Battle in the City (2)
Sergei added, “Just counting the worshippers of the hero Isabelle is enough to go beyond domestic and foreign borders. Whether she is evil or good now doesn’t matter. If you could be with her, that alone would be glory. Some madmen.”
Cloud muttered with a stunned expression. “Unbelievable… The witch wasn’t a goddess, she was human. What could have turned her from good to evil?” Questions swirled inside his head. After the cigarette was finished, Sergei stood up, picked up the white gloves and musket rifle from the servants, and prepared to leave. “Stay away from Valua Castle as much as possible. Tonight that place is the most dangerous. If the witch sent only pyres here, then here they sent quite sizable fellows. To bring down Count Aaron.”
The moment the words left his mouth, Silvia’s face flashed in Cloud’s mind. His heart grew uneasy. “Then best of luck to you. Don’t die.”
“I hope you have good business too.”
After the farewell, Sergei left the castle with his servants in carriages and carts. Cloud stood alone for a moment, lost in thought, then turned to Elena. “A place where the two of us can go together has appeared.”
“Where?”
Cloud looked up at the hill in the center of the city. The place where the most dragons were wreaking havoc was Valua Castle.
*** Thirty-seven years ago, in the Rotia Kingdom Calendar Year 55, December. The Ten-Year War was still raging. Ophelia, acting under the king’s orders, led her army to suppress the invading Elzland forces in the southeast of the Rotia Kingdom. While scouting the terrain in the snow-covered, pristine landscape before the battle, she discovered a village on the map. She asked her aide who followed her. “What is the name of that village? It doesn’t appear on the map. You should know since you’re from this region, Aaron?”
“It is a village called Yoronda.”
“Yoronda… that sounds like a god’s name.”
“Before the village was built, there was a very beautiful lake in this area. One day, the goddess Yoronda passed by this place, saw the lake, and was so moved that she started coming down from the sky to take baths here. That is the legend. After the lake dried up, people came and built a village on that spot. They named it Yoronda after the legend.”
After listening to Aaron’s explanation, Ophelia smiled warmly. “It sounds like a story straight out of a fairy tale.”
White breath escaped from her lips in the cold. Aaron gazed at the village and made a vow. “When this long war ends, I will definitely return home and turn that old village into a prosperous city.” And that city was born—Valua.
Galatea, the deputy commander of the Witch Legion and a woman with white hair and deep brown skin, appeared in the vast garden inside Valua Castle. Her heavily armored soldiers noticed her and immediately charged. “Kill the witch!”
Galatea twisted the middle of the Lance in her hands. It split perfectly in two, and she gripped each half. She dashed straight at the soldiers and plunged into their center. Her fearless charge caused the soldiers to scatter left and right in panic. They drew their weapons and swung them down. But Galatea easily parried all the attacks. The two halves of the Lance whirled like a dance, deflecting every weapon. Galatea unleashed a fierce aura. As she spoke a spell, a whirlwind rose from the ground where the soldiers stood. Grass was uprooted, helmets were stripped, and weapons were dropped in a daze. It wasn’t even a battle—it was one-sided slaughter by a superior fighter. Before long, blood flowed across the green grass. “If you face me, don’t even think about going back alive!”
After defeating the soldiers, the escort captain Fred appeared. As soon as he spoke, he rushed like lightning and swung his halberd at Galatea with full force. Galatea barely leaned her upper body back. The swing passed right beside her nose, making a dull whoosh sound. “Damn, it was a little short!” Fred scowled at his missed strike, but didn’t stop. He changed the direction of the halberd and swung it downward. “Yaaaah!” The old man’s battle cry echoed through the night sky. He had enough power to split the enemy in two. But Galatea dodged by flipping in mid-air and retreated far behind him. His attack was in vain. “Damn it!” Galatea’s cat-like eyes gleamed in the darkness. She twisted the ends of the Lance that had split into two. The Lance rejoined into one, regaining its original long shape. Fred roared. “You brat! I will give you one last chance to choose! Surrender to me here, or else…”
He pointed the halberd at Galatea’s face. “Your head will roll!” Galatea’s black robes fluttered in the night wind. She stared at Fred with unwavering eyes. “What my master commanded was only one thing—kill Aaron di Valua, the lord. Surrender is not an option.”
