Night came, and day followed, soon turning into evening. Whenever she felt hungry, Irene ate fruits from the trees, and when thirsty, she drank water from a stream. She had lost track of time and kept walking without much sleep. As darkness fell and visibility decreased, she stopped and looked back.
Something was following her.
‘Is it that creature? Did I not kill it before?’
Strangely, the wound on her shoulder from the creature’s claw was not healing and was festering instead. She felt unusually fatigued even after not walking long.
She heard breathing sounds around her. There were disturbing laughter like that of a drunken man and strange cries of a child. The unpleasant noises grew louder and surrounded her from all sides.
“Hear me, monsters of the Sky Mountains. I may not know your true nature, but you have chosen the wrong opponent.”
Irene pulled out Vena Esarck, planted it into the ground, and recited an ancient incantation. The meaning was known only to Lutia’s magicians who specialized in ancient languages, and she knew nothing else in that language. Yet, it was familiar to her like a prayer a religious person repeats every morning and evening.
Red light leaked from the engraved letters on the blade, pushing away the darkness, and the whispering voices vanished. However, their locations did not change. They were afraid of the red light, not Irene.
Irene sat down, keeping the sword planted in the ground. She anticipated a long battle. Beings that use darkness as their weapon fear the end of darkness. They would either attack at dawn or retreat, conflicted between the magical light of Vena and the morning sunlight.
‘I wish they would just retreat.’
Vena Esarck was a sword that could withstand the darkness of the night. As long as the will of its owner did not fade, the sword would not withdraw its light. Irene closed her eyes and waited for their approach.
When waiting in such darkness, she always remembered that night. Among all the matches and duels she had in her life, it was the most intense, and even after nearly ten years, it occasionally resurfaced in her mind.
☆ ☆ ☆
As Quain predicted, when Lontamon’s main force barely reached the Blue Gate, the leading Excelon Knights had already passed the Red Gate and were rushing towards the Gold Gate. They seemed to be fleeing from something.
Thanks to the straight road leading to Nadium, the nearby villages suffered almost no damage. People near the main road purposefully fled to villages closer to the Sky Mountains, not to escape the Excelon Knights but the Lontamon army following them.
Quain urged the Wolf Knights to annihilate the Excelon Knights; otherwise, the people of Aranthia, inexperienced in war, would face a great tragedy.
“The one who cut off my arm might have come this far.”
Lofin stood in front of the Gold Gate’s walls, looking eastward. The faint glow of campfires from the Excelon Knights’ campsite was visible. Irene, with sharp eyes, asked,
“Who is it?”
Lofin did not reveal the name.
Irene grabbed his shoulder.
“Let’s go there, Lofin.”
“Where?”
“To the Excelon Knights.”
“Why rush there when they’ll come here tomorrow anyway…”
“Still, let’s go.”
Irene was already leading a horse, speaking as she did. The two, unbeknownst to others, slipped out of the city gate and rode towards the campsite where the Excelon Knights were staying.
The Excelon Knights’ camp was unusually subdued for a group on the brink of battle. They seemed chastened and gloomy, as if they had been severely reprimanded. Irene dismounted and approached the knights on guard. Immediately, an alert was raised in the camp, and even the resting knights came forward. Yet, Irene was undaunted.
“I am a knight of the Wolf Knights. Let the strongest among you come forward.”
In retrospect, it was a rather embarrassing challenge. However, at that time, she was serious, and the knights of the opposing camp did not underestimate her.
“It’s me.”
A tall man stepped forward. His build was as large as anyone in the Wolf Knights, with brown hair and eyes that shone even in the darkness.
Irene squinted hard, trying not to lose the staring contest, and asked Lofin behind her.
“Is this the guy? The one who cut off your arm?”
“No.”
Irene barked at the man.
“Are you the strongest? What’s your name? I am Irene Wolf.”
“I am Welch, the captain of Excelon.”
