The Main Characters That Only I Know

Chapter 317:

Yu-hyun was unable to move.

The person he had trusted and relied on until now turned out to be the most suspicious suspect.

He felt a surge of tension as he realized this.

‘I have to stay calm.’

Yu-hyun moved his hand that was holding the paper calmly.

He pretended to look for something, just like before.

“…Don’t bother me right now. I’m busy.”

“Did you find anything?”

“No. I still can’t see it.”

Yu-hyun spoke casually as he folded the paper and opened another one. But that was not enough.

He was still in Ryan’s gap. And he couldn’t draw his weapon yet.

‘Get away.’

He could clearly see the sword wrapped in black cloth on his waist, and he could pull it out with a slight movement.

But the distance felt impossibly far.

He couldn’t reach it even if he stretched his hand, and he felt that Ryan’s sword would move faster than him even if he drew his sword quickly. It was an instinct.

An instinctive wariness.

That made Yu-hyun’s movement slightly hesitant.

“Your hand stopped.”

“…”

“…I see.”

Ryan muttered in a disappointed voice.

He noticed something too.

Yu-hyun closed his eyes tightly and opened them as soon as he heard that. And with a lightning-fast speed, he grabbed his sword and…

“Too late.”

Ryan was faster than him. He slashed the sword sheath on Yu-hyun’s waist with his sword.

Before he could grab it with his hand, the sword on his waist flew out and rolled on the floor.

Yu-hyun quickly grabbed the papers on the ground with both hands and threw them back.

The rolled papers unraveled and blocked Ryan’s sight.

Ryan didn’t panic even in that situation.

His hand holding the sword moved a little faster, and soon the papers that were fluttering in the air and blocking his view were cut into pieces and scattered.

“It’s useless to resist.”

Ryan kicked Yu-hyun’s side as he tried to grab the sword on the floor.

Yu-hyun reflexively crossed his arms to defend himself, but he couldn’t stop his body from flying back.

Kwoong.

Yu-hyun’s body hit the closed door and rolled on the floor.

He frowned at the pain in his arm and looked up at Ryan who was approaching him.

“Why are you doing this?”

Why did you betray us, weren’t you Lean’s right-hand man?

“You were a veteran explorer who had been guarding this place for 32 years…”

“Yeah. I’m an explorer. And before that, I was one of the great warriors. And after that, I’m an explorer. And after that, I’ll always be an explorer. Fighting against the frost giants, struggling endlessly.”

“What are you talking about…”

“I don’t think you’ll understand what I’m saying.”

Ryan still had an expressionless face.

He thought they had become friends after talking a few times before.

But now, it felt like those memories were lies. Ryan looked down at Yu-hyun with a cold gaze.

“It would have been better if you had disappeared like before, being called a witch by everyone. Then I wouldn’t have to do this annoying thing.”

“What are you saying…”

“Well, it doesn’t matter anyway. Even if you die, it will be blamed on Frechen and his gang. That’s lucky. Thanks to that capricious emperor who drew all kinds of attention, I was able to move so easily.”

He never thought that he, who had been Lean’s right-hand man, was a traitor.

No, he had left some possibility open. Yu-hyun didn’t think Frechen was 100% a traitor. He came here to fill in that gap, and that’s why he survived Ryan’s attack until now.

But that was over now.

Ryan lifted his sword up.

“Die.”

And as he swung it down,

Crack!

The wooden door above Yu-hyun’s head broke and a monstrous hand popped out.

“What…!”

Ryan was too late to react with his sword.

The hand that broke the door grabbed Ryan’s neck and pulled him out with a strong force.

Crack!

The wooden door shattered and Ryan flew out.

“Wow. That was close. You could have been in big trouble if I was a little late.”

“Who are you…”

Yu-hyun recognized the person who saved him and widened his eyes.

The first thing he saw was gray hair.

“Frechen?”

