Chapter 321:
‘Connected to the Genesis Network?’
This was unexpected good news.
I didn’t know why this happened, but if I had to guess, it was because I had delved deep into the story of this world.
Being connected to the Genesis Network meant that this world, which was said to be frozen in its story, had started to work properly again.
Maybe even the communication that was cut off was restored.
I immediately opened the Genesis Network window, but it only turned on and didn’t move properly.
‘Maybe it’s only connected, but not fully functional yet.’
That’s a shame.
But still, this was a hopeful change.
It meant that the passage that had been closed until now could open wider later.
Depending on what stories the Guardians would show, the story of this world would be officially known to other worlds.
‘But, is it possible?’
Could I survive and come back from this fight against Georon?
This could be the first and last fight.
It was doubtful whether I could show a proper story in front of such a situation.
‘But I can’t stop.’
I’ve come this far. It wasn’t just to collect the fragments and give a proper blow to Pentagram, including Demialos.
I had grown fond of many people while living here.
Ringug, Lean, Gondulbor, Aunt Bella, and other explorers.
I didn’t want to see them die.
Let’s focus on the fight tomorrow.
I closed the Genesis Network window that didn’t work.
***
The Earth after I disappeared.
Celine was facing various annoying things while staying at White Flower Management’s office.
The most annoying thing was dealing with some Tellers who came from the headquarters and blatantly sought her out.
‘They want me to hand over his library authority. They’re so selfish.’
They coveted my library authority and pressured me to give up some of it. Some Tellers wanted to buy it, and some subtly tempted me to join their department if I gave it to them.
Celine rejected all of their offers without hesitation.
This wasn’t hers in the first place, and it had an owner, so they should talk to him when he came back, she added.
The Tellers who were rejected were furious and said why did she care so much about someone who was going to die anyway, but Celine was firm.
She believed.
That he would come back someday, smiling as usual.
‘The others too, they believe.’
The people at White Flower Management were all waiting for him to come back. Even though he had gone to a banished world where even the story was frozen, they all believed that he was alive.
Because he had overcome many dangers that seemed like miracles until now.
If it was him, if it was Kang Yu-hyun,
He would come back with a success to show off.
‘But, I don’t know how long it will take.’
Even if his success was certain, no one knew how long it would take.
It could take 10 years or even 100 years or more. If he didn’t come back soon, he would lose everything he had built up until now.
Celine was worried about that when the Genesis Network window she was using rang loudly.
‘What?’
Something happened in the library. But it wasn’t hers. It was his library that she agreed to temporarily take over by transferring ownership.
Something was connected there.
‘Who on earth?’
Celine was startled and checked his library. There was no one else who could access his library except her. And she didn’t open it, so there was no way for anyone else to open it either.
Even if the chairman came, he couldn’t touch this library without permission.
But it opened, which meant only one thing.
‘Senior!’
This wasn’t the time to be doing this.
Celine quickly informed the people at White Flower Management about this fact.
“Everyone! The library is connected!”
“What? Celine, what are you talking about?”
“My library… No, the library that senior left behind has a weak response. It’s senior! He’s still alive!”
“What did you say?”
“Wait a minute!”
It had been several weeks since he disappeared without any news.
But now they said he was alive, and everyone stopped what they were doing and gathered around Celine.
When she realized that everyone was there, Celine immediately displayed the screen.
The screen that was flickering gradually stabilized and something appeared.
“If my guess is right, this video that is being transmitted to senior’s library is the story that senior is sending from the banished world.”
Everyone held their breath and watched the scene.
And what everyone gathered there saw was…
“Yu-hyun… sir?”
“Is that really you?”
It was a woman with black hair, who could not be recognized as Yu-hyun no matter how they looked.
***
‘What is this? Why do I feel like someone is watching me?’
Yu-hyun felt a gaze directed at him from somewhere ever since the Genesis Network was connected. But the Genesis Network was still inoperative, and he had no way of knowing who was watching him even if he felt it.
That was not the important thing.
Now that he could not get the Key Sword from Pield, he had to fight Georen with only the power of the survivors.
The only good news was that Georen was not at his full strength either.
He had left some of his power in the Key Sword for his successor, so Georen was weaker than when he was called a god.
‘The only variable is the fragment of the Codex embedded in Georen’s chest.’
That was the key to whether it could fill his lacking power or not.
He still had worries. Georen had summoned the Curse of Frost, defeated the Great Five Sisters, and created the Frost Giants with his current state.
Even if his power was halved, a Divine Spirit was a Divine Spirit.
It was like hitting a rock with an egg to face him.
‘A hopeful observation is that Georen might have weakened a lot while fighting the Five Sisters and their candidates. And that we have a lot of numbers on our side.’
The number of people who decided to participate in this battle was 2,000.
Except for the old and young, almost everyone volunteered to fight.
‘It’s not about whether we can do it or not. We can’t stop now that we’ve come this far.’
It was regrettable that he could not get the Key Sword because of Pield’s stubbornness, but it was a matter of life and death now.
‘I can’t see the future or pull out possibilities. It’s so frustrating and anxious that I can’t do that.’
But maybe, he was too dependent on the power of the fragment.
“Are you ready?”
Lean approached Yu-hyun and asked him. Yu-hyun nodded silently without saying anything.
In front of them, people wearing weapons and armor were bustling.
