NOVEL NEXT Book 2: Chapter 200: The trade has been established (6)
He heard a pretty warm voice at that moment.
– Cale. You must be tired.
Cale answered honestly out of reflex after hearing the tone of Sheritt’s voice.
“No ma’am. I’m not that tired since I came back after getting a good rest……”
His voice slowly became quieter.
Sheritt had a mischievous face but it was full of wisdom. There was still a gentle smile on her face.
Honestly speaking, Cale could not pay any attention to her smile right now.
‘Mmm.’
Eruhaben.
Of course, he was slightly smiling as if to not show that he was angry, but his gaze was vicious.
Shhhhhhhh—–
There was also golden dust fluttering around him.
“Hmm? Goldie gramps! Why are you using your attribute? Is somebody attacking us?! Or did someone come to destroy something?!”
As Raon’s eyes opened wide and he asked in confusion, Eruhaben calmly answered back.
“It looks like I need to go attack something while you go destroy something.”
“Hmm?”
Raon tilted his head.
Cale felt his heart sink.
But why was his reaction like this?
For some odd reason, the corners of his lips were twitching and slowly going up.
“Cale.”
The ancient Dragon called out to Cale at that moment.
“Since you are not tired, you should be fine to chat, right?”
Cale suddenly recalled when he first met Eruhaben.
He had looked exactly like the stereotypical arrogant Dragon.
Cale felt like he could see that appearance overlapping with the current Eruhaben.
Because-
“I think I need to hear about that rude little son of a bitch of a Dragon.”
He was vicious.
Extremely vicious.
“Pfft.”
Cale chuckled.
Rude little son of a bitch of a Dragon.
There should only be one existence he was referring to right now.
Cale was certain that Eruhaben was talking about the head of the Purple Bloods that had taken over Aipotu, the Dragon Lord.
Cale looked around.
Rasheel, Dodori, Mila.
Dodori was still young and not very reliable, but Rasheel and Mila were full of spirit.
Rasheel, who was not hiding his extremely rebellious aura, was extremely annoyed.
“Those fucking Dragons of another world dare to mess with our youngest…”
He was mumbling to himself but Cale did not care to figure out what he was saying.
Mila was patting the concerned Dodori’s shoulder as she quietly stood there.
However, that made it the scariest.
He didn’t know why, but that was how he felt.
‘…Now that I think about it, these Dragons all have extremely strong personalities.’
They were still reliable.
The Dragons of Roan and the Dragons of Aipotu…
Dragons vs Dragons.
Just thinking about that created a vicious image in Cale’s mind but Cale didn’t think that the Dragons in front of him would lose.
“Ahem.”
Cale let out a fake cough before starting to speak.
“I will answer everything you are curious about within the scope of my own knowledge, Eruhaben-nim.”
He then looked at Alberu.
Alberu sighed before responding.
“Let’s go to the Royal Palace.”
They would chat in a place they were all too familiar with now.
* * *
The Central Plains.
The Emperor, who was looking outside not from his Imperial Palace but from Hainan, observed the vast sea underneath the endless sky.
“Did he leave?”
“Yes, your Majesty.”
Chief Eunuch Wi bowed deeply.
“He really did leave quietly.”
“…….”
“They were like a mirage when they came and the same when they left.”
Chief Eunuch Wi did not answer the Emperor and simply stood there with his head still bowed. After his many years of experience in the Imperial Palace, this was not the time to raise his head to look at the Emperor.
“Chief Eunuch Wi.”
“Yes, your Majesty.”
“The martial artists should have realized it as well, right?”
“The leaders of the respective forces seem to have noticed the absence of young master Kim’s people, your Majesty. As for the Heavenly Demon, he seems to have been informed in advance as he had a separate conversation with Noble Warrior Choi Han yesterday.”
“I see.”
The Emperor nodded his head.
“Their absence will soon spread throughout the Central Plains.”
Kim Hae-il was an existence they could not hide even if they tried their best to do so.
Now that he has disappeared, there will be quite a lot of rumors about where he had gone.
Of course, the very few people who knew his secrets will not tell others the truth.
Well, they should at least be smart enough to know that in order to be in their respective positions.
“He is truly an arrogant individual.”
