Chapter 142 - It was also at sea (2)

His green hair was disheveled as if it had been cut in a hurry.

Even the black cloak was so large that it trailed on the floor.

The first thing Joseph noticed was the thin wrist somehow holding the loose cloak.

He was a child who seemed too miserable to be of noble blood.

"Hello Awn."

"I'm Marcus now."

"...Yes, Marcus."

Bayezid's hidden sword whose name isn't even known.

He was the leader of an underworld group that only the head of the family could fully handle, but now we can question that to some extent.

"Is the boy in front of me really Karl Ravnoma?"

"..."

Joseph's office in Deirmar, tinted by the sun.

It was a quiet place, unlike the north, but at the moment, only a heavy silence prevailed.

"I'm sorry."

"Fine."

It was an obvious mistake, but Joseph didn't bother to blame Marcus.

As this child was dismissed with the last bit of strength left in Ravnoma, everyone involved in this must have been desperate.

It would have been impossible for Marcus to overcome all that struggle alone.

"Anyway, it's probably true that he is Ravnoma."

A boy who claims to be the last Ravnoma.

Bayezid had to pay a high price to get this child out of the West.

However, if he had known that this child wasn't Karl Ravnoma, he wouldn't have put in so much effort.

"Tell me your real name. The last scion of Ravnoma."

In response to Joseph's question, the boy lifted his chin as if trying to look resolute, but his eyes were still filled with helpless anxiety.

Because there was no one here who could defend him.

"I am..."

"I'll tell you beforehand, I hate lies."

A child whom no one can protect anymore.

For a child like that, even the slightest warning will come like thunder.

Therefore, the only thing the child could rely on now was the black cloak he wore.

"...Charlotte."

A voice that seems to have resigned to something.

To survive, I had to hide.

That was the first survival method the child had to learn upon entering the world.

"Charlotte Ravnoma."

And when she finally revealed her identity, as expected, no one rejoiced for her.

From the moment the girl was born until now, when she barely survived.

A girl named Charlotte has lived in such a world until now.

"...I see."

Bayezid's men seemed frustrated at the answer they heard.

Charlotte simply grabbed her cloak again with trembling hands, listening to the faint sighs she had heard countless times throughout her life.

"Thank you for being honest."

Though disguised with a rebellious look, Charlotte's eyes, trembling mercilessly, were pitiful.

Like the boy I met one winter day.

Joseph's mind began to blur as he looked at the girl who identified herself as Charlotte, not as Karl.

***

The sky was blue and the waves calm.

Unlike last night when the storm raged.

"…I hate Zemina."

A man with black hair lay sprawled on the deck like wet seaweed.

A small voice, as if singing, escaped from between the lips of pure white.

"Zemina is too small, slow, and wobbly."

"Mr. Rutiger. Please, snap out of it."

Like Rutiger, Vlad dried his wet hair and quickly helped him up from his limp body.

Vlad's complexion was also white, but he still looked much better than Rutiger, who was babbling nonsense.

"I hate the sea. I don't like storms either."

"But how did you manage to come out?"

"I'll never set foot on a boat again. I'll live on land for the rest of my life."

Unknown sea. And the first storm I experienced.

The ship Zemina could only venture into northern waters today after surviving a brutal storm last night.

According to Harven, it was a situation where everything could have been ruined if the response had been even a little late.

'...Everyone's taste has vanished.'

Vlad, who was moving Rutiger, who was still babbling, to the hammock, looked silently towards the deck.

The men of the North tangle with each other and roll without anyone else.

Vlad sighed as he watched the forced unification of the North caused by the great forces of nature.

"Why the hell isn't there a captain's cabin here?"

"To begin with, it's because it's small. Everything turned into luggage space."

Vlad threw Rutiger, who was struggling, into the hammock and complained to Harven with an unsatisfied voice, but returned only with a proud excuse.

"Looking at things like this, doesn't the name Zemina surprisingly fit this ship? They're both small."

"...Fine, do as you please."

Vlad left Harven, who was steering the wheel enthusiastically, and began to move the Budart knights and warriors inside to replace the sailors in the alley that were still occupied.

"I almost died."

Although he was moving as if nothing had happened now, the lingering effects of the storm he encountered the night before were still strongly rooted in Vlad's mind.

It was probably a storm that would have caused the ship to sink long ago if the squid banks hadn't alerted them.

"They're such amazing creatures."

Vlad gripped the deck railing, a little wider, and looked out to sea.

The glowing objects fall one by one as soon as the storm passes.

Vlad quickly closed his left eye as he watched the squid return to the depths of the sea as if they had done their job.

"Just looking at the problem, it doesn't seem like a spirit."

Glowing squid warning of an approaching storm and showing us the way through it.

But even in Vlad's world, where the remnants of the voice had been absorbed, they were nothing more than ugly, ordinary squids.

"...I don't know what the hell it is."

Harven said that the squid banks that came in mass last night must have come out to escape the storm.

However, Vlad knew very well that the squids now retreating were not held together for such a natural reason.

'What the hell did you do to me?'

Vlad silently looked at the blue sword hanging from his waist.

The Star Sword that the young World Tree made along with the spirits.

The dust that blew from the sword last night was something that only Vlad could notice.

It was the same scene as on Hainal Hill where the white snake was.

"The white snake really liked this."

Vlad, who had simply absorbed the remnants of the voice, still hadn't realized.

The fact that you're sowing seeds now.

The young potentials that hadn't yet become spirits were being guided by the knight and spread throughout the world.

Just as the old Sword Master wanted to do.

"I see it! I can see land over there!"

Vlad was awakened from his thoughts by the cry of a sailor coming from somewhere.

