Between Responsibility and Respect (1)
Memory is sharp, and the truth hurts.
"This… looks like the uniform of the 9th Expedition Team who left the capital earlier…"
A murmured comment came unexpectedly.
And with it, memories returned, unbidden and unstoppable.
"........"
The former Demon Queen, Artanis, kept her mouth shut inside the cold seal artifact.
And she thought:
Back then, there was no other choice.
"…What? Is that true?"
Kim Jangcheol asked again.
Combat Engineering Commander Forkray nodded gravely.
"It's certain. From the insignia and rank badge on this coat… this one was a supply soldier from the 9th Expedition Team. Cause of death… looks like a massive impact burst his abdomen. Aside from the torn clothing and the dried bloodstains… there are signs that the exposed intestines burned, rotted, and disintegrated."
"Then, what about this one?"
"Same. That insignia marks him as a combat soldier."
"His lower body has been cleanly severed. This lower half here seems to belong to him."
"Looks that way. And this one… has a crushed skull."
"…Whew."
Kim Jangcheol let out a sigh, almost inaudible.
The scene was gruesome.
Signs of trauma everywhere. Not a single corpse had died cleanly.
There appeared to be roughly a hundred skeletons. All wore the same uniform. Though the garments were now rags, faint traces of their affiliation and rank were still discernible.
"Then… are you saying these remains all belong to the 9th Expedition Team?"
"Seems likely."
"......"
An answer he wanted to deny.
As he heard it, Kim Jangcheol suddenly recalled a small favor asked of him back in the capital.
Was it right before the marching ceremony, when the statues caused that chaos?
'She said her husband… her son's father had stopped sending word.'
He remembered the woman and child who had come to him with that request.
The wife and son of the 9th Expedition Team's commander. They had pleaded with him.
Her husband.
The father.
To be found.
Honestly, it had been a difficult request.
But when he saw the child, he remembered his own childhood self, searching for his mother — the mother who never came back.
And so he had nodded.
He had even made a promise to the child.
That he would definitely bring his father back.
"…Then, perhaps, could we find the commander's remains as well?"
"Let's look together. If the commander is here, he'll certainly have an insignia or item like this."
The engineering commander drew a simple symbol in the sand as he added,
"It's the emblem of the noble Magentano family. The 9th commander, Bronda Magentano, was a man of pride and strong responsibility toward his family. He surely carried something to represent his house, wherever he went."
"I understand. By the way… how large was the 9th Expedition Team?"
"One hundred strong."
"....Then they were wiped out here."
"Which means the commander's remains should be among them."
"...."
I must find him.
Even if he can't return alive, bringing his remains and belongings back to his son would be how he keeps his promise.
Kim Jangcheol solemnly resumed his search.
But it was no easy task.
A hundred skeletons.
Time and sandstorms had weathered them down, leaving only bones. Identifying them was no simple feat. Their clothing and belongings were heavily damaged, making recognition difficult. This was more excavation than Expedition.
'Can I really find him?'
To be honest, he was beginning to feel hopeless.
Then, it happened.
— If you're looking for the one who led this group, his remains will be over there.
Before his eyes, words formed from mana, carved by Artanis.
"What?"
Kim Jangcheol, startled, turned quickly.
He saw Artanis staring at the seal artifact, her eyes filled with a strangely conflicted look.
— This way.
"........"
Her steps were slower than usual.
Cautious?
No.
It was the walk of someone trying to hold firm to a decision made within hesitation.
— Here.
At last, she stopped.
There lay a single skeleton, lying neatly, as if awaiting death.
Artanis gestured toward him.
— He was the one who led them all. He shouted speeches, rallied them with his words, and planted a flag atop the sealed ruins. With great strength.
"......."
— That crack he created disrupted the mana structure holding the ruins sealed. The balance of the ruins collapsed, control was lost, and all that power exploded at once.
"Wait, then…"
— The mark carved into his chest came from that moment. He was standing at the top of the sealed ruins when the explosion began. Just as he sensed something wrong and turned to react, he was struck in the chest by the decorative stone that had blown off from the top.
"........."
Just as she said, the commander's chest was horribly crushed. As if struck by a giant's hammer, an area as wide as two palms had caved in, the bones shattered into dozens of fragments.
— But even so, he didn't die right away. Clinging to a fragile breath, coughing up blood, fatally wounded — he still worried about his men first.
"Then…"
Did you take his life?
He couldn't bring himself to ask that.
Because at that moment, he saw Artanis's eyes.
— But the subordinates he worried about… they too died in various horrific ways, at the same time.
"......"
Was she crying?
No, no tears were visible.
But Kim Jangcheol was certain.
She felt regret and sorrow.
— And so I commanded my loyal ones… to end their lives. To shorten their suffering.
"......"
— Of course, I do not regret that decision. Nor do I feel sorry. It was the best choice then, and I would make the same one again. But somehow… it feels bitter. Very bitter.
"......."
What should he say in a moment like this?
A clumsy condolence?
He didn't know.
But he did know one thing.
That her words were not a lie.
He knew it because while she etched those words… and for the 190 seconds afterward, she stared at the commander's remains.
…Ding dong.
[Bloodshot Eyes (Lv.2) skill has been activated.]
[Target of focus: Remains of Bronda Magentano]
[You have discerned the condition of Bronda Magentano's remains, and the changes they will undergo over the next 7 hours.]
[This corpse, having sustained severe trauma to the chest, died a merciful and peaceful death due to a specific sound wave. Because of this, the skeleton—which passed in a posture closely resembling peaceful death on a comfortable bed—will undergo only a very minor degree of additional weathering over the next 7 hours.]