The Emperor let out a quiet chuckle.
He had given the First Emperor’s Clothes, one of the Imperial Palace’s Three Great Treasures, as a reward.
Even if the government and the Martial Arts world worked together, forget the Blood Demon, they would not have even been able to defeat the trap created by the Dragons.
He had saved the Central Plains.
The Emperor had been generous and given a precious item like that because he could not give any position or land as a reward.
‘It felt like he needed it.’
The Emperor believed that Kim Hae-il was not someone who would remain as a human.
That was the reason he gave him the item of the First Emperor, someone who became an immortal.
“What an interesting fellow.”
However, that guy had not been satisfied.
‘Your Majesty.’
‘You look like you want something else as well.’
‘Yes, your Majesty.’
The Emperor recalled that guy’s confident gaze.
‘If I am to make a request in the future, please give me some help. If I don’t make such a request, then there will be no need.’
That punk had so easily said something so arrogant.
“…That person’s name was Cale Henituse, correct?”
“Yes. That is correct, your Majesty.”
The Emperor looked out at the vast sea that was as wide as the endless sky and nonchalantly commented.
“For some reason, I feel like I will see him again soon.”
That was what he was feeling.
The Emperor, whose instincts had allowed him to avoid the former Emperor and survive to become the current ruler, nonchalantly commented.
“Leave the rumors about Kim Hae-il alone.”
“…….”
Chief Eunuch Wi hesitated before commenting.
“…The rumors might become impossible for us to handle, your Majesty.”
“Why? Are you scared that the rumors will claim that he is an immortal and even greater than the Emperor?”
“…….”
The Emperor calmly commented to Chief Eunuch Wi who could not say anything.
“It doesn’t matter. So just let them be.”
“…As you command, your Majesty.”
The Emperor continued to speak to Chief Eunuch Wi who answered with a bit of a delay.
“I plan on heading back to Beijing today. You stay here with the Fist King to take care of things in Hainan, Guangdong, and the Martial Arts world.”
“As you command, your Majesty.”
“You may leave.”
“Yes, your Majesty.”
Chief Eunuch Wi cautiously left the Emperor’s room.
He then silently left the palace.
Only then did he finally let out a breath. Meeting with the Emperor always took a lot of mental strength.
‘Mm.’
His gaze headed toward one side.
It was the direction of the pavilion Cale and his people had used.
‘It doesn’t matter. So just let them be.’
He recalled what the Emperor had said.
‘He’s not wrong.’
It should not matter.
No matter what they said about young master Kim Hae-il, it would not be able to bring down the Emperor’s authority.
In fact, it might even be beneficial to the Emperor because Kim Hae-il was rumored to be a hidden member of the Imperial family.
However-
‘…This is different from normal things though.’
Rumors spread even wilder and quicker than wildfires.
They became endlessly exaggerated without showing any signs of stopping.
Furthermore-
‘Mmm.’
Chief Eunuch Wi could feel the odd atmosphere roaming around Hainan.
‘…Some people seem to be worshiping young master Kim-nim.’
Worshiping might be too excessive of a description.
However, respect or envy were too lacking to describe it, as people clearly felt a stronger emotion toward young master Kim.
It could not be helped as the people who had treated the Blood Demon as a god saw that person having the individual who defeated the Blood Demon as his subordinate and created a giant tsunami to stop the sea.
How could he ignore that?
Young master Kim Hae-il was already etched deep in their minds.
‘It is the same for the martial artists.’
They were looking at Kim Hae-il as if he was a harbinger who had already walked the path they needed to walk.
‘Mmm.’
It didn’t seem like it would become problematic, but…
“I don’t know.”
Young master Kim has already left, so what could this sort of atmosphere even do?
It would end up cooling down.
“I should just go fulfill my duties.”
Chief Eunuch Wi stopped talking and started walking.
He did take one last look toward the pavilion Kim Hae-il and his people had used and made a short prayer.
‘I pray that young master Kim-nim’s future days go as he wishes.’
Chief Eunuch Wi made such a prayer once a day for the person who had saved their home.
He had no idea whether it would come true, but he didn’t think having an extra person praying for him would create a negative effect.
Chief Eunuch Wi prayed for young master Kim’s group’s happiness and safety as he quickly moved.
