CH 94

Terms used in this chapter:

Hair grows in one’s heart – An idiom which refers to a brazen person. An English equivalent would be ‘having a lot of nerve.’

Haraken, a high-ranking demonic human of the Devil’s Eye and the main person in charge of all their plans in the wild lands, couldn’t retain his human form.

In his anger, his compound eyes, wings, and horns were all revealed, but he managed to suppress himself from screaming loudly.

‘Billvine’s dead?’

Black Knight Billvine.

Among the mid-ranking demonic humans of the Devil’s Eye, he had the best combat power.

‘What is it? What’s going on in the east?’

The demonic humans who were dispatched to pollute the eastern dragon veins had their connections cut off one after another.

When Zarakul first died, he thought that something like that could possibly happen.

When Madgar died, he was extremely surprised. So he asked for support from the Devil’s Eye’s headquarters in the Argon Empire and they sent Billvine.

But Billvine also died.

‘The east.’

Something like this had never happened in the west.

But strange things were continuously happening in the east.

‘Red Gale’s condition is not getting worse either.’

If it went according to their original estimation, he would have been dead or lying sick and unable to move, but that didn’t happen at all based on his spies’ information.

His condition had rather improved than before.

‘That’s not the only problem.’

The Eastern Alliance.

Now that the west was about to be unified under the flag of the Angry Bull tribe, their intelligence reported that Red Gale was trying to establish an Eastern Alliance centered around the Great Storm tribe.

‘No, that is unacceptable.’

Wasn’t that the reason he cursed Red Gale in the first place?

Wasn’t it to prevent the current situation?

However, his condition was improving little by little.

And as Haraken feared, he was trying to establish an Eastern Alliance.

‘In the end, should I solve it through force?’

By polluting the eastern dragon veins, they tried to incapacitate the wild gods and the tribes under them.

He tried to maintain the power of the barbarian lands as much as possible for their fight against the Sälen Kingdom, but that seemed to be impossible now.

‘Once this military expedition is over, I’ll gather the troops from the entire west to strike the east.’

After he made up his mind, Haraken calmed himself down by taking a deep breath.

He returned to his human form of a prophet with a long white beard and laid his eyes on at the map showing the locations of all the tribes in the barbarian lands.

‘Great Storm, Violent Avalanche, Gentle Snow Breeze, and the sacred place in the east.’

Who was it?

Who in the world was protecting the eastern dragon veins?

Was it one person?

Or was it several people?

“Who is it, who are you…”

Haraken’s low and angry voice was heard inside his tent.

***

At the same time, at a place far away from Haraken who was in the far west…

One of the people Haraken hated had slowly wiggled her body and opened her eyes.

“Uuugh…”

Cordelia grunted as she barely opened her eyes before closing them again.

But instead of falling asleep, she let out her voice again.

“Mmnnn…”

It was the typical sleepy voice.

Those who let out such a voice would normally fall back to sleep, but Cordelia was a little different.

She reopened her falling eyelids and forced them to stay open.

“Uhhhh…”

She uttered a groan as she tried to move.

Cordelia barely opened her eyes as she felt refreshed but also felt a slight pain as if her muscles were being pulled.

“Oww…”

“Are you awake?”

Upon hearing Jude’s voice, Cordelia blinked her eyes and somewhat became aware of her position.

‘I’m on his back.’

She was being carried through a podaegi on Jude’s back.

Instead of recalling why she was in such a situation, Cordelia rested her cheek on Jude’s back.

‘It’s cold.’

Did the leather get cold when I took my head off for a while?

But it wasn’t very cold. As she found the coolness to be pleasant, Cordelia replied.

“Mmm…I’m awake. I’m awake.”

Although her voice sounded weak, it was quite clear compared to when she just woke up.

But Jude slightly fixed his carrying position and peeked at Cordelia as he said.

“Would you like to sleep for a bit more?”

“No, I’ll wake up. I will wake up.”

Cordelia wiggled her body again and then removed her head from Jude’s back. She thought she would fall asleep again if she kept leaning her head on his back.

Jude said again to Cordelia.

“Are you no longer exhausted? You made such a fuss yesterday.”

“Huh? Yesterday? Yesterday I…ahhhh.”

