Ending Maker Chapter 27
Ending Maker Chapter 27
Chapter 5 - Devil's Hand #8
Sunflower Herb.
Beyond the northernmost border of the Saelun Kingdom, at the edge of the wild lands, there existed a ruin called Frost Anvil.
The most widely accepted theory was that it was a ruin of an ancient kingdom built by the Frost Dwarves, but what mattered was that the Frost Anvil region was an extreme land beyond even bitter cold.
'The coldest place on the continent? Obviously Frost Anvil.'
In truth, it was more than simply cold. If water was thrown into the air, the stream froze into icicles before it could fall.
Opinions were divided on why such an extreme region had been created. Some said a device built by the Frost Dwarves was still operating, while others took a theological view that it had been cursed by a god.
'Anyway, Frost Anvil has one legend.'
Once every twenty years, a Sunflower Herb containing extreme yang energy bloomed somewhere in Frost Anvil.
A flower of extreme yang blooming in an extreme land.
And this story was not legend but fact.
'In some ways, it’s even more useful than the Sunfire Carp.'
Among the items with extreme yang energy in Hero Legend 2, the ultimate prize was naturally the Sunfire Carp. In truth, however, extreme yang energy was about all it had to offer.
The Sunflower Herb had less extreme yang energy than the Sunfire Carp, but in exchange it raised the body’s overall abilities and could even transform the person who absorbed it into a special constitution.
'But Lucas brought it up first.'
In the original work, the Sunflower Herb event wasn't a main event.
Like 'Cordelia and the Fairy Banquet,' it was closer to a hidden event. Any character located in the north, such as Yuder or Lucas, could trigger it, but it could essentially be called an event prepared for Lucas.
'Well...... Lucas probably only knows that the Sunflower Herb is a flower containing extreme yang energy.'
As the saying goes, too much is worse than too little. Whether extreme yang or extreme yin, energy skewed to one side was often harmful to the body.
Just like the Nine Yin Meridian Blockage.
"I've heard of it. It's a flower with extreme yang energy, right?"
"Yes, it's a flower passed down like a legend in the north. And......."
Lucas suddenly lowered his voice, stepped closer to Yuder, and continued quietly.
"It's not legend but fact. The records of the Count Hraesvelgr Household contain the story of a person who discovered the Sunflower Herb twenty years ago."
"Ohhh......."
Yuder already knew that, but he swallowed hard and gave the reaction the story called for.
Nothing opened someone’s store of stories quite like an interested listener.
"This year marks exactly the twentieth year. Once we return to the north, winter will come before long...... so the timing is also suitable."
By this point, it was obvious what Lucas's intention was in talking about the Sunflower Herb.
He was recommending the Sunflower Herb to Yuder.
'The question is why this guy is doing this.'
Actually, he had a guess.
Yuder already knew well what kind of person Lucas Hraesvelgr was.
"That's quite an interesting story."
Yuder swallowed again and spoke.
He put on an act of seeming uninterested while making it obvious that he was actually fascinated—the kind of performance Cordelia could never pull off in a million years.
It must have worked, because a glint of light flickered in Lucas's dark blue eyes.
"Lord Yuder, won't you come north with me?"
'Bingo!'
Yuder cheered inwardly but did not hide his delight. He let the joy show plainly, then hurriedly composed himself and spoke as though he were still an inexperienced young master.
"To the north...... you mean?"
"Yes, if it's agreeable to you, Lord Yuder, I'd like to invite you to the Count Hraesvelgr Household. And if you wish, Lady Cordelia as well."
'Oh, Lucas. Oh, Lucas.'
Just like in the fight against Minos, you really are useful.
Yuder barely suppressed the urge to kiss Lucas on the forehead for scratching his itch so perfectly, then parted his lips slightly.
"That's a truly...... truly kind offer. However...... why......."
The relationship between the Count Bayel Household and the Count Hraesvelgr Household was neither particularly good nor bad.
At first glance, one might expect bad blood between them: the Count Hraesvelgr Household now held the margrave position once monopolized by the Count Bayel Household. But another family had held the position between them.
'From the Count Bayel Household to the Count Pael Household, and then to the Count Hraesvelgr Household.'
