* * *
* * *
Face the things you have thrown away and destroyed.
The moment I heard those words, what came to mind were the traitors I had purged and the bugs eating away at this country. Are you going to gather all those things and destroy Arcadia? Am I going to tear down the castle I built over hundreds of years? It was funny. It was nonsense that wasn’t even worth listening to.
“Try destroying it at least once.”
It’s my hundreds of years.
Over the past hundreds of years, I have done my best. Those who shine, those who are brilliant, are gathered together. Dragon shaman, sword saint, great sage, saint, astrologer who reads heavenly laws, piercing spear, sharpshooter of the edge, knight of the sun…
“It will be different than it was then.”
It’s different from back then. As back then, I was neither helpless nor weak enough to have to rely on someone else’s sacrifice. My hundreds of years are solid. It doesn’t collapse. That was the moment when I was sure.
“Sister.”
Acrita went crazy.
As if he couldn’t hold back his laughter.
“Do you think only your time will be solid?”
He gestured. Water poured out following his gesture. The gushing water flooded.
“Time is both relative and absolute. If your time is solid, wouldn’t my time, standing opposite you, also be solid?”
I.
“Isn’t what you have abandoned and destroyed for hundreds of years also absolute?”
Things I threw away.
The moment I encountered the gushing water, I realized.
“···iced coffee.”
No, no. What my brother gathered was not like the city affairs thugs I had purged. A different being from them. Those who were crushed by me and had to lose a lot. There were people there who I had only lost during my hundreds of years.
‘Owner of the abandoned land.’
These people are called demons.
The main enemy of humanity, a subrace that borders Arcadia. The beings I have subdued for hundreds of years to solidify Arcadia’s integrity and rule out variables.
The poison created by them overflowed.
A foul odor emanated from the overflowing water well.
It wasn’t a stench created in a day or two. It was a foul odor emanating from things that had stagnated over years, decades, and hundreds of years. A voice was heard from the water that began to flow through the corridors of the royal palace. A scream echoed.
Crushed malice.
Hatred that knows no end.
Resentment, resentment, disgust, and curses.
A lump of resentment that hates the star that abandoned them and longs for the starlight that does not shine on them. Gujeongmul responded to my blessings and starlight. The royal castle shook. As the castle at the center of Arcadia shook, the entire country began to shake.
The ground shook. The sky screamed. Cracks began to appear in what I had built up.
“Even after all this, is your kingdom… is your empire strong?”
Acrita Clen Arcadia sneered.
The palace turned upside down with laughter. The things sticking out from the overturned wall are beings that can neither die nor live. Things that can exist only by cursing others. Their mouths opened with a sigh.
■■, ■■■■■■■■, ■■■■■■■■■■■.
they howled. A scream echoed.
The echoing screams made the water boil, and eventually it took shape. The gujeongmul that turned into a hand rushed in, clawing and tearing at the walls of the royal castle.
“Just try struggling, sister.”
He walked away through the trash.
I gritted my teeth as I watched him walking away.
“···majesty!”
A voice was heard from far away.
I tore off the hands clinging to my body and walked towards the place where I heard the voice. My vision was blurry. I blinked several times and only then could I see what was ahead. I heard the voice of someone running towards me.
“Ah, was it Sir?”
I burst into laughter as I watched him running toward me, cutting through the dirt. The fastest and sharpest sword I have. A sword heavier than anything else because it knows the weight of its own power.
Ganichalt van Galatric.
He approached me swinging his sword without hesitation. He knelt in front of me and ripped off the grip that was holding my body.
“Are you okay? Okche…”
“I’m safe. It’s not as strong as a light, but I have enough strength to protect myself.”
It was a lie. Wounds festered wherever the black hands scratched. It was rotten and crumbling. But it was bearable. No, I had to endure it. I am the king of this country. If I, standing at the highest point, were to shake, the confusion would become even greater.
“Let’s go outside first. Will you open the way?”
Ganicalt swung his sword.
I parted the wall covered in debris and swept away the hands and headed outside. I climbed to the highest point so I could understand the situation at a glance. So, when I arrived at the place, my subjects were already waiting for me.
