Chapter 116: Epilogue
After the complete annihilation of the Duchy of Araceae, events unfolded without granting the slightest respite.
The list Sirius had handed to Gramm proved to be just as exhaustive as those established by the enforcers under San’s command, tasked with monitoring and evaluating the candidates throughout the examination.
It did not take long before a final list of those selected was projected onto the base’s screens.
When the thousands of rejected candidates saw it, reactions erupted immediately, chaotic and uncontrolled.
First came shock.
Then sadness, anger, incomprehension.
Each reacted in their own way, but together they formed a single, overwhelming wave of panic.
Yet when their eyes finally settled on the names of the accepted and they recognized those they had mocked, humiliated, or despised during the examination this emotional storm condensed into one thing alone.
Pure hatred.
All the accumulated frustration and pain found a single designated culprit.
Sirius.
Fortunately for him, he had anticipated this outcome.
Long before the results were displayed, he had already taken refuge within the enforcers’ quarters of the base, safely out of reach of the crowd.
For hours, the rejected candidates launched a true manhunt, driven by a determination that only visceral rage could give birth to.
They searched every corner of the base, until one of them finally voiced the conclusion they had all been dreading.
Only one place remained.
And so they gathered in front of the enforcers’ facilities.
Insults erupted, so violent that even Sirius, from a distance, was taken aback.
Only then did he realize how badly he had underestimated the fury he had ignited.
Without the presence of the enforcers assigned to secure the area and, indirectly, to protect him there was no doubt he would have been stoned on the spot.
---
While Sirius became the vessel for all that hatred, Iris experienced the exact opposite.
She was greeted by thunderous applause, mixed with a fervor that was almost unsettling.
Around her, gazes were filled with admiration and genuine loyalty.
Long before the examination ended, Iris alongside Carla, Ereis, and Rana had discreetly gathered all those she believed capable of joining the Order.
Once Sirius’s plan was revealed, the shock was real, but resolve prevailed. They understood there was no other path.
By eliminating bullies, opportunists, and the least committed candidates from the outset, they gradually established through observation and patience a precise list of those who would be selected.
Lucy, Fidri, Garcia, and Elizir had followed a similar approach on their side, also selecting promising candidates in the shadows.
Once their choices were finalized, all the lists converged toward Sirius, who accepted without complaint his role as the scapegoat.
While Iris basked in the adoration of those she already considered her future allies, Kritos watched her from afar, an amused smile on his lips.
The bet they had sealed no longer had any meaning: no direct battle against the Calamities had taken place.
Iris had undoubtedly proposed that wager already knowing her brother’s plan. In other words, she had deceived him perfectly.
Yet far from feeling anger, Kritos felt a growing fascination.
As though he had just discovered a specimen that far exceeded all his expectations.
("Her eyes are beautiful," he thought.)
("And what if that light doesn’t come from that... but simply from her?")
He finally looked away and murmured to himself:
"I can’t wait to learn more."
---
Once the crowd had been calmed, the enforcers chartered trains to evacuate the rejected candidates.
Before their departure, each of them was forced to sign a strict confidentiality clause, forbidding them from revealing anything about the examination, the events they had experienced, or the truths they had glimpsed over the past month.
When it came time to sign, some hesitated, others even considered protesting.
But Gramm simply walked past them without granting them a single glance.
That was enough.
Silence fell instantly, and all of them hurried to sign, frozen smiles plastered on their faces.
Who would dare challenge his authority after having felt the earthquakes, the violent gusts of wind, and the crushing pressure that had shaken the base?
Even without having witnessed the battle against Helion, no one was ignorant of what had transpired.
As compensation, the rejected candidates received payment for their participation, as well as a letter of recommendation from the Order.
A meager consolation, but sufficient to ease part of their disappointment.
Most would find work elsewhere.
The most stubborn might try their luck again at the next examination.
---
It took a full day for the last rejected candidates to leave the base.
When only the accepted remained, they were gathered together and each received an envelope containing their entry bonus into the Order, along with two weeks of leave.
Though accepted, they were not yet officially enforcers: a decoration ceremony would be held in fifteen days at the Order’s headquarters, where they would receive either a coat or an insignia, depending on their status.
As for the Eleven who had already been decorated, they too were granted two weeks of rest, their first salary paid in advance, and a mission bonus.
When Sirius, Iris, and Lucy saw the number of zeros displayed on the accounts created for them by the Order and accessible via their phones, they nearly choked.
They finally understood why so many people had signed up for the examination.
Compared to this, their former lives as mercenaries suddenly felt like a scam.
After cashing in their pay, they boarded a train bound for the capital of the Republic of Palmeraies, where their allocated villa and a few days of rest awaited them, alongside Brad and Bell.
Thus, the examination officially came to an end.
But its repercussions were only just beginning.
And for the people of Eterniti, it marked the dawn of a new era.
---
At the border of the State of Mirage,
the enforcers under Kori’s command packed up shortly after the destruction of the duchy.
The State’s president came in person to thank them, then took the opportunity to address the refugees of Eterniti.
He delivered a compassionate speech, denouncing the abuses suffered by a neighboring nation under the grip of smugglers.
