Chapter: 127
The words from the Spirit’s Mother were astonishing.
“Really? We can move in an instant?”
[If we use the Spirit’s Door, we can reach the human Empire in the blink of an eye.]
Lian’s eyes sparkled at the Spirit King’s explanation.
[But first… we need to go meet my children.]
This reminded Lian of the spirits he had escaped with alongside the knight.
‘Now that I think about it, I should have encountered them earlier… Where did they all go?’
It seemed as if the Spirit King answered Lian’s unspoken question.
[…As I taught, they’re hiding silently in the forest. They won’t be found unless a fellow spirit opens the way.](Answering Lian’s implied question.)
As soon as she finished speaking, the wide forest beside the path began to shake. It twisted and turned like a forest of hallucinations. Soon, the trees parted on either side, and the rigid grass turned its heads, creating a path.
The sight of the forest seemingly beckoning them in left the worshippers who had been preaching and those with tears of emotion speechless, gazing at the woods in astonishment.
[Alright, let’s go.]
As the Spirit King floated into the air and moved forward, Noah hastily guided the group to follow her.
*
Just as she had said, they could meet the knights and spirits deeper within the forest path. Almost a hundred spirits fluttered around, leaving the entire group wide-eyed at the marvelous sight.
“…! I’m glad to see you’re safe!”
The knight approached Lian with a face full of emotion. Lian immediately introduced him to the others. Those who had initially been wary quickly softened at Lian’s introduction.
“…Huh?”
With a charming smile, the knight seemed to be struck from behind the head as he gazed at Iris.
“Uh?”
His gaze began to dart back and forth between Lian and Iris. The two indeed bore striking similarities.
Individually, they didn’t look alike at all, but collectively, with both having gentle features, no one could contest that they were siblings. Their matching hair and eye colors even reinforced that idea.
However, Iris’s hair was slightly dulled due to evidence of the dark powers Lian had drawn when he died once, so it appeared a bit darker than Lian’s. Even so, it really looked like a soft white color unless placed next to Lian.
‘Why are there… two of them?’
In any case, the knight was filled with confusion at the sudden appearance of two direct descendants from the Duke’s House.
As he was submerged in this confusion, the Spirit King spoke softly.
[Fortunately, there’s an abundance of spirit power in this vicinity, so I can open the Spirit’s Door right away.]
With a desire to quickly leave the unpleasant place, she returned to her original form to open the Spirit’s Door. The puzzled eyes of Lian, Lily, and Nero all turned toward the now enormous Spirit King.
[So then…]
“Whoa?!”
The Spirit King playfully laughed and pulled Lian in for another hug. Lian couldn’t help but awkwardly settle his posture against her … um, chest.
“Gah…”
“Wow…”
A few of them gasped in awe, speculating enviously.
“Truly, Lian… You’ve even charmed the Spirit King with your seductive aura…”
The followers praised that Lian, the Savior with his charismatic allure, had even charmed the Spirit King. As they say, the ability to seduce beautiful women is essential for a hero.
“Twice…”
Iris’s eyes glittered as she drew her sword once more, and Noah, unconsciously looking down at his chest, suddenly snapped back to reality with a face burning bright red.
“Do you like it, Master? Should I show you mine too?”
Jess crept toward Lian, tilting her head while lifting her bosom. Just as Lian’s mind was about to drift into Andromeda, the Spirit King uttered words like a song that no human could comprehend.
Swish.
With the gentle sound of the breeze at night, a pitch-black door suddenly appeared in the air, akin to a moon rising suddenly.
[If we keep this open too long, the energy of the forest will scatter, so we must move quickly.]
After saying this, the Spirit King waved her hand lightly in the air.
Clack.
Then the long-closed door smoothly opened. Beyond the door lay a completely different landscape from the forest they stood in. Without a moment’s hesitation, the Spirit King, still hugging Lian, moved toward the door.
“Uh? I-I’ll go first!”
Lian, belatedly saying his goodbyes, stepped through the door. Jess naturally followed Lian, while Iris trailed behind with a dangerous look, like a hunter chasing down its prey.
‘As expected… the descendant of the Lord must be Lian.’