He was the last bloodline of the fallen empire, always acting on his own and hostile to Lean.

He was also the one I suspected of being a traitor, but he saved Yu-hyun at this moment.

Frechen smiled slightly, turning his head.

“Why? Are you too surprised to see me?”

“No, how did you…?”

“How did I know? Well, I’d love to answer that, but.”

Frechen twisted his lips as he saw Ryan getting up from his fallen body.

“We don’t have time for that right now.”

He said, grabbing a large axe.

The blade of the axe was jagged at the end.

“…It was you? The tail?”

“Hey. That’s too harsh. I’ve never been a tail. I’m a head, if anything. You also figured out the existence of the traitor, didn’t you?”

“That’s…”

“Frecheeeen!”

Ryan roared Frechen’s name, enraged by the interruption.

His face, which was always expressionless, was distorted like a demon.

He exuded a murderous and fighting Divine Spirit that made my skin tingle. His Divine Spirit was like a well-forged sword.

A pressure comparable to a high-ranking collector.

“Oh yeah. Here comes Frechen.”

Frechen didn’t flinch or tense up in front of him. Rather, he smiled as if he had been waiting for this situation.

“How dare you, you rotten prince of the ruined empire!”

Ryan charged at him like a beast. At the same time, his sword was very calm and sharp, aiming precisely at Frechen’s vital points.

Clang!

Frechen easily deflected Ryan’s sword with his axe.

“Right. I used to be like that. But now? I’m the only bloodline left. That’s what I’m saying.”

Frechen said with an arrogant voice.

“So I should naturally be called the emperor. What’s wrong with that?”

“The empire has already fallen! The title of emperor is nothing but an empty shell!”

“True. It’s nothing. It has no meaning either.”

Their weapons tangled in the air.

Clack clack clack! Frechen focused on blocking Ryan’s attacks, while Ryan swung his sword with all his strength.

A blue aura extended from his sword tip, sweeping the surrounding space.

The wide corridor was cut and torn apart, and the ceiling collapsed.

They fought through the debris.

“But, I still have the title of emperor. What about you, Ryan? A loyal dog of the leader? The third in command under me? Oh. Did you hate that most? You were always so ambitious, even if you pretended otherwise.”

“Shut uuuup!”

Ryan’s emotion seemed to affect his sword Divine Spirit, which flared up like a flame.

“You’ve always annoyed me! You had power but acted shallowly, behaved like a child and did whatever you wanted! You defied Lean’s will!”

“Defying his will is also what you’re doing right now, isn’t it?”

“You have no honor!”

“But, I have power.”

Frechen chuckled. Yu-hyun watched them fight as if he was bewitched.

Frechen wasn’t called the second in command for nothing.

“Sis!”

Ringwook ran from afar. Behind him were knights who could be considered Frechen’s subordinates and collectors who heard the news and came running.

“Sis! Are you okay?!”

“Uh, uh. I’m fine. Luckily. But what’s going on here?”

“I told Emperor Frechen. That you were heading here.”

Boom!

A loud noise erupted from afar.

Frechen started to swing his axe more seriously, as if he had been holding back until now.

He switched from defense to offense.

An ash-colored aura flowed from his axe and clashed with Ryan’s aura.

Frechen’s aura overwhelmed Ryan’s.

“How, how can you have such power!”

“Hahat. Did you think I was called the second in command for nothing? Or did you think I was just a hollow leader who relied on my subordinates’ power? That’s shocking.”

“Damn it! How dare you!”

Ryan rushed towards Frechen.

“You traitor! How can you talk so much? Did our great warrior teach you to fight with your mouth?”

“Shut up and shut up.”

Frechen ran towards Ryan.

“I don’t care about your words. You’re just a loyal dog of the leader. The third in command under me? Oh. Did you hate that most? You were always so ambitious, even if you pretended otherwise.”

Lahio’s sword energy exploded and flew towards Frechen’s chest. Frechen easily deflected it and lifted his right foot to step on the rubble.

