Chapter 268
My Villains Episode 268
interlude. meadow and harbor
A meadow that retains the greenness of spring even in the middle of winter, and a large river flowing in the middle of it..
The river was wide enough to float a large sailing ship, and there were no curves, so it flowed fiercely..
The wind blowing from the east cut the rough waves deeply and went westward, splashing spray. The place we reached was a land completely stained black..
A warrior stepped onto the black ground. She had a muscular body on full display, was about a head taller than most men, and had wild, reddish-brown hair..
Every time my calloused bare feet touched the ground, acrid smoke rose. Still, the warrior did not stop. I just mutter a curse and keep walking..
After walking for so long, the warrior finally stopped in front of a rock. The flawless black rock was as huge as a mountain..
“You look like a fucking bastard.”
The naked warrior muttered as if chewing and looked up at the rock..
“I always wondered, why on earth do I look like this??”
Uh ha ”
A corner of the huge rock shook and a strange voice came out..
“My job is to sit here and face the wind. Can't you even allow some eye candy for your poor master?. ”
A voice that sounded like a young boy, a young woman, a middle-aged man, and an old woman speaking at the same time echoed in the grassland..
“pervert bastard.”
The warrior's impression became even more distorted..
“Since you make such a request, I am calling you a false owner..”
“You foolish warrior. Who gave you grace?. ”
“It originally belonged to Mohsin. You just stole.”
“When a mother dies and disappears, everything she owns belongs to the child. Early inheritance is not theft.”
A strange echo was tinged with ridicule.
“And, even if it were theft, could you blame me? It was I who gave a woman who had nothing what little power she had.. ”
“dirty cheat……
There was nothing the warrior could do other than growl lowly..
“What did they call me again this time??”
“I was in trouble..”
“so? Did you call me to make fun of you??”
“It can't be.”
The voice continued speaking in a regretful tone..
“When my dear warrior saw me naked, he luckily escaped and was caught by a single rope. Isn't it also the owner's duty to comfort a dog that hides its crotch?.”
“……A baby like this, a dog like a dog,”
“Show no fangs, warrior. You are neither a challenger nor a winner. Just a servant and a loser. ”
“servant? loser?”
The warrior shouted with bloodshot eyes..
“no-! I am a warrior. Mother Goddess's greatest warrior!”
“Maybe it's because I'm holding on to more power, but I'm so arrogant.. ”
A sharp wind poured down from the top of the rock. Even though it was strong, the wind could barely make silver grass fall, but the warrior who faced it immediately fell to his knees as if he had been crushed by a mountain. And it wriggled like a bug stuck on a grill..
“Huh, huh huh-”
“Girl. You poor girl.”
With a sneer disguised as sympathy, the voice looked down at the warrior..
“The first warrior of the Mother Goddess, that's ridiculous. If it weren't for my grace, wouldn't a shabby girl like you have been able to cross swords with her mother's great warrior?. ”
“Ughhh,”
“Who gave strength to the earnest petition of a bug crawling on the ground?.”
“……stop. stop-!”
The warrior trembled in pain, weighed down by an invisible force. He looked down at her, his voice laughing low..
“After losing badly and losing all his armor and sword, who is the one showing his teeth to his master?. ”
“……Save me, please……
“Speak. Who is the master and who is the servant?.”
“…… You are the owner. “I, I am your servant, now, stop-” The wind dispersed and a loud noise rang out. The warrior who was begging for his life now grits his teeth out of humiliation instead of extreme pain..
“Alas, it is an unexpected misfortune. You're making a bold and unscrupulous woman your warrior..”
O Uh Q ••••••
■‘ 1 1 flaw, ■ ■ •
The warrior, whose body was covered in soot from rolling on the ground, stood up and took a deep breath..
“The Great Master of the Mother strengthened his position by obtaining new tattoos and grace. When are you going to fulfill your task and give me the gift of freedom?.”
“Huh, whoo……
The warrior's chin trembled as spit and snot mixed with soot wiped his face..
“Eilisha. Eilisha comes first. That's our contract..”
“It's stupid, it's stupid. Do you still not believe that my freedom and rebirth will make you great? If you sell your regrets on revenge, you will ruin your great cause.. ”
“I'm not interested in that..”
The warrior swallowed dry saliva and looked up at the rock with dark eyes..
“show me the way.”
“What?”
“Please tell me where Alysha is..”
“Are you asking for power??”
“••••••okay.”
The warrior's voice chuckled for a while in response to his affirmation..
“Come on, I'll be happy to show you! God's main job is to show the way to those who believe.!”
Following the satisfied smile, a strange power flowed into the warrior..
In return for power, the owner of the voice increased his control over her. If the costs like this continued to pile up, one day something resembling that god would completely take the warriors as its servants..
