Chapter 99 : Chapter 99
Chapter 99
Jereuth.
He watched the duel between the King and Leonardo while preparing for camp and dinner.
‘Isn’t he pushing himself too hard on the first day?’
The duel between the King and Leonardo had already been going on for over an hour.
Since dueling itself consumes a lot of stamina, it was not an easy task even for skilled knights to duel for over an hour. How much more so for Leonardo, who had not received proper training.
‘He must be tired from riding a horse all day.’
Although he had such concerns, Jereuth did not interfere in Leonardo’s duel. It was because he could not interfere in the affairs of his lord.
“Cough…… haah……”
Leonardo, his face scrunched up, gasped for breath. His fair and beautiful face was already covered in sweat, dust, and the mud and sand of the ground.
‘Philip, don’t you think it’s time to stop?’
—Jereuth said to the King in his mind. He had already said it countless times in his mind.
But.
“Get up. Didn’t I tell you! The enemy will never wait!!”
“Kugh……”
At the King’s shout, Leonardo grabbed his pathetically trembling legs and took a stance.
Unlike Leonardo, the King’s breathing and posture had not changed in the slightest. He didn’t seem to have broken a single sweat.
“The more you feel that the opponent is unbeatable, the calmer you must be. Watch the opponent’s movements carefully and predict the attack! If you can’t predict it, then charge in before the opponent attacks!”
“Haah…… haah……”
“The tip of your sword must never be lowered powerlessly. Keep the tip of your sword alive so that you can stab, so that you can cut, at any time!”
After another word, the King swung the twig at Leonardo. Leonardo raised his sword, and as the King had said, he tried to block the King’s twig while keeping the tip of his sword alive.
But this time too, the King’s twig avoided Leonardo’s sword as if teasing it and went for Leonardo’s chest.
Thump- thud.
The King’s attack was light, but Leonardo was completely exhausted.
In the end, Leonardo, unable to support his body, fell to the ground on his butt. He was so weak that he couldn’t even support his body with his arms, so Leonardo was lying on his back.
“Haah…… haah……”
Leonardo gasped for breath, unable to even open his eyes properly.
Feeling sorry for such a Leonardo, the King reached out his hand, but then withdrew it and spoke to Leonardo.
“That’s enough for today. We’ll train like this tomorrow as well, so make sure you rest well.”
“Hah… haah… yes.”
The King threw a water bottle to Leonardo and then approached Jereuth.
“Is dinner ready?”
“It’s been ready for a while. But… isn’t this too much? His Highness is holding a sword for the first time today, and he must have been physically exhausted from riding a horse for a long time for the first time.”
“Leonardo didn’t give up, so I continued.”
“Because His Highness didn’t give up, you continued… I see.”
Jereuth turned his gaze and looked at Leonardo.
Leonardo was gasping for breath and even dry heaving, but he did not let go of the sword in his hand.
The fact that he was not letting go of the sword.
It meant that his body was not listening to him, so he couldn’t get up, but his will was not dead.
The King also looked at Leonardo. In the King’s gaze, there was a mixture of apology and pride.
Jereuth, who was reading the King’s gaze, asked.
“So, what do you think? Does His Highness seem to have a talent for the sword? Seeing how he’s trying to break your twig, his judgment seems good.”
“Talent…”
The King nodded lightly and finished his words.
“Inheriting the talents of one’s parents. That is the blessing and the ordeal of a child born with the blood of an Elder Elf. You know that, right?”
“Of course. That’s why His Highness Leonardo’s two older brothers, His Highness Hannibal and His Highness Baria, displayed such great skills from a young age, isn’t it?”
“That’s right. However… it seems Leonardo was born with only the talent, not my swordsmanship itself.”
“Born with only the talent?”
“Mhm. So he will have to work hard. Unlike Hannibal or Baria. He must have inherited Victoria’s talent as well, but I don’t know what talent he inherited. Seeing how he rides Kartum, it seems he received the ability to be loved by animals, but that’s a natural thing for a human mixed with elf blood.”