There were still a lot of things to take care of in the Central Plains.
The busy Emperor and Chief Eunuch Wi did not notice it yet.
The Emperor of the Sea.
The Central Plains.
They did not know that rumors were spreading about how the Emperor in Beijing was the one to rule over the land while another Emperor ruled the sea.
Furthermore, there were also people who praised him as a God of Martial Arts.
They had no way of knowing about it yet.
These rumors were just starting to spread.
* * *
Tap. Tap.
Eruhaben tapped on the table.
“Aipotu is a world ruled by Dragons, their leader, the Dragon Lord’s attribute is ‘time’, and the dead Dragon who gave you guys that information had ‘future’ as her attribute?”
“Yes, Eruhaben-nim.”
“And there also seems to be a Dragon whose attribute is the ‘past’?”
“Yes, Eruhaben-nim. The Dragon who gave us the information, Maxillienne, told us to go find that Dragon.”
“Mm.”
Eruhaben debated for a moment before starting to speak again.
“Cale. Can I take a look at the items Maxillienne gave you?”
“Ah, yes. As much as you want, Eruhaben-nim.”
Cale handed the spatial pocket bag with his fortified crown, the ring, and the sword.
Eruhaben received the spatial pocket bag and nonchalantly commented.
“I will be going to Aipotu as well.”
“Yes, Eruhaben-nim.”
“The other Dragons will be going as well.”
The corner of Cale’s lips were twitching.
Eruhaben chuckled before touching the spatial pocket bag.
“Cale, the sword you plan on giving to Choi Han is the sword for the Guardian of the Dragon Lord?”
“Yes, Eruhaben-nim.”
Cale recalled the information Maxillienne gave him.
< Ah, the sword is a sword used by the Elf race that served the Dragon Lord for generations. Keke. I stole that as well! This is the sword that the first Dragon Lord bestowed upon the knight to serve him and it's amazing! Pwahaha. That Lord’s Guardian should only be half a guardian as well right now! >
Eruhaben asked in a calm voice.
“And that sword belonged to the Elves?”
“Yes, Eruhaben-nim.”
“And the Dragons of Aipotu have destroyed their World Tree?”
‘Hmm?’
Cale flinched.
He suddenly had a thought and looked toward Eruhaben.
The ancient Dragon calmly spoke.
“Elves respect and serve Dragons, but the only existence they truly follow and give their lives to protect is the World Tree.”
That was correct.
The Elves went crazy for Raon and Eruhaben but the foundation of their villages was the World Tree.
They took small branches of the World Tree to create their villages. The World Tree was their home and their world.
Aipotu.
He saw another path at that place.
Cale slowly started to speak.
“…The God of Hope told me something, Eruhaben-nim.”
Rather than being destroyed…
“The World Tree has lost its intellect.”
“Couldn’t that be understood to mean that it has lost its conscience and is being controlled by the Dragon Lord?”
“…That is possible.”
“Unless the Dragons of Aipotu are idiots, they would not get rid of the World Tree and turn the Elves hostile toward them.”
Cale added on to Eruhaben’s statement.
“They would instead destroy the World Tree’s mind and control it so that they could have the World Tree and all the Elves do their bidding.”
Cale and Eruhaben… The two of them looked at each other. Eruhaben slowly started speaking after a moment.
“If our hypothesis is correct.”
He turned to look at Raon.
The crown prince’s office… Raon, who was in a corner eating cookies, felt the gaze and his eyes opened wide.
Next to Raon was the young monk statue whose face was now extremely skinny.
“We may be able to say with certainty that we will have allies there since we are heading over with the seed of a new World Tree.”
The ancient Dragon saw a smile forming on Cale’s lips before he even finished speaking and nonchalantly commented.
“I’ll be back soon.”
He did not say where he was going.
“Are you heading to see the World Tree, Eruhaben-nim?”
However, Cale easily figured it out.
“Yes. I will look into the stability of these items and learn more about the World Tree’s seed.”
“Yes sir! Please have a safe trip!”
Cale leaned back against the couch once Eruhaben left.
“…Is this your house?”
He turned his head after hearing a grumbling voice to see Alberu looking at him with disbelief.
“It is as relaxing as my own house, your highness.”
