Chimera of Batius - Chapter 8
Every time he inspected the new training facilities, Ruzerolt couldn’t help glancing toward the quarters for the actors and dancers. Since that chance encounter in the square, he hadn’t seen Cheil again. Yet thoughts of him kept growing in his mind. As he walked the training ground, he overheard the voices of some knights taking a break.
“Mason, wouldn’t you like to make the most of this free time?”
“Of course.”
“How about we do something together?”
“What sort of thing?”
“When the theater folk arrive, we could have some fun. You, me, and the acrobat, the three of us.”
Mason raised an eyebrow, intrigued. Seeing the positive response, the knight who had started the conversation puffed out his chest and wore a blissful look.
“Last night I spent the night with the acrobat, and it was simply incredible.”
“Hmm… Is he as gorgeous as the dancer?”
“You mean the one you accused of being a thief?”
They were talking about Cheil. Ruzerolt’s ears sharpened as he listened closely.
“Moldani, watch your tongue. With what that fellow did, misunderstandings were bound to happen!”
“True. Those people are vulgar. They go crazy for jewels.”
“The acrobat too?”
The knight clicked his tongue.
“When I gave him a ruby bracelet, his jaw dropped.”
Hearing that, Mason scoffed.
“Just for a ruby bracelet? You had quite a time, huh. I wouldn’t have played it that way.”
“But it was amazing! Must be his calling to spread his legs, because he left me breathless. We’re meeting tomorrow night. How about the three of us have some fun? He’s not the dancer, but he’ll do for a night of pleasure.”
“Ah… I liked that dancer.”
“After all, he’s just a man. Not even an omega.”
Ruzerolt could hear their filth clearly.
“You know nothing. Those types are perfect for a one-night stand and then forget them. Besides, with a face like that, who cares if he’s a man or a beta?”
A shadow crossed Ruzerolt’s face. The knights saw Cheil as nothing more than a disposable toy for a single night—not someone to talk to, just a body to enjoy and discard. He felt suddenly depressed. It strangely sickened him to hear Cheil spoken of that way.
“However, I would choose to use the flower. One of my wishes is to spend my whole life with the person I love… If I don’t do it that way, no one would be able to stay with someone as lowly as me for the rest of their life.”
Had those sincere words come from experience?
No matter how much of a dancer he was… he wasn’t an object whose value could be exhausted in a single night. The knights were pushing Cheil to stay alone in the winter garden.
Ruzerolt walked toward the knights. His body moved on its own. He felt he had to tell them something. Without realizing it, the words he needed to say lined up in his mind.
“Fine. Then next time let’s try seducing that dancer instead of the acrobat.”
The crunch of snow underfoot could be heard.
“Thanks to Lord Dexler, I’ll be able to pass this quarantine period in a fun way.”
Dexler. Hearing his brother’s name, Ruzerolt stopped dead in his tracks.
“As always, Lord Dexler has a good eye for these things.”
At that moment, Ruzerolt realized what he was about to do.
Just to protect a mere dancer?
Cheil meant nothing to him.
He had no reason to feel bad hearing those things. Besides, what bothered Ruzerolt wasn’t the conversation itself, but the fact that they mentioned Cheil. Realizing that fully, he froze.
He’s one of Dexler’s men. And a low-ranking dancer at that. Someone who’ll disappear when the season ends.
Under no circumstances was Cheil someone worth getting close to.
There was no reason to get angry hearing those things. Absolutely, absolutely no reason.
Had he been swayed by his appearance?
Ruzerolt turned around, trying to calm his confusion. The knights kept up their obscene chatter. He hurried toward the building where his office was.
As he walked, he kept repeating to himself: “Cheil is nothing to me, nothing.”
And the more he tried to control himself, the heavier his chest felt.
“I don’t understand why I’m like this…”
He tugged at the shirt choking his neck, loosening it slightly. But the feeling of oppression didn’t go away. Ruzerolt’s expression grew harder. Just as he was about to enter the building with a frown…
“Captain.”
He ran into Reym, who was coming out. From his expression, it seemed he’d been looking for him.
“What’s going on?”
“I have something urgent to tell you.”
Reym’s attitude was a little different from usual when reporting matters.
“Why do you have that expression?”
Reym hesitated a moment, then lowered his head.
“It’s about the dancer we talked about earlier. I think it’d be better if I informed you first, Captain.”
When Ruzerolt raised an eyebrow, Reym stepped closer.
“It seems there have been some problems between him and some soldiers.”
“Problems?”
Several guards approached from behind. Reym followed them with his gaze, as if waiting for them to leave. That brief moment felt terribly long. Finally, unable to wait any longer, Ruzerolt asked again.
“What kind of problems have there been?”