“Oh, the captain? Since I am the strongest in the Wolf Knights, let’s have a duel before tomorrow’s battle to measure our strengths.”
Irene half-expected him to either dismiss her because she was a woman, refuse the duel, or try to take her as a prisoner. She was prepared to fight and escape if he attacked. Surprisingly, Welch agreed immediately.
“Alright.”
He asked her to wait, then brought his weapon. Meanwhile, the other Excelon knights quietly glared at Irene and Lofin. Feeling the weight of their stares, Lofin nudged Irene.
“You might not realize this, but these knights are serious. Not like our disorganized Knights.”
“I can’t escape now.”
“We’ve raised a child poorly.”
Lofin lamented.
Irene drew Vena Esarck and stepped forward, while Welch also appeared with his halberd. Meanwhile, one of the Excelon knights approached Lofin with a lantern.
Lofin was a bit cautious, but the knight just handed him the lantern.
“It’s just to help you see better. Don’t worry. Regardless of the outcome, we will let you go. No other knights have shown such initiative, so I will give you the due respect.”
Welch said, looking at Lofin.
“And you?”
“I’m here to drag her corpse back if she dies.”
Lofin said. When Irene glared at him, he quickly added,
“No, I said it so he might let his guard down a bit.”
Welch stared at Lofin for a long time, as if trying to remember who he was. However, soon his intense gaze shifted to Irene.
In the flickering light, Irene spoke with firmness to avoid being overpowered by his gaze.
“Shall we begin?”
For a brief moment, they both showed each other the courtesy required before a match. They began their duel, going full force from the start. Irene was thrown by Welch’s heavy attack, flying towards Lofin.
“Need help?”
Lofin asked.
“No. Like you said, if I die, don’t fight for me. Just take my body back.”
Irene joked, not considering defeat. Her attack made Welch stagger. After exchanging several blows, even Welch seemed surprised.
“Since Aranthia has such a knight, why have you been holding back until now? Why didn’t you stop us at the previous gates?”
Neither side showed any significant weaknesses, prolonging the fight. Irene had never experienced such an exhilarating battle. The only comparable ones were her duels with Lofin, Meylumil, or Quain, but those were not life-threatening.
In the heightened tension, Irene was grateful for how well Vena Esarck responded to her will. There was a buzz among the Excelon Knights.
Lofin, watching from behind, was also extremely tense.
‘If he had been fighting, he would have been singing while fighting, right? Watching from the side is more nerve-wracking. That’s why I’m fighting now.’
The prolonged battle was ultimately decided not by skill or weapons, but by concentration. Noticing Irene’s slowing pace as she reached her physical limit, Welch pressed his attack. Though her stamina was waning, Irene’s determination to win never faltered. Welch, overconfident in his stamina, exposed a vulnerability.
Irene struck Welch’s flank.
As her blade grazed him, Irene immediately turned to take a defensive stance, not thinking it was a decisive blow. Worried about a counterattack if she rushed in to strike his neck, she chose to be cautious.
Welch fell briefly but quickly stood up, remaining in the shadows, looking at Irene. Several Excelon knights approached to support the injured Welch, but they showed no intention of attacking Irene.
“Impressive. I’ve seen your swordsmanship,” he said.
Though injured, he didn’t look defeated, and despite being wounded, he walked unaided. His trousers stained with blood showed it was not a minor injury, yet he did not stagger. Irene, however, found it hard to stand and leaned on Lofin’s shoulder.
‘Damn, it feels like I lost.’
Welch spoke.
“I will remember your name, Irene Wolf. There will be another day for us to duel, even after this war ends.”
“There won’t be. If you push towards the Gold Gate tomorrow, we will annihilate you. Remember this. You will despair against Aranthia’s magic. I am just the beginning.”
Irene shouted boldly, mounted her horse, and Lofin followed. She looked back just in case, but as expected, they did not pursue.