“What about our lord? You brat! How dare you spout such nonsense! I can’t forgive you!” Fred’s eyes burned with the ferocity of a beast. He gripped the halberd with both hands and charged with a savage momentum. Galatea also moved at almost the same time. The two of them closed in and swung their weapons. Clang! The Lance and halberd met with a metallic sound and sparks flew. They exchanged blows again and again, sparks flying nonstop. Fred’s strikes were terrifying, as if telling of his long life. His body burned with the prestige of an old warrior. Every time the spear and Lance clashed, Galatea’s legs were pushed back by the overwhelming force. Fred had absolute superiority in both power and skill. And… “It’s over!” With a cool swing, Galatea struck the Lance with all her might. She couldn’t withstand the shock and dropped the weapon. The Lance spun in the air and flew into the night sky. “Hahaha! Prepare yourselves!” Galatea leaped backward in retreat after losing her weapon. But Fred wouldn’t allow such an action. He charged forward and pursued fiercely. Fred was a legendary hero who had experienced countless battles in the past. He never let go of a victory once he had it. This was the time to decide. He charged with a fierce momentum toward the victory right before his eyes. But Galatea’s expression in her predicament wasn’t one of anxiety. “If you think you won, you’re mistaken.”
“What?!” At that moment, Fred sensed something and quickly turned around. Four spears flew at him from the empty air. The Lance that was thought to have been thrown far away split into four and came stabbing toward his body. Clang! One was deflected. Clang! Two more. Then the last two simultaneously. The moment Galatea turned around again, her long white hair whipped violently. She gathered both hands over her chest and waited, having created a mass of dark magic. She looked at Fred with a more wicked smile. “Farewell.”
“You damned witch!” It was too close to dodge. The dark magic mass struck Fred’s abdomen directly. For a moment, the dark power enveloped his entire body, draining his life away. Fred collapsed weakly to the ground. He died like a mummified husk. Galatea picked up the Lance and walked again. As she crossed the quiet garden littered with corpses, a purple flash sliced through the air like lightning and cut her shoulder. Her right arm was severed clean from the shoulder. Blood flowed from the fallen arm onto the grass. Galatea stood upright in place without even screaming in pain, and calmly looked back. Before she could even understand the situation, another half-moon-shaped purple flash came flying again. This time Galatea quickly dodged and rolled on the ground. She stopped rolling, propped herself up with one hand, and looked up. She carefully looked at the trees planted in the garden. Soon a majestic voice came from them. “How dare you enter this place!” At the same time, a figure slowly emerged from the darkness. She wore sleek white armor and held a purple crystal-like staff in one hand. She had a slender beauty, but her face showed firm resolve and unyielding will. Her long blonde hair fluttered in the wind as she stopped in front of Galatea. She spoke boldly. “I am Silvia Cara di Valua, knight of the Rotia Kingdom. I will hold you responsible for everything!”
Galatea stared at her quietly and opened her dry lips. “Are you the daughter of Lord Aaron?” Blood continued to flow from the shoulder where her arm had been cut. Galatea immediately created a blazing blue flame in her hand and burned the flesh on the opposite shoulder to stop the bleeding. At the same time, her gaze turned to the sword Silvia held. The sword that gave off a clear, blue glow under the cold moonlight. “That isn’t a normal sword.”
“Indeed. One of the swords left in the world after the master smith Heto died, and it is the Light Saber, the sword that kills immortal demons!” Silvia declared, pointing her sword. “I will split both your body and your remaining arm in half. Prepare yourself!”