#200

Cullen had not seen Kiyen for over two days since leaving the end of Mount Tesnia. During the time he didn’t see him, Cullen mulled over the children’s words.

Cat, who pointed out that he waited for Kiyen while saying he didn’t want to be by his side, and Black, who mentioned that his lifespan might be different from ordinary humans, crossed paths and pricked Cullen’s conscience.

Was his choice truly for Kiyen’s sake?

Cullen had been thinking about it continuously since leaving the mountains. Even before hearing Black and Cat’s words, Cullen had suddenly pondered.

He wondered if his actions on the day he was hurt by Kiyen might not have been the best for him. Once he thought that, he couldn’t be sure if what he was doing now was truly for Kiyen’s sake.

Because Kiyen just kept crying. If he was to do what was best for him, wouldn’t it be better to make him smile, as Cat said?

As these doubts arose, Cullen also felt Kiyen’s absence. Perhaps it was because he had been by Kiyen’s side constantly since waking up. Even though he hadn’t seen him for only three days, it felt like a long time since he had last seen Kiyen. Despite the time he had spent pushing him away, his body had seemingly ingrained the habit.

Cullen tried to erase the emptiness caused by Kiyen’s absence by keeping himself busy. There was much to do. Ulli called for him relentlessly, as if to make up for their time apart, and Cullen became increasingly busy dividing tasks with her.

Ulli’s expedition had two main tasks. First, with the capital where the Imperial Palace was located having collapsed, they had to find new routes.

The central part of the continent was land subordinate to the capital, half of which was the capital itself, and the other half a barren white wasteland where nothing grew. Kihelene’s message was merely a word referring to that vast area, so they had to deduce where she had gone.

The other task was to deal with the Demonic Beasts that appeared whenever they headed towards the central region. Since no one lived nearby, they could focus solely on killing Demonic Beasts rather than rescuing people.

Fortunately, no colossal Demonic Beasts appeared, unlike the ones they encountered in the mountains. In terms of difficulty, they were only slightly more challenging to handle than a pack of wild animals.

Thanks to this, there had been no casualties yet. As expected of mercenaries from Dadin, they all knew how to fight, and the methods for dealing with the Demonic Beast that Ulli had discovered with Junon proved effective. Ulli mentioned that learning how to deal with the Demonic Beasts Cullen had faced was also the result of many sacrifices.

And besides becoming this busy, there were a few other changes. One was that the Young Dragons still seemed sulky, even as they hovered around Cullen, and another was…

“What’s that pale-faced guy doing constantly by Ulli’s side?”

“Well, Lord Jik said he was some kind of Crown Prince or something.”

“Nah, that can’t be right. All the bloodlines of the ruined Empire are dead. If he were going to appear, he would have done so long ago. It’s been three years. He’s definitely a fraud.”

“True, I heard the Crown Prince could defeat Demonic Beasts with a single blow. He looked so frail from the moment he appeared, so that’s impossible.”

Some envy and suspicion towards Cullen began to surface. He could understand. Unlike Ulli, who had gathered people through her own skills and character, Cullen was a sudden appearance.

However, he had no intention of making them understand or dealing with them. The command was not his, but Ulli’s. Ignoring the open gossip behind him, the remarks escalated.

“They say he goes in and out of the tents every night. Just with his handsome face, is he trying to get ahead?”

However, remarks that touched upon Ulli’s honor could not be ignored. Loosening his reins, Cullen slowly came to a halt. The three mercenaries following him stopped as if they had been waiting. Cullen, turning halfway, gazed at them.

“What are you looking at?”

Perhaps due to his relationship with Ulli, harsh words didn’t immediately come out, but their tone was rough.

Cullen thought of Gael as he looked at them. After all, they were from Dadin through Gael’s introduction, so it was difficult to lay hands on them carelessly. Their motivation for volunteering was respectable, so Cullen decided to end it with a suitable warning.

“It would be best to stop there.”

One of the mercenaries, a man with a thick mustache and a face full of scars and a half-shaved head, bristled at his expressionless remark.

“What did we do?”

To the rough retort, as intimidating as his appearance, Cullen calmly replied.

“Spouting whatever comes out of your mouth. You can talk about me if you want, but don’t speak carelessly about Ulli.”

“You bastard…!”

Seeing that they showed no signs of backing down despite the menacing atmosphere, the mercenaries became agitated. Those passing by watched them with interest, their faces suggesting they wanted to watch rather than intervene.

Cullen casually shifted his gaze forward. Ulli was looking at the road ahead, so she wouldn’t know about this situation. Just as he was considering whether a light hand would be best, a shadow fell over Cullen and the mercenaries. Everyone’s gaze shifted upwards at the long, massive shadow. Thinking it was a sudden cloud, they looked up at the sky and saw something with unexpectedly long wings.

The moment the creature, resembling a giant bird, appeared, Cullen momentarily superimposed Kiyen onto it. It was because he recalled Kiyen’s wings, which had once been shaped like a bird’s wings.

Come to think of it, had his wounds healed?

A momentary hesitation I didn’t realize I had gave the opponent an opening. It was because, just as the mercenaries and Cullen were stepping back to make way, it descended with a sharp bird’s cry.

It plummeted in the blink of an eye and first snatched one of the mercenaries with its long claws. It resembled a giant eagle. The difference was that it was large enough to attack a person with its talons, and its beak contained sharp teeth.

