Ack, sorry for the delays. Things have been a little hectic lately. Thanks for waiting, and hope you enjoy the chapter!
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Ayla stared at Levi.
Levi stared back at Ayla.
Silence filled the parlor, the only sound coming from the grandfather clock merrily ticking along in the corner of the room. They sat in plush leather seats across from each other. Between them stood a table atop which rested a teapot, two cups of steaming tea, and a three-tiered stand filled to the brim with assorted confectionaries.
“So…” Ayla began, her tone deliberately conversational. “I hear Duke Montague was killed a few days ago during an attack on Montague Castle. His son, Heir Theodore Montague, as well.”
Levi’s expression was tranquil like the surface of a lake. “Were they now? How tragic.”
“Indeed,” said Ayla. Her grey eyes pierced into him. “It happened right when you inexplicably disappeared for a week.”
“Really? What curious timing.”
“I also hear that Lady Liliya Volkov went missing from Montague Castle in the aftermath of the attack… And rumors say that a certain Mythmaker Grand Assassin was seen at the scene.”
Levi took a measured sip of his tea. “Very interesting.”
“...”
“...”
“Did you kill Duke Montague and his son?”
“No.”
“... Are you certain?”
“I assure you, I killed neither of them.” Levi even had the nerve to sound offended. “Have you such little faith in me?”
Ayla gave him a flat look. The past few days had seen the entire upper society of Luminarche in an uproar. The government had tried their best to suppress the information of the deaths, but with the sheer amount of spies planted in Lancaster (mostly by rival nobles), it was a futile attempt. Once a single leak got out, the whole ship quickly went down. The news spread like wildfire, and within less than a day, virtually every noble knew of what’d happened.
She had found out when Lord Ironwood practically burst into her room several nights ago. Ayla had been panicked at first, until she realized that he’d looked even more panicked than she was. He’d hidden it well, but she knew her father. The sweat trickling down his face, the minute paleness to his expression, his carefully restrained voice even as he demanded to know where Levi was…
After he informed her what’d happened, Ayla couldn’t even blame him. There were already whispers of assassins being hired by all the potential inheritors of the duchy; the Duke had two younger sons, one daughter, a cousin, and a sister vying for the title. The succession crisis that was to inevitably follow would be an utter nightmare. Duke Montague had controlled one of the largest pieces of territory in the kingdom; Ayla wouldn’t be surprised if the Royal Crown had to step in to mediate.
But at any rate…
“Very well, let me rephrase,” Ayla said. “Were you present when they died?”
“... I wasn’t present in the same room as them, no.”
Ayla narrowed her eyes, and a small angry hiss escaped her throat.
“Okay, fine,” Levi relented. “Maybe I was there at the castle that night.”
“I knew it!” Belatedly, Ayla realized that she’d stood up in her triumph, her chair nearly toppling backward. She steadied it with a cough and sat back down, recomposing herself. “Have you gone mad? What were you thinking, killing a duke?”
“In fairness, that one actually wasn’t my fault.”
Ayla listened with growing incredulity as Levi gave her a basic rundown of what’d happened at the castle. A part of her was honored, and touched, that he trusted her enough to tell her everything. The rest of her was only growing more and more aghast at what she’d heard.
She was silent for several moments after he finished. “So this Phantasm… He was the one who sabotaged your Ascension Trials, right? And now he killed Duke Montague and effectively let you guys take all of the blame?”
Levi nodded.
“Huh,” Ayla said. “How did you manage to let him get one over you both times? I thought you were stronger than that. Weren’t you a former servant of Death?”
Levi stared at her, his mouth slightly open. Then, his eyes flickered with amusement. “I was retired for three years. I got rusty.”
Ayla sniffed. “I’m sure. You better get him next time.”
“Right, right,” Levi gave a lazy salute. “Will do.”
Ayla gave a brief smile. Then her gaze sharpened. “So, what’s going to happen now?” She hesitated. “Will the Royal Sentinels be able to trace the attack back to you?”
While the news of the deaths had leaked out, the actual details of the investigation were still kept under tight wraps. The Royal Sentinels, for all their faults, knew how to keep a secret. Allegedly, a High Priestess from the Church was aiding in the investigation as well, and nobody wanted the Inquisitors sent after them.
Levi shook his head. “Theoretically, no. Only Qorbin was identified during the attack, but he’s already since left the country. I assume he’ll only return after it all blows over. Liliya might catch some flak since she was Qorbin’s apprentice and she’d escaped with us after the attack – which is never a good look – but she can excuse it easily enough by just saying that Qorbin had acted entirely on his own and abducted her out of some misguided sense of justice. Or something.”
That made sense. The government would probably just assume that Ravenbane had finally gone off the deep end and that Liliya had been powerless to do anything. He’d been well-known as a loose cannon for a while now.
Truth be told, when Ayla had first heard that Levi had become Ravenbane’s apprentice, she’d been a little worried. As heiress, she’d learned about pretty much every person of importance in Luminarche. And Qorbin Ravenbane was… well.
Village-Slayer Ravenbane, they called him. A Grand Assassin who’d slain hundreds if not thousands of villagers and townsfolk during the Third Blood War. She knew his actions had been done on orders, but still.
Assassins already didn’t have the best reputations amongst nobles, for obvious reasons. But at least for most of them, they affected a veneer of dignity and professionalism.
