Episode 17 : Ragon Arises - Part 2

"A..."

 The one who let out a faint cry of surprise and stood still was not Guin, but the other man.

 Or perhaps he had merely come out of curiosity to sneak a peek at a new species of lagon with the head of a beast and the body of a man. But what he found in that rocky dungeon was the yellow, sinister glow of a fearsome beast's eye that lurked in the darkness.

 Guin, biting back a growl that had been lodged in the back of his throat, watched his opponent with eyes that glittered with fear.

 It was still a very young child of the Ragon tribe, and it was already almost as tall as Guin's chest. However, the somewhat unbalanced appearance of his body, and the confident, curious, and young appearance that is common to all young individuals of any race, clearly indicate his youth.

 For a ragon, he's probably on the slender side. His long hair sprouts wildly, and his body is black with dirt and dust. But in his round, frightened eyes, there was the innocence of a newborn colt.

 The young lagon peered at him in horror. In truth, he might have wanted to scream and run away. But Guin's magnetic eyes had caught him head on, and he was unable to move, as if he were under some kind of spell.

"aa... arm".

 He shook himself as if he were trying to shake off his bewilderment and secret fear.

 Guin saw the young lagon tense up. He suddenly took his gaze away from him. The other breathed a sigh of relief.

 He turned his back to flee as quickly as he could, as if he were afraid of what kind of monster lurked in this dungeon with those terrible eyes. Then, in a strong voice,

"Now, what time is it, Ragon?"

 Guin said.

 The other was startled and nearly jumped. But though his eyes were haunting and terrifying to behold, there was a whip-like crack in his voice that was so accustomed to commanding that it compelled the child of Ragon to obey.

"a... i..."

 Ragon paused, hesitated, turned... and finally answered, reluctantly. From the outside, he couldn't see inside the dark dungeon. From inside the dungeon, he could see a little of the outside. And the young lagon stood there, twisting his hands together in fear, just where Guin could see him from his bound position.

"Aye ... what?"

"I said, what time is it? Come here, Ragon."

 Guin's voice took on an even stronger ring to it.

 Lagon's son was frightened. Then he approached the dungeon and, perhaps a little relieved to hear that his master spoke the language he understood, he put his face close to the lighted window and tried to look in.

 Guin is a little more cautious. It is not advisable to frighten him by showing him this anomaly now. He softened his voice somewhat and repeated the most disturbing question again.

"What the... what? I don't know."

"There's nothing you don't know. Just tell me."

"I don't know what you're talking about. What time is it?"

 Guin suddenly realized. The barbarians of Nosferus may have no concept of time.

"So, here we go. Is the sun up now, or is it night? Is the moon shining?"

"The moon--oh, that's it, the sun is out."

"Is the sun high? Is dusk near?"

"I don't know. I don't know."

"Is the sky red?"

"You're crazy."

 Ragon seemed to have loosened up a bit and let out a small laugh.

"The sky is blue. The sky isn't always red."

"That's true, but--yeah, damn it, now the sky--is the sky still blue or is it black?"

"Blue."

"Since I've been here, have you slept? How many times have you eaten?"

"It's not time to sleep. Ragon, you don't sleep until nightfall. I've eaten two pounds of salted meat."

 The other replied. Guin patted his chest a little. Then at least the third night hadn't passed. He still had a whole last day and night to go.

Then it's far too early to think it's too late for anything.

"I need you to do something for me. Do me a favor.

 Guin said as if to push him over the edge.

"What? Mother said I shouldn't talk to you because you're a bad, bad lagon of a kind I've never seen before, and you might be an evil spirit."

"But you've already heard it."

 Guin pointed out.

"Well. Did anything bad happen to you?"

"No--it won't happen."

 He thought for a moment and then answered.

"Nothing bad has ever happened to me."

"I know. So I'm not an evil spirit. So, will you do me a favor?"

"What?"

"Give me a chunk of that salted meat you ate. And give me something to drink."

"Meat and water?"

 I was expecting him to say no, but he thought about it for a while before saying yes,

"I will go into the house of the eater and get a piece of meat."

