Ending Maker Chapter 61
Ending Maker Chapter 61
Chapter 18 - The Great Storm #2
"It's huge."
"It really is."
Yuder and Cordelia stood before the massive front gate, which stood a good five meters tall, and spoke.
The Great Storm tribe's village was far larger than they had imagined. It was big enough that calling it a city rather than a village seemed more fitting.
"There are over ten thousand people here."
Red Wind, who for some reason seemed pleased by Yuder and Cordelia's reactions, said with a smile, and Yuder understood.
'Because they're a group that the Devil's Eye bastards deliberately paid attention to.'
Part of it was because Red Gale himself was a great hero, but it was also because the strength of the Great Storm tribe itself could not be ignored.
"Who goes there!"
"Red Wind?!"
A wary voice and a delighted voice came from beyond the front gate at the same time.
Red Wind smiled bitterly, then stepped forward and raised her voice.
"It's Red Wind! I'm back! I want to see my father!"
She was clumsy with the continental common tongue, but naturally she was fluent in the language of the barbarian tribes.
"What's she saying?"
"Uh... I think she's saying she's back? And that she wants to see Red Gale."
When Cordelia asked quietly, Yuder answered quietly as well.
Yuder could read and write the barbarian tribes' language, but that didn't mean he was fluent enough to hold a natural conversation.
After all, Yuder had simply crammed the characters that appeared in the game into his head.
'Come to think of it, it's amazing.'
It was a game made for entertainment, yet several actually usable languages had appeared in it.
Of course, works of fiction featuring constructed languages weren't entirely nonexistent—like The Lord of the Rings or Star Trek—but they were so few that you could count them on one hand.
'But the truly amazing thing is something else.'
This world, identical to the Hero Legend series.
He didn't really feel like he had entered the game.
The idea that a world identical to the game existed somewhere, and that he had been reborn in that world, was at least more plausible.
'Then why is it identical?'
The reason this world so closely resembled the Hero Legend series.
Had the Hero Legend developers imitated this world? Or was there something else at play?
The thought was intriguing, but he couldn't pursue it any further. The front gate had opened.
"Red Wind!"
"Blue Wave!"
The blue-haired girl who appeared through the open gate spread her arms wide, and Red Wind quickly ran over and embraced her.
"I know her."
When Cordelia spoke quietly, Yuder nodded as well.
She was the girl who appeared in Red Wind's 'homecoming' event.
The image of Red Wind clutching the girl's body, frozen solid like an ice statue, and wailing in grief remained vivid in his mind.
"I'm glad. I'm really glad."
Because it didn't turn out like the original.
Because they could meet while both were still alive and laugh like that.
Cordelia's eyes grew red, and then she turned to Yuder and continued.
"Let's change it completely."
Their fates.
The future of the Great Storm tribe, which was destined for destruction.
"Yeah, let's change it completely."
Yuder and Cordelia had already changed many futures. That meant more and more situations were unfolding beyond anything they knew or could predict, and the danger was growing with them. Even so, neither had the slightest intention of stopping.
"Let me introduce you. These are my friends. They saved me."
When Red Wind pointed at Yuder and Cordelia, Blue Wave wore a wary expression, but soon smiled brightly and extended her hand.
"Red Wind's friends are my friends. Welcome to our village. The chieftain said you would come."
Cordelia blinked, Yuder worked hard to interpret in his head, and Red Wind said with a smile.
"Blue Wave welcomes you. Father said you would come."
It seemed Great Storm had made arrangements in advance.
"Good, then let's hurry. We need to stop the illness from progressing."
When Cordelia urged them on, Red Wind nodded vigorously. She had left the village in the first place to cure her father Red Gale's illness.
"Let's go!"
Red Wind shouted energetically.
And about twenty minutes later.
Red Wind burst into loud sobs.
"I'm sorry! I'm sorry! Waaah!"
They were not tears of emotion shed while embracing Red Gale.
It was a wail made up of roughly 20% embarrassment and 80% pain.
Smack! Smack! Pow! Pow!
Red Wind was getting spanked on the butt.
To describe it more precisely, she was lying face-down over Red Gale's knee while his palm struck her bottom.
He was spanking her with her pants pulled down, not caring who saw, and bright red handprints were clearly visible on her buttocks.
"No wonder she ran away from home...."
She had run away for a completely different reason, but somehow Cordelia's words sounded incredibly convincing.
"......Is he really sick?"
Red Gale, who was spanking Red Wind.
First of all, he was enormous.
He was not quite on Landius's level—or perhaps he was. His palm was much larger than Red Wind's backside, and she looked like a doll sprawled across his knee. He was enormous enough that he might actually rival Landius.
