→ Sun – Claiomh Solais (2) ←
The next morning, we gathered at Uzkias’s house.
Me, Yuel, and the Arden sisters.
On the other hand, along with Scaith were a bunch of people wearing gloomy-looking clothes. They were probably monsters related to the ‘Shaded Village’, considering how Scaith was taking them around with him.
There was an old man in the group who was definitely unlike the rest of them. It was annoying, but it seemed that Tates had also sent this old man with Scaith.
“I will now announce the second test.”
“Second? Was there the first test?” Alicia asked while tilting her head. She seemed tired as if she didn’t have enough sleep last night, making me wonder whether she was okay or not.
“You have already taken your first test when entering the city.”
“When entering the city… Are you referring to the illusion formation?”
In response to Lunia’s question, Uzkias replied with a nod.
“That was a test of your qualification, seeing how much you can do to fight for your conviction… and whether you have an unshakable perception of justice or not. All of you have proven your conviction already.”
I see. That seemed to have been a test of how much trust we had in ourselves, and how we would act in certain situations. Looking at how both Lunia and Alicia had also made it through, it seemed that all of us were confident and unhesitant in whatever we had to do.
“Umm… I, I don’t think that was the case for me…”
Alicia hesitantly raised her hand and an objection.
“Alicia.”
“Y, yes? Brother-in-law… I mean, Mr. Korin!”
“Hmm? Anyway, there’s no need to be that self-deprecating. Be proud, because you have carried through with your conviction and values.”
“U, uhh… t, the thing is…”
She was sweating profusely from her forehead. It seemed that she really was tired from lack of sleep.
Alicia lacked so much confidence in herself that even Lunia tried to lift her mood while tapping on her head.
“Whatever your actions and your cause may be, fight for your conviction. We, as humans, tend to become stronger when fighting for a cause.”
“I, I don’t think I should though…”
Her eyes dizzily rolled around in circles. Maybe we had to let her rest.
“Alicia. Maybe you should take some rest if you’re tired.”
She looked so out of it that even Yuel stepped up to make her rest.
“I, it’s okay. A sinner like me has no right to rest…”
“What do you mean by that?”
I had no idea why she was like that, but in any case, Uzkias added something before introducing the test to us.
“The druids that have come with you will be helping out with your test. For Korin Lork, it will be Yuel the druid of Avelorn, and for Dun Scaith, it will be Dumnorix, the representative of Esus.”
Hearing that, I turned to the old man who was standing next to Scaith with a robe on. In some ways, he was a more intimidating opponent than Scaith.
Lawmaker, Dumnorix.
He was a Druid Elder, who was a right-hand man of Tates Valtazar unlike most druids that kept a neutral position. He was the druid who wholeheartedly supported the usurpation of Tates Valtazar.
In other words, he was someone who wanted the Advent of Paradise. I had to put shackles on him first.
“Sage Uzkias. There is something we would like to make certain before we begin.”
“What is it, young hero?”
“For these tests, let’s make it so that we can only receive assistance from the druids, and keep them from participating in battle.”
“Kuhihihilk! Did you hear that, Dum?”
“…”
The old man wearing a black robe, Dumnorix, turned towards me. His eyes with an arcus senilis threatened to pierce through me.
“The tests will involve no fighting,” Uzkias replied.
“What about after the tests are over? Whoever it is, the one who didn’t get it is going to attack the one who did for sure, so it would be problematic for us if the druids don’t maintain a neutral standpoint.”
“Hmm…”
Uzkias pondered, contemplating about the neutrality of druids and whether he should force it onto others or not.
Although they were a communitarian society, that didn’t mean they outright denied the individual rights of their people. Whether it be Yuel or Dumnorix, Uzkias was probably thinking that he had no justification to stop either one of them from supporting different people.
But at the same time, he was probably thinking about how Yuel was a normal druid while Dumnorix was a Druid Elder. There would inevitably be problems with fairness.
“Let’s make a vow with a geass. On how we will both accept the result of the test and refrain from attacking each other for the next 60 days.”
“Huhihi?”
In an instant, Scaith’s eyes glistened. Right, I knew he would find that offer very appealing for himself.
“What do you think, Dum? ‘I’ think it’s fine.”
“…Alright.”
Before starting our test, we made a geass under the supervision of Uzkias.
The content was as I said, about me, Lunia, Alicia, and Yuel not attacking Scaith’s group, as well as Scaith and his group not attacking us.
It was a simple contract of restriction which was therefore more powerful. The moment we went against this vow, this vow would take our lives for it.
“That should be enough. I will now announce the second test. Your task is to make a staff out of wood that has had a connection with the gods.”
“I understand the staff part… but what do you mean by having a connection with the gods?”
“You shall listen to the advice of your druids for that because they have the knowledge. The deadline is tomorrow before sunrise.”
Hmm. In the first place, this hidden land was impossible to enter without the help of druids, and it seemed that we would need the help of druids from the first to the last test.
What was fortunate was that I had been somewhat aware of this from the Precepts’ reward that I received after killing Fermack. After all, the reward itself was about the existence of Findias and its relation to the ‘Solar Eclipse’.
