The best guide (2) It was a strange
vibration
.
A vibration that continues without interruption, seemingly uninterrupted.
The shaking continued for too long to be called an earthquake, and the man who was sitting like a corpse began to quietly open his closed eyes.
“…This is what happened in the end.”
It was a dark space without any light coming in.
However, Frausen was getting up naturally, as if he could see in front of him.
“Sarnus.”
Frausen’s world was a world that had already lost its luster.
However, he was able to catch a glimpse of the world of dragons through the carvings embedded in his chest, and through Frausen’s left eye, which was now closed, he could see Sarnus slowly taking on the form of a dragon, and Vlad trying to run away from him.
“You ended up breaking your covenant with me and swallowing the dragon piece.”
Frausen, who was looking at this with a stern expression, began to smile quietly.
The presence of the oldest dragon becomes increasingly darker and the traces of the most perfect dragon trying to escape from him.
Frausen was almost dejected as to why he was acting exactly as he had predicted.
“I didn’t even know it was poison.”
After finishing his last words, Frausen quietly stood up and stood in front of the door leading to the hallway.
Now that the oldest dragon had swallowed the imperial piece, it was now his turn to move.
“As expected, I did well to keep you alive. Sarnus.”
Even when the door was open, Frausen was greeted only by darkness, but he simply stepped on the shadows on the floor without any hesitation.
He had forgotten so many things while walking down this path that he now had to finish the things he had scattered.
※※※※
Chiik-
With the sound of a match burning, the dark cave was lit up.
The group began to sigh in relief as they were finally able to recognize each other in a cave so narrow and deep that they had to touch shoulders.
“What is all this? “Why is there a hole?”
“I don’t know either. “If you, the wizard, don’t know.”
“shit. “You almost got tired of it!”
Radu, who had been away for a while, shook his head as if he didn’t want to even remember that memory.
However, contrary to that terrible feeling of floating, they were unharmed and the reason was probably because of the small mole that was still shining.
Kya-!
The eyes of the group, who had finally come to their senses, naturally began to focus on Vlad.
To be exact, it was aimed at the glowing mole sitting on Vlad’s head.
“What is that rat?”
“It’s not a rat, it’s a mole. mole.”
“It’s a mole, why does it glow? “What kind of firefly is this?”
The group was muttering a little as they looked at the strange-looking mole, but the guy actually started shrugging his shoulders as if he thought he was praising himself.
Seeing the sight as if he was receiving a compliment, Nibelun unconsciously handed over the piece of bread he had in his pocket.
“…Bread crumbs are falling. “You bastard.”
Vlad, who had finally regained consciousness, looked up at the mole whimpering above his head and frowned.
However, the reason they couldn’t put him down despite such inconvenience was because they could fully predict what would have happened if it weren’t for the current hole.
“But where do we go?”
“You should ask the guy who dug it.”
There was only one road, but there were open caves going in both front and back directions.
Not knowing which one to choose, Vlad raised his finger and bluntly poked the mole’s side.
“Where do we go now? men and horses.”
Kya-!
The mole raised his posture as if he was surprised by Vlad’s pointed finger, then immediately raised his short arm and started pointing somewhere.
It was a completely dark cave, but the direction he was pointing towards was toward the mountain where they had tried to escape earlier, and was also where the Luga tribe who had escaped from the city were headed.
“let’s go.”
After deciding on the direction to go, Vlad raised his head for a moment and looked at the entrance where they had fallen.
The ground above shines like a hole in the black curtain.
Thinking of the dragon blood ball standing there, Vlad made an effort to turn his head and started walking in the direction pointed by the mole.
‘I’m sorry for making you run away for me. Quijano.’
[……It’s okay.]
Contrary to his complex feelings, the mole’s den is just straight.
Vlad was comforted by the fact that there was a path he could walk without thinking, and quietly thanked Quijano for taking his place.
※※※※
The first place the group came out of the cave was where the mountain they had seen earlier was located.
It was a mountain not far from the city of Namarka, and it was also a place where you could still see the dark army of Dragulia gathered in the distance.
“You survived.”
Vlad was able to meet the godmother of the Luga family who was waiting for him there.
Even though her location could be exposed, she was smoking a small bonfire, and her forehead was damp with sweat, as if she had been acting mysterious just a moment ago.
“It’s the spirit of the land. “I didn’t know this guy would come out.”
The godmother’s eyes brightened as if she was amazed at the mole on Vlad’s head.
“Did your godmother call you?”
“I called… but I didn’t know that the earth spirit would come out.”
It is a mystery because it cannot be explained, and it is magic because it is unpredictable.
The godmother of the Luga family was surprised as she looked at the mole on Vlad’s head, as if it was a mystery of her own, but it was not the result she had predicted.
“It seems like there was a connection between the two. In order to command a being of this magnitude, a lot of preparation is required.”
It was a vague guess, but she was right.
A shining mole that came down here from Dobrechti along the mountain range starting from the north.
The fact that he was able to come down to this place from that far away in one go was probably possible not only because of the mystery sown by the Great Mother, but also because of the possibility of the World Tree formed on the Dragon Slayer Sword and his relationship with Vlad.