The Count Bayel Household had held the margrave position nearly fifty years ago.
After the Count Bayel of that generation died in a large-scale battle against the northern barbarians, the margrave position passed to the Count Pael Household. Tragedy struck again when the newly appointed Count Pael also died in battle not long afterward.
The central government then dispatched Count Hraesvelgr, a powerful central noble and the foremost of that era’s Ten Great Swordsmen, as margrave. From then on, the Count Hraesvelgr Household held the margrave position as the foremost of the twelve houses.
'Either way, they're not enemies, but that doesn't mean they're on good terms either.'
You could call it a distant relationship.
At Yuder's question, Lucas's face flushed slightly, and he averted his gaze as he spoke.
"Because I thought...... I had met a rival."
'So it's that after all.'
At the answer he had expected, Yuder felt like a laugh would slip out, but he struggled to maintain a serious expression.
"A rival...... you mean?"
"Yes, I...... this is a bit embarrassing, but until now, I believed there was no one my age who could stand against me."
Lucas was a sword prodigy, after all.
Unlike Yuder, he hadn't been born with the Nine Yin Meridian Blockage, so he had grown up freely displaying his dazzling talent from childhood.
"No one my age can match me... It sounds flattering, but the truth is that I have always felt lonely. I have always longed for a rival—someone who could stand beside me as an equal and advance together with me."
Sincerity colored Lucas's face and voice.
Lucas was handsome enough to make the scene picturesque, but Yuder had to work hard to maintain an equally serious expression.
'Ugh, seriously. This is so cringey.'
He already knew this from the setting, but hearing it in person felt new in many ways.
"Lord Yuder."
"Yes, Lord Lucas."
When Yuder barely managed to answer in time, Lucas looked at Yuder with an utterly serious face, then suddenly grabbed his hand.
"I was certain after seeing you fight, Lord Yuder. I was certain that you are the rival I have long yearned for."
'Right, originally he takes Maximilian as his rival, but well, Yuder has the Heavenly Martial Body too. He's worthy of being a rival. But why the hell is he holding my hand.'
Yuder, who had barely suppressed his inner voice, met Lucas's burning gaze head-on.
"So I thought. Let's cure Lord Yuder's illness as quickly as possible, even a day sooner."
So that Yuder could properly display his talent.
In truth, immediately after defeating Minos, Lucas's head had been filled with thoughts of Cordelia for various reasons.
Not because he had fallen for her, but because her true nature had been so shocking.
But as time passed, Yuder's fight kept coming back to him.
The movements Yuder had shown.
His fighting style, bold beyond compare.
The talent of a genius that only a fellow genius could recognize.
"Lord Yuder, let us go north together. I will help you find the Sunflower Herb."
It was exactly the offer Yuder had been hoping for.
But this time too, Yuder didn't answer right away. He let a moment pass.
It was to make Lucas anxious.
'Hmm, good.'
Had about twenty seconds passed?
When Lucas’s eyes wavered, Yuder answered in a grave, serious tone, as though he had reached the decision only after deep thought.
"Thank you very much. But...... more than the offer to search for the Sunflower Herb together, what touches my heart more is that Lord Lucas, who is called the prodigy of Hraesvelgr, regards me as a rival. I have only just begun walking the path of martial arts, but I have come to want to live up to Lord Lucas's expectations."
"Lord Yuder, then......."
"Yes, I will go with Lord Lucas."
Yuder smiled brightly as he spoke. Lucas let out a long breath of relief and answered with an equally radiant smile.
"I look forward to the journey north with Lord Yuder."
"Yes, I look forward to it as well."
When the conversation came to a close, Lucas rose from his seat with a happy face and returned to the knights of the Count Hraesvelgr Household.
Excitement showed even in Lucas’s steps. For all his talent, he was still a sixteen-year-old boy.
'And a hero novel fanatic too.'
The current situation itself was almost identical to the opening of 'The Heroic Legend of Biltbain,' one of the hero novels Lucas loved.
The line Yuder had used at the end—that being Lucas's rival pleased him more than the Sunflower Herb—was taken almost verbatim from something Kartrang, the rival of the protagonist Biltbain, said in the story.