He promised food, medical care, modern housing, and swore to support the refugees until their complete recovery.
Political promises, certainly... but for many, it represented an unexpected salvation.
Orion, however, was far more wary.
Having never yielded to the Mercury clan and having preserved its traditions as well as its faith in the King, the city refused any form of dependence.
In Renard’s absence, Arnaud led his people with firmness: he thanked the State of Mirage for its assistance, but paid for the food and shelter provided with gold coins.
Then he severed all ties.
As he left, Arnaud recalled the warning Fidri and the others had given him:
"Be wary of this country’s leaders. We don’t yet have all the proof, but remain cautious."
Their mistrust now seemed justified.
At the moment of departure, Arnaud was surprised to see nearly five hundred people mostly children and adolescents ask to join them.
He hesitated.
Then he remembered his promise.
"If that is your choice, then all I can do is wish you a safe return, my brothers and sisters."
Now convinced that it was still possible to save those who had betrayed their traditions, Arnaud decided that upon his return, he would ask his father to send men to teach the values of Eterniti to the lost cities.
---
After the farewells, Arnaud and his people began a return journey that lasted longer than expected.
With no urgency, they walked by day and rested by night.
What should have taken three or four days ultimately took seven.
They finally arrived before what was now nothing more than the ruins of Orion.
The buildings had been completely razed.
Craters scarred the ground, and the earth was still warm in places, as if burned by a devouring fire.
But Arnaud, the knights, the women, and the children did not linger on this desolate sight.
There was far worse.
Beneath the rubble, buried under dust, lay bodies. The stench of death was suffocating; they had fallen long ago.
Arnaud removed his breastplate and helmet, suddenly unbearably heavy.
He knelt down and began to unearth the lifeless remains one by one, digging with his bare hands.
He was not alone; all the people of Orion followed his example in a heavy silence.
There were no tears yet. Everyone restrained themselves, hoping against all reason to find a survivor, that the one who had guided them might still be alive.
But life is cruel.
They found neither a body to mourn nor a weapon to honor.
The only remnants of Renard were his helmet and part of his breastplate, charred beyond recognition.
Arnaud knelt again, clutching the only relics of his father in trembling hands.
Tears threatened to overwhelm him, but when he raised his eyes, he saw the shattered, desperate gazes of the men he now had to lead.
"Stop your tears. A man does not cry for nothing," he remembered his father’s words.
"We do not cry for those who died bravely on the battlefield!" Arnaud shouted,
his throat dry and his eyes shining as he rose and wiped away the moisture at their edges.
"When we defeated the Mercury clan and I was broken, these are the words my father spoke to me."
He paused, holding the attention of the grieving crowd.
"My father and the knights who died at his side fought with courage. They held their ground against the enemy so that we could survive. To mourn them would be to dishonor them. None of those brave souls would have wished for that. So..."
His voice softened slightly, but a firm determination infused his words, painful as they were necessary.
"We will honor them according to tradition.
A feast will be held to celebrate our dead and our survival.
Yes, we survived! If sorrow still lingers among you, then let us double our efforts together.
Let us rebuild our city. Train ourselves.
Become stronger.
So that in the afterlife, my father and your loved ones may be proud and feel no shame for their sacrifice."
A solemn silence settled as each person recalled the lives of those fallen knights.
---
That evening, as night fell, people did their best to drink and eat.
Laughter felt forced and expressions betrayed deep sorrow, but everyone hid behind this illusion of festivity to honor tradition.
Leaning against a rock, Arnaud held in his trembling hands the old, dusty journal his father had given him before their separation, making him swear not to open it until the battle was over.
Thinking back on it now, he realized it was his father’s testament. Perhaps he had foreseen his death.
Arnaud pushed those thoughts away.
There was no room for regret; the past could not be changed.
As soon as he opened it, a page slipped free.
It was his father’s handwriting. Only a few simple words were written:
"By reading this, you inherit the history of our kingdom and its secrets. As for your judgment, I trust you. Do not follow a path that is not yours. You are not me. No you are better."
Tears welled in Arnaud’s eyes, but he chose to continue.
The first page was written in a different hand, the ink ancient, as though centuries old.
It read:
"Today, we have been betrayed. Those we considered allies have revealed themselves to be traitors. The King was deceived by that woman and her followers.
From now on, we stand alone against all, awaiting His Majesty’s return.
I beg you, to whom I pass on these words, let neither time, nor events, nor people deceive you.
The Order is the true enemy, more dangerous and more insidious than the Kingdoms of Calamities.
And that woman, considered a goddess... Yet her name, ’Homo’, is no tribute. She is called ’Nova,’ but she does not represent renewal. On the contrary, she is — "
Arnaud flinched.
Time had eroded the bottom of the page, preventing him from learning the woman’s identity.
Yet that was not his greatest shock.
He remembered Fidri, Elizir, and the others; they claimed to belong to the Order.
Moreover, it was thanks to the Order that the duchy had been annihilated.
So why such harsh words?
Hoping to understand, Arnaud continued reading, devouring every word to grasp its meaning. He read throughout the night, until sunrise.
Only then did he close the book carefully.
His expression was impossible to read, marked by an intense inner conflict.
Only the future would reveal the consequences of this discovery.
