#14. I Swear—I Will Never Harm You.
Cryer knelt on one knee in front of her, gazing up at Olivia.
He didn’t say a word. He simply stared up at her in silence.
Olivia looked down at him, lips parting as if to speak, but no sound escaped.
Then, slowly—painfully slowly—Cryer reached out and took Olivia’s hand, gently pressing the back of it against his forehead.
Her blue eyes trembled as if struck by an earthquake. And in that moment, a voice deeper than the bottomless depths of a well seeped from between his lips.
“I swear. I will never harm you.”
His oath…
It was like a spell. Like magic.
It pierced deep into Olivia’s heart.
And that very fact pushed her into the pit of confusion.
Wasn’t this the man who started a continental war? The one who drowned the entire continent in blood?
And yet, right now, Cryer looked more pure—more divine—than anyone or anything in her eyes.
Divine…? Did I just think that?
Divine, this man?
Her thoughts spiraled in disarray.
Just who is he…?
“You,”
Olivia began, her expression difficult to describe.
“I don’t know what you were in the past, but there’s one thing I’m sure of.”
“What is it?”
“Even before you were resurrected, you weren’t an ordinary person. Never.”
To that, Cryer simply gave a short laugh and flicked her forehead.
“When you find yourself afraid of me again, remember the oath I made today.”
“Even His Majesty never made such a promise when we were kids.”
Rubbing her forehead with a small pout, Olivia then pressed against Cryer’s steel-like back.
“Go now. Find out what’s going on. I’ll wait here.”
Even now, she still couldn’t smell blood, nor did she understand what was meant by “contamination of the earth,” but that didn’t matter.
Because she believed in Cryer.
Obediently moving at her urging, Cryer continued forward and soon discovered several more corpses.
Time passed.
As the metallic scent of blood overwhelmed the air, his gaze dropped to the sticky soil and bodies.
Cryer’s eyes darkened.
And the air around him grew so heavy it distorted the surroundings.
Noticing this, Olivia’s eyes widened.
“Cryer—”
Before she could finish, she felt her body lift.
Startled, she instinctively wrapped her arms around his neck.
When did he get to her?
He had swept her into his arms and already returned to the center of the clearing.
Cryer spoke.
“Princess.”
“Yes?”
“This doesn’t seem like an ordinary case of disappearance or murder.”
Following the branch he was holding, Olivia’s expression hardened.
“This is…”
“Yes.”
His low voice pointed to the crumbled mark etched into the forehead of a withered corpse.
“A symbol of the ancient god.”
The man responsible for the corpse branded with the ancient god’s symbol was in despair.
“It’s not enough. Not enough. Not enough. Not enough. I need more…”
Muttering the same words over and over, he began counting the items in front of him.
“One, two, three, four…”
His fingertips touched all kinds of items: a ragged doll, a ring, torn fabric, fingernails, clumps of sticky hair…
They were remnants of people.
Offerings made to the ancient god.
As he lined them up and mumbled in madness, the man suddenly stopped.
“I need money.”
As people grew wary and began guarding their children, finding prey for offerings had become nearly impossible.
Despite prowling every night for days, he returned empty-handed.
He rubbed his face, burying his twisted faith deep down, and changed into neat clothes.
—Click.
He stepped out of the house and hadn’t gone far before bumping into a neighbor.
“Hey, long time no see!”
Smiling politely, the man replied,
“Good evening. I’ve been caught up with some things.”
“Well, don’t overdo it. You’re young, but not forever.”
The man nodded earnestly to every word, his smile gentle.
“Yes, of course.”
“Oh, wait a second.”
The neighbor disappeared inside, returning shortly with a basket.
“You’re not sick, are you? You look a little pale. Here, take this.”
The basket smelled of warm bread and savory food.
The man bowed.
“Thank you. I’ll enjoy it.”
“No worries. You fixed the roof for free last time. Speaking of which, my back’s been acting up and the chair creaks…”
He glanced expectantly, but the man shook his head apologetically.
