The Goddess's Groom
The carriage raced onward without rest for several days.
Thanks to that, they arrived in Raviesque far ahead of schedule.
Heat poured through the window and pricked at their skin.
“This place is on a completely different level from the other cities.”
Stone structures built with practicality in mind filled the city. Grains of sand scattered across the stone pavement crunched underfoot. The harsh conditions showed in the sharp gazes of the passersby.
“Yeah. In the worst way possible.”
Henrik spoke indifferently.
They sold off the bandits’ valuables at a trading post, keeping only the practical items. The merchant, astonished at the sheer quantity, handed over a large pouch of gold coins.
“We’ll leave the luggage here and ditch the carriage.”
Traveling by carriage through the desert was impossible.
However, they ran into an unexpected obstacle.
Iris refused to part with the horse.
She clung to the white horse’s neck, eyes brimming with tears.
“Do we really have to leave Baekseol behind?”
“Baekseol? You even gave the horse a name?”
Iris nodded seriously.
“Just as Kang Yoonsoo gave me a name, I gave one to the horse. Names are very important.”
The white horse snorted as if agreeing with her.
Kang Yoonsoo stared at her for a moment before speaking.
“We’ll leave the carriage at a nearby inn. We can come back for it later.”
“Thank you so much.”
Iris smiled brightly.
Henrik gave him a suspicious look.
“You’re being strangely generous.”
Kang Yoonsoo added,
“No matter how precious something is, you can’t stay together forever.”
“As always, Master Kang Yoonsoo seems to speak only after trying everything first.”
Shanette remarked with curiosity.
Kang Yoonsoo gazed into her eyes for a long moment, then turned away.
The group stopped by the largest treasure hunter clan. Sand-covered hunters were drinking or maintaining their gear.
A middle-aged man seated at the counter asked,
“What do you need?”
“We’re heading to the Extinction Desert.”
“There are plenty of easy ways to kill yourselves. I don’t know why you’d choose such a difficult death.”
The man pulled out some rather old equipment from a storage bin: windproof clothing, a field shovel, a leather pouch, a canteen, a map, a compass, and a simple tent.
He asked in a routine tone,
“First time in the desert?”
“No.”
“Then you should know. Plenty of people go into the desert chasing a quick fortune only to end up as dried bones. Don’t get greedy. If it looks impossible, turn back immediately. Don’t waste a perfectly good life.”
Shanette glanced around at the treasure hunters and asked,
“Are there still many people heading into the Extinction Desert at this time of year?”
“There are always those who’ll go anywhere until they can’t anymore.”
“Is there really that much treasure in the desert?”
“They’re after the remnants of a fallen civilization. You’ll hear plenty of boasts about finding an ancient king’s golden mask or a battle priest’s famed sword. But more than half of them are lies. Rather than hoping for a miracle in that barren desert, you’d be better off sticking to whatever you were doing before.”
Kang Yoonsoo paid for the equipment and left.
The group bought four camels from a merchant. They secured their luggage beneath the camels’ curved backs.
“Let’s go.”
The moment had come to enter the desert in earnest.
* * *
Fifty fire trolls had gathered.
Unlike ordinary trolls, these creatures wielded the power of flames. Simply by assembling, they made the air around them shimmer with heat.
Representatives from each tribe had come together to discuss an important matter.
The troll priest declared,
“We need a groom for the goddess!”
“What is a groom for the goddess?”
“Last night, the goddess Sylphia appeared in my dream! She commanded me to bring a man who would fulfill her request! Therefore, we need a groom for the goddess!”
The fire trolls murmured in awe.
The continent’s goddess Sylphia was a being even trolls revered.
One fire troll stepped forward.
“Then I shall become the goddess’s groom!”
“You fool! That’s impossible!”
The troll priest immediately struck the volunteer on the head.
The struck troll clenched his fists in anger, but the others intervened and calmed him down.
“Only one who can draw the Sword of Divine Oracle is qualified to become the goddess’s groom!”
The troll priest pointed to a sword of pure white form.
Half-buried in a sand-covered rock, only part of its blade and the hilt were visible. Even so, anyone could tell it was no ordinary weapon.
“Then I will draw this sword!”
“Idiot!”
The troll priest struck the same troll on the head again.
It was the same one from before.
Unable to endure it any longer, the troll grabbed a club, but the others desperately held him back.
“To draw the sword, one must first pass the Trial of Salt Fire!”
“We are strong against fire! Our regeneration is excellent too!”
“Yanac is right! The Trial of Salt Fire is nothing to us!”
The troll priest slapped the troll in front of him on the head.
Once again, it was the same one.
The troll called Yanac let out a furious scream, but the priest paid him no attention.
“We cannot become the goddess’s groom!”
“Why not! We also desire the goddess Sylphia’s oracle!”
One troll protested.
The other fire trolls voiced their agreement.
The troll priest shouted,
“Even if you pass the Trial of Salt Fire and draw the sword, you lack the most important qualification!”
“Why!”
“Tell us the reason!”
The troll priest spoke solemnly.
“The goddess’s groom must be handsome!”
“I am extremely handsome! Therefore, I shall become the goddess’s groom!”
“Shameless bastard!”
The priest struck the fire troll on the temple.
By coincidence, it was Yanac again.
“You’ve been hitting only me this whole time!”
Yanac was so upset that tears streamed down his face.
The other fire trolls patted his shoulders and offered clumsy comfort.
