Father and Son Reunion

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The Alliance’s northward advance. Their first step was completed, and the army returned.

The result was a success. The Alliance forces had constructed three forward fortresses at a point one-third of the distance from Muspelheim to the Demon Lord’s Citadel.

This was the first instance of the Alliance marching out from the Holy Stones in this war against the Demon Lord, signifying a counterattack by the Alliance like when Enoch was active about 130 years ago. Therefore, its significance was immense.

Ordinarily, a grand celebration would be held to boost the Alliance’s morale after such an achievement. However, Doyun postponed it.

Enoch Razvolnic. He was the most experienced and most capable commander in history.

Unlike others who were elated by the immediate success, he thought skeptically instead. It was a wartime perspective only he could take.

‘Something is off.’

He had doubts about this advance. Specifically, there had been no interference from the Demon Lord’s forces at all.

Though the Demon Lord’s forces had suffered a heavy blow in the previous war, there were still plenty of ways they could respond outside the Holy Stones.

With 200 years of war experience, Doyun knew very well how the Demon Lord’s forces would deal with such a situation.

Direct confrontation wasn’t even necessary. The Vanguard Commanders and officers possessed various powerful abilities.

If Ossu turned the march route into a swamp, the heavily-armored infantry and cavalry would drown in the ground.

If Lilith unleashed mental debuffs, the frenzied soldiers would rape their own comrades.

If Satan transformed all the plants in the area into poisonous weeds, maggots and mushrooms would grow on the living soldiers’ bodies.

Such tactics would inflict immense damage on the enemy forces without any losses for the Demon Lord’s army.

In war, the Demon Lord’s forces were effective to the point of selfishness. Perhaps that was why the final expedition a century ago was undertaken by only a few hundred elite warriors.

Yet the Alliance forces had succeeded in a bloodless advance this time. Doyun could not make heads or tails of it.

Therefore, Doyun remained vigilant.

‘It is not yet time to celebrate victory.’

Making a fuss in such an ambiguous situation would only cause disorder.

The enemy must be preparing something. In that case, they needed to maintain tension and caution.

Celebrating should come after they had thwarted the enemy’s ploy. That was Doyun’s judgment.

“Lord Razvolnic, welcome back!”

Upon arriving at Muspelheim, Doyun headed to the royal palace with Vyuskr.

Though recognized by all as the Alliance’s supreme dignity, his current official position was that of a soldier. Therefore, procedurally, he had to present himself to the king when entering the capital.

The Lion King naturally tried to dissuade him. This was Doyun’s stubbornness – his theory that the chain of command and hierarchy must be firmly maintained, especially during wartime.

The two passed through the royal capital, encountering many servants, knights, and subjects. However, no one questioned the skeleton wearing a tattered black robe.

An undead being – an unholy existence that should not set foot in the royal capital.

Yet the fact that he was accompanying Lord Enoch was enough for even a skeleton to receive VIP treatment in the royal capital.

Without any commotion, the two headed straight for the royal audience chamber and met with the Lion King.

As the two entered the spacious audience chamber, the subjects who had been lined up on both sides of the red carpet quickly exited.

The Lion King rose from his throne to welcome them.

“You have worked hard. The 2nd Legion arrived first and has been waiting.”

“Your Majesty has also worked hard.”

Doyun did not kneel in the audience chamber. It was due to the Lion King’s firm insistence that he could not bring himself to kneel before Lord Enoch.

Instead, whenever meeting Doyun, the Lion King dismissed all his subjects. It was a consideration for Doyun’s concern about disrupting the hierarchy – without any watching eyes, the king’s dignity would not be compromised.

After exchanging such courtesies, the Lion King’s gaze naturally turned towards Vyuskr.

“And who might this be?”

The skeleton presumed to be a man standing beside Lord Enoch.

Remarkably, he was bowing his skull and looking down at the floor, showing at least minimal courtesy. Though undead, he seemed to fully retain the memories and rationality from his human life.

“I have brought him to introduce him to you, Your Majesty. He is a friend of mine.”

“Hmm!”

The Lion King’s eyes widened noticeably.

‘If he is Lord Enoch’s companion, he must be one of the warriors who was active in the original Guild!’

The Lion King quickly scrutinized him.

A skeleton with a human skeletal structure. And one who was suddenly encountered in the Wastelands and brought here. Then…

‘He must be one who valiantly fell in battle during the final expedition towards the Demon Lord’s Citadel.’

Some twist of fate must have allowed him to move again while retaining his sense of self. Though rare, it was not an unheard-of occurrence.

Respect filled the Lion King’s face. With a solemn demeanor, he extended one hand.

