Chapter 215: Berg (2)

 

News arrived urgently, delivered through the hawk.

 

Gendry burst into the council chamber, shouting.

 

“Berg Reiker’s army has defeated the Demon King’s right-hand man! The war is over!!”

 

Cheers erupted within the council chamber.

 

The announcement resonated throughout the room, filled with countless nobles and heads of noble houses.

 

King Rex Draigo clenched his fist in silent triumph.

 

The most troublesome issue had been resolved.

 

And it was all thanks to the decisions of Berg Reiker.

 

He hadn’t been ordered to, nor was it expected of him, yet he had taken it upon himself to battle the Demon King’s right-hand man.

 

Even now, the king couldn’t fully understand why Berg had done it.

 

But piecing together the reports he’d received, he could only assume it was for the sake of his territory and its residents.

 

After all, even his wife, Sien Reiker, was bedridden, unable to move due to the plague.

 

Ner Blackwood, who had gone to assist him, was also reportedly severely weakened and confined to bed for some unknown reason.

 

Perhaps it was because of the crops he had planted in the land. Could that have been the reason?

 

But understanding the reason and making such a choice are two very different things.

 

To choose to fight in a seemingly hopeless battle was not a decision just anyone could make.

 

In hindsight, Berg Reiker wasn’t the only one who stood out.

 

The numerous humans who supported his decision were remarkable too.

 

It was important to remember—they weren’t even an army.

 

The Reiker family, being a newly established house, didn’t have a formal military force.

 

Those who fought alongside him were his old comrades—mercenaries.

 

Mercenaries, who could leave at any time if not paid, had risked their lives alongside Berg.

 

And this fact was not lost on the king alone.

 

After the initial cheers subsided, discussions about Berg and his followers began to surface.

 

Some noble heads shrugged, sighing with mixed emotions.

 

“...Who would’ve thought humans could make such a decision.”

 

“Credit where credit is due…”

 

“Courageous, indeed.”

 

Rex Draigo quietly nodded along to these remarks.

 

He had always sensed something extraordinary about Berg, but he hadn’t imagined this extent.

 

Only positive assessments were being made about him.

 

Having a hero of the human race as an ally could only be a good thing.

 

If possible, forging a close alliance with him would be wise.

 

The king addressed Gendry.

 

“Gendry, summon Berg Reiker to the capital immediately. He will be rewarded.”

 

“...”

 

Gendry hesitated at the king’s words.

 

He seemed to wait for the room to quiet, as if he still had more to relay.

 

Noticing his hesitation, the king frowned.

 

The other noble heads also fell silent, sensing something ominous.

 

In the heavy silence, Gendry finally spoke.

 

“...Lord Reiker…”

 

The king’s expression darkened.

 

“...Don’t tell me.”

 

“...He perished in the war.”

 

****

 

Sien had come out to the village to welcome Berg.

 

The plague had finally been overcome. Her long battle with illness had come to an end.

 

Everything seemed to have been resolved.

 

Though it wasn’t confirmed, there were rumors that Berg had defeated Krund.

 

Sylphrien herself had brought this news.

 

Strangely, sadness lingered on her face as she delivered the message.

 

...Sien pretended not to notice her expression.

 

She focused only on the significance of the extraordinary news.

 

Sien knew all too well how powerful Krund had been.

 

Among intelligent demons, he was the strongest in sheer might.

 

Even Felix, the hero, hadn’t been able to best Krund in their encounter.

 

And yet, Berg had slain him.

 

Berg, whom she had been with since the age of ten, had accomplished such a feat.

 

Feeling the cool breeze, Sien gazed at the distant horizon.

 

She could see the approaching members of the Red Flames group.

 

The villagers were already cheering for their return.

 

“...”

 

Unable to suppress her anxiety, Sien ran forward.

 

She moved carefully, mindful of the child in her belly, as she hurried toward Berg.

 

She dashed across the vast meadow.

 

Every inch of this land was filled with memories of Berg.

 

The places where they’d sat and walked, laughed together, and shared kisses.

 

Sien kept reliving those memories as she ran.

 

“...Lady Sien.”

 

She soon saw Baran, who was at the forefront.

 

Sien couldn’t understand why Berg wasn’t leading the group.

 

Even Gale, who was injured, was right behind Baran. So why wasn’t Berg there?

 

It was an unfamiliar sight.

 

Berg had always been at the forefront, leading his comrades.

 

“...Where is Berg?”

 

“...”

 

“Baran, where is my husband?”

 

Baran bit his lip tightly and glanced back.

 

Then, slowly, he nodded.

 

“...........”

 

Sien saw Berg being carried on a stretcher made of two long wooden poles and cloth.