Meanwhile, the warrior saw a stone tablet in the vision shown by the voice..
She gained the ability to sense souls through a deal with something resembling a god, and was able to recognize that countless souls were trapped in the stone tablets..
A long crack was drawn in front of the stone slab that was floating in an unknown dark space. Beyond the crack stood an old man wearing a rusty bronze crown. With a face full of joy, he reached through the crack and lifted the stone slab..
By the time the old man with the army of the dead raised the tablet, the illusion was over..
“It was a fruitful conversation today too.. ”
A relaxed voice continued toward the warrior, who stumbled and collapsed due to the aftereffects of the illusion..
“Go away, my warrior.. ”
The warrior swallowed his breath as he felt as if his body was disintegrating. return is imminent.
“I am the only child of my mother, so you, who are connected to me, communicate with the sky. Don't forget that you are different from the insects that crawl on the ground.. ”
Just as I was about to tell her to fuck herself, she woke up from a mysterious dream..
“Heo Eok—”
Opening his eyes, Renka took a moment to catch his breath and looked around..
She was lying on a pile of dry straw, wearing familiar rags, and one side of the dark room was blocked by a thick iron bar..
“…… Ha, damn it.” On the other side, in the soot-filled stone wall, there was a gap a little larger than the palm of your hand that looked like a window. Looking down at the snow-covered plain in the distance, solid castle walls, wooden castles, and a courtyard that doubled as a parade ground filled the field of view..
“Where are we again?.”
Renka realized that he was trapped in an unknown fortress, especially in its center..
‘Abiden' had a very unusual topography among the various regions of the Kingdom of Milan..
It faces the sea to the southwest, a steep mountain range to the north, a plain beyond the river to the east, and a plateau across the cliff to the northwest..
Due to its unique topography, it has become a center of trade and production of all kinds of products, but Abidden is a region with the worst weather in winter..
The most extreme manifestation of such characteristics was Auduenne, the richest city and port in Abidden..
A cold wind came down, scratching the slopes of the mountain range.
Oduenne was struggling with heavy snow as it does every year due to the humid air that hit the sea..
“Haha, I'm freezing..”
Even mercenaries from the far north, a harshly cold land, could not help but flinch from the sea breeze that cut through their bones..
The mercenary was a woman in her early to mid twenties with a slim figure and short, black hair. The eyes are sharp, but the mouth is large and the tip of the nose is round, giving a cool look..
She cursed lowly as she passed through a narrow alley between shabby buildings..
“This kind of thing. Why are you having a hard time living in this cold weather?.”
Then, when the mercenary turned his head, the subordinates who followed him trembled their shoulders and hurried away, even though he did not say anything..
Six or seven mercenaries, including a woman, reached their destination after wandering around the slippery alley..
It was originally an empty lot centered around a well. But now, the small square in the middle of the slums was filled with tents that seemed ready to collapse at any moment..
“……Ha, damn it.”
A woman frowned when she spotted a group of soldiers among the throngs of refugees..
“I think it's late.”
“I have eyes too?”
The woman who shot her subordinate approached the soldiers muttering, ‘I’ll just hear something from the captain.’.
“stop!”
When the soldier who discovered the mercenaries aimed his spear in a stern manner, his comrades also took a alert stance with their eyes flashing sharply..
All of the soldiers were wearing chain armor, fur coats, and flat iron helmets, and, befitting their uniform attire, they looked very disciplined..
“This place is controlled by Prince Ulkar's army. Reveal your identity and business.”
“Calm down, guys. We came from the watchtower..”
“……Watchtower? Are you Grania's subordinate??”
“Well, of course.”
The woman who was showing her hands outstretched shrugged her shoulders..
“I heard that our kids were here, so I came to pick them up. Can you excuse me for a moment??”
“‘Did you come to pick up the ‘half elf’??”
“……He's not a half-elf. Who on earth is spreading such nonsense??”
The lanky mercenary sighed as if he was bored and remembered an expression he once heard from an unusual friend..
“Are you a cuckold racecist??”
“Cucking… … what?”
“They don't treat you like a human just because your skin color is different..”
“what? No, how- that's not it.!”
“Otherwise, please open a way quickly. Because I'll freeze and search.”
While they were fighting like that, a young man covered in acne jumped out from among the soldiers..
“uh? Arnal?”
The mercenary, Arnal, spotted the young man and was delighted..
“Aibo? What, why are you here??”
“Well, because I sent it to you..”
“Sir Lyam? why‘?”
“Why, you know.”
The young man was Aibo, who until a few months ago was a low-ranking scout for Ulkar's army. Thanks to his exploits in South Harbor, he was now the squire of a renowned knight..
“Sister… … . Ah, you came to pick up the half-elf.?”
“It's not a half-elf, it's Raysis.