When the guards were completely gone, Reym said in a low voice:
“Last night, some soldiers tried to get him drunk.”
Ruzerolt’s expression hardened instantly.
One of the reasons Ruzerolt hated Dexler’s parties was precisely this.
The dancers, musicians, and omegas who were brought in received a generous reward, but in exchange, they became Dexler’s property while they were in the north. And Dexler didn’t hesitate to hand his performers over to the city’s men as if they were one-night prostitutes.
“You know nothing. Those types are perfect for a one-night stand and then forget them. Besides, with a face like that, who cares if he’s a man or a beta?”
They hadn’t stopped at obscene words; they had actually…
“Both the dancer and the soldiers ended up injured.”
Ruzerolt looked at Reym. At Reym’s insistence that he say more, Reym exhaled.
“It seems the dancer resisted fiercely and stabbed the soldiers. Not one, but several.”
“…”
After a moment of reflection, Ruzerolt asked:
“Who else knows about this?”
“Only the soldiers who were there and the stable master, it seems. I don’t think they’ve told Lord Dexler yet.”
Ruzerolt rubbed his face. If Reym was this desperate to tell him, it meant the situation was worse than he’d thought.
Cheil…
It felt as if someone were tightening a noose around his neck again. Ruzerolt swallowed and searched for words.
“How is the dancer?”
“He doesn’t seem to be in danger of death, but he’s not well.”
“…And the soldiers?”
“They won’t be able to train for a while.”
Every dancer Ruzerolt had known until now had been someone who seduced others and sold their body for profit. But Cheil hadn’t just rejected the soldiers—he’d used a sword.
Cheil didn’t fit any definition of dancer Ruzerolt knew.
“Take the soldiers to the doctor. And…”
He’d said the soldiers were hurt. But in Ruzerolt’s mind, only Cheil was there.
“Sir, do you want to go see the soldiers?”
He had to see Cheil with his own eyes right away. It was an absurd impulse. He knew it was wrong. But…
Ruzerolt clenched his fist with resolve.
“Take me to the dancer.”
The image of Cheil trembling, soaked, came to mind. He also remembered how Cheil wandered the garden late at night and his smile as he held a piece of fabric.
“I… I’m trying to choose a fabric. Because of what Sir Ruzerolt said…” A cautious glance slid toward Ruzerolt. “…I have to follow your advice carefully…”
The wall Ruzerolt had built swayed in a gentle breeze.
* * *
“This way, Captain.”
As they descended the underground stairs, a foul stench filled the air. The deeper they went, the darker Ruzerolt’s expression became. Soon both stopped. Reym pulled a torch from the wall.
“Captain.”
He pointed to a cell. Cheil lay in the center of the narrow cell, his wrists chained.
“Dancer. Get up.”
When Reym spoke in a threatening tone, Cheil rose slowly.
His clothes were torn and bloodstained. Scars showed through the rips in the fabric. His arm, still bleeding, bore the marks of the fight. Ruzerolt bit his lower lip.
“Cheil.”
When Ruzerolt called his name, Cheil lifted his head. Despite his condition, he still wore a mask. His golden eyes stared straight at Ruzerolt.
He had held out this long…
“Sir Ruzerolt…”
“Yes.”
Cheil dragged himself toward the bars. The metal screeched. In a low voice, Cheil asked:
“Have you come to punish me?”
“You’re none of my concern. If you want punishment, ask Dexler.”
“Then why…?”
Their golden eyes met again. At once, the tendons in Ruzerolt’s clenched fist tightened.
It was true. Why had he come here?
“Should I leave?”
“I just thought you had no reason to come.”
Up close, marks of violence covered his body. Ruzerolt knelt in front of the bars.
“I’ve been told what happened.”
“…”
“Why did you refuse the soldiers?”
“I… I’m not…”
His voice was so low it was barely audible.
“Say it again.”
Cheil repeated it, looking him in the eye.
“I… didn’t come here to sell my body…”
The words that came from the mouth of the man who danced to please the northerners were unexpected. Cheil blinked his long lashes, trembling.
“What I sell is my dance, not my body. Since they asked me to sell my body… that’s why I refused.”
It was an absurd statement. What sense did it make for a dancer to distinguish between selling a dance and selling his body? Once someone was taken to Heinsley, it was hard to avoid serving the northerners at night.
“And for that reason you hurt the soldiers?”
Cheil let out an ironic laugh.
“To you, full of power, it may seem like a trivial reason, but to me it means a lot.”
“Then… did you commit this act knowing you’d be punished?”
Cheil clenched his chained fist and spoke calmly.
“Even a humble dancer has convictions to defend.”
It was an unexpected answer. With his body fallen and defeated, his eyes, when speaking of convictions, showed a righteousness never seen before. What kind of conviction had led him to this situation?