After confirming that I was safe, they soon reported. While listening to their reports, I stood at the highest point and looked down at Arcadia.
“···iced coffee.”
It was falling apart. Everything.
By means of waterways and waterways, the evil spirits spread throughout Arcadia. No matter where I looked, all I saw was junk. Grasps were rising from every corner of the kingdom.
The screams of the people, the confusion, and the groans of those being crushed by their grasp echoed.
The old objects eventually headed to the sky. All the objects spread throughout the royal capital gathered in one place. What is created in this way is a huge sphere. A huge black sun rose above Arcadia, large enough to engulf Arcadia.
“Ashen Magic Tower Master.”
“Yes, did you call me?”
“Do you recognize what that is?”
Great Sage, Cardi Van Armiel.
I asked the person who knew the most in this country, but there was no answer. The story was that he didn’t know either. I waited a little longer, but there was no answer anywhere.
It was a gathering of the most capable and wisest people in the capital, but none of them knew its true identity. A complete unknown was blocking the sun and casting a shadow over Arcadia.
“It’s gestating. It’s beating. Like a living creature.”
“···That’s how I see it, too.”
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“And it’s getting bigger and bigger.”
I pointed to a sphere made of spherical water.
“It looks like it’s about to explode. What do you think?”
“······.”
Cardi van Armiel took a deep breath.
After thinking about it, he opened his mouth.
“It is something with properties that are completely opposite to starlight or mana. And, it is running wild. When it reaches a critical point, it will explode.”
“Can you stop it?”
“I tried pouring out all the spells I had, but it had no effect. It dissipates the mana itself.”
That means it’s impossible with magic.
“Guardian leader.”
“Yes, Your Majesty.”
“Can you cut it?”
“······.”
With a grunt, Ganicalt touched the hilt of his sword. The answer did not come back right away. 1 second, 2 seconds, 3 seconds. Only then did Ghani Kalt open his mouth.
“I’ll try…”
“No, quit.”
If there was anything that needed to be cut, if there was anything that could be cut, it was Ganicalt, who drew his sword without hesitation. He was so distressed. His hand holding the hilt of his sword shook. That means there was no certainty, and it didn’t seem like a being that could be cut down without confidence.
“I guess there are some things you can’t cut.”
I laughed bitterly.
“If it explodes, what is the range?”
Cardi answered my question.
“···It’s half.”
“Of the royal capital?”
“Half of the continent.”
It’s like a star.
Something close to God, Cardi added. If that explodes, not only Arcadia but most of humanity will be swept away.
“You must evacuate.”
“Evacuate? Where? Didn’t I say that half of the continent would be swallowed up? There would be nowhere to run.”
With a thud, I took a step forward.
“Is there a way?”
“······.”
“I guess there’s something you don’t know either. It seems like I often see a new side of you today.”
I muttered jokingly and glanced at Cardi. When I looked into those eyes, it wasn’t that I didn’t know the answer. Even though he knew the answer, he seemed unable to say it easily. That would not have been the ‘best’ answer that the elf was always pursuing.
I felt like I knew what the answer was.
‘This is a situation where someone has to make a sacrifice.’
He really is a damn brother.
I felt like I knew why he let me run away from the castle. As always, he forces me to make a choice. He must be enjoying watching me suffer and struggle from somewhere.
…Is that so, am I still nothing more than entertainment to him? Has nothing changed from hundreds of years ago?
No, that won’t necessarily be the case. I saw my subjects gathered here. These are the talents I have collected over the years. Unlike back then, there were many people around me who were more capable than me.
‘Even if I disappear.’
Even if my time ends here.
‘If they are there…’
Arcadia will never end.
If they survive, there will be a next time for Arcadia. Then that was enough. I agonized, and after much agonizing, I made a choice.
“I see the answer in my eyes.”
I took a step forward. I continued walking forward, passing my subjects.
“Did you say it was a god-like being? Did you say it was a being with enormous power? It seems to me that it is looking for a container to contain itself. If it cannot be contained, it will not be able to maintain its shape and will overflow.”
I need a bowl.
“What is needed in this place is a vessel to hold the poor things. A vessel to hold God.”
