OPDSP 49

For a moment, Aeryl stood dazed, glancing around in disbelief.

The main road was packed wall to wall with people—so tightly that there wasn’t even room to step.

All of them were there to welcome the purge unit’s return.

They waved flags, showered flower petals into the air, and cheered loudly. Street musicians played music, and people shouted out whatever words they wanted to offer the returning soldiers.

“Congratulations on completing the Great Purge!”

“Our heroes!!”

“We can rest easy this winter!”

Every voice was filled with joy.

The welcome when the party had first arrived in the village had been impressive, but this was on an entirely different level.

No one had formally announced the success of the mission, but the sight of the soldiers returning healthy was proof enough.

The success of the purge meant survival.

There would be peace of mind for the next few years.

The villagers showered the entire party with enthusiastic gratitude.

The soldiers responded by waving their hands, whistling, and greeting the crowd.

This year’s purge had been such a monumental success that even calling it historic would fall short. Everyone shared in the collective joy.

And among them stood Aeryl.

Still stunned, he was brought back to his senses when Jenx tapped his arm.

When he followed where she pointed, he saw a familiar face—several, actually.

It was the young girl who had nearly been trampled by horses the day they first arrived in the village—and her parents.

The family held up a large sign together with writing on it:

[Welcome back safely, Doctor Aeryl!]

What?

Aeryl blinked and reread the words several times.

They were clearly meant for him.

“There he is! That’s the doctor!”

“Wow! Doctor! I’m so glad you came back safely!”

“Doctor Aeryl!”

As soon as their eyes met, the family started bouncing in place and waving their arms wildly.

Even a long-lost family reunion might not have been this enthusiastic.

Aeryl hadn’t even imagined something like this—he was stunned all over again.

“Wow, look at that. You’ve got people coming out just for you, Doctor.”

“You’ve got folks waiting for you too, don’t you? Didn’t you say they even hang banners in your hometown?”

“That’s why we all do this job, really.”

“Come on, at least wave back.”

“O-oh, right!”

Jenx and Beryl beamed at Aeryl as if they were the ones being welcomed.

Aeryl raised his hand and waved to the family.

The three of them waved their big sign even harder, cheering as if they might burst.

Seeing that, the surrounding people began shouting along, not even knowing why.

“Aeryl? Who’s that?”

“No idea. Just yell!”

“WOOOOAAAAAAHHHH!!”

Regardless, the cheer was just for Aeryl.

His chest was full to bursting—he felt electrified, overjoyed.

He couldn’t hold it in anymore and burst into laughter.

Ahahahahaha!

It was a moment that would remain in his heart for the rest of his life.

After the wild celebration, the purge unit set up camp just outside the village.

They planned to rest there overnight and depart again in the morning.

Not everyone was heading to the duchy; some would leave the group halfway and return to their own homes.

Since Aeryl was staying in village, this marked the end of his time with the party.

“You were the last to join, and now you’re the first to leave.”

“That’s a shame. We just started getting close.”

Aeryl said his goodbyes to the other members.

Some of the closer ones even gave him their home addresses and asked him to write.

Though they were parting now, it didn’t have to be the end.

“Thank you for everything.”

With those final words, Aeryl turned away, leading his horse.

It felt lonely, being alone after spending so much time with everyone—but the closer he got to home, the quicker his steps became.

‘I just want to go back and rest in peace.’

The clinic looked just as it had when he left—except the door that the Grand Duke had broken was now repaired.

‘Maybe the village chief took care of it? I’ll have to thank him later.

Aeryl opened the door and dropped his bags to the floor.’

He went straight to the sofa and plopped down.

“Hoo…”

He let out a deep breath and looked around the clinic.

It was tidy and orderly, just like before he left.

‘Seems like nothing happened while I was gone.’

Well, it had only been about two weeks.

What could possibly happen in a quiet countryside village during such a short time?

But with everything that happened during the subjugation, it felt like so much more time had passed.

‘I gained so much.’

Even though he had been half-dragged into it, he’d come away with incredible things.

The research data he’d aimed for from the start, connections that would help him settle in the North, the experience of working with colleagues, the recognition of the people—too many blessings to count.

