Chapter 41 - Hero VS Kingdom 3 (2/2)
The problem right now was the fact that the world and the monsters changed depending on the seasons.There were monsters that were calm in the spring, and they would cause trouble in the summer.Then there were the monsters that attacked after the fall harvest in the winter.They attacked to steal the food of the humans.Artpe was trying to proceed on a specific route, and there were those on this route that would be affected by the seasons..
‘If Silpennon is able to grow up quickly, I can use him.No, it might be faster to develop this one. ’
On one side of him, a lovely white-haired girl was grabbing onto his sleeve like Maetel.He smirked as he looked down at her.
She was skilled enough to control her Mana, and under his tutelage, she was emitting a white colored Mana.She was moving it around with one hand.Her skill level was better than him in his previous life.She had ridiculous amount of potential.Why were there only geniuses around him!
The genius pouted as she looked up at Artpe.
“This is tiring, oppa.”
“Mana is nature.If you accept nature as being Mana, nature will soon become one with your Mana.It will fill you up.”
“Ok.I’ll try harder.”
Demons possessed overwhelming more Mana compared to humans.After consuming Mana, Demons also had a much faster recovery time.The reason for this difference was the fact that the Demon race looked at Mana in a fundamentally different way than humans.
No matter how much he explained it, humans were unable to understand the perspective seen by the Demon race.There were magicians in historical records that were barely able to understand this truth after many years.This foundation allowed them to be able to compete against Demons.
In his past life, the magician from the hero’s party understood this perspective.It was thanks to this magician that the Demon race’s strongholds in the human world was all brought down.Any Demon that got in her way had died.In truth, Artpe was more afraid of the magician than the hero in his previous life.
“Ah.It quickened a little bit.Oppa, it is as if the Mana is smiling at me!”
“······yes, I see.So that’s how it is.”
In this life, it seemed there would be at least one more terrifying prodigy that would be on par with that magician.
Artpe wonder why such a monster-like prodigy like Sienna hadn’t made a name for herself in his previous life.
He stroked the head of the girl that was smiling brightly at him.
“Ughhhh, Artpe.I....I want to learn Mana…..”
“Maetel, you are already pretty good at handling Mana…...”
In short order, they arrived at the first town.The town had been in a rut, since they had lost all their children.They rejoiced when they saw the safely returned children.They also cried for the children that would never make it back to them.Then they became shocked at Artpe’s edict to leave their town.
“I….I can’t do this!”
“Of course, you saved my child, so I’ll give you compensation as thanks.However, I can’t abandon the village…..”
“We won’t force you to do this.However, if you all continue to live like this, the soldiers will steal your children once again.Shall I give you more bad news?They won’t hesitate to torture you for information regarding my party.They will kill several of you as an example.”
“O...our king would never······.”
“There is a different king on the throne.”
“W...what!?”
The people discussed the topic in a heated fashion, and sides were formed.The people that lost then recovered their children followed Artpe and Maetel’s lead.The rest stayed behind.Since the children obediently followed Artpe and Maetel, the townspeople decided to put their trust in them.
“If the soldiers come asking questions, you guys tell them everything you saw here.”
“I...if we do that, magician-nim will….”
“It’s all right.You tell them everything.You can even tell me what I’m trying to accomplish.It is better than you guys dying just because you hid the information.”
“Magician-nim······!”
The people remaining behind in the town had rejected Artpe, yet he was being considerate towards them!
Of course, he didn’t think the soldiers would let the townspeople live even if the townspeople told them everything.However, Artpe had given them a fighting chance.He had done enough for these idiots who had basically forfeited their lives, because they were afraid of change.
It took several days, but Artpe’s party toured all the nearby villages.Most towns reacted similarly to each other, and the people who lost their children showed strong feelings towards Artpe.
“My child!What happened to my child!”
“You did it!I bet you killed my child!”
Artpe understood their rage, so he didn’t get mad.Maetel had been restless over the situation, and she had done well holding herself back until now.However, her composure broke when she met the parents of the dead children.
“No, it isn’t like that.When we found the children, they were already…..”
“That’s enough, Maetel.”
They were unfairly placing the blame on Artpe.Maetel had emerged from this tragedy alongside him, so it would have been weird if Maetel wasn’t agitated by the current situation.
However, the truth would place the people in more danger.If townspeople decided to stay behind, they were told the children were kidnapped, and some had died under unfortunate circumstances.
He left it at that.
“I was too late to save them.I’m very sorry.I have no excuses.”
Artpe spoke only those words. Deception and disdain were necessary skills for the Four Heavenly King, but he briefly put away those skills.Right now he had to use an essential skill used by swindlers.He pushed forward with his version of the story.There were omissions, so he wasn’t technically lying.
It was enough.
“Eek.Eeeeek…...”
“Koo-hoohk…..We already know you aren’t at fault.However, if we accept that as fact then who should we hate!”
“Hoohk······My baby…. My baby…..!”
In the end, many people rejected Artpe’s offer.He was a being that possessed mysterious powers, and that fact was enough for to be ostracised by them.
On the other hand, the people who accepted his help stuck very close to him.Artpe had to be satisfied with that fact.
Still, Maetel’s heart hurt as she took in everything.
“Artpe.”
“No one here is at fault, Maetel.The people who are dishing out the hate and the people who are receiving the hate aren’t at fault.Sometimes screwed up situations like this occurs.In truth, this is some of what happens in real life.”
The war in his previous life was similar.Even if the Demons didn’t want to fight, they had no choice thanks to the Innate ability of the Demon King.A kindhearted girl had to repeatedly fight horrific battles just because fate had chosen her to be the hero.
What happened in her past life was about to be repeated in her present life.He had no other words he could say except that it was screwed up.
“Ooh-ooooo.All right.”
Maetel understood the meaning behind his words, so she suppressed her emotions.This in turn increased the frequency of her sneaking into his arms when he slept.Sienna unnecessarily burned with a strong sense of rivalry, so she stuck close to Artpe too.It just made Artpe exhausted.
There were a lot of words and troubles exchanged, but all the people were gathered in a week.There were around 2,000 people gathered.
It took them an additional two days to search for a land that would be suitable for them to live on.They ended up at the mid-slope of a hill where monsters rarely appeared.
“So are we supposed to build the town here, magician-nim?No, I guess we have to call it a small city.”
“There are two thousand people here.I wonder if this many people can really live here…..”
“I’ll help you build your city.Don’t worry too much about it.”
A large number of people came here, because they looked up toward Artpe and Maetel.It looked as if Artpe felt a bit abashed when he scratched his nose as he spoke.However, his inner thought differed a little bit from his outward appearance.
‘Since I’ve made a bait this large, a large fish should be biting it soon.’
This was how the city construction started.
The fish became aware of this without delay.