NOVEL NEXT Chapter 83: Precursor (2)
Until Reneide River, who had only troubled him ten years ago, returned as a 4-star blacksmith hero, Kim Hyunwoo was in a good mood.
Actually, it would have been strange if he was in a bad mood.
From Kim Hyunwoo’s perspective, River’s arrival was no different from a much-needed 4-star blacksmith hero suddenly dropping out of nowhere onto empty land.
‘So, it was definitely good…’
Kim Hyunwoo glanced over at Elena, who was standing in front of his office.
Her lips were smiling, but her eyes were not; she didn’t seem to be in a particularly bad mood, but she didn’t look very happy either.
“Hmm, have you had a bad day today?”
Kim Hyunwoo asked cautiously.
“No, not particularly.”
Despite Kim Hyunwoo’s question, Elena smiled and neatly denied his words before speaking.“Ah, by the way, have you known that tiny dwarf who came this time for a long time?”
“Dwarf? Are you talking about River?”
“Yes, that tiny dwarf.”
Kim Hyunwoo smiled strangely but soon affirmed at Elena’s focused description of the ‘tiny dwarf’.
“Yes, that’s right. She was a blacksmith who worked in Lartania ten years ago.”
“Really… Is that so?”
“Yes. But it seems you’ve met her, knowing that?”
“No, it’s not that. Just- I overheard some of the conversation on my way to report to the office. I heard that you were quite casually using informal speech with each other.”
“Well – she was a friend I talked a lot with, even ten years ago.”
Elena, whose gaze seemed to become slightly colder than before, responded with a neutral ‘Hmm’ to Kim Hyunwoo’s statement, which he carefully phrased without adding that they weren’t particularly good memories.
“Lord, you must be cautious with dwarves.”
“Yes?”
“As you know, dwarves are stubborn and don’t follow orders, so if they enter the territory, they will need to be managed in many ways.”
“Uh…”
Elena’s words were indeed a general truth, but dwarves not listening properly usually happened when heroes were forced into tasks other than their blacksmithing duties.
In other words, her statement was only half correct.
While Kim Hyunwoo was contemplating whether to address this, Elena, with a noticeably cooled expression, continued speaking.
Given Elena’s inexplicable disdain for dwarves,
“First off, I understand this. Well, she is the Guild Master of the Blacksmith Guild, so she couldn’t be part of Lartania anyway.”
Kim Hyunwoo quickly agreed with her statement.
“Oh, is that so?”
Feeling the atmosphere lighten as if her words had an effect, Elena cleared her throat nonchalantly before continuing.
“Ah, and Lord.”
“Yes?”
“Should we perhaps start speaking more informally to each other now?”
“Speak informally?”
Kim Hyunwoo looked at her with a ‘Why here, why now?’ expression, but she said,
“I thought it might be more comfortable if we spoke more informally to each other.”
“Well, that is true. But is there a need to do so right now-”
“Do you dislike speaking informally with me, My Lord?”
Seeing Elena’s expression stiffen slightly, Kim Hyunwoo answered,
“Uh…no, it’s not that… Well, if you wish to do so, feel free to proceed.”
“Then, could you call me ‘Elena’ first?”
Elena immediately responded to Kim Hyunwoo’s words.
“…Elena?”
Kim Hyunwoo, puzzled but speaking to her, saw her smile genuinely for perhaps the first time.
“Yes. I’ll see you again at the report tomorrow.”
She left the Lord’s castle with a tone suggesting she was in a much better mood.
“…?”
Kim Hyunwoo wore a slightly odd expression.
And for good reason.
‘…Didn’t I originally call her Elena? And she didn’t use informal speech either.’
Because the way Kim Hyunwoo addressed her hadn’t really changed, neither then nor now.
Unable to understand what made her so happy, Kim Hyunwoo stared at the door for a while with a perplexed expression.
‘Well, if it seems to have improved her mood, then that’s fine.’
Kim Hyunwoo shrugged it off.
