Chapter 8  

Hermia?had been?enjoying a?bath just a minute?before,?but she rushed out to the reception room?wearing only?a bathrobe. She did?not even have the time to dry her wet hair, and a droplet of water trickled down along her plump cleavage and dropped to the ground.

A young man?sat in the?reception room, his short black hair sticking?out. He was on the?good-looking?side, but his face was?cold, void?of any expression;?in fact, he?looked so cold?that he carried an eerie presence. A device could be seen on his right wrist.?Hermia asked as soon as she saw the device, “Are you a?Traveler?”

“Why are you only wearing a gown, milady?” the guard standing beside her asked?awkwardly.?No servants could be seen in the mansion, and the guard was the one?who had?escorted Kang Yoon-Soo to the room.

Hermia wiped down her large breasts and replied with an annoyed?expression, “It’s funny hearing that from you,?seeing as you’re?still wearing that?helmet?indoors.”

“You know it’s because of my burn marks, milady,”?the guard replied.

“I keep telling you this, but?you have to show?yourself more?the more lacking you think you are,” Hermia?said. She?then went and sat down?in?a chair opposite Kang Yoon-Soo. When she?crossed her legs, it nearly revealed the inside of her gown. Any?other man would have?stolen a glance between her thick thighs, but the man?before her?did not even?spare a glance. Hermia actually liked?his?attitude.

“My name is Hermia Lepe. I am the feudal lord of Kerlin. I hope you will forgive the rudeness of the guard over here. He is someone I took in?since?he was young, but he prefers to cover his face because of his severe burns. What is your name?” asked Hermia.

“Kang Yoon-Soo, and I’m a traveler, just as you said,” Kang Yoon-Soo?replied briefly.

“I briefly heard you through the window; we elves have excellent hearing, you see. You claimed to be able to use the Orb of the Covenant?” Hermia asked, clearly interested.

“Yes.” Again, Kang Yoon-Soo only gave a short reply.

“Are you aware of what it is?” Hermia?asked.

Innread dot com".

“Yes,” Kang Yoon-Soo repeated.

Hermia stared at the man for a minute, as if she were?intently scrutinizing him. Then,?she began to recite a verse in a voice halfway between speaking and singing.

‘A lone traveler walking in a desolate desert met his first escort

Even though half of the world might disappear

He?would?reach the spring he so longed?for’

Then, Kang Yoon-Soo sang along in a low voice.

‘The traveler who crossed the desert through sandstorms

Faced the last sandstorm?head-on, but could?not grasp a grain of sand

And ended?up?wandering?in?the mirage forever.’

Hermia covered her wide-open mouth with one hand and said, “Oh my god…”?She could only stare at Kang Yoon-Soo.?Then, she started to mutter to herself as if she couldn’t believe what had just happened, “Oh my god…?Oh my god…?Oh my god…”

The guard worriedly leaned toward Hermia and?offered, “Shall I bring some tea?”

“Ye..?Yes...?Put a lot of tea leaves in it, and make sure?to?be careful around the fire,” Hermia replied.

The guard left, and Hermia put a hand on her forehead and let out a small moan. She then pulled down her gown, exposing her milky white breast. Her plump breast?illuminated by the sunlight?was a sight to behold.?“Can you check if my heart is still alright?” she asked.

Kang Yoon-Soo placed his right hand on her breast and replied, “Yes, it’s still beating.”

“Is it? That’s a relief…?I thought my heart stopped for a moment there,”?Hermia said?as she pulled her gown back up.

Usually, the faces of a man and a woman in?such a?situation would be bright red with emotion, but?neither of the two revealed any hint of such a thing.

“Really…?It's?really surprising.?I never?imagined I would hear the poem that was kept secret by the Lepe family for over 400?years from a human, and a?Traveler from another world on top of that,” Hermia said after she calmed down.?She asked with a curious expression, “How did you find out about the?Orb of the?Covenant??And how did you?learn?the poem of Ignus?”

Kang Yoon-Soo recalled a memory he did?not want to remember.?How could he not?know about the poem of the Ignus Dragon? A prophecy among the elves had been passed down, that a man who knew?the poem?would?show up?and?be able to use the?Orb of the?Covenant.

He had entered?the Desert of Death in one of his previous?lives?and?gone?through all kinds of difficulties there. However, at the end of it all, he had only received a poem as?a?reward.?It had been?one of the biggest shocks of his life when he learned that?it?was all he?would be?getting.

However, he?shook his head and said, “I can’t tell you that.”

The story of his life was not something that people will easily understand or even believe at all. Kang Yoon-Soo felt that there was no reason for him to repeatedly explain to people and let them know about his regression. “I see. I won’t pry into it if that’s what you want;?after all, we, the Lepe family, are only the witnesses.” Hermia then sighed and started to explain, “The ancestor of my Lepe family…” But suddenly, she was interrupted.