 

His eyes were peacefully closed, and he lay completely still.

 

Thud.

 

Sien’s legs gave out, and she collapsed to the ground.

 

“No... no…”

 

Baran wept as he apologized.

 

“...I’m so sorry.”

 

Soon, Berg was placed in front of her.

 

He looked as though he was merely asleep, as if he could wake up at any moment and smile at her again.

 

“No… ahhhhhhhhhhhhhh… noooooo!!!!”

 

Sien screamed as she grabbed Berg.

 

She shook him with all her might, trying to wake him up.

 

“Wake up, Berg...! Please wake up!!”

 

One by one, the members of the group averted their eyes.

 

It was as if they couldn’t bear to witness this heartbreaking scene.

 

“Aaaaaaaaaaaaah!!! Berg!!!”

 

But no matter how desperately she pleaded, Berg didn’t open his eyes.

 

She could feel that life had already left his body.

 

Sien clutched her chest, overwhelmed by an unfamiliar, crushing pain.

 

It felt as though her heart was being burned alive.

 

From the miraculous moment they first met to this very moment, it seemed as though all the memories they had shared were meant to lead to this unbearable pain.

 

Baran dismounted and sat beside Sien.

 

“Lady Sien...”

 

Tears streamed down his face as he spoke.

 

“Captain Berg worried about his family until the very end. I know it’s heartbreaking, but for the sake of the child in your womb… you must remain strong…”

 

But nothing he said could reach her.

 

“No!!! Berg!! Aaaaaaaaaaahhhh!!!”

 

She screamed, pulling at her hair.

 

“Please wake up... ahhhh… please… aaaaaah…!!”

 

Two members of the group stepped forward to support her as she appeared on the verge of collapsing.

 

Baran wiped his tears and said softly.

 

“Let’s head to the village... We can… we can discuss further there…”

 

Even Baran struggled to finish his sentence.

 

In the end, he signaled to the others, who began to lift Berg’s stretcher once again.

 

With great effort, Sien forced herself to stand and follow Berg toward the village.

 

Her legs felt like they would give out at any moment, but she couldn’t let herself fall behind.

 

“Aaaaah… nooooo… haaah…!”

 

The once-mighty Berg, who had always stood strong, now couldn’t even move without help.

 

Sien couldn’t believe it.

 

She had never experienced pain like this before.

 

Her consciousness flickered, and her head throbbed endlessly.

 

-Thud.

 

“Lady Sien!”

 

She finally collapsed again, her strength giving out completely.

 

As tears streamed down her face, she looked at Berg in anguish.

 

‘Berg… What about our child?’

 

*****

 

Ner struggled to her feet upon hearing that Berg had returned.

 

She had regained some of her strength during his absence, enough to walk again.

 

Leaning on Lan for support, she made her way forward to greet him.

 

“...Walk slowly,” Lan said coldly, supporting her.

 

But Ner couldn’t slow down.

 

She was desperate to see Berg, to the point of madness.

 

Even in her weakened state, her feelings for him remained as strong as ever.

 

He was her one and only.

 

It was because of Berg that Ner could still find the will to live.

 

For him, she would willingly give her life. She had already risked it once for his happiness.

 

‘Aaaaaaaaaah!!’

 

But as soon as she stepped outside, she was struck by the sound of heavy sobbing that echoed through the estate.

 

She knew there would be casualties, given the nature of war.

 

But something about this particular grief unsettled her deeply.

 

“Haa… haaah…”

 

Even walking a little faster left Ner breathless.

 

Lan grew frustrated with her and scolded her.

 

“Ner...! I told you to walk slowly…!”

 

But Ner couldn’t listen. Her body refused to obey.

 

She needed to see Berg, or this overwhelming anxiety would never subside.

 

Finally, she arrived at the heart of the village.

 

The villagers, stunned and paralyzed with shock, didn’t even move to make way for her.

 

Forcing her way through the crowd, Ner called out.

 

“...Berg… Berg…”

 

She kept moving, calling his name.

 

Berg had joked about their future together, about building a life and being happy.

 

That dream had made her heart race with joy.

 

She had believed they could finally be happy together.

 

But when she finally saw him, Ner froze in place.

 

At the center of the gathered crowd was Berg.

 

He lay motionless, his eyes closed.

 

There was no smile on his face, no tender greeting for her.

 

“B...Berg…?”

 

A searing pain tore through her chest, making it hard to breathe.

 

Even Lan gasped audibly beside her.

 

“...”

 

Step by step, Ner approached Berg.

 

The rest of the world seemed to disappear until it felt as if only the two of them remained.

 

Ner knelt by her fallen hero.

