I Pulled Out the Excalibur

Yet, Najin knew.

They were not as pure and incorruptible as commonly believed. While the followers might be unaware, he was well aware of the rotten core within the order’s leadership.

“Did the Starlight Order send you?”

Thus, Najin boldly posed the question.
Mere utterance of it could be deemed a blasphemous insult to the order, punishable by severe sanctions. But if he had been concerned about such matters, he would have never escaped the underground city in the first place.

“Seeing the order’s name come up so quickly, you seem to have quite a deep feud with them as well,” Kapman chuckled.
From his reaction, Najin could infer a few things: Kapman did not hold the order in high regard, and he was not affiliated with it.

“Yes, the order sent me.”

Kapman lifted his chin, pushing away the longsword at his neck with his fingers and began to unravel the bandage wrapped around his throat.

“They promised to release a hostage if I killed you. From the Underground City Artman.”

Najin frowned.
The brand on Kapman’s neck was familiar; he had seen it before. It was the same mark found inside Ivan’s eyepatch and branded on Drugmaker Hakan’s arm.

A mark branded on those cast into the underground city.

Offen had said, even if one managed to escape the underground city by sheer luck and coincidence, as long as this brand remained, the order would hunt them down until death.

“You too…?”
“Sorry, but I’m not from Artman. This is a leash they’ve put on me.”

Perhaps one hostage wasn’t enough for them.
Kapman shrugged and muttered.

“A hostage?”
“My daughter. A common story, I guess. Makes you wonder why soldiers even bother having kids.”

Kapman’s laughter was rough and bitter.

“I’m not looking for sympathy. Nor am I begging to be spared. After all, if I don’t kill you, I die. But would you let yourself be killed by me?”

Najin remained silent, signifying his refusal.

“See? I’ve lost to you, and I don’t think flailing here will let me win against you.”
“Then what?”
“The victor should enjoy their rights.”

He stated.

“From what I see, your feud with the order seems extraordinarily deep. Well, if you’re from Artman, it couldn’t be shallow. I don’t know why they’re hell-bent on killing you, but…”

Kapman looked at Najin, then suddenly burst into knowing laughter.

“Ah, I see. A monster close to being a Sword Seeker at eighteen… They probably thought you might actually become a Sword Master. At that level, you could potentially dismantle the order. So, they deemed you a threat.”
“……”

Najin didn’t deny it. It was true that the order saw him as a threat.

“Anyway.”

Kapman sighed deeply.

“Can I ask you something?”
“Go ahead.”
“Do you plan to overturn the order?”
“Yeah.”

Najin answered without hesitation, his response devoid of any pretense or falsehood.
Swearing on the name of Ivan, who had sent him above the city, he vowed to demolish the order.

“I intend to do so with my own hands.”
“You seem to have quite the story behind that face.”
“As do you.”
“Yeah, well… doesn’t seem like you’re lying.”

Kapman reached out, pointing towards his poncho lying some distance away. Najin moved towards where Kapman had pointed.

“You’ll find a document if you search it. It’s the contract I made with the order; might come in handy for you somewhere.”

As he spoke, Kapman laughed, but Najin sensed something off in that laughter. Just as Najin was about to approach the poncho,

“Don’t come closer.”

Kapman extended his arm to stop Najin.
Najin’s brows furrowed. Kapman didn’t seem to be preparing anything, nor did he show any sign of counterattack. Then why?

“Hey, Najin.”

Even as he pondered the reason, Najin halted his approach, maintaining distance to understand the discomfort he had sensed in Kapman’s laughter.

“The Starlight Order is more vile, more thorough, and more insidious than you think. Remember that.”

With that unexpected advice Kapman took a long breath.

“They have many words at their disposal. Many. Whether the hostages are taken, brainwashed, or just purely fanatical zealots of the religion…”

Kapman pulled out a necklace from under his clothes. A trinket dangled from the necklace, and as Kapman gazed at what it contained, he grimaced.

“I’m just the beginning. Plenty of those star-crazed lunatics will come after you. Better be plenty of them. Anyway, what a pain.”

As he spoke, Kapman applied pressure to his hand.
With a snap, the necklace broke.

“Well, do your best.”

Kapman threw the necklace he had carried all his life towards Najin.

Thud.

Najin caught the necklace thrown by Kapman, sensing no magical presence from it. Kapman smirked and said,

“I’d appreciate it if you buried that necklace with me.”

Before Najin could respond, a searing noise came from Kapman’s neck. The brand turned red-hot. Blood flowed from Kapman’s eyes, nose, and ears.

-Silence…? No, why would he…?

Before a puzzled Najin could utter a word, Kapman, spewing blood, forced out his last words, as if determined to pronounce the name of the damned person.