“Nahilen, the ancient archer, was a renowned hero?who?fought alongside Surian, the King of All Beings. Nahilen was the leader of the elves residing?in what was then?the Pehe Forest.

“The most widely held belief about Nahilen is that he?lost the Pehe Forest to Ignus the flame dragon, and that?the forest had been turned into the?Desert of?Death by the dragon. However, that?was only a false rumor spread to hide the existence of the?Orb of the Covenant.

“Nahilen and Ignus held a?long-standing?alliance to fight against the Lord of Evil?who would?later?arrive. The calling of the Lepe family was to find?a?worthy successor?for?the power fragment left behind by Ignus.”

“…”?Hermia was shocked beyond belief. The words?she had been?about to say had been perfectly summarized, and it was Kang Yoon-Soo?who had said them,?not her.

Kang Yoon-Soo stood up and said nonchalantly,?“I didn’t want to listen to the long explanation.”

“I’ve brought the tea, milady.” At that moment, while?Hermia was still in shock, the guard?came?in with a silver platter with tea on it. However, he?clumsily tripped and fell forward.

Kang Yoon-Soo wrapped his arm around the?guard’s chest?and caught him, using his other hand to catch the platter.

Tak!

His movements were flawless, as if he had expected?the accident?to happen.?Not a single drop of tea?hit?the floor.?He?placed the platter on the table and?lifted a?teacup?toward his dry lips. He took a sip of the tea?and?remarked, “It?tastes terrible… as always.”

Both Hermia and the guard were dumbfounded, as if they had been struck on the head.

“Before I?look at?the?Orb of the?Covenant, I need a few things first,” Kang Yoon-Soo said.

***

The thing Kang Yoon-Soo had asked for was none other than alcohol. He specifically requested the strongest alcohol they had in the lord’s mansion. Hermia ordered the guard to?comply with his request.

“I’m glad you came here,” the guard said while?propping a bookshelf on the floor upright. He?was not particularly large, but he was surprisingly strong.?He?navigated?around the various miscellaneous items spread out on the floor?while babbling, “It’s a waste to keep Lord Hermia?in a frontier territory in the middle of the wilderness like this. She was the one that took me in when I lost all of my family?in?a fire. She used to tell me about the story of the Lepe family. I'm?glad that she’ll?now be?freed from that duty.”

“You think?she’s?beautiful, don’t you?” Kang Yoon-Soo asked.

“Isn’t it obvious?” the guard asked back.

Kang Yoon-Soo picked up a hand mirror on the floor and said?quietly, “I know someone more beautiful than her. That’s why.”

“If there’s someone more beautiful than Lord Hermia, I would love to meet her. I’ve lived in Kerlin my whole life, and I’ve never been to?any other places,”?the guard said.

“You can meet her too,” Kang Yoon-Soo replied.

“Wow,?really? How can I meet her then?” the guard?asked?in surprise.

“Take your?helmet?off and look in the mirror,” Kang Yoon-Soo said.

The guard’s busily moving hands?suddenly stopped. Her back was turned toward Kang Yoon-Soo, but her anger was visible as she said coldly,?“...Do they call women who are bald and?covered in?burn marks beautiful outside Kerlin??What an?unsophisticated joke you have there.”

“I’m not a fan of jokes,” Kang Yoon-Soo replied?curtly.

“You sound like an old man who’s?already fully lived his life.”?the guard?retorted?sarcastically.

“I’m tired of?it, that's?why,”?Kang Yoon-Soo said bluntly.

The guard finally found the strongest alcohol they had in the mansion;?it was a whiskey with very high alcohol content. As she was walking toward?the door, however, a mouse suddenly came out of nowhere. She grabbed the mouse’s tail and started to tickle it, her own giggles audible even through her helmet.

“Hehehehe…?Ehem.” She came back to her?senses?when she noticed that Kang Yoon-Soo was looking at her.?Just as?she was about to let the mouse down, however…

“Squeak!”

“Ouch!”

The mouse jumped?into the guard’s?helmet?and started to run?all over?her face.?Flustered, she?immediately threw her?helmet?onto?the ground, and her eyes?met Kang Yoon-Soo’s.

She looked pitiful.?Her bald head was grotesque, covered in disgusting, shriveled burn scars that reached all the way across her face and down to her neck.?The left side of her face had the most serious burns;?her left eye looked?as if it had sunken into her skull.

The guard quickly covered her face with her hands after chasing away the mouse, screaming,?“Don't look at me!”

She hated letting anyone see her pitiful appearance more than anything else. In fact, she?would rather?die than?let?anyone see her—especially a?good-looking?young man like the one in front of her.?Although she had covered her face, she was filled with unbearable shame.?However,?Kang Yoon-Soo tapped her on the shoulder and handed the?helmet?to her without?showing any expression.

“I’m sorry,”?the guard?said after hurriedly?donning the helmet again.

“Why?” Kang Yoon-Soo asked in the same unenthusiastic?tone?he always had. “Because I let you see my appearance. I’m sorry you had to see something so hideous,”?the guard?replied while biting her lips.