At the end of her words, Cordelia turned red and buried her face on Jude’s back. She wanted to crawl into a hole and die.

The fuss she made yesterday.

Her shameful behavior last night.

“It’s because of Beast Mode, so I understand.”

Jude spoke in an exuberant voice, and Cordelia groaned once again before she snorted and said.

“I was going to get off, but now I won’t. I’ll continue taking advantage of this situation. I’ll continue this luxury. I’ll break Jude’s spine.”

T/N: Kind of a pun here, as Cordelia was both referring to an idiom and of literally breaking Jude’s spine because he was carrying her.

Break (someone’s) spine is a Korean idiom which means to exploit or take another’s fortune in every possible way. Also referred to as ‘spine breaker’ and commonly used on parents and children. Children are ‘spine breakers’ if they demand something that is so expensive or ‘burdensome’ to their parents that ‘it breaks their parent’s spine because of the burden.’

“If you insist. I’m fine with it because the warmth in my back feels like I’m walking around with a stove.”

Cordelia sulked even more at Jude’s sly answer, but she felt like she’ll lose if she continued further.

So Cordelia changed the topic.

“But Jude.”

“Yes.”

“How long have we traveled?”

“Based on my estimation…I think we can see it now?”

“Huh?”

“Over there. There. Can you see it?”

Cordelia silently shifted her gaze to the direction Jude was pointing with his chin, squinted her eyes, and soon shouted in surprise.

“What! Gentle Snow Breeze’s basin?!”

It was clearly Gentle Snow Breeze’s basin that was situated on a snowfield that was like a vast ocean.

As she blankly stared at the basin located at the foot of mountains that surrounded it, Cordelia gasped for a moment before she looked back at Jude again.

“Oh my gosh. Hey, how long have you walked while carrying me? What time is it now?”

“About half a day? It’s roughly 3 to 4 in the afternoon, I think?”

“Half a day?!”

In terms of time, that was about 6 hours.

The startled Cordelia writhed her body while still being carried in a podaegi as she asked.

“Are you all right? Does your legs hurt? What about your waist?”

It was no less than 6 hours.

Just walking was already hard, but he continued walking while Cordelia was on his back?

Moreover, Jude had one more luggage. The small rope tied around his waist was connected to a sled full of luggage that he was dragging.

When Cordelia was flustered and worried, Jude said as he pretended to wipe tears from his eyes.

“My princess is all grown up now. She knows how to worry. Daddy is going to cry.”

“Wow, you must be really comfortable if you can talk such nonsense. Has my Jude really become stronger?”

“It’s all thanks to Madam.”

Whether he was acting or not, Jude’s voice had indeed, sounded relaxed.

Cordelia suddenly touched Jude’s back and shoulder, and she widely smiled at Jude’s strong and firm body that resembled a savage animal, or rather, a beast.

“Yes, Daddy. That’s a good mindset. Please continue to thank me. Ahem, ahem, it feels nice.”

After smiling at the appearance of Cordelia who cleared her throat while wanting to be thanked more, Jude looked at the front again and said.

“Now then, just stay on my back as we’ll get there if we go a little further.”

They could see the basin, but it was still at a distance that would take 30 minutes on foot.

But Cordelia shook her head, patted Jude on his back and said.

“Jude, Jude. Can’t you just go fast? Just create some wind and go swoosh-swoosh.”

“No, over there. Can’t you see the luggage sled? Walking is okay but running is impossible, okay?”

If he did that, all their luggage would be turned upside down.

However, Cordelia said with a bright face as if it was not a problem.

“Why don’t you just leave the luggage sled for a while, take me to the basin, and then come back alone to take the luggage with you?”

“What?”

“Leave the luggage sled and only take me as you run fast, and then Daddy will come back alone to take the luggage.”

She rephrased it in an innocent-sounding tone, but the content itself was cruel.

“You must be really Satan.”

“Come on, come on. Cordelia wants to go to the village, sit comfortably, and then drink hot tea.”

“Does hair grow in your heart?”

“No, my heart is always kind.”

Cordelia retorted and grinned, while Jude had a blank face before he smiled.

“Well, okay. Shall we go?”

“Eh? Really?”

Cordelia was taken aback as she blinked her eyes and asked.

It’s just a silly joke but is he really going to do it?

