Chapter 73
The opponent who had always been wary of him accepted his kindness for the first time.
Perhaps happy about that fact, the girl chattered on excitedly and took out the food she had packed for herself.
“Somehow, I’m getting hungry too.”
Having been starving for several days, Kaisa couldn’t help but glance at the food the girl brought.
Then, while hastily picking up and eating the crumbs of bread she dropped, he was caught.
A snake eating bread — she must think that’s strange.
Fortunately, the girl didn’t seem to mind. Instead, she tore off a big piece of the bread and handed it to him.
“Grandfather is busy again today. I can’t even remember the last time we had a proper meal together. We’re family, though…”
Murmuring bitterly, the girl stood up at the sound of a bell.
Before they knew it, evening had come.
“I’ll come again tomorrow. And the day after, and the day after that too!”
When the girl left, darkness returned.
Kaisa looked toward the village.
It hadn’t been long, but he had learned enough about the surroundings.
The place he’d been resting was a small farmhouse not far from the battlefield.
Because it was close to the front lines, there were far more soldiers than villagers.
Even the leader of the Rabbit Tribe had come down to this remote region to raise the soldiers’ morale.
“Let’s destroy the vile Snake Tribe!”
The Rabbit Tribe’s leader always moved with an escort, walking through the village to encourage the troops.
In such circumstances, being alone behind enemy lines was risky.
The girl hadn’t suspected him yet, but if anyone else from the Rabbit Tribe saw him, they would surely question his identity.
He had to return.
Even if his brothers—who had once tried to kill him—were waiting there, he had to go back to the citadel.
That was his duty.
I can’t stay here forever.
But why, then—
When he thought of the girl who visited him every day, he found it hard to take a single step away.
Just a little longer.
He repeated that resolution again and again — I’ll leave once I’ve fully recovered.
And before he knew it, morning would come.
“How’s your wound today?”
Over time, he had noticed something.
The girl was always alone.
Even though this was clearly the land where she had been born and raised, she somehow felt like an outsider.
One day, when his body had mostly healed, Kaisa went into the village in secret to scout — and learned why she was always alone.
“How dare she walk around with her head held high.”
Whenever people saw the girl, they whispered. Their cold stares pierced her.
“Why did the chief bring that thing to the battlefield?”
“Hey, watch your mouth! Don’t question the chief’s decisions! I’m sure he has his reasons!”
“She’s disgusting…”
She was treated as a symbol of bad luck. No one would have cared if she’d been caught up in battle and killed.
It almost seemed as if they wanted that to happen.
“If it weren’t for her, the war would’ve been over long ago.”
“Ugh, that tail-less brat… just born to bring misfortune.”
For beastfolk, physical traits were of great importance.
Even if their civilization had grown and their human consciousness had strengthened, those born without ears or tails were easily shunned.
Victory in war depended on strong leadership, well-trained troops, and ample supplies.
Kaisa knew that what these people said was nothing but ignorant nonsense.
Yet the girl truly seemed to believe she was guilty of something.
Her small shoulders would shrink beneath the weight of the stares flung like stones.
Why?
If only she would cry or lash out, it might have been better.
But she didn’t. She just curled up in silence, her expression clouded with sadness.
Why… does this bother me so much?
Kaisa became aware of the strange change within himself.
It felt as though a tiny sprout had pushed through the cracked, barren soil of his heart.
What was this feeling?
It was something he had never experienced — so strong, so incomprehensible.
He wanted to know more about her.
But that day turned out to be the last time he saw her.
Reinforcements from the Snake Tribe had arrived, reclaiming the stronghold that had fallen to the Rabbits.
“We need to run! Now that they’ve lost the stronghold, the enemy will be here soon!”
The Rabbits’ earlier victory had only been possible because they ambushed the exhausted Snake soldiers.
Against a well-prepared Snake army, they stood no chance.
“Has Lord McAkin already fled?”
The Rabbit Tribe’s leader, who had been rallying his soldiers just the day before, was the first to flee once the enemy drew near — taking his relatives with him.
The panicked villagers decided to look out for themselves.
They packed their belongings and left in a long line.
Soon after, the Snake army arrived at the village.
“Search every corner!”
Kaisa shifted back into human form.
His bones reformed, revealing a tall young man emerging from the brush.
He no longer needed to hide.
His wounds had long since healed completely.
I just used that as an excuse.
He had known for a while why he hadn’t left.
His gaze followed the trail of the refugees.
“…She’s not coming.”
Surely, the girl had fled with the others. Waiting here any longer would change nothing.
But that was fine.
As long as she was alive, they could meet again someday.
Just as he turned to leave—
“Kaisa?”
A familiar voice called out behind him.
“It really is you, Lord Kaisa! To think you were here of all places!”
The speaker was Rube Gordon, the knight commander of the 1st squad.
Months ago, Kaisa’s sudden disappearance had thrown the royal citadel into chaos.
Not only because of the prophecy at his birth — Kaisa was officially recognized as the previous lord’s son and a legitimate heir.
Finding him near the front lines was a shock beyond words.
“My word… so that’s what happened…”
After hearing Kaisa’s story, Rube frowned deeply.
An honest man, he despised political scheming.
While countless lives were being lost on the battlefield, nobles and the lord’s sons cared only about their power struggles — a fact he loathed.
“Don’t worry, my lord. I’ll see you safely back to the citadel.”
And he kept that promise.
Leaving battlefield command to his deputy, Rube personally escorted Kaisa back.
“You’ve managed to survive, I see.”
The citadel looked just as it always had.
His brothers still glared at him with envy, plotting new ways to kill him.
But aside from them, everyone else’s attitude toward Kaisa had changed completely.
As the war dragged on, criticism of those obsessed with internal power struggles grew louder.
“You can’t win a war just by sitting far from the front lines and flapping your mouths!”
In that climate, Kaisa — who had fought and bled alongside the soldiers — became a symbol of hope.
“He bears the blood of the First Ancestor! Lord Kaisa will end this endless war!”
Voices praising him grew louder with each passing day.
With the tribe’s support behind him, Kaisa began to build a political base.
The tide was unstoppable.
Even opportunists, sensing the shift in power, started reaching out to him.
Ordinarily, he would have rejected them without hesitation.
But this time, he didn’t.
Thinking ahead to what he needed to do, he knew — the more allies, the better.
The conditions were set.
The days of drifting aimlessly, like a broken branch in a vast sea, were over.
To survive—
To see that girl again—
Kaisa had only one path.
“The former lord has passed away.”
On that fateful day, he did not hesitate to stain his hands with his brothers’ blood.
“Hail! Long live our radiant sun!”
And so, the young leader of the Snake Tribe was born.
Years passed since Kaisa’s ascension.
The once-unripened boy had grown into a man — strong and honed like tempered armor.
Kaisa Graves became a figure of terror on the battlefield.
With a body as massive and unyielding as a siege weapon, and unmatched, brutal skill with the spear—
Even the flash of his golden eyes was enough to crush enemy morale.
Every battle he led ended in victory.
All who saw him revered and worshiped the leader of the Snake Tribe.
“There’s only one stronghold left.”
“So the endless war will finally end?”
Both sides knew the outcome was near.
The Rabbit Tribe’s chief, McAkin Rosebin, realizing defeat was inevitable, offered terms for peace.
