Echoes Buried Beneath Forgotten Memories
"A Sword Master."
"Accompanied by two fully equipped knights."
"Was ambushed by ordinary bandits."
"Both your father and one knight died."
"But the remaining knight escaped..."
"...and somehow lived long enough to report everything."
He looked directly into Clara's eyes.
"Doesn't that sound strange to you?"
Clara clenched her jaw.
"Of course I doubted it."
"I questioned it many times."
"But because of that knight's testimony..."
"No further investigation was ever conducted."
She slowly continued.
"Everyone trusted him."
"They said his honor was beyond question."
"When I eventually became an A-Rank adventurer..."
"I searched for him."
"I wanted answers."
Her voice became quieter.
"But I learned he had taken his own life."
"They said..."
"...he couldn't bear the guilt of surviving when Father couldn't."
She swallowed painfully.
"After hearing that..."
"I convinced myself..."
"...that he had been telling the truth."
