Tsuyokute New Saga (LN)

Book 8: Chapter 1

The Kingdom of Gilbohl was located in the center of the continent. It was the kingdom of dwarves close to the Demon Territory, running along the Sangurd Mountain Range next to Zilgus. The plot available for the country wasn’t huge, and it couldn’t boast much in terms of population, but its rich area and minerals made it perfect for the home of the dwarves, offering plenty of riches.

The ruler of the kingdom, King Garadoff the 5th was the ancestor of Garadoff the 1st, who achieved great results in the war against the demons 300 years ago and was known as the Hero of Dwarves. This was yet another country that greatly influenced how humanfolk moved. And right now, this very Garadoff the 5th was resting in his audience chamber. This was the place where envoys from other countries would arrive, or the ministers would make their suggestions. Normally, he would have to be seated deeply within his throne to show a righteous and dignified posture as the king.

However this time, he was leaning forward, a passionate gaze in his eyes. His expression was brimming with excitement and passion, like a child having found a new toy. His gaze wandered between two swords. One was made by the master of all dwarves, known as the Holy Sword Rand. Three hundred years ago, this very sword was used by the Hero Randolph, who struck down the Demon Lord at the time. It was a sword of legend and more.

Although it must have struck down countless foes, the black shine of the blade showed no deterioration whatsoever, which created a level of reliability and respect. Just watching it for a while would leave you entranced. After Randolph’s death, the sword disappeared from the eye of the world, but now it appeared once again. The other sword was a magic sword created before the fall of the Ancient Magic Kingdom Zaales from a thousand years ago. Its presence was fierce enough that a single glance could suck you in, perfectly incorporating the fame and glory of this advanced civilization during its zenith.

It gave off the impression that it was made of sturdy Mythril, but there was something else that created a fierce power that left Garadoff completely engrossed. For a moment, he felt the strong urge to rush up and ask if he could hold it for even a second, but as he was no warrior, he was not prepared to carry that weight. The blades weren’t weak enough for someone like him to hold these masterful works. One sword was made on the pinnacle of technique, and the other was born from limitless knowledge. Garadoff could not cast away his eyes from these swords. He didn’t even know how much time had passed, as he was reminded to even breathe properly. After a few moments, Garadoff could finally tear his gaze away.

“Wonderful work…is all I can say,” Garadoff couldn’t contain his raw emotions.

He was utterly bewitched by those two swords. He relaxed the fist he had formed while in a daze and leaned back on his throne.

“It’s an honor.”

So responded the man carrying one of the swords with its white blade—Kyle.

“I have heard the stories, but…the real thing has utterly blown me away.” Garadoff returned to his senses as he closely inspected Kyle.

And this made him think. Garadoff the 5th was a skilled man when it came to politics, and he lacked no talent as a king. If there was one problem, it was that he often mixed private desires with official matters when it came to the collection of weapons and tools. He would buy whatever weapon or tool had caught his eye this time, so much so that his ministers were suffering from severe headaches trying to salvage the king’s financial situation. Even right now, the aide at his side had a look like he was expecting the worst.

Naturally, the king had plenty of swords in his assortment, many which he could boast about, but none of them could hope to hold a candle against the two masterpieces in front of him. Naturally, that gave birth to a burning desire—that he would make the two swords his own. It was only natural for a collector like him. But at the same time, he knew that this would be rather difficult to accomplish.

Garadoff was the absolute ruler here in Gilbohl, and they were currently inside his audience chamber. What he said here was the law. And if he had been dealing with a random merchant or dealer, he might have pushed his authority to make the swords his own. However, he was looking at a young swordsman called a hero, and his sword was necessary for him to remain active, so forcing it out of him was too much. Especially since it was none other than Kyle—the man known as a hero.

So far, Kyle wasn’t particularly clear about his overall standing in terms of alliances, but his name and deeds had already spread across all of humanfolk. He had fended off demons without looking for compensation, even donated money wherever he went, and even earned himself the title of [Dragonslayer]. At this point his fame surpassed that of a small country’s king. Especially considering his deed of defeating the Hydra in the country of Zilgus, neighbor to Gilbohl, where he saved Princess Milena. Everybody in the whole kingdom knew him. They started doing plays and writing books about his deeds.

Gilbohl and Zilgus were always on good terms, with various treaties, so Garadoff would rather not ruin their relationship by being too selfish here. Even more troublesome than that was the fact that the upcoming ruler of humanfolk’s greatest country, the Empire of Galgan, Maizer had taken great interest in Kyle himself. Even if Gilbohl had the means to protect itself from such an overwhelming enemy, Garadoff would rather not make the Empire an enemy. Plus, Kyle helped quell the civil war that burned up after the sudden death of the first prince Eldorand. This raised the chance that the Empire itself might move if Kyle asked for it. Adding to that, there was even intel about him making connections with Glorious Sakira from the Holy Kingdom of Sura.

