On his deathbed, Liam remembered.
You must follow the Kaiser!
You must live for the Kaiser!
The Kaiser worships and serves God, and you serve the Kaiser!
You must lower your head and kneel only to the Kaiser!
"Kaiser!" the soldiers shouted, an endless crowd. They surrounded the carriage of Kaiser Egon IV, Emperor of Egon, as it paraded through the military camp.
Battalions roared in unison, smiling proudly at their emperor.
"Kaiser!"
On the highest platform of the enormous imperial carriage, Kaiser Egon IV waved coldly, accompanied by Marschall Vens. Surrounded by gold and a red mantle dyed with fragments of diamonds, he swept his gaze over the soldiers, scrutinizing them critically.
'Fragile as glass,' the Kaiser thought, not even bothering to fake a smile.
"So many injuries…" commented Idna, the Kaiser's youngest sister.
Below the upper platform, the emperor's two younger sisters whispered, mocked, and criticized the condition of the soldiers who served them.
Among them, Liam was the only one who did not shout the Kaiser's name—yet he was the first to stand out. He stepped ahead of the others, his posture heavier and more striking than the rest of the crowd. With sharp eyes, he stared directly at the emperor.
"Look at that one over there…" Idna said, pointing toward Liam.
By instinct, the Kaiser's eyes moved to the target of his sister's remark.
"All mutilated… That cut on his throat looks like the worst one. Poor thing," she said, pouting.
"The scar on the corner of his lip is agonizing. But he's still kind of cute, isn't he?" retorted Kayna, the Kaiser's second sister.
"He is! Brother, I want him!" Idna shouted.
"No! He's going to be mine!" Kayna protested, grabbing her sister's shoulder.
"What? You said his scar was agonizing! Take that other blond guy with his eyes closed over there!"
Staring directly at the Kaiser, Liam massaged his throat and cleared it in discomfort.
"The emperor's sisters seem to be arguing. How dramatic…" said James, an agent beside Liam, whose blond hair hid his ears and whose eyes remained half-closed.
"Who cares about them?" Liam replied, grimacing in pain as his throat protested.
"Damn. You need some water, huh?"
Consumed by the shouts of the other agents exalting the Kaiser with passion, Liam chose to save his breath. The deep, healed cut made his throat ache, forcing him to glare at the emperor with a bitter expression.
The Kaiser, however, felt threatened.
"Der Kaiser…" Marschall Vens called, his hands clasped behind his back. "That is the twenty-sixth unit, commanded by Oberst Hans Mason. I would like to highlight the two individuals who—"
"Who is that blue-eyed one, covered in scars?" the Kaiser asked, interrupting Vens.
Clearing his throat, Vens continued.
"Precisely. That is Liam Mason Le Fay, the unit's lieutenant. He is known for never being wounded on a mission, even after spending a year on the front lines against Mikoto."
"Never wounded in battle? Then what about all those scars?"
Confused by the Marschall's statement, the Kaiser frowned, waiting for an explanation.
"His own father. Apparently, Liam was part of the mental rehabilitation program… There are several reports that Oberst Hans Mason raised his own son with… a glass bottle."
"Ah…" the Kaiser muttered.
"Liam became a lieutenant one month after entering the battlefield. At eighteen years old."
"Wow. A lieutenant at eighteen…" he whispered, intrigued.
The Kaiser's eyes shone—not with joy, but with pure magic. The Emperor of Egon did not possess absolute power, but eyes that saw all.
The Kaiser could see a metaphysical manifestation within individuals—the spirit—which appeared as a dense mantra of energy, a symbol defined by all. A color. A meaning.
The brighter an individual's aura, the more loving, naive, kind, and positive they were—and thus, the weaker. The strongest, however, were the opposite.
Cruel, abominable, monsters. Neutral colors, and sometimes extremely dark.
Yet, when he looked at Liam, the emperor's posture faltered.
"There's a phrase that has spread over the past year… Spoken by the units that saw Lieutenant Le Fay fight…" Vens said, watching the Kaiser's expression.
The emperor's eyes were wide open in perfect ecstasy.
"Science defines human laws, and magic is how theory reveals itself to the world. But Liam Mason… stands above the world."
Liam's mantra bore no unfamiliar color. It was an almost diabolical mixture of neutral hues, shattered, like open wounds. A unique sensation, which the Kaiser's heart instinctively named: Void.
Without warning, the Kaiser leapt down, landing on the thick mud below. His red mantle revealed its royal-blue interior as the diamond stones shimmered in the wind.
Walking straight toward Liam, he wore a genuine smile.
"You there, introduce yourself. Ethnicity and age," the Kaiser said, stopping in front of the lieutenant.
"Lieutenant of the twenty-sixth unit, Liam Mason Le Fay, nineteen years old. Egorian and Le Fay—" he began, only to be interrupted by the emperor.
'Only nineteen?' Idna thought, adjusting herself in her seat.
"This is Kaiser Egon IV, your emperor, Lieutenant Le Fay. I suggest lowering your head a little," Vens said, stepping in front of the emperor.
