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EPISODE 137 – LONG LIVE THE SUN (1)
Light poured from the ceiling.
And in that light, he slowly came down as if he was walking down the sky.
A halo shined behind his huge and beautiful steel-like body, and he was like a legendary hero- no, he was like a god who popped out from a myth.
‘Why did he appear?’
Why did Landius appear here at this point in time?
He seemed to know exactly where we were, given that he showed up and broke the ceiling.
‘Ah, I don’t know!’
That wasn’t important now.
The only important fact was that Landius appeared in this crisis like a cheat key that would solve all their problems!
“Help!”
“I will, girl.”
Landius answered with a gentle smile and landed on the ground.
He looked once at Jude who was floating in the air and shining before he turned to the monsters again.
“Girl, I’ll be back.”
“What about Jude?”
Cordelia’s question was not clearly heard. Because Landius had immediately sped on the ground, causing a huge vacuum and a loud roar.
Boobooboom-!
The entire temple shook as if an earthquake had struck, and the spiders that had vigorously popped out were now hesitant.
Landius just stared at those spiders, and that was enough.
Dozens of spiders suddenly shrieked and began to scatter and escape.
“Wow.”
It wasn’t some kind of conqueror’s spirit.
Cordelia unknowingly let out a stunned voice at Landius’ imposing presence, but it was not yet over.
Landius stepped forward to the Living Heavy Armors that rushed in late.
“Landius! I’ll do that!”
Cordelia belatedly came to her senses and shouted.
Even if it was Landius, the enemies were Living Heavy Armors. They numbered over 30 too, so it would take a considerable amount of time to deal with them.
That was why she had to change it.
Cordelia herself would fight the Living Heavy Armors while Landius would check Jude’s condition-
Bang!
A powerful pressure.
An explosion in the air caused by his fist.
And the light that rose.
An intense flash of light.
Landius’ fist smashed the Living Heavy Armors, causing them to explode. Furthermore, that wasn’t the only thing scary about him.
Bang! Bang! Bang!
It was a tragedy for the monsters that stood in a square formation.
Even those who were behind the Living Heavy Armors were hit by his attacks and exploded one after another.
Boobooboom-!
Five went down with just one punch.
Living Heavy Armors were known for their strong defense, but they were no different from sheets of paper in front of Landius’ fist.
“Wow.”
Cordelia let out a stunned voice again as Landius continued to move. The Living Heavy Armors quickly recovered, but he ignored their attacks and just did what he had to do.
Bang! Bang! Bang!
Fist, fist again, and a kick.
An explosion occurred in just three moves of his.
Those that were hit by Landius’ fist exploded, and those he missed were blown away in the aftermath and torn like sheets of paper.
Obviously, the Living Heavy Armors didn’t just stand there doing nothing. Those that did not know fear tried to hit Landius’ naked upper body, but not a single one of their attacks on his chest did anything because he was Landius.
Clang! Clang! Clang!
It wasn’t the sound of a sword hitting iron.
It was the sound of a sword hitting muscles.
‘What the heck?’
Why are the swords bouncing off his muscles?
Why is his skin fine despite being hit by a sword?
It didn’t seem like he was using magic.
It didn’t seem like he was using a special technique.
It was simply a passive skill.
The defensive power of his muscles was so high that it was like some kind of armor.
“Girl! Close your eyes!”
Landius suddenly shouted, and Cordelia reflexively closed her eyes.
Because it was natural for her to follow Landius who carried a godlike dignity.
And right after that.
Cordelia instantly felt that she was engulfed in a bright light despite closing her eyes.
Because a truly immense amount of light was released not far away from her.
Light.
Heat.
A transcendental life energy.
Cordelia realized it then at that moment.
The one thing she forgot because she was overwhelmed by his imposing muscles.
‘The warrior of the sun.’
Landius’ nickname in the first episode of Legend of Heroes.
Sun Warrior Landius!
Shaaa-!
She heard the howling of the wind after the light, which was then followed by silence.
“I’m done now. You can open your eyes, girl.”
Cordelia slowly opened her eyes upon hearing Landius’ words and held her breath in surprise.
All of the Living Heavy Armors that numbered over thirty were scattered on the floor, and there were some whose surface had melted.
‘As expected of the warrior of the sun.’
Those chosen by the Sun had a powerful Yang and life energies.
‘Wouldn’t it be possible for Landius to fight the Demon Prince alone?’
The power of the sun was good against demons.
Cordelia unknowingly nodded, but promptly shook her head. Because what she was thinking wasn’t important now.
“Landius! Jude!”
“I know, girl.”
Landius said as he walked towards her.
Landius’ bearing and tone made him seem like an old man even though he was only in his late 30s, or less than 40 years old.
