The putrid smell of blood stenched the surroundings.

The terrible screams resounded from all directions along with metallic sounds, mercilessly snuffing the desperate hope of those who reached out towards life.

It was familiar.

The environment was similar to the countless battlefields he experienced until now. Raven attempted to open his eyes and to raise himself, but his body did not obey.

The sounds of the battlefield gradually faded away.

The feeling of being thrown into the darkness alone.

“Where… What…. Is…”

A voice seemed to tickle his ears. Raven once again tried opening his eyes, but it felt as if two large boulders were keeping them tightly shut.

In the meantime, the faint voice gradually became audible.

“Open your eyes. For what reason has the duke come to this place?”

The clear voice sounded familiar. It definitely belonged to someone he knew.

But the owner of the voice was…

“Great Aunt Attia?”

Raven called out after finally succeeding in opening his eyes.

“That is correct. Can you see me, duke?”

Raven nodded. He could see the confident, benevolent figure against the backdrop of a faint light. She looked the same as when he last saw her in the Pendragon family’s mausoleum.

“Why are you…”

“That is what I want to ask, duke. For what reason have you come to the family’s mausoleum as a soul?”

“…..!”

Raven’s mind cleared up after hearing Attia’s words.

That was right. He had died.

He eradicated Elsaroa, the Queen of Death, as Duke Pendragon, losing his life in the process as a result of her final curse.

“I am… dead.”

Raven spoke calmly. He could clearly remember Killian’s face as the knight cried out as his body became enveloped in a dark green flame. He remembered Soldrake’s calm gaze as he met his end.

“Hmm? What do you mean by that? You are not dead, duke.”

“What?”

Raven raised his head with shock, and Attia responded while tilting her head with confusion.

“Although your soul has come to this place, you are not dead yet. By chance, did you see the goddess before you came here?”

“Hmm, I do not think so.”

The last memory left to him was the moment he faced death, and the smell and sound of the battlefield. Although he did not know whether the last part was a dream or real, he possessed no other memories.

“See? The duke is not dead. When their time in this world has expired, every Pendragon returns to the mausoleum after meeting with Goddess Illeyna. Moreover, they would not possess 

such

 an appearance. They would take on the form of the moment when they shone the brightest in their life.”

Attia frowned while observing his figure. Raven followed suit and lowered his gaze, looking over his own body.

“Ah…”

He understood why she had emphasized a certain word.

His armor was caked with blood and flesh. Both of his hands were still holding onto his two weapons, the Widow’s Scream and his scimitar, but they did not reflect the light. Rather, they were also dripping with blood.

“I apologize. I did not realize that…”

Thinking that he had been disrespectful for showing such an appearance to a dignified noble lady, Raven hurriedly lowered his head and apologized.

“No, you do not have to apologize to me. Anyhow, what happened?”

“Yes, well…”

Attia asked in a concerned voice. Raven explained the crisis that struck the Pendragon Duchy and what he went through. Finally, he explained how he extinguished Elsaroa after hearing Soldrake’s words. Attia burst into a long sigh.

“Ha! So that is what happened! The unusual beginning of the family came back as an enormous curse to haunt your generation.”

“I apologize. I could not take good care of my family and the duchy because I was lacking.”

“No. How could that be the duke’s fault? Everything is due to the circumstances intertwined between His Excellency Alex and the wicked witch…”

Attia spoke in a bitter voice, then approached Raven. She continued while stroking his chin.

“You have worked so hard. Although you are a foreigner, strictly speaking, the duke made immeasurable sacrifices and dedication. All of the family’s ancestors, as well as myself, are well aware of the fact. Although I cannot speak on everyone’s behalf, I for one consider the duke a true Pendragon.”

“Thank… you…”

Attia’s soft voice and warm hands caused Raven’s heart to throb. At the moment of death, he thought of himself as nothing. Raven Valt never existed in his current world. Moreover, he wasn’t even the real Duke of Pendragon.

He did not possess an identity as a human being.

As such, he had been bitter.

At the least, he wanted to be the father of his two unborn children, but even that had been a vain wish.

“…..”

Raven shook his head with a dark expression. As if sympathizing with his pain, Attia patted him on the shoulder.

“There is no need for you to worry, duke. Lord Soldrake was the one who asked you to do as such, right? Above all, the fact that the duke came to the mausoleum in such a form means that the duke has not died in a true sense.”

“Great Aunt Attia, do you have any guesses?”

“I am not quite sure either, but there is definitely something unusual.”

“What is it?”

Raven asked back in a hurry, and Attia turned around with a small smile on her face.

“Come this way for now.”

“…..”

It was strange for her to ask him to follow without answering his question, but Raven complied. As soon as he took a few steps, Raven smiled bitterly. Even though he was walking along the ground, he could not feel the touch of it.

