Swordmeister of Rome - ALLA
Swordmeister of Rome - ALLA
Author:
ALLA
Alternative names:
Genre:
Webnovel
Status:
Completed
God’s mistake.
Prologue End.
<It is a lie that the possibility of man is infinite. Look at yourself if you
need evidence. But don’t worry. Bander is with you.>
Ra-Bander from 300 years ago. Excerpt from Liviath, Sword of the
Sun.
…….
The Roman family of the Tian Kingdom. Famous for its physical
prowess.
People born in the Roman family had high Bander Ratings, also
called an Ancestor’s Blessing, which was a measurement of fighting
prowess. These people were genetically designed to fight. All who
were born in the Roman family were proven warriors.
God was fair and did not bless the family with many children. The
family was strong but small.
A second boy was born into such a family that became huge news
within the Kingdom of Tian. Many nobles from around Tian gathered
at Roman family’s provinces to congratulate the birth of the baby. It
was the third day of the party.
The lord of the Roman family, Count Kain von Roman, mumbled in
his mind.
Count Kain von Roman. 13th lord of the Roman family and a
<Grand-Bander>.
Count Celaine was the lord of Celaine Province, which was seated
right next to the Taran Kingdom. He used his geographic advantage
to conduct trades with the Taran Kingdom and his province
flourished upon the profit. He was far from the capital and he always
claimed to be neutral over the factions between the King and the
nobles. He was hated by both sides and he never visited the capital
unless there was something really important.
The second birth in the Roman family was just that important.
‘No… he wouldn’t have come just for that. He probably came to see
how the factions are changing these days.’
Kain realized what he was really up to. The Tian Kingdom was at war
internally between the <Royalist Faction> and the <Noble Faction>.
Swordmeister Kiraine led the old Royalist Faction. Uncle to the King,
Kiraine was one of the strongest warriors in the kingdom. He was not
interested in the politics, but his name was enough to bring the
Royalist group together.
‘But at least it’ll be over by today. I hope Sian isn’t having too much
of a hard time.’
Kain was concerned about his second son. The party was now
almost over and there was only one final ceremony remaining for the
newly-born Sian von Roman.
<Ceremonial>
This was held by all Noble families who gave birth. In the past, it was
only meant to pray for the baby’s well-being, but after the Exalted
Magical Council created the Great Magical Rune, it changed the
ceremonial completely.
The particle that allowed one to overcome their limits and train
infinitely.
<Bander>
The Great Magical Rune allowed one to read the Bander possibilities
within the body.
Kain was curious about his second born’s rating as he watched the
preparations take place. Bander Ratings were impossible to achieve
through training from scratch. Therefore, the rating declared during
the ceremony indicated talent. The higher the rating, the better the
chance for the baby to become powerful.
‘Well, he’s one of the Romans… I guess he’ll get at least 50.’
The Sword of the Sun, the most famous warrior of all time, had a
record of 85 Bander Rating. Kain himself had a 55 Bander Rating
and his first son Rian had 60, higher than his father’s.
Considering the fact that most Grand-Banders had a little bit over 50
Bander Rating and ordinary Nobles only had about 25, it was an
amazing feat.
The Count left the party grounds to call his wife and the son while
the 3rd Class Magic Priest sent out by the Exalted Magical Council
to prepare the rune began the ceremony.
“We will now start the ceremony for Sian von Roman, the second
son of Count Kain von Roman, the Guardian General of Tian
Kingdom! Please give your congratulations from the bottom of your
hearts!”
The message given by the senior priest was done quickly. It had
been much longer in the past, but it had been shortened as it was
boring and not significant to the actual ceremony. What was
important was testing the <Bander> rating.
“We will now activate the Great Magical Rune. May the Ancestor’s
Blessing be with the newborn!”
People looked down to the rune on the ground and up to the baby on
top of it. The baby was awakened from his sleep as Kain took him up
from mother’s arms onto the pedestal. He was round and chubby,
but he looked like Kain.
The Magic Priest finished his blessing and activated the rune. It
began to glow, surrounding and covering the baby. Light particles
began moving through the baby, flowing in and out of the baby,
checking on all parts. The light then died out as if it had lost all the
energy from within.
<How would I know that was coming? Would you have known? I’m
the one who’s having the hardest time!>
…….
The Great Magical Rune was made to check the Bander inside the
body. But it was meant for a body of a newborn baby not older than
one hundred days. According to history, the highest possible rating
was only 88. Liviath, the Sword of the Sun, was at 85 and Kuradan
was at 86. So the rune was designed to measure up to 97.
This was not just decided on a whim. The most efficient rating to
measure the Bander was up to 97. Anything above would require
15% more of the Talic Stone, and since it was so expensive, they
decided to stop measuring at 97.
He needed to solve this issue right now so he could stop using the
Talic Stone and give an answer to Count Roman or else his research
money would be deducted for overusing the Talic Stone.
Jeraph quickly fixed the formula and used his own <Exar> to control
the flow. With this, the number still wouldn’t pop up, but he was able
to remove the measurement limit.
The light was then absorbed by the baby and it shone brightly. Soon,
Jeraph accurately measuring the rating.
Nobles began mumbling to each other. The bright light that flashed
at the end was surely the light that meant the measurement was
done. They had watched it before, but the number did not pop up.
The number for the Bander Rating of the second son of the Roman
family was missing.
‘Hm…??’
Jeraph was not sure if he did it correctly after looking at the rating.
He had never seen such a rating.
“Uh, um…”
‘Ugh, I’ll just tell the Count and let him be the judge.’
Jeraph quickly made up his mind. It was not his mistake but he was
sure to get blamed for it. So it was better to push any issue onto the
Count to avoid any future problems.
The Count was shocked to hear it, but he quickly returned to his
normal expression. Then he stood up on the podium and shouted to
the Nobles.
“Everyone, you all must have been confused by this incident! I must
apologize to each and every one of you for such an inconvenience.
Sir Jeraph just explained to me that the rune had a slight error in its
calculation so it did not display the number! But the rating was
measured and I was informed of it.”
Everyone turned to the Count. It was usually not perceived well if the
rating didn’t show up, but that depended on who announced it. Count
Roman, the famed, faithful and loyal warrior, was surely not a liar.
It was a really high number, but people did not look as excited. It was
higher than the father’s, but lower than his brother’s. People who
anticipated the coming of a Ra-Bander were disappointed, but they
soon began applauding.
Count Roman met with Jeraph and paid him handsomely for his hard
work. The small incident that happened during the ceremonial was
quickly forgotten and time quickly passed by.
<What is a Bander?>
But can humans fly? Can humans fight against the Harijan and pick
up a house-sized boulder?
No.
<Bander>
It has been 400 years since the existence of Bander was first
introduced to mankind. People who discovered its power have been
recorded as legends.
Even after the days of the Great Emperor, Bander users led the
world.
They were called warriors, great generals, heroes, or kings.
….<skipped>….
This rating was created by the Royalists to fight with the Nobles.
…<skipped>…
<Addendum>
The second was the fact that there was only one simple building.
Count Roman’s family never had any interests other than protecting
the Kingdom. That was why they decided to reside in the Royal
province with only a few people to protect the Royal family.
They were considered the role model of loyal knights to the King.
“It has been a long time since I appreciated the capital’s scenery
from here. I should find a place like this when I retire.”
“As I always say, this is one of my treasures. Anyway, how are things
going? I read the message you sent me…”
“Of course. The Guards of the Great North Wall. Has it already been
five years?”
It was located between the Tian Kingdom and the Empire that had
fallen 400 years ago. The use of Forbidden Magic devastated all
parts of the Empire and was overtaken by the Harijans that had
come from the far Great Forests.
Without any defensive lines, the Harijans were sure to invade and
devour the Ra-Tian Continent whole. Thus, the Seven Kingdoms
worked together to fix the wall and seal off the lands of the Empire
before the Harijans finished taking over and spread outward. After
seven long years of construction, it was a success.
Then years after the fall of the Empire, the Harijan bred with
exceptional speed and spread all over the vast lands of the Empire.
The Harijans that were driven out while fighting between themselves
over the territory were weaker beings, but they still had enough
strength to wipe out a small village.
The only country that had contact with the wall was the Tian
Kingdom, but if they were to fall, it was obvious that the other
countries would be affected. It was a must for the Seven Kingdoms
to work together to create a unified force on the wall.
There were two significant points that could describe the Guards of
the wall.
“Well, Marquis Narasha’s side sent thirteen the last time and Royals
sent eleven. The number might be greater this year.”
The <Talic Stone> was only the beginning of what they earned.
Warriors that were sent had a death rate of over 50%, but the
surviving warriors became more powerful as they were trained in
harsh environments.
The two factions tried to send their best warriors because of this
reason and the number of people selected showed the current power
balance between them.
Five years ago, the Marquis sent thirteen, the Royals sent eleven,
and the neutral faction sent six. It was vastly different from thirty
years ago when Count Roman himself joined the Guards. Back then,
it was twenty-five Royals and seven Nobles. The balance was turned
upside-down after twenty-five years.
“The ones coming back will change the tide. They should be well-
trained by now.”
The warriors sent to the wall were elite individuals, but it did not have
a huge impact on the families as they were not the main members.
When they returned, however, they would be fully-trained, sharpened
weapons that could be immediately used.
“Right. So, I guess you didn’t just visit on a whim,” Count Roman
said with a bitter smile. He was already speculating why this good
friend of his was paying him a visit.
“Yes. Sir Rian is very talented. But he and his 3rd Knights will not be
enough to oppress Marquis Narasha and their violent tactics.”
The first son of the Roman family, Rian von Roman, was now
twenty-four years old. He had already finished the 2nd Bander
Expert level training and had started training for the 3rd Bander
Master. He had proven himself in various wars in the Con-Tian
Mountains and had earned the nickname of ‘Young Lion of the
Romans.’ He was also appointed as captain of the 3rd Knights that
kept order in the capital city.
However, even he was not enough to handle the oncoming strife.
“I see what you’re worried about. It’s the <Succeeding War> after
their return.”
“Yes. From what I can see, Marquis Narasha will not back down
easily. He will start right after the Guards return.”
The Royalist faction had reached out to him, and as he also wished
for peace, he visited his friend. But as a Knight Captain, it was too
much for Count Roman to be involved.
Count Roman continued, “I understand how you feel. You wish for no
bloodshed. Marquis Narasha is a hardliner and he will do whatever it
takes.”
Count Roman knew what Count Kerbel was thinking. After all, they
were longtime friends.
“I will give you a solution. Take my boy, Sian, to the capital. Not the
Guards. He will be of good use to you.”
Kerbel could not understand. Sian von Roman was only seventeen
years old. Count Roman looked at him and smiled. Count Kerbel did
not know the second son, and that was why he couldn’t understand
the offer.
To Count Roman, it was time to send his second son out into the
world. He had been learning about the world through books, but he
now needed real-life experience. If he could combine that with
helping out old friends, that would be perfect.
‘I’m a bit worried though. He’s only that age… what if I’m wrong?’
Count Roman started unraveling the secret he had been keeping all
these years and began planning ahead.
Their skin is stiff and durable, their blood can be used for potions,
and their meat is so tasty that anyone who has tasted it is willing to
pay thousands to taste it again. However, the most important aspect
is not any of these.
<Talic Stone>
Although the Empire met its fate with the war against Kar-Gul, it was
the Talic Stone that led Empire to rule over the continent for
hundreds of years.
<I have never tried hard. Isn’t trying hard doing something that’s
difficult? Everything was easy for me.>
…….
One was a small garden located in the front, facing the capital, made
for visitors. The other larger garden faced Con-Tian Mountain and
was used as a training ground.
It had been a few months since he began wasting his time out on the
hammock, watching the skies. He was not normally like this. He
used to love training and talk about sword mastery with his father
and brothers. However, the reason for his sword training wasn’t to be
strong.
He did not know this when he was young. He trained as told to by his
father and learned other essentials from the tutors that his mother
brought in from outside.
However, he quickly found out that he had no talent in almost
everything. To be more precise, he just couldn’t find anything
interesting. He tried all sorts of hobbies such as instruments, but he
could not get better and got bored of things quickly.
Making friends was also boring. How could one read another’s
mind? Why did one have to fit in? His mother or brother seemed like
mind-readers to him. His father seemed to agree with him on this,
however.
The three things that he started learning since he was very young
was to utilize his body, practice the sword, and controlling Bander.
Most people started training at the age of five, but his father made
him start earlier.
The training was fun and never boring. His father always mentioned
that training was hard because the body was not yet ready to follow
what the mind told it to do.
However, it was never hard. His father was known for his honesty,
but in this instance, it seemed to be false.
As for Bander, it just grew on its own. His father taught him a secret
training method to grow Bander inside the body, but it was much
slower, so he secretly stopped doing it. He didn’t feel the need to do
it since the Bander just grew on its own anyway.
It was about five times… but it felt more like paper rather than a wall.
It made him struggle for a few days and irritated him, so he trained
harder and it went back to normal. That was five years ago.
It was the same feeling he felt five years ago, and he was now
seventeen.
Something blocked him and he could not get past it. His Bander did
not grow any longer and his body stopped growing stronger. At first,
he figured a few days of hard training would solve it, but it didn’t. It
was the first time he felt something like this.
The sword training that he loved was now the same as all the
lessons he learned before. It was boring.
That was why he had been gazing at the skies for months.
He couldn’t find a way. His mind stopped telling him what to do.
His body and mind used to tell him where to go and what to do.
But it wasn’t the same anymore. It was so irritating. He had never felt
that way.
‘Ugh…’
…….
This was the opposite of what he believed in, and he hated the word
for it. He could not understand the stories of the famed warriors in
history. One of the most famous men was someone named Eclipse,
a man who went across the Great North Wall to train himself.
The world beyond the Great North Wall was infamous for being hell
on earth. Even he knew of this though he had never left his province.
The man, Eclipse, was a Grand-Bander, but after he went across the
wall a hundred years ago, nobody heard from him since. He was
probably dead.
Due to this, he refused any type of difficult training that might put
himself in danger, and his father agreed to that. However, his brother
Rian was the opposite. He was a firm believer of putting himself in
danger to grow stronger. The only reason Sian could not outright
oppose the idea in public was due to his brother.
And this was the reason why he was currently deep in thought. The
only way to overcome his current concern seemed like the one he
had always refused.
It was easy. It felt wrong to give up now, but he did not want to put
himself in any danger. He saw no point in killing himself because of
it.
His father always told him to look after himself. His brother seemed
like a bad son for not listening, but he was a good son. He planned
on staying as such.
Besides, he could not think a way to put himself into danger inside
this safe capital of the Kingdom.
He felt good about his decision. He had delved into his thoughts in
search for other routes, but there were none. As the only route was
impossible, (at least to himself) he felt it was easy to give up and
choose a new path.
‘Yeah, I’ll go out and meet new people… learn instruments… try
horse riding… and do what those other Nobles do!’
Sian decided to talk this over with his parents the next day.
He once asked his father why they did not have maids to wash and
clothe them, but after looking at his father’s expression, he never
asked again.
When he went down, his parents were sitting at the table and the
maids were serving the food. Count Kerbel’s visit seemed to have
lasted through the night and they looked tired.
They greeted Sian and resumed eating. Sian also began eating his
breakfast. They spoke of simple issues, but nothing important while
eating.
After breakfast, the maids brought out some tea and Sian noticed
that something was different. His father seemed like he wanted to
say something and his mother left, allowing them some privacy.
“Hmm… Sian, you must know that Count Kerbel visited yesterday.”
“Yes, Father.”
“Yes… it’s about the Guards of the Great North Wall. Count Kerbel
told me about the upcoming recruitment.”
Sian also knew of this. It was a huge issue five years ago when his
brother Rian insisted on joining the Guards. His mother, Celine,
objected so strongly that he couldn’t go. Sian remembered this.
It was also then that he learned that the most powerful warriors were
going to be stationed in the most dangerous places in the Guards.
After that, Sian began hiding his true power, even from his father.
He never intended to join the Guards, but there was no telling what
might happen, so he decided to hide it. The most dangerous station
of the wall, Traz Sector 13, had one of the two existing Ra-Banders
on the continent and three out of the seven Stars of the Exalted
Magical Council stationed there. There were also powerful high
priests of the Sun God and the War God protecting the place. That
meant it was a literal hell.
Unlike him, Rian was famous and was known for his skills. If he went
there, it was possible that he would be stationed at the Traz-level
sectors.
“No, your brother will not go there. Rian knows his place now. He will
not want to strain the Royal family with his absence. Of course, your
mother will be relieved.”
“That’s good. To think of what he did five years ago… there are
many families that want to go. We’ll let them go,” Sian answered.
“Yes, but they aren’t to be trusted. They all have different agendas.
The recruitment has become more competitive. Besides, you were
also on the list,” Count Roman told Sian, speaking as if it was none
of his business, to tease him.
“Yes, but…”
“What is it?”
Sian seemed relieved to hear that he was not being sent to the
Guards.
“As you know, you are now of age, and you must now work for our
family. I talked with Count Kerbel about that. When the recruitment
begins, the capital will become busy. Go to the central capital and
stay with your brother. Help him and learn.”
Sian looked grim, his expression indicating that he was unwilling, but
Count Roman spoke firmly.
His son could not object right now, but he would soon try his best to
find a way out of it. Count Roman wanted to make sure he could not
do that.
Count Roman was relieved to hear his son’s acceptance. He did not
listen well to his words lately, so he was expecting more of a
commotion, but it looked like he understood his position.
“Is that so? Good. Then…” Count Roman continued, explaining what
he had planned with Count Kerbel the previous night.
He believed that this would be the best for his second son who had
no experience in the world. His only hope now was that Count Kerbel
would lead him in the right direction.
‘It changed so much in just ten days,’ Sian thought as he walked with
his superiors through the crowded capital city.
‘Count Kerbel will tell you what position you will be in. I will not ask
you to acquire fame for the Roman family, but remember you are a
Noble and don’t forget noblesse oblige. Don’t create any trouble!’
His father reminded him again and again before he left. He wanted
to object, but he couldn’t promise so he didn’t. Count Kerbel’s
mansion was located a bit away from the palace, in Tobe-Tian. It
took him three hours on a carriage from his home. Count Kerbel
greeted him quickly and told him what to do.
After that day, he had been residing in Count Kerbel’s home, doing
what he was assigned to.
They were assigned to keep the public safe in all parts of the capital,
excluding the royal palace. Guarran-Tia was not some simple group
formed randomly. The Capital was full of high-ranked Nobles and
powerful individuals, so there were a lot of problems that occurred as
a result. Therefore, the Guarran-Tia employed strong individuals to
tackle and solve such issues. It required strong fighting skills from
their guards and they were also given special privileges to arrest
high-ranked officials.
Sian was fine with using his background to enter, so he didn’t need
to go through the test that Rian had insisted on taking. He simply
used the recommendation and joined easily.
There were three types of people who kept an eye on him on his first
day.
The first were simply curious about the second son of the Roman
family.
The third were disgusted at the man who used his family name to
join without taking the test.
As they did not cause him any harm and taught him the basic
essentials, Sian decided to just keep his distance. The job was very
easy. He was nervous after hearing that there were a lot of
happenings in the capital, but there had been none until today.
The second son of the Laron Merchants, Taron, did not like the new
recruit next to him. Everyone was excited at hearing a second son of
the Roman family coming to the Guards. The previous one, Rian,
had replaced every record that Guarran-Tia had and moved on to
become the Royal Knight at the youngest age according to record.
Everyone was anticipating that the new recruit would be the same or
better.
But a week after he met the man, his expectation now turned to
disappointment. He had no signs of being of a warrior or a
swordsman and he looked weak. His lifestyle also wasn’t that of a
warrior. He was too lazy.
Not once did he come earlier than he needed to and he ran off right
after the work was done. Even when an incident occurred at the
building right next to their post, he went home, saying his shift was
over. That incident was with Count Narsas, who was famous for his
temper. Taron had to work late into the night to resolve the issue.
After that, he decided to have this Sian do the work when something
popped up. He made a promise with Keran, who was standing next
to him. They were both expecting something to pop up before their
training was over.
It was why the new recruit was assigned to their area. But after he
joined, there were already two incidents in just one week.
He still was mad at what happened a few days ago. He wished the
incident will be hard for this new recruit so he could have hard time
like he did.
When they arrived, the area was already in a big mess. It looked like
a fight was started in the middle of a road. Taron sighed. Most fights
like these were between mercenaries or commoners, easy for
Guarran-Tia to handle since they could not fight back against the city
guard. He closed in, disappointed that it would not give the new
recruit hard times, but things were a little different.
Sian quickly followed his superiors who quickly ran toward the
commotion. He thought these men running in front of him were into
their jobs. They loved to protect the citizens of the capital so much
that they worked so hard like this. He was a bit sad to see these men
sleeping at dormitory of the Guarran-Tia, thinking they were poor.
But he wished for their success after looking at their respectable
deeds.
It was not a fight between two groups. One was a group, but one
was just… one.
“Hey, go there and control the situation. We can’t be there all the
time. You have ‘ENOUGH’ time until your shift ends today, so you
will be able to handle it.”
They were right. Sian was getting paid and he needed to do his part.
He needed to have experience with the real job when the superior
was watching over him.
Sian thought to back away if something went bad and push it to his
superiors and approached.
‘Let’s see.. first is to identify myself… and ask for their identification?’
Celine felt her heart sink as she eyed the person from Guarran-Tia
approaching her casually.
She felt great when she just walked out of the knights’ dormitory.
She was excited to meet her friend who wanted catch up on life with
her. She anticipated eating tasty desserts and even prepared a small
gift to give to her friend.
The mansion that her friend lived in was not far from the dormitory,
so that was good.
If she was not in the Knight Guard, she would’ve been fine since she
would’ve just beaten everyone up. However, she was with the Knight
Guard now. She was not free to do whatever she liked.
She once beat up a man who kept trying to court her persistently and
underwent special training under her grandfather that helped her
make up her mind to never cause any trouble.
She tried to finish this peacefully so her grandfather would not know.
She assumed beating up a few of the guard would make him run.
But this fool became furious and started yelling.
<Bribery>
She hated using her family’s power, but she figured it would be
better than undergoing the horrible special training again. Celine
then walked to the men she had just beat up.
Sian eyed the woman who walked up to the men. The men were
scared as they could not speak nor move as the woman approached
them. She then whispered to a man that looked like a Noble and
showed him something that made him turn pale. Then he began
bowing and ordering to the other men around him. Then they began
moving away, dragging the others that had fallen unconscious.
The other Guarran-Tia members that watched Sian from the back
came up to him as things were taking a turn.
After the men moved out of the area, the woman then turned and
walked up to Sian.
She just made a mess on a public road. Nothing had been solved.
Even her claim of being from a duke’s family seemed strange. What
kind of Noble’s daughter walked the roads without any guards? And
with casual clothing? Especially in a commoner district?
Then it was fine to let this pass. There was no harm in subjecting it
to the law, but the Noble was asking for a favor. It was good to let
this issue be resolved here.
However, Sian opened his mouth first. He was still looking down at
his manual.
Celine then made a move. She decided to use the special training
she learned from her grandfather.
“YOU BASTARD!”
This woman looked like she was angry against the Guarran-Tia itself.
This woman would definitely unleash her fury on his superiors and
beat them up.
There was still time left for the fist to arrive. There was enough time
for him to look through the book to see what he need to do.
‘I will punch his face, then the left rib, and then the right, and…’
‘What?’
She was sure that her fist was thrown right at his face. Yet the man
had moved his chin ever so slightly to avoid the fist and while
reading a book.
She did not see him moving, nor did she see him taking out the book
that was on his waist.
It was as if she had thrown a punch into thin air and he was reading
the book from the start. But that was impossible.
As she watched the man in disbelief, he folded his book and spoke.
Then she looked back at him again. If her thoughts were right, then
this man was stronger than herself.
‘Hmm?’
Yet he was not like that. There was nothing extraordinary. He looked
so plain. He was so plain that it made it weird that he was a Guarran-
Tia.
As she looked into his beautiful blue eyes, she came to her senses.
She made a mess and tried to use her family name to clean it up.
Then she even threw a punch at Guarran-Tia. She just did the very
act that she despised. It was not the right thing to do.
She did not like the man in front of her, so she couldn’t apologize too
sincerely.
Sian looked at the woman apologizing and thought she was not as
bad as she seemed. He kind of wished she would resist so he could
show some force, but it was all good. Even the superiors behind him
seemed to be relieved.
“Then I will escort you to our base. Oh, and who will you call to prove
your identity?”
“I will call Rian von Roman, the captain of the 3rd Calvary of the
Knight Guard. Tell him… I am Lieutenant Captain Celine de Kiraine
of the 3rd Calvary.”
Sian was surprised when he heard his brother’s name pop up from
her mouth.
Even if she spoke poorly of him to his brother, he did as his manual
said and there was nothing to be ashamed of. He looked back to his
superiors with a proud smile since he solved everything perfectly.
Keran and Taron sighed in relief that things did not grow much worse
and sent the newcomer home to keep him from causing more trouble
as they escorted Celine to the post themselves.
Count Kerbel looked out the window from his office in his mansion.
He noticed Sian walking into the mansion with a snack in his mouth
and glanced at the time.
The Guarran-Tia post was about eight minutes away from the
mansion. Therefore, he definitely walked out of the office the
moment the clock hit 6:00 PM. It was his training period, but he did
not care to stay behind to learn more.
<He only does what he wants to do. Hates getting stressed. Hates
anything that doesn’t show results. But he’s still strong. Stronger
than me!>
This was opposite of what most people would consider as the traits
of a strong warrior. Sian was more like a foolish Noble son that liked
to only enjoy his privileges, but he was strong. The Count claimed he
didn’t know how much stronger he had become now.
What came next was more unbelievable. The Bander Rating. Count
Roman paid the Magic Priest a handsome amount of gold to keep
him quiet about the rating. If Kerbel was not in need of great help,
Count Roman would’ve never disclosed it.
<497>
Count Roman was scared that if this rating was known to the world,
his son would be swept up by the world. He decided to keep him
within his mansion and raised him until he could stand on his own.
Kerbel thought Count Roman and his wife did a fantastic job of
raising such a son to this point.
<Count Roman wanted his son to go out in the world and do his part.
And live a happy life.>
<Sian wants to do what he wishes and live a stable and happy life.
(This was judged by Count Roman after hearing it from Sian.)>
The capital looked peaceful, but that was only the shallow surface.
The returning Guards were sure to be a powerful asset to their
families when they returned. Unlike five years ago where they were
young and powerless, they surely had grown to be powerful after
surviving five years in extreme environments.
The balance between the two factions was equal, so it did not create
much trouble before. However, things might turn out differently upon
their return.
Count Kerbel was doing his best to block this from happening.
He did not intend to tell Sian what to do. It seemed pointless since
he would not listen.
Nonetheless, if his plan worked out and Sian did his job well,
everything would surely move according to plan.
‘But where’s Celine? I thought she was going to come and visit
Sharlotte today? This is weird… she’s not the type to break her
promise.’
It was very close and not many men out on the road were stronger
than the <Blue Train of the Knight Guard> herself.
He then moved downstairs for dinner to ask what Sian and Sharlotte
did today…
It had been ten days since Sian moved to his new station in El-Lua.
Sian loved his new life. Guarran-Tia was like a dream job for him.
There was no one around to tell him what to do and the area he
patrolled was a district of high-ranking officials and Nobles where
nothing serious occurred. Unlike some ruffians from the slums, the
public road was not their fighting ground.
Not only that, the houses and buildings in the district were lavishly
decorated with various decorations and statues that made Sian feel
like if he was one of those high-ranking nobles himself.
El-Lua was usually a very quiet area, but it had been very busy lately
during the ten days that Sian started working.
The day for the heroes to return from the Great North Wall was soon
and all families were preparing to greet them. El-Lua, in order to not
disrupt nobles who lived, was quieter and more modest than other
districts.
Unbeknownst to Sian, the entire capital was celebrating.
They all knew that once the Guards returned, the capital would lead
Tian Kingdom in an unknown direction. Yet everyone was aware that
they could not fall behind in this change. There would be no mercy
for those who failed.
He was a son of the Roman family that protected the Royal family,
but it was to protect against outside enemies. Roman families never
got involved in internal affairs.
This was what the Roman family followed for generations. It was
also the second family motto.
The first motto was to have as many babies as possible, which Sian
was eager to keep up.
First, do the best to keep the peace in El-Lua district. But only work
from eight to six.
As Sian was patrolling the city, the plain at the north perimeter of the
capital was preparing to greet the returning Guards.
<Ra-Shar-Roa>
Means ‘Road of Light’ where the Sun God walked. It served one
purpose.
Each country used the rune to move people and supplies to and
from the Great North Wall.
Tian Kingdom had two such runes: one near the capital, and one at
the Royal province near Count Celaine’s province. This one near the
capital, located in Bashar Plains, was where the Guards would
return.
First and Second Class Magic Priests gathered on the plains worked
on using their Talic Stones to initiate the transportation process
under the watch of many Nobles and Royals.
The cracking sound grew louder and the crack itself became wider.
As it got bigger and bigger, it took the shape of a huge black ball in
the air. It started to suck every light ray into it and exploded in its
lights. The bright light blinded everyone looking at it and it made
them close their eyes.
The hole was now showing the Guards of the Great North Wall,
waiting on the other side with familiar, vicious looks on their faces.
The Royalists believed that they had put up a close fight as they
were given eleven spots, but it was not. The Nobles only needed
thirteen, no more. They even gained various mines in giving up the
eleven spots, so it was very profitable in the end.
However, the returnees were six from the Royalists and eight from
the Nobles. Viscount Talin was sad that a few of the men were sent
out to die when they could’ve been a powerful asset if they stayed
here.
This was only Viscount Talin’s train of thought, and he was not a
warrior.
All the other warriors tried their best to keep calm as they felt pure
might and strength emanating from these returning Guards. The
recruits standing next to them was nowhere close to them. If these
recruits turned out like that in five years, only two out of fifteen would
mean a huge success.
Not only that, they were sure to bring Talic Stones upon their return.
It was a win-win situation no matter what.
As everyone was busy with thoughts and their works, there were
only two people who kept their calm.
Other than Count Roman who remained neutral while protecting the
kingdom, these two giants that represented each faction had deep
complicated thoughts.
The old and new Guards switched places through the portal that
opened and Ra-Shar-Roa soon stopped working. The area was now
back to the normal, Bashar Plains.
The only thing left in the plains was the two factions looking at each
other.
“Duke Kiraine, we should return to the capital now. Tian awaits us.”
Marquis Narasha spoke and waited for the answer. The Duke quietly
eyed the Marquis for a while and answered shortly to him. He turned
back to his people and shouted, “Sure, to the Tian that waits.
Everyone! We will return! The city will be waiting to start the
celebration of the Guard’s return.”
They turned and began moving down to the capital. It was a day of
celebration, but only one thing filled everyone in each faction’s
minds.
A celebration was held in the Royal Palace for the return of the
Guards.
‘What kind of party is this? Why are the people so tense? Are they
always like this?’
However, this one was not that case. This party had two factions all
joined together. Sian, who had been looking forward to a pleasant
party where he got to meet other Noble girls, was disappointed at
such a tense atmosphere.
‘And who are they in the middle? Letting out energy like that… show
offs.’
In the middle of the party was the main focus of the celebration. The
Guards. They were letting out powerful energy waves, making
everyone around grow tense from the pressure.
Sharlotte was quiet around Sian as if she was embarrassed, but she
was staying beside him to explain the Noble society under strict
orders from her father.
Celine replied coldly before she turned to Sharlotte and hugged her.
Sharlotte also seemed to be happy to meet her.
“Hey! Sharlotte, long time no see. I’m sorry I couldn’t go that day. I
even had a gift for you…”
“No! It’s okay. I was sad you couldn’t come though. I heard
something happened?”
Celine gritted her teeth as she glanced at Sian who was looking
away. After Celine was released after Captain Rian came to prove
her identity, she was summoned to her house immediately, in front of
her grandfather. She hoped it would end with her grandfather
scolding her but it did not.
She was forced to use all of her ten vacation days to stay with her
grandfather to undergo special training. She was just released from
punishment today.
Celine gritted her teeth again. She knew it wasn’t Sian’s fault for her
punishment, but she couldn’t help but dislike him. It was when she
heard from Rian that Sian was the second son of Count Roman. It
made sense that he dodged her punch. The Roman family was
famous for their fighting prowess.
Celine then shook away her thought and turned back to Charlotte.
“Oh, yes of course. You are not a warrior. Give me your hand.”
Celine took Sharlotte’s hand and began transferring Bander into her.
A blue fog glowed out from Sharlotte’s hand and moved onto her
body, swirling around it. Then Charlotte realized her body had been
lightened up instantly.
“Those guys in the middle are letting out energies to compete with
each other. It’s why the area is so tense. Warrior energy is not
something that people with no Bander can withstand. Especially…
when it is rough like that.”
Those people in the middle were around her age. They all had 30 to
40 Bander Ratings. They were all promising individuals that needed
more time.
They were now true warriors. It was easy to see that they had gone
through life-threatening experiences. She could not fight against
even one of them. It seemed that she could only fight against
Captain Rian. Celine remembered her grandfather, or Swordmeister
Kiraine’s words.
They fought the monsters, lived with the monsters, and became
monsters.
Sharlotte began chattering with Celine and Sian was left alone,
bored from not having any company.
‘Oh, Brother should be there too! Maybe I should pay him a visit.’
Sian didn’t meet with his brother after Rian left the mansion to work
at the capital. Even when he was home, there was no time to meet
him as he was busy training in the training room but it became
harder when he left.
Sian thought about this and glanced around. However, there were
too many people to find him with his sense of sight. Sian figured
Rian would be in the gardens and not the palace so he closed his
eyes and concentrated.
Something popped out from Sian and a wave surged out. It was very
weak, not even a second long wave that a commoner could feel. It
spread out from Sian out to the palace and the garden.
Sian felt two familiar readings. One was from the Outer Palace and
the one was at his home.
His father was surely at home, so it must be his brother’s that was at
the palace. His father hated parties with a political motive like this, so
that he was sure about. (Besides, the reading was too weak to be his
father.)
He did it to find his brother in the garden, but he was actually in the
middle of the party.
The mess (at least how it felt like for Sian) was not a place he
wanted to go in to find his brother. He decided to meet with him later
on and moved to a quiet corner of the party. He then was visited by
an unexpected figure.
‘Hmm…?’
Jack, the son of Viscount Qual who was also from the Guards, asked
the viscount a question.
“No, it was nothing. So, how is it feel to return after all those years?”
“Yes, Marquis.”
The Marquis then moved away to talk with high-ranking Nobles. This
place was not to discuss anything important. What was more
important was waiting to hear from the Inner Palace later on.
Jack glanced around to see if he could meet with the others. The
people from Royalist faction were also busy talking with the
Returnees.
However, the Returnees were not in his interest. He had been living
with them for the past five years and he would have to deal with
them during his life back here.
But he did not care. That was for the others. He only needed to do
his job.
What he was curious was about was the warriors from the Royal
faction. They were the future enemies. Among them, he was most
interested in the first son of the Roman family.
The Guards were not entirely cut off from outside world news. They
were able to hear about the news coming from the capital from time
to time.
The name they mostly heard about was Rian von Roman.
Youngest master.
Youngest Top Ranking official of Guarran-Tia
He had replaced all the records that Marquis Narasha and Count
Roman set upon when they were young. He was only twenty-four
years old while he himself was forty-one. It was unbelievable.
He gritted his teeth every time he heard news of Rian von Roman.
She was out of her mind. Even though she looked young by using
her Bander, she was still thirty-nine.
Jack then found a man who looked just like Count Roman. He had
no intentions to cause trouble, but he still wanted to say hi in case he
broke the man down the next time he met him.
He heard from his brother that he had a hard time at the party
because of all the women that gathered around him. Sian did not
know that only applied to his brother who was handsome.
Sian sighed deeply and hoped that this Returnee wasn’t coming at
him, but the War God was not with Sian.
It had been only a month since he was assigned to the capital. There
was no way he could’ve become famous as this man mentioned.
This man, Jack, had mistaken him for Rian.
It was possible that if he sent this man to Rian, his brother would be
in trouble for handling him. This man was eager to cause such
trouble for his brother.
As a loving brother, Sian thought about handling this with his own
hands. Luckily, this man did not ask directly if he was Rian, so there
seemed to be no problem even if he found out if he was Sian and not
Rian.
It was best not to cause any trouble, but if he did, he would just
punch him a few times.
“Yes, good to see you too. I heard so much about you from the Wall
and was curious.
“So, how are the things going with protecting the ‘peaceful’ capital? I
was expecting a fatter person since life here would be so good! But
you look so scrawny!”
“I see that you lived a harsh life. Your face bears it. You should enjoy
the peaceful life here from now on.”
Jack immediately knew he had made the correct judgment. Just as
he thought, this Rian was a jerk. He was sure that even Miran would
not object this now.
Jack hated how he looked so old. Everyone, even his closest friend
at the Wall told him that he looked old.
Most Bander users looked younger than their actual age. To prove
this, Returnees were usually in their late thirties to forties, but they all
looked like they were in their twenties. Except Jack.
He looked old since he was very young. Other Noble girls avoided
him because of this.
Jack was infuriated that this man picked up on that, but he could not
cause any trouble, yet.
“Oh… ha… HAHA! Thank you for that. I wish I met you at the Great
North Wall!”
He was going to deal with him if he exploded with his words, but he
did not. Of course, Sian did not mean anything when he mentioned
the looking old part.
He had no intentions to talk any longer with a man who was trying to
pick a fight and it was sure to cause more trouble if he found out
Sian was not Rian.
‘I guess the stories from Mother weren’t all fairytales after all. Hah.’
‘ARGH!!!’
Not only that, the Bander that he poured onto him was now being
thrown back viciously. It felt as if his intestines had been twisted.
He felt his fingers getting crushed, but this man did not stop. He
began preparing to throw a punch at the man with his left hand. He
needed to stop him before this man crushed his right hand.
At that moment, the man let go of his hand. The Bander that surged
inside was gone too.
“Ugh…!”
“Oh, Sir Jack. Is something wrong? You must be tired! I guess the
party was too much for you since you just returned! You should go
home and rest.”
Sian then felt his brother finishing his discussion and moved away as
Jack hollowedly watched him leave.
Sian delightfully greeted his brother.
“Yes, Sian. Long time no see. I heard you got into Guarran-Tia.
Great job. It’s absurd that a man like you stays at home without
doing anything.”
Rian spoke as he glanced to where Sian had been standing just now
where people had gathered around.
“Oh, yeah. Don’t mind that. Sir Jack will recover quickly.”
Rian sighed. He did not know the details, but it looked like Sir Jack
was the reason for the commotion and the culprit was right in front of
him.
Rian knew Sian was lazy. He knew his younger brother better than
his father did so he believed that Sian figured to not make it a bigger
problem.
‘You should be thankful, Brother,’ Sian thought, but did not bring it
out of his mouth.
This man was the second son of the Roman family. With a Bander
Rating of 57, he was bound to have such talent also.
“Oh, isn’t this the famous second son of the Roman family? Great to
meet you. Would you mind if you introduce me, Sir Rian?” the man
asked Rian politely.
“Nice to meet you, Sir Ron,” Sian answered. He was the Returnee
from the Royal faction. The Roman families always kept neutral on
politics, but Rian was so loyal to the Kingdom and the King that he
had made friends with the Royal factions already.
He did not want to side with one faction. He was set on staying
neutral, but this wasn’t helping. It was even more so because he just
had a small skirmish with a Returnee from a Noble faction.
Sian noticed that something was going wrong. He even felt a group
of people from the Noble faction approaching.
Sian felt the energy of the approaching people. It was the Guards
from the Noble factions. They must’ve heard about what happened
from Sir Jack.
“Captain Rian! Where are you! You will not hide after everything you
did to our man!”
“What are you talking about? I have been standing here the entire
time.”
“HAH, so you lie. Sir Jack told me the son of the Roman family
crushed his hand! I didn’t know the Knight Guard was against us
when they claimed to stay neutral! He just returned from the Wall to
protect the land!”
“….”
‘Brother… so you thought breaking his fingers would make him keep
quiet?’
Lennon turned to Sian. It was his first time he seeing the second son
of the Roman family, but he looked just like Count Roman himself.
But Lennon also knew his age. He was only seventeen. It was
impossible for a boy to do something to Sir Jack. Even the famous
Sword of the Sun became a Master at the age of twenty.
“Sir Rian, I am disappointed. How can you hide behind your little
brother? I heard he is only seventeen years old! So you’re saying Sir
Jack, the warrior who returned from the Wall, had his hands crushed
by a seventeen-year-old?”
“No, why would he do that? You should ask Sir Jack right now. He
can tell you. Besides, a hand grip doesn’t represent fighting skill. I
just made a handshake but his hand was too soft. Don’t get too
worked up.”
Sian spoke the truth (he was upset that his brother was being talked
down upon) but Lennon was not convinced. In fact, Lennon was here
to pressure Rian anyway. However, Sian’s response made it hard for
him to do that and it would make it seem as if Sir Jack had his hands
crushed by a seventeen-year-old. That would be a bad reputation for
them.
‘Ugh.’
Sian didn’t expect that the man in his forties would tell everyone
what happened like a baby. He figured out that his peaceful life had
just been ruined and he grimaced.
The Kirion family had bases in the capital of Roa-Tian and they
traded grains and ores with the Kharan, Tian, and Con Kingdoms to
build their wealth. They were low-ranking Nobles, but their wealth
made them a powerful figure within the Royal faction.
As such, it was a long-time family goal for the Kirion family to have a
powerful warrior group within the family.
However, not everyone was gifted like the Roman family. The
viscount held the ceremony every time they had a baby, hoping for
high Bander Rating to occur.
Then at last, a baby was born to finally give the family what they had
longed for long.
<Elon de Kirion>
The third daughter, out of two sons and five daughters, had been
rated 40 in the ceremonial. Viscount Kirion did everything he could to
support Elon and to train her to be the best. He also started building
up a group of warriors for Elon to lead when she grew up.
Elon did not betray her father’s expectations. She slowly grew up,
falling just short of the Master level. She was only thirty when she
reached the top of the Expert level, but she still wasn’t satisfied.
The Kirion family was thrilled. But they were also tense from the
looming storm within the capital.
Elon, looked down from the window out to the streets from the
mansion, smiling as she seemed to be interested in something.
Sian von Roman. The famous second son of the Roman family. A
man born with an unimaginable power from birth that she herself
could never dream of.
The ruckus that happened at the party was interesting. She hated
Jack. Lennon, from the opposite faction, thought that it was Rian
who did it while others thought Marquis Narasha family was trying to
frame Rian for something that had not happened. But she saw.
She saw Sian shaking hands with Jack who fell to his knees as Sian
held his hand.
Even though Jack was the weakest out of the fourteen Returnees,
he was still a Master.
Masters used Bander around themselves to crush their enemies with
ease. It was a mystery, but Sian managed to crush the hand of a
Master. He was no ordinary man. It would’ve been weirder if the son
of the Roman family was a nobody in the first place.
She was sure that there were more that saw what happened since
they weren’t hidden. Yet there was nothing to be gained to say it out
loud at the party, and people must’ve been investigating.
She picked up a teacup and began sipping it while she looked at the
reports brought to her a while ago.
It was not wise to delve into the Roman family too deeply, so she just
made simple investigations. It was the information that was floating
around in the cities, but there was so little.
-He has no talents on all sorts of things. According to the tutors who
worked for the family, he was very slow in learning the following:
instruments, horse riding, reading, history, geography, astronomy,
political science, warfare, social studies, and others.
“Hahaha!”
Elon let out a loud laugh as she read through the reports. A lot of
things seemed suspicious just by reading it. He came out unharmed
after running into the famous Blue Train and showed Jack what he
had.
The area he was patrolling was also suspicious. The 3rd to 14th
districts represented the areas where the Royalist and Noble factions
lived. Count Kerbel must’ve known of the impending war between
the two factions and that the road would be on the stage. It was not
possible for Count Kerbel to simply put his best friend’s second son
in the place where war would break out without knowing it.
There was something at hand. She wasn’t sure, but she figured it
would benefit her if she found out.
But there was too little information. If he was an officer of the army or
a Knight Guard, he must’ve been done a regular Bander Rating
evaluation, but he was only a Guarran-Tia. A Bander Rating
evaluation was too expensive to be done for Guarran-Tias. There
was only one way left.
Elon began plotting up a plan. She was not made to do the merchant
side of work. She had to prepare for the upcoming war. She needed
more information.
‘Hmm… Why can’t they leave me alone? Was that house on the 11th
district the house of the Kirion family?’ Sian thought as he felt like he
was no longer being watched.
The Kirion family was one of the families from the Royalist faction
that had a Returnee. The person who was looking at him must have
been one of them.
After that party, he felt people watching him every time he patrolled
El-Lua Road. People must’ve thought they went unnoticed, but they
had their Bander wrapped around their eyes as they watched so it
was easy to notice. All of them were either Returnees or warriors
from the party.
The Bander users had specific auras coming out of them that made
it hard to forget. Once Sian saw them using it, he was able to tell
when it was being used anywhere within the capital.
However, they definitely did not know that Sian had noticed. The only
person who could do this was Sian himself.
It only had been five years since he could do something like this.
He did not like being watched, but they weren’t doing anything so he
decided to stay. Whatever it was, he just needed to do his job and
return home to Count Kerbel’s mansion.
He then noticed that his shift was almost over and he began moving
to 14th district. That was the place where he traded shifts, so he
needed to go there if he was to get off work right away.
“Good day, Sion. We’ve met, right? I’m Elon from the Kirion family. I
thought it would be good to be friends since we will meet up more
often anyway.”
“You keep the peace on our roads. I’m so relieved that a man like
you is keeping the peace for a weak lady like me.”
Sian could not agree. This woman was a Master-level warrior who
just returned from the Wall. If there was a danger that she could not
handle happening within the city, Sharlotte should just stay in the
basement and never come out if she wanted to live.
He nodded.
She was thirty-five years old, but her Bander kept her looking young
in her twenties. Yet, unlike Sharlotte, she had the body of a well-
trained warrior that gave her look of a panther.
Sian didn’t seem to alienate her either, but he seemed really lazy for
sure.
She couldn’t bring up the energy to scan it as it was very rude (It was
taken as a challenge) but she glanced at him as she spoke. He had
the signs of being a warrior.
This was not something that one could hide. It was natural body
language to show how hard the body had tried to become strong.
But this man had nothing like it. He just felt like a very lazy man.
However, she did meet a person like this before. The Great North
Wall was a place where all kinds of powerful people gathered. There,
she met those who felt like the man in front of her right now.
<Exer>
‘Now that I think of it, the second Roman son doesn’t have to be a
Bander. He could be an Exer.’
‘There’s a way.’
“I wanted to invite you over too. My place is close to where you work,
so how about you stop by after you you finish? Come, join us for
dinner. My family oversees the trade from the Con Kingdom through
the Karan Kingdom. We will have great food made from various
ingredients, and you won’t regret it.”
Elon smiled as she gave her explanation. Sian was tempted. His
family was very modest in their expenditures, so he was amazed by
how Count Kerbel dined. To taste cuisine made from ingredients
from around the world… Elon, who noticed Sian faltering, smiled and
continued, “Our chef is one of the finest and he worked at the Royal
Palace for a long time. The King sent us a few of the Royal chefs for
our service and all the ingredients that we supply. How about dinner
in two days? We will have Salon Shrimp from the Con Kingdom that
day. It’s for the Royal Palace, but we will be able to taste it
beforehand.”
“Hm, okay. Then, I guess I can’t refuse. I will go to your place in two
days.”
“Good! I’ll see you then. It was a pleasure talking to you today.”
“No, no. It’s just to return your invitation from the other day. This is
Shuville. She’s an Exer who works for our family. She just came back
to the capital so I thought it would be good to introduce her to you.”
“Oh, I see. It’s great to meet you, Miss Shuville. It’s amazing to meet
an Exer.”
Dinner soon began, and it was pleasant with the casual talk.
‘It’s interesting.’
It was very different from Magic Priests. They did use Exar, but they
used it like Bander users. It was calculated and it flowed through the
body on a set route.
But Exers were different. The Exar resonated together with the
heartbeat and swirled around the body in a disorderly manner. It also
seemed to be affected by how Shuville felt since the Exar became
stronger as she munched on the Salon Shrimp.
He ate all food in front of him; it was not anything like he’d tasted
before. It even made him feel the need to visit Con Kingdom’s city,
Martia, where the shrimp originated.
It seemed natural that it happened and Sian felt like he could use the
energy by himself. He then imagined pulling on the Exar that was
swirling around him.
At that moment, the Exar reacted violently and was instantly pulled
into him. Sian quickly cut off the flow, surprised by what just
happened. As the Exar was cut off from being pulled, it returned to
Shuville at once, like a spring that recoiled.
“UGH!”
“Um… I’m… I’m not sure. He may or may not be an Exer. I’ve never
felt something like this.”
Shuville left the mansion, and Elon was left alone to think about what
had happened.
She thought about asking Rian, but it seemed to be too much. She
decided she would take the time to look into it slowly; she would find
out for sure. At least the dinner was a success, so it would be easier
to befriend him from now on.
Elon shook away her thoughts and turned to the report that came to
her today. Sian was a personal interest, but her work was not. Elon
began reading through and frowned midway.
Elon read through the reports and moved to the training room in the
basement, trying to shake off the stress that came from all the
problems.
Sian finished eating at ‘Karac’s Horn,’ located further out from El-Lua
Road on his way to his patrol. That was when a red signal fire
soared up into the sky.
A red signal fire was used to gather all Guarran-Tias within sight of it.
It usually meant that the incident involved powerful individuals.
A blue signal was to request help from the Knight Guards. Unlike the
1st and 2nd, the 3rd Knight Guards were able to leave the Palace to
help with city peacekeeping.
The red signal fire meant the incident was an emergency and
immediate assistance was needed at the scene. Sian swallowed
down the dessert he was snacking on and started running.
“Bastard!”
It was a mess. Men from the two factions got into a fight while eating
at the same restaurant. One of the building walls was crushed, and
the fight had now leaked out onto the street.
It looked like Sian was the first one to arrive as there was only one
Guarran-Tia escorting citizens away from the fight. Sian sighed. The
fools didn’t seem to realize that fights did not have to be so vulgar.
As he felt from Celine’s case, these people seemed eager to destroy
and plunder.
It was a rule for the Guarran-Tias to wait for backup to arrive in the
case of a red signal fire. However, any more damage would be
severely problematic to the restaurant owner, who was already
looking pale at the side.
Sian decided to handle the issue on his own and took out his sword
without unsheathing it.
“Hey! Wait!”
The Guarran-Tia called out to him, but Sian ignored him as he began
swinging his sword toward the back of each person’s head that was
fighting.
They began to fall unconscious, one by one. A few tried to fight back
as they started to realize what was happening, but it was too late.
The sky was filled with blue signal fires from all over.
The damage report she received showed that it was much worse.
The budget meeting that was held the day before had ended in
chaos as the Noble and Royalist factions opposed each other
fiercely. She had expected something to start, but she didn’t expect it
to be so soon.
‘Don’t worry about the red ones and go for the blues… the reds will
be taken care of… was it?’
She couldn’t remember much of what Rian had said as she was
concentrating on the matters at hand. However, as she thought
about it now, it seemed that it wasn’t just to let her concentrate on
her own work.
Captain Rian must’ve known that the red signal fires would be solved
easily and he also knew his brother would be the one to do it.
The officer shook his head and answered that he did not know the
details.
Sian was supposed to follow the other Guarran-Tias out to the outer
capital, but because he signed the paper, his patrol area was now
three times larger, and he had to support all the blue signal fires.
“Why don’t you think of the bright side? You are helping your brother,
Captain Rian, after all.” Celine spoke with a tired face as she ran
beside Sian. She requested Sian to help to tease him, but it proved
that she had made a fantastic choice as time went by.
She had only worked with him for a few days, but one thing was
certain. ‘This guy is too strong.’
He did not look strong. He moved like he always did, even when he
fought. There was no excessive force or emotional outburst. He just
swung once, every time.
Just like how a lumberjack swung his axe, Sian swung his sword
naturally. There was nothing wasted, and no one who could evade
his attack either. It took him just one swing per person to quell the
situation.
Sian was already working once they got to the scene and Celine
jumped in as well, thinking she should work hard to keep up.
Kial, the second son of Baron Gnon, loved the current situation at
the capital.
Battle.
The capital was too peaceful. He knew that he could not cause
trouble as it would damage Marquis Narasha’s reputation, but it
made him feel depressed. Sparring wasn’t enough to satisfy his
hunger for battle.
He loved the life at the wall, but he also wanted to return and repay
the grace that Marquis Narasha had bestowed upon him. He readied
himself for a boring life in the capital, but things were different now.
When he heard from Marquis Narasha a few days ago, he could not
believe it.
He had no interest in picking fights with the weaker ones like the
others. He wanted to fight a strong warrior. That’s why he came to
fight Karan from Count Kravel. The other five stronger individuals
had a chance to ignore his taunts, but this man was sure to react.
And he did.
“YOU BASTARD! How dare a Narasha dog like you belittle me! I’ve
hated you since the Wall. I’ll kill you!”
And the fight started. Buildings were destroyed, and everything was
thrown upside-down. A Master-rank Bander’s sword was
unstoppable.
A Guarran-Tia lit a blue signal fire, but he did not think there was
anyone powerful enough to stop them. It seemed he could fight until
that Captain from the 3rd Knight Guard arrived.
THUD
Kial stopped, confused from the sound and the fact that Karan that
had fallen. Then, he also felt a sharp jolt at the back of his head as
he lost his vision.
“Wh…what…”
“Are you okay? Wasn’t one of the men from the Royalist Faction?”
“I mean… You are from the Knight Guard… and the Kiraine Family is
a Royalist and all… I was just worried if you felt bad about it.”
“Right.”
“Yes, it means we do not care who the king or who his family is. We
protect them from foreign enemies and solve Tian’s problems.”
Celine explained it, but Sian didn’t seem to grasp the concept yet.
She felt she needed to elaborate and remembered how she
explained it to her eight-year-old nephew a while ago, which seemed
adequate for Sian.
“Hmm… You do know who the current king is, right?”
“It’s because anyone who can take over the throne can become a
king in this country. The current king is very good, considering the
fact that it continued into the second generation.”
“Be careful. You might get arrested for saying that out loud. He did
not rebel. It was a… transfer.”
Celine explained further, “No ordinary man can do this easily. You
have the military, diplomatic issues arising from all sides outside the
country, and inner conflicts. The king is given the authority to rule,
but he needs power to fulfill his responsibility. If not, the kingdom will
not survive. We will be torn apart by the three kingdoms I
mentioned.”
“Oh… then…”
“Yeah, the family that proved themselves worthy for the task is
chosen to be on the throne. If they can’t prove themselves or if
there’s another family that can prove to do it, then they will have to
relinquish the throne and transfer the seat over. That’s what is
happening right now. The Succession War. The current Royalist
needs to prove itself worthy as it did before to take the previous
Royalists’ place.”
It had continued for years and helped the Tian Kingdom survive. The
faction that was overthrown accepted it quietly since they could
always try to reclaim the throne later. But there were always those
who hated to give up on what they had and were executed. These
were the same concerns that Count Kerbel had also.
“But I don’t quite understand it yet. Isn’t the Knight Guard there to
protect the Royal family?”
“Yes, but we do not care who it is. We only make a move when the
kingdom is in crisis. We cannot interfere with internal conflicts.
Besides, the stronger faction taking over the throne is good for the
kingdom. So the three warrior families, the seven military groups,
Tian Kingdom’s Magical Priest Council, and the Knight Guards do
not interfere with the factions. We only intervene when the problem
gets out of hand.”
Sian finally understood why his father joined the Knight Guard even
though he insisted on staying neutral. This was, in fact, the most
efficient way to stay neutral.
She wasn’t sure, but part of her had already made up her mind.
It was highly probably that Sian was the blessed great one, Grand
Bander.
If it wasn’t true, then it was impossible to make Kial and Karan fall
unconscious in one hit. It was a fight between Masters, and even a
Master at the same level probably would not be able to stop the fight.
Most people who came back from the Wall became Masters. The
total number of Masters within the Tian Kingdom was ninety-seven.
Out of those, there were seventeen Royalists and twenty-six Nobles
that joined the war. This was all the power that each faction could
muster as other the Masters were divided up among the other
neutral factions.
Rian and Celine herself were ranked lower than those Masters.
Celine was probably the one of the lowest and Rian was probably at
about the seventieth rank. There were a few reasons that allowed
Celine and Rian to become captain and the lieutenant captain of the
Knight Guard.
First, a lot of other Masters had filled up the other positions. They
were stationed along the outer perimeter and important stations as
commanders and generals to protect and fight against the Kharan
Kingdom.
Second, unlike the 1st or 2nd Knight Guards that moved around the
entire kingdom, the 3rd Knight Guard only stayed within the capital to
keep the peace. As such, it did not require powerful warriors at its
disposal.
With the above reasons, there were no Masters left to spare for the
3rd Knight Guard. So including Rian and Celine, the number of
Masters in the 3rd Knight Guard was only three.
But third and the last reason was the most important.
Third was that Rian was promised to become a Grand Bander, given
his lineage. He needed experience as a captain to become the
Commander of the Knight Guard once he became Grand Bander.
Many loved Rian and respected him, but there were some who
despised him.
But Rian was sure to become one, as all of the Roman family did in
the past.
This was why he was the captain of the 3rd Knight Guard.
This was also why Celine hated to admit that the man next to her
was already a Grand Bander.
The Saladar family that reigned before the current Craden Kingdom
had ruled the kingdom for over a hundred years. It was, after all, one
of the three warrior families of the kingdom.
This turned the tides against the Saladars. One Grand Bander
wasn’t enough to fight against the entire Saladar family, but they also
could not fight against a Grand Bander, an asset to the kingdom.
It helped the Craden family build its power and build the Noble
Faction to challenge the Saladar family.
After they were dethroned, the Saladar family returned to being one
of the three warrior families of the kingdom.
“…So, Kial was locked up until now and you brought him back?”
“Yes, milord. He just woke up from being unconscious from the blow
to his head. He is being treated by one of our Exers.”
There was more. People from the other areas succeeded in creating
a ruckus and moved out, but everyone who was at El-Lua Road was
arrested. Kial was one of them.
“Did the 3rd Knight Guard deploy all their forces to the streets?”
“Yes?”
The Marquis came back to his office and dived into deep thought.
‘What happened…?’
There was no chance that the Grand Bander had come from a
foreign country, so it must be from within. But no one knew who it
was.
This called for a need to change the plan.
The Marquis then thought of bringing <Them> in. They were what
gave him hope against fighting both the Kharan and Taran Kingdoms
at once. They only joined because the Marquis had what they
wanted. But he shook away the thoughts. They were too dangerous.
They were not to be involved with the internal conflict.
Nothing was certain about the Grand Bander yet anyway. Maybe it
wasn’t even a Grand Bander.
Sian finished beating up the last man and fastened his sword to his
belt. There was another blue signal the was fired air at a distance but
to Sian, it was for the next shift.
“Ugh…”
Celine sighed. Sian seemed like he felt no responsibility for his job.
The blue signal meant the area was being smashed into pieces, but
Sian did not care. She understood why Sharlotte hated him so much.
Sian felt bad as he saw Celine running off, but he defended himself
by thinking he had done a lot of work for the day. He had been doing
more work than what he was getting paid for.
And all these men who were causing the ruckus had eyes watching
them from distance. Sian had nothing to hide so these men were
definitely bad criminals to have a man to watch out for them.
So he rolled up his sleeves and beat up these men under the name
of justice. (It wasn’t because he feared they would come back to
cause more problems if he did not beat them up to stay in a bed for
two weeks.)
He felt bad for attacking the watchers who were just doing their jobs,
but he did their job by putting down these criminals anyway so it was
okay.
‘I need a vacation.’
Sian wanted a vacation so bad. Ten hours of work per day was too
much for him.
Yet it did not go as planned. The warriors and watchers were all
beaten up and fell unconscious. None of them knew what had
happened.
2. The Grand Bander did not interfere outside of the hours between
8:00 and 18:00.
3. Watchers who were one thousand feet away were attacked, which
meant that there was an accomplice.
Celine couldn’t have done this. She was weak and young. Even if
she hid her true power, she was only thirty-five years old. There was
no way she was a Grand Bander.
He did hear the Guarran-Tia at the district was Count Roman’s
second son, but he was only seventeen so it wasn’t possible.
He had failed to find out who this new Grand Bander was and what
he was up to. But he had no time on his hands and he needed to
make a decision.
“Shake up all areas outside of El-Lua. I will take care of the inside.”
“Yes, milord.”
There was no time to waste anymore. It was best to keep El-Lua out
of focus, but it would make him look weak and make people think he
was avoiding Kiraine and the Royalists from the road.
“Wasn’t it you that was tired of Harijan meat? Haha, but there is no
food better than that anywhere else.”
“Anyway, thank you for coming so quickly. It has only been a short
while since I called for you. It’s always amazing to see. I reckon you
all heard about what’s going on?”
“Yes. Someone is hindering our plans. I don’t know who he is, but it
must be easy for you to find out, I assume?”
<Yes. This should be easy… we have some who were getting tired
of staying hidden.>
“I see. I guess you didn’t need to bring all of you here for such a
thing.”
The Marquis answered, but he felt bitter within. He said that killing a
Grand Bander was nothing when he himself was a Grand Bander.
He did not consider himself to be most powerful in the world, but it
felt bitter to feel powerless.
“Yes, here’s the report for basic information. Make sure you do not
kill the two men in the report, that will ruin the plan. We just need to
remove the Grand Bander who is standing in our way.”
The Marquis handed over the report and the drawings of Count
Roman and Swordmeister Kiraine.
These two were from opposite factions, but they were also pillars of
the kingdom. They were important figures of the kingdom. If they
were harmed, it would result in problems.
These were his last resort to bring in to fight against other countries.
He feared them when he faced them for the first time, but he was
also filled with joy. They were dangerous but worthy as a powerful
weapon. After hiding them within his estate, he began to form a new
plan for the best-case scenario. They were to be feared, but it could
not be Tian who feared them.
They were too dangerous to bring into the kingdom’s affairs like this,
but there was no other choice.
He left the basement and headed to the strategy room, where his
advisors were waiting.
Sian was sure that the War God had been watching over him in the
recent days. There were no blue signals for the past few days, and
El-Lua was peaceful. The other districts outside of his area still had
problems, but he did not care. Because of this, Celine also had to go
help the other districts, which gave Sian complete freedom.
‘What is that?’
It was moving all about the street, especially the damaged areas. To
Sian, it seemed like it was sniffing at the damaged area. Sian began
to rationalize the situation:
The thing came up to his face and began sending a strange flow of
energy at him. It was just like that feeling from Lady Shuville at Lady
Elon’s home, and he instinctively reflected the flow without realizing
it. At that moment, the thing began shaking severely as if it had met
an earthquake.
After a loud thud, the swirl dissipated and a small girl dropped out of
it. She looked at Sian blankly and then fell unconscious.
‘Oh no…’
Even among the Exers, she was the most powerful, as well as
exquisite.
The place where she had come from was a living hell. There was
nothing she could think of other than survive. She and her people
needed to fight day to day to survive, killing Harijans and eating
them. They kept moving south as the Harijans in the south were
weaker, but it took them a long time. Under the order of the Seven
Elders, they moved south, passing by the fallen Empire. After a few
hundred years, they arrived and were blocked by the great wall,
protected by humans.
The leader of those humans offered to aid them. They helped them
move over the wall, and gave them a place to stay.
They finally succeeded in surviving, over thousands of their people’s
dead bodies in the cursed Empire’s land.
They did not see many humans, but Marquis Narasha seemed like
he was one of the strongest among them. She remembered talking
among his people, realizing how peaceful their place was.
Eleven of them followed the Elders to help the Marquis who asked
for their aid. It seemed like too many to kill just one person, but they
were bored, so the Elders approved.
Once Kirat returned with the information on the target, they would
move out. They did not know how Kirat was so good at finding
people or information, and she did not explain in detail.
All of them did not know much about the others within as it was
taboo for them to ask in-depth questions about each other. All they
needed was to believe and show results.
They just needed to wait for Kirat to show the way, as she always
did.
Kal-Rasha then turned to the food that was served in front of her; it
was called dessert. The food wasn’t better than Harijan meat, but
this dessert was amazing. She needed to eat a lot of it once she had
the chance.
<Exers are fascinating beings. No one can predict what they can do.
Oh, of course, I’m still stronger.>
…….
She had a hidden power that she never revealed to anyone. Only
her sister Rasha knew of that power. Kirat had never heard of
anyone having a similar power, even after secretly looking into it
when she arrived here.
They did not hear any detailed information about the target from the
Marquis, but with Kirat’s power, they were not worried.
Needless to say, as she was listening to the Marquis and the Elders
talk, a strange box popped up in the air in front of her. Sometimes it
guided the path she needed to take.
[As per the Fifth Elder’s order, go out to El-Lua Road. Look for traces
of the unknown target.]
She did not know where this El-Lua Road was, but was not worried.
The map would soon pop up next to her. When she left the
basement, she began moving in the direction the map showed. She
did not need to think; she just needed to follow the guidance from the
map.
El-Lua Road was very clean and majestic. If it weren’t for her task,
she would enjoy the view and look for a store where ‘desserts’ were
sold, but there was no time to waste. The place where the map
guided her to was different as it was in ruins. People were working
hard to repair it.
-This place bears the traces of battle between Kial (Knight Guard
Retiree, 44 years old) Returnee of Marquis Narasha’s faction and
Karan (Knight Guard Retiree, 43 years old) Returnee from the
Royalist faction.
-The two had been fighting until they were subdued by an unknown
individual. Look for traces of him.
The quest included useless information like it always did and told her
what to do. (She had no use for the information about their age or
old jobs.)
She was hidden using a secret technique from her people called
Zengar-Klang so she could investigate slowly.
Various pieces of useless information filled her view, but she did not
give up. The quest had guided her here, so there must be a trace.
Finally, she found the trace she was looking for.
-The button still holds its owner’s scent. Trace the scent and locate
the man.
Kirat used the skill that she learned when she went on missions. It
helped her people get out of dangerous situations multiple times.
The Marquis’ report claimed the individual was living nearby. It would
mean she would just need to walk around carefully, which she did.
Not long after, she heard an alarm and some information popped up.
[Success.]
-Distance: 24 yards.
Her skill had never failed her, but this time she was filled with doubt.
The man had a confused look and did not feel strong at all. After
surviving the land of death in the north, she acquired animal-like
instincts, and they warned her whenever there was a dangerous
individual nearby.
However, it was definite that he was the man she was looking for.
The skills and information never lied to her, and he was looking
directly at her anyway. He seemed annoyed to see her and was
moving away to avoid her. Even Masters could not sense her when
she was using her hiding skill, so she was sure that he was strong.
Kirat decided to check on him before he returned home.
If he was a Grand Bander, the hiding skill wasn’t enough, but she
had more than that. Even the Elders could not find her if she used all
her skills unless she intended to attack. But she had no such
intention this time, so it seemed possible.
-You are setting foot into a different dimension. Your trace has
decreased greatly.
-Your ability to hide from the five senses has greatly increased.
After using all of her skills, Kirat used all her might to use Zengar-
Klang and approached the man. If she drew close, the information
would pop up, and she just needed to check it.
[Success!]
-Go back to the Fifth Elder and report for the next order.
The mission completion proved that he was the target. It felt strange
that she couldn’t feel anything, so she used another skill.
[Activating skill <Eye of the Avant Garde>]
This skill allowed her to investigate the target’s details and even their
weaknesses. It was one of her best skills. It had even helped her
people fight two six-horned Harijans. It had cost them three Elders
and many others, but it still helped them significantly reduce the
number of casualties.
[Success!]
‘…what?’
At that moment, Kirat felt as if she had been struck with a hammer
from within. The energy from her skill being canceled rebounded at
her. Her inner flow was disrupted, and she could not activate her
skills. She felt dizzy as all her skills were canceled, including Zengar-
Klang. Her sight went dark, and she fell unconscious.
“Okay, I was joking. But I can’t trace her identity… there’s nothing on
her to prove it. We should ask her when she wakes up.”
Kirat opened her eyes as she heard the noise around her. She could
not understand what had happened; she was on a bed.
‘Why am I here…?’
All she could remember… was a man’s face looking down at her.
Kirat found the man talking to her as the man she saw before she fell
unconscious and became wary.
“Hey, what did you do to her? Why is she on guard like that?”
Kirat watched the man and woman in front of her talk to each other
for a while, before asking, “…where am I?”
“Hmm? That’s an unfamiliar accent. You must not be from here. This
is the Guarran-Tia’s headquarters within the capital. You’re here for
treatment. I don’t see anything wrong but do you feel anything
strange?”
Kirat sighed in relief as she saw the woman talking nicely to her, her
identity had not been revealed.
Kirat spoke as she had been trained for emergencies in the Marquis
mansion. It helped that she only looked fifteen.
“Huh? Me?”
“Yeah, you. You brought her here. You are responsible. Besides,
she’s a girl! And everyone else is on duty, unlike you.”
“Ugh… understood.”
‘Dammit.’
“Thank you.”
[Status: Kal-Kirat]
-Level: 37
-Bander: 0
-Level: ???
-Bander: ???
-Exar: ???
-Skills: ???
…
All she found out was his name and job. It would help the Marquis,
but she had never experienced something like this, so she was
confused. She had never tried it against the Great Elder and the
Second Elder who were much more powerful than anyone else out
of fear, but she had tried it on the Fifth and Seventh Elder with no
problems.
She tried conversing with Sian, but he seemed too annoyed to chit-
chat.
The mansion was a distance away from the capital, standing alone in
the plains, with nothing around it.
After she arrived, there was nothing else she could do other than
give her thanks.
[Quest failed!]
<Yes… We succeeded.>
“That’s great. I just asked you for it… So, do you require any more
information?”
<Of course… Look into this… ‘Sian von Roman’ for us.>
The Marquis looked confused at the name of the second son of the
Roman family.
<Of course he is… he is the one you’ve been looking for… Give us
the information… and we will handle it.>
<…?>
Even the Fiften Elder was dumbfounded. It was not possible for a
seventeen-year-old to become a Grand Bander. Others who were
not even close to that level might have thought it was maybe
possible. But to the Marquis and the Elder, who were at the level of
such strength, both knew it was impossible.
But at seventeen?
<I will look into it further… But you should too. Grand Bander or
not… this Sian is the one… who subdued your men.>
“Understood. I will do the same.”
The Elder disappeared with a swirl, and Marquis Narasha delved into
his thoughts alone. He did not believe it was possible, but if Sian was
the one, then every situation fit in perfectly.
“Hello!”
“Hello Sir, I am Raat. I heard my sister put you into some trouble…
so I came to invite you over for dinner.”
“Okay. You can go with us once you are done with your shift.”
“Oh, yes. We heard there’s a great dessert place nearby. We’ll stay
there until then.”
The sisters turned and left as Sian thought to himself that it was to
do a good deed and complimented himself, daydreaming of what a
good time he would have at the dinner.
“So… your parents are merchants that trade with the Con Kingdom?”
“Yes. They are away right now, so my sister and I are the only ones
at the mansion along with some workers. Oh, Kiras, don’t you need
to apologize for something?”
“I’m sorry. She loves to prank people, but she’s a lonely girl.”
“It’s okay, Miss Raat and Miss Kiras. Don’t mind it too much.
Besides, her falling unconscious was my fault. I should be the one
who needs to apologize.”
Sian replied politely without thinking, but the sisters were startled.
What he said meant that he knew she tried to scan him. They did not
expect this. No Bander user had ever sensed the Exar that was used
to examine them.
“Sir Sian… What do you mean that it is your fault?” Rasha asked
calmly, pretending not to be surprised. She needed to find out what
he knew. Sian became curious and answered, “Aren’t you
apologizing for Miss Kiras using Exar on me? It’s okay, she could’ve
just been curious.”
Rasha and Kirat were relieved that Sian did not know what they were
trying to do. But they also raised their guard against him for being
able to sense such a weak flow of Exar. As such, they could no
longer investigate as Sian might grow suspicious.
Keratan, one of the people, asked the Fifth Elder. No one in their
group doubted that they could kill the man. Even if he was a genius
who had become a Grand Bander at the age of seventeen, it still
seemed possible.
The only thing that stopped them was Marquis Narasha, who was
hesitant after he found out that the man was the son of the Roman
family.
The Elder gave his answer as no one in the capital knew that they
were related to the Marquis. They were going to lure him out of the
capital before taking care of him.
<Yes… the Marquis has decided… Let’s be quick… We will do it as
planned..>
Sian was heading to Raat and Kiras’ mansion with a bright smile on
his face. Their parents had invited him over after returning from their
travels. He couldn’t go empty-handed, so he purchased a small gift
beforehand. He was looking forward to having dinner with the
beautiful Raat and the soon-to-be beautiful Kiras. He knocked on the
door when he arrived.
“Hello?”
“Welcome, Sir Sian von Roman. They are waiting inside. Please,
come in.”
A man invited him in, and Sian smelled the scent of good food as he
entered. However, something seemed off.
Sian thought that the return of merchants would cause more activity,
but the mansion was too quiet. He dismissed it thinking that it could
have been because their father who hated noise and decided to
focus on the dinner.
Sian walked into the dining area. There were guards inside the room.
“Where is Miss Kiras?” Sian asked, and Keretan answered with a
smile,
Sian looked confused, but Keratan drew the sword at his waist,
which Sian had thought to be decorative, and lunged at him. At that
signal, all the guards inside the room attacked Sian.
Kirat thought as she watched the mansion from a nearby hill. She
was not a fighter, so she had to retreat. She wasn’t weak, but fighting
was not her specialty. Their plan was perfect.
The Fifth Elder had lived for fifty years after becoming a Grand
Bander.
Even if the man were a Grand Bander, he would not stand a chance.
Kirat’s face turned grim. Her people, including her sister, was in
danger… The reward Exp was high; it meant that the task was very
hard. Kirat began running toward the mansion. At that moment, an
enormous, pressuring force of vicious energy burst out of the
mansion.
‘Ugh…!’
She almost fainted but steadied herself. She needed to save her
sister.
He was expecting a good meal, but the man claiming to be the father
of Miss Raat was trying to impale him with a sword. All the guards
surrounding him also didn’t seem like regular guards.
All of them were stronger than his brother. What was weirder was
that Miss Raat was among those guards.
There had to be a reason for them to attack, as even Miss Raat, who
was so kind, was among the attackers. He had been doing good
deeds until now, and it wouldn’t be right to kill them without knowing
the reason. Thinking this way, he complimented himself for being
merciful and drew his sword from his belt.
After dodging the sword that almost reached his eyes, he tried to
strike the guard next to him, but he was stopped. He felt his body
being frozen by a strong, dark Exar clinging onto him. He looked
over and found a woman disguised as a maid looking at him, swirling
Exar over him.
His father’s force felt more dignified, while this force behind him felt
more vicious and angry. He couldn’t avoid it while thinking of other
things like he did before.
He quickly moved his sword to block the attack from the back. After
parrying the attacks from all sides, he moved to a corner of the room.
“Hmm… Can we solve this with a talk? I haven’t killed anyone yet, so
I wish to resolve this peacefully.”
Keratan and the others smirked. They liked that he was honest, but
he had to be killed. They all attacked.
Sian sighed. They were trying their best, putting their lives on the
line, but he was just annoyed. It would’ve been great if he could
finish all of them with a smack to their heads. However, these people
were strong, and a man who looked especially strong on the other
side didn’t seem to want to let him do that so easily.
When Sian broke the wall that blocked him from advancing, he felt a
strange feeling reeling within him.
He did not hate the feeling. He had no interest in other things than
using the sword.
He was busy trying different things with his swords after breaking the
wall, so it did not bother him much. Yet, other than training,
everything else became pointless.
All the rules, traditions, and lifestyles made by humans did not seem
to fit him. He didn’t want to follow anything.
The only thing that held him back was the families who could be sad
if he somehow ended up different from their perceptions. That made
him lock up the new strength which filled him with strange thoughts.
It brought him back to normal and he decided to not use the power if
possible.
It was the best state he could ever wish for and he wished it could’ve
continued on as is.
He wished he would never have to use the power again and avoided
any possible conflicts.
“Hah…”
He felt like a fool for trying to stay within the boundary of people.
Sian realized there was one thing he had to take care of before.
He looked at the eleven people who froze in fear of the energy blast
that occurred as he unlocked the power. He smiled and made his
decision.
This was also to respect himself from ten seconds ago. The Sian
from ten seconds ago wanted him to take care of the situation, so he
decided to do it.
At once, a space on his palm began to distort itself. It was the first
time he was using the power, so he couldn’t control it properly,
wasting most it. But it did not matter. He was strong. Stronger than
anyone. Sian decided to practice using his power on the surrounding
people and began walking up to them.
The Fifth Elder could not pull himself together at the evil energy that
blasted out from the man. The only thing that stopped them from
fainting was the similar experience they had from before.
It was the vicious energy that radiated from the monsters, trying to
tear them into pieces which made them feel dizzy. If it wasn’t for the
Great Elder, the Second Elder and Kirat, they would’ve all died.
But this was much worse. The man walking toward them was
smiling, and he was definitely going to kill them all.
The Elder did not take off his gaze off the man and spoke to his
people in their language.
<We… need to run… now. I will hold him… spread out… Rasha…
go take Kirat… run to Great Elder…>
Everyone nodded as they bit their lips. Kirat was the most important
among them all. Each one of them represented one of the many
warriors, including the Fifth Elder, but Kirat and her special Exar
power that enabled her to guide their people made her unique and
valuable. They needed to buy time for Rasha to successfully flee
with Kirat into safety.
The Fifth Elder then took out his weapon from within. He needed to
attack when his enemy unexpected it the most.
<Now!!!>
The Elder shouted and blocked Sian. The other ten people began
running out.
The Fifth Elder took out a weapon crafted by the Second Elder.
They ate the meat, gathered blood to make medicines, and they
used Talic Stones to craft arms.
The Second Elder then collected many Talic Stones from those five-
horned Harijans and created powerful artifacts. They had to use Talic
Stones to survive through the battles, so the number of artifacts
crafted were small and they were given to the other Elders and elite
warriors.
The power went unmatched and even proved powerful enough to cut
down the arms of a six-horned Harijan.
<Karmata>
It was so strong that the Fifth Elder restrained from using the
weapon as it would make him rely too much on the weapon. He was
certain that there were very little people in the world that he could not
defeat with the weapon.
<The world… is too large… the War God that your people believe
in… must have been crazy… to make a man like you…>
The Elder spoke, gritting his teeth. The man in front of him was at
least equal, or probably stronger than the Great Elder.
“Yeah, yeah. The world is large after all. That’s why you have to play
nice.”
He didn’t seem to care about the others who were running away. He
also seemed much less polite. The Elder looked at the distorted
space upon his palm and began moving Bander into Karmata.
“So, I’ve waited long enough then? Come on now, I gave them
enough time to run…”
<ARRGH!!>
The Elder could not take the sword out of Sian’s grasp and gave up.
He then concentrated all of his Bander and smashed it on Karmata’s
hilt, trying to bash it into the enemy. A loud crashing sound was
heard and Karmata wobbled like crazy. It wasn’t because Sian was
moving. The sword was flailing against the powerful strike. Sian was
still looking at the Karmata he was holding onto.
The weapon let out golden light, trying to destroy the target, but it
was helpless as the owner was no longer holding it and the light
began to dissipate. The Elder was standing a few feet back in shock.
<…No…>
It looked like an easy task when Marquis Narasha asked them. Even
after they examined the target, it seemed so easy. The man followed
them to dinner without any suspicion, and even when he ate, he
seemed to have put down all guards against her. She was worried
since the man was said to be a Grand Bander, but he was a letdown.
It began to make sense. That was why he was so relaxed and didn’t
seem to be afraid about anything. He didn’t need to be afraid. There
was nothing that could threaten him.
<Pa-Harijan>
Rasha ran toward her sister who was running down from the hill.
The Elder seemed to be successful in buying enough time. She
looked around and the found others still running in one piece. She
shouted at her sister.
The skill that brought them here was enough to teleport them back at
once. It consumed a lot of Talic Stones, but now was the was time to
use it. Kirat needed to be saved. She looked at Kirat, relieved from
being free from danger, but she was looking at her with a weird face.
She stopped running and despair filled her expression.
“…huh?”
The sky turned upside down and the ground was kicked up into the
sky. With the upside-down view, she saw the others being cut in half
from the waist and falling down to the ground.
Rasha looked at Kirat who was screaming in terror as she ran to her.
She felt her sight going dark and closed her eyes.
[The user has been exposed to danger. So by default, the user will
be recalled immediately.]
“NO!!!!”
Kirat screamed as she looked at the status window. For the first time
in her life, she wished that the window was wrong. Her sister was
running toward her and the enemy was still fighting the Elder. But
she was proved that her window never lied, and she saw her sister
and others getting cut in half by an unknown force.
“No… no… ah…”
She ran to her sister’s upper body and cried in despair. That was
when she felt she was being teleported back.
“No…! NO!!!”
There was nothing she could do here, but she couldn’t just return like
that. It felt better to die with all of them here. But the setting that kept
her safe from danger worked correctly as intended. It had saved her
many times from life-threatening situations, but this was the one time
she despised it.
Kirat glared at Sian who inside the far away mansion that had been
sliced in half and activated her skill.
Using multiple skills at the same time usually caused her to faint, but
she was using only one skill. She endured the pain coming from the
skill, but she examined Sian.
She was able to get more information than before. She would return
and find out more. Revenge was next.
‘Just wait…’
“It’s really interesting. I was attacked first, but then I become a target
of revenge. Did I just need to die? To let people be happy?”
Sian spoke to the dead body of the Fifth Elder as he turned away
from Kirat who disappeared. He could feel her use the skill as she
glared at him until she disappeared. He could’ve canceled the skill,
but the Elder charged at him with all his might that distracted him
and Kirat was gone.
Sian flinched. It wasn’t too much. They were trying to kill him. He
was smiling as he watched the dead man in front of him, then
suddenly flipped. He was now looking around sadly.
There was no good in killing people. Sian locked up the power and
looked around grimly before he walked back to the capital.
The people who were at the Narasha Estate told Kirat what she had
expected. It was their way of life.
<The strong ones survive while the weaker ones perish. We do not
carry weak.>
This way, the dead were just weak. There was no sin in being strong.
After hearing it from Kirat, the Great Elder determined that Sian
could be stronger than himself. To carry out revenge against such a
man only meant the doom to the people.
She could not bear to accept the reality of her sister’s death. Even in
her dream, she saw her sister being cut in half to die.
Yes, they did attack him first. But she was her sister.
‘Haha…’
His level.
-Level: 399
-Bander: ???
-Exar: ???
-Skills: ???
The Fifth Elder’s level was 183 and Keratan was 97. The Six-horned
Harijans were 217 and 331. She did not measure the Great Elder or
the Second Elder, but they fought against the six-horned Harijans, so
it was estimated to be about 320. While the two of them fought the
male, the weaker female took half of the warriors with her.
<If I don’t have the power to do it, I will borrow it. I will look for the
way. Like I always have done.>
…….
Sian tried hard to calm himself from the despair after he returned to
the capital. He was also deep in thought. The power gave him many
insights. His ego was fighting against the change that the Ra-Bander
power had brought upon him, and it would continue to do so. He
tried hard to fit into society and follow its rules, but it wasn’t for a
person like him.
The rules were for humans. They had to abide by the rules to stay in
society.
Yet Sian did not want to give up being human, and he didn’t want to
leave his family. That’s why he insisted he was different from
ordinary people and learned to fit in with society.
Suppressing his power and changing his personality wasn’t enough.
He would have to find a new way to do this.
Marquis Narasha felt the evil energy that seeped into his mansion
while he waited for the return of the Fifth Elder and his people as he
looked out the window. He looked toward the shelter he’d provided
for the Elder to hide in while staying at the capital. If he wasn’t a
Grand Bander, he would’ve missed it as there was a great distance.
It wasn’t far, but it still was about six miles away.
The Marquis spent the entire night with uncomfortable thoughts and
he sent a man at dawn. When the man returned and said that there
were only bodies and ruins, the Marquis ordered the collection of all
the bodies and arms.
This was beyond his level. It was not something a Grand Bander, or
Kel-Duin, the strongest Grand Bander, could do. There was only one
level above him.
The first was already in progress. The Third Elder who was in
contact with the Marquis did not want to risk the danger of facing a
Ra-Bander. They were powerful, but they did not want to take the
chance.
They received a heavy blow due to his request, but it was fortunate
that they did not try to exact revenge against the Ra-Bander. They
needed to stay safe for Tian Kingdom.
The research did not go well. Ra-Banders were famous figures, but
not much was written about them. They were too strong. So even
though everyone knew of them after thousands of years, nobody
knew what they really were.
The people working under Marquis Narasha did manage to dig up all
existing information about them. Ra-Bander information was scarce,
but the Magical Priests who held similar power had lots of
information as they left many writings and research papers that
helped a lot.
After going through all the findings of the superhuman beings from
history, they began identifying the differences.
This allowed them to stay about the same even after they became
Ra-Banders. They were already like that.
But Sian was different. His family was alive and he had never
experienced living in society. Even though he was strong, he was still
only a seventeen-year-old boy. He was trying hard to resist the alter
ego that came with being a Ra-Bander.
<If the monster wants to act like a human, I will help him.>
The reason why Ra-Banders were feared was because they were
not bounded by humans. Their moves weren’t predictable. But if
Sian wanted to live as a human and follow the rules of society, there
was a way to avoid conflict.
That would allow the Marquis to achieve his goals, but he needed to
be careful.
<People plotting against you behind your back? Good. It means that
they are afraid that you might know what they are up to. When all
fear you, that’s when you know you have become a God. Of course,
you won’t become one. I will.>
…….
Sian had been trying to shrug off the incident by focusing on his
ordinary life. What happened back at the mansion had been covered
up for unknown reasons. Sian had no reason to speak of the
incident, so he kept quiet, but it felt uncomfortable not to know the
true intention behind it. However, part of him considered it fortunate
that it didn’t become an issue.
From his experience, he realized that a sudden letter like this was
never good and carefully read it through, firing questions to the
operations officer in front of him.
“Of course. You will be going with Sir Cariman. He has plenty of
experience on royal inspections.”
‘Hmm?’
Count Kerbel sank deep into thought. Sian didn’t know, but it was
Kerbel who had arranged for Sian to work with Celine. Her job was
to keep Sian’s true strength hidden. If it were revealed that Sian was
the one responsible for stopping all the problems in El-Lua, Marquis
Narasha would’ve cast Sian out to the countryside at once. Count
Kerbel had no power to prevent that, so he had to hide that fact.
Celine was neutral when it came to politics, but she was worried the
Marquis’ extreme actions would cause problems on the streets and
accepted Count Kerbel’s request to help Sian.
She did a great job in hiding Sian from the public eye. Count Kerbel
knew this and believed Sian had not been exposed. Even now, most
of the Guarran-Tia believed Sian to be a lazy fool. He knew that the
Royalists and Nobles were keeping an eye on him, but he was only
seventeen and not considered dangerous. (If it weren’t for Kirat, the
Marquis might have still been wondering about the mystery man.)
The Third Knight Guard wasn’t enough to resolve all problems. (If
Sian had beat them up enough to stay in bed for longer, it would’ve
been great, but most of them recovered after four weeks.)
Marquis Narasha felt both relief and emptiness when he heard that
Sian had left the capital with Cariman for the inspection.
‘…that easy?’
The problem that killed eleven of his allies had been solved so
easily. The plan had been simple.
After they left, Cariman would drag out the trip to last for two months,
giving the Marquis enough time to finish everything.
The balance between the two factions was not large. It would be
easy for the Marquis to take over the throne once Sian had been
removed from the roads of El-Lua, which was the most strategic
location.
‘…’
“Hah… I see.”
Throughout the history of the world, there had only been twelve Ra-
Banders. Even after a thousand years, their names and their actions
had been recorded and praised. They were beings above what
ordinary humans could do. Their plan was to deal with such a being.
This was why Marquis Narasha was concerned right down to the last
detail. He was sure that his people could not fully grasp this.
“Yes, milord.”
It had been quite some time since they left the capital, and they were
now headed to the Logadis Estate. Sian was chatting with Sir
Cariman in the small carriage. Cariman studied Sian, whom he had
befriended during their travel, and remembered what the Viscount
had instructed.
<NEVER, never, let him think about returning to the capital. You
have to keep him out of the capital for two months.>
There had been other precautions, but those two were the most
important. It wasn’t very detailed, but it was apparent that he
considered Sian some kind of plague or disaster and that made
Cariman curious.
“The countryside is not the same as the capital. I believe you have
only lived in the capital?”
“Yes.”
“OH!”
“The Logadis Estate is more peaceful than most other places… but I
haven’t been there in a long time so it might have changed by now. It
might feel like a different country, so be prepared. Haha!”
<One who helps the weaker in the fight becomes a hero? Then what
happens to the stronger that was doing his best to win the fight?>
…….
‘Dammit… is it a fight?’
The Guarran-Tia were not weak, but bandits were the same;
furthermore, they fought to the death because being arrested meant
death anyway. However, out of all new recruits that Cariman had
been assigned, 85% of them ran out with a sword in their hand.
Concerned, Cariman turned toward Sian as he expected Sian to be
eager to join the fight to uphold the honor of his family name.
‘Hmm?’
“Uh… N-no. Not at all. I was just wondering if you were curious
about it.”
“Oh, I see. I just asked to confirm if that was one of our inspection
duties. I was under the impression that fighting not included in our
duties as inspectors.”
It was the correct thing to do, but it dumbfounded Cariman; it was not
something he expected from a new recruit.
‘Interesting.’
But even if it was rare, there were similar cases in the past, so he
decided to just let it be.
“It’s good that you understand. It’s not our job to meddle in those
affairs as it can be dangerous. We can help if we can, but we do not
need to…”
“…”
With his sincere hard work and love toward his people, the people of
Kulan Province followed Phareon Kulan like their king.
Craine was one of the people who joined the Kulan Peacekeepers
and became a captain.
That was when Craine found the carriage moving along the road.
The attackers did not want to reveal themselves. If he ran past the
carriage, their attention would turn to the carriage. Viscount Teron’s
men did not want to leave any evidence, so he was sure that they
would follow and attack the carriage.
This would help him and his people survive the attack and return
safely.
He felt sorry for the people inside the carriage, but he needed to
return and inform Phareon of the attack.
‘Dammit…!’
Craine groaned as he watched the Bander user coming out from the
bushes. There was no way to ask for help from the people inside the
carriage.
“Oh, hello. I have an issue with that man. Can I take him away?”
“That man, he turned toward our carriage after he saw us. Bander
users were following him, and yet he came straight toward us. What
would’ve happened if we were just commoners?”
“You don’t have to believe me. We will not meddle in noble affairs,
that’s not our job.”
Cariman thought that Sian would not lie and lost any sympathy
towards Craine.
“Understood.”
Naruan looked at Sian and Cariman. It was apparent that they knew
what would happen to the man if he was taken away, but they
dismissed it so coldly.
Naruan smacked the man with the hilt of his sword, hefted him onto
his shoulder, and began returning.
“…Sure.”
The people around also looked different. The guards looked prideful
and people coming in and out of the castle gate seemed happy.
Cariman showed his identification plaque and the guard went inside
to report.
“Thank you.”
As they moved into the castle, Sian and Cariman came across many
things. Kids were playing about in the streets, and the marketplace
was busy with people. As they drew closer to the inner castle, the
courtyard was filled with warriors training.
The one thing the people had in common was that they were full of
energy.
Cariman had visited eight years ago and could not believe he was
looking at the same place. The Kulan Province back then was worse
than the other two provinces they had just visited. It was
unbelievable that they had undergone such significant change in
only a few years.
‘What happened?’
The question would be solved once they met the lord who was the
successor.
“I am Sian.”
The young man who was working on some papers inside the office
came out to greet them. Cariman felt a strong impression from the
man; he was full of confidence and very charismatic. Sian was also
staring at the man in amazement.
After looking through the finance department and then the city
planning department, Cariman was astounded. He was surprised by
how quickly they had grown. In just four years, they had achieved
incredible growth according to the financial reports. The city planning
and operations were also amazing. They had found many talented
individuals in their jobs or placements. (Interestingly, most of them
were beautiful women.)
“These are the training grounds. Sir Rianna is in charge here.”
“Good day, I am Rianna. If you have any questions, feel free to ask.”
‘Wait… Bander?’
It was a very common thing in the capital, but he never saw such a
sight out in the countryside. The nobles in the countryside never
taught Bander-Roa to their soldiers; they usually were afraid that it
would cause revolts.
“Yes, the lord modified the Bander-Roa three years ago and then
taught us. Our lands have grown stronger ever since,”Rianna
explained proudly.
‘What happened four years ago? It’s so different from the last time I
was here.’
They were now at the armory. The armory was usually located in the
inner castle, close to the training grounds. This was to help ease the
process of withdrawing arms for the soldiers. Cariman was surprised
yet again when he entered the armory.
‘A Dekon?’
He was genuinely surprised to see a Dekon here; it was very rare to
see a Dekon. All of the non-human races had special abilities that
humans did not. It was because all the other races without any
special abilities had gone extinct after a thousand years under the
Empire’s domination of the world.
All the races who had special abilities were deemed worthy to live
with humans and were respected highly.
The Dekons were one of them. These people had great skill in
creating magic-related items. The ultimate weapon, Artagon, which
was used at the Great North Wall, was created by Dekons.
There were only a few Dekons deep within the capital or in magical
councils. It was unbelievable to see them in a noble’s land out in the
countryside.
“So the kid next to you won’t introduce himself? …oh, I am busy. Ask
him if you have any questions. I only make weapons. Roina, come
with me.”
Roina asked in reply, “Huh? What do you mean? Are you talking
about Sir Cariman?”
“Oh, you mean Sir Sian. I only heard that he’s from the Guarran-Tia.
What about him?”
She did not hear any details other than they were from the Guarran-
Tia, so she could not understand what the problem was.
“Ugh, nevermind. Humans are blind. So, they are not here to cause
trouble?”
“No, not at all. They just came for inspection and will return shortly.”
“Okay. Just be careful. Don’t touch that Sian kid. Give him everything
he wants and get him out of here as soon as possible.”
“…”
Cariman and Sian were discussing their work in the room they were
provided with to rest. Cariman was more concerned about Sian
because Sian had proved to be useless throughout the day. If he
looked extraordinary, he would’ve understood Talin’s orders, but with
Sian’s foolishness, Cariman couldn’t shrug the feeling that there he
was hiding something.
He replayed the day’s events word for word in his mind, but it
seemed like Sian was genuine in everything he said.
As Cariman was mulling over Sian, Sian was thinking about what he
had seen today.
