During their brief exchange of words, Azwin learned that the elves were called Lemifs and humans were referred to as Ugeh. She also discovered that these two terms actually had their meanings swapped due to a difference in perspective. Essentially, they were calling each other elves.
Azwin decided to use the words Lemif and Ugeh according to the local language. Gerald, who was immensely proud of being human, was slightly discontent but followed the majority’s decision.
“Hmm, so you worship dragons as gods?”
As they were in the midst of a bustling market, Azwin gladly accepted the food offered to her and asked.
Rontlos replied in a hesitant voice.
“That’s correct. You believe in gods that are intangible. We believe in a being that exists within reality. In fact, dragons prophesy to us. We base our political decisions on these prophecies.”
“So according to those prophecies, you were supposed to meet us?”
“Not exactly. It’s complicated to explain. It’s partly because I’m not well-versed in the human language. And explaining something that’s obvious to us is… hmm, um, difficult.”
Rontlos struggled with his words, appearing distressed.
“I’ll try to explain it more simply. We receive oracles, but we cannot say for certain if they are directly from the guardian dragon we worship. Therefore, our fate, or rather our path, is said to lead us to meet you, but it’s not guaranteed. Not meeting you is also a type of fate. Opposite phenomena always occur.”
“So it was just good luck, then.”
When Azwin concluded, Rontlos laughed heartily.
“Let’s just say that’s the case.”
“Anyway, why was she… tied up?”
“That’s a long story.”
“We have time.”
“We do not.”
“Then give me the short version.”
Rontlos burst into laughter again.
“You always look on the bright side of things, Azwin.”
Gerald also laughed loudly.
“You’ve barely known her for half a day, yet you’ve already figured out half of her personality.”
Rontlos began his story slowly.
“We are of the Lemifs, specifically from the Fvoe tribe. The Fvoe tribe is divided into three nations: Putier in the north, Tachisel in the east, and Larunton in the west. We were allies. We used to be. Now, we find ourselves in a situation where we must draw swords against each other.”
Rontlos spoke with a hint of surprise in his tone, but Gerald responded indifferently.
“A common tale.”
“Not at all common. Such events are rare in the world of Lemifs.”
Rontlos emphasized his point.
“No, if it were just the world of Lemifs, such a thing would never happen. At least, not within our fate. We gather information. We had gathered information. Putier’s Hopet had formed an alliance with the Ugeh.”
“Ugeh and Lemif formed an alliance?”
Azwin asked, surprised.
“It’s a recent development. It was a few years ago.”
Rontlos spoke in a somber tone.
“Putier’s Hopet welcomed humans clad in black armor and garments, known as ‘Iguselrun’, who had killed their own god, ‘Ka-Putai’. A grave mistake. Faced with their overwhelming power, Tachisel also surrendered. The Lemifs of Tachisel… Oh, horrifically, they killed their own guardian dragon, ‘Ka-Droch’, with their own hands.”
“To kill a god? For humans, that would be a very philosophical tale, but for Lemifs, it’s a horrifying reality. Is something wrong with this Hopet of Putier? To join forces with an external power that killed their own dragon, and then to be intimidated by their threats… Wait!”
Azwin, who had been lamenting, suddenly asked.
“Iguselrun? Did I pronounce that correctly?”
“That’s what we’ve been calling them. Is it incorrect?”
Gerald shrugged and said to Rontlos.
“Are you sure it’s not pronounced ‘Excelon’?”
“Is that so? Perhaps you know of these Ugeh?”
Rontlos showed little interest in the precise pronunciation.
Azwin swallowed, feeling nauseous.
“I can’t say I’ve encountered them directly, but I have quite a connection with them. If they are indeed the ones we’re thinking of, this is no ordinary matter.”
For the Lemifs who had lost two gods, it was already extraordinary.
“So what about Larunton’s dragon?”
Gerald interjected sharply, before Azwin could even ask what he meant.
“It’s ridiculous to blindly obey those who would kill dragons, even if they claim such dragons are terrifying. If a dragon is revered as a god, then mere humans should be easily crushed!”
