In the sin of his we live (1)

A few weeks have passed since that night. Bern and Ev continued taking care of Tar, giving him two meals a day, and although Tar complained inwardly about the bland food, he still felt extremely grateful to Bern and Ev.

Often, Tar had this blank look on his face and sometimes, even silently cried at night. Whenever this occurred and Bern and Ev happened to see it, they would steal a glance at each other, and thought to themselves to not press him for information.

One day, Tar woke up with Ev sitting beside him, smiling at him. After a few blinks, he made out Ev's plump cheeks that were in front of him, and he was surprised that he felt calm and refreshed despite all that happened some weeks ago. This made him feel a bit guilty.

After a very modest breakfast with Bern and Ev, Tar was told to go somewhere with them. Tar wanted to ask where he was being led to, but he stopped himself when he saw the seriousness of their expressions. It was about half an hour's worth of walking distance, but since his leg was not healed completely, they took a little over an hour to get there.

At the centre of the temple, there were three incense sticks, whose tips burned out long ago. Looking past them into the main hall, Tar saw the many stone tiles on the wall, all of which had names engraved onto. Bern replaced the three incense sticks with three new ones and lit them on fire by striking a flint, before walking into the main hall and clapping three times. Ev and Tar followed what he did.

"Say your greetings to the young man there," Bern pointed to a stone tile. "Happy birthday, son."

Tar learned that Bern's full name was Bern Compass, and Bern and Ev were married for over thirty years. They had a son named Dhar, who died defending Eustacia at the young age of eighteen. "So the calligraphy was probably Bern's farewell gift to him before Dhar went to the front line," Tar thought.

"Back when those Tzappians lusted upon our land and invaded us, Dhar fought in the front line. In that battle three years ago, we had those grey rats surrounded. But that traitor… That traitor!" Bern fumed. "I don't know what deal that traitor made with those rats… But he turned his back on his comrades. His army betrayed us in the middle of the battle!

"And it was all downhill from there. After no more than a few weeks, the grey rats and the Traitor's army headed east. That's where Dhar died defending East Frey. I still remember the day Vidi brought my boy's body back home. How shocked we were… How empty everything felt…"

Tar noticed Bern's voice started shaking and Ev's eyes became moist. "They lost their family just like me…" He thought. He couldn't help but tear up a bit when he was reminded of his father.

"That traitor, heh, finally met his end. I wish I was there to witness it," surprisingly, it was Ev who said this with a smirk. "I wanted to look him in the eye and see how he struggled to live like a cockroach, how his eyes dimmed as he remembered all the terrible things he's done, how his body shrivelled as he pleaded for his life… I want to see it!"

Tar jumped a bit inwardly when he heard what she said. Wanting to change the subject, he asked, "He died?"

"Oh yes, just yesterday," Ev smiled in relief. "During the big fire at the Amber Manor."

There was a feeling of wrongess but he could not pinpoint it. "Is it the terrible things that have happened to the old couple? Is it Ev's sudden shift in attitude? Or is it…?" He couldn't think of a reason. He didn't want to think of the reason. But he had to confirm it. There was no way… right?

"And who is the Traitor?"

"Remember well, Tar, his name, so you can spit on his grave if you ever come across it," Ev answered coldly. "It's Torc Im."

Tar's heart sank. It took him all his might just so his knees would not give out. He could not believe what he just heard.

"It's impossible! Papa is not some traitor! Papa is my Papa!" He argued internally. "But all the new people we met when we moved three years ago… They were all very tall. And had beautiful grey hair. And long names too. Are they… Tzappians? But they were not ruthless like how Bern and Ev said those filthy Tzappians were! But then again…"

He stood in place, mouth wide open. The old couple merely thought that Tar was surprised by how they lost their son.

"Eustacia turned into what it is now because of him," Bern said. "Millions suffered and still are suffering because of one man's betrayal, because of his sin."

He paused for a while and let out a sigh. "Even though Im is the most popular family name in Eustacia, if possible, you shouldn't mention it. Promise me?" He asked concernedly.

"Ye-yes. I'll do that," Tar replied, suppressing the urge to defend his father.

After getting a quick meal nearby, the three of them walked back home to find a slim man with long wavy black hair, roughly forty years old, standing outside, holding a small brown pouch.