Episode 17. 3rd Edition 2nd Line (2)
Contrary to Yuri’s expression of disapproval, John’s face facing this was the brightest in recent years.
Yohan replied in a way that he didn’t know why Yuri was upset.
Filled with joy and refreshment.
“What do you mean?”
“Are my eyes weird… Why is that damn thing here?”
“Oh hey, you bastard! f*cking our Bungboong! Cancel that statement right now! I definitely said that old things have spirits! Our good Bungbung gets hurt!”
“What, bullsh*t! No, you promised. If I get to Chrome in two days, I won’t have to drag that damn thing! Physical training is over!”
“When did I?”
“This old man!”
“Heh heh, don’t you remember?”
“… … ?”
“When did I say physical training was over? He said that if he gets to Chrome in two days, he will move on to the next step.”
“… … ?!”
At John’s story, Yuri’s eyes shook as if an earthquake had struck.
‘surely… It did.’
And I realized
That he was played by that damn old man’s pun.
As Yuri’s face decayed, John’s face brightened.
It is as if the mental agony experienced because of the glass during the last voyage is quickly healed.
“Puhuh, foolish kid, no matter how much mana you have, training your physical strength and body is a lifelong task!”
Yuri gritted his teeth at the voice full of ridicule.
He tried to calm down his anger and spoke calmly.
“Ok, fine. I conceded a hundred times, so it’s okay. But inspiration… … .”
“Why do you keep calling me?”
“What is that!”
He shouted as he pointed at the resurrected Bungbungi.
Where Yuri’s finger is headed.
There was nothing to be there.
In response to Yuri’s anger, John cleared his ears.
“what? Is there any problem?”
“problem? in trouble? Did you say it was a problem?”
In the end, Yuri couldn’t stand it and exploded at Yohan’s innocent tone.
“No, where the heck did you buy the wheels!”
It was.
The chariot brought by John.
It was embarrassing to even call the resurrected Boongboong a cart.
Because both wheels were missing.
In response to Yuri’s fury, Yohan replied as if he was very happy.
“Cluck. At best, I learned mana and improved my body, but can I train only if the difficulty level is the same as before?”
Having said that, Yohan quickly jumped on the wheelbarrow.
Then, he raised his prosthetic leg on the railing and shouted.
“No time, kid! Move quickly! Are you trying to get me out of here!”
Seeing Yohan shouting excitedly, Yuri muttered in a low voice.
“You cursed old man… … .”
Seeing him holding the handle of the cart while swearing so much, it seemed as if his body was still remembering the physical training for pulling the cart.
“Come on, let’s go!”
The first day I set foot in the Niger administrative district.
Yuri’s hard training began again.
* * *
Fortnight has passed since Yuri and Yohan set foot in Niger.
The end of the Cold Wall Mountains that divide the Niger and Baltan Administrative Regions.
land- land- land-.
Time flies by the time the sun fully reveals its appearance.
The incessant ringing was finally gone.
and the epicenter of the sound.
Kik-.
The door of the smithy, which had been smoking white steam for two days, suddenly opened, revealing an old man with a height of more than 2m.
A flat face and a stiff white beard that grew wild.
And the huge muscles that create a sense of intimidation.
“hmm… … .”
Ralph Schnell, who had been hammering iron a moment ago, gazed eastwards where the sun had risen.
The uneasy feeling was clearly visible on his face in the sunlight.
“From early in the morning, a certain dirty guy… … .”
the other side of the east.
A strong life force approaching fast interrupted Ralph’s work.
A life so intense that it breaks his concentration and makes him come out.
For this reason, Ralph was thinking of folding the waist of the uninvited guest in half.
That is until the uninvited guest shows up.
Zug-Geuk-Zugguk-.
A cloud of yellow dust approached with a grotesque sound.
And the blue eyes shining in it.
“Sibu… Kill Lol… Shibural… Lord, kill… … .”
The continuous swear words were full of life.
A grotesque cart without wheels.
And a boy like a beggar who pulls a cart with all his might.
At the appearance of that bizarre combination, the giant stared blankly at them.
A few minutes passed like that.
zuggeuk-.
Finally, a cart without wheels and a village boy, Yuri, arrived in front of Ralph.
“Do, do… nice… … .”
Before she could finish her words, Yuri fell forward and passed out.
“… What is this guy doing?”
In an unexpected situation, Ralph looked at the stunned Yuri with a puzzled face.
That was the moment.
Kki-Pusluk-.
The wagon without wheels, which was already badly worn, was broken as it was.
Front and rear, left and right, the wooden planks of the cart collapsed as if a gift box had been opened.
And a blanket rolled up in the middle.
Puss-.
“Poo Hut!”
A thick cough could be heard as the blanket wriggled amidst the blowing dust.
Ralph’s face hardened instantly at the appearance of someone out of nowhere.
‘… … ?!’
The proud 12 masters produced by Yoram.
Sixth of them, Ralph Schnell, tricked his senses and felt chills running down his spine at the knowledge that someone was hiding.
‘Who the hell?!’
As Ralph raised his alertness and raised his spirits, an old voice came from the other side.
“Eh! Hey, kid, run slowly so you don’t blow dust.”
A familiar face was revealed as the blanket was pulled back with a grunt.
“Oh my gosh, our poor Boongbung… suffered all this time Please go to a nice place.”