‘In other words, this would be a part of many tests that will allow us to reach the sky, or the sun for that matter. The problem is that I don’t know the individual tests inside but…’
“This test is not for deciding the victor. Just find it. After a rightful procedure, you will gain the chance to arrive at the Sun.”
After Uzkias was done with his last sentence, we gathered together and the first one to open their mouth was Alicia.
“Ms. Yuel! What does it mean to find wood that had a connection with the gods?”
“Druids that become the sages of forests make their staffs using a special tree.”
I looked at Yuel’s staff. Her staff was made out of an old oak tree, and was a considerably good one. However, it was different from the final weapon you could get for Yuel in ?Heroic Legends of Arhan?. That was…
“We need to look for an oak tree with a parasitic mistletoe, right?” I asked.
“Yes… How did you know that?”
“I found it in a book when I was reading about Ogham letters.”
I used Ogham letters as an excuse because I couldn’t tell her, ‘I had to go through a quest to get you that final weapon in the game’, and Yuel seemed convinced by it.
“If I remember correctly, for druids, a mistletoe and an oak tree represents death and resurrection; and are special ingredients that are symbolic of a communication with gods. Is that correct?”
“Yes. That’s why we say an oak tree with a parasitic mistletoe is the trace of a communication with gods. Plus, they are very powerful magic mediums as well.”
Thanks to Yuel’s explanation, everyone understood the content of the test but our next question was how we would find the said tree. Lunia shared her concerns.
“This will not be very easy.”
“What do you mean, unni? Weren’t there a few mistletoes near our house as well?”
“The important part is that the mistletoe must be on an ‘oak tree’.”
“Mistletoes grow on all sorts of trees including apple trees and lime trees. It won’t be easy finding a mistletoe on an oak tree,” Yuel added from the side.
It will definitely be easier than finding a jujube tree that was struck by lightning, but finding an oak tree with a mistletoe in this ocean of trees won’t be that easy either.
“But if I ask the spirits, that should increase our chance at finding one.”
Fortunately, we had a druid in our group, the representative of nature that was loved by the forest itself. They were so loved that the trees and spirits even made them houses and a city.
“Alright. Let’s first head into the forest.”
However, waiting for us was a very rough start.
The spirits did not listen to Yuel’s request.
****
“T, this is bad.”
Yuel said with an apologetic and troubled look on her face.
“Are the spirits not listening to you?”
“Rather than that… most of them…”
“Most of them went to Scaith, huh.”
That was out of our control though, because Dumnorix was a sage of another forest whereas Yuel was just a young druid who learned a few hidden skills. Spirits naturally had no choice but to prioritize the forest sage who had dedicated himself to nature for much longer than she did.
“I know it’s not a contest of who comes first but… Will we even be able to find a mistletoe by tomorrow morning at this rate?”
“We would have to be… very lucky.”
It was completely like a lottery. Finding an oak tree in this dense forest was already a chore and finding one with a mistletoe was close to impossible, unless we received the help of a bunch of spirits through the druid.
“Mr.Koriinnnn~!”
It was then. Alicia came running at us while carrying a large branch that was bigger than her own body.
“A mistletoe! I found a mistletoe!”
She seemed to have run around looking for one while we were coming up with a plan.
“That’s a nettle tree, Alicia.”
“Ehk? But the mistletoe… I made sure to cut it nicely though.”
Alicia planted the branch of the nettle tree with a mistletoe into the ground with a disheartened look on her face. As if she couldn’t let go of her hope, she looked back and forth between the branch and Yuel, before carefully sharing her opinion.
“Umm, maybe there’s… a different way?”
“Speak, Alicia.”
“For example, we can pop the mistletoe into an oak tree…”
“That will get rid of its magical significance though,” Yuel replied.
“Hmm…”
This time, Lunia raised a different plan.
“I heard there was a secret technique among druids that can immediately grow a plant. Can you not grow a mistletoe along with an oak tree?”
“A plant that grew rapidly is just expanded with mana and has no nutrients so it will go back to its original shape. It won’t even last until tomorrow.”
Rapid growth… hmm?
“Yuel, can you find an oak tree for us?” I asked.
“That… shouldn’t be too hard.”
“That will be more than enough then.”
I said while shaking the glass bottle that I took before coming to the east. It contained something gleaming in gold, and was the hidden card up my sleeve that was supposed to help us reach the sky.
It was time to take a glimpse at a portion of that power.
****
Next morning, Dun Scaith giggled while looking at the thick oak wood staff in his hands.
“So pretty~. Right?”
“Yes, it certainly is, Mr. Scaith.”
His subordinates enthusiastically agreed to his words. Most of his men couldn’t come into Findias through the first test and even the few that did were quite useless. It was Lawmaker Dumnorix who did most of the work, but…
“Who’s the little friend that made this staff?”
Scaith praised the one who made the staff regardless.
“Little friend! Buddy buddy! Let me give you a compliment.”
“Ah, ahh…”
Despite being praised for his work, his subordinate wearing a robe had a pale look on his face. He tightly gripped on the silver rosario hanging on his neck and gulped.