In fact, his face had a smooth skin that didn’t have any wrinkles.
‘S-scary.’
She felt like a wall was approaching as the 2 meters and 30 centimeters- no, perhaps Landius was taller than that, headed towards her.
Landius faintly smiled when he saw Cordelia involuntarily shrink back as if he understood the reason before he looked at Jude besides her.
“Indeed, it’s that.”
“Do you know what happened to him? Is he okay?”
When Cordelia urgently asked, Landius frowned first instead of answering. He then raised his big hand and placed it on her shoulder.
“My disciple is now opening a new door and undergoing a change in his body and soul.”
“Is that good?”
“You can say that it’s good. But something not good is also happening.”
“Eh?”
What in the world does he mean by good yet not good?
Cordelia looked teary-eyed at that moment, and Landius gave her an explanation in a calm tone.
“It’s good that he’s opening a new door and breaking the existing frame of his body and soul, but he’s going too far. He’s trying to get to the point where it’s too much for him right now, so his body and soul itself will be destroyed if he makes a mistake.”
“W-what? Then we have to stop him! Quick!”
“I will stop him. But girl, I alone am not enough. You also have to support me.”
“How? S-should I give you something like mana?”
Landius shook his head when Cordelia blinked her eyes and asked.
“Girl, listen carefully. As I said before, my disciple is now undergoing a change in his body and soul. If he continues like this, perhaps it will be possible for him to undergo metamorphosis and be reborn with a new body and soul. So we can’t touch him right now.”
“Metamorphosis
is that something good?”
“Yes. It’s better for him to utilize the current flow
and runaway until the metamorphosis is completed. Therefore, I’ll aim after his metamorphosis is over. I’m going to help in pacifying his energy with my energy.”
“I think I understand what you’re saying.”
She remembered reading something similar in a martial arts webtoon.
It was a scene where the master saved the main character from the jaws of death.
‘The master put his hand on the back of the main character, who was sitting cross-legged, and injected his energy
something like that?’
It seemed like he would do something similar.
“What about me then?”
Landius definitely said that he needed Cordelia’s support as well.
Does he need mana too?
“Girl, your role is important.”
“So what in the world is it!”
The cracks of light that spread all over Jude’s body grew bigger while they were talking like that.
Jude seemed to have been quiet for a while, but he began to roar and scream again.
“Girl, your role is to call the soul of my disciple.”
“Huh?”
“I will stabilize the body of my disciple with my energy. But Ninth Heaven’s Nine Doors is a superhuman art that leads the body and soul to a higher level, so it is necessary to call my disciple’s soul who is now trying to reach out to the door that is beyond the door that he had already opened. And I think that only you, girl, can do it.”
She roughly understood it.
In short, he was saying that she had to awaken his consciousness.
“How should I do it?”
“Call my disciple.”
“S-shout at him?”
“Any method is okay. When I begin stabilizing my disciple’s body, you should call his soul.”
“Noo! It’s too vague!”
“No, it’s not. I have seen some of it myself, but Lena also talked about that. She said that my disciple and you, girl, love each other so much that you’re always together. The power of love you two have for each other is truly great, so you’ll be able to bring back his soul if you appealed to him.”
“W-what?”
“It’s the power of love, girl.”
Landius seriously spoke while Cordelia blinked her eyes. She thought after she unconsciously gazed at Landius’ big hand on her shoulder.
‘S-stop talking bullsh*t with a serious face!’
Po-power of love?
There isn’t anything like that between Jude and me!
“I’ll begin.”
“W-wait!”
“There’s no time to lose!”
At the moment when Landius suddenly raised his voice.
“Aaaaah!”
Jude screamed as an immense amount of light was emitted from the cracks of light that had spread throughout his body, and the light swallowed up Jude’s entire body.
“Girl!”
Landius loudly cried as he closed his eyes and reached out to Jude.
A golden aura then began to rise like a flame in Landius’ entire body.
Then it continued.
The golden light from the tips of Landius’ hands enveloped the white light that covered Jude.
It felt like a river that was about to overflow but was blocked by a dam.
“Hurry!”
Landius shouted again as he closed his eyes and concentrated. Sweat began to pour down all over Landius’ entire body.
“Eueueu
”
Cordelia stamped her feet for a moment before she ran straight to Jude and shouted as loudly as she could.
“Hey! Jude! Hey!”
“With love!”
“Uuugh!”
Cordelia was about to cry when she heard Landius, so she shouted again.
Whether she meant it or was just acting, she let out a cry that would satisfy Landius but would surprise Jude if he heard it.
“Continue!”
“F*ck!”
She cursed. And continued her appeal full of love again!
‘Don’t you dare not come back!’
I won’t forgive you!
She seemed to be either embarrassed or desperate.
