episode_0028

The fragrant scent of tea wafted through the green forest.

The house was made of wood, but the vines around it seemed quite uninhabited.

Here it was the natural form of a house.

“Cassat… okay. What brought you here?”

The elder stared at the young boy with a slightly perplexed gaze.

I already have a noisy family these days.

My heart was complicated when the son of that family came to visit me.

Of course, that’s not the only reason I’m not happy about it.

Cassat glanced at the elder with indecipherable eyes and then turned his attention to the car.

The tea in the teacup was soft, reminiscent of the calm before a storm.

There will be a ripple effect soon.

“It must have been a long time ago. To the elder. They deceived and intimidated the child with words that did not make sense and forced him to make a sacrifice.”

“… … !”

It appeared for a moment and then disappeared, but the elder clearly seemed to be asking this with his expression.

How do you know that?

“… … I don’t know what you’re talking about.”

“You are saying that you will do it without knowing.”

“It’s not that I don’t know, I really don’t know… ”

widely!

“… What is this?”

Perhaps because he sensed that it was something unusual, he opened the book with busy hands.

As he went from one side to the other, the elder’s face hardened.

The moment the elder tightened his grip, Cassatt quickly retrieved the book.

“Can you tear it up? That is the only evidence.”

“… … What do you want to say?”

“I don’t know either. Should I let people know about this and make them pay a fair price? or not. Will I have to pay a different price?”

“You, you will not know. What would have happened if the power of the Belian Crystal had not been charged at that time!”

The elder spoke in a persuasive tone.

“Cassat. Hey. It’s really unfortunate that your brother ended up like that… Still, can’t you understand that it was an inevitable sacrifice for the greater good?”

“Sacrifice for the greater good?”

Cassat’s calm expression gradually hardened.

“I’m saying that now… ”

“Don’t say anything you don’t know! What if the power of the Belian Crystal disappears? Maybe we could all die!”

He was very excited, and when he saw Cassatt’s cold gaze, he cleared his throat and calmed his excitement.

He made a serious expression and opened his mouth again.

” I was worried about when the Belian Crystal would run out of power, and before that happened, I looked up the data left behind by my predecessor and worried about the future. ”

The elder recalled the day he learned that shocking fact.

Since ancient times, diaries left by ancestral elders, although not grand, have been passed down from generation to generation.

Elder Hyeon, who inherited this from his predecessor, was surprised by the thickness of the book when he first saw it.

Second, when I opened this book in person, I was surprised by the content written inside.

“It was during the time of Elder Five. One day, there was a problem with the Velian crystal, and the barrier was broken for a while.”

The tragedy at that time… It was written that it was truly indescribable.

I don’t know when or how that story leaked out.

Unknowingly, there was a rumor that the heart of the Atran people was the elixir of eternal life.

Several tribes, drooling at this, wandered for a long time in the forest where they assumed the Atrans lived.

Then one day. The tragedy has come to an end.

The Atran village, which had been shrouded in secrets and mysteries ever since the barrier was lifted, was briefly revealed to the world.

“It only lasted a few days, and the crystal was quickly fixed and the barrier returned. but… A lot of blood was shed in that short period of time.”

Even though they were Atran people, they were not suffering helplessly.

Filled with venom as their compatriots died, they fought desperately.

Just because we’re weaker than other races doesn’t mean we can’t fight.

“But after only the third day, we were on the defensive. Since I didn’t know when the barrier would return, it was almost hopeless. It was then. A race so strong that the fight until now was like a fight between ants has emerged.”

That race is the race of warriors who stopped by here in person not long ago.

“Larun people. They saved us with one condition.”

“What conditions?”

“… … .”

It seemed as if the elder could not easily fall silent.

However, I let out a deep sigh and found it difficult to get the words out.

“He asked for the heart of our people.”

Cassatt looked more surprised than this.

My pupils trembled as if I was agitated.

“Why are our hearts… ”

“We don’t know that either. but… My predecessor said that it seems like our hearts are some kind of elixir.”

“No matter what, you’re asking for our hearts… You don’t know if they will just go away if you give them their heart in the first place.”

“Then? What options were left for us? I fully understand the decision of the elder at the time. No, it should have been that way. Isn’t it possible for everyone to die to protect a few people?”

“… really. You are disgusting to the end.”

I definitely heard a surprising secret.

The choice at that time, as told in secret history… It deserves to be criticized, but that was a long time ago.

What was important to him now was to relieve his brother of his injustice.

Cassat stood up, staring at the elder with as much disdain as possible.

“In the end, you can sympathize with the elder because he is the same. How many people died then? Even if we couldn’t do it, at least one person would have died.”

Thinking about that, Cassat’s heart sank coldly.

‘Then the reason why the Larun tribe took my brother away… … .’

Close your eyes tightly.

I shed tears inside.

In memory of my older brother, who was always taken advantage of without protection.

