< Chapter 39 - Encounter #2 >
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“Ha, now I can live a little.”
Adelia, who had settled into the tent that Gale had made, stretched out her legs and let out a sigh of relief.
Having just been hit by the bitter wind, the presence of a tent to block the wind was invaluable.
“Don’t overdo it. Let’s just rest here today.”
“Yes, Prince Gale. Prince Gale, please come here too. I will cast a spell on you.”
“Thank you. Thanks to you, Miss Adelia, I am living a comfortable life.”
“I’m the one who’s enjoying myself, what is it?”
As Adelia answered with a soft smile, Gail smiled back.
It was a refreshing smile that was very familiar to the people of Count Bayer.
“Then excuse me.”
“yes.”
Adelia answered quietly and waited quietly for Gail to sit next to her.
Count Chase- no, the men of the royal capital blinked several times when they saw her, so different from the usual Adelia, but there was no one here who would care about such things.
“Heat wave.”
As Adelia recited the spell, a hot heat began to fill the tent.
My frozen fingertips began to thaw, and my toes, which had previously felt like rocks, began to feel a tingling sensation and blood began to flow again.
“Ha······.”
As Adelia reflexively let out a voice at the thrilling sensation, Gail laughed softly again and sat up slightly, saying.
“You’d better take off your shoes, because you might get frostbite. I’ll take them off for you.”
“Yes? Uh… yes. Please… please.”
Adelia answered again quietly.
If the king’s subordinates – no, his fellow captains – had seen this, they would have shouted, ‘You evil doppelganger! Where is the real Adelia!’, but it wasn’t a fake. The one standing here right now was the real Adelia.
‘You’re kind.’
Adelia thought as she watched Gail carefully taking off his shoes.
In fact, if it had been the beginning of the trip, Adelia would have harshly pushed away Gail’s kindness, saying, “I have money too. Go away.” But not anymore.
‘Because we’re not nothing, we’re not nothing.’
That day.
A word that Gail uttered as she looked at Adelia with moist eyes.
‘We’re not related… are we?’
That voice, like a wounded lamb, changed everything.
I ended up opening the last lock of my heart that I had been resisting.
“Whew, you’re really frozen. Don’t be too surprised, I’ll give you a massage.”
Gail spoke softly again and began to gently rub Adelia’s feet, and Adelia blushed and pursed her lips.
“It… doesn’t it smell?”
They were in my shoes for a long time while they were wet.
“it’s okay.”
As expected of someone who was born and raised among knights, Gale was secretly not very good at talking in this area.
But in this situation, what was important wasn’t actually the words.
The power of the bean pod was great.
‘You’re so kind······.’
I liked the way he spoke plainly instead of adding all sorts of words.
Moreover, look at those hands and eyes kneading my feet.
Doesn’t it clearly show Gail’s pure concern for Adelia, without any hint of evil intentions?
‘It’s okay to hold it a little.’
Adelia, who had thought about it without realizing it, flinched, and Gail, who misunderstood the stiffness, asked cautiously.
“Are you sick?”
“Oh, no. It’s okay. Thanks to you, I feel so much better.”
Adelia, who tried hard to look calm, quickly took back her feet, and Gail smiled again and took his place next to Adelia.
And Adelia thought.
‘Should I tell him to knead it too?’
No, isn’t that a bit weird?
Should I make some hot water for you to wash your hands?
Snow is everywhere, and heat can be created with magic.
While Adelia was spinning her head around, Gail took off her shoes with her own hands and started rubbing her feet.
“I guess I need to ventilate a bit. Sorry.”
Gale, who spoke in a flustered manner, slightly opened the tightly sealed tent door, and Adelia came to her senses as the cold, fresh air rushed in.
‘Whew, Whew. Calm down, calm down. Adelia.’
It wasn’t like we weren’t related at all, but it wasn’t like we were in a relationship that could be clearly defined.
‘Okay, calm down. Calm down, Adelia.’
Adelia took a deep breath and regained her composure. While Adelia was doing that, Gail took out a blanket from his luggage, sealed the tent door, and started heating it again.
“Cover up. I’ll rest for a bit and then prepare dinner.”
“Prince Gale, you should also warm up your body a little.”
As Adelia spoke while covering herself with a blanket, Gail hesitated for a moment before sitting down next to Adelia, and Adelia covered herself with a blanket.
“I hope Cordelia and Uther are doing well?”
