[If you can hear my voice, open your eyes. Wake up and look at me.]
Jude slowly opened his eyes at the faintly heard voice.
What he saw was a warm light and a cozy space.
His eyes then caught the face of a witch with long black hair and green eyes.
[Youâre finally awake.]
In front of him was a white-faced beauty around thirty years old.
The witch wore a black dress decorated with black bird feathers, and a wide-brimmed cone hat on her head, which were the typical symbols of a witch.
âThis place isâŠâ
[This is the world of my consciousness. Your body was overwhelmed and has fallen into a deep sleep. So I woke you up here to share my story. Now, hold my hand and get up.]
In a daze, Jude stood up holding the witchâs hand. And on the other side, he could see Cordelia standing up while holding the witchâs hand as well.
âCordelia?â
âJude?â
[Itâs so nice to see you two taking care of each other here too.]
The voice who spoke was not from the two witches standing in front of the two, but rather, from the rocking chair in front of the fireplace.
There was another witch sitting there.
[Now, both of you, come here. Itâs warm in front of the fireplace.]
When the witch in front of the fireplace beckoned, the witches in front of Jude and Cordelia suddenly became haze and vanished.
Jude and Cordelia looked at each other spontaneously and exchanged glances, and then nodded.
âLetâs go for now.â
The witch will not likely harm us.
As Jude and Cordelia stood in front of the fireplace, the witch also stood up from the rocking chair.
[First of all, I need to talk about my story. But Iâll ask you in advance, so please answer me. Do you know why Iâm sealed here?]
She was asking if we knew the real reason why the witch was sealed.
In the eyes of the witch who was inwardly full of expectations, Jude hesitated and pretended to not know, while Cordelia nodded without thinking.
[I see⊠You know this again⊠You knowâŠ]
The witch became openly sullen, drooping her shoulders as she pouted a bit.
The real reason why the witch was sealedâŠ
Despite being a lowly slave, the witch brought down numerous demons, and the existence of such a witch was enough to offend the five great monarchs of Hell.
Eventually, the witch clashed with Belial, known as the monarch of corruption, and one of the five great monarchs of hell. She suffered a crushing defeat at the overwhelming power of the great monarch.
But just before Belialâs flames completely extinguished the witchâs soul, another monarch stole the witchâs soul, and that was Asmodeus, the monarch of lust.
âAsmodeus thought that the witchâs soul, who overthrew countless demons, could become a dagger to stab other great monarchs.â
Asmodeus sealed the witchâs soul deep in the forest of Trefalgar in order to hide the witchâs soul from the other monarchs until the day it would become useful, as well as to make the witchâs soul submissive to him.
âThat is why the great witchâs soul was sealed in the human world, and why there was only one demonic monster that protected the seal.â
If the witchâs seal was in hell, or even if it was in the human world and had a lot of guardians protecting the seal, it was highly likely that the other monarchs would notice it.
Having said that, when the witch made a sullen face, Cordelia hurriedly opened her mouth and said.
âAh, noâŠabout thatâŠwell, I donât know! Please tell us more about it!â
[Really?]
âYes, really.â
The witch was enchanted by Cordeliaâs words and bright smile, and soon, a smile spread on the witchâs face too.
And Jude thought at that time.
âYou must have been lonely.â
It was understandable since she was trapped alone in the seal for hundreds of years.
[SoâŠto beginâŠ]
The witch began telling her story clearly and softly, and Cordeliaâs eyes sparkled as she became a good listener.
After four hours or soâŠ
[And thatâs how it happened.]
The witch widely smiled with a satisfied face, while Cordelia and Jude nodded with exhausted faces.
It was briefly summarized in the game, but it was a really long story if you heard the full story directly.
[Ha, that was refreshing. Now then, letâs get to the main point.]
âWhat?!â
Youâve been talking for four hours and youâre only starting to get to the main point now?!
Cordelia was surprised and asked back, and the witch laughed and came close to her.
[Iâve finally finished telling you about the past. So letâs talk about the future.]
In fact, there was no such conversation in the original story.