Roina acted as if she had shown everything, but she only displayed
safe or necessary places. Cariman was busy inspecting what was
shown, but Sian was busy focusing on all the hidden stuff. He was
interested in the beautiful women, but he was more interested in all
the secret rooms under the basement, in the forest, under the lake,
and everywhere else. It was impossible to see with one’s eyesight,
but Sian had been using other senses to feel the world for a long
time that made him realize the existence of hidden rooms.
He felt the Exar moving in and out of those hidden rooms, but he
couldn’t make out exactly what they were doing inside. He thought of
the two choices he had:
1. Tell Cariman about the hidden rooms and start inspecting them.
2. Since Cariman didn’t seem to notice them, let it slide.
If he were to fulfill his duty, option one was the correct choice. There
must be a reason why they hid the rooms. But, if revealing this
secret would make them turn against him and try to kill them, it
would be troublesome. The ones hidden under the lake or in the
forest didn’t seem to be a problem. However, the one hidden under a
cliff far away from the city was.
<Good to have: Passion and talent. Must have: Luck and money.>
…….
Sian sensed something annoying from the cliff. It was pretty far, and
something hindered his senses, making it hard to see what it actually
was.
After pondering over what the Baron would do, Sian came to a
conclusion.
The Baron was trying to do things with his own land, and Sian had
no right to interfere.
It didn’t seem like he had stolen it, and he could hide it as long as he
liked. He was only here to inspect and leave. It was bad to massacre
people just for an inspection.
After making up his mind, Sian felt comfortable being freed from his
concerns and drifted to sleep.
“Ra-Kadum warned me never to touch that Sian boy and have him
leave the province as soon as possible.”
‘The inspection will not last long. Let’s show them what they need to
see and then send them off.’
The best thing about Logadis was that nobody in the capital or the
Kingdom paid any attention to it. That gave Phareon time to build up
the land.
One year. That was all the time he needed. He would be able to
unite all the nearby lands and unlock the next stage of the <Artifact.>
“Hmm.”
“Do you have an idea? I guess you do since you summoned all of
us.”
“Not much… other than not having any more choices left.”
Viscount Teron tortured the man named Craine that Naruan had
captured the other day, and so he explained to the people that had
gathered.
“Yes, they have sped up in the past year. Their soldiers are heavily
armed.”
The reason why they did not conduct a full-scale war was because of
one reason.
They had no choice. If over ten nobles joined forces, it was possible
to crush Kulan Province with ease.
“No survivors, milord. We sent out scouts to check because they had
not returned and…”
Phareon gritted his teeth at Rianna’s report. This was a time where
he needed to focus, but they kept bothering him. As Phareon
wondered what he should do, Roina ran into the office.
“I see. Who?”
“Huh? War?”
“Yes. The nobles from our neighboring provinces have declared war
against us. I am sorry. Such an unfortunate turn of events have
happened while you are within our lands. I suggest you leave before
the war begins.”
Not only was it dangerous, but this meant that he could not fulfill the
order from Viscount Talin. But, if all the nobles were involved in the
war, there was no way he could continue the inspection; he would
have to return. It would mean that Sian would return in less than a
month since he had left.
When the war ended, it would be well past the months that he was
ordered to be away, so it seemed like a good idea.
They had been doing nothing but work. What could be so fun?
Cariman was confused but he just thought that Sian loved his work.
A severe war was when one massacred other nobles or ruled its
people with tyranny that would negatively affect the Kingdom.
Just like the succession, Tian did not intervene in a nobles’ war. The
Kingdom encouraged it.
This applied to all the nobles of Tian, including the Royal families.
The women were working hard to make supplies and armor, while
children were being trained to escape by following the roads in an
emergency. All the men were gathered outside the castle to train.
What was interesting was that these men were all volunteers.
They all had the same experience before and after Phareon’s rule,
so they knew exactly what was going to happen if they lost.
“It’s not a common sight to see in the countryside, but all important
areas within the Kingdom do this. However, this is pretty intense.”
They were staying in a land which was going to war, but Sian didn’t
seem to be bothered. Even Cariman himself was concerned. This
was after he heard that Kulan would be fighting against Logadis.
If Kulan lost, the land would be swept by the war, and there was no
telling what would happen to them.
Cariman asked, “Sian, aren’t you afraid? This place might be swept
up by the war if Kulan loses.”
No war was guaranteed. Both sides believed they could win the war,
which was why a war started. Cariman thought Sian was foolish, but
Sian was thinking of something else.
‘The one from the underground, the forest, or the lake… any one of
them will allow them to win. They won’t lose.’
He didn’t know what it was that Phareon had on his body, but after
taking a closer look while at the castle, he realized it was similar to
the energy that came from those hidden places.
He wasn’t sure what it was, but if it was a weapon and it was given
to Sir Rianna for example, she would crush any knight easily. The
thing that Phareon had contained enough power to allow a small
child to crush a house easily.
The <Kranga> artifact on his wrist helped him, but the preparations
were still exhausting. This would be his first war, so he was nervous.
“Oh no!”
“Hey, boy! What happened to the squid and… the other one. Did
they leave? I don’t see them in the castle.”
“They are staying outside of the lord’s castle. They will leave after
the war is over,” Roina answered Ra-Kadum’s question.
“Hah, it’s good that you cannot see what I’m seeing. You wouldn’t be
able to joke around if you did.”
The war waged fiercely between them. Bander users on both sides
were even. It wasn’t because the Kulan Knights were formidable;
they had no experience unlike the knights on the Logadis side.
However, Sir Rianna evened out the balance.
Or to be more precise, her weapon did.
The weapon itself didn’t seem special; it looked just like an ordinary-
looking sword. The result when it was used, however, was not
ordinary at all.
It cut everything down with ease, and it wasn’t because Rianna was
strong. Compared to the power of the weapon, Rianna’s strength
was like that of a baby. No shield, Bander-wielding sword, armor, or
even castle gate was able to withstand her attack. Everything was
cut down.
Even the regular soldiers of Kulan were much stronger than those of
Logadis.
The problem was the difference in the number of soldiers was too
huge. Rianna charged on the front lines, but the enemy turned to
ranged attacks and forced Rianna to retreat.
The war was dragging longer than what they all expected.
That person spoke of the sword that Rianna wielded as a toy and
scoffed.
The artifact that he had on his neck let out a strange sound and
distorted the area around his face to disguise him, but his tall posture
and strength were hard to miss.
“Yes, I have already made sure. But, it’s really interesting to see the
<Armory of Arankal> hidden in this remote land.”
<Armory of Arankal>
Named after wolf War God, the armory had been built in the days of
the Old Empire.
They were put to use when the Empire needed to exercise its power
on the rebellious countries, and the armory contained various
weapons created with the Empire’s finest magical scientific
technologies.
Even after the Kal-Gul war, the Empire did not reclaim these
armories in case the Seven Kingdoms would revolt against them and
they were abandoned after the Empire’s downfall.
The records mentioned one more armory, but they could not find it.
When they almost gave up on finding it, they came across a few
items that could only originate from the <Armory of Arankal> that
were circulating within the black market of Usharan Kingdom.
1. The serial numbers and formation proved the items were from an
<Armory of Arankal>.
2. These were not from their armory. It was from a new <Armory of
Arankal>.
After learning this, they became excited and began searching for the
sources. They finally found out that one had been sold by a man
named Phareon from the Logadis Estate of Tian Kingdom. He had
come to the black market of Usharan Kingdom to sell it.
So that was why Kurandas, the one who was appointed to guard
Usharan’s armory, was here in front of Viscount Teron.
After the investigation, it seemed that Baron Kulan was using some
of the items from the armory for the prosperity of his lands. It was
hidden well, so it took some time to figure it out.
Even the First Stage was amazing, but Kurandas had no interest in
that. The true power lied with the Second Stage.
They had no intention to keep it. Viscount Teron didn’t seem to know
that a Grand Bander could easily bend the will of such a contract.
With the support of intelligence and money, Teron united the other
nobles and started a war against Kulan.
They didn’t need to win. Teron was to be killed soon and Kurandas
was never to return with the items within the armory.
“Let’s move. Make sure you do your part until the end, Viscount.”
“Understood.”
Teron began moving out to order his forces to put the pressure on
the Kulans.
<Dekons see what humans cannot see. One includes the future. It’s
not something we can see when we want or when it is clear… but it’s
very near in the future. I will still help you. If you don’t know what to
do, do this…>
‘What is it?’
The cliff was where his <Artifacts> were being hidden. It was hidden
deep within and only he knew where it was. It also had all sorts of
security measures, and his forces could not provide stronger
protection than the armory’s self-defense system anyway.
He couldn’t figure out what they were doing, but the <Kranga>
suddenly began sending alarming messages into his head.
“WHAT!”
Light came in from the top of the door, scanning Kurandas before
rejecting him. He grinned and pulled his sword.
“I knew it.”
He began pushing Bandar on his sword and the light began to glow
from the sword. He then swung his sword at the door.
The steel door that could withstand a charging ram was broken into
pieces with just one swing. As the door broke open, some red light
began shooting upon Kurandas from within.
Kurandas jumped in, swinging his sword all directions around him.
Sian awoke from the weird energy waves coming to him. He looked
at the cliff and thought for a second, but then grinned.
“Oh.”
First, the Defensive Area was comprised of all sorts of weapons and
supplies for soldiers at war. Rianna’s sword, Talic Stones, and elixir
were all from this primary stage.
Items from the First Stage were all crafted with technology and
magical sciences of the Old Empire and were proven to have some
value. It was what helped Kulan Province rise to its current power
and allowed them to fight against Logadis.
He did it with ease, but these Pavlocks were powerful as they had
been created to fight and oppress civilians and soldiers. It looked like
Phareon pondered about using these machine dogs, but he figured it
would draw too much attention and gave up on using them.
Kurandas reached the front of the Second Stage and sensed some
kind of energy.
‘He’s here.’
Even with the age of the Empire, making such a small teleportation
rune was a great feat, but they did manage to make it so that the
person in charge of the armory could easily teleport in and out of it.
Managing the armory required its administrator to work, which
required such easy access.
The Great Magic Priest of the Empire, Nitzmatan, first created it and
left a blueprint, of which it was named thereafter. It had one function.
Kurandas placed the artifact in the empty air in front of him and
stepped back.
The artifact floated in the air and began twirling itself, making bright
lights. The blue light that came out from the artifact began
expanding, then touched the <Kanuans>. All the Kanuans that were
touched by the light began disappearing and were absorbed into the
void.
That was when he thought something was off. It was too quiet.
He was preparing to defend himself since he felt that the owner was
teleporting in. Even if he did not have access yet, he would’ve been
able to see what was going on, even with basic access.
Maybe he didn’t know the true potential of the weapons inside the
Second and Third Stages.
Phareon, on the other hand, did not give up and knew the potentials
of these weapons. That was why he was doing his best to block
Kurandas from elsewhere.
‘Where did he come from…?’
The <Pavlocks> that he stored aside for the time being were all
smashed into pieces and the Second Stage had been broken
through. This man was a Grand Bander.
He did not have high enough access to fight the man either. If he had
just one more year… that would’ve allowed him to unlock the
Second, or even the Third Stage lock. Then he could have stopped
him.
Phareon groaned.
He was very careful. Nobody knew the location of the armory. But
the man knew the location and broke in.
The items that he moved to his land from the First Stage was
amazing in itself. If the items in the First Stage were enough to make
him a powerful noble, the ones in the Second and Third Stages
would be enough to make him the King and the Emperor.
Phareon was swept up by the bright light and was teleported inside
the armory, into A-13.
When Phareon opened his eyes, Sian was standing in front of him
with a surprised look.
“What…”
He was concerned that this man was with the invader, but that was
unlikely.
Even if he was, it could not be any worse and Ra-Kadum would not
have sent him here. His advice was never wrong.
“Watch?”
“Yeah. I came here a while ago but it was blocked by some steel
doors. I can’t just break them and trespass without permission, right?
But I felt some man breaking in, so I thought it was a chance to take
a peek… But this place sure has some fascinating stuff! Just as
expected. That blue light absorbing everything was especially
amazing.”
He heard he was staying within the castle, but he felt the door being
broken down? It was over fifteen miles from here to the castle.
Phareon teleported right after he felt the intrusion, but it seemed like
this man got here about the same time, meaning that he had come
here instantly.
However, that was not the issue. The intruder was approaching the
Third Stage at the moment. The defense system would hold him
back for a while, but it was only a matter of time.
The advice given by Ra-Kadum surely meant that Sian had way to
help him.
“Right, you don’t have time to waste here. You should go. Isn’t this
place yours? What are you doing?”
Phareon was lost for words. He was correct. There was no reason
for Sian to protect the place.
“Hm. Yes?”
Phareon felt his face blushing from shame. But he had no choice.
“My shift is over, and this isn’t my area to patrol. Besides, I’m on
inspection duty and this is yours. You surely didn’t give this to the
country right? I guess not, because you were hiding it. It’s not my
duty to protect personal property.”
<Whatever you say, it will not work. You should say this… and don’t
forget. Lose your greed.>
<The infiltrator has broken all the Third Stage defense systems. The
entrance has been destroyed.>
“Oh, no. I can’t miss all the fun! Good luck! I will go and watch now.”
<Kranga> and Sian both spoke to Phareon and he made his choice.
He shouted as Ra-Kadum told him to do.
“I will have all of this presented to the Tian Kingdom! I request the
exercise of Guarran-Tia’s Chapter 3 Section 7!!”
…….
Kurandas felt a chill pass through his bones as he entered the Third
Stage. He was also relieved. If Phareon managed to take control of
this, Tian Kingdom and all other nearby kingdoms would surely fall
under his rule.
That was when Kurandas turned to another wall. He read the ancient
Empire writing and was shocked.
“The… the Fourth Stage! So it exists! The rumors are true after all!”
Those were powerful assets. When they first found the armory, they
were mesmerized by the ancient technology. It was astounding that
a machine could go up against a Master-level Bander.
However, that made them wonder; these were not enough to control
all Seven Kingdoms of the Ra-Sian Continent.
Grand Banders did exist during that era, and no matter how many
Kel-Rufens were available, it wasn’t enough to fight against the
number of Grand Banders.
<It’s not here, but the other armories might have a fourth stage
where the machines were stored to fight against Grand Banders.>
All the warriors scoffed at the idea, it seemed impossible. The theory
was ignored and abandoned as it did not exist within their own
armory.
But to see that it was true! Kurandas could not help but shiver in
excitement.
He began breaking down the door that blocked him from reaching
the Fourth Stage. It was very durable, but it seemed that it wasn’t
made to withstand such an attack.
He walked in.
“Oh… OOH!”
<Arankal>
That was when he heard a voice from outside and turned around. He
was surprised since he didn’t feel anything before.
“Hey! Old man! You should leave that there. You’re stealing, you
know? You should know better.”
Sian sighed and began running toward the man that opened the door
for him to enter the armory.
“Hey! Old man! You should leave that there. You’re stealing, you
know? You should know better.”
Sian shouted, and the man flinched before turning to him. He figured
the man knew what he was doing was embarrassing.
But as he approached him, the man swung his sword without a word.
Sian did not expect him to be arrested quietly. The man was familiar
with swords.
But this was not something that would require him to unlock his
power, so he had time. This man seemed to be weaker than the old
man with the golden sword from before and there no one tying him
down with some strange black thing. He could just take some time to
beat him up.
“Trespassing, stealing Kingdom treasure, and assaulting a Guarran-
Tia. You’re under arrest.”
“UGH! ARGH!”
Kurandas couldn’t pull himself together. This young boy who just
avoided his attack spoke some nonsense and began swinging his
scabbard at him.
The boy wasn’t doing anything special; his speed and power weren’t
high either. But he couldn’t dodge or block the attacks. He had
managed to avoid the first few hits, but that was it. He was getting
beaten up.
The boy was not one of the three Grand Banders of Tian. There
were only a few Grand Banders in the world, so he could recognize
all of them.
‘He’s much stronger than me. And he still has more power hidden
within.’
Kurandas felt despair as he was being beaten up. What was worse
was that he was going to be captured soon; he felt like he was going
to faint.
“AKO-RAK-TA-SHE, A-RANKAL!!”
Red light glowed from the eyes of the machines. The <Arankals>
came to life.
“DAMMIT!”
This was how the Empire used to control the Seven Kingdoms. This
forced all the people from the Old Kingdom to register within the
Empire to avoid being killed. Even if they didn’t, the Empire did not
care. It just meant that whenever the system, <Armory of Arankal>,
was activated, anyone not registered would end up dead.
It wasn’t much help in the Kal-Gul war, and that was why they were
abandoned here.
He felt sorry for Sian, but he had to evacuate his family as far away
as possible.
“Ra-Kadum?”
“Boy, you’re promising, but you still have a lot to learn. You didn’t
listen to me until the end.”
<Don’t run away alone. Stay there unless you want to get beaten up
in front of your girlfriends.>
<If a Grand Bander is master at chess, then I’m the one who made
chess.>
…….
The machines scanned Sian, and as soon as they realized Sian was
unregistered, they began attacking him. Their cores, which were
made out of top-grade Talic Stones, supplied infinite energy and
helped the machines transform it into Bander and Exar.
The <Karmata> that Sian saw before was like a toy compared to
these machines. These were much more advanced as they were
created by using Talic Stones. Each one of these machines easily
matched the strength of the old man with the golden sword.
These were what Sian felt inside the cliff once he arrived here.
He sighed as he had to use his power again and unlocked the power
from within. Something changed and there was a smile on his face.
Sian dodged the attack and the Arankal’s right hand tore down the
wall that it had struck.
The ones that the thief stole that were in his pouch did not interest
him. Those were just toys.
He thought about taking these home, but he did not know how to
stop or maintain them. Thus, he decided to play with the machines
for a while before destroying them.
But it did not affect Sian at all and the Arankals began analyzing
Sian to plan for another attack.
All ten machines were now much stronger than before. Sian laughed
in excitement.
[Bander Rating…]
[Movement speed…]
[Damage potential…]
[Acceleration speed…]
[Analyzation failed.]
The number that didn’t change, hence the name, physical number,
kept changing from within.
[Activating <VOID>]
Ra-Banders were rare, but the age of the Empire had Ra-Banders,
also known as Pa-Harijans.
The Empire arduously tried to research them, and with the help of
Kiladaple, who protected the Empire from the Six-Horned Harijans,
they were able to conduct research on them.
The research went slowly. Kiladaple got bored easily. He ran off to
hunt down Harijans and there was not enough knowledge to
correctly understand the secret of Pa-Harijans.
-The body that is not bound by physical rules transcend the laws of
physics.
The only way that seemed remotely possible was the one stored
within <Arankals> labeled as Plan Z.
‘What is this?’
Sian looked at the Arankals as some weird Exar flow started stirring
within them. The Exar that spread outward was now being called into
one magic rune inside its core.
The Arankals kept attacking Sian, but the Exar that began flowing
fiercely from within made them slow down as the cores were getting
overloaded.
The Arankals did not care about their overloaded state. They did
everything they could to prevent Sian from running away.
The Magic Rune began shining where the core had been destroyed,
activating the dimensional twist in front of Sian.
<Distort the space of the target, tear it from the current dimension,
and throw it to another dimension as a whole.>
Even the Empire limited its use of such magic and there weren’t
many instances where it was needed.
One core meant one distortion of space, and seven cores resulted in
seven distortions.
There was a total of ten cores within the Arankals.
The result wasn’t dramatic. It was so quiet that the sound of Arankals
falling down from running out of power was even louder. The space
surrounding Sian began swirling and it swept him up.
And he was gone. It was not even one second after the core had
activated the magic.
The sound of crushing came from the emptiness, growing louder and
louder. Then, something suddenly came out from nowhere, sticking
out from inside.
The sword that poked out at a finger’s length started moving about
its space, trying to make the hole bigger. The crashing sound grew
even louder.
The sound then turned to ripping and the sword was pushed out
even deeper, widening the space. Soon, the hole that showed the
darkness of the void became large enough for a person to pass
through and Sian came out of it.
Sian looked around to find the box that the man had brought here.
He did not have the right to those weapons that he stashed in the
box as it now belonged to the country. But the box seemed okay to
take into his possession. He finally found the box and remembered
how the thief had used it. He needed to empty what was inside to
take the box.
It would’ve caused trouble if he took the box and whatever that was
inside since it wasn’t his. That would result in not being allowed to
have the box. Moreover, Sian had no interest in those toys.
Sian activated the box just like the old man did and it began shooting
out red light.
The same thing happened when the man activated the box to take
out his sword out of it.
‘Huh?’
But nothing came out. Sian was sure he did the same thing the thief
did. He touched the box and tried different things, but it was no use.
This was bad. He was the last one to stand in this place and there
was nothing. He was bound to be accused as the thief.
Sian began thinking how to squeeze out of this mess and made up
his mind.
“Huh? What!”
“WHAT’S THAT!”
He hung the box he acquired on his neck like a necklace and hid it
behind his clothes.
Sian laughed as he thought about the amazing ability that this box,
named Nitzmatan, had.
That was when he remembered Baron Kulan who ran away the
moment those machines came to life. If it wasn’t for Sian, those
machines would’ve destroyed half of Tian before going down.
Judging by how fast he ran away, it seemed that Phareon knew how
dangerous those machines were. Sian knew he wasn’t much help
and didn’t expect the baron to leave him there to die, but the man
should’ve at least tried to warn him.
Yet he just ran away after asking Sian stop the thief.
Tarnian checked to see if anything was wrong and was just about to
call his subordinates when the Ra-Shar-Roa burst into light, spitting
out various war supplies and mechanical weapons.
“This is…!”
It was meant to save whatever that was inside in exchange for the
loss of the artifact.
Since it had been activated, it only meant Kurandas’ death.
Everyone in Kulan Province was busy. After the collapse of the cliff,
the Logadis forces disbanded on their own.
Viscount Teron, the leader of the group, was found dead, and
Phareon was suspected to be the killer, which terrified the noble
forces. All of them surrendered, and Phareon gave them some
property so they would move off their land.
Phareon was glad that it ended with just him though. He was worried
that Riana or Roina would try to interfere, but Ra-Kadum managed to
keep everyone out of it so that only he got beaten up.
After that was done, Sian explained everything that happened at the
cliff.
He said that the cliff collapsed in the middle of a fight and he barely
managed to escape, preventing him from retrieving the weapons that
the thief had stolen. However, they did not need to worry about the
<Arankals> as they had all been buried with the collapse of the cliff.
It was fortunate that the items from the First Stage had already been
moved to other places.
“But?”
“It was a good lesson. I have my friends, my loved ones, and you
too. I think I have been rushing things.”
They laughed and started talking about future plans when Roina
came and cut in.
“Milord, a messenger just came from the capital.”
“Huh? Why?”
“The succession is over. It’s the King Narasha Qun Tian the First.”
Sian was worried that Count Kerbel would be shocked, but when
Sian returned, he did not seem to be too bothered.
“It’s okay. I wasn’t worried that the former king would lose his place.
I’m a citizen of Tian. I welcome a strong king. I was just worried that
Marquis Narasha would spill too much blood.”
But the balance of power had tilted too far, and the former king
decided to give up the throne before it became ugly.
His interest shifted to something else that happened during his two-
month absence.
“Lady Celine, what’s going on?” Sian asked Celine who looked
extremely fatigued.
Sian was not good at sensing other people’s problems, but Celine
looked so tired that even Sian could recognize that she was having
problems.
“Oh… you’re here…”
Celine sighed as she glanced at Sian who had returned to duty and
began explaining what had happened to her while he was gone.
After she was finished, Sian exclaimed in disbelief, “So… there’s a
man who’s been following you around? And he’s in love with you?”
Sian first thought that Celine was joking, but she seemed really
concerned, so he decided to continue listening. Celine was a
beautiful woman who had a good background, so it didn’t seem
impossible.
Sian nodded. If the man was weaker than Celine, there was no way
that she would allow herself to be stalked. After asking more
questions, Sian decided that she was just showing off.
“Hey, you didn’t ask me the most important thing. His personality.”
“Huh?”
Sian realized that he hadn’t asked about that.
“Oh… then…”
Marquis Narasha began his plan the moment Sian left the capital. It
needed to be done quickly, so he hired various powerful mercenaries
from all parts of the Kingdom to come the capital and help.
It had only been half a year that his name had been known. He first
appeared in the battle between Viscount Nebel of the Royalist
Faction and Viscount Qunon of the Noble Faction. Kuntarian
singlehandedly led the weaker Noble Faction to victory with his
prowess. After that, he led the Noble Faction to victory with his
powers many times.
He only helped the nobles because they were rich and offered him
more money.
This boy was out of line: stealing and assaulting people was the
norm for him. He drank and flirted with the women on the streets,
taunted nobles, and ridiculed commoners. He learned all sorts of
dirty acts.
Kuntarian made Celine change her view about Sian. She always
thought that if she had the same strength as Sian, she would put it to
better use. However, after meeting Kuntarian, she felt it was better
for a man of such strength to be lazy. She realized how terrible a
powerful man without any restraint could be after meeting him.
“Ugh…”
Celine sighed loudly and grabbed her head while Sian turned toward
the voice. A handsome man was walking towards them, wearing a
lavishly decorated sword and armor that shone brightly.
It was the same even after he arrived at the capital. However, he still
needed to be wary of the monster-like Grand Banders.
If that wasn’t the case, he just needed to take the woman by force.
But Celine wasn’t easy. He liked how she looked, so he tried to give
her the glory of becoming his girlfriend; however, she refused. So he
became irritated.
It was especially irritating because he couldn’t take her by force. It
was not the time to fight against old man Kiraine yet.
Kuntarian had already secretly beat up any man who had been
talking with Celine, so he was sure that there was no one else
around Celine anymore. However, it was not enough.
He decided to focus on Celine for now and beat the guy up later.
“Hey, hey. Celine, isn’t it about time you accept your fate?”
‘He’s a half-wit.’
Half-wit was the most degrading term for a warrior. It was used to
describe a warrior that could not draw out all the power he had. Sian
wasn’t sure about how he got the power, but he was sure that
Kuntarian didn’t have the talent to absorb all of it.
If it was Rian who had the power, it could’ve made him a Grand
Bander at once.
‘…huh?’
Sian almost threw his scabbard, but he sighed and held back. Unlike
that savage, he was civilized.
“UGH!”
“Huh?”
Sian gasped in shock at his unintended action. Celine seemed
surprised, but she smiled brightly and gave Sian a thumbs up.
“Wow, you have a temper too! Hahaha! I feel like you and I share
similar traits.”
“Haha! Yeah, you did well. This fool needs a harder beating than
this. Anyway, thanks, Sian.”
King Narasha Qun Tian the First asked Viscount Talin, his right-hand
advisor.
“We’ll keep an eye on him… but if he steps out of line, we will have
no choice.”
The King asked about Sian as there was no one else around, and
this issue was to be kept a secret for now.
“Yes, Sir Cariman did a wonderful job, although I think he loves his
life back at the capital.”
‘But to think he does not even care about the seat which I wanted so
badly my entire life…’
The King then listened to reports about Sian in the past two months.
It was recorded by Sir Cariman along with a few other observation
methods. What interested the King most was the war in Logadis and
the quick growth of Kulan Province, and the cliff collapse.
“So the war itself is suspicious?”
“Leave it be. I am not sure what happened there, but I can guess
who did it.”
Kurandas and Phareon tried hard to cover up what they were doing,
but the entire area was monitored the moment Sian visited the place.
“It would be good if he does join… but I don’t think he’ll feel it’s worth
bothering.”
“I thought that too, but after looking at Kuntarian, I’ve learned one
thing.”
“It’s fortunate that he’s just staying put. Look at Kuntarian and all the
problems he’s causing. Imagine if that were Sian. It would be a
disaster.”
It was fortunate that Sian was not interested in worldly affairs. Sian
was so powerful that he could not be controlled at all.
The prizes were amazing. The King allowed merchants who could
provide the best prizes to supply all of the festival needs. It made all
the merchants prepare the best prizes they could; the profit that
could be earned from supplying the festival was just too great to
pass up.
He looked through it to see where the two names were and found
something strange.
The two were famous for being Masters at a young age. They had
the right to join the <Kaloan> competition.
“What happened?”
It seemed certain that the girl must have had told her grandfather.
Kuntarian knew he was dangerous, but didn’t expect him to be that
much. His protection runes failed and yet he didn’t even realize it. It
was something no Master could achieve.
‘Hehe…’
He then turned toward the Tra-An street at the outer edge of the
capital. It was where he had found the best brothel in the Kingdom.
Kuntarian had a bad reputation, but he was still strong. That was
why Celine could not think him as a half-wit.
‘Only Sian can say that… but it’s weird. I don’t think he’s the kind to
back off like that.’
Celine knew that Kuntarian wasn’t one to back off easily, but she had
no way to find out why he stopped coming. She turned their
conversation to the most heated topic of the season.
“Oh well. Hey, aren’t you joining the tournament? The prize and the
money seem good. I’m sure you can win it easily if you enter.”
“…”
“Sorry, that was a lie. I’m too lazy for that. I’m just not interested in it.
How about you?”
“Right, I knew you would say that. I’ve already entered for <Kaloan>.
I probably can’t win, but I want a rough idea of my strength. It’s a
good chance to fight with various Masters and Exers.”
Now that she thought about it, Sian had already beaten up almost a
third of all the Masters. It was only natural that Sian had no interest
in the competition. However, Celine could not stop from grinning at
the thought of all the participants being knocked out by a smack from
a scabbard to the back of their head.
“Anyway, if that’s the case, cheer for Sir Rian and me.”
Sian did not worry about Celine. She knew when to back off. But
Rian didn’t; he was too passionate. That was why Sian loved his
brother, but he also sometimes made his parents worry.
Sian wished his brother would live more peacefully and transfer to
the Guarran-Tia.
The <Kaloan> competition was held quickly. Unlike the participants
of <Haron>, the participants of <Kaloan> were warriors and soldiers
in various important positions, and they needed to return quickly.
The focus was always on the new and upcoming warriors. The
Returnees, Rian, and Kuntarian, were included in this. People were
excited to see how those young warriors could fare against the
experienced warriors of Tian.
Today was the last day of preliminaries, in which Kuntarian and Rian
were to take their chance. Out of the sixteen who won against their
opponents, only eight of them were allowed to join the thirty-two
main participants of the competition.
That was why the Coliseum was more packed than ever before. It
was a place that would determine who would be leading the future of
the Kingdom.
“…I didn’t know Sir Rian had become that powerful. Ha~”
Celine retorted, but she felt ashamed for making such a lame
excuse. It was true though, Rian had become quite powerful. When
Sian had just entered the Guarran-Tia, Rian was barely stronger
than Celine and weaker than the Returnee, Jack. Yet on the day of
the competition, Rian had become much stronger than before.
Celine, who had faced Rian on the first day of the competition, was
quickly defeated. Rian was always kind and considerate, even when
using swords. However, this time he was like a ferocious animal.
“Marry me!”
‘He’s so popular.’
It was Rian who charged first. Unlike the Rian from a few months
ago, he moved like a predator to attack Roxanne from all sides. It
looked rough, but it was all calculated. It was what made Count
Roman famous, earning him the nickname, Mad Bear. It was the
Roman family’s sword mastery called <Lion’s Way>.
It was not taught until one was at a certain level, and that seemed to
be true. Roxanne already expected it by watching his previous fight,
but soon realized it wasn’t going as she had planned.
She was being pushed back by his fierce attacks. There were
opportunities that she could have taken, but she hesitated because
of the pressure and soon lost those options.
“…”
Roxanne grabbed the hand and stood up, staring at Rian. She then
turned away wordlessly and ran out of the Coliseum.
‘Oh… I’ve made her mad,’ Rian thought as he exited to the other
side of the Coliseum.
Celine could not understand why Sian thought that Roxanne had just
fallen in love with Rian. There was nothing that could have triggered
it.
“Now that I think about it, you are one of a kind, Lady Celine. I have
never met a girl who spent time with my brother and didn’t fall in love
with him.”
Celine thought about it and realized that all the women around Rian
always fell for him; he was a perfect man after all. It just didn’t cross
Celine’s mind as he was her coworker.
“Haha, it’s okay, it’s not important anyway. Oh, the next fight is
starting.”
“…”
That man had lived in prosperity all his life, unlike himself who had
struggles and hardships as a mercenary. Unlike himself, Rian was
strong only because of his family and background.
‘It will be a short-lived glory for you… enjoy it while you can.’
As he began climbing up the ladder in the competition, he was
bound to fight against Rian. He didn’t beat Rian up only because he
was the son of that Grand Bander Roman, but this was his chance.
The Roman family valued honor, and that meant that the Count
would not interfere in the competition. And if he won the competition,
he would be freed from being scared of Grand Banders.
That was what most Masters thought, including Celine, but Sian and
all the other Grand Banders saw it differently.
“I don’t know where he learned it, but he definitely doesn’t know how
to use it.”
“He’s a half-wit.”
“Yes.”
<Half-wit>
They didn’t know much about this Kuntarian, but as they watched
him fight, one thing was sure. He had picked up something very
powerful; however, he was showing the characteristics of one who
obtained the power suddenly. He would have been worthless before
then.
The Grand Banders were able to discern how he was using his
powers. It was not something Masters would notice. Kuntarian did
not know when or how to use his powers.
All the Grand Banders who were watching felt like it was a shame to
waste such power.
“If Rian had more time, this would’ve been a good chance. Such a
shame.”
King Narasha and Count Roman had to stay behind, but they too felt
that <Kaloan> would not be that entertaining this time.
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Chapter 41
Chapter 41: Showdown
That was what all the participants had in mind and it did not matter
who they were fighting against. However, that was only what the
participants thought. People were dying to see the tournament
matchups to see who would win and climb the ladder.
“OH! The one that you use to make boxes move and pour water
without touching anything?”
“Uh… yeah. But it moves boulders and waterfalls, not boxes.”
“Rian will win against him. Exers have a hard time using their powers
when being pushed around. Who will be next?”
Celine looked at the pair next to Rian and turned grim. Sian
wondered why her expression had changed and looked at the pair.
The names written there made him frown.
The winner was going to fight against Rian, and it was likely that
Kuntarian would win.
“I regret it.”
“What?”
“Oh…”
“Haha, I’m joking. Rian would not like me doing that. It’s not
honorable.”
Sian laughed it off, but Celine knew he would have run out to break
Kuntarian’s leg in a heartbeat if his brother didn’t mind. She smiled at
Sian as he had no interest in any other thing except for his brother.
“You really look after your brother. Sir Rian is not someone who
needs looking after, you know.”
“What are you saying? He worries me all the time. He’s not weak,
but he always heads into danger.”
“Yeah, he is passionate. But you should learn from him if you want to
be popular. That’s what makes him popular with the girls.”
“…No, that’s not the only reason.”
Celine agreed. Being passionate was only part of what made Rian
popular.
“…”
Sian valued survival as the most important aspect of life. There was
no way he would jump into dangerous situations. Besides, anywhere
that might be dangerous for him would be across the Great North
Wall, or on top of Sky Mountain, where no women would be able to
watch him be passionate.
Sian felt an urge to beat him up with his scabbard but held back
because of what his brother told him the other day.
<Sian, I know you are worried, but don’t ever jump in. It’s an
embarrassment as a warrior. And please, don’t break Sir Kuntarian’s
leg or something before the match. He has a bad reputation, but I
respect him as a strong warrior and I want to fight him fairly in the
tournament. Help me, brother.>
‘Okay, let’s use <Poison> first, I’ll make his face turn purple.’
He decided and began focusing Exar from within, which was when
Rian reacted. Rian quickly charged in at Kuntarian who was trying to
pull and focus the Exar.
“Huh?”
Kuntarian had a hard time defending against <Lion’s Way>, but the
sheer difference in pure energy soon enabled Kuntarian to match
Rian’s pace.
It had been a while since they started the fight, but Kuntarian just
considered it to be the start and began pushing Exar out from his
armor. The armor that was already shiny began glowing with bright
light. The third defensive magic, <Elan’s Light>, was activated. It was
an amazing artifact; the magic had the potential to block <Kularen>’s
explosives that were usually used on the castle gate.
Rian frowned. His opponent’s defense had gone up too high. There
was no way to break through using a sword. He took a step back
while Kuntarian smirked.
“Show-off-ism?”
That was when Celine realized he wasn’t really using his Bander.
Kuntarian’s main strength came from using Bander that was at the
level of a Master. However, he was handling Rian by using magic
and armor.
“I guess he wants to show off everything he has first, and then defeat
Rian at the end… but that’s not a good idea against Rian.”
“Oh, right!”
<Magic Hunter>
“It’s just a feint. Look, he’s closing in little by little while gathering the
power to strike back.”
Celine then realized Rian was quite close to Kuntarian, and he didn’t
seem too weak either. But, she wasn’t sure if he was gathering
power for an attack.
That was when all the magic that was directed at Rian was suddenly
thrown back, opening a path straight to Kuntarian.
Kuntarian was shocked when all of his Exar was scattered away,
opening a path for Rian’s attack. Rian was too skilled to let the
chance pass.
“UGH!”
Kuntarian felt Rian’s Bander striking him against the weapon and
gasped. He had been too focused on using Exar that he missed Rian
gathering his Bander.
Rian calmly blocked Kuntarian’s attack, but the difference was too
large to withstand.
“…Ugh…”
Rian failed to block the attack and he was open to getting beat up on
all parts of his body. When Kuntarian regained his senses and
stopped attacking, Rian was on the verge of fainting. He needed
immediate attention from the priests.
This could’ve angered the Count. Kuntarian turned to where the King
and Count Roman were sitting and found a weird scene. Both of
them were looking at the other side of the spectator’s area with
concerned expressions.
‘…hmm?’
“Huh?”
The spectator seat that Count Roman and King Narasha were
looking at was where Sian was sitting.
“Hey… relax… It’s going to be okay. Look, the priests are signaling
too!”
Sian was barely holding back his anger. Rian kept whispering that it
was a fair fight and that he was okay. It was a small whisper, but
Rian must’ve known that Sian was listening to him. A few hundred
yards were nothing to him.
Sian did his best to keep his brother’s request. It was enough.
Kuntarian was to be left alone until the tournament was over so that
the people’s attention on him would dwindle. If he acted now, rumors
would spread about Count Roman getting revenge for his son. The
only people who could do something with Kuntarian at the capital
were the Grand Banders, which would hurt his father’s reputation.
Unknown sword.
It was brought back from the Great North Wall by Count Roman
when he returned from Guard Duty and presented it to the King.
Roman had been ambushed by an unknown tribe while guarding the
Wall. The chief of the tribe had this sword, which made it difficult for
Roman to fight him. Therefore, Roman brought the sword back to the
capital.
Even after the Exalted Magic Council examined it, the sword was
made with such advanced technology that they could not decipher
the mechanisms behind it. However, they discovered that it had a
strange power that could multiply the user’s energy. The only
downside was that the user needed to use both Exar and Bander
together.
Since no one was capable of using the sword, it collected dust at the
Royal Storage until it was chosen to be a prize of the tournament.
Roman immediately looked over at his second son Sian the moment
Rian was beaten up. As a father, he was also sad and angry that his
son was getting beaten up, but that was the life of a warrior. Rian
wasn’t a boy who would cry and reach out for help from his father.
Count Roman knew this and knew it wasn’t his job to interfere.
But Sian was different. He did not care about what others thought.
Sian had been educated to not be violent and always mind the
responsibility of using force, but nothing would stop him this time.
Sian had no greed or ambition, but he loved his family. Especially his
brother.
He always tried his best to not get in the way of his brother, but he
was always worried.
And now this happened. It was amazing that Sian was still keeping
quiet. Count Roman was prepared to jump out and stop Sian from
beating up Kuntarian right after the boy started pummeling Rian.
‘Sian, please don’t kill him. Not to mention… the King knows about
Sian.’
He saw the King looking at Sian. It was obvious that the King knew
about Sian because of the way he turned to look at the boy, and that
relieved the Count. He needed to talk to the King about Sian, but it
was so unbelievable that he was hesitant about telling him. If the
King already knew, then it was easy.
Kuntarian enjoyed his victory for a while and began preparing for an
entrance ceremony. He wasn’t to be disturbed, so he even borrowed
a small mansion in the outer area of the capital. Excited, Kuntarian
looked at the sword in front of him. After this ceremony, he was
going to be reborn.
And when that time came, no Grand Bander was going to stand in
his way.
That was what the heart of a <Kal-Gul> warrior, which replaced his
own heart, was telling him.
…….
Kuntarian was born into a fallen noble family. His family had nothing
that could be considered noble, and when he was fifteen, his family
collapsed. Kuntarian was then forced to live as a mercenary. His bad
character became worse when he joined the mercenaries, and with
not-so-great skills, he faced death within one year of being a
mercenary.
The laboratory was a few hundred years old, but the heart looked
like it had just been pulled out from a living being. However,
Kuntarian couldn’t think properly. He was extremely hungry and so
starved that he gorged the heart down. After he finished eating it, he
was shocked by the pain and soon fainted.
It seemed like he had eaten the heart that the Empire had been
researching to win the war against <Kal-Gul>.
He couldn’t use all the power and the memories it had though
Something was missing.
The power of the <Kal-Gul> was stored within the heart and the
weapon, so he needed to find the weapon. Yet Kuntarian had no
intention of finding the sword. If the owner of the heart was a <Kal-
Gul>, the sword was definitely in the Old Empire.
Yet when he came to the capital, he realized the sword was there
somewhere. After meeting with the Grand Banders, his desire for the
sword grew stronger. He couldn’t bear the fact that someone else
was stronger than him.
“Hahaha!”
Just like when he ate the heart, he felt sudden pain and fainted.
“Nngh…”
Kuntarian woke up and glanced around. He then realized the change
in his body and began examining it. He burst into a smile and
maniacal laughter.
“WHAT!”
“You bastard, I waited here for an hour for you to wake up, just in
case you wouldn’t feel any pain if you got beat up while sleeping.”
After looking closely, Kuntarian remembered that it was the guy who
was talking with Celine a while ago. He couldn’t beat him up
because Kiraine ambushed him, and now he was here.
Kuntarian forgot the shock and began smirking in delight.
Kuntarian felt searing pain coming from his belly and fell down on
one knee.
“Get ready, it’s just beginning. I used all fifteen vacation days for
this.”
Sian gritted at the thought of his wasted vacation days and began
smacking his scabbard at Kuntarian.
“UGH! ARGH!”
Kuntarian could not think straight due to the beating that had been
going on for two straight weeks. That evil man did not talk. He didn’t
even seem to be angry. He just smacked and smacked. For two
straight weeks, it did not stop.
Kuntarian cursed his powers. The power of <Kal-Gul> granted him
incredible regenerative powers and a strong mind. Thanks to his
power, even though he was under great pain, he did not faint. Just
one smack was more painful than when he broke his bone from a
sword before. It had been going on for fifteen straight days without
one second of rest.
Today was the fifteenth day. He said he used his vacation days and
today was the last day. That was what kept Kuntarian awake. As he
felt hopeful from almost reaching the end, his face brightened and
Sian opened his mouth for the first time.
“Hah. I told you I spent fifteen vacation days. It doesn’t mean I have
fifteen days total. I still have six days left including the weekend.”
“UGH!”
Kuntarian felt all hope shatter into pieces after hearing Sian’s words.
He barely managed to withstand the fifteen horrendous days with the
power of <Kal-Gul>, but there was still six more days to go.
Kuntarian then lost his energy and fainted. That was when Sian
became curious.
“Huh? Did you faint? I was controlling it…”
Yet Sian was not delighted. Sian frowned and spat out, glaring at
Kuntarian.
Warrior of <Kal-Gul>
He had no name.
Names were made for beings that did not have the ability to feel and
identify each other. The <Kal-Guls> were connected to each other
since birth and required no names. He had no memory after he was
killed in the war against the humans before he woke up.
The ritual itself was very simple. The successor eats the heart first,
and puts the weapon, or the source of the soul, into the heart
afterward. The successor would then acquire the power and
experiences of the previous owner. This was how they continued
handing down their powers.
When the successor took damage strong enough to shake their soul,
the successor would lose control of the body and open the path for
the previous soul to take over.
The event was very rare as the soul of a <Kal-Gul> was very strong.
After going through the ritual, the soul would grow stronger so that
no amount of damage would be able to shake the successor’s soul.
For it to be possible, there should’ve been constant stress or pain
placed upon the successor. Usually, the body would have fallen first
before the soul was damaged, but this was something that rarely
occurred.
This man looked like the one who was responsible. The Kal-Gul had
already absorbed all knowledge from the successor and was able to
understand the language. He quickly recognized everything and
opened his mouth.
There was something different within him that was more organized.
Sian’s target was the half-wit Kuntarian, not this <being>.
Sian sighed as he couldn’t beat him up for six more days and began
walking toward the capital. He had no business with such a being.
The man inside Kuntarian eyed Sian carefully. Then he began
following Sian. Sian knew that this new Kuntarian was following him,
but he didn’t care.
When Celine found Sian upon his return, she held back her delight
casually asked Sian, “Hey, Sian. You’re back. So… what have you
done…?? Huh? What’s that!”
Celine, who was asking Sian, stopped in the middle as she noticed
Kuntarian at the back.
“So… err…”
Sian was irritated also. Kuntarian just disappeared and was replaced
by another man. He had no idea why.
“I’ll explain.”
“So… you were inside the sword that Kuntarian won, and you were
released? Kuntarian doesn’t exist anymore?”
“That is true.”
“Hah…”
The man inside Kuntarian didn’t feel the need to truthfully explain
everything, so he mixed in some lies to tell his tales. He even
changed his race’s name.
“Why don’t you meet up with the King? I don’t think this is something
we can handle.”
Sian thought Celine had made the right decision. Celine did not
know Kuntarian had become stronger, but even the old Kuntarian
was stronger than her. It was best for them to bring this problem up
to the King.
After the talk, Celine and Kalagul began walking toward the palace.
Sian hesitated about following along, but if Kalagul caused trouble,
he would destroy the palace and that might mean danger to his
brother, so he decided to go also.
“I see.”
Celine was dumbfounded when she realized that all three Grand
Banders seemed to believe the story and were thinking about what
to do.
The Grand Banders had to believe. They gathered because they felt
powerful energy slowly approaching the palace. When they saw who
the owner of the energy was, they were shocked. The half-wit had
returned as a Grand Bander in just a few weeks. They also felt that
something inside him was entirely different.
They had no other option than to believe that this Kuntarian was
different now.
“Call me Kalagul.”
“That is right.”
“How about you work for Tian and think about what to do? We will
help you leave if you choose to do so at any time. We also promise
full support.”
“Hmm.”
“We will need to discuss them, but we will try to grant your wishes.”
Kalagul accepted it. He had nothing to do and he could always leave
if he wanted to. Besides, he needed help adjusting to living here.
It had been active when the Seven Kingdoms were active at war, but
it became less useful and now only the name of the group was left.
King Narasha had been thinking about reviving this group since a
long time ago. After hearing the news, he was thinking of reviving
<Dragona>.
The current military groups had their own duties to perform, so the
Kingdom needed a new military group to perform the work and
<Dragona> was the best fit for the job. The only problem was that
<Dragona> needed a powerful captain, and they had no one to
appoint.
The three Grand Banders were needed at the capital, the Taran
border, and the Kharan border respectively. However, that was when
this powerful being walked in.
If a Grand Bander led <Dragona>, its morale would rise and it would
successfully fulfill its duties. The King also planned to place Rian and
Sian in <Dragona>.
It was a waste to have Sian stay back at the capital. Count Roman
said that Sian was always worried about his brother. That was why
Rian was being put into <Dragona> too. Sian had no other choice
than to join if he wanted to protect his brother.
Besides, Narasha did not trust Kalagul. That was why he needed
Sian in <Dragona> to subdue him if things got out of hand.
Sian was now living at the dormitory provided for the newly-created
<Dragona>, which was located right next to the Third Knight Guard
dormitory.
Viscount Talin visited Sian a while ago to ask him to join <Dragona>.
Sian pondered on the offer, but eventually accepted it because of
two reasons.
Sian asked Count Kerbel and was told that <Dragona> did not have
any work to do unless it was wartime. It was a time of peace, so Sian
guessed that there was not much to do, and he was right.
<If you just become a member, you will need to train along with them
and work on various things. Your brother can’t help you out with that.
What will others think if he keeps you off regular duty? They will
accuse your brother for being unfair. Become the assistant. It’s the
best choice for you.>
It was so logical, rational, and beautiful that Sian took the offer at
once. In the end, <Dragona> had no regular members. It had one
captain, one lieutenant-captain, and a captain’s assistant.
Talin did keep his promise, however. He sent a clerk to do all the
clerical work for them. The assistant position was created just for
Sian, so he naturally had nothing to do.
Sian, who was very satisfied with his current peaceful life, pondered
on what to do next. He decided to return home and have dinner.
It had been a while since he last met his mother, so Sian began
thinking about what he should buy for his mother’s present. He had
no use for his money, and he had plenty of it anyway.
“It’s doesn’t look good. Usharan Kingdom has declared war against
Con Kingdom. It’s not a full-scale war yet, but it’s just a matter of
time.”
Sian realized why the palace had been so busy lately. Rian asked
his father in disbelief, “But how… don’t they have Taran Kingdom on
the other side? I don’t think Usharan has the power to protect
themselves from both sides.”
“Usharan did not pull any of their forces from the Taran border. They
are fighting against Con Kingdom with a smaller number and they
are pushing them back.”
Con Kingdom was an ally of Tian. It was created to compete against
Taran and Usharan, and as such, Tian now had no choice but to
support Con Kingdom. Also, it would be bad news if Con Kingdom
became weak or lost to Usharan.
“Well, we don’t have that many soldiers to send… we’ll need to send
a small number of elites.”
“Yes. I believe that’s why our King created <Dragona>. I’m sure other
men will be sent also, but <Dragona> will be the main force.”
But, it was okay now. They had a new Grand Bander, Kalagul.
It would’ve been great if the Kingdom could use Kalagul for their
expansion, but they could not trust such a mysterious man for the
job.
That was why the King decided to use <Dragona> to help Con
Kingdom. Rian and Count Roman also realized the King’s intentions.
‘Ugh.’
Sian didn’t understand complicated issues that much, but he realized
his peace had been destroyed. He despised the idea, but he knew
he had no choice once he saw his brother showing eagerness
toward fighting for his kingdom.
Also, Sian had been enjoying a good life, so it was about time to do
some work.
Sian did not want to use his power to kill people, so he decided that
his goal was to bring Rian back safe and sound. Therefore, he
planned to enjoy his last few days of peace.
Among the people who were added to Dragona, Celine was the only
Master-level warrior. Everyone else was an upcoming warrior who
had good results from the <Haron> tournament.
After glancing at the other new recruits, Panolan moved to his room
to unpack and began walking around the building. He had two weeks
before leaving for Con Kingdom, so it looked like a good idea to
familiarize himself with the place.
‘…hammock?’
“Good day. I’m in Dragona too. I’m Sian, the captain’s assistant.”
“Huh?”
“Oh… yeah. I heard I didn’t need to attend if I didn’t want to. Haha,
we were going to meet soon anyway.”
Rian told Sian: <It’s better you come and greet the newcomers.> To
which Sian interpreted: <It’s still okay not to go.>
Panolan started wondering what was up with this guy. He did not
intend to meddle with him, but they were going to war. If some fool
was working as the captain’s assistant, he might just kill everyone by
making the wrong decisions. This guy needed to change.
Sian usually didn’t question the motives, but even he could see that
the King had some other motive for putting together such a crude
team.
‘Oh well, I guess I have to put up with it. If I have room left to spare
after saving Rian…’
“HEY! Sian, why are you here? We were all introducing each other!
Aren’t you the Captain’s assistant?”
“What do you mean by that! I’m the Second Lieutenant Captain here!
I’m in charge!”
“It’s nothing. Don’t we have two weeks left? Why have you all
gathered up already?”
“It’s already late. We need to calibrate and train before going out to
war.”
“Oh?”
“We have Kalagul. What can they say if we send a Grand Bander?
It’s a good chance for them to gain some experience.”
“Ugh…”
Besides, the current <Dragona> team setup was basically made with
Sian and Kalagul as the main firepower. Con Kingdom would know
what Tian was up to with the team, but they wouldn’t complain with
the Grand Bander as an aid.
“Nngnggng…”
They had two weeks before departing for Con Kingdom. It wasn’t
enough time to have significant results with training, so the
newcomers gathered at Dragona to train with together and they got
to know each other. They needed to learn how to fight together. Even
then, two weeks wasn’t enough.
Kalagul was to fill the role as an actual aid to the war. Training aside,
they still needed to fill in the role as reinforcements. Being a Grand
Bander was enough as a reinforcement on its own.
If it wasn’t for Kalagul or Sian, Tian Kingdom would never send these
new warriors out on the battlefield. They would be killed in an instant
and it would bring shame to the Kingdom.
Sian, who understood all this very well, was looking at the training
ground with a concerned look.
“Oh… that boy needs… some care. He looks okay. And him…
maybe we should leave him here…”
Sian did not join the training ground as he was just a captain’s
assistant.
These men had potential. All of them had good results during the
<Haron> tournament, so they weren’t too bad. However, Sian had
met so many powerful warriors lately that he couldn’t consider these
men for their worth.
All the men he had beaten up lately were either Grand Banders or
Masters, so looking at Expert-level warriors training in front of him
looked like children on a playground.
Rian was 100% and Celine was 78%. People of his race connected
to each other with their minds and souls, and that made them one as
a whole. There was no companionship or teamwork. That was not
necessary since they had the ability to act as one. But it seemed like
humans had a hard time doing that. Besides, those men were too
competitive. The kids named Rian and Celine were working hard on
making them focus on teamwork, but it wasn’t easy.
Anyway, Kalagul didn’t care in the end. It wasn’t him who was going
to die. Surely, the leader of these humans, King Narasha, didn’t think
Kalagul would care either. He then returned to the book he was
reading.
These books were a great help for acquiring information. This body’s
owner really had no information stored in it, so Kalagul needed to
learn fast. He had to adjust and adapt.
Besides, it was all because the others couldn’t keep up with him. It
felt wiser to just train by himself.
There was a reason why no one knew much about the second son of
Roman family. As the son of the Roman family, he must have
something up his sleeves, thus making him the captain’s assistant.
But what could one do with such a bad attitude?
It seemed like everyone else had the same idea. All the new recruits
were blatantly ignoring Sian. Sian seemed to be enjoying it, but that
was probably a bluff.
Rasion decided to leave Sian alone if he got into trouble during the
war before going out to save him from dying. He then turned to the
information given to them about Con Kingdom and the region they
were going to be sent to. Information was power. He needed to learn
more to increase his survival rate.
Two weeks quickly went by. Rian and Celine wanted to spend more
time as much as possible, but the war progressed quickly.
‘There’s no choice but to rely on Kalagul and Sian…’
Rian asked the King if it might be too dangerous, but it seemed like
he had no intentions of changing the plan. Rian looked at the Ra-
Shar-Roa that was being activated in front of him with a worried
expression and walked in.
<If you can make my army work as one with fear, I can give half, no,
three-fourths of my army in exchange.>
…….
The war between Usharan and Con Kingdom was getting worse.
Con had been using everything at its disposal to protect their
borders, but it was no use. The newly-deployed automated machines
from Usharan were very powerful. Not only it was possible, but they
had no feelings and moved as one.
There were not too many of them, which allowed Con to defend
against them with Bander users and explosives, but somehow the
number of such machines increased all of a sudden.
They began pushing the borders of Con Kingdom from all sides and
were now closing in at a rapid rate.
If it wasn’t for the <Black Star>, one of the best warrior groups of
Con Kingdom stationed at Con-Tian, all would have been lost.
“We will have reinforcements coming from Tian Kingdom today. That
will help us out a little.”
“Good. It will be too late if they sent them later. But I didn’t expect a
Grand Bander as a reinforcement.”
“Yeah, I’ll go out and meet them. Call Sir Krashana. We should
introduce each other.”
“Thank you. I heard a lot about your exploits too, Sir Krashana.”
That was why Kalagul, who had recently begun studying about the
world, knew about him.
“We have prepared a place for you to stay. We won’t have a lot of
time to rest but… why don’t you all unpack first?”
“I can see that. Sir Rian, Lady Celine, guide our team to unpack and
come back.”
The machines did not need rest, thus attacking nonstop. Even now,
Kularen cannons were firing against incoming attacks. Kalagul had
no intention to rest so he decided to join the warfront at once when
his team was ready.
They began explaining the current war front and the details
regarding the enemy. The new recruits of Dragona began to frown as
they listened to the details. These were like war dogs from the
legends; they never got tired and kept fighting until they died.
Throughout his life, his brother was never worried about any enemy.
The machines looked very dangerous, but they were surely no
match for Kalagul or Sian.
Sian speculated that the box was broken, but he realized what
happened now. He didn’t know how, but all the stuff that was
transferred inside was sent to Usharan and they were using it
against Con. It was apparent where the thief had come from.
Gronn, who figured it was too late, closed his eyes and slouched for
the incoming attack, but nothing came. The machine was shivering
while spitting out a weird mechanical voice.
Then it came to a full stop, losing all its lights. Gronn became curious
and went closer to investigate. There was some small iron marble
still spinning fiercely on the Kanuan’s head. The marble was the
culprit that put a stop to the machine as it destroyed the machine’s
brain.
Gronn then turned to Kalagul. Surely his captain had saved him from
death.
Sian, who had been sitting up on a spire along with the other
advisors, sighed as he watched Gronn who charged in again like a
boar. He was at the spire since his position was not a fighter. He did
not want to interfere, but that Kalagul didn’t seem to mind saving
their friends. He was defending an important passage, but he didn’t
care if the others died. Sian didn’t want to see people die, so he
activated <Nitzmatan>. No one inside the spire cared about what
Sian was doing because they were busy commanding the war. After
a red light, many marbles rolled out onto Sian’s hands. It was what
Sian purchased before coming here. Sian then picked one up with
his fingers and snapped it.
The marble, shot upon the target in a straight line, crushed the
Kanuan’s head that tried to bite off Panolan’s neck. Panolan looked
at the Kanuan with shock before he turned to Kalagul and charged
into the battlefield more eagerly.
It allowed Grandal to spread out his forces and send <Black Star> to
the other important areas, which made the battle much better for
them. The lieutenants also seemed to be wise. They lacked
experience, but they knew how to lead the group and fight. Rian
especially looked very promising as he was already at the level of a
lieutenant of the <Black Star>.
“Roman and Kiraine. No wonder. But who are those fools who came
with them?”
Grandal didn’t have any problems with their skills. It was their
attitude. These experts acted as if they were legendary Ra-Banders.
They didn’t care about staying in formation and were easily baited by
those machines.
‘Is there something that I’m not seeing? I will see it soon.’
He expected at least a third of them to die, but none did. He didn’t
have any complaints though. The captain and his lieutenants were
already doing enough.
The following were the four strategic war locations against Con.
Con-Tian Region
Arsharan Region
Kerbel Region
Cordova Region
All four regions were equally important, and thus the Con Kingdom
resisted heavily. It made the Kingdom send all three of its Grand
Banders to the warfront. All three fronts, other than the Con-Tian
Region, had Grand Banders stationed already. Thus, Usharan sent
their Grand Banders and Kel-Rufens to fight against them there.
“We have a report that all the other Grand Banders are still in the
other regions.”
The lieutenant handed the report over to him. It had been only a
month since Kalagul appeared, but there was already enough
information.
Nazgal let out a laugh, but he knew the King of Tian. Only the
greediest could become the king of the country, so he probably had
some other motive with such a plan.
“Anyway… report it and ask for reinforcements. We’ll kill him once
we have the Kel-Rufens on our side.”
“Yes, Commander.”
“The reinforcements have two lieutenants. They are from Kiraine and
Roman.”
“Yes, Commander.”
“Wow, that is unbelievable. Why would Tian send one of the Romans
out onto a foreign battlefield? This doesn’t make sense. Do we look
weak to them?”
“Well, I guess it’s our chance. Tian is next after we conquer Con.
Let’s kill him.”
“I was going to get some rest, but it’s not time. Send Kanuans to the
Grand Bander to buy some time and send a few Kel-Rufens to Rian
so we can kill him. We will kill him before our reinforcements come.”
“Yes, Commander.”
“We will start now. Bring back the Kanuans and keep firing for today.
Give them no time to rest.”
Sian was still acting as a sniper from the top of the spire.
Sian had been shooting his marbles with a very specific flowchart.
Shoot.
Although he was following these rules, he had already used half of
the marbles he brought. Additionally, Gronn and Panolan didn’t seem
to get number 3 at all. They kept on charging in and it became worse
once they realized that someone was protecting them.
Kalagul had the same idea as Sian. He did not gravitate toward
danger. He would’ve stayed in his spot even if Kanuans did not force
him to. He was standing at a spot where he could run or ask for help
if needed.
The Kanuans had no way to avoid the marbles, but the Kel-Rufens
looked like they could defend themselves. These machines were
also smart: once they sensed that Sian was distracted while firing a
marble, they started moving toward Rian and Celine.
“Haha, five!”
A Grand Bander was definitely a great help, and these Experts were
doing okay since none of them were dying. It seemed that Kalagul
was protecting them somehow. Krashana sighed and reached out to
a Kanuan that was charging at her. The space in front of her
distorted; it reflected Kanuan’s feet and made them fall down.
Krashana then took her chance to crush the Kanuan’s head.
Krashana was a dual power user. She was born with a Bander
Rating of 45. At the age of ten, she also realized she had the talent
to become an Exer. She began training to use both powers, which
allowed her to become a Master Bander and a B-grade Exer at the
same time.
She had been utilizing both powers to destroy the Kanuans. As she
fought, she glanced at Rian from time to time. He was so handsome
that he could not be missed from a distance.
‘Dammit… Nazgal…’
They were aiming to kill Rian first as they lacked Kel-Rufens to fight
against the Grand Bander. It was too late to help as the Kel-Rufens
were already preparing to fight and she was too far.
As she tried to shout to warn them, she felt some weird sensation
and became dazed. It almost made her get bitten by a Kanuan, but
she fended it off and braced herself again.
‘What is that?’
‘What!’
The hand then crushed the cores at once. It was one clean grab and
it destroyed all four cores. The Kel-Rufens stopped moving at once
and fell to the ground, destroyed by Kularen fire that sensed
activation of the cores.
Sian began pondering about the idea to leave the war with everyone.
“We have fought off the <Golden Lion> and invaded the Kiranon
Region.”
The prince smiled and thanked Kurandas again.
“Thank you, Sir Kurandas. May you rest in peace… We will honor
our victory under your name.”
The Prince was lost in his thoughts when he heard another report.
“We have lost six hundred Kanuans and half of the fifteen Kel-
Rufens at Con-Tian Region. Report says they retreated because of
heavy damage.”
“What happened?”
“What?”
The Prince became surprised and understood the reason for the
damage. However, there was still one question left remaining.
Con had three Grand Banders, and they were all being tied up by the
Kel-Rufens.
The Prince had already heard about the hidden Grand Bander at
Tian Kingdom. They had Kurandas in hiding, so it wasn’t surprising.
But to send one for foreign aid…
“I don’t know what they’re up to.”
Grand Banders were extremely useful for the Kingdom. There was
no way King Narasha would not see that. There had to be something
more.
Surely General Nazgal recorded the Grand Bander with his Exar. He
needed to see this to judge for himself.
After looking at the video and going through some of the reports, he
smiled ominously.
“I see what he was up to. This King Narasha… doesn’t have full
control over this Kalagul.”
The video proved his speculation. Kalagul did not want to do any
more work than what he was supposed to do. The space he was
guarding was very important, but it was also a place where he had
the best chance at survival. If the King had full control, Kalagul would
definitely run out and destroy his enemy.
The King had sent the Grand Bander out of the country as he had no
control over him to help his kingdom. It was good since they could
help Con Kingdom while sending out an uncontrollable Grand
Bander out of the country.
“Focus our forces. Let’s see this how well this sellsword Grand
Bander can fight at the brink of death.”
They still had more weapons at the armory. A Grand Bander had the
power to defend himself from it, but the castle did not. If the Grand
Bander could be scared away, then that would be the best.
Prince sat back in his chair and went over his plans again.
“Kalagul… I am not sure what you were promised, but let’s see how
well you fight.”
<Humans don’t need a monkey’s respect. Just like how I don’t need
respect from you.>
…….
“It’s weird…”
“Yes, Commander.”
Dragona began training as the attack slowed down. There was the
occasional cannon fire, but Dragona was temporarily off duty. After
the battle, the new recruits learned the importance of formations and
teamwork. They had no deaths, but most of them suffered wounds.
Panolan and Gronn barely escaped death and experienced severe
trauma. They were now more subdued and were working hard to
work as a team.
“Sian, what’s that in your hand?” Celine asked Sian when she saw
that he was holding something.
Sian added that he had used five hundred already. Celine did not
understand what he meant, but she soon realized it.
“Aren’t you mad? They think it was Kalagul! They respect him while
they are ignoring you.”
“But…”
Celine was angered by the fact that Sian was being ignored. They
needed to know how they were still alive. If it wasn’t for Sian, most of
them would’ve already been dead. Sian thought Celine’s reaction
was cute and smiled.
“Haha. It’s okay, Lady Celine. I don’t need their respect. I’m just
happy if I can live happily with the people I love. I don’t need respect
from others.”
Celine ranted. Sian wanted to correct her that a saint was something
different, but held back. He just didn’t find getting respected to be
worth it.
“So when are we going back? We’re not going to stay here forever
are we?”
Sian closed his eyes. Celine then looked at him curiously and Sian
spoke up, opening his eyes.
“Huh?”
Celine couldn’t understand what that meant until the next day.
Kalagul realized the Kanuans and Kel-Rufens were from the Old
Empire he fought. These machines had no chance against <Kal-
Gul> as they had great magic. These soulless machines were no
match against them and that was why the Empire gave up using
them. But with his current human body, he had no way of using the
great magic to subdue them. Kalagul began calculating his chances
of winning against them without the great magic.
There was the possibility of winning if the powers were all combined,
but Kalagul had no intention to do it.
‘I should draw back. I’m not sure how strong this Sian is either.’
Kalagul still hadn’t seen how strong Sian was. Kuntarian was too
weak to draw his true strength out. Even when he became a Grand
Bander, he was still much weaker than King Narasha. Even if Sian
was stronger than Kalagul himself, it was still a suicide mission to
fight against many Kel-Rufens with two Grand Banders.
“Yes. What do you want me to do? Should I join them back at the
capital and fight there?”
The King must have been surprised by the enemy. He must have
sent them because Kalagul was enough to fight them off. Kalagul
also thought the King would know that he did not intend to take the
risk if it came to this. That was why he spoke about the option of
falling back to buy more time.
<No. I wish we could buy them a few more days, but that’s enough. I
can’t stress him out for any longer also. Bring everyone back. Use
the Ra-Shar-Roa nearby.>
“??”
But it didn’t matter. It was good that he did not need to fight any
longer.
<Don’t drag me into your quarrels. Or else you will feel my wrath.>
…….
“Yes… Sir Kalagul is a foreign Grand Bander. He will not fight for us
until the end. He has already declared that he and <Dragona> are
retreating per the King’s order. They are going back by using the Ra-
Shar-Roa nearby.”
Krashana’s face dimmed. If they did not have Kalagul, they had no
chance at winning this war. Krashana also saw the number of Kel-
Rufens on the plains. She wanted to find the man who helped Rian,
but that seemed unlikely and there was no guarantee that he would
help them either.
“…Krashana.”
“Yes?”
“Thank you for everything.”
“It might be weird, but they were escorting all the civilians out from
the castle.”
“No, Commander. Only civilians. All the soldiers are still at the
castle.”
“Heh… so the Krashana girl is willing to make a last stand. She’s got
some guts.”
<Black Star> and the other soldiers knew they couldn’t run. If they
did, they would be chased down.
“I will respect their decision. Let’s not waste more time. Attack when
the preparations are done. We will dine at Con-Tian today.”
“Hmm…”
Rian kept glancing back at the castle as they walked away from it.
They were acting under the King’s orders, but Rian felt
uncomfortable about abandoning their allies and leaving them to die.
Usharan started attacking Con-Tian not a day after they left the
castle. The sound of Kularen cannons came from far away, but it
would not last long. Even at this moment, the Kel-Rufens and
Kanuans were fiercely attacking the inner castle.
“Sir Rian.”
“But…”
“We will all die if we fight against such an army. Think about our
people and all the civilians here.”
Rian could not answer. Krashana had one request. It was to help
safely move the civilians to where the Ra-Shar-Roa was located.
She knew they could not do it as they would be tracked down. Rian
could not forget her face when she made the depressing request. If
Sian put up a fight, it would’ve solved everything, but he couldn’t ask
Sian to do such a thing. Sian did not want to kill people. Even in the
war, he only destroyed the machines. He also hated taking sides.
Knowing all this, Rian couldn’t ask Sian to side with Con Kingdom.
After organizing his thoughts and making up his mind, Rian turned to
the castle one last time.
‘Hmm?’
The ground was shaking. The castle was trembling violently from
within. They were miles away, but they still felt the quake. Then a
terrifying energy began radiating from within the castle.
This was kept top secret among the region’s general and a few of
the top-ranking generals. It was the ultimate weapon that needed to
be kept a secret. It was then stored under the Con-Tian Castle for a
hundred years.
Their armies could barely fight against ten Kel-Rufens. They were
not just seventy Master warriors. These machines became stronger
as their numbers grew. Even now, the Kel-Rufens were creating
formations and killing Con-Tian warriors. They were not to be sent to
the capital. They needed to be stopped. If Usharan lost the Kel-
Rufens, they would not be able to advance any further and it would
buy some time to allow Con Kingdom to recover.
The Kel-Rufens and enemy generals were now deep inside the
castle. They would not be able to run away from this point. Even if
they wanted to, Krashana would slow them down.
He then moved into the inner office where a small magic rune,
connected to the <Explosive Fire>, was located and transferred
Bander into it, proving that he was the Commander of the Con-Tian
region. At once, along with the huge tremor, the <Explosive Fire>’s
magic rune was initiated.
<Explosive Fire>
First, its Exar flow was too wild and abrupt. Everyone, including the
enemy, would know the moment it was activated.
Second, it took a long time for the actual magic to happen after its
activation. It took one minute and required three minutes if a Magic
Priest was absent, or if the rune was activated only by a Talic Stone.
These two problems allowed enemies to run out of its range, which
would render it useless.
Great Magic Priest Arantina knew it had these problems. Yet she still
installed it at Con-Tian because of the one pro it had.
When activated, and provided that the enemy was drawn deep within
so they didn’t have time to run away, it would wreak havoc.
<You find me dull? It’s better that I’m dull than active in your case.
About 200 times better that is.>
Excerpt from Black Moon Karakal, Ra-Bander from 150 years ago.
…….
Sian was relieved to be out of war, but it didn’t feel good. It was good
that he didn’t have to fight, but he could not stop thinking about those
who were left behind. Yet he couldn’t interfere out of remorse. He
was too powerful to interfere lightly. If he interfered in the world just
because of his emotions, he would destroy thousands of lives.
Therefore, Sian avoided trouble and made his world smaller.
If Usharan Kingdom did not cause any problems against Sian and
his family, there was no need to fight. That was when Sian felt the
tremor coming from the Con-Tian Region.
It was hidden, but Sian felt a terrible Exar that was sleeping under
the castle. The reason why he wanted to leave the battlefield was
because if that was used, Sian had no way to save anyone else
other than his brother and Celine.
Right after it was activated, the magic covered the entire castle and
the region with one small black sphere. The sphere that stretched
across a five-mile radius captured everything… the Kel-Rufens, the
Kanuans, the soldiers, the castle, and shrank all of it into the size of
a human head. Nothing was left.
Even the part of the mountain that it contained was gone. It was as if
something had bitten off a part of the mountain.
The sphere then fell down to the ground and the air was sucked into
the space. Then it exploded with a loud sound and sent out a dust
cloud all the way to where <Dragona> was walking.
Sian, who was looking at all this, narrowed his eyes as if he had
found something in the dust cloud.
‘Haha…’
“Huh?”
The Dragona who felt sad for those that were left behind brightened
up. Surely they had a way of surviving such a powerful attack.
However, they were left to despair.
Most of the soldiers died, but he was able to save his generals and
sixty Kel-Rufens. Then Nazgal turned to <Dragona> who was
walking far away in the distance. He remembered Prince Rakun’s
another order.
<It might be hard, but if you can quickly conquer Con-Tian and have
time to chase Dragona, chase them and kill the Grand Bander
named Kalagul. It’s rare for a Grand Bander to act outside his
country.>
If a Grand Bander fought within the Con-Tian Region along with the
<Black Star>, it would’ve been hard. Yet, at the current moment, the
Grand Bander was an easy target. That was why he was not
bothered about the Dragona warriors leaving since he would be able
to ambush the group. The civilians would slow them down and there
was certainly enough time for Cordan and his Kel-Rufens to chase
them afterwards. Besides, the reason for General Cordan’s presence
was to chase after Dragona by using the artifact if they got too far
away.
“I almost died there! Let’s finish them and go get some rest.”
Cordan voiced his thoughts, to which Nazgal agreed. They had sixty
Kel-Rufens. It was going to be easy. Nazgal then ordered the Kel-
Rufens to attack at once.
‘Ha…’
Sian stayed put because he didn’t want to side with anyone. To him,
Con and Usharan were the same. Even if it was his own country, he
wasn’t interested. It was only because Rian was siding with Con that
Sian helped Rian steer clear of danger. Sian didn’t want to help one
side.
That was why he let go of the fact that they tried to kill Rian.
But it seemed foolish to not fight when the Usharan was still chasing
after them. Even when they showed that they wanted to stay out of
the war, Usharan still attacked them. If Sian wasn’t here, everyone
here would’ve been killed. Kalagul, Rian, and even the civilians.
Sian gritted his teeth. He pulled out his sword that he had never
drawn once until today. The toys weren’t at fault. He decided to put
down the toys fast and beat up those culprits who stayed behind.
‘Idiots…’
‘What?’
At that moment, a sword penetrated out from the center, like a nail
piercing a thick stack of papers. The sword destroyed all the cores of
the Kel-Rufens and it was pulled back, but the end of the sword
broke and fell to the ground.
Kalagul picked up the sword piece that had broken off and found
something interesting. The sword was so clean that it hadn’t been
used at all. It was broken due to powerful magic, but the piece itself
was extremely clean. There was only one person in Dragona who
did not use his sword.
‘…Sian?’
Kalagul glanced around, but there was no Sian. Then he heard faint
screams from far away through the dust cloud.
When the dust cloud subsided, Kalagul and all of Dragona were able
to see who was making the sound. Beyond the destroyed Kel-
Rufens, six men were getting beat up.
“ARGH!”
Four of them had already fainted and two of them were being beaten
up by side of the broken sword that Sian was holding.
‘It is… that Nazgal… I’m not sure who the other man is.’
Kalagul decided to wait. It didn’t matter who it was. If Sian was able
to destroy sixty Kel-Rufens at once, two Master warriors were no
match for him. Kalagul only needed to pick them up after Sian
finished his business with them.
‘This is it.’
It was now a material that was extremely durable and the heaviest in
the world. It still probably weighed a few thousand tons, but that
didn’t bother Sian. His power defied the laws of physics and gravity.
Sian pondered on how to carry this sword and was reminded of the
necklace. It let out a blue light and absorbed the sword. Then the
necklace shined again with the blue light. It meant that <Nitzmatan>
was now almost full in capacity. Even when it was contracted, the
sword still weighed ten thousand tons.
But it didn’t matter. Sian did not need to store anything else other
than his sword. It was a decision made on a whim, but he was very
satisfied with the sword and decided to name it.
<Chrona-Phon>
There was a weird sensation pulling him lately. It was something that
he could not make out, but it still bothered him.
“They… what?”
Prince Rakun asked in disbelief. General Nazgal was one of his best
generals. He had beast-like instincts on when to strike and when to
flee. He brought Usharan many victories over countless wars. But
they were wiped out.
“What happened!”
“They still had such a weapon left…? But didn’t he have the <Gate of
Narangel>?” the Prince asked.
“We are not sure, but it looks like they didn’t have a chance to use
it.”
It was his plan to let General Nazgal attack the capital with fifty Kel-
Rufens, but all was lost. As the Prince was deep in thought, one of
his messengers ran in.
Prince brightened up a bit, hoping for better news. But what returned
was nothing he could have expected.
“Tian Kingdom has declared war against Taran Kingdom! They are
now advancing their troops toward the Lagran Region of Taran
Kingdom!”
“WHAT!”
The Prince was shocked to hear that. He realized what was going
on.
When he returned through the Ra-Shar-Roa portal, Sian felt that the
capital was different than usual.
“What’s going on?” Sian asked Celine who had just returned from
being summoned to the capital.
“Huh?”
That was what Kalagul had in mind. The King did not send Kalagul to
Con Kingdom just to help his allies. It was a decoy for Usharan to
focus their eyes on the war with Con Kingdom. He made Usharan
think that they divided their forces to help Con and carefully moved
troops over to the Taran border, under the excuse of strengthening
the border.
It was all a setup to let Taran’s guard loosen, to make them think that
Tian was focused on Con Kingdom, afraid that they might lose.
King Narasha’s target was Taran Kingdom from the beginning. His
intention was to take over the farmlands of Lagran. He believed Con
and Usharan would be too busy to interfere with the other war and
began preparing for an invasion while disguised as fortifying his
kingdom’s borders.
…….
If Lagran was lost, it meant the loss of half of the power that Taran
had. It also meant the enemy that acquired it would grow stronger
while Taran would grow weaker. It was why Taran had been doing
the best it could to protect this region. It was why the Lagran Region
was never allowed to be attacked.
King Stahntal the Fourth gritted his teeth in anger. He didn’t expect
to be attacked from behind. He was moving his forces to attack
Usharan when it was vulnerable, but he never imagined to be
attacked by Tian. He figured Tian was a fool to send its Grand
Bander out of the country, but it turned out that Tian Kingdom was
foolish after all.
Stahntal the Fourth, who was ninety years old, never imagined he
would have his borders breached by a newly appointed King of Tian.
He needed to give the new king some credit as he did create results.
At this point, Tian Kingdom was a threat against Taran.
So it was also a good time to crush them under his feet.
‘Good. I will take this chance to shake up your country, all the way to
your capital.’
It was a good opportunity since Usharan was too busy with its own
war. He would not allow Tian to reach Lagran.
The four Grand Banders, except for Kranon who was guarding the
Usharan Border, would be enough to deal with Tian Kingdom.
“Yes, Sian.”
“Yes.”
If the King kept declaring war and insisted on having a Roman at the
lead, Sian was bound to be called around. He needed to take a
stand.
Sian began heading toward the palace. He decided to use his last
option if it didn’t work out.
“Hm…”
King Narasha was looking calmly at Sian, who obviously seemed
uncomfortable, but he was really worried. By the looks of Sian, it was
apparent that his patience had reached its end. Even now, he was
flexing his fist, threatening to use force at any time.
Sian was a man of absolute power. He had been very generous until
now.
King Narasha wasn’t worried about Old King Stahntal or the Great
Generals of Taran. He needed the help of the Roman family to win
this war. The problem was whether Sian would allow it.
If Sian decided that it was best to kill Narasha at once to keep his
family out of war, his reign would end in a year.
The King sighed. He was better in every aspect than the boy named
Sian in front of him. His power, wealth, judgment, wisdom, charisma,
every other aspect… he was better at all those but one thing. The
one thing he wasn’t better at was what made him worry about this
boy.
“…”
“I will explain the main condition. I wish our nation to have talented
individuals like Count Roman and Sir Rian, but I do not want our
nation to be built upon the power of a man like you.”
“So, I want to build a system that Tian itself will be able to maintain.
To train talented individuals and become powerful. To build a
Kingdom… no, an Empire.”
“Hmm…”
Sian began to accept what the King was saying and the King
continued, “So, I want to make Tian strong without your help. That’s
why we need Lagran and that’s where we will stop.”
“No. If our plan works, the Tian forces will be enough. I believe you
are just worried about your father and brother and will work to do just
that.”
“Yes. Rest assured, Tian will become twice as strong once we have
Lagran. No one will dare to fight us then. Don’t worry.”
It seemed okay to help one last time. There wasn’t much that could
threaten his father or brother other than the wars.
“…”
“I’m just worried that your ‘plan’ will not work as intended. Oh, and
make my request a secret, will you?”
“…don’t worry.”
The King sighed after Sian left the room. The main problem was
solved. It was now time to focus on Lagran.
If Lagran fell under Tian rule, the region would serve as a foundation
for the future empire.
Talos Fortress, the final defense point before the Lagran Region and
the impenetrable fortress of Taran. Its walls were littered with various
defensive runes and all spires were equipped with cannons created
with the newest technology.
Count Roman was already eager to jump out. His old nickname was
<Mad Bear>. His age made him more dignified and calmed him
down a lot, but it didn’t make his personality go away. He loved to
fight and his father always worried that his son would die in the battle
and end their bloodline with his generation.
Count Roman thought about his rival who was somewhere inside the
Talos Fortress.
‘Hmm…’
Yet there was one thing that he couldn’t understand from the King.
<If everything goes according to plan, Count Roman will not need to
fight at all.>
It wasn’t definite, but the King always knew what he was saying, so
Count Roman decided to believe it.
The new Fifth Elder, who was the Sixth until while ago, spoke as he
watched Talos Fortress. They sensed four Grand Banders from
within the fortress. The walls and defense also seemed very sturdy
and powerful, making it hard to deal with.
<It would mean nothing if the Great Elder or the Second Elder fought
with us. What are they doing now?>
<Same as before. They are still readying themselves for <that time>
as always.>
<Yes, do not forget our mission. Our mission is to bring them to our
land. The rest is up to them.>
The Fifth Elder nodded. Their job was to win the fight against that
fortress. Now they will finally return to their homeland.
Sian was now moving toward where his father was. Something kept
bothering him. As he went closer to the Talos Fortress, he felt
something similar to that of himself. He kept touching the necklace.
He didn’t expect to use it, but he felt that his weapon would soon
come in handy.
Sian made up his mind and quickened his pace. After this mission
was done, he was going to be free. He thought about going traveling.
Once his family was safe, there was nothing to bind him anymore.
[LA-AKUM-SAOW-SHE…]
With weird words and flow of Exar, the Sixth Elder began working his
magic. The First Grade Magic Priest Jeraph looked at him curiously.
The stone began to glow brightly and a ray of red light shot out.
<Way of Agran>, or second-grade magic, had no special effect. It
was the ultimate magic focused for the war as it had the longest
range and caused devastation upon its target. The Sixth Elder added
more effects by using his Exar and the ray of light shot out at one of
the guard towers inside the castle. It needed to be destroyed to
attack Taran without the danger of being pummeled by the cannons
from above.
In return, the Sixth Elder smiled and used his power. The ray that
was divided then changed directions and was directed to the top of
the spire of the wall. There was no sound. The two rays met at the
spire and melted the place entirely. The ray that still had the energy
to move was now directed toward the ground, blasting it soon after.
As the dust from the explosion subsided, a man in his shield was
revealed. It was <Revadan the Ravager>. He jumped in to defend
his soldiers as the ray attacked them.
The Sixth Elder smiled. It was only the beginning of the attack. It
wasn’t time yet.
Both sides began fighting at that moment. Cannons began firing and
warriors started wielding Bander on their bodies before charging in.
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Chapter 56
Chapter 56: Talos
When he first arrived, he intended to quickly finish the war. One thing
he realized was that even if he only intended to protect his family, if
his family was at war, then it meant that he was at war too. Thus he
thought that it might be good to finish everything quickly as the King
said Lagran would be the end.
Yet something made him stay back. Something was off. He thought
this was the place where he needed to fight, but it didn’t seem like it.
This was the first time he felt as such, so he decided to stay back.
If his father was in danger, he was going to jump right in, but there
seemed to be no threats against his father for now. There were four
enemies who could fight his father, and two of them were quite
dangerous. Yet they were not joining the fight.
The cannon fire was pretty powerful, but it was not enough to
actually hit the Grand Banders as the flow of Exar was too great to
miss. Besides, it was only a skirmish right now. The main warriors
were not at the front.
‘Father… didn’t you tell me that it’s always good to not fight?’
Count Roman was not fighting at the moment. He was still with the
Swordmeister, at the back of the warfront. He seemed very eager to
jump in and fight.
Sian agreed with his father’s views, so he had no complaints. If it
wasn’t for his parents, he would’ve ended up like Kuntarian.
After looking through the warfront, Sian found a group of people with
some familiar features.
These people who were at the frontline were very powerful. The four
of them who were not at the front also seemed to be very powerful.
Each one was as strong as Kalagul. Something was familiar about
them, but Sian couldn’t think of a place where he would’ve met them
so he shook his thoughts away.
Zagron, the Great General of Taran, looked toward the other side.
He was eyeing the four mysterious men, Count Roman, and
Swordmeister Kiraine. They knew about the two Grand Banders of
Tian, but he wasn’t aware of the other four men. It was because they
invaded the border within seconds.
“Colan, give me a break. I’m not talking about that and you know it.”
Colan, also another Great General, teased Zagron who had been his
best friend for life.
They were here without any worries at first. Taran Kingdom had a
total of six Grand Banders and was much more powerful than Tian. If
it wasn’t for Usharan, who ways looked for a chance to invade Taran,
they would’ve already conquered Tian.
But how dare they attack first? Zagron scoffed when he first heard of
it, but he also thought it was a great chance to destroy Tian and
move the border out to the Celaine territory.
“…”
“We still might win. You’re just afraid that Narasha might be hiding
more things.”
The reason for the four Grand Banders gathering was to kill and
capture all of them without much loss. Colan and Zagron himself
were enough to fight against Count Roman and Swordmeister
Kiraine.
But when he arrived, things looked different. It looked like there was
going to be heavy casualties. What was up with them? What would
happen if they reached Lagran? What then? What are they up to?
Questions began filling Zagron’s head.
“Let’s gather everything and move back to Lagran. We’ll let them
handle it on their own.”
“Of course. That Tian King must have prepared something… but ‘he’
might like it that way.”
!!
“We don’t need to about care who wins. It’s not up to us.”
Colan spoke without much energy. That was when Zagron realized
what he had been ignoring.
Yeah. After that, the four Great Generals jumped into the battle and
began pushing the enemy back. As the fight came to a rest, they
quickly began gathering all troops and used Ra-Shar-Roa to teleport
out. Tian wanted to chase after them, but they were tired and driven
back by the Great Generals.
So after not much of a fight, Talos was taken over by Tian and Tian
began advancing toward Lagran.
After the defeat of Talos without much effort, they were now
advancing toward Lagran. The war had to be quick.
They were people who continuously changed their forces that made
them hard to track, even for the Pa-Harijans. Kirat was different. He
knew what she looked like. There was a chance that the Pa-Harijan
would not care about such a petty incident, just like other Pa-
Harijans did in the past, and thus they hid Kirat for her safety.
<That is a shame… we shall call her once our job here is done…>
Kirat didn’t return to her people when she left, but the Fifth Elder
didn’t disclose this and nodded. What was important was the war
ahead.
<I see Gran-Latra. Is what the Great Elder and the Second Elder
have prepared for?>
<Yes. The time is now…>
The Third Elder and the Fifth Elder looked toward Lagran Region.
After four hundred years, they were now back at their homeland,
<Gran-Latra>. It was time to reclaim <Granine’s> glory.
<Granine>
They were the people who lived under Sky Mountain four hundred
years ago, at the current Lagran Region. The reason why they lived
in that region was because their holy ground, <Gran-Latra>, was
located there. The Well of Spirits, <Lavne>, was placed at the center
of <Gran-Latra> and their people lived around it. There was a
commune near the Well of Spirits and they returned to it after they
died. It was through <Lavne> that they learned how to live and were
reborn. Only the <Granines> could reincarnate with the Well of
Spirits and that was what made them think that they were chosen.
After losing connection with the Well of Spirits, they lost the ability to
reincarnate. Some who realized that they have no way to
communicate with the spirits even committed suicide. But the
younger generations who had little to no experience in communals
and reincarnation did not give up. They worked hard to return to their
homeland.
It wasn’t possible to go the commune, but they still felt the presence.
That was what made them persevere for four hundred years. After
fighting for so many years, they became strong. The weak were also
left to die. Even the Great Elder and the Second Elder, who had
become Pa-Harijans during those times, could not give up on
returning to their land.
But there were problems. Their homeland was occupied by humans.
She stayed at <Lavne> for two hundred years after invading the
Lagran Region. She needed to be disposed of. Yet the Great Elder
and the Second Elder felt him and realized it. Even with their
combined powers, it would barely even the odds of fighting him.
That was why they couldn’t join the war. They must not be revealed.
The humans gave them information about this <Stahntal>, but it did
not mean anything. Superhumans were not beings that ordinary
humans could decipher.
That was why they needed help. It was not possible to arrive at
<Lavne> without the two elders’ powers. That’s why they decided to
help Narasha and made a deal. The deal was made to win back
<Gran-Latra> and give all resources to Narasha in addition to
helping and protecting each other.
Narasha made fine work out of it. And they were now finally at
<Gran-Latra>.
If <Stahntal> was strong enough, they would lose. If not, then they
would be able to reclaim their land.
Sian looked at the Lagran Region that was still very far away and
began to realize what he had been sensing until now.
To the north of the Lagran Region, there was a small well on the way
to Sky Mountain. It was a small, ordinary well that was located near
the creek of Lagran. It was a historical ruin that gathered a small
number of archeologists and historians, but even they didn’t pay
much attention to the well.
Next to it was a small shack. A woman was looking at the well in the
back.
She looked very rough and was very tall, broadly built like a man.
She was like a lioness. She kept looking at the well while mumbling
something. No, maybe she wasn’t looking at the well as she was
closing her eyes.
After a while, she laid down on her back on the spot. She looked
very tired.
She looked tired, but also accomplished. She then stood back up
and sat down in front of the well.
“Seven during one hundred and seventy years… and there’s three
more. I can still enjoy it for a hundred more years. Will I be alive til
then?”
The woman spoke and closed her eyes again, concentrating on the
well. At that moment, she opened her eyes suddenly and turned to
the foot of the mountain, over toward the Lagran Region. Something
powerful was walking in her direction.
“Oh… wow. So there are still interesting people left other than
Groyn?”
Groyn was too busy occupied fighting Harijans in the north, so she
had no choice left but to fight the ones inside the well. There was no
one powerful enough to fight against her. Fighting the ones inside
the well was pretty fun after all. But it couldn’t match a real, physical
fight.
What was more exciting was that these two powerful figures were on
par with her own power. It was amazing that they had hidden it until
now.
“Wow, I didn’t really expect much, but they really slacked off.”
“Ha… okay. I would’ve snapped their necks off for doing that, but I
will let it go since I haven’t had some fun in a while.”
The woman, Stahntal the First, moved into her shack and began
watching over herself. She was a bit tired from fighting the one inside
the well. However, there was still time before they would arrive. She
had enough time to rest.
She loved fighting against the strong, but she hated losing. She
needed to win and she always did.
…….
The city in the Lagran Region was empty. It was a large city, but
Taran’s Great Generals had already evacuated all of its people. They
all knew well of the person living not too far away from here. They
weren’t sure what King Narasha had in mind, but if he prepared a
force powerful enough to fight Stahntal the First, the city was sure to
be left in ruins when the fight began.
She wasn’t one to care about the petty lives nearby, and that’s why
the people of the city were evacuated.
The forces of both Tian and Taran placed themselves miles away
from <Lavne>, waiting for the main fight to begin. The two Elders
were now crossing the empty city of <Stiel> towards <Lavne>.
<Yes… what have they done… to our land? We must… build anew.>
“Of course not. I have to play with the well once I finish dealing with
you two, so it can’t be destroyed. Oh, do you guys also go in there
once you die?”
Both sides didn’t want to destroy the well, so they began moving
down to the city. After they were far from the well, about ten miles
away, they would start the fight. Fighting in the city meant the
destruction of the city and the loss of lives, but they didn’t care.
“Ugh, look at those crazy bastards. Why are they coming down?
Fight up there!”
The three people quickly moved ten miles into the city and stopped
right in the middle. The problem was that the place was only five
miles away from where the Tian forces were stationed. If they fought
there, the chance of his father getting involved was 100%. Five miles
was nothing in a fight of Ra-Banders.
“The world is large, and there are so many who need to be beaten
up.”
The only problem was that it wasn’t easy this time around. He
wanted to solve it by talking things out, but he knew that wasn’t
possible. Sian then charged towards Lagran, unleashing his full
power from within.
“HAHAHA! Shall we start now- HUH?”
Stahntal, who was excited to start the fight, turned in shock towards
the walls of the city. The two Elders were also looking at the same
direction in disbelief.
“…What have you guys done to bring such a terrible thing here?”
Stahntal, who had resided by the well for 200 years, thought she
didn’t have anything to do with this and asked a question
However, the Great Elder now realized he was wrong, and so was
the information from his people. This boy was not just stronger; he
was an unimaginable being, even to him.
The three of them looked at each other for a moment and turned
toward that direction. If this being existed, there was no way anyone
else could become the most powerful. It needed to be dealt with.
Besides, this being wasn’t approaching with a friendly attitude
anyway.
“Don’t pretend that I was the only one hiding something. Come on,
bring it out. Unless you want to die without having the chance to use
it.”
<…>
The two Elders created a void in front of them and reached in. The
Great Elder took out a ring while the Second Elder took out a
wristband. Stahntal’s eyes widened in shock. Those were items she
had been searching so hard for but couldn’t find.
“The <Hand of Gran-Ra> and the <Spear of the War God>… I didn’t
understand why I couldn’t find it all those years. So it was because of
you guys. Okay, we might be able to stand a chance then.”
The elders equipped their items without a word. The Second Elder’s
wristband began to shine with a golden light while the Great Elder’s
ring let out black waves.
They all turned to the same direction again, where a young man was
now walking toward them.
Upon his arrival, the boy glanced at the three of them and said,
“Hey.”
??
<…?>
<Hm…>
Sian’s first intention was to drive them out of the city, to a part of the
mountain where his father would not get dragged into. However, as
he unleashed his power and closed in, something welled up from
within him.
Sian could barely hold himself back. If he fought them here, it would
mean the death of his father. He had given his father the <Gate of
Narangel>, but his father might not run away.
The woman covered in weird fog, spat, “HAH! What if I don’t want
to?”
<Destroy them.>
<Chrona-Phon> was taken out from his necklace, and he
immediately swung it at the woman.
As the sword swung at Stahntal, the powder that was floating around
her gathered at the striking point and formed a shiny thin plate.
Sian then jumped toward the same direction. The Great Elder and
the Second Elder looked at each other.
<…>
<…<Division Fold>…>
The Second Elder mumbled quietly, and the space where the two
Elders stood began folding like paper. After it finished, they
disappeared.
She spat blood from her mouth and stared at Sian. The <Armor of
the Seven Stars> was an artifact that protected the user from all
attacks and strengthened the user’s attack, hence the reason why
she didn’t dodge the black sword that he swung at her.
“Even if you are that strong… I won’t make this easy for you.”
