Became a tyrant of defense games - Episode 698
◈ 698. [STAGE 40] Man of La Mancha (3)
Outside the dark window, a white flash followed by a bright red light flashed..
“……!”
Verdandi, who was having a happy time with her older sister Urd and younger brother Skuld, suddenly stood up..
“That light…….”
Skuld grabbed Verdandi's collar as he was in a hurry to leave the Oak Tree Palace..
“Where are you going, sister?!”
“…….”
“Are you leaving me again? also… … You're going to abandon us all?”
Verdandi turned his trembling head back. Schooled was seen crying and Urd had a confused expression..
“Don't go, sister. You said you'd stay with us.…….”
“…….”
Verdandi slowly turned around, knelt down, lowered his eyes, and made eye contact with Skuld..
And I spoke to my brother in as kind a voice as possible..
“I'll tell you what happens next, Schooled..”
“huh?”
To the puzzled Skuld, Verdandi recited the cruel truth one after another..
“I leave, and the war situation worsens. In the end, the Fairy Kingdom army was defeated, and here in the royal palace, Urud did not surrender and fought until the end... … Seal it in prison.”
Verdandi bit her lip as she spoke of her sister's final moments..
“And Skuld, you were forced to become queen... … Leading the survivors, they are forced to leave their hometown and move to the autonomous region. And for a hundred years, he led the tribe, enduring all kinds of indignities and humiliation..”
“…….”
“And in the end, on the front lines fighting for the world... … You risk your life to save people, and then you die..”
Blood flowed from his closed lips. Tears poured from Verdandi's eyes as he recalled his brother's final moments..
“Urud's older sister died to protect the honor of her race, Skuld. You died to protect the future of your species..”
“…….”
“Even though I knew I was going to die, with a noble heart that I could not even imagine... … I mean, I went down that path..”
Verdandi looked around the interior of the oak tree palace, which was peaceful and cozy back then..
“If I stay here in my dream, I will be happy. But, just to ease my mind, I can't make it happen like it never happened..”
“…….”
“Because lying like that would be an insult to my sister and you.…….”
Sobbing, Verdandi hugged Urd and Skuld tightly in her arms..
“love you love you love you. I really love you both. therefore… … i have to go.”
“……Verdandi.”
Urd, who was silent, slowly took off his crown and handed it to Skuld..
Skuld takes it and… … He held it with both hands and politely handed it to Verdandi..
“take it.”
Following Urd's soft whisper, Skuld smiled brightly and raised his crown..
“It's your sister now!”
“But, I…….”
“My sister is qualified.”
Urd also smiled kindly..
“You just proved it. qualified to bear that weight.”
“…….”
“Take care, Verdandi. Please do our part too…….”
be happy.
With the whispers of my older sister and younger brother.
Verdandi took the crown and slowly placed it in his own hands... … written on his head.
Shame, humiliation, glory, honor, and-
The sisters' lives are bittersweet. That crown.
Verdandi, the second daughter of the World Tree and the last survivor of the newly crowned fairy royal family, laughed. She laughed with a tearful face.
And then I turned around and put my hand on the closed door.
***
“You said you would play with me today.!”
Young Kellyson burst into tears on Kelly Bay's back as he opened the crypt door and was trying to get out..
“It's always like this, Dad! Always, always! Leave your family behind and go off to do your own thing.!”
“…….”
“What is the golden branch? A race’s longing? The future of the kingdom? It's always such a story that I don't understand! Going far, far away, chasing only illusory dreams……!”
Kelly Bay kept her mouth shut. Kelly Thorn screamed..
“That's better than my family... … more important than me?”
“Dad has work to do.”
Kelly Bay held onto the entrance to the crypt with his strong hands..
“But just know… … There is nothing more important in this world than you.”
“…….”
“The day will come when you too will understand this contradiction, my pebble..”
At that time, the voice coming from behind changed..
“……No, daddy.”
I turned around in surprise, and before I knew it, the grown-up Kellyson was there..
The Dwarf King scratched the back of his head with a wry smile on his lips..
“Actually, I already understood it..”
“…….”
“My father's actions that I couldn't understand when I was young, now that I'm older... … I understood it automatically.”
Kellyson looked embarrassed and continued..
“Why was my father so self-righteous, why was he so single-minded, why did he always keep to himself without telling us anything... … . Now that I have become an adult and am in a position of responsibility for many people, I understand..”
Kelly Bay's eyes filled with tears..
“…… This must be a dream I made up on my own, right? It must be an illusion I created to feel comfortable in the face of your death.?”
“haha. Maybe so. Because my father is a coward.”
Kelly Thorn burst into laughter and approached in stride..
“But you never know. Likewise, the son who grew up as a cowardly adult who swallows the words inside instead of expressing them... … Could it be a small sincerity that could not be conveyed?.”