 

Her kind, loving heart had belonged to him and him alone, but now he lay there, unmoving.

 

Drip.

 

Tears she couldn’t hold back fell onto Berg’s face.

 

“...Berg…?”

 

She called his name once more, the name of the one she loved.

 

Memories of their first meeting flashed before her eyes like a lantern reel.

 

Every memory she had with him came flooding back.

 

Berg, who had rubbed noses with her instead of kissing during their wedding.

 

Berg, who had come looking for her when she snuck out for a nighttime stroll.

 

Berg, who had boosted her confidence about her tail, calling it beautiful.

 

The hugs they shared, the conversations, the emotions.

 

The trust they had rebuilt, and the love that blossomed between them.

 

He had given her happiness she had never known, only to close his eyes like this.

 

“…Stop joking around, Berg…”

 

Tears continued to stream down her face, falling onto Berg’s.

 

“This isn’t funny…”

 

Ner forced a smile as she spoke to him, as if her playful tone might somehow stir him awake.

 

“We still need to go on nighttime walks like we used to. Like before… we need to go see those beautiful places again.”

 

But as he remained unresponsive, the grief she had been suppressing began to surge uncontrollably.

 

“You promised we’d be together again… you promised, Berg…”

 

She clutched at his sleeve tightly, her voice trembling.

 

“So please, open your eyes, Berg. Without you… ahhh… without you, I…!”

 

Looking at Berg, who still didn’t answer, Ner finally began to realize the truth.

 

Berg was dead.

 

Her Berg, who had always stood by her side, was no longer part of this world.

 

She would never see his smile again.

 

She would never hear him call her name again.

 

There would be no more conversations, no more shared emotions.

 

All those moments of happiness had become memories, nothing more.

 

“You said you’d come back!!”

 

Ner cried out at him, her voice filled with accusation.

 

Could anyone feel more abandoned than this?

 

An overwhelming emptiness consumed her, as if her heart had been ripped apart.

 

She broke into heart-wrenching sobs.

 

This couldn’t be real.

 

Without Berg, it felt like her very being was unraveling.

 

“Please stop…! Please, get up!!”

 

Ner collapsed onto Berg’s body, her tears soaking his unmoving form.

 

She had never cried like this in her entire life.

 

Even during her divorce, she thought that was the most she could hurt, but this… this was a tragedy far beyond that.

 

“You promised you’d come back!!!”

 

She repeated herself like a parrot, blaming him.

 

Pressing her face against his chest, she clung to his body.

 

Even in death, she couldn’t let him go.

 

His body was shockingly cold.

 

It was hard to believe, but it didn’t react to her movements at all.

 

Never before had she seen Berg so still.

 

The realization terrified her.

 

Through her tears, she embraced him tightly, as if trying to share her warmth.

 

She had long since forgotten she had only recently risen from her sickbed.

 

“Why are you so cold, Berg?”

 

Drip, drip.

 

Her tears continued to fall as she spoke.

 

“Are you not cold? Sob… just like you used to do for me… sniff… I’ll keep you warm… so please, just move a little…”

 

But of course, there was no answer from Berg.

 

“…Berg. Have you really… left me?”

 

No matter how much she pleaded, the response was the same.

 

“...”

 

A sudden ringing sound echoed in her ears, and Ner instinctively pulled away from him.

 

For a brief moment, even her tears stopped.

 

She scanned Berg’s body, noticing the large, freshly stitched wound on his abdomen.

 

It appeared that his comrades had tried to close the wound.

 

That injury… it was likely what had ended Berg’s life.

 

...Ner was beginning to fully understand.

 

The Berg who lay before her, silent and unmoving, meant something profound.

 

It became clearer than ever now that he was gone.

 

Berg had been her heart.

 

There was nothing, and could be nothing, in this world she loved more.

 

And now, that heart had stopped beating.

 

Ner realized, belatedly, that she too had died the moment Berg did.

 

“…Haaah… hic…”

 

Understanding this, everything else became clear.

 

Her sadness, though profound, felt less overwhelming.

 

Having decided what she needed to do, she felt strangely at peace.

 

Slide.

 

She lifted Berg’s limp, cold hand and pressed it to her cheek.

 

“I told you, didn’t I…?”

 

She smiled faintly, tears endlessly streaming down to wet his hand.

 

“That if you died… I would follow you.”

 

She reaffirmed the promise she had once made to the departed Berg.

 

“…I’ll join you soon, Berg.”

 

Even the thought of dying to be with him brought her happiness.

 

“I’ll see you soon.”

 

With those words, she whispered to him and placed a kiss on his lips.

– – – The End of The Chapter – – –

 

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