Stahntal mumbled as she charged out. The Great Elder activated his
ring.
Darkness covered the Great Elder’s hand. Within that darkness was
something even darker. It wasn’t an illusion. It was a weapon that
was meant to devour everything it touched. An attack meant
destruction as powerful as <Explosive Fire> magic. It was named
after the War God as the devastation left behind after using this
weapon was like the War God had passed through. The Great Elder
followed behind Stahntal, toward Sian.
Soldiers were looking at the mountain, or what was left of it. The
mountain before was now almost destroyed, only half of it was left.
“…”
Zagron, Colan, and the two Great Generals could not say anything.
They all knew stories about Ra-Banders, but they didn’t realize the
sheer power they wielded until now.
“Ha…”
Disinterest. Apathy.
That was when Zagron became humble and stopped making a fool
of others. He understood he wasn’t good enough, so he focused on
his training and earned him the nickname, ‘Invincible’.
However, this was the first time he witnessed Stahntal fighting. And
she was having a hard time, even when teamed up with two men of
similar power.
Those two men seemed to like the weapons that Narasha had
prepared. But they were now fighting together, against one man.
“…”
The four of them came to a stop when Sian stopped swinging his
sword and backed away. Two of the mountains in Sky Mountain
Range had been completely destroyed.
Stahntal’s floating powder was now dull, with bruises all over her
body. The armor would regenerate, but it was slow and could not
keep up with the damage.
The Great Elder was in worse condition. His right hand that had the
ring was broken and it was being held together by using Bander.
The Second Elder looked okay but was hurt from overusing his Exar
and was now bleeding internally.
“…?”
The other three looked confused. They were fighting for their very
lives. Although they were not really successful, they thought Sian
was also having a hard time.
“You three aren’t enough, though it was a little dangerous. When can
I break this barrier…? I thought I might make it if I gave myself a
handicap while fighting, but it’s not working. I’m done.”
At once, the plain sword that previously didn’t radiate any magic
began shining. Sian, too, was covered with light, but there was no
color.
The three looked grim as they watched Sian’s power grow even
stronger.
Everyone knew he was the main culprit for the damage to the
mountain and could not even speak a word. When the man reached
the Great Generals, he threw down a woman from his shoulder.
“I’m going.”
“I’m Sian. Oh, and the Lagran Region is now under Tian rule. Don’t
touch it, okay? Don’t let her come near it either. The owner has
changed.”
“Take them.”
The Third Elder whimpered and checked to see if they were okay.
He sighed in relief when he found that they were only bruised and
injured but still alive.
It was not a moment to be thankful for, but the Third Elder truly
appreciated the outcome.
Sian shrugged and turned away, then moved over to his father.
“I told them to never come back anymore, so they won’t. But I’m not
sure if it’s all going to work like Nara… I mean, like what the King
said.”
<…father?>
Everyone was shocked. So this man was Count Roman’s son? They
all thought he was a thousand-year-old Ra-Bander. But the son of
Count Roman… how old was he?
Count Roman was also very confused, but he did not want to reveal
his thoughts to his son and began chatting with Sian. Besides the
swollen cheek, he looked okay
“Oh.. Sian, what’s that ring and wristband? Are you making a hobby
of collecting jewelry? That <Narangel> thing too…”
“Haha…”
<I thought that was the worst day of my life. However, it was only the
beginning. The world was large… with lots of madmen… and strong
men. And a LOT of those needed beating up.>
…….
King Narasha had been very busy. He only had to look over
significant matters that needed his attention, but that still tied up his
time. They now had the Lagran Region, so all its laws, systems, and
everything else had to be resolved now.
The <Granines> were given the right to rule over the Lagran Region
as promised and was made an ally. What Narasha wanted from the
region were the resources and people, so he had no interest in their
sacred place and the well.
It was only matter of time for the title of the strongest in the Seven
Kingdoms to belong to Tian.
Usharan was having a hard time in their war against Con Kingdom.
After losing a lot of forces at Con-Tian, they were having a hard time
advancing into the Con Kingdom. However, it was speculated that, in
a year or two, Con-Tian would be swallowed whole.
At that time, Tian would have completed its infrastructure, and the
Ra-Sian Continent would then have the two strongest nations and
four other nations.
The most important thing now was to stop relying on Sian. The King
had not felt the power of a Ra-Bander until now. He now considered
it to be too dangerous.
Sian was discussing with his father in the Roman mansion, located
in the outer part of the capital. He had been pondering this idea for a
while. He enjoyed the life in the capital, but it was boring. That was
why he thought about traveling.
The idea came from a novel he had fun reading when he was young.
He had always wanted to try it, but he was too lazy to do it at first,
and all those other things that popped up held him back. But now he
had enough money saved, and his family was no longer in danger.
He wanted to give the armor he picked up this time to his father or
brother, but that armor would crush the user if they weren’t strong as
a Ra-Bander. In the end, he gave <Narangel> to his brother, so it
was okay.
Count Roman agreed to the idea at once. He and his wife had done
all they could. Now Sian needed to learn and experience new things
out in the world. The Count didn’t know how powerful his second son
had become and didn’t know how responsible he had grown. The
fact that nobody knew of such a powerful man showed how careful
Sian had been.
‘He should travel out in the world and experience more things.’
“Good. I’ll support you with anything you might need. Is there
anything else?”
“Hmm… no. I can just go. Oh… I need a map and a… good place to
start.”
“Well… eat good food and see good things, I guess? OH! And one
more thing.”
“Hmm?”
“Broshan?”
“Yes. It’s one of the Seven Kingdoms. That’s where the Great
Emperor’s original Kingdom, Broxian, was located. I heard it’s
beautiful and they have great food there, it’s a popular destination for
nobles. Oh, and that’s also where the famous Sun Sword Liviath
lived.”
“Yes, Father?”
“You… have been doing very well. I am very proud that you have
grown into a fine young man and are responsible for such great
power.”
Sian also became embarrassed, but the Count continued, “You don’t
have to sacrifice your life for the family. And I also hope you learn to
use your power to help others if it doesn’t badly affect you or others.
It might bring you another kind of joy.”
Stahntal the Fourth looked at Stahntal the First who was lying down
on the bed.
“…”
Stahntal the Fourth couldn’t still believe what happened. She had
become a Grand Bander at the age of thirty and she overthrew the
old Taran King. Then, she became a Ra-Bander at sixty and had
lived to this day. That was what he knew of her. There was no enemy
strong enough to fight her; she was like a god.
Stahntal the First looked at him and smiled. She knew what he was
thinking. If it were before, she already would’ve ordered his death for
being rude; however, she decided to stop that. It was because she
remembered what the brat said to her after beating her up.
“Hey.”
“Yes, my king.”
“Did you look into that brat?”
“Yes, as ordered.”
She couldn’t believe it. He was living peacefully even with such great
power. There were a few times when he used his strength, but it was
nothing compared to his powers.
That was when she understood why Sian said that to her. It wasn’t a
threat; it was his way of life.
“Travel…?”
“Yes. I think our intel reports that he wants to enjoy his youth.”
“HAHAHAHAHAHA!”
It had been so long since she had laughed so hard. The man in front
of her wouldn’t know why she was so happy. She felt like as if she
was stranded for years and she finally found another stranded
human. It was near impossible for a Ra-Bander to meet other Ra-
Banders.
“HUH?”
Stahntal the Fourth blurted out his thoughts and quickly stopped. He
knew any slight mistake in front of her would mean his death.
She spoke, smiling. Then, Stahntal the Fourth asked, “Are you not
going back to the Lagran Region?”
She looked at the man as if she understood what he was saying and
replied,
“I can’t.”
“…”
“But…”
“You fool, give up. We can’t touch that place anymore. They’re too
strong. Rather, you should pound on those Usharan kids.”
“Usharan?”
“Yeah. And you know that Tian has him. He’s not like me. He still
cares about the world. What will you do if he comes to defend it?”
“Good. I’ll rest for another week and then move out. Find out where
he is going before then.”
“Yes, my king.”
<Do we lack human feelings? No, we have more feelings and ways
to express it. It’s just that you are not worthy of the effort.>
…….
<Lenorva>
“THIS IS GREAT!”
“HEY! YOU!”
A beautiful voice shouted out. Sian clearly heard it, but he ignored it
since couldn’t be meant for him. He had no one that he knew here.
However, the voice was so beautiful that he wanted to see who it
was. He held back because it might make him look foolish.
‘Huh?’
He was sure that he was the only one with such clothing. Sian
scowled after turning around to see the owner of the beautiful voice.
He wasn’t wholly wrong since she really was beautiful. He also knew
her, but he wished he didn’t.
“UGH.”
“Oh, why such coldness? Didn’t we touch each other’s bare skin and
all? You were so wild back then. I love a wild man, you know.
Hehehe.”
The woman smiled brightly at Sian.
Sian grimaced and replied, but he did so with his voice lowered,
afraid that someone would hear them.
“YEAH! Exactly! It’s called fate. And you sound so polite! What
happened to you?”
The woman glanced at Sian from top to bottom and side to side.
Sian felt like prey at this moment, a deer standing in front of a
lioness.
Sian thought that he was too gentle with this woman, so he decided
to chase her away.
“Well, you are MUCH older, so I can only be polite. Maybe I was
rude back then because I was so mad.”
‘Brother? Huh?’
Sian was confused. He didn’t know who she actually was, but she
had to be very old to have gotten such power. How can he, at the
age of seventeen, be her little brother?
The woman was furious, but she gritted her teeth, still smiling.
“Ha…haha. We are not that much apart! I’m a genius, you know.”
“…Okay, let’s leave it at that. Why did you come for me?”
Sian’s reaction upset the woman, but she remembered her purpose
and replied, “Oh, I lost my home because of ‘someone’, so I had to
leave and travel around the world. I was thinking of teaming up with
you.”
“…ugh.”
He did feel sorry for that, so he couldn’t reject her outright. However,
as he thought about it, he found no reasoning behind it.
“Wait, I can just compensate you. Why do I need to travel with you?”
“Call me Stiel.”
“Uh… ok, Miss Stiel. So, why do I have to travel with you?”
“What…”
It was the first time he had seen such a woman. He had never been
threatened after using his powers.
After the last battle, Sian had learned to use some of his power
without losing his personality. He placed his hand on <Nitzmatan>
and <Chrona-Phon> appeared.
“Hey- hey, hey, hey! Relax! Why do you hate the idea of us traveling
together? Aren’t you lonely?”
“I was so happy to see you! It has been such a long time since I met
a human!”
“Huh?”
She had all sorts of people around her, but Sian realized what she
really meant. Sian was one of a kind who still considered humans as
humans. Other Ra-Banders did not and felt very lonely once they
became powerful. Sian felt somewhat sympathetic and turned to
Stiel.
She did not mention that she had already been quiet for nearly two
hundred years. She didn’t want to disclose her actual age to Sian.
“Okay, I understand. However, I’m warning you, you better not create
any trouble. Once you trouble me, it will mean goodbye.”
“Hehe, threatening to say goodbye when we just met! What a cold
man.”
Sian did fight with her, but he did not have any ill feelings towards
her, so he accepted her company.
“We’re going to the Roland family’s training ground. Oh, and you can
call me by my name.”
“Okay, Sian.”
The Roland family had fallen. The reason for it was because Sun
Sword Liviath was too powerful. The birth of the Sun Sword was
accidental. He was a genius who was born into the family and
learned everything easily and quickly. However, he had a problem.
He was so smart and superior that he had no way of teaching what
he knew to those who were not at his level. He had no idea why
people needed to learn how to use Bander when it was as natural as
breathing for him; he had no idea why he needed to practice with the
sword when he could just use it however he wanted.
The family prospered until Sun Sword Liviath reached the age of
eighty. He was still a Grand Bander at that time and had interest in
his family. But when he, Sun Sword Liviath, became a Ra-Bander, he
immediately left his family.
Without its leader and successor, the Roland family began to decline
quickly, and the mansion was sold. The Broshan Kingdom then
purchased it and opened it up for the public to view the traces of the
great warrior, and it had now made a good profit from the mansion.
A lot of warriors who were at the barrier paid the expensive entrance
fee of 200 talons to look at the trace of Sun Sword Liviath to try and
gain ideas of how to break through. However, Sian wasn’t interested
in breaking his barrier; he was just curious about how other Ra-
Banders lived.
As he and Stiel walked into the mansion, she spoke softly, “Sun
Sword Liviath, it has been a long time since I heard the name…”
“…?”
“Oh, your idea of ‘not much difference’ was in the hundreds? I’m
seventeen, not a hundred and seventy.”
“Ha…Hahaha.”
That would make the whole visit pointless, but Sian decided to enjoy
the mansion as his purpose was to relax. Besides, Stiel paid the
entrance fee, so it didn’t matter to him.
They had now arrived at the most famous spot in the Roland
mansion. It was the trace left by the Sun Sword Liviath, right after he
became a Ra-Bander while training at the training grounds.
It was <Ra-Vash>.
<Ra-Vash>
When Sun Sword Liviath didn’t return from the training grounds to
eat, his family came to check on him out of concern. However, he
was already gone, and there was only the trace that he had left. His
family frantically searched for him, but he never returned to the
Roland family.
People speculated that the great warrior felt empty after he became
a Ra-Bander, and after leaving a trace to teach his family, left them
to find something that would interest him.
The Roland family was confused, but they quickly understood what
they needed to do. They needed to observe the trace and learn the
power of their greatest warrior. It was the only way to preserve their
family.
<Ra-Vash> was a rare spot that visitors could actually feel the trace
of a Ra-Bander. That was what drew in warriors from various
country. Broshan was a neutral Kingdom, so anyone from any nation
was allowed to visit.
However, they all stayed within the training grounds in fear of ruining
the actual trace.
Sian looked at the trace for a moment and scowled, while Stiel
watched his expression change, smiling.
“…What is that?”
Sian turned away from it and looked at the people with sad eyes.
Then, he noticed a kid.
‘Hm…?’
A boy, looking barely over the age of ten, was serving food and
drinks to those who were training here. He carefully delivered drinks
to the angry warriors and then stared at the trace, unmoving. It
seemed he had some stories as the dining knife that he held in his
hand was flinching.
“…!”
“Oh, no, no. I know you have questions. I can feel it.”
“…”
“I told you, I can feel it. Go ask him to help you out.”
Sian believed the boy would not accept such a strange offer.
However, it seemed that her offer was very tempting.
“So… you are here because you couldn’t break through the Expert
barrier; but you didn’t have money to pay for it, so you got a job?”
Sian didn’t want to ruin her memory by telling her what level he was
at that age, so he held back.
“I CAN’T BEL—”
“Quiet! Quiet!”
Sian quickly covered the boy’s mouth, but the boy looked discontent.
“Why aren’t you letting me talk? You shouldn’t worry if what you say
is true.”
“No, that’s…”
Sian was momentarily lost for words, and the boy shouted, “DON’T
LIE TO ME! What do you mean Ra-Vash is nothing! I better train
something else rather than wasting time looking at that?”
Sian grabbed his head while Stiel laughed madly next to him.
Sian couldn’t be angry at the boy who realized what he had done.
A warrior who had stayed here for over a week confronted him. To
say that the trace left behind by the Great Sun Sword Liviath was
nothing, what was he saying about those who were training here?
Sian decided to explain. He felt bad for these people who were
staying here by paying 100 talons per night.
“…!!!”
The warriors who were approaching all flinched and stopped. They
all felt something coursing through them.
“That… ugh. That’s just a doodle. It’s not made out of some profound
insight. It’s just a plain doodle created out of boredom.”
“Hehe, did you hear that boy? It’s pointless if you keep looking at it.”
The warriors turned grim. They all felt that a person with such
strength had no reason to lie about it.
Sian and Stiel knew this right away once they saw it.
The warriors were shocked and divided into two groups. One group
consisted of the people who came here on a whim or had no
expectations, which meant they left easily. The other group consisted
of those who were desperate and came here as a last resort, who
couldn’t leave just yet.
<Disappointment>
<Despair>
The boy looked like his life had just ended. Sian, who couldn’t think
of any reason why the boy would be that desperate, suddenly
thought of a possibility, and asked carefully,
Sian stared at the boy for a while and then turned to Stiel.
“What?”
“You said you fought with Sun Sword Liviath before, right?”
“Huh? Aren’t you being too nice?” Stiel asked in shock. There were
no superhumans who showed sympathy toward common people.
Whatever she did was because she figured it might be interesting to
see Sian’s reactions.
“It’s nothing much, and I don’t have anything to lose. Also, I’m a
good son that listens to his father.”
Stiel became curious, but she didn’t bother to ask him now.
“Ugh.”
At that moment, the sword skill that was never made for anyone else
to understand other than Sun Sword Liviath himself, the <Shining
Way>, was copied by Stiel’s hands against the hill.
The boy was mesmerized by the beautiful <Ways> that Stiel was
casually making.
“No-no. You’ve done so much for me. I can learn from it every day
now.”
Sian turned to Stiel awkwardly as the boy looked at him with respect.
Sian and Stiel were touring through the city with Dekaron from the
Roland Family. After Dekaron found out that Sian was here to tour
around, he volunteered to show Sian around Lenorva. Dekaron was
born and raised here and had experience as a tourist guide. Sian
reluctantly accepted, and that was how the three of them ended up
walking around the city of Lenorva.
“…This place is called <Kuron’s Lunch>. It’s a really good place, but
outsiders don’t know about this. Kuron, the master and chef, is really
talented.”
The three entered the restaurant. It was not crowded and the food
was good, so the three of them enjoyed their time. While eating, Sian
managed to find out a few more things about Dekaron.
One, his family was on the brink of being wiped out due to poverty.
Two, Dekaron was doing his best to keep his family alive.
However, since Sian and Stiel were more talented in that regard, so
they didn’t mind that much.
“Maybe a week? I love this city of Lenorva. I still have lots of places
to see.”
Dekaron then quickly continued, “If- if it’s not too much to ask, can
you please teach me about the sword while you are here?”
“I… see… I’m sorry for troubling you. I guess it was too much.”
“Huh?”
Dekaron looked doubtful and made a face as if Sian was just making
excuses.
“It’s true. I tried to help my brother before, but it didn’t work out.”
Even Rian could not understand a thing Sian said. Sian didn’t
believe this boy was more talented than his brother.
Stiel laughed.
“I believe there’s nothing that Sun Sword Liviath left for his family?
Like a Sword Art or anything?”
“No.”
“It’s because it’s pointless. Anyone without that same talent of his
won’t understand… and if one has such talent, then they won’t need
to be tutored.”
“Oh…”
Dekaron looked grim. All of his family’s 200 years of effort had just
been proven to be a waste of time. They did their best to learn the
ways of Sun Sword Liviath even during their hard times, but these
people proved that it was all useless.
“Boy, isn’t that why I made a trace for you to learn? On the hill? You
can learn from there.”
“Oh…!”
Dekaron brightened up, and it eased Sian’s mind. He did not want to
see someone in despair. Then, Dekaron suddenly became
concerned and turned to Sian.
“I didn’t mention it before, but there’s one thing that Sun Sword
Liviath left behind when he visited our family about a hundred years
ago.”
“Huh?”
Sian and Stiel were surprised. It was amazing that a Ra-Bander took
an interest in his family and revisited. Sian was also interested at
unexpectedly finding the trace of a Ra-Bander.
“Boy, you are pretty brave to tell us that. What if we decide to take it
away?”
Dekaron always had been quick to figure out what people thought.
After talking about Sun Sword Liviath for a while, he realized these
two had absolutely zero respect for his ancestor. It even felt like they
were looking down on Sun Sword Liviath.
He had been hiding the artifact left by Sun Sword Liviath until now.
There was no way to protect it as his family was too weak to defend
it. However, these two seemed safe, that’s why he told them.
They could not decipher it for the past hundred years anyway. It felt
better to take a chance and show it to these people. And fortunately,
as expected, these two only had a look of interest, not greed.
“Would you take a look at it? My home is not too far away.”
The three finished their lunch and followed Dekaron to his home.
“It’s here.”
They had arrived at a run-down house. The once powerful family
was now left with nothing.
Besides, it didn’t matter to Sian and Stiel. They didn’t care if it was a
palace or a mansion, it was all the same to them.
“I’m Sian.”
“Stiel.”
“Go to your room and rest, mother. Come this way, please.”
“What?”
“Yes… At least that’s what our record says. Sun Sword Liviath sent
someone to deliver this to us.”
“That’s weird,” Sian mumbled, and Stiel agreed. It did not have any
traces of a Ra-Bander; there was no sign of any Bander or a <Way>.
It actually had continuous movement of Exar from within which made
it feel as if a Magic Priest had created this. However, he couldn’t
even guess what was inside. Although one thing was for certain.
“…to eat?”
“It is well made. Only someone with above average skills can
notice… it keeps sending signals to eat it. I’m not too sure, but I think
it’s made to increase power or something.”
Dekaron turned to the stone. After looking at the trace on the hill, he
had learned something, and by concentrating on the stone, he felt
the kind of signal that Sian mentioned.
Besides, it didn’t mean much to her and Sian, even though they
weren’t sure what the stone was for.
After a round of discussions, the sun had set, and both Sian and
Stiel went back to their inn after promising to meet up the next day.
When Dekaron was left alone in his room, he looked upon the stone
and pondered. He recalled what Sian said.
<I’m not sure what it is… but it seems fishy. I would advise you not to
eat it.>
[How long will you keep training? You need to revive your family…]
A mansion stood on the island, not too far from the city of Lenorva.
A man, who was enjoying the sunlight in front of the mansion, woke
up immediately from his sleep.
“Oh… finally ate it then? Sun Sword Liviath must be having so much
trouble. His descendants are so disappointing.”
The man grinned as he stood up from the chair and turned towards
the west. Then he was gone.
Sian and Stiel arrived at the place where they had promised to meet
with Dekaron, but he did not turn up. They waited for some time,
thinking he was running late, but it proved fruitless.
Sian knew the boy wasn’t the type to renege on his promise, so he
became bitter as he commented, “I guess he ate it…”
“Yeah, but you did what you could. Don’t mind it too much.”
The stone had the effect of luring a man with a certain level of power.
They weren’t sure what it was created for, but it was certain that a
stone with luring power was not something good. That was why Sian
had quickly altered the stone to lessen the luring effect.
Since that was the case, it was probably Dekaron’s choice to eat it.
Therefore, it was out of his hands.
“Well, since we don’t have our guide anymore, I guess we can enjoy
our date. Hehe.”
“Ugh.”
“So our next stop… is the city plaza where Sun Sword Liviath’s
weapon is stuck?”
“Hmm. The sword from him… was it <Granzod>? It was so-so. Not
as good as mine though.”
The only certain thing was that Sun Sword Liviath did it.
All of Broshan was excited. They figured it meant the great Sun
Sword Liviath was still looking after them. All the Grand Banders
knew that it certainly wasn’t the case, but they did not know what the
meaning was behind it and it seemed terrible to spill the truth and
crush their hopes.
There were attempts to steal it; however, they all failed. Nobody was
able to remove it. Even the Grand Bander <Taguron> tried and
failed.
“What?”
“Can’t you see the whole city easily without going to the tower? It’s a
bit hard for me, but I’m sure you can do it easily.”
Sian could not reveal his true intention, that he expected a romantic
meeting like in the novel he read, and quickly walked away. Stiel
shrugged at Sian’s answer and just followed.
After Sian returned to his room, he turned to Stiel, who was not
going back to her separate room.
“Hm… I don’t think you need to mind that perverted old man. He’s
weaker than you.”
“What?”
Sian was confused. Stiel was very young when Sun Sword Liviath
had become a Ra-Bander. Sian automatically assumed that Liviath,
who was much older, was probably stronger than Sian. Stiel grew
excited and began talking,
“Ugh, why couldn’t you guys share it? The well had no owner.”
Stiel looked Sian up and down as she spoke, giving him the chills.
He changed the subject.
“I don’t know. He took a bucket of the well water and ran. I’m the
slowest of the Ra-Banders so I couldn’t catch him. He might be
dead… or alive. Ra-Banders are difficult to find if they decide to hide.
I thought there were only two Ra-Banders left before I met you and
then I met those other two a while ago since I heard Sun Sword
Liviath was dead.”
“I see.”
“We are strong, but we cannot know everything that happens in the
entire continent.”
That was true. Ra-Banders had enhanced senses that allowed them
to detect a wide range, but the number of such superhumans was
too rare. They also chose to fight in extremely remote parts of the
world which made news about them more obscure.
She counted herself, Sian, the two from the Lagran, and Groyn from
the Great North Wall. However…
“Who knows? We don’t know if some are hiding out there. As you
said, they are hard to find if they decide to hide.”
“Yeah, but if we don’t know they exist, then it’s as same as not
existing.”
“Oh. Yeah, he had some talent in that. It worked well with his
<Granzod> too. The energy he had was one of a kind. I… I won
because I had the upper hand in some parts.”
“Yeah. It was a long time ago, so it was around after I barely had
become a Ra-Bander. I still feel the burns from it back then. You
want to see it?”
“UGH!”
Sian jumped back as Stiel posed to take off her shirt. She cackled,
and Sian realized she was teasing him as there was no way for
wounds to be still left on a Ra-Bander’s body.
“Haha, I know you want to see it. I felt you were trying to take a look
by using your Bander.”
“Ha… it’s very uncomfortable. How many years have passed? I feel
like I have become an idiot.”
“That idiot stuck it in too deep. Nobody could have stolen it anyway.
It would’ve burned them to death.”
The sword contained his full power and would’ve burned alive
anyone trying to steal it, but the man sealed it in the center of the
plaza.
Dekaron swung his sword to the left. At once, all the trees on that
side burned and quickly became ashes. A man walked out from it.
The man addressed Dekaron as Livaith and taunted him for being
weak.
He made sure that the stone only worked on beings with above-
average talent, but he still didn’t understand why such an ordinary
kid ate it. That was why even with his full power from his sword didn’t
wholly restore him to his old self.
“Yeah… I guess so. Thank you for that. It made it easy to get my
sword back too.”
The man smiled and jumped into the void; Dekaron, or rather the
reborn Liviath, followed.
The man pondered for a bit and then dismissed it, leading Liviath
toward their destination.
After Sian and Stiel finished touring through the city of Lenorva, they
moved towards the east. They were now traveling to the east coast
of Broshan. It was where Sian felt like visiting, and Stiel did not care
where they went, so their next destination became the large city of
<Margaran> on the eastern coast of the Broshan Kingdom.
“Yeah. I never went to the ocean other than for official business.”
“Official business?”
“…”
“However, the ocean is great. You don’t have to clean out the
corpses. You can just destroy the whole ship. Haha.”
“…”
Sian sighed as he thought she looked like a wild animal when she
spoke of such things.
“Huh? Why are you looking at me like that? Aren’t you the same
also? You never spared anyone trying to kill you, right?”
<Margaran>
It was one of the most popular trading posts on the eastern coast of
the continent and the best resort.
<Margaran>
This bustling city full of life was famous for two things.
First, it was the center of trade that connected Kiara and Broshan,
with hundreds of ships visiting each day.
Second, it contained one of the top five resorts that nobles wanted to
visit to rest and relax.
The northern half of the city was a trading hub, while the southern
part of the city was built to fulfill the needs of visitors from all around
the world.
Even when it was not peak season, the city was full of people.
However, right now was the busiest time of the season, when the
huge festival, <Lagaope>, was going to start.
“Yes. If you don’t make reservations ahead of time for the Lagaope
season…”
The employee of the inn looked as if Sian was to blame for
attempting to rent a room without any reservations during this
season.
Sian liked that it was a pleasant time to visit, but the problem of not
having any available rooms was frustrating. Other than Sian, there
were a lot of other people that weren’t able to rent a room.
“Hehe, I’ve told you. I can solve this quickly. I just need one word
from you. ONE word.”
“Ugh.”
‘Sigh…’
“Yeah.”
“Don’t worry. Some kid I know lent this place to me for free.”
“Yeah yeah.”
“Let’s go in.”
“And the people here, other than the employees, are only you and
me?”
“Yeah. No one will dare to use the place while I’m here.”
Sian asked Stiel, who was rolling around on a huge bed the size of a
small yard.
“Oh… It’s the rules. I rented this place, so I have no choice but to
follow the rules.”
“…”
Stiel flicked her finger, and an employee walked in and greeted them
politely.
“Yeah. So, this room is the only one we can stay in, right?”
“Yes, ma’am.”
“Yes, sir.”
“What storage?”
“Ugh…”
All of the employees sided with Stiel and Sian thought they looked
more like slaves. He sighed as he had no other place to stay in the
city.
Sian figured that at least the bed was large enough and prepared to
go out.
“I heard the name before. I think it was around when I was born.”
“Was he a Ra-Bander?”
“I don’t think so. You can hide after becoming a Ra-Bander, but you
can’t hide the fact that you became one.”
“…”
“It’s okay if you don’t have one. Huh? Why are you looking at me like
that?”
Sian ignored Stiel’s frown and quickly moved through the crowds.
<Rokuum Show>
They were trained to act appealing and cute in groups, which gained
fame from people. It was always packed with people who wanted to
see them.
The show, which usually took place two times a day, increased to
four times a day during the Lagaope season.
“It’s so CUTE!”
“That’s adorable!”
Everyone cheered the cute Rokuums doing various tricks. Sian was
one of them.
“…”
Stiel barely managed to refrain from making Sian shut up and sit
down, so she gave him a skewer to eat.
“Ha…haha. Hey, you know what this skewer is made out of?” Stiel
asked.
“Hmm, I don’t know. It’s good though. What is it?” Sian replied while
munching on the meat.
“Rokuum.”
“UGH!”
“…”
Sian scowled at Stiel and turned back to watch the show. After Sian
fell silent, she smiled and began watching the show. To Stiel, she
couldn’t find any difference between Rokuums and humans, but it
was her first time watching the show, so it was interesting enough for
her.
On the stage was a young man who was working hard to make the
Rokuums do various tricks.
“He’s an Exer.”
“Exer.”
They both commented at the same time, but what they said
afterward was different.
“…”
“…”
Exers with the power to control animals was rare, but it was deemed
useless.
The only use that power might have was to control a Harijan, but it
was known that Harijans were impossible to tame.
At that moment, they felt a slight tremor through the ground. It was
so mild that the ordinary people did not notice it, but Sian and Stiel
did.
“When I went hunting down pirates, they were all hiding. So I fired an
Artagon from a distance, but they had a huge gunpowder storage. It
was one of a kind. Hahaha.”
It was a man who had lived hundreds of years but was still veiled in
mystery.
It was better that the man was cloaked in mystery to idolize him. The
lighthouse shaped like Lagaope located at the northern part of the
city was part of such idolization.
The Lagaope Lighthouse was over thirty feet tall, and people could
enter from the heel to go up to the head. Once they reached the
head, they could activate the Talic Stones to shoot lights out from the
eyes.
“No. It’s missing a bit. I would’ve made the light come out from the
mouth, like the legendary Dragona.”
“Oh, I’m sorry, Sian. I was a genius at everything else. It’s only that I
was too good at fighting.”
“…You traitor.”
“Sian, why don’t we watch it from the mansion? We can see it all
from there too.”
“Yeah but… look at this. I guess it’s the fate for a beautiful woman
like me, but what would’ve happened if it wasn’t me?”
The man grabbed his broken wrist and rolled on the ground in pain.
Sian’s eyes were cold; he had seen where that hand was trying to
grope.
“ARGH!”
‘…what a liar.’
If he didn’t say it, her kick would have ensured that the man ended
up at the head of the lighthouse. He considered it lucky that it ended
only with broken bones, but Sian didn’t feel sympathetic as it was the
consequence for that man’s bad behavior.
He felt bad for the man’s friends who were now picking a fight with
Stiel.
“I’m going to get some skewers so you can take your time.”
“Yeah, go ahead.”
Stiel, who had been stressed out while following Sian around,
decided to relieve her stress and began walking toward the group.
“So, you didn’t kill them right?” Sian asked as he munched on the
skewer. The two of them were sitting down right in front of the place
where the ceremony was going to be held. It was possible for them
because people began distancing themselves from Stiel after
witnessing her graceful destruction of that group.
“Don’t worry. They were Bander users. Don’t all Bander users need
to experience some beating up? I experienced that when I was thirty
years old.”
“I would never want to experience that, but Bander users?”
“Yeah. They asked me if I knew who they were while they were
getting beaten up.”
“So?”
“I wasn’t interested, but they told me anyway. What was it? Mar…
mar…”
“Margaran Peacekeepers.”
Sian pointed to the armored men behind them. There was no crowd
around them anymore. Stiel, however, looked very excited.
“Hehe…”
Sian held back Stiel, who was about to jump in and whispered, “Miss
Stiel.”
“Yes, Sian?”
“…”
“…”
Stiel soon realized that she had just been overthinking things again.
“You can beat them up AFTER the ceremony is over. It might get
canceled if you fight now.”
That was a request that she could accept. Stiel became satisfied and
walked toward the Peacekeepers.
“We are sorry about what happened. It looks like the mercenaries
that we hired made a mistake. It is our fault that we couldn’t watch
over those we hired. We have fired them and fined them as a
penalty. I apologize on behalf of the Margaran Peacekeepers.”
The man who looked like the captain bowed deeply, and the men
behind him followed. Stiel was surprised at the sudden turn of events
but decided that it wasn’t too bad.
Since Sian was young, he had been trained in the human way of
doing things. That was why Stiel wanted to teach him the way of
powerful beings. It seemed preposterous for such a powerful being
to be chained up like a puppy.
Ra-Banders needed to live different lives, just like how he acted back
in Lagran.
Stiel wanted to find those things and show them to Sian. At least that
was what she needed for her mate. However, it didn’t need to be
rushed. She was going to take it slow like his parents did.
There were plenty of Talic Stones on the pedestal at the top of the
hill by the coast. Below the pedestal were merchants, politicians, and
nobles of Margaran wishing for safe passage for another year.
Everyone in Margaran made profits from the route, but these people
especially so.
Sian and Stiel were sitting on the closest seats that allowed them to
witness it closely.
“So, it wasn’t only for memorial purposes. Let’s see… <The route will
not close if the shrine is supplied with enough Talic Stones every
year, said Lagaope>. That’s what the booklet says.”
“I’m sure there were others who thought like you before.”
Some people in Margaran thought the same. They wanted to save
using Talic Stones, and under one merchant’s strong persuasion,
they decided to do the festival without Talic Stones. After the
ceremony, the route was safe for almost a week, and there were no
Harijans. Merchants became proud and shouted,
And until the news that all ships had been sunk reached Margaran
and Kiara, a total of 930 ships that had set sail had been destroyed.
It was the time before communication artifacts that resulted in such
large scale damage.
The cost of the damages were thousands of times more than the use
of Talic Stones.
Stiel looked at Sian, who was scanning through the pages and
remembered the report she read about Sian before coming here.
‘That’s interesting.’
‘…I see.’
Stiel began to realize that she was overcomplicating the things that
Sian did.
“Oh.”
Exar that was spilling out of the Talic Stones began collecting in the
front of the pedestal as it swallowed the Exar while emitting a weird
light. Then, the pedestal began to shake…
“So that is what drives away the Harijans, I guess. I’m not sure
though.”
That was why the power of the pedestal remained a mystery, and yet
no one complained. It provided enough power for Margaran. It
allowed Margaran to be the only one with <Lagaopora>, so the
mystery actually helped them anyway.
“But it’s so boring! I thought some beam would shoot out and kill all
the Harijans on the route or something.”
The route was very long; it ranged over thousands of miles. No top
grade magic had such a great range of attack, save one.
The magic that was activated by fifteen Great Magic Priests of the
Empire destroyed the entire Empire. It also killed all the Harijans and
Kal-Guls that had invaded the land as intended.
However, that was just a legend. No one was left to prove it.
“I can do it.”
“WHAT? Really?”
Stiel was shocked. She couldn’t believe that Sian was able to divide
the sea from here to Kiara with a strike. That wasn’t at the level of a
superhuman, that would make him a god.
“…”
“Haha, it’s my revenge for a while ago.”
After they finished watching the ceremony until the end, it was
already night time. Today was only the beginning, and the wave was
going to shoot out to sea for ten more days. That was how long the
festival would last.
He thought about King Narasha, but it didn’t feel right to ask for such
a petty request, so he shook it away.
The restaurant was located at a high part of the city, towards the
north where the coast was visible, and that helped with it also
famous. It was a great place to enjoy lunch and the view at once.
The road to the place was through the bazaar, so Sian and Stiel
bought some snacks to eat along the way. As they walked through,
Sian noticed people gathered around something. They looked like
they were avoiding what was inside. He wanted to ignore it, but he
had to pass it to head to his destination when he saw some familiar
faces.
“But how can you beat up a man like that? Hehe… now you should
feel how to get beaten up!”
The man being cornered was the man from the Rokuum show. It
looked like he had beaten up two or three men with a club-like
weapon he was holding on to, but he was cornered in the end. And
there was a woman who looked like she was in her early twenties
with an infuriated look behind him. She was holding onto a small
dagger.
It looked like the group of men tried to harass the woman and it
turned into a fight. She looked cute, so it was understandable. They
were glancing around to see if there was a way to escape, but they
couldn’t find a pathway so they were trying to fight back.
Men who were chasing off the onlookers jumped up as they found
Sian and Stiel. Interested, Sian spoke up.
“You gentlemen work hard to become the evil of society. Are you
guys trying to create more work for the Margaran Peacekeepers?”
“Uh… er…”
“Yeah. I don’t think they have fully healed from yesterday. I told you
Sian, this would’ve not happened if I did it right yesterday.”
“…Ugh.”
The men began backing off as they watched Stiel. As soon as they
started backing away, the woman ran out and hid behind Stiel.
She figured they were afraid of Stiel, so she hid behind her, but that
was the wrong move.
“Oh well. It doesn’t matter. Let’s go now. Are we almost there yet?”
‘Oops.’
The woman who expected the body to be soft, was shocked when
she felt the body was like a steel pillar and began examining it. As
she reached up, she saw Stiel who was looking down at her.
“EEEK!”
“Hehe… Hey, ant… I mean girl. Do you know what it means to touch
others without permission?”
“Ah… ah ah…”
She was too afraid to speak properly and she could barely shake her
head.
Sian sighed. Even if she hurt herself while holding onto Stiel, it
wouldn’t have made a scratch on her.
“…”
Sian stepped in and Stiel mumbled as she stood up. She glanced
around as she felt unsatisfied and the mercenaries ran away at
once.
“…”
The young man named Lamran spoke to Stiel. Stiel looked
uncomfortable as she had unintentionally helped them.
Sian quickly guided her to the restaurant before she became even
more uncomfortable and Lamran took his woman partner
somewhere else.
It was a dark night and the two people were closing in on the
pedestal. They were going to the hill by the pedestal to be exact.
There were guards everywhere, but no one paid much attention to
the hill a few hundred yards away by the pedestal, so these two
managed to go to the place without any interruptions.
“Yeah. Everything he said until now was correct. I’m almost done
preparing too. I just came to look today so let’s take a peek and
leave.”
“Okay, okay.”
She was a popular adventurer due to her special skill. Lamran was
extremely thankful for her help.
“Yeah, don’t mind it. It’s not free anyway. Don’t forget it.”
“Haha, I know.”
“It was really dangerous today. The mercenaries were strong too, but
it might’ve been better to fight with them.”
He was an Exer, but he was too weak. That was why he needed to
fulfill his goal.
Lamran.
He had a dream to become a hero and travel around the world, but
reality was brutal. He had no money or any sort of hidden power. All
he could do was help his father work at a bazaar while he
daydreamed.
<Hey, go there.>
He was so excited when he found his power. It seemed like the path
to becoming a hero had opened up for him. Lamran then began
training hard. He tamed birds, animals, fish, and all kinds of things.
After he was able to control his powers, he came out of his home.
Warriors that he had never seen when he was at his fishing village.
His power was nothing compared to those Grand Banders.
<Scouting with bats? You can just use <Detection>, you know.>
Magic Priests were everywhere and they all had power and
knowledge that Lamran provided with animals. It was more efficient
too.
He didn’t have a problem with the income. In fact, nobles loved the
show and it allowed him to gain a lot of income. Life was more
prosperous and peaceful. He now was able to eat well and he had a
nice house.
That was when someone came to him and showed him hope.
Lamran was given another chance and the opportunity was pretty
close.
……..
The man was very mysterious. He did not show his face and his
body was covered by a mantle. Lamran would’ve disregarded him
under normal circumstances. He knew it was dangerous to interact
with mysterious beings as he learned it back when he was working
as an adventurer. Yet Lamran could not refuse to talk to him.
Lamran was curious at first about who this man was and his
purpose, but as he listened more, it became pointless.
And it wasn’t hard. It was really close actually, and only he would be
able to do it.
That was why the man came to him. It was only something he could
do.
It was the last chance to seize his dreams once and for all.
“Sian.”
“Huh?”
Ra-Banders were hard to find. Part of it was because they were not
interested in society, but a large part of it was because they were
only interested in one thing.
One of easiest ways was to find someone that was the same.
Even Stiel was taking her time because she had Sian who had
become her prime interest. When she was back at Lagran, she
trained all day long.
“Yeah.”
Stiel was genuinely surprised. The barrier that stood at the end of
the Expert-level from the beginning was close. It only took a bit of an
effort for anyone to achieve. The one for Masters was wider than
that. But if one became a Master, one would be able to see the
Grand Bander barrier with great effort.
At the Grand Bander level, it was extremely large. Even with life-long
training, it was rare for Grand Banders to even see the barrier before
dying.
But the Ra-Bander barrier?
Even 170 years of training wasn’t enough for Stiel. She believed it
just didn’t exist as she just kept getting stronger and stronger.
“So… that research was true? There’s another level after Ra-
Bander?”
“Research?”
“The Magical Council once reported some research they found from
data from the Empire data. That there’s another level after Ra-
Bander.”
It wasn’t sure who recorded it, but it was well protected. But
everyone scoffed it off, considering it as foolish research, not
knowing the power of a Ra-Bander.
Stiel shouted in shock and all the grass surrounding them was
plucked out by the force, which Sian was covered with.
“Ugh.”
“Oh… uh, sorry. I’m just curious. Why aren’t you doing it then?”
She just wanted to witness the birth of a <God> that no human in the
thousands of years of history had managed to become.
“Oh… that…”
“Yeah.”
Stiel had such talent, but she had countless experiences where she
nearly died. It was probably the same for the other Ra-Banders.
Such power was not left alone in this world. They were attacked and
they tried to stop it before it became too strong.
“…”
“But…”
“I will probably run away if that happens but… if it really comes that I
cannot run and I might die, you should run away.”
“…”
If there was a time when Sian was in danger, she wouldn’t stand a
chance.
“…”
“You dug the ground up by using these animals?” Lilia examined the
animal while asking.
Farmers usually killed these animals since they destroyed the crops.
But Margaran did not have many farmlands and thus these animals
were left alone.
The pedestal was heavily guarded as it was a vital piece for the city’s
growth. It also had all kinds of detection magic and machines that
sensed any nearby Bander or Exar movement.
Lamran’s power didn’t use Exar once the order had been made, so it
was easy to dig the tunnel to the back of pedestal.
The first step was cleared. It was now time to believe in his friend.
The two moved into the tunnel and the entrance was covered up by
the Kukurans.
“Ugh… Lamran, why did you make the tunnel so small? Are you
going to carry me around if I injure my back?”
They were at the cave as the mystery man had said, but it was only
the first step. There was still a long way to go. The second step was
to go through this cave.
“Ha… Lamran, you’re dead if nothing comes out from here,” Lilia
frowned. Lamran looked at Lilia apologetically. The cave wasn’t just
complicated. There were a few inhabitants living here. In fact, they
created this whole cave system.
<Lorun-Tach>
These giant crab-sized ants fed off the minerals and hated lights so
they weren’t widely known. Lamran and Lilia had come across these
monsters before, so they immediately knew that the cave had these
monsters.
This was where Lilia’s skill shined. Her ability as an Exer was being
a <Pathfinder>. It was a common Exer skill.
It was a common skill, but the level of power was different for each
individual. The finest <Pathfinders> were recruited by countries and
were well-respected. Lilia wasn’t that powerful, but she was above
average in terms of her skill and was a trusted companion of
Lamran.
With her power, they were able to avoid the ants and they finally
arrived beneath the pedestal. As the skill required such high
concentration, Lilia was dead tired when she arrived.
“WHOA! Finally here!”
“Don’t worry. My instincts say this place is safe. The ants will not
come here.”
Lamran looked around. This place looked different from the cave
they walked through. It was shaped like a large cube that was surely
not a work of an ant.
There was something that repelled the ants from coming in here.
At the center of the room was a round pillar that pierced through the
ceiling.
‘This pillar…’
Lamran remembered the part of the pillar that was sticking out from
the ground from the pedestal.
The bottom part that stuck out at the top was touching the ground at
sea water level. The water was shaking along with the pillar and this
shake coming from the pillar was surely connected to the seawater
that went out to the ocean.
Lamran realized that was not important. He had time to spare, but he
wanted to do it quick.
After looking upon the pillar, he left Lilia at the back and walked
toward it. After crossing a bridge that laid above the sea water, he
was now at front of the pillar.
There was a small, nail-sized marble stuck on it. It was shining with
blue light.
After watching it for a moment, Lamran pinched the end of his finger
slightly with his sword.
This step required his fresh blood. It was why the mystery man
needed him. He was ready to give him any price in exchange for
what he would earn from this.
Then the pillar began to shake and the marble began shining even
brighter.
It was time.
“It’s…”
“The fireworks are starting! Haha. So that black pillar had fireworks
inside! How exciting.”
“…”
Stiel ignored Sian and looked at the pillar, but she couldn’t
understand what the movement of Exar was about.
Stiel then began dragging Sian, who was overly excited at the
fireworks, to the restaurant where they had made a reservation.
The light that filled the room subsided and Lilian looked toward the
pillar in shock. There was now a huge door open at the pillar, large
enough for a man to walk in.
‘…What is that?’
Lilia became curious and decided to take a look inside the pillar. But
the inside was empty. There was just another pillar within that came
up from the ground to about the height of a human chest with
something placed above it.
‘…?’
That was why she held onto the dangerous woman back then. She
was too dangerous for her to sense the danger of it.
But Lilia couldn’t stop Lamran, whom she liked very much. She just
wished it wasn’t a bad sign.
“Hmm?”
“What is it?” Liviath asked the man next to him while he trained.
“Hah, good for you. What did you forget? What is it?”
“Margaran. Liviath, you will become like me if you live long enough.
Memory fails me, you know.”
“You talked so much about it when we first met. You said you created
a quick route by using it.”
“Oh… did I? Yeah. But someone took it.”
Liviath turned back, losing interest. What happened now didn’t really
matter to him anyway.
Then he decided to forget about it. The crown was important, but
what he needed to do afterward was more important.
Sian was eating with Stiel. The streets of Akulan were famous for
having a lot of good restaurants. People filled the streets even when
it wasn’t Lagaope season.
“So this…”
Lamran was impressed. This crown was the artifact that facilitated
the existence of <Lagaopora> after all these years. Lamran grabbed
the crown and placed it on his head.
Nothing happened.
The crown turned red, then changed back to its original color.
The waves that moved out from the crown, to the pillar, and to the
sea also stopped.
‘Hm…?’
The mystery man did not tell him this. The room was left with only
silence. Lamran became uncomfortable and turned to Lilia. If this
decision was dangerous, Lilia would’ve sensed it. But she looked
tired, not scared. Lamran became relieved.
It was an outcome that even mystery man did not have knowledge
of. Lamran then felt at ease when he realized that the mystery man
wasn’t so powerful after all. He turned to the crown to put it on his
head again.
Actually, he could feel every living being’s senses with his brain.
“Ugh…”
It gave him a headache, but he got used to it. It seemed that the
crown had narrowed its power so that Lamran could withstand it. If a
powerful being used it, the crown would be more powerful.
However, that did not matter.
He couldn’t feel the humans, but he could feel every sense that the
other living things felt. It was as if he could hear as they did and see
as they did.
He could see the food that the fish were seeing and the taste of
crops that the Kukurans were eating.
He also felt the rage of the Lorun-Taches that were charging into the
room. Thousands of Lorun-Taches were now rushing toward the
room once the pillar stopped working.
Lamran issued an order through his head. No, that wasn’t right.
These Lorun-Taches were another <Lamran>. Thousands of Lorun-
Taches, or Lamrans, began attacking the other Lorun-Taches that
Lamran could not control.
A few of them came out in front of Lamran and Lilia while thousands
of them erupted in a fight.
Lamran spoke and the Lorun-Taches began piling on each other and
laid themselves flat in front of Lilia, telling her to hop on. Lilia turned
to Lamran.
He was walking to her with a crown that was glowing red.
Lamran was now using the Lorun-Taches to open his way through
the ground.
Now he could become like the man who was once his companion
who put him in despair.
This power was beyond imagination. But why did the mystery man
let him take such power?
He did make him promise one thing. To help him when needed.
What was that pillar for? And how did it maintain <Lagaopora>?
He was reborn.
<Bakuron>
This monster gained its fame after killing the Grand Bander that tried
to open up the sea route through the Kiara Sea. The only reason
why it was forgotten was because it didn’t cause any problems
during those few hundred years.
The <Bakuron> didn’t think much. This deepsea Harijan only had
one thing in its brain. <Leave anything up above the water and
swallow everything that travels beneath it.>
It was a simple order, but the effect was powerful. The Bakuron did
not remember when its brain was filled with the order, but it needed
to follow it. For hundreds of years, it kept eating everything beneath
the surface.
<Hungry.>
It was an instinct that had always been blocked off by the order.
“Yeah, but there are no more Harijans left nearby after Lagaopora
was opened.”
“I see.”
“I don’t know I can’t wish for it, but I wish a strong one would show
up just like that. I can tame it then.”
There were some small problems when they found out that pedestal
stopped working, but the festival commenced normally as if nothing
had occurred. However, this was to keep the people from being
terrified while the festival was being held. Sian felt that Magic Priests
and Bander users kept visiting the place.
But it didn’t matter. Sian and Stiel were going to leave soon.
Sian was enjoying his dessert by the beach. This dessert that came
from Kiara was so good that Sian decided to eat lots of it when he
visited Kiara.
While watching him, Stiel asked, “So, where are we going next?”
There was nothing to look at on the road on land. Margaran was too
far from any other place to visit. Therefore, it might be better to move
over to Kiara and use the Ra-Shar-Roa to go to other places when
he was done.
Taran was located at west end of the continent while Kiara was at
the east end.
“Let’s take a cruise ship. I think it’s good to enjoy the view and all.”
It was very annoying to run across the sea anyway, so Sian decided
to make a reservation for the cruise ship when they returned to the
mansion.
“Yeah, that’s what I heard too. It’s only a matter of time until it comes,
especially at that speed.”
Marquis Talruk asked Babil, the Second Grade Magic Priest, who
was examining the pedestal.
The bigger problem was that they did not know how Lagaopora
worked and were unsure of the outcome. The only thing they knew
was that this pedestal blocked Harijans from coming near
Lagaopora.
“You… should strengthen security first. I think it’s easy to say that we
are just heightening security since the festival is about to end.”
“Messages have come from the ships… seven ships have sunk on
the Lagaopora, milord!”
The Marquis tried to keep his calm. He needed to stay calm so that
all of Margaran would not fall in chaos.
“Dammit…!”
The Marquis could not hold him back. It was not important to find out
how the pedestal worked anymore. He knew what happened when
the Talic Stones were not used, and even then the problem did not
come onto land. That was why he wanted to solve this problem
without letting the people feel terrified.
“Yes, milord!”
“Stop all ships from departing the harbor and send a message to
Kiara to bring all their ships back to their docks. We do not know
when this problem will end.”
“Arrest any fearmongers and evacuate the civilians into safety. Now,
hurry!”
“YES, MILORD!”
“Babil, you must act quick. I will support you in any way I can. And…
you must flee if it becomes dangerous.”
The Marquis then began to return back to his castle. Worst case
scenario, he needed to ask for reinforcement from the Kingdom.
“I didn’t… expect…”
Surely his crown had affected the monster in some way, and it kept
the peace at Lagaopora. It was sure that taking of the crown was
related to the monster approaching the city.
Then an idea struck him from within. To save Margaran, and prove
himself to become a hero.
An idea that didn’t need him to travel all the way to the Great North
Wall.
No one knew he took the crown anyway and he destroyed the cave
when he came out.
There were no ships that dared to leave the shores when the
monster was approaching from the sea.
“Ugh, some fish ruined my plans.”
The choice was already made. He needed to take the easiest route.
To him, number four was the easiest. Besides, once the monster
arrived, it would be easier to kick it out than follow it in the sea.
After that was done, he planned to ask Stiel to ask ‘some kid’ she
knew to have the ships depart and move on his way. That fish would
be no problem once he boarded the ship.
The Bakuron felt two sensations coming from the beach as it arrived.
Both of these beings were present at the beach. The terrifying one…
was as if it was looking at its motherform. It was the feeling that one
would get when facing an unmeasurably powerful being. That being
was now threatening it. Fortunately however, it looked like a land
dweller and seemed to have no intention of following the Bakuron
out to the sea.
And for the uncomfortable feeling… this felt like the one that kept
giving it orders. The only difference was that it was much weaker, but
it was trying to subdue the Bakuron completely. It was trying to keep
the Bakuron under its feet. Having been invincible from where it
came from, Bakuron felt annoyed and irritated at that fact.
It was a dilemma.
Lamran let out a sigh. He was now back at the room where his
crown was located, sending his orders to the monster at the sea.
There was no worry of being discovered as his Exar was being sent
out to the sea by the crown very stealthily.
He was trying his best to subdue the monster, but it was resisting. It
seemed like it might work if the monster came closer, but it stopped
a few miles away from the beach.
That was the only reason he could think of, but that was
troublesome. He needed to subdue the monster. Fearing him wasn’t
enough. Lamran focused harder on the crown. He was now
becoming familiar with using it. It was only a matter of time for the
monster to bow at his feet.
And when the time came, everyone will love and respect him.
It looked like the monster was waiting for its lunch to come back to
the city, so Sian couldn’t ask the ship to depart.
‘Are all Harijans like that?’
Stiel looked at Sian with a strange look and asked, “Hey, why aren’t
you killing it?”
“Hmm… killing it because it’s blocking my way doesn’t seem all that
nice.”
‘I see…’
Stiel came to know more about Sian in the recent days. He didn’t
care if the target was a human or a Harijan. The only thing that
mattered was if it invaded his space. Invaders were punished
severely while others were spared. In turn, Sian didn’t like invading
others’ spaces.
Even now, Stiel would’ve killed the monster already only because it
blocked her way. Superhumans needed to be like her. Wherever a
superhuman went, they needed to exert their power. That was good
for everyone.
Sian was having a hard time because his boundary was too small.
He was too locked up in protecting his way of doing things. His
power was between the level of a superhuman and a god, but his
conscious was still at the human level.
Nonetheless, it was fun watching Sian getting irritated, so Stiel
decided to just watch.
“Ah?…”
It was half correct though. Since the monster was already far away,
Sian stopped in between. It was so fast that it seemed like the island
had disappeared.
Yet the problem was the aftermath of the move. As it ran at full
speed, the sea was shaken up and there was a tsunami. The
tsunami quickly swallowed the beach and the whole city.
Every ship that was docked at the Margaran harbor was destroyed
and the entire city was swallowed in whole. It happened so fast that
it couldn’t be stopped.
“…and I’m sure no one will try to set sail with that monster alive.”
“Probably not.”
“…so we have no choice but to go by land.”
The road to Kiara by land was very long. That was why Sian wanted
to take a ship and the only ship large enough to travel to Kiara was
at Margaran.
Sian was furious, but it was too troublesome to follow the monster to
get revenge, so he began to prepare to travel by land.
“…”
Sian gritted his teeth as he watched the monster watching the island
from the sea. It came back to the sea as Sian did not follow him out,
and it ran if Sian tried to come out to the sea, only to return when
Sian began preparing to leave.
It seemed like the monster was now very relaxed. There was no way
to determine its expression, but it sure looked like it. The monster
was now using its tail or weird backbone-looking part of its body to
send a wave toward the beach. Part of the city was destroyed each
time the monster flicked its tail and the once beautiful city of
Margaran was now laid in ruins.
Sian touched his necklace and took out Chrona-Phon. It was bit far
to slice up the monster, but it looked like it was possible. He could kill
it, but he couldn’t catch it. The distance forced Sian to use all his
power that would definitely kill the monster, but he was left with no
choice.
“…if you’re lucky, you will survive with your tails cut off.’
Stiel, who just came from somewhere, grinned at Sian who was
pulling out his sword.
The monster was flailing its tail from a range where it could run
away. It looked like it wasn’t scared anymore.
“It won’t even know what killed him. It needs to realize what it did.”
Sian turned to Stiel. He was angry, but he still hesitated on killing the
monster.
“You’re welcome.”
<Hey, kid.>
<…! Who are you! How do you know about this place!>
The man was alarmed, but he calmed down after a few smacks. Stiel
asked him why he was here and he confessed everything.
<So… you are here to tame that monster? And you thought it was
going to work soon?>
Tame! The artifact he was wearing was very powerful, but the artifact
depended on the user’s powers. This man’s power was just enough
to make the monster angry.
Stiel finally realized what had been going on.
The monster was extremely terrified of Sian and wanted to run away,
but it was also angry at this man. So it didn’t want to just run away
without killing him. The monster was probably infuriated that such a
weak man like him wanted to take control of its mind.
‘Hehe…’
This man would’ve been stoned to death if the people of the city
knew this. Stiel could barely hold back her laughter at this wannabe
hero who just destroyed the city and started thinking.
<Wow, good. We need a hero who can save Margaran! Do you think
you can tame the beast if we take you closer to the monster?>
<Yeah. I’m not sure if you’ve realized it, but I am really powerful.>
To Stiel, this was the crown’s problem. It used too much of the user’s
brain that by trying to use powerful magic, it occupied too much of
the brain, making the user dumb.
Yet it didn’t matter for Stiel as he was useful for her purposes and
took him back to the mansion. Then she proposed her idea to Sian.
“Okay, Sian. I’ll make other preparations. You just need to create
what I asked for.”
Sian could not think of a way to find a bait to lure the monster, so he
accepted it and went to the beach to create what she requested.
There was plenty of materials as all the ships at the dock had been
destroyed.
After Sian moved to the docks, he began taking off every anchor and
chain off the damaged ships. As he gathered enough of them, Sian
then began linking all thick chains into one really long chain. He was
done with a fishing line. It was time to create a fish hook.
Sian then gathered all the anchors he piled up and began molding it
all into one. He needed to make a big hook so that the monster could
not run away. After a while, he was left with a giant fishing hook.
“…”
“Hmph. That’s for another reason. He did volunteer for it. You want to
see it?”
Stiel then turned to Lamran who was still focusing toward the sea,
and woke him up by calling to him.
“Yes. If you only take me to him… I’ll control him and bring peace to
the city.”
After seeing him, Sian called Stiel to the corner of the room.
“Really? But he’s the reason why that monster’s still here.”
Stiel began to explain what she found out. Sian now understood why
the monster was still at the beach.
“Hmph. So, both of them are fault. That monster and Lamran… but
this guy really made a mess.”
He was the reason why the monster did not run away when Sian
made it terrified, and it would lead to the destruction of the city
eventually.
“Hehe… we are not going to kill him anyway. You aren’t going to kill
either of them, right?”
“…”
“Don’t worry, he won’t die. Besides, that monster is here because of
him. Isn’t it fair for him to take care of it?”
Sian nodded. It was, after all, Lamran’s responsibility to try mend his
actions.
“Good choice.”
They began to prepare for the final stage for ultimate fishing.
Sian ran toward the monster floating in the middle of the sea and it
fled as it always did. Unlike the first time, it was now taking time to
run away. Sian began to ponder. It seemed like a better idea to just
take off the crown off from the man and let the monster run away.
But he decided against it. Lamran and the monster were both
responsible for this mess and they needed to pay the price.
Sian began to make his preparations once the monster ran away.
There was a small island nearby, so Sian took out his fishing line and
the hook from the Nitzmatan. The hook had a hole big enough for a
human to step inside and a door to close the person in. It was all
possible because the hook was that big. Sian then put in Lamran
whom he carried here on his shoulder and closed the door. He would
stay safe in it as it was created with precision by Stiel. After Sian
finished putting Lamran in, who was still so focused on the crown,
into the hole, he then dug up the ground to bury the hook inside and
laid the chain across the ocean before he came back.
“Is it done?”
“Yeah.”
“You know…”
“Huh?”
“…”
Sian and Stiel finished their job by hiding their power from the chain.
They would still be revealed if the monster got too close, but the
chain was long enough so it looked okay.
The Bakuron eyed the beach suspiciously. After it came back from
running away, the terrifying being was no longer present. The
Bakuron was still being careful, but there was no sign of it. However,
the uncomfortable one was now much closer.
Bakuron started thinking. Did it need to run away from this very
suspicious situation? But the uncomfortable one was too close to just
ignore it. The Bakuron then began approaching the one.
There was still no sign of the terrifying one. Even if it was hiding,
there was still some distance for him to run away.
Then Bakuron took a bite into a chunk of dirt that was letting out the
uncomfortable wave of energy. It decided to just run away after
crushing it with its mouth.
At that moment, the monster felt something weird in its mouth. The
Bakuron tried to crush it, but it became stronger with a strange
power and resisted. It felt that something was wrong and tried to run
away, but the terrifying power exploded from the beach, pulling it
toward the beach with tremendous strength that it had never felt
before.
“Heee-yah!!!”
Sian unlocked his power as soon as the monster took a bite at the
hook. The monster would’ve run if it wasn’t for the chain, but it
couldn’t anymore. Sian began sending Bander into the chain and
pulled it with all his might.
The tug of war between the monster and the small human began.
Under the law of physics, even if the human was much stronger, the
sheer mass of the monster was enough to drag the human off the
ground, but the sand which Sian was standing on didn’t even move.
Stiel was surprised. This boy was beyond her imagination. It didn’t
even seem like Sian was the same as a Ra-Bander after all. Ignoring
all those laws of physics… a Ra-Bander had no way to control the
way one ignored the laws of physics. It all depended on the Ra-
Bander’s power and the <Way>. Stiel could’ve won the pulling war,
but even she would’ve been dragged out to the sea. She was
thinking of helping Sian if that happened, but she had nothing to do.
“…”
The monster was now running rampant as it couldn’t break free from
the chain. If Sian didn’t protect Lamran with Bander, he would’ve
been crushed to death by the force of the movement. But he
probably was feeling enough pounding even then.
As the monster was dragged in, the depth grew shallower and the
tremor destroyed all the nearby islands. One roll to the left and there
was a crater on the beach, and one roll to the right destroyed an
entire island built for a vacation mansion. It all was being witnessed
by the city of Margaran on higher ground.
“Oh Gods…”
“This is terrifying…”
Then they noticed the five big horns and one small one growing on
the monster’s head. The monster was on the verge of becoming a
Six-Horned Harijan. This was, without a doubt, the monster
<Bakuron> that killed the Grand Bander a long time ago.
Then people became curious about who was at the other end of that
chain. Was it Broxian, the legendary Emperor, who had returned to
save their city?
Even though they could see the unmoving Harijan on the beach,
they couldn’t come down. They were now more afraid of the person
at the other end of the chain. They could not do anything but watch
the monster and their half-destroyed city.
“Yeeeyah.”
Sian opened up the monster’s mouth. The monster had no sign of
resisting as it only rolled its eight eyes. It tried to resist when it was
far away, but the sheer terror made it freeze and it was unable to
think. The monster also remembered provoking Sian, so it did not
dare to make a move.
Sian took out the hook from its mouth and opened up the door to
take Lamran out. He was unconscious but still alive as Sian had
protected him. He was covered with bruises, but it seemed okay as
he was still tightly holding onto the crown.
Sian thought about taking the crown, but he figured it was useless as
the artifact made the user dumb, so he decided to leave it be.
After putting Lamran aside, Sian turned up to the fish he just fished
up.
Sian mumbled that Stiel was really a genius and began to walk up to
the monster with a chain. The fish, Bakuron, could not dare to move.
At least Sian didn’t seem to want to kill him.
“We’re finished.”
“Anyway, thank you, Miss Stiel. How did you think of using him to
travel across the sea?”
The box was for them to stay in while Sian and Stiel traveled across
the sea on the back of Fish No.1. The monster would repel any
Harijans and would probably be faster than any ship. If they needed
to eat, this fish was the best among any meat available so that was
also solved. They just needed to take some part of the meat next to
the box.
Harijan meat was known for its taste and it tasted even better if they
had more horns.
Sian was ashamed that he hadn’t come up with the idea first. If he
killed the monster, he was left with no choice but to walk to Kiara
either by land or sea.
“Hey, don’t you know about teamwork? I gave you an idea. It’s your
job to do the labor.”
The steel box was made larger than what Sian originally intended. It
was because Stiel wanted to keep the enormous bed from the
mansion. Sian liked the bed too, so he agreed and made the box
larger.
The last part of the damage was the biggest. Margaran was no
longer able to work as a trade center and it would lose its charm as a
tourist location. It had no way to regain its fame with no Lagaopora. It
was lost by a young man’s foolish action.
The bigger problem was that placing the crown back on the pillar
didn’t work. All the Magic Priests from the area gathered to solve the
mystery, but they failed to find a resolution.
Marquis Talruk thanked the gods that he still had his people, and he
tried his best to rebuild the city, but the future didn’t look too bright.
Sian then stopped thinking and kicked Fish No.1 to haul the
supplies. Fish No.1 then began using its tentacles near the tail to
haul the supplies onto its back.
“Harijans are smarter when they are stronger. Dumb ones can’t
survive.”
“Oh, I see.”
Sian and Stiel hopped into the steel box and kicked Fish No.1’s back
and it began swimming across the sea, allowing the box to sit above
the sea surface.
Babil let out a sigh. They couldn’t find anything out about the crown.
The person who could’ve known was now too dumb so it was
impossible to ask.
All the other Magic Priests were already back in their rooms to sleep.
They placed the crown on the pillar and went away.
After a while, a strange swirl appeared at the front of the pillar and a
hand came out from it. The owner of the hand looked at the empty
space in front.
“…Good.”
She was so excited when she saw the reward the first time, but she
didn’t dare to use the item herself because of the terrible effect it
had.
It all worked perfectly. The command was reset and she was
watching over Lamran with her <Party> ability, so she was able to
find the crown quickly enough.
Kal-Kirat thought about getting revenge by hurting his family, but she
gave up after hearing advice from the Great Elder.
<Family doesn’t mean anything once you reach that level. Don’t take
it lightly and just aim for the man.>
It was from the Great Elder, so she believed it to be true. His voice
trembled a bit, but it probably was because he was excited for her to
fulfill her people’s long-sought goal.
The man had no way to utilize the crown, but Kal-Kirat knew she
could utilize it to its full potential while minimizing the penalty with her
skills.
She then took the crown and disappeared into the void.
Stiel was impressed with Fish No.1. The feel of its back was one of a
kind. She first figured the movement was going to be rocky since its
massive body had to move, but the monster smoothly swam across
the sea. It was so big that it wasn’t even affected by the waves. The
steel box that was tied down did not move at all.
“Should we take him onto land also? I think he has legs too.”
“Oh… right.”
If this monster walked onto land, Kiara would bring out their Artagon
to shoot it at the monster. That part was okay since it would only kill
Fish No.1, but then Stiel would start destroying the entire nation and
Kiara would be wiped out. Sian decided to let Fish No.1 go once they
toward the end of Lagaopora.
Sian came to like the fish because of the comfortable ride and meat
it provided. Therefore, he let it go without any hard feelings.
“…Miss Stiel…”
“Yeah?”
“What happened?”
Near the end of Lagaopora, the city, Kerbal, was also in chaos.
Margaran lost all of its contacts right after it sent a message to stop
all ships leaving the dock. The City of Kerbal was in distress, but it
was only the start as the chaos would only grow larger if they heard
about what happened at Margaran.
All the goods came from Broshan, and people gathered to travel to
Broshan. With the warm climate and beautiful scenery, the City of
Kerbal was one of the best, only second to the capital of Kiara.
The city was famous for a lot of things, but there was one in
particular.
The Black Market.
Every city had their own black market, but the one in Kerbal was
special. It was huge, and with the vast amounts of money coming
and going, the nobles knew of its existence but allowed it to continue
operating. The people involved in the market were too powerful, and
the bribes that were given to nobles were substantial.
Sian and Stiel were munching on the fish meat. The meat was stored
within <Nitzmatan>, and it would last for a while. Fish No.1 had to
leave with a large chunk of its back sliced up.
“I don’t think so. It was already a large city before. It did profit from
Lagaopora, but it didn’t rely on it that much.”
“But Miss Stiel, do you know how to get to the black market?”
It was famous, but it was still hidden. It was not like the visitor’s
guide booklet told travelers where to go.
Stiel took off a piece of clothing. She was now only wearing a thin,
short-sleeve shirt, revealing her curves.
Stiel felt people’s attention shifting to her as she began walking into
the crowd.
“…”
“A guest?”
“It’s cheesy. Why do they use such code words?” Sian whispered.
The owner then returned while Sian and Stiel walked in through the
door. As they opened it, they were now in a vast underground alley.
They had reached the Black Market of Kerbal.
The Black Market dealt with everything that wasn’t legally allowed.
Smuggled weapons, drugs, items, Talic Stones… it had everything.
And the most popular item of all was the slaves.
The Kiara Kingdom still had slaves. It was illegal officially, but people
still traded and kept them secretly. This was where the most
significant number of slave trades were held.
The Black Market wasn’t just some market that people shouted
about. It was crowded but somewhat subdued. The people who
made purchases here wanted to hide what they were purchasing, so
they tried to keep it as quiet as possible.
Sian and Stiel looked around as they walked through the alley. There
were all kinds of fascinating things that Sian had never seen, from
fascinating creatures to mysterious weapons and illegal potions. It
had everything. The Black Market was a good place for mercenaries
to shop around. If they were lucky, they would be able to purchase a
good potion at a cheap price. It usually had bad side effects, but the
mercenaries who always put their lives on the line did not care too
much about it.
As Sian and Stiel walked in further, they came to the market where
the slaves were being traded.
“It’s a slave market.”
Sian and Stiel glanced in that direction, but they were uninterested.
“They won’t sell if they look dirty. It’s the same for everything.”
“…”
‘Some fairytales say that’s where the main characters find their
partners…’
Sian had no intention to buy one, but his dream had been shattered.
The people sold at a slave market were one of two things. They were
either too poor that they had to sell themselves or they had a debt
that they could not repay.
Both were the same in the regard that they were helpless either way.
That was why the slave market was the gloomiest place in the Black
Market. It was full of chained up, hopeless people. At least they were
washed and clothed with decent clothing that made them look less
like bums.
Sian thought for a while and then remembered. It was when those
Arankals warped him into a different dimension. The place that he
was put in for a moment had the same kind of smell.
Sian began chasing the smell. After a while, he came to a small box.
‘Looks weird.’
He couldn’t figure out what it was made for, but it looked weird and
had a strange hook on it. Sian decided to buy it. After all, he was
here to shop.
“That?”
The rough-looking man who was selling his items turned to the man
who had asked the question. It was a pale-looking man with a
beautiful woman next to him. It was a very unusual combination, and
so the man was alert. He knew from experience that he always had
to get away from any unusual stuff to live a long life and decided to
take care of this fast.
The man was pointing to a strange box that he had acquired while
ago. It was about the size of a thin book, and he wasn’t sure what it
was made for. He tried opening it, but it didn’t budge. So he just kept
it, hoping that some weirdo would purchase it.
‘What!’
The man looked shocked. That kind of artifact wasn’t something just
anyone was allowed to have.
The man kept his calm, took the money, and bid farewell.
“Sian, why did you buy that?” Stiel asked curiously as she watched
Sian putting the box into Nitzmatan.
“Do you have to say that? And it’s not like that.”
The man watched the two leave, closed his stall, and left. It looked
like they were probably too powerful for him to handle, since carrying
that kind of artifact with such a combination meant that it had some
power. But he didn’t need to fight them. He just needed to sell the
information and take the money.
Third Grade Magic Priest Riff was walking along with Limainu.
“Because…”
“Gosh…”
Riff held his head. His friend had a strange sense of righteousness.
His friend must’ve felt sympathetic toward those slaves. If he didn’t
do something, his friend would surely to try to something to set them
free like buying them, so he decided to warn him.
‘Haha…’
Riff wasn’t the same as him though. He would be punished for not
looking after his friend. So Riff decided to persuade him.
“Then…”
“…”
“If we free them, they’ll get captured before leaving the city wall. So,
if you buy them, you have to take care of them for life.”
“…”
“If they get sold, they at least solve their problem of having a home.
Go buy them if you can take care of them until the end. If not, give it
up.”
“Okay…”
‘Whew…’
“Right…”
Limainu smiled bitterly. He came here right away when he heard that
the object was found at the Black Market. He gave up hope after
losing it, but he still clung to the hope of finding it. After using the
power of the Magical Council to investigate, he heard a similar object
was being sold at the Black Market.
They came right after they heard the information, but they didn’t
expect the market to be this big.
“We’ll just take it slow for a few days and…”
“Huh?”
“So, you don’t know what it does, but you still bought it?”
“Yeah. It was cheap, and I have a good feeling about it. Haha.”
Stiel thought that Sian’s feeling wasn’t all that accurate, but she too
was curious about what the object was, so she decided to stay quiet.
It didn’t seem like an ordinary box. An ordinary box would not require
expensive glass as a material. And if glass was used to create the
box, then it should’ve shown what was inside. In contrast, there was
only blackness, and it was also too thin to store something in it.
Stiel quickly lost interest as she had no idea how to determine the
purpose of the box. Sian also wasn’t interested in its purpose as he
just bought it on a whim, so he was about to put it back into
<Nitzmatan> when someone stopped him.
“Excuse me!”
“That is mine.”
“????”
“…???”
“The box you have… it’s something I lost a while ago. Can you
please sell it back to me?”
“Oh, I see.”
Sian smiled, and Limainu’s face brightened.
“It’s okay.”
Sian realized the man did not understand him, so he continued, “No.
I mean I’m not going to sell it.”
“…What?”
“I mean, I don’t need money, and I bought it because I wanted it. I’m
not selling it.”
Limainu was troubled. He needed the object for himself and the
project. Even if he was a genius, he couldn’t memorize all the
details. He needed the information inside the box. Yet, the man in
front of him just declared that he did not want to sell it.
“Good day, sir. I am Riff, a Third Grade Magic Priest from the Exalted
Magical Council.”
Sian told the truth as he was no longer part of <Dragona>. Stiel was
barely holding back her laughter next to him. It looked like the boy
wanted to pressure Sian by using the name of their organization.
The name of the Roman family should’ve been enough to make
them back off, but Sian was answering them so naively.
“…”
“It should be considered as theft, but we will consider the fact that
you purchased it, so we will pay you what you paid for it, and we will
take the item into custody.”
‘Hehehehe.’
Stiel was quite amused at Riff, who didn’t realize he was putting his
head into an alligator’s mouth. Riff finished talking and glanced at
Limainu, thinking Limainu should learn from him.
Sian watched Riff for a moment and spoke, “What will you do if I
won’t give it to you?”
“Oh… that’s good. I didn’t feel like beating up a man who wanted to
sort it out by talking. Thank you.”
The Fish No.1 meat that Sian was chewing on was thrown at Riff
before he could finish talking. The meat that was held by Sian was
no longer food. The meat thrashed Riff as it was smashed into
pieces and Riff could not think correctly. The people at the back,
including Limainu, didn’t dare to intervene and only watched on.
“Well, it’s not like he deserves to die. But I can’t eat this anymore.”
Sian and Stiel began walking away, and Limainu quickly blocked
them.
“W-Wait!”
“Hmm. Are you thinking about using force to take the object too?”
“No… is it true that you do not know what the object is?”
“That’s true.”
“Then… I’ll teach you what it is for. It’s not something that should be
just kept as a collection. Please, let me have… at least the
information inside. It’s very important to me.”
Limainu did his best to convince the man. The others that were
watching on were dumbfounded. Limainu just revealed all the
secrets he had which Sian could’ve used against him.
“Will you visit our place then? A few repairs and a recharge will make
it work.”
“Oh…”
The inside of the box was more complicated than it looked. After
fiddling around inside, Limainu took something out from it.
“What is that?”
“Why is that?”
“The energy from within… it’s what provides the energy to make this
machine work, but there’s no more.”
Limainu placed the Talic Stone powder in various places and used
many valuable metals to replace the various parts. After a while, he
covered up the box and pressed on a mysterious part of the box.
The glass then began to shine.
“It worked!”
“Yes. Can I remove the information from inside? It’s not going to take
long. I will teach you how to use this afterward.”
“It’s fascinating.”
Limainu answered while blushing. The red bar within the crystal
began to shoot up, and it soon turned green. Then Limainu took it off
and put it into his backpack. Then he took out another crystal.
“What is that?”
“Huh?”
“??”
“Aksarai?”
“Aksarai…”
Sian was pleased with his new belonging and eagerly learned how to
use it. Stiel, too, seemed to be very interested, so she quietly
watched.
“I’ll be going then.”
“Goodbye.”
Sian was very satisfied with his <Aksarai> and Limainu also left with
a smile as he had obtained the badly needed information.
“Hehehe…”
<Good work! Good work! That crystal will be vital to help finish our
magic rune!>
“Thank you.”
<You are our treasure from the sky! Limainu, come right back.>
Limainu smiled, thinking he was sent here by the sky after all.
<Yes. The magic rune will soon be finished when you return. Stay
safe.>
<The similarity between Beauty and Weakness is that both are good
to take. So don’t touch them. There’s a reason why they still walk
unhinged.>
…….
Black Serpent was one of the three organizations that ruled the
Black Market. One of its leaders, Spinn, stared at the man who was
reporting to him.
“Did you take care of the fool who came to sell the information?”
“Yes, sir.”
A void artifact was created from high-grade magic and many Talic
Stones, thus making the item valuable no matter its capability. With a
beautiful woman by its side… it seemed lucrative.
However, that didn’t mean he was going to give up on it. There were
always people foolish enough to wade in without any thought.
“That’s right.”
“You idiot. He’s not going to flee and lose all the profit from this place
because of one artifact.”
The Kakuraks were not big, but the profit was still huge. They would
never give up their spot for just one small artifact.
Spinn sighed. The man was very loyal but too dumb.
“How long will I need to train him so that he can think better?”
“Did you think the market would hide some legendary sword or
something?”
“Yeah.”
“…”
Lightning would be much better for the attacker than Sian being
summoned. Stiel thought it was good to know that Sian cared a lot
for his family and continued following him. Suddenly, someone
bumped into Stiel.
“OUCH!”
“Miss Stiel?”
That was a lie because Stiel would not allow someone to bump into
her like that. People began gathering and whispering.
It seemed like that man didn’t have good intentions when he bumped
into Stiel. She definitely would not let the man go without a beating.
This seemed like it was enough for them to realize that they should
back off, but the man who looked like the leader of the group
shouted from behind.
“WHAT! Is that all? You can’t just say sorry and be done with it! We
need compensation!”
“…”
‘Is he dumb?’
‘Huh?’
“No-no. I wasn’t doing anything. They bumped into us. I was just
going to get an apology.”
“Yeah, right. You remember what you did a few days ago?”
“We’re going to stay here for a while. If you pick on weak people
again…”
“No-no. It won’t happen again. We’re just trying to keep the peace of
the streets! Boys! Let’s get back to work!”
“Yes. Be careful. This place is filled with bad people. It’s dangerous
to walk around.”
“Ha!”
Stiel burst into laughter from the back. She was disappointed that it
didn’t turn into a fight and was now dumbfounded when such
weaklings were warning them to be careful.
“Huh..?”
The red-haired woman then turned to the woman behind the man.
‘Ugh…’
She always was proud of her good looks, but the woman at the back
was even more beautiful. Her skin was fair, and she was tall with
long arms and legs.
As she turned around and returned to her group, she became more
irritated as Kelvin, the guy from her group, was looking at the woman
with a mesmerized look.
“UGH.”
“Where.are.you.looking.at. Kelvin?”
Rinna began dragging Kelvin by grabbing his hair, and the other two
women disappeared with them.
“Hehe.”
“Miss Stiel, you look proud of yourself. I thought you didn’t care
about humans?”
Sian nodded. Those three women were beautiful, but Stiel was one
of a kind.
Limainu was reminded of the city of Kerbal and the disaster that it
faced. It seemed the magic rune was going to be a great help to the
city.
Dekaduin then walked out of the room, and Limainu was left alone to
review the information on the magic rune.
<Warp-Gate>
Limainu began to focus as he was filled with hope that the Warp-
Gate would instill hope in many people.
“Yeah.”
“Yeah. It’s not something that can be covered up. It’s too big, and
think about the number of Talic Stones and people needed for the
work.”
The runes were made by Magic Priests, and they had no part in it.
Only Liviath was needed to provide the required energy.
“Okay?”
Liviath still couldn’t understand, but he turned away. The man wasn’t
one to do something without reason.
After they were done strolling through the Black Market, Sian was
back on a Kerbal road. After looking into various places, Sian was
surprised that Kerbal was calm and peaceful. It had been enough
time for Kerbal to hear about what had happened to Margaran, but it
seemed like it did not bother them that much. However, Sian soon
found out the reason.
“Right.”
“Huh?”
Stiel became confused. She was once the ruler of a Kingdom and
had interest in Exar, so she knew her way around it. A Ra-Shar-Roa
was already impossible technology that was only made possible by
digging up ancient texts and documents. Yet it did not allow a large
number of transportations made at the ports of each city. The sheer
cost of Talic Stones would prove to be disastrous.
Stiel thought there was something else going on and began to listen.
She needed to look into it.
Kirat was walking along the coast of Ropel. A status window was
alerting her constantly.
Kirat had never received such a quest. It seemed like there was
nothing to be earned from such a quest; however, she followed it
anyway. The status window never lied to her, and it didn’t seem
dangerous.
Kirat was frustrated. That was why she was walking along the beach
to calm herself down.
She first thought she would be able to kill him if she was prepared,
that was not the case. She ran to Margaran once her <Party>
showed that it was dangerous and she positioned herself on higher
ground where the evacuees and watched what Sian did.
That was when she realized that she needed to find another way.
“Whew…”
She sighed as a voice came from behind, “Oh, you were here. But
how did you know to wait here?”
“Huh?”
Kirat turned around quickly. She had all sorts of detection and
sensing skills invested to ensure her survival. However, she did not
realize that someone had crept up next to her.
“…”
“It’s okay, don’t be afraid. I made it, so I know where it’s at. I just
followed the signal.”
A more powerful skill than the <Eye of Avant Garde>, it allowed Kirat
to view more details on the target. After looking through the status
window, Kirat couldn’t believe what she saw.
“You…”
“!!!”
The man began thinking. He was just going to take the crown at first,
but he now wanted the girl. The Connector of Aksarai wasn’t
common. He only encountered it once throughout his long life. She
would surely be a great help. He then decided to take her with him.
“What?”
“…”
“If you’re unconvinced… look at whatever that you’re looking at. You
should see it since you’re the Connector of <Aksarai> right? The
offer is good too.”
Kirat looked into the quest window that popped up and all of the
other connected quests. After looking into it, she realized that she
now had a chance.
“You will have good compensation… good pay… and… huh? You’ve
already decided? I’m not done yet.”
The man smiled. Kirat also smiled, satisfied that she now had a way
to get her revenge.
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Chapter 81
Chapter 81: Hope of Kerbal
Limainu was excited by the fact that the great magic rune that was
going to be finished soon. He was sometimes sad for living in this
world, but he enjoyed times like these.
A <Warp Gate>!
It connected two spaces. It was a miracle that was not possible in his
world. Limainu was proud that the science he brought and the magic
here combined to create amazing things.
It had been three years since he came to this place. A lot of things
happened, and Limainu proved himself to be able to rise to such a
level. He was lucky that he met the higher-ranking individuals of the
Magical Council.
“Haha. You should look carefully with your recording device this time,
then.”
“Your job here is done. It’s time for the magic. You should return to
the council.”
There was a small boat in the middle of the sea where the Harijans
infested after the destruction of Lagaopora. But this ship, without a
sail or paddle, sailed through the sea at an incredible speed.
Harijans also didn’t attack it.
“…Where are we going?” Kirat asked the man. The man, who called
himself <Lagaope> answered.
Kirat knew the man’s name was different since she saw it with <Eye
of Gran-Ra>, but she decided to not ask him about it and called him
Lagaope.
“What experiment?”
“The magic needs to kill a Six-Horn with ease. I need to test that
out.”
“Then…”
“Yeah, we’re going to… oh, you saw it too right? That <Bakuron>?
We’re going for his mother.”
‘…he’s crazy…’
Kirat examined the Bakuron’s status. It was level 203. If it weren’t for
Sian, the east coast of Broshan would’ve been left in ruins within a
few days. But its mother? Harijans grew stronger as they got older. It
meant that the Bakuron’s mother was much stronger.
-Get help from <Lagaope> to tame the deep sea <Barakuna> in the
Kiara sea.
-Find <Barakuna> and bring it to <Kerbal>
“I don’t want to die yet,” Kirat answered after glancing at the status.
The words were normal, but the information it contained was brutal.
She had no power to tame such a beast.
“Hehe, Kirat, I didn’t bring you here to let you die. I have a way.”
“Yeah, that crown. It’s really good stuff. It was so hard to create, and
I almost died trying to get the materials for it.”
Lagaope then moved the boat. Kirat thought it was a good choice to
follow him. She began to feel that she would have a chance at her
revenge if she followed this man around.
Sian was walking through the city alone since Stiel disappeared after
saying that she needed to look into something. Sian then found
something interesting. It was the one man, three women group he
saw back at the Black Market.
“SHUT UP!”
They shouted for a while then took out a flag from the bag and raised
it. The blue-haired woman who was holding on the flag seemed
embarrassed.
<Money betting: Win ten times the money if you win at arm
wrestling!>
Sian looked at them while chewing on the fish meat. It was common,
but it became popular instantly. It didn’t seem like it was possible to
win since the women were all so powerful, but the only reason why
was because they were all very beautiful.
<Necklace of Vows>
-Creation of the old Magic Priest to keep his loved one. Paired with a
ring.
‘There it is.’
It was what he wanted badly. The blonde women had the ring, so it
was the perfect timing. Sian began to approach them. He needed to
join in before they finished up the arm-wrestling contest.
The blonde spoke to the redhead as she claimed victory against the
twenty-seventh challenger.
Reka was confused when a familiar face sat down in front of her.
“Huh? He’s the one who was with that big breasted woman.”
“Oh, you’re the guy from that time. What’re you doing here?”
Sian thought he was being unfair, but he wanted the necklace so bad
that he endured the embarrassment. But Reka mistook Sian’s blush
for something different and grinned.
“Hehe, I know I’m charming, but you shouldn’t flirt with other girls.”
“Huh?”
Reka looked dumbfounded.
Sian then took out all talons that Stiel gave him.
“…?”
“So, you’re up for it?” Sian asked worriedly. There was no other way
if they refused to take up the challenge.
“What, are you afraid now? It’s too late! Come here!”
“Let’s do it then.”
“Hehe…”
When she returned to the room, Stiel found Sian who was grinning
on top of the bed.
Interested, Stiel asked, “Oh, isn’t that the one from yesterday? From
the Aksarai? Where did you get it?”
“Oh. It’s not much. They were making something interesting nearby,
so I paid them a visit.”
“It’s simple. You just need to provide energy through your <Way> at
the center of the rune. Next is on us.”
“It was created per Sir Takion’s blueprint and finished with the other
world’s knowledge.”
“Tomorrow, at 2 PM.”
“Good. We’ll make quick work of it.”
Liviath laughed.
Sian did not speak this out loud. It was because he found Stiel’s
nickname while reading through Aksarai.
Even without the book, there wasn’t one case that ended nicely
when Stiel became excited. Now, she was more excited than ever
before.
Sian turned back, and sure enough, that voice was calling him.
“Kurin. Stop.”
It was the blue-haired woman who shouted. The blonde and red-
haired women were trying to stop Kurin.
“Heh. Sian, do we look like we’re easy to pick on?” Stiel laughed.
“I’m sorry, but didn’t you promise that you would pay with your
belongings? And you made me choose 20 thousand talons worth of
items? I only took a necklace and a ring.”
“You knew! You knew what it was! That’s… that’s more than 20
million talons!”
Kurin couldn’t continue since she was so enraged. She did say take
what he wanted, but they did not expect for Sian to take away the
<Necklace of Vows>. They couldn’t even react at the unexpected
turn of events.
“20 million…?”
Sian flinched at the price of the item and felt bad. It was true that he
approached them, knowing what it was, but he needed the item.
There was no way he was going to return it.
“I know, I know. You just feel bad because it’s expensive right?”
“Wait here.”
“Babies, you need that necklace to protect that boy there, right?”
“I’ll give you a resolution. If that necklace only serves to save him
once… how about Sian here promises to help you all once when you
face danger?”
“No. It’s for your own good. You all will face a danger and come ask
for help to Sian in about an hour or so. I guarantee it.”
“So, you made a promise. Sian, this is a good bargain if you don’t
have too feel bad about taking on such an easy job.”
Only his trusted people were left here. It was the least amount of
people needed to activate the rune.
“Good. We’ll activate the rune once Sir Liviath enters it and escape
through the Ra-Shar-Roa. Did you install the recording device?”
Dekaduin led his Magic Priests and moved them to the vital points
on the runes. Liviath was watching in the middle while yawning.
Liviath began activating his way, <Sun>, and everything from within
began to change. His body began to change and reorganize itself. It
was being recreated to fit the creation of <Sun> from within. Then his
body started shining brightly.
The people were all gone, but the runes that were placed over
hundreds of yards still shined in bright light. Soon, all light was
absorbed into the center where Liviath was standing and a red
sphere appeared in the air.
The hole began to grow in its size and became as large as a mile
wide.
<Tasha-Dagon>
Hell did not exist. It was just named after it because Takion thought
the space past the gate felt like burning hell, and thus named it as
such. Takion managed to realize the existence of another dimension
and managed to communicate with beings in another dimension
accidentally.
Second was that these people from the other dimension would be
dangerous if they had the chance to cross over.
But, danger meant that there was a use for it. Takion pondered on it.
<Let’s make a gate that allows entry, but nothing can come out of it.>
The beings inside the gate were too dangerous let out. At the same
time, if they made a gate big enough to put the target in, then it
would surely kill them all.
This was what Takion thought to handle the enemies, or the Harijans
that were impossible to fight against. After doing the research with
this in mind, Takion thought it would be like going into hell when
going through this gate, thus naming as such.
Limainu.
Those questions led to the test. It seemed like it might be little too
much, so Takion decided to contact his old friends. They agreed to
help. If the rune worked and successfully got rid of the <Barakuna>,
it would be a success.
“Hehe. What do you think? Isn’t it better to ask for your life now?”
Kelvin had been fainted long ago because of the giant flow of Exar
coming from outer area of Kerbal. Kurin and the other two women
were looking at each other with grim look. They couldn’t figure out
what was happening, but one thing was certain.
It seemed like there was still time. The power was great, but it didn’t
seem evil and it didn’t affect anything yet, so it looked like it was
possible for them to run away.
Rinna took up Kelvin on her back and the three of them decided to
run to the opposite side of the energy. The sight of a gigantic
mountain appearing from another side stopped them.
“Ugh…’
Kirat grabbed the crown. Her head was aching really badly.
With all her activated skills and Lagaope’s help, she barely managed
to make it walk. It was barely possible because Lagaope had to fight
with the Barakuna to make room for the mind control.
“…Yes.”
“I can do it better, but that won’t do. I won’t be a whole lot better
anyway, and you need to do your part too. The previous Connector
was amazing. I think you can do better than him.”
Lagaope was a very talkative man. Kirat couldn’t spare the time to
talk. She was busy controlling the instincts being sent to her by the
<Barakuna>.
<Kill it…>
<Rip it apart…>
<Destroy it…>
<Eat it…>
They did not care if Kerbal was populated with millions of people.
The man in front of her was no different. He would’ve killed her if she
wasn’t the <Connector of Aksarai>. She was taken care of because
she was useful.
That being said, she did not care. She joined him because she could
use them for her purpose and she didn’t care about humans either.
At that moment, a status window popped up.
[Quest completed]
“You think she will walk into it if it looked that dangerous? <Tasha-
Dagon> is created with everything taken into consideration. It’s
beyond your expectations.”
Sian looked at the red sphere from distance. It was large, but there
was nothing special about it. As he looked more closely, there was
something inside. Some were few feet to few hundred feet. They
looked all different but they all had one thing in common. They all
looked vicious and evil. It seemed like they wanted to come out from
the sphere as they were clawing from within. The sphere was
blocking the energy coming from the beings inside, but if it didn’t,
half of population would’ve gone mad by now.
Sian wasn’t worried about that side. No matter how evil it was, there
was no way for it to come out of the sphere. The problem was the
other side.
The fish from a while ago was nothing compared to the one coming
here. It was same type of Six-Horn, but the size and power was
different. It wasn’t tied up and coming closer to raze through the city.
The coast was already being destroyed by the waves created by the
monster.
The monster’s arrival wasn’t obvious, but it sure looked like it was
coming toward the red sphere.
Sian turned to Stiel and sighed.
Goddess of Disaster.
This wasn’t Stiel’s fault, but Sian understood the reason for the
nickname and realized that he needed to do some work.
“I will lose.”
Stiel grimaced. Even with the <Armor of the Seven Stars>, she had
no chance. Sian glanced at both sides and turned to Kelvin.
“What are you trying to do? Don’t say that you’re going to beat that
monster up.”
“What do you mean? We should run away. Why would you want to
fight a monster like that?”
“…”
Everyone was dumbfounded at such a correct answer. It seemed like
they were able to run away if that woman helped them. Stiel seemed
to think differently.
“Huh? Why aren’t you fighting Sian? I might lose, but you can win.”
The four of them were shocked as they turned to Sian. Stiel didn’t
look like she was joking either and their faces became pale.
Especially Kurin, she felt a shiver running through her spine as she
had been provoking Sian until now.
“With that? Oh no… it’s not like I’ve got anything to do with that.”
‘What a character.’
Stiel couldn’t understand. Even she had the urge to try fighting with
the monster even when she knew she would lose. She would’ve
probably already gone to fight it if she didn’t have her target of
interest already.
After hearing them talk, Reka became angry and asked, “Are you
saying you will not fight it even when you can defeat it?”
“So you three are going to fight him? Then, I’ll just be on my way.
Are you going to stay here too? Miss Stiel?”
“Haha, no way.”
“Good. So Miss Stiel is coming… and you all are staying behind,
right?”
“N-no. I mean…”
“Huh? Didn’t you just say you wished to protect the city?” Sian asked
as he was curious as to why they were changing their position.
Sian replied coldly, “So, you won’t do it if you can’t get good results?”
“But…”
“…”
“It’s only when you do it regardless of the possible outcome.”