“It doesn’t seem to be magic.”
“I don’t think it’s magic either. But who knows. How the talent will manifest later.”
The King threw the twig he was holding into the campfire.
Thud-.
“Anyway, my job is to awaken Leonardo’s talent. Within Leonardo, my swordsmanship and some of Victoria’s talent are dormant.”
“Awaken his talent… so that’s why you dueled with His Highness?”
“That’s right. There’s no faster way to learn than to be hit directly. Isn’t there a saying, ‘you have to be hit to know’?”
“……I don’t think that expression is used in this context.”
Leonardo had inherited the sword talent of the King, which Jereuth had evaluated as ‘like magic.’
The King stroked the necklace he was wearing and finished his words.
“Still, it’s true that his body is too weak. So I’ll have to help his body catch up with his talent. I was originally going to give him this necklace later… but since that boy saved my face in front of the knights, I can also express my gratitude for that, right?”
***
“Your Highness, I’ve brought you a meal. Would you like to have some?”
Jereuth said, handing me a bowl of meat soup in a wooden bowl. Steam was rising from the soup.
I tried to take the soup, but my arm wouldn’t listen. My arm was too heavy.
I smiled awkwardly and spoke.
“Haha……. Commander, I’m sorry, but could you please put it in front of me? I’ll eat it when it cools down a bit.”
“I understand.”
As Jereuth placed the soup in front of me, the King, who was eating his own soup next to me, spoke.
“Are you alright?”
I’m not alright.
“I’m fine.”
“You don’t look fine.”
“……”
“It will probably be harder tomorrow than today. Muscle soreness is always worse the next day, and the day after that.”
I knew that too. When I was in Korea, I did a lot of manual labor, and my body always ached more the next day.
“I’ll give you this.”
The King said, taking off his necklace and putting it around my neck.
And the moment the King put the necklace on me.
Whoosh—.
I felt my whole body warm up and relax as if I had put on a hot pack. It was a feeling of washing away the foreign substance called ‘fatigue.’ It also felt refreshing, like the feeling you get when you go to a hot bath after a hard day’s work.
“Ah……!”
“Haha, you seem to like it.”
“What is this… what kind of necklace is this?
As I looked at the necklace and asked in a surprised voice, the King leaned against a nearby tree and answered.
“It’s a magical tool I found by searching the entire continent when your mother was very ill. It has magic cast on it that drives away or slows down diseases and helps the body recover. If you rest with that necklace on, muscle soreness will disappear lightly. It’s a magic necklace that can heal a cut so deep that it’s life-threatening in a week.”
By ‘mother,’ he must have meant Queen Victoria. I had never seen her in person, but I had seen her portrait and diary.
In her diary, there was something about ‘her body becoming weak after giving birth to a human’s child.’
‘This necklace… is it a real ‘health necklace,’ not some fake health necklace that old people get scammed into buying from a peddler?’
“Then was my mother wearing this necklace?”
I asked without much thought.
But.
“……”
The King couldn’t answer. For some reason, he also glanced at Jereuth, who was managing the campfire a little way off.
I didn’t know, but at some point, Jereuth seemed to have been listening to our conversation.
The King, who had been hesitating for a moment, spoke.
“No, your mother did not wear that necklace. There was a reason… I didn’t give her that necklace.”
“You said you found the necklace for my mother. Then why—”
“I was originally going to give you this necklace much later. But I’m giving it to you now because I’m grateful that you saved my face from the knights.”
“I have something to ask you about my mother—”
“Let’s talk about something else. I have nothing to say about your mother.”
The King cut me off and tried to change the subject. I wanted to ask the King more about the necklace, but I gave up because I didn’t think he would answer.
Still, since the topic of Queen Victoria had come up, I decided to ask what I was curious about.
“Father, you said earlier that I’m a good rider because of my mother.”
“……Again, about Victoria.”
