Chapter 109 - GATHERING

Terms used in this chapter:

Gap moe?– Japanese slang for a person/character who does something completely contradictory to their usual habits, personality, character, or appearance, which then makes them look cutely attractive.

The two men from the Bayer family and the two women from the Chase family gathered inside Jude and Cordelia’s?love nest.

T/N: Puns are back. ‘Love’ can also mean ‘guest/reception room,’ while ‘nest’ can also mean ‘home.’ Combine the two and it would also mean the house’s reception room.

‘Why are we seating like this?’

‘Well, just trust me. Just think like it’s part of our act.’

Anyway, the group had sat down.

The Great Storm tribe had a culture of sitting on the floor using cushions and not on chairs, so the two pairs were sitting while facing each other with a fire pit in between them.

‘This isn’t strange.’

Because Jude and Cordelia sat beside each other and Ga?l and Adelia sat next to each other.

Jude and Cordelia were still in a shoulder hug even when they were seated, while Ga?l and Adelia sat side-by-side but were not that close to each other.

They were just at a proper distance from the other.

“Hehehe, hehehe.”

Cordelia leaned her body on Jude’s side as she mischievously looked at Adelia and Ga?l.

She had already forgotten the series of actions Jude had done earlier that made her heart pound as she had now focused all her senses on Adelia and Ga?l.

And it wasn’t really strange.

‘Because I’m used to it.’

Cordelia had been carried by Jude on his arms or his back almost every day since they entered the barbarian lands, so she was accustomed to it already.

“Hehehe, hehehe.”

The Cordelia who was afraid of Adelia’s arrival was nowhere to be found.

The only person sitting here now was a younger sister who had a cat’s mouth and mischievous eyes as she let out strange sounds that seemed to say, ‘I see, so that’s what it was.’

“Ueueueu…”

She was indeed Cordelia’s older sister.

Adelia was still blushing and groaning while she sat. She couldn’t even look at Ga?l’s side and just kept staring at the ground.

‘She’s shaking.’

Her heart and mind were shaking.

Jude’s guess was right. The events that had just happened were playing over and over again in Adelia’s mind in a beautified manner due to being blinded by love.

‘Is there…nothing between us?’

His gloomy eyes had looked sad and heartbroken, yet his voice and expression seemed to say that he didn’t want to give up expecting.

‘Why are you like this, why are you doing this to me? Uwaaa…’

She did not let out a voice, but her reactions were really like Cordelia’s.

‘Adelia Chase.’

Cordelia’s older sister.

One of the seven heads of the Royal Guards Magic Corps.

A genius wizard who fully inherited Count Chase’s talents.

She was high-handed, hot-tempered, and even had violent tendencies, but-

‘She really is Cordelia’s older sister.’

She was absolutely pretty.

Unlike Cordelia’s vivid red hair, her golden hair that seemed to shine even if it was not fluttering, was beautiful in itself. And her fair complexion and fierce eyes gave her a sharp and urban beauty.

Furthermore, her cheeks were red from embarrassment and she was at a loss on what to do.

Thanks to her unusual appearance, she was now exuding on what was called ‘gap moe.’

‘Hmm, but Cordelia is still better.’

Because Cordelia was more beautiful than Adelia, and she was even lovely.

Jude gave a subjective opinion that was completely unobjective. He then nodded a few times to himself before turning his gaze towards Ga?l.

‘Did he…overcome it?’

The reason why the eldest son and undeniable heir of Count Bayer was still not married in his late twenties.

He didn’t know it when he was Outboxer009, but he now knew when he was reincarnated as Jude Bayer.

The incident that happened to Ga?l.

The incident that made Ga?l stop thinking about marriage and devote himself to training for some time.

It was an incident that he could not overcome in the original story. No, perhaps he was ready to overcome it, but the tragedy of the barbarians’ great invasion in the north robbed him of that opportunity.

‘Older brother.’

He was Jude Bayer’s own brother and not just a supporting character of?Legend of Heroes 2.

He was looking at the embarrassed Adelia with a warm smile.

He was sitting calmly, but Jude could tell.

Ga?l’s earlobes were slightly red. He was somehow embarrassed like Adelia too.

‘But still.’

The way he looked at Adelia was really that of love.

Do I have such a loving look when I gaze at Cordelia?

“Hehehe, hehehe.”

Jude quickly looked back at Cordelia who was still giggling and letting out a silly snicker as she watched Adelia.

In any case, they had to proceed with their conversation now.

“Ahem, ahem.”

When Jude cleared his throat, Ga?l and Cordelia shifted their gazes to Jude.

Adelia was still staring at the ground, but she seemed to have heard him given that she had flinched.

“Moving on…let’s continue our conversation.”

Because they had a lot of things that they really needed to talk about.

“You’re right, Jude. Let’s start with you. Did you become Iron Man Landius’ disciple? And I heard that you became involved with the Guardians of the Holy Cross. Can you tell me when it all began?”

