Perhaps it's not just Cale who has a dubious sense of beauty."
With the same smile on his face, His Highness deigned to make an excuse:
- I have not been there personally. I told exactly the information that I heard myself.
His Highness was forgiven.
They looked interesting. However, all this diversity was hardly "beautiful." Cale looked at the kittens in Hans's arms. They seemed very disappointed.
However, there was one person who seemed more serious than Cale expected. Choi Han bowed his head like the other people who were praying, and seemed to be praying as well.
"I'm sure he's praying to return to Korea."
The sword master looked at his double and tried to imagine what he was thinking at the moment.
He had lived in this world for a very long time. Even among humans, it was a ridiculously short amount of time. At one point, he thought he had always been here, and his home world was just a figment of his own imagination.
Especially when he lost his last connection to his family. Their photograph. Faces and memories faded over time. In the end, all that was left was his own name for a very, very long time. And only decades later, among other people, other things came to the name.
Was Cale right in his assumption?
Did he really want to return to a place that had become practically alien to him?
Deep down, perhaps. But he had long ago resigned himself to the fact that he would not return home. It was simply scary to return. After so many years, few people remained of those dear to him, and of his former self there were only memories.
The only thing he himself hoped for right at that moment was that this world would not turn into one huge damn Forest of Darkness.
Choi Han grew up in a happy family. He was different from Kim Rok Soo, who took over Cale's body. Choi Han grew up in a happy family, which had a positive effect on him. That's why he was able to survive catastrophic situations while remaining a good person.
Hearing these thoughts, the ominous feeling returned to the ancient dragon. There was something he really didn't like about this phrase. At the very least:
"If you have occupied this body, where is its real owner?"
Cale stared at Choi Han as he raised his head and looked into his eyes.
— Kale-nim.
- What?
- I want to ask a question and tell you something.
Cale had a bad feeling about this.
— Start with a question.
Choi Han seemed to be pondering something as he looked at the stone towers towering over the wide plain before speaking.
- Cale-nim, aren't you going to make a wish?
"And this question interested you so much?"
Everyone became interested. Before this, he dreamed of a quiet life somewhere in a quiet corner. Would he want that now?
Cale replied rather casually:
- I don't do such stupid things as making wishes.
- Why not?
- It makes a person have high hopes...
- It sounds very sad.
The Black Dragon and Mary said this together.
They always wanted to get out. The dragon wanted to get out of the cave, and Mary wanted to get out of her safe bubble. Both wanted to see the world.
But perhaps there was some truth in what this man said.
For Mary, entering a world she thought was interesting and beautiful meant facing dangers she probably couldn't handle. Her great intolerance for necromancers would ensure that she would be attacked by other people. She didn't think she could take the life, even in self-defense, of a man whose worst vice was ignorance.
And for the black dragon, the chance to live appeared only due to the direct intervention of the God of Death.
Should they have wanted such a world?
Choi Han, Hans, and even the kittens all turned to look at Cale, who in turn looked at the stone towers as Choi Han did before speaking slowly.
— It's much easier to live without high expectations.
It's great if you scratch off a lottery ticket hoping to get one dollar and end up winning five dollars. But if you buy one hoping to win the grand prize and end up winning five dollars, you're bound to be disappointed.
While Eruhaben wondered what the poor bastard had gone through to have such a negative-pragmatic outlook on life at such a young age, Rosalyn and Alberta understood Kayla perfectly well.
For Rosalyn, the dream of becoming a mage would have remained just a dream if she had not taken it upon herself and with full dedication. The dream will not come true by itself. She will not wake up as the Master of the magic tower one morning simply because she wished for it. It is a huge work, first of all on herself.
This was no stranger to the Crown Prince either. The throne he desired would not be his just because. Even the title of Crown Prince did not guarantee that he would be the one to lead the kingdom. At any moment, after one single mistake, all of this could pass into the hands of one of his younger brothers. That was why he worked constantly. Even now, in this room, any bit of information could help him. There was no point in simply wishing for something. You had to work on your desire.
Although not wanting anything at all is already completely strange.
*Splash* Cale looked up as he felt a tap on his shoulder, only to see Deputy Butler Hans, who began to speak with a wide grin.
