Chapter 99: Sun Claiomh Solais (7)
dTKG“…They’re not coming.”z2doQ
h5FZl8G“Like, what is going on…?”4Llb
mmILThe druids of Findias did not know that the two girls stuck in their illusions were a part of Korin’s group. That was why they had laid them down at one of the city’s halls, thinking that they would wake up sometime soon.n5tQg
vCxkrq“Korin. Any later than this and there will be no advantage to our previous lead.”tzF4HLJ
XnDYaGG“Sister, but…”jXbnC
AnH“No, Miss Lunia is right. If we wait any longer than this, our advantage over Scaith’s group will turn meaningless.”alhoNq
DtDhtvIn the end, Korin decided to start climbing the oak tree.zRXjUZ
c1HmTZ“Let’s go!”OxS
twpKWBKorin, Alicia, Lunia and Yuel.2W7Jfi
HkQl5The four of them started climbing the enormous oak tree.wqd
3OEm3CMeanwhile, Scaith and Dumnorix were glaring at them with a sharp look in their eyes.j9dbHN
35aoQ****5kG
RLWVGRBMarie silently watched over the two happy people.tRCd
7AlstGuests congratulated them; the choir sang songs and the priest blessed their future. Everyone in the chapel was happy except for Marie.qtLoX5
XVLeKp1 year went by.rhFUw7
kgYxWDHua Ran gave birth to a child. Watching the two of them buy baby clothes together, Marie unknowingly bit her lower lips, not knowing that her lips were turning red with blood.9BT
vUmGaAnother year went by.fk6Lr
ib4The child turned 1 year old. Seeing the baby toddle forward reminded her of Korin.IEs8Gn
J2mNAnother year went by.ZDIcN
C9mDvefShe saw Korin preparing an event for the wedding anniversary. He didn’t prepare much, but it still allowed her to see just how considerate he was.2GSmz
7xg7hxIf only she was the one instead…Qpxy
g35Tr3Another year went by.iYU
ogZ“…I wish you all the best, Korin.”gE6i
pDTWgcXShe decided to accept it.cB8m
IFEa1Marie decided to wish the best for her loved one. It seemed that they weren’t meant to be – they weren’t lovers, and it was already too late for her to do anything.gqiUUT
6i43DZlThat was why she chose to bless them.6Hqv375
RdV76vFor their happiness.SFOv
bXfa91Another year went by.N2jH
qsH2U“Here you go, Hua Ran. A birthday present…!”xb7u0N
m1kvShe became friends.NEw0J5
b1CvAQ1Hiding her inner turmoil and as a senior and a friend, she congratulated them on several anniversaries and went out together. However, she couldn’t stop her eyes from going to the husband of her junior.6X993zz
L7vMNo, no no.KDdr1
leGShe had to hope for their happiness.05Yg
yM3OShe had to wish for their best.sf5QUg
4YOglMDAnother year went by.gDu2gZ
lMBzVm9“Korin. Isn’t that… the same clothes as last year?”QR8
bBPNL“Yeah. Well, they are expensive, right?”OBiNM
HR7Marie said while glancing at the suit with obsidian buttons. That was the same suit he wore in the wedding ceremony that was being worn again and again.pOF
RZgDgAlthough the two of them were happy, they were leading a very poor and impoverished life. Even the baby’s nanny was from a humble background with nothing special.StY
ZA6edfyEven those meals, clothes, houses, and land…ws9F
CIG‘If it was me…’ she thought to herself, thinking about all the things she would have done for him.cXQ1xZ
jhrYAnother year went by, followed by another year.FlxU
GCAHVA1Time flew like an arrow.qxkWL
x52QY7………ZDtKQAq
HDB……CyX9
1gVeSX…yyzvV
7JKMarie still couldn’t accept it. Looking at the family, her eyes gleamed with unsightly jealousy and greed.HAf7xNn
ODWA3I liked him first. I met him first.RgQ
3r9stjII can give him more things.FBMN0fG
JorHUagLand, mines, treasures, status, everything.d0GrcW
Q2S8KwHe doesn’t need to do anything. All he needs to do is wait at my home and smile at me when I’m back.gQt
R5NyThat was all he needed to do.aZLSo1D
KyLXT1HAs long as he could do that,mP7
ovy5ri9If only he did that for me, I would have given my everything…JWF
3T485S‘Ah, I see’. That was when she realized it.J9Gf
dApShe realized that she could never accept this defeat.htMC
6KoMarie admitted the terrible and evil emotion inside her.AzDF
yg4nMThat was also when she noticed that her first love hadn’t failed. It was just that it hadn’t succeeded just yet.JnW
