Chapteer 283: Side Story – The Boy with Blue Eyes (3)
DU8Q7AIRutiger silently stared at the tea from which hot steam was still rising.QgtUcff
GdWVThen he lifted the cup and took a long sip.kCb
RrMxjAnd he thought to himself.gbibxr
fNsd1Ah…Lsp30w6
QaLkQG1This is awkward.7a7
3SY5sPUDid my father feel this way too?j86XEWa
ku9wv“I apologize for troubling you at this hour of the night, Count.”I7e16D
UHPKe25Rutiger had gained a few moments to organize his thoughts thanks to the tea.i0kl
uE3n3But Ramund seemed to read them immediately and spoke first.JW97lN
dWNPfU“This old man failed to separate public matters from private ones and ended up making a fool of himself in front of the young ones. Please accept my apologies, Count.”tt6Z4WO
yWOsi“…There is no need, Lord Ramund.”kxrC
QA3jMNo matter how distinguished a knight Ramund had been in previous generations, it was still late at night.19q
1QmquugNot only had he interfered in a disciplinary process, but he had also awakened the master of the house while being a guest.91ZGTl
Qn923GEven Ramund felt embarrassed about it.RYR
yyq51N“That’s why I said you could have sent a telegram before coming. It wasn’t that difficult.”sVEmS
hd6EEGh“I already told you I sent one.”01XXg
kDH48Upon hearing Jager’s reproach, Ramund struck his chest several times with an expression of complete indignation.yyFMM
Iu2“I’m not senile yet. I’m telling you, I sent a telegram from Varna during the journey.”mfOa
2CcF“…”Qwn
TnbSloK“Really?”hDOed
5CxJager had been complaining about having to receive visitors at such an hour.e2kN
HTVBut when he saw Ramund’s face, he ended up falling silent.F2gc
epqzBecause the sight of Ramund speaking in a subdued voice, so different from the energy with which he had been raging moments earlier, filled him with a sadness that was difficult to explain.d5A
XcVI“I have prepared a room for you, Lord Ramund. I hope that this time as well, you will stay with us for a long while and continue guiding our squires.”Ywil
rbSEO“Haha. Guiding them, you say…?”dLPCSeT
cvnCGTUpon hearing Rutiger’s words, Ramund gave a bitter smile.IXg
mbvP4QThe truth was that Rutiger knew it too.OkO
k9oUyr0He knew perfectly well that the old man sitting before him no longer had the strength to teach or guide anyone.oUsSFgr
tSX6rQ“I think it is time for me to retire. Thank you for your hospitality, Count.”y51JghF
GaiHVEven so, he had come all the way to Sturma for a single reason.xAQcGPJ
KOUq9Because he thought this might be the last chance he would have to see it again.RXZ
wBJHe wanted to visit once more the place that had practically been the starting point of his entire life while he was still capable of moving under his own power.v0hg0
jzypQ“…Your health has weakened considerably. The journey must have been difficult.”yoJt
oLOuYWhen Ramund left the room leaning on his cane, Rutiger sank into his chair and spoke quietly.ADH
R1v4p“At this age, even a single illness leaves its mark. That’s also why he couldn’t come last year.”AdO5
P8lDSRamund was already over eighty years old.I2g
jhNLWnWhen he met Vlad, he had already completed the Lower Path.u9m1
a3Th2qNo matter how indomitable Knight Ramund had once been, time had reached an age that even he found difficult to overcome.vtJu7p
6TBT“…Even so, I’m grateful that he made the effort to come.”W4v0
tHVWRmlTime flowed onward.FRQ2e
qDEmAnd farewells arrived sooner or later.HI57Q
pzToXBut although he could feel that moment drawing near, Rutiger discovered that he was surprisingly calm.T8vKvp
MrGHe was old enough now to be accustomed to goodbyes.q4Tp
eiD***Ry2GM
XLUzQPAfter leaving the room, Ramund began looking around the dark hallway for the servant who was supposed to accompany him.jxriv
