Ironically, letting all their victims go only spread their infamy further. More and more bandits came seeking protection, dragging him deeper and deeper into the bandit life as well as his role as their giant leader. Blofeld’s life truly was a never-ending series of misfortune—a painful life story that he likely couldn’t bear to share with others, given his kindhearted nature.
“So,” Blofeld continued, “you said you wanted to know more about Raid back in the day?”
“Mm-hmm. You’re a very kind person. Since you asked for a private conversation, it must be because you don’t want to make Raid talk about it or for others to hear, right?”
“Pretty much... Also, I feel like I might cry, and I wouldn’t want anyone to see that.” Blofeld tugged his lips into a strained smile, but it didn’t last long. Soon, his expression darkened as he muttered, “You see, back then...Raid was killing people left and right.”
Blofeld took another swig of his herbal drink before continuing. “He became an imperial soldier because the previous emperor—Viteos’s father—took a liking to him. But make no mistake, that guy wasn’t interested in Raid’s military feats. No, his eyes were just twinkling at the ‘fascinating monster’ that appeared in his domain. He treated Raid like an exotic beast and threw him out into the battlefield so he could kill more and more people.”
From how he spoke, Eluria had a feeling that Raid had been sent to subjugate Blofeld’s bandit group simply because the previous emperor had wanted to see a “monster” and a “giant” fight it out.
“Raid probably had us pardoned and placed under his command because he was getting sick and tired of all the killing back then,” Blofeld continued. “He never said it outright, of course, and he came up with a bunch of other excuses during the hearing...but after the previous emperor heard about it, he started throwing all sorts of dirty work at Raid.”
Eluria frowned. “Dirty work?”
“Oh, you know... Criminal execution, political purging, mercy killing injured gladiators—the works. Not the type of thing you’d nominate a specific soldier for, no, but the previous emperor didn’t care; he shoved it all onto Raid anyway.”
“Why didn’t Raid refuse...?”
“I never asked, but I do have a hunch... His guardian at the time was an Altanian researcher, and the previous emperor had implicitly threatened to cut funding and support. Raid was indebted to that researcher—even praised their research to the skies—so he probably couldn’t refuse.”
When Blofeld looked back, Raid was clearly far more knowledgeable than the ordinary soldier. From retrieving Vegaltan magic devices and studying them to raising impoverished villages to be self-sufficient—his feats weren’t achievable simply by reading books as a hobby. With a researcher as his guardian, Raid had probably had many chances to involve himself in deeper studies, which would explain his vast pool of knowledge.
“It was the same out on the field,” Blofeld continued. “Enemy soldiers went without saying, but even his fellow soldiers who were injured or had violated the rules... His shitty superiors would order him to kill them, saying, ‘It’s His Majesty’s orders,’ while laughing their butts off.” Blofeld’s features warped in distaste as he clicked his tongue. “But Raid was just as annoying as them. I tried protesting once, when it was one of my bandits who’d committed the violation—I said I’d do the execution as my man’s superior. But Raid, that idiot... He just smiled and said, ‘It’s okay. I’m more used to it,’ and went on to do the deed himself...”
Raid had known that Blofeld was a pacifist at heart, and so he’d decided to take on the dirty work himself.
“He’s...such an idiot,” Blofeld gritted out between his teeth. “He’s the biggest goddamned idiot...I’ve ever met!” Tears began welling up in his eyes and streamed down his cheeks. “He was always plagued by nightmares of the people he killed... In his sleep, he would call out their names and apologize over and over... It got to the point where he was too afraid to sleep, but even then, he kept shouldering everything by himself just because he didn’t want anyone else to dirty their hands... He’s the biggest, most infuriating idiot in the entire world!”
Eluria had only ever seen Raid asleep a few times, only enough to count on both hands—far too little, even considering their different lifestyles. Of these few times, she’d never witnessed him tossing and turning from a nightmare, but she could imagine that his current tendency toward minimal sleep was something that had stuck with him from his early years in his past life...all the way to the present, where he’d reincarnated into a new body altogether.
“That’s why I swore to stick with him forever,” Blofeld said. “I’m a pathetic excuse for an adult who made a kid do his dirty work for him...but there had to be something I could do to lessen that idiot’s burden!” Thus, Blofeld continued being a “giant.” He buried his cowardly self and stood in front of everyone else on the battlefield in the hopes of shouldering at least some of Raid’s burdens. “Because, despite everything...” Even with tears streaming down his face, Blofeld stretched his lips into a wide and toothy grin and said, “We love that idiot with every fiber of our being.”
Such was the sentiment shared by the entire Special Combined Forces. No matter how they met him or the nuances in their dynamics, each member of the Special Combined Forces chose to follow and support Raid Freeden because he was their Hero.
“Supporting him was the best we could do... But you, kiddo—I’m sure you can stand right by his side. I can’t think of anyone I’d rather entrust him to.”
“Mm-hmm. Whenever Raid has to shoulder something, I’ll be there to shoulder it with him.” Eluria smiled brightly. “I’m going to be the best wife in the world. So rest assured and leave him to me.”
✦ ✦ ✦
Blofeld wiped his tears away with his thick arm before throwing his head back in laughter. “Bah ha ha! I knew I could count on you!”
“Oh. You still laugh the same way.”
“I mean, it’s pretty hard to fake a laugh...” Blofeld chuckled. “Ah, my bad. It’s been so long since I got to openly chat with someone; I ended up talking all about myself instead of answering your question...”
Eluria shook her head. “I’m happy you shared this with me. Besides, we still have some time. Could you tell me more about Raid?”
“Hmm... I don’t really know a whole lot more. I was too big to go indoors, so I only talked with people when they came outside...”
“Oh, so you really didn’t know anything... I thought you didn’t answer on purpose.”
“Raid and I have known each other for many years too...” Blofeld hunched his back and sheepishly scratched his cheek. After a short pause, however, he straightened up and looked at Eluria. “I just remembered something! On those sleepless nights, Raid sometimes sang a lullaby. He told me that he’d always have a different sort of dream whenever he did.”
“A lullaby...? From his hometown?”
“No, that language—it wasn’t Altanian, or even Vegaltan for that matter.”
“I’ve accidentally unearthed a new mystery...” Eluria mumbled.
Blofeld shrugged. “Well, who said lullabies need to make sense? As long as it brings you back to your childhood, right?”
“Mm. When Raid comes back, I should sing that lullaby for him.” With a small smile, she turned her gaze to the distance. “I’m sure he’s working very hard on the other side. He deserves a good night’s sleep when he comes back.”