TBVP 10

Chapter 10

“I will find them… and take revenge.”

Tears streamed down Zenis’s face.

Garen’s hand twitched in the air, unsure whether he should wipe her tears or not. Before he could decide, the old lady came over and gently wiped Zenis’s tears for him. Garen let his hand fall awkwardly.

“Tell her, Garen.”
“But Mother, she’s only seven years old.”
“You are her parents, aren’t you? Zenis said it herself. Even if they’re gone, shouldn’t she at least know how they died? I think we were wrong.”

She tried to persuade her son. Garen looked troubled, and Zenis stared at him with desperate eyes, waiting for an answer.

“Do I really have to hear it? You can just pretend not to know and live on like that. At seven years old, you should only see good things, only…”
“They are my mom and dad!”

Garen quietly stared at the child who was calling another couple “mom” and “dad.” He was the one who had rejected her in the first place, but strangely, he didn’t feel good about it.

But that wasn’t what mattered now. After organizing his thoughts, Garen spoke.

“Well… it’s like this.”

The story was both long and short. The murderer had not been caught yet, and the reason for the killing was the relic or ruins the couple had discovered.

Even though they were her biological parents, the man who should have been acknowledged as her father was not recognized as such. After hesitating for a while, Garen also told her about the letter the couple had sent to Fernando.

If anything happened to them, they asked him to take care of Zenis. And when Zenis became an adult, they wanted her to know that they truly loved her.

He told her everything.

Zenis broke down crying. Garen watched her in silence, and the old lady gently patted her.

“Mom… mom…! Mom! Waaah! Dad…!”

Garen watched the child who looked just like him call strangers her parents while crying.

He felt sorry for Zenis, and grateful to the Baker couple who raised her. Their deaths were also tragic. But for some reason, he also felt a small sense of disappointment.

His hand, unable to wipe anyone’s tears, twitched in the air. The old general quietly walked up to his son and patted his shoulder.

And late that morning, a messenger was sent to Fernando to retrieve the letter Zenis’s parents had left behind.

After learning the truth about her parents’ death, Zenis spent days and nights crying and refusing to eat or sleep properly.

She went into the pink room prepared excitedly by the old lady, cried alone, slept alone, and thought alone. In her hands was the letter her parents had sent to Fernando.

Everyone who knew her—the worried old lady and old general, even Garen and Fernando—came to her room and tried to talk to her.

But all they got in return was…

“I’m okay. I just… need a little more time.”

A low, exhausted voice.

Even when food was left at her door, she didn’t touch it. On the third day, Garen stepped in.

“Housekeeper, the key!”

The housekeeper looked toward the old couple nervously. Garen spoke again.

“Look, I already have a bad relationship with her. She already hates me anyway. What’s the difference if I make it worse? Just give me the key. I’ll bring the kid out.”
“But…”
“What, you want her to starve to death? I don’t want to talk twice. Give me the key.”

Garen no longer cared whether she hated him or not.

“Please don’t push her too hard.”

The housekeeper hesitated, then handed him the key to Zenis’s room.

Garen unlocked the door and went inside.

He scanned the room. He expected her to be on the bed, but she wasn’t there.

Startled, he looked around and found her curled up on the floor right beside the bed.

His brow furrowed at the miserable sight. He walked closer. The child, who hadn’t eaten properly for three days, was sitting there staring at a family photo of her parents.

If she had been lying on the bed or sitting at a desk, or even wrapped in a blanket, he might not have been this angry. But she sat there on the bare floor as if punishing herself.

By Garen’s standards, the floor next to the bed was where a dog should sit, not a human. He clicked his tongue in annoyance.

“Get up.”
“…”
“Hey!”

Still no answer. Garen finally snatched the photo from her hands.

“Give it back!”
“Come out. Eat first, and I’ll give it back.”
“No. Give it back first.”
“You don’t listen to me, so why should I listen to you? If you don’t want to come out, don’t. If you don’t want to eat, don’t. But then I’ll take this too!”

He turned to leave with the photo.

Then he noticed something else on the floor—the letter her parents had left for Fernando.

It was wrinkled and damp, as if it had been soaked with tears.

Garen bent down and picked it up.

“That’s mine!”
“Then come out and eat and talk.”

In this house, there were only two things Zenis treasured: the photo and the letter.

In other words, those were the only things that could pull her out of this miserable room and make her eat.

Garen had no intention of giving them back easily.

Zenis, now furious at having them taken away, shouted.

“What right do you have?! That’s mine! My mom and dad gave it to me! Who are you to take it?!”

Her voice shook with anger.

“I’m doing this for you. And I’m your fa—”
“You’re not my dad! You didn’t even know I was born! You have no right to be my father! I came here thinking I’d meet my real dad, but all you do is say cruel things! Whether I eat or not, what does it matter to you?! Do you just want me to die? You never even wanted a daughter like me!”

“Hey!”

Garen was speechless.

He had many things to say, but he didn’t know where to begin.

Zenis kept shouting. Each word pierced his chest like a knife. It was clear she had been deeply hurt by him.

“I’m sorry.”

Garen finally spoke.

Zenis froze.

“I know it’s too late to say this. But I’m serious. I’m sorry. I regret it.”

He had his own circumstances, but that didn’t excuse taking it out on a child.

Zenis’s face turned red.

“So what does that have to do with me?”
“…Yeah. I know. I’m sorry. I just… felt like I had to say it. I don’t expect forgiveness. I just wanted to apologize.”

He didn’t force her to forgive him.

Tears began falling from Zenis’s eyes.

“I don’t… need that.”
“Right.”
“If you’re really sorry… then find the killer. Make sure they’re punished properly. And… and… find my mom. Find my dad. Tell me they’re not dead. They’re not dead! Adults are all liars!”

Her desperate voice made it painfully clear—more than anyone else, Zenis understood that her parents were gone forever.

Garen pulled the struggling child into his arms.

It wasn’t a father-daughter bond. They hadn’t even known each other long enough for that.

But somewhere between pity, sympathy, responsibility, and maybe even guilt… Garen’s heart moved.

“Sorry. I’m sorry.”

He didn’t even know why he was apologizing anymore. But it felt like he had to.

He held her tightly as she cried.

“Mom… Dad… waaah…”

Garen quietly patted her back. Her small body felt painfully fragile.

“…Do you want their house? The house you lived in with your parents. The one I… took from you.”

He wanted to comfort her in any way he could. Even if he wasn’t good with gentle words, that was the best thing he could think of.

Zenis’s crying slowly calmed.

Garen immediately started thinking about transferring ownership of the house back to her, and about who would become her guardian…

‘Should I send my mother? Or my father?’

Since he himself was unwanted, he thought his parents might be better guardians.

But then—

“I don’t need the house.”

“Hmm?”

“I don’t need something like a house! Just… find them. The ones who killed my parents!”

A sharp, grinding voice came from Zenis.

“Definitely! Definitely! Definitely find them! Find them!”

She repeated it like a curse, each word filled with rage.

Garen felt something like the smell of blood in her voice.

And yet…

“Alright. I’ll find them. I’ll definitely find them… and take revenge.”