NOVEL WEB Chapter 63
“Hero party is… coming here?”
“Yep.”
Upon hearing Lati’s words, I momentarily spaced out.
Considering their past actions, I thought the Hero party would have already passed Stormblast.
The reason Hero parties typically stay in cities or towns is to resolve issues they can’t handle themselves.
So they visit the adventurer’s guild to take on requests, but if there’s a guardian in the city or town, the story changes.
Stormblast has guardians.
And not just one, but three of them.
El Stormblast.
Kunder Stormblast.
Lati Stormblast.
Three members of the Stormblast clan, to be exact, two Stormblasts and one Infeurblaeno, are protecting it.
And they’re all dragons.
It’s a territory guarded by three dragons, so I thought the Hero party would just pass by.
But now they say they’re coming.
“But… I’ve already withdrawn… why in the world are they coming?”
Those words reluctantly slipped from my lips.
The Hero party must already know this situation in detail.
My master mentioned that Kunder was coming to get me, officially marking my withdrawal.
No matter how powerful and important they are in their respective fields, they are up against the Stormblast family.
It’s not easy to resist the words of those whom even the emperor cannot treat carelessly.
The Hero burdened with the fate of the world might be an exception.
But even that seems quite challenging in reality.
“Do you know Yggdrasil?”
“The country of Rapirie… is that what you mean?”
“Yep. They’ve requested to meet with the Stormblast family there, with a very rare material called Yggdrasil’s branch.”
Yggdrasil’s branch, as she mentioned, is a material that’s not easily obtainable.
It comes from the divine body of the Elven goddess, after all.
But suddenly?
“Of course, that’s only their official position.”
“Huh?”
“Well, I may not know since I’m not part of the Hero party, but they probably want to see you.”
“……”
Did they intentionally create an official meeting to justify their visit?
Or was it just a coincidence that the information was sent from Yggdrasil?
“By the way, El and Kunder are aware of this too. El will probably inform you soon.”
Lati’s words were true.
“Rui.”
My master, who came into my room, gently sat on the bed and started to play with my hair.
“I guess you’ve already heard from Lati. Yes, the Hero Party is coming to our family.”
“······Can’t I just refuse?”
Wouldn’t it be better to pass on this instead of getting tangled up and causing a bigger mess?
“Unfortunately, that’s not possible. Because Yggdrasil is involved.”
“I see.”
“Rui, the reason we can’t refuse Yggdrasil’s request isn’t just because they’re royal. It’s the branch of the World Tree they brought that’s key.”
“······A branch?”
At my question, my master’s eyes shone bright blue.
“We’re going to experiment with causality restoration using that branch.”
“Ah.”
The World Tree is the god of the elves.
So, the branch of the World Tree is practically a part of a deity.
It’s an experiment to see if causality can be restored with the power of the World Tree, which has a different divine aspect from the highest goddess in this world.
To be honest, the potential for this was far greater than all the random experiments we’ve done while clinging to prophecies so far.
In that case.
“Ultimately, it’s certain that you’ll meet the Hero Party. And they’ll likely want to see you too, so there’s no escaping it.”
“······.”
“So, you might as well get up and shake it off. Separately from reuniting with the Hero Party…”
My master rubbed my face with her hand one last time and said,
“If you don’t want to worry those who were once your comrades.”
Click.
After my master left, I kept mulling over her words and eventually got out of bed.
I really didn’t want to welcome them in this state.
*
The next day, I left the castle with my master and headed towards the mansion.
The cold air that used to flow through the mansion was now filled with warmth from the bustling movement of the servants after a long time.
“Move this to the banquet hall, take that to the kitchen… ”
“Yuus, Laol, the preparations for the new chandelier…”
It could be seen as a sudden large event, yet the expressions on the servants’ faces were just blank and nothing more.
Everything was being prepared perfectly as if it wouldn’t matter when the emperor arrived.
“It’s lively here after a long time. Now, Rui. You should get ready too.”
As my master snapped her fingers, three maids suddenly appeared from behind to take me to my room.
“Excuse us, Lady Rui.”
“···Yes.”
The Hero Party will arrive in the Stormblast territory tomorrow.
Today is the preparation for that.