2OTxIn that case, all she had to do was make it succeed.qj4Acc
SfgThe world might tell her she was too late; that it was her loss and that she had to acknowledge her defeat but Marie did not care about any of that.TkEW
G0cFn9rAll she needed to do was change it to the reality she wanted it to be.lKqcAg
03L60VxDefeat was not an option. That was the road she chose.pFT
tK04kTricks, strategies, wealth, and authority.brH2M
EeWp4Marie thought about all the means she had under her belt, but it was destined to turn into a horrible and long battle if she were to use everything she had in her kit.biZ4
xhWW8HWould Korin hate it though? Would he start hating me?rnCy9
lh6EKorThat was the only thing she couldn’t allow; his opinion of her was the thing that mattered the most to her.2eQSL
O4TmnHer tricks and strategies had to be carried out in secret, and she had to use her power and wealth behind his back.4IQh
cCTKShe considered all of her options and that was when she noticed the wrinkles near Korin’s lips.IAAe
Ch4nv“Ah…”vrv5o3S
W6wRfhSeeing his grown-up child who was now old enough to enter the Academy, Marie recalled that Korin Lork was just a normal human.83k
z67l4yBAs a vampire, it was possible for her to live forever as long as she had enough blood. Vampires in general could live almost forever except for the fact that they had to be away from sunlight but Marie was at the level of a Vampire Elder who had even overcome sunlight with her innate talents.5rBb8E
CvccCompared to that, Korin was just a normal human who would live 100 years at max. His life was destined to come to an end one day.RF6f
ksyb1lfRight, that was a good approach. Why didn’t she think about that till now?cCY48
sq2ju100 years.xgR
U3OKorin was a healthy knight so he would probably live 100 years, which was yieldable. It was uncertain how long Hua Ran would live for, but that didn’t stop Korin from having a life limit.wRYG
JHUsBf9100 years would be a long-enough wait. After that, all she had to do was take him away after Hua Ran had her fill.qv87L
AT7OySAShe could then make him into hers. It was easy for a higher-status vampire like her to make someone into her familiar.rNcMMQ
d6mtmvjWhat would happen after that? Hua Ran might chase after them but it was okay.2UA
FN3qLower vampires were subordinates to higher vampires. Hierarchy was immensely important, especially for direct links like Korin who would turn into a vampire from her own blood.SoL
eyXKorin would have no choice but to listen to her commands. He might be against it at the start but that was okay.97Kz
YyeHqAs long as she honestly told him about how she didn’t want him to die, and that she was hoping for him to live forever, he would probably understand her.p4X537V
mxD1zIdLastly, if she could help him overcome sunlight… Throughout that process which would take centuries for a normal vampire, Korin would be hers and hers alone.wGi9D3
ZRoM9pLike that, the traces left behind by that woman would be worn down and weathered away into nothing. He would turn back to his clear and untainted self and live with her forever.gjW9n
e4u“I… am the only one that can give Korin eternal life.”oSkgS
tOTL100 years? She could yield that much, but he would be hers after 100 years. Those unpleasant decades would be completely erased away by her.1oinfo2
M8w2nThe Vampire Elder girl gave a crooked smile, telling herself that that conclusion would bring happiness to everyone.cD29cCA
CVM………8M3vfp
d8CiF……7AK
okI97MS…Elcswv
qrkyThere was a time when she saw a beautiful artifact made of glass.yoP5h
RjBCpIt was a glass doll that her father got for her from a faraway land from his acquaintance when she was lying on her bed, too ill to even move an inch. The doll was so beautiful and pretty, but appeared so fragile that it would break from a single touch.K1qFCj
LyFdxThe days of the boy and the girl were so beautiful and colorful like that glass doll.FicFOie
9xGLp‘What are you doing?’q3HF6
QWFdJvx“…Watching them.”U8J6dbn
QzBfK4For no reason, she kept watching the two people. It might have been better if the two sisters hadn’t been sharing a body.qV5u