“I am Adolf Ignis Fatuus, the current king of Muspelheim and a former warrior. It is a pleasure to meet you.”

The king extended his hand for a handshake first and introduced himself by his true name rather than his title ‘Lion King’. He also used honorific speech instead of the informal form. It was the highest courtesy a king could show.

Doyun nodded satisfactorily, feeling the appropriate respect being shown.

“You may raise your head.”

Vyuskr, who had been silently looking down at the king’s hand with his empty eye sockets, raised his skull to meet the king’s gaze.

Whoosh! Azure flames flickered in his two eye sockets.

He grasped the extended hand with his bony fingers.

The Lion King firmly grasped the hand while giving his characteristic warm smile.

“I wish to know the name of the great warrior before me. What is your name?”

“…”

With a slight delay, Vyuskr moved his jawbone to utter a low, grating voice as if scraping against bone:

“Vyuskr. That is my name.”

“Hmm! Vyuskr!”

The Lion King nodded vigorously.

Indeed! Even at a glance, it was a very familiar name. Judging by the exquisite longsword at his waist, he must have been a renowned swordsman whose name echoed across the continent.

The Lion King gazed at the flickering azure flames, searching his memory.

‘Vyuskr, Vyuskr…’

However, unlike the familiarity of the name itself, he could not easily recall who this person was.

Perhaps there were two among the Three Heroes who wielded swords, overshadowing Vyuskr’s fame. No matter how brilliant a light, how could it shine before the sun?

The king did not release the hand, thinking slowly.

‘Let’s see. Among the great men renowned for the sword, there were Enoch Razvolnic, Vyuskr…’

Only those two names had passed when the Lion King’s facial muscles twitched slightly.

“Hm?”

He inadvertently let out a sound of doubt.

‘Vyuskr?’

Lord Enoch’s words, which he had brushed off earlier, replayed in his mind:

‘He is a friend of mine.’

The Lion King’s smile gradually froze, without him even realizing it for a moment.

Enoch had clearly referred to him as a ‘friend’, not a comrade or colleague.

According to the records, there were only two people Lord Enoch had called ‘friends’ – the great heroes themselves.

One was the Fist Saint Hecleus. And the other was…

“The… Sword Saint?”

Vyuskr remained silent.

From beside the now-stiffened Lion King, Doyun answered instead.

“Yes. He was known more by the title of Sword Saint than his given name.”

The Lion King’s eyes widened as if they would pop out of their sockets.

+++

“That king. He’s powerful.”

As they walked through the capital of Skeletonia, Vyuskr moved his jawbone to speak.

“Yeah. In terms of raw firepower, he surpasses even me from the old days.”

In a one-on-one fight, even the Lion King would not be able to defeat Vyuskr from before his death.

However, his unparalleled destructive power made him an invaluable asset in this age of war.

In fact, Vyuskr had already internally rated the Lion King higher than himself a century ago.

By his standards, the Lion King seemed to lack a bit of composure compared to the power he possessed.

‘To be so astonished at the mere appearance of someone from a hundred years ago as an undead…’

Like Doyun’s experience over the past three months, Vyuskr did not yet fully grasp the weight carried by the title of Sword Saint in the current Alliance.

Even considering that, his mana capacity was difficult to believe. It was like gazing at the sun itself.

He would undoubtedly become a brilliant flame in the new war against the Demon Lord.

“A reliable descendant.”

“Descendant…”

Vyuskr softly repeated that word, feeling its resonance.

Doyun glanced at Vyuskr. He could now understand his friend’s inner thoughts.

To see with one’s own eyes those living in the world he had protected… it was a far more profound experience than he had imagined. Doyun surmised that Vyuskr must be feeling something similar to what he had felt.

Doyun slowed his pace to match Vyuskr’s slightly slower steps.

“Dokkomuyoung, the warrior we met earlier, oversees the actual authority of the Alliance. I have informed him and the Lion King, so there will be no security issues regarding your identity.”

Vyuskr showed no reaction. It was a clear display of his personality, showing no interest in matters outside his concerns.

Concealing his identity was not so much his own desire as it was the two descendants fulfilling his simple wish to ‘quietly cultivate the sword’.

And above all, he had no mental energy to spare for anything else.

Trudge, crunch, trudge, crunch. His inattentive footsteps made noise, contrasting with the cat-like tread he had in the Wastelands. It was evidence that his mind was solely focused on the upcoming reunion.

As Doyun turned towards their destination, Vyuskr’s childhood home where Brudhild resided, he asked:

“How do you feel about seeing your son after a hundred years?”