Stiel was impressed, but this was possible since it was what Sian
had been taught since he was very young.
“Besides, I’m not responsible for all those people. Why would I? At
least I’m being responsible for the four of you.”
Sian spoke to the women who were speaking of same thing as his
father.
“But you are mistaking one thing. Great power brings great privilege.
Why does power bring responsibility? Power and privilege are the
same thing. It’s just that others wish for the one with great power to
be responsible for a lot of things.”
“…”
“…Help us.”
“Huh…?”
Sian was surprised. They just chose to honor their virtue over their
lives.
His conscious tempted him even now, but he was barely ignoring it.
It was really dangerous this time. He never feared death until now.
Stiel was worried about that gigantic monster, but that was because
she couldn’t feel the monsters inside the red sphere. That Six-Horn
was like a baby compared to the monsters inside the sphere. Stiel
wouldn’t last a second if she jumped into the sphere. Sian couldn’t
understand why it was even opened.
It was too much to kill the Six-Horned. That was why Sian was
pushing down his temptation. He wanted to ensure his survival.
The city was in chaos. People were running in all directions for their
lives.
“Whew.”
“Huh? What are you doing?”
Stiel thought that was a possibility, but Sian’s hand flew at that
moment.
“Ugh…”
And three women who were walking toward city fell to the ground.
“…”
Sian picked up the four of them like a pair of sacks and turned to
Stiel.
“Weren’t you trying to help? You can just make it turn around.”
That was what Stiel expected. She was sure that Sian wasn’t going
to pull his sleeves to make work of the monster, yet the monster
didn’t seem to be interested in the city either. It would only require a
few smacks to make it avoid the city on its way to the sphere.
“Oh. Yeah, I did think about that, but it really feels bad this time.”
Sian did consider it, but he decided to follow his instincts. He did not
want to go near the bomb. He wanted to stay as far away as
possible from the sphere.
Sian could’ve let ladies follow their wishes, but he decided to keep
the promise to the owner of necklace. The man’s wish probably did
not include the death of those three women. Even at expense of the
lives of the Kerbal citizens.
“Huh?”
“I was going to help you… but you want to save these four so… I will
have them be escorted to safety. Good luck!”
“What do you-”
Stiel began darting off into the mountain, to the opposite side of the
ocean.
“Huh…?”
“Oh man…”
He picked up the crown and put it on his head, but it didn’t work. It
seemed like the connection with Kirat was still intact. Lagaope
couldn’t understand what happened, so he picked up Kirat on his
back. The Barakuna was now charging straight toward the city of
Kerbal. The tremor was enough to destroy Kirat’s internal organs if
left alone, so Lagaope put her up on his back and jumped up.
The Barakuna was thrown off and was dazed. Something was
approaching from the distance.
“Oh no.”
But Sian didn’t care. The city was already done for after the first
explosion.
The monster used its eight legs to lift itself and swung at Sian. It was
much bigger than Fish No.1, but it looked quicker. Sian struck his
Chrona-Phon at the front leg. When the monster was struck by
Sian’s sword, it was pushed back as if it were hit by a meteor, but it
kept coming back again and again.
<Rip it apart…>
<Swallow it…>
Kirat couldn’t think straight as the Barakuna’s instinct kept invading
her. She also felt all the pain that the Barakuna felt as Sian struck it.
Now she was able to control the monster.
The monster was enraged at Sian in return. Its rage was growing
stronger as Sian kept slashing it. Its rage was strong enough to
overwhelm its survival instinct.
It wasn’t enough. That was why she needed to fulfill her quest.
[Chance of a lifetime]
-Control the <Barakuna> to push the target into the <Dungeon: Gate
to Apental>
Kirat didn’t understand what this <Gate to Apental> was, but she
quickly realized that it was the red sphere that was now big enough
for the Barakuna to go through. She wasn’t sure why it would be so
dangerous. So she used <Eye of Gran-Ra> to look at it. She couldn’t
get much information out of it, but one line of description was
enough. She didn’t need to win. She just needed to push the guy in
there.
<Gate to Apental>
“Ugh…”
Kurin opened her eyes as she felt the tremor and touched her head.
‘…what happened?’
She thought she was on her way to evacuate the citizens, but she
couldn’t remember anything else past that.
‘Was I attacked?’
“You’re awake.”
“…what happened?”
“I paid for the necklace and the ring instead. I saved you four in
return of the necklace that can save one, so you owe me, but I’ll let it
go.”
‘…Necklace…?’
Kurin couldn’t agree more. The city where they were staying at was
laid in ruins.
“…is that?”
The sphere was now shrinking into nothing and the monster only had
three of its horns left. It was barely breathing. The light in the sky
seemed to realize this and was loosening its power.
“What is it doing?”
“UGH!”
“ARRGH!”
The four of them gasped and screamed at once as they felt the
energy and fainted. It was very far, but it still was powerful and Stiel
frowned. At that moment, something penetrated the crushing
Barakuna’s head and shot out from within.
“What is that?”
It was an arm. But it was so fast and so long that it looked like a red
line. It snatched Sian up out of the sky. Then it pulled it back at an
incredible speed and as it returned back into the sphere. Then the
sphere sealed itself up, leaving only the headless Barakuna on the
ground.
However, that didn’t matter. “It’s okay. It went in there. It’s as good as
dead.”
There were a few other things that needed to be fixed, but it was
okay. They had seen the power of the <Tasha-Dagon>.
‘Kirat…’
After Lagaope returned with Kirat, Liviath began erasing the traces of
the Tasha-Dagon, but it seemed that he had used too much power.
Someone was approaching.
“…open it.”
“Huh? What?”
“Open it right now, you stupid old man!” Stantahl shouted in rage.
“Don’t you lie… there’s no one who can open that thing other than
you. Besides, I saw you preparing it with your <Way>.”
Stiel gritted her teeth.
He thought Stantahl would not hide and peek, but he was wrong.
“Uh… I just provided the power. I don’t know how to open it. Don’t
you see the runes that were all destroyed?”
“Then bring them back here. Who made this evil thing anyway?”
“That’s not important. What are you going to do after you open it?”
“From there?”
“…”
Liviath was right. Stiel also felt what was inside when the monster
destroyed the part of the barrier. Monsters had no feelings. It just
looked as if it was looking at its prey. It was probably why it took
Sian. It was looking at which was best for its food. If the sphere
stayed open for a while longer, it would’ve been Liviath or Stiel
herself.
She had no way to save Sian if the gate was opened. Liviath then
spoke to her.
Stiel was shouting and stomping on the ground with rage. The
ground trembled as she stomped on it and Kerbal, which was
already in ruins, crumbled each time she stomped. Liviath flinched
and backed away. This was what she did right before she jumped at
him when Liviath claimed that he was going to take the well.
“Huh…?”
“Oh no…”
And two began running away. After they ran, the space began to
crack more and was crushed. Then a red arm that snatched Sian a
while ago popped out of it. It was now holding on to the opening to
make stay it open.
Liviath and Stiel didn’t run because of the monster. They were
definitely terrified, but what was behind it was much more. The hand
had no body. There was nothing left behind the hand as it held on to
the openings of the crack.
The rage that made Stiel and Liviath run shouted from within.
‘This is mad…’
He knew the man was strong, but he didn’t expect it to be this much.
A living being’s instinct was only brought up when it became the
most dangerous. It seemed like nothing was enough to threaten the
man at that level. Yet the place beyond <Tasha-Dagon> seemed like
it was enough.
The man had unleashed its viciousness and returned from hell. A
man like him needed to run to avoid such wrath. But…
It was after they ran away about eighty miles when Liviath turned to
the direction where Kerbal was and spoke.
“But who is he? I’ve never seen him before,” Liviath asked. It was
good to know.
Stiel thought about it and decided to tell him. There was no point in
hiding it as Sian had destroyed two cities in a month already. It was
better to tell him and tell Liviath to avoid him. She decided to tell him
some parts, and when she was done, she began heading back to
Kerbal.
Stiel knew Sian in his normal state, but this wasn’t something she
could expect so she was being careful. She saw Sian sitting down
where the sphere was. There was no sign of the space and Stiel
sped up. She was surprised when she found that Sian had fainted
while sitting down.
Stiel then picked Sian up on her back and jumped out. As she
moved out, she found the four people that she had left by the road.
They were moving to the next closest city.
Stiel was very excited right now, so she decided to take them with
her. It wasn’t because she needed helping hands to care for Sian.
<Ra-Intaro>
His office was always quiet as he loved being alone, but today was a
little different.
Takion was talking with Lagaope. They were talking about Kirat.
“And the Barakuna stuck its head into the sphere and died?”
“Yeah. The head was cut off. They probably feasted on it.”
Lagaope scowled at the thought of it. Even in his long life, he never
experienced such terrifying monsters.
“I think being a Granine allowed her to do that. There was no way for
her to make the Barakuna run rampant like that.”
Kirat thought she was able to make the Barakuna run rampant by the
power of the crown, but she was wrong. It was the result of a
<Granine>’s power and the crown’s power combined that made the
Barakuna lose its control on attacking such a powerful enemy and
ram into the sphere as a suicidal attack. A Harijan’s survival instinct
would not let that happen if it wasn’t controlled.
“But… couldn’t she just come out of it before it was too late?”
“Yes… only if it didn’t stick its head into the Tasha-Dagon. It must
have been painful.”
She planned to return at the end, but it was unfortunate that the
head was stuck in there. It was the place where no spirit could
return. Her spirit was probably ripped apart from within.
“Huh? Really?”
“Yes. The power comes from the heart and brain, so if we keep this
body and put in a new soul, we can revive the Connector.”
“Oh. HAHAHA! That’s good then. We’ll revive one and put it back,”
Lagaope shouted. It was good that they were successful with the
Tasha-Dagon, but that was another good piece of information. Kirat
was skilled, but she was too weak. Lagaope only needed the
<Connector of Aksarai>, so that was fine. As a Granine, it was also
going to be useful to plant the spirit.
Sian could not sleep throughout the night. He was not enraged
anymore as he had more interesting things in front of him. He was
examining his body which was now above the level. It was full of
power. He thought he could not become any stronger, but it wasn’t
true. After a week of fighting against those evil things, he became
much stronger than ever before.
He thought overcoming the barrier would mark the end, but that was
not the case.
He did overcome one barrier, but there wasn’t just one. There was
one more in front and it looked like there were a lot more he needed
to break. Just breaking one barrier did make him much more
powerful.
Until now, he thought that it might be good to face such danger and
break the barrier and be done with it. However, that was because he
had never felt such danger. After experiencing it, he decided to never
try it anymore. It was a terrible experience.
Kerbal had fallen due to the giant monster invasion. Luckily, the
monster was defeated by the Warp Gate magic rune that was
installed by the Magical Council prior to the incident.
It was sad that a city had been destroyed, but it was also fortunate
that the damage did not expand to a larger part of the nation.
There were a few who knew the truth as there were very little
survivors. Those survivors were either mad or were considered to be
mad because of the trauma.
The six people who knew the truth and were not mad were also at
Coupin.
Sian told Stiel about his plans. He made the decision yesterday.
He did not plan to quit traveling, but he thought it was a good time to
go back and give the present he bought while he passed Tian for his
next destination. Stiel agreed.
“Don’t pretend you don’t remember. You swore that you’d kill those
people that opened the gate, remember?”
Stiel cackled as she imitated how Sian roared as he got out of the
gate. Sian blushed.
“Uh… yeah. Well, I was angry back then. I’m not going after them.”
It was the Exalted Magical Council who was behind the red sphere,
but Sian heard that it was opened due to some unforeseen
miscalculations. Even if they did intend to open it, he’d already killed
the monster and the monsters inside, so he had no reason to blame
the council.
“You’re too logical sometimes. You should follow your heart, you
know. But it’s up to you.”
“I see. Then where are you going?” Sian asked again, curious.
“Tian.”
“…”
“Roa-Tian.”
“…”
Sian then turned to the man and the three women standing next to
them.
“Thank you for taking care of me. I’m sorry about the necklace… but
I think I did best I could to repay it.”
“No, we’re grateful that you saved us. We’ll go on our ways then.”
After spending time with four of them, Stiel realized it was good to
have slaves. Sian noticed the four of them flinching when Stiel said
that and sighed.
“We should go our separate ways. I hope you all have a good time
on your journey.”
Sian bid farewell to those four and went to the Ra-Shar-Roa with
Stiel.
“Aren’t you too nice? It’s hard to find ones like them, you know.”
“It’s okay. Isn’t it good to travel around with just us two sometimes?”
Sian had no other intentions with his words, but Stiel became happy
and grinned.
“Oh, I just had some business here. Are Father and Brother
here?”Sian asked.
“Lots of things changed since you were gone. Let’s get something to
eat first, shall we?”
“Is it meat?”
“Rian… is a babysitter?”
There had been no academy for warriors until now since Bander-
Roa was usually a family secret that had to be kept within. It was
also hard when no warriors were willing to share their secrets and
techniques to stay stronger than the others.
The King decided to break that culture. It was now time to stand
together and strive to become stronger. After discussing with the
other two Grand Banders, they decided to start first.
The land had abundant flow of Bander. It was a place where the best
warriors were born without any training. His first goal after obtaining
Lagran was to setup an academy. It was where the next generation
of Tian would grow into fruition.
“Yes. The time to rely on nobles to train their own warriors is over.
They are too selfish if we let them do that.”
“Yes. And they are saying that it’s bad that we are sharing the
Roman or the Kiraine family’s visions.”
“Ignore that too. They know that’s better for the plan.”
Narasha sighed.
“I don’t think that’s the case, Your Majesty. He didn’t take her with
him into the house.”
“…”
“What is it?”
The King started to worry. His mind was filled with the ruins of
Margaran and Kerbal.
It wasn’t just any Bander-Roa. It was the <Lion’s Way> from Roman
family and from the Kiraine family. There were countless other
Bander-Roa, and the academy also accepted non-nobles. The
classes were different between the nobles and commoners, but they
were being taught the same thing.
“He knows what’s really important. The Stantahl boy should start
catching up if he doesn’t want to get left behind.”
The academy’s purpose was to make each other compete and train
for higher levels. Everyone was granted the same opportunity. Now,
they were on their own to strive for their goals.
The reason for gathering people from other countries was to create
enemies within the academy for Tian students to gather together and
become one.
King Narasha was planning for all the nobles to give up their
potential and work for the country. If it was done as planned, the
country would be creating more talented warriors than ever and the
country would become powerful. As it grew in power, war would
come after.
“Haha, they can’t learn anything here. They can come to teach,
though.”
“You really love your brother. You came all the way here to give him
the present, right?”
“Huh?”
“The world is too dangerous. I didn’t know I could face the danger of
dying. My brother might die while going out for groceries, you know.”
“…”
“I think I didn’t know about the danger because I lived within the
capital. Gosh… I didn’t imagine the world was full of monsters like
Fish No.1 or that cow-head monster. Meeting them twice in just a
month! I will probably meet stronger monsters if I traveled a lot
more.”
“…”
Stiel realized Sian was getting it all wrong, but she couldn’t figure out
where to start correcting him.
“Huh?”
“You?”
“Yeah, of course.”
“Didn’t you run at full speed? I don’t think you need to be worried.”
“Okay, I’ll leave it at that. This necklace… I wish they could make two
more.”
“Oh, so one is for me and… who are you going to give another one?”
“…You’re mean.”
“Won’t the students fight with each other with all these different
people?”
“You DOGS!”
“Uh… hmm…”
It was obvious that the students would fight each other under the
circumstances. Stiel figured the King would’ve prepared some
measures to stop it from happening, but there was nothing.
After moving past a few more fights along the way, they went to the
place where Rian was working.
“I don’t think my brother was like that when he was that age.”
He was young, but he was a Master and a son of the Roman family.
“He’s not good at enforcement. You need to give some smacks for
good teaching, but he won’t do that.”
“I see.”
“Last time, when we were at Dragona, he kept talking all the time. I
almost got up to do it myself.”
“…”
“So… I guess you didn’t know that much about your brother after
all?”
“You think you can fool around like you’ve been doing your entire
life?”
The training ground was chaotic. Men and women alike were
sparring each other and there was a group of people making weird
postures as punishment in the corner. And in another corner was
Rian and some students who were getting smacked by Rian
continuously.
Sian decided to wait in the distance for the class to end. Rian did not
know that he had arrived yet. Sian then glanced around to check on
all the students. There were various students, but most were having
a hard time following the instructions. Oddly enough, there was one
who did understand. Stiel and Sian looked at the student weirdly.
“I don’t know.”
Sian couldn’t believe what he saw and began waiting for the class to
end.
Sian then turned to Stiel, expecting a scowl as Stiel did not consider
anyone below Ra-Bander as a human. Yet she did not act as Sian
expected.
‘For now.’
“My god, Sian did you…?”
“It’s probably not what you are thinking about right now.”
Sian became suspicious of Stiel for being too nice, but he decided to
let it go for now.
Sian was confused, but Stiel seemed to realize what was going on.
“I see.”
“Yeah?”
“Didn’t we think it was weird? That the fight was left alone?”
“…”
“…”
Rian and Stiel looked at Sian, but Sian became irritated and made a
face for her to continue.
“It’s nothing.”
“That’s where the enemy comes in. We don’t have outside enemies,
so we’re taking their places.”
“Yeah. They’ll fight for now, but it will decrease. It’s much more
efficient than suppressing them.”
“I learned a lot in Dragona. I think it’s better that I look bad and make
them grow stronger to survive. I can become evil if I need to be.”
Sian shook his head, but this was also why he loved his brother.
“If that’s the case, okay. I was worried if something had gotten into
you.”
“What is it?”
“Here.”
“Use it.”
“A necklace?” Rian asked again because Sian wasn’t the type to just
present a simple accessory.
“It’s nothing special. It’s going to help you when you are in danger.”
“Haha. I’m happy that you are worried for me, but I don’t think there’s
any need for this here.”
“No, brother. I’ve seen terrifying things in the world. You should
always keep it on you.”
“Always have that on you. Oh, is there any problem with you being
an instructor here?” Sian asked again as he saw that Rian had a
hard time as a Dragona.
“Nothing much. I like training here. Why don’t you go see Lady
Celine? She was quite bored without you.”
“Yeah. Follow the path and you’ll get there soon. She’s probably
finished with her class by now. We’ll talk later in the evening.”
Stiel then jumped out and Sian shrugged and moved to where Celine
was.
‘Is he up to something?’
The other students were obviously annoyed with the Granine. The
interesting thing was that he wasn’t getting picked on. Sian was able
to find out the reason soon enough.
“ARGH!”
“Huh? Sian? Why are you here? I thought you went traveling?”
“Yeah.”
“Oh?”
“Granines are powerful, but they can’t live without interacting with
humans. The academy is a good place to start.”
“Can he just not learn about fighting? He’s already good enough.”
“Yeah, but he’s really interested in human sword arts. He loves Sir
Rian’s lessons especially.”
“Hmm…”
…….
“You’re back.”
Sian learned about the people he had fought before from various
places, so he now knew about them.
“They’re still celebrating. They must be really glad that they found
the well again.”
“Hmm… so, they can reincarnate. And when they die, their spirits
return to the well to wait for another body.”
“Oh.”
“They then bury the dead body next to the well. The bones gain flesh
and the spirit returns to it afterwards.”
“I heard only Granines can do that. And they need the right bones to
reincarnate into it.”
“I see… but why does that well hold such a unique effect?”
“I don’t know. They don’t know either. They don’t seem to record
history so nobody knows.”
“What for? They have people who have memories of those times.
Although there’s no one left from that age because they were sent
out to participate in the Empire’s war.”
Sian was surprised that Stiel knew so much about the Granines.
“You did?”
“Yeah. You can speak to those spirits in the well. That’s what they
told me.”
“Why aren’t they coming back to life? They could’ve saved their
bones, right?”
“I thought so, but they said bones get weaker every time. Those are
not recreated.”
“Oh… so they can’t reincarnate when all the bones are gone.”
“Yeah. But it’s really long. There were spirits that were thousands of
years old. Those spirits didn’t remember anything and were numb.”
“It’s unimaginable.”
“It’s weird how humans ruled the world when there were more
powerful beings around.”
There were the Kal-Guls who destroyed the Empire, the Granines
who could reincarnate, and all the other races that were more
powerful than the humans. Yet the survivor of the continent was still
the humans.
“Well… it’s not like strongest always survives. Except that’s not
important. Didn’t you say you were going to practice in the evening?”
“Oh!”
“Let’s go then.”
“Yeah. I can’t stop my heart from pounding. It’s where you beat me
up so well, right?”
“I might.”
“Something changed…”
“You think I’m that dumb? I’m not talking about that.”
“Hm… didn’t this region always have more Bander and Exar
movement?”
“Yeah, but it’s little more than that. Maybe it’s because we fought
here.”
“That might be the reason. It will be helpful for the academy though.”
“By the way… don’t you think it’s a shame that those artifacts were
destroyed?” Stiel asked Sian who was stretching.
“Huh? Yeah, well. It was useful.”
“Useful?”
“It made me stronger. I was impressed that there was something that
allowed me to become stronger. I would’ve probably died if I didn’t
have those in that other world.”
Sian smiled. “Yeah, but it’s okay. I’ll show you why.”
“And…”
Sian then began focusing energy at the tips of his fingers. On his left
hand was a golden light and on the right was a dark, black light.
Stiel was dumbfounded. She was impressed that Sian wielded the
armor himself, but it was possible. However, wielding various powers
like that wasn’t something that was possible. No Ra-Bander was
able to use different <Ways> at the same time.
For Sian to be able to do this, that meant one of two things.
One was that he was so powerful that he could easily bring those
out, and the second was that his <Way> specialized in bringing out
different powers.
Whichever reason it was, it was amazing. There was no way for Sian
to want the artifacts anymore. He didn’t even need one.
Sian tested his powers on the grounds and skies. With one effortless
move, something was erased completely.
“What about it?” Sian said, not knowing what she was asking.
“Then?”
“It’s one <Way>. I started using it when I hit the barrier, but I can use
it a lot easier after I broke through the barrier.”
Stiel’s analysis was wrong. It was not one of two. It was both.
“But it’s really amazing. I think you can even kill that legendary
Seven-Horned Harijan,” Stiel said as she could not guess anything
would be a match for Sian.
“That’s from the legend. Even if it exists, I’m going to run away from
it.”
“Huh?”
“Oh… that…”
“…”
Stiel smiled.
There were two people that the Elders warned him about when he
came out to the human world. Sian and Rian von Roman. He was
told that he should never lay his hands on them. He had no intention
to do so anyway. Everyone, including him, saw what happened to
the mountain range. The Great Elder and the Second Elder had their
artifacts robbed from them, but it was beyond their level to get
revenge.
That was why he was out here. He was calmest, and that allowed
him to live among the humans. Rodeval grabbed his head and
moved to the next class, <Monarachy and Political Balance>. It was
a helpful class, even more so than his warrior class.
“Kharan is the best at keeping its balance. The only country that
touches its border with the Great North Wall is Kharan. It has Kiara
to the east, Tian to the west, and Broshan to the south. It’s
surrounded by enemies.”
Everyone knew the answer, but they couldn’t say it since it was a
sensitive issue. Rodeval raised his hand.
A few hundred years ago, Kharan was a country that all nations
wanted to invade and attack. As the problem reached its peak, the
High General at the time, Keldan de Rofelheim, made a decision. He
withdrew all forces from the border. Countries started invading past
the border, but they were shocked by Kharan’s final warning that
followed.
<If you come over our border one more time, we will attack the
Wall.>
It was daring but too dangerous to ignore. The Wall was barely
fending the monsters off. If all the Kharan forces were to attack the
wall, it was bound to break. That meant the fall of the entire
continent.
There was one King who ignored the warning. The then King of
Kiara, Rosile the Third.
Kiara then invaded Kharan, but they should’ve listened. A few days
after, The eastern part of the Wall was destroyed by Kharan’s
cannon fire and many Bander users died that day. Kharan had
already evacuated their people, so the Harijans invaded Kiara,
bringing massive destruction to the Kiara Kingdom.
Tian and Broshan became shocked and quickly withdrew their forces
outside of Kharan. Kharan then made a pact with the other countries
and began concentrating on rebuilding itself.
Kharan never withdrew its forces from the wall after that.
The students of Taran seemed angered, but Count Kerbel did not
care. He could not worry about everyone’s feelings.
“It’s good that we only have to worry about people who want to break
the balance. It would be a huge problem if we had to consider the
Harijans for that, but it might make your homework easier.”
“I’ll give you a thing to think about. You all know Margaran and
Kerbal lay in ruins now. The Lagaopora which connected the cities is
gone too.”
Everyone became silent. There was someone who did not know
about the news yet.
“Lagaopora is gone…?”
“Kerbal…”
Kerbel smiled and continued, “Think about what each country will do
because of this incident. It will be your homework for the week. You
are dismissed.”
Kerbel was surprised when he finished the class and came out to
meet the person who was waiting for him.
Count Kerbel was surprised since he heard that Sian had left to
travel for a long time.
“I have some business here. This is part of the travel too. I will leave
after a few days. I just came to say hi since I heard you were coming
today.”
“That’s right.”
King Narasha and a few of the high officials knew who was
responsible for the destruction of Lagran, and that included Count
Kerbel.
Count Kerbel was unconvinced. It was impossible that the city could
be destroyed within a day.
“If you say so…”
“Stop him!”
The students seemed to have broken into a fight and Sian went to
look. It was a group of people against one.
<…do it…>
<…it…>
‘Ugh…’
Rodeval grabbed his head and fell to his knee at the entrance of the
room. Then someone bumped into him.
<It’s an attack!>
He then snatched the hand that was coming to help and threw the
man away.
“ARRGH!!”
“He’s crazy!”
“ARGH!”
Ricardo couldn’t even take out his sword, so he held up his left arm
to block it. However, his arm broke instantly and was thrown off.
“Dammit!”
Rodeval didn’t pull out his sword, so no one was dead, but it was just
a matter of time. Students realized this and began cornering him. At
that moment, he backed away into a corner and crouched as if he
was afraid.
“…What?”
People couldn’t easily approach him even then, but one came out of
the group.
Sian ignored all the eyes looking at him and moved out. He felt like
he was back in his Guarran-Tia days.
A fire was rising up from the area where the Granines lived and the
evil energy was radiating all the way to Gron-Pilah.
<What happened…!>
Their hearts were racing madly and they had headaches ever since
they arrived at Gran-Latra, but it became so severe yesterday that
they were about to discuss it.
But it was too late. At that moment, a scream came from outside the
house. It was probably one of his people who could not resist the
energy from within.
‘This… is bad…’
The Elder was barely holding it off, but he could not believe that his
people had such evil instincts from within.
His heart was ordering him to follow his instincts. To kill and
destroy…
The Third Elder quickly moved out of the house. It was chaotic.
Some were lying on the ground, grasping their chests or heads and
some were glancing around as if looking for prey. Some were
moving down to the human city.
The Third Elder and a few others began taking care of the situation.
They shared Exar to help people gain control of their conscious and
knocked out those that tried to run down to the city.
<Fifth Elder… Ask… for help. Fourth Elder… go find… Great Elder…
and the Second Elder…>
<Understood…>
The Fifth Elder quickly moved out to the people’s city and the Fourth
Elder ran to the Well of the Spirits, <Lavne>. The rest of them began
searching for clues. There was a limit to suppressing this.
Rian and Celine ran out of their dorm rooms in response to the evil
power coming from the Granine’s holy place, Gran-Latra. Everyone
was looking in the same direction and there was a person running
toward them at an incredible speed. It was the Fifth Elder.
“Everyone! Scatter! Run!” Rian shouted. If the Fifth Elder went mad,
the people here had no way to fight him back. People began running
at those words. Rian tried to run too, but his brother came first.
“Are you okay?”
Rian sighed in relief and turned to the Fifth Elder. He was now very
close. Fortunately, he seemed okay.
“Yesterday?”
Rian thought about yesterday, but there was nothing weird. Rian
glanced around and found his brother making weird expressions.
“Tell me anything.”
“Yes.”
The Elder shook his head. Sian was powerful, but it wasn’t
something that would affect them like that. Even if his practice
affected something, it didn’t explain the strange sensation they had
from before.
“I’ll send an investigation team to the crater just in case. How is the
village?”
<The Elders are suppressing the people, but it will not last long. We
are having a hard time to controling it ourselves. We need to find the
reason fast. We do not wish for war.>
The Elder spoke and Rian nodded. The Granine had four Grand
Banders, two Ra-Banders, and countless Masters. If they went mad,
this area was doomed. He needed to solve this.
Rian did not refuse Sian’s help as the issue was serious.
The Fourth Elder walked up to the well to meet with the two Elders
while grasping his head.
<…>
<…>
<Elder?>
The Fourth Elder felt something strange as he saw Great Elder and
the Second Elder blanky looking down into the well.
<What…>
<…>
The Fourth Elder felt the reason he came here being erased in his
head. Yet it did not matter. He needed to concentrate on the voice
coming from the well.
Then the Fourth Elder too began looking down into the well.
Stiel, who was waiting for Sian at the dorm, felt the energy and ran to
Lavne at once. Then she saw something weird. The two Granines
she fought before were looking down into the well. Another Granine
that ran up from the village seemed to feel the same strange feeling
and carefully approached, but he also got stuck and started looking
down into the well.
Stiel was curious as she knew that the well had spirits in there. Most
of them had no conscious and the strongest spirits that were
thousands of years old only had their instincts left. So she knew
those spirits would have no power over the people here.
Nonetheless, she didn’t want to end up like those Granines. So she
watched from a distance.
“Oh well.”
She couldn’t hold back anymore and decided to look into the well,
but something changed. The Granines began moving into the well.
Stiel stopped still and watched them. All three of them were soon
submerged in the well for a few seconds and before they started
walking out. Stiel frowned at once.
The well water was now decreasing as if the well itself had a hole
somewhere.
“Something’s off.”
Rian frowned. “If you say so… is there something dangerous at our
destination?”
Rian, Sian, and the Fifth Elder were going to Sian’s crater ground.
The Elder thought it was not the reason, but there was no clue so
they decided to go anyway. After looking at the ground, Rian
narrowed his eyes.
“Hehe.”
Rian sighed. Sian would not let his energy flow outward, so no one
would’ve sensed it anyway.
“Yes, sir!”
As the people spread out, Sian looked far toward the mountain and
sighed.
“Okay. Go ahead.”
Sian then jumped out. He needed to fight far away so that his brother
would not get hurt.
“Ugh…!”
Stiel felt her body get struck against and backed away.
She had no way to run and these guys were too strong. Stiel knew
who these new spirits were.
It was the three superhumans in the well that she couldn’t win
against. They somehow managed to come out of the well. It seemed
like the spirits were now used to the new bodies they had gained.
“I like Sian, but never have I ever missed him so much!” Stiel ranted
as she fought off the attackers. Then she turned to the familiar power
approaching.
“Finally!”
It was Sian. As she brightened up, Sian did not stop and picked Stiel
up.
“I missed- huh?”
“Ugh.”
There was no running away. He couldn’t leave Stiel alone and they
would attack the city anyway, which would include Rian and Celine.
“I didn’t think they were that strong. What happened to them?” Sian
asked as he couldn’t understand the sudden increase in power.
“I’m not sure, but they became like that once they bathed in the well.”
“A bath?”
“Yeah.”
“Where is that well? I should bath in it and break a barrier myself.”
“…I know.”
“I think the spirits in the well took over their bodies and got out.”
“That’s what I thought. But if it’s just taking over the body, it can be
different…”
Sian and Stiel then stopped at the middle of a mountain and turned
back to the three Granines.
“You should take the far left. I’ll handle the other two.”
Sian was impressed. These new Elders were much different from
their weaker selves. There were not wasting their power. They were
so strong that if Sian had not overcome his barrier a while ago, it
could have been dangerous.
‘Luckily, I got here in time. Miss Stiel would’ve been killed if she
fought them when they adjusted to the bodies.’
He couldn’t figure out why, but he just had a gut feeling. It wasn’t
because the fighting style was girlish. It was even more vicious than
the Second Elder’s, but that didn’t matter.
Sian was not in any hurry. He was actually happy that this had
occurred. They were an enemy worthy enough for him to use his
newly-acquired powers on. They were strong, but they were not
strong enough to the point where Sian would be worried about
losing.
<Where is this?>
He was filled with many thoughts, but soon his mind was filled with
powerful desires.
<Follow…>
There was no meaning. There was no body to act. Then he felt his
conscious flowing somewhere else. No, it was the water of Lavne
leaking out from the well. After flowing through multiple lands, he
arrived. He wasn’t sure where it was, but it was easy to recognize.
Then the senses came back. He felt lights touching his eyes. He
heard a noise. He could even move his hands. He thought he
needed a sword and a sword was given.
“….f!”
“…Hm?”
Someone was shouting at him from a distance, but he could not hear
as it was drawn out by the explosions. He looked more closely.
“…ful!”
“…Ugh…”
It was too late. There was a sword that pierced through him from the
back. He tried to think about what was going on, but another sword
cut his head off.
He turned back immediately and went to where Rian was at. It was
not only two. There were more than tens of those skeletons rising
from the ground.
The Elder grabbed his head as his headache grew worse and moved
forward. Then the group clashed against the red skeletons.
“Hahaha!”
Sian laughed as he swung his sword to throw the target into the
mountain. He was excited that he had a target to fight with at full
power. These guys kept coming back to life. Even when their arms
and legs were cut off, they grew back instantly. This wasn’t natural
even when the Granines were known to reincarnate.
That didn’t matter to Sian. He was happy that his toys were not
breaking down. At that moment, the Great Elder regenerated his arm
and focused blue energy on his hand to throw against Sian. Sian
didn’t bother to block it. He took the chance to attack the Second
Elder. The attack struck Sian’s head. Or it should’ve struck his head,
but it did not. His head was covered with some invisible barrier.
As Sian struck the Great Elder and the Second Elder, he felt some
kind of energy working on him.
He looked around and noticed the magic was activating from within.
It was from the ring he was wearing. It was the ring that summoned
the wearer when the necklace wearer was in danger.
Sian frowned. He thought Rian was safe there, but it turns out it
wasn’t. He would’ve accepted the summoning under normal
circumstances.
But…
Stiel would not survive if he disappeared right now. Sian then began
swinging his sword around fiercely. He was going to injure them
severely at least before he was summoned, but the regeneration
held him back.
“Dammit!”
The green light shining from the ring told him it was too late. Sian
made a choice.
“Dammit…!”
Stiel grew angry at the Fourth Elder. The spirit inside was strong, but
it was reborn into the body of a Grand Bander so she thought it was
going to be easy to manage. She was wrong. The regeneration was
just too fast to keep up with.
‘Huh?’
Those two were very powerful, but Sian was stronger than them, so
Stiel wasn’t worried.
‘Dammit…!’
She readied herself to lose her arm as she saw the attack coming,
but it did not come. Sian came over and smacked the Elder before
he hurled him toward the other Elders.
Sian snatched Stiel’s hand and put on a ring on her hand. She was
dumbfounded, but she soon smiled.
“Oh, are you proposing here? How romantic. You don’t need to do
this in such a hurry.”
“What are you talking about? Take care of my brother, will you?”
“What?”
Stiel was confused, but a green light encased her and she was gone.
Sian then felt relaxed. He wasn’t sure what happened, but Stiel
would probably be enough to save Rian and run away.
Rian was getting tired from the skeleton attacks. He was barely
managing due to the necklace that Sian gave it to him. He thought
he was a goner when he was struck by a skeleton. However, the
necklace began to shine and created a weird cloud around Rian’s
body.
But it was too much. The Fith Elder wasn’t much help since he was
still struggling from his headache and the others were too weak.
Then an attack followed. Rian saw the sword coming to him, but it
was too late.
At that moment, green light exploded from the necklace. The light
reflected the sword and lingered for a while. When it subsided, a thin
and long slender arm came from within.
Stiel could’ve rejected the Exar that worked on herself, but Sian
wouldn’t do anything strange and he looked like he was in a hurry so
she accepted it.
She turned and saw Rian next to her. It was then that she realized
the ring was the artifact that Sian was so happy to acquire.
She looked around and found weird skeletons attacking Rian and the
others. She wasn’t sure what these skeletons were, but she knew
what she needed to do. She ranted and casually knocked the
skeleton that charged at her.
The skeleton was thrown all the way out, crashing into all other
skeletons in the way and on to the ground.
Rian was shocked. The woman Sian introduced to him a while back
had jumped out from the necklace. She wasn’t lady-like anymore.
She was more like a ferocious beast.
It was after she was almost done taking care of skeletons when the
Fifth Elder suddenly charged at Stiel. She was weary if the Fifth
Elder had changed spirits, but he simply just lost his mind. The Elder
kept coming back after regenerating so Stiel destroyed all the Elder’s
bones and threw them away.
Stiel suddenly became sad. She had to run away so many times
lately that she had to feel proud while being looked upon by such
babies.
“Thank you, Miss Stiel. But where did they come from?”
There were the skeletons, the mindless Granine, and the revived Ra-
Bander. Everything seemed to be connected and there seemed to be
a reason behind all this.
“Sir Rian.”
“Yes, Khutil?”
“I see.”
“Yes.”
“If the Fifth Elder lost his mind like that… will the Granine village be
okay?”
“!!!”
“Yes?”
Stiel had no interest if the Granines and humans fought against each
other and killed one another. She was more interested in that
suspicious red object. On the other hand, it was Sian’s loving brother
who was asking her.
‘I should gain some credit here.’
The Third and Sixth Elders were probably at the village right now,
and if they lost their minds, the village was probably very dangerous.
And if Rian was to be sent alone…
Rian and the others were confused. If they had gone mad, then they
should’ve run toward the city. Rian had already gone to city first, but
there were no Granines there either.
“hmm.”
“Yeah… but you should return to the city. I’ll look into it myself.”
Stiel went to where Sian was fighting. If she was right, everyone was
probably there. There was no sound coming from the battleground,
meaning that the fight was nearly over. Stiel relaxed as she walked.
She knew there was no way for Sian to lose.
“As I expected…”
“Haha, you did a heck of a work again. I think we should call this
place the Sian Mountain Range now. Haha.”
“Hehe. Who do you think you are talking to? Your brother is safe.”
Stiel laughed, “It’s your brother. I definitely have to take good care of
him.”
“Right, where did you get that anyway?” Stiel asked. The black
sword that could withstand Sian’s power had the strength and
durability that was on par with the artifacts that Stiel had.
Sian then began explaining how he got the weapon. Stiel looked
disgusted.
“Ugh… so you mean that sword is made with dough that has people
mixed into it? You have terrible taste.”
“…”
Sian looked like he was slightly bothered by what Stiel said, but he
took a good look at his sword and shook his head.
“I’m using this sword anyway. You were going to try to take it as
yours if I threw it away, right?”
“Oops.”
“I knew it.”
“They helped those three when they were getting beaten up. They
don’t die either. I just crushed their bones for now.”
Stiel then explained what she found after she saved Rian.
“That’s weird.”
“Sure. I don’t think it’s going to end like this. But I can’t leave them
here either…”
Sian then jumped down. He then stacked the three Granines who
couldn’t move and placed his Chrona-Phon on top of it.
“There, they won’t move for a while. They might regenerate, but it
will take time for them to recover enough strength to move this
sword.”
Sian and Stiel then moved to the place where Rian was fighting a
while ago.
Sian shook his head. “We’ll see once we take a look. Where is it?”
Sian and Stiel ran up to a body lying in front of a cliff and found an
opening beyond it. Then they found something glowing in red that
was covered in dirt.
Stiel spoke as she saw a smooth red wall, but it wasn’t a wall. There
were particles. Red particles were placed in a line that blocked Sian
and Stiel’s path. They examined it and found a few of the particles
that had broken off and fallen out.
“There are some particles here… Sian, why are you so quiet?”
“…”
“Huh?”
Stiel knew Sian would not say something like that so quickly, so she
backed away.
“What?”
Sian took her hand and dragged her out back to the cliff area.
Sian didn’t answer and began focusing energy on his both hands. A
space in his hands began to distort and dark energy radiated from
within. Stiel was surprised at such a vast amount of energy being
gathered, but Sian then waved it around like a windmill. Then the
mountain in front of them began crumbling down.
After the mountain was destroyed and the dust cloud subsided, Stiel
got to see what was inside.
“…Is this…?”
“This was the red wall that you saw back there.”
<…Where is this?>
Rodeval was dreaming. No, it wasn’t a dream. He was experiencing
an old memory. A memory that came from the ancient times.
<Krrr….>
Then, when it was almost time to go to the next step, it ordered one
thing into the new creation. To work as a guard.
<You will earn great power and lifeforce if I’m attacked. Protect me
with that power.>
It was the purpose for the creation and thus it was never allowed to
disobey. It was carved within the bones and souls so that it would not
disappear.
That was the end of the memory. There was no telling of what
happened to that being.
But his race was a mere guard that some Harijan created to protect
itself.
This was the reason why his people became mad. It was because
Harijan’s body was attacked that they reacted for their purpose.
<That being was successfully reborn into another being. Leaving its
husk for us to protect for thousands of years…>
Rodeval was confused by the sudden memory that was sent to him.
<Who is it?>
Rodeval was then pulled out from his dreams. He was chained, but it
was not enough to hold him down. There was no more madness
surrounding him.
Rodeval took off the chains and jumped out of the building. He then
began running toward the voice that called out to him.
It was a huge body with numerous red particles covering it. It was
covered within the mountain so it must have been lying underground
for thousands of years, but the red particles, or the scales, were
flawless.
The head had six horns. It wasn’t like Fish No.1’s young horns. All of
the horns were fully grown and twisted, showing that it had been
growing for ages.
What was more amazing was that it was just a husk. It looked like it
would come back to life at any moment, but it was all but a husk.
Stiel then let out a sigh of relief. She then realized she had been
nervous and couldn’t even breathe correctly because of it.
Stiel moaned at the fact that she had been living on top of this husk
for 200 years.
“Huh?”
“It has all of the power extracted into it. It’s sealed tight inside. That’s
why you and I didn’t feel anything.”
“What?”
“It has weakened due to age though. It probably was stronger back
when it just got here. I think the reason why the Lagran Region is
prosperous is because of this.”
Stiel was astounded. A power that allowed the land to grow and
prosper for thousands of years.
“Or?”
“This power was nothing to the new one that came out from it.”
“…”
“So this is the reason why they keep coming back to life. If they are
getting power from here, we will need to kill them hundreds of times.”
They were buried, but there would be no time later when they came
out from it. Killing it hundreds of times was not something even Sian
could do. Without Sian, those monsters would destroy everything in
the region.
“Miss Stiel, there are times when I have a feeling that I have no
choice left.”
“What do you mean.”
“I can’t keep killing them. They’re strong and they won’t die. The
reason why they have awakened is because we touched the husk
here. My practice a few days ago was the final trigger.”
“But…”
“Hey, why can’t you just run! And you just said you are going to put
yourself into danger!”
Stiel became frustrated. Sian just said that he had no choice but to
face the danger of death to solve this.
“I told you. They will come after me. I can’t run away. Besides, I
should take responsibility for my actions. Don’t worry, I’m not going
to die. I’m going to become stronger.”
It was different this time. It was him who touched the sleeping husk
and it was him who was responsible for the upcoming death.
“Hehe. I’ll be normal as far as I can be. It’s been fun. Take care of my
family, will you? Oh, and take this too.”
Sian then took off his Nitzmatan and put it on Stiel’s neck.
“I’m just letting you keep it so it won’t get destroyed. It’s mine. I’ll
come back for you.”
Sian then began moving toward the red scale. Before Stiel could do
anything, Sian laid his hands on it.
<…Food…>
“Not so fast.”
The husk began moving. The husk was left by such a powerful being
that it had its own will and after it had been awakened, and it was
now feeling hungry. The husk didn’t want to lose this high energy
food that had contacted it. The husk then stopped sending all the
energy to the <Guards> and began focusing on the food.
“What…!”
Stiel stared at the red egg. She wasn’t powerful enough to fight it,
and knowing what was happening inside, she didn’t want to feed the
husk energy.
“Hehe… if you want to play it cool, then I’ll help you as your mate.
Come back victorious.”
When all power was gathered, she then smacked the ground hard. It
was a fist on the ground, but it rumbled like an earthquake. No, it
was an actual earthquake. The ground that was weakened by the
fight between Sian and the Granines began crumbling and the entire
ground around the red sphere began to fall. The sphere was then
buried a few hundred feet below ground and there was no trace left
afterward.
Stiel checked the area where she had buried the Granines a while
ago. There was a trace of them trying to dig out of the ground, but it
seemed that their bones were left in dust after the power source
stopped.
The others were okay, but she needed to check on the three. Stiel
then began digging down to check on the three Elders. Fortunately,
they were all dead. The energy source stopped before they could
finish their regenerations, thus killing them. Stiel then picked up
Chrona-Phon that was on top of them and then stashed it into
Nitzmatan.
Stiel then buried all bodies by destroying the hole and moved out.
One person watching her from the distance. It was Rodeval.
“I was lucky.”
<Our people’s revival is in your hands. You are the sole survivor.>
“I know.”
He couldn’t make sure if the monster woman was gone for sure, so
he waited for a day and began digging down. He then collected the
bones and moved to a part of the Sky Mountain where nobody could
find him.
It was the place where no Harijan or human would enter. It was the
perfect place for him to grow more powerful.
“…They did. They warned about the possible danger due to the
weakened ground.”
Ron heard that Instructor Khutil said this land became unstable after
the incident five years ago, but Mirian didn’t seem to mind.
Mirian then began jumping up the rocks to climb up, and Ron
followed after shaking his head. It was after the sun began to go
down that they arrived at the destination.
“Is it here?”
“Yeah. I saw this from far away last time. I couldn’t even sleep
because I wanted to see this.”
There was nothing special around here. Except for one thing.
“Huh?”
“Huh? Why?”
“Huh?”
Mirian realized she had not read the names and began examining it.
<Stiel>
<Celine de Kiraine>
“Wow…!”
Mirian brightened up instantly. She didn’t know who ‘Stiel’ was, but
she recognized all the other names. The King who brought the age
of peace to Tian, Narasha Qun Tian the First, the Kingdom’s greatest
general, Grand Bander Kain von Roman, and the leaders of the most
powerful special force <Dragona>, Rian von Roman and Celine de
Kiraine. They were all the most important figures of Tian.
“Oh…”
It didn’t make much sense, but Mirian didn’t care. She was too
excited already. She began unlocking the compartments.
“Huh?”
“I saw this months ago already. The owner must’ve taken it if there
was one. Even if there was, the owner wouldn’t really care if it was
left alone here like this.”
“But…”
“Hey, I’m not taking anything. I’m just taking a look. Aren’t you
curious too?”
“…”
Ron couldn’t say anything. He was, in fact, curious about what secret
this mysterious pillar contained.
Mirian took out a hairpin from her pocket and began to pick the lock
before she finally opened the drawer. She was most curious about
Count Roman’s drawer as she was a warrior herself, so she checked
to see what it had, but she was disappointed.
“What is this!”
“Huh? What?”
Mirian then moved onto the other compartments, but she was still
disappointed.
“Ahh…”
‘…a letter?’
“Move out.”
“No! It’s a private letter! What are you going to do if those senders
find out?”
“Then let’s read those with the name ‘Stiel’ on it. I’ve never heard of
the name so there won’t be any secrets in there.”
Mirian quickly moved closer. Then a voice came from the back.
Ron and Mirian flinched and turned back quickly. There was a weird
man talking to them. He was weird because he was buried in the
ground up until his head.
“Ugh… so what are you doing there? Why are you buried like that?”
“Oh… I don’t have any clothes, and since you guys are there, I can’t
come out right now. Haha.”
“But why are we going to die if we read that letter? Is there some
hidden secret?”
“…”
“Yes.”
“If I’m correct… there should be clothing in the pillar. Can you toss
me those?”
Mirian searched around the pillar. Sure enough, she found some
clothing.
“Thank you.”
The man then began moving about underground and came out after
putting on the clothes.
“WHOA!”
“Ha… sorry about that. So, why are you guys here?”
The man looked at them with a weird look after noticing that there
was nothing around other than the pillar.
“Oh… we are…”
“We were just here on a walk. But what are YOU doing here? Buried
up to your neck.”
“…”
“It’s 1017.”
“Oh… I see.”
He then moved past Ron and Mirian and began opening the
compartments. It was locked, but the man opened it effortlessly.
“Wow, brother, you sure know what to do. Perfect.”
He then found money from within, took the bag from the pillar, and
collected all letters into it. After he was done packing, he then started
walking down toward the city.
Mirian decided to follow him. They were going in the same direction
and she was curious about the man.
“Hey!”
“Let’s go together.”
“Sure. I was bored too. You can tell me about any news in the world.”
Mirian yelled at Ron to follow and the three of them began walking
down to the city.
“I am… Sian.”
“So, why are you guys here? I thought academy was on vacation.”
Ron couldn’t say they waited for the vacation where the number of
people at Gron-Pilah decreased to check on the pillar.
Sian felt so good eating real food after a long time. He did eat the
husk, but he didn’t really eat it with his mouth so he always longed
for something in his mouth. The real taste of food after five years
was so good.
“Hey, Sian.”
“Yeah.”
“Oh, I see…”
“!!!”
Mirian then realized where she had heard the name Sian. It was the
name Instructor Rian spoke about a countless number of times.
He had gone missing when Sky Mountain was destroyed and all of
Granines had gone missing back five years ago. There had been
rumors surrounding Sian, but none of rumors seemed to be true.
Even if only half of them were true, it would make Sian inhuman.
Even the incident itself was suspicious. There were some who
claimed they saw a giant beast within the mountain, but there was no
evidence of such a thing and all the Granines going missing wasn’t
explained either. The other big issues that arose afterward
overshadowed the incident as the Kingdom grew busier.
“Gods… we heard the incident was five years ago. Have you been
somewhere?”
“What rumor?”
“Well… rumors are rumors. So, what are you going to do now?” Ron
asked.
“Curse that old man. I told him to put my brother in the Third Knight
Guard.”
“Is that ‘old man’ some high-ranking official?” Ron asked carefully. A
man who could place Rian von Roman must have some rank.
“Uh, I guess?”
The Capital always had forces to keep the peace. Sian couldn’t
understand the reasoning behind such a move and questioned it.
Ron answered bitterly.
“Then what?”
“There’s no country that dares to attack us, but the Harijans don’t
care about that.” Mirian answered instead.
“No… but after five years ago when Sky Mountain was destroyed…
there was a change.”
King Narasha was speaking to Viscount Talin. The King was really
tired after all the meetings and paperwork that needed to be done.
He then thought about what happened five years ago.
He was so shocked when he heard a huge tremor detected from the
Lagran Region. The King asked if Gron-Pilah was okay. The place
had all of the talented individuals from around the country. If that
place was destroyed, it would mean war.
The King was worried when he heard Sian going to the place.
Luckily, Gron-Pilah was unharmed. After that, King asked if the
Granines were okay. There was good and bad news. The bad was
that all the Granines were missing. The good news was that they
were gone entirely, so there was no problem.
It was good up to that point. But the real problem came next.
No living beings lived there and no one dared to set foot there.
They sent all available forces to the north of Tian, to block the
Harijans from coming over. It wasn’t a lot, but the range was too
wide.
The King then asked for the other countries to help. Just like the
Great North Wall, this problem wasn’t something Tian could take on
alone. All the countries agreed to help, but they did not send anyone.
“Bastards…”
Usharan had finished conquering Con Kingdom and had grown into
powerful country, so it was in a good fight with Taran who had been
weakened by losing the Lagran Region.
Tian became more busy with all of this going on. They were building
walls on the north border, but it would take years for it to be finished.
Sian moved around without putting much thought into it, but every
place he went to caused a huge power shift in the world. The five
years without Sian was at least easier in the fact that it was
predictable.
Yet the King couldn’t say this out loud in fear of Stantahl the First
who might be lurking around. It was why he had been writing letters
every year.
“Hm… it’s been a while since I wrote a letter. Maybe I should write
one now.”
The King did send a letter once every year that included how the
world had changed. Sian’s return was unpredictable, but he hoped
Sian would see the letter and understand the situation and tread
carefully afterwards.
However, the King knew that Sian would not care. He would not
even understand.
The King almost wrote this in the letter, but he barely held it back
before he began writing.
Sian was reading through the letters after renting a room. He wanted
to see his family, but he decided to read the letters to find out what
happened since he had gone missing.
After reading those letters, Sian learned that a lot of things had
happened during those five years.
Celine had returned to Dragona and Stiel mentioned she had taken
care of everything regarding his brother…
“Huh? Married?”
Warriors had a different age standard than regular people. The more
powerful they were, the healthier they were, so it allowed them to
look young. Stiel, for instance, was over two hundred years old but
she only looked like she was barely twenty years old.
If Sian was asleep for five years, his brother was now twenty-nine
years old. It was about time for him to be married and have babies.
“I see… well, I should get married someday. So he got married to…
Kora-duum?”
Sian was curious about the name he had never heard of before. He
read through some more and became shocked.
“…he was married three years ago… and she was fourteen? Only
seventeen now?”
<Dear Sian. It has been three years since you’ve been gone. I wish
you come back soon… <Skipped> I have a second wife… her name
is…>
<Dear Sian. I miss you so much. It has been four years… <Skipped>
Third wife… she is…>
The letter had a lot of information that he needed. How his family
was doing, where Stiel was, how busy Celine was… the letter sent
by King Narasha looked so complicated that Sian decided to skip it.
The last letter that came from Rian two weeks ago said where they
were staying currently. Sian moved to the Ra-Shar-Roa. The pillar
had enough money and he had his identification plaque so it was no
problem for him to move.
“Hm… why are you guys here?” Sian asked Mirian and Ron who
were waiting outside the door. They should have no business with
him anymore. Ron hesitated and Mirian said, “When are you going to
meet with your brother?”
“No.”
Sian had his reasons. Lavilan and Celaine Estate were not close. His
speed would allow him to arrive at once, but taking these young
students would take too long. He wasn’t in hurry, but he wanted to
meet up with his brother fast.
“Come on. You should listen to our story first. You’re related too.”
“A friend…?”
“Uh… oh…”
Sian understood what his brother had done after looking at the
young student standing in front of him. He didn’t realize how young a
seventeen-year-old girl could be and Sian himself started working as
Guarran-Tia when he was seventeen. So he didn’t think it was
absurd that his brother married such a young girl.
Sian felt the need to change his plans. If they were friends of his
brother’s wife, it seemed like a good idea to take them along. Sian
thought it would be bad to be rude toward his brother’s wife, as she
was family, so he nodded.
Sian nodded approvingly as he saw packs that Mirian and Ron were
picking up that they had put aside. They were quick on what they
had to do. They would not hinder his travel too much.
Sian also thought it was a good chance to know why Rian had
married such a young girl. Rian did not describe in detail in his
letters, but this girl next to him would surely know if she were a
friend.
After they walked past the Ra-Shar-Roa post, Mirian and Ron looked
at Sian admiringly.
“It wasn’t like this before… It’s good, but it’s interesting,” Sian
answered as he thought about what just happened. When he
showed money and the identification plaque, the post was shocked.
The knight that was at the post began calling somewhere and
allowed Sian to use the Ra-Shar-Roa for free. Even Mirian and Ron
managed to use it for free.
Sian then took out his identification plaque and examined it. There
was something engraved behind it. Five red lions. It wasn’t there
when he was traveling around.
Sian didn’t know what it was, but it was made specially for Sian. It
was created by King Narasha to find Sian who might show up all of a
sudden.
<If you see anyone with this engraving on the identification plaque,
call and make everything convienent for the user as best as
possible.>
Sian didn’t know all that, but he decided to not think about it.
“So… how did my brother meet his wife? If she is the same age as
you…” Sian asked Mirian.
“Hehe. What do you think? I told you, she’s a friend of mine.”
“You mean…”
“Hehe. Who would’ve guessed that Instructor Rian would marry his
student?”
<Lavilan>, the city west of Celaine Estate, next to the border of the
Taran Kingdom.
Within its inner city was a man training hard on the training ground.
And there was a woman who approached the man.
“No. I just train and fight… there’s no trouble. How about you,
darling?”
“Thank you. I really appreciate that. So, are there any problems?”
The Harijans coming over the sky mountains had one more feeling.
<Fear>
They were coming over to Tian to search for food, but they were
definitely scared of something. Their fear seemed to grow stronger
toward the west, and near Gron-Pilah, even the strongest Harijans
didn’t want to go near it.
However, when Kora-duum checked the north side while visiting her
father, she felt the fear dissipating from those Harijans.
One didn’t even need to see through the minds of the Harijans. Even
now, more Harijans were crossing the Sky Mountain to invade Tian.
It seemed that the Harijans figured that it was easier to come over
Sky Mountain than attacking the Great North Wall, so the number of
Harijans coming over the mountain increased.
“Don’t say that. Taran is staying back because you and your father
are protecting this place. The King asked you to do that personally,
remember?”
Rian had to flee when his father-in-law came running after him with
<Gaira>. Dekons matured much earlier than humans, but fourteen
was still too young.
“He should be okay. He was okay the last time I visited him.”
“Oh, them.”
Rian smiled as he thought about his wife’s friends. They were good
students, but they always caused problems because of their
inquisitive nature. Kora-duum noticed that her husband was worried
and smiled.
“Don’t worry. It’s such a short distance. They won’t get into any
trouble.”
Rian escorted Kora-duum inside the house to have a meal with his
other wives.
Sian thought about what had led to this as he watched the chaos
unfold in front of his eyes.
‘So… it was good until we went to rent the carriage in the city…’
It was right when they passed by the marketplace. There were some
ruffians collecting fees from the merchants. Celaine Estate was
peaceful compared to the other estates, but it wasn’t perfect.
Besides, those ruffians usually worked to prevent other ruffians or
beggars from invading the streets so it was usually left alone. Mirian,
however, had different ideas about them.
<Huh? You don’t know what you’re talking about. Scoot or I will-
UGH!>
<SHUT UP!>
Ruffians only had power over merchants as the streets were full of
powerful warriors. They trod carefully and never tried to pick a fight
with other people. Mirian didn’t care. The ruffians figured she must
have some backup and wanted to avoid her, but Mirian smacked the
first man’s head and started beating up the others.
“Hah…”
Sian sighed and Ron was holding his forehead in shame while
counting the compensation and repair fees for all of destroyed
merchant carts and pieces of furniture.
“Yes… Mirian isn’t like that… mostly. I think she got too excited since
this is her first trip.”
Ron tried to defend his friend, but Sian figured out that Mirian did
cause a lot of problems. He began thinking. It seemed Mirian would
make everything inconvenient along the way and it didn’t bode well
for the peace-loving Sian.
If they did go separate ways, there was no way for Mirian to arrive at
<Lavilan> unharmed. Sian thought about what might happen.
<Sian! Long time no see… <Skipped.> I heard that you had a friend
with you when you took the Ra-Shar-Roa. Where are they?>
<Sorry, I don’t feel like introducing myself. My friends, who you left
behind, were found dead on the way.>
<Ugh…>
<Sian, was it that hard to bring two students? They were my wife’s
friends!>
<…>
It was all his imagination, but there was the possibility of it becoming
real.
“Ugh…”
“Uh… Mirian?”
“…”
“Hm…”
Sian couldn’t say anything as she had spoken first. It wasn’t like she
did anything bad either. Sian didn’t want to become her teacher for
just ten days, so he made a decision. He wasn’t good at any kind of
teaching other than beating people up.
“What is it?”
“Go on.”
“Are you afraid of heights? Or, do you throw up when your body is
shaken violently…?” Sian asked apologetically, but Mirian scoffed.
“Haha, aren’t you underestimating us? Warriors can’t have
something like that.”
Sian then picked up Mirian and Ron at once and they became
shocked and shouted.
“Put me down!”
Sian then began running. He was running so fast that normal people
couldn’t even make out what ran past them with their naked eyes.
Mirian and Ron became confused, but they soon realized it and
asked as they were being carried on Sian’s shoulders.
“Haha, no way.”
“Then what…”
“Hahahaha.”
“Huh? What?”
Taran had been standing guard against the Tian Border, and there
were no signs of any attacks. They might have been watching out for
Granines, but they were gone now so it didn’t make sense.
Krasant, after his five years of duty in this tower, had never seen any
signs of hostility. But he was involved in the war that allowed Tian to
attack the unsuspecting Taran, thus acquiring the Lagran Region, so
he did not let down his guard.
The red object was approaching too quickly. It didn’t seem like it was
big, but the speed was too threatening.
“…Huh?”
“Uh… But…”
The intruder was quarreling with the two people he had been
carrying on each shoulder. Krasant wanted to jump in and
apprehend the intruder, but he couldn’t. No one couldn’t when they
just saw a man fly down from the sky at an unbelievable speed.
Then Krasant realized the intruder had a familiar face. The face
reminded him of Tian’s greatest general, Count Roman. Then he
remembered the face he saw when he was at war more than five
years ago. The intruder had grown taller and bigger, but he couldn’t
forget his face.
“Hahaha! Sian! It’s been so long! What a grand entrance you just
made. I won’t need to let Father know about it,” Rian laughed. There
was no way Grand Bander would miss what Sian just did.
They hugged each other for a while. Rian then said, “We have a lot
to talk about. Come, come.”
“Oh… haha. It’s a long story. Hahaha… and who are these friends?”
“They’re your wife’s friends. I took them along with me. Hey, can you
walk?”
Sian and the group went into the castle and guards went back to
their post.
<People say I’m a genius, but that’s because they don’t know my
brother.>
Rian was a genius for sure. It was just that Sian should not even be
considered as a human if the stories were true. Even if only half of
the stories were true, it would mean Sian was like a reincarnation of
the War God himself.
She thought she would know right at the moment she laid her eye
upon him, but it did not work as she planned.
“So I had to fight that stupid husk that tried to eat me as a whole…”
“By the gods… you must have gone through so much pain.”
‘…What is it?’
At that moment, her question was answered. The yellow thing turned
to Kora-duum and she saw what it was. Within the middle cross-
shaped opening was a red burning light. As Sian turned to watch
Kora-duum, its powerful, ominous eye looked directly into Kora-
duum and she felt all her energy and the hope of resistance failing.
“Ah… ah….”
“I… I just got nervous. I’ll talk to my friends and leave you two here.”
Rian looked concerned, but Kora-duum slowly walked away with her
friends.
“I’m sorry, Sian. I’ll be back soon. Go to your room and have some
rest. We’ll talk again when Father comes back.”
Rian then followed his wife and Sian moved up to his room. On the
way, Sian mumbled to himself.
“So, Dekons really are something. I thought she would not see it.”
“He looked happy… I wonder when will I get married,” Sian sighed.
“Yes. I read the letters. It’s shame that I couldn’t attend his wedding.”
“No, I just met his first wife. Where are other two?”
“They’re at another place, training. I’m sure they saw you flying in, so
they will come soon.”
Count Roman also saw the meteor flying in, so his daughter-in-laws
must have seen it too. Sian had a lot of questions, but he decided to
ask about two people that sent him letters.
“Where’s Lady Celine and Miss Stiel? The letters said they were
here.”
“Celine is training with the other two wives so she will come with
them. And… by Stiel, do you mean Stantahl the First?”
“Yeah. The letter…”
“Huh?”
“Yeah.”
His father began telling him what Stiel had been doing since then. It
happened five years ago when Count Roman was protecting the
border that someone came into his room. It was protected by many
warriors, but nothing was enough to defend against the intruder.
<You… you are Stantahl the First! How… what has brought you
here?>
Rian did not know about the person, but Count Roman, who was a
Grand Bander, knew about Stiel. Count couldn’t figure out why the
superhuman that was responsible for the destruction of the mountain
would visit him. He first thought Stiel came to blame him and kill him.
She then began explaining the unbelievable story. That Sian decided
to sacrifice himself to save others and fight the evil monster. And that
there was no telling when it would be done. Count Roman was
dumbfounded. He knew how these superhumans considered
humans like insects. Stantahl the First herself was a tyrant even
when she was a Grand Bander, so there was no reason for her to be
this considerate to them. Then Count Roman decided to ask a
question.
<Why are you telling me all this?>
<Oh…>
<Understood.>
Stantahl the First left after that and Count Roman shared this news
to Rian, his wife, and Lady Celine who were close with Sian. They
were all saddened, but they didn’t lose hope. It didn’t feel like Sian
would lose.
He did not tell the King, thinking it wasn’t needed, but he heard it
from somewhere and came to him. And thus he offered this.
<And we should take a step to help him when he comes back to the
world.>
King Narasha then brought a steel pillar to the place and stashed it
with clothing, money, and other things Sian might need when he
came back. Before they finished it by sticking it into the ground,
Stantahl the First appeared out of nowhere and said,
<You guys are so dull. Narasha, go and make some drawers here.>
<Huh? Why…>
“So that’s why you are here. We’ve never seen her since then.”
“Oh…”
Sian was confused. It wasn’t like what the letter said. Stiel only left
one letter but what it said was different.
<I took care of everything. I told the Stantahl boy to stay away from
Tian and made Narasha station your family at Taran border. It will be
the safest place that way… <skipped> I hope you come back soon.
I’ll be by your family. That should make it easier to find me, won’t it?>
Stiel wasn’t a character to protect his family behind the scenes. She
had already done her best to protect Sian’s family, so she didn’t
need to provide any more protection. Sian thought she would have
been living lavishly under the care of King Narasha, but it was weird
that no one had seen her since then.
“Yes, Father.”
“…Huh?”
Count Roman was always concerned about his son. He was living as
an ordinary man, but he was after all, a superhuman. That meant he
would eventually live his life as a lone man. Nonetheless, the Count
believed Sian needed a family. He and his family weren’t enough as
they were mere humans. The Count liked Celine too, but she was
also only a human, not fit to stay by Sian’s side.
Sian also looked like he was interested in Stiel. He had never dated
a girl before so he was clueless, but Count Roman figured Stiel
would be okay. Sian, who was only interested in his family, would not
have asked about Stiel if it wasn’t the case.
“I’m too young. Besides, Brother will continue the family name, so
I’m relieved. He has three wives!”
“Haha, you should think about it. Shall we go down? They all must
be here by now.”
“Yes.”
Celine greeted Sian happily. He did almost die back there, but he
didn’t want to mention it to make his people feel sad.
“Haha, I saw from the letters, but it’s good to see you all.”
“Greetings.”
Sian was astounded. He did hear that love had no boundaries but…
Rian’s second wife was one of the Catfolk and from the Targan tribe,
the strongest among them.
Catfolk lived in small families and did not group, so they were driven
out to the mountain regions of Con-Tian or Broshan, but they were
powerful beings. They were born with powers and reflexes that no
human could match and they grew more powerful as they aged.
When they aged enough to have seven stripes on their forehead,
they became almost as strong as Grand Banders.
Kukraxa didn’t look as strong, but her five stripes proved that she
wasn’t weak either. It looked like she was as strong as Rian himself.
Hence the reason why Sian was curious. Catfolk, and especially
Targan who was the most hostile and vicious, weren’t easy to meet
in the first place. They weren’t like the Dekons who lived among the
humans.
“Oh that’s…”
Rian then began telling him about the grand adventure. Sian
managed to summarize it.
‘…Huh?’
“Limainu?”
“Yes. Uh…”
‘Wow…’
Veronica was shocked and so was Sian. Sian then turned to his
brother, whom he just decided to give the utmost respect.
Veronica.
She wasn’t the religious type, but she only had religion to hold onto
when she was thrown out into this world, and she also needed a
name to use.
She never said she came from another world. It was only going to
get her into trouble.
Black hair and black eyes were rare in this world and women had a
lower social standing in the world where power was everything. In
fact, she had faced many threats in just three years after she came
here.
One was because of the special power she acquired upon coming
here.
The other was her husband whom she met a year ago. She was
allowed to live in peace after marrying her husband.
‘He’s so handsome…’
She loved handsome men back in her world, but Rian was much
more. There was no one more handsome than Rian.
He was powerful, wealthy, had a good background, and good
character. He was god-given.
He did have two more wives, but that was fine. It wasn’t common in
a lot of places in her own world, but she was not in her world. She
decided to let that go.
Besides, the three of them were different races, so they were not
jealous of each other and they became friends.
As they became closer, they began talking about one topic they all
wondered about.
<Who is Sian?>
The Roman family’s fame was already at its peak when Veronica
arrived in this world. That was the family that was at the top of the
food chain in a world ruled by force.
There was no one in Tian who did not know about them. They were
also very famous in other countries too.
Yet Sian wasn’t that well known. There were rumors, but they were
just absurd. It was almost like those internet hoaxes from her own
world.
If all the rumors were true, Sian was like a walking nuclear weapon.
No, it was more. She knew no nuclear weapon that could destroy a
mountain.
She first thought the crater beyond the Lagran Region was a place
where the meteor had fallen, but she couldn’t believe what her
husband explained afterwards.
<You should know too, since you are part of the family now.>
It made her and the other wives grew more curious about Sian.
In the end, there was so little information about him, so they couldn’t
it figure out exactly.
Today, when she was training with Kukraxa and Lady Celine from
Dragona, they saw something that looked like a red meteor from far
away.
She and Kukraxa were alarmed and was worried about their
husband, but Celine looked delighted.
<He’s back!>
She then began running toward the place where the meteor was
falling down.
He didn’t look any special at all. She imagined him to be like twelve
feet tall while holding a giant hammer made out of some dragon
bone. That was kind of image she had about a man who could
destroy a mountain.
But Sian was too plain. He actually looked weaker than her father-in-
law or husband.
The description that followed matched with the person she knew.
Lee Mina, was shocked to hear about her only brother whom she
couldn’t find after falling off the cliff in a car accident together.
“Yes. I didn’t see him after that, but he was there for sure.”
Veronica was relieved to hear the news, but she soon turned pale.
Kerbal was already in ruins before she came into this world. The
place was barren with no living beings allowed to live there.
“Yes.”
“No…!”
It was especially shocking to hear as she just heard that her brother
was alive.
Count Roman and Sian offered Veronica to get some rest. Her face
was livid with shock.
“If you were there for all that time… do you know what happened to
the Granines?” Kukraxa asked. Everyone turned immediately to
Sian, as they all had that question for a long time.
“What?”
The energy that allowed them to live eternally was absorbed by Sian.
He tried to see if he could make such Guards, but it wasn’t possible.
The people turned to Sian. The husk was powerful enough that even
Sian had a hard time fighting it. It would be a concern if even piece
of that remained in the Lagran Region. That would mean the
evacuation of the whole area, including Gron-Pilah.
Sian wanted to show off his new power. The power that made
Chrona-Phon meaningless to him. Other powers would only make
others fear him, but this one was just enough to show it to people
without terrorizing them. Kora-duum seemed to recognize his
powers, but the others would not know.
Sian then decided to show the people who were concerned about
the husk.
The scales were so small that it took some time to cover the entire
body, but when it was done, Sian was now covered in smooth, red
scales that were so small that it looked like red metal was covering
his body. An ivory plate covered the large areas, like a platemail
covering a red chainmail.
Count Roman was at a loss for words as Sian had just turned into a
human weapon. He asked, “What… what is that?”
“It kind of grew it out when I ate every bit of the husk.”
‘Hehehe.’
Sian loved this armor more than the power he acquired after passing
another barrier. It was good that it empowered him, but he liked it
best because it looked so cool.
“So, there’s nothing left back there and you can rest assured…
huh?”
Rian turned toward the direction Sian was looking at and found that
Kukraxa had fallen to the ground in a seizure.
“Nnggh….”
Kukraxa moaned and shivered, so Rian picked her up and took her
to the healing room.
Count Roman and his wife followed after and only Celine and Sian
were left in the hall.
“…”
“I think you are probably the only one who made all three sister-in-
laws faint at first glance.”
“…”
True warriors did not show off just anything, and Sian looked
confident. He was definitely going to show them something really
powerful.
‘Is it the <Armor of the Seven Stars> or the <Spear of the War God>
from the legends?’
Those were the artifacts that she always wanted to see since she
was very young. She was excited to see it with her very own eyes.
However, what followed wasn’t what she expected.
The story of a monster who lived thousands of years ago that her
ancestors told her about.
<We used to live near Sky Mountain… until a mad monster drove us
out, taking the entire mountain range for itself. We weren’t sure why,
but we couldn’t walk into Sky Mountain afterward. The monster
seemed to have disappeared, but we still felt the terrifying energy the
moment we approached. Humans seem to not notice the power, but
we Catfolk or Harijans with heightened senses can never set foot in
that place now.>
Kukraxa then decided to walk into Sky Mountain to prove that she
was different. She didn’t like how the powerful Targan tribe was
afraid of such a legend. She wanted to change history and reclaim
her people’s land.
As soon as she laid foot on the mountain, she immediately realized
what her father meant.
Terrifying energy emerged at once that she could not withstand. Her
instincts told her that the place was dangerous. She could not go
near it.
<AHHH!>
She barely managed to run out of the place and never returned. She
thought she would never have to feel such terror again in her
lifetime.
Yet there it was. The same terrifying feeling from the mountain.
No one seemed to notice, but she did. She also realized what made
Kora-duum fear him.
“Nngh…”
She thought she was different from her younger days. She even had
five stripes on her forehead. Five stripes meant she was worthy of
being a true warrior among the Cat Folk.
Thus, she didn’t run when she felt the energy creeping out from
Sian.
She regretted it later when she realized she should’ve run as she
couldn’t even manage to stand. With the terror that ripped her apart,
she fainted.
“Nngh…”
“Me too.”
Kukraxa got up and sat on the bed. They all looked at each other
silently, but they couldn’t any find words to say to each other. They
were all too shocked. Veronica spoke out first.
She was shocked by the news of the possible death of her brother,
but it seemed to be different for the other two. Kora-duum fainted at
the moment she saw Sian and Kukraxa fainted when Sian was
showing something.
“Why?”
They knew that there was no danger. Sian loved his brother and that
meant he would never harm his brother’s wives. He didn’t look
violent either, and he even looked like a kid in some way.
“But what can we do? We have no choice but to get used to him.”
What changed was the people’s eyes that watched Sian. He was
usually considered a fool that was born as a genius, but the people
of Lavilan couldn’t think like that.
“So, this is why the world is interesting. You know, I’m still the same
person and I look like this. Isn’t that right?”
“Well, my power grows when I train, but it’s faster when I overcome
an obstacle. Rian won’t let me do such a thing so I can’t increase it
any further. I’m just taking it slow now.”
“Hm… So old man Narasha didn’t bring any news yet?” Sian asked
in disbelief. Limainu didn’t seem like a super important figure. There
was a record of him moving out of Kerbal by using Ra-Shar-Roa, so
he was probably alive.
So, Sian assumed they werelooking for Limainu. Unlike his request
to find Stiel, the request should’ve been easy for them. Yet there had
been no clues for two weeks already.
“Yes, they are still working on it. And you don’t have any word from
… Stiel?”
Sian asked the King to spread the rumors of his return, saying that
the Roman family was holding a party to celebrate the return of their
second son. Superhumans were impossible to find if they went into
hiding, so Sian intended to have Stiel return by letting her know that
he was back.
But that didn’t work either. There were only two possibilities.
Stiel was in a position where she couldn’t come, or she had no
intention of coming back.
The second possibility seemed more likely since it didn’t make sense
for Stiel to be in a position where she couldn’t do what she wanted.
Yet the second possibility was also unlikely because Sian couldn’t
think of any other reason. If Stiel did not want to return to Sian, then
there was no way she would’ve done what she did to protect Sian’s
family.
Sian thought about it for a while and decided it was useless to think
about it.
He decided to look for her if she didn’t return by the day of the party
that was going to be held in Lavilan.
Sian tried activating the necklace Rian was wearing, but it didn’t
work.
There was only one week left until the party. If Stiel didn’t come back
within that time frame, Sian was going to search for her by himself.
So, he decided to rest some more.
“So, he’s finally here after five years! Where has he been?”
He couldn’t believe his ears when he first heard that Sian had gone
missing. He couldn’t believe that a man with such power could go
missing like that. Nonetheless, it didn’t matter. He simply needed to
look after his land.
As Tian arose to its seat of power, Phareon, who just finished uniting
the Logadis Estate, was ready to take the chance. He needed to
grow in power so that no other noble dared to take his lands
anymore.
The party was a good chance for him. There was no such occasion
in Tian after the succession, so it was a good chance to make
acquaintances with the other nobles. He heard that Ra-Kadum who
left his land to focus on developing weapons would be attending to
see his daughter, so it was also great that he could see him again.
He knew later that the man who visited his place was the Roman
family’s second son. He couldn’t forget what happened, but it might
have meant nothing to that man.
The north border of Tian then used Talic Stones gathered from
Harijans to change <Kularens> to <Gairas> and sold the used
<Kularens> to the warring countries of Usharan and Taran in
exchange for Talic Stones, thus making additional <Gairas>.
They were smaller than the original, so they were weaker, but one
was still powerful enough to defeat a Master warrior. It was too
expensive to create, so Ra-Kadum only managed to create two of
them. But he was taking both of them with him.
“Yeah. She’s a smart girl, but she can’t fight. And… I have a personal
use for it.”
“No, no. Not at all. I’m going to shoot a monster who married two
more wives after getting the young, beautiful wife that he didn’t
deserve in the first place.”
“Ugh…”
“If this smaller <Gaira> was ready when he came to ask me for
permission to get married… I would’ve killed him right there and
then.”
What he didn’t know was that Ra-Kadum did shoot a small Gaira
prototype when Rian visited a long time ago. If the weapon was at its
final stage, Rian might have been injured.
Kal-Tian then asked Ra-Kadum, “Oh, do you know about Sian von
Roman though?”
“The party is celebrating his return, so you should know who he is…”
“…”
Kal-Tian wanted to tell him more, but it seemed that Ra-Kadum was
uninterested.
“We didn’t invite too many though. The actual party won’t have that
many people. They’ve probably arrived already.”
There were a lot of nobles that had already arrived at the castle and
were moving into their rooms. But Sian didn’t care.
Veronica had been growing anxious as she couldn’t hear any news
about her missing brother.
“Hm…”
“I think your brother’s probably holding her back even now. The
world is too dangerous for her to travel around anyway.”
Veronica had been through a lot before she met Rian. She was
beautiful yet weak, so it was amazing that she had not faced danger
that she couldn’t avoid until now.
“Well… the energy the Ra-Shar-Roa uses isn’t weak either. And old
man Narasha isn’t just some ordinary man.”
Sian jumped out of the hammock and ran somewhere into the inner
castle.
Celine shook her head as she was left alone. She then turned to the
hammock that was still swinging.
Sian almost never left the hammock ever since he got back. Celine
carefully climbed up the hammock, laid down, and swung it.
Celine decided to wait for Sian out on the hammock. He’d probably
be back soon when the problem was solved. Sian never left the
hammock for too long.
Ra-Kadum took out his new transportation device from his void
storage soon after he walked past the Ra-Shar-Roa at the Celaine
Estate.
The 2nd grade void storage he used to stash his equipment was big
enough to have him store his transportation device. It was not yet
named, but two-wheeled artifact could be used by Bander or Talic
Stones. Some Magic Priest he met gave him the idea to create it.
Ra-Kadum then took out a green Talic Stone and placed it into the
core of the device. The green Talic Stone wasn’t cheap, but one
would let the device run for one year, so it was worth it.
The guards at the gate were busy greeting all kinds of high-ranking
nobles.
‘Count Celaine…!’
It was a party hosted by Roman family so it was going be safe, but
the guards who had to deal with such nobles were having a hard
time. Then they saw some weird object approaching with a loud
noise from the distance.
There was only one way to deal with such a thing. It was too close to
fire a cannon at it.
All the soldiers prepared their weapons and the object drew closer.
When it was almost in range, the object stopped all of a sudden.
“Huh?”
‘Ra-Kadum?’
Gregory turned toward the voice. It was Count Phareon, the man
rising in power at the Logadis Estate.
“It’s been a long time. But you should be careful. You might have
been showered with arrows.”
Ra-Kadum scoffed.
“I know their distance when I see it. That’s why I stopped at the limit.”
Gregory was dumbfounded. The man stopped just short of the range
of their attack because he knew the range.
“Yeah.”
Rian von Roman’s marriage was big news in Tian, especially when
the person he married was his student and a Dekon.
Phareon knew the story behind the marriage because he was close
with Ra-Kadum, so he was worried.
“You shouldn’t shoot him now. What are you going to do if Count
Roman gets angry?”
“He won’t die. You should handle Count Roman while I do it.”
“I trust you.”
“….”
‘Oh no.’
“Ra-Kadum.”
“I know, kid.”
“…Hmph.”
Ra-Kadum then saw that Rian had noticed him and began walking
toward him with his three wives. Luckily, the other two wives went in
the other direction as soon as they noticed Ra-Kadum.
“Dad.”
“…”
“You… what did you say when you took my daughter away?”
“I-”
“Dad…”
“You be quiet. But three wives… so you must have a lot of loves? To
divide it into three?”
“…”
There weren’t any problems in human society for a man like Roman
to have multiple wives. Besides, the marriage wasn’t forced or
arranged, so there were no problems at all.
Yet Rian couldn’t defend himself. He too, thought he would get angry
if his daughter was in the same situation.
“I’m sorry.”
“You stay there for a second. I need to talk with these three.”
‘…NO!’
Ra-Kadum had completely lost his senses, but he was too quick. He
quickly took out a staff-looking thing from his belt. It was his
masterpiece, <Gaira>.
‘Dust cloud?’
His small Gaira did make a huge sound, but the energy was
constricted into a small size so it did not bring about huge damage. It
was, after all, made to use against humans so it didn’t need to
destroy in a huge range.
“Ugh… nngh…”
It was Sian who was walking out of the dust cloud that appeared
when he landed.
Rian and Kora-duum were sitting in the guest room at the inner
castle. Two more people were there too.
“I didn’t do anything.”
“Sian.”
“…Hah.”
Sian then sat down comfortably. Ra-Kadum then was freed from the
thing that was watching him and sighed in relief.
“Ugh…”
“Yeah. I have no intention of staying here with you any longer. Send
my daughter to visit me next time.”
“I’m sorry.”
“And… Kora.”
“Yes?”
“This is your present. You should protect yourself in this world. The
second one… is an extra one.”
“…Dad.”
Ra-Kadum then walked out. He wanted to talk with his daughter, but
he was too exhausted. But as he walked out, he was blocked by
someone.
“Wait!”
“Huh?”
“Get lost.”
“What is it?”
“That motorcycle that you rode… and the gun… where did you get
that?”
“Motor… what? Gun? What are you talking about? That thing I rode
doesn’t have a name. And what is a gun?”
Veronica then realized she didn’t make sense. There was no way for
the people in this world to know about them.
“But…”
Black hair, black eyes, and unusual facial features. He then turned to
Veronica, who had fallen down on the ground and asked, “You… is
your name Limiina… or something?”
“!!”
Veronica brightened up. Rian, Kora-duum, and Sian came out of the
guest room at those words.
Ra-Kadum left the Logadis Estate when his research was done at
Phareon’s vault. He then was called upon by the Great Magical
Council for a job.
<We are scouting talented individuals. Why don’t you join our study?
You will learn new technologies that you have never seen before!>
Ra-Kadum saw no lies in the words of the man who came to scout
him and he was tempted for more knowledge within the Magic
Council, so he agreed.
The place was a wonder. He didn’t like being separated from the
world due to all the secrecy within the group, but it was okay. He was
busy reading through all sorts of information stored within.
There was a bunch of smarter men within the group, but he was
special. The worth of a person was determined by his potential, and
with that measurement, Limainu’s worth equaled Leader Takion’s.
There were a few more Great Magic Priests, but there was only one
Limainu.
Limainu was only there to help with the project since he seemed to
be a member of a much higher, different circle of groups that was
placed above the Magic Council itself.
<No, I like working here. And I need to pay my price for my sin. If this
project is finished, it will make the world a better place and it will help
me pay my debt.>
Ra-Kadum was curious about what sin he was talking about, but he
later heard that project he was involved in had gone wrong and killed
thousands of people. The only incident he knew that killed thousands
of people was one.
He then took his then prototype Gaira and left the council. Of course,
it was after making a pact to never disclose the secrets.
Everyone fell silent. One problem was solved, but there was another
one.
Now, they all knew why Tian Intelligence couldn’t find Limainu.
Veronica asked Ra-Kadum, “Didn’t you say you needed to keep that
a secret though? Are you allowed to say all this?”
“Wouldn’t it be weirder if the Magical Council did not have any secret
projects? Unless I specify the technologies, people, or location of
their projects, it’s okay.”
“I see…”
“Besides, that’s why I can’t say your brother’s name. It’s that secrecy
magic that’s stopping me from saying his name,” Ra-Kadum said
irritatingly.
“Yeah. In my opinion, he seems to eager. But you can say he’s well.”
“He’s doing too much. He’s too focused on the project… I think he
sleeps only about two hours per day. That was three years ago
though.”
“I can’t say that. Besides, what are you going to do once you get
there? That place has top-notch security.”
Secrecy magic varied in power depending on who used it. The magic
that was used on Ra-Kadum was used by a First Grade Magic
Priest, which meant that no one on the continent would be able to
remove it. Veronica became sad, but she needed to do something.
She needed to tell her brother that his only sister was alive. That
would stop his brother from focusing so hard on research.
“Veronica…”
“And will it help you get in, if you find the place?”
“…”
As they were busy discussing, Sian who was sitting down, spoke
casually.
“So… you just want your brother to know that you are alive, right?”
“Yes.”
“That’s right.”
“Huh?”
“I mean… since we know he’s there. I guess sending a letter will do,
right? They won’t throw away a letter from a King.”
Everyone nodded. They didn’t have a way to force the Magical
Council to confirm Limainu’s existence, so sending a letter would not
be a problem. Besides, if it was a letter sent by a King, that would be
harder to disregard it.
“I’m not really sure it will work, but old man Narasha will know. He’s
on his way here, so we’ll ask him once he arrives.”
“Huh? Sian, how do you know that?” Rian asked. They were notified
that King Narasha would be joining, but Sian wasn’t notified of such
information.
Sian was satisfied that he did not need to do anything else and
walked out of the room.
“No. The one you stepped out of is only one around here.”
“…Yes.”
“Hmm. Sure, that will work. I’ll send them a letter. But I can’t
guarantee anything since I don’t know much about them,” King
Narasha replied after hearing what had happened.
King Narasha did not have time to join such a party, but he had to
pay a visit when he heard that Sian had returned. If Sian changed in
some bad way that he did not expect, he had to change his future
plans.
“Uh…”
Besides, the King was now growing suspicious that the reason for
the Harijan attacks was somehow related to Sian. It was increasing
in numbers in the past five years, and after he heard Sian had
awakened, the number grew exponentially.
The King contacted the Magical Council to talk with Limainu as they
had found his sister. Yet the Magical Council denied the existence of
such a person. They claimed that Limainu had left the council five
years ago.
“Is… is he dead?”
“We’ll… find a way,” Rian spoke, assuring Veronica to not give up. In
actuality, they did not have to find another way.
Veronica was confused at the strange intruder who jumped into her
bedroom in the middle of the night. She did not panic. Her power,
<Fate’s Way>, did not react to it. Therefore, it was not a dangerous
situation.
“We are here to meet with Limiina. Does that ring a bell?”
“!!”
“Your name is as difficult as Limainu’s.”
No one else knew her real name other than her brother. These
people must have a relationship with her brother.
“Hmm… no. He didn’t send us. I’ll just say… we’re here to provide
employee compensation.”
“…”
“By the way, you shouldn’t look for him like that. Limainu isn’t
involved with the Magical Council right now. But they did allow us to
visit you.”
“Your brother can’t visit you. And you will keep poking around
everywhere if we don’t let you visit him, right?”
“…”
“We can’t have you keep poking around with the King by your side.
That’s why I’m here. We’ll let you meet him.”
A stranger had broken into her room, but there was no sign of her
husband nor father-in-law coming in to protect her. Their room wasn’t
that far either, which meant that this intruder was either stronger than
them or had a unique skill that allowed such intrusion. Whichever it
was, it didn’t mean well.
“…”
Veronica looked at the man, unconvinced.
“…”
Veronica turned to the window where the voice had come from. It
was Sian, standing outside the window as he was holding onto the
frame.
The guest room was filled with people within the Lavilan Castle. It
was the middle of the night, but Count Roman, Rian, Kora-duum,
Kukraxa, Veronica, and Sian were all gathered together. One
stranger was with them. The mysterious man was sipping on tea.
“It’s from the Rotan Region. So… can you please continue on?” the
Count asked. He was being too polite to an intruder, but there was
no other way.
“Sure. So… sir. wasn’t your daughter-in-law looking for her brother?
I’m going to take her to him. But hey, can I just stop with all the
formalities? I’m probably much older, you know.”
“No, keep doing it,” Sian spoke as he raised his chin and fist. The
man sighed.
“Ugh, okay. Anyway, Limainu can’t come out. It’s not like he’s in
trouble or anything, but the project is at such an important stage that
we can’t interrupt him. He is very valuable to us, so don’t worry.”
“Hm…”
“So we decided to have Lady Veronica meet with him. We’re just
doing this to provide better working conditions for our employees!”
“Is there any condition to that?”
“Well, I’m actually here for another matter. We have business with
Mister Sian.”
“Huh?”
“What business?”
“We wanted to meet you five years ago, but we couldn’t find you
anywhere. Yet you even created a party to let the world know that
you’ve returned! Think about it. I couldn’t have come all the way here
to pay a visit just to invite Lady Veronica over. I’m here because of
you.”
“…”
“How can we trust that following you will not bring any trouble? My
brother-in-law can get in trouble too.”
Kora-duum knew the man was telling the truth after she saw it
through her eyes, but she still asked since she was concerned. The
man burst into laughter.
“…”
“…”
“I don’t like explaining things in detail, but I’ll do it anyway. It’s best
that you know before sending away your loved ones, right?”
“…”
“…”
Sian wondered about the man who seemed to know a lot about him.
Besides, he couldn’t send his sister-in-law to such a dangerous
place alone.
“Sian…”
“Shall we go then?”
“No but…”
They then went to their room and did not come back for an hour.
“…”
“See? Ladies take a long time to prepare. So, I guess those rumors
were true.”
“The rumor that you’ve never had girlfriend throughout your entire
life… I didn’t believe it, but it’s true! Hahaha- UGH!”
“Oh.”
Sian was surprised. He threw a punch at the man, but he fell to the
ground unconscious. Sian glanced around, picked him up, and laid
him on a sofa.
“You should take care of yourself… ask Sian for help if you get in
trouble.”
“Oh, no. It was nothing. Ladies need time,” Sian answered. Rian
glanced around, but he could not find the man so he asked Sian,
“Where did that man go?”
“He’s here.”
Sian pointed to the man lying on the sofa. Rian was surprised as he
noticed that the man was sleeping on the sofa.
“Sian.”
“Huh?”
Sian then turned to where Rian was watching. The man’s chin was
bruised.
‘Oh…’
“Wake him up.” Count Roman spoke, sighing. He actually expected
something like this to happen. This superhuman was polite, but he
spoke as if he considered them as insects. All superhumans were
like that anyway, so it wasn’t anything special. It was just that Sian
wasn’t the type to ignore a man looking down on his family.
“…”
“You are more savage than I expected. God, you just punched me
without any warning.”
“You know, other common people would’ve had their heads blown if
you did that to them.”
“…”
Lagaope dropped his head the second he saw Sian flexing his fist.
“We’re here.”
“What’s weird?”
“Right.”
Sian thought about it, but there was no evidence. He then shrugged
and followed Lagaope into the Ra-Shar-Roa.
The Ra-Shar-Roa near Celaine was still very crowded. Veronica and
Sian began questioning it.
“…”
“…”
“Let’s go.”
“God, so you never even used Ra-Shar-Roa before? It’s one of our
masterpieces. You need identification plaques to be allowed to use
it.”
“…”
Veronica didn’t mean to ask in that regard, but she decided to stay
quiet.
‘Roa-Tian?’
“You’ll see.”
After standing in line to use the Ra-Shar-Roa, it was now their turn.
“?”
Sian and Veronica walked closer and Lagaope activated his artifact.
“This thing doesn’t give too much time once it’s activated.”
Lagaope then walked toward the huge buildings on the other side of
the beach.
“You two don’t fear us. I guess it’s because you two are from the
other world.”
“…?”
The fact that the man knew her brother meant he knew that they
were not from here, but she couldn’t understand what Lagaope was
saying. Why would she fear him when he hadn’t done anything to
her?
The place was extremely large. It didn’t seem like a lot of people
were here, but there were countless human figure golems working. It
wasn’t modern by any means, but it was quite refreshing as she was
used to the medieval settings of this world.
She realized why Lagaope said they were different from the Magical
Council. She visited a regional office of the Magical Council with
Rian before, but it was nothing like a secret agency or place of
powerful technology.
“?”
“Place is crowded.”
“Yes, we need a lot of people to work for our cause. They’re well
taught, so they are useful.”
“…”
“By the way, what’s the offer you had for me?” Sian asked. Lagaope
claimed that he had business with Sian, but he had been quiet up
until now.
“We’ll talk about that later. Won’t Lady Veronica need some time with
Limainu? We can talk after they meet. Besides, don’t we want Lady
Veronica to quickly reunite with her brother?”
As they walked further into the building, they reached a machine that
was moving vertically, allowing people to go up and down. It wasn’t
large, but it was big enough to have three of them step in, and it
began taking them up to the top floor.
The man then walked out from the shelves and looked at Lagaope.
He then realized there were two more people standing beside him.
He dropped his books.
“S…sister?”
“Mina!”
“…”
“Should we change places? You two should take your time here.
Mister Sian, this way please.”
“Isn’t it wonderful?”
Sian turned north, but he could not see the land even when he used
energy on his eyes. It meant the island was located really far from
the coast.
“So… what is your offer? How did you know about me?”
“It’s a long story, but I’ll talk about the offer first.”
“Huh?”
Sian was dumbfounded.
“Insurance?”
“Yes, insurance.”
“Like… the one where you get paid when you die?”
“I guess not.”
“?”
Death.
Being a Ra-Bander did not prevent him from dying. He felt there was
a limit to his life at some point and he realized that the limit of his age
was 300.
The man was delighted and delved into their secrets, only to be
disappointed by the fact that their immortality was only granted to
their own kind.
“…?”
“Isn’t it heartbreaking?”
“Oh, no. There’s more of course. It’s only revealed to the people who
join us, but I’ll tell you since you are a special case.”
He was reborn in a new body, but with all the knowledge and power.
After growing up a little, the man realized it had been 100 years
since his last death. He then realized he would not overcome death
with his old ways. He was strong, but it wasn’t enough to avoid
death.
Then he found a special power that came with him in his new body.
A power to change the world and twist it.
The new body had special skills that were later going to be called
Exer.
The man trained on both the Ra-Bander way, and the Exer way. It
allowed him to become a Ra-Bander and a Great Magic Priest at the
same time.
The man then devoted his life to study the powers of the Kal-Guls
and Granines.
A small marble that allowed the dead to live again. The man
succeeded.
“And that’s where the story ends. The third story is still underway.
