Chapter 290: Side Story – The Song of the Forgotten (2)

“That’s what old age is like. You become a child again and end up returning to the past.”

Ramund patted Emil on the shoulder as he spoke.

“Of course seeing her must have surprised you. It’s the first time you’ve met someone like that. But don’t be afraid of Lady Oksana. She took care of your father since he was young. You should know that you also grew up surrounded by her affection.”

The children who had seen Oksana the day before had been deeply shaken.

In theory, they knew such illnesses existed, but seeing someone wandering through memories of the past was something entirely different.

Even for them, it was difficult to process.

“That’s why you should learn to enjoy each moment as it comes. Don’t worry about things that haven’t happened yet. Look what a beautiful day it is today.”

Ramund spread his arms as if he wanted to show them the world.

“Eat as much as you want. I’ll pay for everything.”

At the end of Ramund’s outstretched hand rose the enormous walls of Sturma.

And above them shone the warm sun that had appeared after the rain.

It was a weekend morning.

The cheerful voices of little fledglings leaving the Bayezid manor echoed everywhere.

“Wow! Look at all those stalls. It looks like a festival.”

Tarenian shaded his eyes with one hand as he looked over the scene.

“Was Sturma always such a colorful city?”

The city stretching below was already filled with open shops.

Improvised stalls.

Clowns.

Everything prepared to create a festive atmosphere.

It was a completely different image from the cold and austere Sturma he had seen upon arriving.

Tarenian’s face flushed with excitement.

“Dad, then today…”

“Yes. Eat as much as you want. Don’t worry about getting fat.”

Portly, whose belly was practically identical to Hampton’s, told him to forget all worries for one day.

“Telsa, then can I also…”

Clink.

In response to Tarenian’s question about whether he could buy more collectibles, his escort knight answered by shaking a pouch full of coins.

“And what do you want to do, Emil?”

Emil’s expression gradually brightened.

Just moments ago he had seemed depressed.

But the festive atmosphere had reignited his enthusiasm, and his eyes regained their usual shine.

“Will there be a horse market today too?”

“……”

The unshakable obsession with riding horses.

Ramund scratched his head awkwardly when he saw such stubborn determination.

He could not help wondering who Emil had inherited it from.

***

“Knights, come take a look! We have delicious honey sweets!”

“Get your skewer here! It just came off the grill!”

The merchants never stopped calling out to customers.

It was a tradition that had endured for generations in Sturma.

The merchants worked hard to empty the pockets of the children and their companions, happy that they had entered the prestigious path of Bayezid.

“I knew there would be one here too!”

With his cheeks flushed from excitement, Tarenian stopped in front of a shop.

Its name was Rose’s Smile.

The sign was shaped like a rose, and the name sounded suspiciously adult.

But the products they sold were completely innocent.

Because the store was dedicated exclusively to memorabilia related to the Swordmaster Vlad Aureo.

“I knew there would be one in Sturma. It’s a very rare shop.”

“Really?”

“Yes!”

Tarenian answered indignantly when he saw Emil’s lack of interest.

“There’s only one in the entire city of Pelagos in the Southern Archipelago! And those guys used to be pirates, so they sell everything at ridiculous prices!”

Pelagos.

The city ruled by Duke Kazan Barbosa, the Golden Duke.

Known as the City of Pirates.

And in a place like that, buying anything at a fair price was almost impossible.

Tarenian had built his collection while dealing with swindlers like that.

It was understandable that he was so bitter about it.

“What do I care? Everything they sell here is already in my house.”

But Emil was not in the mood to sympathize with him.

Because he had just been kicked out of the horse market.

“…Hmph! That’s why you can’t talk to rich people!”

While he had gathered every piece with effort, Emil claimed to have all those things piled up at home.

That infuriated Tarenian.

Shaking his coin pouch, he entered the shop accompanied by Telsa.

It was hard to determine which of the two was truly privileged, but one thing was certain.

Emil’s attitude was absolutely offensive to any collector.

“…What are you looking at?”

After being left alone, Emil decided to pick a fight with another squire who was in the shop next door.

“Have you never seen someone who can’t ride a horse?”

“What nonsense.”

It was Renvar.

He was selecting merchandise on his own.

The stern-looking escort knight who normally accompanied him was nowhere in sight, but his relaxed attitude remained the same.

“Without someone leading you around on a leash, you’re practically a delinquent.”

The situation was absurd.

Emil was supposed to be the one provoking others.

And yet it seemed he was the one being provoked.

But Emil’s personality was so rebellious that he did not even notice.