Qorbin Ravenbane didn’t have that. He did whatever he wanted, whenever he wanted, however he wanted. Factor in his bloody past, and it was understandable that he made a lot of people leery. Admittedly, herself included.
However, it appeared that Levi trusted him, and so Ayla would too. Albeit a little reluctantly.
“Besides, it doesn’t matter even if they do find out I was there,” Levi said. “I’ll take them all head-on. I attacked Montague Castle for a reason, and I stand by it.” His eyes flickered momentarily with something dangerous. “Even if it turns an entire country against me.”
“What reason? To get revenge on Montague?”
“Partially. Mostly, it was just that… Well. I had someone who I had to save, and someone who I had to inspire, and someone who I had to witness.”
Ayla drew in a sharp breath. “I see.” She had a feeling she knew who he was talking about. She tilted her head curiously. “Did you do things like this a lot in your past life?”
Levi snorted. “Attack nobles? Somewhat. They were rarely my targets, so I tried to avoid them whenever possible, but…” He shrugged. “I’ve caused my fair share of political incidents before. They typically never ended well.”
“Avoid them?” Ayla’s brows furrowed. “Were you not a noble?”
“Me? Definitely not. I was a street rat.”
Ayla paused. “What about our parents?”
“What about them? I didn’t know who they were. I grew up an orphan.”
“... so I never existed in your world?”
Levi shook his head. “If you did, then I wasn’t aware of it,” he said quietly. “I didn’t have any family growing up. I had a mentor who took me in eventually, but he died soon afterward.”
Ayla stared at him for a long time.
Then, softly, she said, “Get up.”
Levi blinked. “I’m sorry?”
“Get up,” she said, her tone more imperious. She stood up from her chair and gestured for him to do the same. Slowly, he rose as well, looking a little wary.
“What are you–? Oof.”
The air was knocked out of him as she stepped in and hugged him for all she was worth. She could feel his muscles automatically tensing like always, and in her peripheral, she saw his hands awkwardly moving around in the air, as though he wasn’t sure what to do with them. It was clear that he wasn’t used to being hugged. She squeezed tighter.
Her older brother… the original Levi Ironwood, had hugged her a lot when they were children. Had told her that he’d always protect her, that he’d always save her. He had been the first to tell her fairy tales of all the heroes of Old.
He hadn’t been able to fulfill his promise. She had resented him for it, but now she knew it wasn’t his fault. She felt thankful to Levi for telling her that her older brother’s System had been locked; it had lifted a weight off her chest that she hadn’t even known was there.
After Levi’s confession the previous week that he wasn’t her actual brother, Ayla had been deeply conflicted about what to feel. It hadn’t helped that she’d woken up the next morning to find Levi gone; presumably to head to Lancaster. She had spent the past week figuring out what she felt and what she should feel.
On the one hand, Levi was a veritable stranger who’d basically stolen her true older brother’s body. On the other hand… Ayla would be lying if she said she didn’t feel an undeniable bond with him. Ultimately, it had been him, not the old Levi, who she’d begun warming up to in the past few months.
When it came down to it, though…
Ayla had a feeling that Levi Ironwood, wherever he was, would feel grateful to the Levi she was currently hugging. After all, it was Levi who had finally fulfilled Levi Ironwood’s promise.
No, not just his promise.
“What Class do you want to pick when you finally reach level 25?” Ayla asked from where they were playing in the forest. “Knight? Lancer?”
The twelve year old form of Levi Ironwood looked back at her over his shoulder, a toy wooden sword slung over his shoulder. “Isn’t it obvious?” He grinned. “I wanna be a [Hero]!”
His dream as well.
Even Lord Ironwood had changed. Ayla had half-expected him to immediately go back on his word after Levi left, but… The fight against Levi had done something to him. Ayla didn’t know if it’d been because the pain had gotten to him, or if Levi’s words had truly gotten through to him. Ayla hadn’t gotten a proper chance to talk to her father yet; she was still a bit too fearful for that. But… He seemed different.
It was a good sign.
She hadn’t had a chance to fully process everything that night, but now…
“Thank you,” she whispered into Levi’s shirt.
And she meant it.
Levi seemed to sense the weight of her words, because he relaxed a moment later. “Of course.”
For several seconds they stayed like that.
Then, Ayla pulled back. “What about afterward, then?” she asked. “Were you just always alone?”
Levi shook his head. “No. I became Death’s servant almost immediately after my mentor’s death. I was fifteen at the time.” His lips quirked. “I suppose, in a sense, Death has always been by my side. From my early childhood to when I took my last breath.”
“Ah,” Ayla said. “Then you’re wrong.”
Levi blinked. “How so?”
“You did have family growing up.”
It took him a moment to register her words. He chuckled. “What? No, Death wasn’t–”
He froze.
What was Death to him?
His master?
His boss?
His condemner?
Three years ago, Levi would’ve answered yes to all of the above.
But now…
For ten years, Levi had served Death, and for ten years, Death had commanded Levi. The reaper had watched him grow from a hotheaded, idealistic teenager into a quiet, broken, but not beaten young man. Levi had left Death’s service, had renounced him entirely, had expected not to see him again until the end of his natural life.
Yet, Death had still shown up at that teahouse. To give Levi another path, a second chance. A new life.
He had no reason to do that. But he did anyway.
Slowly, Levi smiled.
“Perhaps you’re right.”
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Thanks for reading!