Episode 14 : To the Wilderness of Shem Again - Part 1

 As far as the eye can see, it's white and flat, the Nosferus Desert--

 Somewhere in the middle of that wilderness, which resembled a vast, white ocean, a small clump of people was born.

 From a distance, it looks like an optical illusion or a slight mirage, a white-gray mass - it is like a scoop of fluffy cream, scooped up from the white sand, with a tail that gets thinner and thinner, and now Like a soul trying to struggle out of its body, it is swaying unsteadily.

"That's not good."

 A small murmur escaped from the mouth of the traveler, who had kept his eyes fixed on it from a while ago.

"Sandstorm's coming. Hopefully, it'll turn around, but if we get caught in a straight line, ..."

 The traveler's head was not that of a human being as he raised his hand in front of him as if to dismiss his concerns.

 The head covered with a round, speckled fur, the mouth with huge fangs, the ears lying perfectly on the side of the head - needless to say, this is the figure of the leopard-headed super-soldier Guin.

 The thousands and tens of thousands of swells of the desert stretched out before Guin in a vast expanse. He seized the bridle of his steed, and putting on a thick cloak of leather over his usual half-nakedness, which consisted of only a breast-belt, and stuffing some food and water into the back of his steed's saddle, Guin, defying Linda and Remus, and the entreaties of Sheba, and all the fears and appeals of Shem, rode alone into the midst of Nosferus. into the midst of Nosferus.

"At this rate, Shem will be defeated. All we can do is wait for defeat and for Mongol to overrun us as he sees fit. But I have only one thought."

 As soon as Guin had said this, and revealed his secret plan, the whole place was filled with astonishment, suspicion, and even cries of indignation and rebellion, and at once the camp of Shem was filled with a riotous uproar.

"Ragon? That's ridiculous!"

"I swear to you, Alfetu! He said it was a lagon!"

"Leard has lost his mind!"

 Guin's words are repeated one after another to the frightened warriors of Shem, and another cry of astonishment breaks out.

"Guin-- hey, Guin, what the hell!"

"Guin!"

 Linda and Remus, who did not yet understand Shem's words easily, were frightened and impatient, and clung to Guin from side to side.

"Please, tell me what's going on! You're acting weird. We have a right to know what's going on."

 Linda squeezed Guin's hand tightly, looked into her yellowish, expressionless eyes and shouted.

"It's nothing. Shem's at a disadvantage at this rate. That's why I told him to hold out until I could call for reinforcements."

 Guin explains.

"Reinforcements!"

 Remus yelped.

"Where is it?"

"Oh."

 Linda was, after all, a quick thinker.

 The horrified screams of Shem and the others that had just occurred suddenly became clear to me,

"Guin! You can't possibly-- you can't seriously be thinking like that, can you? To have Ragon... to have Ragon on your side to fight Mongol!"

"That's right."

 That was Guin's short, curt call.

 Ragon - that's the name of another barbarian tribe that lives in the remote wilderness of Nosferus.

 Nosferus is said to be no place for civilized people, full of unknown threats, and so on. There are only two things that infest Nosferus as their territory, other than strange plants and animals such as Ids, the several clans of Shem, a dwarf race, and the Ragon.

 Just as Shem is a prehuman ape-man, so is Lagon a barbarian, a hideous, filthy barbarian to the civilized people of the Middle Plains, who pride themselves on their culture... but what people know about Lagon... That's all they know.

 All that remains is to say that, in contrast to the dwarf race of Shem, as it is commonly called, the giant race, it is a gigantic, crude, and ferocious race - that is all.

 A huge and ferocious race, over two meters tall - that was all that was known about Ragon, and in that sense, it could be said that Ragon's existence was more legendary and shrouded in mystery than Shem's.

 Above all, the Semites settled their villages in the rocky mountains to the northeast, and they often appeared on the banks of the Kes River. Therefore, quarrels with the people of Gora and the free settlers across the Kes River were frequent, and it was not uncommon for one side to cross the Kes River and invade the other's territory, as in the night raid on Staphoros Castle.

 But in that sense, Ragon is the Phantom Barbarian, incomparable to Shem. They have taken up their abode in the depths of Nosferus, in the very heart of it. Some say that they have built villages of solid stone, protected by rocky mountains and sheltered by the desert, while others say that it is not so, that Ragon is a race of drifters, desert drifters who have no home and no stores, and that they have made the vastness of Nosferus their home.

