Chapter 130: The Tears.

Ezra listened.

He stayed where he was, leaning his back against the rough bark of a huge tree, his breath still uneven from everything that had happened.

He tried not to move, not to make a sound, even as every part of him wanted to go back, to take Lior away from Kaelis, to fix what had just broken between them.

’Just listen…’

He forced himself to stay still.

Even though it was really, really, really difficult.

“You know, I have a younger brother named Aurien,” Ezra heard Kaelis say.

His voice carried softly through the quiet, calm in a way that almost didn’t match the chaos from earlier. “I’m sure you’ve met him once. If not, you will at some point.”

“Aren?” Lior repeats, tilting his head.

“Yes, Aren,” Kaelis repeated without correcting too much this time. “He’s my little brother. I care about him a lot. But the thing about Aurien is that he used to be… a bit weak, and a bit of a pushover.”

’Lior doesn’t know that word.’

Ezra let out a slow breath through his nose, already knowing what was coming next.

“Pusher?”

See?

“Pushover,” Kaelis corrected gently.

“That’s what I said.”

A quiet chuckle followed.

“You really like saying that,” Kaelis said, sounding a little lighter now. “But it means he wasn’t brave back then. He let people be mean to him because he was scared. So he did whatever they wanted.”

“Oh…” Lior’s voice softened. “That’s sad again. Why do you have so many sad families?”

Ezra’s lips twitched despite himself.

’Still the same…’

Even after everything, Lior still spoke like that, still reacted the same way, still found simple words for things that were anything but simple.

Kaelis laughed quietly, too. “Yeah. Being a prince is tragic. Being royalty in general.”

“I will never like being royaly.”

“Royalty.”

“That… is… what… I… said!”

Kaelis huffed out another amused breath. “Right. Now listen, kid.”

His tone shifted slightly. Not colder, but more serious.

“Aurien used to be bullied. Not just teased. They actually hurt him.”

There was a pause.

“What?!” Lior’s voice rose, full of disbelief. “But princes have power!”

“Exactly,” Kaelis said. “That’s what makes it worse. Because he was weak, those knights took advantage of it. They used his position to get what they wanted. No one knew what was happening to him.”

Ezra’s fingers curled slightly against the tree bark.

’…I remember.’

He could still picture it. The bruises. The silence. The way Aurien used to avoid looking anyone in the eye.

“Until?” Lior asked, his voice smaller now, like he already knew something important was coming.

Kaelis paused, just for a moment.

Ezra already knew what he was about to say.

’So this is what you’re doing…’

“Until Ezra found out,” Kaelis said. “He saw what they were doing. He stepped in. He helped Aurien. Then he told our father.”

There was a small shift in Lior’s breathing.

“Master… helped?”

“Yes,” Kaelis answered. “He did. He protected Aurien.”

Ezra looked down slightly, his jaw tightening.

’Don’t say it like that…’

“He saved him,” Kaelis added. “That’s why if you ever meet Aurien, he looks at Ezra like…” He let out a soft breath. “Like Ezra is everything to him.”

Ezra closed his eyes briefly.

’That’s not…’

But he didn’t interrupt.

“What happened after he stopped the bullies?” Lior asked quietly.

“Well,” Kaelis said, “Ezra dealt with one of them himself. But the rest…”

His voice lowered just a bit.

“Our father handled them.”

“Your papa?”

“Yes,” Kaelis replied, a faint trace of amusement returning for a second. “Our father.”

Then it faded again.

“He had all of them executed. Every single one, except the one he left to Ezra.”

There was a sharp intake of breath.

“K-Killed?” Lior’s voice trembled. “Dead?”

“Yes,” Kaelis said, steady and clear. “They’re all dead now.”

Silence settled between them.

“But… why?” Lior asked, his voice small again. “Killing is bad…”

Ezra’s chest tightened at that.

’…he’s right.’ Ezra had taught him that.

For a moment, the words felt heavier than they should have.

He pressed his back harder against the tree, his grip tightening slightly.

“Because sometimes… bad people deserve to die,” Kaelis said, his voice calm, not loud, not forceful. “And sometimes, people do things… things for the people they love. It’s not right. But it happens.”

Ezra felt his breath catch slightly.

’Don’t say it like that…’

But he stayed still. He kept listening.

“Just like how Ricardo took you,” Kaelis continued. “He did something bad because he wanted to save his daughters. That doesn’t make it right.”

There was a small pause.

“But it tells you why he did it.”

Ezra’s grip against the tree tightened.

’Why…’

The word echoed in his head, heavy and uncomfortable.

“Ezra did the same,” Kaelis said more quietly now. “He hurt someone to save you. And he hurts people to protect this kingdom.”

Ezra shut his eyes for a second.

“You know,” Kaelis added, “he doesn’t do it for fun. Something inside him… gets hurt when he does.”

Ezra’s chest tightened at that.

He didn’t like how easily Kaelis said it.

Like he understood.

“The same reason I do it,” Kaelis went on, his voice steady. “And every knight does.”

Ezra heard the soft rustle of fabric, then Kaelis’ quieter tone.

“…to save the people they love.”

There was a short silence after that.

Ezra could almost picture it without seeing it. Kaelis’s hand is resting on Lior’s head. Lior was sitting there, small and quiet, trying to understand something too big for him.

“If Ezra was in danger, Lior,” Kaelis asked gently, “what would you do?”

There was hesitation.

Ezra held his breath.

“…Do my best to save him,” Lior answered, his voice small but certain.

“Even if that best means hurting someone else?”

“Y-Yes…”

“Why?”

“Because…I care about him?”

Ezra’s chest ached, and his tears finally fell from his eyes.

’…Lior…’

“Then you understand,” Kaelis said softly. “Why did he do what he did?”

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