Chapter 48 Worthy To Sacrifice

Staring at the small loft and the trees outside the window and knowing that there was a grave beyond the trees, Hajime began to feel uneasy. He watches as Yul opens his bag and pulls out his blanket.

Hajime said, "Yul..."

Yul looked up and asked, "What's wrong?"

Hajime asked, "Why do you want me not to tell U-ri about the grave?"

Yul said, "U-ri is afraid of ghosts."

"I think he better get used to it because who knows what we're going to meet on this unknown journey," Hajime said.

Yul asked, "What about you?"

Hajime asked, "What about me?"

Yul asked, "Are you afraid of ghosts?"

Hajime opened his bag and said, "I've never seen a ghost, so I don't know if I would be afraid of them or not." He looked at Yul. "As of now, I think humans are the scariest creatures to walk on this earth."

Yul looked up at Hajime and said, "Human beings are scary, but at the same time they are kind."

Hajime lay on the floor and sighed, "I hope there are more good people than bad people in your world."

Yul looked at Hajime for a while, and asked, "Hajime..."

Hajime closed his eyes and replied, "Mn."

Yul said, " I hope that every day you spend with us will bring relief from your horrific past."

Hajime sighed and said, "You must have high hopes for me. When I was the old me, I didn't have the courage to stand up for myself, but I promised my new self that I would live every day to the fullest to make up for those days lost." He looks at Yul. "Why did you choose me to sleep with you in this loft? Honestly, I'd rather sleep in bed."

Yul said considerately, "U-ri is old, and Abrafo is seriously injured again. They'd better rest in bed. And... only Michio can satisfy U-ri's request."

Hajime chuckled and said, "Ah... you surely pay close attention to your subordinates. Hey...I want to ask you something."

Yul asked, "What?"

Hajime said, "So, why do you think the tenth king of Tangzang designed the Bayarmaa family as the only family in Tangzang with the highest military power?"

Yul said, " I don't know, but as far as I know, His Majesty feels wrong about what he did to the Kukungga and Grandfather Sukh."

Hajime said, "After listening to this story, I have my own views on their relationship."

Yul asked, "What's your opinion?"

Hajime said, "Died as a childless King, can only mean one thing... The tenth king of Tangzang must have loved this Great Grand General so much that he could not have children with his concubines. U-ri said that until the day he died, he didn't appoint a queen, which confirms my theory that only those who love deeply will sacrifice their lives for each other without thinking." He sighed heavily. "Heh... If there is someone who loves me like the ten kings who love the Great Grand General, I will not hesitate to use my life to protect him. People like the Tenth King are really worth sacrificing for..."

Yul shook his head at Hajime, " Don't be too crazy now. You must help us bring back the white dragon tail."

Hajime leaned closer to Yul and asked, "Then, is it true that the Tenth King built the statue of the Great Grand General on the highest mountain in Tangzang instead of himself?"

Yul said, "Hmm... hundreds of years have passed, and not many people know about it, but it is recorded in the history of the Bayarmaa's family records that His Majesty demolished the temple that originally worshiped the God of Heaven. In its place, His Majesty built the temple enshrines the statue of the Great Grand General."

Hajime murmured, "It turns out that he didn't place himself equally to the emperor of heaven..."

Hajime's words were so soft that Yul barely heard him, so he asked, "What did you say?"

Hajime asked, "Is there anything in your family history that is not known to the world?"

Yul said, "According to Grandfather Qadan's diary written a hundred years ago, Grandfather Sukh and His Majesty were buried in the same coffin in Mount Tai."

Hajime said with a smile, "If I can rift between time more than twice, I would like to go back to the past and change the fate of this King. Now I understand why people say, 'Don't judge a person by his appearance'. I will take back all the bad things I said about him."

Yul asked, " Can you create a rift between times?"

Hajime said, "Avalokitesvara once told me that a mage can rift through time and space twice in a lifetime, so only mages who have reached the highest level of enlightenment have such power."

Yul looked down at Hajime strangely, and asked, "Are you sure?"

Hajime said, "Yes, that's what Avalokitesvara told me."

Yul said, " If that's true, why didn't those four hundred mages use their power to bring the Kukungga people elsewhere, but were at the mercy of the swords of those soldiers."