 In any case, with the exception of Kal-Mor, a mage from Kitai in the East, no civilized person has ever crossed the demonic Nosferus Desert and survived, so there is nothing to judge either of these theories to be true or false.

 It was these people that Guin gave as his trump card in the decisive battle against Mongol for the survival of the desert people.

 It was Linda, rather than Shem, whom Guin had to persuade. Roto and the other chiefs of Shem were suspicious that their god of war would not abandon the field for such an impossible reinforcement, and they were anxious and fearful that Guin, who had brought them all their victories, should be temporarily separated from them. Guin was able to overcome them with his characteristic persuasion and patience. But,

"Whatever, anyway, I've decided never to be separated from Guin again! At Ragon's, anywhere, even at Dole's. Wherever Guin goes, Remus and I go. Take us with you."

 Linda's determined declaration that she would not retreat seemed to baffle even the leopard-headed warrior.

"You're being absurd. I'm not going out to play."

"It's me, too, Guin!

"We have to be on our toes. Besides, it's a dangerous, unknown desert. I don't know how much longer I can hold you back if I take you with me."

"But in return, if something goes wrong, you can call for help. You don't have to sit around anxiously wondering if Guin failed or succeeded, or if he needs help or not."

"Princess."

 As if moved by the desperate color of Linda's eyes, Guin's tone became a little gentler.

"Trust me, and wait. I'll never fail you."

"I know that Guin never fails," she said. But there will always be times when you need help or wish you had another hand or foot - especially when it's attached to an inspired head - and then it will be too late. It will be too late."

"Princess, time is running out. Every minute is precious. I've got to go."

"Suni said you're not ready yet.

 Remus looked at Linda with concern as she continued to speak. Remus was very anxious to be away from Guin, but when he thought of Guin's fears, and of the difficulties and dangers that lay ahead, it was difficult for the practical man to be as unselfish as his sister.

"Linda--Linda."

 He pulled her hand anxiously.

"Anyway, I'll follow Guin wherever he goes. You can't stop me. It's my choice."

 Guin shook his leopard head with a wry smile at Linda, who raised her little chin stubbornly without turning around.

"Then we have no choice. Let me be blunt, Princess, you and Prince Remus must stay here. Otherwise, Shem and the others will not be convinced - they need to know that I do not intend for the three of us to escape to safety before the odds are against us."

"So we're supposed to be hostages."

 Remus shouted.

"Yes. Otherwise, the chiefs-- and Iracelli, for that matter-- would not be convinced. But Roto said he believes in everything I do."

"Then leave Remus--"

 Linda almost shouted, but kept her mouth shut.

 I really want to follow Guin, a strong urge to the point of inexplicability even to myself, and also to my own alter ego, who I have never been separated from even for a day, and I am overwhelmed by the pain of being in a dilemma, biting my little lips and keeping silent.

 Then the warrior of Raq came to tell them that everything was ready.

 Guin placed his large, strong hands on the two silver heads of Linda, who was now on the verge of tears, and Remus, whose eyes were wide.

"Listen. I'll find Ragon by sundown in four days' time, I'll hunt them down and bring them back to the battlefield as my allies. That's a warrior's promise."

 Linda's eyes widened as she looked up at this oddly shaped guardian deity of their twins.

"What--in fact, I could come back sooner. And anyway, this is something I must do. Because I promised to bring you both back to Argos, or Paro, or some other safe ally in the Middle Plains, and to do that, I must first lead Shem and his men against the Mongols. Trust me, and wait for me."

 Guin repeated.

"Trust, and wait."

 Linda made no reply. Her sensitive eyes betrayed her stubbornly knotted mouth, and she was about to burst into tears.

"Guin! I can't wait for you to come home."

 Remus hung on to Guin's hand.

 Guin nodded and walked with a broad stride towards the waiting Rak warriors. In place of the old horse, completely exhausted from the previous battles, was the shiniest, fleshiest and sturdiest horse he had taken from Mongol's army in the course of several battles.

"Liard! What should we do about the replacement horse?"

"You don't need it. horse's not exactly a nosferous vehicle anyway."

 Guin wore a tanned leather cape.

"The juice of the id-repellent areca is in the sack in front of the saddle, then put it on the limbs and anywhere the body is exposed. It will keep away sandhills, featherworms and bloodsucking flies."

 Guin scooped out with the palm of his hand the sloppy, green juice of some moss that had been mixed and crushed, and poured it over the bare parts of his body. Sheba and some Rak youths helped him.