JZInHowever, the person waiting there was not a servant at all.WwgA
XPrU“Grand… no, Lord Ramund. I’ll escort you.”Un3PG
YSwE5CIt was a boy whose eyes were half-closed, as though he were fighting against sleep.HajUSR
IrcHlSilver moonlight streamed through the windows and softly illuminated his blond hair.f0Ht
LeOaIt looked as though a lunar halo rested among his locks.AwOF
62e8IgRamund reached out and patted his hair.lAT
JY3ECi“Haha. It’s late. You should be resting.”iV3E
s9XM“Even so, I wanted to accompany you. Besides, thank you for helping me earlier.”pNmN
qVBYThe boy’s words, saying that he had waited for him, were especially pleasant to hear.Va0Kc
tv9l0uXWaiting had always been the task of the elderly.qyxlTC0
ea66xoBut every now and then, it was not bad to reverse the roles.JDs0
2V4ROqL“Come. The nights are still cold.”t2YRrkr
q09WEmil removed the cover from the lantern he was carrying.v2ex1O
VYc2FkThe flame began to sway and illuminate the dark hallway.vfkT
KdL3V8C“Let’s go to the annex. They say it’s the warmest place. It gets plenty of sunlight too.”B4z
UWWizMost people feared Ramund and found him difficult to deal with.xaCfhJQ
7F43l4bBut Emil was different.vOc9G
A0IzBecause ever since he was little, he had always called him Grandpa.juy1lg
5k8dHw2“How long do you plan to stay this time? You’ll stay until autumn, right?”ODhn1
DCIniEmil had never had grandparents.tiVU1Ok
TyvIt was inevitable.FnDk
TZ4IBoth of his parents had been orphans.yjXSN
glKzThat was why, at first, Ramund had allowed him to call him Grandpa without giving it much thought.v6Khndj
aVlkIVBut as time passed and the child grew, Ramund eventually came to understand something.YtsoH
hdCYThat he could no longer remain merely a knight in front of this boy.tbkK
iVxL“Yes… yes. That’s right. I’ll probably stay until before winter.”d8m
H2eLXgb“That’s great! Stay for a long time!”xTf
qTUSeeing Emil speak with shining eyes, asking him to remain by his side for a long time, Ramund let out a hearty laugh.9UhN91
bzdaIf someone had observed them from afar, they would have easily mistaken them for a grandfather and his grandson.LrO5
74T6r“And since you’re going to stay for so long, could you teach me that?”mmm
LI9j9x“Teach you what?”u0Md
uygs4xWas it because of the brilliant white moonlight that night?oLFJyjo
6PegOr perhaps because of the dark black light that lately seemed to be growing stronger and stronger?5FBeX
MWuPBecause of those two lunar lights, Ramund’s vision became blurry, and he had to blink several times.B3Ecg
7NuoiO“You know. The body-strengthening technique. The one that hardens the body. I really want to learn it.”eb8H
OIxY90In that blurred vision, Emil’s face began to overlap with someone else’s.fhPw
QOWobTA blond boy with blue eyes.T0OnAx
nccANzJust like the child before him, he had always wanted to learn something new.AYiIL
200kaihIn the end, he had learned it on his own and left before Ramund had the chance to teach him anything.wK9I
nNeiGY7But this time, Ramund had no intention of making the same mistake.qMFTxAv
qJQ“Absolutely not, brat! To learn the body-strengthening technique, you first have to master aura.”YE7ui
Hgyic“Ah, seriously. Everyone tells me the same thing. I’m already thirteen years old. My father also learned aura when he was sixteen.”75V
mePg“I learned it when I was thirty, boy. Don’t be in such a hurry.”9mXGH
KpWAThis time, he would teach him everything.O4Dd7t
FrTxC8UHe would hold nothing back.UzisXrY
fz1He no longer wanted to leave behind any regrets.vFxOuG
cZ1DrF“…By the way, while the boy keeps growing up, where the hell is his father and what is he doing?”aTY111d
lFsErTrying to focus his vision again, Ramund lifted his head and looked out the window.b3u37