He was even paid a generous sum for his participation.

‘I should be thanking the Grand Duke, really.’

Naturally, his thoughts drifted to the Grand Duke.

The last time they’d seen each other was when Aeryl had given him medicine and exchanged farewells.

Since then, most of the time had been spent traveling, and Aeryl hadn’t even had a chance to go near him, let alone speak again.

He should be fine for a while as long as he takes the medicine properly… but still, something about it keeps nagging at me.

Since he couldn’t get close, all Aeryl could do was observe the Grand Duke’s outward condition.

And outwardly, the Grand Duke seemed exactly the same—calm, strong, the very image of the ideal leader of the North.

Yet, Aeryl couldn’t feel at ease.

‘Am I just overthinking it? Or is he actually unwell?’

‘He hides things too well. I can’t be sure.’

Lowering his gaze from time to time, the quiet sighs he let out when dismounting…

Couldn’t those be signs he was overexerting himself?

Maybe he was reading too much into it—but Aeryl couldn’t help worrying.

No one else seemed concerned, so why did he feel like the Grand Duke was a child left unattended by a river?

‘I should go check on him.’

Until he did, he knew he wouldn’t truly be able to rest.

The village was still in the middle of celebrating the success of the Great Purge.

Most of the party members had gone to unwind, which might actually make it easier to find a moment alone with the Grand Duke.

He really is a man who needs constant looking after.

With a groan, Aeryl lifted his tired body and stepped outside once more.

The party’s camp near the village entrance was quiet.

Most of the soldiers had gone into village to enjoy the festivities.

Within the dim, unlit camp, one tent stood out with a bright light—It was the Grand Duke Asirion’s tent.

Inside, Grand Duke Asirion was seated at his desk, working.

Whether the Great Purge had ended or not, his daily routine remained unchanged.

Once they returned to the capital, preparations for winter would begin in earnest:

purchasing food supplies, readying snow removal equipment, maintaining roads…

There was no end to the tasks he had to oversee personally.

No time for rest.

‘It’s starting to wear me down.’

It had been two days since he last took his medicine.

With the lingering effects wearing off, his pheromones had begun to decline.

The sensation was familiar—like blood draining from his body, his limbs growing heavy.

If he left it alone, soon his body would give out, and his mind would begin to blur.

Just as expected.

He had deliberately shown signs of fatigue—just enough for Aeryl to notice.

Having observed him for this long, Aeryl was sure to come check on him.

His condition would continue to worsen, and with no medicine left, Aeryl would have no choice but to follow him.

His work efficiency was bound to drop in the process, but even so, the benefits of bringing Aeryl to the duchy far outweighed the cost.

‘When will he come?’

The Grand Duke’s gaze kept drifting to the clock.

He had heard the noise of the soldiers being greeted earlier—surely Aeryl had reached his home by now.

And once he’d had a moment to rest, he knew the doctor wouldn’t be able to stop thinking about him.

And once he started thinking about him, he wouldn’t be able to sit still.

Any moment now.

The Grand Duke looked toward the entrance of the tent.

Uncharacteristically, he felt anticipation.

But the approaching footsteps that soon followed were not Aeryl’s.

“Kyla.”

It was Kyla who had come to see him.

She wore a grave expression as she reported:

“Akim’s body is missing.”

Akim—the man who had infiltrated the purge unit pretending to be a medic, Ronar, and attempted to sabotage the operation.

By the time the Grand Duke had uncovered his identity, Akim had already committed suicide by poisoning, leaving only a letter to piece together the situation.

Unsettled by his death, the Grand Duke had ordered that the body be carefully preserved.

“What signs of intrusion?”

“According to the Commander and Vice Commander, there were no signs of anyone entering the tent. But there were footprints—from the coffin all the way out of the tent.”

“Then are you saying he got up and walked out on his own?”

“That’s impossible. He was definitely dead at the time.”

Kyla was visibly disturbed.

She had personally confirmed Akim’s death and taken measures to prevent the body from decaying.

The idea that he had simply stood up and walked away was unthinkable.

But the Grand Duke saw it differently.