Chapter 345
Episode 345: I will tell God (3)
With its huge wings, Suzaku crossed over ice-covered mountains, lava-flowing snow fields, and drift ice-flowing seas. Then, a white world with nothing but glaciers unfolded. It was the end of the world and the starting point of the barrier dividing the dimensions.
[Oh… noble dragon.]
However, the only things waiting for him at the end of the world were the beings beyond the universe, the dragon’s claws that killed them, and the dragon that came infinitely closer to death. The curse flowing endlessly from my dug-out chest split like the branches of a tree and flowed into the ground.
[Who made you like this?]
Suzaku, who helped his claws to briefly sweep away things from the other side of the universe, folded his wings and placed his chin on the head of the sleeping dragon. Chinwoo, whose heart had been stolen, no longer had warmth, but he didn’t care. Suzaku was a being who remembered how noble and devoted this dragon was.
[Who ruined your mission?] Since
the heavens opened and the earth was created, the dragon has never left this place. This is why they sacrificed themselves to prevent any possible external invaders.
[Who on earth is you….]
The scales become the walls, the horns become the thorns, the teeth become the gatekeepers, and the last remaining fingernails and claws become the soldiers.
It was a wall he built by sacrificing his freedom, but why did he fall asleep with his heart ripped out? How can the price of keeping a mission that should have been rejected be so meaningless?
[…nothing external could have made you like this.]
The most heartbreaking thing was the conviction that the entity that ripped out this dragon’s heart could not have been external.
[If a ruthless external enemy had been the culprit, he would have definitely taken your life. The being who took the heart must have been a being of this land.]
After a while, Suzaku took off his head and saw the curse flowing like a branch. The curse was limited to this land and a certain lineage. It was a lineage that contained a piece of the dragon’s heart.
Suzaku’s eyes narrowed.
[…Foolish.]
Whether it is a crime committed by the devil or an accidental crime due to stupidity, there is no intention to lift the curse. They had to pay a price. Even if it is the price for the sins committed by our ancestors.
[Friend, I will bring you a human who can connect the scattered hearts. So please wait a moment.]
Suzaku’s wings spread again.
* * *
“This is pretty good.”
Arrived in the city. Of course, the first thing to do was to prepare for winter.
“This is too thick…”
“Have you ever experienced the cold in the north?”
“…no?”
“Then shut up and do this. “You can change something that’s uncomfortable later, but you can’t change something that freezes to death.”
However, surprisingly, the Deathbringer did not help at this time. This is because he also had no experience living in a cold region.
On the other hand, even when he was young, Meister was an experienced person. He was extremely careful about the thickness of his clothes.
“I like that better than that.”
‘This?’
Faust also gave various advice. It wasn’t a strange thing. To be given the name of a knight in a northern city means, in other words, that you have shown great activity in the north.
It is a natural process to accumulate experience in the North during the course of one’s career. I enjoyed the boy’s advice.
‘Isn’t this too thin?’
“If you don’t like being cold, you can choose a thicker one. But I was able to endure this enough.”
‘Really?’
“If it doesn’t work out, you can cover your body with fire.”
‘Aha…’
Well, anger is a fire attribute, and it is the body that contains such anger. Even if it gains cold resistance, I don’t think it would be particularly surprising. Isn’t it a common rule that fire types are strong against ice types?
‘Even if it’s not fire, I have a bead….’
「Oh, that’s right.」
I have a sea dragon bead there. It doesn’t block the cold itself, but rather protects against the cold contained in water or ice… but it would be easier to endure if only the chill from the snow was relieved. I decided to pay less attention to the cold weather.
“Ah, if you are going to keep a separate dagger like you do now, it would be better to replace it with a product made for cold climates.”
‘Really?’
“yes. If you’re not careful, the weapon could break.”
Ah, there’s definitely a saying that metal is weak to cold. Then I guess I should stop by the blacksmith shop.
I took Faust’s advice and rummaged through a few leather clothes. It was all for design confirmation.
“Have you seen enough?”
“Roughly.”
“Anyway, if you have a good body, you don’t need a head.”
“It’s not for you to say.”
What does it mean to be a person who uses his body even though he has a good head?
“Okay, this should be enough.”
Anyway, this is the end of my shopping. The two put their clothes into the bag they had prepared. I thought I would go to my dorm and change clothes.
“kyung!”
“Adventurer!”
At that time, two people who had stopped by the temple ran towards us. There was a sense of urgency and it seemed like something had happened.
“Oh, the incident doesn’t stop.”