“I’ll have to do what my princess wants.”

“No, wait. Wait a minute. I was really just joking…”

Her words were cut off at that moment. Jude untied the rope that was connected to the sled and even untied the podaegi. He grabbed Cordelia who was about to slip down, threw her into the air as he quickly turned around and caught her again.

“Eeeh?”

Why is he now carrying me in his arms when I was clearly on his back just now?

And why is Jude’s face in front of me?

“Let’s go.”

Jude grinned and said, while Cordelia remained speechless.

She unconsciously nodded her head while blushing.

And Jude was pleased with Cordelia’s response. He held Cordelia in his strong arms and kicked the ground.

“Black Wind’s Advent.”

A black gale and golden whirlwind surrounded Jude and Cordelia.

***

Jude and Cordelia simultaneously raised their voices in front of Gentle Snow Breeze whom they met again after being gone for a few days.

“What?! My older sister?!”

“What?! My older brother?!”

“Yes, your older sister and brother came here. They smelled and looked to be really related to you in many ways, so I told them that you two went to Raptor Canyon… Looking at your reactions, you must have missed each other.”

At Gentle Snow Breeze’s words, Jude immediately clapped his hands without even needing to recall the map in his head.

They gone diagonally without passing through Raptor Canyon.

Perhaps by now, Gaël and Adelia were at the beginning of Raptor Canyon.

‘We might have really met them if we had gone through Endymion.’

It was when Jude was thinking that.

“W-what should we do? My sister came? She must have chased after me? Eh? Did she come here to catch us?”

Cordelia was flustered as she fell into a panic.

Her face turned white even if Adelia wasn’t really that scary.

“Cordelia, calm down. The two came here to find us who run away. Not to hunt us.”

“N-no? It’s because you don’t know my sister? Perhaps she really came here to hunt us? That’s right, she’s definitely hunting us.”

“Woah, woah, calm down. Calm yourself. If my brother and Adelia have come this far, they would have roughly known what we are doing. So let’s be positive. My brother and Adelia are strong. They’ll be a great help in the fight against the west.”

Though it was not accurate because he didn’t experience it directly in Legend of Heroes 2, but if he inferred it from the background and settings information, Gaël and Adelia were clearly strong enough to fight against a mid-ranking demonic human alone.

‘They could at least do that much.’

Gaël was the heir of Count Bayer, who is one of the ten great swordmasters, and Adelia was a genius wizard who became the youngest head of the Royal Guard Magic Corps.

The minimum they could handle was just a mid-ranking demonic human, and it was highly possible that they could fight those who were stronger than that.

But despite hearing Jude’s words, Cordelia still couldn’t shake off her anxiety.

“No, it’s because you don’t know. And you’re more in danger than me. My sister might try to kill you.”

“Ei, no way. And you’ve seen it, right? I’ve become quite strong now, right?”

He was right. So Cordelia seemed to calm down for a moment, but she soon shook her head and said again.

“No, my sister is a wizard so she might cast a curse on you. Yes, a curse. I have to set up some precautions against the curse. I have to learn magic resistance spells and become familiar with them.”

The magic spells that were written in the witch’s spell book exceeded a dozen and even reached in the hundreds.

There were quite a few spells that she hadn’t learned because she didn’t need it then, but she thought that now was the best chance to learn it.

“Uh…it seems that you’re going a little overboard, but it isn’t bad to learn it.”

“Uuuuh…is there any other way to stop my sister?”

“There is one.”

“What is it?”

“Umm…it’s been a while since you’ve done it.”

“It’s been a while?”

“My beloved…”

They haven’t said those words ever since they left Count Hræsvelgr’s territory.

“My beloved Mr. Jude Bayer…”

“Okay, okay. That’s it. You know what it is, so that’s it.”

Cordelia gasped as her face turned red, and then fanned herself with her hand before making a trouble expression again.

“Uhhhhh… Okay, I’ll do it. I’ll do it. It’s not my first time, so I can do it.”

“Yes, you’ll get used to it.”

“That’s right, I’ll get used to it.”

Cordelia unconsciously repeated Jude’s slip of the tongue that he said quietly, and she nodded a few times before clenching her fist.

“I can do it. I’ll protect you. I’ll protect you, Jude.”