You bastard.”
“Oh, it's just a nickname..”
“Damn. I guess they don't want to mention the name of an infidel..”
“Don't say that. Because he's a pagan and there aren't any people in this city who roll their eyes..”
Arnal, who ended the scuffle thanks to Aibo's intervention, grumbled and walked past the soldiers..
Dozens of people were lined up in a place tightly guarded by soldiers. People who are left without anything, such as the poor, orphans, refugees, and the disabled. Among them, the weakest were the old and the sick..
Among those miserable and smelly lives, a girl with a strange appearance was sitting across from a bent old man..
“……Please avoid exposure to cold air as much as possible..”
The girl was wearing an ordinary fur cape and common boots, but she was wearing a white and black headband and a headdress made of several small feathers, so she could be seen at a glance as a stranger..
“Oh my, what can I do? I have to go to the cathedral in the morning..”
“The cathedral?” In response to the old man's worried lament, the stranger girl hesitated for a moment and then opened her mouth..
“Umm, isn't the cathedral closed? I heard you fast and pray.,”
“Then I should at least go in front of him and say a prayer..”
The girl looked around for a moment and then gently scolded the bent old man..
“Please pray at your residence. All gods are merciful, so the God of Gwangmyeong Church will also forgive. Even if your mouth feels uncomfortable, be sure to eat your meal.” The old man thought about it for a while, and when his daughter next to him said, 'Mommy, you've just stopped coughing,' he stammered with a puzzled look on his face. Then, when the girl spoke again, he quickly nodded and said goodbye again before leaving..
“This office.”
At the sound of Arnal's voice, the girl, Iopiya, turned around with her eyes wide open..
“Arnal?”
Iopiya, a bright-skinned girl with a faint red undertone, has mysterious indigo hair that reminds me of the sea. Not only the skin color and hair, but also the facial features were unfamiliar to the kingdom. But even putting all that aside, Iopiya was a rare beautiful girl..
That beauty was the main factor that made the girl called a 'half-elf'..
“Well then, what about taking a walk on this cold day? Let's go quickly. It's dangerous here.”
“It's dangerous. “There are so many people who protect me.” The girl said that and looked around. Not only Prince Ulkar's army, but also mercenaries sent by Grania as escorts were nearby..
“These ugly bastards.”
Arnal glared at the mercenaries and growled lowly..
“You’ve been out for a long time just getting some fresh air, right? My ear holes are clogged?”
“Well, scout leader, this is……
“Iopiya was so eager,”
“Just shut up and stop talking bullshit. Go back and break your leader's shins, so take care of it..”
Leaving behind the mercenaries who were in tears, Arnal sighed in frustration. And then he grabbed Iopiya's arm and dragged her, who was hunching her shoulders with an apologetic look on her face..
“Let's go quickly. There are so many wolf cubs here.”
“Wolf? Where is it?”
After being glum for a moment, Arnal gritted his teeth as he saw the girl who loved animals look around with sparkling eyes, thinking, 'Is this on purpose?'.
It was then.
Dang dang dang dang-!
The frozen city suddenly woke up to the loud and urgent sound of the bell. Ivo, the squire of Sir Lyam, the person in charge of Auduenne's defense, shouted even though he was surprised by a situation he did not know about..
“Everyone, protect the half-elf! Arnal, let’s go to the permanent residence together.!”
“shit. What's going on??”
“I don't know either!”
Before he knew it, Arnal looked back at his subordinates holding weapons and shouted, pointing at the short bow he had taken out..
“You stupid bastards, get out there and make your way!”
As the mercenaries hurriedly made their way through the poor people, a group of warriors wearing scale armor appeared in an alley..
“Mr. Agos?”
The one who responded to Arnal's voice was a middle-aged man at the forefront of the newly appeared warriors..
“Scout leader Arnal? Half elf is?”
“Half-elf no - X-arm, it's behind me!”
“Thank goodness. I'll join the escort.!”
“yes?”
Arnal looked at the Nudein warriors with suspicion..
“No, why are you guys?”
“‘This is Nafi Dat's command. And, that's not what's important now.”
Agos, who had led the newly organized elite warrior corps, ‘Hares Kiss’, opened his mouth with a heavy expression..
“It's an attack by the fishmen..”
“yes? What is that? Why are the fish bastards in this harsh winter-” “The merchant who washed up on the dock a little while ago told me! in a hurry!”
Prince Ulkar's army, Grania mercenaries, and Nudein warriors gathered around Iopiya hurriedly left the alley..
Then, when they heard a faint singing voice coming from the sea far away, their faces hardened at the same time as if they had just heard something..
“That song, no way-”
“That's right.”
Looking back at the pale Arnal, the warrior Agos nodded..
“The witch of praise has come.”
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