Isn’t it amazing?”
Sian was really surprised. The man wanted to avoid death and really
succeeded.
“…”
“I mean, what can he do if he faces a man who’s stronger than him?
It would’ve been better if he only trained in either Bander or Exar.”
“Oh… right.”
“But it’s not important. We know how to create the <Soul Transfer
Orb> without the genius.”
“Really?”
“Of course. I’m sure you saw it before. Do you remember a boy
named Dekaron?”
Sian felt tempted. With that, it would solve his main concerns. Of
course, he had no intention of walking into danger, but who knows
what might happen? He was so sure that there was no one stronger
than him when he got out of the red sphere, but he had to be locked
up in another red sphere after that.
Lagaope felt Sian getting tempted by the offer and continued, “We’ll
be adding a special this time. It’s all because you are such a
powerful man.”
“?”
“Haha… I knew you would like it. No one has refused until now.”
‘No one…?’
“And there was no one who turned it down after hearing what was
requested. It’s nothing much really.”
“Hmm.”
“…”
“We’ll need four right? I guess you only need it for those related by
blood.”
Sian nodded. Sister-in-laws were important, but they were only
important because of Rian.
“Superhumans?”
“Okay. And?”
“We have one motto. We do not force anyone. Our group doesn’t
work well with force, so we strive hard to have people join us
voluntarily. Wouldn’t it be like a threat if we make joining our group
as a condition of the insurance?”
“Hmm.”
It was true. The insurance was very tempting, but superhumans had
no chance of dying. Even when superhumans fought each other,
they did not fight to kill since they valued each other so much. Even
when they did not want to die of old age, they would be reluctant if
the price is to join such a suspicious group.
“Right.”
“So we just offer our insurance. But they join us voluntarily anyway.”
Lagaope laughed.
If you find any errors ( broken links, non-standard content, etc.. ),
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Chapter 114
Chapter 114: Insurance
“Hmm… that’s another complicated story. Didn’t the story end in the
second part?”
“Right.”
As he strived hard for his goal, there were small incidents – at least
in his eyes.
All who stood in front of him were all destroyed and beaten. Since
the man had no intention of going around or using other ways, it
would mean disaster if he met a stronger man, and he did.
The man was just a tiny bit stronger after gathering all the power and
methods he could muster, so the opponent fled.
The problem was what happened next.
The opponent returned after the man died. The problem was that the
opponent chose to exact revenge on the wrong target. It began
hunting down superhumans as it was strong and did not die of age.
“How did nobody know about such a crazy bastard roaming the
world?”
“Hmm.”
<They died because they’re weak! I’m strong, so I’ll be able to kill
them easily.>
“I’m weaker than Ra-Banders, so it’s not like I can just punch them
and say you aren’t strong enough.”
“…”
“I see.”
No superhumans would refuse the offer for the insurance. However,
they would not agree to join the group until they died by the hands of
the hunter and were revived.
It was why all the superhumans who had such experiences joined
the group.
“Sure.”
“Hmph.”
It looked like this group was doing really hard to recruit Sian, but
Sian didn’t even know their goal, their members, or their name. It
looked like he’d tell Sian if he joined, so he decided to wait on that.
“It’s a runner. We can’t stop it from running away. It’s best to drive it
out and wait for it to hibernate. You’ll know once you see it.”
“It’s interesting.”
“It’s wise. You can’t get revenge when you die. But if we didn’t group
up, not many of us would still be alive. There were some who we
couldn’t save.”
“We can say it’s weird. There’s still a lot of questions about the
hunter. So, have I answered all your questions?”
Lagaope laughed.
“No, it’s not the season. We drove it out about ten years ago. That’s
why I travel alone. We group up and stay together when it wakes
up.”
Sian was relieved. He was worried that this hunter might have
managed to kill Miss Stiel.
‘But how did she manage to live then? It’s not like she was in the
group. Hmm…’
That was a question he couldn’t solve, but there was no way to find
out.
“Let’s make things clear. So, we will provide the <Soul Transfer Orb>
for free and you can decide later. We’ll provide you with more details
when you decide.”
“Hmm.”
“Yes. Like I said, we do not force it. Most join us when they die, but
since you aren’t a type to die… can we make a condition? Just to
make things more even?”
Sian nodded. It was better to pay the price that way than to just
receive it for free.
“What is it?”
“Yes.”
“The process isn’t that hard. It’s just that we don’t have that many
materials.”
“Materials…?”
“Do you remember that the genius studied Granines and Kal-Guls to
create this?”
“Yes.”
“So, we need two things. One is the heart of a Kal-Gul, and another
one is water of <Lavne> that the Granines treasure.”
“…”
“I mean, it’s okay that mountain was destroyed where the Granines
used to live, but the <Lavne> was dried up. I wonder who did that…
it even made some of our projects come to a full stop.”
“…”
“Huh? Why do you look so grim? Anyway, we have some hearts, but
we ran out on the water.”
“That’s where you come in. In truth, we don’t need the well’s water
anymore. We have a replacement. It’s really hard to get, but it allows
us to create better quality orbs. We recently found out after we
worked on it hard after the incident five years ago.”
“Hmm.”
“You should just consider it a trip to get a present for your family. It
would be great if you join our group afterward, but just getting us that
replacement is going to be a huge help.”
“I see. Can I take care of my business first? Before going out to find
the replacement?”
“Of course. It will take us a few months to prepare for the orb
creation anyway. You should bring it to us during that time. But what
business do you have?”
Sian was actually already very tempted to join. He was still being
careful as he could not believe everything, but it didn’t seem like a
bad idea.
“Oh… you mean the one who lived at the Lagran Region.”
Lagaope smiled.
“She’s the only superhuman who did not join us after making the orb.
They usually hear about our group after they are reborn, so she
probably doesn’t know much about us.”
<Groyn… he took a basket full of well water and said that he’ll make
us something great. But I didn’t understand what he said because he
stuttered too much. I got so irritated so I fought with Liviath who
came for it next. Now… well, it was 150 years ago so they’re
probably dead.>
“So, she already has one.”
“Yes, she was the one who stayed by the well. I didn’t do it myself,
but someone who went to get the water offered it to her. But she
never even saw the orb. We created it and have it protected in our
care.”
“But it’s not anything special. They all join after they die, but she
managed to live for over 200 years so we’ve never contacted her
since then.”
It meant that they never got into contact with Stiel since then.
“I see…”
Sian sighed. He was worried, but there was no way to find her.
“Ah…”
It seemed like Veronica had more things she wanted to talk about
with her brother.
“Thank you.”
“You’re welcome.”
Sian couldn’t point out that Lagaope was treating Limainu like a
person, but he seemed to understand.
“Haha, we treat people for their abilities. Limainu’s worth much more
than any superhuman. Although he’s… irritating sometimes.”
“We don’t we look around the lower floor? I’ll show you around.”
“Is it okay? I thought you had a lot of classified stuff.”
‘And you won’t know what it is even when you see it.’
“Huh?”
“I can hear you from anywhere on this island, so I will come when
you call me out.”
“…Sure.”
“You should come this way. I’ll show you something you’ll find
interesting.”
They then walked around the lower floor. Sian realized that the
people here were afraid of Lagaope.
‘This place…?’
What was important was that the weapons that Sian recognized as
swords, spears, or cannons were something different here. It wasn’t
like anything he recognized.
Lagaope laughed.
“Purpose?”
“Hmm.”
Sian was confused, so Lagaope walked to one side.
“Oh?”
“It’s based off Limainu’s idea. You can carry this in your pocket and
create the blade with your own power. Here, try it.”
Sian then took the stick and held the shiny part with his bare hand.
“NO!”
Some of the people around them were shocked and they gasped,
but nothing happened. The part Sian was holding was losing its
energy.
Lagaope then threw the stick and moved to another place. There
was a marble that flew around itself. Marbles were circling around a
blue transparent swirl from within. As Lagaope walked closer,
researchers moved out of the way for him. Then Lagaope reached
out and grabbed the blue thing.
Then, a terrible scream came about.
<KYAYAYAAAAAA!>
“Yes… we were having a hard time with the Koderan stat change….
Ugh…”
“Oh well, it’s okay. Mister Sian, come this way please.”
“This…”
“Isn’t it amazing? It’s an energy force with a will of its own. It’s
making those marbles float. I heard the researchers here made it
accidentally.”
The blue energy that Sian held was now much more calm, seeming
to have lost all their resistance after being held together. The
marbles that circled around it also slowed down as if they were
somehow connected to the blue energy.
“I’ll send you one as a pet if we create some more. Say… how long
will it take for it to be ready?” Lagaope asked a researcher.
“We will need about six months to create these energy masses in
great number.”
The researcher was still panting even after the energy stopped
screaming.
“I guess you can take one as a pet when you come with the
replacement material for the orb.”
Lagaope then began walking toward the corner of the island, outside
the buildings.
“Yes. We need a lot of water due to the cooling issue. That place
focuses on researching various objects collected from around the
world, including precious metals.”
The building they entered after a while was quite different from other
buildings.
“Well… Dekons wanted the place to be like this. I’m not sure why
they like this better.”
They had all the technology and magic, but Dekons still
outperformed them in metallurgy. Thus, the place was filled with
Dekons.
“We have a lot of metals here. Some are really fascinating… this
here is made from a Dekon.”
“Huh?”
“So… if you hit someone with this, it will hurt them, but it won’t kill
them?”
“Yes. If you really intend to kill someone then that’s another story… it
has no use as a weapon. But I’ll give it to you.”
“Why?”
“You should beat someone with this from now on. Not with your fist.”
“…”
“I just showed you the most worthless metal, so I’ll show you most
precious one now. Come this way.”
They walked to where a great magic rune was drawn on the ground.
The rune was being sourced by endless energy to create a dark
barrier on top. Sian couldn’t see through the barrier so he narrowed
his eyes and asked, “Why do you even need such thing?”
“Oh… the metal is just too heavy to store so we need to hold it. But I
can’t always take it around so we created this dimensional-anti
gravity area to keep it in.”
Lagaope then told the Magic Priests to stop the rune. As the rune
stopped working, Lagaope jumped into the rune and picked up the
metal that was revealed. It seemed like it was heavy since Lagaope
could barely pick it up with his two hands to bring it out.
“I’m a Ra-Bander but this is really heavy. This… huh? Mister Sian?
What is it?”
“Yeah. I love it here. There are a lot of things to learn and a lot of
things to research.”
Limainu smiled.
“Don’t worry, sister. I love it here. The magic here is much more than
the science that I studied back in our world.”
Magic was not something Limainu knew existed until he came here.
There were some things that magic allowed while science didn’t, and
vice versa. Limainu loved studying both to create many things. He
didn’t care if he was being taken advantage of. He was busy
studying to satisfy his own desire. Besides, his organization,
<Herrantor>, provided everything he needed for his research.
Limainu couldn’t believe what he saw five years ago, when he saw
Liviath producing nuclear energy by himself. He wished to study
superhumans when his current project was finished, but he also
learned to fear them. He was scared when his sister was asking
Lagaope a flurry of questions. After discussing for a while, Limainu
asked the question he first had when he met his sister.
“Yeah, I saw him there. I didn’t expect to meet him again, especially
with this kind of connection.”
“Yes.”
“Don’t be too disappointed. You should meet him again next time.”
“Oh…”
Lagaope did say that he worked hard for the happiness of the people
working here and they were not slaves.
“Oh, I almost forgot. Mister Sian asked me to escort you and he left
for some important business.”
“What?”
“He looked very serious… but don’t worry. I’ll escort you back to the
Roman family safely.”
This great desert separated Taran and Usharan with its large land
mass. The desert provided no good side to the Usharan, but it
helped them in a way that it decreased the amount of border that
needed protection.
‘Thanks, Lagaope…’
Sian thought as he remembered what Lagaope provided him.
<Is this…?>
<It’s nothing, but they won’t stop you when you go on the Ra-Shar-
Roa while carrying this. Take it.>
<No, I mean, I sense some energy from within. Does this track my
location or something?>
<…No. You are mistaken. That’s only there for me when I get lost.>
‘Dammit…’
Sian expected to find at least some trace here since there would be
a battle-scar here if Stiel had fought.
‘What is it?’
Sian took it out and touched the artifact, which suddenly began
shining a light into space.
“Huh?”
The light that came out from artifact was now portraying a human
figure on the space in front of him.
“Lagaope?”
It was Lagaope himself. The artifact was portraying him and his
voice.
<I don’t know what you are trying to find there… but you didn’t find
anything, did you?>
<Deserts are not that easy. If it was four years ago, you might have
to put that place upside down to have a chance.>
<Can you even do that? Haha… but that was just an idea. You might
find some burnt traces, but it won’t be any use. Besides, we couldn’t
find much when we went there four years ago.>
“Oh…”
<I’ll help you. It looks like you want to search for Stantahl the First,
right?>
<Yes, but it’s not me who’s going to help. The answer is always
much closer than you think.>
“Let’s go back to the beginning, shall we? You know we were really
interested in you.”
“Oh?”
“It’s not like that, Veronica. But how did you know about me?”
“Liviath, from our group, was watching you when you blew up
Kerbal.”
“Oh…”
“We searched for you for so long after that. It was love at first sight.”
Sian nodded.
“So, we managed to find out that you loved your family, unlike the
other superhumans. That’s when we began researching your family.
Don’t worry, we didn’t dig too deep.”
“It’s okay.”
It was what allowed them to offer the orbs for his family, so he didn’t
care.
“And when we looked into your family, your family was growing! I
mean, I would’ve grown envious of Rian if I were a normal person.
He’s living a life like he’s from a novel.”
“Haha…”
“Wives who are a Dekon, Catfolk, and a person from the other
world… Anyhow, we looked into his wives. I didn’t expect for it to
come to my aid like this though.”
Sian then suddenly realized why Lagaope didn’t send Veronica back.
“…”
Sian didn’t hear anything about Veronica’s power. He just knew she
had some kind of power as an Exer.
Veronica was terrified when she was thrown into this world. She fell
off a cliff in a car accident, but she was on some mountain with no
car, and her brother was not by her side. She had no injuries, but
she panicked. Veronica, who had come from a wealthy, prosperous
family had one thing she wanted the most when she panicked.
Then she felt some weird feelings coming from within. A feeling that
seemed to tell her where to go. Veronica just figured that this weird
feeling was originated from her fear, so she just walked toward a
light that was visible from far away.
As she walked, her heart began to pound and her head began to
ache, as if someone was sending her a warning. She eventually
gave into her feeling and began walking toward the direction. After a
while of walking, she found some small shack. The place was ruined,
but she did not care and knocked on the door. She felt some weird
feeling disappearing as she saw the man coming out from the shack
and fainted.
When she woke up, some old man was taking care of her.
<ARACK-KA DU RACKEN?>
It was language she never heard about. She used eight different
languages fluently and understood twenty-one languages, but this
language was not on the list.
She panicked, but she realized she was safe and began to learn the
language. The old man was very kind and looked after her as if she
were his real granddaughter.
She was able to learn the language quickly enough as she had talent
in learning other languages. As she became fluent enough to talk
with the old man, she learned that the light that she tried to go had
some bandits living there.
<Another dimension>
She first figured she was kidnapped and abandoned in some foreign
country, but this was unexpected. It scared her for a while but she
had to accept her fate. That was when she realized she needed to
adjust to this world. Her thoughts became conclusive when the old
man was killed while walking out on the road by some passing
mercenaries.
She realized this world’s savagery and began to feel the weird
feeling again.
She ignored the feeling before, but now she believed in it. This place
had mysterious powers and magic that did not exist in her world. It
looked like this weird feeling was also one such power.
The person she met was some merchant. He was really kind to her,
but she didn’t feel that he was enough to protect her.
Besides, this world was too dangerous for a beautiful woman like her
to travel alone. Her power saved her from such threats but it gave
her a stronger feeling each time she overcame a threat.
That was when the weird feeling stopped. It was the man she had
been looking for.
It was the man, which her power, <Fate’s Way>, had been looking
for.
“Her power will guide you to Stiel for sure. We found out that her
power grew enough to help others at end of her journey. She even
helped Rian a few times. Did you not?”
Veronica nodded.
“Yes, but it has many limitations. I did try to use this power to find
Sian, or my brother, but it failed. It didn’t give me any feelings.”
“But we can give it a try. Oh, but we have a problem. It’s shame that
the person who has this power is your sister-in-law.”
“I heard you need to kiss the person to help. That’s why she couldn’t
help anyone besides Rian.”
“…”
Sian was happy that her sister-in-law could help him, but it was
blocked immediately. That was when hope came back.
“Oh? I see. I guess our information was a little behind. Mister Sian,
we should give it a try now!”
“Come here.”
As Sian sat down on the chair, Veronica stood behind him and
placed her forehead at the back of Sian’s head. She used her both
hands to cover Sian’s head.
“You should think about the person strongly. Don’t reject the Exar
that I send you.”
“Understood.”
Sian released his defense and accepted the flow of Exar coming
through him and thought about Stiel.
The flow began to grow weaker after a while, signaling that it was
about finished.
As <Fate’s Way> faded out, Sian turned back and asked, “Did you…
do you feel anything?”
Veronica nodded.
“Yes, I have something. I’m not sure how long it will take but it will
guide us for sure.”
“You’re welcome.”
Sian then tried to ask something, but he was cut off. However, Sian
was happy that Veronica was eager to help him out so he nodded.
“Hope you find her. She is also a valuable person. Oh, and keep the
artifact. It will be useful for your journey.”
Sian was confused by what had happened. The method she used
didn’t seem like a kiss would be required as Exar moved through her
brain and hand, meaning that it didn’t seem like it needed to be
transferred over via mouth.
Veronica blushed.
“….et..”
“What?”
“It’s a secret.”
“Huh?”
Veronica became sad when she found Rian after a long journey. Her
dream man already had two wives. There was something going on
between them, but she couldn’t do it because of his wives. It was
then that she got her chance.
<Brother?>
<Yes… my brother is missing but I want to try finding him with that
power.>
The rest was history. They quickly became close after that.
Veronica couldn’t find Sian, but she managed to court Rian and
married him at last.
‘Wow…’
“It’s a secret, okay? I’m helping you out this much so…”
Veronica smiled.
They smiled at each other and began walking to use the Ra-Shar-
Roa.
“Veronica, how does <Fate’s Way> work? Does it tell you how long
you travel… and in what direction, or such?” Sian asked as they
walked toward the Ra-Shar-Roa. He thought Veronica gave it a
fitting name, but she looked embarrassed when Sian mentioned it.
“Just call it a power… and I don’t know much about it. It changes a
lot depending on my condition too.”
“Does it?”
“Oh.”
“Let’s say I have to find Person A. But if I don’t have any connection
or information about Person A, then my power will lead me to Person
B who might be connected to Person A. Now, if I don’t have a
connection to Person B, then it leads me to Person C who might lead
me to Person B. So… if the person I’m looking for is located where I
can find them directly, it leads me that way. If not, then I need to take
steps.”
That was what Veronica discovered about her power. However, there
were a few times where she had different results than she expected,
so she couldn’t say for sure.
“But… if that’s the case, shouldn’t it have allowed you to find your
brother or me? I think that power will get you to someone no matter
what.”
“It does have a limit. If the power required to find someone is too
great, it stops. I think you and my brother were located at a place
where my power or someone I know couldn’t reach.”
“I see.”
“And there’s been a time where I took too many steps that it failed.
Someone who hides and lives as a hermit falls into this category.”
“Yeah. So that’s why I had doubts… if the person you’re looking for is
hard for you or Lagaope to find, it will be impossible for me, or there
will be too many steps to take. The maximum amount of steps when
it’s used on someone else is about three to four. So it is weird.”
Sian was intrigued. There weren’t too many people who knew about
Sian or Stiel’s existence, but Veronica was walking to a place where
her power was confidently leading her.
“…”
Sian and Veronica were now in front of Lavilan Castle. Veronica then
began walking somewhere and came to a stop in front of someone.
“Celine, can you tell my husband that I will return after I am done
with my business?”
“Sure. So, how was the trip?’ Celine asked as she was concerned
even though Sian was accompanying Veronica.
“It was very good. Tell my husband that I’ll be away with Sian for a
while. It won’t take long.”
“With Sian?”
“That’s true.”
“Is it over?”
Veronica laughed.
“No, it just tells me which way I need to go. It’s like getting
information updates once I meet the person I need to see.
Sometimes I need to do something to update the direction, but we
were lucky this time. I think we can just keep going like this.”
“This is…”
“It is amazing how powerful these superhumans are. How can you
split this giant canyon within half a year?”
Veronica was astounded. She couldn’t feel how strong these
superhumans were, but looking at something so grand gave her a
glimpse of their true power.
Veronica then turned to Sian and asked, “Can you do this within half
a year too?”
“Hm… I can.”
Half a year would be enough for him to erase the entire mountain,
but he decided to hold back as it felt like he would be boasting.
Veronica wasn’t sure what it was like for superhumans to use their
powers, so she spoke without thinking much.
“Oh.”
The soldier was shocked after seeing the plaque and let Sian pass.
After a few more checkpoints, they arrived at their destination.
It was the first time for Veronica, but Sian knew this person.
It was Kalagul, a Kal-Gul reborn into Kuntarian’s body.
“Why are you here? I thought there was a party to celebrate your
return?”
“Huh?”
“Oh no.”
Sian became worried. Veronica was his only hope to find Stiel.
Kalagul asked them, “Can I be on my way?”
“Sure. I’m not sure what you are doing, but I wish you good luck.”
Sian then looked at Kalagul who was trying to walk away. There was
some weird feeling.
“Wait, Kalagul. Stop right there. Veronica, can you leave us alone for
a while?”
Sian always had a feeling that told him what to do, just like
Veronica’s power. It worked for the husk and the fight at the Lagran
Region. This feeling was telling him to deal with Kalagul.
“Hmm.”
“…”
“I don’t do this often, but I’m in a bit of a hurry. I will leave you in one
piece if you tell me.”
Sian never was wrong when he had the feeling to beat up someone.
If he used the stick that Lagaope gave to him, maybe it would show
better results.
Kalagul had been placed at the <Cancun Fortress> from the days
when Sian began his travel. Kalagul could not refuse the order as he
did not have his people anymore and had to live with the humans.
But there was more. He wanted to go as far south as possible.
After a while, he heard that Sky Mountain next to Gron-Pilah was
destroyed.
However, he did not mind as it did not have any effect on him. That
night, he felt something while training.
<Huh?>
It was a familiar feeling. A few days after feeling that sensation, there
was an unexpected visitor. It wasn’t a human.
<I have not felt my people’s spirit since years ago… how did you
survive, warrior? Your spirit tells me that you died from the war.>
<Great warrior…!>
It was one of his people, a Kal-Gul. And one of the strongest who
represented his race.
Kalagul faced the greatest warrior, <Nekra>, who had lived for over
400 years.
“How do you live for over 400 years? It doesn’t make sense.”
“…?”
“He’s special among the Kal-Guls. He became a superhuman, and
he even mastered all three powers,” Kalagul continued.
They fought against the Empire and led it to its demise. If it weren’t
for the Great Magic used by the Empire before their fall, it would
have been the Kal-Guls who would’ve ruled the world by now.
One was power that flowed continuously through the heart and
weapon.
Another was the power that each individual had called <Sorma>.
Sorma, which utilized Exar, only was the only power that the Kal-
Guls were allowed to wield and use. Each person trained hard and
specialized in one way of Sorma that fit them most.
He was able to use all three ways of Sorma and wielded them with
ease. There were a lot of superhuman-level Kal-Gul warriors, but
Nekra was the only one who could use all the ways.
And the three powers had their own ultimate abilities. One of most
rare and not sought after was <Somarin>. After mastering the power,
Nekra managed to acquire the ultimate ability, <Somarin>, an ability
that had the same name as its way. Somarin meant immortality in
their language.
“Like I said, no humans can use Sorma. They lack a vital attribute
that allows them to use Sorma. I knew the way of <Somarin>, but I
can’t use the power with this body.”
“…”
Stiel didn’t like being in groups, and the hunter had awakened much
earlier than expected. And Sian was led by Fate’s Way to meet
Kalagul who had met the Great Warrior.
“…”
Kalagul saw Sian’s expression changing and began to speak quickly.
It seemed he might kill him if he didn’t do anything.
“…”
“The Great Warrior left right after! He told me I’m not one of the Kal-
Guls anymore if I’m in a human body. I’ve never seen him since
then!”
Kalagul knew what happened to all places Sian had visited. He came
to Cancun to avoid such troubles, but Sian came directly for him.
“Hmm.”
Sian grew frustrated. He was clueless, and it seemed like there was
nothing more he could find out from Kalagul. Veronica then walked in
from the outside.
“What? Really?”
“Yes, I’m not sure what you did, but my power came back. We
should be able to find the person,” Veronica reassured Sian.
“…”
Sian tried to smile, but he couldn’t. He was too worried about Stiel.
Nothing was certain yet. There was a chance that Nekra wasn’t the
hunter. Sian wished his theory was wrong. It was only going to be
revealed when he met Nekra.
Phareon turned to the cliff beyond his castle. It was the destroyed
cliff. He could have cleaned it up, but he decided to leave it be in its
messy state to always remind him that the world was full of powerful
men.
Sian was now more monster-like than when he first saw him.
It was fortunate that Sian only destroyed the cliff. To think that he
even destroyed mountains… it seemed like Sian could destroy the
entire mountain range that Phareon was looking at currently.
‘What is that?’
Part of the cliff was moving. Phareon tried to use <Kranga> to zoom
in, but there was no need.
The cliff was collapsing again.
It wasn’t a large destruction, but it was not normal as the cliff was
destroyed entirely again.
Sian was digging at the cliff with his bare hands. The castle was
about fifteen miles away from the cliff, but Phareon became uneasy.
He then made a choice. He knew what had happened to cities that
Sian had visited. Other than Lenorva, all of those cities were left in
ruins.
Rianna came running in. Phareon shouted, “Evacuate all our people
away from that cliff! Make it quick!”
“…Yes, milord!”
“…”
“Veronica?”
“You don’t have to stand that far. I won’t make any mistakes.”
“Haha…”
Veronica laughed awkwardly as she saw Sian casually digging at the
cliff.
Sian was really surprised. They weren’t sure why her power led them
here, but he wouldn’t have been able to come find the place that he
buried years ago.
After a while, they arrived at the armory that had been buried.
‘That’s…’
It was the place where those <Arankals> opened up the void portal.
Sian then walked to where Veronica was wandering about.
“Huh?”
“Huh? Huh?”
Sian then picked Veronica up and quickly jumped out of the cliff. He
couldn’t run too fast as he had to be careful not to harm Veronica,
but he was able to quickly get to the city.
“Hmm, why is the city so quiet?”
“Right.”
The city was empty. Sian took a look and saw people moving up
north.
“OH!”
Sian then jumped up with Veronica again and was able to catch up
to Phareon who was walking north.
“No, it’s about to start now. Can I ask you for a favor?”
“Huh?”
“It might be okay, but just in case. You did make a good choice.”
Sian then took a few steps away from the people and jumped up. He
flew out like a rocket toward the cliff and Phareon shouted to his
people.
“Dammit! Ditch your belongings! We need to get out of here quick!
Make it quick!”
“17% is it?”
Phareon mumbled and turned back. There was little time to waste.
He sighed and began wielding his power. The armor covered him up
in a second. Sian then began grabbing the space.
Something shot out from within and struck Sian, flinging him back
against the wall. After he was hit, something else came out and was
thrown at Sian.
<I was always lucky at beating up someone. But that’s where all my
luck goes. Dammit.>
…….
“So, the Lord knew what was going to happen? It doesn’t look like
we needed to evacuate.”
It was pretty far, but some knights from the Kulan Knighthood were
able to see what was going on at the cliff. Phareon sighed.
‘It’s starting.’
Sian reflected everything that flew at him and regretted it. He wanted
to ask about Stiel first, but this enemy might have been the one who
attacked Stiel. He should beat it up first.
Sian then began pounding the enemy that jumped out from the hole.
It looked very weird. It had some weird-looking thing that covered its
ten-foot tall body. What was more important was not its looks.
Sian dodged the mysterious sword that was swung at him. It looked
very weird. It was about six-feet long, but the handle made up a third
of the weapon.
It looked peculiar because the weapon’s handle was very visible, but
the blade was very faint and unclear. It was like that weird beam
sword that Lagaope showed him. The only difference was that this
one did not shine as its blade was more transparent.
‘That’s crazy.’
The weapon was not crazy heavy like Chrona-Phon or powerful like
the Spear of the War God. The blade made no sound when it was
swung, but Sian figured it would be better to be smacked with the
said weapons than be struck by what Nekra was swinging at him.
When it swung, it damaged the space and distorted time. Sian felt
part of his spirit being taken away when he took a hit at the start. It
healed, but he did not want to experience that anymore.
But…
‘I’m stronger.’
It would’ve been really bad if the enemy had such a weapon and was
strong as Sian himself, but he was weak. Sian was stronger in every
way.
The enemy kept moving faster and faster. It seemed like the enemy
was using some weird power.
Sian couldn’t understand what was it like to control space and time,
but he understood what it was after looking at it first-hand.
Sian was irritated. The enemy was not even close to his level to fight
him. Even with such a powerful weapon, Nekra wasn’t strong
enough to defeat Sian. The only thing that allowed him to fight Sian
was the power.
Sian gathered his power on his fist and hit the sword, which was
thrown back helplessly. Nekra had to step back with it.
Sian then realized that this was not necessary. He only needed to
find Stiel’s whereabouts. He did not need to fight him. Besides,
Nekra should’ve realized that he had no chance against Sian. He
was fighting on equal ground until now, but it was only a matter of
time for Sian to emerge victorious.
Sian asked a question. He didn’t feel good about getting hit and was
thus irritated at Nekra, but he wanted to know about Stiel more than
anything else.
“Stop! Let me ask you something. You’ll walk home if you answer
me.”
<…>
“Uh… have you met a woman with a sword made from this piece of
metal? If you guide me to her, I’ll be happy and I’ll just break a few of
your arms.”
<…>
“…”
He then unleashed his full power that he had been holding back
because of Veronica who was nearby and charged at Nekra.
The sky above the Con-Tian mountain range was being torn apart. It
was weird to describe the sky ripping apart, but it fit the description
perfectly. The ripping part wasn’t much of a deal when compared to
the huge energy that poured out from it, sweeping everything in its
path.
‘Why…’
Rianna was confused, but it didn’t matter. They needed to run as far
as they could. The Con-Tian Mountain was now gone, so just a slight
change in direction would mean a wipeout. Rianna ran with the
people toward the north. It became easier to lead the people, as
those who did not want to abandon their belongings at first had now
thrown away everything they had and began running for their lives.
He was relieved to hear that Stiel had her own Soul Transfer Orb,
but the explanation followed afterward made him worry.
Sian felt despair, regret, and guilt. If he had just gotten out of the red
sphere just a bit faster… He smacked Nekra down. The same thing
happened before as the space between Sian’s fist and Nekra began
to expand, but with all of Sian’s power unleashed, the result was
totally different.
The fist made a strange noise as it destroyed the space itself. Nekra
quickly activated his second magic and created a hole. Con-Tian
Mountain appeared through the hole and Sian’s attack smashed the
hole, destroying the mountain on the other side.
Nekra then used <Tamara> on him and Sian. The time around Sian
slowed down and Nekra became faster. Since Sian could not react
too fast, Nekra focused all his energy on the sword and swung it at
Sian. The attack, wielding the extreme power of <Somarin>, was
destructive. It ripped the enemy’s spirit and destroyed the lifeforce
from within. It was <Somarin> that allowed Nekra to stay as the
strongest of them all.
Nekra also knew the real reason behind it. Sian was just too
powerful.
The ultimate powers of the three ways had one thing in common.
<Extract.>
It granted Nekra the power to extract all the time, space, and
lifeforce that was allowed and use it later when he needed it most.
After a few thousand years, he had gathered a very large amount of
extracts as his power. His stay at some weird void that suddenly
appeared four years ago also made it easier for him to draw out his
powers.
He quickly subdued the enemy and pulled the heart out. The weapon
was already kicked away into the distance.
The heart was still pounding even after Sian pulled it out and it was
full of energy. But it wasn’t only the heart that some energy left.
He still had the raging anger within him that had not calmed down.
But it was over. Nekra was going to die soon. When Sian
approached him, he saw Nekra smiling.
“?”
As Sian was confused, something from the heart began flowing into
Sian.
Nekra.
Nekra was a proud Kal-Gul who feared nothing and he was proud of
the fact that he was a mighty Kal-Gul warrior. However, he had one
issue.
<Chrona>
The one that stood on top of all the powerful things in the Great
Forest.
Nekra could not accept the truth. Even if it was that strong, it was
only a Six-Horned. Six-Horned Harijans were very powerful beings,
but there were plenty of Kal-Guls who could manage to beat such
monsters. His High Warrior status was also given to him after he
beat up a Six-Horned Harijan.
Therefore, Nekra did not like the fact that the other Kal-Guls were
avoiding Chrona.
He decided to visit the monster to try to kill it. In fact, he had trained
in all three ways of Sorma that made him powerful.
Chrona was at the stage just before getting the seventh horn and
was not even close for Nekra to dare to fight it.
Chrona seemed interested in Nekra who was shocked and sent its
thought to Nekra.
<!!!>
<Hahaha… I’ll give you power. But nothing in this world is free.>
<UGH!>
When he did wake up, there was no Chrona. Nekra felt something
had changed from within. His heart was now replaced with one of
Chrona’s six hearts. Nekra was dazed at such enormous power. The
second was the weapon. His sword was nowhere to be found and he
instead had a stick that was made from Chrona’s razor-sharp teeth.
Nekra named it <Karnine>. Third… he knew what he had done. He
should not have approached Chrona.
That was why Chrona forced Nekra to take care of her baby.
Nekra fell into despair. He had earned great power, but he was now
a slave.
Sian then realized the owner of the scales he was wearing. He also
managed to find out the hidden power behind <Karnine>.
Sian was surprised that there were more than one of those
monsters, but he believed he didn’t need to worry about those
monsters. If they wanted to destroy the world, the world would have
been left in ruins already.
Fortunately, his job to protect <Chrona> wasn’t too hard. The Kal-Gul
had grown into a powerful group so no Harijans dared to come close.
<Con-Rad.>
He was real. He was only 300 years old, but he could equally fight
with Nekra who had been empowered by Chrona.
As Nekra was busy dealing with Con-Rad, the war dragged on. As
Nekra stayed behind to stop Con-Rad from jumping into the fight, he
felt something shooting out from the north.
<What is…>
<Chrona…>
Nekra realized what the ray was. It was Chrona who was mad that
her baby had been harmed during the war.
Nekra then felt he could not feel any connections with his people.
<What happened…>
Before Nekra could organize his thoughts, Chrona ordered with rage.
<The few who harmed my baby have run out to Liona’s territory. I
can’t go there… but you can. Go kill all of them and never return until
you do.>
<Everyone died…>
Nekra was enraged and filled with emptiness. He also felt bitter that
he could not disobey Chrona’s order as he was ordered to seek
revenge.
<You bastard… I will do as you say for now. But I won’t be your dog
for too long.>
The next memory was now going to be 400 years ago from now.
It meant if he did kill all the threats, he needed to return. But he did
not want to. The only danger that lurked only seemed to be the
superhumans.
So he did not kill them all. He could not resist the order completely,
so he only killed one at a time and hibernated within the void. When
he could not resist the order again, he came out, killed one, and
went back. There were very little superhumans, so he needed to buy
time to slow the progress.
The most painful thing about this was that he could not kill himself. It
looked like the superhumans began grouping up to fight him, but it
was still a little lacking.
After living for 400 years like this, Nekra felt a powerful energy
shaking him. He could have resisted the order for a while longer, but
he thought he should not miss the opportunity and jumped out from
his slumber.
It was a human female training in the desert. This one used to stay
by Dragona’s territory so Nekra did not go after her since he didn’t
want to trigger the husk beneath. Besides, there were always other
lone superhumans.
The human female was strong, but she wasn’t strong enough for
him. Before he was about to kill the woman, an idea struck him.
The powerful being that was surely going to end his cursed life.
He wasn’t sure about when this being would come out from the
sphere scale, but he was certain that this being would not lose to
some red husk. The being would grow even stronger.
In the last memory, the being was on par with his current state, but if
he came back from fighting the sphere scale, he would be far
stronger than Nekra himself.
Nekra began to think about how to make Sian come and kill him.
He needed to make Sian come to him and try to fight him to the
death.
The first step was easy. His power, <Tamara>, allowed him to see
the near future. <Tamara> told him Sian would come to him even if
Nekra did not do anything.
The second was the problem. Sian would not kill him that easily. It
would be easy if Nekra killed his family, but he didn’t need to go that
far. He just needed to let Sian believe that he had killed this human
female.
After he solved everything, Nekra went into a void that was cracked
open.
He was not going to die easily, however. He wanted to show the man
everything he had.
After some time, the void cracked open. Nekra looked upon the light
and spoke.
Sian walked toward <Karnine> after going through all memories and
the energy flowed into it. A more powerful blade came out from the
handle. But Sian didn’t pick the weapon up to just admire it. He knew
everything he had to know. Sian followed Nekra’s memory to insert
Karnine into the space, and he turned it as if he were turning a key.
The space began to open up. When it grew wide enough, Sian
jumped in and carried a person out.
Nekra did not kill Stiel. He just locked her up for a few years so Sian
would think that Nekra had killed her.
After checking on Stiel, Sian sighed and felt a different will flowing
into him.
<I spared her as an act of gratitude and I had few more years to
resist the order. I did think about killing her… but it looked like you
had no mate. I felt sorry for you, so I spared her life.>
“Huh?”
“Did you want to die that badly?” Sian asked, but the will that came
from the heart only spoke of what had been recorded.
Sian shook his head. Nekra was dead, but it seemed that he loved
that fact that he died. The place was now left with Sian, Stiel, a
sword, and the heart. He would’ve put everything into Nitzmatan, but
he now had a different method. Just as the memory did, Sian pushed
Karnine into his left palm.
Karnine then was absorbed into a void that opened up, and Sian
stored the heart into it also.
He thought about consuming it, but he shook his head. His barrier
wasn’t going to be overcome by just this one heart. He then picked
up Stiel on his back and used Nitzmatan on Stiel’s neck to store
Chrona-Phon. Then he jumped out of the cliff.
‘Hmm… I hope nothing happens from that. The city looks fine too.’
Sian looked back at the damage and flew out to the far north where
Veronica would be moving.
Phareon looked down at his land from the castle. It was only a few
days after the disaster brought havoc upon the sky and mountains.
The energy didn’t come toward the city, so it was okay other than the
fact that the buildings were covered with dust.
“…”
The place where the great Con-Tian Mountains were located was
now an endless and barren plain. The mountain range that protected
Logadis was now gone, like a wall with wide-open castle gate.
Phareon then looked far across the plain with the help of Kranga.
“Usharan…”
Usharan was now visible with the help of his artifact. He became
worried about what might happen now.
This did not change even after Usharan invaded Con Kingdom. With
the Con-Tian mountain range intact, Usharan only had Taran to
invade.
But it was going to change now. The great plain that was a hundred
times wider than the canyon was a great place to deploy military
forces. And Logadis, which was at the entrance of such a plain, was
bound to encounter trouble.
“Long time no see, Mister Sian. You should’ve seen Kuradan’s face!
Haha.”
It was hard to witness superhuman fights, but the damage left was
too great. Clearing the entire mountain range between two
countries… what Kuradan did in his days was not even close.
The fact that he fought him for so long meant Nekra was really
strong. Sian would’ve been killed if he met him when he was
seventeen years old. Sian did not explain details of what happened
other than the fact that he killed the hunter and rescued Stiel.
Lagaope did not ask much either. What was important was that the
hunter died.
“So, how is Stantahl?” Lagaope asked. Sian thought his group really
did look after the superhumans.
“That is good to hear. We were really worried. We did not expect her
to have no descendants.”
Lagaope sighed. They could not always keep an eye out on the
superhumans as that would anger them. They thought Stantahl the
Fourth was her descendant, but he was not.
He didn’t care if it would save his family, but it still raised some
concerns. Lagaope smiled.
“You don’t need to worry about that. Remember I said that the
replacement material is actually better?”
“Oh, right.”
“The new orb will be applied in new ways. We fixed some issues.
You just need to obtain the ingredients.”
Sian now had time to go look for the ingredients and thus he began
asking. He just heard that he needed to meet some race and retrieve
it. But Lagaope’s continued explanation made Sian sigh.
“Haha, yes. It’s hard for us. We can handle one or two Six-Horned,
but you never know what might happen there and we’re all very
busy. With you here, it won’t matter. You can just jog down there and
come right back.”
“Hmm.”
He was afraid of what was beyond the Wall in the past, but not
anymore. The Great Forest he saw through Nekra’s memories would
have been dangerous for his seventeen-year-old self, but it was
nothing for him now.
What made him worry was Chrona, the Seven-Horned ruler of the
Great Forest.
Sian knew how Chrona ruined Nekra’s life, so it made him reluctant.
He didn’t know where this race lived, and if Sian accidentally walked
into Chrona’s territory, it wouldn’t end up well.
Sian thought it was from his artifact and looked down, but it wasn’t. It
was coming from Lagaope.
Lagaope then took out the artifact and a face appeared on it. It was
Groyn. Sian thought it would be rude to overhear their conversation,
so he began on thinking whether he should go into the forest or not.
Lagaope did not talk for too long. He finished talking and smiled as
he walked toward Sian.
“Huh?”
“Haha… ha…”
“Ha..ha… ngh..”
The King’s laughter turned into moans. The report wasn’t long.
“…”
The problem was that Tian was focused on pushing back the
Harijans in the north.
“But…”
“What is it?”
“There’s something that happened in the north also. You should look
at this.”
“Huh?”
The only things that appeared from beyond the Wall were the
Harijans. However, it seemed that the soldiers were talking about
different beings, so Kal-Tian looked out to see for himself.
“What is that?”
There was something that should not have existed out there.
‘…A military?’
He wasn’t sure about calling it a military force, but that was the only
thing he could think of. There was no formation and they all had
different weapons. Their faces were full of despair.
No one would call them a military, but it gave them eery feeling.
“They’re not all humans either.”
“Reload the Gairas and keep your place. Record this and send it to
the Capital and ask for Swordmeister and the King’s reinforcements!”
The mysterious group outside Wall stood there, but it wasn’t because
they did not have the intention to attack. It was because more of
such soldiers were joining. When their numbers were enough, they
would launch an attack.
Due to that fact, Chrotia Fortress was the most vital defense point.
But after watching the recording, the King could not be so certain.
The bigger problem was that they had no clue what they were.
They didn’t even look like humans as the soldiers looked like they
were filled with despair. The worst type of army was always the one
where the soldiers had no will to fight, but the King knew that these
soldiers were different. His warrior instinct told him this army was
much more powerful than that.
“Order all the nobles to send reinforcements! Send all military groups
except Dragona toward Chrotia and send Swordmeister Kiraine as
reinforcement for now!”
The warriors were shocked to hear the orders. They all saw the
recordings, but they did not think it was a big problem. They thought
the armies in despair were going to be easy to deal with, but the
King seemed to think differently.
However, they knew the King never made a wrong decision. They
felt this was going to be much more complicated than they originally
thought.
Sian looked at Stiel who was asleep. Her body seemed to have
recovered, but she did not wake up yet. Sian could not do anything
but watch her lie in bed. He then thought about what Lagaope said to
him.
<Sure.>
<Haha, thank you. We’re almost at the end of our project. Oh, and
you said you will move when Stiel wakes up?>
<I see… well, that might be better for the time frame. We are not yet
finished with preparations and they must not have gotten to it yet.>
He did return the piece that Lagaope picked up, but the actual
Chrona-Phon was still stored in its destroyed state within Nitzmatan.
Sian then weighted the two pieces and realized one was lighter than
other.
Sian broke off a piece on the heavier side and pushed it against the
other. It then began molding itself into the piece. When he made both
sides weigh about same, Sian began molding Chrona-Phon as a
whole and he remembered a gauntlet he saw once.
It was little thinner than the ones that were sold, but the metal
material was not just some regular metal and therefore it seemed
okay. Sian then activated Nitzmatan and put it back in. Stiel would be
satisfied once she saw it.
If it was a human army, it would have been less scary. But this
mysterious army gave people the chills and induced more fear in
their minds. The enemy’s growing number also played a big part in
their fear.
That was why Kroll was afraid. Their leaders seemed to be afraid
too.
‘Please don’t move.’
Kroll began screaming and sounded the alarm. It was the beginning
of the war.
“Already?”
The King groaned. He was on his way to the north with his own
forces, but it seemed like it was too late.
Recording was a basic war tactic. King Narasha was then allowed to
see what was going on at Chrotia Fortress. However, he could not
say anything as he watched.
A warrior let out a gasp from the side, but the King did not mind. He
felt the same way. The view that appeared on the recording was a
living hell.
“ARRGH!”
Refel, a 2nd Grade Soldier, wanted to block his ears to stop hearing
his friends screaming. However, if he didn’t want to end up the same
way, he had to keep swinging his sword.
His sword struck the enemy and Refel backed away. His friend next
to him was attacked after he hit an enemy’s neck. As expected, the
enemy did not care that it had been struck by the sword and charged
forward.
That was what he thought at first, but it didn’t seem like it since the
enemy was still moaning and screaming.
“Die! Die!”
‘Huh?’
“ARRRGH!”
The enemy lunged forward and struck their sword at Refel’s heart.
Refel fell down as he died. The enemy didn’t seem to be happy,
however, it was filled with more despair. It then looked down at its
injury.
The enemy looked confused, but as the pain grew stronger, it glared
down at Refel. It then began chewing on Refel, and the injury on the
arm began to heal.
After the injury was all healed, the undead stopped eating and
glanced around to attack another.
Chrotia Fortress was filled with such a sight. These enemies charged
in no matter what damage they took. Grand Bander Kiraine did his
best to fight against them, but this mysterious military had countless
Masters, and these Master warriors did not fear death. Kiraine could
barely fight them off.
“No, don’t be. I saw the recordings. We would not have any survivors
if it wasn’t for you.”
These soldiers didn’t seem like they would be of any help in the
future as they seemed to be traumatized. King asked Kiraine, “So,
what happened there? I did see the recordings but…”
The best way to deal with them was to crush their heads. This would
make it impossible for them to regenerate since they wouldn’t be
able to eat the bodies. However, that didn’t mean they were dead
yet. It was best to cut their arms and legs off also.
Magic also worked well. It didn’t kill them, but it made it easy to
render them powerless.
The invincible army that kept coming back from hell. Armies that
existed before the humans formed nations.
“What?”
The undead was one thing, but having the enemies join their ranks in
one day? That seemed impossible. The numbers were in the
thousands. The King checked to see if they were being kept as
prisoners, but they were not.
“What is it?”
“All the cities along our northern border are under attack!”
“!!”
“We have been informed that the Taran Kingdom and the Great
North Wall is under attack also!”
“What…?!”
The King couldn’t believe what he heard. All the cities including
Chrotia at the northern border were being attacked by these armies
that came beyond Sky Mountain. It seemed that some places were
being attacked by larger armies other than the one that was
attacking Chrotia.
This wasn’t a problem for Tian anymore. This was a problem for the
entire continent.
“Call the Great Magic Council… ask for their help. We will retreat
from here.”
The King’s original plan was to observe the enemy’s movements and
wait until his forces gathered to wipe them out all at once. However,
if the Kingdom was being attacked from various places, that was not
possible. Any land that was not protected would fall vulnerable
against such a vicious army. And if that happened, the enemy would
grow as they absorbed all the people they attacked. Some estates
had populations of over ten thousand. If those people fell into their
hands… that meant the doom of Tian.
“Search every document, every book, and every bit of research. See
what we can find out about those monsters.”
The first thing was to know the enemy, attacking was second.
Tian, Taran, and Kharan were the only countries with borders met
with the northern part, but the other countries knew the gravity of the
problem. It wasn’t like Harijans. If those armies grew in number as
they attacked, they would be invincible once they reached Usharan
or Broshan at the southern part of the continent.
King Narasha couldn’t bear to ask Sian for help after witnessing the
destruction of the entire Con-Tian Mountain. It wasn’t like Sian had a
bad temperament or was violent. He was actually calm and nicer
than the other superhumans. However, that was the scariest part of
all. He had no evil intentions but he brought about destruction with
him anywhere he went.
He had destroyed two mountains and four cities. The most recent
was the destruction of the Con-Tian Mountain. It would’ve taken
hundreds of years if it was done by a country.
The King was afraid that those acts were just done on a whim.
And that was why he protected the Roman family until now. He
couldn’t imagine what kind of destruction would follow if Sian
decided to deliberately run on a rampage.
However, it was now time. The King had no way to protect his
kingdom otherwise.
King Narasha thought of Lenorva, the only place that had survived
Sian’s visit and sent a message to the Roman family. But the answer
he received was unexpected.
“He’s gone?”
“Oh…”
“…”
“…”
Stiel repeated what Sian had said from her side. Sian blushed with
embarrassment, and he was at a loss for words. Stiel looked at Sian
and laughed.
“…”
Stiel showed her gratitude and stopped teasing Sian. Sian sighed
and answered, “You’re welcome.”
Stiel bumped the gauntlets against each other and gave her answer.
Her fist attacks were now more vicious than ever, and Sian regretted
a little bit that he made such deadly weapons for her.
Stiel then noticed Sian fidgeting and said, “Haha, don’t worry. I’m not
going to just smack anyone with them.”
“Sure.”
Stiel laughed, “Hehe, something always happens when I’m with you.”
“…”
“Nngh…”
Rokum glanced around in terror. He and the other Tian soldiers had
fallen at the hands of the undead armies and the northern fortress
had been taken over. The armies he had fought were now
surrounding him. However, since he was now a prisoner, these
armies did not attack him. They just stood there silently, staring at
the prisoners as if they were pitied them for what was about to come
next.
‘…huh?’
‘…a fairy?’
It was impossible, but it looked just like a fairy he knew from the
legends. A small, child-like body with four wings on its back. Silver
powder traced its path as the wings flapped. The face was also cute,
but he wasn’t sure if it was a boy or a girl.
Rokum and the other prisoners hoped this out-of-place being might
have arrived to save them. The fairies they knew from legends loved
pulling pranks, but they were always good.
<Hehe.>
Ralokura, the 27th daughter, smirked.
After they retreated deep into the Great Forest, escaping from the
monster that attacked them a few thousand years ago, the Queen
had been in a perpetual bad mood. However, the recent 400 years
had been great.
That was because the Empire’s monkeys were wiped out 400 years
ago.
When the Empire advanced into the Great Forest 600 years ago,
they thought it was an opportunity. They wanted to enslave them and
regain their peaceful lives. Their life without slaves within the Forest
was too harsh.
But the monkeys they met after thousands of years were too
different. Who would have thought these slave monkeys could
become so strong with such mysterious powers?
However, when the monkeys were gone, it was time to come back. A
lot of those monkeys were still left. They were fearsome when
grouped together in large numbers with their magic, but they were
nothing when they were separated.
After a few hundred years of work, their power grew. It wasn’t much
compared to their former glory, but Ralokura was satisfied that they
now had a place in the Great Forest. However, her mother didn’t
seem to be satisfied. She wanted to increase their territory and kept
enslaving any survivors of the old Empire.
The Queen shouted in joy. Now, nothing blocked their path. Their
preparations were complete and the armies of slaves had been
ready for a long time. The Queen began advancing southward.
They were afraid when they arrived at the fortress. It was the same
place when they had to retreat 600 years ago. The magic the
monkeys used was terrifying, and they might have advanced their
powers. To their surprise, the monkeys seemed to have stepped
backward in their power. No, their sword skills did increase but their
magic was nowhere close to what they originally feared.
After they confirmed that their slaves could defeat the monkeys,
what needed to be done next was simple.
Her brothers and sisters were probably busy increasing the number
of slaves already.
The prisoner tried to resist drinking the blood, but it was futile.
Now, it was only a matter of time. However, she didn’t have time to
waste. She walked over to the other prisoners and made them drink
a drop of blood, one by one. She felt dizzy after that as she had
been increasing the number of slaves for the past few days without
rest. She wanted to finish it quickly so that the Queen would praise
her.
<What?>
Ralokura turned toward the sky. Something was approaching at
incredible speed. Ralokura felt it was dangerous and ordered her
slaves,
<Protect me!>
Two beings crashed down onto the land in front of her. She frowned
as she expected the destruction to be much bigger in scale. She
thought it was some kind of magic fired by the humans, so she
ordered the defensive wall, but it was no need.
However, she didn’t let down her guard. There were no humans who
could fly like that.
Ralokura was shocked since anyone who knew their name had been
enslaved.
“I guess you are. I came to get something from you. If it’s not too
much to ask…”
“I know it’s rude to ask… but will you donate some blood? It will save
four lives.”
He took out a bottle, and Ralokura felt her patience waning. A slave
monkey wanted her precious blood!
<Kill him!>
“…”
“Yes, but they came out recently and they’re heading this way.”
“What is it?”
“It binds the spirit. It binds the spirit to the body when one consumes
the blood so the spirit can’t escape from it. It’s much more powerful
than the water in the well. We figured it would be better if we use this
instead of the well water.”
Lagaope explained that drinking the blood meant that the person
could not die. But it just meant that its spirit could not leave the body
no matter the damage it received. If the body was damaged, the
spirit would remain within the body along with the pain that followed.
What was unique was that it had a way to regenerate, but it also had
a negative aspect. Unlike the Granines who were supported by the
husk, Rosharans did not have such backup. They had to consume
dead bodies to regain the energy required to regenerate.
After drinking the blood, it meant that the person would become a
Rosharan slave for eternity.
Every blow of hers turned the enemy into powder. Powerful Bander
users easily destroyed the bindings that kept the spirit attached to
the body.
Sian looked at her. Stiel didn’t need to turn each of them into powder
as she could just easily punch the ground to immobilize hundreds of
them.
‘I guess not.’
The armies seemed to realize that running to Stiel would free them
from their slavery, so they all started attacking Stiel. It was good for
Sian as he had no business with the slave armies.
He then quickly walked up to the Rosharan before she could issue
any other orders. As he walked up to her, Sian realized she was very
beautiful and he thought it was wrong to judge others by their looks.
“I just need your blood. I saw you spilling it like water just a while
ago. It should be okay if I take some too, right?”
<You dog…!>
“If you won’t help me, then I’m just gonna leave.”
The fairy then became confused, because this offer actually seemed
to be better.
<…>
It wouldn’t take more than ten minutes for Stiel to destroy the entire
army here. And when she was done with the armies, the fairy would
be next.
“I think I can get more blood that way, but isn’t it better if we resolve
this peacefully?”
Sian took out the special bottle he had received from Lagaope.
Lagaope told him that the bottle housed a small dimensional space
that allowed the blood to be kept without any alterations.
The fairy then realized why the man looked like he was hesitating.
<You… dog…>
The bottle was about half of the fairy’s body size. That amount of
blood would not kill the fairy, but she would only barely survive.
However, she didn’t have any other choice.
<Dammit!>
“Haha, but we won’t have to meet with each other again. Just take it
easy and let it out.”
Sian handed over a knife. He felt bad right up until he came here, but
after watching these fairies doing such evil things, he became
indifferent.
Rolakura looked on as her blood poured into the bottle, but she
couldn’t complain.
“If you get mad, look at that woman. It will help you calm down.”
<…>
“Should I hang you upside down? I heard it helps the blood flow out
faster.”
<…>
“Or not.”
“Haha, Mister Sian, you’re back so quickly. And Stantahl… we’ve not
met before. I’m Lagaope.”
Stiel didn’t know anyone other than Groyn, but there were a lot of
things to explain so Sian and Lagaope quickly briefed her.
“Wow, I didn’t know that kind of thing existed. Why didn’t you make
me one then?”
“Hmm…”
“…”
Sian felt the familiar feeling of being hunted, and so he quickly
changed the subject.
Sian took out the bottle and handed it over to Lagaope. Lagaope
smiled.
“Great job. Now, we just need to make it. Where are the other
three?”
“Huh?”
“Hmm? I thought I told you that this bottle was only for one person.”
“…”
“Ugh.”
“Well, you can go back again and gather more,” Lagaope answered
and Sian nodded. He was going to keep the promise. He just could
visit the other Rosharans.
She smiled while her eight wings fluttered as she looked far away
upon the human armies.
She was excited. It was about time to reclaim their old glory, the
days when they were called the <Race of the Golden Blood>,
thousands of years ago.
Of course, the slaves started out weak. Yet as they lived for
hundreds and thousands of years, they grew strong and powerful.
That was why the <Rosharan> were so powerful. At that time, they
had hundreds of 1st-grade slaves, or Grand Banders in the human
language. They were even considered as threats to a lot of the Six-
Horned Harijans.
The army now only was 400 years old and much smaller in size.
The Queen remembered the days when she arrived in this world,
Ra-Sian. It was harder back then.
Now she just needed to enslave all the humans standing in front of
them. She didn’t think she would lose. Her new slaves informed her
that these countries only had three to four 1st-grade slaves at best.
This was a very important battle, so all of her sons and daughters
had gathered here with their slave armies. The number had
multiplied many times since they got here.
Rosharan was worried when they first left the forest. After their
failure 600 years ago, they thought that the humans could have
gotten much more powerful while they had stayed within the forest.
However, as their armies began advancing, they realized that they
were still powerful.
<Where’s Rolakura?>
Rosharan was puzzled. Rolakura only had four wings, but she was
one of her favorite daughters as they had a lot of things in common.
Rolakura was greedy, but she knew her place and that was why she
had increased the number wings in record time. The number of their
wings grew as they made more slaves, so Rosharan thought that
Rolakura would have at least six wings after the invasion. Rolakura
wasn’t the type to overwork herself to the point where she would
faint.
<She also returned alone without her army. We found that she
fainted along the way.>
“They’re coming,”
Their numbers had grown so it was now a few times larger than
when they first attacked. Fortunately, his forces were not as weak.
King Narasha retreated immediately when he realized he had to
gather forces to deal with them. They were joined by Taran and their
six Grand Banders, and Usharan also sent their Grand Bander and
the Kel-Rufens to help. Their forces combined were powerful, but
King Narasha didn’t feel relieved.
The fairies themselves were also very powerful. The ones with less
than five wings were powerless, but the six-winged ones were very
powerful and the seven-winged ones were hard to fight, even for
Grand Banders. Luckily, it did not seem like they were joining the
battles, which made the fights a bit easier.
“Ha… I wish Sian was here.”
The King really wanted Sian here. He had searched for him
everywhere, but Sian was nowhere to be found.
“Yes. I hope your title still stays with you after this war,” the King
replied with an empty laugh and Zagron agreed. He always wanted
to win, but this was the one he wanted to win the most. He had seen
the recordings too. If he was going to lose… he decided to commit
suicide. Suddenly, he saw something strange from afar. Two streaks
of light were quickly approaching.
“Huh?”
Zagron focused his vision to take a look. The two were flying directly
into the army of the undead. The King also narrowed his eyes to
make out what it was. Then he laughed loudly.
Rakun, the prince of Usharan, was the only one who didn’t
understand why they were laughing. However, he soon understood
what was happening.
<What is that?>
<Come here.>
She called in her 1st-grade slaves to her side; they were better at
fighting than her. She then began forming a wall. If the meteors were
the explosive-type magic, she needed to protect her mother.
Her other sisters nodded. The meteors were coming in fast, but they
didn’t feel any danger.
Rium became uncomfortable as her twin had always been her rival.
However, she realized what she had missed with Raum’s response.
Rium turned to her mother who was looking at the meteors. She had
surely felt something that they didn’t. Rium began pulling in her
power as she flew up while using her seven wings.
<Incoming…>
The meteors jumped across the armies and landed in front of them.
They kicked up a dust cloud and Rium used her wings to blow the
dust away.
<!!!>
A man emerged from the dust cloud and bowed.
Raum was dumbfounded at the two slaves coming all the way into
their fold. Her brothers and sisters were infuriated by that man, but
they did not jump in. It was because their mother was standing still,
just staring at them.
Their mother was more vicious and more violent than any of them.
Her silence wasn’t normal.
“It’s good that so many of you are here. I took too much blood from
one of you the last time, but I think I can gather a little bit from all of
you.”
Rosharan felt like she would faint at the power these people had, but
she concentrated on keeping her dignity as a Queen.
She could feel her children looking at her in shock, but she ignored
them. She needed to make the right decision. A wrong decision here
would mean death for all of them.
“Huh?”
Sian was confused by the Queen’s question. She probably had not
felt his armor’s power yet.
The Queen felt sorry to her daughter for her hasty judgment. She
would have had no way to resist if she was attacked by <Nobles>.
<No, but why do I not recognize you? How did <Nobles> get here?
This is the land of monkeys…>
“…?”
Sian and Stiel looked at each other as they could not understand
what this fairy-looking creature was talking about.
“I don’t know. However, they wouldn’t make nobles into slaves if that
was the case.”
“He’s…”
Sian had seen the man before in a book. He was bad at recognizing
people, but he remembered the man because he reminded himself
never to do the same thing as the man countless times when he was
young.
It was the warrior that went over the Wall a hundred years ago,
Grand Bander Eclipse.
‘So, he was enslaved by them,’ Sian thought, but Stiel nudged him.
“Oh, right.”
The term ‘noble’ could mean something different, so Sian didn’t need
to understand what it meant. He just needed to do what he came
here for.
“Well, I think it’s not important to know who we are. I’m just here for
personal business.”
<?>
However, what was more important was what they wanted from her.
Sian then took out the bottles from his void storage. Stiel curiously
asked,
“Oh…”
<You only need three, but see if you can get more. It’ll be hard to find
them if they run back into the Great Forest. I think it’s better if we can
get a stockpile while we can.>
“Right.”
<Are you…?>
“It’s nothing much. I just want you to fill this bottle with your blood.”
Sian felt a bit bad, but he decided to ignore it. He could do much
worse if he could ensure his family’s safety. Rosharan was frustrated
as she looked at the stacks of bottles. That many bottles meant that
she would have to draw blood from all of her children until they were
half dead.
Besides, taking out that much blood might even weaken their power.
Rolakura, who was at the brink of having five wings, had been
powered down to just four after the incident.
She thought about it but decided against it. Her current armies were
no match for nobles. It was fortunate that they didn’t just get stuffed
into those bottles.
<Mother! But->
Rium and Raum shouted. These were just two monkeys. However,
Rosharan did not want to talk about the dark history that she had
been keeping a secret. Her children should only know about the
Dragona invasion. Rosharan’s expression turned grim, and the twins
became silent.
Their mother was definitely uneasy about what was happening but
she wasn’t showing it. The twins knew what happened to those who
made their mother angry, so they understood what was happening.
The two monkeys were powerful beings and their mother had no way
to resist them.
<Hmm…>
Rium used the knife on her arm and began drawing blood.
She wasn’t sure why Stiel came all the way here, but the woman
looked like she could destroy their entire army.
“Hmph.”
“Should we go now?”
“Why?”
“Didn’t you say you didn’t want them going back into the forest?”
Lagaope said it would be better if they had more blood; however, all
the bottles were full. Stiel flicked her fingers sideways.
“We can just bring them all back. We’ll keep them somewhere and
draw their blood when we need to. They’re small, so it won’t be hard
to keep them.”
<!!!>
This would mean that their race would be dragged somewhere and
kept imprisoned, only to be used to harvest their blood. Rosharan
quickly yelled,
<Don’t do that!>
“Huh? Are you going to stay here? Then that will be better for us. I’ll
leave you here then.”
<…>
What was worse was that the man next to the crazy woman was
considering her words very carefully.
Rosharan was thinking about using her last resort, but Sian spoke
out,
“Hmph.”
‘…again?’
Rosharan watched the two figures jumping away and called out to
her children.
<Did you not hear him? They will come back again if we stay here.>
<But…>
<Didn’t you see her face? They will come back! We have gathered
enough armies this time. We’ll hide in the forest… and train these
armies as much as we can. Besides, you all lack the power to fight.>
<…Yes, Mother.>
It looked like the man didn’t want to go into the Great Forest, so she
needed to hide in the deeper parts of the forest to increase their
strength.
Rosharan ordered her children to begin pulling back their armies into
the forest.
“Yeah, but I couldn’t help it. Thank you for helping me out there.”
After the mysterious army retreated after destroying the north, Tian
Kingdom underwent a lot of changes.
There had always been continuous attacks by the Harijans, but all
the nations now realized the importance of expanding the Great
Wall. The expansion began to speed up and it would only take about
a year for it to be finished.
The King was bitter as the construction sped up but he couldn’t say
much to those who helped.
It was the large opening within the mountain that connected southern
Tian to the Usharan Kingdom. People had started spreading rumors
about the place. Some said it was God’s wrath while others said it
was the evidence of a giant Harijan rising from the ground.
It didn’t have an official name yet but people were already calling it,
<Gada-Vash>
“Yes. I do owe Sian this time though. The north posed a more severe
threat compared to the south.”
“Usharan and Taran have ceased the war. They are moving their
forces…”
It was no use watching Sian, but the King wanted to check on Sian
to at least reassure himself.
It was tiring, but the trip did give him many things.
Sian took out Karnine’s handle and swung it. It was a weapon that
he liked very much.
Sian had already given the steel stick that he got from Lagaope to
Stiel. Stiel didn’t want to use it because she figured it would make
her strikes duller, but Sian gave it to her anyway. Stiel’s gauntlets
were too powerful.
“No, not at all. Why don’t you change the name of that sword too?
Call it Con-Tian. It’s what you got after destroying that mountain. Or
call it- <Gada-Vash> or <God’s Strike> or something. Isn’t that cool?”
It had been a while since Lagaope visited Sian to pick up the blood.
“Yes, it’s going smoothly. It might take some time, but it will be done
soon.”
Lagaope also collected Sian and his family’s blood. Sian was worried
that the revival only was possible through his descendants, but
Lagaope had reassured him.
Sian then remembered what he wanted to ask last time. The fairy
called them nobles. He thought Lagaope might know why but
Lagaope left in a hurry after getting the ingredients.
“Oh…”
“Do you know?”
Sian didn’t expect too much, but it seemed like Lagaope knew
something.
“Of course I do. But it will take a while to explain. Do you have time
for that?”
“It has to do with our group. You should listen too, Stiel.”
Stiel then walked over and sat down on the hammock next to Sian.
“Remember I invited you two to join our group? Let me explain that
first. You should know what our goal is in order to make a decision.”
Sian and Stiel nodded. Lagaope continued, “Our group… and the
nobles that Rosharan mentioned… you need a history lesson to
understand.”
“Hmm.”
“…”
“Ra-Sian?”
Sian answered easily. Ra-Sian, the land of rising sun. And the north
of Sky Mountain was the land of the setting sun, Don-Nasian. Even
kids knew this.
“Good. Then, the next question. How do you know of its existence?”
“Huh?”
“You, Mister Sian, know who lives within Sky Mountain and the Great
Forest, right?”
“….?”
“…”
“I’ll start from there, so you’ll need to listen from the beginning.”
Lagaope began telling the long story.
“If I start from the conclusion, no one on the Ra-Sian Continent has
confirmed the existence of the Don-Nasian Continent.”
“Hmm…”
“However, there was an instance where people who lived there came
over. They don’t call it Don-Nasian nor do they call our continent Ra-
Sian, but we’ll use those names to make things easier to
understand.”
“I see.”
The land was vast and all kinds of monsters and races lived
together. It was full of dangers and also full of mystery. The people of
Don-Nasian marked the dangerous places and forbid others from
entering those places. Nonetheless, there were fools who did not
care. They gathered people to adventure into those forbidden
places.
The place they entered was different from what they expected.
It was dangerous, and the only one who survived in the end was that
man.
However, it was much less dangerous than he expected. After he
passed by the dangerous territories, he expected to find treasures of
the new world.
He was disappointed.
The new land was vast. It was smaller than his world, but it was still
huge as it took him a few hundred years to explore the entire place.
But there was nothing. After taking a few hundred years to visit all
parts of the land, he only found some monkeys and some other
races. Even they were too weak compared to those who existed in
his world. All of these new races would not even last a day back in
his world.
He realized that the reason for such weakness was the forbidden
entrance. These lands were forbidden by the beings that had placed
guards to prevent entry. However, they did not care about the lands
inside so there were no predators that would kill the weak beings.
The man found an old kingdom, but it was destroyed and people
who lived there had disappeared. It was only filled with some
monkeys who seemed to be slaves. The man was disappointed. He
gave up and tried to return to his homeland. It was dangerous, but if
he avoided those Kal-Guls, it would be okay.
And the last one was from the south sea, which he called the Great
Southern Sea.
The three had all been asleep at the same time in order to evolve.
That was why he was able to get in.
Now it was over, and the three beings had returned to their places.
It meant the man had lost all possible routes to return back to his
land.
“And so… that’s how I was trapped here. You can’t imagine how
broken I was at that time.”
Sian and Stiel were shocked to hear the last part. Sian asked
Lagaope, “You… are the man in the story?”
The guards that Lagaope mentioned must have meant Chrona who
defended the forest, Dragona who guarded Sky Mountain, and Liona
who patrolled the sea. And that was why Sian couldn’t understand.
According to Nekra’s memory, Chrona had evolved thousands of
years ago. It meant Lagaope had been there at that time.
“I gave up on keeping track, but it’s probably been more than two or
three thousand years.”
“No way. It’s only because of the priest’s blessing I received before I
came here. I got it just in case my trip was extended… but I didn’t
know it would be this long.”
“The blessing…?”
“It puts the person out of time’s control. That way, you can’t get old,
but you can’t become strong either. You’re basically hiding from the
world. However, you still can die from getting beat up.”
The man tried hard to return back to his home; however, it was
impossible. The man, because of his noble blood, attracted Harijans
wherever he went. As he fought them off, even stronger ones came
for him. If that continued, it would eventually attract the attention of
the guards.
<…Alone?>
“I did try different things with various races… but the monkeys were
the best fit.”
“Monkeys?”
“I told you… those who lived here. I think they were slaves but they
lost their masters. They were stupid and weak but were really similar
to us humans. I figured as such since they looked really similar to
us.”
“Oh.”
“That’s why I chose them. But it felt so miserable to think that I had
to put up with them.”
“I see.”
“Didn’t you say you succeeded? Where are those monkeys that
didn’t become humans?”
Lagaope laughed.
“Oh. Haha, I guess my explanation wasn’t enough. The chance of
becoming a human is really low. There are a bunch of monkeys who
couldn’t become humans that spread across the continent. It’s all
due to my care. Haha.”
“…Huh?”
The man tried many things. He was very intelligent and had brought
along a lot of artifacts. However, he failed. It was too hard to make
these monkeys turn into humans in a short time.
Therefore, he decided to change their race and spread them all over
the continent, to make them evolve faster and wait for them to
cultivate. At least the one thing he had was time.
The man was disappointed but the monkeys kept reproducing. They
began to prosper as they became stronger in this world with no
enemies.
That was when the man revisited the monkeys. Some were being
born with a higher percentage of the man’s blood. Some had 15%
and some had 20%. The man concentrated on increasing their
numbers for a better chance in the creation of a human.
<…80%!!>
A monkey with 80% of the man’s blood. It wasn’t enough but it was
okay.
The monkey did grow powerful. It beat up all the other monkeys and
united the lands. As its power grew stronger, the blood percentage
grew.
The man rejoiced as his research was proven correct. He was able
to evolve these monkeys into his species. After thousands of years,
the man finally created a friend. He gave the monkey, or rather, the
human, a name.
<Broxian.>
“Oh…”
Broxian, the Emperor who united the entire world, was a successful
test specimen from Lagaope’s project.
It meant all the people living in this world was from the monkey that
Lagaope used his blood to create.
“Ugh, don’t say that. No. I just shared my blood. You are more like
my brother than a child.”
“Hmm…”
Sian and Stiel were shocked to hear the secret of their world’s
history but quickly came back to their senses. Stiel nodded.
“Hmm…”
“It was weird that I considered even those I was close with as non-
humans. I thought I lost my feelings, but it didn’t feel that way when I
met Groyn, Liviath, or you. Now I realize what it was. We only see
each other as humans because we actually are. That’s why we view
others as monkeys.”
“Then… the people on the other continent. Are they all humans? Are
they all strong as us?”
Lagaope laughed.
“Huh?”
“We aren’t born strong. I can probably explain about the <Nobles>
here also.”
“Oh.”
“Yes, there are many but I’ll explain it with the power.”
The limit is set by the world, so it’s not possible to overcome it.
“Right. It will require at least Ra-Bander level of talent and skills for
monkeys to switch out their blood. It’s impossible to achieve when
the blood ratio is too low. I will now explain some things about the
<Nobles>.”
The people in the other world weren’t all strong. They were born with
the same power but different blood.
They divided themselves like the way people did here, with Grand
Banders and Ra-Banders.
“So, it’s easier if you consider <Nobles> as another name for Ra-
Banders. All the others are common people. We call them <Nobles>
because they have proven their nobility.”
“That’s weird.”
“It’s the same word but it means different things. And there are a lot
of instances where nobles and commoners fall in love with each
other. We are of the same kind.”
“I see.”
“Why is that?”
“There are not many Ra-Banders here, but we have a lot back where
I come from. It’s not easy, but there’s still a lot of them. As you know,
not all Ra-Banders are same. That’s why we divide it into different
ranks.”
Sian was intrigued as it was the first time he had heard of such a
world.
“So, you must know about <Nobles> then. I think the leader of
Rosharan must have met one from the continent. Or, they came here
from that continent.”
He did not know all of the races and some lived really long so there
was a chance that they came over before all the passageways were
blocked. Besides, Chrona was more generous toward Harijans than
Dragona.
“I understand.”
Lagaope seemed to realize who was behind the ruined Kingdom and
smiled.
‘It probably was the Narija-level race… too bad they got caught up
with Sian.’
“No, I can’t do that. It’s all random. I can only do one thing.”
After asking a few more questions, Sian asked his final question.
Lagaope answered, “That’s the main part now. We… are going back.
To where I was born.”
He was only a Baron, the weaker of the nobles, but he knew what he
saw. It was a suicide attempt with his current numbers. It would take
a million years to have enough numbers to cross. Besides, with the
age limit at only 300 years, there wasn’t enough time for them. They
couldn’t grow powerful enough to hunt down even the Six-Horned
Harijans. He could not grow any stronger either.
His world did not have magic. The individuals back home used were
so strong that they did not need the help of magic. But these
monkeys were weak and that made them study to gain more power.
“Is that possible?” Sian asked as he felt the sheer power through the
memory.
“We wouldn’t be doing this if it wasn’t. There’s a way, and that’s why
<Herrantor> exists.”
Stiel asked, “Then why is the group a secret? I don’t see any reason
for it to be.”
Lagaope answered, “It isn’t a secret. I just didn’t tell anyone who’s
not involved.”
“Oh.”
Stiel nodded. These were different beings who could play king
among the monkeys. Sian thought about ways to pass them and
came to an assumption.
“Are you… trying to use some teleportation magic?” Sian asked, but
Lagaope shook his head.
“Why is that?”
“That’s only possible when both sides have the exact coordinates.”
<What is it?>
<I only see something red instead of the destination.>
Lagaope turned to the open portal. The portal displayed its original
destination, but on top of that was someplace else.
<BLOCK IT!>
All the other experiments had the same results. As the distance
increased, it connected to <Aptental>.
<If we don’t set the coordinates on the other end, all teleportation
portals will connect to <Apental>. It’s because <Apental> exists half
a dimension below ours, and it sucks the end destination into it if it
isn’t specified.>
They finally realized that teleporting back home was not a viable
method. However, Takion kept studying about how to use the place.
With Limainu in their group, they managed to create the portal that
allowed them to enter, but not to come out; it was named <Tasha-
Dagon>.
“Ugh.”
It was a simple test by the Magical Council, but learning the truth
made Sian feel disappointed.
“I’m sorry that you got mixed into it. We didn’t mean for it to happen
that way.”
Sian couldn’t guess what it was but Lagaope shook his head.
“Hmm.”
“You don’t need to know if you won’t join, don’t you think? I think
you’ve heard enough to decide if you wish to join. I’ll tell you
everything if you decide to join us. This offer also applies to you too,
Stiel.”
Sian and Stiel paused to think, but Lagaope smiled, already knowing
the outcome.
“Can I go later?” Sian asked carefully. He had his family here but if
they died, then he would be left alone. He thought it might be good to
go when that time came. However, Lagaope shook his head.
“No, we are running out of time. Our plan is nearing completion. You
will not have a chance to come over if you miss this.”
“Hmm…”
He knew that Sian would not leave his family behind and he didn’t
seem as lonely as the other superhumans. However, he didn’t want
to force him.
Sian was relieved to hear that Stiel had decided to stay. He now
knew what his feelings toward her were, and he had been worried
that she might leave.
“Are you sure?” Sian asked. He had family here, but Stiel had no one
other than him.
“Oh.”
Lagaope smiled.
“No, it’s not something I can force on you. It’s good if you can live
happily here.”
Lagaope and his people did not want to live here. But if Sian loved
life here, there was no need to move.
“I’ll send you the orbs once they are finished. It will be done before
our project is complete. It’s our last gift to you.”
Sian returned the artifact that Lagaope gave to him and Lagaope
disappeared.
They had learned the truth of the continent’s history but nothing
changed. Sian and Stiel spent peaceful days together after Lagaope
left them. It was a while later that they heard from him via a small
box and letter.
Rian brought a box and a letter to Sian, who was spending time with
Stiel.
“I like it here… besides, old man Narasha won’t like the idea of me
going out.”
“Is this…?”
Stiel rolled over from the other side of the bed, checked the box, and
found a piece of paper.
-Writer: Lagaope
-Instructions:
1. Put the orb in a bathtub in a safe place. You need a lot of water
so it might work better if you throw it down into a lake.
2. Soul Transfer Orb 1.15 will activate once it senses the target’s
death.
3. When the target is dead, the orb will sense the target’s death
and begin reviving the target starting from the bones to the
soul. It has all the ingredients so it just needs to be supplied
with water and it will be done in 3 days.
4. Target will be revived to a state before death but does not
prevent death from old age.
‘Hmm…’
It was a weird explanation but it seemed okay. It was good that the
orbs didn’t require any descendants. Sian then picked up the letter; it
was very long.
I hope you have checked the gift already. I have good and bad news.
The good news is that we have completed the orbs for your family.
Like I said before, it cannot prevent death by age, but it is limited
when used on a race other than ours.
“Huh??”
Sian became confused and looked back in the box. It had four orbs.
He continued reading the letter.
We tried multiple times, but your orb kept failing. I think there’s
something different between you and us, but we couldn’t find out
exactly what.
We have included 3 of the version 1.15 orbs for your family and a
version 1.03 orb for Stiel.
It looked like you two would create a child soon enough. I think the
orb can be used after that so we did not create a new orb for Stiel.
We lacked ingredients as we failed to make yours multiple times.
Besides, I don’t think there’s a chance that you will die in that land
after we leave. I’m sorry that I did not fulfill my promise, but I hope
you are satisfied.
It is about time for us to leave, so I’m sorry I can’t hand this over to
you myself. The chance I mentioned before has come earlier than
expected.
We’ll leave this land soon, I think we will be on our way by the time
you’re reading this letter. It has been a pleasure knowing you. I hope
you live happily with Stiel.
P.S. We might meet again if we fail, but please pray that we won’t
meet again.
“Hmm.”
He looked closely and saw that one of the gems was different from
the other three. Yet, he couldn’t complain as they were free. Sian
took Stiel’s gem into his void storage and threw the gems for his
family into the lake.
“…???”
Stiel quickly went closer to him, but Sian stared into the distance with
a grim expression. Stiel could not feel it yet as it was coming from a
distance. However, it also meant that power was not something to be
ignored as it could reach this far.
He also felt his feeling activating again, even more strongly than
before.
“Be careful!”
The Great Magical Council claimed that they would never allow
anything like the undead invasion to happen again, and thus they
began building this rune on the plains. When this rune was complete,
it would block the passageway for all Harijans into Tian and Taran.
Every country agreed to the rune being installed and it was now
almost over.
The knights who were in the construction project were in awe of the
rune that stretched on for miles. They did not know much about
magic but they never heard of such a giant rune.
The knights spoke as they stared at the giant sphere. The sphere
made of sheet metal was huge.
“If we place it there, it will buy us time while we finish expanding the
Wall.”
“Let’s move it. But the Council is really amazing, how did they make
such a thing?”
They were warriors, but they couldn’t move such a gigantic sphere
by hand so they used a mysterious machine provided by the Council
and placed it into the center of the rune.
“Are you all ready?” Lagaope asked his people in front of him.
Everyone looked worried. A sharp-looking man that looked
uncomfortable asked, “Hey, Lagaope. Are you sure it’s okay this
time?”
“You said that 400 years ago. Everyone died. You would’ve died if it
wasn’t for Con-Rad.”
“Haha… but you are all alive here. We had orbs anyway. We have
orbs this time also, so don’t worry.”
“Hmph.”
“We won’t have another chance. This one is better than 400 years
ago.”
“Right.”
Among the many things he tried, those were the worst. It was too
hard to run through Sky Mountain in a tunnel and there was no way
the Seven-Horned would not sense it, so the project was
abandoned. The flying plan also turned out to be problematic. As
they went to higher altitudes, some unknown force kept dragging
them down. They could fly as high as about eight miles, but that was
still within range of Chrona or Dragona.
It was a plan that wasted a whole year’s budget from the old Empire.
Lagaope grinned.
“But shouldn’t we take that new one and Stantahl with us?”
Robanotton asked curiously. The others seemed to share the same
idea. They were busy preparing for the plan so they had never met
them, except for Liviath.
“Why?”
“Well, it was their choice. Besides, Mister Sian will live here with no
problems. He’s one of a kind.”
Lagaope then checked the egg going up on the rune through the
video.
Liviath asked because he saw the rune’s sheer scale. Even his
<Way>, the <Sun>, would not be enough. He couldn’t believe one
egg could do such a job.
“Don’t worry. It’s not just some egg. Get ready, it’s going to start.”
“Evacuate! Hurry!”
The steel orb began to shine as soon as it was placed above the
rune. The light from the rune shot onto the orb and made it shine.
The weak beam of light shone stronger and the orb was now shining
as if it was the sun itself. But the light was being swallowed by the
rune and then the large rune itself began to shine.
“Something’s starting!”
A tremor that felt like the pounding of a heart became louder. Then
people realized something was wrong. This was not a pulse from the
rune. It was more like…
“Isn’t this like a footstep?”
“Huh? No way. It’s not like a mountain’s walking over,” the knight
replied. They couldn’t see anything happening nearby. The only thing
they saw was Sky Mountain and the Great Forest. If they could feel
the tremor so far away that they couldn’t even see the object, then
they couldn’t imagine how big it could be.
And there was Sian who was watching it happen. He ran here as his
feeling had guided him.
Sian sighed. But Stiel didn’t care as she had already seen something
interesting.
It wasn’t visible to the knights but Sian and Stiel saw it perfectly. It
was a gigantic monster walking toward this place. It had much
thicker horns than the cow monster Sian fought before. After looking
at the monster’s angry face, Sian realized what kind of orb was
placed on the rune.
The people below were mindlessly running away as they saw the
monster. This place was too far from the Wall so there was no one
around to defend against such a monster. Besides, those kinds of
monsters were usually handled by Groyn, but he wasn’t here.
When the monster arrived at the rune, it carefully grabbed the egg
with its mouth. But the egg had done its job.
“It’s in!”
“No, I just did what the window told me to do. This Aksarai is really
something.”
“Isn’t it great? I was worried that she wasn’t related to you, but I
believed in you, Con-Rad. It would not have worked if you didn’t
have experience on reviving.”
“Right.”
Level: 399
Bander: …
Exar: …
“I think I can beat Nekra with this, but is it true that he died?”
“Yes, he died.”
If Nekra lost, he would lose too. They were both blocked by the
barrier. But it looked like that Sian had passed through.
“Then… isn’t it simpler to ask him to join and try to fight our way in?”
Con-Rad answered as he didn’t like the current plan.
“Did you lose memory when you came back? You know it’s not
something we can deal with.”
Yet, it failed. As the offspring let out a wail, Chrona came in seconds
and their plan was over. The one breath that she fired killed
everything.
Con-Rad smiled.
“Hehe, weren’t you sad when I died? I saw you wailing like a
madman before I died.”
“…I wouldn’t have cried like that if I knew you were going to be
revived. Besides, how can you not be sad when you lose the first
friend you got after coming here? Don’t say I was the only one who
was sad.”
The plan 400 years ago failed miserably, but they discovered one
thing.
Chrona never strayed too far from her offspring. She did stay out of
offspring’s range to avoid the offspring going rampant with Chrona
pressuring them, but she didn’t stay too far out either.
If she heard the wail of its offspring, she would come rushing in.
And that was when Chromat wailed sadly into the skies.
“Haha…”
Sian let out a hollow laugh as he looked at the rune. It was creating
the red hole that dragged him in, but it was large enough to swallow
the monster that was trapped in the rune.
The monster was now wailing as it was attacked by people around it.
However, since the monster was also strong, it was still holding up.
“Huh? Isn’t that the place that you were dragged into? So, that’s
the… dangerous place at the other continent?”
“Didn’t you kill everything in there? I guess it’s nothing much then.”
Stiel thought Sian had killed everything in it before coming out of the
hole, but she was mistaken.
“No, I barely managed to kill the things that were closer to me and
got out.”
The hole that dragged him in was small, but the world inside wasn’t
like that. It was vast and was full of monsters. There were also
monsters who were as strong as Sian back then. He quickly dealt
with monsters around him and got out before he got attacked by
those monsters.
Even that short fight almost killed him. He thought it might be okay
since he had become much stronger, but it wasn’t.
‘It’s still dangerous.’
The problem now was the reason for installing it. It was too much to
kill the monster. Sian figured it was enough to even hold back the
Seven-Horned for a moment.
“Dammit…”
“What is it?”
Sian quickly took out Karnine and activated the magic. After putting
Stiel into <Somazran> where she was captured in before, Sian
began running away at an incredible speed.
Even without considering the seven horns on its head, its movement
and size proved how powerful it was.
Sian knew what it was. He saw it in the memory.
‘That’s… gigantic.’
It felt different to see the monster in real life. Sian then realized what
the monster that was thrown into the hole was. It was different from
Nekra’s memories, so he didn’t recognize it at first.
It was Chrona’s offspring that Lagaope had thrown into the rune. It
was what made Chrona come running for it.
-Chrona will not use her full power as she is close to Dragona’s
territory. She will take time to rescue her offspring.
-Pass through the Great Forest before Chrona comes back to guard
it. Chrona will not go after you once you cross it.
There were some six horns within Chrona’s territory, but that was
okay. The weaker ones could be taken care of by Groyn and others
while Con-Rad could take care of the stronger ones.
The Kal-Gul that was most bothersome had been eradicated a long
time ago, and so was Nekra.
400 years ago, they wanted to kidnap the offspring, put it into
Dragona’s territory, and bail, but they didn’t expect Chrona to be that
close and powerful. They knew Chrona was powerful, but just
knowing it and actually facing the monster were two different stories.
That’s why they tried to make the two Seven-Horned fight each
other, but they had to change their plans drastically after that. Two
Seven-Horns fighting meant doomsday for all.
That was why they just planned to pin her down for a while. It was a
petty plan, but even such a plan was hard to achieve against the
powerful Chrona.
“RUN!”
They ran out at great speed. With Con-Rad in the lead, they ran
through the Great Forest. They were destined to die if they were
captured. They didn’t know why she didn’t follow them after the
Great Forest, but Aksarai never gave them wrong information. They
just needed to cross the forest.
Sian watched Chrona looking into the sphere at its offspring. As she
arrived, she opened her mouth wide.
‘Ugh, is she going to fire?’
Sian flinched, but Chrona then turned toward Sky Mountain. Then
she closed its mouth. It looked like she had given up on using the
beam that Sian saw in the memory. Chrona then struck the red
sphere with its front leg.
It was a simple strike, but a deafening sound came from it and the
sphere shattered into pieces. The evil energy began pouring out at
once. Sian frowned as he was familiar with the energy.
But it wasn’t just the energy. The monsters inside stopped attacking
the offspring and began crawling out to attack Chrona.
When Chrona destroyed the sphere, the whole thing grew even
wider. So countless monsters began crawling out from it and
attacked Chrona.
Chrona seemed like she wasn’t using her full power either. After she
killed each monster, she then put her head into the hole and grabbed
the offspring that stopped moving due to fatigue with her mouth and
dragged it out.
Sian was fascinated as Chrona was for sure caring for its offspring,
but she remained so calm. What was more fascinating was that he
wasn’t running away. The feeling was telling him he needed to do
something here.
The magic was more focused on buying time than destroying it. It
was powerful enough to crush the city, but it was nowhere close to
fight against the Seven-Horned.
Sian began thinking about what was going on. The sphere that
Chrona destroyed wasn’t closing and looked like it would not close if
it was left like that. Monsters were still crawling out from it.
“…”
Yet as he thought about it, there was no need for Chrona to do such
a thing. She just needed to return with her offspring.
The world was doomed if that was not closed. Sian would survive,
but others wouldn’t. Either way, it was no big deal. He was strong
enough to close the hole from outside easily now. Sian then began
approaching the rift.
‘It’s much easier than I thought. I just need to be careful to not go in.’
He crushed the ones charging at him and sliced the stronger ones
with Karnine. He didn’t realize the power of it yet, but it was much
more useful than he imagined. It cut down anything it touched and it
transferred the energy from what it killed to the user.
After killing all the monsters rushing at him, he arrived in front of the
red sphere. It had been damaged by Chrona, and it had ripped the
space itself.
Sian realized his sixth sense was useful yet again. It would take at
least a month to repair the damage if monsters kept coming out, and
it meant doom for everyone here.
Sian began slashing his sword to destroy what Chrona had done. It
seemed like it would close by itself if the damage was gone.
“It’s refreshing.”
Sian began killing the monsters again as the sphere began to close.
It was much easier this time as the number of monsters coming at
him had decreased drastically.
However, Sian then realized the number had decreased too much.
‘Huh?’
“Dammit…”
Chrona threw down her offspring after she got away from Dragona’s
territory. She turned to her offspring that was barely breathing on the
ground. Chrona let out her anger.
<It’s the same… I should’ve raised it for longer. I should just eat it
here and vent my anger out on them.>
She knew who they were. She just left them alone as she couldn’t
cross, but they tried to take her food. And those insolent things even
tried to attack her. She couldn’t open it herself if the door was to
close, so she pinned it so that it would not close. Chrona left it open
so she could eat the offspring and jump in afterward.
<Fool. You fell for the trap 400 years ago again…>
<Who is that?>
It wasn’t because it had her tooth that she gave to her guard. It was
because that monkey was able to kill her guard. Chrona was really
surprised. He still had few more barriers to pass, but he would
become as strong as her if he did it. He was walking down the same
path she had walked down thousands of years ago.
That was why Chrona became interested. If she made him her guard
and ate him when he grew a bit stronger… she would gain
unimaginable power. Then she’d be able to defeat Dragona and
Liona and then run up to the north.
If she threatened him with fear and reward, he too would succumb to
her will.
Chrona felt pain coming from her face. It was the first pain she felt
after hundreds of years ago when she fought Dragona.
Chrona raised her leg to strike, but she panicked. The monkey had
disappeared.
<WHAT!>
<AAAAAAAARGHHH!>
Chrona let out a terrifying roar full of anger. She began venting her
rage at the space in front of her and soon, a roar came out from
beyond Sky Mountain.
<KKKWWAAAAAAK!!!>
There were traces of people that ran through the Great Forest. All
the Six-Horned she had been raising in her territory had been killed.
Chrona was enraged. This humiliation was something she had never
felt for thousands of years.
<GGGGRRRR…>
She chased after the tracks, but the intruders had long passed the
Great Forest. She had wasted too much time. She didn’t want to
chase after them out of the forest, so she began destroying the
Great Forest.
<AAAAARGH!>
However, there were no more beings powerful enough for her to vent
her stress on, and the weaker Harijans had fled in multiple
directions. Some ran straight to the Great North Wall and it made the
humans panic. Luckily, they had already prepared as they heard the
news of Six-Horns appearing, so that allowed them to defend with
ease.
Her fist that was powerful enough to crush steel, became powerless.
In addition, her legs that allowed her to jump over buildings became
weak like a little girl’s.
She checked her body, but there was nothing wrong. It was just that
her body circulation had slowed down drastically. But her recovery
was quicker than before.
Stiel was curious as to why Sian did this to her, but she focused on
regenerating first. After a while, she opened her eyes.
“…Huh?”
Stiel glanced back at the voice. It was Sian, but he looked quite
different than what she remembered.
“Sian…?”
It felt as if he had become more mature and a bit stronger, but Stiel
couldn’t realize what the difference was.
Stiel checked on herself again and found that nothing was wrong.
“Yeah, it’s okay. So, where are we? I don’t think this is where we
were… are we in the Great Forest?” Stiel asked as she looked
around. Sky Mountain had no grass as it glowed white. But the place
here had a lot of mysterious trees. Stiel had gone through many
experiences, but she had never seen such a thing. That was why
she guessed it was the Great Forest. It was the only place she
hadn’t visited yet.
Sian shook his head. “No. I’m not sure where we are.”
“Huh?”
“One thing’s for sure… we will have a hard time going back home.”
“?”
Stiel couldn’t understand what he was saying, but Sian had begun
walking.
“Let’s walk. We can’t stay here for too long. I’ll explain on the way.”
“Yeah, probably.”
Stiel knew nothing really went the way Sian wanted. He wanted
peace and prosperity, but he frequently ran into trouble everywhere
he went. It’s not like he looked for such troubles, but he was put into
such predicaments no matter what he did.
“So… you were closing the hole and Chrona was standing there
beside you?”
“Yeah.”
“So, you thought you couldn’t run, so you slapped her face and ran
into Apental?”
Thus, he jumped.
He realized two things right after. One good, and one bad.
The good thing was that the rift had completely closed and blocked
the entrance from Chrona. The bad thing was that he couldn’t
escape from it either. The trace had disappeared, and he didn’t dare
to open it up again. If it allowed Chrona to chase him in, that was
going to be the end of him.
As Sian began fighting off the monsters rushing at him from all sides,
all of the traces had disappeared and Sian was now trapped in a
dangerous land.
<I knew it. Besides, it will be hard for even you, Mister Sian. To
protect us all while we go through.>
Finally, he finally found the exit. It was at a small well in the corner of
Apental.
His instincts told him that it was the exit he had been searching for.
The well was located at the bottom-most floor of the eight-floor
world.
Luckily, he got out of there in one piece. After checking that the place
was safe, he took Stiel out.
“That’s the whole story. I don’t know where we are, but I think it’s
probably somewhere on the continent that Lagaope called home.”
Stiel looked at Sian sympathetically. He tried to close the sphere to
save people, but he was swept into a fight with countless monsters
alone for a long time.
Sian knew what Stiel was thinking and said, “Don’t worry, I got used
to it. I’m okay now. What’s important is now.”
