Chapter 312: Proclamation (1)
Chapter 312: Proclamation (1)
The sun goddess Solari.
The youngest among the seven archangels, she was also a special being in Heaven.
Altariel, the Archangel of Penitence, called her a perfect being.
That was Altariel’s natural evaluation because Solari’s power was comparable to Auriel, the Archangel of Judgment, her beauty was on par with Eros, the Archangel of Love, and her personality was as friendly and kind as Raguel, the Archangel of Justice.
Auriel, the eldest of the seven archangels, cherished and loved Solari very much.
No, not only Auriel as all the angels in Heaven loved Solari.
The Archangel of the Sun.
A holy being who imparted a bright and warm light to everyone without discrimination.
Therefore, it was inevitable that she showed interest in descending.
The arrival of the overlords of Hell made the earth into a place of death, lamentation, and grief.
Numerous countries collapsed and countless people lost their lives.
Solari could not bear to see this and chose to descend to the human world, rejecting the disapproval of the archangels including Auriel.
Arriving in Pleiades with a group of angels, she wiped out the darkness on earth with the light of the sun.
Many people saw the miracles of the archangel.
Those who had been wandering around the world with only fear and despair and no place to go then gathered at Solari’s side.
Solari cared for them with love and devotion, and lifted the darkness from their hearts with the light of the sun.
People loved such a Solari.
Many who were saved from despair began to follow Solari.
But it was impossible for Solari alone to completely removed the darkness in the earth.
That was why two archangels from Heaven chose to descend on earth to help Solari.
The beings of the world regarded the angels from the high heavens as their gods, and Solari became the supreme being called the sun goddess.
However, this did not change the nature of Solari.
Rather than reigning as a god and controlling the world, she still stood at the lowest level and tried to take care of everyone in the world.
But it made some beings angry.
The overlords of Hell held hands for the first time to swallow the sun that had descended on earth, and Solari was eventually killed by the sword of Asmodeus, the overlord of lust.
The sun fell on that day.
However, Solari’s will was not broken.
With her remaining power, Solari completed the ritual she had been preparing for a long time, and as a result, Pleiades became an independent world that was not connected to Heaven or Hell.
The demons of Hell could not appear in the human world unless they went through the Hell Gate or underwent the process of summoning, and the same was true of the angels in Heaven.
The Solari denomination never forgot the sun goddess who devoted her everything even in the last moment.
So they followed her will and continued to fight the remaining demons on earth.
They prayed even though they knew that there was no longer a goddess to hear their prayers, and continued to love her and keep their faith.
But there was a limit.
Every time they fought against the demons, the Solari denomination wore out little by little, and met its complete annihilation in the end.
But people’s faith in Solari did not disappear.
The denomination had disappeared, but the legacy the denomination had left was still passed down.
And one of those legacies.
The last and greatest legacy that the Solari denomination wanted to protect until its moment of collapse.
The denomination took one action to prevent anyone from finding that legacy.
Only those who collected all four slates could find the tomb of Solari’s champion, Gallus, and again, only those who were qualified could find the way from Gallus’ Tomb to Solari’s final legacy.
“May the sun be with you.”
The Solari denomination disappeared, and the four stone tablets became a forgotten past.
No one knew the exact location of the slates, let alone its existence.
But now.
After hundreds of years, there were those who drew nearer to that final legacy.
***
“Bye-bye!”
“Goodbye!”
“Let’s play again next time!”
When the fairies brightly smiled and waved their hands, Jude waved his hand as well.
As for the other two.
Elune’s cheeks were red so she could not properly say goodbye, and Cordelia was the same.
Or rather, Cordelia’s state was a bit worse.
“Haa…”
She had not gone through all the steps yet.
According to the books that Kajsa had lent her, she was just knocking on the door.
She and Jude had only kissed and touched each other.
That was all that they had done, but not for Cordelia. She felt like she had run up the stairs at once.
Jude’s big hands.
