158. Festival of the Sword (1)
#158
“This is Sword Saint Zaipa.”
“ok? Jaipa?”
Ronan’s eyes widened. He was a completely unexpected person so he couldn’t help but be taken aback. At the same time she felt like she knew why the boy had crawled to the edge of the sword.
‘If you’re in Jaipa you can do that.’
I heard that Jaipa still travels the entire continent under orders from the emperor. The only thing where he could definitely stay somewhere for a certain period of time would be the sword festival. The boy nodded his head.
“yes. The Master is giving it to Jaifa as a gift out of reverence. “He said he would like you to use it at the sword festival if possible…”
Apparently the person called the teacher had a deep connection with Jaipa. He was after all the greatest swordsman of all time so it would have been odd for him to have no one who admired him. Ronan suddenly remembered the scimitar that Jaifa usually carried and touched his chin with his index finger.
“I see…but isn’t it too small for Zyfa?”
It was a fairly large long sword but it was by human standards. It seemed like he had gotten bigger in the two years I hadn’t seen him but when I saw him I thought he might look like a toy. The boy let out a meaningful laugh and shook his head.
“Uhuhu…it might seem that way. But that’s not the case. “This sword has special abilities.”
“ability? “If I touch you will you sing?”
“I’m sorry but I don’t think I can tell you in detail. “Master told me to show it in person only after meeting Jaifa.”
The boy said firmly. I thought he was a shy guy but he surprisingly had a sharp side. Ronan didn’t bother to ask. He wasn’t really curious.
‘This bastard…’
However the swollen face was annoying. Bare skin exposed through torn clothes and blood flowing from there. Ronan sighed and took out a bottle of potion from his inner pocket.
“I understand so let me hurt you.”
“That’s a potion?! are you okay! “I really…”
“I have a disease where I hit people who make me say the same thing three times. “Until you pee”
“bout…!”
The boy pursed his lips. Ronan started dabbing the potion onto his fingers with an indifferent expression. Varen’s special potion healed the wound in an instant. I was in the middle of examining the wound on his shoulder.
‘hmm?’
Ronan noticed that the boy’s overall injuries were superficial. He wasn’t broken anywhere and didn’t seem to be hurt internally. Considering the size of the rookie hunters it was a very minor injury.
“Considering getting hit by those big guys there are only a few injuries. “I guess you’ve been beaten a lot?”
“Ahaha…yes. I did hit it with a bit of tact. “Our teacher is also a tough person by nature.”
“But you are such a helpless bastard that you beat up a brat like yourself. “It’s done.”
Ronan finished the treatment by rubbing the potion on the boy’s cheek. As his bruises disappeared and the swelling subsided a fairly smooth face appeared. Looking as weak as a girl it was definitely not a good fit for a swordsman.
‘Gray hair and brown eyes. ‘It’s an interesting combination.’
The gray-white hair looked like snow covered in ash. The boy’s eyes widened as he saw that his wounds and pain were gone. He began to stutter his face as if he had witnessed a miracle.
“Oh my god…it doesn’t hurt at all anymore.”
“It’s awesome. “The messenger who made it is not an ordinary person.”
“Thank you. thank you. This grace…”
“It’s done. “Just do the delivery.”
Ronan waved his hand as if he was annoyed. It wasn’t something I had hoped for in the first place. The boy bowed at a right angle and quickly began to pack his luggage. Ronan who was looking at that scene shrugged his eyebrows.
“Are you planning to leave now?”
“Ah yes! I think if I walk diligently from now on I will arrive by tomorrow evening. “I should quickly finish my business and go back.”
“You can come with us. “We can guarantee a level of safety.”
“Thank you very much but I will only accept it with gratitude. I can’t bother you anymore. “I will never forget.”
The boy bowed his head again. I was very uneasy but he said he would do it but he couldn’t just hold on to it on his own. Ronan asked scratching his head.
“What is your name?”
“It’s Darman. “What about that…?”
“Ronan. When you see Jaifa say hello. “Let’s have a drink and resolve any misunderstandings.”
“Oh I’m mistaken…? With Jaifa?”
Darman’s face hardened. It wasn’t a story worth bragging about to others. Ronan nodded lightly and motioned for us to go quickly.
“There is such a thing. “If it’s burdensome you don’t have to.”
“…No I will definitely tell you. I will not forget today’s grace. Ronan.”
“good.”
Darman said that and turned around. He looked back every three steps and said hello to Ronan. Only after Ronan saw Darman disappear behind the trees did he turn around.
He suddenly noticed that all the junk that had been lying around had disappeared. Pieces of torn sleeping bags and crushed sandwiches were disappearing everywhere. Apart from the dying campfire there was no trace of Darman left.
‘What a fascinating guy.’
Only the blood stains and the six arms showed that what happened a moment ago was not a dream. He was a guy who gave off an odd impression in many ways including going all the way to Farzan to make deliveries.
Ronan extinguished the campfire by covering it with dirt. He was looking up at the starry sky. Pasasak. A rustling sound was heard from behind.
“hmm?”
Ronan turned his head putting his hand on the hilt of his sword. The approaching energy was unusual. Did an animal come? It was the moment when La Mancha’s sword came out of its sheath. A familiar face appeared between the overlapping trees.
“what?”
Ronan raised his eyebrows. Schlieffen who made eye contact with him stopped in place. He was also holding the hilt of his sword ready to strike at any moment.