Yuder could not know for certain, but during that conversation Lucas had probably felt as though he himself had become Biltbain.
'Anyway, that's one thing solved?'
Yuder, who had let his shoulders relax, turned to look at Cordelia.
She was explaining the fairy banquet to Sylvia and Viola, who were completely absorbed in the story, even adding gestures.
'As expected...... except when she's with me, her Cordelia side comes out more strongly, huh.'
Yuder and Cordelia had awakened memories of their past lives.
And as a result, many things had changed.
Into a life of barely more than ten years, memories amounting to over twenty years had suddenly been added all at once. So even though it was called a past life and reincarnation, the Outboxer009 side of him stood out a bit more than the Yuder side.
And that became even more pronounced when he faced Yellow Storm, who likewise had memories of a past life.
Yuder and Cordelia were engaged, but originally they had been distant with each other.
But Outboxer009 and Yellow Storm were not.
They had known each other for five years, and they had snarled at each other in the chat room almost every day for nearly three years. So when they were together, it became a meeting of Outboxer and Yellow Storm rather than Yuder and Cordelia.
The fact that they still called each other by nicknames was proof of that.
When the two of them were together, nicknames were still more familiar than each other's names.
'An affection for a past life shared only by the two of them...... or maybe it's something like an obsession.'
Of course, it would change little by little.
Right now, Yuder's personality had already changed as his memories and Outboxer's memories mixed together.
The current Yuder was closer to someone new, a little different from both the original Yuder and Outboxer009 Kang Jin-ho of his past life.
'The way we address each other will change someday too.'
Since their first meeting, the frequency of calling each other by nicknames had been gradually decreasing.
Later, a day would come when they would call each other by nicknames only when they truly thought of it, giving it a special meaning, like a kind of pet name.
"Someday."
Yuder, who had risen from his seat, walked toward Cordelia, who was in the middle of talking excitedly.
* * *
Time passed.
Two days since the Devil's Hand attack.
The first to arrive was the Count Dahut Household, located geographically closest.
The Golden Deer Knights, the pride of the Count Dahut Household, quickly left Langesthei with the twin brothers, and the next in line were the Count Crossbell Household and the Viscount Lang Household.
"Cordelia, this gathering had some scary moments...... but still, I was really glad to see you. I'll look forward to next year's gathering."
"M-me too, Cordelia."
The two of them had grown much closer over the past few days, and they genuinely seemed sorry to part with Cordelia.
"I'll look forward to it too. I'll really miss you both."
Cordelia hugged Sylvia and Viola in turn. The peerlessly beautiful Sylvia and the cute young Viola both blushed in the arms of the equally beautiful Cordelia.
Three days since the Devil's Hand attack.
After Sylvia and Viola, Felix also departed, and now only three people remained in Trejean: Yuder, Cordelia, and Lucas.
"I plan to join up with my family midway."
Lucas, who had finished contacting his family over the past few days, said with a smile.
Thunderdoom Fortress, where the Count Hraesvelgr Household was located, was too far from Langesthei.
Besides, if Yuder and Cordelia went together, the Count Bayel Household and the Count Chase Household would also be involved, so there would be no problems with escort.
Joining midway would be fine.
"So it's just us left."
The Count Bayel Household and the Count Chase Household.
And the next morning.
The people of the two count households finally arrived in Langesthei.
* * *
"Hmph, still as scrawny as ever."
"F-Father?"
Surprisingly, the one who had come from the Count Chase Household to greet them was none other than Count Chase himself.
"Hahaha, Yuder. I've heard the stories. You've become unrecognizably stronger in just a few days."
And the one who had come from the Count Bayel Household was Gale Bayel, who had been confirmed as the next Count Bayel.
"If Count Chase is going, we have to keep up appearances on our side too."
Gale, who had smiled bitterly, whispered into Yuder's ear.
Indeed, if Count Chase was going, at least the heir of the Count Bayel Household should accompany them to keep up appearances.
Count Chase looked at Yuder with his usual stern face, then snorted and spoke.
"I heard you faced a Demonic Human?"
"Yes, I was able to defeat it thanks to Lady Cordelia and the mages of the Red Dawn Tower."
