Book 3: Chapter 119 (2) |
The Thousand Lantern Festival was a traditional human holiday, held once a year.
On the festival day, people released paper lanterns with flames inside. Legend said that if you wrote your wishes inside the lantern, a deity would help fulfill them.
Kids loved this festival because all they had to do was release the lanterns and wait for the gods to grant their wishes.
But adults no longer believed in deities; they celebrated just for the fun and good luck.
Regardless, the Thousand Lantern Festival was a major annual event in the Empire, and the streets would be packed.
“But how exactly do we do it?”
A man beside Rebecca asked.
Leon followed the voice, then narrowed his eyes slightly.
After staring for a while, Nacho introduced himself,
“Nacho Salamanca, former field assistant to Erandi, the Dragon-Slaying Corps’ overseer.”
Nacho…
Memories flooded back, and Leon recalled that in the “Leon-less twenty years later” timeline, Nacho had risen to replace Erandi as the future overseer of the Dragon-Slaying Corps.
The Sharp Knife Trio were his subordinates in that future.
Leon had also gotten intelligence about the Heart-Protecting Dragon Scale from Nacho in that timeline.
Seeing the Captain stay silent, Rebecca thought he didn’t trust Nacho and explained,
“Captain, a few years ago, Nacho’s father was framed by the Empire and died horribly in prison. That’s why he joined the Lionheart Society.”
Rebecca’s explanation was brief, so Nacho added,
“My father was forced by the Empire to cook the books. If he didn’t, they’d come after our family. But as time went on, the fake accounts grew bigger and harder to hide. When it all came to light, they made my father the scapegoat.”
“Erandi promised me that if I took the Dragon Kings to deal with you, he’d spare my father.”
“But after the battle at the Ravi Space Rift, Erandi completely gave up on me and had my assistant Scott take my place.”
“When I went to visit my father in prison, I learned he’d died at the hands of some death-row inmates.”
“But who’d believe that? My father knew the dirty secrets of some big shots’ accounting, so as long as he was alive, those big shots wouldn’t let him be.”
Nacho’s tone was flat as he recounted this,
As if he’d been soaked in grief and sorrow for so long that he’d gone numb.
After hearing Nacho’s addition, Leon pieced together the full story.
In the “Leon-less” twenty-years-later world, Nacho succeeded in making Leon fall into the space rift, erasing him from that world, perfectly completing Erandi’s task. His career soared, and his father survived.
But Leon, through Little Light’s reversal magic in the future, returned to the present, altering causality and giving the whole affair a new trajectory.
His father’s framing showed Nacho the Empire’s dark corruption, so he joined the Lionheart Society—perhaps for revenge, perhaps to find a new purpose in the world.
But there was one key contradiction.
“You said Erandi tasked you with taking the Dragon Kings to eliminate me, and my counterattack caused your mission to fail. So fundamentally… we were true enemies, Nacho.”
Leon’s simple words laid bare the grudges and conflicts between him and Nacho.
Unlike the other Lionheart Society members, he and Nacho had truly fought on the battlefield.
Leon wasn’t questioning Nacho’s loyalty to the Lionheart Society; he just wanted to hear what this former enemy thought now.
Like Constantine—crazy as he was, once you understood him, he could still be a partner against a common foe.
Nacho thought for a moment, then replied slowly,
“I never thought joining the Lionheart Society would completely wash away the wrongs I’ve done. I only ask you to give me a chance—a chance to take revenge on the Empire. Once I’ve avenged my father, you can throw me in prison.”
He paused, then added, “I mean… a prison in the *new* Empire, not this one.”
Leon locked eyes with him silently.
He realized Nacho and Constantine were different.
Constantine could team up with Leon not through “redemption” or “sudden enlightenment” but because that’s just how he was.
The Empire offered him benefits, he cooperated; they betrayed him; he struck back—perfectly reasonable.
But Nacho?
He knew that abandoning the Empire for the Lionheart Society might look like *“seeing the light and turning from darkness”* to some, but that wasn’t his intent.
Because of his sins, his mistakes—he never planned to dodge them.
He was willing to go to prison for them, but as he said, not now.
The one to judge him shouldn’t be a corrupt, fallen nation,
But a fairer system and a juster law.
Roswitha stood quietly to the side, not planning to interfere.
Rebecca lifted her little head, glancing at Nacho, then at Leon.
The two men stared at each other, not saying a word.
The crazy girl was panicking.
She thought Nacho was a pretty good guy. Sure, he’d once *aided the wicked*, but he had no choice.
Now that he’d seen the Empire’s true face, it wasn’t too late, right?
The Captain wouldn’t kick him out just because they’d fought before, would he?
“You’re right. You’re pretty suited for prison,” Leon suddenly said.
Nacho froze slightly, though it seemed like an expected response.
Rebecca, however, was freaked out.
*Is he going to send Nacho to prison?!*
*No way, Captain!*
“So after we overthrow the *dog emperor*, I’ll talk to the new king about making you the prison warden. What do you think?” Leon said with a smile.
Rebecca blinked, her brain taking a few loops to catch Leon’s meaning.
“Ha~~ Captain, can’t you just say it all at once?” the crazy girl complained.
Leon chuckled,
“For some special reasons, Nacho and I crossed paths outside the battlefield.”