Kellyson approached and placed a small key in Kelly Bay's hand. It was the key that locked the entrance to this small crypt..
The next moment, when Kelly Bay raised his head, the door in front of him was no longer the entrance to the crypt..
It was a royal treasure trove sealed with a golden door, and the key in Kelly Bay's hand turned into a golden key that could open the trove..
“You should take it.”
Kelly Bay's thick fingers grabbed the golden key as he laughed helplessly at Kellyson's words..
“A father inheriting the throne to his son, he's really ugly..”
“He was truly the worst father, but he was the best blacksmith and the best miner.…….”
Kellyson patted his father on the back..
“You've always been my idol.”
“…….”
“Let's go, daddy.”
Kellyson gestured..
“If there's a need to drill a hole in the sky, we dwarves can't be left out.?”
After tightly closing my tear-filled eyes,.
Kelly Bay raised his beard, grinned, and quickly inserted the key into the lock on the door..
***
The ivory tower was on fire..
All old books, all research books, and all kinds of artifacts were turning to ash..
And, the young wizards who filled the ivory tower also.
Standing still, with the hem of his robe on fire, his face swallowing back tears... … We were standing together in the lobby of the ivory tower..
“That's what wizards are like..”
Diarmudin came to his senses from the light shining outside and immediately realized that this was a nightmare..
So, in order to come to my senses, I set fire to this place without blinking an eye..
“Smarter than me, more talented than me, better than me... … All those young lives always died before me.”
Diarmudin looked back at his burning disciples..
I saw all the young lives that left this world before me..
Visions of poor, sorry children whose names, faces, and anything else I had never forgotten, even in my dreams, were flickering..
“But regrets aren't the thing for an old man like me to do.”
Diarmudin turned around, shedding bloody tears. Leaving the burning ivory tower interior behind, she stretched out her hand toward the closed door..
“Recording, researching, paving the way and building a rock for other children who will come after them..”
Building bridges with blood and lives, continuing knowledge and research.
“That's the wizard's job, that's the scholar's job, that's…….”
Holding the main door of the ivory tower, which was melting from the heat of the flames, with both hands, Diarmudin muttered as if he was coughing up blood while enduring the pain of the burns..
“Because it's human history.”
And, the moment Diarmudin opened the door and was about to go out..
“Power, attention-!”
The children in the flames shouted in unison..
“Salute to Master-!”
chuck-!
The young wizards all saluted the archmage..
“Forward to a great tomorrow, Archmage.!”
“To a great tomorrow!”
“To a great tomorrow-!”
“…….”
Diarmudin wiped away the bloody tears that had soaked his wrinkled face with his hands..
Then he turned around with as solemn and handsome a face as possible, and did his best to sound cool..
“See you in the great tomorrow, rocks of history.”
And Diarmudin grabbed the door of the ivory tower covered in flames and opened it with all his might..
***
The inner corridor of the temple. In front of the goddess statue.
Thorkel quietly prayed. Margerita sat next to him, held his hand, and prayed with him..
After a while, Thorkel finished praying. Margerita asked with a smile..
“What did you pray for today??”
“It was simple.”
Thorkel opened his closed eyes and slowly exhaled..
“Here at the Crossroads, in my sunny land... … Bring back the original sunlight.”
Then Thorkel slowly stood up and walked out of the corridor..
Margerita asked while kneeling in front of the statue of the goddess..
“Where are you going, Thorkell??”
“to where I need to be.”
Thorkel took a deep breath..
“The final struggle isn't over yet..”
Margerita asked worriedly..
“Doesn’t it hurt??”
“It hurts.”
“Isn’t it painful??”
“It's painful.”
Thorkel clenched his fists..
“But it's okay. Because you prayed with me that day.”
“……Thorkell.”
Margerita asked in a somewhat relieved tone, facing Thorkel's back as he walked away..
“What expression is your goddess making right now??”
to that question.
Instead of looking up at the statue of the goddess, Thorkel looked back and smiled faintly at Margerita..
and answered.
“Now it's okay if you don't have to check everything..”
Then Margerita laughed too..
Thorkel left the corridor, walked down the corridor, and headed towards the temple's main entrance..
Before I knew it, my once clean skin was covered in leprosy, and my once light body was covered in extremely heavy armor..
A helmet worn all his life to hide his ugly face was worn on top of his head, blocking his vision..
Thorkell muttered as he bravely endured the weight of life..
“Now, it's appropriately heavy..”
When he picked up the broom next to the front door, it transformed into a huge shield and was held in his left arm..
Thorkel opened the door with force and came out of the temple..
Then - it was on the deck of the private ship La Mancha..
A dark space filled with swirling darkness, with black tentacles flashing evil gazes from all directions..
