Becoming a Hunter in a Dark Fantasy - Chapter 75
Only Noblemtl
Episode 75: The Old Man and the Red Clover (2)
Aajen felt a bit afraid.
The weight on your back that grows heavier and heavier as you move forward, or the old, gentle voice whispering.
“Aren’t you going, young man?”
Aajen instinctively took a step forward at the sound of a voice that shook his eardrums and the breath on his neck.
At the same time, goosebumps appeared all over my body.
‘… … You’re not human!’
It was a kind of instinct. A living creature’s instinctive sense when its life is in danger.
But strangely enough, I didn’t have any regrets like, ‘Oh, I shouldn’t have brought her in the first place.’
Clink, clink.
Aajen walked, silently, like a pilgrim enduring hardship.
As he moved, the old man’s voice, which had been chanting like a wicked monster, also stopped.
“… … .”
But at some point something strange started happening.
The more Aajen walks to the other side of the river, the deeper the water becomes!
The water that had been around my waist went over my shoulders, my neckline, and eventually up to the tip of my chin, overflowing.
Even though more than half of his body was submerged in water, sweat poured down his forehead like rain.
The old woman’s arms were cramping as she lay face down, and her legs were unable to support her weight, so she swayed even in the shallow water.
“Bachelor, put me down.”
That was when.
“Leave me. You can do that. Aren’t you already at your limit?”
The old man, who had been acting like he would never fall like a cicada on a tall tree, spoke softly.
“Enough is enough.”
Swish.
The strength naturally drained from the tree-like arms that had been holding onto me tightly as if they would never let go.
If Aajen pushes just a little bit, it will fall off without any problems.
Clink, clink.
But Aajen just walked. He walked and walked and walked as if he didn’t hear the old man.
I moved forward blindly.
“Bachelor?”
In fact, he couldn’t hear the old man’s voice.
Anxiety, nervousness, obsession, stress… … and many other factors overlapped, so instead, all my nerves were focused on one goal.
“Gasp, gasp… … !”
A certain word kept lingering in Aajen’s dazed mind as he let out a heavy breath.
Something that someone says over and over again, emphasizing it.
-If you happen to meet someone in trouble today, no matter what happens, do your best to help them with all your heart. Got it? Definitely! Definitely!
Those words kept echoing in my mind.
-Then… … ‘This time’, you absolutely must believe me?
That’s why Aajen can’t stop here.
“… … This time, definitely.”
I must keep that promise. Strength returned to my eyes that had been blurry.
When Lerwin first pointed out his shortcomings, Aajen felt as if someone had broken into the castle he was staying in and destroyed it.
They were benefactors who not only saved the lives of the rich, but also risked their own lives to fight against the villains… … .
-Favor and enmity are repaid tenfold! That is the motto of our Clover clan!
He considered himself a good person in his own way, someone who knew how to repay the favors he had received.
But when reality comes into play, ideals remain just ideals.
─An opportunist who makes choices according to the situation and conditions.
That was the nature of the person named Azen Clover.
I was embarrassed. I was so embarrassed, so embarrassed, that I couldn’t even show my face.
‘ah.’
And then I realized how, how inadequate I was.
I heard the sound of the solidly built castle walls breaking apart. It was the moment when the frog in my well escaped into the world.
‘Did it really have to be me?’
Suddenly, Aajen wanted to know.
‘Would I have been the one to survive that tragedy?’
In the midst of the turbulent events, the agony that had been forgotten… no, buried deep inside, slowly emerged.
‘Out of all those people, why was I the only one left to survive? Why did my colleagues put their own lives before mine?’
Aazen Clover is the successor to Clover Company? Because he is the youngest? Or… … .
Honestly, I don’t know. No matter how much I think about it, the living cannot guess the thoughts of the dead.
So, I hope so.
‘Today better than yesterday, tomorrow better than today. I want to be a better me.’
I wanted to become a person who was no longer ashamed.
‘For the sake of my colleagues who have gone before… …!’
In order to protect himself, he kept his mouth shut until the very end, even though death was imminent, and he wanted to tell his dead comrades.
This life that I survived thanks to you, I owe it to you.
I lived honestly so that you wouldn’t have any regrets.
certainly!
“Eeeeeep!”
Even as he struggled with the river water reaching the corners of his mouth, Aajen raised the arm carrying the old man higher, cursing.
Then, he powerfully stepped forward with his legs as if they would collapse at any moment.
“Ugh, ugh!”
I will prove it. That the human being called Aajen Clover is one who does not repeat mistakes.
“Why don’t you give up, young man?”
The old man, who was puzzled by Aajen’s desperate advance, immediately asked.
“I gave you permission. You can leave me. You’ve already done enough for me. I won’t blame you.”
“… … .”
Splash, splash.
Aajen walked silently. In fact, at the moment, he did not understand this properly either.
Due to the excessive pain, the body was unable to perform its functions.
“Because I promised.”
“What promise?”
That’s why the next words that came out of his mouth were closer to a monologue.
“I will help those in need… … .”
Step forward with your left foot, splash.
“This time for sure.”
Step forward with your right foot again, and splash.
“Prove me… … .”
The old man looked at him for a moment with unreadable eyes.
When colorful emotions flashed through his deep green eyes like a forest.
“Ah, clover.”
A faint smile appeared on the lips of the old man who was quietly watching him.
“Pass.”
And that was when something truly bizarre happened… … !