“Yeah. I want to stay with them until they pass away at least.”
“Oh, that should be okay. When I went into the sphere back then…
you told me that time didn’t pass that much outside, right?”
“Yeah.”
“It was longer back then. I think that time in Apental is different than
the outside world. My guess is that time hasn’t passed that much
here.”
“That’s good if it’s true. But how are you going to go back?”
Stiel looked at Sian with hopeful eyes. If Sian had overcome life-
threatening situations in Apental and had broken through the
barrier…
Sian shook his head.
“Oh.”
“Really?”
Sian nodded.
Sian and Stiel walked through the endless forest and discovered
some things.
“Yeah.”
Unlike near the exit of Apental, they met various monsters as they
walked further in. Strange frogs spat out a weird liquid that melted
insects, which the frogs then licked up to consume their prey. The
green and black trees tried to capture Sian with their roots when he
walked near them.
The common thing between them was that they all tried to consume
each other. It was fierce.
“Right. I thought this world was filled with powerful monsters,” Stiel
answered as she remembered Lagaope saying that the land here
had countless superhumans. It made Sian and Stiel think that the
world was filled with powerful Harijans.
Even now, insects did not dare to approach Stiel who began
emanating her energy to turn them away.
“Maybe this tree has a type of poison that can kill a superhuman…”
“I think it’s just some tree.”
“…”
“Did Lagaope lie to us?” Stiel asked, but Sian shook his head. There
was no reason to do such a thing.
Stiel nodded. Nothing was was certain right now. They had to find
someone living here to understand. Yet, the problem was that they
could not find anyone living around here. If there was a human living
here, there would be some type of trace, but they couldn’t find any.
In this vast world, Sian didn’t think he’d find Lagaoope so easily and
thus he decided to take it slow. With no clues, however, he didn’t
even know where to start.
Sian began running and Stiel followed. After a while, the trees
started clearing and they soon reached a small hill. After that hill was
a vast plain. Sian and Stiel managed to succeed with the first part of
their plan. There were human-looking figures standing in the plains,
but there was something that was more eye-catching.
There were many animals in front. One looked like a rhinoceros, but
it was much bigger. Each one was about as big as a house and they
had strong armor on their backs. The weirder thing was what was
the carriage itself. It was big as a house, and it was created with
some unknown, durable-looking material. It seemed like the carriage
was too heavy for any horse to pull it.
The fire did not damage the carriage as they were easily reflected.
The defense became relieved as they discovered that the carriage
was safe and fought against the small green ones. It looked like
green ones were weak in close combat, so the human-looking ones
tried to approach them. However, they were then blocked by a
swarm of insects. Sian had never seen such insects before, but the
outer carapace made the insects look very powerful. A Master
warrior would have a hard time fending one off.
Sian and Stiel watched them for a while… Then they realized
something.
They could not tell how powerful those human-looking ones were
compared to the people back home, but the group had two Grand
Bander-level beings while Tian Kingdom itself only had a total of four
Grand Banders. All the other younger ones were all Masters.
Sian and Stiel then noticed something interesting. The green ones
began mumbling and some of the insects pulled out of the fight
before they began charging at the carriage. They were going straight
toward the animals that were pulling the carriage.
The leader of the defensive lines realized this and shouted, “Leeron!
Dammit! Have all the Ravas crouch!”
Sian and Stiel couldn’t find out who Leeron was, but they managed
to find out what the animals were called.
The monsters curled their six legs underneath them and crouched in
round form. As these Ravas crouched, the insects jumped up on
them and began attacking.
However, the armor of these Ravas was very strong. The insect
attacks that even worked against those Grand Banders didn’t seem
to have any effect. It left some small cuts, but that was it.
The green ones seemed to realize this and recalled the insects. As
they were joined by the insects again, they began to fight more
fiercely.
The advantage was shifting toward the green ones. The insects were
dying, but more came out from the forest and the defense line was
slowly losing.
There were the beings that looked like humans, and there were the
small green dwarvish people that were trying to eat the human-like
beings.
“Unless those green ones are like Lagaope’s relatives and are about
three thousand years old… I think the carriage people would know
better.”
“Okay.”
Sian and Stiel jumped out. Sian towards the green ones, and Stiel to
the insects.
They treaded carefully since they knew it was <Graan> territory, but
they were soon being chased by the Graans and a fight had erupted.
Ravas were good at pulling carriages for long periods of time, but
they weren’t the fastest.
It would be their end; they were not even close to Viscount Locke’s
estate. Parhum felt sorry for the people who followed him here.
‘I’m sorry…’
“?”
“!!”
“Hah, this isn’t even close.”
Parhum could not let down his guard as he knew what that woman
was. She didn’t have the usual energy, but it was very obvious.
Not all nobles were bad. There were some good nobles who looked
after the commonfolk.
That was the problem. He did not know what this noble was like. It
could be worse if they met a bad noble than fighting a group of
Graans.
This noble woman was a destructive kind and it seemed she wasn’t
satisfied even after crushing all the Antaines around them. Then,
Parhum turned to another noble who was a little farther away.
The man knocked out all Graans instantly as he landed. He did not
kill Graans, so it seemed like he was on the nicer side.
Parhum felt he was growing more tense after all Graans and
Antaines were taken care of.
“Why is he so tense?”
“Hmm. I thought nobles were common here? Why did you let them
live?”
“We only have business with these people here. I’m not interested in
them.”
“Ugh.”
Stiel still was fascinated by Sian. Maybe his strength made him more
generous towards the weak, especially when the weak did not do
any harm to Sian.
“What’s important is that we have to talk with them. Let’s go. I think
we speak the same language.”
“Hello.”
“Oh… uh, let me introduce myself. I’m Sian. I need to ask you some
questions.”
Sian was awkward with formalities and quickly tried to dive straight
into his business. Luckily, they could understand each other.
Parhum felt the tension coming back. The man didn’t feel like a
noble so he had relaxed a bit, but the woman was like a standard of
all nobles. She had the prideful approach and arrogance.
“It’s our first time here. We don’t know anything so we got a lot to
ask… are you in a hurry?”
“Uh… we are…”
“So, that’s what you call it? Yeah, that. Let us take a ride too. Sian, is
it okay?”
“Is it okay? We’ll take care of any attackers in return. We won’t ask
for a free ride.”
Parhum could not refuse the offer. The noble woman didn’t look like
she’d accept ‘no’ as an answer, and there was no telling what she
might do if he refused.
Besides, the offer to protect the Muvakal was also very tempting.
They were not even halfway to their destination yet.
“Okay. But if you are lacking space…”
“No way. We should still have plenty of room. Please come this way.”
They did not have much space, but Parhum did not mention it. Some
died from the last battle so he thought he could clear their rooms and
arrange it so that he could lend the best room to these nobles.
“So… you are moving together with your people to another noble
estate?”
“So, why are you traveling around instead of settling down in one
place? Aren’t those attacks common? It seems dangerous.”
“And… those nobles don’t hunt down those monsters?” Sian asked.
Those Graans and Antaines were powerful enough to put Grand
Banders in danger, but it wasn’t much of a threat against
superhumans. It wasn’t like Ra-Sian where all superhumans were
not interested in protecting humans. Sian could not understand the
superhumans who had those monsters roam the land outside their
estates if they did protect their land.
“Huh?”
“Well, yeah.”
There were some cases where humans became nobles after training
deep within the forest as those with great talents would allow them to
become nobles quickly without any help of Akra. It was weird that
these nobles had no Akra coming from them, but it made sense now.
That was the start of the weird situation made by the superhumans
of this world.
The commoners needed protection and the nobles were only ones
who could provide it.
It was good for the human race for the nobles to protect commoners
since all nobles were once commoners. The talent to become a
noble could not be inherited by the children of nobles, so they did not
automatically become nobles.
But that was only considering the race altogether. Individual nobles
were not interested in protecting the commoners. There were no
benefits to gain from them.
Nobles only trusted one thing. It was not political power, wealth, or
information. Their own physical strength. Anything else was
irrelevant.
That was why there was no point in having political power or forces.
And that was the same for wealth. Nobles took everything from the
weak and the strong took over everything. Nobody protected the
commoners. There was no country here, so there were no such
rules. These powerful beings did not abide by any laws as they were
impossible to enforce.
That was why nobles only sought to become stronger and only
focused on that.
They needed talent, effort, time and a lot of other things to become
stronger.
Yet the commoners could not provide any of that. That was why the
nobles did not care about protecting those commoners.
The power of the human race began to dwindle. The nobles grew
stronger, but the commoners became weaker. The nobles then
began to grow concerned. Not many races were powerful enough to
fight them, but it was not zero. If the other races joined forces, the
human race would be wiped out.
That was when the Duke and the others joined together.
But ‘to some extent’ was too vague. They did take up the duties, but
they had no rights. Even if the commoners they looked after became
nobles, it only meant that they would have one more competitor. The
world was too dangerous to look after all the commoners.
Those words became pointless as the nobles did not follow the law,
hid themselves, or only protected the commoners under their family’s
care.
<If you abandon the duty to protect the commoners because they
can’t provide anything, I’ll give you one. You will try your best to
protect them with this.>
Duke Lorvall then gathered his talented people and created magic.
“So, nobles and commoners alike learn <Akrata>. It has two effects.”
“Ohh.”
“It’s because of the second effect. You can transfer the <Akra>
stacked by <Akrata> to someone else. The downside is that it can
only be transferred to the nobles.”
“Huh? Then…”
They received <Akra> in return for protecting the nobles within their
boundaries. The <Akra> gathered by commoners was very little, but
once collected for a long enough time period, that accumulated into
sizable amounts.
Stiel then became curious and asked, “That’s weird. Then it doesn’t
make sense that you’re walking around like that. No noble will allow
you to leave. If strength is that important, then there’s no way that
the nobles would let the useful commoners leave them.”
Duke Lorvall was also prepared for that and made a new rule.
There was no need for protection if there was no danger. That was
why the nobles let those hostile races loose around the estates they
protected. It made the commoners to ask for protection reluctantly as
they had no way to fight against them.
The nobles did actively hunt down any Rotan level races with their
joint forces. Even Narija levels were hunted down if they became too
powerful.
So the lands between the estates were now left with monsters of
Narija levels. Duke Lorvall knew that too much restraint on the
nobles would make them revolt so he left them alone on this.
“So, the noble from the estate you left was a bastard.”
“…”
Parhum smiled bitterly without saying anything.
One was where they were left without any protection and decided to
seek out other estates even with the danger of traveling.
The other was to wait for nobles who might be interested anyway.
Baron Raul’s estate was the latter case, which Parhum came from.
However, the nobles who sought such small estates were usually
one of two kinds.
The good ones included those who did not care about Akras being
provided and happily protected the commoners. The bad ones came
to such estates to play King.
The bad one was more prominent in these cases and the place
Parhum came from was no different.
Baron Raul did provide protection, but he took the maximum amount
of Akra possible. Overall, this was fine since Akra was provided as
payment for protection.
The problem was that Baron Raul was a terrible man. He came all
the way to the remote lands as he could not bear the idea of having
someone sitting on top of him. The land he came to had nothing
important and Apental, the dangerous place, was nearby. Thus, the
land had been abandoned.
As Parhum was faced with sending his daughter to the Baron’s bed,
he took his last option.
<Migration>.
It was a right that was given to the commoners, but it was also very
dangerous.
Sian spoke as he thought about his homeland. At least the laws that
Duke Lorvall set helped this world to at least maintain it.
“There are two reasons. We can’t last too long without noble
protection because hostile races also group up to attack. The
village… is a non-starter because of that issue. We have to be on
the move constantly. There are some commoners who grouped up
as you mentioned, but they too cannot settle down and make
villages.”
“Why is that?”
That was why commoners who decided to live without protection had
to move constantly.
“Wow…”
“It’s only confined to the lands in this region. Other places might be
different in some ways.”
They talked more afterwards. Sian asked about Lagaope but he got
nothing out of it. Sian decided to head to the Viscount’s estate to
gather more information. After Parhum went out, Sian talked with
Stiel about their future plans.
“Let’s head to that Locke Estate first. But I’m curious what my power
would get me to.”
But this place had a lot of superhumans and she was curious about
where she ranked among them.
“Hmm… you look relaxed. Aren’t you curious how powerful you are
here?”
“Hmm, he did.”
“…”
“Besides, I’m going to leave this place quietly after I find Lagaope.
Nothing is going to happen. Hahaha!”
‘Hmph.’
Stiel sighed.
Traveling in the Muvakal was very peaceful. Stiel was really bored so
she tried to lure Graans or Barkhans by hiding her powers. It did
attract those Barkhans a few times at first, but after they were wiped
out, they seemed to realize that it was no use and did not come for
them after all.
Stiel then turned her interest to this <Akrata>. She was also
interested in becoming stronger. Parhum agreed to teach Stiel
<Akrata> without hesitation. It wasn’t a secret anyway as all people
knew it.
“It’s not hard. This is more like magic than a skill. Do you mind if you
give me your hand for a second?”
“Sian, is it okay?”
“Because you might get jealous if I touch some other man’s hand.”
“Don’t worry.”
“Already?”
“Yes. The important thing is to receive <Akra>. It will be the seed and
it will grow within you.”
“Hmm… interesting.”
Needless to say, the Akra that was transferred over to her began
spreading through her entire body and began to multiply as it fed on
Stiel’s powerful energies within.
Akra’s true power came from the next step. As it grew in power by
feeding off the energy, it absorbed energy from the surroundings to
empower the user. It also strengthened the body of the user with its
magic.
“Yes. There’s a limit to how much <Akra> can be sent over, but if it is
collected from a lot of commoners, it turns into a huge amount.”
That would result in a huge power, but Parhum shook his head.
“It has its limits depending on the user. Also, the <Akra> sent over by
others die out once it reaches its age, unlike the one that you have
on your own. But its energy remains and it depends on the noble’s
ability to absorb the power.”
“So, does training help absorb that power?” Stiel asked. If the
training had some effect, it seemed it was worth it.
“No, like I said, it’s more like magic. It’s not like you can make
<Akrata> work better. It only depends on the individual’s own power.
You can’t train <Akrata> itself. It creates itself depending on the
user’s power.”
Stiel nodded. This Akra was working like a buff she received from
the priests a long time ago. It granted her more energy and power. It
also circulated constantly throughout the entire body to help
empower the person internally.
“This is really amazing. I wonder how it was created… so, the world
here did change after Lagaope left. Sian, give me your hand.”
“Of course.”
Stiel answered and Sian gave her his hand. Stiel then took his hand
and sent her <Akra> to him.
The Akra was trying to absorb the surrounding energy and Sian
inspected it. It wasn’t bad to become stronger, but Sian grew
disappointed.
The Akra that flowed inside Sian tried to absorb the energy, but it
was overwhelmed by Sian’s blood. A small amount did successfully
reproduce, but it was not even close enough to help Sian grow more
powerful and then it melted away. Sian wasn’t too disappointed
though as it was what he had expected.
“I see… but is there a place where I can get more of this? It will take
time for it to grow within the body.”
Stiel glanced around and turned to Parhum. She was like a predator
hunting for its prey. Sian sighed and stopped Stiel.
“You should take it slow. By the way, the Akra seems to be really
useful. I guess the nobles of a huge estate will collect a lot of
energy.”
“It should… but there are more nobles so they won’t collect a lot.
Higher-ranking nobles do collect more though.”
“I see.”
Sian was very fascinated by this world since it was very different
from his. They soon arrived at their destination.
“Yes.”
“Yes. That is Locke Estate. Have you… not seen the tree either?”
“…”
Parhum was intrigued by Sian and Stiel who had not seen a Ciculus
Tree before.
“It’s complicated.”
Parhum explained.
“We might have managed for a bit longer if we had the tree, but the
Baron’s estate is too small for it.”
“I see.”
“We have to go out to hunt if we don’t have the tree. Crops aren’t
enough.”
Sian nodded.
As they talked more, they got closer to town. And as they got closer,
Sian was now able to see details of the town. The town wasn’t
comprised of buildings. It only had caves that were made by digging
a weaker part of the tree roots. It seemed primitive, but the tree roots
were so large that it seemed like they provided large rooms as
residences.
Besides, the roots were very clean and the people living there also
kept it very clean. So it was like a town of fairies from the fairytales.
“So… how are you going to find a place to live? Do you know the
people living here or something?” Sian asked.
“Haha, no, I don’t. I’ll just find a good place and dig into the tree to
make one. It will take time but we have the Muvakal to stay in while
we do that.”
“I see.”
Sian and Stiel said farewell to Parhum and parted ways. Parhum
thought it was a weird experience as Sian and Stiel weren’t like any
nobles he’d met before.
‘Oh… maybe I should’ve told them this… well, I guess it doesn’t
matter now.’
Parhum said the nobles stayed in the high branches of the tree. Sian
felt powerful energies on the branches. The tree roots that were
revealed above ground was also very large but a lot of people filled
them from within. Sian then realized the answer to one of his
questions.
“I was curious. If they have to get the Akra by hand, it will take too
long if they collected Akra routinely.”
“Right.”
It did seem like the Akra could be transferred via air, but it couldn’t
work from a distance.
“Of course. I can’t look deep into the trunk, but I can see the energy
flowing from the roots to the trunk. I guess it’s flowing to that
Viscount Locke. Or the other Barons below.”
“So it’s like taxes. But this would be easy for larger estates to collect
it then.”
Sian and Stiel walked on the road created by roots. They had no way
to find Lagaope any time soon so they were more relaxed now. Sian
was now thinking of looking around this new world while he was
here.
Then Sian felt something awkward.
“…I think these people are ignoring us. Is that just my feeling, Sian?”
“…”
Stiel spoke and Sian realized where the awkwardness was coming
from.
Rupika scowled at the man and woman who were walking along the
road on the roots.
But it wasn’t only Rupika who was making such a face. Everyone
else was too. The weak were to be despised.
Nobles did not care how strong the commoners were so they only
divided their power amongst themselves, but the commoners also
made divisions between themselves. It was a simple measurement
tool.
<One’s strength.>
It was a simple but clear standard. It applied to the nobles, but it also
applied to the commoners. The weaker ones were looked down
upon and ignored. It was even worse when compared to nobles.
The commoners were afraid of the nobles, but they did not hate
them. They envied them and dreamed of becoming nobles
themselves. If one became a noble, one didn’t need to be good at
anything else. They only needed to be good at ruling, and the only
way to rule was to become stronger.
The commoners also had the power to sniff out the weak via their
Akra.
<Akra resonates with other Akras. With its resonance, one can find
out the amount of Akra the target contains. This amount of Akra is
directly connected to the power of its holder.>
It was the same for the nobles. It was good for commoners because
it allowed them to see who the nobles were and prevented them
from attacking the nobles without knowing. Nobles had very powerful
Akra Resonance that was strong enough make commoners faint.
They did have the ability to hide their powers, but they couldn’t mask
their Akra Resonances.
Those with weak Akra either lacked talent, or were fools trying to
seek out alternative ways to become strong.
The latter was more probable for those two, but it didn’t matter. They
were both weak. They also did not provide enough Akra to the
nobles so the nobles did not like them either. The nobles even
encouraged commoners to discriminate against the weaker ones.
That was why these people were labeled as lowlies and were cast
out to the outer area of the protected estate. Lowlies were afraid that
they might get lynched if they walked to the inner town, so none of
them approached the middle of the town.
Yet these two lowlies were walking proudly in the middle of the Locke
Estate.
The evidence was apparent. There was no Akra Resonance coming
from these people. The woman seemed to have a very slight
resonance, as if it had been only a few days after she had received
Akrata. The man, however, had nothing.
Rupika wasn’t nice enough to let these fools dirty their place. It was
the same for the others.
It was time for someone to step up and do the job. Rupika walked
out and others followed.
Sian and Stiel turned to each other as they found four men
approaching them. It was very refreshing. No one dared to approach
them in their own world. It was Sian’s first time being approached by
someone trying to intimidate and taunt them without any hesitation.
“I don’t know.”
“Hmm… do they not feel the power because we’re from a different
world?”
Sian knew how to hide his power, but he let out some of it just to
scare others to save them from Stiel’s wrath, so it was very
interesting.
“No… I don’t think it’s that. They are too sure of it… there must be
something else. We can ask about that. I remember Zagron… hehe.”
Stiel grinned as she put on her gauntlet. It seemed like these men
were about Grand Bander level. Zagron, the boy that Stantahl the
Fourth brought to show her. It seemed they were strong enough to
pound them with the gauntlet.
Sian quickly held Stiel back and replaced her gauntlets with the steel
stick that Lagaope had given him.
Stiel rambled, “What?! I haven’t tried this, but I don’t think it will feel
as good as the gauntlets.”
“Yes, but if you use that gauntlet to make you feel good, it will kill
them. We’re here to ask a favor so use that instead.”
“…”
“Hah, okay. I guess you don’t appreciate me for trying to put your
present to its best use.”
Stiel then began swinging the stick and approached those men.
“I like the man. Hehe… you guys can fight each other.”
“??”
“Haha… you mad girl. You know that you don’t even have any
resonance? Didn’t your parents teach you that it’s dangerous
outside?”
She wasn’t sure what resonance was, but she could ask slowly. She
thought about taking out her gauntlets in appreciation of reminding
her of her disgusting past, but it didn’t need to end up messy as Sian
said.
“Huh?”
“Why use your mouth when you have a sword? It’s my life motto.”
“AAAAARGGH!”
“Huh?”
But the guy was rolling on the ground with a painful scream instead
of getting knocking out.
That was the reason why Sian gave the stick to her.
“Oh… so this is special. I’ll see what it can do then.”
Stiel then began hacking away at the other three who seemed to be
in shock from behind.
“Yes… ma’am.”
“…”
“But that’s troubling. I guess the people here trust Akra a lot.”
“Huh? No way. I love peace, but it will make others keep jumping at
us. You don’t even have Akra.”
“Yeah, but put that Akra back inside. I know you were trying to
release everything.”
“Anyone would know if you gather it into your hand like that.”
Sian sighed. Stiel was gathering up all her Akra onto her hand as
she heard that people could find out how much Akra was stored
within others. It seemed like she wanted to impersonate a commoner
but Sian wasn’t going to let her do that.
“Ha… okay. I’ll keep them. But it will take a long time for it to grow to
my level.”
Akra was slowly absorbing Stiel’s energy to grow. It would take a
very long time to grow enough to have a powerful resonance that
would suit her level.
“…”
“…”
“By the way… the lord here doesn’t seem to be coming. Isn’t he
supposed to protect the estate?”
There were four men hung upside down on the tree, but no nobles
came down to check on it.
Sian and Stiel then began to walk toward the tree trunk again.
Locke felt the sudden movement of Akra from below and looked
outside. The noble that empowered the Ciculus Tree was very
sensitive to Akra movement within the estate. Locke let out a gasp
as he looked out. There was someone getting beat up mercilessly.
The Akra movement was sent out by him. He was getting beat up so
bad that even Locke himself could not see through it. The woman
was beating up the entire body as if she had been doing this for a
long time. And the stick she was using seemed special that men
were getting severely beat up but none of their bones were broken.
They were just screaming in agony.
Under normal circumstances, he would not have cared. It did not
matter if they did not die. But he couldn’t ignore it because the
woman did not have any Akra Resonance. The speed and skill she
had also made it easy to tell that she was more powerful than Locke
himself. Even without any Akra Resonance, it was obvious.
The woman didn’t seem like a Marquess, but she was at least close
to being a mid-level Count. It was a vague guess without fighting her,
but her skill had proved enough.
The Counts were being careful as it was a critical time these days.
There was no way a Count would come visit a Viscount’s Estate,
especially without any Akra.
There were some who became strong without any help of Akra or a
noble’s protection. It was extremely rare, but it wasn’t impossible.
But these came out of hiding to roam around the world as it was
powerful enough to become a Baron. Locke never heard of one
staying in hiding to train to that level of strength.
The best way to resolve it was to not fight against her, but he still
needed to prepare for the worst.
‘By the way… I should waive their Akra next month. They’ve done
good things. No… I’ll give them a three-month waive to compensate
for that beating.’
If he did not see them getting beaten up, he would’ve probably met
the same fate as he too relied on Akra Resonance. But those four
men allowed him time to prepare.
Kukuru felt unpleasant and kicked the Antaine that he was riding on.
If they did not have enough Antaines, it might allow the Barkhans
from the plains to invade their territory. They needed to replenish
their lost numbers fast. If they allowed an invasion by the Barkhans,
their chieftain would surely kill Kukuru for failing. That’s why Kukuru
walked into the inner forest where they usually never traveled.
There was not much to eat and they had strange power that they did
not like, but it wasn’t time to be picky. They needed to find food and
find what they need to create Antaine.
His subordinates began playing by the water and Kukuru kicked one
of them out of anger. It made him fall into the lake. The others
laughed. But something was weird. He wasn’t coming back out.
Kukuru felt something was wrong and walked into the water to bring
him out. It wasn’t deep enough to drown but the fool was still useful.
Even if he died, he could be used to feed the Antaines.
He was shocked, but he swam for a few seconds before he felt the
ground again and stood up.
It looked like the red atmosphere was the reason. Kukuru decided to
leave and turned to dive back into the water. But the fool called him.
Red monsters that he had never seen before were piled up there. It
seemed terrifying and was not something Kukuru would even dare to
look at, but they were all dead. Kukuru carefully observed them and
became excited.
Kukuru told his fool to go back and fetch the others. There were food
and husks for the Antaines here.
This happened while Sian and Stiel were traveling to the Locke
Estate.
Sian and Stiel glanced around as they walked closer to the tree
trunk. The roots became thicker closer to the trunk and more
powerful people lived further in.
It also looked more pleasant to live up here than below. It had more
amount of energy that allowed for better training.
“I guess humans are all alike. These people are more primitive I
think,” Stiel commented. They were primitive not because they
valued power. It was because they did not care about art or
literature. The obvious outcome of humans that followed after
acquiring prosperity did not apply here because these people only
constantly aimed to become stronger.
As they walked further up, there were no more homes and only a
road. At the end of the road was a big gate by the tree trunk. It was
the place where the nobles lived.
“Uh… sure.”
After passing by, they arrived at a huge room where three men and
one woman were standing.
‘Three of them are Barons… and that man in the middle is the
Viscount.’
Stiel was much more powerful than the Viscount and by comparing
the Viscount to the Baron, he was able to draw a conclusion. As Sian
thought about the rank, they opened up first.
“I’m Sian.”
“Stiel. Hehe.”
Locke was more confused. The woman was surely much stronger
than himself. But that man that followed the noble was very
mysterious. However, he didn’t want to cause trouble by
discriminating against the man so he concentrated on talking.
“So, why are you here? Have you come here to settle down?”
He was worried about that, but it had the highest possibility. There
was a chance that the woman had come here to gather Akra after
learning about the existence of Akra. It seemed she had a small
amount of Akra growing within her.
The estate he cared for had been well-taken care of and a lot of
people lived here. That was what drew these four Barons to come
under him. But it wasn’t enough for a Count, especially when shared.
If this Count decided to settle in, there would be not much Akra left
for them to receive.
He had put in too much work for that. As Locke became nervous, the
woman spoke.
‘NO!’
“Stiel, don’t tease him. We’re here to ask a few things. We thought
only people with some rank would know.”
“Oh… I see.”
“I was serious!”
Locke pretended he did not hear the woman ranting and turned to
the man. It was better to talk with the man who seemed much
weaker.
“Hmm… we are looking for someone.”
Sian began to explain about the man he was looking for. The name,
appearance, and other simple traits. Locke listened to the end asked
back, “Is that all? Say, where he was staying when he was a
Baron… or his special power…”
“…”
“This land is too vast to search with only that information. And there
are too many Barons here. There are at least tens of Barons that
appear and disappear within a year. A new Baron doesn’t mean
much news.”
A Baron was the easiest to become as it was the lowest rank, and by
far had largest death count due to inexperience. This Lagaope
seemed to be a Baron, so the information was lacking.
“Con-Rad?”
“Hm… I’m not sure if that Con-Rad is the same Conrad I know, but I
do know a Duke Conrad.”
Duke Conrad.
A new noble who appeared suddenly five years ago. He was one of
the two most famous names.
Unlike Barons, a Duke was a very rare being to be found in this vast
land. One that barely appeared in tens of years. They were the one
who came at the end of the human race’s limit. There was a way to
gain more strength as humans hit the limit so all Dukes differed in
power, but they were still very powerful compared to other nobles.
Conrad was such a man. After appearing five years ago, he was now
one of the fastest that was growing in power. He was in the eastern
lands, very far from the west where the Viscount was at, but his
name was known even at this place because of his speed and
power.
Also, Dukes were beings that had been blocked by the limit; they
could not grow stronger using Akra and sought other ways to
become strong, meaning all nobles under them benefited from
acquiring Akra with ease. Due to that, no Dukes other than Lorvall
created their own force.
What surprised the world was that Conrad had appeared out of
nowhere.
There was no way for a Duke to just appear all of a sudden. Nobles
who had the potential to become a Duke usually had a large estate
with a countless number of commoners to collect Akra. In fact, most
Marquis estates had a Ciculus Tree that was tall as the sky and large
as a mountain.
That was why the nobles were paying attention to him. No Duke did
that. A normal Duke would have finished doing that even before
becoming one.
The Viscount was surprised to hear that name from the man who
seemed to not know anything. But Sian was excited. He didn’t
expect much, but this was a big lead.
“Hm…”
Sian was disappointed after hearing from Locke that there weren’t
many who knew the exact whereabouts of Conrad.
“It looks like he travels from estate to estate. Nobody knows where
he is until he appears. He was last seen at Count Levathan’s estate.
Would you want to go that way?”
“Then…”
Sian was going to ask where is nearest Count’s estate was, but
someone came into their room calling for the Viscount.
“Viscount!”
It was Baron Gerahim, who was absent from the room. The other
man was someone whom Locke had seen before.
Baron Gerahim was out scouting, so Locke felt something was up.
“What is it?”
“We found him running toward our estate on our way. We heard
about the Alpha from him.”
Baron Raul scoffed at the thought of commoners who left his estate
a while ago.
Baron Raul became a noble when he was about eighty years old. He
was excited at such power and felt like he could do anything. But he
quickly realized he wasn’t as powerful as he thought he was. When
he was a commoner, he was the stronger of the bunch that allowed
him to be arrogant, but he was now weakest of all nobles.
Then Raul felt something ominous from the west of the forest. Raul
knew what that place had and became worried.
Apental was safe as long as no one entered it, but he didn’t like
having such a terrible thing near his land. He got up from his bed
and left behind the girl he slept with and jumped out to check what
was going on.
They were very far away, but its army was advancing toward his
estate.
Raul came back to his room and took up his sword. He thought it
was a good chance to have some fun in a while. But something
made him stop. As they got closer, he managed to look at them in
detail. It wasn’t the same Graans he was used to. They were now
bright red instead of green, and the Antaines in front of them had
very durable looking armor on them. But the last thing was more
obvious. They were letting out an ominous aura.
Raul felt a shiver running through his spines. He realized what was
going on.
Evolution of the race, the biggest concern of all nobles. It was the
birth of the Alpha. It wasn’t something Raul could handle by himself
so he headed for Locke’s estate. It was largest estate within the area
and the closest. He ignored those Antaines charging toward his
estate and fled to Viscount Locke’s estate at full speed.
“This was what happened a few days ago. I met Baron Gerahim
along the way and got here.”
‘Alpha…?’
Sian didn’t know what it was so he decided to ask them when they
were done with their meeting.
“No, but even if it did… it will take long time for the entire race of
Graan to undergo the change, given their traits.”
If Raul was not lying, it seemed like most of Graans had changed.
That was what Locke was most concerned about.
As Sian could not join in on the discussion, he could not resist the
urge to ask.
“…?”
‘It’s better if he makes trouble. I’ll get to know more about that man.’
Some races had no way they will be able to achieve the power of a
<Noble> rank. It didn’t matter how long it passed and how powerful it
got. Theses race were called <Narija>.
It was a race with no <Nobles>. As such, it didn’t pose any threats to
the nobles. It could prove dangerous against the commoners, but not
the nobles.
However, there was one question: why did the nobles want to kill the
Narija race?
It was a rare mutant among the Narija races. There was no telling
when it occurred, but these <Alphas> broke their limits and became
stronger. They were dangerous enough to be a threat to the nobles.
One Alpha did not mean much. Even if one became a noble, it only
meant that it was as strong as a Baron. However, nobles always
were wary of an Alpha’s appearance. If an Alpha were to born, they
needed to be killed when it was weak and nobles constantly scouted
the areas near their estates. As such, there were tens of Alphas that
Viscount Locke killed himself.
It was not known to the commoners, but for the nobles who had lived
long lives and knew what happened thousands of years ago, and
what kind of disaster could occur when an Alpha and the traits of
dangerous races were combined.
The birth of the two dangerous races, <Murakan> and <Swarm>,
represented such disaster.
The human race had been getting weaker by the days because of
the lessening of the commoners, but the nobles, or the
representation of the might of the humans, still stood strong.
The Lorvall family insisted that they must preserve the commoner
group to ensure the survival of the human race, but the insolent
nobles did not care to heed the warning.
<They are getting scared because they will surpass the limit now.>
The ones in the forbidden lands were scary, but it didn’t matter as
long as they avoided going there in the first place. The only other
race that might pose a threat was eradicated by a joint noble force.
The Alpha born from two monster races of the eastern continent was
the culprit.
A race that lived at the eastern end of the peninsula, beasts called
<Murakans>.
Another race that also lived in the east, at the southern coast
peninsula were the parasitic <Swarms>.
These two races almost had no Alphas in their ranks and they were
pushed out to the eastern corner by the other races. However, they
had two distinct traits.
<Murakan> Beasts that ate everything. They were just called beasts
because they had the ability to morph. They absorbed the shape and
power of the prey they consumed. The traits made them seem
strong, but the nobles made this comment: “Pointless.”
Even if they consumed and changed with the shape and power, it
wasn’t any good if they could not become nobles. If they were
strong, they were merely considered as pets. There were some
nobles who captured Murakans and kept them as pets. They fed
them whatever the nobles wanted them to morph into.
And <Swarm>, these shared similar traits to the Murakan, but they
were different. They were very small, silvery insects that crawled the
land with a group of thousands, or millions, like a silvery slime. The
group consumed everything in its path and anything that was
attacked reached a slime-like state as everything would be covered
by millions of those insects.
Their way of becoming powerful was also simple. They used the host
that they consumed to live inside them. They absorbed the
knowledge and power of the prey they consumed and sent it to their
queen. This made the host become one with the swarm, sharing all
the knowledge that the swarm had. But made this comment: “Still
just dirty mud.”
They could not consume or invade the bodies of nobles and even
the race that the Swarms took as a host did not become strong
enough. They were not even considered as pets.
<Eat me.>
Murakans jumped in and ate their own kind, while Swarms took the
Alpha as their queen. That was when the change began. After that,
the race that consumed the Alpha became another Alpha. This
happened to both the Murakans and Swarms.
But there were just too many Swarms and Murakans. This was also
reason why Apental was a forbidden place. The monsters in there
were also Rotan level monsters, but their number was just too much.
The Duke showed off his might without hesitation and began pushing
back at the Murakans and Swarms. The other nobles were shocked
to witness the sheer power of the one who had hit the limit.
Nonetheless, it was still a hard fight. The Duke and other nobles
barely pushed back the Murakans and Swarms into their peninsula
and Duke transferred them into his home via the entrance and
sealed them in.
<What is this?>
The rest was history. Nobles that realized Alpha and a race with
certain traits could be a real threat. Thus, they began using Akrata
and Ciculus Trees to increase their power.
“I see.”
“Yes. The Graans don’t have such dangerous traits, so that’s why
they were left alone. But to see the number of Alphas increase in
that short amount of time…”
Their race was not like Swarm and had no way to increase the
number of Alphas like that. It only had been a month since their
routine scouting. If Raul was correct, these were not Narijas
anymore. They were now Rotans.
“We have all the twins to send messages to the three Viscount
estates and two Baron estates.”
“Understood.”
“Other Barons, go with Baron Raul to check their position and see
which way they are heading.”
“Huh…? Me?”
‘Dammit. This is why I don’t want to deal with the higher ranks.’
Raul was dragged out. As the other Barons walked out, Locke
looked and Stiel and Sian and spoke. If they were leaving, there was
no way to stop them as Stiel was a Count.
“You should leave if you will. This is our duty. If you travel to a
Count’s estate, you might find information about Duke Conrad there.
I would use the twins to ask, but I don’t have any twins that have a
connection with Levadan.”
Sian nodded.
“Yes?”
“What do you mean? Aren’t you a noble? You trace the direction of
Ciculus by Akra.”
“…?”
“Yes. We sense the Akra Resonance coming from Ciculus to find our
ways. It’s not possible for commoners to do that though.”
“Then the map…”
“…”
“Viscount.”
“They are… coming directly toward us. It won’t take that many days
and there are… a lot of Alphas.”
Fortunately, not all the Graans had turned into Alphas. It looked like
the Chief and a few Great Warriors had turned into Alphas. But it
didn’t make the situation any better as the race as a whole was
much stronger now.
“Dammit.”
Locke then ordered the Baron and gave him a room. It wasn’t time to
think about petty matters. He then walked down to talk with the
nobles from the other estates through the twins.
That was okay. It was expected as Raul had come over. But the
problem was how the other two were being treated. There was the
beautiful, gorgeous woman and a weak-looking fool. Both looked like
lowlies but Locke considered them as VIP guests. It looked like they
were offered to leave whenever they felt like it.
But he did not listen. If a noble was letting a lowlie stay within the
trunk and treat them in such a way, there must be a reason. They
were even given a better room, which made it even more frustrating.
Also, Raul always needed a woman next to him to sleep but he
couldn’t do anything to the commoners of the Viscount’s estate so he
was even more frustrated.
‘Ugh… whatever.’
Sian and Stiel came out of the room out of boredom and were
walking outside when they felt a guest coming to their room.
“Yeah.”
“We’ve been here for a short time, but I think this place has too many
idiots.”
The world was created by the difference of sheer power. Power was
the only thing that mattered and the weak were not spared. Raul was
now looking in other places after checking to see if the room was
empty. Raul was up to no good as he fiercely looked around for Stiel
and Sian.
“Stiel.”
“Yeah, yeah. The stick, right? But I’m not sure if this is going to be
enough for a superhuman. What if I get hurt? Are you going to look
after me?”
“…”
“Hehe.”
Sian could guess what Raul was up to, so he didn’t feel sorry for the
man. At last, Raul came out at the empty room. It seemed he was
even angrier as he searched around.
Sexually harass Stiel so Sian will attack, allowing him to act in self-
defense.
Whatever it was, the result would be the same. But Sian didn’t know
Raul.
Smack the man down and take the woman to bed for a good night’s
sleep.
Sian could not help to let out a hollow laugh as he saw a punch
being thrown at him.
“Huh?”
“Hmph!”
Raul tried to pull his fist out, but he couldn’t. So he threw his left fist
out too. But the weak-looking man easily flicked his head to easily
dodge the attack.
‘What…’
“Huh? Stiel?”
“Why are you hesitating? Don’t say you are just going to stand
there?”
The woman handed over a steel stick to the man. Raul felt
goosebumps rising on his skin as he saw the stick.
“UGH!”
Raul tried to back away with all of his power, but it was too late.
“Hm… yeah, maybe I should do it this time. I’m sorry, I’ve been
relying on you too much.”
Raul wanted to run as he watched the man swinging the stick, but he
couldn’t.
“…it’s nothing.”
“It’s okay.”
“They are coming directly at us. After talking with the other estates,
fifteen Barons and five Viscounts will be coming to our aid. It’s best
that we get rid of them in the early stages.”
“Oh!”
“It’ll take some time for the Counts to arrive, but we’ll stay by the
Ciculus and defend ourselves first.”
The distance between estates was too far so it took a long time for
them to come. It wasn’t sure how strong these Alpha were, but
luckily there were only about fifty Alphas. It seemed it would be
enough to fight it off with combined numbers and fight by the Ciculus
Tree.
“Good morning.”
“It’s slow.”
It was good to think that they would come to help when the time
came.
Kukuru was excited as he saw the great tree. It was a place he could
never invade, but it was different now. They were different.
He tried to take the meat out through the well, but the meat melted
away after it was put into the water. But it wasn’t much of a deal as
he could just eat it inside. He then planted Antaine eggs into the
monster bodies.
His race had grown one or two steps stronger after consuming these
bodies. There were some who became unlike Graans now, just like
Kukuru himself.
But there was something strange coming to him after he ate the
meat.
<Kill him…>
<Kill him…>
“I can’t believe it. How did they get strong that fast?”
Based on what the Graans were like, they couldn’t have become
strong like that. After the disaster, nobles eradicated any races that
had dangerous traits like the Murakans or Swarms even if they were
Narija, or a non-hostile race.
But these Graans had become so much more powerful than what he
knew them as. He was even confused that these were really Graans
as the color of their skin had changed.
This wasn’t the important issue at hand however. Locke looked out.
He needed to concentrate on the fight.
Sian and Stiel also watched as they sat on a branch around the
middle of the Ciculus Tree.
“Yeah.”
“Yeah.”
“…”
“I think they did eat something really good for them. The entire race.”
“…”
“Sure. It’s good that we know now. It could’ve been worse if it was
kept open.”
<It’s him…>
<Him…>
The Graan’s chieftain, Groran, could not pull himself together with
the voices echoing from within. It was bearable until now, but the
echo grew larger and began pushing his will to the side.
He glanced around to see what was going on, and found the man
passing through them. Then all the Graans began turning to the
being passing through at the sky.
Groran tried to stop his army from going in the wrong direction, but it
was futile. He himself was now being controlled.
<…after him.>
Sian was worried that he might not find the lake, but he found it fairly
quickly. There were countless green small ones going in while red
ones were coming out. These red ones were now much larger in
size.
Sian quietly landed on the ground. Unlike the past where he made
loud bang each time he jumped down, he could do it silently now
without any of that.
He then began to let loose his energy so these ones would run away.
“Huh?”
The red ones came out of the lake slowly. No, after they felt Sian’s
power, they were charging out.
“Oh man.”
There probably was some other reason, but Locke let out a sigh of
relief. Whatever it was, it was a good thing that they didn’t come. It
was time to chase after them and destroy them.
They now knew that the Graans were a potential threat so they were
to be eradicated.
“Scout the area. Kagera, go after them and find out where they live.
Be careful.”
“Understood.”
Kagera ran out and Locke returned to the Ciculus. There, he met
someone unexpected.
“Count Karim. When did you arrive? How did you come all the
way…”
“I just got here. Am I in the wrong place? I came to help you know.”
Locke moaned. This man wasn’t someone that was very hospitable.
Nobody liked Count Karim who had become strong in a very short
amount of time. His motto was this:
<Power and rule. Why can’t we nobles take both? I will enjoy both
for myself.>
This kind of thing was usually not possible as other nobles would join
forces to fight against it. But it didn’t affect Karim, as he was the son
of the one of the two that were the most famous these days.
Marquis Karltonheim, the ruler of the west. No, he was now a Duke.
Duke Conrad of the East and Duke Karltonheim of the West. These
two were the most famous figures in the world.
Karim got worse as his father became a Duke. The Duke wasn’t
interested in power but it didn’t mean they did not care about their
family.
Karim never came to hunt down Rotans. That was why Locke wasn’t
expecting him to appear.
“They retreated.”
“Huh? Then why are you not chasing after them?”
‘Bastard…’
Locke gritted his teeth. He did value the commoners as they were
like livestock. But it was not possible to disobey a Count, so Locke
nodded. At least having a Count would lessen the damage.
“Then…”
“Go on.”
“…”
‘Bastard!’
Count Karim had been tasting the power of the Duke these days.
He was afraid of nothing even when his father was only a Marquis.
No one raised any problems on what he had been doing. Unless the
opponent was a Marquis, he had no one to fear. But a Duke! Karim
was the one who was the happiest when he heard the news.
That was when he heard the interesting news from the twins at a
Viscount’s estate near him.
<Wait.>
<Huh?>
Karim ran out of his land at once and headed toward Locke Estate
after hearing the news. It was quite a distance, but it wasn’t too far
for a Count to go.
After he got there, there were no mutant monsters, but that didn’t
matter to him.
“We are not sure. We just know that they are here somewhere.”
“Really? It’s a bit a wide to search… will they come out if I break
down this tree?” Karim mumbled threateningly. He couldn’t do it as it
was a direct order, but this man in front of him didn’t know that.
“Aren’t you the lord of this estate? How can you not know… wait. I
heard their Akra was weak.”
Karim remembered and nodded. This man really didn’t know if that
was the case.
“…Understood.”
Karim then searched every part of the tree. He had heard about the
appearance but it was too large. Then after a while, he did find her.
She looked just like a standard female noble as he was heard.
Nobles came in a variety of sizes and genders. There were small
ones, tall ones, cute-looking ones, vicious ones and more. Yet that
woman really looked like a standard noble. She had a tall figure with
an insolent look on her eyes, and a gait that showed how arrogant
and proud she was.
Karim then walked up to her and checked the prowess. And he
reached a conclusion: ‘I will win.’
“Good day.”
“Who’re you?”
“…”
Karim thought he was the rudest of the bunch, but she wasn’t any
better.
“Huh?”
At once, a violent wind blew out from Karim. He spoke as he let out
his full energy, expecting one of two answers. One was that she
would give up in fear of power and literally enjoy the good times or
two, that she would feel humiliated and charge at him. Both options
were good for him.
Karim raised up a guard to block the attack and he was thrown off
into tree trunk hard. The tree had no damage even after being struck
so hard. Its durability was also why nobles loved this tree. It
withstood all sorts of things that the nobles did.
“What? You wanted a good time and you’re okay here, right? You
said everything was okay! Haha, I don’t have much time so let’s do it
quick. Sian’s going to come back soon.”
“You…!”
Then Karim noticed Stiel jumping at him with black metal gauntlets
on her hands and he took out his sword and fought back.
Sian, who closed all the entrance of Apental and returned to the tree,
found some clashing sounds and light coming from the tree. As he
focused his eyes, he saw Stiel and a man fighting there. They were
using their full power but the Ciculus Tree did not even budge. It was
amazing when compared to the Lagran Region.
Sian then sped up and approached them. He didn’t know what was
going on, so he decided to separate them to ask and thus pushed
them away from each other.
“Ugh!”
“ARGH!”
Karim and Stiel felt powerful energy pressuring them and jumped
back. Karim was confused but Stiel knew what had happened.
“It’s nothing.”
“…and?”
“So, we were having a good time.”
Stiel spat blood from her mouth but she really did seem to enjoy the
fight. It was good to fight someone as an equal after a long time.
However, Sian didn’t feel the same.
“Huh? But it won’t fit your hand,” Stiel said. Her hands were bigger
than other women’s, but it was still much smaller than Sian’s hand.
Stiel couldn’t understand but Sian took the glove from her anyway.
Karim couldn’t act up as he knew this man was the one who pushed
him out with his energy and became tense as the man approached
him with a gauntlet. His sight was then filled with a black gauntlet
that the man was holding and tried to block, but it was too late.
“ARGH!”
Karim screamed as he was struck in the face with the gauntlet. But
he couldn’t think as he was then beaten down by the metal gauntlet
until he fainted.
“Nngh…”
‘What happened?’
Karim waited for the pain to subside and thought about what brought
him in this state. Then he remembered what had happened before
he fainted.
“Those bastards…”
The man was probably the man that appeared along with the woman
noble. Karim thought he was probably that Stiel woman’s pet, but he
was mistaken. Karim felt goosebumps rising as he remembered the
man beating away like a madman.
“You’re awake.”
“…”
“Talk.”
“About a week.”
“…What?”
Karim was dumbfounded to hear that.
“They… went for the Cocul Estate. They are heading for the
Levadan Estate from there. It has been about three days now.”
“Nngh…”
“If… you are thinking about revenge, you should think again.”
Karim became angry at what Locke just told him. But Locke shook
his head and explained what he had seen after he went to chase
after the Graans.
“They were all crushed? All those Alphas? And the rest of them?”
“Yes.”
Locke was terrified after checking out the size of the Graan army by
looking at their corpses. There were hundreds of Alphas and a
countless number of minions. It was too much for him and the other
nobles to handle. The Graan forces were large enough that only joint
forces of a large number of nobles would be able to push it back.
“…Dammit.”
That was too powerful for Karim to handle. Some might say that he
should ask his father for help, but that was because people did not
know much about Karltonheim. He wasn’t the type to overprotect his
son. The reason why he let his son run rampant during his Marquis
days was to pressure other nobles by using his son. He was now a
Duke, who needed no forces, so he probably wasn’t interested in
such matters anymore.
All Dukes left their estate as soon as they became one, as they did
not require Akra. Karltonheim Estate was now under fierce
competition on who would take over.
Karim talked through the twins after coming back to his estate. He
was very tense.
<So… they destroyed the entire Apental and beat you up?>
“Yes, Father.”
<So, what do you want from me? Don’t say you want to borrow my
hand.>
<You don’t need to report such petty matters. By the way, you should
come here soon.>
<Duke Conrad is coming our way. It will be a good chance for you to
see him also. Come.>
“Yes, Father.”
‘Hmph. Who are they?’
“Well, if Apental has been closed off, it’s good. But Conrad…”
Karltonheim smiled.
“…”
“But it looks like you adapted well to this place! I’m proud of you,
Sian. Hehe.”
“…”
Sian couldn’t say anything to Stiel who was enjoying teasing him.
“…”
“Haha… You know I’m just joking right? So was Apental all taken
care of?”
“Well, was that why it made those monsters come after you?”
“Right.”
“Haha. But five years… Did you then fight in there for over a
thousand years?”
“I think that’s because I was at the eighth floor. I think the time
difference lessened as I came up. I think it was probably about a
hundred years there. The first floor probably had about same time
speed.”
“I see.”
Even when the Ciculus Tree had powerful Akra Resonance, it did not
reach out too far. Even the Akra Resonance that they were following
now, wasn’t really big. It was very slight and a small sign that only
superhuman senses could follow.
It was the Cocul Estate. Cocul Estate’s tree didn’t seem as large as
the tree back at the Locke Estate. After they arrived, they searched
for Viscount Cocul.
“Greetings. I am Cocul.”
“It’s better than you having no Akra and beating up everyone every
day.”
“…”
Cocul then turned to the man. Locke said this man next to the Count
was even more powerful. But there was no Akra in him. This kind of
man was more dangerous because there was a chance that
someone might attack him by mistake.
“So… I heard you are going to Levadan Estate to find out about
Duke Conrad?”
Cocul laughed.
“Why is that?”
It was good that he knew, but Sian couldn’t understand why the
ruckus at one noble meeting another noble.
Cocul also seemed very excited and began explaining to Sian who
was confused.
Commoners were always curious about one thing. Who ranked the
nobles?
It was a rare moment when a Duke appeared. There was only one
way to decide. It was to fight another Duke. There was no need to do
this, but it was a continued transition. The last Duke that reached the
rank went to fight the new one.
Everyone was excited to see this fight. The most recent coronation
of Conrad was done in secrecy, so it was even more interesting.
Sian, Stiel, and Viscount Cocul were now on their way, crossing the
great plains at an incredible speed.
“Yes, they eradicated most of the hostile races about 300 years ago
when some Alpha appeared. There are only weak or friendly races
left there.”
“I see.”
Nobles were afraid of the birth of a Rotan level race. The Swarm, or
Murakan disaster was about 3000 years ago and since even Dukes
only lived for 1000 years, it was weird that people were so scared
about those races when they had no firsthand experience seeing
them.
“Ugh…”
“huh?”
Nobles then went to the Lorvall family to get the tree, but they were
all forced to pay a huge price.
Nobles spoke of the same thing after coming back from the Lorvall
family.
<It looks like you don’t see what the point in having an estate. You
need to know the gravity of the problem. You can let the Narijas
pass, but you can’t do that with the Rotans. We will show you why.>
Then they dragged the noble into Murakan territory. And then they
taught the nobles the terror of Rotans.
<AAARRGH!>
After pushing them back in a few more times, they were finally given
the tree.
“…”
The higher the rank, a longer the captive of Lorvall family. But they
always spoke of the same thing.
<You all live for hundreds of years. This is nothing. It’s all for your
benefit.>
“So, it’s like the Great North Wall, but a forced one.”
Three of them kept moving while they talked. Cocul seemed to know
which way they need to head toward so they didn’t need to stop by
any other estates on the way. He was a bit slow, but Sian wasn’t in
any hurry and it was good to talk with a person who knew a lot about
this world.
After a long journey, they now saw something appearing over the
horizon.
“Is that…?”
“Whoa…”
Stiel was in awe. It was huge. There was no word to describe its
sheer size. The tree back at the Locke Estate was nothing like it. It
was as big as a mountain.
“Why?”
“Did you remember that all nobles get their trees from the Lorvall
family?”
“Yeah.”
“Right. That tree was born since the founding of Ciculus. It was
planted when the noble numbers went down drastically after the
Murakan and Swarm disaster.”
“Correct. It was a time when the human race dwindled and other
Rotan races came into power. All nobles and commoners had to join
forces around the Marquis. There were twenty-one Ciculus Trees
planted at that time while the Lorvall family held the Swarm and
Murakans back.”
“Hmph.”
“After that, Counts or Viscounts went on to create their own land with
different trees. So that <Vladek> is one of them. It’s over three
thousand years old.”
“Yes. Not all the Ciculuses of the Marquis are the same. And there is
a name for those twenty-one Ciculus Trees.”
“What is it?”
“Yes. We can safely assume that the tree raises a Marquis in that
case. I heard that the Dukes who trained under those Ciculuses
came to have special powers.”
They talked more about it and were now by the Vladek’s roots.
“Nobles can stay within the trunk. There should be a lot of nobles
that have gathered already.”
“Already?”
“I’ll see once I fight him,” Karltonheim mumbled, smiling for the
upcoming battle.
‘So… they are the ones that trained with Akra. Yes, Karim won’t be
enough to fight them.’
Marquis Ritzson thought as he looked at two who came into the tree.
The woman was definitely strong. She seemed to be powerful
enough to become a Marquis if she trained within a tree. The Akra
Resonance proved it. Karim was one of the stronger Counts, but she
seemed to be much stronger.
It was him who wiped out the Alpha mutants. If the rumors were true,
it was hard even for him to wipe them out single-handedly. He also
heard that Karim was beaten up by the man. If those rumors were
correct, he was at least a Marquis.
His own tree wasn’t any smaller as it was raised since his Viscount
days, but this Ciculus Tree was much grander. The amount of Akra
being supplied by the countless number of commoners and the
Vladek’s power itself made Ritzson dizzy. Surely, the other
Marquises were also tempted to take over this estate.
But that was after the battle was over. Ritszon then turned to the
higher ground of Vladek. The fight was to be held a bit farther away
from here, but it was enough of a distance to watch.
Sian spoke as he looked outside the trunk. Nobles were busy inside
finding spots to spectate the fight between the Dukes. The
commoners didn’t seem to budge at all. The area near the root was
very quiet.
“I see. I thought nobles would try to watch it more closely, not from
the inside.”
“Haha, it’s a fight between Dukes. We can see it from here anyways.
But I guess we will get to see what kind of magic that the Dukes
have earned. Nobody has seen Karltonheim’s powers yet as he
recently became a Duke. It’s the same for Conrad… it will be a good
fight. I think they will fight by the mountain area there. Nobles ranted
that the mountain was bothersome when walking over it, so they will
probably erase it with this chance.”
Sian nodded.
“Is it that important? I’m sorry I’m late. I had to take care of my
business elsewhere.”
Conrad, who had the body of Kal-Kirat, had grown a bit so he looked
like a teenage girl, but a young child was the same to Karltonheim
anyway.
“You probably don’t know much since you just became a Duke… but
I’m only in for five years also. I just took the job since I was free to
go. So…”
“…”
“…It’s broken.”
“Well, you’ve been doing well to fix the barrier so you must’ve
expected as much. I didn’t know that this <Coronation> had been
created. It’s good that you’re here. The fixing will take longer without
you… it will buy me some time too. Perfect.”
“Damn.”
Conrad pulled power over his body. Karltonheim didn’t seem like he
was going to let him go easily. He was now being overwhelmed by a
black energy.
Conrad then saw the message popping up.
[Escape]
“Cocul.”
“Yes?”
“Didn’t you… say that the coronation is held somewhere far away to
keep people from getting hurt?”
“Yes. Even when Vladek can withstand the damage, the aftershock
will be too much.”
“Huh?”
Right after that moment, a powerful energy wave shook the tree.
“Sian! What happened?” Stiel asked as she looked to the top. She
knew what was going on, however. It looked like Conrad and
Karltonheim had begun fighting at the top of the tree. She just asked
because Sian might know much more in detail.
Sian frowned. The estate was now absorbing all Akra among the
tree at an alarming rate, including Stiel’s.
“What did you do?” Conrad asked as he felt the weird absorption
happening from below. It was too uncomfortable to let it pass without
asking.
“I can’t let the food walk out before I eat them. It’s why I spread
rumors to gather all of them.”
“It was getting weak for the past five years. I got in somehow.”
Conrad spat.
The Ciculus Tree was now absorbing Akra at an enormous rate and
all the nobles and commoners were unconscious. The Marquis or
Counts were trying to get out of range, but the energy absorption
was too quick so they couldn’t get out in time.
He had never seen a coronation before, but if the others knew that
this might happen, they would’ve not stayed here.
Sian then grabbed Stiel and Cocul with each hand and got out of the
tree quickly. He would’ve saved the others but he needed to save the
people he knew first.
Karltonheim smiled.
Conrad was very strong but it was impossible to beat him when he
was being charged by the Ciculus Tree. Karltonheim needed
information. All needed information was being sanctioned by the
Lorvall family and it seemed like this Conrad was one of them, so he
thought he would gather information from Conrad.
Karltonheim stormed at Conrad. This was his homeground. He had
altered the tree to work at his benefit when the time came. All the
energy that filled him was the result of such work.
Conrad blocked the black whip with his <Lu-Sara> and spat. The
magic Karltonheim used was similar to the magic Conrad used, but it
was more powerful.
-Level: 399
-Akra: …
They were both blocked by the limit, but the conditions were too
different. Karltonheim was pulling up the energy endlessly from the
nobles below and Conrad was blocked of using any communication
or short-range teleportation by using Akra Resonance.
Anyone would have been dangerous if they had just walked in here.
Conrad then used his most powerful short distance magic,
<Akmasai>, at Karltonheim. It was powerful magic that destroyed
inner body mechanics by crushing the space. It was very effective
against superhumans. Karltonheim’s right hand that was struck
turned blue at once and then turned to gray, scattering away.
Karltonheim casually touched his right arm with his left. Black snakes
came out from his left hand and began devouring the gray remnants
of the right arm to replace it. Karltonheim looked down at the snakes
with loving eyes.
Then the snakes began swirling themselves, turning into a right arm.
Conrad scowled at the sight. His magic was very powerful but it was
the result of thousands of magic priests that studied to create it. It
was fascinating for that kind of magic to be created by one person.
Then Karltonheim used his new right arm and attacked Conrad.
Conrad barely blocked it and blurted out, “Dammit. I wondered how
you became a Duke so fast.”
“Haha, it would’ve taken 100 more years if I didn’t get help. People
here are more greedy toward power. They are like primitives. I don’t
think it was like this before?”
“I don’t know. It’s not too long since I’ve been here.”
“Dammit… I can’t…”
“The world is large and there are a lot of powerful men. Don’t be too
ashamed.”
Karltonheim’s body began turning black. Then the snake began
dropping out of his body and it slithered over to Conrad’s body. It
didn’t eat Conrad but it swept up and wrapped Conrad.
The Vladek was being covered with black speedily. When the black
came all the way up to the top of Ciculus, his first goal would be
complete.
“I don’t know why Apental became weaker, but it’s all good.”
Stiel and Cocul quickly regained their health as they got out of the
tree’s distance. After the heavy storm of Akra Resonance died out,
Stiel asked, “Ugh, do all coronations go through this vampiric event?”
It meant this was surely not normal. Stiel then turned to Sian. Her
past experience told her that the usual culprit of any abnormality was
close by.
“Sian… is there something you didn’t tell me yet? Maybe you didn’t
fully close Apental…”
“Well, you can blame all you want, but it’s not on me this time.”
“I’m okay.”
“Me too. But where are you going to go?” Stiel asked Sian who was
trying to jump out.
“Oh, right.”
Stiel then remembered why they were here. The fight unraveling at
the top didn’t seem like it was just a casual fight. They were fighting
to kill each other. Sian figured they were both about the level of
Dukes, enough for Sian to handle easily.
Sian then jumped quickly to the top of the Ciculus Tree. Its leaves
and fruits were all crushed and branches were burned out. He
needed to stop before Conrad before he was killed.
“Did he die?”
Sian was confused but it seemed like it wasn’t the case. It looked like
Karltonheim had done something. He was now jumping down to the
roots. Sian then followed Karltonheim to where he was headed.
A good man would not have created a secret room underground and
dragged a man down wrapped by black snakes.
“Good day.”
“Huh?”
“I don’t know what you’re saying, but I’ll leave you alone if you give
him to me.”
Sian didn’t want to spoil the man who seemed to be working hard, so
he decided to talk it out. His experience told him it didn’t end well
when he used force.
“Huh?”
Karltonheim, no, Kikero, then looked at the man with weird eyes.
There was no Lorvall seal on him. It was a cursed seal that he could
have seen from afar.
“It looks like you have business with that Conrad, but I do too. Can
you give him to me?”
“Hah!”
“I don’t want to threaten you… but I think it’s better for you to just talk
things out with me. I was really sad when no one ended up okay
when I fought them. It looks like you’re working hard and I envy that.
I think you shouldn’t get hurt.”
“Haha…”
[Status: Vladek]
-Level : 1
‘Dammit…’
It was over. It was the one that went over its limit. The problem had
gotten too big.
“HAHAHAHA! SUCCESS!”
[KAAAA!]
Kikero laughed like a madman as he watched <Vladek> shooting out
of the roots. It was a black pillar passing through the mile-long-roots
of the Ciculus Tree. After Vladek swallowed the fool that walked in, it
was moving by the roots with its huge space.
The biggest success anyway was that Kikero removed the magic
that sealed Vladek. He wasn’t sure why all these nobles wanted to
watch two who were not even Alphas, but it helped him get energy
enough to unseal the bind.
Vladek was also very large, but it would take a long time for it to
destroy this Ciculus Tree. It was the tree that was successfully bound
the snake and sucked its life to grow. At that moment, black energy
came out from Karltonheim’s ears, mouth, eyes, and every opening
and was absorbed into the roots.
<Hehehe…>
<KIIIII!>
<Huh?>
<What?>
At last, Vladek’s neck was ripped and two figures jumped out of it.
Vladek couldn’t bear the pain and transformed to millions of small
black snakes. It was Conrad and the man that Vladek just
swallowed.
“Ugh.”
He needed to buy time. He wasn’t sure who that was, but he just
needed to finish infesting this tree and he’d be invincible. Kikero then
ran to the core while millions of snakes were attacking Sian.
Sian thought about chasing after him, but it might endanger Conrad
who was unconscious so Sian began grinding all the snakes that
were attacking him.
‘Let’s focus.’
He decided to give up on Vladek as it will not win against such a
monster. He also decided to give up on Conrad and Karltonheim that
he left behind. He just needed to infest Ciculus.
The infestation was now almost complete. The tree was turning to
black smog and mud.
<!!!>
<Dammit… but you’re too late. The core is already infested. You
must know what that means?>
“?”
<W-Wait! You fool! I’m now one with Ciculus! You killing me means
you’re killing the tree also! Is that okay?>
<DAMMIT! It means there will be a hole in the barrier! Are you really
okay? It’s the BARRIER!>
“I don’t know what you’re saying, but let me ask you one thing. So
you’re saying that barrier shouldn’t be broken?”
<YES->
<…>
<WAI->
But before Kikero could say much, Sian smacked the core that was
the source of the infestation.
“Nngh…”
‘How did I get out? Did someone from Lorvall come here?’
Conrad shook his head. If that was the case, he would’ve been
notified.
He then felt a strong energy radiance coming out from above and
ran out.
<UGH! Nngh…!>
“Hmph.”
Sian punched the core and the infested area reduced each time. He
couldn’t smack it too hard as it would destroy the core, but this
Kikero was able to withstand the weakened punch. It was also
absorbing the tree’s lifeforce so Sian was having a hard time.
<Hehehehe…>
“What’s so funny?”
“Huh?”
Sian was frustrated but he realized it wasn’t his fault that the tree
was destroyed since it was going to be destroyed anyway if he didn’t
do anything. The person who watched from behind thought
differently.
“NO!”
Above the roots were the nobles and the commoners regaining their
strength as they plopped down at random places. Their Akras were
taken out of their bodies forcefully so a lot of people almost fainted
and they needed time to recover.
Sian knew the girl from before, but it was an entirely different being
now. He decided to ask later and concentrated on Karltonheim and
Conrad’s discussion.
“What happened…”
“You’ll get to know about it as time goes on, but this is a special
case. I think all of you here have the right to hear, so I’ll explain.”
“Why is that?”
“It’s complicated… but they were holding them back well,” Conrad
continued.
The continent was full of interesting species 3000 years ago. There
were a lot of species like Murakans, Swarms, Graans, or Barkhans.
Humans did not care about the other species back then so there was
a various number of species.
<Gerna>
They did not have a body. They traveled around in a black smog-like
state. But they hated roaming in the air so they always found
somewhere to settle down and control a species. It didn’t matter
what species it was. They always invaded and controlled one when
something was available.
A Gerna invasion wasn’t all that bad as it made the host to grow in
power quickly. Gerna guided the host to become stronger as it was
good to have a strong host, but Gerna had full control over the host.
They were all over the place on the continent, but it was not widely
known. This species didn’t do much even after taking control, so
nobody noticed them. They just continued to increase their numbers.
The strangest part about this species was that as their host became
stronger, they also became stronger. They could not invade and
control others who were stronger than them so they started out with
the weak and grew stronger to control stronger targets as time went
on.
That was when the Lorvall family realized that the Gerna had spread
among many humans. Upon closer examination, they found these
Gerna were everywhere throughout the continent.
Lorvall did not want them. They weren’t doing much now, but these
were parasites that devoured the living soul and controlled it. Lorvall
wanted the human race to be strongest so the Gerna was a bad
sign.
That was when Lorvall decided to drive them out. However, it wasn’t
easy as it was spread out too wide through the land. So they decided
to do two things.
Lorvall then gathered all who weren’t infested and began executing
their plan. It was a new <Revolution>.
Conrad explained.
The humans thought they were the most powerful, but most of the
power had been transferred to the Gerna already. And the infestation
didn’t only remain on humans. There were a lot of other strong
species too.
One was that they could escape before the host died and try to
invade others.
Another was that Alphas were born among the Rotans with Gerna’s
help. These were too strong for even Lorvall to fight against.
“And… these species were Murakan and Swarm. Well, they didn’t
make it to be exact. They just altered them.”
Lorvall successfully drove the Gerna out back to the northern lands,
but one thing was left remaining.
How were they going to block them out from entering? They were
hard to kill when they were in their spiritual, smog-like state. Lorvall
did not want to create another disaster to kill people if the infestation
occurred again.
That was when Lorvall began making a large barrier to block their
invasion. A barrier big enough to protect not only the humans, but all
species that roamed the land.
Lorvall found the hint from Apental. Apental was a place where
spiritual beings were sucked in and never allowed to come out. That
was where Lorvall got the idea from and he planted the twenty-one
Ciculus Trees around human territory to create a big dimensional
barrier. It wasn’t much as he just combined Apental and Ciculus and
increased their absorption over to the entire human lands. This
allowed the Gerna to be absorbed into Apental when they
approached.
“Yes. As long as the barrier was intact, they would not come over.”
Conrad smiled.
Conrad after examining on Akra and Ciculus and how barriers were
formed, concluded that it was possible. Therefore, he began
traveling around the lands to fix the barrier.
The barrier was created by the runes installed at the Ciculus Trees.
People here were not really good at magic unless its focus was to
destroy, so Conrad used all of his knowledge to fix it. He just needed
to overwrite the existing magic runes and it would make the Gerna
stay out even without Apental.
He was going over all twenty-one Ciculus Trees, but the speed of
Apental being destroyed had quickened and came to the problem. If
it wasn’t for Sian, this place would’ve been the start of barrier’s
destruction.
Stiel was looking at Sian with a weird smile. Sian asked, “Stiel,
what’s with that smirk?”
“…”
“Well, it’s not your fault but I was right! Hahaha, you always exceed
expectations.”
“No problem. But are you really Con-Rad? You look like someone I
know…”
“So, you must know about the owner of this body. I have been reborn
into this body as the soul of the previous owner was destroyed. I’m
sure you know about the orb?”
“Oh… uh, nevermind then. It’s good to meet you too. So how do you
know about me?” Conrad laughed.
“I have heard from Lagaope, but I have a special skill too. It is really
convenient.”
-Level: 3
-Skill: ???
He was shocked when he saw Duke Lorvall, but Sian was much
more than he expected. He couldn’t believe that such man was born
from the Ra-Sian Continent.
Conrad couldn’t pass on the weird title and asked, “I thought you
decided to stay behind. How did you come over?”
“Oh.. that…”
Sian began to explain what had happened after. Conrad was left
speechless.
‘So, he killed all those monsters within Apental and came up?’
That was why the barrier wasn’t working. Apental was destroyed
from within so it was why barrier didn’t work. The way that they
thought about, but didn’t dare to try, was done by Sian alone.
“It’s… an amazing feat.”
Conrad spoke from bottom of his heart. The reason why Apental had
no guard was because if there was a man who was strong enough to
survive in there, no guard would work against him.
“Well, I didn’t want to do that and it almost got me killed. By the way,
what were those below?”
“Huh? Oh, you mean Vladek. It must your first time seeing a Beta.”
Ra-Sian didn’t have any Betas so it was why Sian didn’t know.
They were also called Alphas, meaning the first of its race. But there
was a difference between Narija and Rotan. Unlike the Narijas who
could become Alphas with just one mutation, Rotans needed to
overcome many barriers to become an Alpha.
Those beings that encountered the barriers but weren’t Alphas yet
were named Betas.
‘Hm… so I am a Beta?’
“The serpent you saw was a Beta. It’s a Beta of the ancient race
called <Levara>. This is why the Gerna are dangerous.”
“You mean-”
“Yes, they were controlled by the Gerna. No, they overcame the
barrier when they were infested by the Gerna. Both races are able to
overcome the barrier together, which makes the infestation even
more dangerous.”
That was why they attacked the Gerna before more Betas appeared.
They were strong, but there weren’t that many Betas yet so the
combined number of Swarms and Murakans barely managed to
destroy them. All in all, Lorvall thought they would be a useful food
source for the growing Ciculus Trees so they buried them
underground.
“So that’s why all the Dukes who trained by the tree were able to
obtain the power.”
Karltonheim nodded.
“Yes, it grew with the power of Betas… it allows you to gain the
magic that the Beta had.”
“Don’t be. You would’ve become a Duke anyway. It is why you have
been in control of the twenty-one Ciculus trees.”
Sian curiously asked, “But can we leave it like that? I thought that
tree is what reinforces the barrier.”
“It’s not okay, but we can’t do anything now. We can’t maintain the
barrier until those people get up to their feet and send Akra to the
tree. Luckily, the tree wasn’t destroyed.”
“…”
There was no way to gather all those commoners now since it was
going to take time for them to recover.
Conrad shook his head. “I just fixed the barrier so I’m not sure. I just
made sure they could not destroy this entire tree but we can’t create
a barrier without the core. So, we have one thing to do.”
“What is it?”
“There’s a way.”
Conrad then began preparing to activate the magic. Sian sensed the
familiar flow of energy and spoke.
“Communication magic?”
“Don’t you need to have the same frequency on the other side? And
a lot of energy?” Sian asked as that was what he heard. Even at Ra-
Sian, they needed an artifact or a building made for communication
purposes for it to work. Yet Conrad seemed to not have such
limitations.
“I see.”
Conrad was the Emperor of the Old Empire and had studied magic
endlessly. It would be weird if he couldn’t do such a thing. Conrad
then seemed to have successfully connected and began talking.
After a while, Conrad finished talking and turned back to the three
people.
“Okay… I talked about what to do next. It’s good that you are here.”
“What is it?”
“I have good news and bad news for me, and the same for you Sian.
What do you want to hear first?”
“Oh, okay. The good news is that the barriers can be restored. Only
the tree’s core was destroyed so we can replace the core before the
tree dries out. Luckily… this Ciculus Tree is the last one we have to
fix so when we restore this tree, the barrier will be complete.”
If Conrad had managed to finish the barrier quick enough, the core
wouldn’t have been destroyed.
“Yes. We just need the core, send Akra into it, and the barrier will
work as intended.”
Sian then became confused and asked, “Didn’t you say that there
are no more Ciculus Tree cores? I heard these twenty-one trees use
special cores…”
“Yes… that is the bad news. Lorvall says he has no leftover cores.
He knows where to go to get it, but it’s really hard to get it.”
“Oh no,” Sian answered. That wasn’t any good even if the barrier
was fixable.
“Well, let’s talk about you, Sian. You said you came to see me
because you want to go back?”
Conrad answered, “The good news is that you can go back home.”
“Wow, really?”
“Yes. The first thing I did when I got here was that I tested to see if I
could install Ra-Shar-Roa. I did manage to find out that if we alter
Akra and Ciculus a bit, it could let us use Ra-Shar-Roa. It would take
a lot of energy and alteration to go across the continent, but it can be
done.”
“It’s the same for both of us. Since our barrier isn’t finished yet, we
don’t have the manpower to focus on alteration. That’s why I couldn’t
install Ra-Shar-Roa yet. I needed to fortify the barrier first.”
“Oh…”
“To be exact, you will never go back home at this rate. The Gerna
will keep invading and they will keep trying to destroy the barrier.
There’s a small room for now but they will surely attack Ciculus first.
We can’t travel far without Ciculus.”
Conrad nodded.
“Yes, while we hold back the Gerna… it would be great if you could
go and get the core for us. But don’t worry. It won’t be much of a
problem if you came through Apental. For us… it’s better for us to
fight the Gerna.”
“Hmph. I’ll do it.”
“Let me explain on the way. It’s a very remote place but it’s hard to
miss.”
Sian was running through the plains with Stiel, reminded of what
Conrad had explained to them.
“Well, it will take some time for the commoners to recover and for the
alteration to the rune to be finished. You should come back before
that is over.”
It was a race that made humans suffer terribly enough to drive it out.
In comparison, Conrad seemed like he was more irritated than
concerned.
“Haha… well we did alter all the Ciculus Trees to work as small
barriers. Even without the twenty-one trees, all the big cities that a
Marquis or a Count ruled over had their trees altered to work as a
barrier to block the infestation underneath it. You can enter the tree if
it’s infested though.”
“Oh, then…”
“Yes, it’s good that they wiped out most of the monsters around the
area. The only ones that they can control are either some Counts…
Viscounts or Barons… and some Narija races. It won’t be enough to
fight against big estates of a Marquis or a Count. Given a long period
time, it will still become dangerous, but we will finish it before it takes
that long. We just need you to fetch that core to seal it tight.”
“What’s this?”
“It works for one person, but it will block any Gerna from entering. It’s
easy to make but we don’t have any Talic Stones to make any more.
It’s for me, but I won’t be leaving this place until the barrier is finished
so it’s okay. They can’t come into the tree anymore.”
Conrad was working on something when the situation was over and
Sian realized what it was. Stiel nodded.
“I see.”
“We have not seen any Gerna powerful enough to invade you. If
there were such Gerna, they would have already broken the barrier.
Have a safe trip.”
Even if the Gerna was threatening, they were not much of a threat
when they had no host to consume.
“Yeah. It was…”
Conrad had simply answered Sian’s question on where to go.
<Lorvall told me… that it’s at the west end of Apental. I’ve never
been there but is this enough to find it? Hm… hold on.>
This was a place without any maps so Stiel was worried that it might
be hard to find a simple lake but Sian wasn’t concerned.
“…”
“So we just have to go straight toward the west from here… but can
we really find it that way?”
Conrad said not to worry as they could easily find the place. As they
ran, Sian knew what he meant.
They couldn’t believe what they were seeing. This continent was full
of powerful people but there was no civilization. There no literature,
art, or manners. But there was this huge structure beyond the forest.
What lay ahead was a wide ocean over the horizon.
“Hmm, that’s why no one lived over on this side. There’s only an
ocean.”
The building was located at the end of the cliff. It was huge and had
an unusual look to it.
“This is interesting.”
Sian glanced around. This was like the armory <Amaran> that
Lagaope showed him before. This one, however, was lifeless and
was dusty.
“It doesn’t matter. Let’s find the core and get out.”
“Conrad said we just need to go down and we’ll find the core.”
“Right.”
They couldn’t find the core yet but the direction did get them to the
right place and they began finding a way down. He thought about
just smashing his way in but he couldn’t as it might destroy the core.
“I don’t want to go in, but I think that’s where the core is being held.”
“Yeah.”
Sian nodded. He scanned the area a while ago and found nothing.
He then jumped into the blue barrier.
It was a vast space. The floor was created with some unknown metal
and the ceiling was created with some various crystal orbs so it was
very dark.
It did not bother Sian. What bothered him were the living beings
inside. They were all different shapes and sizes but they all had one
thing in common. Powerful energy flowing through their bodies and
armor-like outer carapaces. They were each placed at the corners of
this vast space.
Conrad said there were names for those who overcame the barrier
like Sian. He overheard it back then but he realized that it meant that
this world had a lot of those beings. These were all Betas. It seemed
that they had barely reached the first stage, but there were a lot of
them.
Sian then realized why Conrad said it was nothing for Sian.
The ones in Apental were all blocked by the wall, but there were
more of them there.
<Kar..gg..>
Sian couldn’t find the entrance yet so he exerted all of his energy
outward. If these things had instincts, they would not try to fight
someone stronger than them. Sian was wrong about that.
“OH my.”
All the Betas, including the ones that were resting further away,
stood up instantly and began charging at Sian.
After going down three floors, there was another ring that worked as
an entrance.
“Hmm.”
He thought there would be another Beta, but there wasn’t. It was like
a lab. Unlike the large building upstairs, this was like a small,
personal lab.
It was radiating a life force within the small, tube-like glass encasing.
It was the same energy Sian felt from the core of the Ciculus Tree.
Out of the twenty-five tubes, only four remained. Sian then realized
where those cores had come from.
“So they took it from here. But why not the other four…”
Sian took out all four cores and put them into Karnine’s space. He
looked around to check on what else to take and then jumped out to
return.
“Huh?”
“Huh? I came out within a day,” Sian answered. He did take some
time to go through those guards, but it wasn’t as big as Apental and
the number was much less. Nonetheless, it seemed it had been
much longer in outside time.
“Huh? Really?”
“Yeah. I guess it’s a different dimension in there. That’s why the time
difference happened.”
“So, what was in there?” Stiel asked and Sian told her about all
those Betas and weird labs.
“Oh, so that’s why they couldn’t enter. But it only took you a day to
go through the Apental-like place?”
“Look.”
The cliff was actually a destroyed trace. From their location to the
visible end of the coast, everything was the same. It wasn’t
something that was created naturally. Sian then sent an energy wave
into the ocean to check what was in the water. Then he groaned.
It was deep, even for the greatest Harijans to travel through. Sian
never heard of a coast getting deeper as it got closer to land,
especially one that large.
Sian wasn’t sure. Maybe Chrona would do such a thing, but Sian
couldn’t find a reason for Chrona or Dragona to come all the way
here inflict such damage.
“Right.”
“Let’s not come near here anymore. I don’t feel too good about this
place.”
The damage seemed like it had been there for over thousands of
years. It explained why the forest was suddenly cut off by the ocean.
There was probably land here before.
“Let’s return.”
“Yeah.”
The road on the way back was much more comfortable since they
had gone through it once. However, the path was now filled with
monsters that Sian hadn’t seen before.
But Narijas didn’t have such thing so they were continuously infested
by the black smog and they kept getting attacked by the Swarms.
“Yeah, but the Gerna are increasing. It will be a problem if the barrier
doesn’t close soon.”
Swarms were consuming the black smog, but the number was still
growing. And unlike the Swarms who crawled the land, the smog
flew away at much faster speed.
Some Gerna also tried to invade Stiel’s body but they were reflected
out thanks to the orb. Those Gernas then targeted Sian and tried to
invade him.
“Oh.”
“You know, you’re like a lamp. One that lures the bugs and burns
them.”
“…”
Then they were at Vladek. The tree was still enormous, but it was
very much lifeless without any leaves.
“Let’s hurry.”
<They’re prepared.>
He knew Lorvall would have been prepared but it was more than he
expected. All the powerful beings worthy of being controlled had
taken refuge under the mysterious tree. They weren’t sure why, but it
wasn’t impossible to control those under the tree.
They never came out from the tree, but it didn’t matter as they could
control those Viscount, Barons, or Narija level races to attack.
However, these cursed silver insects were roaming around and they
were consuming his species at once. They were getting stronger, but
if the barrier was fixed beforehand, it would be a failure. They
needed to destroy this Ciculus Tree, but it didn’t seem like it was
going to be easy.
“Yes, we can’t defend everything when all of the people are staying
inside. This place is a good target so we need a lot of Swarms.”
Vladek was still huge even in its dried-up stage. But the vast area
with the roots were all covered by a silvery wave of insects.
Conrad laughed.
“Well, they are not the only ones that we need to fight against. We
barely had room to use the Swarms since we were successful on
strengthening the Murakans. But they should be enough. Oh, and
there is a person who brought the Swarms here. Do you want to
meet him?”
“Sure.”
“I’ll get you to him before I install the core. Oh, but can you give me
the core now?”
“Sure.”
Sian took out the four cores and handed them over to Conrad.
“Hmm…”
“The core installation won’t take too long. It will take a few hours.
Come this way.”
Conrad then jumped down to where the infested core was at. Sian
and Stiel then found a man transferring energy to the place where
infested core was originally located. The man with a weird word
drawn on his forehead greeted Conrad.
“Ciculus.”
“Conrad! This thing is so big that it’s hard to even keep it alive.”
“So you brought the core. Good. Are they the ones?”
“Sure.”
Ciculus then stopped supplying the energy and Conrad went in.
Ciculus greeted Sian and Stiel.
“Stiel.”
“But it’s amazing. You really brought the core! I went in there once
and ran out right after. So you really are a third stage Beta.”
“But Ciculus… are you the one that created this tree? The one from
three thousand years ago?” Sian asked.
“How did you managed to live that long? Does overcoming the
barrier allow you to live that long?”
“Well, it’s impossible but Lorvall had another way. I didn’t want to live
this long but the world was full of bad fools.”
It seemed like Ciculus’ way was different. Sian decided to ask him.
“Oh. Okay.”
Sian frowned.
“No way.”
But the tremor grew worse as the time went by and they soon
realized the reason behind it.
The tremor was now right beneath them. It was the underground
dragons that usually never came up to the Ciculus Tree.
“Oh. It’s the underground dragons. How do you deal with them?”
Sian asked as he thought there must be a way to deal with them.
“…”
“No, don’t look at me like that. I don’t know everything. Besides, they
can’t destroy the tree anyway.”
“Yeah.”
The dragons that came up were about ten feet thick but they were
much smaller than the enormous Ciculus roots.
“But these Gerna were in a hurry. They don’t like controlling
unintelligent beings.”
“Really?”
Ciculus nodded. “Yeah, we’ve never seen one before but they do
exist. They are Rotans. How did you know?”
“What?”
“That one might be strong enough to destroy the tree. We should get
rid of it beforehand.”
The Ciculus Tree was huge, but the one approaching was also
enormous. If it began chewing the roots, even if the tree did not fall,
it will not revive even with the core. Sian couldn’t let that happen so
he stood up and walked outside. It was still far out, or tens of miles
away, but the tremors could be felt all the way from here.
Sian then walked out of the tree’s range and began grabbing onto
the space in the direction below.
Stiel flinched at the energy that was focused on Sian’s fist but it
didn’t cause any destructive damage when Sian slowly pushed it out.
The place he sent the energy toward only made a swirl but the result
happened elsewhere.
The monster’s body had been destroyed and it was writhing in pain
while the black smog was seeping out of the crack.
“That easily…”
Even when it was the same Beta, a different race meant it had
different sizes. Underground dragons weren’t easy to deal with. The
carapace that was created by the extracted rocks were hard for even
a Beta to destroy. Unless they were a race that hated sunlight and
was easily scared, they were probably the strongest race on the
continent.
Yet, Sian easily destroyed the huge monster with one flick of a fist.
Sian felt bad for the smog but he still couldn’t let them destroy the
tree.
“I just have to have the barriers stay intact. I don’t want to do this, but
you can’t destroy Ciculus. You should go back to your home.”
<What are you talking about… we were the ones who lived here. We
allowed those to live when they fled as their nations were destroyed
and they drove us out instead.>
“Huh?” Sian expressed his confusion and Karon then realized that
this man didn’t know anything.
Sian spoke as everyone seemed to think that strong ones were from
Lorvall. Karon scoffed.
<No way. All races have their limits. You’re only a human and no
Lorvall will share their blood to those who are not related.>
There was an enormous tree that had grown up the mountain. The
Vladek at the Karltonheim Estate was huge, but this one was much
larger.
It was where Duke Lorvall stayed. The tree was thus named
<Lorvall>.
But they couldn’t approach the tree easily. Small beings were fighting
against these giants.
And there were figures looking down at the fight at about the middle
of the huge tree. They were the Dukes. These were not new Dukes.
Most of them had overcome one of the barriers. They all had one
thing in common.
“These new ones are really powerful. The Murakans weren’t that
powerful before.”
“Yeah. To fight those giants like that. It might be hard even for us.”
This time, the Murakans were successfully driving them out. They
were becoming even more stronger as they consumed the giants.
He thought it was matter of time for the human race to invade the
lands and rule. But they were then attacked by other races over the
peninsula.
“I never imagined they stayed back because of the Gerna…”
The Gerna had a power that any race would fear. The humans
managed to drive them out with careful planning, but they were
powerful entities that had the power to rule over the land. That was
why these races did not come over the peninsula.
As they noticed there were no more Gerna, they swam over the
shallow sea and attacked. It had been three thousand years of siege
and defense since then. There had been thousands of deaths. If the
number of Dukes weren’t replenished by raising the human races,
they would have been infiltrated a long time ago.
But this was over now. If the Murakans were that strong, they had
room. They only needed Murakans to defend against both fronts
easily.
“Let’s send Swarms to the north and wipe out the Gerna. Then we
will have more Akra for Ciculus.”
If it wasn’t for Conrad, it might have been a problem for them. It was
good that Conrad even had forgotten magic with him. But it was all
solved now.
“Lagaope, it’s amazing. Where did you get that blood to change
those Murakans? It’s good that you’ve returned from the forbidden
land. To bring those who studied forgotten magic…”
Lagaope smiled.
“But that’s the most interesting thing. Did those insolent bastards let
you pass?” Lorvall asked. He didn’t expect much when Lagaope was
sent to the south as he didn’t think Lagaope could manage to go
across those crazy bastards.
“Yes. The man named Sian brought it. But… is it true? Third stage
beta?”
The Duke seemed like he couldn’t believe it. He had lived for years
and even when the Divine Nation was at its peak, but he had never
seen a human that had passed the first stage. Without his Divine
Blood, even the first stage would not have been possible. But such a
man was born from the land of the monkeys.
Lorvall scoffed. “Why? It’s a blessing that we have such strong being
born among the human race. It’s our long lost goal.”
“It’s all going well. We will clean out the inside and send the Swarms
out to the north.”
They needed to wipe out those pests. The quest to finish the border
was complete so they were now trapped within.
Lorvall looked upon the various quest windows popping up, telling
him what to do next and smiled.
“Yes, preparations were in place. We just needed the core from you.”
As the core was placed, the core began giving energy to the tree so
that its energy started to absorb all the Akra from the environment
and the people, restoring the tree. It replaced the energy that had
been provided by the members of Lorvall family until now.
Then a pleasant energy wave came out from the center of the tree
and spread itself out. It met with the energies of the other twenty
trees around the continent to create a barrier that covered the skies.
Ciculus answered him instead. “They are on their way to clean out
the rest.”
“Cleaning?”
“Yeah, there are still more infested within. That needs to be taken
care of.”
“Oh, I see.”
Sian didn’t understand the last part so he asked, “Huh? Wipe them
out?”
“Yeah. They are strong only when they find a strong host. The north
doesn’t have such races. There are a few Rotans, but the Swarms
can handle them easily.”
“Yes. That place is too fierce that no one under the rank of a Duke is
going to help. We need to raise a Duke from within and someone
from Lorvall comes to fetch them when the new one comes out. We
disguise it as a coronation.”
It seemed like most of the Dukes were under the Lorvall family. Sian
couldn’t understand since all superhumans were too proud of
themselves. Ciculus shook his head.
“Hmm.”
“Besides, there are things that are similar to them and an
environment allows them to fight as they please there. There’s
another perk that makes everyone join also. I was the same.”
Sian looked as it seemed like the secret that Ciculus hid last time.
“Yeah.”
“Nevermind.”
Sian did not want to waste his youth as a guard so he decided to let
it go. He didn’t want to know about the Lorvall family’s secret that
much.
“Who is that?”
“Conrad?”
“So, it’s not forced then. I thought you guys were forcing everyone to
join.”
“Huh? We are not some gangsters. Everyone joins on their own will.”
As Sian and Ciculus discussed the Lorvall family, Conrad finished his
job and approached them.
“Yes. There’s nothing I can do anymore. Swarms will wipe out the
rest and the barrier will stabilize itself.”
“Oh… then!”
“Right. I think we can manage to send you and Stiel back to Ra-Sian
once the barrier stabilizes. It will be easier to move about once we
have to remove the barrier and use the Ciculus energy elsewhere.”
“Hmm.”
“If you two have nowhere to go, why not come to Lorvall Ciculus?”
“Huh?”
“We will teleport you out from there. It’s the largest and safest
Ciculus location. We have the most stored energy there too.
Besides, it’s closest.”
Stiel asked Sian but he had the same idea. He was interested in the
Lorvall family itself and if going there would speed up the process to
go back, there was no need to go elsewhere.
Conrad began running out to the east and Sian and Stiel followed.
“It’s amazing… a being that went over three walls. A being that we
can’t handle even with those new Murakans.”
The upgraded Murakans were beyond expectations. They were first
stage Betas. Murakans were not beings that could overcome the
barriers. It was a great feat to make them Rotans when they were
only Narijas, but it wasn’t enough. Even when they were
outnumbered, it was impossible to fight against the rank that was two
steps above them. Among the giants or mysterious mermaids were
Great Warriors or Princesses that were at second stage Betas. It
was impossible to fight against the Murakans without breaking
through the barrier.
That was why they needed a lot of Dukes. Those second stage
betas were dealt with by having the Murakans attack them and
ambush with joined forces of all Duke as the Dukes were first stage
Betas.
But there was no need. The blood that Lagaope brought pulled those
Murakans break the barrier forcefully. It took a few years to make
just one of Murakans turn into a first stage Beta, but that was
enough. They made the other Murakans to absorb its power and
they made all the Murakans reach the first stage.
“Great. We have even stronger control over them. Can they become
stronger?”
The seal only allowed them to control up to first stage Betas. If they
became stronger, that would pose a problem.
“There it is.”
“Oh.”
Sian and Stiel gasped at the size of the tree that appeared over the
horizon. They had been seeing larger trees each time they moved to
another place, but it didn’t get old.
“Well, the people staying there are all Dukes who have overcome the
wall. It’s no wonder the tree was able to grow that big.”
“Is there some old race buried beneath it too?” Sian asked. An
ancient serpent, Vladek, was buried under the Vladek tree. It worked
as a nutrient to the tree so Sian thought that was a possibility.
“I see.”
Sian could imagine how fierce the war front might be.
There was a well-built and tall man at a distance standing under the
tree, waiting for them.
“I am Sian.”
“Yeah, I see something… but I’m not sure. I’m sorry if I was too
rude.”
“No, no. It’s amazing. So a being who has surpassed three barriers
can see through everything! I’ll tell you all later. We have more things
to talk about for now.”
“I have things to discuss with Lorvall later. I’ll prepare for your
teleportation for now. It will take… about a week or two. We need to
stabilize the barrier first.”
He’d spent a hundred years in Apental. It was easy to wait just two
more weeks so Sian nodded.
They talked about different things as they walked in. Then saw a
fierce fight going on from a distance. Sian focused on the sight and
found two peculiar groups fighting each other.
Sian heard about the Murakans but he’d never seen them before so
he could not guess which one was which. Both groups looked
grotesque.
“The ones with different shapes and sizes are Murakan. And ones
with the fins… are Merpeople.”
“Mer…people? Mermaids?”
“I am not sure about mermaids, but I call them Merpeople. They are
the children of Liona. Really strong. We can barely fight them outside
the water. If it was inside…”
But they became weaker when outside the water so it barely allowed
them to push the monsters back. Princesses were still a great
danger, but now it was more easier.
‘Liona…’
It was the name he heard from Nekra’s memory. It seemed like Liona
was one that lived within the sea.
The fight was almost over. The Murakans were pushing back the
Merpeople. After they won, they began devouring the dead bodies.
The Murakans that ate the bodies began growing scales and fins
sprouted out of their body.
“Oh, so they eat them all like that. I thought they would put some of
them by the tree.”
Sian thought some were used to be absorbed by the tree, but the
Murakans ate them all.
“Hmm.”
Sian had many questions but he couldn’t think of one when asked so
he hesitated. Sian then decided to ask about the building. It was the
one of the most peculiar things on this side of the continent.
“I am not sure.”
“Huh?”
“I went there once, but I never went in. Especially to the place where
cores were stored.”
“Was there someone that strong? No, I actually thought you were the
one who built that place.”
If someone got out of there, they must have been at the second
stage. Therefore, that person would most likely be alive right now.
But Lorvall shook his head.
“No, I didn’t build the place and you don’t need to be strong. You
don’t fight your own guards when you go into your house. The
person who gave me the core was the one who used to live there.”
“Oh… but they were guards? So are the cores that important?”
“No, it is important but not to that extent. I think those guards were
also test subjects.”
“Who is it?”
“Huh?”
“Haha, Mister Sian. It has been a long time. I never thought I would
see you on this part of the land.”
“I did hear how you came to this world. I mean… you really are
talented in getting mixed up with a place. Why did you go there? We
opened it near Dragona’s territory on purpose.”
“…”
Chrona was going to walk in there and wreak havoc so it would not
have caused any problems. That was what Conrad discovered
through his <Aksarai> skill. Sian felt annoyed by his words but he
decided to let it go since it was now all in the past.
“It was much more than just some old artifact. I never saw such
things before even on the other side. Not here either.”
“Well… I need to give you another history lesson to teach you that.”
“I got nothing but time. Besides, your history lessons are fun.”
They needed two more weeks for the preparations to be finished.
Sian also had fun listening to Lagaope’s history lesson before.