NMS1xX8Two moons shone in the night sky.IetsW
VouoAnd between them gleamed that black moon which, according to legend, had been raised into the heavens by the Swordmaster of this era.OXPmX
6Ohxk***sO89Plj
0WFgXbThe two moonlights silently illuminated the snowy plain.WzX54h6
fa4In the middle of that vast white expanse, where there was neither tree nor beast and where even the breathing of the person beside you could be heard clearly, several men glided across the snow.fZSLF
wfV“Damn it! Why does this keep wobbling? It works fine for a while and then it starts happening again.”gn6XMu
0cyHbIt was a man who wore a prosthetic leg on his left side.71DzVPX
YwP“Hmm.”scXV
KOJThe dark-skinned man responded briefly, indicating that the same thing was happening to him.ETDZp
OA3J“Couldn’t it simply be because you’re missing a leg? You know, center of gravity and all that.”Uir
Tw4mNCisaid the blond man while teasing the man with the prosthetic.Zu7VTG
b0M4“That’s not it. It’s because we used a grouch’s soap. That’s why it goes well for a while and then starts slipping again.”Ipfez
DnPLIexplained the cat-eared man who was traveling beside the blond man.uofArv9
1Pv0Four men crossed the snow, stirring the silent plain as they passed.naAuhJ5
7g5Each wore long wooden boards strapped to their feet.PAV1r3T
RWk3hThough they looked crude, they moved at a speed comparable to that of a horse.dDi
UdP“And how much did someone have to grumble for you to call it a grouch’s soap?”udvoQ3
9vSuUp“Hmm, let’s say enough to go out in winter and spray soapy water on slopes so people would slip.”UUhZht
rR3ownSeeing Nibelun answer with a grin from ear to ear, Vlad spoke with an exhausted expression.2QhqpTL
cDutF4y“…That’s not being a grouch. That’s just being a damned villain.”3otv
s7qmq1J“That’s why it was difficult to get. He used to do it at dawn so nobody would find out.”ZXj
uDYDAz9“What? He was a real person?”5r4Z
DHL“Yes. He lives in the city of Timoa.”Fem
QcviAs Nibelun explained that sometimes you had to beat him up a little to make him cooperate, Vlad thought to himself.4h4H
rNKYI will never set foot in that city called Timoa.KrUBU
oQ9q5“Huh? Really? Elder! Here? Is this truly the North Pole?”n3gD
eQQdyLgSuddenly, Nibelun placed something beside his ear and began speaking to someone.HYvo
v0eIt was a seashell.Eh987
LZynlBut not just any seashell.pdDkrCs
LxB0HIt was an extremely ancient fossilized seashell.rvyO
gy7“Vlad, I’ve known that guy for a long time, but every time I see him, he seems crazier.”cKeiB
FvsEOuh“Hmm.”8qoSK
kKTwc“You know he once told me I should show respect to this seashell? According to him, it’s an elder tens of millions of years old. Do you understand any of that?”G93S
XN1kW“Harven, what I don’t understand is why you still try to understand mages. These things are simply accepted.”HF1
hGqMIf something could be understood, then it was not magic.pjq
AFiZBecause magic was, by its very nature, the art of deceiving reality.FB1XZg
5LQlaAnd that was even more true in the case of the beastmen’s primitive magic.S2KdZF3
cw8“In any case, we’ve arrived.”oWU41v3
asikJAfter Nibelun indicated with a gesture that this was the correct place, Vlad took the lead and began descending into a basin.ZV1v1
tgdZIt was a depression so vast that it could have contained a small city.Ad0DVL
auvSvCombined with the silent atmosphere of the snowy plain, it offered a majestic view.yVcvJ6U
VyEVeX4But Vlad was looking at the sky more than at the landscape.CQg
EPxmEpg“It’s definitely a good place for observing constellations.”ljELG3I
a1sThe North was also excellent for stargazing.lIcZUUC
JaDy7dBut not as much as this place.F6xW
