More than eight hours had passed since Leon fell asleep, yet Surfien had just finished reviewing all the traces that had been erased. Even though his lord was a bad person, Surfien didn't care, as long as he could continue protecting his family.
'From what my lord mentioned, everything is to repay his adoptive family'
His lord was cold and arrogant, but always wanted to raise the status of the Everhart family, and once he learned of that goal, it was only natural that he would become his right hand.
'Besides, I owe my entire life to him… and my family does too…'
Surfien was just a commoner, a simple seven-year-old child who knew happiness through the small things in everyday life, living alongside his caring mother, his honorable father, and his younger sister, who was only four years old and saw the world with innocence, until everything began to collapse the moment a noble set his eyes on that family—not as someone observing, but as someone choosing something he wished to possess or destroy, and from that moment on, the life that had once been peaceful began to be slowly consumed by that noble's desire.
His father, even though he was only a rank 4 mage, was a man respected for his integrity and loyalty to the kingdom, someone who would never bow to injustice and who would give his own life to protect those he loved, and it was exactly this attitude that drew even more attention from the noble, who saw in him not only an obstacle but also a perfect target for his cruel games, and so, after an ordinary night, right after a family dinner, when everyone thought they would have just another peaceful rest, soldiers appeared with false accusations fabricated by the noble himself, and without any chance to defend themselves, they were taken by force to that man's city, with not even a single reaction from the main noble of the city his father had protected.
'Why were we abandoned? My father protected this city…'
The family of four was thrown into a completely different reality, cold and merciless, where justice did not exist, only the will of someone powerful, and before them a proposal was made, an agreement that sounded more like a trap than a chance of salvation, as the noble said that if Surfien's mother agreed to serve him in his mansion, he would reduce everyone's sentence, offering false hope amid despair, and as expected, his father refused immediately, unable to accept something so degrading, choosing to face any suffering rather than sacrifice his wife's dignity.
As a consequence, they were all thrown into the worst part of the prison, where they began to live days marked by constant humiliation and cruel orders meant only to make their lives as miserable as possible, and in that suffocating environment, where hope seemed nonexistent, pain accumulated day after day, until, in a moment of pure desperation, his mother made the hardest decision of her life, choosing to accept the noble's proposal not out of will, but believing she could save her family that way, even if it meant sacrificing herself.
"Good, come with me, my new servant"
However, as expected from someone so cruel, the noble did not fully keep his word, keeping them all imprisoned under the justification that they still had to serve ten years of detention, turning the agreement into another form of psychological torture, and although their living conditions improved slightly, they were still treated like common prisoners, as if they were criminals despite being innocent, and the years passed slowly, each day filled with frustration, until Surfien finally turned fourteen.
'I couldn't stay still anymore, in a way that was a bad decision, but one that saved me'
Over time, he developed his own magical ability, born from his affinity and his determination to survive, and it was thanks to this ability that he created an escape plan, taking advantage of a gap in surveillance to temporarily escape from prison, moving silently through the corridors at night while the guards slept, until he reached the outside, and guided by a single desire, he went to the noble's mansion nearby, just to see if his mother was still alive and well.
'Please, let her be okay'
Climbing through a window, driven by anxiety and fear, he ended up overhearing a conversation that would completely change his fate, hidden in the shadows, he saw his mother in a corner, with empty eyes like someone who had already lost everything, while the noble spoke with his father, and to make things even worse, he heard something that made his heart sink, as it became clear that after the ten years, neither he nor his father would be freed, and more than that, his sister would be forced to follow the same path as his mother, condemned to the same cruel fate.
'No'
Overcome by rage and despair, Surfien lost control and made an impulsive decision, rushing toward the noble and striking him in the face, a small act in the face of everything, but filled with all his anger, however, his strength was insignificant, and in response, he was brutally beaten, unable to defend himself, and seeing that, his mother threw herself in front of him, trying to protect him with her own body, taking the blows in his place.
"Please leave my son alone, he only acted impulsively, sir"
Seeing his mother so desperate, at that moment he was certain he would die, that this would be the end, but the noble, instead of killing him, chose to prolong his suffering even more, revealing a new cruel plan, saying in front of him and his mother that he would worsen the prison conditions for his father and sister, and while his mother desperately begged for forgiveness, trying to save what remained of her family, the noble said something that made Surfien tremble deeply, to the point of calling himself a disgrace for being impulsive.
"If you want my forgiveness, then your daughter must come to the mansion today"
Those words echoed like a sentence of destruction, and his mother, completely desperate, tried to refuse, saying she could not allow that, but was silenced by a violent slap, while guards dragged her back into the mansion, and at that moment, Surfien tried to stand, not only to save his family, but because for the first time in his life, he wanted to kill someone with all his strength, however, his body would not respond, too weak to act, the only thing he could do was bite his lips until they bled.
'If I had waited and made a better plan…'
He realized with cruel clarity that his impulsive decision had completely doomed his family, and in despair, he begged God for help, promising that he would be different from then on, more rational, stronger, anything, as long as he could change that fate, but nothing happened, and as he was dragged back, he could only watch his mother being taken into the mansion.
"Please, someone"
His words were thrown into the void, ignored by everyone, as no one dared to get involved, as if the entire city had chosen to pretend nothing was happening, even as lights were turned on and then off in nearby houses, and at that moment, his hope finally broke, disappearing completely, until, when everything seemed lost, a cold and unsettling voice came from behind him.
"So this is what happens in the neighboring city? Well, I don't care, I just came here because the prince asked"
When he turned, he found someone who would completely change the course of his life—Leon Solfyr, the man he would follow for the rest of his existence from that day on.