“You are wise. You are correct. There are no Ugeh or Lemif who can fight a dragon that is awake. It’s impossible. Only a dragon can fight another dragon.”
‘Hmm, I’ve heard this sentiment before.’
“However, the Iguselrun, no, ‘Excelon’, who formed an alliance with Putier’s Hopet, have joined forces with another power.”
Azwin anticipated Rontlos’s next words and spoke up.
“‘Only a dragon can fight a dragon.’ So, you’re saying they’ve allied with another dragon?”
“Indeed, with the legendary evil black dragon, ‘Ka-Guanil’, who should not have existed.”
As the name was mentioned, even in human language, the surrounding Lemifs murmured amongst themselves. Sermei, who had been silently listening, shrank back.
“If the Zvi Lemifs have the ‘Nurailfdom Legend,’ we have the ‘Ka-Guanil Legend.’ Both names are objects of terror by themselves. Especially Ka-Guanil, who is a god of destruction that no dragon can oppose and no weapon can kill. Ka-Guanil demands living sacrifices from the Lemifs and is known to devour other dragons.”
‘So, to summarize, the Excelon Knights and a dragon named Ka-Guanil have joined forces? How? Did they sit down at a negotiation table and share a drink? It doesn’t make sense for the Excelon Knights to be in the Sky Mountains in the first place.’
Azwin couldn’t continue asking her questions because Rontlos kept going on with his story.
“The fear instilled by the name Ka-Guanil is so great that the Lemifs of Tachisel killed their own guardian dragon. Recently, there have been rumors that Ka-Guanil has extended its reach to the world of the Zvi Lemifs.”
“Is ‘Zvi Lemif’ a different race?”
“Most of the Lemifs known to Ugeh are probably from the Zvi. We’re not exactly on good terms with them.”
“Do you fight?”
“Not necessarily. In truth, whether it’s the Fvoe or the Zvi, Lemifs hardly interact with Ugeh. However, I’ve heard that countries like Larden have exchanges with ‘cities of Ugeh’ once or twice a year.”
Rontlos continued somberly.
“We, especially among the Fvoe, are a country that avoids interaction with the outside world. We hardly have any relations with Ugeh, let alone other Lemifs. Amidst this, the king of Putier forced us to accept such an evil dragon.”
“Accepting an evil god means you have to kill your own gods, like Tachisel did.”
“That’s correct. We cannot do that. We held a meeting. All Lemifs of Larunton were called to a public meeting. We don’t know how to fight. We detest fighting. Yet, our fate was determined to lie within battle. We decided to awaken our guardian dragon and fight against Putier to the last person.”
Gerald, engrossed in Rontlos’s paradoxical use of human language, forgot about his food. Azwin was just quenching her thirst.
“We held meetings. We did. But no oracle came. Finding it strange, we decided to visit our guardian dragon, ‘Ka-Tanthol,’ directly. Dragons sleep deeply. However, if you request an oracle, they will grant it. But if they don’t answer, you have to awaken them to ask. Awakening a dragon requires several procedures. The most important among them is the priestess, of which there is only one per country. The priestess is necessary. In our case, it’s Bapukuz here with us.”
“So what did that dragon say?”
Azwin, uninterested in the procedure, hurried to the next part of the story.
“After a two-day ritual, we awakened Tanthol and informed him of everything that had happened. However, Tanthol refused our request to fight alongside us.”
“How could that be! How could he abandon his own people?”
“Tanthol said that ‘death’ lies within his fate. If he were to intervene, he would be killed by ‘Ugeh with the power of Ka-Guanil’ and thus drove us away.”
‘How dreadful. It’s like praying to a god, only for the god to directly refuse the prayer.’
Azwin tried to understand Rontlos’s sorrowful tone.
“We are at a loss. We were. Fighting on our own seems futile against Putier’s forces, Ka-Guanil, and the power of Iguselrun; it would be a meaningless resistance.”
“Wait a second. When did all this happen?”
Azwin suddenly asked.
“The ritual to awaken Tanthol was about half a year ago…”
“No, I mean the alliance between Ka-Guanil and Excelon, the betrayal of Putier and Tachisel.”
“I’ve almost forgotten to count the years. 5 years? No, maybe 7 or 8 years ago.”