“I’m sure you’re doing well. It’s only been a couple months, but I think both of you have grown a lot during this trip.”
It wasn’t just about force.
They were two people who had already grown greatly mentally.
“When did you get so big?”
“That’s right. I thought you were just a bunch of immature kids who fell in love······.”
Gail, whose words had been trailing off, looked back at Adelia with a smile, and Adelia also looked up at Gail.
And then the two realized.
The fact that our faces are too close.
That we are so close that our breaths can touch each other.
Adelia opened her lips slightly without realizing it. Gail looked at Adelia’s lips, and at some point their eyes met again.
Without saying who would go first, they closed the distance between themselves.
Adelia let out a gasp, clutching her trembling heart in fear and anticipation, and slowly closed her eyes.
And right after that.
Kwakang!
The tent shattered with a loud noise. At the same time, or rather, a little earlier, Gale dodged the attack that was coming straight at him by slamming Adelia down.
Trrr!
The tent broke and the crossbow embedded in the stone wall rattled.
Adelia’s eyes shot open beneath Gale, and the pink current flowing between the two of them dispersed in an instant.
bang!
A second explosion erupted. This time it was from Adelia’s side. The powerful wave of magical power blew away not only the shattered tent, but even the crossbow that was about to explode.
And Gale sat up. He quickly drew his sword and looked in the direction the crossbow had come from.
“nine.”
I figured out the numbers right away.
It was a number that was discovered by relying not only on sight but also on feeling.
“Devil follower.”
Maybe mine.
A giant man, holding a small ballista in one hand, was smiling from a distance.
Around him were several hideously twisted monsters, the kind I had seen in Caraval, wearing dog collars and drooling as they glared at me.
Gail thought.
I immediately figured out why they had appeared here, so far down south.
‘Like Yuder.’
Yuder left to trample on the rear of the West.
The West was the same. It must have sent troops to the East with similar ideas.
‘Sky Roof Mountains.’
A land of death where even wild gods do not dwell.
So instead of bypassing the Skyroof Mountains, they took a major detour to the south and infiltrated east.
It was a situation where I encountered those guys moving like that.
“You’re lucky.”
The intermediate-level horseman Garad who attacked Gale laughed. This was because Garad also had similar thoughts the moment he saw Gale and Adelia.
‘It’s definitely them.’
They are ruthless monsters who will make any sacrifice to win, defeating one by one the demon eye minions who were operating in the West and eventually annihilating them.
Although it was a complete misunderstanding, one that was both significant and, crucially, a misjudgement of the person, Garrad’s mistake was also well-founded.
It was hard to imagine that in the wild lands of the Kingdom of Cailun, there would be a couple, especially a handsome man and a beautiful woman who would make your eyes pop.
“I’m sure Lord Haragen will be pleased.”
There was no particular reason to take it alive, so I planned to just abuse it to my heart’s content.
The corners of Garad’s mouth went up and the transformation began.
The eyes that had been sparkling with resonance and shallow desire split into dozens of pieces and became compound eyes, and the already large body swelled up even more.
A black, glossy shell reminiscent of a stag beetle covered its entire body like armor.
A horn grew on its forehead, and its jaw split open to form an insect-like mouth.
“I’ll tease you.”
Garad thought about what happened after he won.
He dropped the small ballista he was carrying on his right arm and charged forward at lightning speed.
“conflict!”
At that moment, Gale shouted loudly. He kicked the ground and rushed towards Garad, and Adelia began to recite a spell.
The lowest-level mines mixed with demons screamed and kicked the ground.
Kwakang!
The moment Garad and Gale collided, a loud noise erupted.
To be exact, it was the sound of Garad’s huge fist smashing the ground.
Tsukwahak!
Gale’s sword, which dodged Garad’s attack like the wind, swept forward, emitting a blue light.
The sharp sword energy split the shell on Garad’s waist as if it was breaking.
“Ugh!”
Garad was taken aback by Gale’s attack, which was stronger than he had imagined. However, he was already too close to escape. He swung his fist again and gave orders to the lowest-level minions.
“Kill the woman!”
This distracts Gale’s mind.
It was a valid command.
But even at that moment, Gale didn’t look back at Adelia.
Because I believed.
No, I just knew.
Adelia’s power.
Her strength.
Boom! Boom! Boom!
