Chapter 401: Don’t Get Too High On Your Horses
The children, meanwhile, had noticed their mothers’ flushed expressions and completely misinterpreted them.
"Look! Mama is so angry she’s turning red!" One whispered frantically.
"She’s going to punish us for sure!"
"I’ve never seen my mother this angry before!"
"WE’RE DOOMED!"
The panic intensified, if such a thing were possible.
But then Nella, brave, stubborn Nella wiped her tears and stood up straight.
"Everyone!. Be quiet!"
Her voice was shaky but carried enough authority to silence the chaos. The children turned to face her, their eyes wide and frightened.
"I will take responsibility for all of this." She declared. "There is no need for any of you to worry."
Her companions immediately protested.
"What? What do you mean, Nella?"
"We all defeated the Hero together! We’re all responsible!"
"How can you take the blame alone?"
Nella shook her head solemnly. "I am the one who landed the finishing blow."
The children gasped.
"I definitely felt it." She continued, her voice wavering. "I accidentally swung my sword a little too hard and struck him on the head. That is why he collapsed. That is why he is..."
She couldn’t finish her sentence.
"That’s why I will end my own existence to make up for my sins!"
A tiny filly raised her hand, sniffing. "What...what does ’end my existence’ mean?"
"I don’t know!" Nella sobbed loudly. "But it’s something my mom said a knight has to do if they make a grave mistake that costs a life!"
Nella’s mother, standing with the other parents, buried her face in her palm.
But Nella’s friends were not about to let her make such a sacrifice.
"No, Nella! We won’t allow it!"
"We’re comrades! We’ll face this together!"
"In the future, we’re going to protect the queen as knights of the Galloping Brigade! We can’t abandon our leader now!"
"Even if you’re the one who did it, we were all part of the battle! We share the blame!"
"We’ll always be by your side, no matter what!"
Nella stared at them, tears spilling down her cheeks.
"You guys..."
She was overwhelmed by their loyalty. Even in the darkest moment of her young life, she had people who refused to let her face it alone.
The mothers also watched this display of loyalty with expressions of profound pride.
Yes, their daughters had been misbehaving.
Yes, they had been influenced by Mavis’s questionable philosophy.
But beneath all of that, the core values they had worked so hard to instill were still there.
The bonds of friendship. The spirit of camaraderie. The willingness to stand together in the face of adversity.
These were the qualities that would make them true knights someday.
The moment was almost perfect.
That is until a voice cut through the emotional scene, warm with amusement.
"What strong friendship...What good values...This is what the youth should aspire to!"
"I hope you can stay like this in the future as well—and never give up on your friends."
Nella nodded automatically—then froze.
She knew that voice.
Slowly, she and the other children turned their heads toward the source and were shocked!
Luca was standing right beside them, very much alive!
"EVIL VILLAIN!" Nella shrieked, jumping backward. "How are you not dead?! I destroyed you!"
The other children erupted in similar shock.
"How are you still alive?!"
"You were dead! We saw the blood!"
"He’s a zombie! He’s a zombie! Run away!"
"An undead Hero! This is even worse!"
Luca chuckled, shaking his head. "Of course I’m not undead. I never died in the first place."
He spread his arms wide, displaying his complete lack of injuries.
"It was all an act, you see. I poured a bit of sauce on the ground and collapsed. You little ones actually believed you’d killed me?"
He laughed heartily. "No matter how much you pretend to be adults, you’re still just babies who need to wear diapers!"
Realising that she had been fooled, Nella’s face cycled through several emotions in rapid succession—confusion, realization, embarrassment, and finally, pure indignation.
"You...You...!"
She had just been crying over him and offered to take responsibility for his death.
And it was all a prank.
"YOU EVIL HERO!" She screamed, charging at him with her tiny fists raised. "TAKE THAT! AND THAT! HOW DARE YOU FOOL ME LIKE THAT?!"
The other children joined the assault, their earlier fear transforming into righteous fury.
"You big bully! I can’t believe you tricked us!"
"I felt so bad for you! I was thinking about what flowers to put on your grave!"
"I was ready to get exiled from the village to atone for my sins!"
"You’re the worst! The absolute worst!"
"Evil Hero! Evil Hero! EVIL HERO!"
They swarmed him, their tiny fists and wooden swords raining down in a storm of adorable vengeance.
But their anger was undercut in the way their eyes kept flickering to his face as though to confirm he was really, truly alive.
Sigrid watching the wholesome scene unfold couldn’t help but think he was a walking contradiction.
After all, he was a terrifying powerhouse capable of single-handedly conquering the human continent.
And yet, he was rolling around on the ground with a dozen tiny centaur children, letting them kick him with their little hooves and pummel him with their wooden swords.
He was talented in so many different ways. It was honestly a little staggering to contemplate.
—
"Okay, okay, enough!" Luca had cried, laughter still spilling from his lips. "Any more and I’ll actually die! And then you’ll have the sin of killing the Hero who saved your entire continent!"
The ponies reluctantly pulled back, though several of them made a show of landing one final, half-hearted kick before retreating.