“Thank you, Cordelia. You’re the only one who can do it.”

“Eh? Uh…ahem, ahem.”

Cordelia was suddenly embarrassed as her cheeks turned red and she cleared her throat before averting her gaze. Because of that, she ended up meeting eyes with Gentle Snow Breeze who was watching her.

“Uh…is it over now?”

“I-it’s over.”

As Cordelia’s face turned redder, Gentle Snow Breeze smiled and said to Jude who had a sly look.

“Jude, there’s actually something more urgent than that.”

“Don’t tell me…did the west launched an attack already?”

Jude asked back in surprise. Because he couldn’t see any signs of war from the appearance of the Gentle Snow Breeze tribe while they were on the way here.

“No, it’s not an attack. We just have a problem in establishing the Eastern Alliance.”

“A problem?”

When Cordelia asked her, Gentle Snow Breeze paused for a while as if she organized the story in her head before she began to explain.

“The establishment of the Eastern Alliance went smoothly. Not only me and Violent Avalanche, but also Great Storm… Because of us three wild gods, the other tribes and wild gods near us also cooperated. The only problem is the Blade Song tribe in the north.”

“Blade Song.”

He was one of the strongest beings among the wild gods in the east.

The Blade Song tribe that he cared for was a combat race that was both tenacious and belligerent and was second only to the Angry Bull tribe.

‘If the Great Storm tribe are elves, then the Blade Song tribe are orcs.’

In fact, they inherited the blood of the ancient Orcs.

‘The Angry Bull tribe and the Blade Song tribe were the ones who always took the lead in the battle against the Sälen Kingdom.’

There was only one reason why the Blade Song tribe would cause a problem in the establishment of the Eastern Alliance.

“It’s a battle for leadership.”

“Yes, the Blade Song tribe agreed to the formation of the Eastern Alliance itself but insisted that they become the head of the alliance.”

“Are there people pushing for the Great Storm tribe?”

“Not necessarily. However, they were against the Blade Song tribe in becoming the leader of the alliance. If the Blade Song tribe became the leader of the alliance, the fight against the west will cause even greater damage. Moreover, since the power of the wild lands have now been gathered as one, they will try to fight against the Sälen Kingdom again.”

Her words were convincing.

Cordelia had been quietly listening before she raised her hand and asked.

“What did the wild god of the Blade Song tribe say?”

“The tribes of the wild land tend to resemble the wild gods who take care of them. That Blade Song had been a war fanatic in the past and even now in the present, so it’s hard to talk to him.”

It seemed impossible to solve the problem with a conversation in the first place, as the Gentle Snow Breeze who always used gentle words like her name spoke like that.

“Is there any other way?”

“There is. And that way is why it became a problem.”

“Uh…there is a way but that’s what caused the problem?”

When Cordelia asked again, Gentle Snow Breeze nodded her head and replied.

“Yes, the Blade Song tribe applied for a Karaval to the Great Storm tribe.”

Karaval.

Cordelia blinked her eyes as she thought what that meant, but Jude frowned.

Because he remembered it from his memory in the corner of his Memory Palace.

“It’s a one-on-one fight. A way to settle a dispute through a duel.”

Most tribes were unfamiliar with that method that if it weren’t for the tribes that were battle fanatics like the Blade Song tribe or the Angry Bull tribe, they wouldn’t know about Karaval. However, there were no tribes in the wild land who denied the authority of the Karaval itself.

“Normally, it would have been Red Gale…”

Thanks to Jude, his curse was prevented from progressing, but he was still sick.

“The Blade Song tribe also took that into account and sent the chieftain’s son, Sun Song, as their representative for Karaval.”

“Uh… Then, so our side should send the next strongest warrior after Red Gale, right?”

“No, it’s not. Since the Blade Song tribe sent out Sun Song, our side must also send the chieftain’s child as the representative for Karaval.”

As the conversation progressed, Jude and Cordelia finally realized what the problem was.

“Red Wind.”

She was the person who must be sent as the representative for Karaval.

Gentle Snow Breeze nodded her head when Cordelia reflexively said her name.

She then spoke to summarize everything that she had said.

“Red Wind must beat Sun Song.”

That was the only way to properly establish the Eastern Alliance.

Jude and Cordelia turned to each other.