Shadow's Oath

[Translator - Night]

[Proofreader - Gun]

Chapter 105: The Execution Meeting (2)

Damion had no expression, no emotions.

To Terdin, he seemed as if he had no soul at all.

Terdin felt heartache.

‘He is the last person who should be here. But at the same time, he is the one who must give his opinion more than anyone else.’

Terdin wanted to hold the meeting only with Rusef and Vadio and merely inform Damion of the decision.

Or better yet, he wanted to decide alone, as he had done during wartime, and issue a command without discussion.

The prince was too young to handle something like this calmly.

No, could anyone handle this calmly?

If he had gone through the same thing, would he have been any different?

‘If I had experienced this at eighteen, I wouldn't even be sitting here right now.’

Even Vadio, who rarely bent his pride, leaned in to listen to the prince, and Rusef held his mouth shut, his eyes filled with anticipation.

But before Damion could speak, the last person Terdin wanted to hear from—Aikob—opened his mouth first.

“Please, Your Highness. What could be more important in this moment than your opinion?”

He raised both hands outward and closed his eyes toward the heavens.

“Oh, do you all feel it? The warmth of the divine, as if God Himself is sitting among us.”

‘That old man is doing something he wouldn’t even do in his own sanctuary. Did he hit his head last night? I should have known when he started raving about receiving a divine revelation…’

Damion didn’t even look at Aikob’s sacred pose.

He simply responded flatly.

“Count Vadio is right.”

Terdin’s heart sank.

He hadn’t expected Damion, no matter how furious he was, to side with Vadio.

Vadio grinned ear to ear at the unexpected agreement.

“Isn’t that so, Your Highness? Then, according to martial law—”

Damion cut him off.

“No, what I meant was that executing them in front of the villagers is the right approach.”

“That’s exactly my point. So, as per martial law—”

Damion interrupted again.

“But according to martial law, as General Terdin pointed out, since this was an incident involving two foreigners within our camp, Count Vadio has no authority to carry out the execution.”

“What? But Your Highness, I was granted full command—”

“Just as Archbishop Aikob said, we must adhere to proper procedure in front of those savages.”

Aikob gave Damion a slight nod, signaling humble gratitude.

Vadio crossed his arms and huffed like a child left out of a game.

Damion continued.

“But if Captain Rusef transfers ownership of Charlon to me, then the assault on a woman under my protection would justify my authority to punish Jedrick, the chieftain, under martial law.”

Rusef asked cautiously,

“So, Your Highness, are you saying you will accept Charlon—”

“I have no intention of breaking my engagement with Lady Charlon over this matter. I will persuade my father. The wedding ceremony can be held properly at a later date. For now, words will suffice. Will you make this promise as the Duke of Vormont’s representative, Captain Rusef?”

Rusef responded firmly.

“Of course, Your Highness.”

“Then as of this moment, Charlon is under my ownership. Would you agree, Archbishop?”

Aikob hesitated as if he wanted to argue but then shook his head.

“It may not align perfectly with the law, but regarding a man’s right to own a woman, you two may decide as you see fit.”

Damion spoke before Aikob could even finish.

“Then I will exercise my authority under martial law regarding the assault on my property. However, as Count Vadio suggested, if we are to solidify our legitimacy and gain leverage in negotiations, the execution will take place publicly, following their tribal customs.”

Vadio’s eyes widened.

“You mean another village trial?”

“They will decide the verdict themselves. They will declare their own guilt and carry out the execution themselves.”

Terdin suddenly realized.

The prince had tried to use a village trial to save Olga, but he had failed.

He wouldn’t be making the same mistake twice.

If things continued as they were, the outcome would be exactly as Vadio wanted.

Damion truly wanted Jedrick to be executed.

“The village trial will be held at dawn tomorrow. Bring Ikarum.”

Terdin stood in front of the bound Ram.

"Damn it, so that’s where Vadio disappeared before the meeting."

Ram was unable to kneel properly and lay slumped on his side.

“Can he at least get some water?”

Terdin asked.

“The Count ordered that not a single drop be given to the prisoner,”

One of Vadio’s personal knights replied coldly.

“Even under my command as Supreme General?”

“We were only permitted to allow conversation. During the meeting, we learned that all military forces have been placed under the Count’s command. Even before that, we were his personal knights. You have no authority over us, General.”

“You’re certainly loyal to your master.”

“Thank you.”

“That wasn’t a compliment. I’ll ask one more time—leave us alone.”

“We cannot comply. The only one who can order us is Count Vadio—”

Terdin stepped in close, almost touching their faces, and spoke in a low, dangerous voice.

“Oh, because the entire army is under Vadio now? Most of the soldiers here don’t even know that yet. If I start yelling that you two are threatening me, how many of them do you think will hesitate to attack? You think they’ll say, ‘Oh, but we follow the Count’s orders’? Or do you think they’ll charge at you with their axes, the same way they threw themselves at the Geron warriors? You two cowards spent the entire battle peeling peas next to the Count, and now you have the guts to lecture me on authority?”

The two knights flinched and backed away before leaving the tent.

“Get out! Far away! If I catch you eavesdropping, I’ll kill you myself! And bring some damn water!”

Once they were gone, Terdin lifted Ram slightly and gave him some water.

After confirming that the knights had moved far away, Terdin asked,

“Can you speak, boy?”

“Yes, General.”

“I can’t free you just yet, but I’ll find a way.”

“It’s fine.”

Ram, still bound, recounted what had happened the night before.

Even though Terdin trusted him, the story was almost too absurd to believe.

“Maraka used a death curse? A panther?”

“Not exactly a panther. But it was definitely a large feline.”

"If they say the dead have risen, a panther isn’t that unbelievable either..."