He shoved his hands into his pockets and casually approached.

“What’s wrong? Do you have a relative with a coughing problem?”

“What?”

Renvar was standing in front of an herbal shop.

More specifically, in the section for tea leaves.

He was examining some Tuzon leaves, an Elven specialty.

“Don’t buy that. Buy this one.”

In the past, that plant had been distributed under the name Apsilon.

A drug.

Now it was legally sold as Tuzon, an infusion beneficial for coughs and restoring energy.

“And who are you to—?”

“Buy this brand. It has dried lemon mixed in, and the leaves last longer.”

Emil waved a packet of leaves in front of him.

It had a label decorated with a white tree.

It was the emblem of the Heinal family, rulers of the territory of Daermar.

“Your family lives in the capital, Brigantes, right? It must take months to transport tea leaves from here all the way there.”

“……”

If you’re really worried about your family, this is better.

Upon hearing that and seeing the hand offering him the package, Renvar quickly looked around.

“……”

When he confirmed that no one was watching, he took the packet and hurried toward the register.

He muttered something as he walked away.

But he spoke so quietly that Emil could not understand him.

“People from the capital are incredibly picky. They don’t even know how to say thank you.”

“What happened? What did you do now, Emil?”

At that moment, Hampton returned carrying a pile of skewers and joined Emil.

He was still chewing something, as if he had just eaten.

But it was such a common sight that Emil did not even find it unpleasant.

“At least one of us seems happy.”

“Heh, want one?”

The collector was angry.

The boy from the capital had not even said thank you.

And he himself had been kicked out of the horse market.

“…Now you can even see it during the day.”

Emil looked up and stared at the black moon floating in the sky.

During the day it appeared almost white, but just as the adults said, it truly seemed to be getting closer little by little.

[……!]

“Huh?”

Suddenly, a voice brushed against his ears.

With all the noise around him, he could not make it out clearly, but it sounded incredibly urgent.

“Hampton, did you say something?”

“No. You know I don’t talk when I’m eating.”

“Really?”

Then what had it been?

Without giving it much thought, Emil turned his head toward the Rose’s Smile shop.

Although it only had one floor, the exterior was identical to the establishment in Soara.

As he looked at the reflection in a window to see if he had something on his face, he noticed a man reflected in the glass.

A black-haired man.

[Duck your head right now!]

“……!”

Crashhh!

The window exploded into pieces with a deafening roar.

At the same time, an icy sensation brushed the top of his head.

In that instant when time seemed to slow down, Emil saw strands of his own cut hair floating through the air.

“Aaaah!”

“Milady!”

Grabbing Hampton by the head and forcing him down, Emil saw a red-haired boy being dragged out of the shop.

Tarenian.

A rope was wrapped around his neck, and he was being violently dragged away.

Behind him, Telsa ran with a horrified expression.

“…Tarenian?”

Then screams began to erupt everywhere.

Fires.

Explosions.

Indiscriminate killings.

The Sturma that only moments ago had been filled with children’s laughter had become a blood-soaked hell.

“Tch!”

Realizing the situation, Emil grabbed Hampton by the back of the neck and threw him into the herbal shop.

Beside him stood Renvar, completely stunned.

Without stopping, Emil shoved him aside and grabbed a pair of tailor’s shears that were nearby.

“Hah!”

And he threw them with his whole body.

Just as his father had taught him.

The way they did it in the back alleys of Soara.

Thunk!

The scissors cut through the rope and embedded themselves in the ground.

He had thrown them so hard that the handle disappeared into the stone.

“Cough! Cough, cough!”

“Milady! Milady!”

Freed from the rope, Tarenian fell to the ground, coughing violently.

Telsa drew her sword to protect her.

But it was already too late.

Dozens of masked men had surrounded her.

“Hampton! Hey! Hey!”

Emil called out to his friend as if he were having a seizure.

He slapped him several times until he reacted.

“Run and get the adults!”

“Ah… ah…”

It was impossible for a thirteen-year-old boy to react normally in a situation like this.

But Emil’s eyes brought Hampton back to his senses.

That cold gaze.

So cold it seemed to pierce the soul.

A chill ran through his entire body.

“Got it! What about you?”

Hampton got to his feet and desperately began searching for the back door through the wreckage of the shop.

Emil answered without even turning around.

“I’m bringing her back!”

Tarenian and Telsa were still trapped among dozens of assassins.

The girl’s desperate cries made Emil’s heart begin pounding violently.

Bang! Bang!

What should you do now?

If you are where you are supposed to be.

What is it that you have to do?

‘…Tch!’