“Duncan!”

A mercenary next to him drew a bow, calling out his comrade’s name. It was admirable that he immediately took a stance to counterattack despite his surprise, but the problem was that the bird-like Demonic Beast deflected the arrow.

Cullen drew his sword. Then, he clung to the leg of the Demonic Beast that had snatched the mercenary and was about to fly off immediately. The mercenary’s abdomen, where the sharp talons had dug in, was already stained crimson with blood.

The problem was that there wasn’t just one Demonic Beast. Following the last encounter, three more Demonic Beasts, each one overwhelming enough, appeared in succession.

The mercenaries, walking across the wide plains with no place to hide like a forest, formed ranks and began throwing arrows and spears, but their range didn’t reach. The Demonic Beasts, easily dodging the attacks, began to descend, letting out menacing screeches.

“Cullen, you need to come down!”

Ulli, who was at the forefront, called out his name from nearby. She was blocking the descending Demonic Beasts along with Junon and Lasano. Meanwhile, the Demonic Beast was trying to fly away with Cullen still clinging to its leg.

“I’m fine!”

There was no time for a long reply. Cullen, still hanging on, slashed horizontally across the Demonic Beast’s leg, which was moving to crush him. The skin of its talons, like its wings that deflected arrows, was tough. The sword scraped past with a clang.

As if its mood had been disturbed by Cullen’s attack, the Demonic Beast flapped its wings violently. In the meantime, the mercenary pierced by its talons was dying with a choked sound. He was the one who had spoken insultingly to Cullen just moments before, but Cullen didn’t want to see him die like this.

Cullen gritted his teeth and swung his sword again. This time, it was aimed at the abdomen above the talons. However, due to the change in flight direction, he almost fell.

He looked down, and the height was dizzying. If he fell now, it would be instant death. He had to find a way. To lure it down and kill it…!

At that moment, with a familiar heat, Cullen witnessed flames spreading across the Demonic Beast’s back. The flames, which erupted with intense heat silently, struck its back, causing the Demonic Beast to open its beak wide and twist its body. As the Demonic Beast, its wingbeats stopped, descended, Cullen’s hand slipped.

His body floated in the air, and just as he was about to plummet, pulled down by a strong force. With a heavy sensation, someone embraced him.

He knew who it was without needing to check. Golden hair caught his eye, and he smelled the faint scent of lilies he hadn’t smelled in a long time.

Blinking, Cullen looked at him. There was only one person who had held him like this, or rather, who would willingly give themselves up for him. Kiyen, whom he hadn’t seen in a while, looked thinner than before. His sharpened cheekbones made his golden eyes look almost beast-like.

…Kiyen-nim.

His name lingered on his lips. He had called his name unconsciously before, but the result had not been good.

While Cullen hesitated, Kiyen, holding him as if he had caught him, descended to the ground. Kiyen landed instantly, set Cullen down, and folded his wings.

He felt his body gently touch the ground. Cullen saw the injured mercenary next to him being slowly laid down by an intangible force. The mercenary, who had fallen when the Demonic Beast released its grip, seemed to have been brought down by Kiyen’s Magic.

He hadn’t left.

He must have thought that subconsciously, since he hadn’t seen him for so long. Yet, seeing his face brought him relief.

So, he found himself gazing at his face without realizing it. He hadn’t seen Kiyen for only three days, but it felt like over a year. His heart churned uncontrollably.

Their eyes met. Kiyen watched Cullen with an unreadable expression, then spread his wings. He looked different from before. The Kiyen who would always show some small expression when he saw Cullen was now expressionless, as if he had returned to the beginning.

Watching Kiyen, who seemed about to leave without a word, Cullen hastily got up. It happened before he even realized what he was doing.

As he moved to stop Kiyen, Cullen spotted a charging Demonic Beast. Looking at its blackened wings, it was the one Kiyen had attacked. It boasted a larger body than the other Demonic Beasts and was descending at high speed, its beak open as if in rage.

Its talons, sharper than swords, were aimed at Kiyen’s back. Kiyen seemed to sense it too, twisting his body but not dodging. Instead, he completely shielded Cullen with his own body.

Just like that time, he was trying to block for me again.

As that scene unfolded before his eyes, a reaction occurred within him. He couldn’t let Kiyen get hurt again. It was unthinkable to inflict a fatal wound on Kiyen, who had just recovered from his injuries, while sane.

As a desperate yearning, akin to rage, boiled intensely, white light burst from his fingertips.

Hwaaak!

The light that flowed from his hand, which had unconsciously reached out to grab Kiyen, formed a circular barrier, enveloping Kiyen and him. The charging Demonic Beast collided with the white barrier of light that also encompassed the mercenary beside them. Though he thought it was just light, something unbelievable happened afterward.

Kiiaaah!

The talons, which had seemed about to pierce Kiyen’s back, began to oxidize from the tip, turning black. Watching the Demonic Beast, which began to disappear from the point of contact with the barrier, Cullen felt a force swirling and flowing intensely within him.

It felt similar to when he had healed Kiyen. No, it was even more intense.

The Demonic Beast disintegrated into ashes with a long scream. Following that, the light slowly began to fade.

As the barrier of light disappeared, Cullen felt an intense dizziness that struck him. He felt as if all his energy had been depleted, and his sense of balance was momentarily lost.

As his body swayed, against his will, a firm hand grasped him.