“I’m sorry. I’ll be late today.”
“Ah, I see. No problem. Come by when you have time.”
It had somehow become expected that he would fix the chair, but the man simply smiled kindly and nodded.
“I will. Thank you again.”
As the man walked away, his neighbor murmured to himself.
“Such a kind young man…”
He had never caused trouble, never raised his voice.
A diligent, polite man who often played with the neighborhood children and listened attentively to others.
Who could have imagined—
That he was the very serial killer who was spreading fear across the city?
As he walked further down the street, exchanging greetings with passersby, he finally reached one of the branches of the Taren Trading Company.
“Good afternoon.”
“Oh! You’re okay!”
“Yes. Sorry I’ve been away without notice.”
“Don’t worry about it.”
The branch manager welcomed him without a fuss.
“Hard to find someone who works as hard as you. By the way, have you heard anything about…”
The manager asked about a colleague, but the man only shook his head.
“I see… So you don’t know either. I was wondering if they disappeared too. That one always carried that ragged doll, saying it belonged to his daughter…”
Muttering under his breath, the manager trailed off.
The man bowed and headed inside.
In the shadows, his lips curled into a grin.
“He became a noble offering.”
Recalling the colleague’s fate, the man’s face lit with joy—briefly.
“Just a bit more…”
His eyes scanned the workshop for another target, but pickings were slim.
Everyone had become cautious due to rumors of disappearances and murders.
He’d have to save up money and buy someone instead.
Lowering his head, he focused on work.
“Phew…”
After completing some tasks, he leaned against the wall and looked up at the sky.
His goal was within reach. If only things didn’t have to go in such a roundabout way…
But they say when one door closes, another opens.
“What are you doing here?”
A bright voice rang above his bowed head.
Startled, he looked up to see flowing pink hair.
“I heard you’re the hardest worker here.”
The man didn’t respond—just stared at the woman in front of him.
Pale hands, manicured nails, a simple yet clearly high-quality dress.
She didn’t even seem interested in hiding her noble status.
“The branch manager said they’re short on hands lately.”
No one who worked here would refer to the branch manager so casually.
And no commoner would dare speak that way to a merchant leader.
“If you need help, say so. Hardworking people like you are rare—even money can’t buy that.”
So this woman…
“In the name of Taren, I’ll take care of it.”
Angbre Taren smiled brightly and promised.
The man immediately spun a tale—80% truth, 20% lies.
“Hmm. Money, is it? How much do you need? No, here—take this first.”
She handed him a heavy pouch.
The clinking of coins was unmistakable.
“If you need more, tell the branch manager to—no, wait.”
Angbre shook her head.
“Tell the branch manager to speak to me directly.”
She extended this generosity purely out of goodwill—to help the struggling man and to ease the worries of the overworked branch manager.
“I’ll always help you.”
That night, the man who received Angbre’s coin pouch knocked on a neighbor’s door.
Under a crescent moon, the princess’s palace was shrouded in silence.
—Tap tap.
But that silence was broken by hurried footsteps within the palace.
A figure moving swiftly stopped abruptly when a shadow stretched across their path.
The knight instinctively lowered his center of gravity and gripped his sword.
Foreign weapons were banned in the royal palace.
But with so many “accidental deaths” among foreign knights, the rule had been relaxed for self-defense purposes.
At least, they were called accidents.
The rumor among knights was clear:
“The man who monopolizes the princess’s favor is behind it—he’s killing them off.”
Recalling the rumor, the knight’s expression twisted in fury.
“Show yourself.”
He growled, ready to strike.
A voice, low and cold as if rising from a deep abyss, answered through the swaying shadow.
“When I take one out, another appears. And then another, and another…”
The silhouette leaning against the pillar straightened and took a step forward.
His face was half-shrouded in shadow, but the twisted smile playing on his lips was unmistakably vivid.
“Did you all line up like trash, waiting for your turn?”