- You are right, young master, there is no place for such a dream or hope in this world.
- Just stop talking nonsense.
— Yes, sir!
— It seems that this deputy butler has completely forgotten about the young master's threat?
- Ahahaha!
Hans responded loudly, but seemed a little disappointed as he took the initiative and began to fiddle with the kittens. Cale followed Hans leisurely as Choi Han approached him and whispered in a voice so low that Hans couldn't hear him.
"The dragon entered the city," the dark-haired youth reported his observation.
- Ignore him.
- Understood.
And again the wet blue eyes stared at the poor sword master.
- I would never, dragon-nim!
The grown teenager decided to play ahead. He didn't want to be called stupid again.
The dragon nodded importantly and his eyes instantly dried.
"Little sneak."
Eruhaben had a strong feeling that the baby was learning from the cats who were twisting the butler candidate around as they wanted.
And while the dragon and the swordsman were trying to figure out the extent of the latter's stupidity with their eyes, the next day arrived on the screen.
The next day, Cale was ready to go to the grave. Naturally, he had to get rid of the people and kittens who wanted to follow him. Fortunately, everyone stopped complaining when he said he was only going to take one person with him:
- I'll only take Choi Han with me.
- Is he already going for the ancient power?
- It looks like it.
"He really should hurry up. Not only is Taylor looking for her too, but he still needs to get to the capital on time."
Choi Han was the strongest man. In this regard, neither the vice-captain nor Hans could find anything to object to.
The vice captain simply frowned and said that he needed to train the knights before he began gathering them. While Cale watched the knights follow the vice captain with despair on their faces, Hans simply said one more thing before disappearing.
- He still thinks that the vice-captain was chasing the knights because of Choi Han, right?
— To him.
- Poor thing...
- I'll take care of our little kittens.
Cale turned away from Hans, who seemed very excited about being with the kittens, and walked out of the inn, Choi Han following behind him.
— Are we going to do something today?
- What are you talking about? Someone might misunderstand us if they hear you.
Choi Han looked at the two princesses who were giggling disgustingly again. He didn't understand what other people could possibly think?But Eruhaben seemed to begin to understand what was making them so happy.
He simply rolled his eyes. As a member of a great race, he shouldn't pay attention to the stupidity of humans.
Choi Han didn't answer. Cale didn't care, he just walked towards the mountain located behind the high-class area and continued speaking:
- I need to go to this mountain. You can just wait for me at the ascent to the mountain.
- I understand.
- He continues to gather ancient powers in secret from everyone.
- These are forces for his self-defense. With his reluctance to get involved in the military strife of the continent, keeping the same shield secret from the "main hero" is quite logical. You never know, he might ask to use it somewhere.
Choi Han was a little offended. He wouldn't pester.
You wouldn't, would you?
Choi Han didn't ask questions. Cale preferred a silent companion. Choi Han didn't ask his benefactor questions. He was the one who seemed to follow Cale, but didn't care about what the Count's son was doing. This was probably only possible because Choi Han thought he could understand what the red-haired boy really wanted to do, or because he thought that no matter what Cale did, Choi Han wouldn't be able to put Choi Han in a dangerous situation.
In general, "Professor Hanityuz" probably guessed right this time. He wasn't very curious. And for Choi Han, Cale seemed like a reasonable person to let him go somewhere alone.
Cale arrived at the small mountain, passing through the stereotypical area where the upper class of the city lived before stopping at Choi Han's words.
— Kale-nim.
- What?
— I'm leaving tomorrow.
- I know. I was the one who told you to leave tomorrow.
Choi Han walked up to Cale, who was standing impatiently at the mountain path, almost right next to him. Cale was the one who said that he, Choi Han, had enough power to protect. And Choi Han had been thinking about this for the past few days.
— I thought about this for a while and decided I needed to tell you something.
The sword master was very curious about what his double wanted to say. It was especially strange that he needed to be alone with Cale to do it.
Yesterday's report about the dragon was not what Choi Han wanted to say. He hesitated for a moment before looking at Cale carefully and speaking.
"Mr. Ron is a dangerous man," Choi Han's gaze was directed over Cale's shoulder to the tree near the mountain path.