“It’s not hideous at all,” Kang Yoon-Soo remarked.

“You mean my appearance isn’t scary?”?the guard?asked again in surprise.

“Not at all,”?Kang Yoon-Soo?answered.

The guard was astonished. Usually, whenever a man saw her face, they would?be?scared or spit a curse at her. However, Kang Yoon-Soo was different. He?showed no sign?of disgust; in fact, he?maintained a calm expression?the whole time.?Neither did it seem?as if?he were?acting this way just to be nice.?Perhaps he was not so bad?after all.

Suddenly, as Kang Yoon-Soo stared at her, he asked, “What are you doing standing around?”

***

“Will this place suffice?”?Hermia asked.

It was a?wide, deserted plain, empty as far as the eye could see.?In this land, where not even a blade of grass grew, three people?stood.

Hermia took out a red orb—the?Orb of the?Covenant.?It was too large to be held in?one hand, and its crimson hue resembled a wild flame sleeping within it.?She?carefully placed the orb on the ground and said, “According to the story my grandmother told me, Ignus left behind a fragment of its power in the?Orb of the?Covenant. However, you have to pass the trials the orb has prepared for you if you want to obtain the power of Ignus; a trial?in which?you will?have to put your life on the line.”

Hermia proposed to put her troops on standby just in case, but Kang Yoon-Soo refused the?offer.?He?looked at the guard,?who?handed him the whiskey bottle?and?asked, “Forgive me for asking,?but where do you plan on using that?”

“Oh, I was curious about that too,” Hermia asked as well.

However, Kang Yoon-Soo?gave them no?answer as he?silently tied the bottle to his waist. He then said,?“The lonely traveler that traversed the?Desert of?Death shall meet his end in the burning fire and return to the eternal mirage.”

It was the poem of Ignus, but the words were slightly different. At that moment, cracks appeared on the ground where the orb?had been?placed, and?it?let out a blindingly bright light. Hermia and her guard quickly moved back.

A tall shadow?rose from the orb and?suddenly said,?“I can feel someone worthy of inheriting the power of?Ignus?in this place.”

The being was a?Spartoi, a creature that resembled a cross between a red dragon and a human male. Its whole body was covered in rough scales, and it was?four?meters tall. It held a thick spear?in its hand,?and?its body was covered in bulky muscles.

[A Spartoi of the?Ignus Dragon (Clone) has appeared.]

[You may obtain a fragment of the dragon’s?power if you pass the trials?of the Spartoi.]

[You will face the fury of the Spartoi if you fail to pass the trial or choose to give up?halfway.]

“Are you the one who wishes to inherit the power of the Supreme Being?”?the Spartoi?asked.

Kang Yoon-Soo?said nothing.

The Spartoi raised its spear up and declared, “I, the Spartoi of the?Ignus Dragon, will test you. You will obtain the fragment of the dragon’s?power if you manage to pass my test.”

The Spartoi swung its spear?at a speed that tore the air apart.

Whoosh!

Hermia and her guard?gulped and looked on?as they watched from afar.

A red cloth fell from the sky and wrapped itself?across?Kang Yoon-Soo’s eyes. The Spartoi said,?“You, face me with your eyes covered. It?matters not?if you use magic or a puppet. I will acknowledge you if you manage to defeat me. Of course, I will give you time to practice.”

The two women watched, stunned and horrified. How could?anyone face that fearsome Spartoi with their eyes?covered? It was impossible even for a sword expert to achieve?such a?feat.

“Wait,” said Kang Yoon-Soo, raising?his right hand.

The Spartoi?stopped suddenly, his spear at the ready. At that moment, Kang Yoon-Soo opened the whiskey bottle, and Hermia and her guard watched intently.?‘Surely that man will be doing something amazing,’?they told themselves.?‘What will he do with the whiskey?’

Gulp.?Gulp.

Kang Yoon-Soo started to down the whiskey without stopping, finishing the whole bottle?at once.?He then?threw the empty bottle to the floor?before drawing his greatsword?and saying, “I don’t need to practice. Bring it on.”

Hermia and her guard looked?as if they had been hit in?the back of the head. They looked at?each other in horror.

“He asked us to give him the whiskey just because he wanted to drink it?”

“He?can’t even?see in front of him, but he still drank alcohol?”

The situation before them seemed completely absurd. To the two women, Kang Yoon-Soo’s actions were no different?from?throwing away his life.

The Spartoi’s expression twisted into one of disgust as he said, “I will be facing you with all of my strength. You may lose your life,?and yet you?are so certain that you will be winning?”

“Yeah,” Kang Yoon-Soo answered?dryly.

“You! You arrogant fool!”?The Spartoi’s spear suddenly thrust forward, as if it planned to pierce Kang Yoon-Soo’s body right from the start.

. This is the first time her gender is revealed. Korean lacks gender pronouns, so ‘he’ was used to prevent spoiling it.