Chapter 152
My memory of the past and present is foggy . I’m currently in the air .
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“…Ahh!”
I flail around in a panic, but Legs of the Forest Wolf allows me to stand where there is nothing . I had been standing up until now, but now it seems firmer . No different than standing on ground . It doesn’t feel like I’m floating… It’s definitely strange .
Below me, I can see the remains of the guard house . It looked pretty much flattened, but I was too high to up to tell for sure .
“Still…how did I get up here…”
I must have fainted for a second . But I wasn’t sure how that would have led to this current situation . I calm myself down and think . …Perhaps Daniela’s tornado had blown me into the air . Or it could be an effect of Eve’s reckless combinations of magic . It might have caused an upward current of wind… I don’t know .
I looked down at my body and saw that I was not hurt . This was dragon armor after all… To be honest, I had been worried that I would come out much worse . The protection of the wind would have helped as well, its effect was tremendous .
In any case, the most important thing to do now was to make sure that Daniela was safe . Everything would be fine as long as she had been able to escape . However, there was a chance that she had used too much magic . Perhaps it had weakened her . She would be unstable and vulnerable . I would look for her from above, then we would cross the river . Honestly, we could have crossed the river through the air from the beginning . But I wanted to stick to the rules . If there was a boat fare then we would pay it . If we needed to prove our identities, then I was prepared to do it .
It might be easy to cross the river on these legs, but there could be problems later on . What if we needed official documents on the other side? It was us who would be inconvenienced . Regardless, we hadn’t even discussed that possibility, and had every intention of going through the town properly .
And yet this is what we got for it…
“I suppose being honest doesn’t pay…”
I didn’t know how to express what I felt . All I could do was weaken the green and silver wind and drop to the ground .
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“Find them! They should still be close by!”
I could hear the sounds of running guards in the distance . It would have been wise to wait and hide here, but I could not do that .
“Hey you, where did you come from?”
“Sorry…I got lost . I shall leave now . ”
“Lost…? You don’t look like you’re lost . ”
On heavy legs, I had thrown myself through the first door I had found . The person who confronted me must have been a resident of this town . Was he good or did he work for the bandits? I could not tell, but he would not appreciate it if I stayed here, and so I had to leave . But my body felt sluggish . I had exhausted my reserve of magical energy, and now my legs would not move .
“You look ill . Are you alright?”
“I am fine… I will be better if I can just rest somewhere for a short while . Sorry that I bothered you…”
I somehow managed to raise my shaking arm and reach for the doorknob . All it would require to open it was a little twist, and yet even that proved to be impossible .
“Well, just wait a minute then . You can rest here . ”
“No, I cannot…”
“Don’t worry about it . It’s really nothing to me either way . ”
Then the man picked up a cup and filled it with water . He handed it to me and helped me bring it to my mouth to drink . The cool water going down my throat was so relaxing that I sighed . And with that, I regained a little control over my body . I turn the cup in my hand as I slowly get to my feet .
“Thank you…you saved me . ”
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“You’re not well yet . Stay and rest a little longer . ”
And so he lent me his shoulder and brought me over to a chair .
“Thank you… My name is Daniela . Please tell me yours . ”
“I’m not someone worth remembering . But if I had to give you a name, it would be Vent . ”
“Aye, thank you…Vent . ”
I had to leave this town as soon as possible, but my body was still working against me . Only my hand would listen . I was worried about Asagi, and there was still the matter of Eve . It did not feel good to have to lie here and rest when nothing had been resolved . All I could do was fret, and that was of no use to anyone .
As I stared at the table and willed myself to recover quickly, a plate was placed in front of me . Two beautiful, yellow circles on white . It was fried eggs . And next to them were three slices of crispy bacon, just the way Asagi liked them .
I looked up just as he offered me some bread . To the side was a cup of water .
“You must be hungry . That’s why you have no strength . ”
“No, I…”
“Don’t talk . Just eat . Don’t worry, it’s not poisoned . ”
Vent said and then laughed with amusement . And so I picked up the fork and stabbed the bacon . I brought it to my mouth and then there was no stopping me . While I was not as quick as I am during full health, I still scraped the plate clean in very little time .
“You eat well . It was worth making it . ”
“It was delicious… Thank you . I feel bad now . ”
“Don’t . I wanted to feed you . ”
Asagi, you have competition . Perhaps I am overrating him as tiredness combined with hunger can have strange effects over a person . But it did taste delicious . And I felt much better already . I had been even more tired than I knew .