Ron turned back to the sword master with a good- natured smile on his face.
He looked back with a carefully blank expression on his face.
Cale winced for a moment at the blunt message that hit him like a bolt from the blue. Should he pretend to know, or should he pretend not to know? The boy quickly made up his mind. Cale hadn't expected the question, but he answered calmly.
- Is that so?
"Aren't you surprised? He has a dangerous stench about him. He's a strong man who has shed a lot of blood. At first, I thought Cale-nim already knew about it, but he was still forced to keep Ron by his side."
The vicious couple's staring never stopped for a second.
- I would ask you to mind your own business in the future...
- Firstly, it's not "I". And secondly, he still knows.
- And if it were a real young master?
- Where are you now and where is "your" young master? Considering all his secrets, you can't know for sure whether he knew or not. And you, as we've already found out, didn't give a damn about him.
- You little snive...
*SNAP*
The scandal that had begun was interrupted by Vitira, who loudly cracked her whip.
Everyone looked at her.
— Are you done sorting things out?
The whale princess's gaze pinned each of them to their place. The vicious duo turned away from each other with a quiet snort and pretended that the other did not exist.
Attention returned to the screen.
The room was stuffy from the dark, evil aura.
But if Cale knew, wouldn't he have taken the strong Ron with him to save the dragon? But Cale didn't. Choi Han thought that meant Cale either didn't know about Ron's strength or didn't trust him. But how could Cale not trust someone who had been with him for eighteen years?
That's why Choi Han came to the conclusion that Cale didn't know about Ron's power.
Loku really didn't like the current atmosphere. Even the Death God's power was friendlier. He tried to somehow fix the situation:
- Choi Han-nim, that was a v-very interesting i-thought.
The teenager stuttered, but finished speaking.
"Even if it is fundamentally wrong, it is logical."
The swordsman nodded stoically. Then he thought about it and, smiling slightly, patted the teenager on the head.
- Thank you, Locke.
The boy smiled shyly. The room became a little brighter.
"Praise to the children!"
"But neither Cale-nim nor anyone else seems to know about Mister Ron's power."
Choi Han discussed this for a while. To be honest, the fact that Cale said he had no expectations made him keep the knowledge of Ron's strength a secret. However, the fact that Cale chose him to protect today made Choi Han feel guilty.
The thought of the dark-haired brat feeling guilty made Ron thaw a little. But not completely. He had hit an unexpectedly sore spot.
— That's why I thought I needed to tell Cale-nim about this.
- Really? I didn't know Ron was strong.
Choi Han asked again after hearing Cale's calm reply:
- Do you still plan to keep him around? He seems like an evil person.
The sword master snorted.
Cale snorted at Choi Han's words. Keep Ron close to him? Cale planned to push Ron towards Choi Han once they arrived at the capital.
- It's you or Ron.
Now Ron snorted.
Both of them stared at each other again. But for now they were silent.
- Sorry?
- You say he has dangerous powers, but why do you leave Ron alone?
- That's because...
Choi Han suddenly fell silent, unable to find what to answer.
- Probably because he didn't do anything to you.Choi Han couldn't refute Cale's words. The initial misunderstanding led to their small skirmish, but Ron helped him find a suitable sword after that event, and also helped him deal with the problem of Harris Village.
Choi Han turned away from the grinning old man and addressed the screen. If Cale was asking questions, then this was "Professor Hanites." Therefore, they had to listen.
Cale watched Choi Han silently.
This wasn't just true for Choi Han. Ron didn't do anything to anyone. The only thing Ron did was keep giving Cale lemonade too often or making fun of him by mentioning rabbit meat. But it wasn't dangerous or harmful.
- Ron was my servant for eighteen years.
"Technically, he's only been your servant for a couple of weeks."
Regardless of the circumstances, Ron had decided to devote himself to service for the time being. Even the vice-captain, who cared deeply about hierarchy, did not get angry when Ron walked shoulder to shoulder with him. Even the deputy butler Hans did not get angry if Ron did his job.
This was because Ron was experienced and loved by all the residents of the estate.
The old man continued to grin.
- Do you hate Ron?
Choi Han shook his head, thinking for just a moment.
- Then?