 He accepted the offer quite easily and ran away with the sound of his footsteps.

 A few moments later, Guin, who had been lost in thought, was startled by the sound of something being thrown through the window.

"I brought you some meat.

 A high-pitched voice for a young lagon said.

"Mother is the best in the house of food, and she will give you as much as you ask."

"Thank you."

 Guin said sincerely, but there was still one problem. He had been given food, but it was lying haphazardly under the window, out of reach of his hands, which were chained to the back of the chamber.

"I'm tied up and I can't reach. Get a stick from somewhere and use it to reach me from the outside."

 Guin asked.

 Your partner seems to have begun to be interested in this development. This is natural for a child with a strong curiosity. Guin had taken this into account when he saw that it was a child who was looking at him. Rather intrigued, Ragon's child did as he was told.

 Finally, after much struggle, the food was placed firmly in Guin's bound hands. Guin gobbled it up, bending his body and bringing his head close to it. It was raw meat soaked in salt, and although it was very salty, it was as good as alive to me, having eaten Semitic food that did not use any seasoning.

 Guin devoured the meat in no time at all. He wished he had more, but his strength was returning to his body, and with it, his mind. The only problem was that his throat was churning. He begged his young companion for a drink.

 This was not as easy as the meat. However, the child eventually found a water bottle made of wood with a hollowed-out cork.

 Guin held the tube with his knees, pulled out the stopper with his teeth, and drank to his heart's content. Never before had he felt water so sweet and delicious, never before had he tasted so much of the blessing of being alive. He consumed the water in no time at all.

"Whoo!"

 Finally, when he felt comfortable, he licked his lips and growled like a satisfied tiger.

"May Janus repay you a thousandfold for your kindness and of course I'll never forget it. Now I feel alive again. By the way, tell me. How big is this village?"

"Of course."

 The child clung to the window, rolled his eyes, and gazed at the strange creatures cowering in his increasingly familiar field of vision, yet with sufficient pride in his race to resist.

"Ragon is mighty. And Dodo the Brave and Kaa the Wise will guide Ragon to the right path."

"Are Dodo the Brave and Kaa the Wise in the village now?"

"Of course. As the sun and moon are in the sky, so they guide Ragon. You don't know anything, do you?"

"I don't know. So I want you to tell me."

 Guin made the move.

"Tell me about the lagoons. How many Ragon are there in all?"

"A lot, a lot."

 That was the answer of the other party. I asked again, giving specific numbers, but the answer was the same. Either Ragon doesn't have the same ability to recognize too many numbers as Shem, or this child, who happened to be Guin's collaborator, doesn't have it because she's too young.

"Do you like to fight, Ragon?"

"I--I don't know."

"Is Ragon strong?"

"Ragon, stronger than any of them. Bin is stronger than Tar. Rang is stronger than Bin. Tey beat Rann with one arm. But neither Tey nor San or Ev or Ro, who are stronger than Tey, are a match for the brave Dodo. Because the brave Dodo is a brave man-- so the brave Dodo is the brave Dodo."

"I see."

 Guin thought quickly. From the way the child had spoken, it was clear that Ragon was probably quite belligerent, as his physique and lifestyle suggested, but not in the direction of conquering Shem or dominating Nosferus, but in the nature of deciding the order of rank among his people based on power and strength. It seems certain that this is the case.

 And he also seems to be leading this tribe of giants as a chieftain of Ragon along with the wise man Kaa, and the brave Dodo is probably not a chieftain in the sense of Roto, Iraceli, or Gauro of Shem, but one who is always the strongest warrior in all of Ragon. In other words, all the warriors would fight each other in a tournament style, and the last winner would be called the brave one and lead Ragon. According to her, the name "Dodo the Brave" may be the symbolic name of the leader of Ragon.

If that were the case, it would be a lot easier.

 Yes, Guin thought. If Ragon had such a system in place, then he should just go to war with Dodo the Brave. Then, if he won, he could take control of Ragon and easily decide to reinforce Shemhae.