Little by little, traces of land begin to appear ahead.

At the lookout's call that land was in sight, the knights who had collapsed began to rise slowly.

I don't know if it was my mood, but I felt like the smell reaching my nose had already changed.

"Good."

Harven looked at the dock seen in the distance through the telescope and smiled faintly.

"Tell your guests! We've reached our destination!"

The captain was the last one left and managed to deliver his cargo to its destination despite the storm.

Captain Harven's performance was so impressive that it was deeply ingrained in Rutiger's mind.

"Raise the flag! So we can identify ourselves!"

Following the captain's order, a red flag was hoisted again over the small but sturdy Zemina.

A red flag resembling someone's hair color.

The flag that proved its worth waved not only on land but also at sea.

***

Neigh-

Noir is staggering around as if dizzy.

Fortunately, although it was a tough journey, no horse was seriously injured.

"I'll head back to Soara like this."

The dock of a small coastal town.

On the dock, where not even the smallest sailboat, Zemina, could fit, Harven bid farewell to Vlad.

"Thanks for waiting for me in Nassau."

"If you're so grateful, why don't you buy me another boat?"

Harven was smiling as he stroked Vlad's sleek armor.

However, when Harven looked closely at the armor, his smile hardened at the sight of the scars engraved in various parts of the armor.

"Of course, I'll buy you one more. Still, it's top-notch, but would you like to have a baby with just one pear?"

His blond hair fluttered over his smiling face.

It looks beautiful from afar, but up close, it's full of scars.

Harven couldn't help but smile bitterly as he looked at Vlad's armor, which was exactly like its owner.

"...Don't overdo it. I make money now too."

"I'll stick that on someone's nose."

Though it was a cold response, Harven raised the staff he held and opened his arms to embrace Vlad.

The balance was a bit unstable for a moment, but when both sides leaned on each other, they could maintain a perfect posture.

"Don't forget that Zemina is always waiting for you."

"...Alright."

Take care, stay healthy. See you later.

Though not necessarily expressed in words, the sincerity contained in a hug was fully conveyed through the warmth of the other.

"I still have cargo left."

Harven pointed back with his thumb.

There was Rutiger, looking at Vlad with a grim face.

Bayezid's eldest son, who couldn't bear to step forward even though the order to board had been given.

He couldn't stay ashore like this and had to return to Soara following Zemina.

Because he had to join Peter, who led the main army in the impending war.

"Go see him."

"Alright."

After exchanging brief greetings, Harven and Vlad simply turned their backs on each other as if they were accustomed to their duties.

For men of the dark alleys, saying goodbye aloud was like a taboo.

Because they believed that only a simple greeting would lead to tomorrow's reunion.

Vlad and the Budart warriors leave the village through the port.

Harven, watching them from the ship, silently observed Vlad's back until he disappeared beyond the end of the telescope's sight.

"As soon as we weather the storm, it's war."

Those who rose alone had to constantly prove their worth.

Like Vlad now.

"Otar. Weigh anchor."

"Yes."

Haven had no choice but to turn his head when he saw his friend had to enter the battlefield storm once more.

However, unlike in the past, when he had no choice but to watch from afar, Harven now had the legs to move forward.

"Get out! Everyone, get ready!"

Though small now, there will come a day when we can share it together.

Thinking of Vlad's armor full of scars, Harven quietly took the captain's hat in his hand.

A small boat begins to move slowly, propelled by the wind.

Fortunately, unlike yesterday, today the sea seemed calm.

***

The group leaves a small coastal town whose name they do not know and heads towards Deirmar.

Perhaps due to the resentment lost at sea, the Northern horses only advanced with strength.

And finally, when the Hainal flag began to appear in the distance, an unusual group of soldiers began to enter the group's field of vision.

"Is it Gaidar?"

"...I don't think it's the main army."

Gaidar's soldiers slowly raise their heads through a small stream.

As Agge said, it wasn't the main force brought by Sigmund, but a group that seemed to be an advance party that had already come to check the situation.

"They're sticking their heads out very openly."

Everyone knows it and there's no need to hide it.

Gaidar's vanguard didn't hesitate to reveal their presence, despite the reconnaissance mission.

It was both confidence and disdain.

"Oh my. Give me the flag."

"Alright."

"No, not mine."

If they ignore you, you have to return the favor.

Because that was Vlad's rule of life and survival method.

"Please, greet them in advance."

Seeing Vlad's fierce smile, the Budart warriors smiled too.

As expected, the choice made by the son of the meadow was not wrong.

"Let's go!"

Warriors running downhill on the fields, not towards Deirmar Castle.

Gaidar soldiers began to panic at Vlad's sudden charge.

"Hey, what are those?"

"They're charging towards us!"

Warriors charging towards an advanced force of hundreds with just ten units of cavalry.

Due to Vlad's sudden actions that went beyond common sense, Gaidar's formation began to fluctuate with no trace of their previous relaxed appearance.

"Lower your shield! I only came to greet you!"

However, Vlad and the warriors simply laughed and passed by the formation.

Vlad and the warriors began to scan Gaidar's formation, boldly passing as if to touch it.

However, the reason why Gaidar's soldiers couldn't easily respond wasn't simply because they were perplexed by the sudden situation.

"Is that flag real?"

"...No, that can't be possible."

A blonde knight who looks beautiful to anyone.

However, in contrast, the flag held by the knight was very torn and stained.

"Tell Count and Godin! I was grateful for the flag you gave me!"

A familiar flag held by a Northern knight they had never seen before.

It was Gaidar cavalry's flag, with the wings broken and hanging limp.

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