Because the two were not involved with the Guardians of the Holy Cross until the time they had left Langesthei.

At Ga?l’s calm comment, Adelia also stared at Jude and Cordelia after having recovered to some extent, and Cordelia also looked back at Jude.

‘Are you going to tell them that?’

‘Yes, I am.’

After their eye conversation, Jude cleared his throat again and began talking.

“It all started when we met the Fairy Queen.”

To summarize, Jude’s story was as follows.

The Fairy Queen warned them of the demon followers’ attack at Langesthei, and also informed them of the witch.

After the incident in Langesthei, they headed to the witch’s forest to meet the witch’s soul. They then heard a warning about Landius and the demon followers’ atrocities that were happening across the northern borders.

On their way to Count Hr?svelgr’s territory, they met Landius and Jude became his disciple. They finally made a decision at that time too.

“Did you mean about your decision to go north and stop the demon followers?”

“Yes, brother.”

But it was a story with very little evidence.

Moreover, Count Hr?svelgr was trying to prevent Jude and Cordelia from leaving Vedrfolnir.

Therefore, Jude and Cordelia were forced to escape Vedrfolnir using a honeymoon trip as an excuse.

“After that…”

On their way to the north, they headed to Frost Anvil to cure Jude’s illness, and while obtaining the Sunflower there, they ended up facing the demon followers.

“Because of that, I was convinced that something was going on in the barbarian lands – no, the wild lands.”

They crossed the border via Lankebuste after that, and in the middle of that, they met the Ghostblade Kamael.

“I’m sure you already know what happened after that.”

They became the guardians of the wild lands who busied themselves in stopping the plot of the group of demon followers called Devil’s Eye from undermining the wild lands.

“As expected…it wasn’t a simple runaway…no, I mean, an elopement.”

“I was immature and couldn’t come up with other excuses. Like you’ve said, we’ve troubled a lot of people.”

When Jude made a sad expression, Ga?l felt sorry for him while Cordelia stealthily nudged him in the ribs.

‘Do you think it worked?’

‘Of course.’

He was the one who created this story after all.

With a very faint smile that only Cordelia could see, Jude spoke again as he looked again at Ga?l and Adelia.

“Older brother and Lady Adelia. Once the demon followers seize the wild lands, there will be a big war between the north and the barbarians again. That alone must be stopped.”

“You’re right. Moreover…as I traveled around this land myself, my thoughts changed a little. Perhaps we were too prejudiced against the barbarians.”

But that was just it.

The S?len Kingdom and the barbarians in the barbarian lands have already confronted each other many times in the past, and all of those confrontations were not the plots of the demon followers.

It was clear that those who lived in the wild lands were not beasts in human form but were humans too like those who lived in the northern part of the S?len Kingdom themselves, and as such, the kingdom’s citizens did not harbor wild fantasies about that fact.

In the first place, the Argon Empire were humans too, but they were at odds with the S?len Kingdom too.

“I will help Lady Cordelia and Jude. What about you, Lady Adelia?”

Ga?l clearly and decisively revealed his intentions and then asked Adelia, who replied after taking a deep breath.

“I will help too. Because it is for the defense of the kingdom.”

After all, she was one of the seven leaders of the Royal Guard Magic Corps.

The current situation had changed from a personal matter of catching a runaway younger sister while on her vacation to a public one for the defense of the kingdom, so it was natural for her to step forward as she was a public official of the kingdom.

“Thank you, Unnie.”

“Hmph, I’m not doing this specifically for you.”

“Hehehe.”

At the appearance of Cordelia and Adelia talking like Count Chase, Jude and Ga?l happily smiled.

“And Jude.”

“Yes, brother.”

“Maybe it’s not just us.”

At Ga?l’s words, Jude and Cordelia tilted their heads together.

It wasn’t just Ga?l and Adelia.

What were they talking about?

“No, how should I say it… we did something like a runaway too.”

“Run…away?”

“Because we intentionally cut off contact with our families in order to cross the border.”

“Because it’s obvious that our families would oppose it if we said that we’ll cross the border after you.”

Adelia remarked following Ga?l’s words, and the other two looked at each other before they said something different from the other.

“Just as I thought.”

“Then, is Unnie in a honeymoon trip too?”

“No, it’s not?! It’s not like that!”

Adelia reflexively shouted before she flinched at that moment and looked at Ga?l.

Ga?l didn’t say anything, and Adelia said as she fidgeted.

“N-no! What I meant to say is this! That… I’m not saying that there’s nothing between Lord Ga?l and I, ah, no…eueueue…”

Adelia eventually self-destructed as she blushed and groaned again, and everyone who saw Adelia thought.

‘Cute.’

Since when had Adelia been this cute so far?

