Lane's plans were going smoothly.The people of this village were merely tools for him, a stepping stone, the first strategic step toward the future. But inside Lane, a fragment of a child still remained; behind the cold calculations he built for the future, that "small child" who changed the fate of an entire village was still breathing.
He stood before Morris. Lane's gaze was calm, confident. Morris, on the other hand, looked at Lane with the tired wisdom that came with age. When Lane extended his hand, Morris took it without hesitation. Their fingers clasped together.
"Then we have a deal," Morris said, a smile easing the weight of years on his face.
The handshake was a simple gesture, yet the same kind of satisfaction flickered across both their faces. For the village, it was a beginning; for Lane, it was the first true signature of his destiny.
Lane took a deep breath and withdrew his hand.
"Now I should slowly get going… it's late. Tomorrow, very big things will happen."
The smile on Morris's face faded slightly. He looked at Lane with careful concern.
"Child… don't cause too much chaos. There may be things happening inside the village right now, but if you draw the empire's attention, that's when real problems start."
Lane touched Morris's shoulder lightly. In that small gesture, there was both comfort and calculated assurance.
"Don't worry, master… I've thought of everything. Now it's time to execute."
A helpless yet trusting smile appeared on Morris's face.
He said goodbye to Lane, and Lane headed off on his own.
Night had grown deep. The village paths were empty. The light spilling from the windows painted the narrow stone streets in a pale yellow, and the stars above seemed to watch Lane walk.
Every breath filled his lungs with cold air, and the silence echoed in his ears.
Lane looked up at the sky.
"Life is such a strange thing…" he thought.
It was so quiet that even he could hear his own voice.
"You never know what will happen at any moment. Right now your face may be gloomy, but no one knows what tomorrow will bring. You may be suffering now, but tomorrow you might be the happiest man alive."
He slowed his steps.
"So why do people dramatize everything when they're in pain? Even the smallest thing becomes exaggerated… because people are emotional beings. So are the ones in this village. They cry for their tomorrows, but they don't know what tomorrow will bring."
He stopped for a moment, leaning against the shadow of a stone wall.
"A weak person dramatizes every negative thing they experience.A strong person sees what happens as training. They don't let their emotions defeat them. That… is the only true difference between the weak and the strong."
He took a deep breath.
Then, shrugging his shoulders, he continued walking.
Walking in silence gave him a strange peace.He enjoyed it so much that he intentionally took different alleys to lengthen the path toward the cave, wandering leisurely.
Finally, he reached the entrance of the cave. Sounds were coming from inside.
There was movement.
Lane raised his eyebrows slightly.
As he walked toward the council room, the smell of alcohol filled his nose the moment he stepped in.
Edwick, Gorn, and Sara were sitting at the table drinking. Their faces were flushed. The room was warm and comfortable. The softly flickering candlelight made the stone walls appear alive, chasing away the darkness of the outside.
Lane approached the table and greeted them lightly.
"Hello… what do we owe this happiness to?"
Edwick's face was bright red. His drunken state showed both in how he spoke and how he sat. When he tried to stand, he nearly fell off the chair. Swaying forward, he threw an arm over Lane's shoulder, still holding a half-full bottle in the other hand.
"Laaanee!" he dragged the word out.
"Thanks to you… we taught the church their place! This is all thanks to you! A single child… stopped an entire church! Amazing dark child! LANEEE!"
Edwick's voice echoed muffled through the stone walls.
Lane, as if inwardly embarrassed, gave a small smile and slowly sat Edwick back down on the chair.
He turned to Gorn.
"Are you drunk too?"
Gorn grunted.
"Not as drunk as Edwick… but yes, I'm drunk. Everyone in this room is drunk right now."
At that moment, Sara took a cup, filled it with dark-colored liquor, and extended it to Lane.
"Here… drink. Let's end the hostility between us. I apologize for being rude to you."
Lane smiled lightly.
"There's no hostility between us. I brought you good news about the plan but… if tonight is a celebration, then we'll talk tomorrow."
He took the cup.
Gorn immediately interjected:
"Hey Sara! You're being a bad example to the kid! He's only 10 years old, and you're giving him alcohol?"
Sara rolled her eyes.
"Hey old man… does Lane look like a child to you? He beat the church with a child's mind. He's controlling a whole village right now. What child?"
Lane lifted the cup and downed it in one go.
As it went down his throat, the alcohol burned like fire.
"Oghh! What the— this is so strong!"
He coughed, his eyes watering.
"Where did you get this drink? It's insanely strong… burned my throat."
Sara smiled.
"This alcohol is special to the village. It's a mix the tavern keeper makes. You didn't like it?"
"I did like it but… isn't it too heavy?"
"We're used to it."
Lane's mind drifted for a moment to a night he spent with his master.
His first drink with his master… he remembered its soft taste, its gentle warmth.
"Master… I miss your drinks. Their flavor was so good."
Then he continued drinking with the council members.
Laughter rose.
Everyone told scenes from their past.
Lane shared small details about his childhood; even the few memories he shared about his master were listened to with full attention.
As the night progressed, everyone became completely drunk.
After midnight, Lane stood up. Even standing was difficult.
"I'll go sleep slowly… we have a lot of work tomorrow."
He left the room.
He staggered through the people.
His feet tangled together as if they were fighting one another.
He barely made it to his room.
He fell onto the bed.
He didn't even take off his clothes… his vision was spinning.
He stared at the ceiling.
"Alcohol is such a strange thing…" he muttered.
"It doesn't taste good, but everyone drinks it.Some drink from pain,some from joy,some for pleasure,some out of necessity…Every reason comes from emotion.Everyone finds their own way to escape reality.Alcohol is one of those ways.Someone who lost their family drinks from pain.Someone celebrating a newborn drinks from joy.Someone getting married drinks from happiness.Some drink just for pleasure.Some pour alcohol on a wound after getting injured.Each gives alcohol a different meaning but…alcohol is only a short-term escape.In the long term, it's a curse."
His eyes grew heavy.As thoughts spun in his mind, he slowly drifted into sleep.
When Lane opened his eyes, the sun had already risen. But since he was in a cave, no light entered, and Lane was comfortable. He looked at his watch; it was already noon.
His head ached.
His throat was completely dry.
"Damn it… this is why I hate alcohol."
He got out of bed and washed his face.
His muscles were still numb.
"The best way to get alcohol out of the body is exercise."
He muttered to himself.
He ran in the empty area at the side of the cave, stretched, did a few simple movements.
After sweating, he felt a bit better.
He took a shower and dressed quickly.
There was much to do today.
Both new plans… and real preparations for the coming attack.
When Lane entered the council room, all three were awake.
Edwick was pointing at something on the map while Sara and Gorn listened carefully.
Sara smirked teasingly when she saw Lane.
"Looks like the alcohol didn't treat you well. Considering how late you came…"
Lane ran his hand through his hair and smiled.
"Yeah… I guess it didn't."
He approached the table.
"What are you discussing now?"
Edwick immediately replied:
"We were discussing what to do if the church attacks."
Lane placed his hand on the edge of the table and began to speak.
"I came with two plans today.One is for the church.The other… and the most important… is for the future of the village."
The air in the room grew serious.
In Lane's eyes, the child from last night was gone; in his place stood a leader.