“Ronan. Have you ever been in a place like this?”
“That’s what I want to ask man. “Why are you here?”
“I came here after hearing screams. “It looks like the situation ended a long time ago.”
Schlieffen looked around and nodded as if he understood the situation. Ronan tilted his head.
“A while ago?”
It was too short a time to be called a while. Schlieffen removed his hand from the hilt of his sword.
“okay. There is no sign of the person who screamed at all. “I guess he left a long time ago.”
“That’s true…but it really hasn’t been that long?”
Concentrating Ronan expanded his senses. I felt the presence of three people about a hundred meters ahead. These were the rookie hunters he dealt with.
The bleeding must have been so severe that one of them eventually died out like a candle. In the end there was no sign of Darman.
“Arabsho?”
“It looks like one of the owners of this arm is dead. “I still can’t feel the energy of anyone other than them…”
Schlieffen still could not sense Darman. The fact that he who had much more sensitive senses than Ronan could not find it meant that Darman was already far away. He doesn’t seem to be able to fight at all but are his feet really fast? Ronan laughed at the absurd situation.
“I feel like I’m possessed by a fucking ghost.”
“What happened?”
“I’ll tell you as I go. “What about Instructor Nabirose?”
“He came back a little while ago. He praised you for having a lot more guts than you thought. “What happened?”
“…Ha that’s a really killer story.”
Ronan laughed. Looking back on both my lives it was one of the strangest nights I could count on one hand. Two full moons and the naked body of the teacher. An unidentified delivery man visiting Jaipa.
Ronan and Schlieffen walked together. The way back was long but it wasn’t boring at all as there was a lot to talk about. Starlight was shining as if it were pouring through the sparsely stretched out branches.
****
It was two days later when Ronan and his group arrived at their destination. As we left the dense forest a field covered with short grass appeared. Nabirose who glanced around encouraged the two.
“Everyone worked hard. “You came exactly on time.”
The air was clean. The dawn ripening into morning was still colored a dark blue. Ronan raised his eyebrows when he saw the twinkling lights across the field.
“at las.”
It was Dran Farjan one of the four villages that exist in Farjan. It was also a place that any swordsman who wanted to participate in the Sword Festival must stop by. Ronan’s gaze moved to the back of the village.
“Is there a shrine at the top?”
“okay. This is a place that only those who have passed the ritual can go to. “It’s a new feeling to see you after such a long time.”
“It’s so damn high.”
Ronan laughed. Behind Dran Farzan a huge mountain rose. The mountain rising with a gentle slope was like a support stone supporting the sky. Farzan is usually a term used to refer to the mountain and the sacred site above it.
Perhaps because of the high altitude Farzan’s appearance was bluish as if he were covered in a veil. The head of the mountain was stained pure white with perpetual snow.
‘Now that I think about it those are….’
Suddenly Ronan noticed that many people were crossing the field. As far as I could see there seemed to be fifty people. They were moving towards Gran Farzan as if they had promised.
Someone was holding a torch and someone was walking using the setting star as a light. Each person’s behavior was different but what they all had in common was that they were all wearing swords.
“Let’s go too.”
It looked as pious as a pilgrim procession. After exchanging brief words of encouragement the three people took steps in the direction they were going.
The field was wider than I thought. No one said a word while walking so all that could be heard around us was the sound of stepping on the grass.
“You had a hard time coming. “If you are going to participate in the Sword Festival I would appreciate it if you could move to the square immediately.”
When we arrived at the village the surroundings had already become brighter. People who appeared to be guides were guiding the participants. The guide suddenly encountered Nabi Rose and sighed.
“It was a lot of trouble to come… hehe! Butterfly Rose?!”
“It’s been a while. “I think it definitely happened four years ago.”
“I’m honored that you remember me. I also provided guidance back then. “I will take you to the trustee headquarters.”
“No there is no need for that. “This time I came as a participant.”
“…yes?”
The guide’s eyes widened. It was the same for Ronan and Schlieffen. Nabirose turned away from the guide who seemed to be very anxious to say something and walked away. Ronan who was dazed quickly caught up with her.
“What is it that even someone like you instructor can leave?”
“There is no problem as long as you do not make a mistake that violates the regulations. “Is there a law that says I shouldn’t look for the holy sword?”
“That’s true but it’s unexpected. “There is sparring between participants during the filtering process right?”
“Maybe so. “Because it is a consciousness based on merit.”
“I feel sorry for the person who is stuck with the instructor. “That’s a lot.”
Ronan shook her head. I don’t know what kind of test they were going to do but this was no different from massacre. They moved to the square according to the guide’s instructions. Ronan’s eyes widened.
“This is…”
People were crowded together in a space the size of Phileon’s plaza. Ronan who was looking around laughed. There were a lot more people gathered than expected.
“Is this what you filtered?”
“…It is an unusually large number. The date of the event was moved up so what really happened?”
Butterfly Island tilted his head as if he was puzzled. Even people kept gathering. Ronan said looking back at the two people.
“I think there’s a little bit left before we start so I’ll take a look around. “When I try to stay still my stomach hurts.”
“Do it that way.”
Nabirose remembered. Ronan stretched her legs and took a step forward. The energy of the two was so strong that there was no need to worry about being lost.
It had been about five minutes since we had been wandering around. An unfamiliar voice came from behind.
“Who is this the hero who brought spring back to the islands?”