"I put the food in this bag for four days."

"Yeah."

"Liard."

 Sheba stopped smearing the moss to repel insects and turned her faithful, hairy face to Guin.

"Shiva will be with you."

"You're no good."

 Guin had made his point.

"Don't you see? The thing is, it's urgent. The sooner I go and come back alone, the sooner we can act."

 Seeing the look in Guin's eyes, Shiva said no more. Instead,

"Hurry home, Liard--without Liard, the morale of our army is likely to drop by half."

 I said in a quiet voice.

"Four days from now, at sundown - that is, before the sun sets on the horizon - he will return with a large and powerful army."

"If it passes and you do not return..."

 Iracelli came up to Guin, who was about to mount the horse, and said, looking up at him with glowing eyes

"After all, Liard will see that you have forsaken Shem and run away, because the two children of Om will be sacrificed to Alfettu according to the way of Glo."

"Iracelli."

 Roto shouted sharply. Guin gives a slight shake of his head and strides lightly onto the horse.

"Roto, Sheba, Iracelli, all of you - please, for four days, continue to use ... the same methods as before, and the same strategies as before, to keep the situation as it is now."

 Guin on horseback towered several times taller than any Shem on earth. His tanned leather cloak billowed in the wind.

"I'll come back for you, Ragon."

 Guin kicked him in the gut.

"Liard!"

 Sheba cries out. As if stirred by it,

"Liard, Liard!"

"Liard!"

"AIIAH!"

 From the mouths of the warriors of Shem, crowded here and there about the Oasis, came a shout of joy, but they were distressed, and some were angry, that the Leopard Liad, their hero and the god of their victory, should leave them, and so their voices sounded less anxious than the fervent shouts they had heard before. And their voices, compared to the frenzied cries they had just heard, were small and had a somewhat anxious ring to them.

"Hi!"

 After passing through the oasis, Guin intended to head straight north in search of traces of Ragon.

 That's when he raised it to whip the horse.

"Guin--Guin... Guin!"

 I heard a high-pitched, desperate scream and saw Linda running toward me, frantic.

"Guin-- east. You must go east. ... past Dzughed. Ragon is beyond the white stone... where the white stone meets the black mountain... and there lies Ragon's soul. ... Beware the winds of death. "Beware the winds of death..."

 Linda seemed to be shouting something, but it was no longer heard by Guin.

 Guin raised his right hand and waved the whip in his hand in a sign that he understood. Linda must have been meditating, saying the Janus Prayer, and summoning her own clairvoyant abilities so that Guin would not waste any of his limited time. Guin had no doubt that Linda's words were correct. He turned his horse's head back to face the north and then the east and whipped the horse.

 Soon, the horse begins to run at a great speed, with fine white dust under his feet. The oasis and Shem and the others are behind him, far away,

"Liard, Liard!"

 And the murmur of the water in the oasis is no longer audible.

 Guin went out into the desert-- this time, alone.

 It's already been half a day.

 At first, Guin's horse could see nothing but flat, smooth, hard sand, with no change in its path.

 Nearer to the oasis, the sandy soil is covered here and there with gray-green lichen, and occasionally desert lizards can be seen scurrying about. However, as we move farther away from the oasis, even the poor lichen gradually disappears, and all that remains are the undulations and swirls of the sand that cover our view.

 Guin's horse, though heavy, had a perfect rider who knew how to ride it, and it rode through the swells with an easy gallop. The horse's hooves were covered with thin leather boots to prevent the desert sand from getting between the hooves and damaging them, so that every time the horse ran, a cloud of fine white sand flew up.

 The sky was clear. For the time being, there was no danger of the appearance of idols, leeches, gluttony, or any of the other dreadful creatures that hindered their progress. And the juice of the moss which Shem and his men had smeared abundantly on the horses and on the rides helped to keep them off. When the sun goes down and the night comes, when these activities become more active, the danger will increase and the journey will become more difficult, but Guin wants to gain some distance in the meantime. But Guin wanted to gain some distance in the meantime. It was still a long way to Dzughetu, the mountain Linda had mentioned, and it had not even appeared yet.

 Guin drove the horse without taking a rest. Sometimes he slowed them down so that they would not be crushed, and sometimes he dismounted and pulled them along. As he walked, he took some dried meat from a sack attached to his saddle and ate it. When he had strengthened himself with a little food, he again became a man on horseback and hurried on.