“Or… land.”

Someone’s name.
At the mention of that name, Kapman’s body swelled. Najin, with eyes wide open, grabbed the poncho and jumped into the waterway.

As Najin plunged into the water, a thunderous boom shook the underground waterway.

Emerging from the water, Najin looked towards where Kapman had been sitting. Kapman was gone. Only pieces of flesh and bloodstains remained.

-…It was a Silence spell.

Merlin said.

-A spell triggered by certain words or names. Usually paired with a spell that causes the body to explode.

Even as she explained, Merlin couldn’t hide her discomfort. Her voice trembled slightly as she spoke.

-It was a forbidden spell even in my time.
-Because it was used in this manner.

Najin gazed at the charred wall.
Kapman had died without leaving a body behind, exploding into nothing but blood and flesh scattered around. Silently, Najin spread his hand.

In it lay the necklace thrown by Kapman.

Inside the trinket attached to the necklace was a photograph. It depicted Kapman, his wife, and a girl who appeared to be their daughter. Najin stared at the photo for a long while.

“……”

He had tried to kill him.
Najin knew all too well that dwelling on the deaths of such individuals, feeling sorrow and guilt, was unbearable. Thus, he attempted to look away, but upon seeing the photo, he couldn’t help but feel a stir of emotions.

The young girl in the photograph was someone Najin recognized. During his cleanup of Tricksey’s involvement in human trafficking, which Ivan had prohibited, Najin had come across a list and ‘products’ Tricksey had been dealing with. He remembered scoffing at the destinations where these ‘products’ were sent.

Najin’s expression darkened as he recalled those memories.

“This fucking…”

Najin cursed out loud. Despite not having eaten anything, something seemed to churn in his stomach, rising up as if to come out. Grinding his teeth, Najin felt a surge of intense emotion.

Merlin remained silent, sharing the same intensity of feelings as Najin.

“Merlin.”
“…Speak.”
“I thought, I thought the surface would be different. That the world under the stars, unlike the underground city, would be different. But now… I’m starting to doubt that.”

The underground city was filthy because the stars did not shine upon it. Najin had believed so. But after experiencing a series of events, doubts had begun to sprout within him.

“Do the stars not care about this world? At the very least, shouldn’t the orders serving the stars not engage in such deeds?”

“Do you want an honest answer?”
“Yes.”

Merlin exhaled deeply.

“Most constellations don’t care much about this world. Especially not about the central continent.”

Najin asked why.
Merlin responded with a bitter tone.

“Because we are, in a sense, entities that have ended.”

The ancient constellation spoke.

“We achieved our feats, hung our stars in the sky, and met our end. Unless it’s a place where the boundaries between heaven and earth blur, we cannot intervene.”

There are those among us who try to intervene.
But they only end up regretting it.
After all, we are merely onlookers.

“The constellations are not as grand as you think. The battlefield of the stars, the abyssal land of Camlann. We are akin to the dead, trapped by our stars, continuing an endless journey.”

Najin remained silent, and Merlin continued.

“The majority of constellations have no interest in how the world turns. Most stars are more concerned with their own well-being and shining brighter than others.”

Hunting other stars in the battlefield of the stars.
Creating avatars to roam the battlefield of the stars.
Longing for the next chapter of a story that has already ended.

“That’s the essence of what constellations are. Perhaps I’m not much different.”

Before Najin could respond, Merlin chuckled.

“Longing for what comes after an ended journey is something I share as well.”

Merlin took another deep breath.

“As much as it might disappoint you, who admires the stars, not all constellations are grand and flawless beings. Many are uglier than humans.”

The truth Najin didn’t want to hear.
That’s why Merlin hesitated to share it. As he spoke this truth, Merlin observed Najin’s inner image. He wondered if the star floating in Najin’s psyche might change.

But the star remained unchanged.

Najin’s inner star continued to hold its place. Soon, Najin’s voice was heard.

“Then all the more reason to climb higher.”
“…What?”
“The constellations that the order serves. Does that lighthouse star know about this?”
“Probably. I can’t be certain about Excalibur, but it’s unlikely that the star is completely unaware of the order’s misdeeds.”

Najin, having pocketed the necklace, stood up.

“Then I must question it as well.”

To take the star and ascend higher.
Najin had one more question to pose to the order. Clutching Kapman’s poncho, he moved forward.

Orland.

Najin mulled over the name Kapman had uttered last.
Ironically, it was a name Najin was familiar with too. He had come across it while investigating the Starlight Order.

High Priest Orland of the Starlight Order.

Sitting at the highest place in the Starlight Order’s main church, built above the Underground City Artman. Najin realized whom he needed to confront.