Near the entrance to the forest, the residents were peering anxiously into the woods. When they saw the children, they let out a huge cheer of joy and several of them came running towards us. The children must have seen someone they knew, because they shook off my hand and ran off.
Captain Cyril tried to put the girl he was holding down on the ground, but before he could, one of the residents approached the Captain and snatched the girl back from his arms.
"Give it back! Don't touch my child!"
The girl, who had been roughly snatched from Captain Cyril's arms, seemed surprised and clung to the woman who appeared to be her mother who picked her up again, and began crying.
"Oh, you were scared? It's okay! Mommy is here now."
Glancing at the mother desperately holding the girl in her arms, Captain Curtis began reporting loud enough for everyone to hear.
"Two basilisks appeared about five minutes away. We defeated them, so everyone is safe now. All the children are unharmed. Please pass this on to whoever went to call for the Saint." (Curtis)
Any resident would understand the terror of the basilisk. It could swallow a child in one gulp, even an adult, and it could only be defeated with a group of several dozen knights. So, one would have thought that the residents would heave with relief upon hearing Captain Curtis's words, but for some reason, suspicious voices were heard.
"A basilisk? Why would such a vicious monster appear near the entrance to the forest?"
"Isn't the forest god angry? Either way, isn't it? If such a vicious monster appears at the entrance to the forest, the lord will punish us for not managing the forest properly."
Everyone looked at us with accusing looks and Captain Cyril stiffened in shock.
The Captain opened his mouth to say something, but before he could speak, the surrounding residents continued speaking.
"So then? What do you knights have to say next? Are you going to punish us for putting our lives in danger by making us face a basilisk?"
"You guys haven't changed at all since the last ten years! But if you just said something suspicious, the Duke behind us will probably try to kill us!!"
The moment he said that, Captain Cyril opened his eyes wide and opened his mouth as if to complain about something.
"...I will never unreasonably hurt anyone." (Cyril)
However, the voice that came out was hoarse and not loud enough for the excited residents to hear.
Hearing Captain Cyril's small voice, Captain Curtis repeated Captain Cyril's words out loud, as if he was growing impatient.
"Duke Sutherland would never wantonly harm anyone! Besides, confronting vicious monsters is a risk that a knight is prepared to take. There is no way that anyone else should be blamed for that. Since I became the Captain of this land, Duke Sutherland has never treated the residents unfairly! On what basis do you accuse Duke Sutherland?" (Curtis)
"You guys were the ones who took that unreasonable action ten years ago! 300 years ago, we promised not to fight with anyone. That's why we never stood up to anything that happened ten years ago. But that doesn't mean we're okay with it!"
Details of the incident ten years ago were unclear, but it was true that many of the residents were killed. It's not surprising that they might still have many feelings that they couldn't swallow.
Perhaps sensing these feelings, Captain Cyril stopped Captain Curtis from continuing by saying more with one hand, and spoke in a quiet voice as he looked around at the residents.
"I'm sorry for the fuss. I'm glad the children are safe, you see." (Cyril)
The lord was the pinnacle of power in a land. The residents, fearful of being punished in some way for their rudeness, were momentarily silenced by Captain Cyril's unexpectedly kind words.
The people who the residents blamed were the former duke, Captain Cyril's father.
There were many reasons that could be said, such as "Don't speak rudely to the deceased," or about what happened today, "Don't be disrespectful to the knight who saved the children," but the Captain swallowed all of the objections.
The Duke had absolute power, so if Captain Cyril were to mutter just one word, many people would be arrested and punished—And this became a negative chain reaction.
Captain Cyril was big. That's why he ended up consuming everything on my own. Because he knew how much power I had, he had to be careful how he used it.
The residents were shocked by Captain Cyril's kind words and fell silent, as if they had been deprived of energy, and I felt like shouting at them.
Hey, look, take a good look! He is a very kind and considerate lord!!
However, if these facts were to come from the other side —especially from a member of the Knights—they would likely only be met with backlash. They wouldn't accept it unless they realized it themselves.
Without noticing my impatient thoughts, Captain Cyril nodded slightly to the suddenly silent residents, turned on his heels, and left the place. We also bowed slightly to the residents and followed after Captain Cyril.
On the way back to the manor, Captain Cyril seemed to be deep in thought and didn't say a word. Captain Curtis seemed to be considerate and remained silent, so it was a very quiet journey home.
