With Altaïr's experience as a point of comparison, Sid had no rebuttal left.
After the incident, his former friends and the Guild personnel he knew had urged him more than once to look on the bright side and try to let go. Yet their words had never reached him; they had only fueled his rage.
What right did people who had never endured the same thing have to think a few casual words could make him let go of his hatred?
But the young man before him was different. Unlike Sid, whose pursuit of revenge looked more like a path to self-destruction, Altaïr had a much clearer plan and goal.
Altaïr was drawing closer to the day he would exact his revenge, one steady step at a time and in his own way. Sid, by contrast, had remained stuck in place all this time and had even been sliding backward...
Altaïr was right. What "wailing of the dead"? Those bastards would never haunt him that way. The truth was that Sid himself had been too weak to move beyond the pain of that day.
Seeing that Sid's gaze had finally regained some clarity even though he remained silent, Altaïr sighed quietly.
In truth, Altaïr's circumstances had not been exactly the same as Sid's.
He had managed to pull himself out of that darkness partly because of Teacher Karin and the others' attentive care, and partly because he had been just an ordinary child at the time.
Back then, Grimclaw Tigrex was an opponent beyond even most High Rank Hunters. To him, it had seemed like a mountain whose summit he could not see.
No matter how furious he became or how fiercely he hated it, he knew that even if he staked his life, he could never inflict the slightest harm on his enemy.
That was why he had been able to bury his hatred deep in his heart and become a "normal person who had set revenge aside for the time being."
Sid's situation was different. He was an outstanding Hunter on the verge of High Rank, and he had personally fought the "Demon King." Although he had lost, the creature was not entirely beyond his reach.
If he staked his life and luck favored him, there was still the faintest chance that he could hunt it successfully.
That faint hope was precisely what made it impossible for him to let go.
If Altaïr had to draw a comparison...
If Isis, Morgan, Teacher Karin, or any of the others had been killed by Elderfrost or Grimclaw Tigrex on the last quest, and Altaïr alone had escaped...
Then he would most likely have become an even more terrifying madman than Sid.
Merely imagining the possibility made his heart clench and skip several beats.
After a brief silence, he spoke. "I'll be frank with you. The Guild has decided to slay the 'Demon King' so the Royal Academy can study it.
"My companions and I have accepted the commission and are preparing to hunt the 'Demon King.'
"We have two parties: three High Rank Hunters and three 5★ Hunters. I won't claim we're guaranteed to complete the hunt without trouble, but with thorough preparation and carefully devised tactics, our chances of success should be quite high."
Sid's head snapped up, his eyes locking on Altaïr.
Lania also shot Altaïr a displeased look.
As far as Lania was concerned, Altaïr did not need to tell Sid any of this. They only had to escort the man back for trial. By the time Sid finished serving his sentence, the Demon King would be dead, and he would have nothing left to cause trouble over.
Altaïr, however, saw matters somewhat differently.
As a fellow avenger, he could see that revenge was the only thing still tethering Sid to this world.
Once Sid left prison and learned that the target of his revenge was gone, he might finally let go. Or the news might make him collapse completely.
He was, after all, an outstanding Hunter who had nearly reached High Rank in his early thirties. It would be a terrible waste to let someone like that fall apart.
Even in purely practical terms, if they intended to hunt the "Demon King," they would obviously need intelligence.
No one in the world understood the creature better than Sid, who had tracked the "Demon King" for months and challenged it more than once.
If they could learn everything he knew, their odds of a successful hunt would improve by at least twenty percent, perhaps as much as thirty.
"Forget about exacting revenge with your own hands. It would serve no practical purpose, and you'll never get the chance anyway." Altaïr tilted his head toward Lania, who stood frowning beside him.
"See this unsmiling lady? She's going to knock you out, and when you wake up, you'll already be locked away. No one will care that you wanted to take revenge with your own hands."
Altaïr paused and met Sid's gaze.
"But you can choose to tell me everything you know: its weaknesses, habits, the areas it frequents, and so on.
"That way, you'll have genuinely contributed to the hunt for the 'Demon King.' It won't mean you exacted revenge yourself, but you can certainly say you took part in it.
"This is the best possible outcome for everyone, including you. What do you say?"
Sid's gaze wavered as he wrestled with the decision.
But Altaïr knew he would agree.
The man had always held to his principles. Apart from challenging the "Demon King," he had broken no other laws.
Even when Lania, disguised as a bandit, confronted him and threatened the Nomads who had helped him, he had never considered striking to kill or using a Hunter's weapon.
A few more months might have changed that, but for now, reason still governed his actions.
Some people truly did lose themselves in hatred and become obsessed with exacting revenge in person. They would see anyone who stopped them, or even avenged the dead in their place, as a mortal enemy.
Altaïr could not be bothered to reason with people like that. They were not avenging the dead so much as indulging their own twisted desires.
Sid was clearly not one of them.
After nearly half a minute of silence, his shoulders sagged as though all strength had left his body, and a pleading note entered his voice.
"I'll tell you everything I know. But I have one request. I don't care if you use me as bait or send me to die on the front line. Just... can you let me see the 'Demon King' die with my own eyes?"
"No." Before Altaïr could answer, Lania rejected the request without leaving any room for negotiation.
"We'll take you back to camp. A Guild Airship will arrive within a few days, and I will personally escort you back to Dundorma to stand trial.
"The quest to hunt the 'Demon King' has absolutely nothing to do with you."
Altaïr did not interject. Honestly, even if Lania had relented, he would not have allowed Sid to join the operation.
This hunt would be exceptionally difficult, and coordination would be paramount. The members of the Vanguard Hunting Party were seniors Altaïr and his companions knew and trusted, which was why both groups could confidently watch one another's backs.
As for a man they had met only moments ago? Forget it.
He might seem reasonable enough now, but standing before his sworn enemy would be another matter entirely.
"So that's how it is..." Sid lowered his head.
After another long silence, he spoke in a soft but clear voice. "Beyond its two most obvious features, the red carapace and single horn, the 'Demon King' has one other distinguishing trait. It is enormous, far larger than an ordinary specimen. By my estimate, its body length is about thirty meters."
Altaïr took out his notebook and carefully recorded every piece of information Sid provided, occasionally asking follow-up questions to make sure he missed or forgot nothing.
Once they had finished, he held the notebook out for Sid to review. Only after Sid confirmed everything did Altaïr carefully put it away.
The information was extensive and important. Sid had clearly been thorough.
Looking at the despondent man, now silent again but somehow more at ease, Altaïr hesitated before speaking. "We can't let you watch the 'Demon King' die with your own eyes, but we'll bring you back a gift."