I laughed lightly.
“There just happens to be a suitable person here.”
The subjects looked at me.
Cardi’s eyes wavered as she understood what I meant.
“A person blessed by the stars. A person who has the most starlight in their body. Isn’t there someone here who has already imbued their body with the power and authority of God?”
A being loved by the stars and with star eyes.
“There is no one more suitable than me.”
It must be here.
A place to end my time.
“I will be the vessel.”
This is the moment when I am about to stand in front of everyone.
There was someone blocking my path. I passed all the servants and headed to the front, but they didn’t let me pass by that much.
“It’s no big deal.”
The one who has always been by my side, one step behind me, protecting me. A knight who protects my country.
“The Lord is blocking my path.”
Ganicalt van Galatric looked straight at me.
He, who had always bowed his head and sworn loyalty to me since our first meeting, spoke while looking straight at me like the day we first met.
“I have been commanded by you to protect Arcadia. I see that as my mission.”
“That’s what I ordered.”
“Aren’t you Arcadia? I must protect you. What value is a sword that cannot protect its owner?”
Indeed, I laughed bitterly.
“There can be no nation without its people, sir.”
“that···.”
“Where there is power, there is responsibility. I climbed to the highest place in Arcadia to take responsibility. So, I must take responsibility.”
This is something that should not be ignored.
“Would you please move out of the way?”
“Ugh,” Ganikalt said and grabbed the hilt of his sword. As if I was angry at the helplessness I felt for the first time. The prosecutor, who had become arrogant and believed that nothing was impossible, felt his own helplessness. Perhaps now we can head to higher places. It was a shame not to be able to see that scene.
I smiled bitterly and opened my mouth.
“Can I ask you something?”
“Please order.”
“I am not asking this as a pseudonym, but as a close friend who has known you for a long time.”
I laughed lightly.
“Did you find the meaning to put into the sword?”
“···I found it.”
“Do you have faith?”
“I have it.”
Ganicalt grabbed the hilt of the sword.
The mission I entrusted to him is protection. Becoming humanity’s bulwark, he swung his sword for humanity. He must have gained faith in the process. Weight must have been added to the sword.
“I see. It had meaning.”
I smiled.
“It’s a good thing. I can tell you now, you were too much of a sword for me.”
I passed him and headed forward.
I stood at the front and looked back.
“Ganikalt, it’s not just you. Cardi, Belial, Gleria, Abaddon, Rugran, Tristan…”
The brightest people in this country.
I stood at the highest point in Arcadia, saying the names of the subjects I cared about the most, one by one.
“I trust you.”
It will be a heavy burden, though.
“Please protect Arcadia.”
That was my will.
I threw myself into the wrong god.
The Queen sacrificed herself.
The queen, who was swallowed up by the clearing water, disappeared beyond the horizon along with the clearing water. To an abandoned land where starlight cannot reach. Those who lost their master to worship were in agony. The first to move were Ganikhalt and Cardi.
“I will find the cause. Your Majesty has always said that there is poison in the kingdom. The purge began from the depths of that royal castle. First, I will cut it down first.”
Protect Arcadia.
Since that was the queen’s will, they said they had to first sort out the chaos in Arcadia. Cardi, Ganicalt, Belial, and Gleria made it a priority to clean up all the trash left in the royal capital.
“I will head to the Forsaken Land.”
“I’m with you too.”
Abaddon said that he would follow the traces of the missing queen and disappeared somewhere, holding only a spear made of woven tree roots. Tristan, holding a shield shaped like the sun, followed Abaddon.
“Rugran.”
There is only one Rugran left.
Secretary, Rugran.
What are you planning to do, Cardi asked. In response to that question, Rugran closed the notebook he was holding. He put down his quill and raised his head.
“Your Highness has requested something special.”
“is it.”
“I plan to seek refuge outside the kingdom.”
“···What are you running away from?”
“Rather than running away, it’s better to prepare for every eventuality.”
Rugran, a person who inherited a little bit of royal blood.
“Prepare for the worst. Because you told me so.”
Rugran Clen Arcadia said.
fantasy,
