chapter 49
49 – Guardian of Flame Canyon (2)
Flame Canyon.
A place where heroes who sacrificed themselves to the last and fell heroically to protect their land are resting.
Originally, when the body dies, the soul must leave for the afterlife, but the souls of heroes do not go to the afterlife, but stay in this world and guard this land forever.
For hundreds of years, we have been trying to exclude intruders coming from outside.
As a result, Flame Canyon became a symbol of prohibition, strictly prohibiting entry by the general public.
“It’s a terrible sandstorm.”
hehehehe.
As its nickname, Flame Canyon, suggests, the entire area surrounding the canyon was desert.
Wind-blown sand and ever-changing terrain.
A sand pit that sucks in all living things around it.
Is the temperature particularly high, or are there flares leaking out every now and then?
I wouldn’t know until I saw it with my own eyes, but I heard rumors from time to time, so I was walking around paying special attention to my surroundings.
“Kid. “Is it still far?”
Rasputin walks unsteadily with his tongue sticking out like a dog.
Perhaps because they come from polar regions, they seem to have no tolerance for heat.
The water and beer that Rasputin personally brought had already run out.
“Hold on. “I’ll be arriving soon.”
“Ship… I’m craving a cold beer… ”
As the three-legged crow said, the power of the sunstone fragments resonates with each other.
An unknown certainty and resonance were leading me to a forbidden land.
Sunstone fragment.
An artifact that symbolizes the sun and contains the power of the sun.
I was also curious about what form the three-legged crow would change when it regains the glory of the sun.
“Stop!”
As we approached Flame Canyon, guards blocked us.
This was because the government had deployed separate guards because ordinary people would inevitably lose their lives if they entered.
Soldiers with the eagle seal, the symbol of the empire, on their helmets instantly surrounded us.
Among them, the one who appeared to be the commander stepped forward and opened his mouth.
“Ahead of here is Flame Canyon. “Due to special imperial laws, entry by the general public is prohibited, so please return immediately.”
“What if I say I have business to do in Flame Canyon?”
“Bring your pass.”
From the looks of it, it’s not something that bribes will work for.
I didn’t even bring a pass or anything.
However, if I were to borrow the power of my family, I would be advertising that I had officially visited Flame Canyon.
“Rasputin.”
“Know.”
Rasputin must have noticed everything in my gaze and immediately began to approach.
Sreung!
As the large figure over 2 meters stomped closer, the commander must have been taken aback and pulled out his sword and pointed it at Rasputin.
“Don’t come closer!”
Was Rasputin, one of the stars of the empire in the past, so powerful?
The commander began to slowly retreat, sweating profusely.
“He’s a quick-witted guy.”
Wow!
In one instant, Rasputin’s fist blew off the commander’s head.
The head and torso separated and the torso fell helplessly onto the ground.
“Captain!”
“This guy!”
As the commander was killed in an instant, the sentries drew their weapons and attacked Rasputin.
Kwasik.
Fizzing.
All the weapons they wielded were unable to pierce Rasputin’s body and were all shattered.
“What…what?!”
“All weapons… ?”
“hahahaha!”
Their lives began to fade away meaninglessly without even a single scratch on their bodies.
Every time you swing your arm, you lose one life.
In the middle of the desert, the lives of the sentries began to fade away.
“Are you done?”
“Tsk. “I don’t think I can even warm up.”
Rasputin clicks his tongue after shaking off the blood.
The horrors and tragedies that created Rasputin.
Among the corpses, there was not a single healthy person.
All of them are bodies that have been broken or torn apart somewhere.
These were soldiers who could not safely go to the afterlife.
“Then let’s go in.”
“It would be nice if you could make me happy this time.”
In the middle of the desert.
Two men wearing gloves slowly walked into the Flame Canyon.
*********************************************
A long time ago, there existed a village in the middle of the desert.
The village built around a huge oasis gradually grew and eventually developed into a country.
All the nomads who wandered aimlessly through the desert came together to form a foundation, and the desert culture became their pride.
When the country gradually grew and became one huge kingdom.
A little king appeared.
Even though he was young, he was intelligent.
Even though he was small, he was courageous.
