"Devran Hartude. Is Devran Hartude here?"
"..."
Even after the call echoed through the prison, silence lingered. Even Kiolle's groans had quieted, amplifying the grim atmosphere.
"Devran Hartude. I am a Cavalry member, here to rescue you. The Commander has ordered me to bring you out. If you're here, answer."
Yuder waited, counting silently in his mind. If no response came by the time he reached a hundred, he planned to open all the cell doors at once.
Fortunately, around the count of ten, a ragged breath sounded from within a cell, followed by a weak voice.
"Are you... really with the Cavalry?"
Suspicion and fear were clear in the exhausted tone. Yuder moved toward the source of the voice, fumbling with the ring of keys he carried.
"Devran. Is that really you?"
Before inserting the key, he asked for confirmation. A dark shadow in the cell stirred sluggishly. The figure's voice was strangled, as if at the brink of death.
"...Yes. I am... Devran."
Yuder glanced back at Nahan and gave a subtle nod. Understanding the signal, Nahan lifted his hand to dispel the illusion that had concealed their presence.
Yuder began unlocking the door. After a few failed attempts, the lock finally clicked open on the third try with a metallic clatter.
The cell was narrow and filthy. The stench of blood and waste was suffocating. Inside, a single person sat, their hands and feet bound by iron chains. Yuder halted when he noticed that the chains looped through two rings on the wall, pulling the prisoner's limbs taut and constricting his neck.
He was all too familiar with this method of restraint. The victim's hands and feet were stretched painfully, barely keeping the chain around their neck from strangling them. A moment of relaxation would cause the chain to tighten, cutting off their air. It was a torture technique reserved for the most dangerous criminals.
Yuder, having experienced this torment in his previous life, knew well the malicious suffering it inflicted.
The prisoner couldn't even sleep. The moment fatigue caused them to relax, they'd be strangled.
The reason why most people trapped in this prison could barely make a noise was that they were all bound in the same way. Yuder grimaced at the sight, more brutal than he'd expected. Drawing the practice sword from his waist, he stepped closer.
"It's... impossible. This chain... it isn't ordinary..." Devran tried to explain that no normal weapon could break the chains, but before he could finish, Yuder's sword touched the metal.
With a swift, clean slice, the chains snapped. A clanging echoed through the cell as Devran's arms fell limp, the chain around his neck releasing its grip. Devran gasped, coughing violently, his body finally able to relax after what must have felt like an eternity.
"Cough, cough!"
Yuder conjured a soft light, illuminating the dark cell. He needed to get a clearer look at Devran's face.
"Devran. Can you see me?"
"I... I can. Yuder, of the Shin..."
Even through his ragged, labored breaths, Devran managed to recognize Yuder. His condition was grim—his body marred by blood and filth—but there were no signs of permanent damage or broken bones. It was clear that whoever had imprisoned him hadn't intended to kill him, at least not immediately.
"Good. Your mind seems intact. Now, tell me—what happened?"
"..."
At Yuder's question, a look of deep pain crossed Devran's face. His hand, rough and wounded, reached out to grasp the hem of Yuder's garment. Beneath his disheveled hair, anger simmered in his uniquely brown eyes.
"I was... tricked. It was a trap... from the start..."
Tricked? By whom?
Yuder knelt down, meeting Devran's gaze directly.
"Who tricked you?"
"They... they tried to sell Dermilla while I was away. So, I—!"
"Wait." Yuder gently patted Devran's shoulder, sensing the rising agitation in his voice. "Slow down. It's hard to understand you like this. Speak more clearly."
Devran, still coughing, shot Yuder a resentful look. But before he could say anything more, Yuder conjured a small ball of water, floating in mid-air.
"Drink this first."
"...Thank you."
Devran gratefully swallowed the water Yuder offered. After taking a few moments to catch his breath, his eyes calmed. Finally, Yuder sensed that Devran was ready to speak properly.
"Start from the beginning. What happened after you went on leave?"
"...Alright. After I got my leave, I went straight to my hometown."
Devran's story unfolded in a few short sentences. He hadn't informed his family of his leave in advance, so when he arrived, he noticed an unusual tension in the village. The reason became clear once he reached his home.