 There was only one time when he stopped his earnest walk. It was when, on the far northeastern horizon, a faint black blotch, which at first seemed to be a blur of the eyes, spread out and became the figures of countless horsemen.

 They had not yet penetrated the area that should have been the stronghold of the Lagonese, and that was too easy. Now, when Guin looked, he saw that the distant band of horsemen was apparently the headquarters of the Mongol army on the move.

 Knowing this, Guin quickly jumped off the horse, pulled on its reins to turn it around, and moved slowly so as not to create too much dust. Every minute was too precious for him to stay down and pass the danger. Moreover, even though they were quite far away, in the white, flat Nosferus Desert, the human figure was even more conspicuous.

 Fortunately, however, the Mongol army was moving at a high speed, and did not seem to be paying close attention to the surrounding area. A large amount of gray dust - more like a cloud or a haze on the horizon - was moving from left to right like smoke in the wind.

 It was only when he was sure that it was far enough away that there was no danger of being spotted that Guin jumped on the horse again.

 After that, they simply drove the horse to make up for the delay. Of course, in the monotonous, flat desert that lures one into the feeling that no matter how far one goes, one has not made the slightest progress, neither Ragon nor the Mongol army ever again appears like a mirage.

 In the first place, Guin did not have a definite destination in mind. The fact that he had set out for the east was itself a divine prediction based on the clairvoyance of Linda, the princess and "seer," and was, in other words, a dangerous gamble that could come true or fail.

 Besides, he doesn't even have an infinite amount of time left. He promised the Semitic legions four days at noon. Already, some hours have passed in vain. On that promise depends not only the victory or defeat of all Shem's army, but also the lives of Linda and Remus and the holy twins of Paro.

 But Guin's face still shows no sign of concern - or at least, it doesn't look like it.

 Or he must have known that such mischievous impatience, though it might have been a hindrance, would never have produced good results. There was a slight twinkle in Guin's yellowish binoculars as he saw the distant mass of the dreaded sandstorm in the distance, where not even the shadow of a rocky mountain range was yet visible on the horizon.

 However, rather than being preoccupied with it again, he reapplied the whip to the horse, paying full attention and trying to hurry up as much as possible. This time the whip had a lot of force. The horse, showing no sign of fatigue, suddenly increased its speed and started to run with the sand splashing.

 Guin glanced back at the horse as he drove. The whirlpool of the sandstorm had grown considerably larger than before, with a thin tail - so it seemed to be heading towards them at a considerable speed.

 Guin, nevertheless, showed no sign of flinching. Again, he whipped the horse and charged forward, as if racing against a sandstorm.

 If he had had eyes of such a huge size - so huge that they could see the whole world at a glance, like Yarn's - and had looked down on this scene, what he would have seen would have been a picture like the following.

 It is a small black dot moving forward across the white, rolling desert at a speed so fast that it is hard to say that it is even moving from the eyes of the huge thing, and a huge tornado that seems to be trying to catch up with it with a whooshing sound from far behind. Compared with the tornado, it is very small and helpless, and its speed is frustratingly slow.

 But still, it continued to move forward. A small figure, daring to stand alone against the fury of nature or against a greater destiny itself, and refusing to give in without a fight. It is the rugged and heroic embodiment of the indomitable "will" and "fighting spirit" itself.

 But in the meantime, the relentless sandstorm was closing in on the horseman, laying bare its cruel power.

 Now the crackling grains of sand and pebbles hitting Guin and his horse's rump warned of impending danger, and the once clear sky was suddenly covered with an unsettling black-gray, and in response, various strange inhabitants of Nosferus began to appear. They also began to approach. They, too, must be desperately trying to escape the approaching sandstorm.

 Finally, Guin stopped his horse when a cold wind began to whistle in his ears.

"It's too dangerous to go on. We have to go somewhere and hide-- but ..."

 He looked from side to side in a panic, his hands tightly gripping the reins as he chuckled to himself.

 His eyes suddenly flashed, as if he had been startled by something.

"It's Dogtooth Mountain Dzughetsd!"

 A short, rasping cry escapes from his mouth.

 It was indeed the dog-headed mountain Dzughetsud. The black, shadowy figure of a huge dog hovered on the horizon, as if the desert had deliberately hidden it, and suddenly it revealed its strange form. He had reached his first goal.

 At that moment, a tremendous noise and wind choked him and made him fall to the ground.

 The sandstorm has arrived!