wYwZTheir emotions were being shared, so Hua and Ran were able to feel each other’s displeasure. Because of that, their displeasure was multiplied twofold and their minds led to worse and more vicious thoughts.lTcvtWF
uU1RZThey watched the two of them hold each other by their hands. They watched him debone the fish for Marie.tswIV
5RD1JrIt was the same thing as the thing he had done for both Hua and Ran, but it was clear that his actions now meant a lot more.1HJ07R2
sYzVTIt made them feel very unpleasant.XFOS
30u5bRan couldn’t take her eyes off of their interlocked fingers.vOr
byGjgFor a long time, she had no choice but to watch them. Their happiness and their beautiful harmony of emotions were so terribly unpleasant to see that she couldn’t bear it, but even so, she continued looking at them. She just couldn’t take her eyes off of them.D5l8qyF
U2XIZMThat meant that Hua also had to look at the same thing, as one who shared the vision with her.pVwH
8BfY‘What do you want to do?’oOyU94G
PldrT3e“…I don’t know. Failure… wasn’t a part of my plan.”jtiY8
8Kkwrlx‘Plan?’6zDPhOk
wFM“Un. My plan was to love like normal, have a normal relationship, a normal family and children… and call him with every title possible.”VUtfyCA
6eROppa, honey, love, hubby, darling.JfCDpKq
PPncOUzThe girl had a very strong desire for the ‘norm’, due to lying on the bed the whole time with the thought that she wouldn’t be able to live for a long time. She had been hoping to share that with her oppa.UWMP
9Pk8EFA‘Why can’t we do that now?’O5xG7Z7
jWuMz“Obviously because…”tRqMP
J0KRan stopped and didn’t bother explaining it to Hua. Her younger sister, who was barely 3 years old, did not know about the common sense of human society and its rules. Because she tended to solve her immediate wishes whenever possible, she couldn’t help but have a very simple way of thinking.EqyT
kKjGtV3‘Do you need help?’2o3a
a9Icsvs“Help? What do you mean by that?”es5daC
SrTc‘I mean I can help you get what you want, Ran.’aWr
MJNXAfter hearing Hua’s words, Ran tilted her head. Unfortunately, she had no other choice but to rely on her help, even if that meant crushing the perfectly-crafted glass doll.WYCvou
N5d8Mt“Been a while. Have you been fine?”CXq7RsD
dY9wr23The boy acted like usual. His kindness tickled her cheeks and made her feel feverish on her face but Hua Ran pretended indifference while gazing at him.cPxJ
a0NpThen, she grabbed onto his hands while locking her fingers with his.qjRis
K5tl“…Hua Ran?”KSd
fJxCphz“Try to escape.”VqWr0r
Rm5Her hands were tiny compared to the large hands of the boy. But when she added power to her locked fingers, the boy cried out in pain.dkBK
IgbxT1N“Ugh…!”3H9
TqfvOSThen, he tried as hard as he could but could not escape from her grip. The stubborn boy tried to use his own weight by leaning back, but even after falling onto the bed behind him, he still couldn’t escape from her grip.8WMkXD
KZcGXJHua Ran got on top of him, but still kept her fingers locked in his.HdUhVMn
Qy3XUr“…Hmm.”uyv
cZB2nOne of her red eyes turned blue.Mtqq
DvJ3ISeeing that the boy couldn’t escape from her grip no matter what he did despite her loose fingers, Ran realized something.tvd
siA‘Huh? He is…’EJb3Qos
kVOEr“Look. He’s weaker than you think.”MHuHT
aJMmPvuHe was weak. Despite his stubborn attempt, the boy just couldn’t escape from her hands. It was shocking how Korin, who had looked so reliable and enormous in her eyes, was this weak.bME2G
e5A215“Hmm… You are weak, huh. Hehe, oppa is weak, huh.”Jb7Q28
qMf0After laying him down on the bed, Ran licked the cold sweat falling down his cheeks. It was salty.ZL03
1thMBB“You are… in the wrong, oppa…s9MwW
DUNMCyn“It’s because you keep on looking at someone else and not me…”wXFY
pvt7vy9With a rugged breath, she gazed down at the boy beneath her. On his collarbone coming down from his shoulders was a trace left behind by that woman.W4iWr
9npa“Horrible…”Izdf6p
