“So what?”

Dylan replied casually, but Adel continued with careful words.

“The Maris Cathedral Orphanage takes in children abandoned by unmarried mothers.”

“…!”

At the mention of children abandoned by unmarried mothers, Dylan flinched.

“They were discarded as soon as they were born. Moreover, due to the circumstances of their birth, people’s gaze towards this child was always cold. They didn’t even receive proper sponsorship.”
Dylan looked at Joy once again. Joy, curled up as if protecting herself, asleep, reminded Dylan of someone from his past.

“Although there wasn’t enough money for tuition, thanks to the sponsorship from the Grand Duke’s family, the child was able to attend school. I still can’t forget the face of this child who personally conveyed that gratitude to me.”

“Why are you telling me this?”
“It was eyes filled with joy. This child, who had been abandoned, found hope in their life.”

Hope? Dylan furrowed his brow at the unfamiliar and unsettling word.

“Hah, what are you trying to say? How is that relevant to me?”

“I’m begging you. Please, don’t crush the hope that has finally arisen in this child.”
Aidel, still on both knees, stood up and respectfully lowered his head. Dylan, upon seeing this, widened his eyes as if he couldn’t believe it.

It was a first. Seeing a noble, especially one of the highest rank, beg like this.

And it wasn’t an action taken to beg for his own life. It was an action taken for this insignificant orphan.

“Please, at least help this child to have hope and live.”
“…What on earth is the reason for going to such lengths?”

As Dylan, he simply couldn’t understand the Duchess’s actions. In her experience, even high-ranking nobles she had encountered had not received proper treatment as human beings. They were seen as disposable, easily used and discarded like commodities.

“Even if they were abandoned by their parents… I want to let them know that they’re not alone in this world, that there are adults who support their existence.”

“……!”
“In that case, this child can also grow up to be an adult who plants hope in someone else when they grow up.”

Aidel’s words left Dylan momentarily stunned. The image of someone from his past, someone who could have made a difference in his life, flashed through his mind… it was his younger self.

If such an adult had been there for him back then…

“Would my life today be different…?”
It was himself who had to survive alone, just like the child named Joy, born to an unmarried mother without anyone to care for them.

From a young age, he roamed the streets, begging for food to survive. It was during this time that he encountered an elderly woman who shared her meal with him. He trusted her and followed her, only to be sold to a large farm in the East. The farm he now worked for under Douglas.
The betrayal of someone he had briefly trusted, and the harsh reality he faced on the farm, were brutal. Watching the powerless female slaves on the farm and seeing the kind of life they led, Dylan took matters into his own hands. He cut his hair and started wearing men’s clothing.
As a mercenary who did whatever was commanded of him, Dylan became a loyal servant to Douglas, living in allegiance to him. He would report and capture runaway slaves and, just as he had been deceived by the old woman in his younger days, he would deceive orphans and bring them in as slaves. It was the only way of life he had learned to survive.

“You can become one too. An adult who gives hope in life to this child.”
As Dylan reminisced about the past, Adel’s compelling voice deeply penetrated his ears, much like the shaking of his eyes as he looked at Joy. As shaken as her heart.

“Darn it! I have to leave tomorrow, and this complicates things.”

Douglas expressed his frustration by pounding his fist on the official letter placed on the desk.
Having escaped the sealed capital, they had finally made it to Maris, but a problem had arisen. All the ports leading to the Empire had intensified their inspections. The Maris port under the Grand Duke’s jurisdiction was no exception.

“Externally, they claim it’s to search for smuggled goods, but it’s certainly for the Grand Duchess’s search, isn’t it?”

Douglas asked Dylan anxiously, looking at him with an agitated expression.

“How many did we manage to bring here?”

“Including the Grand Duchess, there are four.”
“The more people we have, the harder it is to avoid inspection. Keep only three, including the Grand Duchess, and deal with the rest.”

“Deal with… you mean?”

“The dead don’t speak. Don’t leave unnecessary traces.”

“I understand.”

Dylan, who received the order, nodded expressionlessly.

Dylan’s footsteps, leaving Douglas’s room, headed for the warehouse where the kidnapped individuals were held.
As Dylan entered the warehouse, he examined the captured individuals one by one as if searching for something. Those who met his gaze huddled with tense faces.

Finally, Dylan’s gaze stopped at Joey’s face. Fearful Joey had pressed close to Adel. Adel, too, shielded Joey behind him and looked at Dylan with wary eyes.

Dylan approached them.

“What’s going on?”
Despite Adel’s question, Dylan reached out and grabbed Joey’s body without a reply. Joey, feeling something was amiss, struggled in surprise, screaming.

“Quiet down.”

Dylan pulled a long piece of cloth from his pocket and bound Joey’s mouth with it, muffling him. Joey, with his mouth gagged, whimpered on the other side of the cloth. Dylan lifted Joey in his arms.

“Just a moment! What are you going to do with Joey?”

“This child is going where he needs to go.”

“Surely… No?”
Adel looked up at Dylan with moist eyes.

“Please release the child. I’m begging you.”

Adel blocked Dylan’s path as he tried to move outward.

“Step aside.”

“Please… You can be a good adult too.”

Despite Adel’s heartfelt plea, Dylan looked down at her and spoke in a cold tone.

“…It’s already too late for that. There’s no chance of becoming such an adult.”
Dylan passed by the stubborn Adel in that spot.

“It’s not too late yet!”

Adel cried out pitifully behind Dylan, but the door of the warehouse remained firmly closed. Despair settled in Adel’s eyes along with the darkness.