“Does Excelon only have such monsters? Is there really someone stronger than him?”
Irene barely held the reins, speaking weakly.
“I can’t be certain. Honestly, even with both arms, I couldn’t have beaten you now. But the duel just now, it could have gone either way.”
Lofin encouraged the gloomy Irene.
“Regardless, you won. You can be proud.”
“I might have ignited their will to fight.”
“If Meylumil hears this, he’ll be angry.”
Lofin smiled and continued.
“Leave the rest to Quain. If he accepts himself as the captain, then the opposing captain is his responsibility. Don’t you trust him?”
“If I didn’t, why would I have recommended him as the captain?”
Irene sighed deeply as they crossed the Alaya bridge.
It was the end of a very long day, awaiting a longer night. The next day, the battle at the Gold Gate unfolded. In the duel between Captain Welch and Captain Quain, Quain knocked Welch off his horse.
While everyone cheered, Irene couldn’t fully rejoice.
“Ah.”
‘Welch was wounded by my sword, unable to wield such a heavy weapon!’
☆ ☆ ☆
The attack of the monsters began a little earlier than dawn.
Irine, without even opening her closed eyes, swung Venar Esarck behind her, rising from a crouched position and spinning around, scattering her blade around. Red blood splattered onto her body. The red glow of Venar shattered the darkness.
Only then did Irine open her eyes.
Three corpses of the monsters writhed around her. She plunged her blade into the throat of one trying to rise, keeping watch on the red eyes hiding behind the trees. The excited panting of the beasts grew louder.
‘Making large movements really hurts.’
The pain in her shoulder had worsened overnight.
‘This is poison. The claws had poison. Or the wounds festered because of the filthy claws!’
The monsters attacked again at dawn, with one of them managing to slash Irine’s thigh before fleeing. She killed two more, but there were still many left, seemingly more than in the evening.
Initially, she thought of them as mere obstacles hindering her journey, but they proved to be more troublesome than expected. Each one was a match for an armored knight, not just a time-consuming nuisance.
‘Will I, who survived battles determining the fate of the world, become mere prey to these monsters? Ah, I dislike such an end.’
As morning came and she walked on, she realized the monsters’ intent wasn’t merely to secure food. The vast mountain ranges had plenty of prey. There was no reason for them to choose a strong opponent like her as their food.
It didn’t seem like just an encounter with wild beasts during her journey. It was hard not to associate it with the bad events that happened before reaching the Red Gate. The Black Knight and the grey-robed wizard.
Irine quickened her pace.
The monsters continued to follow. Occasionally, when she looked back, their faces would boldly peek out. They would even stick close beside her. When she stopped with her sword, they stopped; when she walked, they followed at the same pace.
Now she was afraid. Her injured shoulder swelled, and her thigh muscles pulled painfully. They were waiting persistently for Irine to tire. She drank the prepared water, but whenever she let go of her sword to eat, they approached immediately, and retreated quickly when she grabbed her sword again. Unable to chase the forest-adept creatures or leave the path, the situation repeated.
‘They know I’m injured.’
Her vision blurred, and it became hard to maintain balance. Walking straight soon became difficult. Apparently, the injuries in her shoulder and thigh were paralyzing her whole body.
The monsters whispered among themselves, which was very irritating. Moreover, if she stumbled or tripped on a stone, they came so close that she could almost touch them. She cut the throat of one who approached too closely, but the creatures did not back down even after one of their companions died.
Irine had never seen or heard of such creatures in the Sky Mountains. The eerie atmosphere they emitted, neither beast nor human, was chilling.
Irine was accustomed to fighting non-human monsters. Venar Esarck, as if attracting battles, brought numerous enemies to her. Whether she intended or not, she became a hero, saving people by killing monsters.
It wasn’t the fight with the non-human monsters that scared her. It was the ominous feeling from the day Tailed disappeared.