Azwin pondered, and Gerald tapped her shoulder.
“What are you calculating?”
“Nothing. Just trying to fit it with the war from 10 years ago since Excelon was involved…”
“Does it fit?”
“I don’t know. So, what happened next?”
Azwin asked.
Rontlos resumed his story.
“That’s when Sermei proposed the last oracle. To someone greater than Ka-Tanthol. Surprisingly, we received an oracle we hadn’t expected.”
“What was the oracle? Keep it short. I’m starting to get confused.”
Gerald showed his agreement by fist-bumping, which Azwin reciprocated. Rontlos nodded and said,
“Though the message is long, to summarize, ‘To the five chosen ones, it is revealed, come and awaken. Among the five, two Ugeh will join your fate.'”
“Are oracles usually that specific? The oracles I know are always metaphorical and dreamlike.”
“That’s correct. It was an unfamiliar oracle to us as well. Our Hopet, even the oldest ‘Wazaiybt’, didn’t know who would issue such a voiced oracle. Ultimately, we concluded it must be an oracle from a dragon we haven’t encountered, the ‘Le-Hopet’ of the dragons. And to find him, we’ve traveled eastward.”
Though there were many unfamiliar terms, Azwin somewhat let it slide.
“We don’t know where they are. No one does. But we believed that if our fate led us, we would surely reach them. In the meantime, we stopped by Tachisel. After all, they were the closest we had to allies, so we suggested they reconsider their stance. We also suggested they seek forgiveness from Ka-Tanthol. If successful, we believed we would gain an ally as powerful as a dragon.”
“Tachisel refused the proposal?”
Azwin was slowly starting to picture the situation.
“Yes, but at first, the refusal was gentle. They sent us away saying it was time to leave.”
“But you were captured?”
Azwin turned to Sermei and asked.
“Yes. Their actions suddenly changed. We were attacked by Lemifs from Breston, a subsidiary city of Tachisel.”
“That place was Breston?”
“That’s correct. The place where you met Bapukuz at night, that was Breston. It’s one of the rare villages that have a professional army. In the battle with the Breston Lemifs, all four warriors we brought to meet the conditions of the oracle were killed. The strongest Lemif in our world died from an arrow. Our fastest runner also died. A boy with white hair named Worg died saving a princess. The elderly ‘Wazaiybt,’ who lives in seclusion at the top of the Sky Mountains, was drained of his power by an opposing sorcerer at the beginning of the fight and passed away.”
‘Four of the five chosen ones died. Doesn’t that mean the oracle has already been disregarded?’
Azwin thought to herself, not wanting to push Rontlos, who already looked despondent.
“I guess I can figure out what happened next. Princess Sermei was captured in that village, and you were all trapped in a scheme to capture you all, but we ‘accidentally’ got involved, right?”
At Azwin’s words, Rontlos chuckled.
“It’s not by chance. It’s fate.”
Sermei, who had been silent, quietly said something to Rontlos. Rontlos relayed a few words to her before turning to Azwin with a puzzled look.
“Sermei says… you were led here.”
Azwin yelled out loud.
“See! I knew it. I thought it was just a dream, but it was Sermei’s voice. Right? That… Komo du, Run mu. That thing.”
“The pronunciation is terribly inaccurate, but it roughly means… come and help.”
Azwin pointed at Sermei with an accusatory finger.
“You silly princess. You should have said that in human language. If you’re a sorcerer capable of sending your voice across such distances to someone miles away, you should at least be able to communicate properly.”
Having called the princess foolish, Rontlos was shocked, but Sermei simply laughed like a child.
Gerald, who had been observing everyone’s faces, suddenly chimed in.
“We’re going.”
“What?”
Azwin asked.
“If we’ve come this far in the story, isn’t the conclusion obvious? There’s no way they’d tell us all this detail just for the sake of it. They’re asking us to go with them. That’s my answer. We’re going.”
Azwin looked at Rontlos with questioning eyes. Is that it?
Rontlos did not deny it.