Boom. The debris from the collapsed ceiling rose into the air. At the same time, dust spread out.

The wind whirled past Ryan, barely grazing him. Ryan raised his aura and blocked the dust cloud.

At the same time, Frechen burst through the dust cloud like a huge cannonball.

Ryan, who had let his guard down for a moment when his sight was blocked, was hit in the chest by Frechen’s shoulder.

Crack!

“Cough!”

He spat out blood and flew back, rolling on the ground. His ribs were broken and his chest was caved in from the attack just now.

Ryan used his sword as a cane to get up, but he was no longer in a state to continue fighting.

Frechen put away his axe, thinking that it was enough.

Ryan shouted with trembling lips.

“It’s not over yet, it’s not over yet!”

“No. It’s over.”

The one who answered was not Frechen.

Leann appeared, parting the crowd that had rushed in.

His eyes, looking at Ryan, were filled with more complexity and sadness than anything else.

Ryan also froze in his place when he saw Leann.

“Ryan…”

“Captain Leann.”

“Why did you do this? What made you abandon your comrades who fought with you until now, and make this hell continue?”

“Why do you ask?”

Was that question so funny? Ryan laughed lowly, without even bothering to wipe the blood from his mouth.

When his laughter stopped, Ryan yelled in rage.

“Why are you asking me that? Leann! This is what we should have done!”

Ryan glared at Yu-hyun beyond Leann with bloodshot eyes that were crazed with madness.

It was because of that witch. If it weren’t for her, his struggle would not have been hindered.

“Have you forgotten?! We Guardians have to keep fighting! Struggle is our only purpose! I just wanted to keep fighting!”

“Just for that? Just for that?”

“Just? Just? Leann! Then answer me this. What meaning is there in our lives if we don’t fight? We were born to wield swords, and became warriors to fight. If peace comes, what are we supposed to do?! What value do we have left in peace?! Huh? Answer me!”

Ryan was a great warrior of a northern minority tribe.

And when he was born, the north was in turmoil. Conflicts broke out everywhere and many people died.

In the barren environment, Ryan’s tribe had no choice but to fight and plunder someone else’s belongings. They had to fight even if they didn’t want to, because they didn’t want to die.

Ryan wielded a sword from an age when he couldn’t even remember how old he was.

And even as a young man, he never let go of his sword and swung it hard.

You will become a great warrior. As much as the blood on your sword, our tribe will prosper.

Ryan believed only those words like iron, and repeated killing and fighting as he roamed the barren land.

His father and mother passed away, and even his precious younger sister died, but he didn’t stop.

Killing and killing and killing again.

Fighting and fighting and fighting again.

When he pacified the surrounding area and became the leader of a larger tribe,

The fighting ended and peace came to the world.

The empire ended its conquest war, and the various kingdoms joined hands. The northern minorities stopped their struggles among themselves, and formed alliances through blood ties and formed a union.

Surely, it was the peace that everyone had been waiting for.

But not for Ryan.

‘What am I supposed to do now?’

Ryan lost his purpose of swinging his sword. The sword was for killing someone. But if there was no enemy, what was the sword for?

He had lived only for killing and fighting, but he couldn’t accept peace.

A great warrior must fight. Only struggle proved his life.

But what is this peace? What is this terrible boredom?

So Ryan was secretly happy when the curse of the frozen land erupted.

The frost giants that threatened humanity.

Enemies.

They were the enemies he had longed for, the ones he could fight against.

“The curse of the frozen land? Everyone will freeze to death? So what!”

Ryan shouted while spitting blood.

“There are enemies! We can finally fight! Keep on, keep on, keep on! Finally, we have found our purpose!”

Ryan didn’t want this hell to end.

If winter ends and spring returns, peace will come along with it, and weapons will inevitably rust.

What he wanted was eternal struggle.