“No. The Sky Mountains are sacred. The demon from that time cannot appear here.”
Externally she denied it, but inside she couldn’t deny the possibility.
The number of monsters had increased. Now, if they attacked all at once, it would be too much for her to handle alone. They were cautious to the end, moving only as much as she did, slowly tightening their encirclement.
She felt like an insect surrounded by ants, dreading the moment when they would block her path and swarm over her.
‘I might need to fight while I still have some strength left.’
Irine drew her sword and stopped walking. Roughly counting, there were about twenty of them. It was a disadvantageous position, but with the full power of Venar, it wasn’t impossible to fight.
She placed the sword on the ground and chanted a spell. The monsters quickly narrowed their encirclement. Calmly finishing the spell, she picked up her sword.
Ancient magic enveloped the blade. The monsters hesitated to approach due to the red glow of its power. She wished they would retreat, but that was too much to hope for.
One of the monsters spoke. At first, its pronunciation was unclear, and she thought it was just a language they used among themselves. But listening again, they were repeating a single word.
“Kaguwa.”
They kept uttering that word.
“Kaguwa.”
“Kaguwa.”
“Kaguwa.”
Beyond the space barred by trees like prison bars, something ghost-like swiftly passed by. The monsters buzzed among themselves, the word ‘Kaguwa’ interspersed in their incomprehensible language.
‘Is that word significant? Can it be? These creatures are just monsters. They shouldn’t be able to speak.’
The ghost continued to circle around Irine. It moved so fast it was almost invisible if not focused on. It looked like someone trying to imitate a ghost, a dark blanket flipped over their head.
The ghost stopped and seemed to glare at Irine. It was impossible to tell if it was glaring, staring, or just looking. All she felt was a murderous gaze.
After a moment, the ghost spoke in an indecipherable language.
‘It’s giving orders to the monsters!’
As it finished speaking, the creatures that had been scared of Venar’s light all moved at once.
Normally, when surrounded by trained soldiers, Irine calmly dealt with the first one to approach. After killing a couple, the others would become fearful and slow. She used this to her advantage to counter the surrounding attacks.
This time, Irine used the same tactic, slicing through three monsters at once. Their bodies exploded in a burst of red light, signifying they were evil beings opposed to the sanctity of Venar.
Despite this, the monsters continued to attack. They feared the silent, commanding black ghost behind them more than Irine.
‘Who are you? Who commands these monsters and exists in the Sky Mountains?’
The blood of the monsters soaked Irine, and her limbs grew heavier. She kept being pushed back until she hit a rock and stopped. She had killed more than ten, but there were still many left.
They moved like ants. Each one desperately clung to her, trying to inflict even a small wound before dying, showing no fear of death.
Finally, the movement of the monsters ceased. After a moment, the black ghost slipped out like mist between the trees and approached Irine. The monsters, seemingly knowing only violence and appetite, retreated to either side like disciplined soldiers. A heavy aura pressed down on Irine’s shoulders.
‘It’s the same.’
Her legs gave way, and Irine collapsed. Her head spun from the vigorous movement.
‘It’s the same as that time.’
Blood from the monsters’ claws soaked her back. The blood flowing from her broken forehead eventually seeped into her right eye, forcing her to close it. With her already confused mind, her vision narrowed even more.
The approaching black ghost looked like a real ghost.
‘I thought if I were to die, it would be while searching for Tailed or after finding him…’
Irine spoke.
“Who are you?”
The ghost approached without answering, but suddenly stopped. Irine’s sword began to sing.
A deep humming vibrated through the air. The red light on the blade scattered like smoke to either side. She had seen this phenomenon a couple of times before.
‘There’s another sword nearby with the same power!’
Irine sensed this and shouted loudly.
“Over here!”
The ghost quickly retreated as if being sucked away somewhere and then issued some command to the monsters. Half of them moved to the right, while the other half charged at Irine.
‘I can’t die here.’