After making a decision, Emil swept all the herbs off the stall with his arm.

His fingers were trembling.

Tension.

Fear.

Excitement.

Anxiety.

They were emotions far too heavy for a thirteen-year-old child.

But Emil gritted his teeth and shoved the stall into the street.

“Tarenian! Over here!”

His instincts screamed only one thing.

He needed to create a variable.

Something capable of breaking the flow of that disastrous situation.

Rumble—

Tarenian, who was dodging swords between Telsa’s legs, reacted when she heard her name.

And then she saw it.

The blond hair she knew so well.

And the stall approaching at a terrifying speed.

Craaash!

“Aaaagh!”

It happened so fast that the assassin did not even have time to move aside.

Emil compensated for the lack of weight with speed.

The struck assassin was launched into the distance.

“I am Emil, son of the Swordmaster Vlad!”

The word Swordmaster instantly drew every eye.

Golden hair.

Blue eyes.

And the child who had just spoken the name of the most honorable knight in the world tossed a yellow mole into the air.

“Kyu?”

First, he had to establish his presence.

Make everyone look at him.

And if everyone was looking at him.

Then the real move could begin.

“Tarenian, close your eyes!”

Bzzzzzt!

“Aaaah!”

“My eyes!”

The light emitted by the mole blinded the assassins.

“Kill them!”

At the same time, dozens of blades descended toward Tarenian and Telsa.

It was the cold, ruthless instinct of trained assassins.

And the girl standing at the center of that storm squeezed her eyes shut.

Clang! Clang! Clang!

“…This actually hurts a little!”

Tarenian’s eyes widened.

Standing in front of her was Emil.

Taking dozens of attacks in a completely terrible stance.

“Run, Tarenian!”

Emil caught the mole out of the air and pulled Tarenian up by the wrist.

Behind them ran Telsa.

The shining boy.

The terrified girl.

And the wounded knight.

The three of them began running down Sturma’s main avenue.

‘Where to?’

He knew the city well.

But his mind was chaos.

Bang! Bang! Bang!

The beating of his heart roared in his ears.

His vision narrowed from the adrenaline.

[This way!]

Then he heard that male voice again.

He followed the sound.

Fragments of shattered windows.

Puddles of water.

Rain-soaked streets.

On every reflective surface, the same man appeared, pointing in a direction.

“This way!”

He no longer even knew where he was.

He simply ran wherever that man told him to go.

“Damn it!”

“Catch them!”

The assassins finally reacted and began the pursuit.

But by then, the children were already far ahead.

‘Just a little farther!’

Just a little farther and they would reach the city gate.

If they could make it to the guards—

Bang! Bang! Bang!

“Ghhhh…”

“Emil!”

Then it happened.

An unbearable pain tore through his heart.

Bang! Bang! Bang!

“Are you okay?”

“Aaagh!”

It felt as though someone were crushing his entire body.

As if his heart were being squeezed flat.

He had never felt anything so cold and terrifying.

His legs gave out.

As though something were commanding him to remain on his knees.

‘…It’s coming!’

He did not know what it was.

But his instincts were screaming it at him.

“Get down!”

“Kyaa!”

Emil grabbed Tarenian by the back of the neck and violently threw her to the ground.

The girl let out a scream.

But it vanished beneath the roar that came immediately afterward.

Rumble! Rumble! Rumble!

‘An earthquake?’

Telsa narrowed her eyes.

That vibration felt familiar.

Anyone from the Southern Archipelagos would recognize it.

The vibration that rose from the depths of the earth.

It traveled through her feet.

Her knees.

Her spine.

Until it reached her head.

And Telsa reacted instantly.

She covered the children with her own body.

“Aaaah!”

“It’s an earthquake! Get down!”

The earth roared.

The vibration was so violent that no one could remain standing.

The tremor seemed to tear at their internal organs.

“Aaaagh!”

“Don’t raise your heads!”

Buildings collapsing.

People screaming.

And a gigantic shadow rising amid a storm of dust.

ROOOOOOOAR!

Through the raging wind, Emil managed to open his eyes.

And he saw a shadow so immense that it covered the entire city.

He looked upward.

And kept looking.

And kept looking.

But he never reached the end.

When he finally saw the top of that monstrosity, he froze.

“What is that…?”

A gigantic existence had emerged right in the center of Sturma.

Colossal.

Overwhelming.

Indestructible.

Its head raised as though it wished to pierce the heavens.

“A Deathworm?”

The most resilient dragon in the world.

A Deathworm.

And at the center of its forehead shone a red gem radiating a sinister energy.