The knight concluded, having observed Iris’s viciously contorted expression—then quickly recalled the face of the Lord in a fury, falling back into confusion.
‘Huh? No, wait… Maybe she resembles the Lord more…?’
The duke’s character was not one to be described as kind, hence the knight’s confusion seemed to stretch on longer.
“Everyone, move quickly!”
Noah, regaining his composure like a proper leader, began guiding the group through the door in a line. The spirits, lively and joyous, flew over the humans’ heads, passing through the door.
As all of them passed through the Spirit’s Door.
Screech, thud.
The Spirit’s Door naturally vanished. Yet no one even cared about it.
“Wow…”
“Where are we?”
Surrounded by blooming flowers and fresh green leaves, the life force felt so magnificent that those who had only grown in dead lands were left spellbound.
*
“It really felt like we’d hit rock bottom when we were caught in that bizarre laboratory.”
“Actually, it turned out to be quite fortunate.”
Time passed, and they were now at the evening campsite.
The group, comfortably gathered, shared light-hearted conversations. Normally, they would be on high alert, but now there was no need for that.
“I never imagined we’d move to the Empire in one go.”
“Honestly, nobody would believe it. The claim that we traveled to the Empire through the Spirit’s Door.”
Indeed, they had moved to the Empire in one fell swoop through the Spirit’s Door. It really was a situation that made it feel like “they had exhausted all their luck.”
The forest filled with cute bunnies hopping around was too similar to their imagined “paradise.” Having come from such horrific places, even an ordinary forest felt like a dream.
In such a mood, there was someone nervously trembling.
‘What should I do?’
It was none other than Pantone, the Duke’s Knight. He thought to himself that being back on the Empire’s soil was a sign of divine guidance.
A golden opportunity had arisen to bring the rumored missing descendant of the Lord safely to the Duke’s House. But problems had started to emerge.
‘Which one exactly is the descendant of the Lord?’
Lian, who had grown up as a commoner yet exuded dignity, poise, and kindness… It felt like his bloodline was different.
Iris, oddly enough, had a vibe so similar to the Lord’s fierce spirit.
The knight couldn’t tell which of the two was the Lord’s descendant. Because of that, he hesitated to speak about heading to the Duke’s House.
‘It’s definitely Lian… But… Ugh…”
While he grunt over his soup, a small hand suddenly thrust forward toward him.
“Big Brother, if you’re tired, eat this.”
“Huh? No, it’s okay—”
“I have what my sister gave me, so I’m fine.”
A child who looked no older than ten, sharing the same features but with different hair lengths, grinned beside her equally resembling sister. They looked like twins.
Boom!
“…!”
A lightning bolt struck the knight’s head.
‘…! What if it isn’t just one? If those two are twin siblings, everything makes sense!’
Both Lian and Iris had slightly younger-looking faces, but they were of adult height, far from that of the average child.
Lian carried a more mature vibe, giving a strong impression of an older brother, but aside from that perception, they looked like they were of a similar age, intensifying the knight’s confusion.
‘Right now, I need to send a message to the Duke’s House!’
Though he couldn’t send a courier from somewhere in the Empire’s nearby forest, he didn’t let that stop him. His eyes twinkled like a star.
At that moment, Lian found himself in an awkward situation.
“That’s my brother.”
“…”
Iris narrowed her eyes and glared at Noah. She was wary of how close he had gotten to Lian while she had been away.
Noah awkwardly grinned before standing up with his soup bowl.
“If it’s uncomfortable, I can go eat over there.”
“Uh? No way, Noah, eat here.”
Iris’s eyes conveyed a sense of “get lost,” yet her words were perfectly normal, catching Lian off guard with Noah’s sudden move.
“No, I wanted to talk to Lily. Enjoy your meal.”
“Ah, uh.”
After Noah moved away toward Lily, she sighed and said,
“Just eat with your brother over there. Why come here?”
“…I’m just…”
Noah sighed and wiped his face with his empty hand.
‘How do I say I got jealous seeing my little sister?’
Even though they were of the same gender, Iris was Lian’s real sister. It didn’t make sense for him to be jealous. Knowing this, a wave of dark jealousy surged, and Noah let out a small groan. His ears turned crimson.
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