Only then did Raven come to a complete realization. He had no body. Regardless of whether he really died or not, he was currently only a soul. As he passed through the corridor lit by radiant blue ores, Attia and Raven arrived in a large room.

“This is…!”

Raven let out a low burst of exclamation. The walls and ceilings were decorated with many strange shapes and symbols. A giant white rock stood erect on the other side of the room, or rather, it was a little strange to call it a rock. The front of the rock was smooth without a single wrinkle, as if was cleanly cut with a sword. Raven felt as if he were looking at a mirror.

“Duke, come this way.”

Attia called out after arriving in front of the white rock. Raven moved his steps. As expected, he saw himself and Attia reflected on the smooth, transparent surface of the white rock.

“Great aunt, this is…?”

Raven asked while turning his head towards Attia. Surely Attia had not brought the two of them here to appreciate their reflection in the mirror. She smiled while covering her face, then pointed her finger to their reflection on the rock.

“Look carefully. At yourself, not me.”

“Hmm.”

Raven obeyed her words with a slight frown. He looked at his reflection. He possessed the same appearance as when he fought the last battle at Fort Bellint.

His armor showed traces of the fierce battle, and sweaty black hair and gloomy grey eyes were…

“What!?”

He was overcome with shock.

Raven approached the rock and reached out his hand towards his reflection. He was in disbelief. His trembling fingers passed by his wide-opened eyes, then touched his hair.

Black hair, grey eyes, and a stubborn jawline along his shadowed cheeks. It was not the face of Alan Pendragon, but the face of Raven Valt. He had not seen it in a long time.

“T, this is…”

Raven’s stuttered with a voice that trembled as much as the grey eyes that stared back at him.

“That is correct. That is why I am certain there is something unusual going on. That is why I believe the duke has not died yet.”

“Ah…”

Raven turned after hearing Attia’s voice.

“By the way, your original appearance is very manly and handsome. It reveals your stubborn sincerity very well. No wonder our family was able to spread its name throughout the empire in such a short time.”

“I am ashamed.”

Raven forgot his surprise and humbly bowed his head. But as if remembering something, he suddenly raised his head.

“Great Aunt, did the soul of a knight arrive here by chance? His name is Elkin Isla… He is the first person I took in. I am sure you must have seen him a few times in Conrad Castle.”

“Elkin Isla? Ah, the knight who was well-versed in spearmanship and taking care of griffons. No, he did not. Why are you asking?”

Raven briefly explained how he perished at the hands of Elsaroa.

Attia narrowed her eyes, then sank into thought. Soon, she opened her lips.

“The mausoleum is a place reserved only for the souls of our duchy’s direct descendants. However, if the duke considers him important and if he truly was so unusual in his lifetime, he could come to the mausoleum with the permission of the goddess. But he did not come. Perhaps his soul is still wandering the duchy or already by the goddess’s side.”

“I see. Thank you.”

Raven nodded with a heavy sigh, then sank into a brief silence.

Attia noticed that the knight named Isla had truly occupied a large space in Raven's heart. On one hand, she felt even more proud of him. The knight had sacrificed his life for the family. But Raven was currently ignorant as to whether he himself was alive or not. Even so, he was concerned for his knight.

Even though his face did not belong to her grandnephew, Attia was quite surprised and touched.

‘He was not born with it. He is a true monarch who honed himself over time. There was a reason why brave, courageous knights flocked to his side and followed him.’

Attia nodded while observing Raven with a pleased expression. However, that was not the issue at hand. She spoke after regaining a calm expression.

“Anyways, duke. Soldrake asked you to die because there was another way, right? That you should trust her.”

“Yes. That is correct.”

“Hmm.”

Attia sank into thought.

She had seen Soldrake over the generations.

Her father, her brother, and her nephew, Gordon, had all said the same thing. She herself knew as well because she was somewhat capable of communicating with Soldrake.

‘The White Dragon will never betray Pendragon.’

As such, Soldrake would not have told Raven to die without a reason. Above all, upon the death of the current duke, Soldrake would…

“This is troublesome. Ha…!”

“What is wrong?”

Attia suddenly sighed with a dark expression. Raven asked with a frown.

“Duke, my brother and Gordon died in relative peace. But do you know what Soldrake did when they died?”

“Ah…!”

Raven flinched without realizing it.

Him and her were companions connected by the soul.

He had died. Right in front of her eyes…

“Don’t tell me…”

“Yes. Even if the witch is somehow revived… Soldrake will burn the witch thousands, tens of thousands of times. Even the other dragons, or even an angel will not be able to handle the anger of the White Dragon.”

“…..!”

“However, she herself wanted the duke’s death. Ha! I have no idea as to what will happen in the future. It is impossible to even speculate.”

Raven’s heart became heavier as Attia sighed.

It was even more painful that there was nothing he could do right now.