Terdin hated how he was growing accustomed to such madness.

“You think it was after you?”

“I’m not sure. It could have been after you, the prince, or me. But considering Maraka raised Zenri Selken as a ghoul, I think I was the target.”

“Why you?”

“I think Maraka used divination to learn that I killed Mantum. Then he told Ikarum.”

“Ikarum must want you dead.”

“Yes. But I doubt he’ll find it easy to kill me when I’m right next to the prince. Maybe that’s why he used sorcery.”

“This isn’t just about revenge...”

Terdin couldn’t shake the feeling that Ram was holding something back.

“Is there something you haven’t told me?”

“Yes.”

“Then say it.”

Ram’s answer was not what Terdin expected.

“General, your son was here.”

“What?”

[Translator - Night]

[Proofreader - Gun]

"It was when the sound of trumpets suddenly came from the sky."

"Trumpets? Like the night you killed Mantum?"

"Yes."

"When?"

"You really don’t know, do you?"

"What do you mean I don’t know?"

Ram continued speaking in a cryptic manner.

"Yes, General. If you truly don’t know, then you shouldn’t even know that you don’t know."

Lying face down, his expression hidden, Ram's voice was low, emotionless, and even eerie.

"What exactly are you trying to say, Ram?"

"Your second son, Astian, pretended not to know when I asked him certain questions. But the way he answered—it wasn’t that he didn’t know. He knew, but he was pretending not to."

"Explain in more detail."

Ram spoke about the magician Kura.

On the day King Gallant arrived, Kura had secretly approached him, assigned to assassinate Terdin.

He also spoke about the wound he had inflicted with his sword—the same wound that appeared on the back of Astian’s neck.

And finally, how Astian had suddenly appeared at the campsite today, only to vanish again.

It was a tale even more unbelievable than stories of ghouls.

"And then he just left? Without meeting anyone, without doing anything?"

"Astian spoke vaguely. He said he did come to meet someone, and he didn’t do nothing—he was stopped from doing something. That was directed at me. He came to see me, and I was the one who prevented him from meeting Maraka."

"Just listening to your story, I can’t tell if that’s true or not, my boy."

Astian had always acted in ways that were difficult to understand.

He had been that way since childhood, and he remained so.

"It’s not that I don’t believe you, but the situation itself is hard to grasp."

"I feel the same way. I thought I had finally figured things out, but now I realize I know nothing at all."

Terdin understood Ram’s frustration.

It wasn’t that he didn’t know.

Quite the opposite.

He knew too much.

And that began to worry Terdin.

Ram still had a royal order to assassinate him.

And this clever child—who didn’t even realize how intelligent he was—would soon come to the same conclusion as he had: the king was deliberately provoking General Terdin into rebellion.

"It’s all my fault. Prince Damion, Jedrick, Charlon—I promised to protect them, but I failed to protect even one. It’s all my fault."

He wasn’t crying, but his voice was full of despair.

Terdin wanted to comfort him, but he didn’t know how or where to begin.

‘I can rally my soldiers and lead them to charge into death, but I can’t even console my own children’s small sorrows. I’ve come to think of Ram as my son. And because of that, I can’t do anything for him.’

Terdin decided to think of Ram not as a son, but as a subordinate.

That way, he could treat him differently.

It hurt, but it was necessary.

"Ram, if I were to order you to kill Jedrick, would you obey?"

"I cannot."

Ram answered without a second thought.

But he respectfully added a question.

"But I would like to know the reason why he must be killed."

"Jedrick will be put on trial in the village tomorrow morning. He may suffer a fate worse than death. The Geron people, to prove their innocence, will likely carry out an exaggerated execution. That means burning at the stake."

It was harder than he expected to continue speaking.

"But if you kill Jedrick, things become simple. The villagers will believe that a prince, enraged at the dishonor brought upon his lover, acted in a fit of passion. That would eliminate the need for a complicated trial and spare him a gruesome execution."

And it would put an end to Count Vadio’s obvious scheme.

"You are asking me to show mercy."

"Yes."

"I cannot."

It was the answer Terdin had expected.

That’s why he had chosen to think of Ram as a subordinate.

If Ram were his son, he would have felt frustrated and tried to persuade him.

"Just keep it in mind. That way, if something happens, you won’t hesitate."

Terdin didn’t expect a response, but Ram suddenly lifted his head and straightened his posture. It was as if his earlier exhaustion had been nothing more than an act.

"What about Count Vadio?"

Ram asked.

"You don’t need to worry about him. He will never have you executed. He always thinks about profit. Killing you would bring him no benefit. Even imprisoning you now is likely part of a ploy to claim you for himself. I’ll find a way to get you out soon, so don’t—"

"That’s not what I was asking, General."

"Then what?"

"Will you not give the order to show Count Vadio mercy?"

At that moment, there was no change in Ram’s eyes.

He wasn’t revealing some great conspiracy.

He wasn’t making some grand resolution.

He simply looked as if he were doing something routine.

It was the same expression Terdin had seen countless times.

If he had told his adjutant, "Bring me my sword," that adjutant would have replied with exactly that expression.

‘Yes, General. Please wait a moment.’

Terdin shuddered involuntarily.

‘I’ve never forgotten how this boy came into my service, and yet… he still makes me feel this way. I must always remember what this boy is capable of.’

Terdin shook his head.

"I cannot give that order. Even if I could, now is not the time."

"Then please tell me when the time comes."

"I will."

Terdin left the tent.

It felt like he was running away from Ram.

A sudden fear struck him.

If that kind-hearted boy were stripped of his warmth, just how terrifying a weapon would emerge into this world?

[Translator - Night]

[Proofreader - Gun]