How to Survive as a Player Chapter 92

#92

The first absence of Rod, who had been through a lot, came suddenly. He was a king who had never been away from the empire for more than a day, so his absence caused many problems. Anxiety, ominousness, and even concern for his safety.

The silence at that time. No words came out of my sleepy, as if clogged throat. No one mentioned Rod’s absence, and the fact was deeply buried. Everyone chose to patiently believe and wait.

However, by the time I waited, closed my eyes, and woke up again and again, ten days had already passed.

Only then did everyone acknowledge Rod’s absence.

On a gloomy, rainy day, the people of the empire poured out their pent-up resentment. It was a time when images of vassals wiping away tears, sitting down and wailing, lined the streets. Even when I turned around, all I could see was my drooping back.

It was a day when sobbing covered the empire.

The only ones who kept their mouths shut were the twelve heroes. Clenching our jaws, everyone suppressed bitter emotions. When it was time to endure it and let it fester, the heroes gradually acknowledged the fact. Euncheong was also the same.

Again, you were abandoned.

The king who was thought to be different disappeared without a sound, leaving no trace. On the day when he couldn’t erase his futility, Euncheong locked himself in his dorm and held his breath.

“road… road… .”

Still, I couldn’t stop the hot tears flowing between my fingers. How many times did I run away from a reality I didn’t want to admit, when the setting and rising sun repeated countless times and even the warm touch in my memories faded.

At that time, Euncheong heard a voice that resembled her own.

‘You must never, ever doubt.’

It was a voice so strong that it made you wonder if it was his own. Her eyes filled with pity entered her mind. What was in front of him was him as a child and him now.

It was a memory that appeared only when it was forgotten. Although I have never experienced it, it was a reality I have experienced. My fists were clenched white. Gritting her teeth, Euncheong chased that memory.

It was a memory that appeared and disappeared like tinnitus ever since the moment my hellish life began.

He was young. His feet were bare and covered in scars. Even his clothes were like that. A skinny orphan dressed in rags and beaten to death.

Dan Sang, who thought he was a hope, rescued him and made him a slave, and Euncheong was dragged around the continent and had to live a harsher life than before.

Even death wasn’t easy. It was around that time that I met ‘him’. When his feet hurt and he was so lonely that he wanted to die.

Euncheong still remembered the hand that comforted the infinitely tall man. The thin arms that hugged the man wearing brilliant silver armor were like young Euncheon.

It was a dazed world. He was wonderfully dim and wonderfully clear. He couldn’t do anything except stare helplessly. I wanted it. I wanted to touch it, I wanted to be with it.

It was a moment when I became miserable due to my feverish greed. However, the moment his eyes met hers, Euncheong felt a rush of shivers. A voice similar to mine appeared in my ears again.

‘Euncheong.’

It resembled the sea and the moon.

‘That’s your name.’

A name that felt like a new life imprinted on a child who had never known anything.

‘Nothing until I received that name… It won’t be your name. endure. And be strong enough not to doubt. You must never doubt him at any moment.’

I waited as long as I wanted, and I worked hard to be together as much as I waited. Throwing away countless names.

This was someone I had waited a long time to finally meet. He couldn’t let it go like this. The moment Euncheong realized that, he was taking his foot towards the door. Wiping away the dried tear stains on his cold armor, Euncheong grabbed the solid doorknob and opened it.

Eleven heroes with red eyes stood in front of them. Without even erasing the traces of their tears, they were waiting for Euncheong with hardened eyes. Their eyes had made up their minds.

They too were like Euncheong. Rod’s presence is so great that even resentment can be erased. Even if I cut it out, the only thing that fell was my own flesh. The presence of the Lord was already deeply rooted in them, so much so that there was no end to them when they looked up.

The heroes acknowledged that fact deep in their bones.

There must be a reason. Circumstances that cannot be avoided, or things that are too difficult to come.

It was a day when the road to visit the Archduke felt particularly long. With each step I took, my heart became stronger. The heroes already owed him too much to forget Rod.

There was a lot to repay, and a lot to share. Everything here was a product of his love. Even the armor, clothes, and weapons everyone wore were like that.

These were traces of the road that I had not recognized.

The office I arrived at with heavy steps was covered in dark ash. There was nothing left in the office that the Archduke had entered after stepping on a pile of ashes, except for the chair where the Archduke sat. Everything burned to ashes and fell without even a shape remaining.

There, the Archduke sat with his forehead immersed in grief. His shadowy face made me feel like the distance was far away. It looked as if it would turn to ashes and disappear at any moment.