We all gathered in the great hall for dinner, but even from afar, Captain Cyril looked low spirits. The Captain 10 years ago was just a teenager and not even the lord of the land, but I think it was typical of him to face the residents' dissatisfaction head-on, and he was thinking about it carefully.
Although I was curious about Captain Cyril, I didn't have a chance to talk any further and it was time to go to bed. My plan to get a good night's sleep was dashed because of all the things that had happened today, and for some reason I woke up in the middle of the night, which was very unusual for me as I usually slept soundly.
Feeling thirsty, I walked down the hallway looking for the kitchen. Then I encountered Captain Cyril coming up the stairs.
Looking closer, the Captain was carrying several bottles of alcohol in both arms, apparently taken from the underground cellar.
"Did you drink a lot late at night?" (Cyril)
When Captain Cyril asked, I was amazed at the number of bottles he was holding, and the Captain smiled in a troubled tone.
"Every year around this time, I can't sleep well... I know it's bad, but I turn to alcohol for help. However, I don't seem to get drunk easily, so it doesn't have much effect on me." (Cyril)
Then, after hesitating for a moment as if he was having difficulty speaking, he continued speaking as if to say, "If that's okay."
"I know it's rude to ask this late at night, but if you can't sleep either, would you mind joining me for a drink? There's a wide selection of drinks made with fruits unique to Sutherland." (Cyril)
"Well, then, I'll join you for a drink." (Fia)
I nodded without hesitation. There were many fruits that could only be found at Sutherland. And they were all incredibly sweet and delicious. I was sure everyone wanted to know what these would taste like if they were made into alcohol, including myself.
I followed Captain Cyril and we passed through a large door into what appeared to be a private room. It seemed to be an office—one side of the large room was filled with difficult-looking books, and there was not a single document on the desk. Yes, this room looks complicated and well organized. I could tell at a glance that this was Captain Cyril's room. Opening the door further in, a room that seemed to be a living room appeared. In this room, there was a cabinet along one wall, with liquor bottles neatly lined up. However, upon closer inspection, all that was lined up were bottles of what appeared to be fruit wine in cute colors and shapes, and no other alcohol was to be found. There were several empty bottles lined up on the floor, so it seemed that Captain Cyril had drunk them.
He's still a heavy drinker... I thought to myself as I sat down at the seat he offered to me. I think what made Captain Cyril a gentleman was the way he nonchalantly pulled out a chair for me to sit on and left the door to the hallway slightly open so that there's no misunderstanding that we're alone together in the middle of the night.
I accepted the beautifully cut glass and took a sip of the drink as offered to me. I was told that it was a liquor made by soaking yellow fruits that are a specialty of the region, and it was very sweet and delicious.
"Ahh, it's delicious..." (Fia)
I murmured in ecstasy as I checked the taste. "That's good to hear," said Captain Cyril as he gulped down the strong looking liquor that had been poured into his glass.
Looking again, Captain Cyril was wearing a shirt and trousers. Unlike me, he wasn't wearing full loungewear, and it didn't look like he'd ever crawled into bed.
"You still haven't slept at all?" (Fia)
I thought maybe he had woken up in the middle of his sleep like me, but that didn't seem to be the case.
"...I don't feel like I can sleep. This is a bad time." (Cyril)
Ah, that's right. The period when "Sutherland's Lament" occurred also coincided with the anniversary of the deaths of Captain Cyril's parents.
This day, I was reminded that in addition to the words hurled at her by the residents, Captain Cyril was also experiencing the pain of mourning the death of his parents. Perhaps he still hadn't recovered from the grief of losing his parents. Perhaps, returning to his hometown and seeing the familiar scenery brought back memories. Ten years was surely a short time to heal the pain of losing a loved one.
"What was your mother like?" (Fia)
I wondered if it was okay to ask, but knowing that getting the feelings that had been building up inside out would make him feel better, I decided to go ahead and ask. At the very least, it would be a better topic to talk about than bringing up the accusations from residents.
I could have asked about his parents, but somehow, I felt that his mother would be more approachable and easier to talk to, so I decided to limit my questions to her. Captain Cyril looked at my face for a few moments as if thinking, then shifted her gaze to my red hair.
"...That's right. My mother was a beautiful woman. Just like you, she was a beautiful saint with red hair just like the Great Saint." (Cyril)
——Captain Cyril sat down deeply in his chair, clutched his glass, and began to talk bit by bit about his mother.