Everyone warmly looked at Adelia and upon feeling their gazes, Adelia was at a loss on what to do and repeated the vicious cycle of showing off her cuteness.

The first person to come to his senses was Jude, and he asked while staring at Ga?l.

“So are you saying that…another person from our families will come to chase us?”

“Yes, that is highly likely.”

People were coming after them one after another.

“However…we do not intend to clearly communicate the current situation to our families.”

Because they had gone across the border.

It would become cumbersome if their families offered to actively help Jude and his party.

“Let’s think of asking help from the family as a last resort.”

If the scenario of the wild lands falling into the hands of the demon followers ever comes, then the whole north might have to take military action at that time.

“I understand.”

“Okay.”

Having said all that, Ga?l turned his gaze to Cordelia and said to her.

“Lady Adelia and I have already talked about it. We ask for your understanding, Lady Cordelia.”

“It’s fine, brother-in-law.”

Cordelia modestly replied at the end and widely smiled, and Ga?l also warmly smiled.

And one more person.

No, one animal – or rather, one being.

“Are you done?”

At the question of Violent Avalanche who was squatting in the corner of the tent, Jude and Cordelia nodded their heads while Ga?l and Adelia were a little embarrassed.

“Why in the world did you even call me for, why…”

The grumbling Violent Avalanche rose from its seat and sat down again in the middle as it faced the two couples and said.

“Well, now that you’ve roughly organized everything, we’ll be working together to defeat the demon followers, right?”

“We need to win the Karaval before that.”

Violent Avalanche nodded at Cordelia’s words.

“Yes, the Karaval.”

It would be held in the next two days and in addition, it would be a single-round match that would decide the fate of the Eastern Alliance and the whole wild lands.

“Unnie and brother-in-law. I have a favor to ask.”

Because Red Wind needed to become a little stronger in order to win.

And to do that, they also needed the help of Ga?l and Adelia.

“So…”

Cordelia glanced at Jude before she narrated the conversation the two had the other day, and Ga?l and Adelia nodded their heads with serious faces.

And in the middle of that, Violent Avalanche thought alone.

‘So why did you call for me in the end?’

Did they really need me for this meeting?

Either way, the conversation continued, and time also passed.

***

“Let’s go.”

“To the land of Gentle Snow Breeze.”

“To the land of Gentle Snow Breeze.”

All of the barbarian tribes in the east began to move.

From the small tribes with just a hundred people to the large tribes with over tens of thousands of people.

The tribal chiefs led their warriors to the basin of Gentle Snow Breeze.

To watch the Karaval hosted by the beautiful and wise wild god, Gentle Snow Breeze, and to witness the history of the formation of the Eastern Alliance that would influence the future.

“Let’s go.”

Red Gale also led his warriors.

He had to participate in this Karaval even though he had a serious illness and refrained from going outside.

Great Storm sent off his greatest warrior.

He blessed his greatest warrior’s daughter, the girl who would decide the fate of the Eastern Alliance.

“Daughter of the wind, be the red and beautiful wind that will freely roam the world. You can be anything, you’ll be able to do anything.”

Though he had the form of a young boy, he was a wild god who had cared for the tribe for a long time.

Red Wind accepted Great Storm’s blessings with gratitude. She promised him that she would do her best.

“Let’s go too.”

At Ga?l’s words, Adelia was the first to nod while Cordelia mischievously giggled ‘hehehe’ as she pinched Adelia’s side.

And Jude sent his gaze towards the west.

Devil’s Eye.

Haraken, a demon follower who dominated the Angry Bull tribe and the west.

And the mighty demon who killed Count Bayer and Ga?l in the game.

‘Are we in the second act?’

The confrontation between the east and west.

Karaval would be the beginning of it.

“Jude, Jude. Why are you frowning like that? Are you all right?”

“No, I was just composing myself. Is my princess all right too?”

“I’m fine. Let’s quickly go and stop this nonsense.”

“Okay.”

After completing their usual nonsensical talk, Jude took a step forward and tried to ignore Adelia who looked at them after hearing Jude say, ‘my princess.’

Together with Cordelia, they headed to the land of Gentle Snow Breeze where the Karaval would be held.

And at that same time.

Count Chase was writing a letter inside a luxurious lodging in Lankebuste.

The recipient was his long-time friend, Count Bayer, the parent of his soon-to-be sons-in-law.

The content of his letter was not very long.

Like Count Chase, it only contained a plain explanation.

‘It looks like the children have crossed the border.’

They were not in the north.

They were neither dead nor seriously injured.

Then what remained was the barbarian lands beyond the border.

Count Chase paused his writing for a moment.

He faintly smiled and added one more line.

‘I’ll go and come back.’

This was enough.

Count Chase sealed the letter and wore his red cloak. He held a space expansion bag that was filled with bags in one hand, and a jeweled staff in the other hand.

“To the north.”

Count Chase left his lodging.

He took a step towards the north.