“Ha.”
Alberu shook his head in disbelief. He was seated at a desk organizing documents.
He looked back at the documents as he spoke.
“I’ve already set some time with Ahn Roh Man. Just let me know when you are free.”
“Yes, your highness.”
‘Ah.’
Cale suddenly had a thought and asked Alberu.
“Could you please ask Ahn Roh Man if he knows Bluey?”
“Bluey? Is that all I need to ask?”
“Yes, your highness.”
“Alright, I will contact him once I am done with things. Are you heading over to the Henituse territory first?”
Raon stopped eating his cookie.
“Yes, your highness. We will.”
Raon’s wings fluttered at Cale’s answer.
“When are you going?”
Cale responded to Alberu’s question.
“Right now.”
Raon flew up.
“We’re going home!”
He then flew in a figure eight in the air.
“By the way, your highness.”
“…What is it?”
An unexplainable leeriness made Alberu look at Cale who nonchalantly commented.
“Hannah and Clopeh Sekka will soon be visiting the Roan Kingdom.”
“When?”
‘I send them a message on my way to the palace earlier, so probably in a few days?”
The two of them were quite famous people and core individuals of different places, requiring Cale to report to Alberu in advance.
“Do as you please.”
Cale nodded his head at Alberu who responded as if he didn’t care and then asked Raon to cast the teleportation spell.
His group gathered around him.
The Dragons had already left after their discussion. Only Eruhaben had stayed behind to hear some more details.
“Then I will contact you again once I am back home, your highness.”
“Yeah.”
Alberu waved as if he didn’t care.
“Human, should we go?”
An extremely excited Raon looked at Cale.
“Yeah.”
Raon cast the spell as soon as Cale gave permission.
Paaaat!
There was a bright light and Cale returned to the Henituse territory, more specifically the black castle in the Forest of Darkness.
Cale slowly opened his eyes after a moment of darkness.
He saw the entrance of the familiar black castle.
“?”
He then saw it.
“You, why-”
Clopeh Sekka.
That bastard knelt down as soon as he saw Cale and looked at him with a burning gaze.
He then started speaking in a calm voice.
“I’ve been waiting for the moment you called for me, my lord.”
For some odd reason, he could feel a tinge of lunacy underneath the calmness.
Cale looked stupefied.
‘What is going on?’
All that Cale had said in the message was for Clopeh to come because he had something to say to him.
He did not say anything about there potentially being a way to fix his body.
But why was this bastard acting like this?
“Hoohoo.”
Clopeh was laughing weirdly.
‘This bastard really is weird.
No matter what world I visit, nobody is as weird as this bastard.’
– Human, in my opinion, Clopeh is the best.
What did Raon mean by Clopeh being the best?
Cale did not want to ask as he felt as if he already knew the answer.
“Finally, I also have a chance to decorate a page of your legend.”
‘…Should I just leave this bastard as is?’
Cale felt tired already despite just getting home for the first time in a long while.
His eyes felt bleak thinking about how this bastard would react when he learned about the way to fix his body.
‘Will it be okay to take this punk to Aipotu?’
Cale seriously pondered that question.
Author’s Note
Hello, it is Yu Ryeo Han.
Please accept my greeting as we reached chapter 200 of Part 2.
…Part 2… Chapter 200… 2… 200… 2… 2… Two two…I’m sorry.
But this is truly weird!
When I was preparing for Part 2…
‘Fifty chapters per each Hunter household for 250! Give myself some space to tweak things with an extra 50 chapters to finish it all within 300 chapters!’
That was my original plan! I really thought that it would be possible, but…
This is truly mysterious.
We’ve only been through two households, two worlds, and have reached 200 chapters.
In that case, how far Part 2 will go- even I have no idea. Haha!
There are three households left so maybe add 300 chapters and finish within 500 chapters? Haha!
I don’t know either! Hahaha!
Thank you for being with me until here.
You are all giving me such strength. I truly mean that.
I pray that these words can leave a small moment of joy or at least the slightest of pleasures to the readers.
Thank you very much.
– Sincerely, Yu Ryeo Han –
—
Translator’s Comments
Baby Shark do do do do doo (that’s what I was thinking when she went two two two two two)
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