It seemed that Lorvall had heard the story from Lagaope before so
he left the room.
“Where should we start… Right. I saw that you had the Hand of
Gran-Ra and the Armor of the Seven Stars before.”
“I saw you fighting with it before you were dragged into Apental a
long time ago. You were strong back then, but you are one of a kind
now.”
There had been hundreds who were powerful enough to fight against
Sian back then in Don-Nasian, but there were none now.
“Do you think the civilization here would allow that? You should be
aware that this place has no magic or technology. This land only
values power.”
“I brought those when I came from my country back then. It was for
my personal defense. The laboratory was built when that country
existed.”
The Lorvall family was mighty, but they were too busy and they
lacked the resources to create a country to govern the land.
“Yes, but there was a time when it existed to rule over everything
with its might. It was located to the west. My country, <Broshan>,
was such a country.”
“To the west? Hm… Is there another continent over the western
ocean?”
Sian was told that the laboratory was surrounded by the ocean. It
didn’t seem like there was any part of the continent that was able to
form a country.
“Then where was it? I didn’t see any big chunk of land… was it a
small country?”
Lagaope shook his head.
“But then…”
“The coast that you saw… was the place where <Broshan> used to
stand.”
“…”
“You can’t find it now. The laboratory you saw was located at the far
east corner of Broshan. It stayed intact on the day of the Great
Disaster. I was saved because I was inside the laboratory on that
day. Everyone else died.”
Stiel believed it meant that the land that was so large that it had sunk
under the sea.
“Chrona and Dragona were only Betas back then. They were
terrifying beasts even during their Beta days, but we weren’t scared
by anything back then.”
“Huh?”
“Our Divine Nation, Broshan, was protected by the great War God.
Well… it wasn’t as almighty like a real God, but don’t you call
someone a god when that person is exceptionally good at one thing?
He was such a being.”
The first and last of humankind, the most powerful Alpha of all the
races. He managed to become one as a human but nobody called
him an Alpha. The only word that could describe him was <God>.
The title that perfectly described his power and arrogance was the
one and only: <War God>.
A man who started out as a human and became a God. One who
never lost to anything.
<Broxian>
A long time ago, humans were very powerful. But they were not
powerful enough to control the continent. No Betas were born among
humans. Without one, it wasn’t possible to fight against a race with
Betas. Therefore, humans stuck to the western end of the continent.
They weren’t weak, but they weren’t the strongest either. There were
Rotan races with Alphas among them. The continent was ruled by
such races.
These children, with the blood of a God, ruled the country under the
<War God>. They grew up to be powerful themselves.
These children of God had been allowed to become Betas and were
granted long lives. Other humans could not become Betas, but these
children were allowed at least to become Betas.
When they reached such a stage, they turned to magic. They were
still powerful, but they couldn’t fight the Betas that had overcome two
or three walls. Broxian had no interest in other beings unless they
were Alphas, so they needed a way to fight.
That was why they studied magic. It was magic that was needed for
them to be able to fight against the second or third stage Betas and
a small number of first stage Betas. It wasn’t just simple magic that
was developed on Ra-Sian.
All of these events allowed the human race to evolve and prosper.
The continent was now under full control of the human race.
“Why is that?”
“…”
“They can’t come down, but we had to give up. They attacked by
throwing lightning at us as soon as we went up. Broxian thought
about wiping them out, but they ran further up so he couldn’t do it.”
“Oh…”
Stories of one living in the clouds and one going after them didn’t
seem like a normal story.
“…”
“It was called Divine Military Arms – AP-4, but that name was too dull
so I made one up. How do you like my naming sense?”
“…”
“Don’t look at me like that. So… what do you think we did after
conquering the west?”
“…”
“So we went to the east… Oh, and the east means this place. The
west is gone now.”
“…”
“Go on.”
“Huh?”
“We didn’t find any races that were worth ruling over. Besides, there
was a ruler here.”
“Oh.”
“But it didn’t matter. The Gerna could not take over the ones with the
Divine Blood.”
“Yes… and the children of God didn’t want it. They didn’t want to live
in the countryside.”
“…”
Yet they still needed to know about the race as they needed as much
information as possible about Betas to proceed with their project.
“So we built two structures. One was the laboratory you saw,
Aksarum. It means a place that studies the truth. We researched
various projects there. I was there too.”
The reason for its placement in the east was to study about races in
the east. Sian then realized why there were so many Betas inside.
They were captured for the testing and had not been released since
then.
“…”
“You never know when you might need it so that’s why we created
<Apental>. It looks crude but it’s a large scale dimensional prison
that we made with the best technology at the time. All of those failed
races were thrown in there.”
“We didn’t put all of them in. It’s a dimensional place so it captures
some spiritual beings and they probably reproduced inside. But we
did put in a lot.”
Sian now knew why those monsters inside had such hostility and evil
energy. If they were locked up for countless years, they would surely
develop such hostility.
“Well, you freed those races in those two places. I wanted to free
them from their curse but they were too strong.”
Stiel then asked, “So, what did you find out about the east?”
Lagaope sighed.
They discovered something weird when they studied the Gerna. The
Gerna and other races didn’t think about going to the south. They
tried to ask, but the unintelligent beings weren’t smart enough to
answer and these Gerna were so proud that they decided to self-
explode than cooperate when captured.
<Ugh…!>
The place later called the <Mountain of Extreme> had crumbled the
human’s inside chaotically. Everything inside turned to poison, then
turned to medicine. Every passage within was paralyzed and then
returned back. Muscles flexed and relaxed on their own. This change
became worse as they walked closer to the top.
One went to the west while one went to the east. Another team
decided to take the sea route.
The group to the east went inside the <Great Forest> and was
attacked by a mammal-like fourth stage Beta later called <Chrona>.
The group that went toward the <Great Western Sea> was attacked
by an amphibian-like fourth stage Beta that was later called <Liona>.
“Yes.”
“It was probably the same for us, but God told us that it was
strongest of the Alphas. God was strong enough to rip apart the
Chrona or Dragona of today. Broxian wasn’t one to exaggerate so it
was probably accurate.”
“What?”
“You know how nobles differ in power. I’m sure Alphas differ in power
also. We thought no one would be able to match Broxian’s power
back then.”
“Hmm…”
If that was true, then that being was still probably living near the
south of this continent.
Sian realized why this land was not consumed by Harijans. It wasn’t
because the humans were strong. It was because this mysterious
race was blocking the way.
Lagaope saw that Sian was curious about those races and asked,
“How many religions are there in Ra-Sian?”
Sian replied, “Two. War God and the Sun God… wait.”
“You mean…”
“The story of the clash between War God and the Sun God. I told the
story to young Conrad when he was reborn as Broxian, but he soon
claimed that he was the reincarnation of the God. Haha. Not even
close.”
“…”
“Yes, it was unfortunate that they fought right in the middle of our
nation. If we knew that such a being lived within the mountain,
Broxian would’ve gone there to fight by the mountain. If they did, it
was probably the Gerna’s land that was destroyed.”
“…”
That was when they found something interesting. There was a huge
nation to the west and a being that they considered a God. But they
also had their God.
<Gran-Ra>
One so powerful that they considered him as the God of the Sun.
They shared the information to their God and their God jumped out
of the mountain since he was bored. He then flew straight to
Broshan nation and began fighting with Broxian.
“Hmm.”
Sian remembered what the Gerna told him and nodded. It looked like
that was what the Gerna meant.
“Yes, you must know if you went in. When I was finished with my
research… more time had passed than I expected. And the human
race… was living a miserable life.”
They forgot about the glorious days of their nation. The children of
God were wiped out as they lived the closest to Broxian and so only
the common humans were left to live.
<By the Gods… how did the Divine Blood survive through that?>
<I was on a trip and… it was gone. I did survive thanks to that
though.>
<No. I walked around for a thousand years, but there’s only me. But
it’s good to see you. I’m Lorvall. I never thought I’d meet someone
who would remember the days of our nation.>
Meeting with Lorvall gave him hope to bring the human race back to
their glory. That was when Lagaope began his project along with
Lorvall.
“That’s what you’re seeing now. Ciculus, Akra, Murakan, Swarm and
all kinds of things… It’s the result of my research within the
laboratory.”
“Yeah.”
“What do you mean it’s gross. I’m looking at you with loving eyes.”
It was Sian’s blood that he gathered to create the orb. Lagaope knew
the worth of Sian’s blood who had reached the second stage and
stored some of his blood after creating the orb. It was Sian’s blood
that allowed Lagaope to upgrade the Murakans to their power.
“All of them are like your children! A copy! Sort of. Hahaha.”
“…How can you use someone’s blood for such perverted work?
Besides, I can’t have any children now. I’m a virgin.”
“…”
“…”
He wanted to tell Lagaope that he was now 127 years old, but he
decided not to.
“They are safe. We have Lorvall’s Divine Blood in them. They cannot
disobey.”
“Oh.”
Sian nodded.
“My story ends here. Lorvall and Conrad should have more details
on your return. I think this is everything I can tell you.”
Lagaope then walked out down to the Ciculus. Sian talked with
Conrad and Lorvall about what to do next.
Sian and Stiel came up to the tree after discussing their future plans.
If they tried to stop them with only humans, they would have lost long
ago. That’s where the Murakans came in. In their upgraded form,
they were now easily pushing back those giants.
The giants were very tall and their feet were thick, but tens of
Murakans chewing on them caused them fall to the ground. More
Murakans then hopped on to the giants, attacking and eating them at
will.
Stiel was impressed by those Murakans. They were like the dream
army of any nation. She thought of Usharan’s toys as useful war
machines, but these were different. Each one of them was as
powerful as a Duke and was evolving into a Beta at a rapid rate.
“Are they trying to invade the continent with them?’ Sian asked as he
figured it would be possible for Lorvall to go over the peninsula with
those armies.
“I don’t know. Oh, look. Another one became stronger,” Stiel shouted
as one Murakan suddenly howled. Its body was changing. Arms and
legs that stuck out had been sucked inside and all the mouths that
were present on its body disappeared. Three of its heads also
became one.
It was finally only left with two legs, four arms, and one head. It was
now much stronger than its former self.
The Murakans were busy gorging on the giants, but a few of them
stopped eating and were looking toward the tree.
Stiel answered with a lack of interest but the context was terrifying to
think about.
“Don’t say that. It’s already annoying to think about it,” Sian
answered. If they attacked, it was going to be very tiring. He would
win, but it would be a close one.
“That’s good.”
“If we wipe out the Gerna and deactivate the barrier… we can
probably install a Ra-Shar-Roa too.”
“Hmm…”
“What is it?”
“We did decrease the trait, but it increases when they are done with
the battle. It won’t be much of a problem.”
“Hmm.”
Lorvall still frowned. It seemed like they were just eating the giants,
but Lorvall’s heightened senses allowed him to see that they were
not. They were eating their own.
After Lorvall sent them orders to stop the act, they stopped. It still
wasn’t a good sign anyway.
“I should look into them. They might have changed after I upgraded
them the last time.”
The Murakans felt two powerful types of blood within them. One tried
to control them nonstop; it told them to stay where they were and
listen to the orders. Another one forced them to kill, eat others, and
be reborn into another being.
They did not know who was the owner of the 2nd blood. However,
they were certain that the owner of the 2nd blood was much stronger
than the 1st. The 2nd blood eating away all of the 1st blood was the
proof.
Then they dreamed to meet with the owner of this 2nd blood.
The beings that allowed them to become strong with just a drop of
blood. If they ate such a being.. they would become much stronger.
But it wasn’t time yet. They had too much of the 1st blood left in their
race. They needed to wash away the blood that controlled them first.
And when that time came… it would be time for them to be reborn.
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Chapter 173
Chapter 173: Evolution
“Good. We have more Betas now. Almost all of them have overcome
the wall.”
“We can’t control them if that happens. That’s enough. Let them stay
by the plains.”
The Murakans felt that the time would soon be ripe. The blood that
controlled them was almost gone and what was left of it wasn’t
enough to control them anymore. What was even more fortunate
was that the 2nd blood’s owner was nearby. It was like their father;
they could feel it that it was close. They wanted to go back to him.
And eat him.
However, it was still not time. They felt the power of the being.
They had become stronger, but it was not enough to fight against the
being. Their blood constantly warned them of the danger. Luckily,
this place was really ideal to strengthen themselves. The prey
constantly came over and allowed them to become stronger.
But they were still lacking. So they resorted to their ancient way.
<Cannibalism>.
They ate each other and filled each other’s missing parts. It allowed
them to reinforce their weaknesses and strengthened their power.
The blood that had stopped them from doing it was no more, and
their path was now clear. The Murakans looked at each other. Now
was the time. Even if most of them were sacrificed here, it was okay
if they were reborn into the next level of being. They could not fight a
two-stage difference, but a one-stage difference would be okay if
they had enough numbers.
That night, the Murakans fought and killed to eat each other. The
massacre was done in silence. They kept killing and eating until they
became stronger.
Next was the final step. They just needed one of them to eat the
owner of the blood.
The Murakans were ready. They knew how strong their father was,
but they were strong now as well.
They tried to fly to the giant tree, but it was not needed.
Sian sighed.
It seemed like something had gone wrong. Sian flew over here as he
felt the ominous energy from the plains. The energy was hostile
towards him, so his first thought that Lorvall was trying to attack him.
‘No.’
Sian realized what they had done. Even when they were eating each
other, they hid their power so that it would be a secret. He was
certain they were ensuring that Sian himself would not notice.
It was no use running as he was sure they were targeting him. Sian
also knew why; it must have been his blood that was used on them.
Even if he went back to the tree and fought together with the Dukes,
they weren’t going to be much help. All of the Dukes combined
would not be able to fight even one of these Murakans.
Sian crushed one that rushed up to him with the power in his hand.
Whoever it was, the survivor would be reborn into another being.
Sian and the Murakans both fought as they believed it was
themselves who would be the winner.
Stiel felt Sian jumping out and raised herself up. She felt the energy
from the plains and went outside. The tree was full of Dukes that
were more powerful than her, but they barely managed to feel the
energy and was moving up the tree to seek confirmation.
Lagaope shook his head and shouted, “I don’t know! I don’t know
what’s going on!”
“WHAT?!”
Stiel confronted Lorvall, even though Lorvall was much stronger than
her. She was desperate.
“No, right? If I get caught up in there, I won’t survive. Same goes for
the other Dukes. We will only get in his way if we go.”
“…Dammit.”
Stiel remembered how she felt so helpless when Sian dragged her
into the red sphere a long time ago. She thought that she was
powerful, but after she saw the world with Sian, she knew she wasn’t
even considered strong.
The fight was happening miles away but the released power was
terrifying. If they went, they would only disrupt Sian’s focus.
“If they manage to win, we will be wiped out. Of course, we hope that
Sian wins. But if they win… where will they come first?”
“To you.”
Stiel spoke grimly. The monsters running rampant meant that they
were no longer being controlled. They would surely not forgive the
being that controlled over them for over thousands of years.
Lorvall nodded.
“Yes. The winner will be in a half-dead state, but we should still get
ready. Even if they are half-dead, I’m not sure if we can fight them
off.”
Stiel didn’t know what that meant, but she could tell that it was very
dangerous. And that it was powerful enough to damage those
Murakans.
“Dammit…”
‘Please survive…’
Sian was necessary for the human race. He must not die out here.
Sian was barely managing to fight them off. He felt two things. One
fortunate and one unfortunate.
The fortunate thing was that he knew how to fight when he was
being attacked by a large number of enemies. What was unfortunate
was that these monsters had learned how to fight against powerful
beings first hand.
Sian tried to run out of their formation and attack them one by one,
but they did not allow that. They tried their best to keep Sian within
the formation and Sian had to give up trying to escape it. He turned
to the beyond, as he smacked down the one that tried to bite off his
arm.
‘Bastards…’
The one that took huge damage moved out of the formation and
began eating dead bodies to recover. Sian then realized what their
goal was. They weren’t trying to minimize their damage. They were
willing to sacrifice almost everything to kill Sian.
Sian became irritated. These monsters didn’t seem to have the basic
instincts of survival. That’s what annoyed Sian. It was good that
eating those corpses didn’t make them grow stronger, but they
quickly regenerated and came back.
The dangerous one wasn’t the one that ate the bodies. The
dangerous one was the one that actually bit Sian.
‘Dammit.’
Sian cursed at the monster who had just bitten off his arm. The
monster morphed after biting Sian. Something was coming up from
the damage it acquired from Sian’s attack. It was an arm. If given
more time, another pair of arms was sure to pop out. But the arm
itself wasn’t the problem. The reason that the arm was coming out —
that was the problem.
“Dammit…”
However, he had lost. There was one survivor. The final survivor was
now at the third stage. This survivor would become the strongest of
the land.
Both of them were half-dead but Sian couldn’t even move. The
Murakan was also weak but it seemed it could move enough to at
least deal a finishing blow and finish eating him.
He read stories where the main character was saved by his friends
at such times, but no one was coming.
Sian shouted and panted. At that time, the Murakan that was
crawling over to Sian with its remaining three arms screamed.
“Huh?”
“Nngh…”
Sian felt his body had fully healed and woke up. He could now feel it;
he was at the end of the Beta stage.
They probably did. If he were to pass this one last stage… he would
become like the legendary Broxian or Dragona. He would still be
much weaker, however, as he would just be a newly-born Alpha.
“Maybe I’m crazy now. To think that I would want to try again…”
Sian shook his head to dispel those thoughts and glanced around. If
his body had felt a threat he might have woken up automatically, but
it seemed that the area was now safe. Lorvall and the other Dukes
must have managed to kill off the last Murakan.
‘That’s fortunate.’
“You’re awake.”
“Oh… Lorvall.”
Lorvall smiled.
“What?”
“…”
“It’s okay though. You won and everyone is saved. I thank you for
that.”
“So how are you defending against those invaders?” Sian asked.
They had been relying on the Murakans to defend the warfront, so if
they were gone, it would be a huge blow to Lorvall. However, he
seemed unconcerned.
“Swarms?”
“Yes. There weren’t much of them left in the north. They probably all
moved in when the barrier was down. We also got more Swarms
when we cleaned up… I guess it was only natural as we had more
food for them. We will manage.”
“What’s even better is that we now can use the energy that was
powering the barrier elsewhere.”
Sian realized the barrier that covered the sky was now gone.
“It feels weird to see the sky without the barrier. It had been covering
us for over three thousand years, but it’s a good thing. We can focus
on defending the peninsula for a while. All the Swarms are coming
here, they will arrive by today or tomorrow.”
“Congratulations.”
Conrad had told him that they needed the barrier to stabilize before
they were able to send Sian back.
“Yes. We can now teleport you out. Conrad is working on the rune as
we speak. It should be ready by tonight.”
“Hmm…”
“Yes… but it just doesn’t feel real yet. I just took a nap and then it’s
ready.”
“Haha, you’ve been sleeping for a month and we’ve been keeping
busy. You should rest a bit more.”
“She’s out at the roots, training. She’s been focusing on training for a
while now.”
“Hmm…”
“UGH!”
There was a training ground located at the outer roots of the tree. It
was where the Dukes sparred with each other. It was built out of the
most durable parts of the Ciculus <Lorvall> to withstand the Dukes
fighting. The mile-long training ground of the Ciculus Tree was now
filled with clashing sounds.
Stiel was fighting against some weird roots that were controlled by a
Duke.
“Dammit!”
The tree was so dense that it couldn’t even be cut with Stiel’s
strongest attack. She tried to fight it off but soon gave up and jumped
back to dodge the attack.
“Ha…”
“It’s pretty strong, isn’t it? They were the rulers of the southwestern
region for a long time. But they were wiped out along with their Betas
during the first disaster.”
“Hmm?”
“Hmm…”
Stiel then remembered that Sian had mentioned such things. She
always believed she had to become stronger from her own training,
but she needed results.
At that moment, roots began sweeping over towards Stiel, and she
began crushing them with her black gauntlets.
Sian was watching from afar so he wouldn’t disrupt the training and
thought, ‘Something good to eat…?’
<Heart of Nekra>
<Karnine>
<Succession>
It had been on Sian’s mind that Stiel did not have much time left to
live. However, nothing was for certain yet, so Sian began to ponder
as Lorvall asked, “What are you thinking about so seriously?”
“Oh…”
Sian thought Lorvall might have a better idea as he had lived longer
and began to explain. But Lorvall didn’t give him an answer he
wanted to hear.
“I’m not sure as I’m not an expert on that… I don’t even know what
that Kal-Gul race is.”
“Hmph.”
“Oh?”
Sian also realized that there was an expert not too far away.
“Thank you.”
Conrad and Lagaope had come to inspect the heart and Karnine.
They were intrigued that the heart had belonged to the Kal-Gul’s
Great Warrior Nekra, as they had previously fought the Kal-Guls for
a long time. After testing it with various magics, Conrad and Lagaope
started discussing a lot of things. They started debating with each
other on various issues for a while and concluded in the end, “We
don’t think there will be any issues.”
“Oh? Really?”
“Yes. The heart is stable and we don’t see any… trace of Chrona in
there. You won’t need to worry.”
“But…”
“Yes.”
Sian explained what he had seen before. He told them about when
Kuntarian’s ego was gone and Kalagul, the old Kal-Gul warrior took
over. Conrad and Kuntarian frowned.
“What is it?”
“So, that Kuntarian guy got the heart that we were studying… but to
have beat the man up until his spirit died. You are one of a kind.”
“…”
“Why is that?”
The side effect of having one man’s ego disappearing wasn’t one to
take lightly. However, Conrad didn’t seem to be concerned. Sian
questioned him, unconvinced, and Conrad laughed.
“You would die with that amount of damage before your spirit dies to
allow that to happen.”
“Oh.”
“The body would be crushed before that happened. If Stiel falls into
that situation, it would be much direr than a Soul Transfer.”
“You probably can use it without any concern. If you think it will be
hard to eat it raw, should we process it a bit?”
“Is that possible?” Sian asked. The heart was still beating so he
didn’t feel it was appropriate for a lady to eat it whole. It was quite
large too. Conrad began drawing something up on the space. It
began to form a circle with various incantations as Conrad took the
heart and placed it inside the circle.
Conrad snatched the rock and handed it over to Sian. Sian was
confused as it seemed very familiar to him and finally realized what it
was.
“Oh… this looks like-”
“Yes. I processed it the same way we make the Soul Transfer Orb.
The orb requires more materials, but this is how it works. I extracted
the core power of the heart into this, so it will retain its full power
when consumed.”
“No problem. We will work on the rune again, so go and have her eat
it. Stiel won’t be easy to deal with from now on. Haha.”
“Wow, Sian you came back with a present! So, were you watching
me while I was training?”
“Yeah, I went to ask about the heart and Conrad even processed it
into this.”
“…”
“But I trust them. So I just need to eat this and put Karnine close to
my heart?”
Sian was still unsure if he was making the right choice, but Stiel just
laughed.
“It will be okay.”
Sian was worried that it might hurt her pride. However, she seemed
okay.
“Hmph.”
Sian nodded.
“But are YOU okay? You won’t be able to use Karnine anymore.”
“Haha, right. Come to think of it, you’re finally paying me back for my
armor that you BORROWED and destroyed.”
“Oh…”
Stiel swallowed the gem, took Karnine from Sian and placed it over
her heart. She didn’t have to stab it into herself as it immediately
began reacting to her.
There weren’t many visible changes from the outside, but Sian was
able to see the changes happening within Stiel’s body. The gem
scattered into powder inside her stomach and began to spread
throughout her entire body. Karnine also began emitting powerful
energy onto her and spread out.
Her inner body began to change. Her muscles tightened like steel
and her senses increased. Her bones became stronger and her
blood was cleansed and renewed.
The change didn’t take too long. When everything was done, Sian
carefully spoke to her.
“Hm… Stiel?”
“…”
Stiel didn’t answer but glanced at her own body and began thrusting
with her fists and legs. It was a different level of power from before.
After she finished examining herself, with a satisfied look she turned
to Sian and smiled.
“Wow… I guess you really need to eat good stuff for your body.”
“Oh, you’re right. I should put my gauntlets in there. You can have
Nitzmatan back.”
Stiel spoke as she pounded the gauntlets against each other. Then,
they saw a huge wave of a silvery-looking substance approaching
from a distance.
The Swarms were much larger than the one that protected the
Karltonheim Estate. The two of them found it interesting that this
Swarm contained an enormous amount of energy.
“Haha, we don’t need the barrier anymore so we can utilize all the
energy we want.”
“Oh, Ciculus.”
Sian turned to Ciculus, who jumped out from the Swarm and said,
“We will use these to defend now. I pulled out all of the stored Akra
from around the continent. By the way… I heard what happened. Are
you okay?”
The Swarms quickly moved under the <Ciculus> Lorvall. They were
a bit weaker than the Murakans, but they seemed that they had
become strong enough to defend the place.
Sian got up from his bed from a sudden loud tremor that shook the
Ciculus.
“…”
“Oh, Sian.”
Ciculus greeted Sian who came up. Ciculus and the other Dukes
were feeling the energy coming from the bottom of the tree as if they
had been waiting for it.
“What is this energy? What are you guys doing?” Sian asked as he
felt the powerful energy radiating from beneath the ground.
“Isn’t it amazing? This is why we made Ciculus, the Akra, and the
Swarms in the first place.”
The energy was slowly flowing into the core of the tree. The massive
energy was becoming more apparent and powerful as it gathered
towards a small spot.
“What do you mean? I thought they were created for the human
race?”
Lagaope told him that Ciculus and Akra were made to protect and
help grow the human race. However, it seemed that Ciculus was
implying that there was a different motive. And the Swarm? They
were supposedly built to fight the Gerna.
“Okay?”
“You’ll see it soon. Don’t worry, you won’t have a problem going back
home.”
“Hmph.”
Sian looked away as Ciculus pointed out what worried Sian the
most. He didn’t seem like he was lying after all, so Sian decided to
wait and see.
Within the core was a man standing inside; however, the man and
the core weren’t visible as a countless number of Swarms were
covering them. The core was huge, but it was completely covered
with Swarms. But it was clearing up as Swarms quickly began to
disappear.
The silvery waves were rushing into the place where core and the
man stood and were absorbed in as it transferred the Akra energy
onto the core.
The core was now filling up with silver liquid from within and the man
who stood inside was being drawn by the silver liquid.
They were prepared for any emergencies, but the project didn’t
seem to have any issues so far.
Lagaope laughed.
“That only works for a man with Divine Blood. It was a project to
bring out the full potential of the Divine Blood that had been
restricted by human blood. It can’t be used on any man, other than
the descendant of Broxian. I was so relieved when I found Lorvall,
you know? Oh, maybe you might work since you are the ‘Son of the
War God’, right? Haha.”
“I really thought I was a son of God back then. You know, being
reborn and all.”
“Yeah.”
Conrad agreed. There was no one weaker than him on this tree. No,
there were two. Stiel and Lagaope. But that didn’t prove much.
“Don’t blame yourself. You’re still within the top fifty ranks for humans
in terms of strength.”
“No, it’s not that easy. This isn’t enough to bring out the full potential
of the Alpha, Broxian.”
“Lorvall knows. He’ll take the needed steps on his own. Oh, it’s
almost over.”
The enormous number of Swarms had now melted away within the
core and it was shining with a silvery light as strong Akra radiated
from within. Then, the silver liquid swirled around like a tornado and
Lorvall began absorbing it.
“Good… it’s going well. We have to move on to the next step. Can
you give me that?”
Conrad handed over a sphere that was about as big as two human
fists. Conrad seemed to be tempted to take the sphere for himself as
he reluctantly handed it over.
“Can I become strong if I eat this? It’s the extract of a third stage…”
“You can’t become strong with it. It’s made for the Divine Blood.
Come on now.”
“Hmph.”
Conrad handed over the sphere and Lagaope threw it into the core.
As it was thrown in, it changed the silver liquid rushing into Lorvall,
accelerating the process.
“That’s not going to happen. This is the last step of the process. We
are removing the contaminated human blood out of him.”
“Okay.”
“It’s almost done.”
Stiel was confused. The energy was subsiding but it looked like
nothing changed. However, Sian seemed to be in shock.
Sian felt something was born from below. A powerful but familiar
energy.
“What happened?”
Stiel couldn’t feel anything but she knew that Sian had felt
something.
Stiel asked as it had been a long time since she had seen Sian look
so serious.
“Huh?”
“Yeah.”
The sheer amount of energy that was collected would partly explain
the situation, but that wasn’t enough to create a powerful being equal
to Sian. Just then, the newly-born being jumped up to Sian with
incredible speed.
His power was now very different from his old self, but he was a
familiar face.
“Haha! Have you been looking at the world this way? It’s amazing!”
“I guess you have the right to know. I will explain it all. Stiel… can
you give us a moment?”
Lorvall called to Sian and jumped down with him to the bottom of the
tree.
“I have something to show you in return. It’s all thanks to you that we
got this far.”
Lorvall quickly moved down the Ciculus and Sian followed. Sian first
thought that they were going to where the Swarms stayed, but
Lorvall moved past them. There was a deeper underground channel
beneath the Swarms.
“Yes.”
“What’s that?”
“That’s it.”
They arrived at a deep cavity within the ground. Sian found two
weapons stuck within and moaned. There was nothing he could feel
from the weapon, but it wasn’t because the weapon was worthless.
The weapons did not require such feelings or energy.
A silver spear and a golden sword.
Sian didn’t know what they were made of, but he was able to realize
one thing. Those weapons were powerful enough to damage Chrona
or Dragona. It didn’t mean the wielder could defeat either of them,
but that was really something. Sian became curious and asked,
“What is that? Are those weapons from the Divine Nation days?”
That would have been amazing, but Lorvall shook his head.
“You are only half right. It was made during that time, but our nation
did not create those weapons.”
“Then…?”
“Yes. Those are the weapons used by the War God and the Sun
God.”
“Oh!”
“The spear… the War God took out what he needed from the Alphas,
extracted it, and created it with his own hands. We are not sure how
many Alphas were killed to create that weapon. I believe the Sun
God’s sword creation method is similar.”
They were just weapons, but had been created through horrific
methods.
“Where did you find that? I don’t think Lagaope knows it exists.”
“I met Lagaope 1000 years after the war was over. A lot of things
happened during that time and I couldn’t tell him everything.”
“Oh.”
He quickly returned to the west, but there was nothing there except
for an ocean.
The vast Empire of Broshan was no more. It had been sunk into the
sea within hours. Lorvall quickly gathered the survivors.
When he followed the quest that was given to him by that power, he
found a trace of the War God. He thought if the War God was alive,
that would mean they had a chance that the Divine Nation would rise
again. It wasn’t the nation that gave birth to the God. It was the God
that made the nation.
-Stats: ???
-Stats: ???
Relic.
That word on both the weapons meant that the wielders of the
weapons had been killed. Besides, the weapons were useless as he
could barely lift them up. It wasn’t possible for him to use them.
Lorvall didn’t know what to do with the weapons so he just stored
them. He then hid the news that the Gods were dead. The humans
were hoping that God would come back to save them.
<Good idea.>
Lorvall despised the Gerna who controlled the human race. There
was no way to fight back until now, but Lagaope had his ways. While
the Swarms and Murakans pushed them back, Lorvall planted
Ciculus and spread Akra to help humans grow.
The Divine Blood was blocked at the first stage of Beta for unknown
reasons and Lagaope thought it might have been because human
blood was mixed in. That was simple to solve. The human blood just
needed to be cleaned out to open the possibility for the next stage.
The second thing was the powerful extract from a powerful race to
wash away the human blood. A first stage extract at least was
needed to wash away the first stage Beta’s blood.
The third was the sheer amount of energy that was even hard to find
during the days of the Divine Nation.
That was why Ciculus, Akra, and Swarms were created. They
collected enormous energy through Akra and Ciculus and
transferred it via the Swarm. The extracts were solved by Murakans
as they devoured others for their power.
They were successful until they drove out the Gerna, but something
happened next.
When the Gerna were driven out, monsters began rushing in from
the other side of the peninsula. Lorvall and Lagaope had to focus on
defending before they could even wipe out the Gerna.
As they couldn’t wipe out the Gerna, they had to channel the energy
of Ciculus to create the barrier to stop the Gerna from invading
again. They worked to increase the number of nobles, but it didn’t
help.
The bigger problem was the Murakans. Their plan was to consume
the Murakans that became first stage Betas to evolve into the
second stage and control the Murakans to become second stages,
before consuming them again. However, they stopped evolving.
None of them were turning into a first stage Beta. And with the
monsters attacking from the other side of the peninsula, they couldn’t
even focus on increasing the number of Murakans.
“But everything has been solved in recent days, all thanks to you.”
Sian’s blood quickly allowed the Murakans to evolve into the first
stage Beta. Lorvall was planning to consume them to reach the
second stage, but they consumed each other to evolve into the
second stage. And as they fought with Sian, they went on to reach
the third stage.
That was why he waited until the Murakan evolved into the third
stage and became weak enough for him to kill. Sian performed well
for that.
They did not even need the barrier anymore as all the Gerna were
wiped out. They now only needed to bring in the energy using the
Swarms.
“Didn’t you say that the Murakans were all taken care of?”
“Of course. We processed them all into extracts. They are all here
now.”
Lorvall tapped himself. Sian thought about smacking the man for
what he made him go through, but a fight now would mean disaster.
Lorvall laughed.
“No, it’s not that simple. The Murakans can do that, but I can’t. I
would’ve done it if it worked.”
“But… doesn’t it mean that anyone can become strong like that?”
“But didn’t you rush a bit?” Sian asked as there were some parts that
seemed dangerous. If Murakans were bit stronger, for example, their
plan would have been failed miserably.
Lorvall laughed.
“I see.”
Sian nodded.
“We only had third stage extract so this was the limit. This is a failed
project. Yet.”
Lorvall added a little and Sian became concerned at that last word.
“Yet? Is there another way?”
Sian felt something wasn’t going right but Lorvall shook his head.
“…Go on.”
“Yes. The trait… it’s a trait that lets you become stronger once you
survive through the brink of death. It’s amazing that you can break
the wall just by doing that.”
“I guess you know what I want to do next then. Take one that you
like. At least we should use the weapons to feel the threat.”
Lorvall laughed.
“Didn’t I tell you that I was lucky? I didn’t have a lot of time left. I
guess the War God is helping me. Oh, by the way, I’m telling you
because we will be fighting anyway, but I wasn’t going to send you
home.”
“Can we solve this peacefully? I’ll tell you where you can fight until
you die. If you go to the south…”
“Oh, the forbidden lands? I’m not powerful enough to fight against
Chrona or Dragona yet. I will die even if I become an Alpha. But I’ll
go there and train when I become an Alpha, so don’t worry.”
“No, that’s why I’m looking at you. And remember I said I have
special power telling me what to do?”
Sian wanted to avoid fighting at all costs, yet it seemed like there
was no other option. He thought about pulling out both the weapons
and ambushing him, but Lorvall seemed to be expecting that and
had readied himself with the weapons. He was speaking as if he was
relaxed, but he was ready for an ambush.
Lorvall laughed.
“What?”
“I do not wish to stay a Beta until I die. I’d rather die here than lose
my chance to become an Alpha.”
“Dammit.”
Sian understood why Lorvall was so eager to fight. If they fought with
the weapon they were holding, one of them would become an Alpha
in the end. Lorvall desperately needed to become an Alpha so he
couldn’t let this chance pass.
“Should we move?”
Lorvall then jumped out, and Sian followed him back to the ground.
Sian thought about it but shook his head. Lorvall was now at the
same level and he was fully on guard. Sian shook the thought away
and followed Lorvall out.
“Sian, what’s that?” Stiel asked Sian as he came back with a weird
golden sword. The Duke also had a silver spear in his hand. She
didn’t sense any weird energy from it, but Stiel figured it was
something powerful. Sian, who didn’t even consider Karnine a
worthy weapon, was holding onto the weapon tightly.
“Huh?”
“It’s… nothing. You should stay here. Take my Nitzmatan for a while.”
If Lorvall had any bad intentions, there was no way to protect Stiel.
Luckily, Lorvall wasn’t interested in that, so Sian decided to leave
Stiel here. When Sian was done speaking, he glanced at Lorvall and
Lorvall jumped out at once. Sian then followed, leaving a
dumbfounded Stiel behind.
“Where are we going?” Sian asked Lorvall as they flew over the
peninsula.
“We are not as powerful as the Sun God or the War God, but the
surroundings will be crushed when we fight. It’s better we fight
somewhere with no one around.”
“You care about people?”
Lorvall laughed.
“Haha, they are poor beings. A Divine Blood like me has to look after
them. If we have an Alpha back in our race… we can regain our
former glory.”
“…”
“Huh?”
“Follow me.”
The sea that divided the peninsula to the other side of the continent
was filled with dense fog.
‘Can’t I just ambush him here?’
Sian didn’t have any intention to play fair so he thought about a way
as the fog hindered their visibility, but he gave up.
“…”
Lorvall was curious as to why all those monsters came from the
beyond so he decided to pave a way with the Murakans and Swarms
to go over.
<Please!>
The other Dukes begged him not to go, but Lorvall was irritated as
his project was put on hold because of those monsters.
<I want to know why they keep coming over for the last thousands of
years. What are you going to do if I die from old age? Go extinct?>
Lorvall finally managed to cross the sea with his power of Aksarai
and the help of the Murakans and Swarms.
“…”
“Yes, that’s why I’m taking you there. I couldn’t stay long back then
though, but it was a breath-taking scene. I’ve always wanted to go
back again.”
“…”
“I will be taking a look at that continent once I win. You should too if
you win.”
“…”
“It’s beautiful.”
There was nothing on the beach, but there was a huge mountain
range in the distance. It was so tall that it even broke through the
clouds and it was so large that it felt like the continent was just a part
of the mountain.
Sian realized what created the fog. The shorter peaks were the ones
creating the fog, but there weren’t just a few; there were thousands
of these peaks.
“What is this place?”
“Haha. Don’t you think this is a good place to fight? I wanted to show
you this before you die.”
Sian had always fought with numerous weaker beings. It was the
first time in his life that he was going to fight someone on equal
footing. It seemed that he might be at a disadvantage as Lorvall
would have much more experience than him. However, Sian
believed in his instincts. Even now, his instincts were telling him what
to do and how to fight.
That was what allowed him to survive all those fights that would
otherwise kill him. He knew his instincts would bring him another
victory.
Conrad turned to Lagaope and asked, “Did you know that this would
happen?”
“Yes.”
Lagaope had said it wasn’t finished when Lorvall exited the core.
“So if they fight until they die, the other becomes an Alpha, just like
that?” Conrad asked back, unconvinced.
“Yes. The one who returns will become the new God.”
Sian dodged the end of the spear that struck under his nose and
swung his golden sword. The sword destroyed the space and the
ground each time he swung. The peak that stood nearby had been
destroyed a while ago and the giants and Merpeople were frantically
running away from the sudden calamity. Sian and Lorvall were
fighting in the direction toward the peninsula so they couldn’t even
run toward the peninsula.
Sian then thought about another thing as he saw the lands being
destroyed.
Sian then refocused himself on the fight. The opponent wasn’t like
any he fought before. He thought that fighting the Murakans was the
most danger he would ever have to face in his lifetime, but this was
much worse.
Sian was shocked at the amount of powerful magic that Lorvall was
using. Each of the hundreds of magic was very powerful. Sian
dodged the silver spear and deflected the blue ray of energy with his
sword. The ray was sent towards the ocean and instantly froze a few
miles of water. However, it was then melted by a green ray that was
also deflected.
‘Is this the power from <Connector of Aksarai>? That’s not fair!’
It seemed that Lorvall was using all the magic he had available. Sian
thought he had a good chance to win until Lorvall started using his
magic. Although they were at the same level, he would win. This was
because of pure talent. He knew how to fight and how to win. But
Lorvall was much stronger. He was even using the power to control
time and space that Nekra used.
‘He can do all sorts of things, but I only know how to swing a sword.’
In order to dodge the attack and counter it, he needed to give up his
arm.
There were a lot of possible ways, but they all required sacrifices.
As they fought endlessly, they gained injuries. The land and the sea
had been destroyed.
Sian then fought something that was changing from within. It was
almost ready to undergo a new change. Sian felt why Lorvall wanted
to become a God as he felt the change. If this change reached
completion, he would really become powerful enough to call himself
a God. Just like Chrona who decimated the Empire in the blink of an
eye, he would be such a being.
The fight became more intense. Sian knew what Lorvall was
thinking. If they slowed down the fight, they would both survive, but
they would never become an Alpha. The change happening from
within them didn’t allow such slow fights to happen. It wanted a
dramatic change, a danger that would bring the body to its limit.
That’s why Lorvall was pushing him.
Sian then began oppressing his opponent. Even with all that magic,
with such power, it didn’t matter. He had lived with just a sword, and
he would survive with just a sword.
“This is…”
Lagaope nodded. “Of course. All the people who have received the
seal of Divine Blood dies with the owner of the seal. It means Mister
Sian has won. I guess the power came from him.”
Stiel brightened up but asked again, “Then how come you’re alive?”
Conrad said he didn’t receive the seal, but the problem was
Lagaope. Stiel thought that Lagaope had lived this long because he
had received the seal from Lorvall.
“Hmm…”
Stiel then rushed towards the energy. There was the possibility that
Sian would not be in a healthy condition even if he had won.
Lorvall died with a satisfied look on his face. It seemed Lorvall didn’t
care who would become an Alpha in the end and his last words were
confusing.
“Wow.”
Sian didn’t have time to think about that. The change that was
happening within him was even more amazing.
Sian knew how could do this now. The him before he became an
Alpha was a different being than what he was now. He then realized
why there needed to be such stages to evolve and gain another
power level. Its difference wasn’t something that could be managed
at once. The wall that he just broke through wasn’t just a wall. It was
the change extracted from within that exploded in the end, changing
his entire body.
“HAHAHA! I see the ways now! I don’t need to go through this pain
to become strong anymore!”
Sian was glad. The <Ways to become strong> that he wasn’t able to
see anymore since he was seventeen had now shown up again.
Sian learned that the world was very large and there were powerful
beings throughout the world.
Stiel was correct. He needed to take the chance and become strong
when possible.
Even now, he could think of three beings that were more powerful
than him: Chrona, Dragona, and Liona. Sian was very unlucky in that
sense as there was no telling when he would need to fight them. He
needed to become strong enough in order to beat them up.
“I should train hard now. But to think that I still can’t defeat Chrona…
wow.”
He couldn’t believe how strong he had gotten, but it still wasn’t
enough. He now realized he was very lucky to have managed to
escape after slapping Chrona. If Chrona never imagined that she
would be attacked like that, Sian would have no chance of running
away.
It might take a long time for him to become strong enough to fight
head-on with Chrona. He was also thankful for the mysterious race
blocking the way in between. If it wasn’t for them, Chrona and
Dragona would come over to this part of the land and destroy
everything.
Sian began running toward the shore from the sea. The shallow
beach at the continent was now destroyed; its floor was now like a
deep sea. It didn’t matter as Sian could just run over it. Sian then
found Stiel flying in at a distance so Sian flew over to her.
“I’m here.”
“Hehe, I won.”
Ciculus and Lorvall were on the horizon and memories were flashing
past Sian.
Starting with the Apental to the result of him being thrown in this
world, along with the Murakan and Lorvall’s attacks. It all had been
started with Lagaope.
Stiel spoke astonishingly. “You make it sound like I killed them all…
well, I did but it was self-defense.”
“They won’t come over… at least for a few hundred years. The land
has been destroyed and the ones that can sense the energy won’t
dare to come over,” Sian answered confidently.
It was all over. Sian had gone through a lot, but it was now time to go
back. As Sian turned toward Ciculus, his face became grim.
“Huh? What’s going on, Sian?”
There was no way Conrad and Lagaope could hide from Sian. Sian
searched the parts of Ciculus and finally came to the core. The core
was very empty but Sian was able to feel that it had been used to
perform teleportation magic. There was rune drawn on around the
core. Sian tried to see if there was any trace left but there was
nothing.
As Sian looked at the core, some weird marble dropped from it and
Sian picked it up. There was small energy coming out from it so Sian
sent his energy in.
“Lagaope.”
“Haha…”
<But don’t be too angry. You can go back to your home. You see the
magic rune next to the core? That’s the rune that connects to Ra-
Sian Continent. The core is damaged but you probably can source
the energy now. You’re an Alpha now, right?>
“Hmph.”
Sian wanted to smack the man’s face at once but he didn’t want to
look for Lagaope as he was tired. Lagaope continued,
“Yeah.”
“…Why are there so many things that you didn’t tell me?”
<This one’s the last. You have to know. It’s really important.>
“Huh?”
<Hmm… Where should I start… It’s been a long time since I found
out about you.>
Ten years ago, Sian was dragged into Apental. If Lagaope had found
him then it would have been ten years. Lagaope shook his head.
“Huh? Then how did you know about me when I was in Lagran? Or
Con-Tian?”
Rumors of Sian had spread at the time so it could have been within
that time frame. Lagaope’s organization <Herrantor> had a network
of people working for them throughout the continent so it was
possible.
“Then when?”
<I should say… it was when you were born. Right after the
ceremony.>
“Huh?”
<Do you know why the ceremony is held when a baby is born?>
“Uh… I heard that it’s to measure the Bander Rating and see how
talented the baby is…”
“…”
“Hmph.”
<Even then, I taught the Bander Rating system to the people and
had the nobles go through a ceremony to measure them. I’m pretty
sure you know the reason for that.>
<You are correct. The highest ratio we ever had was 86%. This is
what you know as an 86 Bander Rating.>
Lagaope grinned.
<Of course. That’s why I went all the trouble to have Magical Council
start a useless ceremony like that. Besides, the higher the ratio did
mean that the person would have greater power, so it wasn’t
completely useless in the end.>
“So, that’s how you found those who would be your people.”
Lagaope nodded.
<I didn’t mean anything bad. Even with the high human blood ratio…
you still might die in an accident when you’re young. We couldn’t
have that, so that’s why we had to know. To protect them. Do you
think Stiel could have managed survive long enough to succeed in a
coup against her father and claim the throne as a young girl? There
were plenty of powerful people within that Kingdom.>
<I think Robanutton was protecting you back then. She couldn’t be
there all the time so she pressured the Magical Council to work for
you and sometimes did it by herself… we couldn’t let anyone die.
This did allow us to increase the number of superhumans.>
<Well, you were different. You were different from the beginning.
Stiel, what was your rating?>
<It calculates the power stored within the blood. If those monkeys on
Ra-Sian had 1 in their blood, then people on this continent had 100.
A pure-blooded monkey would have the rating of 1 and if the blood
reacts to about 40 times more, it would be at 40%… at least that’s
how we calculated it.>
“Then what about 497? It’s not like I should have 5 times the blood of
others or anything. Or am I like descendant of the War God or Sun
God? Or a hidden son?” Sian asked, but Lagaope laughed.
<Haha, you sound like Con-Rad when he was young. Don’t learn
that from him.>
“…”
“Yeah.”
<Yes, but…>
“I heard that people with the seal die when the Divine Blood leader
dies. Why are you still alive?”
Lagaope laughed.
<I did not lie. Lorvall was the last of Divine Blood and people with the
seal died. Those dead Dukes are proof of that. No descendants of
Broxian are left in this world.> Lagaope answered.
Stiel wasn’t familiar with either concept so she thought it was the
same thing.
“…”
<But there are priests in another race. Like I said, there wasn’t just
one God back then.>
<Yes. The beings that gave me immortality… they are the priests of
Lukra, the followers of the Sun God, Gran-Ra. I live because of their
blood.>
Lagaope tried going to the forbidden land after he gave all the
information he had about becoming an Alpha to Lorvall. But he didn’t
expect much as he didn’t have much time left to live. 1000 years had
passed outside but he only had been in <Aksarum> for 150 years.
Yet, he only managed to become a Baron which did not grant him a
longer life span. It seemed like he only had about 10 years left at
most.
It would’ve been good if he had received the seal from Lorvall, but
Lorvall was using his entire seal to control the situation at hand so
Lagaope descended south without it as an adventurer. He did not
have that much time left so he thought it would be nice to go on an
adventure through the forbidden lands before he died.
Lagaope was passing by the roads that went around the Mountain of
Extreme when he was kidnapped and dragged into the mountain.
Luckily, the power of the kidnappers allowed Lagaope to withstand
the effect of the mountain. After the higher rank of kidnappers read
through Lagaope’s memories, they moaned. They were using
different words, but one word came through Lagaope’s head through
a telepathic power.
<We do not care who he is. The fact that there is a connector means
that we have not routed out <Aksarai> yet.>
<We are… Lukra. It’s the name given by the mighty Gran-Ra.>
Lukras, the followers of Gran-Ra, began explaining their side of
history.
Lukra, the mighty race that gave birth to the powerful Alpha, <Gran-
Ra>.
They did not originate within the Mountain of Extreme, nor they were
powerful from the beginning. They were weak when they started out
because of two traits.
<They can only grow stronger through fighting at the brink of death.
No amount of training will allow them to become strong.>
However, the results were tragic. There were a lot who couldn’t
overcome the challenges and died.
The power that made the body strong became its attacker.
After they discovered the land, they stayed there and continued
training. The weaker ones started training on lower ground until they
were close to dying, which then they went further down to keep
themselves from dying. The one who became stronger moved up
toward the peak. The mountain became harsher as they went up, but
it allowed the Lukras to become stronger.
They called the mountain a <Holy Land>. Their power grew within
the mountain.
But there was a problem. The warriors within their fold had become
Alphas. The problem was that the mountain was no longer a threat
to them.
Then, they moved out of the mountain to hunt down Alphas of other
races. If they died while doing it, that was that. The survivors
became stronger as they hunted down the Alphas. The humans that
came exist on the eastern continent in later days thought there were
no strong races on the land, but this was because the Lukras wiped
them out first.
<Gran-Ra>
After Gran-Ra killed the King of the Giants who ruled the eastern
continent, he came to have the might of a God. But this gave him
another problem. There was no one else left that was strong enough
to fight on the same level as him.
No, there was one. One who lived above and had no interest in the
land.
<Aksarai>
Ruler of the <Drakun> who lived above the clouds, the one almighty.
Aksarai knew he would die if he fought Gran-Ra so Aksarai avoided
him. There was no way to catch Aksarai who hid among the clouds
so Gran-Ra came back to the Holy Land, disappointed, and slept.
The other Alphas of Lukra slept with him.
A thousand years passed and Lukras had been training while Gran-
Ra slept. That was when the human <Broxian> came to his reign.
Then when they found out. There was a powerful Alpha that was
strong enough to fight <Gran-Ra>. They sent a message to Gran-Ra
and it woke him up instantly.
Broxian was shocked at first but he wasn’t the one to avoid a fight.
<I will take this chance to kill you both and rest in peace!>
Aksarai came down to take the chance to kill the two annoying
Alphas who came after him at every chance. One Alpha was the one
who kept coming after Aksarai to fight, and another one even made
a flying island to come over to the sky. Aksarai was irritated but
these two were as powerful as him so he avoided fighting them. But
as they fought each other, he thought he would have a chance.
Besides, if one of them grew stronger than they were now, it would
allow them to rule over the sky.
The priest knew what happened after as Gran-Ra sent him the view
that he saw before he died.
Both their Gods died so they were equal for now. Humans were
counted out as they were almost eradicated by the battle.
It was still much less powerful than <Drakun> who knew how to use
all kinds of magic; the death of Aksarai gave birth to races who could
use at least one of the magical powers.
But the priest realized the situation wasn’t as dire as he first thought.
It seemed the connector wasn’t a valid one was it did not get the
spirit from Aksarai himself. It would make him a minion to Aksarai,
but it seemed he had free will. The magic that this Lorvall used also
were much less powerful than the actual magic used by the
connectors he knew.
The fact that Lorvall could not break the wall of the Beta was the
proof. Connectors automatically knew how to break the wall with the
power.
The priest also knew the plans that Lagaope made would also fail.
This man did not know the true power of an Alpha. The Murakans,
for example, would surely stay in the same state.
The beasts out in the world were evolving. These beasts thought it
was their chance to become strong as powerful beings such as
Aksarai, Gran-Ra, or Broxian were gone and they were now almost
done with their process. If they were reborn, it would add three new
Alphas. They wanted to get rid of them, but it would draw the
Drakuns down to come and attack them. They weren’t visible from
the ground, but they were up there, watching the Lukras.
They could defeat the Drakuns if they fought on the mountain, but
they would lose if they fought in the skies. Fighting on the ground
would be fair game, but no one would start a fight with no
advantages on their side. The Lukras loved to fight but they did not
want to die.
Thus, they stayed within their territories for thousands of years. And
if those beasts finished evolving, those beasts combined would rise
as the third opposing power.
But if Aksarai were born again, that could change things. Aksarai
also had a mighty power like the Sun God himself. Fortunately,
Drakuns didn’t seem to realize that there was a new Connector of
Aksarai. If they knew, they wouldn’t have left the connector alone.
The priest knew what this man’s purpose was. The poor human race
that Drakuns nor Lukras paid attention to after they were eradicated.
Drakuns did not care about them as they were sure that the human
race would no longer give birth to any <War Gods>.
Lagaope was one who dreamed of the poor human race rising to
obtain their lost glory.
He was the one who wanted to bring back the War God.
<Yes.>
<Good. The bad news is that your plan will fail. That Lorvall cannot
become an Alpha.>
<Okay.>
<The good news is that your plan will fail anyway. I have seen your
plans… it’s not enough. You do not understand the Alpha.>
<…>
Lagaope was shocked again to hear that his plans that he had
studied for 100 years were incorrect, but he quickly calmed down. If
the priest was right, his plan would not succeed anyway.
<We have two choices at hand. Train within the mountain, or go fight
the Drakuns.>
<…>
<Both these choices aren’t any better than the other. The Drakuns
still guard the skies and we will see more connectors be born across
the continent. It won’t be easy, but in the end, one among them will
become an Aksarai.>
<…>
<We will need to kill every Drakun and watch over those connectors,
but that is not the most optimal choice.>
Lagaope could not understand why the priest was telling him all that
and asked,
<Why are you telling me all this? Don’t say that you are asking me to
fight the Drakuns together with you guys.>
<…>
<But… I will trust you, the human race, who gave birth to Broxian.>
<You mean…>
<We will ultimately fall if we stay in this state. But we have no other
choice. So I am offering you a form of alliance. We will attract the
attention of the newly-born Alphas and Drakuns. You should
continue your research and create an Alpha no matter what. And
when that time comes, perform your duties as an ally.>
<No… I don’t have much time left to live and if my project failed… I
don’t even know where to begin.>
<It seems that man called Lorvall has used the seal to the limit. I will
help you with the aging problem. Swallow this.>
<What is that?>
<What is this?>
<Our blessing only works on one of our race, so our blood has to
flow within you if I were to give you our blessing. It will not grant you
our race’s traits, but you will live for eternity as long as that blood
remains within you.>
<What…>
<And the blood… will help your research. Our blood is much more
superior to the blood of your own kind.>
Lagaope was given a time of eternity and a vital ingredient for his
research.
<I must return and study at once! I will surely make an Alpha to fulfill
our duty!>
Lagaope tried to jump out at once but the priest stopped him.
<What is it?>
<Our blood flows within you. The Drakuns will not miss this. You will
die as soon as you step onto your land again.>
<But it does not matter. You can go back if we take away our
blessing. However, it will take away your immortality.>
It seemed that the priest was confident about his answer so Lagaope
was intrigued.
<What makes you so sure?>
Lagaope almost slapped him in the face out of irritation but he held
back as he was much weaker.
<Don’t look at me like that. Our hunches are much different than the
ones you have. Think of it as a foresight. Besides, you have no other
choice left.>
<Okay.>
<Find the answer by using the time and the blood given to you. And
when you find the answer, come back to this place. I will take away
your blessing and send you back north again.>
<Do I go now?>
<Yes, you should go now. The beasts are going through their
evolution so this is the chance for weaklings like you to pass
through. All the beasts are staying by their side to protect them. This
is your only chance.>
Lagaope then hurried to travel south. He wasn’t still sure what to do,
however.
Lagaope then began mixing his blood in with the monkeys to create
other humans to find his way back. He had all the time he needed.
That was when he came to witness the birth of a miracle.
<Do you remember I told you that we have other places that we
studied other than the <Amaran>? We were studying the Lukra’s
blood to learn more about Alphas. We couldn’t bring out the trait of
the Lukras until we got the unexpected.>
“You mean…”
<I never thought putting my blood would result in the birth of a being
with Lukra blood. The powerful blood usually doesn’t mix well.
Remember that monkey’s blood was at 1 while humans are 100?
Lukra blood would be at about 300. At least that’s what I had when I
studied their blood. It didn’t even work when it was mixed into
humans so I never imagined its blood would be awakened within the
monkeys.>
“300…”
It meant that the one with such a rating would be born with three
times the human potential. Considering that humans here would
easily become nobles, or superhumans on the Ra-Sian Continent, it
was outstanding.
<I was shocked when I heard the report of your rating. It meant that
you had Lukra blood. It was the first time in 3000 years that I ever
saw its blood being awakened, along with the chance to become an
Alpha.>
“…”
<The proof is that you become strong when you face the threat of
death. Don’t you think it’s odd that you can become so powerful just
because you have just encountered such a threat? Other Betas can’t
do that.>
“…”
<You have the traits of both humans and Lukras. Lukras can’t
become strong through training in return.>
Sian was still confused and asked, “But that’s weird. Even if I
awakened with the blood, wouldn’t it max out at the 300 rating?”
Lagaope laughed.
<Yes, that’s why I had such high expectations for you. It means you
were beyond my expectations. To me, you were like a miracle.>
“Hmph.”
<Anyway, it seems like your father was surprised. Your father used
secrecy magic on the one who performed the ceremony. However,
wouldn’t you find it weird for the one who went to check on the rating
on the famous family who usually had high ratings, to come back
with secrecy magic? I unlocked it and checked it out.>
“Oh.”
<I think your father thought it would have been enough to keep it a
secret from the Magical Council, but they are one of us. There’s no
hiding from us.>
Lagaope nodded.
<Of course. You can’t imagine how shocked I was when I heard the
rating of 497. That’s when I changed my plans. I kept this to myself
and decided to watch over you for a while longer. I didn’t want my
friends to know about you in case they would do something to you.
As you see, they were mostly more powerful than me.>
Lagaope didn’t want his friends to know about Sian in case they
wanted to try to see how strong he was before he became strong
enough.
“Hmph.”
<I couldn’t help but place my hope in you when I heard the rating.>
“Did you do something behind my back to make me an Alpha when I
was young?” Sian asked.
Lagaope knew that Sian had broken the wall when he was twelve.
This was secret that he had not told anyone up until now.
Sian wasn’t convinced as every problem he had faced was all tied to
Lagaope.
<What’s interesting was that you were really unlucky. I didn’t intend
to drag you in but you came right into it every time.>
“Huh?”
Sian frowned.
It was absurd, but it made sense. Sian was already too powerful
among those monkeys. He was at a Duke level just before reaching
a Beta barrier at age of seventeen. However, that didn’t bode well for
Lagaope. He needed Sian to become an Alpha. This was his best
chance.
<He can only become stronger through the brink of death? Who is
powerful enough to even be able to kill him?>
But he did not give up yet. This land didn’t have anything that would
threaten Sian but the northern continent was different. He just
needed to bring Sian there.
That was when Lagaope decided to proceed with his plans to return.
That was why Lagaope was shocked when Sian was dragged into
Apental.
He did not care about the new <Connector of Aksarai>. It just didn’t
need to become an Alpha. Lagaope was worried when the spirit of
the connector was blown away, but he used the body to reincarnate
Con-Rad.
Then he realized that there was nothing that would endanger Sian
anymore. There was nothing on Ra-Sian. But the other continent had
such things.
The priest looked the same as before, but he also looked different.
At six feet tall with golden, tentacle-like hair, the priest also wore a
vest created with a mysterious fabric. He was full of dignity. But
unlike the years before, Lagaope couldn’t feel any power coming
from him this time.
Lagaope asked,
<Oh.>
<We did not intend for those beasts to become this strong, but it’s
too late now. We can’t go down there anymore. This balance will
stay for a little longer, unless we have something that breaks the
balance. So I must ask.>
<Yes.>
<Have you succeeded? Do you think you will have such powerful
being in your fold?>
Lagaope grinned.
The priest then took the blessing and blood away from Lagaope and
Lagaope felt something within him flowing again. The time that had
been frozen within him began to move.
<You have about ten years left to live. I hope you find your result
before you die.>
<Of course.>
Lagaope moved out of the mountain and came down to his world. He
went onto find Lorvall. He was still at the Beta stage.
He knew when he heard from the priests, but it felt bitter to see it in
his eyes.
Lorvall was shocked to see Lagaope, who should’ve died within ten
years, come back after thousands of years.
<So this power that helped me the most… is the thing that blocks my
right to become a God?>
<Yes…. But don’t worry. I found out a lot of things from that land.>
Lagaope was then worried. There was no way to put Sian in another
dangerous situation anymore. He was too strong. That was when
Sian did it again.
<We shall wait until he reaches the fourth stage and kills those
Murakans.>
<It’s time. If I die to create an Alpha among us… it’s worth it.>
<No, that will not work. And that will not allow Sian to become an
Alpha.>
<But what if you win? That will turn you into Aksarai.>
Lorvall answered.
<Then that’s what it will be. But I will kill myself if I think I will win. My
guess is that even we are at equal power… he will win.>
The Duke then walked into the core to undergo the final step.
<That’s where it ends. But I really didn’t do much. It was all you all
along.>
“…”
Sian couldn’t find any words to respond with. These people had
spent three thousand years to just make one Alpha.
“So, what do you want? I am an Alpha now, but what if I do not want
to fill my duty as an ally? You should know about me already.
Shouldn’t you like, beg me to do something?”
Lagaope laughed.
<Of course. That’s why I’m not asking you any favors. Would you
help if I asked?>
“…”
<No. You value your life and your family above all else. I know this.
You will not put your life in danger to fight against Drakuns or
Harijans to protect all people. I need other ways.>
“Huh?”
<Thanks to you, we did earn safety. Only humans remain within this
land.>
“Hmm.”
<You have destroyed the monsters within Apental and Aksarum. Its
barrier was getting weaker so I was going to ask you to protect us
from it.>
“…”
<You also defeated the Gerna of the north. Didn’t you also destroy
the eastern peninsula? The monsters will not come over anymore.
You also wiped out all the Narijas in the central region. There’s no
other race than the humans here. The Swarms took care of the rest
on their way.>
“But isn’t there south? Wasn’t it the reason why Lukra asked to be an
ally?”
It seemed things went well within this land, but there was a bigger
problem. Sian thought the south was a bigger problem. Harijans,
Lukra, and Drakuns… they were fighting each other at the moment
but if humans grew to become a threat, they would surely come after
them.
“Ha…haha…”
<I feel accomplished. I don’t have much time left… but I’ve done
what I needed to do. It seems all my burdens are gone now. Oh, one
more thing. Don’t just smack away people like that. Haha! I wanted
to tell you this so badly for so long.>
“…”
<I only have 5 years to live. Shouldn’t you let me have this vacation
after 3000 years of work? Besides, you won’t have time to find me.>
“To go home…?”
<Yes. You need to go home now. I forgot to tell you one important
thing.>
Lagaope then told Sian what he discussed with the priest before he
embarked on his adventure down to the land of the beasts 3000
years ago.
Lagaope spoke as he looked back to his land but the priest added,
<You have to go to the south. Besides, you will not be able to make
an Alpha in that land.>
<Why is that?>
<Why would those Drakuns let you live when one of their third stage
Betas is enough to wipe your entire race out?>
<…>
<It is because they despise fighting the weak. That is the reason why
you humans are alive. You all are weak.>
<Dammit.>
<Being an Alpha is a different story. You have never seen the birth of
an Alpha, I assume. The birth of an Alpha involves a powerful energy
wave that rings throughout the whole continent. That land is where
Drakuns can still reach down. An Alpha is no longer considered
weak to them. Even if you succeed within that place, the new Alpha
will just get caught and be killed.>
<Then what do you want me to do?>
<If an Alpha is born… they will send their Alpha to kill the new Alpha.
You must evacuate your Alpha immediately.>
The priest answered, <If you manage to make one… send it to the
land of the beasts.>
<What…>
<We will leave those evolving beasts alone. When they become an
Alpha, the Drakuns will not easily invade their land. We will also
draw their attention on us. That way, its land will be the most safest
place while being dangerous.>
<It would have been dangerous even then. Dragona, Chrona, and
Liona would have come for you. Besides, there’s nowhere to run
within that land. And if we did that, we wouldn’t be able to defend the
east peninsula anymore. Lorvall brought you there intentionally.>
“Ugh.”
<You probably knew this from before, but Alphas can’t find each
other if they decide to hide. The energy that rings out when they are
reborn is the only way to find them. Did you now know why I’m telling
you this?>
“…”
<Drakuns must have felt your energy. The Drakun Betas would stand
no chance against you but the Alphas surrounding the Lukras are a
different story.>
“…”
<You must flee via the teleportation rune at once. The Alphas of
those Drakuns must have heard of your birth by now. They are
masters of magic. They probably know how to use communication
magic. I’m sure they’re on the way to find and kill the newly-born
Alpha.>
<Well, it’s still not too late. You should run now. The Ra-Sian
Continent is the only place where you can survive. You should train
while you hide there. And wipe them out! You can do this. You have
the blood of Gran-Ra and Broxian.>
“Ugh…”
<Do you want to live in peace? Then you should become strong. It
should be safe for a while once you return, but you never know when
the power balance will be disrupted. If that happens, the land will be
in chaos. Do what you can do best when that time comes. Beat’em
all up! Become stronger and wipe them out. That’s the only way, and
the only choice you have. That’s all I can say to you now.>
Sian quickly filled up the needed energy to the rune and the rune
began to activate. Sian hid all of his power and dragged Stiel into the
rune. Soon, he was gone.
Right after they were gone, Drakuns landed on the ground while they
flapped their slick ten pairs of wings and checked on the runes.
<What about these insects? How have they given birth to such a
being?>
<Haha… if you want to dirty your hand… go on. I didn’t know you
were that scared of those weaklings.>
One of the Drakuns mocked the other. Attacking the weak humans
was absurd. It was a dirty act.
The two Drakuns growled at each other but another one stopped
them.
<Sure.>
“Whew.”
Lagaope sighed after he was finished talking through the
communication magic from within <Aksarum>.
“Is it finished?”
Lagaope was worried that the Drakuns will unleash their anger
toward the humans but it didn’t happen.
Lagaope grinned.
“Ha… do you think becoming an Alpha is that easy? You are not
even a Beta yet.”
“Ugh. By the way… do you really have only five years to live?”
Conrad asked worryingly.
“…”
“…”
“You believe in him so much. I don’t think he’s the type to fight for
humankind. What if he stays hidden?”
“Then what?”
“It will be peaceful for a while, but it won’t last long. If the balance
between the three races breaks down, the land will be at war. Sian
will have to fight if he wants to protect his family from it. The human
race will be wiped out if he doesn’t.”
“Right.”
“That’s why I created orbs for his family. So that they will not die
before that happens. I also increased Stiel’s life span. I want Sian to
protect his family. That will suffice. He will fight those disastrous
races to protect his family. I didn’t expect him to fight for all of
humankind. Broxian didn’t do that either.”
“Oh…”
“Huh?”
“I can’t believe I’m saying this when I believe in science, but Sian is
really unlucky. He will need to fight whether he likes it or not.”
“…Right.”
“Right.”
The Lorvall family that ruled over this land was now gone, but
Conrad was still there. Conrad would probably be able to unite all of
mankind and encourage them to grow.
Larune loved to fight; peacefulness was too boring for him. This
place was too dull compared to his days at the Great North Wall.
“Dammit! Run!”
Larune began to escape. The energy that was being formed from
within wasn’t normal.
Sian and Stiel took a deep breath as they glanced around. They
were home.
Stiel ignored Larune and the man and spoke to Sian. Stiel was
terrified as she felt the presence of three Drakuns flying at them
before they teleported away. Lagaope reassured them, but they
couldn’t believe him after all lies he gave to them.
Sian answered, “If what Lagaope spoke is true… I guess it is. And I
have a feeling that it is true. It should be okay as long as I hide my
power. If those Alphas could come over, they would have come
already.”
Sian was concealing his power just in case. It was time to train to
become much stronger. He was strong, but the land was still filled
with dangerous beings. Besides, Sian now knew that he was too
unlucky to think that he would not have to fight.
“If you need to hide… can you use the power? Can’t you even fight
back even when a guy like Lagaope comes to beat you up?”
“Don’t say it like that. If I don’t have to fight an Alpha, it will be okay.
It’s a different level of strength.”
“And that’s what you call hiding? What if you destroy a mountain like
before?”
“…”
“The energy that radiates from a fight between Alphas is not like that.
It might have a similar range of destruction but the power is entirely
different. I just need to be careful to not use such power. If I were to
draw attention for breaking a mountain, Chrona or Dragona would
have come for me already.”
“You’re right.”
“M-me?”
Stiel nodded.
“Y-yes.”
“Huh?”
Sian nodded.
It was year 1017 in Continental Year before Sian left the place. He
assumed it would be around 1022, give or take, but it was shocking
to hear.
Sian frowned.
They did come to the right place, but things had changed a bit.
Stiel laughed.
“Oh, right.”
“Five… five years. I can probably start from the Attack of Harijans.”
The Giant Harijan appeared at the Great North Wall five years ago.
Guards of the Great North Wall frantically searched for Groyn while
the Magical Council tried to contact Takion. King Naraha also
seemed to be looking for someone. But it was all useless. They were
all gone. All superhumans that existed within the land were gone.
However, they could not give up yet so they brought all the forces
they could muster and advanced toward the Great North Wall.
The joint forces that were sent up the north to fight the Six-Horned
Harijans did not need to fight any Six-Horned, but they instead had
to fight against numerous Harijans that were coming down. This was
later called the <Great Invasion> as Harijans attacked the human
land for years after that. It seemed as if they were being chased out
from something within.
<Kukutaran>
It was a superhuman who rose to power during the fight at the Great
North Wall. But people were worried that Kukutaran would leave
behind his own kind just like other superhumans did. Kukutaran was
a Grand Bander from Broshan, who had proven himself to be a very
powerful asset to the human fight against Harijans. If he left the Wall,
the defensive line would crumble.
“Hmm. Doesn’t it mean he just copied what that old man Groyn had
been doing all along? What’s with the year…”
‘Hmmm?’
“Oh, yes. Just like she said… that alone cannot explain the year
counting.”
People were delighted at the superhuman who did not leave them
and instead protected them. Kukutaran did not stop there.
<Of course. You will all become mine. I protect what is mine.>
Kukutaran scoffed at those four who stood against him and the four
Grand Banders surrendered without putting up a fight. The power
difference was too large.
“My…”
Sian was dumbfounded, and so was Stiel.
“If that’s the case… does that mean something happened to your
family?”
Larune thought about what had happened. There were too many
things that happened with so many rumors and he couldn’t
remember anything that revolved around the Roman family of Tian.
“I don’t think there was anything special. It’s not like people were
dead when the continent was united. I do think they moved up to the
Great North Wall… Every warrior and soldier was sent there.”
“Every?”
“You can probably find them by the Chrotia Fortress… that’s the
most important defense point still. It was destroyed when the undead
army attacked us, but they’ve fixed it now.”
Stiel frowned and glared at Larune. They didn’t understand the new
names in the new world, so Larune quickly realized this and changed
the name.
“Yeah. I had to come all the way here to catch my fleeing brother. It
was a fun trip. I had the chance to ransack the Usharans also.”
“…”
“Okay.”
“Yeah, yeah. I know. You keep doing your work. Sian, let’s go.”
Stiel then readied herself and disappeared through the plains. She
shot out like a meteor, but the man was much faster. His body faded
for a second and he was with the woman.
“Good, good. I thought they all left but there were some who stayed
behind. Hey, you.”
“Yes.”
“I think one of my babies wanted to visit the Romans… I’ll visit them.
She should be happy to visit them in a while.”
“There’s no Ra-Shar-Roa near that place. It’s not far… I’ll just go
slowly.”
“Yeah.”
Kukutaran then began moving down to his harem, where his babies
were kept.
“It changed a lot. I didn’t think five years was that long.”
“Yeah, but Sian. Why are you moving so slowly?” Stiel asked Sian.
She first thought Sian was matching her speed but he was still
moving slower than her from time to time. Sian grinned.
“Well… I’m kind of training. But don’t worry. It’s still in the testing
stage.”
“Yeah. We’re almost there though. So, this continent really is much
smaller than the other continent.”
They were quickly closing in on Chrotia even when they were not
going at full speed. It took them a few days to move between the
Ciculus Tree on the other continent so it was a lot smaller.
“We’ll move quickly. It’s been a long time since I’ve visited my
family.”
“Yeah.”
‘Amaran…’
The world had changed because of two things after Sian had
disappeared.
After the Emperor, the world had been united as one nation. Some
considered it to be bad, but most people considered it to be a good
thing. The Emperor was not interested in much else other than
enjoying his time and filling his pleasures. His desires did not exceed
that of a wealthy noble so it wasn’t that much of a problem.
But there were other beings that came about to change the world.
Another was Baroka, which had vast knowledge of magic and other
knowledge that helped humans understand the world better.
People were glad that these organizations appeared but they weren’t
ready to accept such advanced technologies yet, so it had been a
slow process.
“I wonder if they are living well… Rian, nor Sian are here with me…”
“He’s back!”
“Yeah.”
Stiel also had a heightened sense after she absorbed Nekra’s heart,
so she too knew what was going on within the Chrotia Fortress. The
one powerful presence within the fortress was coming out.
“Well, it’s a return of a son who’s been missing for five years.”
Stiel spoke and soon they were at the fortress. Count Roman quickly
came up to him and hugged him.
“Let’s not stay out here. Come in, come in. You should come too,
Stantahl.”
Count Roman was in awe after hearing what Sian had gone through.
“So… there were humans on the other continent? And all the other
superhumans moved there?”
“Yeah. Oh, by the way. I heard that there was a new superhuman
here? Kuku… something?”
“He’s still busy. We have been united but… the Emperor isn’t really
interested in ruling. I think he just united the land because he had
other motives. I heard he’s created a harem to keep his wives and
concubines.”
“Hmm.”
“Taken away?”
“…what?”
“…”
Count Roman answered, “He couldn’t fight when he had his wives.
What would you do if superhumans harmed the wives? Rian
followed him voluntarily.”
Sian couldn’t believe that this kind of thing happened during his
absence. He could not imagine that he would encounter someone
with such a weird taste.
“…”
“Huh?”
“There was a message. He’s on his way here, with your brother.”
“Rian too?”
“Yeah. It seems that the Emperor calls him a ‘baby’ and adores him.”
“Isn’t it about time you let me go?” Rian asked Kukutaran from the
side. He didn’t have much energy in him to speak, but Kukutaran
grinned and answered.
“Why would I? I’d never seen a handsome boy like you before. I
wanted you ever since I was at Broshan, but I couldn’t do anything
back then. I have the power to do whatever I want now. Why would I
let you go?”
Kukutaran had brought many into his harem but he had never seen a
boy as handsome as Rian until now. Kalagul was also handsome,
but there was something weird about him that Kukutaran did not like.
“Ha..”
“You still do not like me? I even let you stay with your wives for half
the year. And I do everything you want.”
“…”
“By the way… it seems that the new superhuman is your brother. I
am looking forward to meeting someone of my kind.”
“…”
“Hahaha.”
He also felt a familiar presence. Sian was glad to feel his brother’s
presence, but he was also worried. The overly excited Stiel followed
Sian on his back.
Stiel laughed as she flashed the metal stick that Lagaope had given
to them.
When they arrived, there was a giant parade of people. Rian was at
the front.
“Sian.”
Sian knew who was Kukutaran was among this large group of
people.
It seemed like Rian was blessed to the end, unlike Sian who seemed
to be cursed.
It really didn’t matter much and Sian wasn’t the type to hold back just
because the target was a woman.
“Wait.”
A portable tent that was stored within some small bag was prepared.
It was very lavish and big, considering that it was created by
mysterious parts within a bag.
All the others were preparing food and drinks while they talked.
“So… you were taken away by force at the beginning but it wasn’t all
that forced… and you came to like her?”
“Yeah. Don’t look at me like that. She’s a poor girl.”
“…”
It didn’t seem all that bad of a life to Sian. It’s not like Rian was
considered a slave either. Sian glanced at Kukutaran, who was
smiling. She had been taking care of Rian with everything he
needed… and was beautiful. It was the perfect life that Sian had
dreamed of.
“Oh, no-no. It’s nothing. I was just thinking about future plans…”
“…”
Sian quickly replied to Stiel, who was glaring at him and changed the
subject.
“Rian, are you going back then? Your family is within Chrotia.”
Rian walked out and there were only three of them left.
“A lot?”
“Hmm.”
“It made me wonder. Why did all those superhumans leave human
society? You can do anything you want. Is there something that I’m
missing? I was so curious.”
Stiel and Sian now knew why Kukutaran was different. She didn’t
consider other humans as lesser beings. This was why she created
an Empire and made a harem to fulfill her pleasure.
Kukutaran was the first Alpha of the Narija level race that Lagaope
named as a monkey.
“It’s amazing that she pushed out the human blood from within.”
She was special in that she managed to drive out the Lagaope’s
blood and became an Alpha.
Stiel realized why she couldn’t feel anything about Kukutaran, like
she did with Liviath or Groyn. Then she realized what Lagaope had
said before. It was the matter of a race difference than a power
difference. Kukutaran was powerful to be considered a noble, but
she wasn’t the same kind.
Sian thought about sharing what he knew, but decided not to. It was
too long of a story to tell, and it would not make a difference anyway.
“Anyway, I was worried so I tried hard to find someone just like me.
That’s why I changed the name of the country to Kukutaran and
made a mess… thinking someone would appear.”
“…”
“The most recent sign of a superhuman was you, Sian. That’s why I
came here but I couldn’t find anything before.”
“…”
“It made me feel even more desperate. I knew that there were a
group of superhumans, but finding a trace of them moving up to the
Great Forest at once… I thought something was going to happen in
this land. Some disaster maybe.”
It was a possible explanation if one did not know about the existence
of the northern continent so Sian nodded.
“No. Why would I? I know the forest is dangerous and I don’t know
what exists beyond. Besides, I love this world. I was just curious
about the reason for such a quick depart.”
“Hm.”
Sian shook his head. “It’s safer here. You should stay.”
“You know something. So, where have you been during those five
years? It seems you have returned through the Ra-Shar-Roa… are
you two only ones who returned?”
“Yes.”
“Why is that?”
“Yes, but it’s better you don’t go. There are too many evil beings
there.”
It was a wonderful choice that Lagaope made for himself for not
explaining about Drakuns or Lukra. If he knew, he would not have
gone there.
“Hmm…”
Sian was only one able to fight those when something happened. He
was told that the land was in balance so it was peaceful for now, but
it didn’t change the fact that the continent was being surrounded by
such beings even now.
Sian nodded.
“Huh?”
Stiel looked at Sian as she seemed shocked that Sian just realized it.
“No, I don’t want to do that. Isn’t that what YOU want to do?”
“Hmph.”
“I’m going to train. Oh, but I’ll need to talk with my family first.”
“Train?”
“Yeah.”
Stiel looked at Sian. She had never seen Sian training until then.
“Your Majesty, you have returned.”
“No, I can’t beat him. I was going to kill him if I had to but… No way. I
thought it was going to be easy since I heard he’s only twenty-
seven.”
Kukutaran answered.
“I actually don’t know about that Sian, but I had some kind of feeling
that I can’t fight him. Besides, the woman next to him was even
scarier.”
“I don’t know who’s stronger, but she didn’t like me. They are both
much stronger than me.”
She could see it at the moment. Her soul was telling her that if she
were to fight them, she would be ripped apart. Dekaduin laughed.
“That’s fortunate.”
“Right. It’s good that I didn’t do anything bad to Rian, just like you
told me to.”
Kukutaran wasn’t being nice to Rian because she liked him. She did
like him, but she was a type that liked to rule over all things. She only
had been nice to Rian because of Dekaduin’s advice.
<No, keep him for now. Besides, it seems that Rian is weak against
any woman who’s nice to him. It’s good to befriend him.>
And that was the right choice. If Rian had something bad to say
about Kukutaran, Sian would have probably pounded her on the
spot. Dekaduin asked Kukutaran, who was shivering at the thought.
“Yeah… I found a few things. First is that I should never touch them
and second is that they did not disappear because something bad
was going to happen here.”
“That’s a relief.”
“No, they didn’t tell me. It was as if they were thinking I wouldn’t be
able to do anything even if I knew. Dammit. It makes me mad to think
about it.”
“But it seemed that those won’t be much of a threat here. We’ll just
leave them be and go back to our business.”
Dekaduin nodded.
“Understood.”
“I’ll be at home. Oh, and tell me if you find any more resistance.”
Sian recounted to his family where he had been and what he had
gone through.
“Haha…”
Sian smiled bitterly. He had been away from home two times in five
years, although it wasn’t intended. However, it wasn’t only Sian who
had changed during those five years.
Rian smiled.
Sian smiled.
‘That’s fortunate.’
Sian was glad to think that other than that weird superhuman, there
was no one who could threaten his family anymore. Rian then asked
Sian, “Oh, have you met my children yet?”
“Huh?”
Sian was excited. His family had been short of children for
generations and Rian just said that he had children. That meant
there was more than one.
“Yes, yes.”
Rian then told his wives to bring the children and they all went
separate ways.
“…”
They waited for a while longer, then Sian asked Rian after seeing
that his wives weren’t returning.
“…Huh?”
Sian was surprised. His family had a lack of children for generations.
They barely had one or two at maximum. Even then, one of the two
usually died at an early age. It wasn’t because they lacked wives.
Their family had the power to have many wives if that solved the
problem.
It was the first time that two children within the family had grown up
normally. But it seemed Rian had much more.
“…”
“…”
“…how many?”
“Five.”
“Uh… haha…”
“Look at Rian. Didn’t you know that daughters are born with their
father’s looks? They need to thank their father later on.”
“Right.”
Rian was handsome and his three wives were also very beautiful, so
it was normal for their babies to be very cute. An interesting point
was that Kukuraxa’s children were larger than the other children.
“They must have been born with the Targan race’s traits. They grow
quickly. I think they become adults at age ten.”
“Oh…”
That was what Stiel was looking forward to. The Roman family had
given birth to a legend named Sian. If Rian was the father of eight
children, there might be a chance of another legend, but it didn’t
seem to be the case. Besides, not all eight would want to become
warriors.
Sian nodded.
‘Yes, my nephews and nieces. You can live in peace without fighting,
your uncle will protect this land.’
“Yeah. I’m curious as to what you will do. Can I be like you if I copy
what you do? Hehe.”
It was pointless to copy what others did at Stiel or Sian’s level. It was
only important to keep continuing what they had been doing.
However, Stiel really was interested in what Sian did to train.
Stiel was now at the stage where Sian had been. She realized how
much power he had been holding back when he fought in the Lagran
Region. If she were to fight her old self, she was sure she would
finish it within a minute.
That was why she was so interested. She wanted to know how Sian
got to the same level as herself at only the age of seventeen.
“What is it?”
Stiel asked back but Sian answered casually, “It’s nothing much. I
just can fully control what’s happening within me. With slight
limitations.”
“Oh.”
“But I think I can apply it to my training. I got a hint from the story of
Lukra who lives in the Mountain of Extreme.”
Stiel couldn’t understand. “Is that something only you can do? Can
other Alphas do that?”
“What?”
“Didn’t we hear that the Lukras went out to hunt Alphas as the
mountain was useless to them?”
“You can’t do that. You can’t voluntarily put yourself in danger. Your
instincts will stop you.”
“…”
“Besides, you know yourself that you will not do it to the point that
you will kill yourself. You can’t call that a death threat.”
“Oh…”
Stiel then remembered what Sian was doing when they were on the
way. She figured it was weird as Sian lost his balance from time to
time, but it seemed he had been testing it out.
“Yeah, I did it lightly as we were moving, but I’ll do it for real this time.
However, it will take time.”
Lagaope was saying that it was good news, but his face looked grim.
Conrad spoke from behind,
Lagaope nodded, “Right. But what should I do? Hm… we’ll think
about it for a while. Besides, he needs a break.”
There was no way to go across the land at this time anyway. They
needed the Ciculus and Akra at their former levels to collect enough
energy to travel.
No sound was heard, but it seemed like something within Sian was
churning. His entire body was now changing to try and kill himself.
The blood had turned into poison and his muscles worked against
him to hold him back. His bones grew weak and his senses
screamed in agony.
Sian clutched his heart as he felt he was getting dizzy. He was not at
the end, but his body was being overloaded. He then followed the
way that allowed him to become stronger. The way was to keep
changing as his body condition kept on changing.
It would have been weird to not get stronger when facing such pain
every day. It even killed a few of them while training. Luckily, he did
not need to go through that much pain. He had human traits in him.
He would not die as his body would refuse to change the body
enough to kill himself anyway. Sian proceeded further to change his
body. He just didn’t need to die.
“Nngh…”
Sian was almost to the point where it would kill him. He became so
weak that even those baby nephews and nieces of his were enough
to beat him up right now. This was worse than when he barely
managed to jump out of Apental in Kerbal.
Sian then began moving in the ways that he could see in front of
him. As he moved, his body worked against him to attack him, but he
did not stop. He couldn’t. He knew he was getting much more
powerful, and his theory was correct.
Sian was relieved as the unbearable pain that he was going through
was really worth it.
Sian became proud as he felt his limit growing each moment and
remembered the days of his old training.
<That’s too slow. This way is much faster. Look, I can make my
sword shine too.>
‘A beautiful memory.’
That was the only Alpha Sian had seen. He saw Drakuns flying at
him, but they were too far for him to accurately measure their power.
Sian was going through extreme pain. It wasn’t enough to kill him,
but he felt like he had been thrown into a giant grinding stone. Sian
gritted his teeth and concentrated on training.
Stiel became pale as she saw Sian’s body changing constantly. She
knew how powerful the energy being worked inside was.
“Whew…”
“Sian, is it okay to carry on for that long?” Stiel asked Sian who was
stretching. Sian stood up suddenly when he could not see any more
ways. Sian changed his body back to normal but he seemed really
tired. Stiel quickly went to Sian to hold him up as he seemed he was
going to fall any time soon.
Sian said, “I should do my best when I have time. You know my life
goal. I can’t rest easy when I know those monsters are hacking away
around us.”
“Oh.”
Sian’s life goal was to live happily for a long, long time.
It was a simple goal; however, Sian wasn’t alone on his journey to
achieve this.
“Hmm…”
“Huh?”
“It could be fast or slow. I might come across another barrier. Who
knows what awaits?”
“Hm…”
Stiel nodded. The balance was still being kept at this point.
“I see.”
“You should do it too, watch over your nephews and nieces for a
change.”
“Oh, what are those weird drinks in the corner of the training
ground?” Sian asked his brother.
Rian answered, “Right, you must not have heard of them yet. You
know about those mysterious organizations?”
“Yeah.”
However, Sian did not know what kind of technologies they shared.
“That drink is called <Siraine>. That was what was distributed to the
warriors during the Great Invasion.”
<Siraine>
<Siraine>
<We should try to create a potion that’ll make one stronger, not the
one heals.>
During the Great Invasion, this gave warriors in the warfront a much
higher survival rate and all the kingdoms quickly distributed them.
The potions gained instant fame after that. However, it lost popularity
after no more superhumans were born and it was proven to not be
useful for training.
“Those were used during the Great Invasion. We placed them at the
training ground for warriors to use when they trained there back
then. However, no one wanted them so we just left it. Maybe we
should clean it out soon.”
Sian thought that if it did, it would be of great help in his fight against
the Alphas. However, Rian shook his head.
“Powerful warriors who can control themselves will not have any
remaining power within them to make that potion work. It should
work on Grand Banders… but not on you.”
“Still, I thank Baroka for that. That potion saved many lives, including
mine.”
“Oh…”
What Lagaope did wasn’t really all that pointless, but it only worked
against Sian in some way. Sian was thankful to Lagaope for helping
to protect his brother.
“Right.”
Besides, the news that they needed to give to Sian would surely
make him angrier.
“Liviath.”
“Huh? Why?”
“He doesn’t work and he’s the most unhelpful among us, so he
should do at least that. Besides, he has seen Mister Sian’s power, so
he’ll be careful around him.”
It was better to send Liviath, who knew how dangerous Sian could
be.
“It won’t be that much of a big deal. We’ll have him send the
message and come back. Besides, he seemed a little depressed
lately.”
Liviath seemed depressed that he was only at the level of a Count in
this world, while he had been the strongest back in his world.
“Oh… and why did you leave all that stuff behind? Like Amaran?”
“Oh.” Conrad nodded. The magic of the human race in the Divine
Nation was very different than what they had been studying in the
Ra-Sian Continent. They did not even need Talic Stones then.
There might be resistance, but there was nothing that could stop
Liviath in that part of the world unless he crossed paths with Sian.
Kukutaran gritted her teeth as she thought about what had happened
then. She met them while she was on a massacre through the forest.
That was when she realized that there were more powerful beings
above her. Sian and Stiel were two of those powerful beings.
After careful investigation, she learned that Stantahl the First had
been beaten up by Sian a long time ago. She needed to find a way.
She needed to do one of two things:
However, she didn’t have the luxury of time, so she just decided to
do both.
Kukutaran smirked as she thought about the new ally that came.
Sian was slumped on the training ground. The body that was
working to attack him quickly returned to normal and began healing
him. The training was agonizing, but it wasn’t useless. His training
had progressed quickly because of it and he was now much stronger
than he was a month ago. He was now strong enough to at least run
away if Chrona came after him. He decided on a place to run to if
Chrona or Dragona chased him.
It was sad that he had no choice other than to run there if that
happened, but it was better than dying.
“Hm… an invitation?”
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Chapter 197
Chapter 197: Provocation
The invitation was decorated and filled with all kinds of formal words,
but it was summarized to this:
There was no reason why he was being invited, but it didn’t matter. It
was the sender that was more important.
He thought that he would never see that woman again but the letter
was definitely from her. He would have ignored it under normal
circumstances as he was too busy training. However, the last
sentence in the letter made Sian move. It was very provocative.
“Hmm…”
He then thought if that was to lure him out of Chrotia to attack his
family, but it would be pointless if he took all of his family with him.
‘What is she up to? Does she just want me to beat her up?’
Stiel asked as she had just returned from her meditation, “Where are
you going? Are you going to try your power as an Alpha?”
“Don’t say such scary things. This is Liona’s territory. I don’t want him
to know I’m here.”
“Lagran?”
“B*tch?”
“Wow.”
Sian was surprised that Stiel knew right away and that it made Stiel
turn vicious for a moment.
“Hmm, have a safe trip.”
Sian felt something was off but thought Stiel was just worried and
answered, “It should be okay.”
Sian then decided to train on his way and began walking slowly
toward Lagran.
Kukutaran nodded. She too knew that Sian really cared for his
brother. However, since Sian didn’t arrive as she had expected, she
became angry and clenched her fist.
The problem was that one of her slave’s head was in her grasp.
The slave could not even scream as her power crushed his head in a
second. Kukutaran shook her hands off and ordered her other
slaves.
“Dispose of this.”
Rian thought Kukutaran wasn’t bad, but that was because she did
not show him everything that she did. She wasn’t the type to be
caring. The slaves became pale from fear and removed the dead
slave who they had been talking and laughing with until a day ago.
However, Kukutaran’s anger didn’t subside.
“He’s coming!”
Kukutaran frowned.
Kukutaran said, “Well, you should come in first. We have some time
left.”
“…”
Sian didn’t know what she meant but decided to hear it inside.
Kukutaran then asked, “You really love your brother?”
“Skip to the point.”
Sian could not be friendly when the letter only asked him to come to
Lagran without any reason. He was sure that her intention was to
use Sian for something. Kukutaran shrugged and answered,
“Huh? Do you think Rian will die in your place out of chivalry or
something?”
“No way. But if I die, Rian will die too. That’s why I’m saying he’s in
danger.”
“…”
“…”
“It’s a potion that was created by using a certain race’s blood to
create a powerful control over the user. The power it gives to the
user is real though.”
Kukutaran laughed.
“It’s simple. When the master of the blood that was used to make
Siraine dies, everyone else that drank the Siraine dies too.”
“…”
Kukutaran smiled as she spoke to Sian. Sian’s grim face proved that
her plan was going well.
Kukutaran always wondered how to fortify her control over the world.
There was only one superhuman now, but if more superhumans
were to arrive, it would pose a threat to her rule. That was when
Dekaduin came to her.
<Your Majesty, we will present you with a valuable gift if you promise
to protect us.>
Kukutaran asked,
<What is it?>
She nodded. She had drunk it when she fought over the Wall.
Dekaduin continued,
<Its purpose isn’t to empower the user. That is only its secondary
effect.>
Their plan was to create armies of the dead just like the Rosharan,
however, they failed. Instead, they managed to create Siraine.
Siraine contained one of the traits from Rosharan’s blood. When one
consumed Siraine, they would be connected to the owner of the
blood that was used to mix the potion. When the master of the blood
died, everyone who consumed the potion would also die.
There had been no warrior who did not consume Siraine until now.
The rumors that had spread at the time also tempted warriors into
consuming it.
<Yes.>
<It doesn’t mean much when you are here. No one will be able to
fight against superhumans. Besides, beings other than superhumans
can’t consume this without melting away.>
“I didn’t know the day I would find this trait useful will come so soon,”
Kukutaran said eagerly to Sian, but Sian was thinking of a different
thing.
Beat her up and take her to Stiel and lock her into Karnine.
Beat her up and burn that master blood from all parts of her body.
Beat her up and leave her be as his family had the orbs.
He quickly gave up on the third option. The orbs were valuable and
hard to make without Lagaope. Besides, it also meant that
thousands of warriors would die, which would result in the Great
North Wall being breached and Ra-Sian falling under Harijan attacks.
The second option seemed like the best idea. He thought about it,
but after checking her body, he had to give it up.
Then the only possible option was number one. It meant she would
stay locked up within Karnine but that was the only viable option he
had right now.
It seemed like Kukutaran didn’t know how weak she was, but it was
time to show her that life didn’t work as she intended.
‘This…’
It was the presence of the Granines. They had been wiped out by
Sian back then but it seemed like they were moving.
The one at the forefront was the one he could never forget.
“But I don’t feel any hostility. Why do you think they are coming to kill
you?”
Kukutaran smiled.
“Well… they probably didn’t want to do that but they will now.”
She decided to destroy them and keep their blood for herself and
found someone very mysterious. That one was holding onto bones
and covering them with Rosharan blood. It was doing this while
Kukutaran was busy fighting against the Rosharan.
“…”
Kukutaran tried to kill it when it didn’t answer, but she couldn’t. The
bones it held began to create veins within the blood and its bones
began gaining muscles and skin over it. Soon, there was a beautiful
woman standing there. It ignored Kukutaran and walked to the
mysterious being and spoke. Kukutaran became angry but she
couldn’t do anything. She knew that the woman was much stronger
than her.