Several days later,
In the lord’s office, where numerous barracks could be seen, Duke Landaron, who had been silently observing the situation, soon turned his gaze and spoke to the hooded man.
“As promised, almost a month has passed.”
“I know.”
The hooded figure, with a voice like scraping metal, stood up and, together with Landaron, looked down at the barracks and spoke.
“Do not worry, Duke Landaron, as I have said, the great plan will soon commence. No, to be precise, it is already underway in real-time.”
“In progress? I don’t seem to have heard such a thing?”
Despite the slightly uncomfortable expression on Duke Landaron’s face, the man continued speaking without losing his composed demeanor.
“It was a conversation that didn’t need to be had. After all, what’s happening now is merely a preparation.”
“Preparation?”
“It’s because demons from our demon realm need to cross over too.”
“If it’s about demons crossing over, aren’t you referring to what’s already happening around us?”
“That alone is not enough.”
At the hooded man’s words, Duke Landaron appeared to ponder for a moment, then looked at him and said,
“You’re not thinking of something else, are you?”
“Of course not. We demons keep our promises better than the celestials. Above all, have we not ‘contracted’?”
“That’s true, but…”
“Then do not worry. For demons, a contract is akin to chivalry among humans. We do not break it unless the other party does first.”
He continued speaking to Duke Landaron with a swift smile,
“In a few days, my kin will start appearing from the outskirts. Then, raise your soldiers and march in coordination. Once you achieve what you desire, you can aid us. That’s the contract.”
At the man’s words, Landaron nodded but also asked,
“I understand the plan well enough, but how much preparation have you made outside?”
“Are you curious?”
“You know, even if demons appear, if it’s only the preparation made within Norba Kingdom, it won’t cause much chaos.”
“Do not worry. Just the number of summoning circles alone prepared in the outskirts exceed 50.”
“…What? 50?”
“Yes.”
“…When exactly did you prepare so many summoning circles-”
Muttering incomprehensibly, Landaron soon fell silent.
He didn’t think the man before him would answer even if he asked about it right away.
“There’s no need to ask, I suppose.”
“You know well. Anyway, it’s almost time to move and finish all preparations.”
As the Duke spoke, the man showed a sly smile and then began to move on after his words.
“Where are you going?”
“It’s time for the final check.”
Responding to him, the man immediately vanished with a burst of black magic.
And then,
“……”
Around the time Duke Landaron, who had been looking at where the man disappeared, silently turned his head back to gaze at the barracks,
the hooded man was moving to check the summoning circles he had set up in the outskirts. More precisely, in various places in the Southern part of the Continent.
Duke Landaron also continued to show his desire to proceed quickly with the plan, but in truth, the man felt the same.
He had been preparing this grand plan alone for seven years, and the energy and resources he had expended due to this plan were unimaginably vast.
Thanks to this, the man, though not overtly showing it, was in a much more elevated state than usual.
In just a few days, he could start the work he had prepared for seven years, and the moment the planned success was achieved, they would have the opportunity to officially take over ‘other worlds’.
So, the man, smiling as he moved to the place where the summoning circles were prepared,
“…?”
soon had no choice but to harden his face with questions.
The reason was that the villages where the summoning circles had been prepared were in ruins.
“……”
The man, looking at the now completely burned and razed to ashes village, sighed softly but immediately prepared to move to another location.
It was conceivable that one or two of the 50 prepared summoning circles could be destroyed.
But the next village as well,
“…??”
And the next village too,
“…???”
Even the territory that the man had secretly recruited,
“…????”
Seeing that all the villages he had checked were all in ruins,
“What is this?”
His relaxed voice gone, he murmured in a voice mixed with emptiness and urgency, unaware.
And at that moment,
somewhere in the Southeastern part of the Continent, where the man had made the summoning circles and where heretics who practised human sacrifices and operated in secrecy resided-
“I will- I will kill you!!!”
Boom!
“It is mine!!!”
Boom!!!
-was being turned into ruins by a beastfolk and a half-demon.