They showed why Gardinians were called a warlike people. Even those who usually lived weakly changed their aura so much when they held weapons that they doubted if they were the same person.
They looked like they could carve out a feast with Georen alive right now with this momentum.
“It’s usually customary to give a speech before a fight and boost everyone’s courage.”
Lean shook his head as he looked at the people who sent him hot gazes.
“But not today. I’ll say what I want to say when we come back.”
The people burst into laughter at his words.
“Hahaha! Yeah! That’s right! I want to hear what Lean has to say, so I have to come back alive!”
“This, I’m curious what Lean wants to say, so I’ll definitely come back alive!”
“Hoho. It’s been a long time since I fought, and my heart is pounding.”
They faced death, and they might never return from the battlefield.
But everyone laughed.
It was not a forced laugh to push away fear, but a sincere laugh filled with sincerity.
“Okay. Then let’s go.”
Everyone grabbed their weapons and moved at Lean’s words.
People who numbered close to 2,000 orderly left Gardinian.
The ones left behind watched them blankly. Those who were afraid of fighting, or too weak to fight, stayed in Gardinian.
Hender was one of them too.
Ringug, who was about to leave, happened to meet Hender’s eyes looking at him.
“Ah.”
Before Ringug could say anything to Hender, Hender glared at Ringug and turned his head away.
A bitter smile formed on Ringug’s lips. Whatever he said now would not reach Hender.
Yeah, it wouldn’t be too late to apologize when he came back.
Ringug vowed to come back alive just to say sorry to Hender.
And to apologize for what he couldn’t finish, to reach out his hand, and to tell him that they would live like before again.
Those who left and those who stayed behind.
None of them uttered farewell words.
Some fought for their families left behind, some for revenge for the dead, and some just to end this cursed reality.
Their reasons were different, but their wills were the same.
Whooosh!
Outside, a blizzard raged fiercely. But compared to the terrible cold they had seen long ago, today’s weather was relatively good.
The people who came out and reorganized their formation followed Lean toward where the giant ice cliff was.
On the white snowfield, a column of people wearing dark brown and black leather armor ran.
“Ugh. I’m too old to come out this far.”
Gondulbor adjusted his clothes as if to prevent the snow from seeping into the gaps.
“But it’s a relief that you’re here to help us, Gondulbor.”
“Hmph. I can’t just sit still inside when I’m a magician of my caliber. Anyway, I’ll die of old age soon if I stay inside like this.”
Even though he spoke bluntly, Gondulbor was also a citizen of Guardian, and he was determined to save the world.
He had used up all the items he had made in the past 32 years.
They were precious materials for a mage, but he decided to spend them generously since they would all disappear anyway.
He still felt tears welling up in his eyes when he thought about it, but he did not regret it.
“Here we are.”
Lian stood at the entrance of the ice cliff.
The ordinary citizens who were not explorers were overwhelmed by the majesty of the cliff.
Beyond that huge wall, there was the enemy, the culprit who had made the world like this. As they realized that, their enthusiasm burned even hotter.
Through the path that Rahian had hidden since 32 years ago, 2,000 people moved.
They saw the corpses of their fellowmen trapped inside the frozen wall and shed silent tears, but no one stopped in their place.
The people who came out of the exit took a break to soothe their tired bodies. It was hard enough to get here through the blizzard.
Lian called the people who were assigned to command each unit for the operation.
“There is Andolim Lake ahead, and beyond that, you have to cross the ice mist to get to Georen. On the map, it’s about here. So we have to reorganize all the front lines here and move together.”
“The distance is not that far, huh?”
“Yeah. Miraculously, we didn’t encounter any frost giants on our way here, but they are probably staying near Georen. Are you prepared for the frost giants?”
“Yes. Of course. We have enough rune stones.”
“I’m counting on you, Gondulbor.”
“Sure.”
Lian skillfully told each person what to do and gave orders.
This was the first and last fight. He did not tolerate failure here, so Lian did his best.
The others knew that too, so they were very nervous.
The land that had not been known until now, that they thought they had lost.
They were standing there now.
“Go back and rest. We’ll move in three hours.”
The people who came out of the makeshift tents dispersed to their units. Yu-hyun watched them and caught a suspicious movement.
‘The Emperor of Frechen?’
Frechen, who should have been with his followers, the knights of the ruined empire, was heading somewhere alone.
‘What? Where is he going without his knights?’
Yu-hyun wondered if he should report this or not, but Frechen was about to disappear beyond the blizzard, so he followed him for now.
He was already too far away to report to Lian. And if he lost sight of Frechen, he didn’t know what he would do.
Yu-hyun quietly followed Frechen. He hid his presence as much as possible and kept a distance where his figure was barely visible.
Frechen was heading in a different direction from where Georen was.
‘That’s where the capital of the ruined empire is, right?’
On the east side of Andolim Lake, there was the capital of the empire that had now perished. And Frechen was the last emperor of that empire.
‘He asked me if I had seen beyond the wall. Was it because of that?’
Yu-hyun’s question did not continue.
As he kept moving after Frechen, a huge castle appeared beyond the blizzard.
The huge yellow castle that must have boasted a great dignity once was frozen solid by the curse of frost.
Frechen entered the castle through the wide-open door. There was no hesitation in his bold steps.
The royal palace of the empire, which could be called its core.
There was something inside that Frechen was looking for.
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