I completely agree with what Meister said.
“So we have to rush to the Norda region?”
“Yes…”
We quickly brought the Archmage and gathered in one room at the inn.
It’s not like I don’t have money, and it’s probably not something worth talking about in a restaurant with a lot of people. It was a 10-person room that was rented briefly at a price.
“For now, I don’t care.”
“Is that so?”
“From the beginning, the Norda region was the first target. “Berserk said she was returning to her hometown, and her hometown is the Norda region.”
“If he doesn’t mind, I don’t mind either. “Why don’t you take a look at the end of the world?”
“Me too… it’s okay. “I will have to report it to you.”
It is unclear whether Berserk has truly returned to his hometown or is still there. However, rather than heading to the ground and asking around, it will be easier to find her if you follow the words she left behind.
This was the reason why I chose the Norda region as my first destination.
“But it’s so surprising… that a request like this comes in at the right time.”
But I didn’t know it would turn out like this.
“Please take care of the Norda region as well. “It is limited to when you accept the request.”
I narrowed my eyes at the request that the ancient beast had delivered through the temple.
The dragon in the north is dying and needs treatment. The only one who can cure him is the Inquisitor.
If it’s a coincidence, it’s mysterious; if it’s inevitable, it’s just funny. My back was lifted from the wall.
“…Separately, I hope we can be proper allies this time.”
“Ah ah.”
Sea Dragon, Six Ghosts, and Biryu Lake. I feel really anxious because of what I’ve been through.
“Don’t worry too much as it has been fighting on the side of humanity for a long time.”
“…Sure.”
But in the first place, it was about catching people, Archmage.
After giving a subtle nod to the Archmage’s words, I lifted my foot off the ground. Regardless of whether I was anxious or not, I decided that since I had heard the general situation, I could leave first.
“Where are you going?”
“In my room. Or is there more I need to hear?”
“That’s not it.”
“Then I will prepare to leave. “Tell me when the departure time is set.”
Of course, in this case, the itinerary paths overlapped and I didn’t need to help. As soon as I arrive in the Norda region, I will go in search of Berserk and they will go to fulfill the request of the ancient beast.
So there is no need for me to hear the details right away. If I heard about it, my desire to help would only increase, but that wouldn’t be a good thing for me.
“I should prepare too. “Damn, I thought you were sleeping a little sluggishly.”
“Just be patient.”
Still, it seems like an urgent situation, so I have to adjust to a certain level.
Meister and I returned to our respective cells and packed our bags. We arrived at noon and had gone to get equipment without even unpacking, so there was nothing special to pack.
‘If this is the case, should I get the dagger later?’
“Anyway, the daggers you can buy here aren’t really for cold weather. It’s okay.」
‘Oh, that’s right.’
So all I have to do is change my clothes? I took off my coat and spread it out on the bed. Since the design was already in mind, the conversion didn’t involve much ado.
Grumbling. The coat turned into a cape and then turned into a fur material. The shirt worn inside was also similar. This damn shirt was so conspicuous and uncomfortable that I wanted to change it every time.
I changed my shirt to a black Gambeson, my coat to a fur cape with a hood, and my gloves and pants and boots to something a little thicker, then put them back on.
In the process, the location of the divine power penetration item gifted by the meister changed slightly, but it didn’t seem too strange. The plain black epaulettes without tassels went well with a gambitson, and just wrapping them around a leather belt was enough. The rest was just a matter of finding an appropriate location and hanging it.
“I think it would be a good idea to take off the gauntlets or replace them with leather ones. “Gretchen won’t get frostbite, but it will be strange for others to see.”
“Oh, okay.”
There is no reason to be obsessed with the right arm anymore. Based on Faust’s advice, I got rid of the gauntlets that covered most of my arms and made leather gloves that covered most of my forearms. Of course, the left and right were the same product.
“ah.”
At this point, I also need to change the eye patch.
I took off the eye patch I was wearing and thought about the design. Now that everything has been revealed, there is no longer any reason to wear an eye patch, but I still wanted to wear one.
Of course, there is no special reason for this. It’s just that I’m a little embarrassed to go around with half-half hair and half-eyes, so I’m struggling to cover up even a single thing.
After all, half hair and half eyes may be fun when coming up with a concept, but it’s not something you can sanely use in everyday life.
So, I want to cover at least one eye. Changing the color can be noticeable, but since you can’t change it just in case, the best you can do is just cover it up.
Again,
“Come in.”