She wondered when it had become so big. It was now big enough to hold from her neck up to her clavicle, and it was hard and firm that she found it reliable.
She had felt it often.
Him pinching her cheeks or hugging her waist, so she had often felt his hands.
But today was different.
Places he normally did not reach.
Places that even Dahlia had never touched.
‘Lewd.’
Was the word ‘touching’ such a lewd word?
Cordelia muttered as she bit her lips and took a deep breath. She kept remembering the places where Jude had touched, but after she struggled to forget it, she decided to be a bit more brazen.
Because Adelia-unnie must have done this after her first kiss.
Because everyone else should have done this too.
‘Yes, yes. That’s right, that’s right.’
I’ve only just knocked on the door. I still have a very long way to go.
Moreover, the opponent is none other than Jude.
‘Jude.’
My scammer.
He’s insidious, mean, and shameless, but I still like him. I love him to death.
Why do I like him so much? Since when did I like him?
My brain feels like it’s melting.
Just thinking of Jude makes me smile.
‘Because I knocked on the door…’
Next is to open the door, open the door, open the door…
Next is…
Just imagining it makes my heart pound.
It’s scary, terrifying, and exciting, and it makes my heart race, but one thing is clear.
It’s okay if it’s Jude.
It’s fine if it’s Jude.
It’s not scary if it’s Jude.
Yes, it’s okay.
Her face was hot, but it strangely felt that this was something new.
And it had been red and hot since earlier.
Cordelia blinked her eyes. She slowly turned to Jude before giggling and tilting her head.
“Jude.”
“Yes?”
“Why are you standing like that?”
It seemed like he was standing with his body slightly leaning forward.
It felt like he was hiding something.
“No, uh. Well. Just…”
Jude did not seem to be his usual shameless self. He awkwardly smiled before he turned to Elune and said.
“Elune-nim. Thank you very much for today.”
“Eh? Yeah. I liked it too.”
Elune blushed as her ears twitched several times.
Although she was 200 years old, she was as pure as a crystal.
The sight that she had seen today might have been too stimulating for her.
‘What if Vincenzo makes a fuss later?’
Jude was a bit afraid of that, but he shook his head afterwards.
No way.
It was only that much.
“Then we’ll go back now.”
“Will you be continuing that?”
At Elune’s innocent question, Jude coughed as if he wanted to continue, while Cordelia covered her face with her hands and slightly turned towards Jude. Her blue eyes that could be seen in between her fingers had a slight look of expectation.
“Ahem, ahem. Umm… no. Because it’s late at night. And Elune-nim, please keep what happened today a secret if possible.”
“Is that your wish?”
“It’s a request, but… okay, let’s make that my wish.”
After all, Elune did everything they had asked her to do, and his conscience could not agree to the amazing solution that Cordelia had suggested.
“Okay, I promise to keep it a secret.”
Elune nodded a few times and sat down before closing her eyes. It seemed like she was trying to remember something.
‘Let’s not think about what she’s trying to imagine.’
Jude thought to himself and held the hand of Cordelia who stepped back in surprise.
“Cordelia?”
“Eh? I-it’s nothing. It’s just… a bit. Yes, a bit. I was a bit surprised. I was really that surprised. Yes, yes, that’s right. It’s like being surprised when you see a worm, being surprised when Melissa says something strange, or sometimes you’re just surprised…”
What the heck is she saying?
Cordelia rambled on and on before she went ‘ehehe’ and clasped Jude’s hand.
She had always held his hand, but it somehow felt special today.
And it was the same for Jude.
Small and warm hand.
Was it this small?
Was it that soft?
‘Calm down. Calm down, Jude Bayer.’
After taking a few deep breaths and finally calming himself down, Jude walked forward.
***
“Master!”
“Kirara!”
“Master!”
“Kirara!”
When they returned to their guest rooms, Kirara welcomed Jude and Cordelia, or to be exact, Cordelia.
Kirara had been so tired when they arrived at the Orange Gate, so she fell asleep earlier. That was why she had only seen Cordelia now.