The King shook his head as if he couldn’t be bothered, but he still answered.
“That’s right. You’re a good rider because of your mother.”
“I’m curious about what that means. I thought I could ride easily because the Commander’s horse, ‘Kartum,’ is a famous horse.”
The King chuckled and answered.
“Kartum is definitely a famous horse. It can run at full speed for days without getting tired, and even if it’s pierced by arrows and spears, it becomes even more excited and stronger. There are probably only a few horses like Kartum on the entire continent. Even a griffin, which is said to be obtained only by a hero chosen by God, would have to yield to Kartum on the ground.”
“Yes.”
“But like all famous horses in the world, Kartum has a bad personality. It’s not an easy horse to handle.”
“Kartum is difficult to handle…? Is that so, Commander?”
As I glanced at Jereuth, Jereuth nodded.
“That is correct. Kartum has never let anyone but me ride on its back until now. It also took me a long time to tame that boy.”
The King took over.
“Kartum, which was difficult even for Jereuth to handle. The reason you can ride Kartum despite that is because you have inherited the blood of an elf. You know that your mother was an elf, right?”
“Yes, I know.”
“Yes. Generally, elves cannot give birth to human children. Because they are different races. Nevertheless, because of their beauty, they have been historically kidnapped by various races… anyway, the royal family of the elves, the ‘Elder Elves,’ can give birth to the children of other races.”
“Elven royal family…. ‘Elder Elves’?”
“Yes. Your mother was an Elder Elf. Unlike ordinary elves, Elder Elves can give birth to the children of any race. Also, the children of Elder Elves inherit the abilities of their parents. That is the greatness of the Elder Elves.”
This was something I didn’t know at all. I had read books about elves in the library before, but those books did not mention ‘Elder Elves.’
“Does that mean I have inherited the abilities of my mother and father?”
“Yes. You may not know, but your first older brother, ‘Hannibal,’ was born with my swordsmanship as it was. Your second brother, Baria, was born with Victoria’s magic as it was. That’s why the two of them were so amazing from birth.”
“……”
“But unlike your two older brothers, you must awaken that ability yourself. No matter how much of an Elder Elf she was, it was impossible to completely divide her abilities among all her children… that’s what your mother said. And that was the truth. You were probably born with only the talents of me and Victoria.”
Perhaps because he was reminded of his deceased wife, the King’s eyes reddened a little.
Seeing such a sight, it seemed the King had cherished his wife very much. But I didn’t know why he hadn’t given his wife the precious necklace he had searched the entire continent for.
‘Wait. And there’s something else strange.’
“Then why were you wearing this necklace, Father?”
I suddenly became curious and asked the King. This time too, I didn't ask with any great meaning.
I just asked out of curiosity.
But.
“……”
“……”
At my question, the King and Jereuth, who was stirring the campfire, both flinched. I wasn't very quick-witted, but I could tell that the two of them were sharing some kind of secret.
The King answered casually, but to my eyes, it was clearly awkward.
“It was because I came out of the royal palace after a long time. I was worried I might be physically tired.”
The King, who was wearing a necklace he had searched the entire continent for to cure the queen's illness, just because he was ‘worried he might be tired.’
I naturally didn't believe him.
‘Looking at how worn the strap of this necklace is, the King must have been wearing it all the time. Why was the King wearing this necklace all the time? Simply out of longing for his wife? It seems like there’s something more to it.’
As I was thinking while touching the strap of the necklace, the King continued.
“I’ll continue what I was saying. Leonardo, the abilities of me and Victoria are dormant within you. Some of those abilities have already blossomed.”
“If the abilities have blossomed… you mean the ability to ride a horse well?”
“That’s right. But to be precise, it’s the ‘ability to be loved by animals, monsters that follow humans, and plants’ that has blossomed. You can tell by the fact that the royal palace’s garden became magnificent as soon as you took power, and the number of birds visiting the garden became more than ever before. Just like when your mother was here.”