“I have to tell you this. Please pay for your sins sweetly, or as painfully as possible.”

Now open the door and read the contents of this book, your brother’s hardships and your elder’s misfortune! All I had to do was shout.

I’m sure it was… .

bang-!

A tremendous shock hit the back of my head.

Suddenly my vision is tilted.

Eventually, Cassat, who fell to the floor, barely managed to regain his dazed mind and heard a voice.

“I had no intention of doing this either. But you were wrong! I did nothing, nothing wrong!”

I was losing my mind.

The back of the shocked head was a puddle of red blood. The floor was soaked.

“Cassat? Cassatt?”

The elder, who found reason later, called Cassat’s name. No answer came.

I felt anxious and gestured to Cassat’s face.

Cassatt closed his eyes and felt nothing.

The elder felt like he was losing his mind again at the sticky feel of blood on his hands.

“What should I do with this? What if people find out that I was like this? I, I… !”

It was unfair. I have been devoting myself to the village with a good heart for a long time… If this became known, people would have no choice but to remove him from his position as an elder.

‘Ah, my God! Is this really the price of good deeds?’

I feel so wronged!

… I shouted that in my heart.

Of course, there was no answer.

The mood of the elder, who had been sitting alone and helpless, changed.

In the eyes… There was a hint of venom.

“Just like this… It can’t end like this.”

Would it be fortunate if he just stepped down from his position as an elder?

It was obvious that he would destroy all the good image he had built up so far.

‘How many people know that Cassatt came here… .’

This fact must be hidden.

That was the way he lived, and by extension, the way the village lived.

‘There is no one more devoted to the village than me. So only if I become an elder can this village be at peace!’

It wasn’t just pride.

Among the elders of all time, no one achieved as many achievements as he did while ruling the village.

Even if it is an achievement that requires someone’s sacrifice.

“Ugh… … .”

The elder’s eyes widened at the sudden groan he heard.

‘live… ‘Is it there?’

Even though I felt relieved that I had not committed murder, I was also filled with anxiety.

‘If I let it go like this, all my secrets will be exposed.’

In the end, there was no change in the fact that this matter still had to be hidden.

Cassat, who came to his senses even if only slightly, could feel himself being dragged somewhere.

* * *

Kamiel decided to go on a trip with Leasian.

She was now able to enjoy the outside world to her heart’s content.

Also, his time was running out, so it was a good thing in the end.

“Oh, now that I think about it, Ilho did this… … .”

“Is it money? I got it too… .”

Kamiel should have felt grateful to Ilho.

It seemed like they had guessed what they were going to do, as they even handed money to the young lady.

Travel isn’t all about money.

Still, if you have money, you can experience more things… It was written in the book.

In reality, no one knew.

Because until now, the world they enjoyed was too small.

“Then where shall we go?”

“So?”

“… … .”

‘… Phew.”

“Phew… .”

As we looked at each other, we burst out laughing.

“We… There really isn’t anything to do about it?”

“That’s right. To begin with, I only encountered the world through books, so what plan could I have?”

“That’s true too.”

Haha, hoho… The smile flower is in full bloom, rivaling the flowers in the flower garden.

The two were just happy to be together.

“Ah, Deacon Ilho said that you can go to places with a lot of people with this bead.”

“Really? hmm… But going to that place all at once is a bit… .”

“… Actually, I’m excited, but I’m also scared. Then shall we walk?”

Leasian, who was looking at his face closely, shook his head and said.

“… no. Let’s use that.”

“Yes?”

Why Kamiel? He stared at me with eyes filled with this question.

Rheasian was a little embarrassed, but answered with his head held high.

“Your condition looks very bad. If you overdo it in that state, it could get worse… .”

As Leasian spoke, he tried to control his trembling heart with worry.

I touched the bottom of his nose with my index finger.

“Ah… … .”

I forgot about it for a while.

That I had a nosebleed.

‘Then I…’ ‘What state are you in now?’

When Leasian bit his hand, Kamiel turned his head for a moment and roughly rubbed under his nose.

Then, a piece of dried blood appeared on the side of my hand.

‘There was a lot buried… .’

“Are you wiping the blood? Shall I clean it for you?”

“No. It’s all done… .”

Kamiel, who had just turned his head, cleared his throat when he saw the gaze focused only on him.

He seemed embarrassed to have shown such an ugly appearance.

“Then… Shall I use beads?”

I wasn’t worried that it might be impossible for everyone to move together.

‘Because even when I cried, I came with Ulka…’ ‘It will work.’

“Ulka Son.”

purr.

Ulka, who was so gentle that it was hard to tell if he was a dog or a wolf, suddenly held out his hand.

“Young lady too.”

“Yes.”

I also held her hand nicely.

For some reason, I felt a small, delicate hand squeezing through the gaps between my fingers.

It was like seeing her cuteness, which made my heart happy.

Camiel, with a smile on his face, shouted softly.

“『Stigma Kinesis』”