“Ka-Guanil is described in our legends as a black demon that stains the sky. The destruction does not end with Larunton suffering and being destroyed. If Lemifs fall, Ugeh beyond the Sky Mountains will face the same threat. As the Pupubai of Larunton, I earnestly request your assistance. Please help us.”
“Haven’t I responded? What about you?”
Gerald turned to Azwin.
Azwin did not answer.
Gerald had already spelled out the conclusion, so there was no surprise or anything to argue about. Yet, Azwin did object.
“We need to return to Lutia. We have friends waiting.”
Rontlos pointed in a direction and said,
“If you mean Lutia, that’s the city of Ugeh to the west of Larden? You’ve come the wrong way.”
“That’s her fault!”
Azwin pointed at Sermei.
“As for that, uh, um…”
“Don’t talk about fate or destiny. Let me ask you. Why me? Out of all the vast Sky Mountains, was I the only one you could call?”
Rontlos relayed Azwin’s question, and Sermei responded immediately.
“She says it’s because of fate.”
“Everything’s fate! Fate! Can’t you give a more plausible explanation?”
Sermei spoke, and Rontlos translated,
“To add, the fact that your will was transmitted over such a distance shows how well your minds aligned.”
“Make sense. I’m Ugeh, and you’re Lemif. How do we match? It’s even more nonsensical that there wouldn’t be a Lemif within that radius whose mind matched better.”
Azwin sharply criticized, and Rontlos hurriedly translated. Sermei responded without hesitation.
“That’s exactly the point of fate. Before being captured, we used the priestess’s power to search for the two Ugeh mentioned in the oracle that would help. Each time, it was you who we felt. After being captured, we desperately pulled you towards us, and as hoped, you came.”
Azwin recalled the first moment she met Sermei.
‘She wasn’t very surprised to see me. For a Lemif, suddenly encountering a human… And she immediately tried to warn me about the trap. She knew I would come. No, I must have been caught in Sermei’s magic.’
Displeased, Azwin scratched her head.
“Alright, alright. But let me ask one more thing. Was it about a week ago? We were ambushed by Lemifs who looked just like you. Thanks to that, we lost our companions and got lost. You might not know, but we can’t find our way around here. Even now, my head feels like it’s missing something.”
Azwin tapped her forehead with the hand she had been scratching her head with.
“What about those guys?”
“Give me a moment.”
Rontlos consulted with Sermei for a long time about that issue. During this, Azwin communicated with Gerald using Dunmel Sign Language.
‘Are we really going to help them?’
Gerald replied in sign language.
‘Don’t want to?’
‘It’s not that, but what if everything they’ve said so far isn’t true? For example, what if it’s an elaborate trap to lure us in, or we end up helping only to find out they’re our enemies?’
‘Too grand for a fabrication.’
‘But still, I’m a bit reluctant to just happily agree right here…’
‘Want to get paid then? Make it easier on your conscience.’
‘Absolutely not!’
Aware of the Lemif soldiers watching their sign language conversation with interest, Azwin stopped her hand gestures. She cleared her throat and then asked Rontlos.
“So, what’s the conclusion?”
“We can’t give you a satisfying answer with the information we have. It’s difficult. We speculate. The Lemifs who attacked you were soldiers from Breston. It seems they were acting on someone’s orders.”
“Breston’s Lemifs… How do you know it was them?”
“You killed Karindelf, the fastest wing in Breston.”
“The fastest wing?”
“We describe the strongest and most skilled Lemif with the sword as ‘the fastest wing.’ You two were trying to save Bapukuz and ended up killing Karindelf during your escape.”
Azwin recalled the incident.
‘That’s why they were so shocked. Their strongest was killed by just the two of us.’
Rontlos continued.
“The Lemifs of Breston said, ‘These are the Ugeh who overcame our ambush in the land of the Zvi tribe and even killed two Wazaiybts!’ Putting the circumstances together, that’s the conclusion we can come to. That’s also why we asked for your help so directly. Not only because you’re involved in our fate but also because you’re both incredibly strong.”
Rontlos pointed to the surrounding Lemifs with both hands. The tired and worn-out figures, eyes devoid of hope… but looking at Azwin and Gerald, there was a hint of anticipation.