And he wasn't just big.
Like Landius, he was a man packed with muscle, and his forearm looked thicker than Cordelia's—and even thicker than Yuder's waist.
'The pointlessly handsome part is similar too.'
Because Red Gale also carried the blood of winter elves.
His smooth, beardless face gave off an androgynous charm that felt closer to Kamael than Landius, but given his sheer size, the disconnect was even more jarring than with Landius.
While Cordelia nodded to herself with little sounds of agreement, Red Gale finished the punishment and withdrew his hand.
"You're grounded for a month."
The strangely familiar words made Yuder and Cordelia flinch reflexively, but fortunately—or perhaps unfortunately—Red Gale was focused entirely on Red Wind.
After delivering the sentence with grave solemnity, he jerked his chin toward Blue Wave, who had been waiting in the corner. She scampered over like a squirrel and quickly helped Red Wind up.
Red Wind had been spanked so hard she couldn't even walk properly.
"Hic... I hate you, Daddy!"
"Hmph! Take her away."
After all, Red Wind hadn't just run out of the village—she had crossed the border.
Normally, someone who crossed the border like that would not make it back. Red Wind really had ended up captured at a slave auction, after all.
Violence wasn't good, but Yuder could understand Red Gale's feelings in scolding her so harshly.
"Haaah...."
Once Blue Wave and Red Wind left, Red Gale let out a sigh first, his face a mixture of worry and relief.
She seemed healthy for now, but he was worried about what hardships she might have endured beyond the border.
But now was not the time to dwell on worries about his daughter.
Red Gale turned to Yuder and Cordelia and spoke.
"Thank you truly. For saving my daughter. Great Storm told me. Please understand that I cannot rise because my body is unwell. I am truly grateful."
His common tongue pronunciation was somewhat rough, but there was no problem understanding him.
Yuder smiled and replied.
"It was thanks to Great Storm's guidance."
"I am a warrior of Great Storm. You are also warriors of Great Storm. Great Storm told me to help you."
Red Gale, still seated, rolled up his sleeve and revealed the golden emblem on his right upper arm.
"I have one too. Yuder's is silver, though."
Cordelia immediately beamed and showed her own emblem, while Yuder, instead of rolling up his sleeve, quickly moved the conversation along.
"As Great Storm may have told you, Chieftain, you are currently afflicted not by an illness but by a curse. This necklace will halt the curse's progression."
When Yuder handed over the Sun's Necklace, Red Gale spoke with a very serious expression.
"It was said to be an item needed to cure your illness. Thank you truly for handing over such a precious thing."
"It's fine. I'm only lending it to you until the matter is resolved. You can return it later."
Yuder, having made clear once again that it was a loan and not a gift, continued.
"I apologize for rushing you, but I would like you to hurry with the departure preparations."
"Mm! Understood. Great Storm told me to help you. You may take anything that belongs to our tribe. But there is one condition. I wish to welcome you for today. Prepare from now, and depart tomorrow morning."
They were unfamiliar strangers, but they were his daughter's benefactors and, at the same time, people whom Great Storm—the tribe's guardian deity—had made warriors.
Moreover, they had even presented a solution to Red Gale's own illness, which had left him helpless. Strangers or not, Yuder and Cordelia were already friends of the Great Storm tribe.
The reason Haragen, an executive of the Devil's Eye, had tried to eliminate Red Gale was not simply because he was a powerful warrior.
The human charm born of his upright and righteous character, along with his strong bonds with the wild gods, was enough to make him a focal point for the barbarian tribes.
"Understood. We will do so."
"Good. White Frost will guide you."
When Red Gale finished speaking and clapped his hands a few times, a young man who had been waiting outside the door entered.
He was a handsome young man with white hair, just like his name.
"Guide them to the supply storehouse. Give them whatever they want."
"I will. Please come this way."
The moment White Frost answered Red Gale, he turned to Yuder and Cordelia and led the way. The two followed him toward the supply storehouse with mounting excitement.
And about thirty more minutes.
"Wow, there's so much cool stuff."
"Barbarian weapons were rare even in the Hero Legend series."
Most of the equipment was things they had never seen before.
"First, let's swap out all our armor."
"Yeah, the dwarf-made stuff stands out too much."
The ancient dwarven work clothes they had picked up at Frost Anvil performed well, but their color was a problem.
They were going to be running around madly on white snowfields from now on, and yellow stood out too much.
"Most of it's made from bone or fur."
"It's like equipment from Monster Hunter."
Thanks to Winter's Blessing, the two of them were relatively free from the cold, so rather than bundling up heavily, they chose equipment with mobility in mind.