Chain and Emperor Traha, covered in blood, were breathing heavily, and Verdandi, Kelly Bey, and Diarmudin were glaring straight ahead, emitting their own auras as if to protect them..
“after.”
After taking a breath,
“let's go-!”
Thorkell let out a roar, and in response, La Mancha gathered the last of the fuel from the rear thruster and burst into flames..
While Thorkell was blocking the hordes of tentacles falling from all directions, Verdandi, Kelly Bey, and Diarmudin were attacked by a dazzling swarm of light directly in front of them..
The ever-appearing curtains of darkness were cut, pierced, and burned. Through the layers of darkness, La Mancha soared upward, upward, upward..
and-
***
Lucas didn't hesitate.
Between the summer of memories with all the people you love, and the winter of betrayal with the cold, harsh reality. Didn't hesitate even for a moment.
Cheolkeong-
Lucas opened the door..
The assassination squad that rushed in from outside the winter poured into the summer garden..
Screams, shouts, and the sounds of blood and flesh splattering rang out from inside the garden. But Lucas didn't even look back..
With an emotionless face, he just took steps forward to get out of the garden..
It was then. Someone stopped Lucas.
“You always regretted it!”
It was Lucas himself as a child..
It was the foolish and immature person who opened the winter garden on the night of betrayal. Little Lucas screamed..
“You ruined everything! Because of you, Empress Dustia died and Her Majesty Ash was ruined.!”
“…….”
“You can still turn it around. It's possible now. Hurry and close that door. And back to the summer garden, back to happy times again…….”
Young Lucas was about to say something but had to stop..
Shut up!
This was because the real Lucas grabbed young Lucas' neck with his left hand and lifted him into the air..
“Whoa, whoa, what is this?-”
“Get away from me.”
Lucas looked at his younger self with his bright blue eyes.…….
No, he glared at his old regrets..
“Because I got over old guilt like you a long time ago..”
“……!”
“No matter how ugly and terrible it is, this is the result of my choice. This is my life, this is my flag.”
With his back turned to the summer garden that had become a sea of blood, Lucas gritted his teeth..
“All those hurts and regrets... … Because you finally brought me here.”
Lucas looked down at the torn black flag that was tied to his left arm and shaking..
I remembered what my lord said while tying this black flag..
- Don't forget what we were watching.
to save the world.
Ash has been running towards this absurd goal, and Lucas has always stood in front of him..
Because I know that this path was created with the blood and tears of my master..
You can't turn back just because of your own regrets.
“With my own will, I pave the way for my lord..”
Growling fiercely, Lucas took a step outside the garden..
“Do you think there will be room for regrets and such?……!”
“……haha.”
Then, young Lucas smiled faintly..
“I really have to admit this…….”
And when Lucas' steps left the summer garden and reached the snowy winter outside.
The surroundings had been transformed into the deck of La Mancha..
And in Lucas's left hand, instead of young Lucas, he was holding the magic sword Xcarnival..
Gooooooo……!
In front of the airship, a thick and strong darkness with an evil energy that was incomparable to any veil of darkness that had been breached so far rushed in..
It was the last, final curtain of this dark swamp..
Taat-!
Lucas ran forward without hesitation. He stepped on the deck and flew towards the end of the ship..
Everyone on deck saw Lucas, who was covered in blood from pulling back the curtains and blocking the darkness coming from all directions..
“Sir!”
“lucas!”
“sir lucas!”
“song-!”
Everyone shouted at the same time. Lucas gritted his teeth and shot forward with all his might..
“Cut it down-!”
At this time, the magic sword held in Lucas' left hand began to vibrate wildly..
It has been used since the days when the Corrupt King Pendragon was originally called the Knight King..
This vicious magic sword, stained black with his regret and guilt, is stained with darkness.…….
Churrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrr!
The dark red dirt that covered everything from the handle to the blade was immediately removed, and its original beautiful appearance was restored..
In the magic sword Excannibal,
With the holy sword Excalibur-
A dazzling light exploded simultaneously from [Excalibur] held in Lucas' left hand and the [Granted Sword] held in his right hand..
“Get out of the way, night..”
Lucas ran to the end of the deck and swung his two long swords with all his might..
“The lord's coming-!”
flashing-!
A sword strike in the shape of the character 十 was dazzlingly engraved on the rushing darkness..
And the next moment,
Toukwaaak-!
The night that seemed like it would never end has parted..
The last darkness, which I could not even guess how thick it was, was torn apart in one blow..
The curtain of darkness that covered the skies of the whole world was swept away, and the sky that had been hidden above it was opened..
The sun scattered a brilliant and warm light over La Mancha, which rose up through the endless swamp of darkness..
It was the dawn sunlight that I thought I would never see again..
Comments