Cordelia’s eyes reddened as she shouted once more. She earnestly shouted Jude’s name.
“Jude!”
***
‘Cordelia?’
Light and darkness.
A world of black and white.
Jude just left his body to be carried away by the flowing current that moved forward like the flow of time, but he regained his consciousness at some point.
Fifth door.
And the sixth door.
He was in the space between the two doors.
‘Ah.’
Jude blinked again. He recognized the world of black and white.
Fifth door.
He opened it by using the Sphere of Life.
But he got greedy. He reached out for the sixth door that he could faintly see.
‘I can’t reach it.’
Not yet.
For now.
If I continue like this, all that will be left is catastrophe.
A future where I couldn’t reach the sixth door and only collapsed in front of it.
‘It’s not enough.’
To open the sixth door.
Not only his life energy but also his physical strength, his mana, the skill of Jude himself, and the size of his soul
but it was at that moment.
His consciousness faded again.
His consciousness was gone again amidst the flowing current.
If he closed his eyes, it would be over.
So he wanted to close his eyes.
Just like that-
As it is-
“Juuuuuuude!”
He came to his senses.
Cordelia’s call.
Cordelia’s cry.
He was clearly hallucinating.
After all, the real Cordelia would never repeatedly call his own name like that.
But that was enough.
At the moment he heard Cordelia’s voice that was either his hallucination or something else, his fading will to live began to burn again.
‘I have to go back.’
Cordelia would be alone if he disappeared.
Even if she could do well, she would be left alone with a bad ending, a world that was heading towards a sad ending.
So he had to go back.
He had to go back and be with Cordelia.
And-
And-
“Cordelia!”
Jude shouted. He turned in the current and resisted its fierce flow. He forced his way back to the fifth door.
Because not yet.
Because he couldn’t die like this yet.
It wasn’t right to leave Cordelia alone.
He also thought that he should stand next to her and become her support when she was in danger.
But it wasn’t just that.
Jude’s own greed.
Jude’s own aspirations.
His personal and human desires.
And everything that he wanted to do with Cordelia!
“Cordelia!”
Jude’s soul was set ablaze. He resisted the powerful flow and moved. He took one step towards the fifth door, took one more step forward, and he eventually began running.
“Juuuuude!”
Cordelia’s call.
She stood in front of the fifth door.
Jude kicked the ground. He jumped over the powerful current.
***
A golden flash of light burst.
Landius groaned and stepped backwards before he hurriedly raised his head. And then he smiled.
Jude Bayer.
He saw his disciple.
His reborn disciple woke up from his metamorphosis and revealed himself.
The white light surrounding his whole body had completely disappeared, so he could fully see Jude’s appearance.
“Jude?!”
Cordelia was standing in front of him as she urgently called out to him.
Jude had become naked because of the metamorphosis, and he was bigger and more good-looking than before.
Their difference in height which used to be around 10 centimeters had now widened so she had to raise her head in order to make eye contact with Jude.
She could see Jude’s green eyes between his ebony-like hair that unevenly fell. Cordelia’s own face was reflected in his eyes, which mysteriously seemed to draw her in the more she looked at it.
“Jude? Are you okay? Jude!”
Jude took a step instead of answering her, and he stumbled as if he was going to fall. Cordelia hurriedly hugged Jude and was surprised again.
‘Fi-firm.’
Jude’s body was firm and toned like that of a well-polished sword.
She felt like she was holding someone else and not the same person.
“Are you okay? Are you okay now?”
Cordelia shook her head to collect herself, and Jude slowly nodded his head. He forcibly raised his upper body a bit to see Cordelia before he said in a slightly dazed voice.
“Pretty.”
“Huh?”
“It looks good on you.”
She wondered what he was talking about.
Cordelia blinked her eyes as she then somehow understood him.
That time when she got the Tiara of Life on the 2nd floor.
It was the question she asked when she wore it on her head.
“You’re supposed to say it at that moment.”
Jude smiled a little at her slightly resentful but shy words, and he leaned against Cordelia.
He lost consciousness and fainted.
And at that appearance, Landius burst into laughter.
His disciple had passed out without even greeting his master because he had exhausted his energy to flirt with his fiancé and spoke without hiding how happy he was.
“Indeed, is this the power of love?”
‘No? It’s not like that, okay?’
Cordelia quickly refuted it in her mind before she hugged Jude and eventually smiled.
Because it was strangely cute to see him sleeping like a baby even though he was bigger than her.
‘No, it’s just because I’m happy.’
It was not because she loved Jude, but because she was happy that Jude had returned safely.
She spoke to herself as she came up with an excuse, and Cordelia closed her eyes to enjoy the present moment.
(T/N: ‘Happy’ and ‘love’ have the same words in Korean, so this is sort of a pun.)