He knew how Dun Scaith had ‘devoured’ his fellow priest after calling him a ‘friend’. That was why his face turned pale from his compliments.
“P, please do not kill me sir.”
“Nnn? What is wrong, little buddy?”
“I, I do not want to die yet.”
“EVERYONE DIES—!!”
Scaith roared out loud with a sonorous voice. His eyes were tainted in purple as something started wriggling beneath the hems of his coat.
“Little friend. Don’t you want to ascend to heaven? We can help you ascend… The world is very cruel and there is a limit to how big it can go, okay?”
The tongue of a serpent licked the priest. Right when Scaith’s duster coat was wriggling and about to change into a different form—
“Scaith. Uzkias the sage is watching us.”
“…”
Dun Scaith stepped back down. Before long, Korin and his group came towards them.
“Hello, little Korin. Is your rod also as thick and hard as mine?”
“You should be careful with your word choice.”
“Huhihirk…!”
Scaith was fond of that boy. What face would the goddess make if he were to take that pretty head of the boy and put it on a platter?
What would the pitiful queen, who was sealed by the king 80 years ago and forced to move around the world with a fake body, look like if even her last disciple were to return in a miserable state?
“So, have you made a good staff? I couldn’t really see any spirits next to you.”
It was hard for Scaith to approach them in secret because of Lunia’s acute senses but even without going closer to them, he still knew that there were less than 10 spirits helping Yuel.
On the other hand, there were a thousand spirits helping them, and finding a suitable tree had been very easy.
“Yuel. Show them what we got.”
“Okay.”
Yuel took out a large staff from her robe. It was a huge staff made of an oak tree with a parasitic mistletoe.
“Their rod is bigger and harder than ours!”
With a flick, Scaith immediately turned his face to his subordinate who made the staff for them as the priest shuddered in response.
“How did you do it? You shouldn’t have had enough time to find one.”
“Don’t you think you should put something on the line when you want to know what your opponents did?”
“Huhihihik…! You’re right! What do you want?”
“I can tell you if you give me either the Spear of Light or the Stone of Destiny.”
“They’re at home.”
“Too bad, then.”
After we had a short verbal quarrel, Uzkias walked to us in the form of a leopard.
“You have both marvelously completed your second test. You have all passed.”
Without any further delay, Uzkias announced the third task.
“In the forest north of this place is a magic rowan tree that bears red fruits. Your task is to bring those fruits.”
We knew there would be more to the task than what he implied.
****
There were so many demonic beasts in these forests that this place was called the Mountain Range of Demonic Beasts, but there were certain areas that were avoided by those monsters.
One of those was Findias. Because of magic barriers around the city, demonic beasts couldn’t enter them and had to retreat back out.
And… another example was territories of absolutely terrifying entities that demonic beasts did not dare trespass.
“This way.”
Outside the secret lands of Findias, Yuel, and Dumnorix were in the lead with Dun Scaith and my group walking awkwardly side-by-side.
“Little kid, little kid. Do you like toads?”
“I like bullfrogs. They taste like chicken.”
“Uhihih…! I’m not liking you as much anymore!”
Do you think I ever did? It was when I was about to walk away from him.
“I told you not to call me!!”
Scaith screamed as if in a fit and almost grabbed me by the neck but—
“Huhi? No no no. I can’t break the pledge. Huhihikk…!”
“Ughkk?!”
In the blink of an eye, Scaith reached his arm back at one of his robed subordinates. The man was immediately thrown onto the ground after having his neck crushed.
“I! TOLD YOU! NOT TO CALL ME…!”
Like a madman, Scaith punched the man in a robe with his fists along with a maddened laughter. It took less than 3 seconds for the robed person to be crushed to smithereens by his insane strength.
I was wondering why he was taking around so many men for no reason, but it seemed that they were there as scapegoats for whenever he had a fit like that.
A time bomb at least had a timer, but this guy was like an unexploded mine that was already stepped on. You never knew when this guy would explode.
“We are almost there.”
Dumnorix said as we then turned our eyes to the other side of the dense forest. At the end of the forest was a massive empty plot of land. We immediately spotted a rowan tree with red fruits and also discovered the one behind it.
“T, this can’t be. How did we not notice this until now?”
Beyond the tree was a cliff – or rather, something that had appeared like a cliff until now.
– Crack crackkkk!
A disharmonious and jittery noise echoed across the forest from something moving after a long time of staying still. Using that as soil, trees, fruits and dust had all been built up on top of it to form a mountain. How long would that have taken?
“…”
“…”
We were all shocked to a stop and that was when ‘that thing’ opened its eyes.
“…A giant.”
I accidentally let out a snicker after hearing Alicia’s remark. That was no giant – even giants were like newborn babies in front of that thing which was taller than 70 meters.
They were beings that existed even before my master… Erin Danua and her race ruled over the world. They were the gods of the first era of this world, that only existed in storybooks and rarely appeared to show off their might.
Sky Titans.
The one before me was a named character of ?Heroic Legends of Arhan?, who was of the same race as the Sky Titans that protected the Sun of Findias.
— My name is Searbhan. Those who crave the fruits must prove themselves.
A majestic voice weighed down on the world.
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