“Human.”
“What is it?”
“Take this Rosharan and increase their numbers. We will take their
blood then.”
The Queen’s choice was simple. If they could not take these with
her, she just needed to have this human raise them. She couldn’t
stay outside of Dragona’s territory for too long, but taking blood
wasn’t going to use much time.
‘…Dammit.’
The Lagran Region was close to Sky Mountain where they stayed. It
would be inconvenient for that human woman, but it didn’t matter.
After the Queen took more blood for the Rosharans, she revived
more of her people and flew to Sky Mountain.
Kukutaran gritted her teeth.
“Dammit…”
She supplied the blood to that Queen who came yearly and
Kukutaran’s anger grew. That was when she saw Sian.
Now, it was time. It was time to use that Sian to kill that arrogant
Queen and the others.
She did not know how strong Sian was, but it seemed like he was
much stronger than the Queen. Kukutaran could feel something from
Stiel or the Queen, but she couldn’t even feel anything from Sian.
That was why she worked. If she died, his brother would die as well.
If she jumped in to try to kill the Queen, it would make the Queen try
to kill her instead. Then Sian would jump in to keep her from dying.
“Ugh…”
Kukutaran felt a dull pain at the back of her head and then felt pain
all over her entire body as something began pounding on her. She
heard something as her sight faded to black.
“She’s a mad one for sure. Ugh, there’s so many in the world that
need to get beat up.”
“Yes, my Queen.”
“Yes.”
The man who fought against them and their undead. She was
controlled but her soul still remembered. It made her realize why that
Kuku-something was being beaten up. He was even stronger than
the Queen herself. In fact, it seemed that he had become even
stronger now.
‘I should wait.’
She didn’t want to get mixed up in it so she decided to wait.
Suddenly, Kel-Rusha felt her head ache.
Kel-Rusha wanted to shake it off, but she couldn’t resist. The man in
front of her was scary, but the one sending her the message was
even more terrifying.
Deep within Sky Mountain, at the highest peak where no one dared
approach.
<…>
Dragona quietly focused it. This was the best way to train his power
but he was bored. Dragona looked around outside by taking control
of other races and he did the same this time. The reason of his
minion’s shock was because of one man. A male, a race of Ro.
Dragona knew about this male. He had read the memories about
him a few times through his minions.
<Hm… It looks like Ro… but maybe not…>
He seemed like Ro, but he was too strong. He then remembered that
he had ignored him because the male wasn’t as strong before, but
he seemed much more powerful now. The minion would not have
noticed, but he could. It seemed that this male had broken through a
few more walls.
But it wasn’t enough as the male was too powerful compared to the
one that was getting beat up. Dragona quickly made a decision.
He did not expect his minion to put up a fight. It would not change
anything even if he helped. But that wasn’t important. He just needed
to check if the male had become a being that rivaled his power. One
slight trace will allow him to know. If he wasn’t at the level, he didn’t
need to be bothered with.
Dragona took control of his minions, which was all of the Granines.
The absurd thing was that they had suddenly become much more
powerful.
Granine.
Guards of Dragona.
Interference of a superpower.
“Dammit.”
Sian didn’t care. He was now in grave danger. His instincts were
warning him of that.
“Ha…”
If it wasn’t for this woman, this would not have had happened. Sian
glared at the woman angrily. He wanted to beat her up more, but he
didn’t have much time left. If Dragona was going to come at him, it
would not take him much time.
He could only use the second option now. He could not allow this
woman to die elsewhere. So Sian began drawing out his entire
energy from within and put his hand on Kukutaran’s head and began
pouring energy into it.
“Ugh…”
The power was enough to blow up Kukutaran with just a scratch, but
it didn’t kill her. Sian carefully controlled his power and erased the
weird magic traces within her body. This would ruin the body that
allowed Kukutaran to become a superhuman. When he was done,
Kukutaran would turn back into an ordinary woman. But Sian didn’t
care.
“You will now live as an ordinary person. You should repent for your
life.”
Sian then jumped out and shouted to someone that was standing
around.
“HEY! Do me a favor!”
“Huh? Me?”
“What happened…”
<You will now live as an ordinary person. You should repent for your
life.>
The words left by a man who swept away the weird race and
Kukutaran. It meant that they were now free. And they now had a
chance to take revenge. However, they were still afraid of Kukutaran.
Suddenly, a brave man ran up to Kukutaran and kicked her.
It was a noble who had been friends with the slave that had his head
crushed by Kukutaran. The noble, Kerdon, began kicking her with all
his pent-up rage.
Kukutaran flinched but could not resist as she was slumped down.
Kukutaran, who had ruled the Ra-Sian continent, ended her reign
miserably.
Sian had only been thinking of one thing after he came back to the
Ra-Sian Continent.
<If Dragona or any of them find out that I’m here before I get strong
enough… where should I run to?>
The best possible choice was to hide in the land without fulfilling his
duty as an ally and grow in power. If he were to go to the Lukra’s
land, he would be forced to do their bidding. However, he needed a
second option. If he were to be caught by the other Alphas, he
needed a safe place to escape to, and the only place that was safe
was the Mountain of Extreme.
The former was safer because he could get past the Drakuns while
hiding his power. So, his first thought was to teleport to the Don-
Nasian Continent and move to the mountain that way.
However, he had to give up when he found out that he had no
coordinates available to teleport with. That left him with only one
way. To go through Chrona and Dragona.
He thought it’d be better if more of them came after him at the same
time. His memory from Nekra showed him that those Harijans were
not friendly toward each other.
The forest was vast but Sian’s speed was fast enough to dash
through it quickly. The problem was that Dragona or Chrona was
much faster than him. But, Sian was counting on one thing. The
three Harijans were greedy.
When he read Chrona’s memory, he saw that those three did not
intrude each other’s territory. However, now Dragona was ignoring
that and heading straight for him. That probably was the same for
the other two.
‘I’ll take the chance while the three of them fight against each other.’
It was just speculation, but it was all Sian had. There was no other
way. If he decided to hide within the continent, those monsters would
surely wipe out the entire continent to find him.
<…He is cunning.>
<Haha… it’s been a long time since we last saw each other. It’s time
to say hello.>
“Huh?”
“Again?”
‘Who is it now…?’
“Dammit, Lagaope.”
He had been lazing around as he had nothing to do, but this was a
dangerous task. Liviath remembered Sian ripping the red sphere
years ago and frowned.
“Yes, sir!”
‘…Huh?’
“Yes. There were two people that came through, just like you did.”
“Good.”
Liviath nodded.
“I should go there then.”
Liviath sighed. He didn’t figure that Stiel would follow Sian all the
way here. It seemed that she had grown so powerful that he did not
even dare to fight her anymore. He had heard from Conrad that she
was now just a bit weaker than him, but it seemed like it was true.
“He went to the Lagran Region. He’ll be back soon, but I can pass
the message to him.”
“The Lukras wanted this. They said he needs to fulfill his duty as an
ally but he must not die. So they wanted to check his power first.
Therefore, they are calling him to their territory.”
“What?”
“Well, I guess that Sian will not want to go, but there’s no choice. If
the Lukras die, we will all die.”
“Hmm…”
Sian would have gone mad if he heard this. Stiel sighed at Sian’s
cursed fate.
“That’s all there is. Without this, he will need to pass through
Dragona and Chrona. That’s too much.”
“…”
“That’s it then.”
“Okay. Bye.”
Stiel nodded and sent Liviath on his way. It was exactly half a day
before Sian had arrived at the Lagran Region.
Sian noticed the way he had to move to safety had changed, from a
straight line into a swirling twisty lane, and gritted his teeth. There
was only one reason that his path would twist like this.
“It’s here.”
There was no sound and the destruction didn’t cover a large area. It
only made a hole big enough for a human to fall through. Sian felt a
chill running through his spine. The attack destroyed the dimension
and space around it by absorbing it. Yet he couldn’t even feel the
presence of the attacker.
It seemed that the attack wasn’t even trying to kill him. It would make
him lose his limbs at the very least, but he was sure that the attacker
was trying to consume him alive.
Sian quickly followed the path shown to him. If he did not train
himself, it would have been impossible to follow the path that
appeared for him. As he moved through, mysterious spherical
objects flew in, creating holes where Sian had just passed through.
As he escaped, he thought about who the attacker might be.
<Damn bastard…>
He was dodging well, but that wasn’t enough for Dragona to miss.
He even loved it because that meant the target was worth it.
Dragona was going to capture him soon at that point. But now, Liona
was shooting blue rays to destroy his attacks and aiming for his
target at the same time.
This was now a fight for his pride. Eating that target was only part of
the process as his final goal was to consume the other two Harijans.
<Good… we’ll end it all today. Three of us is too much. Let’s see
who’s the strongest.>
Dragona then began shooting at the target and Liona at the same
time.
‘Ugh…’
Sian took one of the attacks as he tried to dodge, and it felt like his
body was being crushed. But he could not fall yet. Fortunately, his
training gave him the endurance against such pain so he barely
managed to keep up his speed. It also helped that the attacks were
getting weaker for some unknown reason.
The threat of death made Sian’s trait from the Lukras work on him to
give him more power. But it wasn’t enough to make him powerful
enough to dodge it easily.
He then noticed that his path had started twisting at intense degrees
and moaned,
The path sharply turned to the left, implying that a powerful being
was approaching from the right. It was probably Chrona. Sian
dodged the attacks and turned the left to run.
Chrona was surprised when she felt the presence that she had
closely missed a few years ago had reappeared. She was also
happy that he had become much more powerful. Her intention back
then was to keep him as a pet so he could become stronger until she
consumed him, but now he was strong enough for her to consume.
The problem, however, was that Liona and Dragona were following
closely behind. They were attacking each other while simultaneously
attacking the target, but it seemed they were getting irritated at each
other and had started attacking each other more. She was sure that
they would lose the target soon.
Chrona ran at full speed toward the target. She intended to consume
him while those two fools fought with each other. However, as she
turned, the attacks instantly were redirected towards her. It seemed
that she expected this, as she swung her front foot to shoot out an
energy wave to intercept the attack.
<Y-you fools! We should get the target first before fighting each
other!>
Sian was almost at the Ra’s territory and if he made it there, it would
be too late. She still had time to chase after it, but the other two were
not going to let that happen. She then gave up chasing after the
target and charged at Dragona and Liona.
His problem now was that he wanted to head back home even at this
moment, but he could see no chance that he could make it through
those three. The sky was falling and the ground was being torn
apart.
“Nng…”
Even now, Sian’s power had waned. He knew that his power would
be lessened as he got closer to the peak so it was obvious that the
Drakuns and Harijans would not approach. However, it also meant
that the Lukras could not leave this place.
The best choice was to secretly pass through this place and find
Lagaope to send him back to Ra-Sian and train there. The monsters
would think that Sian had escaped into this mountain, so they would
not search for him in Ra-Sian.
However, the problem was that these Lukras would not let him pass.
Sian waited for them. When they arrived, one of them who was in
grand-looking clothing sent a telepathic message directly into Sian’s
mind.
“…?”
‘Oh, I see.’
It seemed that they did not speak at all, as they all communicated
using telepathic messages. Sian then thought up his words again.
<A message?>
<We told him to send you to us so that we can discuss the duties of
an ally.>
<…>
<…>
<We assumed that you would come by that teleportation… thing. It’s
not good to take an easy route, but we thought you should enjoy the
luxury since you have a lot of fights waiting for you.>
<…>
<And here you are! Coming straight through the danger! We were
worried when we heard about you from Lagaope, but he must have
been mistaken! You are definitely a warrior!>
‘…’
Sian could not even think about what had gone wrong.
<Then you ran into their territory without any reason to come?>
<Huh? No- I mean…>
<It doesn’t matter anymore. What’s important is that you are here.
You have proven that you can survive through them.>
<…>
The destruction was now slowing down. It didn’t seem that they were
going to fight until one of them died so they looked like they were
going to back away. Or it was maybe because they had become
wary of the Lukras watching them.
<What is that?>
Lukra laughed.
<It’s our holy artifact. It’s very precious. It doesn’t work now but its
existence is what matters.>
<Hmph.>
Sian nodded as it didn’t seem odd that they had holy artifacts when
they had priests and all that.
<We’ll start from the start. How much do you know? I can read your
memory if you don’t want to talk.>
<You know most of the details then. We’ll tell you the recent updates.
I will introduce myself first. I am the priest of the Lukras.>
<We had first planned to leave you alone until you become strong
enough to fight against the Drakuns and Harijans with us.>
<…>
<But why…>
<But the power of holy land is getting weaker. No, it is being pushed
back.>
<Barrier? You mean the one made from the Ciculus Tree?>
The priest shook his head.
<No… not that crude barrier. It’s the barrier that Aksarai created by
using <Unkara> himself.>
<…>
Thousands of years ago, when the Lukras and Drakuns were fighting
at the peak.
Aksarai was annoyed. The Lukras ran back to their holy land the
moment it became dangerous for them. The Drakuns could fly
around, but that did not help much. Even when they held the upper
hand during a battle, those Lukras would run back to the mountain
and attack from there. That was when Aksarai thought he should do
the same for his people.
Aksarai then noticed the clouds as he flew around the sky and
thought up an idea.
It was the thick cloud made from the monsters <Unkaras> that lived
under Cloud Mountain.
Those monsters consumed the lava under the mountain and created
a special cloud-like smog that reacted well with magic. The smog
was then mixed together with the clouds and floated around the
continent. It was already being utilized by the Drakuns to cast their
magic with ease.
The place where the Unkaras lived was far from the Lukras so it was
safe from being disturbed. Aksarai began using his full power to
create the barrier.
<Akun-Kal>
The Unkaras did not side with the Drakuns. They were neutral and
hated anyone invading their territory. They were also a very violent
race that would choose to self-destruct rather than lose. Aksarai
needed them alive and thought of an idea. He only needed the
smog, not their race, so he poured his power into having magic
absorbed into the smog that was created. He then returned to wait
for the barrier to spread.
The Lukras did not notice its existence at first since it was created in
a faraway place, and was slowly increasing in radius. But the Akun-
Kal eventually spread across the continent. Within the Akun-Kal, the
Drakuns’ energy increased in power and they were able to know
where the Lukras were. It also made other races other than the
Drakuns stay under its barrier.
The barrier confined the Lukras, making them unable to move out of
their land. When they noticed its existence, Akun-Kal had already
covered the entire continent other than the Holy Land. The Lukras
had no other choice but to retreat into the Holy Land and ended up in
the current state.
Even when Aksarai died along with Broxian and Gran-Ra, Akun-Kal
did not disappear. However, it was almost time. Akun-Kal was now
pushing away the power of the Holy Land.
<We are not sure why the power that had been standing strong for
thousands of years is waning, but the barrier is eating away at the
holy power even as we speak.>
The priest pointed to the sky. As Sian turned to the sky, the cloud
within the mountain and outside seemed different. The top of the
mountain also had clouds, but they were clearer and transparent. It
was probably because the cloud before the barrier covered it.
The clouds outside of the mountain were normal clouds that Sian
had seen for days in Ra-Sian. He never thought of it as strange, but
he was able to tell the difference now.
‘Sickening.’
<If that’s the case… wouldn’t those Unkaras be under heavy guard?
Isn’t that barrier really important to the Drakuns?>
<…>
<The only race powerful enough to kill the Unkaras is us, so the
Drakuns will not divide their forces to defend the Unkaras. It’s not
needed because we are not able to walk out of the Holy Land
without them knowing.>
It seemed that Sian did not have any Lukra blood as he was not
caught by the Drakuns when he walked around. He probably only
had the traits. Sian then concluded,
The Lukras told him that they wanted to check up on him. It meant
that he needed to be strong enough to do the job. The priest,
however, looked away.
<…>
<Do not forget. This is not a matter of ‘if you can’. It must be done. If
the Holy Land’s power weakens enough, they will begin attacking.>
‘…Dammit.’
The area that he destroyed was quite large, but it was nothing
compared to the size of the island.
‘Maybe I should’ve just destroyed the whole place while I was there.’
Sian thought about it but shook his head. If he did, he would have
probably been caught by the Drakuns and killed. Thus, he was able
to pinpoint two important things.
The first was to see how strong the Unkaras were. The second was
to find a way to run to safety after dealing with them.
<I will see if there are any possible routes to run, and check them
out. If I can deal with them, then great. If I can’t, then I will hide and
train.>
He did not dare fight when he knew he would not win. He needed to
check how strong the Unkaras were first. He also had to decide how
to escape. He needed teleportation magic and he knew where to go.
‘I should look for Conrad or Lagaope first. Where would they be?’
Sian then went to inform the Lukras that he would leave soon.
Conrad became confused but returned to his job on fixing the cores.
Lagaope then found something on him was flashing. It was the
communication artifact. He took it out and answered. It was Liviath,
telling him that he returned.
“You’re back.”
<Yeah. I checked Amaran and the other places but there was no
use. I just brought the few things that you mentioned.>
“….”
<Uh… he wasn’t there when I went to look for him, so I asked Stiel
to give him the message.>
“And then?”
If the artifact and the message were delivered, then there was no
problem.
Lagaope became grim. There was only one person who Liviath
would consider that way.
“…north?”
“Hm…”
“I can’t believe he’s that unlucky. I even had an easier way… let’s
hope that he didn’t die.”
The Lukras nodded and told him the location of the closest Ciculus.
Sian then left the mountain and began running toward that Ciculus
as he trained. As he reached his limit, he stopped to cool himself
down and looked at the Ciculus far away. It seemed the core had
been repaired as the tree was full of green leaves.
The only Duke left was probably Conrad and he wasn’t the type to
stay in hiding so he thought it should be easy to find out.
“Huh?”
“Hmm…”
Sian asked if there was teleportation magic, but the Count answered
that such a thing had not been implemented yet, so Sian began
running to Lorvall. He could now feel the energy even when he did
not have Akra.
Lagaope thought that Sian would come to this continent for him if he
survived. But Sian would have no idea where Lagaope was so he
might search all the Ciculus. That was why Lagaope asked all the
nobles to send Sian towards Lorvall to find Conrad.
“I guess so.”
“How long are you going to hide? It’s not like Sian’s going to kill you,
is he?”
Conrad didn’t think Sian was that violent. Lagaope might have gotten
Sian into some trouble, but he wasn’t going to kill Lagaope or
anything. Lagaope nodded.
“Haha, I’m not running away because I’m afraid of getting beaten up.
He will beat me up, but that’s probably all.”
“Then why?”
“I just think I will get mixed up in his bad luck if I stay close to him.
Who knows what might happen?”
“That’s true.”
“Didn’t you always say warriors have to live with danger? Well, you
will be with the man who attracts danger, so good for you.”
Conrad sighed.
“Haha, I’ll be off to other regions to do my thing. I’ll return when it’s
over. If I get beaten up… then I will get it then.”
Sian had arrived at Lorvall not long after Lagaope left. The Lorvall
Tree seemed like it still needed more time to fully recover. Conrad
greeted Sian,
Conrad was shocked to see Sian alive. Lagaope was sure that Sian
would survive but Conrad did not believe it. He had experienced the
power of Chrona years ago and so did his friends.
The monster that wiped out the humans and Kal-Guls that lived in
the empire.
He could not believe that someone could break through and safely
arrive at the Mountain of Extreme.
The being in front of him was different. There was something strange
that he could feel about him.
Conrad thought about Lorvall and paid his respects silently. He then
moved inside with Sian to talk.
“So… you need teleportation magic to help you flee after you finish
the business on Cloud Mountain?”
“Yeah. I just need to run to the Mountain of Extreme. Oh, and you all
should evacuate from this area. There’s a chance that this place
might get hit too.”
Sian warned as there was a chance that the angry Drakuns might
wreak havoc even after Sian fled.
‘Danger, huh?’
“We don’t have any commoners to feed Akra to the tree. However, if
we pour energy into the core, you can teleport even now. However,
wouldn’t it be hard for you to come here from there?”
Sian didn’t think too much as it wasn’t that far, but it could be
dangerous if he were to be surrounded by Drakuns.
Conrad laughed.
“You can power it by yourself just like you did last time. The reason
it’s installed at the core of Ciculus is that it needs such power.”
“I see.”
“I will adjust the artifact so you can teleport out anytime, anywhere.”
“Yes. Liviath brought a few things from the other continent this time
so it won’t take too long. It’s the energy that’s hard to get. I just need
to make it smaller.”
“OH!”
Sian gritted his teeth. He did not know if it was the Unkaras that were
strong, or if the Drakuns had done something.
“There. I made it into a ring so you can carry it around easily. It will
drop you at Einkel when you pour in energy.”
Conrad handed over the ring-shaped artifact to Sian. The ring was
set with a small red ruby and had countless runes engraved in it.
Sian was astonished.
“Wow, it’s amazing how you made such a thing so quickly! Can’t you
just increase the number of Ra-Shar-Roas too?”
“Haha, the teleportation magic itself is very advanced, but the magic
that allows the absorption of the energy is much more important. The
ring is made to teleport only one person, and under the condition that
you will pour in the energy required, and that made it easier to
create. If we were to make a ring that would work as a personal Ra-
Shar-Roa, it will take years. The ring can only be used once, so
please use it wisely.”
Sian nodded.
Sian commented as he jumped across the sea. The fog was very
dense and dulled his senses. It seemed that it would be hard to find
the Unkaras. If they hid underground while sending up the smog, it
would be difficult to locate them. Sian thought about blowing up the
entire place but there was a chance that the Drakuns would come
straight for him.
That would make things much safer. However, his instincts were still
telling him that he should not go further.
Sian found the traces of the damage he had wrought in the fight
against Lorvall. Thousands of peaks were still puffing out smog.
He noticed then that not all were the same. The ones at the lower
peaks of the island were similar to the smog that covered the sea.
But the ones in the middle, from the higher peaks, contained some
power.
The difference was so minute that if he did not know about the Akun-
Kal, he would not have noticed the difference. It seemed Aksarai had
worked hard on it. Sian then decided to check the higher peaks and
jumped up.
Sian had decided on the outer peaks first as it had the highest
chance that he would encounter something there. It was not wise to
encounter something to fight when he just got here. He then noticed
the giants from before, they were now roaming around aimlessly on
the island.
The Lukras had also mentioned that the smog made the Drakun’s
magic more powerful. There was a hole within a peak that was so
deep that Sian could not see the bottom. It was so wide that it could
hold a small village.
Sian then jumped down as he could not see what was inside with the
smog interfering with his senses.
There were a lot of holes in the walls that were definitely attempts to
dig through. It was probably done by the Unkaras trying to dig in to
eat the lava. He was sure that the Unkaras were below.
He thought that the power was contained in the smog itself, but Sian
couldn’t feel it.
Sian felt that he was reaching the bottom, so he slowed down and
fastened himself to the wall. He was prepared for any kind of
defense mechanisms that the Drakuns might have set in place but
nothing happened.
‘It’s safe for now. I guess no one will dare come this deep down.’
It resembled the larvae of a huge insect, but its skin was covered by
a metallic armor with multiple vents that released smoke. It seemed
the newly-released smoke was not yet infused with the magic to
create the barrier so it had no effect on Sian’s senses.
That didn’t mean it was weak. Its armor was very durable and it
moved at quite a fast pace. It just wasn’t strong enough for Sian to
consider it a threat. Sian walked closer to see if it noticed him but it
just went on its way to consume lava. It seemed the violent nature
only kicked in against one weaker than itself because it ignored Sian
as it acknowledged that the stronger being had no intention to attack.
‘Hmm…’
Sian could not be sure, so he decided to scout around more. There
was a possibility that this Unkara was the weakest here. It was safer
to scout around first before killing anything so Sian began to dig
through to check on the other Unkaras.
Sian thanked the gods for such luck to come upon him. These
Unkaras were very weak. It would take him a bit more time because
of their vast tunnel underground network, but it was not going to be
hard.
Sian relaxed and tried to start killing the Unkara in front of him first,
but a sudden tremor made him pause. The Unkaras began frantically
twisting themselves to run away from something. Sian tried to find
out the cause by heightening his senses, but it wasn’t needed. The
culprit came out by itself.
The Unkaras were ripped into pieces and devoured by the monster
that suddenly appeared through the ground. Sian examined the
monster.
‘…lobster?’
It looked similar but it wasn’t a lobster. It was much larger and had
other differing details.
The Unkaras measured at least fifty to a hundred feet long, but the
monster that just appeared was much larger. It only stuck out its
head so he wasn’t certain, but he was able to make out that the
monster was much larger. The pincer destroyed the Unkaras’ armor,
which could withstand the pressure and the heat of the lava
underground, like a biscuit.
The monster destroyed the armor of Unkara and picked the soft flesh
within to eat. It then finished up by licking through the armor to eat
everything in it.
Sian did speculate as much. The race that released smoke meant
that it had to hide from something else. However, Sian believed in
Aksarai. He thought that Aksarai would not have let a predator of the
Unkaras live if he considered the Unkaras to be important for his
magic.
The monster seemed to notice Sian, so it hid into the ground. Sian
then moved to kill the other Unkaras.
When Aksarai came here, he was glad to find the Unkaras race. But
he also found their predator race, the Geshtal. No, it wasn’t even a
race because there was only one. It seemed like it was some kind of
a mutant. Aksarai thought about killing it but decided not to.
He needed the Unkaras that created the smoke, not the Unkaras
that would live in peace.
Aksarai knew why the Unkaras made the smoke. It was to hide from
that monster. If he killed Geshtal, the Unkaras would be freed from
that danger and they would stop making the smoke to protect
themselves.
That was why Aksarai did not kill Geshtal. And that was only the first
reason.
If Geshtal wanted, it could have wiped out the Unkaras in hours. But
he needed a constant supply of food so it did not do that. He kept the
numbers of Unkara constant by consuming the others.
Aksarai thought that Geshtal would work well as a guardian for these
Unkaras. He did not have any extra Drakuns to send to protect them
when they were busy fighting the Lukras.
Sian thought that he had not been detected by Geshtal, but it already
knew as soon as Sian entered the cave. There were only two
reasons why Geshtal didn’t attack Sian.
One was because Sian did not kill any Unkaras, meaning he wasn’t
here to destroy its food supply.
The other was that Sian was strong enough to be irritating for it to
fight.
But if he were to kill any Unkara, Geshtal wasn’t going to let it slide.
After Sian disappeared, Geshtal came back out of the hole. It looked
toward where Sian had disappeared for a long while and then
disappeared back into the tunnels.
“Hmm…”
Sian felt like he was getting used to this place. His senses were
heightened so he could now feel what was changing the smoke into
the barrier. Powerful magic had been secretly placed above a certain
height, which changed the smoke into something else and the barrier
was written over it.
Sian became curious and wanted to pay a visit to see what it was.
He was amazed by the power that was left by such a being would
still have an effect after thousands of years.
The fact that there were Unkaras left meant it didn’t hunt frequently.
Sian speculated that the monster that just finished its meal would not
be interested in the other Unkaras.
‘Good-bye.’
‘It’s a must.’
‘It worked!’
He was worried that the ring would not work as intended but it was
working. Sian felt his body being teleported and sighed in relief.
Sian thought about what to next but realized in a second that he did
not need to think about that.
Sian was sent back to the cave, got hit, and dropped into the sea of
lava. Geshtal then quickly closed in to keep the upper hand in the
fight.
‘Ugh…’
‘Dammit.’
He understood how strong the monster was when he took the hit. It
was stronger than him, but not by a large margin. If he was
prepared, he would not have been struck down. However, he was
relieved when he thought the teleportation was a success and that
distraction made him get struck down.
Sian swallowed the blood and prepared for the next attack.
If Sian did not unleash his full power, it was obvious that he would
die. He needed to kill the monster first and worry about it later. It
would be best if he would escape, but the monster was too close.
‘Yeah… my life was never that lucky. I was wrong for trusting such a
thing.’
It wasn’t over. Sian didn’t just walk into this dangerous place by
relying only on a simple teleportation device.
Sian gritted his teeth and took off the ring that lost its light and took
out Broxian’s spear. He wasn’t sure if he was able to handle the
weapon so he did not use it, but he needed it now.
The monster was stronger and he had taken the first strike. He
needed everything he could use.
Geshtal stopped for a second as it saw Sian’s weapon and felt the
terrifying power within it. It allowed Sian to take a moment to heal
inside but that didn’t change anything.
Aksarai, Broxian… the relics left by them were all great. Sian could
not imagine what was like to see them when they were alive.
They were dead now. What was important was for Sian to kill the
monster.
<Isn’t that the place where the new Alpha was born? It must have
run to the land of the beast.>
It seemed the power was coming from further back. The 1st Kun of
the Drakun <Katura> became grim as he felt it. He wasn’t sure why
that Alpha came back, but he could not let it be. The place where
energy was coming from was an area that should not be destroyed.
The Drakuns did not know what was going on, but the energy
coming from Cloud Mountain and the consequence of such power
was obvious.
<Gather. We will watch these Lukras so 2nd and 3rd Kuns should go
directly to the Cloud Mountain. You must stop it from destroying the
place!>
The power was so strong that any Drakuns under the 4th will not
work. Katura hoped that he wasn’t too late. He wasn’t sure what was
happening, but their barrier must not fail.
‘It’s amazing.’
Sian was astonished by the sheer power of the spear as he swung it.
The choice Sian made to not use the spear when he was chased by
Dragona wasn’t wrong. If he took it out, it would have destroyed his
balance and made him slower, resulting in him getting caught.
However, it was like the spear was trying even harder to avoid the
attack.
The spear swung through the air to strike and the monster tried to
dodge as it tried to attack Sian. It couldn’t dodge the attack fully and
the spear made a scratch on its armor. It was a very small scratch
that didn’t seem serious.
The scratch made by the spear left a silver liquid on the armor.
However, the reason why it tried hard to dodge the attack was
revealed.
A terrible scream came about, but it wasn’t from the monster. The
source of the sound came from the surface that the spear touched.
The silver liquid began to increase its size and began swallowing the
armor of the monster. The silver liquid screamed as it absorbed the
armor in delight.
When it had absorbed enough, it turned into powder and flowed back
into the spear. Sian then felt the spear’s power had increased very
slightly.
He had killed the monster and survived; he had also killed all the
Unkaras in the tunnels. He had learned how to use the spear and felt
its power, but he couldn’t laugh.
‘Dammit… didn’t they say they would draw away the Drakun’s
attention?’
Maybe this was the result of their work. However, it was too late for
him to escape.
Sian gave up as he felt the powerful presences flying in. The spear
alone wasn’t enough to handle this. Seven strong presences were
heading towards him.
There was hope that this path would save him from dying.
Sian could not understand, but he went for it anyway. It was too late
to run outside and the teleportation magic was not working for some
reason.
It was fortunate that the Unkaras were wiped out so the barrier was
going to weaken. But Sian did not want to die yet. He then found out
where his path had led him to.
‘It’s there.’
As the island began to sink, a giant sphere that was located at the
middle of the island stayed still in mid-air, even when the ground
around it began crumbling.
Sian had never seen it before but he knew what it was right away. It
was the artifact that created the smoke, or the barrier of Akun-Kal.
The path was leading him to the inside of the sphere.
He had been saved by his instinct many times, but it was a bit hard
to believe this time. The sphere did not let out any energy, but upon
close inspection, Sian was able to see enormous energy swirling
within. It was even powerful enough to tear through the dimension,
seal it, and recreate it. He now realized why the Lukra priest laughed
when he said he was going to break this instead.
<Uh, I’m…>
<Die.>
<AARGH!>
He could not hear what they were talking about, but he could see the
Drakuns flying in and talking to each other. Drakuns shot each other
concerned looks and glanced at the sphere for a while and then they
flew back to where they came from.
<That’s a relief.>
<Well, not anyone can come in. Some work was put into it.>
<…!>
<What…!>
Sian then realized the voice was transferred directly into his head
and groaned.
Sian asked as the only reason why he could hear the voice was
because he jumped into this place.
<I’m helping you solve your problem. And save your life while we’re
at it.>
Sian said,
<What problem?>
Sian grimaced. So this was the man that the Lukra feared so much.
But why would such a being talk to him? Why would it be a problem?
<Well, it can be a problem for you, but I had to do it. Or else your
Drakuns will wipe our kind out.>
<You… and that Lagaope… you were all fooled! You were lied to!>
<Huh?>
<Yes, that must be so. But… it’s complicated to explain. You should
see for yourself. It won’t take long.>
Then something began washing into Sian’s head, showing him the
old memory.
The Drakuns were more powerful than any other race on the ground.
However, they lived above the sky so they did not need to fight the
other races so they lived in peace.
<What is that?>
Aksarai examined the object. It was a golden crystal. It flew from the
sky down through the cloud, and it fell onto the place called the
Mountain of Extreme now.
<Should we investigate?>
<No. We should wait for now.>
<We will not be able to use our power within the range.>
The weak were more vulnerable against it. As the crystal created its
own range, it shined again. Aksarai frowned. There were weird
beings coming out from it.
The crystal wasn’t small, but was it big enough to hold hundreds of
those big things in it? It wasn’t. Those that came out from the crystal
began roaming around the area, checking to see what it was like. It
seemed they were more used to living in their own place, so when
they stepped out of it, they frowned. But what they did next made
Aksarai scowl.
Those races returned to the crystal and took out small gems. They
then began spreading them out on the southern side of the
mountain.
The change happened rapidly and Aksarai was able to see the
change from the beginning.
The gems that they spread upon the land did not make any change
at first, but it soon appeared. Gems began absorbing the land, water,
and everything into it and created something. It was molded into a
figure and was reborn with a claw, muscle, skin, and sharp teeth.
The head also had a strong horn.
The gem became a monster and it roared, but it could not disobey
the Lukra.
The monsters that were created were well over the thousands in
numbers.
Aksarai frowned.
<What are they going to with all of them? Are they pets?>
Their numbers were great, but they were too weak. However, it
wasn’t over. Lukra then returned to the crystal and took out another
race.
Aksarai couldn’t understand. The ones that came out from crystal
weren’t weak. The one that came out at the end was really powerful
that even he wasn’t sure if he would be able to fight him. That was
why he had to watch it from a distance even when they were doing
something very fishy.
If they were weak and did not hide within that range, Aksarai
would’ve probably wiped them out.
The Lukras did not leave their area, but the monsters and the other
race from the crystal seemed different.
The monkey-like race seemed very energetic and alive as they were
sent out to the south of the mountain under the protection of the
beasts from the gem.
Aksarai then was able to realize the other fact. These one-horned
monsters began consuming other races, or after living for years, they
became stronger. They all started out with one horn, but the number
of horns started increasing.
Lukras did not eat themselves. The race that they called <Ro> was
consumed by the race that they called <Na>. They were so weak
that it did not allow those monsters to become strong but they still
had to eat to ease their hunger.
<Ro> was food for those monsters to consume when they became
hungry.
The Drakuns and Lukras had been fighting for a long time now. After
Aksarai saw them doing weird things under the mountain, he
decided that he could not let them be, so he began fighting them too.
Yet these Lukra were powerful. Gran-Ra, or the one with the golden
sword, was so powerful that his power was on par with Aksarai
himself. Even then, Gran-Ra became much stronger. In contrast,
Aksarai himself had the power of magic.
The Lukras quickly retreated back to their area when they were
about to lose, so they could not easily defeat them.
Aksarai could see through their intentions. The Lukra were waiting
for something and they were just postponing it to put an end to the
fight. There were chances for them to have the upper hand, but they
did not try to take the chances.
That was the only reason. Most of those monsters were only at
about Six-Horned so they weren’t much help, but if they become
Seven-Horned, and more of them appeared, it would destroy the
balance.
Aksarai then realized why these Lukras carried around those weird
races. They were a very powerful race, but there wasn’t a lot of
them. If they lost people while fighting, there was no way for them to
survive many fights. They also could not adapt well to the new place
they come so they needed a warrior race <Na> to use them instead.
If they were left alone and those monsters grew in power, the
balance would surely be destroyed. Aksarai then came to Cloud
Mountain and created the barrier. This allowed the Drakuns and
Lukra to maintain the balance until Broxian appeared later.
The effect was mostly the same as what the Lukras had explained.
But there was one more important effect that they did they disclose
to Sian.
<…>
Sian became shocked at the origin of the land. His people and
Harijans were the race let loose by the Lukras thousands of years
ago.
<Good. We will now go through a war. Their <Na> have grown very
powerful. Dragona, Chrona, Liona… those three are enough to break
the balance. At least its fortunate that there’s still some time for all
barriers to be removed.>
<Dammit.>
<Half is a lie. But half is true. That priest is smart. He did manage to
break the barrier in the end.>
<Was it a lie that the power of the Holy Land was waning?>
Aksarai answered,
<Probably. I’m sure the balance would not have been broken even
then. But that priest will not allow you to grow stronger so you will be
uncontrollable. I’m sure he wanted you to destroy the barrier and kill
you by using the Drakuns.>
<…>
<That’s why I sent you the signal not to come… you fool. It’s so
limited to be living as a parasite.>
<Didn’t I threaten you not to come here? You always followed it well.
Why did you come all the way this time…>
<…>
Sian then realized where the instinct, or what he thought the instinct
originated from. The work did end well compared to what his
instincts had warned him. So the instinct was telling him to not
destroy the barrier.
<How foolish are you? I’m within you. Would I know all that if I was
stuck within this sphere? I’m talking to you based on everything that
you have heard and experienced.>
<…>
Sian was shocked as he was just told that some parasite was living
within him.
<…I heard that the Connector of Aksarai will become you when it
becomes an Alpha.>
Aksarai scoffed.
<…>
<They’re all lies. If taking control over someone was that easy, it’d be
better if I just took it in the first place and did it myself. Why would I
wait until you become an Alpha? It’s even harder to take over.>
Yet, Sian could not believe it to be true. The Lukras’ concern against
the Connector of Aksarai was real after all.
Aksarai answered.
<Then why now? Why did you show yourself now? It’s been a while
since I’ve become an Alpha.>
<…I’m not?>
Aksarai laughed.
<Hah! You’re only able to speak with me because you are at the
place where my power remains. It’s helping the power within you to
allow you to speak to me. My portion of the spirit within you is
smaller than the portion that Lorvall or Conrad has.>
<…>
<Don’t worry. You can’t use any of my powers, but you did inherit the
most important power of all.>
<Huh?>
<Hmm…>
<It’s so small that it won’t give you any of the other special powers,
but that alone had come in pretty handy.>
Then, Sian realized what his mysterious path was. The way to
become strong. The way to victory.
Aksarai agreed.
Sian then realized how long Aksarai’s spirit had been with him. The
path had been with him since the beginning.
Aksarai answered,
<Well, I was with your ancestors to be specific. Your family had been
a carrier.>
<Huh? I didn’t send it specifically to you. My spirit was just sent over
to you, the <Ro> race when it exploded while I fought against those
fools Gran-Ra and Broxian. It’s not because you’re special or
anything.>
<…>
<But… I guess it did affect your family. If my spirit was handed over
to the next generation, it would need to gather many human traits
and characteristics together with the blood. That’s why your family
did not have many children, and if a child was born without the spirit,
then any remaining trait it had been born with should’ve been taken
away by the one with the spirit, killing it in the early stages. Yet it did
make your family strong. It’s more complicated but I won’t go to
details.>
<But Father or Brother do not see the path like I do…>
<I told you. It’s not your family that’s special. It’s you who’s special.
The reason your family was strong was not because of my spirit. It
was because the transfer of the spirit to a newborn required the
transfer of all the power and traits to one child.>
Sian nodded. The reason why he could see the path was because
the Lukra’s blood helped him withstand the spirit.
<Your family will become normal now since you absorbed my spirit
within you.>
<…It doesn’t make sense. If that was true, my brother would’ve been
dead or something. But he’s well off.>
Aksarai laughed.
<Who said it was you who took the powers? Your brother took all the
power that had to go to you even without the spirit. If you did not
awaken your Lukra blood, you would have died a long time ago.>
<…>
<I have never seen a man lucky as your brother. He only took the
good things.>
<…Huh?>
<No, I wanted you to become strong fast, but you didn’t want that.
So I had to push you in.>
<Nothing much. I just… made the other connector put you into
Apental… and made you feel that you must destroy that husk of
Dragona. You could’ve run, but I didn’t want you to. Think about it.
Do you think it makes sense that you would know who to beat up
naturally?>
<…>
<Oh, and I made you feel that you should go to the place where
Apental reopened. That was good work on my part… oh and I also
made that Lorvall kid to make you into an Alpha.>
<…>
It wasn’t much, but all those events almost got Sian killed. It looked
like all those happenings weren’t because of Sian’s misfortune. He
could have avoided them all but Aksarai had dragged him in.
<Well, that Lagaope made many plans and failed, but I’m Aksarai. I
don’t fail.>
<…>
<Hey, relax. You can’t do anything to me because I’m inside you.
Besides, I helped you a lot too.>
<…What.>
<Wasn’t it weird? That you felt it was dangerous to go over the Great
North Wall?>
<…>
<As you know, there was nothing that could bring danger you over
the Wall when you were seventeen years old, besides Dragona or
Chrona. You didn’t know about Chrona’s existence, but you felt it
was dangerous to go there. Why do you think that happened?>
<…>
<I also helped you to find that Stiel girl. If it wasn’t for me, you
wouldn’t find her that easily even with that Veronica.>
But there was no way to beat him up and there were other things to
worry about at the moment.
Even now, the barrier was probably getting rid of, and when it was
done, the Lukras would control the Harijans such as Dragona to
attack the Drakuns. Sian had become stronger, but he wasn’t strong
enough to fight against Dragona, Liona, and Chrona all at once to
keep the balance.
Sian sighed.
<Did you bring me here to tease me?>
Aksarai answered,
<No. I did bring you here to save you, but I also did it to tell you how
to solve this.>
<How?>
<But how?>
<Well… what do you think you need to do to deal with the fools? Just
beat them up.>
<…?>
<That’s not easy. Doesn’t it take like 100 years for barriers to go off?
>
<No way. It will take about a month. That’s when the Lukras will start
coming out.>
<Yes. And stop thinking you want to snap my neck off. It’s your own
neck.>
<Yes.>
<Oh! Then…>
Aksarai scoffed.
<You should just focus on your sword skills. You have no talent in
anything else. Just focus on what you know.>
<I can’t do that. There’s about four that I want to beat up right now,
but I can’t even beat up one.>
<Does that four include me? Anyway, you won’t get strong with such
a cheat. The space isn’t hard to make, but someone as strong as
you will destroy the entire place or make it disconnect it from this
dimension. If that worked, I would have trained within myself.>
<Right.>
<I’ve prepared the best for you. Well… it wasn’t for you originally, but
take it. That’s why I brought you here.>
Aksarai laughed.
<Yes. Consume my blood that I left here and digest my power. You
can become… a bit stronger that way.>
Aksarai scoffed.
The Drakuns he saw last time were really big. It wouldn’t be much
blood to take if Aksarai was much bigger.
<Hm…>
Sian was unconvinced, however. The power in front of him was very
powerful and it seemed like consuming it would make him powerful
for sure. However, he couldn’t just believe the suspicious being
within him.
<Don’t be too suspicious. You don’t have to consume it. But then you
will all die. Can you become powerful in a month to kill Dragona or
Chrona?>
<…No.>
<Then you have your answer. Besides, I’m not trying to take over
your body. I don’t even want it even if you want me to take it. I’m just
helping you because I need you to survive.>
Aksarai answered.
<Just think that you will take it in. I will help you with the rest.>
<Okay.>
Sian then spread his arms and gestured to take the blood in. At
once, the liquid that filled the sphere began swirling. It began to swirl
violently around Sian and started to flow into his body. But it wasn’t
as simple as it looked. Sian had to focus his mind as he absorbed
the massive amount of power.
The power was friendly, but it was still hard. If it was hostile and he
did not have Aksarai’s spirit within him, his body would have been
crushed instantly.
<It will take some time to digest the power. I hope nothing serious
happens outside…>
1st Kun of Drakun, Katura, gritted his teeth. The barrier still stood,
but the Cloud Island that allowed them to keep the barrier had been
destroyed. If the barrier was lifted, the Lukras would definitely attack
along with the beasts they raised.
<HAHA! The barrier has been lifted! That <Ro> did it!>
<Perfect.>
It was now time to take control of those <Na> that grew on their own
and wipe Drakuns out. They could not stop Na from consuming each
other as they couldn’t control them to eat Ro instead, but it gave
them better results. There weren’t many sixth level Nas, but they had
acquired three seventh level Nas instead. That was enough to fight
against the Drakuns. Besides, the one that destroyed the barrier was
also from Ro. It was perfect.
Without the key to the Golden Crystal, they had no way to travel to
other lands. They had to live here. They could not allow a dangerous
competitor like the Drakuns to live.
The priest, Katun-Hal, eagerly waited for the barrier to be lifted and
his control against those Na to come back. If the control came back,
there was no time to waste.
“…What is it?”
[Hey-hey. Do you see me? No, do you hear me? What is this stupid
system interfering with my beautiful connector system?]
“…Who are you?”
[Insolent fool. You all need to learn how to respect your elders.]
“…”
[You should know right away. Who else would it be other than the
one you connect with?]
[It’s not time for that. You will all die if you stay there.]
[You know about those Lukras and Drakuns, right? There will be a
war soon. Lukras will move into the Drakuns’ territory, which means
the place you live in will be the warfront. It will kill you all.]
“Dammit.”
If this Aksarai was telling the truth, the human race was going to be
wiped out. They would not attack them, but just the shocks from the
war would be enough to destroy the land.
[You should evacuate all humans into the continent you call Ra-Sian.
That place will be safe for the moment.]
“We can’t.”
“Right. We don’t have time… but why are you helping us?” Conrad
asked as he could find no reason for Aksarai to help him.
[Well, that Sian boy was worried. It’s not much to just send you a
word to tell you to run.]
“…Sian?”
[You will know in due time. You will get to talk a lot now.]
“Whew.”
Sian came out of the sphere after feeling like he’d absorbed all of its
power. When he came out, the island had sunk under the ocean and
all he could see was a vast sea.
[Well, with you being so powerful, there’s some space for my spirit.
But don’t worry. I won’t stay within you forever.]
“If you succeed in coming back, will your voice go away too?”
[Yeah. So if you don’t want to live with me forever, you should help
me come back.]
“Whew.”
“Explosive Fire!”
[…]
“Was it a scam?”
[Huh?]
“Are you not the Ruler of all Magic, the Almighty… and all that?”
[Huh? You fool, didn’t I say you have no talent in anything else than
the sword? Don’t even dream about it. Either way, the one you tried
to use is the calculated magic, not just some random power. You will
never get to use it with your intellectual level.]
Aksarai responded.
Sian had been focusing on absorbing the power so he did not know
what had been going on. Aksarai then began telling him what he
found out through Conrad.
“Hmm.”
<It doesn’t change the fact that you’re useless though. I made other
connectors find out about other things while you were asleep.>
Aksarai answered,
<2 weeks.>
Sian was worried that he had used years to absorb the energy. That
would have ended the situation as no one would be able to fight
against the Lukras or Harijans, but two weeks was fine. He had not
become strong enough, but he still had time.
“Hm?”
Sian became confused and Aksarai asked again,
<Let me ask you. How strong have you become? I do not know
everything about your state. You should know it best yourself.>
“…”
<You fool. You never planned for anything in your entire life? Right…
I remember how Narasha or Lagaope had a hard time with you.>
<Yes. It’s good that you woke up fast.. and became much more
powerful than I expected. I made Conrad research the barrier’s
range and the movement of those Harijans.>
“Hmm…”
<And Lukras still have their Holy Land. They will run back to the
place if they can’t win. But they can’t use the crystal since they have
lost the key.>
“Crystal…?”
<The one you saw at the top of the mountain. You have the key to
it.>
<Correct. That’s why I told you to not to use the sword since you ran
from Dragona.>
“Oh…”
<If you took up the sword, those Lukras would have to either kill you
or force you return it to them. But that would be a great loss. Rather
than just being a key, that sword also serves other purposes.>
Sian nodded. He had never used the sword to its full potential.
Broxian’s silver spear that he used when he fought against that
lobster was very powerful and the sword did not fall behind.
“That’s fortunate.”
“…”
Aksarai explained,
<The barrier is still there and the Lukras aren’t controlling the
Harijans yet. They are hesitating on attempting to control the beasts
before the barrier is completely lifted. They are afraid that their failed
attempt will make those beasts chose to attack rather than letting
themselves be controlled.>
“I see.”
Aksarai continued,
<So, if the Lukras do take full control over them, it will be too late.
You have no other option than to side with the Drakuns and fight
against those Lukras. But you will lose.>
“Right.”
If the war was to win, Sian had to fight Dragona, Liona, and Chrona,
all three at once. But he wasn’t that strong yet.
<We will have to kill the Harijans before they get controlled by the
Lukras. At least one… if you managed to kill all three, that will be the
best option. Although, I doubt that’s possible.>
Sian nodded. It didn’t seem possible to kill all three within two weeks.
<Liona. That one is the most farthest from them all. Dragona and
Chrona are too close to the Lukras. You will never know what might
happen.>
“Hm… where do I find him?”
Aksarai laughed.
“…”
<I made Conrad prepare a few things but he has his limit. It’s up to
you to lure it and kill it. Let’s go then.>
<Go to the Great Eastern Sea. Go south from where we are right
now.>
Above it was a man running across the vast open space, unleashing
his massive energy. Harijans and Merpeople that lived within the sea
were fleeing from the power. But Harijans did not know that this was
not the man’s full power. Sian was controlling his power as he ran
across the sea.
<Yes. It will let Liona know while the other two won’t know.>
Aksarai laughed.
<Yes. It’s actually fortunate that Liona followed you to the Great
Forest. If he didn’t, he would be suspicious of you. A man running
across the sea while unleashing the power? It’s too suspicious.>
“Right.”
Sian nodded.
<But Liona knows you. He knows how you ran in your weak self. You
didn’t hide your power back then so Liona must be thinking you are
at that level. He will not imagine that you became this strong within a
few weeks.>
“Right.”
Even Sian did not imagine he could become this powerful in that
short time period.
<That’s the chance. Kill him when he comes. Don’t let him get
away.>
“I know.”
<Huh?>
Liona began wondering if it was real or not. The target that he lost
was now up in his territory. It also seemed to be in a hurry as it was
running through his territory at an enormous speed.
He did not think for too long. At the end of his territory was Chrona’s
territory. If he did not stop it, it would surely fall to Chrona’s mouth.
<No way.>
If he can’t consume it, others shouldn’t. This was the basic rule of
thumb.
Liona pulled himself out from the deep sea and swam up.
<It’s coming.>
“They’re so simple-minded.”
<Well… they’re beasts. I think Liona will hate to think that you will fall
to Chrona rather than him.>
The plan was simple. Run across the sea toward Chrona’s territory. If
Liona remained within, he would not allow Sian to go to Chrona’s
land and he would come out of hiding to fight.
<I don’t know. I saw him when he was a Six-Horned and he was
really big back then…>
“Hmm?”
<You’ll know once he comes out. Don’t misjudge him by his looks. If
you rely on your sense to find the large thing, you will get hit just like
now.>
“UGH!”
<See? It was under your range but you were too focused on finding
something else.>
Sian could not fully avoid the blue ray that shot out from beneath the
sea. He then began fighting against Liona who just arose from the
sea.
The ocean water evaporated and pushed back while the Harijans
within range were crushed at the destruction made by the power.
It was an intense fight but Aksarai watched it within Sian and
mumbled. There was nothing else he could do anyway.
Sian gritted his teeth. He remembered what Liona looked from the
memory of Aksarai when he was a Six-Horned. He looked like a
giant frog that was bigger than Dragona. He wasn’t like this small
tentacle monster.
The part that was taken out then instantly regenerated and Liona
attacked Sian.
Aksarai mumbled,
Aksarai added.
<Then change weapons. I figured he was going to be bigger, but a
sword will be much better against him.>
“…Huh?”
Sian then swung his spear to make Liona jump back and put the
spear back in. He had not used the sword to its full extent yet so he
did not know about the power, but it was Aksarai, who had fought
against him with the sword, saying it will help. Sian then took the
sword and began swinging it at Liona. Liona could not avoid the
sudden change of range and a part of him was scratched.
The place where sword made a scratch began burning intensely. But
it was different from the spear. It did not expand to other places.
It did stop the regeneration. Liona had been regenerating after every
injury until now, but he could not regenerate the parts damaged by
Gran-Ra’s sword. Liona even tried to rip apart the damage, but it still
burned.
<That’s the curse within the sword of Gran-Ra. The cut will keep
burning until it kills its target. It uses the target’s energy so it won’t go
away. I had a hard time because of that too.>
“Wow…”
“UGH!”
Sian moaned at the tentacles that were coming at him. Liona gave
up on regenerating and was now attacking Sian at full power. Sian
then began swinging his sword to attack again.
Chrona held her head up at the huge power coming from afar.
<What…?>
One was very a familiar power. She would notice Liona’s power that
she had been fighting with for thousands of years right away. The
other one was a mystery. It was mixed with some familiar presence,
but Chrona shook her head. The target had been chased to death by
them a few weeks ago. It wasn’t as powerful to fight against Liona
yet.
Chrona then thought if there were any that would be able to fight
them, but she couldn’t think of anyone. However, that clash was
surely meant that there was someone.
She did not fight to the end because the three of them were equal,
but she would not let it go this time. Besides, the target to consume
was now two instead of one.
His entire body was bleeding from the wounds. Yet Liona looked
more normal. A lot of wounds were burning from the sword of Gran-
Ra, but they were mere scratches.
Liona tried to run away, but Sian did not let him. Sian wasn’t winning,
however. If he fought for longer, he would surely lose. Yet, he didn’t
need to hold for too long. He knew what was coming in their
direction.
Sian ignored Liona’s shout and kept on swinging the sword. Liona
wasn’t concentrating on fighting Sian as he was now just trying to
run away. Sian’s wounds were too great to do this for too long, but
he knew that time was on his side. The two beings flying in were now
coming at a quicker speed.
<It’s a half-success.>
He should’ve killed Liona, but Liona was too strong. Sian did become
stronger while he fought, but it didn’t mean his wounds would heal
right away.
‘It’s here!’
Sian glanced at the purple beam and swung his golden sword to
make Liona jump backward. Sian then began pushing energy into
his ring that he got from Conrad before he departed.
Liona then realized what Sian was trying to do and began attacking
at him.
Liona then charged at Sian and wrapped his tentacles around him. If
he were to teleport with Sian, Dragona and Chrona would follow after
them into the space. Then he’d die together with Sian.
“Ugh!”
<What…!>
Before Liona could let out his shock, the teleportation was complete
and Chrona and Dragona arrived at the place.
<Dammit… I missed.>
Chrona gritted her teeth and looked around to see where they had
gone off to. Those two were almost dead. So, if she were to follow
after them, she would surely kill both of them easily. Even in the
worst scenario, she could share the food with Dragona.
But Chrona had to give up when she realized where they had
teleported to. It was worse than what she had thought at first.
Dragona was curious as to why Chrona gave up and checked on the
trace himself and realized it. Yet he could not just give up so he
looked at the place of teleportation for while and spat on it.
<Dammit. It’s a shame. But why did that stupid Liona follow them in
there?>
Liona and the target teleported right in the middle of Drakun territory.
If they followed them, there was no telling what would happen.
Dragona and Chrona then returned to their territories.
Sian quickly broke off from Liona and braced himself. It was too
dangerous to stay close. And when he did, powerful rays began
attacking the half-dead Liona.
<!!!!>
Liona could not even try to defend himself as he had accumulated
too many wounds while trying to teleport with Sian and was killed.
The attack wasn’t just some normal attack. It was from the powerful
race that was fighting to take control over the entire continent. It was
an Alpha of such a race. Liona was powerful, but he had no way to
withstand such an attack in his current state.
Liona was burned to death and a giant gem was left. It was the death
of one of the three beasts that controlled one-third of the Ra-Sian
Continent.
<Good. We managed to kill one. We didn’t hand over the dead body
either. It’s a success.>
“I was lucky.”
Aksarai never thought Sian would finish off Liona without getting
caught by Dragona or Chrona. If he was that strong, he did not need
to try to kill them one by one.
The Drakuns would never reject Aksarai’s words, nor would they
reject any help in such a state. Sian did not like the idea of
teleporting into the middle of the Drakuns’ territory, but he agreed in
the end. If he died while killing Liona, the Drakuns had no way to
fight against Dragona and Chrona.
Sian then sighed in relief and one of the giant Drakuns appeared in
front of him. All Drakuns usually were as large as ten to twenty feet,
but this one was much bigger. It seemed like it was about fifty feet
tall. It was Sian’s first time meeting him, but the 1st Kun, Katura, had
already heard a lot about Sian and the God within.
Sian let out his hand toward Katura’s head and Katura lowered his
head to be touched by Sian’s hand. He was then able to receive
messages from Aksarai.
<Katura… the boy worthy of jumping on the first cloud. Long time no
see.>
Katura brightened up. Besides knowing the name and the title, he
knew the familiar presence. It was their King.
<It’s about time we part ways. It’s a shame that one such as me was
trapped within you.>
“Hmph.”
It really was, as they were at war and Aksarai would be a great help.
<But don’t worry. You will still have your power intact. That is now
your own power that’s rooted within your body.>
Sian nodded. Aksarai explained that the power was not being given
to Sian by his spirit. It was the Sian’s body that awakened the power
to accept the spirit. Even when the spirit left, his body would keep
exercising its power normally.
That was what Aksarai meant when he said he could come back
when Connector became an Alpha, but it didn’t mean that he would
take over the body.
Normally, a real connector would have resulted in Aksarai regaining
power at once he came back, but the spirit within Sian was too small
to do that. Even if Aksarai came back, it would take him quite a while
to become much powerful.
But it was still a power of Aksarai. Even at such state, it was enough
to fight off Dragona.
<So, while the Lukras fight with our Drakuns, we fight against <Na>.
Dragona and Chrona… but we won’t have much time. Lukras will
know that Liona was killed by now and if I succeed in coming back,
the energy will be sent out through the lands.>
“Yeah, but weren’t they going to attack the moment the barrier
comes off anyway?”
<Good. It will not take too long. Either we’ll get wiped out, or we’ll
wipe them out.>
Sian nodded. If the Lukras won, they will not let him survive.
Besides, they had nowhere to run away from Lukras. But if the
Drakuns won, the Lukras would have some time to hide behind the
Holy Land. But as Sian and Aksarai gained strength, they would
soon be wiped out. Sian might not, but Aksarai would surely wipe out
Lukras.
<Soon, the barrier will be lifted. You should focus on regaining your
power. They will not give us time. But are you certain you will be able
to fight? Without your entire power coming back?>
Sian nodded. He couldn’t regain all the energy within the timeframe,
but he had gotten much stronger through the fight with Liona so it
would work.
If there was a bit more time for Sian, or if he woke up a bit earlier to
kill Liona, he would have fought with more room, but there wasn’t
any time.
“But it’s no use. I still get kicked around all the time. Oh, but it’s about
time now.”
<Right. We’ll talk face to face then. Don’t try to snap my neck off.>
There were Talic Stones they got from Liona in the middle. It seemed
they were going to use it to revive Aksarai. This was why they
dragged Liona all the way here.
Sian nodded. “Yeah. That’s why I’m here. I have some time. Maybe a
week or less.”
Sian then began explaining what he had done. Conrad looked at him
in shock.
Conrad moaned.
“That’s troubling… did a Talic Stone drop from Liona? That might let
me make a weapon to help you…”
“It’s been used already. I came to ask for another teleportation ring.”
“Thank you.”
“Are you trying to run…”
“Well, I should find a way to live if things don’t work out. I’ll train in
hiding then.”
“…”
Sian then talked with Conrad for a little longer and left for the war.
The forces of Lukra had come down from the Mountain of Extreme
and they were going straight to the Clouds where the Drakuns were.
The forces comprised of many Six-Horned Harijans, along with the
Seven-Horned Chrona and Dragona. In front of them were three
Lukra priests and other warriors, all shining in golden light.
Drakuns were now flying around the sky as their cloud had
dissipated. The numbers weren’t much but their presence did not
falter against the Lukras. At the foremost of such Drakuns was a
powerful being that was floating.
<Good choice. You do have a lot of grudges against her, right? How
is your condition?>
“Well, it’s not great, but I can manage. But don’t you have that power
of yours? Why are you asking?”
<That only works on one weaker than me. I can’t see it on strong
ones like you. If I could see that, why would I go to fight with Gran-
Ra and Broxian and kill myself?>
“Whew.”
“Dammit!”
Conrad had brought every human up to the far north of the continent.
It was where the Gerna lived before, but they were all wiped out so it
was okay.
Even so, Conrad and his friends didn’t think it was safe.
They were able to see the flashes of lightning coming from the
battleground that was thousands of miles away. It was night time, but
the area was bright enough for them to even read a book. It wasn’t
just a simple flash. The tremors that followed the flash across the
land shook the earth violently.
‘Nngh…’
Still, it was at an enormous speed. The one being that inherited the
power of the three races. If he had a bit more time, he would’ve
become the almighty being that would not even allow such a war to
happen.
The first was when that weird red sphere was opened.
She had three chances to eat him and she failed all three times. Not
to mention, he came back stronger each time she failed. The speed
was unheard of through the thousands of years that Chrona had
lived. He now had become powerful enough to threaten Chrona and
was attacking her at this moment.
Chrona let out a roar and shot out the ray of purple light. Unlike the
giant ray that destroyed the Empire at once, this one was extracted
into very small particles, only made to kill the enemy in front of her.
The energy within was much stronger than the ray that destroyed the
Empire. Sian, however, did not dodge the attacks and swung his
sword to cut them in half.
The extracted energy then split into two and showered upon the Beta
Drakuns and Six-Horned Harijans.
It was an attack for Sian to counter, but it was like a disaster to the
others below so it killed a lot of them as they exploded.
This wasn’t the only place where there was a bloody battle. The
other places were all being destroyed as the two sides battled
against each other. Dragona and Aksarai were using various magics
against each other to kill while the 1st Kuns of the Drakuns fought
with the Lukra priests nearby.
They were desperate as they both knew that the losing side would
be eradicated.
The war to keep themselves alive was also leading them into
extinction. The priests that lied to Sian were almost getting killed by
the Drakuns and other the Drakuns were being cornered to death by
the Lukras.
But it was okay. Even if they were left with small numbers, winners
would take everything.
Without competition, they will be left to expand at their will. They
were a powerful race that no one else could compete against.
Sian dodged the purple ray and a claw from Chrona. He then swung
his golden sword which Chrona could not dodge and she blocked it
with her claw. The claw was so dense that the golden sword that
slashed through everything could not damage it. Chrona then swung
her other foot at Sian but Sian jumped out to dodge the attack and
swung his sword again.
<You rat!>
Chrona spat as she attacked, but Sian did receive some heavy
injuries. He had taken many hits from Chrona’s attacks, but he was
able to feel it.
‘I will win.’
He did not regain all of his energy, but he was now much stronger
than when he fought Liona. Even after Aksarai left him, the path in
front of him showed him where to attack Chrona. What was good
was that it wasn’t as hard to follow as when he ran from Chrona in
the Great Forest.
<YOU INSECT!>
The threat of death. All the Lukras joined in this war and hundreds of
them fought against the threat of death. Some of them that survived
through each fight made them stronger and the Drakuns tried even
harder to kill them. But a few who survived those attacked became
powerful and they were pushing the Drakuns back.
There was another reason for the Drakuns to wipe out all the Lukras
before going into hiding.
‘That’s that…’
‘…No.’
The Great Forest had been destroyed and was filled with ocean
water, all the way to the bottom of Sky Mountain. These landforms
had divided the Ra-Sian Continent completely from the Don-Nasian
Continent.
Rian came running out and asked Stiel with a concerned look. He
had never seen such a wave of power from that place. Even the
magic that destroyed the Empire didn’t seem like it could do such a
thing.
Warriors with heightened senses could not rest easy as such power
was radiating continuously.
Stiel became worried for Sian who had gone to travel to the Great
Forest.
<AAARRR!>
<KWAANG!>
<UGH>
Dragona was not just blown away as he used his tail; he was also
struck in the exchange with Aksarai.
<Ugh…>
<When…>
Dragona tried to take the black stick out, but Aksarai flew over him
and struck him again.
<It’s the collection of pain and earth! You would have never laid eyes
on such thing until now, you fool!>
<Nngh!>
<Die-DAMMIT!>
Aksarai dodged the rays that were thrown at him as he tried to kill
Dragona. He turned and it was one of the Lukra warriors that had
shot the ray toward him. They were interfering since they knew it
would be bad if Dragona lost.
The warrior had become much more powerful as they had survived
through the war. Aksarai was able to finish off Dragona, but the
Lukras didn’t seem to want to let that happen. The surviving Drakuns
were not enough to fight against those Lukras that became more
powerful so Aksarai began joining the Drakuns to fight against the
Lukras and Dragona together.
<By the way… I should take that part of the spirit too.>
Taking back that part of the spirit would surely help him grow
stronger. But that was after this war was over. Aksarai was certain
that they were going to win. It wasn’t easy, but the <Path of Victory>
was starting to appear in his way. Then, the unexpected happened.
“UGH!”
Aksarai gritted his teeth. These were so strong that he didn’t even
need to sense them with his power.
“Let’s fight together! I’m not going to lose anyway. I just had to
come.”
“Urhg…”
<AARGH… Ha…>
Sian panted as he took out the sword from Chrona’s neck and
Aksarai looked at Dragona’s body that was ripped apart in two.
Aksarai and Sian had won the battle, but they were in terrible
condition. As a result of the battle of survival, the Drakuns had only
two survivors.
“At least we won… and those who survive can regain their energy.”
<Right…>
Aksarai nodded. Only three of them were left alive, but they could
always increase their numbers. They reproduced genderlessly so it
was possible.
Besides, Aksarai himself was alive so the future for the Drakuns was
bright.
Aksarai brightened up and asked Sian,
<Are you okay now? It looks like you’re in bad shape. Come here. I
will use magic to heal your wounds.>
“Hmm… okay.”
“It’s good that you’re bad in shape also. Didn’t I say I was okay?”
Aksarai gathered the last bit of energy he had in him to fight against
Broxian’s spear that was trying to eat him. Sian did not attack him
further, but the situation didn’t look good either. Even without a
deeper attack, his body was being destroyed.
Aksarai wasn’t relaxed at all. Even when he saw Sian walking over,
he was preparing himself for the unexpected. However, Aksarai was
relieved to see Sian’s body destroyed from within. That was why he
was going to release the energy into Sian to finish him off.
But to take such a hit! Aksarai was shocked to see Sian’s body
recovering.
Sian laughed.
Aksarai moaned.
<You… you were pushing yourself down during the entire battle…>
If it changed during the battle, Aksarai would have grown suspicious.
However, the number was steady throughout the fight and it was just
pushed down a bit so Aksarai thought he had not fully recovered.
<Why…>
“I was sure that you would not let me live if you survived.”
<…>
“I became curious. Why was I getting backstabbed all the time? It’s
not like I’m weak.”
Sian nodded.
“I’m not the supreme one so I have someone to fear and I’m not
weak so I can be of good use.”
“I can’t see through everything. Unlike here, I was never used when I
was on the Ra-Sian Continent. It was because I was the strongest
one there. But the world was large. When powerful beings that were
stronger than me appeared, I was used and bullied.”
Sian knew that he couldn’t do the latter. No one could. No one could
foresee the future and thus prepare for it. Therefore, Sian was
washed away by many things when he came to Don-Nasian. Lukra,
Aksarai, and Lagaope threatened Sian with the things he feared and
courted him toward the safer side while they achieved what they
wanted.
Sian then came to a conclusion: wipe away everything that could try
to use him.
<…So you want to get rid of everything. Everyone whom you might
come to fear?>
“You sound like I’m the one with a problem here. You or Lukra, either
of you would have killed me anyway. You all fear my future. This is
the biggest reason actually.”
<…>
“You observed me but I also came to find out what I needed to know
through you. There was one thing that was the most important of all.”
<What is it?>
“Aksarai, the god-like being and your race. Will you become afraid of
me? Or no?”
<…>
“But I was faster. That’s when I felt it. You, Lukra, or the Harijans…
you all would not let me live until I became powerful. Isn’t it right?”
<…Right.>
“Good that you’re honest now. So, even if I become strong, I can’t
fight against everyone. I thought I would need to clean it out when I
got the chance… so you should understand me.”
“Right.”
The closer the balance, the bigger the damage. Sian’s purpose was
to have the Lukras and Drakuns die together. That was why Sian
helped Aksarai with his rebirth and his plans. He needed Aksarai to
keep the balance. When he started fighting, he purposely dragged
his fight with Chrona. If the Lukras were overwhelming, he’d kill
Chrona off and help the Drakuns. If it was the opposite, he would
bring Chrona to them so her attack would kill all the Drakuns.
The result was splendid. In the end, only one that was left alive was
Sian.
<You… really know how to fight.>
Fighting to keep the balance while not gaining suspicion from other
similarly powerful beings was not easy. Even Aksarai wasn’t sure if
he could manage to do that.
<So you took the ring so that I would think that you might run away.>
Sian nodded.
“Yes. I didn’t intend to run when I had to finish off everything here. I
just wanted you to think that I might run away.”
Sian wanted Aksarai to look down on him and that Sian would never
try to fight Drakuns. That was why Sian followed Aksarai’s every
word and received the ring from Conrad to disguise himself as a
coward.
Aksarai sighed.
<Kill me. I’m ashamed that I lost to you while fighting with wits. By
the Gods….>
Aksarai then used up all of his energy and was absorbed into
Broxian’s spear. Sian then picked up the spear to finish off the two
other Drakuns that were alive and moved to the Mountain of Extreme
to destroy the Golden Crystal.
The war between the Lukras, Drakuns, and Harijans that destroyed
half of the continent was now over.
Sian sighed.
Sian thought about future plans and sent energy to the ring to
teleport. He first planned to stop by Conrad to explain what
happened and return home.
Soon, Sian disappeared from the land where continent once stood
had sunk and was filling with the hail of sea.
Every race was wiped out by one man. Only the human race
inhabited the world.
Conrad also seemed shocked.
“Yeah. He’s like a God of humans… every race was killed. So, when
are you coming back? Sian’s returned home. He won’t come back
here anymore.”
Lagaope answered,
<I should go then. We don’t have anything to worry about… can you
send me the coordinates?>
Lagaope nodded.
<I have enough core energy. We got a lot to do. Are you at Lorvall
now?>
The core of Lorvall began trembling to activate the magic rune and a
figure jumped out from it. Lagaope greeted Conrad.
“…Huh?”
Lagaope turned back to the familiar voice. He then gritted his teeth
and turned to Conrad.
“Noooooo!”
“I’m home.”
Sian came back suddenly to his home. Count Roman, Stiel, Rian,
and Rian’s family and were frenzied as they saw Sian who just
appeared.
Sian and his family then walked into the Chrotia Fortress.
He had to scout the area before going. If there were powerful beings,
he might have to fight. He used <Kopaten> that allowed him to look
through the dimension and realized something.
There were civilizations and the beings lived there seemed powerful.
But it wasn’t close to the might of Kracktan. He could see no
powerful being within. Those self-claimed <humans> seemed to be
busy finding their way to live and there was no supreme ruler.
They did have kings or monsters, and they were also strong, but it
wasn’t enough to call it a supreme being.
<He was glad that he took control of the 17th dimension and caught
up with three controls. I should step ahead.>
Kracktan sent a message to man’s head and looked at the man who
was trying hard to complete the magic. When it was done, the man
shouted against Kracktan and activated it.
“Explosive Fire!”
“Sian, why don’t you give up now? You’ve trained for thousands of
years.”
“Don’t say that. I was sure I was going to get it right this time.”
“But you’re the main character there. You know Serin loves the
story.”
<These fools…>
Kracktan became angry as the man and woman ignored him and
decided to kill them.
<DIE!>
<Purpose?>
Kracktan became mad. The man was thinking he could use that tone
to him just because his orders weren’t working. His specialty did not
lie in the ordering. It was the fighting skill that allowed him to rule
over the three dimensions. Kracktan then jumped up to smack the
man’s face.
The space that the fist moved past was destroyed and struck the
man’s face.
<…Huh?>
“They all have similar reasons, yeah. But I don’t know his name,
Sian.”
Kracktan knew something really wasn’t going right but he took back
his fist to attack again.
The answer was the same. His fist was stopped as Sian grabbed
onto it.
“Yeah, but they aren’t over exaggerating at least… That Lucifer said
he was 666 something… and ran crying after he was beaten up.
Three seems reasonable.”
Stiel spoke as she wrote it down on the transparent paper on the air
and checked on the list on the bottom. Sian then became annoyed.
“Yeah, but it’s better than doing it every time they come. You know
he won’t come back if you beat him up for seven days at least.”
“Right.”
<UGH! AARGH!>
He tried to take out the fist that was grabbed but it did not budge.
Sian mumbled to Kracktan.
<Finish what!>
<It’s a lesson. When you’re done, you will never want to return
here.>
The flat face of the sword struck Kracktan and Sian began beating
him up. Kracktan then realized what the seven days meant and fell
into despair. He also realized one more thing. Why no one invaded
this dimension.
It wasn’t because no one came. Lucifer, Kekiru… and the others all
came and were chased away. They couldn’t speak of it because it
was embarrassing. The list that Stiel was reading showed just how
many unsuspecting dimension rulers had visited this place.
Kracktan then wished for time to quickly pass by and swore an oath.
‘I won’t be going through this alone… I will never say a word about
this place.’
<Hehehe…>
Sian then changed it from seven days to ten days and thought,
‘The world is too large and it’s filled with people that deserve a
beating.’
Swordmeister of disaster.
End.
“Haha, it’s going to be an epic story. It’s my real story in detail… I’m
sure millions of copies will be e sold.”
“…don’t you have all the money you need? Why are you so
concerned about selling the book?”
“Tsk, tsk. You don’t understand the concerns of the writer. We,
creators, feel our pride in getting acknowledgments for our creations.
That equals how many books are sold.”
“…”
“I already have the name. <The Tale of the Great Hero Lagaope: the
Savior of the World>.”
“Of course I did. If it wasn’t for me, there would be no Mister Sian.”
“Right.”
‘Why did he want to make superhumans and save the world so badly
in the first place?’
One hundred years was a very long time, even for superhumans.
Lagaope had roamed the world for four thousand years. Even the
strongest motive would fade away in the memories that faded over
time. If he were to be steadfast for over three thousand years, there
should be the strongest of the motive, but Conrad had never heard
of such a thing.
“Okay.”
“Make sure you read it. I have written my 4000-year journey in there.
It’s divided up into three parts in twenty-seven books.”
‘Twenty-seven books…?’
It was already a very thick book and there were twenty-six more.
Conrad then opened up the book to see the table of contents.
Lagaope’s signature was on the page.
<Orinon Pheriknoa>
“Yeah.”
“Then why is there no story before the fall of the Divine Nation?
Shouldn’t the biography start when you were born or something? Or
is this the second book?”
“Huh? No. That’s the first one.”
“Huh? Isn’t it wrong then? Where are the days of your youth? Don’t
say you will write the prequel later to sell more books.”
Conrad was just joking, but he had to stop when he saw that
Lagaope’s face had turned grim.
“…What’s wrong?”
“I don’t remember.”
“What?”
Takion went to the corner of the room and took a few materials and
came back. He then began using various magic spells on Lagaope.
After a full day of experiments and tests, they were done. Results
weren’t satisfactory, however.
Takion could not even manage to find if something had been done to
Lagaope’s memory. If Lagaope did not insist that he couldn’t
remember, Takion would have thought he was lying. But there was
no reason for him to lie and there was no possibility that Lagaope
had just forgotten. It was a superhuman’s memory and it didn’t make
sense to forget the part before the fall of the Divine Nation.
“Yeah. It’s better for me to get stronger while I can. There’s a lot that
need to get beat up in this world.”
Lagaope began going into the reason he came. After he had finished
explaining, Sian nodded.
“It’s possible.”
Sian nodded.
Sian guided Lagaope to stand behind a couch and began flexing his
body. Lagaope became uncomfortable and asked Sian.
As Sian and Conrad began talking to each other, Lagaope had fallen
asleep into his dream. A dream that began taking him back deep into
his memory. The long forgotten past before the days of the Divine
Nation.
<Well, it’s better that way. It’s better for me to change the name each
time.>
<No, I mean why are you not using Orinon… no, never mind.>
There was the time when he just returned to Don-Nasian from his
long trip on Ra-Sian.
The first time he introduced himself to Sian.
The days where he was working hard on his research with his newly-
found friend during the days of the Empire.
These were within the recent one thousand years. Then the speed of
flashbacks became much faster. It seemed the flashbacked gained
more speed after going back further in time.
The confrontation between the two forces turned more chaotic. The
memory began to grow violent and bright lights soon covered the
memory. When the fight between the two powers reached the limit,
something exploded and struck Lagaope.
‘UGH!’
“Huh? Uh…”
‘Huh?’
Then his body spoke, without his will, with a familiar voice.
‘Huh?’
It was his own voice. It did not have the voice of his usual formality
but it was his voice.
When his sight came back to him, there was a girl calling him. It was
a beautiful blonde girl with glasses who was shaking Lagaope to
wake him up. The body then became irritated and rose up.
“Don’t say like that to a girlfriend who came to wake you up. Did you
forget that we’re on the expedition team today?”
“I don’t care…”
The body tried to go back into the bed but the girl raised her feet to
kick the body. It seemed she was at the level of a Duke.
But the body reached out with his hands and pulled on the leg into
the bed. It seemed the body also was at the power of a Duke. The
girl was pulled into the bed effortlessly.
“Hey!”
“We’re late!”
Lagaope came to like his former self. A man with some arrogance
and with the power of Duke. He couldn’t imagine that it was himself.
Outside the window, one could see the great buildings of the city.
The huge half-transparent letters in the sky told him the exact date
and time.
“ARGH!”
Lagaope realized he had not been interested in girls for a long time
and it seemed that kind of attack might’ve explained it. The girl
became red with anger and walked out of the room while shouting.
“Ugh… you…”
The body then checked on the great letters outside the window and
rose up. It was time to move.
The destination was the south of the eastern continent, the land
without the blessing. It was a place where their Divine Nation’s
power had not reached yet. But it was a matter of time. With their
God, there was no one they couldn’t fight against.
His salary as a bio-engineer did not even come close to afford such
a place. He would not have joined the expedition if the pay wasn’t so
good anyway.
‘Yeah… I’ll get some money on this expedition and propose to her.’
“HEY!”
“Come on, we have to be serious. It’s the place where even the
Gerna can’t go. There might be something down there.”
The Gernas also did not dare to go down south. Those self-
proclaimed masters of the eastern continent were reluctant about
going south.
That was why the Divine Nation decided to send an expedition team.
If there was something valuable there, they needed to take it in. If
there was a threat, then they needed to deal with it before it became
a real threat.
Pheriknoa grinned.
The first time Lagaope remembered going south was after he parted
ways with Lorvall and met the Lukras. He never imagined that his
forgotten memory would bring him to the expedition team.
<Aksarum>
He had no memory about the days of the Divine Nation, but he knew
about the Nation. Lagaope became confused but he then saw
something that interested him.
At the large empty space in front of Aksarum were three great ships
floating ten feet above the ground. Metal ships so huge that it
symbolized the might of the Divine Nation. After checking the names
of each of the ships, Lagaope moaned.
<Dragona>
<Chrona>
<Liona>
Pheriknoa turned to the voice that was calling him. There was a
large man with a scruffy beard smiling brightly as he walked over to
Pheriknoa. Lagaope could feel what his body felt toward the man. It
was filled with trust and deep friendship.
Lagaope liked his former self even more. He had lived a very happy
life. It seemed like there was more to just the destruction of the
Divine Nation that changed him.
The three of them spoke with each other until someone from
<Chrona> shouted.
As everyone boarded the ship, the ships began jumping into the
space with bright lights. With the help of Solacore, it would not take
long for them to arrive at the destination.
“Isn’t it best if we can just look over it from the sky? Why do we have
to crawl on land just because of some weird fools throwing
lightning?”
The ship had the ability to fly but it could not bring them above the
clouds. Kenorod laughed.
“Hah…”
Pheriknoa nodded.
“I did.”
It was hard to meet Broxian, even for the Divine Bloods. He hated
being bothered. Lagaope laughed as he saw Seriana looking
envious. She looked like she was a very innocent person, or at least
until he heard the next part.
“It’s the best luxury you can have. I would do whatever I want.”
Kenorod laughed.
“Haha, you first need to die and be reborn again. Besides, the God
needs to marry again if that were to happen.”
“Right.”
The sorcerers of the Divine Nation did manage to prove that it was
possible to be reborn. But it was impossible to be born as Broxian’s
daughter anyway.
“Oh, and what did he do when you went to him?” Seriana asked.
People did not know much about Broxian. Most of the people did not
even know what he looked like. They just knew he lived in the middle
of the nation. Kenorod met him coincidentally because God needed
a Magic-Engineer to fix one of his machines.
“…Training?”
“Yeah, but he didn’t seem to like doing it. He kept on talking to me.”
<Why are you keep training if you hate it so much, oh dear God?
There’s nothing in this world that can even come close to your
almighty power.>
<I can see a few things that others can’t… there’s always one of
equal power to one great power. But this is top secret. I don’t want
people panicking.>
As three of them spoke to each other, they felt the light outside
<Chrona> fading. It seemed the ship had come to a stop. Yet it was
weird because it wasn’t time to arrive yet. As they looked outside,
they saw a great mountain blocking their path.
“What is it?”
The three of them became curious as they had never seen the
mountain but Lagaope knew what it was.
‘Mountain of Extreme…’
It seemed other ships had been blocked off as well. The Divine
Bloods then made a decision.
<We can’t just let this suspicious mountain be. Dragona and Liona
will go around to continue their journey to the south.>
The three ships moved out after leaving the few members to
investigate. Magic-Engineer Kenorod, Bio-Engineer Pheriknoa, and
Editor Seriana were chosen.
“Dammit…”
It was bearable until now but it got worse as they walked up. They’d
die if they proceeded any further.
Pheriknoa did not stop and Kenorod and Seriana decided to follow.
Kenorod smiled. Pheriknoa did not want to put his friend and his
lover at risk.
He quickly shook his head. The mountain did not have anything.
Besides, if things went wrong, there was a way for them to get out.
He knew what lived on the mountain and how arrogant the evil
beings were. Pheriknoa spoke.
“Whew… we should stop here. We can’t bear it and I don’t think we’ll
find anything. I’m sorry.”
Lagaope was terrified for them. It seemed like they were going down
before anything happened. Lagaope wished his former self to live
happily. It was surprising that there were happy times in his life.
<I was wondering how far you would go, but it seems like that’s your
limit. But it’s enough. It’s you two.>
Three of them felt a huge wave of energy being sent into their heads.
Then a great power exploded out from within. Three of them knew
the level of the power.
‘Alpha…’
A powerful being that did not exist in the human race. If there were
no Broxians, humans would have gone extinct by now. But the
number of Alphas on the mountain top was not just one. At least ten
of them sent their power out and a golden figure came up to him.
<Haha… I sense that you have the present for our <Ra>…>
“What…”
“Ugh…”
The being on the screen spoke to Pheriknoa. It was the golden figure
he saw before he fainted.
“…game?”
‘Damn bastard.’
“Under what standards will you pick out two? What will entertain
you?”
<Simple. One of you needs to step out to die. We’ll let other two live.
Simple as that.>
‘…’
<I won’t start now… we’ll give you time to discuss. When you are
finished, the one who wishes to die should press on the screen. I will
see who presses it faster. Oh, and don’t think you all will go out alive
if you all decide to not press the screen. It will result in… the exact
opposite.>
They all fell silent. Pheriknoa clenched his fist and tried to speak. He
was going to say he will die. They were dragged in because of his
greed. He needed to take up the responsibility. Besides, he couldn’t
bear to lose his lover and his best friend. But someone spoke before
him.
<…what?>
<…’We’?>
And it seemed like Pheriknoa was thinking of the same thing. But he
sighed in relief and asked again. His thought to die to save them had
dissipated already. Instead, it was being replaced with murky
feelings.
Kenorod spoke.
Kenorod answered.
<Same here.>
<Hahaha… it’s all very amusing so I would want to see more… but it
would be more fun with less time. I will count five.>
Pheriknoa glared at the crystal, but he slowly put his hands on the
screen. They were still his lover and friend. They just lost their minds
at the fear of death.
‘…dammit.’
‘…huh?’
<That was not as entertaining… you fool. Didn’t I say it’s by turns?>
<Right. You have quick hands. But I was sure I was going to press it
faster.>
<…what are you two talking about?> Pheriknoa asked with a frown.
It seemed like the situation was getting worse. Kenorod grinned as
he spoke.
<Didn’t I always tell you are too gullible? At least we got you alive.
Dammit, it’s a shame that we’re weak. I wish I could be reborn with
the name of a War God.>
<…Huh?>
“N-ngh… no…”
“AAAAAAAAHRG!”
Pheriknoa broke the wall at once and moved up. The wall of Beta
that no humans could overcome without the Divine Blood was
destroyed. Pheriknoa charged at the golden figure approaching
without hesitating.
The figure was irritated. He would’ve already broken the arms and
legs of this insect and had extracted the memory to present it to
<Ra>, only if he kept the promise. Their race considered a promise
as the most holy thing. They lied without hesitation and had no
problem doing evil deeds, but they always kept their promises. But
he couldn’t keep the promise. That’s why he didn’t do anything to
Pheriknoa.
The golden figure decided to take this chance to ease his guilt.
He had broken the wall but he was only a Beta. He was no match
against the priest who was an Alpha. Pheriknoa fell down and the
golden figure approached him to examine.
The man had fallen down to the lowest of its rank at once. Lagaope
also felt it. The body’s power dropped from Duke to Baron within
seconds.
<Hehe… so an Alpha did hide his energy after all this time.>
They knew about the existence of the being as there had been a
clash of Alphas outside. But they could not go out as they had to
fight against Aksarai and the Drakuns and after that, they could no
longer feel the presence of an Alpha. But <Ra> did not go out easily.
If an Alpha decided to hide its power, there was no way for another
Alpha to find them. They could not search the land while Aksarai’s
barrier was in place, but this man’s memory gave them the exact
location. There was an Alpha of great power in hiding.
<You will live… although your life will not recover my pride for not
keeping my promise. But I think you will not be so happy that you
lived.>
The figure smiled ominously and teleported the man to the side of
the laboratory. It was the place where the figure saw from the
memory.
Pheriknoa looked at the Divine Nation being destroyed into dust with
a dumb look. The Divine Nation was then destroyed within an hour.
“Haha…”
He killed his lover. He leaked the information about the God. He had
led the Divine Nation to its destruction.
He wanted to die, but he didn’t even have the power to do it. His
magic destroyed him and he could barely breathe. The steam and
the heat came swooshing in, but it did not kill him.
Pheriknoa laughed hollowly. The side effect of the magic was still
there. It wasn’t the body that was the problem. It did get weaker, but
he was recovering. The problem was the memory. His soul had also
been destroyed, and his memories were fading. Within a day, he
would forget everything.
“Whew…”
He lost everything. He was enraged. but he was now left with hollow
sadness. There was nothing left in him.
“Why do you look so sad? You seem like you’ve lost your world.”
“…?”
Pheriknoa wanted someone to blame him for his actions. His actions
had killed millions. But there was no one left to blame him for it. He
wanted everyone to know, everyone to blame him.
“Hey… do you know what I’ve done for past three days?”
“That’s not much. Don’t blame it on yourself. It’s all because of those
Lukra bastards.”
“…Lukra?”
“Oh, you don’t know their name? They’re evil beings. Oh, and there’s
one called Drakun. They’re a little better but they’re all bastards.”
“So… is that it? That’s not too interesting. I’ll tell you mine.”
“…”
Broxian nodded.
“Of course.”
‘Right…’
The man ranted as he spoke about the woman but Pheriknoa was
able to see that he wanted to see her again so badly.
“So… that Stana… what happened to her?”
“She died. That bastard Aksarai killed her. I killed him this time but
once isn’t enough. I’ll kill him again… even if I have to revive him.”
He didn’t know who Aksarai was but it seemed like he was also a
fool if this Brok was able to kill him. Pheriknoa laughed and looked at
Broxian.
“Well, I was going to fight him anyway. But I didn’t finish it all too well
yet. So, let me ask you. Do you wish to take up the responsibility for
your actions? Even if it means living for thousands of years alone?
Pheriknoa thought about Seriana. What she said to him before she
died.
“Yes. If I can, I will kill them all. All those races that can become a
threat to mankind. Even if it takes me thousands of years… I will
wipe them out from this world. If I can’t do it myself, I will see to it
that I will find someone who can.”
But he was wrong. The man, Broxian, stood and divided the sky. The
raging sea calmed in an instant. The steam and dust were all pushed
away. He just stood up and the world changed around him.
‘God…’
That was the only thing Pheriknoa could think of. If this man wasn’t a
God, then there was no one who can be considered as such. It was
obvious that the man would have been a great man even within
Pheriknoa’s lost memories.
“You will be held responsible for all of your actions. You will live. You
will devote your life to fulfill your wish. Even if it takes hundreds or
thousands of years.”
Those words had stuck through Pheriknoa’s fading memory, into his
soul. He could not be freed from the words anymore. Even if he lost
his memory.
<Gaope> The one who lives to kill and destroy. Ra-Gaope, one who
lives to kill and destroy the <Ra>. The words were stuck in
Pheriknoa’s head.
“But how can I do it? I’m powerless! The human race is powerless!
We will be attacked by those we oppressed and die!”
Broxian laughed.
“Take pride. The human race is not weak. Remember that the king of
the human race killed the king of Lukras and the Drakuns. This
memory will help you stay on track. Remember this. If you remember
my words that are deep within your spirit, you will see that what you
wish for will come true.”
Lagaope then fell down. He then saw Broxian in his fading sight.
Broxian was crumbling. His body was dissipating into powder.
Broxian looked at Lagaope and spoke.
He had survived against the other two, but he did not win. He did kill
them but it also killed him. There was a day left for Pheriknoa’s
memory to stay intact, but Broxian would not last that much longer
either. Broxian was barely holding on to his fading self just enough to
speak to Pheriknoa.
“It will not be an easy path. It will be a lonely, and painful path. I see
what others can’t. You should live and press on. Then… you will
eventually be granted what you truly wish for.”
‘Seriana… Kenorod…’
With the last memory, he fell. Broxian then laughed out loud.
The man’s word spread across the world. He then faded away,
leaving only Pheriknoa, who became Lagaope in his fainted state.
Within the memory, Lagaope was watching. Then the memory began
to flow again. It connected back to his recent memories.
He then walked into Aksarum and began studying the core, which he
had been doing before the destruction. The human race was in
danger. He had to study to give hope.
‘…’
His lost memory also allowed him to travel across Lukra’s territory
toward Ra-Sian. The priest spoke as if had he met Lagaope for the
first time but it was obvious that he just lied because he knew
Lagaope had lost his memory.
But the memory was now different. Lagaope now knew the
reasoning behind his past actions.
It would have been just one of the success. Even if the monkey
became such a being, it was still only a monkey. But he couldn’t do
that. Without his memories, Lagaope did not see why.
<What… what should I call you? You’re like a father then, right?>
That was when Lagaope had earned a partner that will side with him
for thousands of years. The Lagaope who was looking at this
memory watched without any words. Then the time flowed again.
<I don’t know… but I guess I lived long enough. You have other
friends too so…>
<NO WAY!>
The memory then fast forwarded to when someone came looking for
Lagaope.
<Hey, long time no see. But how are you still alive? You really live
long.>
<B-Brox…>
<Wait. I’m Conrad now. This fits me better.>
<Hahaha!>
Lagaope cried as his friend came back alive. Then his memory fast
forwarded even faster. And now, after 4000 years. A memory
stopped at a certain point.
<Huh? Who’s this? The Roman family? Why did he hide the rating?>
Lagaope had finally met him again. He didn’t know back then. But
with all of his memory back, he could now see it.
Sian, the man who helped Lagaope reach the end of his journey.
Lagaope nodded. All the Lukras and Drakuns had been wiped out to
its last. He also had reunited with his friend, even if they did not
remember him. His friend also fulfilled his wish. He had been named
after the Great God as he wished for a slight moment.
‘Wait… then…’
There was one more wish to be fulfilled. That was when the sight
changed. He felt he was getting sucked faraway to someplace.
‘Huh?’
Lagaope was shocked, but he closed his eyes. He then opened up
and heard a familiar voice.
“Look, he’s back up. I told you I didn’t make any mistakes.”
“Hehe… so, how was your trip? Did you find what you wished for?”
Lagaope then felt tears running down his cheek. Conrad shouted
angrily at Sian.
It was now time to wait. Wait for his final wish to come true. Lagaope
could now understand why he wasn’t interested in women until now.
He had been waiting. Even when he forgot, he had been waiting for
his lover.
But there was one big problem. Lagaope remembered Seriana’s last
wish she spoke before she died and looked at Sian. He then grinned
and shook his head.
‘I hope not.’
Lagaope rose up from the couch and approached Conrad and Sian
while laughing.
“Ugh…”
“No way!”
Lagaope was writing another book in his office. Conrad asked him a
question.
“Hey, are you really trying to start on another book? Didn’t you say
that you were almost done?”
Lagaope smiled.
“Isn’t it great? It’s a story about the War of Dragons and Evil.”
It was the story of a man, Broxian, who lived twice to kill the enemies
of the human race. Two races, the Dragon <Drakun> and the evil
<Lukra>.
“Isn’t it too unrealistic? What kind of a person sees the future… and
comes back from death? And this main character is too squeamish
to be a strong character.”
“Well, but that’s what it makes it fun. A powerful man can be polite
and hate to fight. He can also die for love.”
It took three years for Lagaope to finish writing the book, <The War
of Dragon and Evil> and it became an instant hit on the Ra-Sian
Continent. Lagaope became confident so he also published his story
of the book that he wrote before but it was not as popular. So he
went back to writing a sequel to <The War of Dragon and Evil>.
Then Stiel came to Lagaope to ask for money after thinking she and
Sian’s story was in the book but Lagaope tried to refuse to accept it
by saying it was fiction. But it didn’t work and he lost a lot of money
to her.
After time had passed, Lagaope finally came to see his last wish
came true. He was able to realize it as soon as he saw her. What
was more fortunate that even without the memory, his lover Seriana
felt affection toward Lagaope.
Serin plugged her ears and shook her head violently. Then she
climbed up on Lagaope’s back. Sian shook his head while holding
his forehead.
“Haha… say, I’m sure you won’t agree to the foolish act of a young
girl. I mean, she’s my daughter, but… Yes. I agree that you’re
charming but… Hm? Lagaope? Hey-”
“Hmm…”
“Lagaope. If you don’t say anything, Serin might get confused. You
have to make it right.”
“DAD! NO!”
People then later called this day <Gade-Angera>, the day of God’s
wrath. They thought something had angered God that day and they
chose to celebrate that day to ease God’s anger.