"I just thought that it would be better for you to know that he is a dangerous person, that's why I decided to tell you."
— Is it you or Ron?
Choi Han looked at Cale after hearing those words again.
- You are both the same to me. In this aspect, you are no less dangerous.
Cale looked at Choi Han with a stoic expression and continued speaking:
- You are strong too.
— Brother.
"Brother!"
But this thought really didn't occur to the swordsman.
After all, if you think about it from this point of view, Choi Han was much more dangerous to Cale than Ron, whom he had known "all his life."
He always considered himself a good person and never thought about how he looked in the eyes of others. If you remember their first meeting in that world, and how he looked at that moment, any normal person would have called the guards, and not dragged him home to feed.
Choi Han let out a sigh. Cale didn't know the reason for it, but he continued speaking:
- For me it's one and the same.
He didn't know the reason, but Ron, who came from the Eastern Continent, lived in the Haniteuz territory, hiding his identity. If someone like him dared to touch the Earl's son? The news would spread like wildfire throughout the kingdom.
Ron was someone who didn't care about anything or anyone other than his son and himself. So why would someone like that cause a fuss? Cale was just afraid because he knew Ron was a dangerous old man. He wanted to get rid of this dangerous guy as soon as possible so he could live in peace.
"The young pup was really good at understanding the situation. Although that makes his fright even funnier."
- As long as he is my servant, he is just my servant. Just like you, Choi Han, who only needs to bring me back safely.
Cale checked his watch. The wind in the cave varied depending on the time of day. He needed to hurry.
- You have nothing else to say, right? Don't follow me.
Choi Han nodded silently in response. Cale didn't even look back as he headed towards the small mountain.
Everyone was surprised to see that the image did not follow Cale. They continued to watch Choi Han as he watched his protégé leave.
After confirming that he could no longer see Cale, Choi Han looked back at the tree standing near the mountain path and spoke.
- You heard him, right?
Ron jumped smoothly from the tree. He looked at Choi Han and smiled widely. From Ron's mouth came his muffled voice:
- Well, that's how it is...
The swordsman wondered why he asked now. He couldn't help but know that the butler was nearby. Was he trying to set Ron up in front of his master? Or did he want to see the butler's reaction?
was true.
Choi Han stood in front of the mountain path and began to speak:
- Cale-nim said that no one should follow him from here.
- I know, you boy.
- You're like a guard dog.
— That "I" follows the orders of his employer.
The swordsman thought to himself that he had simply not let Ron through out of spite. And it didn't matter how much blood might have been spilled.
- Yes, yes, yes. Of course.
Even though the atmosphere had begun to slowly emerge from the permafrost, it was still quite irritating.
Ron turned his back on the mountain without regret. Hearing that Cale was only going to take Choi Han with him, leaving even the cat tribe children behind, Ron followed them in case something happened.
- I shouldn't have come.
They say you become more fickle the older you get. And that fickleness was a pain in the ass. Ron walked back into the inn much more slowly than he had when he had come in, and Choi Han watched Ron disappear from view before sitting down on a boulder to wait for Cale to return.
The old butler began to guess the reasons for his double's behavior. He did not like these guesses.
Cale stopped in front of a cave not far from the mountain path. The entrance to the cave was covered in vines, so it would be difficult to find unless you were particularly attentive.
- Crap.
Cale frowned.
The entrance to the cave was quite small. The young man looked at his clothes. He had put on simple clothes, but they were still quite expensive.
His Highness had sketched the entrance just in case. It didn't take Cale long to find it, but you never know.
*Sigh*
Cale let out a long sigh before crawling into the cave. Whether it was the tree that was eating people or this cave, anything that had to do with ancient powers seemed just crazy. There were now Cale's footprints on the ground at the entrance to the cave.
Rosalyn said with a little relief:
— At least I won't have to carry bread there.
The prince shuddered slightly.
A moment later, a trace of a small reptile remained in the same place.
The black dragon looked at what was happening in surprise.
- I'm going with a man? Why?
Eruhaben scratched his curious head with a sigh.
- Who knows? Maybe we'll see soon.
Everyone turned back to the screen. Soon they would see another ancient force.
Will it be as weird as the Unbreakable Shield?