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Roran jumped off Crow, placing a hand on Amaya's knee. "Take Crow to the stables, and then go inside the castle. Yuo don't want to see this." Walking to the men, he smiled. "Good job guys! I see Syra came through for the Kerosians!" Hearing a few guys nod in agreement, he shook all their hands, Lucius' hand last. As they shook, Roran tightened his grip so Lucius couldn't let go. As he saw Lucius give a questioning look, Roran's happy smile faded to an angry frown. Crying out in rage, he punched Lucius in the face with his left hand.

Stumbling back, he looked at Roran as if this was a surprise. "What was that for!?!"

"You thought you'd get away with it, didn't you?" He drew his sword, using it as a pointer. "You thought that the little eight year old girl wouldn't tell anyone! Now she's older Lucius, and is engaged! Do you still think she'd keep it to herself?!?" Stepping towards Lucius, he was very angry.

His face suddenly looked shocked. "How...?"

"Don't be so surprised, Lucius! She told me."

Looking to the Queen, he began to move towards her, but was stopped.

Grabbing his upper-arm, he turned Lucius around to look at him. "No you don't," his right hand's knuckles met Lucius' cheek head on, sending the soldier to the ground. Placing a foot on his chest, he glared down at the man he had trusted for so long. "You held her down with your right arm," His sword came down and met the ground, but not before cutting Lucius' right arm off his body, clean. "Then you tied her to a tree with a metal wire! That means you used your left hand!" Switching the hand his sword was in, he cut Lucius' left arm off. "And you raped her." Roran heard the other four men stir. They knew the punishment for raping anyone, and to make it worse, Roran had said she had been eight, just a child. "You know what that means Lucius."

Screaming as his limbs were cut off, he couldn't believe Roran was doing this. As he cut his own voice off, he was trained to not scream when tortured, so he just panted. Hearing the last part, his eyes widened. "No, no!"

"No?" Roran stopped moving, looking thoughtul as if he was considering something. His face returned to that angry frown a moment later. "Too bad." Bringing the sword down, he saw the other men gasp a little, looking away. On the ground now, Lucius p***s and testicles lay, his pants with holes in them. Lucius' screams filled his ear, Roran still had that frown, but the look in his eyes showed he enjoyed this. "You want to know what's worse? You killed royalty, Lucius. The little boy you killed that night, he was royalty! Even if it was Kerosian royalty, and even though we were at war, you knew the rules! You don't kill any royalty, for negotiations can be made with the enemy nation! But you killed him! You know what the penalty for that is? Do you?!?"

Lucius was numb now, he couldn't move, only having control of his face and head. At the last part, though, his eyes widened. "I-I didn't know he was royalty! I didn't know!"

Shaking his head, he spit on Lucius' face. "You think That'll change anything? Ignorance is no excuse! Ignorance, is bliss." Lifting his sword up with both hands clutching the hilt, the blade facing Lucius, he drove it down into his stomach, watching the blood drain out, watching Lucius' face go pale as his shocked expression made Roran's day. Lifting the blade out, he shoved it down again in his chest, then again where his heart was, then again in his face, then he chopped Lucius' head off, as if he wasn't dead already. Lifting his foot off of Lucius' still body, he turned to the four. "If none of you have any more business here, go home." Watching as the four rode off toward Syra, he sighed, cleaning his blade off and sheathing it. He was now covered in Lucius' blood, blood of someone who was a second father to him, someone he loved.

Walking up the steps in the castle, he came to Amaya's room fairly quickly. Opening the door, he saw her on the bed. About to go in, he stopped himself, closing her door again. Going into his room, he threw his bloody clothes on the floor and changed into another pair that he had at Keros' castle. Leaving his room, he entered her's again, going over and laying down next to her. Seeing her shake, he wrapped his arms around her, not saying a word.

"You don't need to be sorry, my love. Lucius is the one who's sorry now, he's dead." Kissing the back of her neck, he cuddled up close to her. Placing an arm over her stomach, he found one of her hands, holding it lovingly. "You, of all people, do not need to be sorry about what happened."

Shaking his head, he knew she couldn't see it. "No, if you hadn't been ruler, I wouldn't of fought so hard, I wouldn't have been there to give you that liquid the piests gave me, I wouldn't of been there to call Syra's best five-" he caught himself, "-I mean four, Syra's best four soldiers to the battlefeild to aid Keros. If you hadn't been ruler, Keros would be in ruins right now."

"I know that Amaya, but years isn't that long!" Hearing her last part, he got out of the bed, a bit angry now. "You did plenty! You saved that girl's life, didn't you? You saved me from the bandits! Didn't you?!? Then I went and called my men, and fought with the Strikers! Or does Syra mean nothing to you?!? Am I worth 'barely a thing' to you?!?" Storming out, he couldn't take it anymore. She did plenty to save her kingdom from total destruction, yet she still thinks she didn't do a thing! She saved my life, yet she thinks she didn't do a thing! Finding his way to the roof somehow, he looked down at the town, far below him. He had half a mind to jump, but just sat there, his feet dangling over the edge.

For a couple of hours Jack awaited the Princess, but she didn't appeared. Jack would give up, if he did not realised she could help Reider. If a Princess knows who he is, then Reider could be an important someone. He kept repeating to himself.
Faith, however, decided differently. For Reider not to be helped and for him not to remember who he was. Not just yet.
The night Jack left, was the night he never returned. Only his horse returned that night. No one knew what had happened to him.

The morning after, Reider had heard the news about Jack's disappearance. Some say he must have falen victim to robbers, others believe he was taken by slavetraders. There were several rumors, but all didn't explain what exactly happened.
Hoping to some day find out about him, Reider walked in the village, looking for someone who could use a hand.
At first he didn't noticed the mounted traveler. As the man rode next to him, he was adressed by the same name the lady from yesterday spoke.
"I am sorry, I didn't saw you. Is there something I can help you with?" Reider looked at him as if he saw the man for the first time. He gave a quick look, to check if he or his horse were injured or tired, but both looked fine.

Stepping back as Roran put his hand on his shoulder, Reider looked confused.
" ... Wait, what did you call me? ... Brother? ... I think you got the wrong guy ... My name is Reider and I don't think we ever met before ... Let alone be brothers..."
The letter that said he order the attack on Keros was still going through his mind. He still hadn't figured anything out. Why did he order it? What was his intention? And why wasn't he there?
If this man was his brother and he was fighting in that battle, was he one his side? Or was Roran fighting to protect Keros? Without knowing this, Reider couldn't risk anything.