What-?
In the moment of silence that ended the conversation, there was a cry from the mole as if asking, “What should I do now?”
Vlad, who heard that sound, looked around and opened his mouth.
“…How many people are there in total?”
“About 300 people.”
“Is there somewhere to go?”
Vlad scratched his cheek as he looked at the Luga refugees gathered together.
However, when Vlad asked if she had somewhere to go, the godmother just shook her head without saying a word.
“This is all a sin of losing one’s hometown. “Where else will we be welcomed if not in the land where we are rooted?”
The beast people are rejected by the church because they practice mystery, and people chase them out because they look different.
Their history was a history of wandering, and they had been able to make a living for a while in Namarka, a land without roots, but even the dirty alleys were lost once again due to the visit of dragons.
“But let’s get out of here for now. “If we move north, there will be a way.”
Vlad could not help but feel a great deal of responsibility as he saw the Luga family losing their home because of him.
Still, he knew he had to get out of here first, so he looked up at the mole above his head.
“I want to go as far north as possible.”
What-?
“Isn’t there a place we can take all of these people?”
The glowing mole begins to tap his foot as if he is troubled by Vlad’s words.
Vlad was horrified by the sight above his head, but since this was the only one who could show him the way, he had no choice but to suppress his anger.
“…Think quickly.”
At Vlad’s cool urging, the mole seemed to have finally remembered something and rolled down from its head to stand in front of the hole it had dug.
Kkyukkyun-!
Two short arms waving as if asking to go here.
Vlad and the godmother of the Luga family were looking at each other as they saw the mole’s small but violent movements.
※※※※
The window on the side was wide and the sunlight shining through it was a warm room.
Josef looked at the decorations in the room visible through the light and quietly lifted the teacup in front of him.
“You seem to be very interested in elf food.”
The room Josef looked around was filled with decorations related to elves.
The elf ornaments, which looked unusual at first glance, had an old-fashioned charm to them that made you feel like you could get a piece of them even if you put them up for auction right now.
“There was a time like that in the past. “I tried to please them as much as possible.”
With those words, Count Vitskaya put down the teacup he was holding and smiled as he looked at Josef in front of him.
He must have taken a deep sip of the tea he had just drank, and the tea water on his white beard turned pitch black.
“There was a time when the goods sent by the elves were the specialties of my territory and were the lifeblood of my territory. Of course, it is now horribly ruined.”
Tanobo was once the center of elven trade, but is now in complete decline.
The owner of the place, Count Vitskaya, seemed to be bitter from memories of the past, and continued speaking with his tongue licking his lips.
“The elves have arbitrarily cut off trade, and the Dragon Blood Lords have driven away all suspicion about Absilon from us. No matter how much I do, I wonder if I have the talent to endure.”
Count Vitskaya, who was lamenting about himself, began to look at Josef for a moment.
It was a funny sight to see the Count himself reacting to the opinions of a man who had been kicked out of his family, but it was not the time to question such things now.
“Still, there are people who lend a helping hand like this just in time, so it seems there’s no law that says people should die.”
“Is that so.”
Because the man named Josef who was sitting in front of him right now was a messenger sent directly from the pitch-black darkness.
Count Vitskaya knew very well that now that all the support sent by the Dragon Blood Dukes had been cut off, their help was absolutely necessary to ensure the survival of the territory and to completely monopolize the elf resource.
“You can take whatever you want from the elf land, whether it’s the World Tree or not. In the meantime, we will spare no effort in providing you with land and food to stay in.”
“……”
Josef, who was listening to the Count, began to look at him blankly without saying a word.
The count’s eyes began to glow blacker, as if the tea he had just drank had begun to take effect.
Josef began to nod as if he understood the Count’s eyes, which did not hide his desire at all.
“All right.”
Originally, darkness came when a person was in the darkest place.
Even though they were unable to escape on their own, it was darkness that quietly approached them and covered their eyes when no one was there to help them.
“The Count’s firm will. “We will definitely deliver.”
That’s why people will have no choice but to hold their hands.
Because we were coming at the most difficult time and giving them exactly what they wanted.
Like the Baron of Moshiam who wanted to save his young son’s life, like himself who would soon die.
Ramashut’s hand, offering what he wanted in a timely manner, was nothing short of a strong temptation that was difficult for anyone to shake off.
“Thank you! If my job goes well, I won’t be upset with you either.
” Seeing Count Vitskaya nodding his head while saying thank you, Josef began to reach for the teacup he had put down again.
The taste of the tea was as bitter and fishy as its pitch black color. It was still difficult for Josef to get used to it, but he still needed the dark scent of that car, so it was inevitable.
Slowly –
“Hmm?”
However, Josef’s outstretched hand could not reach the teacup.
This was because the outstretched hand stopped due to the vibration of the building that began to subtly vibrate.
“Earthquake?”
Tanovo, a city in the County of Vitskaya, never experienced an earthquake.
However, today, a tremor that could be felt by everyone in the city started from underneath the ground. It started
with a pile of dirt rising up as if someone was digging from underground. The tremors started far to the south and continued all the way to Aushurin, where the elves’ forest was located.