 He was also confident that he could fight the bravest of the Ragon and somehow come out victorious. Ragon was a giant, but his width seemed to be somewhat less than his height. Besides, he had even fought and defeated the Grey Ape of Gabor, who was a head taller than him.

"I want to see the brave dodo."

 He said, "I don't know.

 Outside the window, I heard him gasp for breath.

"Why?"

 Eventually, he inquired cautiously. Guin raised her voice.

"Because I'm stronger than the brave Dodo."

"Bullshit!"

 The reaction was quick and frightening.

"I'm not lying. You can tell Dodo to fight me if you want. If he doesn't, he's afraid of me. And if he fights, he'll know I can defeat Dodo."

"There is no one stronger than the dodo. A defeated dodo is no longer a dodo. The dodo will always be the strongest."

 He said. Guin's reading had apparently been proven. Guin nodded secretly and said.

"Then go get the dodo. Just because I want it-- and if you don't, because I'm stronger than the dodo, I'm the next, and the real dodo. I've come across deserts and mountains to challenge the dodo to see if he's really worthy of the dodo-- tell him that."

"--"

 Outside the window, the other seemed to catch his breath again.

 Eventually,

"What are you-- a beast-headed ragon?"

 A faint voice asks.

"My name is Guin."

"Guin--?"

"Yeah. I'm Guin."

 He squeezes a faint, uncomfortable doubt in his chest, wondering if that is really the case. At least, there is no doubt that he had forgotten everything, but when Linda called him "Guin", he unconsciously answered her without any surprise and accepted it as his own name.

 The child, convinced by the name or not, tries to run off. Guin called out to it once more.

"Wait, child. What about you?"

"Paro--Paro--Paro--Paro--Paro--Paro--Paro--Paro--Paro--Paro.

"I see. Then, Lana, you will tell Dodo exactly what my Leopard-headed warrior, Guin, told you."

 Lana didn't respond any more, but ran off in a panic as if she had been completely ripped off.

 As he listened, Guin suddenly realized.

 Rana... that's a woman's name, for sure. It was the girl from Ragon who gave him meat and water.

I hadn't thought of that.

 Guin looked towards the window with a slight inclination to laugh, but the next moment his thoughts were elsewhere.

(Will Lana really tell the brave Dodo my words? )

 Even if we hasten the night to the day, in order to meet the day's deadline just in time, we have to reserve a whole day or so for the return journey. That means, no matter what happens, we must finish moving the lagon by the end of today.

 If the brave Dodo, enraged by Lana's words about the leopard-headed monster, dragged the prisoner away, that would be just what Guin wanted. But if, for example, Lana had kept her mouth shut, afraid to tell him that she had approached the forbidden rock dungeon...

 Precious time and space are flowing towards the end even as we are doing this.

All right. We'll deal with it then. Then we'll figure out what to do next.

 Guin decided that.

 Instead, he should sleep as much as possible to keep up his strength. He sat back down in the most comfortable position possible, put himself down on the rock and closed his eyes.

 My thirst was relieved and my stomach was full. You can wait in more favorable conditions than before.

Everything will be as it will be.

 Guin, like a warrior, could fall asleep at a moment's notice, anywhere and in any condition, and wake up at the slightest sign of life. So, shrugging his shoulders, he concluded, all thought had been put out of his mind.

 Soon, he began to sleep regularly. Lana did not return, and there was no sign that the angry Dodo was going to come to the dungeon himself.

 And the sun was slowly beginning to set over the rocky mountains.

"Get up! Prisoner, wake up!"

 He didn't need to wait for the loud exhortation, he was already awake to the sound of approaching footsteps.

 But he was pretending to be asleep on purpose. So..,

"Child, sleep well."

"What a stubborn son of a bitch."

 He heard the lagoons who had come to fetch him buzzing about in surprise. Waiting for them, Guin opened his eyes.

 Three giants were standing there.

 In his hand he holds a spear with a spearhead of stone, and at his waist he is naked except for a fur anklet.