The three maids began to dress me up with numerous dresses and cosmetics.
If it were the old me, I would have been too shy to handle it and would have run away, but for some reason, I felt nothing at all.
I didn’t even feel it.
It was like I had become a puppet in a puppet show.
Finally, when my master entered, the choice of outfit for tomorrow was complete.
“You’re looking good. Your color has returned, and you’re even prettier now.”
“Thank you.”
“Rui.”
“Yes.”
“Tomorrow, be resolute.”
As soon as my master and I showed signs of talking, the three maids vanished in an instant.
“I cherish you. I want to grant you everything you desire.”
“…..”
“But you cannot be part of the Hero party. I cannot allow it.”
Sizzle…
A spark of electricity jumped from my master’s hand.
“Even if it means fighting the Hero party.”
And with the night as cover, all preparations to welcome the Hero party were complete, and the day dawned.
*
“Ugh… it’s cold… Niabella, hold my hand…”
“Ah, okay!”
Lapirie sniffled and grabbed Niabella’s hand, looking comfortable.
Coming from Yggdrasil in the southern part of the Empire, she found it hard to deal with Stormblast’s cold.
For her, Niabella, with a naturally warmer body temperature, was practically a savior.
So, when her clothes started to thicken, Niabella became Lapirie’s human campfire.
“Everyone, Stormblast is in sight.”
At that moment, Aswel, who was moving at the front, spoke.
“Wow… it’s really big.”
“It really is a duke’s territory…”
The duke’s territory, nestled against the snowy mountain range, sprawled across a vast plain.
Although the northern cold was not great for the citizens, it served as a shield against enemies.
“Alright, everyone remembers the plan, right?”
“…..Yes.”
“Of course!”
“I remember too!”
At Serelin’s question, everyone answered energetically.
As all eyes turned to Aswel, he calmly nodded in response.
“Let me say it again; we can’t drag this out too long, so we need to resolve it within that time!”
Everyone nodded at Lapirie’s continuing reminder.
“Okay, then let’s prepare! Let’s go get our comrade!”
“For my sister!”
“…..For Rui.”
As everyone got ready to move for one person, the Hero party stepped into Duke Stormblast’s territory.
.
.
.
If Alpares is a city of white stones, and Lakr is a city of ores, then here in Stormblast, it was the city of snow.
“Wow! It’s the Hero!”
“It’s the Hero~!”
But regardless of the city’s differences, all the citizens welcomed the Hero party alike.
All the citizens welcomed the Hero party equally.
They sent boundless goodwill towards the man carrying the fate of the world and his party.
“······.”
“······.”
Normally, he would respond to such greetings, but right now, he couldn’t.
‘······I can feel it.’
The spirit of Duke Stormblast was palpable.
Not just Aswel, but everyone in the Hero party slightly shivered at the thrill they felt in Lakr.
“This way to the mansion.”
After a while, escaping the citizens’ welcome, the Hero party followed a butler towards a large white mansion located at the edge of the territory.
Certainly a duke’s residence, it was even more massive than other noble mansions.
And any dullness was compensated by an Ice Castle perched on the mountain range behind the mansion.
‘That’s······.’
A sudden memory flashed in Aswel’s mind.
She definitely said she could learn magic after climbing the mountain.
So could that be the training ground from the past?
Imagining her curious face, filled with questions, Aswel couldn’t help but smile.
“I will inform the Duke.”
The butler’s words cut through her thoughts.
A moment later, the door of Stormblast Mansion opened, and a man stepped out.
“You’re here.”
Kunder Stormblast.
The Guardian of the Northern Region.
And a Dragon.
Just as he looked weeks ago, he appeared as if he molded a storm into a human.
“Hmm?”
But the first place his gaze landed wasn’t on any of the Hero party.
Whoosh.
It was actually one of the horses heading towards the stable behind them.
‘Why is Nightlux here···?’
While everyone else, including Tempest, trembled under the Dragon’s gaze, Nightlux met Kunder’s sight with a calm expression.
“······Interesting.”
Saying that, Kunder gave them a formal greeting.
“I am Kunder Stormblast, the head of the Stormblast family. Hero party, feel free to rest.”
And thus, the first day at Stormblast began.