Chapter 250: Prelude
Translator: RaidenTL
Chapter 250: Prelude
The atmosphere was so tense it felt like a fight could break out at any moment. Goff grinned as if this would be fun, while the Queen of the North stared back at him with an incredibly resolute gaze. I glanced at Jang Ye Ri, the host of this meeting, but she was just watching the situation in silence, which only made me more flustered.
Just as things were about to explode, Choi Seulgi quietly spoke to the Queen of the North, Han So-Hye.
“We didn’t come here to fight today, Your Majesty.”
With the situation on a knife’s edge, I tapped Goff’s arm. Realizing he’d gotten carried away, he scratched the back of his head. I could understand his fighting spirit. I felt the urge to fight, too, so it was only natural that he would as well.
As a strange silence fell over the room, it was the Queen of the North who spoke first.
“Hmm… yes. Unni—no, Choi Seulgi is right. We did not come here to fight today. In that case, how about this? Let us exchange a single blow. Try to strike me. If I can withstand your attack, it is my victory. If I cannot, it is yours.”
“..............................................”
For a moment, Goff’s face went completely blank. Even I was staring at the Queen of the North in astonishment, but Choi Seulgi’s expression was remarkably composed.
For Goff, this was undoubtedly a blow to his pride. A small human woman was essentially boasting that she could take a strike delivered with his full power. Ogres were already dozens of times stronger than humans. Even the old Goff was powerful, but a blow from the current Goff would force even me to endure significant damage. I was certain that in a pure contest of strength, not even the former Great Tribe Leader Agar could have handled him.
She didn’t say she would dodge it; she said she would withstand it. It was all the more bewildering.
“An interesting human… You could die.”
“That is what makes it all the more interesting.”
I flicked my tail to send a signal to Choi Seulgi, but she just winked back as if to tell me not to worry. My stomach churned. The last thing I wanted was for Han So-Hye to get beaten to a pulp and ruin our relationship with the North.
But she was confident. The North Knight nodded as well, seemingly certain that the Queen of the North could take Goff’s blow.
It was clearly a form of entertainment. Goff stood up, a look of amusement on his face.
No one tried to stop them. Not Park Han Cheol, and not Jang Ye Ri. To be honest, I wanted to intervene, but seeing Jang Ye Ri sitting there quietly, I figured she must have a plan, so I kept my mouth shut as well.
He wouldn’t strike with his full strength. But if she failed to block it, she would be severely injured at the very least. Her body may have been trained to its limits, but she was still human. The North Knight seemed to feel the same, but just in case something went wrong, I slowly began to circulate my magic circuits. If I judged that Han So-Hye couldn’t block it, I would intervene immediately. Before I had even finished my preparations, Han So-Hye spoke.
“Now. Come at me as you please.”
“Krrrrrrk…”
The moment she finished speaking, Goff shot forward. In an instant, he threw a formless punch.
The heavy energy emanating from his arm and his writhing muscles told me that Goff was putting a fair amount of sincerity into this. The power contained within it felt like enough to lightly blow away this entire area. That fist held not some ambiguous emotion like mercy, but pure combat.
Jang Ye Ri released her magic to prepare for the impact that was about to hit the tent.
As Goff’s fist descended, the Queen of the North, Han So-Hye, rose to her feet in a flash. The motion of her drawing the spear from her back was so swift it made me doubt my own eyes. The fist fell toward her entire body.
He had only swung his fist, yet I could hear the sound of the air shattering. The sound was like a meteor falling, and for a moment, I thought to myself that I wouldn’t want to take that punch head-on.
The Queen of the North thrust her spear toward the fist.
A massive gust of wind erupted for a split second, but the tent wasn’t overturned. The magic Jang Ye Ri had released beforehand had done its job.
What was truly strange was…
‘There was no sound.’
Literally, I heard no sound of the fist and spear colliding. Normally, there should have been a tremendous roar. The answer was obvious. She had absorbed the impact.
Her movements and posture as she thrust the spear, the flow and timing of her magic—at the moment she received Goff’s punch, she lowered her body in the direction his fist was falling. It wasn’t just her body; her magic did the same. Every muscle and all the magic in her body moved to receive Goff’s punch.
It was a technique of absurd skill.
A massive attack carrying all of Goff’s weight and strength had been blocked in the most unbelievable way.
Thud.
Crack—
The spear, which had been stuck to Goff’s fist like a magnet, finally made light contact with the table in the center. The table shattered without a trace.
‘No way…’
It was the pinnacle of skill. I stared at the Queen of the North in genuine shock, and Goff was no different. Black Spear’s jaw was hanging open. Having witnessed Goff’s monstrous strength from the closest proximity, his reaction was understandable.
If she had failed, she would have died or been severely injured at the very least.
“I almost died. Had the timing been off by even a little, it would have been dangerous.”
The fact that she said it so casually was even more astonishing.
“I think some of my internal organs are a bit damaged. If you have a decent priest, I would appreciate some healing.”
Her nonchalant expression as she spoke was simply dumbfounding. Goff’s large fangs remained parted.
He hadn’t lost his honor, like me; he had lost his words.
I tapped Goff’s leg, and only then did he quietly sit back down. It was a rather embarrassing moment. I was struck anew by how truly incredible the Queen of the North was. It was a method I could never imitate. A task requiring such fine control was naturally impossible for me.