"Sir, forgive him!" A voice silenced the tumult chanting the Kaiser's name.
Hans Mason, Liam's father, appeared, pushing the lieutenant back. The medals pinned to his chest drew the Kaiser's attention, for an Oberst was taking responsibility for his own son's reckless behavior.
"I am Oberst Hans Mason, responsible for the twenty-sixth unit."
Grabbing Liam by the shoulders, James pulled him away from the Kaiser's gaze and dragged him back into the crowd.
"You're insane… You do know that's the emperor, right? The man who rules all our lives. If he wants, he can have everyone here kill you and—" James said, gripping Liam's military uniform.
"As if they could," Liam replied, averting his gaze.
Sighing at his stubbornness, James adjusted Liam's uniform and straightened his posture.
"Look at this. These guys would love for the Kaiser to look them in the eyes for even a second… Am I wrong?" he asked a random soldier.
"No!" the soldier replied, baffled by Liam's indifference.
"See? Do you even know what that means?"
Liam turned his face away and crossed his arms, but still listened.
"Brother… We met under the same circumstances. A sorcerer always inherits a gene from one of the ancient sorcerers. Unfortunately, we inherited Morgana's."
"I know, idiot."
"Listen to me, damn it!" he snapped, barely restraining himself.
At his companion's outburst, Liam looked back at him, eyes sharp.
"They say the Egon family genes are always tied to the eyes. The former emperor could detect gene affinity—that's how he chose his Marshals and Generals. But the Kaiser…"
Glancing sideways at the emperor, Liam grew irritated by the gentle smile being directed at him.
"He can see the flow of energy that resides within each sorcerer. Something beyond what the physical world offers. He sees our Weltna… And to him, the brighter it shines, the weaker you are. The darkness in our souls is shaped by an individual's mentality and strength…"
"And what is that supposed to mean for me?" Liam asked, his hoarse voice weakening.
"Man… Look at your life. The Shogun Slayer… The Duelist of Death… The one who caused the deaths of two hundred… Your life has been a disaster since your first breath. What do you think your Weltna looks like to the emperor?"
Destroyed. Empty.
"Lieutenant, present yourself again," the Kaiser called, his chest puffed out. "Have you ever been to the capital?"
Walking between the soldiers, Liam met his emperor's eyes as he answered, "Only when I received my rank."
With a gentle smile, the Kaiser took a step back. Accompanied by Vens, he walked toward the carriage with inviting strides.
"Come. You and your sub-lieutenant."
With a strong shove from James, forcing him to follow, Liam walked with firm, confident steps—showing not the slightest hint of respect toward the Kaiser.
The attitude irritated Vens, who questioned him with a glance over his shoulder. It was despicable, even for someone of high rank, to disregard one's own emperor.
After all…
You must follow the Kaiser!
You must live for the Kaiser!
The Kaiser worships and serves God, and you serve the Kaiser!
"You should lower that nose a bit, young lieutenant…" Vens suggested, almost like paternal advice.
But that was not how Liam felt.
You must lower your head and kneel only to the Kaiser!
Feeling Hans's judging gaze as he watched Liam depart, the lieutenant lifted his chin even higher.
"We must lower our heads only to the Kaiser… right?" he asked, halting his steps.
Silence swallowed the camp. Those closest to Liam awaited a statement—one that would be true and utterly controversial.
If the Kaiser could see the essence of an individual, Liam saw strength… Filled with a neutral, almost empty feeling, his hoarse voice slipped past rehearsed lips.
"But I reject the idea of bowing to someone far weaker than me."
Yet, at some point in his life, he bowed.
'And I bowed…'
Not out of resentment or regret, but bowing to someone inferior was what led Liam Mason to this state.
Abandoned on a rock in the middle of a clearing, the glow of a crimson moon bathed his body. An ethereal, divine touch—a festival of departure… for someone who did not deserve it.
As weakness overtook him, Liam struggled to touch the place where he had been struck for the last time—his stomach. Unable to feel movement below his chest, he touched the pierced abdomen, drenched in his own blood.
Raising his fingers, he watched the viscous blood drip onto his face.
The legitimate son of the universe—that was one of the titles given to Liam. A title meant to match the strength he carried, and yet…
Where was that strength now?
If you do not attack, you die. That was Liam's creed…
"I hesitated…" he whispered, coughing up blood immediately after.
The neigh of a horse echoed in his ears—the final chant.
Liam's entrails were exposed; cold wind ran through his body; his organs failed one by one.
'Liam Mason Le Fay…' a voice called him, drifting like a whistling wind.
'Is this the moment to regret my choices?'
'Do you not regret them?'
'Not for a single minute… The envy I felt in life brought me here. I do not regret who I am, who I was… I only hope there is no hell after all this, for I have already tasted it…'
'I will treat this as a signed contract… I will say you accepted your death.'
Disappearing into the forest, the gallop of a horse cut through the wind.
Liam's body grew heavy, his eyes fell. Even so, he felt crushed for a brief moment.
Seconds later, however, he felt light. Almost floating in the air…
The feeling of death was ethereal.