I wasn’t particularly interested in the garden, so I didn’t know… but it must have been so.
“It’s not just the garden. Now that you hold power, the Plank Kingdom will have a series of good harvests, and the animals will grow fat. As long as there are no particular natural disasters.”
“……”
“But Leonardo. It’s not necessarily a good thing for there to be a good harvest every year. Because when a kingdom becomes wealthy, enemies who covet it will surely appear.”
“Enemies… are you talking about foreign enemies?”
“Not just foreign ones. There are various kinds of enemies. Within the kingdom, there are monsters from the Monster Mountains, bandits, those who are aiming for a rebellion, and so on. On the outside, as you said, there are other countries. The great powers across the continent and the sea. All of them are potential ‘enemies.’”
“……”
“Your role is to protect the kingdom from them. The lives, property, and well-being of the people of the kingdom. To do that, of course, you must strengthen the kingdom’s army, but what’s just as important is that you yourself become strong. ……Because the day will come when you have to fight and protect the kingdom with your own hands.”
The King, who had finished speaking, stroked my head and added one more word.
“I’ve said something useless. You had already decided to do so.”
“……”
“It’s getting late, so let’s go to sleep now. Jereuth, let’s take turns on watch.”
At the King’s words, Jereuth nodded. Then Jereuth gestured to the King.
“Philip, can we talk separately for a moment?”
***
The King approached Jereuth and sat down next to the campfire, speaking quietly.
“If you’re going to question me about not giving this necklace to Victoria—”
“No, that’s not what I’m going to talk about. That’s already a finished story, isn’t it?”
“……”
“You let Victoria die for your own reasons. I will never be able to understand or forgive that, but at least as long as His Highness Leonardo respects you as a ‘father,’ I will not be harsh with you.”
Jereuth cut off the King’s words and took out a map from his bosom. On that map, their current location was marked, and besides that, there were a few red circles drawn.
The King immediately understood what the ‘red circles’ meant.
“Did you call me to warn me that there are monster settlements near the campsite? But there are only goblins around here, so I don’t think we need to worry.”
“No, it’s the opposite. I was going to tell you that the monster settlements nearby have ‘disappeared.’”
“……The monster settlements have disappeared?”
“Mhm.”
Jereuth pointed to the red circles he had marked—the monster settlements—one by one and continued.
“While you were teaching His Highness the sword, I went around looking for monster settlements to clear out the surrounding monsters. But I couldn’t find a single monster.”
“Not a single monster.”
The King muttered, mulling over Jereuth’s words.
“……They said no problems would arise until we reached the Wasteland of Ruin, so was this the reason.”
At the King’s words, which were not clearly audible, Jereuth asked again.
“What? What did you say?”
“No, it’s nothing. But it is strange that there were no monster settlements at all. Could it be that the monsters are not approaching because they are intimidated by Kartum’s presence?”
“No matter how great Kartum’s presence is, it’s not enough to drive away all the monsters. And come to think of it, we didn’t encounter any monsters when we went to Misty Port with His Highness before. At that time, I thought it was a relief that no monsters appeared, but since no monsters are appearing not only in the south of the kingdom but also in the north, it feels strange.”
“It is certainly strange. Were there really no traces at all?”
“There were no traces at all. So I thought about it a bit……. Do you remember something similar happening 30 years ago?”
“30 years ago?”
The King searched his memory and then spoke in a flustered voice.
He was worried about a future event that he could not know, or more accurately, that he could not experience.
“……Don’t tell me?”
“Yes, I’m going to say that ‘don’t tell me.’”
“……”
“Like 30 years ago, the monsters might be gathering in the Monster Mountains. Just like that time when all the monsters in the kingdom gathered in the Monster Mountains ahead of the birth of the ‘Triple Head Ogre.’”
At Jereuth’s words, the King felt the puzzle pieces falling into place in his mind.
‘The reason Leonardo is trying to conquer the Minotaur’s dungeon… could it be because of the future where the Minotaur is resurrected?’