“The goddess’s standards of beauty differ from ours! That is why we cannot become her groom!”
“This is racial discrimination!”
“Exactly! Why can’t trolls become the goddess’s groom!”
The fire trolls began protesting fiercely.
The troll priest responded simply.
“Trolls do not match the goddess’s tastes!”
The fire trolls fell into deep shock.
“We cannot produce a groom for the goddess from among ourselves! Therefore, we must kidnap one! Someone who can become the goddess’s groom in our place!”
At their leader’s words, the other trolls stirred.
One troll cried out in horror,
“Kidnapping! That’s a truly vicious and despicable act!”
“Right! It’s disqualifying behavior for a warrior, let alone a troll!”
“Everyone shut up! This is exactly why we can’t become the goddess’s groom!”
The troll priest ground his fangs in frustration.
“Everyone, tell me the worst thing you’ve done this week! The one who has done the worst deed will be given the chance to become the goddess’s groom!”
The fire trolls looked bewildered.
However, realizing an opportunity had arrived, they all began shouting over one another.
“I found a lost child while walking through the desert! I took the child who fainted at the sight of me to a nearby village! Kuhahat! From now on, that village will have to waste food and shelter on a useless parasite!”
“No, I’m the worst! I dug a channel so the desert’s only spring water would flow to another settlement! Now no one can monopolize the spring water!”
Everyone boasted about their misdeeds.
Then Yanac proudly shouted,
“I stepped on and killed an innocent scorpion that was passing by!”
“Ooh!”
The other fire trolls applauded, praising Yanac’s wickedness.
Yanac scratched the back of his head, looking embarrassed.
“Honestly, it wasn’t intentional! I just stepped on it while passing by!”
“Nothing to be ashamed of! You’re bad! You’re fully qualified to become the goddess’s groom!”
A fire troll patted Yanac’s shoulder in encouragement.
The troll priest sighed.
“Trolls are far too innocent! The goddess does not want such a being as her groom! One must know at least a little of the world’s ways!”
“Then the goddess’s groom is a bad and handsome guy!”
The fire trolls murmured among themselves.
“A bad and handsome guy! I don’t understand why females like that sort of thing!”
“Exactly! A good guy is the best, no matter the looks, but females don’t get it!”
A sudden debate on preferences threatened to break out.
The troll priest frowned and said,
“Anyway, go anywhere in the desert and kidnap someone! Bring back someone worthy of becoming the goddess’s groom!”
“Can’t we just bring one of the elves we’re usually friendly with?”
“That won’t do! Elves meet only one partner in their lifetime! Asking an elf to become the goddess’s groom would be disrespectful! Kidnap someone from another race!”
The fire trolls argued among themselves about whom to kidnap.
But no good result would come of it.
The troll priest grew angry.
“Whoever brings back someone worthy of becoming the goddess’s groom will be made chieftain! So hurry up and go!”
“Ooh!”
The priest’s recommendation was the simplest path to becoming chieftain.
Normally, the standard procedure involved bringing back the talons of a corpse king vulture or the teeth of a giant antlion.
The fire trolls scattered across the Extinction Desert in search of a candidate for the goddess’s groom.
* * *
“It’s hot.”
“It is hot.”
Henrik and Iris were struggling with the heat.
The desert sunlight was murderous.
Though they wore thin windproof clothing to cover their skin, the scorching heat still penetrated.
“Aren’t you two hot?”
Henrik asked Kang Yoonsoo and Shanette across from him.
The two showed no signs of fatigue even under the blazing sun.
“I’m fine because I drank.”
“Ever since I changed classes to Ignus Warrior, I don’t feel the heat much.”
Henrik grimaced.
“Those two aren’t human.”
Even riding camels offered no way to overcome the heat.
A vast desert thick with sand.
The Extinction Desert lived up to its name—a place where living creatures could not easily survive.
“Summon Icicle Acle.”
Kang Yoonsoo summoned the ice spirit.
Acle looked around and immediately flew into a rage.
“Have you lost your mind? How dare you summon me in this scorching desert?”
“I need cold air.”
“Hmph! Why should I listen to you?”
“Crown of Frost.”
The Crown of Frost was the treasure obtained from the Winterkill Ruins.
It enhanced ice magic and was coveted by Acle for its magnificent appearance.
“Tch. You petty bastard.”
Henrik wiped his sweat and frowned.
“Whatever. Ice spirit. Make some nice cool ice like your name says.”
“I can’t make ice here. There’s too little moisture in the air.”
“No, since when did magic care about realistic details like that?”
“Hmph! You can’t even make proper thin ice, yet you talk so much! Our spirits’ magic is restricted by the environment. That’s why I can’t use my power properly in the desert either.”
“Damn, you’re completely useless. An ice lump that’s no help when it’s hot.”
“What did you just say?”
Acle glared fiercely at the mocking Henrik.
At that moment, Iris—who had been exhausted by the heat—embraced Acle like a beast that had found prey.
“Aagh! Get off me right now! You damned woman!”
Acle panicked and struggled, but he couldn’t break free from Iris’s strength.
Iris rubbed her face against Acle’s cheek with a blissful expression.
“Acle is so cool.”
“……Using an ice spirit as a cooling pack has no precedent in continental history.”
Shanette wore an incredulous expression.
Kang Yoonsoo left his noisy companions behind and gazed toward the far side of the desert.
‘First, I need to get that sword.’