A cold and eternal winter where weapons never rust.

“We haven’t lost our value! We can keep fighting! If this curse continues, we can fight and fight and fight again! And prove our worth! We will go to the land of salvation…!”

“No. Ryan.”

Lean shook his head with a sorrowful gaze.

“There is no salvation in a place where there is only fighting.”

“…What are you talking about? Fighting is the very salvation! Why don’t you understand that!”

“Ryan. Do you still not know why we are fighting?”

The reason why our ancestors have fought until now. It was not because they simply enjoyed the struggle.

“They fought until now, and we are still fighting, because they all wanted peace. They wanted to create our own fence, where our descendants can live safely.”

“Don’t make me laugh!”

Ryan shouted as if he had a seizure.

“They fought for peace? Then what if peace comes? What are we supposed to do, who can only fight! Our comrades who have been with us until now! My ancestors! What did they die for!”

Ryan did not want to hear that. He had enough of his life being torn apart once.

Grab your sword.

Shed blood.

Seize honor and glory.

Black shadows swirled around Ryan.

No, they were not shadows. What had been with Ryan until now were the ghosts of the past.

Ryan himself might not know, but Lean could tell.

“Ryan. You have been devoured by the demon of fighting.”

“I will always…!”

“Just rest now.”

Faster than Ryan could scream, Lean’s sword pierced his chest.

It was strange that Ryan, who was wounded so much, could not react. Lean’s sword was so quiet and fast. It was hard to catch even a trace of it.

Ryan’s eyes widened. He made a rattling sound for a moment, and then slowly fell backwards.

Ryan, who fell looking at the sky, touched his chest with his trembling hand. His hand was full of red blood.

“Ah.”

Ryan’s voice, which had been screaming until now, calmed down.

“Lean. You were there.”

“Ryan…”

“Lean. Look at this. I defeated the enemy.”

Ryan looked at something else with his transparent eyes, along with Lean.

A glorious fight.

The final battle that he had longed for, that was more than enough to end his life.

Ryan swung his sword there. Even when his comrades died, and his precious people fell one by one, he did not stop swinging his sword. He did not even remember how long he had fought.

The enemies were.

And, the outcome of the fight was.

What happened?

“Lean. I can’t see anything around me. I can’t feel my body. Lean. Please answer me. Did we win? We won, right?”

He asked desperately, even though he was gasping in pain.

Everyone watched that scene solemnly.

“Did we win?”

Lean suppressed the sadness that welled up in him.

He was shocked by Ryan’s betrayal, and hated him for deceiving him for 32 years. But more than that, he felt sorrow and compassion for his end as a comrade who had fought with him for 32 years.

He never got out of the battlefield until the end.

Lean bit his lip with a complicated face, and then nodded heavily.

“Yes. Ryan. We won.”

“…We won.”

Ryan smiled innocently like a child.

It was his smile that he had never seen in 32 years, that he saw for the first time.

“Lean. I think this is it for me. I hear voices from above. The great ancestors. They are calling me. Mother, father. And my dead brother too. My friends, my comrades. They are calling me too. Yes. They were all there… waiting for me.”

“Yes. Ryan. That’s where you belong.”

“Where I belong?”

“The place you wanted to go so much. The land of salvation you wished for. Your long fight that lasted until now was all for this moment.”

“That’s right…”

Ryan coughed up blood along with his words.

The energy in his body drained away, and his fingertips became cold as ice.

His body became heavier and heavier, but his mind was lighter than anything else.

“I can finally… rest…”

He could finally go to the land of salvation he wanted.

He could finally meet his family who had parted from him.

“Yes.”

Lean closed Ryan’s eyes with his hand.

“Just rest now.”

Did he go to the land of salvation in the end?

Or did he go to hell where he would suffer endlessly for betraying his comrades?

Realizing that all those assumptions were meaningless, Lean recited the prayer that he had repeated endlessly from the past until now.

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