“I was so scared. I was afraid. I wanted to run away. But I didn’t run away.”
I didn’t betray you.
Kirara continued speaking as she buried her face in Cordelia’s chest, and Cordelia smiled.
As she patted Kirara’s head and back, she whispered softly.
“Yes, yes, I believed in you. You did a really good job. I’m proud of my Kirara.”
At Cordelia’s words, or to be exact, at the words ‘my Kirara,’ Kirara was about to burst into tears. No, she was already crying. She recalled the hundreds of thoughts she had when they escaped, so she clung to Cordelia more.
“Master.”
“Yes, yes, my Kirara.”
Cordelia could not help but smile like a mother and continued to hug Kirara.
And in the meantime, Jude saw something a bit odd.
Scarlet was making an uncomfortable expression for some reason.
Lucas and Kajsa seemed to have gone to sleep as they were not here.
‘Is it really like what Cordelia said?’
A love triangle between Lucas, Kajsa, and Scarlet.
From Jude’s perspective, it did not matter who ended up with whom, but the thought of seeing it in front of his eyes made him a bit excited.
‘I guess I did like Legend of Heroes 2.’
It was a game he became engrossed with because of Yellow Storm, but regardless, he was absorbed in playing it.
Lucas, Kajsa, and Scarlet.
In Legend of Heroes 2, all three of them lived unhappy lives.
Lucas became a demonic human depending on the route.
Even if he survived, he lost his loved ones one by one just like what happened to Jude, and eventually became an unfortunate swordsman who lost his life.
Although Scarlet survived until the second half of Legend of Heroes 3, she was also a wreck.
After losing her body to the demon in the sword in Legend of Heroes 2, the numerous evil deeds, depravity, and continuous killings she did tormented her conscience and soul endlessly.
Kajsa’s life did get better, but she was not happy either.
She lost everything that she cherished and loved – her hometown, family, and friends, as well as her subordinates, because of Malekith, so she became obsessed with revenge.
But it was different now.
Lucas did not become a demonic human, Scarlet did not fall prey to the demon in the sword, and Kajsa did not lose her hometown.
It became a romcom with a love triangle, something which never happened in the original.
That fact pleased Jude.
It warmed his heart.
Because I want to see something like this.
Because I want a world like this.
From the time I saw the original.
No, even before that.
“Now that you’re here, I’m going to sleep.”
Scarlet briefly said before turning around.
She must have waited for them because she did not want to make Kirara wait alone.
“She’s very kind, right?”
Cordelia spoke with a grin, and Jude nodded.
Scarlet was indeed very kind and nice just like her appearance.
“What about Kirara?”
“I think she fell asleep. It seems like her tension has been relieved.”
Cordelia smiled softly, stroking Kirara’s head who slept like a baby.
***
The next morning, the party immediately prepared to leave the Orange Gate.
They still had some time, but it was because of the heavenly voice that came down last night.
The empress dowager did not specifically say what the message was, but it seemed to be good news given the look on her face.
“We must hurry to the land of Marquis Buckingham.”
After speaking to the emperor who got on the carriage first, Jude and Cordelia each rode an Elven Steed and looked back.
“Goodbye. See you again. I want to spar with you one more time. I want to see the continuation. Umm… because I’m curious.”
Jude and Cordelia awkwardly smiled at Elune’s rambling about the continuation, and they waved their hands.
And Valencia who was watching all this said with a sigh.
[My successor, was it not enough to dye Cordelia black?]
Jude did not answer, and Melissa said something similar to Cordelia.
“Then we’ll be on our way.”
Starting with Leon and Sarah who took the lead along with the Shadow Knights, the group all began to move.
It was early in the morning.
Kajsa and Scarlet rode their horses to the left and right, with Lucas in between them.
Kirara sat while hugging Cordelia’s waist tightly.
Jude looked straight ahead. He spurred his horse towards the northern part of the empire, the territory of Marquis Buckingham.