Chapter 324: The Dead
Translator: RaidenTL
Chapter 324: The Dead
Training and meetings continued. The bastards from the Winter Weasel Clan, who had caused a stir at the last meeting, were now training more desperately than anyone at the front lines; it was almost comical. Even the Green Skins were surprised by their fervor.
It likely stemmed from the belief that they wouldn’t survive otherwise, but they were certainly lifting the mood of the training grounds. The other clans were the same. After Choi Seulgi said she had to step out for a moment, they stopped raising objections in the meetings and were busy enthusiastically agreeing with Han So-Hye.
It didn’t seem like she had threatened them, so there must have been some kind of deal.
Han So-Hye certainly wasn’t a perfect monarch. She was the type of person people wanted to follow, the type who made them follow, but she lacked skill in the art of ruling. That was likely the area where she relied on Choi Seulgi.
Our Blood Dagger Clan was formed into a unit that functioned as a rapid response force. We weren’t positioned directly on the front lines, but were created to provide support wherever the line was breached and to prepare for any unforeseen circumstances.
“Are the children well?”
“Yes, Chief!”
“Yes, Taesung.”
“Laveua and Lapura are both doing fine. Come to think of it, Laveua had something she wanted me to give you… Hehehe.”
From the way Mev handed me a small note with such a cheerful voice, I could guess what it was. Laveua had sent a letter.
[Go, Daddy! I hope you come back without getting hurt. Oh! And Abar had her pups again. I got to choose one this time, so I’m really happy. Hehe. There are so many things I want to show you when you get back! Come back soon!]
A smile spread across my face. Even though they were written words, not spoken, I felt as if I could hear her voice. Seeing my pleased smile, Jung Hayeon also handed me a note.
[I am always grateful, Father. Please do not get hurt, and I hope you can conclude this important battle. I am truly sorry that I am still too young to be of any help.]
It was a simple letter, but I liked this one just as much. This was a feeling I’d never known before. Having something to protect gives you even more strength. As I smiled happily once more, both Mev and Jung Hayeon smiled gently.
It was a little disappointing that I hadn’t received a letter from Ratga, but I figured that by the time this long battle was over, he, like the others, would have grown enough to speak and write. In fact, I wasn’t the only one reading letters.
Orbo of the Shield was also clutching a charm of sorts that his son had given him. Orbo’s child, who was growing into a fine shaman, was already showing the qualities of a high-level practitioner, just as he had in my past life. I was sure that charm would be effective.
“Mev, Jung Hayeon, Choi Eunju, Baek Ahyeon, thank you all.”
At my words, they all nodded. Some had been with me from the very beginning, others for a little while, and though our busy schedules often prevented us from having deep conversations, they were all important to me.
The same went for all the other tribe members.
“Looks like you got a gift, Orbo.”
“Mm. A gift from my son.”
As a father, he was my senior. When I smiled, Orbo nodded as if he understood what I meant. Looking around, everyone was waiting for the coming battle in their own way.
Some read letters during their break, some stared at drawings of their acquaintances or wives, some offered prayers, and some laughed to chase away their fear. Each to their own.
But I believed everyone’s heart was the same.
We are preparing to fight.
We are waiting for the enemy, facing the winter wind atop the high walls.
No grand speeches or morale-boosting words had been spoken yet. But humans and Green Skins alike were quietly waiting for the time to come.
Time spent busy flies by. Even the Big Ogre, who had been preoccupied with drinking with the humans, slowly began to cut back. The Orcs from the South and the Werewolves from the North grew unusually quiet.
Goff, Black Spear, and I spent a lot of time with our tribe members, as we always did.
After a little more time passed, the humans and Green Skins grew closer. There were incidents—fights or minor squabbles—but the two races had come to recognize each other as comrades-in-arms.
They stood guard together, endured the cold together, and overcame it together.
It might seem like a trivial, even childish sentiment at first glance, but these moments made us stronger, made us more solid.
It was the same for Choi Seulgi, Han So-Hye, and the other Northerners. Jang Ye Ri, worried about the battlefield in her absence, sent periodic communications. Her occasional stories about Ratga were a pleasant diversion in the tedious hours.
[Ratga said his first word today. He said ‘Mama.’ It’s a shame you aren’t here.]
[That’s a shame. Is Ratga doing well?]
[He is doing very well. A Green Skin child certainly grows fast. He doesn’t throw tantrums and rarely cries. He doesn’t even wake his mother from her sleep, so he must be thinking of me. This won’t do…]
The connection with Jang Ye Ri cut off for a moment, and then I heard Ratga’s voice. Jang Ye Ri must have been channeling her magic into the ring for him, as I could hear his voice intermittently.
[Ah… ooh…]
It didn’t sound like he was about to speak at all. Jang Ye Ri must have misheard.
[My mate. Didn’t he just call me Mama again?]
[I definitely heard it too.]
I played along, and I could feel her immense joy. The more I heard stories and the voices of my sons and daughters, the more a single emotion grew in my mind: the desire to protect.
I wished that my children, my family, and everything I had built would not fall.