Another ten or so minutes passed like that. Cordelia suddenly spoke in an energetic voice.
"This! This is it! I want this!"
"What's got you so excited?"
Yuder turned around without thinking and gasped.
"How do I look, Young Master? Cute, right? So cute you can't even breathe, right?"
Cordelia said impishly, and Yuder neither affirmed nor denied it.
Because she really was cute.
Cordelia was wearing white rabbit ears on her head.
To be precise, it was a headband with rabbit ears attached to it—the sort of cute accessory commonly seen in JRPGs.
"They say the barbarian tribes draw shamanistic power from animal-shaped equipment, and I guess it's true. The rabbit set boosts agility and even improves your jumping ability. Good choice."
"Don't change the subject. Here, there's one for you too."
Cordelia giggled and held out another pair of rabbit ears.
"Me too?"
"Yeah, you too."
When Yuder hesitated, Cordelia clicked her tongue at him and spoke.
"It's fine, it's fine. Yuder's a pretty boy, so it'll suit you."
"I was good-looking in my past life too, you know?"
"Sure you were."
Cordelia brushed it off casually and placed the rabbit-ear headband on the hesitating Yuder's head.
"Wow, it suits you. It totally suits you. Our Yuder is so pretty."
"Saying that with a face that looks like you're dying of laughter isn't very convincing, you know?"
"But still—pfft—the stats are, heh heh, good, right?"
She had a point. For Yuder and Cordelia, who prioritized evasion over defense, the rabbit set that enhanced agility and leg strength was truly useful. The only problem was that it was a little embarrassing.
"It's okay, Young Master. I'll wear mine too. If we do it together, it's not embarrassing."
"Sure you will."
Yuder answered sullenly and looked around for other things, but unfortunately he couldn't find equipment more useful than the rabbit set.
"That's enough for armor. Let's grab some weapons."
"Is there anything better than the Sword of the Eastern Warrior? The barbarian tribes don't really use swords."
The barbarian tribes preferred large weapons like axes and spears over swords.
Even Red Wind's specialty was spearmanship, and according to the setting, Red Gale used a massive halberd.
"Still, it's free."
"True. We should at least look for something."
As expected, large weapons were the main stock, so they couldn't find anything suitable as a primary weapon, but Yuder and Cordelia instead grabbed several decent daggers and hand axes.
"I have the Heavenly Martial Body, after all."
"Yes, yes, Mr. Heavenly Martial Body who's good at anything physical. Last but not least, equip this."
What Cordelia held out was a white, round ball of fluff.
"What's this?"
"A rabbit tail."
The finishing touch of the rabbit set.
Yuder's face darkened, and as if in contrast, Cordelia's face brightened.
* * *
The schedule after that went smoothly.
Yuder and Cordelia went to Great Storm's altar and retrieved the Arrow of Winged Wind, then attended the modest banquet Red Gale had prepared. The next morning, they left the Great Storm tribe's village.
"It would be good for you to learn fire spirit arts. Great Storm also said that would suit your aptitude. Spearmanship is good, but try practicing archery too. You'll see results."
It was Red Wind's optimal build, created through countless experiments by numerous rankers on Hero Legend Tales.
At Yuder and Cordelia's earnest advice, Red Wind nodded her head several times, saying she understood.
And ten or so minutes later.
Yuder suddenly stopped in place, then turned around and spoke.
"Miss Cordelia."
"Yes, Mister Yuder?"
"Why do you keep hanging back?"
"Because this way I get a perfect view of your tail."
When Yuder's expression stiffened, Cordelia laughed brightly and continued.
"Okay, okay. I'll take the lead for a while. Look at my tail and cheer up."
"No thanks."
"You say no thanks, so why are you coming behind me?"
"For fairness?"
"Bullshit."
In the end, the two of them walked side by side as usual.
The mission given by Great Storm was to investigate Rough Avalanche's sanctuary.
But the two of them had one more objective.
"We're going there, right?"
"We should stop by."
In the Hero Legend series, there were almost no opportunities to travel the Wild Lands.
The only real opportunities were early in Kirara's scenario and during Red Wind's homecoming arc, and even the homecoming arc restricted where the player could go.
'They said all regions would be opened in the final expansion.'
And perhaps because of that, there were several areas that you couldn't visit but clearly had something in them.
The place Yuder and Cordelia were concerned about was one of them.
During Red Wind's homecoming arc, there was even a line saying, 'There seems to be something here,' yet the player still could not enter the area.
It happened to be near the road to Rough Avalanche's sanctuary, so they planned to stop there first.
'If my guess is right... there should be ruins of Solari there.'