“Hey, Nari. If you don’t mind, we asked if we could leave right away today…”
“Okay. “Let’s go.”
When I finished all the preparations, the Deathbringer came with perfect timing. It was a quicker visit than expected.
“…You’ve already changed your clothes.”
“Isn’t that the same for you too?”
It looks like they decided there was no time to change it now. I quickly checked the clothes that Deathbringer had changed into. There is not much difference from before, except that it is thicker overall and has some fur decoration added.
“Are you okay if I don’t rest?”
The Inquisitor I saw as I went down to the first floor was like that. Perhaps because he thought it was a waste to change the armor itself, he added Gambison and fur to the inside and finished it off.
Well, since you have to wear layers of clothing, the horizontal ratio did increase a bit in the process of increasing the armor.
“it’s okay. “Before that, Suzaku asked me to come as soon as possible.”
For reference, she also replaced at least her iron gloves. I wondered if even metal mixed with sea dragon scales could avoid frostbite.
“Are you sure that adventurer will be okay?”
“I think it would be better to worry about Meister rather than me.”
With my chin, I pointed to a relatively ordinary person trudging down the stairs. Although he doesn’t show it, his eyes are slightly darkened, probably because he’s tired. The heavy fur clothes seemed to have added to his fatigue.
“The North doesn’t like this. “The clothes are heavy…”
“Rather than the clothes being heavy, it’s probably because your lower body is weak.”
As a blacksmith, my physical strength and strength have become far superior to those of ordinary people, but what can I do? Since I don’t usually move around, my lower body is a bit thin.
“Noisy. “He’s good at riding horses.”
“It’s definitely fortunate that I can at least ride a horse.”
It is certainly surprising that a person who would only go back and forth between the lab and the workshop would have the leg strength to be able to ride a horse for a long time. I roughly nodded at that point. The meister looked strangely upset.
“I’m sorry, Meister.”
But he couldn’t be angry with me. This is why the honest Inquisitor bowed his head.
“It’s okay. It’s not your fault that the schedule is tight.”
Meister became Kim Saen’s face.
“Are they out already?”
Meanwhile, the Archmage, whose clothes became strangely thicker and who added a cloak, joined them. Looking at the change in the pattern of the clothes, it seemed like they were completely different clothes, but the colors were the same, which was a little funny.
Archmage, you are sodomy oriented.
“I am the last one. sorry.”
“Since Inquisitor Daniel has arrived, I think we can leave right away.”
“I didn’t stay all day, can I get a refund for the accommodation fee?”
“I’m not short of money, so let’s just go.”
“…Still, it’s better to save the money you can save. Let’s go out first. “I will get the money.”
Anyway, now it’s really time to go. I left the inn, flapping the hem of my unfamiliar cloak.
* * *
“Old One, are they…?”
[These are things that must be returned to the noble dragon. [Continue to carry snow and ice to prevent rotting.]
Suzaku found all the corpses with fragments in them and carried them to the nearest city.
Part of me wanted to return it to the dragon who retrieved it, but realistically the distance between me and the dragon was too far. There were so many scattered pieces that if we had to go back and forth every time we found one, the travel time would be longer than the search time.
“Oh, I understand.”
So Suzaku gave up his desire to return it immediately and began preliminary work in preparation for the time when the heart could be reconnected. The task was to separate heart pieces from corpses.
[Is this all for now…]
He melts the body with his flames, but leaves a piece of the heart behind. It was a somewhat tricky task, but Suzaku managed it somehow. Since it was a problem for his friend, it naturally became possible.
[Now I just have to finish one.]
Dozens of corpses were converted into heart pieces, and Suzaku reached out for the last corpse. Human corpses pulled out of the ice are preserved as they were when alive. The frozen platinum hair broke with a rustling sound.
“Old one!!”
However, before he could even reach out to the body, the human who had provided him with the place called Suzaku. There was no reason to be found.
[Tsk, of course.]
Something evil is coming to the city. Suzaku stepped on the ground hard enough to hear the sound of his shoes. It was a sound that clearly revealed his discomfort.
[Representative of the castle, if this fight prolongs, you should represent Go and welcome the representative of God. Also, say to the person who represents God, “Take this body and these pieces and tell them to go to the end of the world.”
“Yes?”
[Keep in mind. If any misfortune befalls the northern front, God’s representative must go to the end of the world. Also, until then, these pieces and the body must never be destroyed. Otherwise, the world will become dangerous. You must engrave this in your bones and pass it on to them.]
But Suzaku had to guard the front lines, for that was his duty.