Even just correcting that could have been a huge help in preventing future disasters.
"...You speak as if you're prophesying?" Ever, who had been blinking, soon chuckled.
"It's not a prophecy. It's a fact."
"I hope so. I'm still not accustomed to receiving disdainful looks for daring to set foot in this noble place as a country bumpkin commoner. Someday, I hope I can stand up like you, Yuder, and reprimand others for looking down on those weaker than themselves."
"That will happen," Yuder assured her with confidence. In the future—and the past, where he had lived—Ever was one of the initial members who worked tirelessly in the Cavalry until the very end.
Her stern demeanor, her unblinking eyes, and her relentless pursuit of those who blindly trusted in their lineage yet lacked ability became famous within the Cavalry.
Now, she was smiling and dancing with a much softer expression, but it didn't make her seem any weaker than her future self.
What she lacked was only experience. Given time to gain that, she could transform into her future self at any moment.
"Good. Let's drink to that future."
Yuder silently clinked glasses with Ever.
"Yuder, have you fully manifested your secondary gender yet?"
"No, not yet."
"They call me an alpha, but I still don't really understand what makes me different."
In a few more years, openly asking about someone's secondary gender would become impolite, but it wasn't the case yet.
The world barely knew about the existence of alphas and omegas. It was all still novel and liberating.
Would this atmosphere last forever? Yuder swallowed his thoughts with a nod.
"I see..."
"What exactly is the power of the Red Stone? It gives us immense power, changes our born gender, and even alters our entire being, yet we can't see it. I don't even know what it is. Is it really a power bestowed by the Sun God, as the priests say?"
"What are you talking about?"
Just then, Gakane, who had been pulled away by other comrades, finally returned and sat down next to them. Ever rolled her eyes and opened her mouth.
"We were discussing whether the power of the Red Stone is truly a divine power from the Sun God. Weren't you curious? Or was it just me?"
"Well, I am curious, but being in the Cavalry, won't we eventually find out?" Gakane answered, his eyes widening slightly.
"There are rumors that the Cavalry was formed to retrieve and protect the Red Stones, after all."
"Is that so..."
Ever sighed. Gakane's words echoed the strong rumors that had been circulating since the first public notice for Cavalry recruitment was issued in the country. Yuder also remembered hearing such rumors from his distant past.
'In retrospect, the rumor was half true and half false.'
The Red Stone that Kishiar had retrieved was refined in the Pearl Tower over the course of a year. It was then dubbed the "World Sphere" and was to be enshrined in the deepest part of the sacred forest located north of the capital.
Although it was said to be enshrined, it was more akin to being sealed. One of the main duties of the Cavalry was to ensure that no unauthorized people could approach it.
Only two people could access that place without anyone's permission. One was the Emperor, and the other was Yuder, the commander of the Cavalry.
Thinking about it made Yuder feel a tingling sensation, as if his undamaged mana hole was being pricked.
'Come to think of it, isn't it about time to retrieve that Red Stone?'