“We’ve lost many capable warriors. To succeed, we need more people. That’s why we’re asking for your help. Whatever you ask, we can provide. We’ve heard Ugeh like gold. If you want, we can give it. A lot. A great deal.”
“Even though we’re quite high-ranking officials when we return home. We don’t really want much.”
Gerald bragged unnecessarily.
“More importantly, when exactly did we kill this Karindelf?”
Azwin knew to some extent, but Gerald, having intervened in the middle, would not know. Rontlos explained. He had apparently been observing the situation.
“I witnessed your fight in Breston. You immediately ran towards Karindelf. Gerald attacked from the rear, and Azwin struck Karindelf down.”
Azwin laughed.
In a way, Karindelf had incredibly bad luck. He might have been a formidable warrior among the Lemifs and could have given Azwin a tough fight one-on-one, but facing two White Wolves from front and back left him no chance to survive.
“The Lemifs of Tachisel are more shocked that Karindelf was killed than that you rescued Bapukuz. They consider it… a curse of Ka-Droch.”
“Wait, hold on. That’s enough. I don’t want to hear any more about Lemif customs and language. My head’s going to explode. So…”
Azwin summarized everything she had heard in one sentence.
“Sermei wants us to help her find ‘some dragon,’ right?”
“That’s correct.”
“Good. We’re lost with nowhere to go, and I’ve wanted to see a dragon at some point anyway, so let’s go. Here’s the condition: once it’s all over, help us get out of the Sky Mountains. You said you know where ‘the city of Ugeh’ is? Just take us there.”
“That won’t be difficult. And one more thing I’d like to say…”
“You always leave something out till the end.”
“My apologies. It’s a habit in our language to attach important things at the end. Especially in Larunton speech. There’s a saying, ‘You don’t understand Larunton until the end.’ In the language of Ugeh, it turns out like this. It can’t be helped.”
“Alright, alright. So what’s this one thing?”
“It’s very dangerous. Our enemies include the coalition of Iguselrun and Tachisel Lemifs, and there’s also a monster named Kagua involved.”
‘Another new word! What’s Kagua now?’
Azwin was frustrated.
“Let’s stop talking now. We’ve eaten enough and rested enough, so how about we get going?”
“You’re quite like Bapukuz in her younger days.”
Rontlos said with a look of a father watching his mischievous daughter. Without giving Azwin a chance to object, he turned and commanded the Lemifs. The soldiers began to prepare for the move.
Gerald and Azwin also packed up. Azwin felt uneasy, but Gerald was already enjoying the prospect of a new adventure like a mercenary who had found a job.
“Do you like it that much, Captain Gerald?”
Azwin asked mischievously.
“And don’t you, Princess Azwin?”
Gerald replied, genuinely enjoying himself.
“Remember what the Master taught us long ago. To always be prepared to fight against non-human entities? And the Queen said this: ‘There were once five White Wolves, now prepare to fight outside Aranthia’… Both came true. Finally, all that insane training paid off.”
“Sounds noble. But our grand mission is to fight in such a remote place where no one will know? Doesn’t sound very glamorous.”
“It just so happens that the ones they’re asking for help are two White Wolves who’ve lost their way. Whether we’re lucky, they’re lucky, or if it’s fate as mentioned before, that remains to be seen. So? Can’t say you’re not excited now, can you?”
Azwin laughed, giving Gerald’s belly a light punch with the back of her hand.
The group set off. Counting now, there seemed to be about thirty Lemif soldiers.
The two walked somewhere in the middle of the long line of Lemifs.
“But what’s the deal with this Excelon Knights?”
Gerald asked Azwin. Despite the Lemifs’ complicated circumstances and confusing terminology, that was one thing Azwin was also curious about.
“We’ll ask when we meet them, won’t we?”
“Even if we meet them, think they’ll just tell us?”
Azwin tapped the sword at her waist.
“When did I say I’d ask with words?”
Gerald also laughed, tapping his axe before fist-bumping. Azwin returned the fist bump.
–TL Notes–
Hope you enjoyed this chapter. If you want to support me or give me feedback, you can do it at patreon.com/MattReading
Join my Discord! https://discord.gg/jB26ePk9