"Dodo the Brave, Kaa the Wise will see you now."

 When one of them explained, he bent down and started to untie the chains.

 Lana's canteen had been kicked into the shade of a rock, hidden from their sight. Guin was glad of this precaution.

 The chains come off and he falls. Guin leaves the dungeon with Ragon and the others around him. His hands and feet are a little numb.

(Couldn't Lana have sent a message that would have enraged the tribe's bravest? )

 It could not be helped. As we passed through the dark and damp passageway, where the rock surface was still cut, we suddenly found ourselves outside in the breeze, with no door separating us.

 It was night. The white moon, Iris, shone brightly on the top of a craggy mountain.

 The stars seemed to be much closer and more numerous than in the desert of Nosferus. The moon, like a huge bronze coin, and the waving stars, spread out like a black cloth across the sky behind the towering rocks, without a single tree or clump of grass to soften them, were a harsh and brilliant beauty.

"Come here, monster."

 Ragon pulls him up mercilessly. Guin walked obediently, as he was pushed. We know what Ragon's village looked like when we were brought here. It's in the shape of a craggy, rocky mountain with terraces clinging to it.

 At the bottom of the village, there was a large open space for tribal gatherings, as in the village of Shem.

 The square would be surrounded by simple terraces, where lagoons would probably sit and join the gathering, or watch the promotion matches and fights that would take place in the middle of the clearing.

 The three ragons lead Guin to the square.

 Thanks to the moonlight, his feet were bright. Guin stepped down the rocky slope, which was like an uneven staircase, and walked calmly.

 The three lagons don't talk either. This tribe of giants is silent. Beyond the rocky mountains, a Sabaku wolf howls a howling war-cry that rises in the wind to their ears like a terrible sound.

 As they passed, from the stone-built doorways here and there, wispy-haired heads poked their heads out and watched them in silence. Among them, there was a woman with a small baby in her arms, and a lagon who seemed to be quite old. In general, however, the women of the Lagon tribe are not very distinguishable from the men of the Lagon tribe. Women who are pregnant have breasts so full that you can recognize them, but women who are not pregnant have flat breasts, and the muscles on their bare shoulders and arms do not differ in any way from those of men.

 And they were all clothed in a single layer of fur. To the eye that is familiar with the Semites, they are hideously long and boar-necked. Beneath their protruding eyebrows, their white eyes watched the prisoners with silent interest and hostility.

 And when they pass by, some of the heads go back into their houses, but others come out and follow them. Before I knew it, they had formed a silent procession. It was an ugly sight, but at the same time, it was a rather funny sight.

 With the legend of Silenos' tour of Hell, Guin, the three Ragon warriors holding him, and the Ragnons following in their wake, soon arrived at the lowest meeting place. There were already quite a few warriors sitting on the steps around the square, waiting to see the strange prisoner and their leader's decision on him. No one spoke much.

 The women and children who had followed behind them sat reservedly behind the warriors. Guin searched for Lana with his eyes, but could not find any child that seemed to respond to him. So Guin gave up and returned his gaze to the front.

 The three ragons who brought him here are standing with spears at their sides and behind them, holding him close. All three are a head and a half taller than Guin. So they seem to underestimate him, almost as if this vigilance were only a formality, and on the other hand they seem to regard his deformity as that of an evil spirit, and to be somewhat afraid of him.

 Guin raised his eyes and saw the two chairs directly in front of the square and the two Ragon sitting in them.

 To the right of him sat Ragon, a very old man. All his hair was white and gaunt, but under his bushy eyebrows his eyes shone brightly. This must be the wise man's Kaa.

 And next to him--

 Guin narrowed her eyes slightly .

 Even sitting down, I could clearly see the extraordinary stature of Ragon. He's probably a head and a half taller than Guin when he stands up. His width was also astonishing for a ragon. And on his shoulders, arms, and chest, bulging, steel-rope-like muscles that would make a child weep at the mere sight of them.

 It was no secret that the brave Dodo was the most powerful man in Ragon.

 Guin has to fight this monster and defeat it.