rrbnP7Recalling those disgusting red eyes of the woman as she openly sucked his blood for her to see made her feel unpleasant again. She must have used oppa’s kind heart and begged for blood, and used that to threaten him into going out with her.WxyEt
Q6iut– Kaduk!MFlwONJ
hXnRan bit into the fang marks left behind on his neck. She covered up the other woman’s teeth marks which made her feel a little better.VJNBc
jrv4GuT“Haa…”TtTKqL
iD6LfTheir faces drew closer in, to the point that their breaths were blowing into each other’s face.NRMeg0
gv1UPThose pretty sunset-colored eyes of his were shaking from a myriad of emotions, but that didn’t stop her. She wouldn’t have even attempted anything if she was going to stop there.GECgySB
ziam“Oppa…”T26EL
qNIdRtdHer lips twisted in a bewitching manner. Guilt and hesitation… All of that crumbled into nothing in front of her greed.HMFjKz
IgZ“It’s all your fault.”xozc
8IupsdI took his first.zLCg
ZkyZYDJust like how he took all of my firsts.1GeS5
6W1CSQTHis first is also mine.o0A1Vu
mF5sxdJ………ArZr7LM
mSbF……UPLR
nWcIw…IuZK
6utFh3kThe next morning, Hua Ran gave a benevolent smile while looking at the little baby in her arms.iOVk6
G1tlAfter all, it was common sense that a stork would deliver a baby when a pair of male and female laid down on the bed and spent the night with their fingers locked.2Ae
kiF5****MEQMzY
NtpW8By utter coincidence, or perhaps because of a prank of a god, or even fate, the two girls woke up at the same time.gq66tTY
fqqHzPD“……”GHa2NRI
KX6“……”TIUPqtZ
y5mMX0Marie and Hua Ran blankly looked at each other on top of the beds placed by the druids. Their cheeks blushed in red as they then realized what they had been doing until now.jeu
ES3GIwV“……”qkoEa
rf3“……”7YGn
351BQEverything was so silent that even the crawling noise of a worm would echo inside the room. In the midst of that silence, the two girls silently shared a knowing gaze and nodded at each other.zIky
zXRQefLet’s forget it.C6MVWN8
NwlzLet’s forget everything that just happened.8B7EKUP
72M233PThe two of them immediately realized that they had just experienced the most embarrassing moment of their life which only they were aware of.Ays
TY27I1“…Looks like you woke up.”d563
DDieMHowever, there was another person in the room.WBeybpj
96rkJJ“You…”v7Q
BEqOaV3“W, who might you be?”xfvMt
OQ1r“I am Uzkias, the guardian of this place, Findias. Uhh… Kuhum!”zQEGH
TUM8HfqHe was about to give some advice as an adult that something like that was no good no matter how strong of a conviction they had but… he soon decided to gloss over their embarrassing memories because if the two girls started a rampage out of embarrassment… Findias might be reduced to rubble.txNSd1q
1gbzbBs“If you are here to see Korin Lork, you were a little late.”l3FR
IToHgV“What do you… mean?”TydT
lDqSIG“They have already started climbing the tree to reach the sky. That was 3 days ago.”j3iB
btP4“…”GUEybD
9iPpDu“W, we were late, huh.”jubusb
Wf2Marie was in the middle of wondering whether they would be able to make it in time even if they started chasing after him now, but that was when she tilted her head after noticing something.HZjzE
dbKSsA“How did you know we were here to see Korin?”uam
3UvG“…”kabTRo
rYzSHUzkias was not inconsiderate enough to tell the two girls that he had taken a glimpse into their illusions and had seen how the cause of their shady, treacherous and extreme decisions had been the same boy.8k7f
CrcG6“… I heard from Korin Lork and was waiting for you to arrive.”S02l
9FVlHe decided to forget the embarrassing memories of the two girls… or rather the three girls and live on without questioning it.ZfH
qLRF“Tch tch. What has the world come to. Kuhum…!”17lj0j
a0k****fj3N
NVZOJIuClimbing a mountain wasn’t easy, especially when climbing an unfrequented mountain with no roads.ip0gw7n
tWrngkSo how hard would climbing a tree be?BP5E
tzrMHow would you climb up the steep slope of a trunk? Normally, the idea of climbing a tree all the way to the sky would sound very ridiculous and impossible.ggRWBW
iqDO“Thank you for your kind help, spirits.”fslZXL
