NOVEL WEB Chapter 204: Where is the danger?
After putting the princess to sleep so that she could recover some of her strength, the rest of those who witnessed her second coming gathered in one of the rooms inside Teria's mansion.
"I know. I already called the banners." Teria's father clearly wasn't willing to waste any time. Now that I thought about it, this would explain the fat beads of sweat trickling down his forehead.
"Still, I said that I would see this situation to its fitting end… But I'm not sure what does that means." Shaking my head, I lowered my eyes. As much as I wanted to be in control I had a premonition that something was finally going down.
It wasn't just some naive worrying, a popular flaw of anyone new to decision-making. It was nothing more but also nothing less than just an analysis of the situation.
When compared to my other adventures in other worlds… This world here was just too easy. Even with the appearance of the force capable of harming the system, nothing could stand in my way so far. And for as much as I could tell, just by throwing some Sander' stones around I could easily deal with everything I encountered so far.
So where was this high difficulty level that the system marked this mission of mine with? Just what was dangerous in it? Just the fact that I was dealing with that bastard god?
And then came yet another clue. The sub-mission of 'bridal night' was now greyed out, just like the two preceding ones. Right now, only the 'One ring to rule them all' mission remained on my feed. And so far, it has yet to flash in green even once.
"Whatever is going to happen from now, having an army at your disposal won't hurt." While just a little notion, those words held far greater meaning. Because in the way Teria's father formed them, it appeared as if he finally managed to accept me as a third party, rather than co-belligerent of the existing two sides.
"I won't deny that, but…" just as I wanted to point out another issue bound to holding a standing army, the doors to the huge chamber shook under someone's knocking.
"Come in." Standing up from his chair, Teria's father looked towards the doors.
"Reporting in, Chief!" Rushing through the doors, a bloodied man kneeled on one knee and lowered his head.
"Speak." Not wasting any time, the chief ordered.
"Humans broke the armistice. A whole new army appeared. As for the moment when I was sent here…" With his report reaching some kind of crucial information, the messenger clearly hesitated.
"Speak, I say!" Turning his tone a little lower, Teria's father ordered.
"By the time I left," he young man's voice shook a bit, "the main front was already obliterated. We were still holding on to the mountain passes though." Lowering his head in wait for an impending punishment, the young man remained frozen for a long moment before realizing that no reprimand was coming his way.
"A whole new army? As unbelievable as it is, they wouldn't be able to break through so fast otherwise." Rather than trying to argue with the facts, Teria's father accepted them at a face value.
"Good job bringing the news. Go and have some rest. We will need all the hands we can get soon." Sending the messenger away, the burly man turned silent for a moment before his eyes wandered to my face.
"I'm assuming you are going to help us now?" As simple as this question was, for the winged tribe it was of great importance. The thing was when this question appeared, I actually questioned my own allegiance for the very first time.
Why I was assuming by default to ally myself with the winged people?
'No.' I shook my head to get rid of those doubts. The only reason why I was siding with this particular side, was because I already wielded some influence with them. And instead of wasting all my efforts so far and actually siding with the wingless tribe, I could make use of what I had on my hands.
"Yes. In fact, I think it would be for the best if we departed right away. One way or another, I should be able to hold their invasion for a while." Turning my face towards the burly man in the middle of the room, I smiled. "That should give you some time to gather the troops."
Without a deep knowledge of how the organization of the winged tribes worked, there was no point for me to stay and attempt advising anyone. Even if earthy ideas could work wonders here, the entire conflict was likely to be over by the time the first few would be implemented.
No, I could contribute the most in times like this by involving myself in the fighting personally.
"Good. Then, Tyrvion." The man stretched his hand forward. At first, I was so startled by this sudden move that I could only follow the movement with my eyes. Only after staring at the man's outreached hand for a moment did I connect the dots in my mind.
"It's Ma… It's Krist." At first, I was going to give my nickname out of habit, but I managed to stop myself from doing so. Even if it could mean trouble for the future, I didn't want to spoil the sacred bond of brotherhood in arms that was about to come to life.
We shook our hands. In this short and silent moment when our eyes connected, I felt as if all the experiences that shaped that man to become who he was right now surged into my mind. IT was as if for a moment, I could see the origin of every single scar of his, every moment that shaved away at the rock of his naive, young self to carve out the monumental power he possessed right now.
Yet, just when I was nearing the core of the man's soul, to a point where I felt as if I could fully become him at will… The feeling stopped.
'What was that…' As our hands parted, I could only stare at my own palm, unable to make sense of what just happened. Was it some witchcraft-related spell that Ayda has yet to teach me? Or maybe some power that could only manifest in a true mage? Or maybe it was just a fluke, caused by the unstable fabric of the universe stemming from the system moving me between the worlds?
All those questions, and no answer in sight. If even I had some clue or path that I could follow to understand yet another thing about myself…
Sadly, I was left all alone in the dark of ignorance. Not knowing what would happen next, not knowing what my next move should be, I could only foolhardy push forward.
"With that, I won't hold you any longer. I promise to make the most out of the time you will buy us." Nodding his head with respect, Tyrvion turned around and looked at his daughter. "What are you going to do now? You accompanied him only to make sure he would bring the sacred core, right?"
Hearing those words, I squinted my eyes a bit. While it was obvious that by the time I was confined to that white dimension where the princess originally resided the time in the real world didn't stop. While I only managed to remember a few details from before getting sucked into that strange prison, I was quite sure that Arsha was actually with us!
But when I returned, the girl was nowhere to be seen. As such, it wouldn't be surprising to assume that Teria and Tyrvion already had a long conversation about all the topics necessary… But now that I thought about it, just how long was that time they were waiting for me?
It was a question that shyly started to appear in my thoughts ever since I heard the news of another army appearing. Because from what I saw back in the very moment I first appeared in this world, neither of the sides here was going easy on the other.
With the armistice signed during the time I was traveling North, it would be nearly impossible for humans to come up with yet another powerful force… Unless the humans were not united in the first place.
This I already knew from the fact that some borders still existed like the one when the first trouble with Teria started. But if such was the case, why would this army appear now, right as I finally freed myself from that white confinement?
"I will go with him." The resolve in Teria's voice was clear. Standing still and looking directly in her father's eyes, there was no hint of anxiety in her soul.
"I understand. Go then, my children. I hope that when we meet for the next time, you will greet me with good news!"