'Devran, my boy! The Lord has ordered your sister Dermilla to marry a man from the neighboring village!'
His father, crippled in one leg from an old accident, clung to him, weeping bitterly.
'The man she's supposed to marry is a widowed blacksmith, known for his violent temper. They say he's killed two men! When Dermilla resisted, they locked her up in the lord's castle. They're going to keep her there until the wedding day and then send her off. What can we do?'
Devran's world crumbled. The thing he had feared most had finally come to pass.
Devran's father hadn't known, but his younger sister, Dermilla, had fallen in love with Zachlis, the Lord's eldest son, long ago. Zachlis, aware that his father would never approve of a marriage to a commoner, had enlisted in a distant knight order to avoid his father's control.
Before leaving, Zachlis had promised Dermilla that he would return for her. She had shared this secret with Devran, and he still remembered the anger he felt upon hearing it.
When Devran was accepted into the Cavalry, he was overjoyed. Even though it meant revealing his awakened powers and enduring scorn from the village, he believed it was his chance to protect his family. He had no trust in nobles; he just wanted to get his family away as soon as possible.
He had feared Zachlis might pressure his father to prevent them from leaving, but he had never expected the situation to deteriorate so quickly.
What would have happened if he hadn't taken leave? The thought suffocated him.
"Sir Zachlis? Is he not in the village anymore?"
"Why bring him up? He... he must still be with the knight order..."
Yuder was certain: the relationship between Zachlis and Dermilla had been discovered. Though he didn't know how, the Lord's actions—arranging a marriage with the rough blacksmith—made it clear he was trying to get rid of Dermilla.
Could the Lord simply want her gone? Devran had considered asking to leave for the capital with his family, and now that request had only become more urgent. Surely, the Lord wouldn't want a conflict with the Cavalry and risk crossing Duke Kishiar La Orr.
Devran had faith in the presence of the Cavalry behind him and the name of the Duke of Peletta, Kishiar La Orr.
"I went to the Lord's castle," Devran continued. "The Lord himself was unwell and wouldn't meet me, but his eldest daughter, Zupiel, who was set to inherit the title, listened to my plea. Thanks to her, I was able to bring Dermilla home safely. I decided to take my father and Dermilla to the capital when my vacation ended. But that night... the Lord called for me again."
He had a bad feeling about it, Devran told his father and Dermilla not to leave the house, and he went to the Lord's castle alone. When he arrived, the entire place was ablaze.
The fire was fierce, spreading as if it had a will of its own.
"It was obvious the fire wasn't natural," Devran added. "There was an Awakener there that day, someone who could wield fire."
Devran himself had the ability to summon and control fire to some extent, but no matter how hard he tried, this fire was beyond him. It spread wildly, uncontrollably.
The villagers, misunderstanding the situation, assumed he was the one who started the fire. Furious, they captured him, and he was thrown into prison, confused and terrified for his family.
"The next day, Zakail, the Lord's youngest son, returned and declared me guilty. And then... I was beaten, nearly to death."
Devran recounted how, after the brutal beating, he had been buried alive near the Rock of Death, a place where prisoners were left to die. A sack had been placed over his head, and he had no sense of day or night. When he finally regained consciousness, he was here.
'Are you awake? Let's have a chat now,'
A strange man greeted Devran. He had introduced himself as a follower of the 'High One.'
'I was just doing some tedious work when you showed up,'
Through this man and his subordinates, Devran learned about their plans. They were secretly expanding the influence of the Duke of Apeto in the East, where the Diarca ducal family held significant power. They were attending to the request of a 'Contractor' who had agreed to support their cause.
"'And then you appeared,' the man said. 'You're a bit special among the Awakeners. It's a stroke of luck to capture someone close to cunning Duke Peletta.'"
The man's goal was to extract information about the Cavalry and Duke Kishiar La Orr from Devran. But despite the torture, Devran never opened his mouth.
The Cavalry had saved his life, and Commander Kishiar and the Emperor was the first person to truly acknowledge his worth. Though he had lived his entire life in contempt as a commoner, he swore he would never betray the Cavalry or those who believed in him.