f9xLAWClimbing the tree was actually not as hard as one would expect. Thanks to the help of the spirits guiding the way for Yuel and the oak tree twisting its own body to create a path with its branches, we were able to climb up an endless spiral staircase and reach the pinnacle where we were just below the clouds in just 3 days.VXDh
uZrw“We are still not there, it seems.”hb0
CkHk“But looking at the speed, I think we should be there in another 20 or 30 minutes,” I replied.zo8
JVD“Ugh… It’s very cold.”F3Ocq
cJFWe were right beneath the clouds so we were probably about 8 kilometers aboveground, and it was thus very normal for her to be cold. I took off one of the coats I was wearing and threw it over Alicia.CC1oj
cJHAOT2“We’ll be there in a bit. Hold on just a little bit more.”C8rQiB7
8uqKR“Aht… t, thank you.”k8J
3GC18i“Korin. By the way, do you know what it is that’s on top of the clouds?”7vh
MVKkxI was in the middle of carving rune letters onto the tree with my spear when Yuel asked a question. Even though she was a druid, she was still young and had been living elsewhere so she didn’t seem very familiar with the secrets of Findias.R2w
DJ7uh“All the tests and trials we went through were for us to reach the sky. It sounds straightforward but ambiguous at the same time.”JvFusCQ
QJ3K‘Reach the sky’.7kPddm
OQsThen what? Is it really possible to just pick up the Sun with your hands?Cj7s
JCYbThat might be the case if we were talking about a mythological story but this was different; we were talking about real life. Considering the distance between the planet and the sun, it was impossible to reach the Sun just by climbing up to the clouds.EYWYcJ4
1W49“Claiomh Solais is referred to as the Sun of Findias. You know that, right?”sCR
KAkvEiR“I heard in fairy tales that it was one of the treasures of the old gods.”ONHTyE
dau“The 4 great treasures of the Dananns do exist.”Du6xr9
GXA6RThe 4 great treasures that would have all ended up in the hands of Tates Valtazar were as follows:Yvx
0Y8mThe Magic of Murias, the Cauldron of Dagda.gYSnF
ZLPVBDestiny Stone of Falias, Lia Fail.u3uep
tHFS3SSpear of Light of Gorias, Areadbhair.1xf
oYKAnd lastly, the Sword of Light, also known as the Sword of the Sun, Claiomh Solais of Findias.FLRaBf
0VUZ3zxBack in the original plot of the game when chasing after the final boss, Tates Valtazar, and his subordinates, the player would visit Gorias and Murias where all the treasures had already been taken out of.Bt6Yp
spN0But by going through the puzzles and solving the hidden pieces of information, it was possible to figure out where the treasures had been sealed.QrJs
QMRyThe magic cauldron of Murias was sealed deep underground, in a dark and bottomless pit filled with slithering snakes, whereas the Spear of Light was recorded to show itself along with the emission of light that came from the successful analysis of an old mechanical device, hidden deep inside a cave.n44l2Ew
DxkATSThose were just slabs of text that players would normally skim through during the game, but judging based on those points, it was possible to assume that the legends of Claiomh Solais were slightly exaggerated, and that it was within reach.Mt1
b0l8IZz“Anyway, it’s normal for treasures to hide in secret lands, whether it be underground, aboveground… or even above the clouds.”1Wyx1VM
VFuSoon, the oak tree soared through the clouds. Following the branches, we walked up to the world above the clouds and…pYXivbv
0ipG“Wahh…”VgYm0TD
pLgIn front of us was a floating island.xtq
lwaVxJThis was the true secret land of Findias, hiding in the clouds.LRKbNuQ
yIHaii“Attention customers. We are about to reach our final destination, the floating island of Findias. The weather is looking very fine today but unfortunately, the natives of this land will be very hostile to us.”JFoW5Cl
kNGCoDrIt was a large rocky island. Jumping off of the oak tree that was touching the island, I continued while giving a deep gentleman bow.ziz
uruo0“We do not have any visas, so it is time for us to smuggle inside.”SYSmQS
dMoOn the large island of rocks was a castle of giants.P0jGQh
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