Lightning struck. The lightning created by Adelia’s specialty, high-speed spear, struck the lowest-level mines that were charging forward with great momentum. It didn’t end with a single strike, but spread out as if bouncing.
Chain lightning.
Even within the Royal Guard Magic Corps, her spellcasting, known as ‘Flash’, reached three times the normal speed. Moreover, despite such a fast spellcasting and magic composition, the precision of her magic did not decrease significantly.
“Kwaaak!”
The lowest-level minions screamed and rolled on the floor, trapped in a hell of chain lightning that bounced off each other, but it was only the beginning.
“These pieces of trash!”
Adelia cursed and chanted new spells again. Her sight of her emitting white light from her eyes and firing off attack spells reminded me of a battle angel from Solari who had descended to Earth.
Boom! Boom! Boom!
There was no mercy in Adelia’s hands. No, rather, she pushed her enemies with more force than usual.
It was because of anger.
‘Why of all things, why of all things, why of all things!’
At that moment!
‘It was my first time!’
No, it was supposed to be the first time!
The situation that had occurred just ten seconds ago flashed through Adelia’s mind.
Again, the countless pieces of knowledge that came to mind just seconds before that, the countless stories that I pretended not to care about······.
“Burn! Tear apart! Collapse!”
Adelia cast three different spells in succession.
The flames of hell.
Blade of the Wind.
Material decay.
This is a continuous casting that is possible only for Adelia, who is called a genius and has achieved the position of youngest captain within the Royal Magic Troops, which boasts history and tradition, through her skills alone.
“Kwaaak!”
“evil!”
The lowest-level minions were slaughtered one by one before they could do anything, and Garad was left bewildered.
‘It’s too strong!’
I guessed that the mines I encountered in the East would be somewhat strong since they were all intermediate level or higher, but they were too strong.
Moreover, it wasn’t just the wizard. The man in front of him wasn’t an ordinary swordsman either.
Tsukaak!
A sharp wind blew.
Gail became the wind and at the same time the wind-wielder.
It was impossible for Garad’s rough and crude attacks to even brush past Gale.
“Kwaaah!”
Finally, Garad let out a roar and kicked the ground with all his might. He forcibly distanced himself from Gale and threw the flare he had on his waist.
Boom! Boom!
A red light burst into the air.
It was an action that could have easily exposed all the troops who were on the flank, but it was unavoidable.
‘It was planned to be a gathering from the beginning!’
There are seven eastern infiltration units dispatched from the west.
Since they had different starting points, they planned to gather together in this area and check their strength.
‘That means there must be other guys around here too!’
Garrad admitted honestly.
The men and women before my eyes were not something I could handle alone. I thought I knew why the men who had been dispatched to the West had died without achieving even a single significant result.
So, don’t be greedy.
Focus on holding out until the other mines arrive!
“Ohhh!”
Garad opened up his power. He focused on somehow enduring Gale’s attacks.
It was the right decision.
Garad’s plan was not wrong.
But still.
‘Why aren’t you coming!’
It seemed like quite some time had passed since the signal flare was fired, but no one showed up.
At the very least, there should have been a call saying that a signal had been seen, but even that did not come.
Why.
For what reason?
Could it be that they are trying to get rid of themselves?
So you see the signal and ignore it?
‘No! That can’t be!’
It didn’t make sense.
How could the minions of other units know Garad’s condition and do such things!
‘Come! Please! Quickly!’
Garad stood up to Gale, praying earnestly.
But it was impossible.
Adelia, who had eliminated all the lowest-level mines, approached with an ominous aura, and Gale’s sword energy became even sharper.
And finally, the conclusion.
“Ugh······.”
Gale’s sword was thrust into Garad’s chest, where both of his proud giant arms had been cut off.
The sword energy exploded from the tip of the sword that broke through the hard chest shell and turned Garad’s body into a slurry.
Quagga-
Garad, who had been reeling back from the aftermath of the explosion, vomited a bucket of blood and collapsed, unable to move any further.
It turned into black ash from the tips of the feet and subsided.
“ha.”
Gale let out a breath and looked up at the sky, his sword hanging down.
The light from the flare fired by Garad disappeared, but that did not mean we could let our guard down.
‘There will be reinforcements.’
Otherwise, there would have been no need to even fire the signal flare.
But for some reason, reinforcements never showed up.
Adelia also seemed to be worried about something similar, so she closed her eyes and used sensing magic, but nothing came of it.