“… scram.”

It was a voice that seemed to go out. It was a word filled with emptiness. Nevertheless, the Archduke’s fist was curled so tightly that the bones stood out white. And there were a lot of bruised wounds on it.

There were many emotions weighing down on his shoulders. Doubt, sadness, suffering, emptiness, and thirst.

I was so tired that I could barely breathe. Nevertheless, Euncheong wiped away the ashes and approached him.

“Get out… “I did it.”

It was a growl that came from inside the throat. His face, with the bridge of his nose distorted, appeared fiercely beneath his hands.

Euncheong stopped in front of the Grand Duke with ten steps left. The light that came in from her open door illuminated the dark room. It was a light that dyed even Euncheong’s hair pure white.

Tears remained like stains on Euncheong’s cheeks as she turned away from the light. It was a trace of the sadness she had endured silently.

“Load… “I’m going to wait.”

Euncheong’s fist clenched. The Archduke said nothing. I just looked over Euncheong’s shoulder with tired eyes. The moment those eyes closed deeply, Euncheong spoke again.

“Even if you deny it, we… “I’m going to wait until the end.”

To be determined and to be honest.

Even if this end was no different from the previous one, Euncheong decided to go forward and face it.

Bearing the pain was what happened after that. This was Euncheong’s will and the will of all heroes.

“Even if he doesn’t come here on the day of selection, we will believe and wait. According to the will of the Lord.”

“You have been abandoned.”

Two people on the plain where desolation had taken over. A faded hand brushed the cheek of a man wearing silver armor. Euncheong has yet to experience a moment when her throat was so hot that she had to grit her teeth.

If that was a premonition, at least Euncheong should not have harbored distrust.

“Still, I’m willing to wait.”

Euncheong answered, showing honest patience. The Archduke only smiled bitterly. He laughed until his eyes became distorted and he scraped out all of his burnt insides. Still, everything was quiet and lonely.

It was a day when the back of his sunken hand said it all. The Archduke did not add any more to his words, but stood up again with regret on his heavy shoulders.

The Archduke decided to wait for Rod, but was nonetheless prepared to give up. When he felt overwhelmed, he put things down one by one. One by one, he put down his luggage and waited for the load. Every time he was out of breath, or whenever he wanted to die so much that he couldn’t bear it.

That was all the archduke could wait.

“Euncheong.”

Euncheong, who was lost in thought, raised her gaze and looked ahead. His rod, wearing open-toed shoes, was standing there with his eyes wide open. Before we knew it, dawn was dawning on the world.

A smile appeared on Euncheong’s lips.

“Are you awake?”

“You weren’t here all night, were you?”

“Yes, don’t worry.”

Euncheong took one look at the neat wing feathers and lowered her gaze. Immediately, a bright white instep came into view. A warm body temperature approached Euncheong’s cold cheeks. As soon as they touched her, her stiffened hand immediately stretched out again and cupped her cheek.

“It’s cold. “Starting tomorrow, come out a little later.”

“Rod, my hands are full.”

“are you okay.”

It was a firm yet kind word. Euncheong liked those words. It was a gentle and delicate word, but with a strong feeling. Although he was infinitely generous, there was goodness in him.

And the only ones who could cross that line were those in his arms. Vassals.

“road.”

Euncheong opened her mouth, placing her hand on the back of his hand as she waited for an answer.

“Would you mind making some time for me?”

“ah… “Where are you going?”

“yes.”

It was something I didn’t know if it would happen someday. It might be an unfinished promise, or it might not happen at all. Nevertheless, Euncheong spoke with a little hope.

To save the nameless child.

“Okay, I’ll definitely go.”

A smile as white as wings appeared on his lips. Euncheong grabbed the delicate hand tightly and wrapped it around it.

Euncheong did not yet know what the faint memories that came when she was ready to forget were talking about. Even the existence of Lord in the world where the younger him and the present coexisted seemed like a question only at the moment.

Nevertheless, Euncheong believed that that day would come.

The day we decided to believe in Rod, everyone had already prepared for a fleeting end.

I felt the fingertips I was holding were getting cold. Only then did Euncheong grab his hands and wrap them in her own.

“it is cold. Please take care of yourself.”

The cold day in the north was now hazy. For Euncheong, there was no place colder and more painful than that place.

So, were you able to endure it?

As I placed my fingertips on Rod’s cheek, the stark and sharp thirst subsided. Euncheong gently stroked his cheek and smiled softly.

Instead of the memories he once had, what remained of him was the road in front of him.