"Hmph, you couldn't defeat it alone. Still weak."
The people around them were flustered by Count Chase’s harsh criticism, but Yuder was not. He smiled happily as Count Chase immediately began rummaging inside his coat.
"You're so weak I can't rest easy. It's nothing much, but take it."
"I love you, Father."
Yuder, who had eagerly accepted the pitch-black bracelet Count Chase held out, smiled again.
It was because it was the Guardian of Darkness, a C-rank bracelet that increased magic defense.
"Tsk tsk, still all skin and bones. I happened to buy something on the way here. Take it."
When he glanced over, a knight of the Count Chase Household was smiling awkwardly and slightly lifting a paper bundle he was holding to his chest.
It was clearly nourishing food good for the body.
"Don't get the wrong idea. I didn't prepare this specifically for you."
"Of course, Father."
It was just as Yuder's eyes were sparkling. Cordelia subtly poked Yuder in the side and signaled with her eyes.
'What? You want to split this too?'
'What the hell is this crazy bastard talking about? Not that. You know, that thing. That thing.'
'Ah, that thing.'
Yuder and Cordelia, who had finished communicating with just their eyes, turned to Count Chase side by side, and Yuder, who had cleared his throat, opened his mouth.
"Father, and Brother. We have something to tell you."
The story about the Sunflower Herb and Lucas's invitation.
And added to that was Cordelia joining.
"I-I want to go with my beloved Lord Yuder. I-I don't want to be apart...... from him."
Cordelia, who had tightly clung to Yuder's arm, spoke with a bright red face and a tearful expression.
She was like that because she was embarrassed, but in the eyes of others, she looked like a girl madly in love who was on the verge of tears because she wanted to be with her fiancé.
'Brother is obviously ready to say okay.'
Because he was looking at Cordelia with a face full of pleased smiles.
Yuder, supporting the clinging Cordelia with one arm, turned to Count Chase, and without realizing it, flinched and swallowed dryly.
Because Count Chase's gaze was too frightening.
But that was only for a moment.
Count Chase snorted, then rummaged through his chest again and spoke.
"I doubt a weakling like you can protect Cordelia."
His tone was quarrelsome, but a new item was already in his hand.
"It's a shabby thing, but take it."
What Count Chase held out was a pair of rings.
At a glance, they looked like items he had prepared for Yuder and Cordelia and had kept for a long time, and a powerful magical energy could be felt from them.
And it was right at that moment.
'Please take good care of Cordelia.'
A message spell that rang in Yuder's head.
When Yuder quickly raised his head, Count Chase had already turned away with his cold expression unchanged.
"My business here is done, so I'll be going. I'll speak to that old fossil Count Bayel myself, so have a safe trip to the north."
"Thank you, Father."
"Father! I'll be back!"
Count Chase answered Yuder and Cordelia’s farewell with a casual lift of his hand. He looked ready to leave Trejean, only to sit down in the reception room instead.
His business with Yuder and Cordelia was mostly finished, but other matters remained, such as meeting with the mages of the Red Dawn Tower, including Ronin.
"Hmph, get to work."
Count Chase’s earlobes reddened ever so slightly as he turned away and waved dismissively. The Count Chase Household’s knights then began coordinating the details with Zibek, who was in charge of the journey.
Since they would be making a long-distance journey again, there were quite a few things to discuss, such as the composition of the escort.
"Father won't say much either, so don't worry and set off."
Gale answered readily and personally organized the escort that would accompany Yuder.
And then, the two of them again.
Cordelia, who had been fiddling with the ring Count Chase had given her, pouted her lips slightly and turned to Yuder.
"Anyway, well...... it seems like it worked out somehow, right?"
They had received Lucas's invitation and gotten her father's permission.
On top of that, they had even received matching rings—no, magic items.
"At this point, it's a huge success."
Yuder, who had smiled in satisfaction, lightly held out his fist to Cordelia, and Cordelia snorted, then lightly bumped her fist against his.
And the next morning.
The party of the three count households—Bayel, Chase, and Hraesvelgr—departed for the northernmost part of the Saelun Kingdom, toward Thunderdoom Fortress.