It would be best to wait here until I was at full strength again, but I could not stop thinking about Asagi . I had seen him launched into the air after being hit by the tornado . He had gone up so high that I lost sight of him . ‘Can people fly so high?’ was the almost idiotic thought that first raced through my mind . After that, I rolled away and ran as the building crumbled around me . If Asagi had stayed there, he would have been flattened just like the other soldiers . I did not even know if Eve was alive . I would not mind at all if she were dead .
I first met Eve in the plains under the moonlight . At the time, I trusted no one . My heart was ravaged by the stress of a long journey . And it was as I walked unthinkingly to the next town, that I was attacked by bandits .
And the person leading the bandits, was the dark elf, Eve . I slaughtered her underlings without hesitation . I tried to kill Eve as well, but a monster came in my way . I saw the lucky elf run away as I dealt with the monster . After that, I returned to my journey and arrived in the town safely . I thought that that would be the end of it .
But one day, I came upon an ancient elven ruin within a forest . I had wandered far before discovering it, but thanks to that, the place was untouched . I could descend into the depths of the ruins without worrying about being seen . And after a week of searching, I found the artifact . Sometime after, I would learn from an old library book, that it was the magic substitution tool .
Years later, I was working as a guard for a merchant caravan . A famous Adventurer of that time was there as well, and I remember that he tried to talk to me . But I was never interested .
It was when we were just two days from the town that the bandits attacked . It was difficult fighting while protecting the caravan, especially as there were those cowards who would run away .
While I fought, a familiar face caught my eye . It was Eve . She too saw me and immediately unsheathed her sword .
“It has been a long time!”
“…”
“You are as quiet as before… Today, I will finally have your sword and bow . The sacred treasures of the tree of life and death!”
She had seen the weapons during our first fight . Perhaps a unique skill had allowed her to confirm it, or she had heard something . In any case, I had no intention of giving them up . I did not care to indulge her, but I needed to fight to protect myself .
However, we were disturbed yet again . Even now, I can remember the fear that I felt .
The wyvern that appeared with an explosive wind in the darkness of the night . It was enough to make me shiver with horror .
It landed between us and then slashed at me with its tail . I instinctively raised my arms to protect myself . Then the sound of my bones breaking reached my ears .
I was thrown into the air . That was when the magic substitution tool fell from my pocket and rolled to the other side . My eyes went after it as I thought, ‘with that, I would be able to revive after the wyvern killed me . ’ However, it was no use if it was not on you . It would have no effect on me now . I would be eaten alive . And that would be the end .
“Is that a magic substitution tool!?”
Eve’s voice rang, but I could not answer . The wyvern now seemed more interested in the caravan than us . We were no longer in its sight . Eve saw her chance and reached out to grab it .
It was then that the wyvern beat its wings and rose into the air .
The violent winds pushed me off of my feet, and I tried to protect my injured arm as I rolled on the ground . As the world spun around me, I had a glimpse of Eve taking the artifact . I wanted to vomit then, but I was suddenly enveloped in a floating sensation .
“Huh…?”
My body was floating . There was no ground beneath me now . I had been thrown over the edge of a cliff that had been hidden in the darkness .
This feeling of floating would not last forever . I was falling down to the bottom of the cliff as gravity dictated . I could not fight against it . I would die here . Just then, the faces of my parents after they had been trampled by dragons appeared in my mind .
And then I lost consciousness . When I awoke, I was in a river in the forest . There had been a river below the cliff, and I had been carried down here, all the way to this forest .
My bow was still on my back, and it seemed that I had been desperately clutching the hilt of my sword . But my armor had taken a beating on the rocks, and was in tatters . Furthermore, one of my arms was broken . And so even though I was alive, there was only despair ahead of me .
Well, in spite of that, I did manage to come out of that predicament alive…though, that is a different story in itself .
In any case, that was the last time I saw Eve . I do not know what happened after that . Not the caravan or that famous Adventurer . Perhaps they had all been eaten by the wyvern . Or they won and lived good lives after that . There was no reason for me to know, and I did not wish to know .
Now, the thing that was more important to me than anything was Asagi . As long as he did not faint, he could go as high as he pleased . That wind of silver and green would protect him .
Thinking about him now made it impossible for me to sit still . I wanted to rush to where he was immediately, but my legs would not let me . And so I had only anxiety to fill my heart now .
I stare at the table again and think . One hundred years… It reminded me of just how long I had lived .