If he left him here, Cheil couldn’t avoid punishment. Even if he forgave the fact that he had wounded the soldiers, Dexler wouldn’t let it go. How could he cover up the crime of a commoner who raised a sword against a northerner? If he handed him over to Dexler, he’d surely be found with his hair grabbed, being whipped. Would he keep that straight gaze then? Would his long legs and arms remain intact?
The image of Cheil broken filled him with an inexplicable frustration.
He no longer wanted him to stay in the castle. If the gates closed, he’d have to spend the winter with him, and he couldn’t allow that.
Ruzerolt leaned toward the bars.
“Cheil.”
“Yes, Sir Ruzerolt…”
“I’ll let you go, so leave the north.”
Cheil moved his lips and came a little closer to the bars.
“Shouldn’t I be punished?”
“Do you really know what punishment you’d receive?”
Cheil blinked. His gaze wasn’t naive. Nor did he seem to question the penalty he deserved. Rather, he seemed not to understand why Ruzerolt was being so generous.
Some reason to absolve him of his guilt. In him was caution toward the “dancer of Dexler.” Perhaps he also felt a kind of affinity with him. An empathy based on the shared situation of having to defend themselves in a hostile environment.
There could be many excuses. But his final decision was clear. Ruzerolt didn’t want Cheil to be trampled by the northerners.
“If you’re taken to Dexler, you won’t be able to dance for a while. Maybe you won’t even be able to leave the north on your own until next spring.”
Cheil’s eyes moved.
“… And what would my punishment be if I leave the north like this?”
“Are you more worried about that?”
Cheil hesitated for a moment and shook his head. Ruzerolt rested his fingertips on the bars.
“If you want to get out of here alive, do exactly what I tell you when I give you the chance.”
Reym, who had been watching them with concern, took a step closer.
“Captain, I’m sure Dexler won’t just sit still.”
“I’m ready to face Dexler’s wrath. Besides, if I don’t let him go now, I’ll have to keep him in the castle all winter. You also objected to the dancers and the theater troupe staying in Heinsley.”
At Ruzerolt’s words, Reym stepped back in silence. Ruzerolt looked into the cell again and ordered:
“Open the door.”
The sound of metal scraping was heard. However, instead of the guard, another person appeared.
“That won’t be possible. Who do you think you are to decide that?”
A strong vibration shook the entrance. Dexler appeared with his guards, not hiding the force of his steps.
“Brother, how did you get here?”
Dexler stood in front of the prison, letting the long flaps of his cloak flutter. Ruzerolt then stood up.
“I came to personally see what happened to my soldiers.”
“And why did you come all the way here if you only wanted to see the soldiers?”
A smile formed on Dexler’s lips. He seemed quite pleased. However, Ruzerolt knew very well the kind of cruelty hidden behind that smile in a situation like this. Ruzerolt stepped in front of him.
“Dexler, this involves several of my soldiers. It would be better if you left it to me.”
“Since he came here on my orders, I believe I should be the one to handle it. Having had the audacity to raise a sword against my soldiers after coming north at my invitation, I’ll give him the punishment he deserves so that something like this doesn’t happen again.”
Ruzerolt’s heart suddenly raced. Trying to hide his agitation, he reached out and grabbed Dexler’s shoulder.
“How about we expel him from here as punishment?”
At his proposal, Dexler let out a loud laugh.
“If you mean abandoning him deep in the northern forest, I’ll accept your suggestion. That will be punishment enough, don’t you think?”
When his half-brother mentioned the northern forest, Ruzerolt’s eyes lit up intensely. Seeing his reaction, Dexler mocked him.
“I like to tame those who don’t obey me. I don’t consider abandoning him a punishment. Rather, it seems my brother is granting him a favor.”
Dexler pushed Ruzerolt’s hand away.
“Bring the guy.”
The prison door opened and the guards lifted Cheil’s arms. Cheil’s cheeks, as he was dragged without resistance, were swollen and red.
“Dexler…”
“We agreed that you handle the outside of the castle and I handle the inside.”
This time, Dexler patted Ruzerolt on the shoulder and whispered:
“So you take care of the wounded soldiers. I’ll take care of my dancer.”
As he was being dragged, Cheil briefly met Ruzerolt’s eyes. He had a resigned expression on his face.
“Walk straight!”
Seeing the guard’s attitude as he pushed and scolded him, Ruzerolt’s hand, gripping his sword hilt, clenched tightly.
The threat that he might not be able to walk on his own was not an empty one. Dexler was perfectly capable of inflicting that kind of punishment.
“Reym.”
“Yes, Captain.”
“Lead the way to where the soldiers are.”
Both on arrival and on turning away, Ruzerolt was unsure of his own feelings. He only knew that he didn’t want Cheil to suffer.