The witch who had possessed Cordeliaâs body and defeated the monster, immediately ascended afterwards.
[Cordelia, youâre a lovely child. You contained my soul for a moment, and I have seen the potential of your soul and body. The potential that you have the same power as mine.]
Unlike before, the witch who has spoken so far had a crafty smile, and then she kissed Cordeliaâs forehead, eyes, cheeks, neck, chest, and the back of her hands in order.
âWi-witch?â
[I left my mark on your soul. Remember my feelings when you use my power. Increase your own strength through that.]
The witch whispered in Cordeliaâs ear, and after deeply swallowing, Cordelia recited the spell taught to her by the witch.
She changed in a moment.
However, it was a little different from the previous Witch Transformation made by the witch herself.
Cordeliaâs hair was dyed black, but the tips were still red.
Instead of both eyes turning green, her usual blue eyes became more vivid.
[Go and increase your strength.]
Cordeliaâs Witch Transformation.
It is a reinforced transformation spell with a time limit, and when in the witch state, all magical abilities are greatly increased.
As Cordelia nodded and looked at herself, the witch affectionately kissed her forehead one more time.
[Look carefully at the place where I was sealed. There should be a spell book that I wrote there.]
It was a spell book that contained all of the witchâs magic spells.
âThank you very much, witch.â
As Cordelia bowed her head in greeting, the witch laughed and hugged Cordelia.
And Jude, who watched all these, cleared his throat.
âAhem, ahem.â
A cough that meant âYou donât have anything for me?â
Unlike the original story, Jude had also met the witch, so shouldnât he get something too?
Of course, this journey had already given Jude the skills of the Guardians of the Holy Cross, but wasnât there a saying that stated that âthe more, the better?â
At Judeâs appeal, the witch narrowed her eyes and said with a slight lick on her lips.
[Jude, youâre not compatible with me. RatherâŠyou possess other possibilities.]
Jude turned at her unexpected words.
âAnother possibility?â
In the original story, after the treatment of his Gueumjulmaek, Jude became a powerful warrior with the help of his Cheonmujiche.
But now, the witchâs words didnât seem to be talking about that.
[You donât know much about yourself yet. But donât you worry. Fate will guide you to it.]
Jude blinked his eyes in curiosity, and the witch smiled strangely, acting as if she didnât know, as she stroked Cordeliaâs head.
[Find the place where the demonic monster lived. There must be something that can help the both of you.]
And that was it.
The witch released her hand from Cordelia and then stepped back, placing both Jude and Cordelia in her sight.
[Youâve been delayed for too long. I think I should leave now. But Cordelia and JudeâŠ]
The witchâs body floated in the air.
The area in front of the cozy fireplace, as well as the surrounding areas, turned into a dark and black space.
[âŠwe will meet again.]
It was words that implied a reunion, not an eternal parting.
Jude and Cordelia were surprised for a moment at the different dialogue from the original story, but that was it.
Before they could even speak out, their vision was tinged in darkness.
***
ââAh.ââ
Jude and Cordelia opened their eyes at the same time and raised their upper bodies simultaneously.
âYoung master.â
âMiss.â
The voices they heard almost at that same moment belonged to Jun and Dahlia, respectively.
Jude and Cordelia blinked their eyes and looked at each other before realizing that they were still inside the witchâs sealing area.
âOh, youâve come to your senses!â
Lucas, who was standing at the side and talking with the knights, came to them with a bright face.
âThe witch guided the knights. Iâve told everyone about what happened here.â
âUhâŠwhat happened here?â
âYes, Iâve conveyed everything I saw without exceptions.â
Lucas proudly stretched his shoulders and taps his chest, and the knightsâ facial expressions were as unusual as him.
Everyone was looking at Jude and Cordelia with happy and warmhearted expressions.
âWhatâŠwhat the hell did he say? Why is Dahlia looking like that?â
Cordelia quickly asked Jude with a glance, but instead of answering her, he closed his eyes.
Jude had a rough idea on what happened.
âAs it is, itâs better not to ask.â
However, Lucas already opened his mouth as if not thinking about Judeâs feelings.