As one day, then two, passed, the tension mounted. Everyone sensed that the curtain was about to be lifted.
The humans began to pray, and the Green Skins grew excited for the coming battle.
When another day passed, I could see the curtain slowly disappearing. I couldn’t make out the situation beyond the hazy veil, but amidst the rising tension, Han So-Hye stood on a platform and began to speak.
It was a simple speech.
“None of us know why we were brought here. Humans and Green Skins, Green Skins and humans, have fought continuously on this continent. Some for personal gain, some out of instinct, some to become stronger. We have fought.”
As Choi Seulgi and I listened to her voice, we exchanged a few words.
“She’s a good speaker.”
“Right? It was the same in our past life. The Queen of the North is the Queen of the North.”
“This continent holds many things. It holds history. Your friends, your children, your comrades-in-arms, and those you respect and love have lived and died, leaving their mark on this continent. Today, we have gathered to protect these things. The two races have gathered to protect the continent where we live and will continue to live. This is a small but giant step.”
“Later! After time has passed! This battle, too, will be recorded in history. And! The day will come when our descendants will take up swords and spears to protect our history! What we must protect are the descendants who will remember us, the children who will watch and learn from this history.”
The hazy curtain continued to recede. Everyone stomped their feet on the ground, and it felt as if a great roar was about to erupt.
“I have heard that we call those we can fight alongside comrades, and those we live alongside brothers. Let us protect it, my brothers.”
“Protect it, my brothers!”
“Protect it, my brothers!!”
It was a decent speech, and the Green Skins roared in response. When the hazy curtain finally vanished from sight, what appeared before our eyes was an incredible number of undead.
I could see the weary, fed-up expressions on the humans' faces. It was truly a feast of endless troops.
Some were skeletons, others were corpses. Their eyes held nothing but hatred and madness for the living. I curled my lip into a smirk.
A battle between the living and the dead was a common cliché straight out of a comic book. The sheer absurdity of being in the middle of that cliché was what made me react. It was surreal to see them take step after step into the space where the hazy curtain had been. And yet, there was no wavering in our forces.
“Protect it, my brothers!”
“For the continent!”
Some shouted as if terrified, while others felt a sense of sublimity and honor.
It was as if they had promised to fight the moment the curtain lifted; they had been preparing, waiting, just as we had.
One by one, they advanced with excruciatingly slow steps.
The undead army approached so slowly. Just as I was feeling a sense of unreality, I suddenly felt a massive wave of magic.
“Prepare protective magic.”
As per the manual, chants to counter the magic erupted from all over. We didn’t know what kind of spell it was. We cast every possible type of magic we could.
“................................!”
What burst forth was a black wind. It wasn’t sharp, nor was it fast. Contrary to my expectation of a massive fire spell, the magic generated by enough power to shake the ground approached us with incredible slowness.
But the moment I saw it with my own eyes, I couldn’t help but scream.
“Block it!!! Block it!!!!!”
Of course, Han So-Hye’s words from the first meeting came to mind like a prophecy.
‘We are not the only ones preparing. From what I’ve heard, they too possess intelligence. You must realize that the hazy curtain covering this place is not here to give us time.’
At my shout, a holy barrier erupted, trying to somehow block the black wind, but it was not enough. No, it wasn’t the kind of magic that could be blocked in the first place. The black wind passed through the shields of holy power and magic with far too much ease, pouring forth as if to swallow the entire continent. Those touched by the wind looked down at their bodies with expressions that said nothing was wrong. It wasn’t a type of magic that harmed the human body.
But…
I could only bite my lip as I watched the magic continue to spread across the continent.
My thoughts—no, our thoughts—had been wrong. They were far, far smarter than we had imagined.
“Kieeeeeeeeeeeek!”
The moment the black wind passed through the castle walls, they charged.
“Goddammit… Choi Eunju!”
“Y-Yes, husband.”
“We’re going to the settlement right now. Quickly.”
“What? B-But… right… right now…”
“The Blood Dagger Clan will remain here. I am the only one going to the settlement. No, Sand Glave will go as well. Sand Glave will go to the Land of Glory, and I will go to the East. We’ll also form teams to send to the clans and cities with relatively weak defenses. I know it will be difficult, but I’m counting on you.”
Choi Eunju nodded at my voice.
Choi Seulgi looked at me as if asking what was wrong, and Mev and Jung Hayeon stared at me with shocked eyes. Gark, Orbo of the Shield, the Goblin Three Sisters—everyone who had been on standby with me swallowed nervously, looking at my urgent state. This was the first time I had shown them such anxiety. But with no way of knowing the exact situation at the Brother’s Land, I couldn’t help but be anxious.
I couldn’t explain the exact situation. But having seen the information on that black wind with my new eyes, I couldn’t just laugh it off. I opened my mouth to address those looking at me.
My voice flowed out, heavy and cutting through the monstrous screams of the charging undead. Hearing it, Mev and Jung Hayeon collapsed to the ground with horrified expressions.
“The dead will rise again.”
It was, without a doubt, a wide-range spell that had targeted the entire continent.