“I wanted to know how good-natured this generation’s Clover child was.”
The voice that had been filled with hardship and experience changed into a voice filled with the joy of youth.
Her wrinkled hands turned into smooth, pinkish skin, and her lustrous hair turned a splendid golden color.
She smiled brightly as she turned from an old man to a woman.
“You speak so well, my dear.”
In an instant, the old, worn-out clothes were transformed into a beautiful, deep blue-green dress.
Flutter-!
That moment when the hem of my long dress fluttered in the strong wind blowing from somewhere!
Swaaaaaaah!
The river water, which had been surging more and more violently, rose into the sky. The river water, which had been quite deep, disappeared in an instant, forming a huge water column.
Aajen opened his eyes wide. A supernatural phenomenon had occurred!
“Okay, should we go a little further?”
Before she knew it, she came down from behind Aajen and lightly pushed his shoulder.
“… … Huh, huh?”
Then, Aajen’s body swayed forward. Without realizing it, he took a few more steps and then collapsed on the ground.
“Congratulations, baby. You’ve reached your destination.”
Aajen raised his head blankly at the voice that sounded warmer than the spring sunshine.
There stood a dazzlingly beautiful beauty.
“Who are you… …?”
It was definitely our first meeting. If he had seen such an outstanding beauty, he would have left at least a faint impression.
But… …For some reason, the moment he laid eyes on her, he was overcome with a strange emotion.
‘I’m familiar with it.’
A strong sense of unease came over me, and a shiver ran through my whole body.
And I had a certain confidence that the same would be true for that woman.
“Who are you?”
Aajen asked with a trembling voice.
That woman who suddenly appears in such a remote place, changes her appearance at will, and causes supernatural phenomena must be an extraordinary being.
“… … .”
But the woman just smiled without answering.
Then he slowly raised his hand, carefully cupped Aajen’s cheek, and gently stroked it.
As if caressing something that could break at any moment, as if engraving it in one’s eyes.
“It was nice meeting you, baby.”
Affectionately.
“My beloved child of Mot. I thought we would never see each other again.”
“Hey, hey… … !”
“This is a gift I give you. It will help you.”
The woman slipped something into Aajen’s hand and kissed him on the forehead.
“May you have good luck in your future.”
Then, Aajen’s eyes went dark.
“… … Found it, over here! … … Unconscious… … Quickly!”
And when I opened my eyes again.
“Hey! Are you awake?”
“… … Here?”
My missing comrades, the members of the Spero unit, were right before my eyes!
“Oh my! This old man was so surprised when you suddenly disappeared. … … Well, it’s okay since you came back safely.”
“Mr. Aajen, where on earth were you? I couldn’t find you even with magic! Are you feeling okay?!”
“… … Are you hurt anywhere?”
Aajen smiled slightly at them, each worried and looking after her in their own way. It didn’t feel too bad.
“Ha, haha. That’s right. Actually… … .”
Aajen laughed awkwardly. It was because he knew little about it.
But just as he was about to open his mouth to tell me what a special experience he had,
“Huh? What is this?”
I felt something tightly clutched in my hand. Aajen raised his hand in puzzlement.
The first thing that came into view was the lower part… … there was a long, thin branch. The branch was dark and red, as if it had been dyed with a rose.
A little above, five vibrant clover leaves surrounded it like a corsage.
As I raise my gaze to the top, what I see is… … .
Twinkle!
A single red flower in full bloom. Depending on the angle, various red hues flashed as if they were flowing.
The red flowers captured people’s attention with their warm yet strong energy, as if they were the sun.
“……uh?”
Azen’s green eyes widened as he finally realized its true identity.
His fingers trembled uncontrollably.
“Red… Red Clover!”
Surprise filled the eyes of the Spero members, including Aajen.
Everyone was amazed by its wondrous beauty.
“This is a red clover? It definitely… … I feel some mysterious energy that is hard to describe in words.”
“How beautiful. It is truly worthy of being called the legendary flower.”
“Wow, how much would that sell for?”
“… … Is your head full of nothing but dust and money? You seem like a person with no humanity and no sensitivity.”
“Why are you suddenly making a fuss? Don’t you know that everyone has different feelings? Of course, there’s no way the young master would understand the importance of money.”
As the argument between Gale and Calix began again, Sercia shook her head with a bored expression.
And then he turned to the person who could most effectively prevent it.
“El, Lord Lwin. Those humans are fighting again. What should we do… …?”
“Huh? Where did the little one go?”
“… …Lord Lwin?”
But when they looked back, there was no one there. They were surprised and hurriedly searched the area, but as expected, there was nothing there.
This time again, no sign of anything was felt.
“I thought I finally found the one… … but now the other one is gone? What the heck!?”
“I never thought that even Lord Lwin would go missing… … No, was it a kidnapping?”
“Well, someone as strong as Mr. Lwin wouldn’t have been kidnapped so easily. If you kill someone and then try to find out who’s behind it, it’s another matter. Maybe it was a voluntary disappearance? There might be some kind of purpose.”
“Indeed. That’s a reasonable guess.”
While Sercia and Calix are having a calm conversation.
“… … Eeeeeeeee!”
Gail, who had been hanging her head, couldn’t hold it in any longer and shouted loudly.
Even though he didn’t think at all that Elwin had been kidnapped.
“If you’re going somewhere, just say something and then disappear! You damn water lord aaaaaaaaaaaaaaaa-!”
The angry screams echoed far away.