“I think it’ll be okay. There are no enemies within two hundred meters at least.”
At Adelia’s words, Gale took another deep breath and retrieved his sword. Although it was a new question, he asked Adelia.
“Where are you hurt······?”
“Is it possible?
Adelia shrugged her shoulders and laughed, and Gail laughed along.
Even though she had defeated eight of the lowest-level mines that were running wild like beasts, she was truly unharmed.
“The tent… looks like it’s unusable now.”
“Ugh······.”
Adelia was visibly discouraged by Gale’s words.
But it was a fortunate situation. If we continued walking for another day or two, we would be able to reach Thunderdoom Fortress, the cradle of the crows.
“Still, I’m glad you weren’t hurt.”
“Yes, that’s right.”
As Adelia laughed, her shoulders drooping, Gail hurriedly approached her.
“Prince Gale?”
When Adelia asked with a blink of an eye, Gail smiled again and said.
“Can you excuse me for a moment?”
“yes?”
At Adelia’s question, Gail lowered his gaze, and Adelia finally understood.
Because both of them were barefoot.
“That… yes.”
“then.”
With Adelia’s permission, Gail acted like a descendant of the Bayer family, or more precisely, like Uther’s older brother.
It was so natural that he embraced Adelia.
Actually, there was no need to do this.
There was also a way to just leave Adelia standing and pick up the shoes.
No, it was Adelia who could fly with magic from the beginning.
But Gail didn’t do that, and Adelia was satisfied. She seemed to curl up in Gail’s arms, but then she moved slightly and met Gail’s gaze again.
That condition.
My heart was pounding.
The adrenaline released from combat was about to lead to a new chemical reaction.
Just a few seconds.
That moment when we both let out our excited breaths.
bang!
A loud noise echoed through the air.
Gail and Adelia turned around reflexively and soon witnessed it.
A man standing alone in the air, his red cloak fluttering in the wind.
A person who massacred all the mid-level minions dispatched from the West to the East, except for Garad.
He saw the flare and flew over quickly to see Gale and Adelia.
He flinched at the sight of the two people embracing each other, then turned around for a moment. He awkwardly looked around as if he hadn’t noticed the two people, and then flew off to another place.
And a few seconds.
Voices came out of Gail and Adelia’s mouths simultaneously.
“Your Majesty?”
“dad?”
Count Chase, one of the Northern Four Rivers and the lord of the Red Dawn Tower.
The reason why he suddenly pulled away after seeing the two people.
Gail and Adelia understood at the same time.
Without saying a word, everyone blushed, and Gail cleared her throat.
“Ahem, let’s start with shoes.”
I felt sorry for Count Chase who had to avoid my seat(?), but the mood had already been ruined.
Adelia frowned at Gale’s words, but soon made up her mind.
Because, something, something, it seemed like nothing would work out if things continued like this.
“Prince Gale.”
“yes?”
That was it.
Adelia, who was hugging Gail’s neck, moved her upper body. She brought her face closer to Gail and gathered her courage once again.
Adelia’s lips touched Gail’s cheek.
‘Ugh.’
This wasn’t the original plan, but it couldn’t be done anymore.
Because the atmosphere was already completely ruined.
Because I was still so embarrassed I thought I could die.
Adelia blushed with her eyes shut tightly, and ironically, Adelia’s actions and appearance once again created a strange atmosphere.
It was a very different atmosphere from the tent, and in some ways it could even be comical, but it was enough to move Gale.
“Adelia.”
After a soft call, he took action.
The silhouettes of two people overlapped on the white snow field.
And far away.
No, not that far, just the right distance.
Count Chase, who had been hiding behind a large rock and holding his breath, turned around to look at the space-expanding bag after releasing some magic. He stroked it slowly and thought.
‘It was good that you prepared.’
In case of emergency.
If not, I would be in quite a bit of trouble now.
Count Chase, praising his own preparedness, closed his eyes for a moment and waited.
Actually, I had a lot of questions.
The reason why two people crossed the border.
The whereabouts of Uther and Cordelia.
But now was the time to be patient.
‘I should write a letter to my friend Count Bayer too.’
Count Chase lightly stroked her chin and smiled gently.
I thought about new things to prepare.
&
At the same time, the Sky Roof Mountains.
Jude and Cordelia opened their eyes at the same time, startled.
< Chapter 39 - Encounter #2 > End