Irine, leaning on a tree, stood up and swung her sword widely. Fortunately, the monsters charging in the direction of the blade’s swing were all sliced in one stroke. The severed bodies of the monsters hit Irine with the momentum of their charge.
The sound of human footsteps approached. The noise headed straight towards Irine’s location. There were several of them. Screams of the monsters that had rushed in that direction were heard.
‘People. Besides me, there are others in the Sky Mountains! Could they be the magicians of Lutia?’
Just then, two monsters charged at Irine from both sides. Her arms wouldn’t lift anymore. She thought she was done for when suddenly, two thick spears flew, striking each monster precisely. The creatures, impaled by the spears, flew several steps and got stuck in a tree like skewers.
Following this, four men surrounded and protected Irine like a shield. The four knights faced the fearsome monsters without a hint of fear, moving as one and quickly dispatching them.
Then a man with a blood-stained sword approached Irine and offered his hand.
“Are you okay?”
Irine took his hand, feeling relieved.
‘Yes. Besides Lutia, there’s another person with the mark to ascend the Sky Mountains.’
Irine took his hand and stood up.
“Quain. How did you know?”
Irine asked Quain.
“‘Vena Silk’ has been crying since morning.”
Vena Silk was the brother sword of Venar Esarck. And that sword had been passed down through generations of the queen’s royal guards.
Quain commanded the four knights protecting Irine.
“Just chase them off the path; don’t stray.”
“Yes, Master.”
The four knights only chased the monsters away without pursuing further.
“I don’t recognize these guys?”
Irine inquired.
“A lot have retired and many new ones have joined in your absence.”
Quain kicked the head of a dead monster on the ground, then asked.
“But what are these monsters? I’ve climbed Mount Aynacast more than ten times, but I’ve never seen these before.”
“I don’t know either. But are we already at Aynacast?”
“If it wasn’t a nearby mountain, how could I leave Her Majesty’s side and ascend the Sky Mountains? It was possible because it’s close. Where did you come from?”
“Tracast Mountain. South of the Red Gate.”
“Even though you haven’t been here for years, but you sure make a grand entrance.”
Quain supported Irine, who was struggling to stand.
“Everyone, fall back. We’re heading back. You two, guard the rear and follow.”
“Yes, Master.”
Irine found the voices of her juniors unexpectedly reassuring.
“There’s a lot to talk about,” Quain said.
“Yes. But let’s talk after we get down. First, I need a warm bath and some wine.”
“As you command,” Quain said with a smile. Irine, leaning on Quain, looked back. Where the black ghost had stood, there was nothing. But the feeling it left was still vividly present.
If she had been here for personal reasons, Irine would have prioritized chasing after the ghost and uncovering its identity. But not now.
“How is Queen Sanadiel?”
Irine asked.
“You can’t meet her right now.”
“Huh? Why? Isn’t she in Nadium now?”
“She is preparing for a new encounter.”
“So, she doesn’t want to see me until then?”
Quain showed an inscrutable smile.
“Let’s focus on treating your wounds for now. The bleeding is severe. We need to hurry.”
Quain, saying this, looked unusually solemn.
‘Right, Quain isn’t the timid boy I knew anymore. He’s the Master of the Wolf Knights. I’ve been away for too long.’
Irine realized anew.
As the number of trees obscuring the view lessened, a familiar landscape beyond the mountains came into view. In the distance, the pointed towers of a castle emerged.
‘Damn, my sense of time got all messed up in the Sky Mountains. I have no idea how long it’s been since I left the Red Gate.’
Irine, descending the mountain, said,
“The Red Gate was attacked by a knight in black armor.”
“A Black Knight?”
“I hope my hunch is wrong, but it seems like he’s a being resurrected from death.”
Quain just listened.
Irine spoke in a lower voice.
“Captain Welch of Excelon is trying to come to Nadium again.”
–TL Notes–
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