Ruins of Solari, the Sun God.
The Solari ruins scattered across the continent followed certain rules, and according to the hypothesis Yuder had established, several Solari ruins also existed in the Wild Lands.
And quite naturally, the places that couldn't be visited in the game and the places where Yuder predicted Solari ruins would exist were located at the same positions on the map.
"Let's go quickly."
"Yeah, let's go."
But neither of them moved beyond pretending to take a step. Each was secretly planning to walk behind the other.
"Just look at how your mind works."
"You and I are the same, you know?"
In the end, the two of them walked side by side again this time.
And at the same time, in a completely different place.
There was likewise a man and woman bickering with each other.
* * *
"What did you just say?"
"They've definitely crossed the border."
Adelia, who had appeared before Gale while he was doing his morning training in the lodging's yard, spoke with an excited face.
"The signal keeps getting farther away. Even at this very moment, they're moving north."
Gale and Adelia were currently in Vedrfolnir, the gateway to Count Hraesvelgr's territory.
Considering that it had taken Yuder and Cordelia nearly half a month to travel from Langesthei to Vedrfolnir, it was truly an incredible speed.
But it wasn't enough. Yuder and Cordelia were still far too distant.
And on top of that, they had gone and crossed the border entirely.
"You're saying Yuder and Miss Cordelia crossed into the Wild Lands?"
"That's what I'm saying! How many times do I have to tell you!"
Adelia took a deep breath after shouting, then drew herself up and continued.
"This isn't the time to quibble over this and that. We need to cross the border too."
There was an enormous difference between traveling within the Saelun Kingdom and roaming the Wild Lands beyond the border.
The Wild Lands.
The land of savage and brutal barbarians.
The Saelun Kingdom had been fighting the barbarian tribes for hundreds of years already.
'Yuder, you bastard!'
If he was going to drag her around, the least he could do was take her somewhere nice. Instead, he had dragged Cordelia into that living hell?
No matter how she looked at it, it was unforgivable. Whether Cordelia objected or Father objected, once Adelia caught him, the engagement was over.
"I'll go even if I have to go alone, so keep that in mind."
"Let's hurry."
"Huh?"
"I said let's hurry."
Gale did not merely say it. He went straight back to his room and returned less than a few minutes later with all his belongings packed.
"First, the fact that Yuder and Lady Cordelia crossed the border must be kept secret. If they find out we're trying to cross the border too, the Count Hraesvelgr household will interfere somehow."
House Hraesvelgr was the margrave house charged with guarding the border.
There was no way they would readily allow the leader of the ravens to cross the border.
"Wait, you mean cross secretly?"
"Were you planning to cross openly?"
At Gale's counter-question, Adelia momentarily lost her words and blinked.
Because Gale was right.
Crossing the border legally required various procedures.
Moreover, House Hraesvelgr had already been thoroughly embarrassed thanks to Yuder and Cordelia. They were unlikely to willingly invite another headache.
If Gale and Adelia got into trouble beyond the border, House Hraesvelgr would inevitably face repercussions, large or small, for having allowed them to cross.
But even so, Adelia couldn't help but be flustered.
"Are you sure it's okay?"
"Ah, you mean the method of crossing the border? You don't need to worry about that. The Count Bayel household knows everything there is to know about the wall that divides the north. When it comes to routes for secretly crossing the border, I alone know at least ten."
"Ah, no. That's not what I meant."
This wasn't just hopping over the neighbor's fence.
They were talking about crossing the border—the northern wall that bordered the Wild Lands, no less.
From the past few days of traveling together, Adelia had come to know Gale as an upright, diligent man.
He never skipped his morning training even on the road, never showed how tired he was no matter how hard things got, and followed the rules in everything he did whether anyone was watching or not. He was diligence personified.
But that man was now suggesting they secretly cross the border.
And through a secret route known to the Count Bayel household, no less.
"Then is there some other problem?"
"Well... no, there's no problem at all."
She had expected him to object.
Or to suggest asking the Count Hraesvelgr household for help.
"Then let's depart right away."
Before she quite knew what was happening, Gale had even had horses brought out from the stable. Still trying to catch up with events, Adelia found herself mounted and galloping after him.
Unexpected drive.
A man who was not merely diligent. No—he was diligent, but he also knew how to judge what truly mattered.
"We'll change horses at Rugenboost! I've already contacted them in advance, so we won't lose any time!"
And meticulously prepared, too.
'He's dependable.'
He might resemble her older brother a little.
Adelia, who had slightly raised her assessment of Gale, smiled a little without realizing it, then soon refocused on riding.
She rode her horse toward the north.