Episode 3: Behind the Finished War

[After the war ended, you learned from your grandfather that your adoptive parents had disappeared after being assigned a secret mission by the army commander. No one knew what that mission was because the commander who gave it had been killed by the enemy. But after the two of them were declared missing, the war came to a mysterious end when the Ursus army abruptly withdrew.]

[Your grandfather, a celebrated war hero, had to retire from the military unwillingly due to his deteriorating health. However, the true reason wasn't just his age—it was also the physical and mental wounds he had suffered. As a result, Grandpa Kirill seemed to have aged decades overnight.]

[But the person who changed the most was Uncle Mlynar. After returning from the war, he became a silent man who never spoke a word. When you tried to talk to him, he only responded in curt phrases, avoiding eye contact. Though he was always a quiet and serious person, he used to be known for his light-hearted teasing of his older brother, Schnitz Now, it was as if he had become a completely different man. You never saw him reading the newspaper in the dining room anymore, and he no longer glanced at the chessboard he used to enjoy as he passed the living room.]

[Out of curiosity, you wanted to uncover the truth about what really happened during the war. Since your adoptive mother used to prepare breakfast for the family every morning, the task had now fallen to you. So when you went out to buy fresh ingredients at the market, you took the opportunity to wander around and eavesdrop on the gossip of the vendors.]

[And just as you suspected, you heard a flood of rumors. The most well-known was the tale of your grandfather's fierce frontline battle against the Ursus army's commander, known as "The Emperor's Spear," Buldrokkas'tee—a pure-blooded Wendigo who fought your grandfather for three straight days and nights without rest. Their duel ended in a draw, with no clear victor.]

[Other rumors included the claim that the Kazimierz army had become so weakened that it couldn't even stand up to the Ursus forces. People whispered that the knights sent to the front were too few in number—even though they were strong, they were overwhelmed by the superior numbers and advanced weaponry of the enemy. Over half the knights perished at the hands of Ursus soldiers.]

[Some said the Kazimierz army wasn't really outmatched—but lost due to a secret weapon deployed by Ursus. One version said it was a nuclear bomb that poisoned the land, while others claimed Ursus had bred mutated monsters with multiple arms to unleash on their enemies. But the most chilling tale came from a one-armed knight begging on the roadside.]

[He claimed to be a frontline survivor—not a greenhorn, but a seasoned knight. Yet the horrors of that war had completely changed his perception of combat.]

["What the Ursus army brought that day... was something beyond human comprehension," he said, trembling as if haunted by nightmares.]

[He recounted how Ursus had sent thirty thousand soldiers—ordinary troops with advanced weaponry, but nothing the Kazimierz knights couldn't handle. That is, until they encountered... them.]

["The Emperor's Blades"—that was what they called themselves. They slaughtered the frontline knights like cattle. Though there were only thirty of them, they wiped out over 3,000 skilled Kazimierz knights in less than a week.]

[It was said that each of the Emperor's Blades had the power equivalent to 100 elite knights. But the most terrifying part was that when one of them died, their body exploded in a massive blast that spread for dozens of kilometers—leaving behind a toxic black mist in which nothing could survive, except them.]

[The appearance of those thirty monsters was enough to reverse the momentum of a winning war. Any knight who saw their superhuman strength and the apocalyptic destruction they caused lost the will to fight.]

[Survivors from the incident called them "The Demons of the End," and no one escaped their blades—except through death.]

[Countless knights, soldiers, and innocent civilians were devoured by that hellish mist, never even realizing what they had faced. The one-armed knight's lifeless eyes seemed to say: this wasn't war—it was a massacre.]

[The appearance of the Emperor's Blades was a message to the world: Submit to the Emperor... or we will turn this land into hell itself.]

[Not long after finishing his story, the one-armed knight was dragged away by patrolling knights after a villager reported him. The patrols publicly declared that his story was untrue—that he was just a delusional madman.]

[When you returned to the mansion with your hands full of groceries, you found your grandfather training Margaret. Two-year-old Maria ran up to hug you, and you gently stroked her head before heading into the kitchen to cook. Thanks to your adoptive mother's teachings—and your past life's knowledge—your cooking skills had improved significantly.]

[Once the meal was ready, you called your grandfather and Margaret to the table. You all ate together while you helped care for little Maria so Margaret could eat peacefully.]

[Thinking the atmosphere was too quiet, you tried to lighten the mood with a joke—but your sense of humor was nonexistent, and it only made things more awkward. Only Maria laughed, but her innocent giggles managed to brighten the mood.]

[After the meal, Margaret insisted on cleaning up, despite your protests. Maria eagerly followed her into the kitchen.]

[Left alone with your grandfather, you decided to tell him the story you'd heard from the one-armed knight and asked if it was true. He didn't say a word—but his silence spoke volumes.]

["The world has changed, Ray. Even human morality must now twist and bend... relying on the power of demons. Honor, pride—one day, all of it will vanish with time. Including the title of 'knight' itself." Those were your grandfather's final words before he walked away.]

[That night, after you finished telling Maria a bedtime story and tucked her in, you were heading back to your room when you saw Margaret in her pajamas standing hesitantly at your door. She looked startled to see you. You asked if she needed anything. Hugging the toy horse her father had once given her, she quietly said she couldn't sleep—and asked if she could sleep in your room that night.]

[You felt a bit conflicted but didn't refuse. Margaret had stopped sleeping in your room since she was eight—possibly because of something Sophia had said, though you never learned what.]

[Once you were both in bed, you asked if she wanted to hear a story like before. She nodded. You then told her a made-up tale: "The Cursed Maiden," about a kind and beautiful young woman cursed by a jealous witch. The curse turned her into an old hag with a hideous voice. To break it, she had to find seven magical beings, aided by a kind squire traveling the continent to become a true knight.]

[In the end, she broke the curse, defeated the wicked witch, and returned home with the now fully-fledged knight—her beloved. They married and lived happily ever after.]

"...And so, they lived happily ever after," Wang Fei said as he turned to look at the girl beside him. To his surprise, Margaret was still awake. She lay silently, staring straight at him.

After a long pause, she finally spoke.

"Brother... do you think Mom and Dad will ever come back to us?"

"..."

"Grandpa said... they went away on a knight's duty, far away. So... when their mission is done, they'll come back to us, right?"

Her face was soaked with tears. She clutched her toy horse so tightly the fabric dented under her grip.

"...Margaret," Wang Fei looked at her tear-streaked face, his heart aching. He was so choked up he couldn't speak—but he knew he had to do something, as her brother.

"You silly girl. Do you really think Mom and Dad would leave us for good? Don't worry. Someday... they will come back."

He hugged her tightly, hiding the pain on his face from her.

"They'll definitely come back. So let's stay strong and welcome them home when they do."

"Sniff... Brother, please don't leave me..."

Margaret couldn't hold back anymore and began to sob on his chest.

"It's alright. I'm here... I'll always be here, Margaret."

Wang Fei tried his best to comfort her as an older brother, but he couldn't hold back the tears he had been suppressing.

"..."

Mlynar looked at the two of them, embracing and crying, without saying a word.

He slowly closed the slightly open door without a sound, then turned his heavy back to lean against the wall.

His hands clenched so tightly that the veins bulged visibly.

'I'm sorry, big brother... sister-in-law... I couldn't do it.'

'I... don't even have the courage to look at them.'

Tears of a man flowed down Mlynar's face, filled with regret,

before he dragged his heavy body out of the mansion without saying a single word.