âThe moment when the monsterâs attack was about to hit Lady Cordelia! The sight of Mr. Bayer flying towards Lady Cordelia was really amazing. It was a proof of true love that didnât even fear death.â
Like a heroic novel enthusiast, Lucas began to speak strangely about what happened.
The knights, led by Dahlia, all looked at Jude and Cordelia happily again, and Cordelia looked at Jude.
Jude then quickly said with a glance.
âNo, itâs not? Will they believe me if I told them itâs the Fairy Steps?â
âI know, right?â
The two exchanged a conversation by just looking at each other, and they tried to get over the situation by coughing and clearing their throat as if they had promised each other.
Fortunately, Lucas didnât bother the two too much.
âAll the knights are fine. The witch said that both of you were very tired, but that there were no problems with your health.â
Although we were covered in blood, it was as Lucas had said, that we were just tired and had nothing wrong with our bodies.
âWeâve decided to stay here overnight and leave the forest early tomorrow morning.â
âYes, that sounds good.â
We had to bring the witchâs spell book and a helpful item that was in the monsterâs nest.
Of course, we were also tired and exhausted.
Jude closed his eyes for a moment and thought about the flow of the original story.
âCordelia having obtained the Witch TransformationâŠâ
Two facts came to light when she repelled the pursuers of the Devilâs Hand in the witchâs forest.
One fact was that the Devilâs Hand kidnapped the children of the 12 families to use them as a sacrifice for demon summoning. The other fact was that the place where the demon summoning ritual was held and what date the ritual was supposed to take place.
There wasnât enough time to go back to Count Chase to announce the crisis, so in the end, the troubled Cordelia decided to head north to save the children of the 12 families and stop the ritual.
âThat scenario is already gone though.â
The Devilâs Hand couldnât kidnap any of the 12 familiesâ children.
Even if Cordelia escaped in the original story, they still carried out the ritual because they used characters such as Lucas and Sylvia as sacrifices. But now, it was questionable if the ritual would be held when none of the children were secured.
Moreover, the attack of the Devilâs Hand was enough to raise the awareness of the northern cities.
It would be impossible to hold a large-scale attack now that the vigilance against the demonic followers have increased.
âBut there is still a chance.â
The purpose of Jude and Cordelia was not just to follow the main scenario.
Their goal was to twist the main scenario and create a happy ending that did not originally exist.
âLetâs go to the north.â
If the ritual is held, stop it.
He must also twist Judeâs main scenario, âThe Northern Barbariansâ Great Attack,â from its very roots.
When Jude made up his mind and opened his eyes, Lucas continued to explain.
âFirst, we plan to stop by the northern viscountâs mansion and stay for a day or two as scheduled. AndâŠI think the people from my home will meet us there and join us in our journey to the northern place.â
At Lucasâ explanation, Jude and Cordelia looked at each other simultaneously, and they exchanged glances.
The reason was simple.
âWho is coming?â
There was no event in the original story where a number of people were sent to meet each of the 12 familiesâ children.
In other words, the arrival of Gaël and Count Chase to pick us up earlier was also different from the original story.
Who will come to meet us from Count HrĂŠsvelgr?
As Jude began to think of the people of Count HrĂŠsvelgr with a serious face, Cordelia just shook her head and looked at Lucas as she asked.
âLord Lucas, do you know who is coming?â
âYes, itâs someone that I really admire that is coming. Itâs a bit embarrassing, but itâs been a while since Iâve seen him, so Iâm looking forward to meeting him again.â
Jude and Cordeliaâs curiosity grew even greater when Lucas spoke with sparkling eyes like he did when talking about adventures.
Who is it?
Who is it that Lucas had such a reaction?
When Jude and Cordelia showed their keen interest, Lucas said with a proud face.
âYouâve both heard of the âRed-Haired Warrior,â right?â
Jude and Cordelia nodded together. They obviously have heard of him.
Red-haired warrior.
The Red Flame Landius.
He was one of the five main characters of Legend of Heroes 1. However, in Legend of Heroes 2, he no longer appeared because his setting was to die in the beginning.