E33AeBecause they were at the North Pole.4IV
9NbXqAAA place where the stars neither rose nor set.2umMP
MVOEvery constellation he had seen throughout his life in the northern hemisphere was etched across the dark sky and could be viewed at a single glance.ciUH
6NCj8z“Then I’ll begin the observations. Now, where are the granny glasses my grandson gave me?”FJM3tqe
4cGBxHWhile Nibelun rummaged through a magical bag, the other three men raised their heads toward the firmament.f2v0Hdl
F5x“You have to live a long time to see things like this. I never thought I’d end up coming to a place like this.”Yh6y
TLw“That’s true.”80PP8v
rc4“Hmm.”94l
5429VMen who had been born and raised in the alleys of Soara now gazed at the night sky side by side.xc7DsFR
bovyqThey commented on how different it was from the one they had known during childhood.6Ky
qKaVBecause the sky of their youth had been a broken and fragmented sky, hidden between makeshift rooftops and old alleyways.HHROKr9
M6m“One day I’d like to bring my son here. By the way, how is Emil? I heard he entered Bayezid as a squire this year.”H8RMA
RGL8NkS“Don’t remind me. His mother cried a lot. As if he had gone to the end of the world.”IgsmYd
F41And the men, now fully grown adults, spoke about their children beneath that sky.W73oV0x
nZN“Every time I see Emil, I’m reminded of you when you were little. Even though he’s your son, how can he resemble you so much? Does his mother never complain about it?”6zwjnH
eVCHarven uncorked a bottle of whisky, took a drink, and then passed it to Vlad.IZia7W
dQYJhLVlad accepted the bottle and let out a brief laugh.sZH9Pn0
bMto2pC“Even so, he’s not like me.”twaI1
PEnEx0DAbove the vast sky, the black moon could be seen.ZrZg
6VbfThe moon that the mad Lamashut had created.gekB0
RGOTk4PThat the dying Joseph had prepared.1hgi
QA4And that he himself had raised into the heavens.z3yYA
qhHL“…Naturally, he must walk a different path from mine.”HzptTH
VG1It was a moon that symbolized a new era.XEf
cWwyChildren born in those times would never know a sky with only one moon.eTO
Ta6AvdVlad believed that his son would grow up beneath a different sky from the one he had known in his own childhood.isDPeDg
E0o8sWD“Sorry to interrupt, but I have the observation results.”svN37
dg3l2Nibelun, wearing the granny glasses, approached while rubbing his hands as though he were cold.tfnFn7
aQq9rYnVlad offered him the bottle of whisky and asked,QjIap
I2sp3“Well? Were you right?”UIeS4
JEpsmNibelun stared at the bottle for a few moments.ayn1O
ba2The apologetic expression never left his face.VTX2C
2aGlPKHe seemed even more distressed by having to give that answer.MDHsO8
spNJ98“Yes. I was definitely right.”Y1W
4YvuJC7Slowly swirling the bottle of whisky, he continued speaking.MtwZr
XWQLtc8His voice was heavy, very different from his usual cheerful demeanor.Gyg0
vNovqV“The black moon has drifted from its orbit. It keeps moving closer and closer to our continent.”ce41EnO
nRPA deep sigh sounded from behind Vlad.4bjTptV
7haAIt was the reaction of someone who desperately wished those words were not true.U4xbNn2
MHW“I don’t know how close it will get…”uGQUH
ntI5uniNibelun did not continue.zfeIn
AO8yGsBecause even for him, it was far too difficult to imagine what would happen afterward.Gq6w3
sV43GVV“…Life isn’t simple.”vD6Sy
ajI7Vlad took the bottle of whisky back from Nibelun’s hands.WzW5Lc
aIp2Then, accompanied by a long sigh, he gazed at the black moon suspended in the sky.gRNNV
DBCPEZThen…Yu5S3gR
HWy7KWhat should they do now?HlrVAO
xy2q6UdIn the middle of the silent North Pole, the man’s breath spread thickly through the air as he sank into deep thought.G29siM
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