Seeing the face of the person who looked at the broken cart more pitifully than the fainted glass, Ralph was stunned.
A dejected voice came out of his mouth.
“John… senior?”
John waved his hand at the voice calling him.
“A long time.”
* * *
A two-story house attached to the blacksmith’s.
Contrary to Ralph’s rambunctious impression, the interior of his house was neat and tidy.
Dalgrak-.
Ralph, the owner of the house, asked, putting the teacup down in front of John.
“So what have you come for? After 15 years?”
I didn’t even look for it for 15 years, so I’m going to go to the middle of the day.
Yohan answered with a grin at the older junior’s complaint.
“Do you have Shari? Why, didn’t you brag about getting it before?”
“Do you remember more than 20 years ago?”
“You should have been very proud.”
“Hum-hum, anyway. Are you really here for that? It was there 20 years ago, what if it’s not there now?”
“That’s something to think about when you go there. And, given your personality, you would have stored up stuff like that. Didn’t you like shiny and pretty things that didn’t match your original appearance?”
“It is a bad habit to judge a person by what he or she looks like… … .”
“noisy. So is there or not?”
“What are you looking for?”
“It’s all because of that rotten guy.”
Yohan frowned and chinned the glass scattered like a rag in one corner of the room.
Ralph, who looked in that direction, crossed his arms and asked.
“Hmm, I’ve been curious since before… What is that little boy?”
“What the heck, he’s a man who’s going to cry.”
“A disciple?”
“What is a disciple? I don’t grow anything like that.”
“Isn’t it time to raise some disciples? Are you going to put an end to the Rednor family’s vision of your predecessors?”
John sniffed at Ralph’s story and snorted.
He poured out a glass of wine and continued.
“Redner’s last family member is me. Whether I eat mine or sell it, what does it matter to you?”
“It’s a waste, it’s a waste! Is the Redner family’s witchcraft normal? Is it a pan-human loss if it is buried as it is?”
“Well, that’s not wrong.”
“So anyway… Is that guy a disciple or not?”
“Because it is not. Even though I’m telling him various things, I don’t think of him as a disciple. He won’t consider me a teacher either.”
“Ohh? So you’re telling me something?”
“okay.”
“Usually people call that a teacher-teacher relationship, right?”
“Oh no, no! That guy and I just… It’s a relationship where we work together for each other’s goals!”
“If it’s right, then it’s right, why are you twisting it so complicatedly?”
“… Just think of what is comfortable for you.”
As if he didn’t want to argue anymore, Yohan waved his hand.
His gaze then turned to the teacup placed in front of him.
At the same time, John’s brow furrowed slightly.
A slightly troubled face.
“hmm… What is this?”
No matter how much I looked at the cup, it was unmistakably a teacup that could only be used at noble ladies’ social gatherings.
In response, John threw a question in a tone that he could not understand.
“Is it fashionable to make drinking glasses like this these days?”
“That’s a cup of tea.”
“Are you crazy? Are you and me having tea together? Bring me a drink now, dude!”
“… It’s been a while since I stopped drinking.”
“It seems that the years are years. All the crazy sounds about quitting drinking come out of your mouth.”
“Curm. Even mountains and rivers change in 10 years… It’s been 15 years, so of course I have changed.”
“I’m sick, I’d rather have a dog quit sh*t. You said you quit drinking? Do you want me to quietly bring you a bottle and offer it to you, or do I search every nook and cranny and shake it off?”
“Grunt… … .”
At John’s threat, Ralph stood up hesitantly and took out a drink from the cupboard.
At the number of bottles that could be glimpsed through the cracks in the cupboard that was slightly open, Yohan’s face was astonished.
“Hey, are you serving tea because it’s a pity to leave so many twists and serve only one bottle? Are you still my junior!”
“Did you leave me drinking… … .”
“What man?”
Seeing Yohan’s eyes wide open, Ralph slightly shrugged his shoulders and rushed out to drink.
In the end, the teacup I brought became a drinking cup.
Squeeze-.
The sweet scent of sake spreads in the silence.
A few drinks passed quickly without any conversation.
Since the two of them were at that level, there was no way they would get drunk at that level.
However, the unique atmosphere of the drinking party made it easy to bring up topics of conversation that were difficult to say.
Even if you’re not drunk, you have to drink, but you can bring it out.
“that… What happened?”
Ralph’s eyes turned to John’s old wooden prosthetic leg.
At that blatant gaze, Yohan smiled.
“Are you asking because you don’t know, or do you want to hear from me even though you know?”
“… The latter.”
“You foolish bastard, do you want to hear from the person concerned? The bird you haven’t seen has become nasty.”
“If you’re going to say that, you shouldn’t have contacted me often in the first place. I tell you the story… Would you like to hear it through someone else?”
“Then, it’s all you need to know, what are you asking, what are you asking?”
“… … .”
Ralph kept his mouth shut.
John read the will to listen in his eyes.
He quickly filled his glass and drank it in one gulp.
“Well, it’s nothing.”
He stole the drops of alcohol that trickled down his lips, and emptiness lingered in his eyes.
“As you know, in a fight 15 years ago… … .”
And when I drank the second cup in succession, the emptiness that had dwelled was washed away.
When you drink the third cup in a row.
“… was taken instead of life. To that damn monster.”
In place of the washed away futility, a new sharp will dwelled.