"......"
Along with the quiet chime of the notification, it became clear.
The direct cause of death for Bronda Magentano, commander of the 9th Expedition Team, was not the chest trauma. Rather, it seemed that, despite such a gruesome and fatal wound, he had been granted a peaceful death through the effect of a specific sound wave.
It was the same for the other corpses.
A soldier with a severed waist, another with a shattered skull, one whose spine and limbs were crushed, likely having been flung into a cliff.
All of them shared the same cause of death—a peaceful passing induced by sound waves.
"But why reveal such a fact at all? If you had kept silent, no one would have known the truth."
The Engineering Commander, who had been reading her script alongside her, asked.
Artanis replied.
— I don't know either. It's just—
"…Just?"
— I thought… it shouldn't be hidden.
"I see…"
The commander nodded.
After a moment of reflection, he turned and asked,
"Then, Sir Kim Jangcheol, what do you plan to do with the remains?"
"......."
Was the burning look in the commander's eyes a mere illusion? Or perhaps a remnant of emotion, seeking direction now that the one to blame for the team's horrific deaths was no longer present?
"We must recover them. As respectfully as possible."
Kim Jangcheol answered flatly.
The commander flinched.
It was an unexpected reply.
'Recover them? Respectfully?'
...Not leave them behind or use them for food?
He could hardly believe it.
Truthfully, he still harbored deep-seated prejudice against the demon race.
Barbaric beings.
Vicious bloodlines.
He had always seen them as ravenous hyenas, ready to devour even the corpses of their own kin without hesitation if the opportunity arose.
He had always thought that way.
Today was no different.
Seeing the corpses of the Expedition Team, he had felt grief and indignation. He thought they had come to this barren land solely to fulfill their mission, only to meet horrific deaths at the hands of demons.
But then, this woman, Artanis, gave a suspicious confession.
She claimed it had been an accident.
She said she had offered them a peaceful death to lessen their suffering.
At first, he thought it might be true.
She had no reason to confess something that could put her at a disadvantage. Yet she did. That made it seem trustworthy.
However…
'That too could be a ploy… meant to deceive me…'
He soon found himself suspecting even more deeply.
Maybe this barbaric and evil demon was spinning a convenient lie, using the situation to deflect suspicion.
And yet—now she spoke of respectfully recovering the remains.
"In what way, exactly?"
He asked, still clinging to a shred of doubt.
The reply came as if it were the most natural thing in the world.
"We'll collect every last bone fragment without exception, sort them carefully to avoid mixing, organize the belongings, and place them together. Then, we'll send them. Home."
"...."
Another surprise.
Even more bewildering than before.
"W-wait… you don't mean just collecting a few mementos and burying the remains here?"
"Yes."
Kim Jangcheol nodded without hesitation.
He looked straight at the commander and spoke as if explaining the most obvious truth.
"They died while carrying out a royal mission. So, we must send them home. With full honors. Respectfully. Back to their families."
It was shocking.
And yet, it didn't stop there.
The woman called Artanis stepped forward and etched words into the air once more.
— I agree. I will go. I'll inform the families myself.
"Please don't describe too vividly the pain they felt in their final moments."
— I know that much. I intend to describe it as an honorable death. Because death at the end of loyalty deserves to be remembered with honor.
"......"
The Engineering Commander fell silent.
And inwardly, he was shaken, as he listened to and watched the conversation between Kim Jangcheol and Artanis.
Their discussion continued in the meantime.
"But are you planning to go alone?"
— No. I'll take my loyal ones with me. They, too, bear responsibility. If possible, I'd also like to bring a few senior engineers from your corps to assist on the way back to the capital.
"That's fine. Commander, would it be alright to assign some men?"
"Uh… yes, it's alright."
"Thank you. Then let's discuss the details later. For now, shall we begin recovering the remains?"
"…Understood."
Still in a daze, the commander nodded.
Thus, the task of recovering the remains began.
They recovered all visible remains.
The scattered personal effects, too.
At that point, the commander thought:
We're just about finished.
Time to pull back the engineers.
But then, it happened.
Kim Jangcheol gave an unexpected command to his subordinates—the demonfolk.
"Attention, everyone. From now on, dig and sift through all the sand in this area. Remember this well. Not even the smallest bone fragment of these soldiers—who died unjustly on our land—must be left behind. We will recover them all, and return them to their families."
"Baal! Understood!"
"You idiot, don't shout! You'll scatter the bones!"
"Asurat, try to keep your voice down too. This isn't the time to be loud."
"The 3rd Star Master is right. Isn't that so, Tbong?"
"Tbo-bong. Tbong."
"Right. But don't call Sirgi 'auntie'. Say 'big sister', alright? Now let's keep digging."
"Tbong!"
"Huff, huff!"
Kim Jangcheol and the demons—including even the physically weakest Zephyros—began tirelessly shoveling the surrounding sand and soil. With utmost care, they ensured that not even the tiniest bone fragment was dropped or missed.
At that sight, the Engineering Commander was stunned.
"......."
These demons… were collecting the remains with more diligence than the human engineers.
Not to eat them.
Not to defile them.
And thanks to that, he understood.
'They're sincere… right now… they mean it.'
That kind of dedication couldn't be faked.
This couldn't be a ploy to deceive him.
On the contrary, these beings—
These demons, whom he had always deemed primitive—
Were the ones who now, more than the humans, respected the concept of honor.
Something he and his fellow humans spoke of but often treated as no more than air.
It was in that moment.
Toward Kim Jangcheol,
Toward the demons,
The commander's deep-rooted prejudice shattered completely. And in its place, the first seed of respect began to sprout.
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