Hajime said, " I don't know ... maybe they haven't reached the highest level of enlightenment yet."

Yul said, " Go to sleep and don't think too much about the past. No matter how much you think about it, the past cannot be undone."

Yul lay beside Hajime, but he couldn't sleep. The pain in his lower back hurt too much and made it impossible for him to sleep well, and he tossed and tossed all night until the early hours of the morning.

Yul sat up slowly, leaning against the wall. Since he couldn't sleep, he reached into his robe and took out the map. He wondered if their new destination was on the map. He hadn't looked at the map since they left Skull Forest. He scrolled the map slowly, a line appeared from Skull Forest, and a name appeared on the map to the Far East.

Yul stared at the bright lines that quickly appeared on the map, forming a village. He took a closer look, and the word 'Magior' appears next to the drawn village.

Yul murmured, "Magior, is this our new destination?" He sighed, rolled up the map, and stuffed it back into his robe. He closed his eyes.

Yul was awakened by the smell of food, he got up slowly, and found that Hajime was no longer sleeping beside him. He looked down and found Michio cooking by the fireplace. Yul asked, "Michio, where are the others?"

Michio said, "Oh, Abrafo is still sleeping. Hajime and U-ri went to look for food and water."

Yul climbed slowly down the ladder and sat at the table, looking out over the moor. A thought suddenly came to his mind. He thought, this place is not bad, he can heal his wounds before continuing. After the incident in Skull Forest, everyone must have understood that retreating the white dragon's tail is not a task that can be done casually.

Yul said, "Michio, we're going to rest here, until we're all healed."

Michio turns to look at Yul. "Are you for real?"

Yul nodded. "We need to be better prepared before we go to our next destination. We don't know how dangerous another mission might be."

Michio said, "I agreed on that..." Michio forgot to remove the lid that was covering the pot when he went to talk to Yul, so the boiling soup overflowed and made a sizzling sound. Michio turned quickly and rushed back to the fireplace. "Oh, my mushroom soup..."

Across the hill, Hajime and U-ri stood on the other side, overlooking miles of solid rock. The rocky mountains extend far beyond what the eye can see.

Hajime frowned, "Why build a house in a remote place?"

U-ri said, " The food we have on us won't last long, and if we can't find food here, we'll have to go somewhere else."

Hajime said, "We have a cabin in good condition. I would prefer to stay there until Yul and Abrafo's situation improves."

U-ri said, "I agree with you, but if there is no food or water, we have to leave this place."

They started walking towards the valley, and suddenly they encountered an open body of water in the middle of nowhere. Hajime and U-ri excitedly ran towards the water.

Uri said, "Where there is water, there must be fish."

Hajime said, "The presence of water does not mean that there are fish, or the water is safe for us to drink."

Hajime and U-ri arrived at the water, only to find out that it was a mountain lake. From a distance, it is a large area of water, but when they get closer, they find that the endless large area of ​​water is just merely a reflection on the tall rocky mountain.

Hajime said, "It's just the reflection of this lake."

Uri looked at the crystal-clear water. "I didn't see any fish," Uri said. "How disappointing is that?"

Hajime bent down and touched the water. "The waters are extremely cold." He stood up and shook his hand quickly. As soon as he turned around, he saw a man in white standing by the lake not far away. Hajime waved his hands and shouted. "Hey!"

The man in white turned his head to look at Hajime, and quickly rushed into the woods behind the rock. Hajime and U-ri quickly chased after him. Once they got close to the rock, they could no longer see the man in white.

Hajime asked U-ri, "You saw it too, right?"

U-ri said, "I saw a man in white clothes."

Hajime looked around and muttered to himself, "Could he be the owner of the house?"

U-ri said, "Not sure, but why did he run away from us?" He turned and started walking back. "let's go…"

Hajime turned to look at the lake, then turned to look at the woods, only to see a white deer with dark blue eyes coming out of the woods with huge white antlers that looked like two hands.

When the white deer slowly approached the mountain lake, Hajime slowly retreated towards U-ri. As soon as the white deer reached the bank, it bent down and began to drink, but its dark blue eyes were still fixed on Hajime.

Looking into those dark blue eyes, Hajime suddenly felt uneasy in his chest. He took U-ri's hand and said, "Let's go back."