"Valdion? That Valdion? Are you serious?"
Veltis looked at me with an expression of disbelief—and suddenly stood up from his seat.
"You're saying the Valdion you mentioned is the same person I know?"
His voice carried both astonishment and distrust.
I nodded slowly.
"Yes. That very Valdion."
Veltis's expression gradually hardened.
"The man who fought in the First Great Fire of Carvanis—as a twenty-four-year-old cadet?"
I nodded once again.
A moment of silence passed—then again.
"Valdion? Truly, that Valdion?" Veltis asked again.
"Yes, that Valdion," I replied.
He still couldn't believe it.
"Wasn't there a rumor that Valdion had died?"
I finally let out a deep sigh and pointed toward the two Guidance Swords I carried.
"In the Kingdom of Veldoras, no matter how excellent your grades are at the military academy, only one Guidance Sword is ever granted—and even that process is so strict that most cadets fail to earn one."
At those words, Veltis's eyes trembled slightly.
"But I have two."
I looked at him and smiled meaningfully.
Veltis stared at the swords before him and muttered under his breath,
"Impossible… two Guidance Swords…?"
"Yes. One of them belonged to Valdion."
"What!?"
I nodded. "Yes. My father-in-law—Valdion."
"Your father-in-law?"
"Yes."
"How could that be…?"
"It's a complicated story."
Veltis crossed his arms and glared at me sharply.
"Convince me—otherwise… this place will be your grave."
I sighed, half in disbelief.
"When I first met him in that old cabin, the moment he saw my Guidance Sword, he glared at me as if he would kill me on the spot."
As the memory surfaced, a chill ran down my spine.
"And then—without asking a single question or saying a single word—he began beating me. He kept hitting me until my entire body was covered in blood."
"He beat me until I was about to lose consciousness."
"When I came to, there was a bowl of warm soup and pieces of bread laid out in front of me."
"He practically forced me to eat the soup and bread—and as soon as I regained a bit of strength, he beat me again, calling me a deserter and cursing me over and over."
I laughed bitterly.
"Never in my life had I been beaten like that."
Veltis could only open and close his lips, unable to speak.
"Then one day—even while still calling me a 'deserter'—he told me to stay. From that moment, he became my teacher—and my father."
"He taught me swordsmanship, tactics, battlefield psychology, and how to survive. His words were always short, and his actions were always precise."
"And one day, he introduced me to a woman—Lia. She was an orphan he had rescued from the battlefield—small and shy."
"Though scarred by war, she could still smile. She was strong—and kind."
"Every time I came back from training with the Master, battered and bruised, she was always busy tending to my wounds. There was never a moment when her hands weren't wrapping bandages."
"Her eyes were always warm—and through her, I felt something for the first time in my life—warmth."
"One day, the Master said to me, 'Lia marks the end of my war, but she will be the beginning of yours.' And just as he said—we were married."
"On the night of the wedding, Valdion handed me a glass of wine and said, 'From this day on, you are not only my disciple—but my son-in-law.'"
"Time passed, and we had a daughter. That day, the Master smiled for the first time in my life. 'This child… is my granddaughter,' he said."
"He smiled not as a hero of war—but as a father, and as a grandfather welcoming a newborn into the world. After that, he never spoke of war again. Instead, he left me his lessons in strategy and philosophy."
"He gave me his Guidance Sword as a token of gratitude for giving him a granddaughter. 'Now,' he said, 'protect your family with both blades.'"
Veltis fell silent for a moment—then, in a low voice, he said,
"Then he was truly a knight."
I nodded.
"Yes. More human than anyone I've ever known."
"But happiness doesn't last forever. Rubenis betrayed us—and invaded."
"As a fugitive, I hesitated to rejoin the army—but the Master handed me a sealed letter and told me to return to the kingdom."
"It felt as though he was saying, 'Take this—and you will not die.'"
"After that, I took up both Guidance Swords and fought across countless battlefields. People began calling me the man who embraced death."
Veltis still said nothing.
After a pause, I spoke first.
"By the way, Veltis—what about you?"
"Me?"
"You were at the Veldoras Military Academy at the same time as I was. But one day, you suddenly dropped out—without saying a word."
"Ah… sorry."
He gave an awkward smile.
"To be honest, the teaching methods of Veldoras didn't suit me. So I transferred to the academy of our allied kingdom—Bronis. After graduating, I joined the Dravanis Foreign Legion."
"Impressive."
"I trained there—fought in real battles. Many comrades died… but somehow, my turn never came."
"I'm sorry."
"It's fine."
Then suddenly, both of us realized that we had forgotten something—something important.
"Hey, Veltis.""What?""The woman…!""What woman!?""The woman from earlier!"
At that moment, Veltis understood.
He looked around quickly, while I—ignoring the pain in my leg—jumped to my feet.
Veltis supported me as we hurried toward the spot where we had left her. She was still there. I rushed over to her.
"I'm sorry," I said urgently."My friend panicked, and it took me a while to calm him down."
"Hey!" Veltis shouted behind me, but I ignored him.
The woman was still trembling, clutching tightly at the coat I had placed over her.
"I'm really sorry," I said gently. "But you're safe now. We have no intention of harming you—please believe me."
Perhaps she sensed my sincerity, for she slowly nodded.Then, as if finally at ease—she fainted.
"Thank goodness," I muttered.
"For what?"
"For the fact that she's still alive."
"Yeah… thank goodness for that."
"Veltis, aren't you cold?"
"I am," he admitted. "Your leg's hurt—stay here and protect her."
Veltis was a man who caught on quickly.Soon, he returned carrying wood and kindling—to build a fire that would keep us from freezing.
The materials he gathered began to burn brightly, sending out light and smoke.The flames rose, crackling as they devoured the wood.
The warmth began to return to our bodies that had been shivering from the cold.I stretched out my hands toward the fire, drawing closer to the heat.
The warmth spread through me faster and faster.Just as I began to grow accustomed to this fleeting calm—my Divine Sense screamed a warning.
Enemies were near.
I signaled to all my senses, preparing them for battle, and tried to rise to face the approaching threat.
"I'll go," Veltis said.
As I gripped both of my Guidance Swords and tried to stand,Veltis stopped me—and rose instead.
"Stay by the fire and keep warm. I'll be right back."
Then he moved quietly—slipping away toward the unseen enemiesthat crept closer through the darkness.