Luca pushed himself up from the ground, and the state of him drew a chorus of chuckles from the mothers watching nearby.
His shirt was streaked with dust and grass stains, his hair stood up at odd angles, and a smudge of ketchup marked his cheek.
He looked, for all the world, like a man who had just lost a wrestling match with a herd of particularly energetic puppies.
He caught the children watching him with their indignant gazes and let out a soft, knowing chuckle.
"I understand why all of you are angry right now." He dusted off his sleeves with exaggerated care. "I basically made every single one of you cry over me. Even though you call me ’evil Hero’ constantly."
Nella’s teeth ground together, and several of the other fillies looked ready to launch another assault.
But before any of them could muster a response, Luca’s expression shifted.
The playfulness drained from his face, replaced by something softer, something almost paternal.
"But that’s simply how life is."
The children stilled. Even the mothers, who had been exchanging amused glances, fell silent.
Luca’s gaze swept across the small faces gathered before him, and there was no mockery in his voice when he spoke again.
"You might think you’re the smartest person in the world. You might believe your strategies are perfectly laid out, that nothing can go wrong."
"But..."
He let out a small sigh, and for just a moment, he looker older than any of them had ever seen him.
"...you should never underestimate your opponent."
The little fillies tensed, their posture straightening as if they were standing in a classroom listening to a master general deliver a vital military briefing.
"Just like how you have your own thoughts and schemes, the person standing across from you has theirs." Luca said calmly. "Never assume that just because your plan is perfectly orchestrated, it will go smoothly."
"Even the most perfect plans can completely go off the rails just because one tiny variable goes wrong."
He paused, meeting each child’s gaze in turn.
"You should never be too sure of yourself. Not in battle. Not in life."
The smarter children, Nella chief among them showed flickers of understanding in their eyes.
But others looked confused, their young minds struggling to grasp the full meaning of his words.
Finally, one of the smaller ponies stepped forward hesitantly.
"Sir Hero...does that mean what we did today was wrong?" Her voice was small, uncertain. "Tricking you and using our cuteness and all that? Is it something we shouldn’t do?"
Luca looked down at her, and his face softened.
Without a word, he reached out and placed his hand on her head, ruffling her hair with surprising gentleness.
The little filly didn’t pull away. If anything, she seemed to lean into the touch, her tail swishing contentedly behind her.
"Not at all." Luca said, and his voice was warm. "In fact, I encourage this behavior you’re showing right now."
Nella’s head snapped up, and several of the mothers exchanged startled glances. Luca only smiled.
"What your master told you was absolutely correct. Honor is a beautiful thing—a dignified way to live. But if you cling to honor and dignity above all else, you may not survive for long."
"There are times when you need to be flexible. To adapt. To use every tool at your disposal, even if those tools seem...unconventional."
He turned his gaze toward Nella, who suddenly looked a bit timid under his attention.
"What you did today was exactly right, Nella. Using a variety of tricks to deceive and take down an opponent much stronger than you—that’s not something to be ashamed of. In fact, I recommend you continue using such tactics in the future."
Nella’s chest swelled slightly with pride.
"But." Luca continued, raising a finger. "You should always remember that you are never the smartest person in the room. There is always someone with their own tricks up their sleeve. Someone who can turn your own strategies against you."
"And the moment you become overconfident..is the moment you lose."
A wry smile crossed his face.
"Basically never get too high on your horses. Pun intended."
A few of the children giggled despite themselves.
Nella on the other hand simply stared at him. Her lips pressed together, and her little fists clenched at her sides.
Sigrid could see the war playing out across her face, the stubborn pride of a future warrior battling against the reluctant respect she clearly felt for the man standing before her.
Finally, Nella huffed and looked away.
"It’s not like I’m going to take advice from you, evil Hero!"
She paused, then added in a smaller voice.
"But what you said right now is something my master would say. So...I’ll consider it."
Luca’s hand descended onto her head before she could react, ruffling her chestnut hair with obvious delight.
"That’s all I ask, little commander."
"Don’t pat my head, evil Hero!" Nella snapped, trying to squirm away. "I’m still angry at you for tricking me! I haven’t forgiven you at all!"
But Luca only laughed and ruffled her hair more vigorously.
Sigrid watched the exchange with a strange warmth spreading through her chest.
’He really is good with children.’ She thought.
Even though Nella was protesting with every breath, the little filly was clearly fighting to hold back a smile. Not to mention her tail was wagging so hard it was practically a blur.
And what amused Sigrid even more was the way the other ponies were watching the head-patting with barely concealed envy.
Their eyes tracked Luca’s hand as it moved through Nella’s hair, and several of them leaned forward subtly, as if hoping some of the attention might spill over to them.
’It would have been funny.’ Sigrid thought. ’If it weren’t also rather sad.’
Because she understood exactly why they were looking at him with such longing even though he was supposed to be their enemy.
It wasn’t because he was the Hero. It wasn’t because of his strength or his legend.
It was because they had never had a father.
Not a real one, anyway.