I thought I could understand everyone, even if I was a child.
Even though he had only recently entered the world, he understood the principles of the world.
When the intelligent king appeared, the people all cheered.
Everyone in the desert gathered to hear the news that someone who could represent us had finally appeared.
In front of the grand plaza where everyone was gathered, the little king opened his mouth.
“I understand. And think. The desert will become our pride.”
Even with the little king’s short words, the people swore loyalty to the little king.
After that, the desert country prospered until the little king came of age.
And it perished.
Fearing that the desert country was growing, neighboring countries joined forces and invaded the desert country.
Even though the little king was brilliant, he could not stop the allied forces that were united by human malice.
Just like that, the desert country collapsed along with its little king.
When the desert country collapsed, the Allied forces returned to their respective countries.
The desert lost its owner again and wandered the world.
“… “A little king.”
Words written on a stone slab filled with dust.
A clever little king who appeared in a desert country.
After reading the anecdote about him, I was able to understand why Flame Canyon was created.
“Ideals come together and become reality.”
Everyone’s dreams and ideals.
Those illusions came together to create an impregnable barren land called Flame Canyon.
“It’s an eerie atmosphere.”
Rasputin followed behind, looked around the ruins, and then gave a short comment.
“I agree. “I’ve never been in such a bad place before.”
As Rasputin said, the ruins of Flame Canyon were giving off a strange atmosphere.
The remains of a collapsed kingdom, the tomb where the fallen king rests.
I could feel the airflow of people’s hopes for the little king’s rest.
Darkness engulfed the hallway.
A light that dispels the darkness for a moment.
Rasputin and I slowly walked into the ruins, facing the strange and bizarre sight.
A strong feeling that the second sunstone fragment is right in front of you.
“This way. Rasputin.”
“… “It’s like looking at underground ruins in the empire.”
Little King’s Altar.
great blood.
Great fear.
A stone statue with blood pouring from its eyes appeared to welcome Rasputin.
And there was a shiny stone stuck in the exact center of the statue’s forehead.
“Rasputin.”
“why? Kid. “Are you at all scared?”
“The thing I’m looking for is over there.”
Rasputin’s gaze falls on a sparkling stone.
“Is that what you want?”
“Okay, if we just retrieve that stone, our business here is over.”
As I slowly approached the statue, sand dust began to pound inside the stone chamber.
Coo coo coo coo coo.
“… what.”
“under. “I knew it would be like this.”
What appeared through the sand and dust were the dead guarding the ruins.
To drive out the grave robbers who disturb the little king’s rest.
The loyalists who had devoted everything to the little king’s life arrived in the desert country once again.
“Go away.”
“Run away.”
“We cannot go to our king.”
The guardians sternly approached Rasputin and me, repeating the same words.
Even though reason had not yet returned, the memories and habits embedded in their souls were moving them.
Wow!
Take out your sword.
And the power of Unggeomgwi is put into the sword.
Gradually, swords began to sprout from all over the body, and numerous swords sprouted from behind the back.
I immediately rushed towards the dead.
Jaeaeang!
The sharp cracking sound of metal cutting through the air tears apart the space.
“hahahahaha! “They’re so much better than the guys from before!”
Rasputin also showed his teeth and began crushing the dead with his fists.
Even if they were dead men protecting the little king, they were far from worthy opponents of Rasputin, who had already transcended human limitations.
Moreover, since I move according to my thoughts…
Just repeating the same actions.
There was no way the attack would work on Rasputin, who moved like a wild boar.
“It’s easy.”
Kwasik.
He rips off the head of the dead person in his hand and throws it into a corner.
Kwasik!
Even though it lost its head, it attacked again, but when I separated its arms and legs, it stopped moving.
After clearing away all the dead that had risen up, Rasputin and I approached the statue.
Shiny stones.
The power of having a piece of the sun.
The power that those who will fight against me desperately desire.
Just as I was about to reach out to take the sunstone from the statue’s forehead.
“Who are you?”
The castle of ruin.
great blood.
little king.
The image of a small king who announced the end of the desert country appeared before my eyes.
“… “I’m going crazy.”
The little king, who was supposed to sleep forever, woke up.