It was likely the result of millions of repetitions, but what was even more astounding was that she had maintained her composure in the face of that fist. I looked at Goff again and saw blood dripping from a wound on his arm, which only made my blood run hotter.
‘She’s strong.’
She was exactly the ideal I had imagined the Queen of the North to be—no, she was even more than that.
As if sensing my gaze, the Queen of the North looked at me with an amused expression while receiving a priest’s holy power.
“Haha. It’s been a while. Care for a round?”
“I’ll take you up on that after all this is over.”
Her eyes were sparkling. Jang Ye Ri watched us for a moment before speaking.
“Then, let’s get down to business…”
“No, there’s no need for that. We will move with the Green Skins. They are trustworthy. Let’s cut the chatter and get straight to the point. I will trust the words of the Queen of the East. The East is our ally. There’s no need to be cautious when you’ve introduced us to such fine warriors to fight alongside. Kang Changhoon, Seo Yeonju, Choi Seulgi, I will not permit any objections.”
There were no protests.
The North Knight, who had seemed displeased with Han So-Hye’s words, nodded, as did Seo Yeonju, the Master of the Frost Dragon Guild, who had been watching us with a look of constant amusement. I didn’t know how simply exchanging a single blow led to the conclusion that we were trustworthy, but the Queen of the North’s expression was quite serious.
Seeing that, the thought that instantly dominated my mind was that the Queen of the North was one of us. I didn’t know how, but her way of thinking was closer to a Green Skin’s than a human’s. I thought it would be a good idea to ask her what she did on Earth when I had the time.
She was a warrior and a good leader.
There was an expectation that the path she chose would always be the right one. The expressions of the North Knight and Seo Yeonju proved as much. Whatever the reason, once a decision was made, they followed. Of course, I still had no idea how the ordinary people of the North would accept the Green Skins, but I could predict that, at the very least, the warriors who followed her would accept us.
“I will ask one thing.”
“....................................”
“I heard that the Green Skins also respect the struggles of humans.”
“Mm.”
“I am curious as to why the Green Skins of the Brother’s Land wish to involve themselves in a human fight.”
She looked incredibly expectant.
I wasn’t sure, but it seemed like she was waiting for an answer like, “We want to fight alongside you.” Just as I opened my mouth to give her the answer she wanted, a voice came from a completely different direction.
“The reason is that I am carrying his child in my belly.”
It was Jang Ye Ri.
“Huh?”
Han So-Hye stared at Jang Ye Ri with a dazed expression. Seeing Jang Ye Ri’s incredibly proud face gave me a rather strange feeling. Although we had already decided to be on the same side, carrying a Green Skin’s child might not necessarily be something to be proud of. Of course, she wasn’t human, but they didn’t know that.
“How… how scandalous…”
“I don’t know what you’re thinking, but it is merely the result of love, Queen of the North.”
“I… I see.”
Han So-Hye suddenly fell silent. She was even blushing. I didn’t know what she was imagining, but she seemed embarrassed.
I wasn’t certain, but it felt like she was puffing out her cheeks. She had a surprisingly cute side. It seemed she was quite disappointed that she didn’t get the answer she wanted. Not only that, but I got the strong impression that she was a little sulky.
“Understood.”
She had suddenly reverted to one-word-answer mode.
She must be thinking that we’d neglected our training or let our discipline slip. As Han So-Hye suddenly clammed up, Choi Seulgi naturally began to lead the meeting, but thanks to Han So-Hye, I suddenly felt uncomfortable being here.
Still, I couldn’t just not participate in the meeting, so we began to talk in earnest. Although Han So-Hye and Goff had both forgotten how to speak, things seemed to proceed much more smoothly without those two.
The most important issue was the movements of the West and the South.
When the North showed signs of moving its troops to the East, we received intelligence that they, too, were spreading out their forces and advancing eastward. It was impossible not to notice that they were quite determined.
“It’s just as we discussed before.”
“That’s right. The Queen of the East was correct. It seems they intend to draw a large line between the West and the East. There’s a high probability they’re aiming for a long war.”
“A long war is…”
Disadvantageous. To begin with, the resources of the West and South were on a different level from the wintery North or the swampy East. The East wasn’t completely without resources, but compared to the West, which had the best environment, our situation was clearly not favorable.
They had probably blocked any transactions with the black money Jang Gi Young had accumulated. It was obvious they had been preparing for this for a long time. I looked at the two of them and spoke.
“A prolonged war is not a welcome situation. It’s not something we need to worry too much about, but…”
The North Knight responded to my words.
“We can hold out for a few years. For now, maintaining the front line is the best course of action. We didn’t necessarily need the Green Skins’ help, but seeing your warriors, it seems that even if we are outnumbered, we won’t be outmatched in quality. They have a large army and will likely be wary of guerrilla tactics, so there’s a high chance they will enter the plains rather than the jungle.”
“It would be best to maintain the front line around there. We should build a wall.”
“A wall?”
It wasn’t something that could be built in a short time. As I voiced my curiosity, Han So-Hye spoke up again.
“Have you forgotten?”
At her words, I searched my memory, and something definitely came to mind. I smiled. During the Tutorial, Goff and I had certainly broken through one of the Queen of the North’s walls. It was a rather pleasant memory.