The depth of this connection was unknown to the king, but turning that woman into an enemy was more than foolish. Spoiling her mood would only backfire. But of course, there were countless other rumors floating around, all of them speak volumes of his deeds. And to both Gilbohl and all of humanfolk, one wrong step with Kyle could lead to unforeseen repercussions. Not only that, but Garadoff was the one who invited Kyle over this time. He heard the rumor that he was using the sword of the hero in this endeavor, so Garadoff just had to see it once.

Kyle had no qualms with just showing him the sword, so he agreed to the invitation. Garadoff never intended to make an offer, but the quality of the swords was a miscalculation on Garadoff’s side. Going back on his sword to steal it would be the same as a betrayal. He would be a failure of a king. But his collector’s heart was bleeding. Meanwhile, Kyle was still down on his knees, showing respect to the king, but he gave off an invincible feeling. Garadoff felt a bit irritated at this sight but didn’t let that show, as he just continued thinking.

“Is there a problem by any chance?” Kyle asked, curious about the long silence from Garadoff.

“No, it is nothing. Apologies…I simply ask for a chance to gaze upon these masterpieces once more in the near future.”

In the end, Garadoff managed to keep his composure and his face as a king. He had to swallow his desires just this once.

“Then…” Kyle said, putting away the sword.

Even the sheath itself was a work of art, said to have been made by the greatest smith in Carran, Gazas. Garadoff enjoyed the last few seconds of laying his eyes on the blades and then sighed. Following that, he asked Kyle about his deeds so far, who responded in a fashion like he was used to it. Especially when he spoke of his battle against the dragon, his voice was packed with passion, like he was a traveling storyteller. A few stories later, right as Garadoff intended to cut things and give Kyle his reward, the young man spoke up.

“Actually…there’s something else. May I?”

“What is it?”

“I have something of a…request of you, Your Majesty.”

“Oh?”

Garadoff latched on rather immediately. He realized that, depending on the conditions and reward, he might still be able to get that sword. And with Kyle the one initiating it, nobody would fault Garadoff for such, either.

“I know I might be overstepping my boundaries, considering I ask this without a proper audience…”

“Say what you want, I won’t fault you. Of course, I can’t grant whatever wish you may have, but I will do my best to offer assistance.”

Since Kyle was acting oddly reserved, Garadoff pushed the matter, slightly irritated.

“Come on, out with it. What do you want? Fortune? Plot? Or possibly…”

“The discussions held between the elves and dwarves…would you be willing to resume them?”

Met with this utterly unexpected request, Garadoff was unable to utter a word.

There had never been a genuine war or struggle between the dwarves and elves, but it was commonly known that they couldn’t stand each other’s guts. This rivalry went back all the way to the creation of the world, based on the fierce rivalry between the Goddess of Spirits and the Moon, Moona, and the protective God of the dwarves, the God of Fire and Smithing Regane. However, nobody could really explain what brought up this horrible relationship, and it just turned into an emotional problem. Because they barely had any contact with each other, nobody suffered any real harm, and yet regardless. That said, the problem was rooted deeply, so resolving it wasn’t all that easy, so their tensions continued.

“A discussion with the elves…” Garadoff barely managed to contain his shock in the face of Kyle’s request.

But, he definitely wasn’t all too happy about it. The ministers present also couldn’t believe what they had just heard. Some started to show resentment toward Kyle simply by hearing the name elves. At the very least, nobody thought of this positively. And yet, Kyle didn’t mind this much, as he just looked at Garadoff.

“What brought this up?” He didn’t budge even under the pressure of Kyle’s gaze, stating that he didn’t understand his intentions. “There is no reason to resume these discussions now and today.”

“Because the current situation is not normal. You should at least keep the bare minimum of contact with the elves living in the forest. That is something very crucial for the dwarves living in Gilbohl.”

The forest of Evenro was the closest forest to Gilbohl that was inherited by the elves, but the dwarves saw this as another world they didn’t much bother with. Normally, they would never have to bother with each other…except for one particular situation.

“Are you hinting at…”

“Yes. The possibility that the demons might come to attack.”

The moment Kyle finished his sentence, the audience room grew noisy. The demons were the common enemy of all humanfolk, no matter the race. They were humanfolk’s sworn enemy. But after the last Great War 300 years ago, demons never tried another attack, and barely anybody had seen them lately. That is why humanfolk had grown less wary of the looming threat.

“To fight back against the demons, we need the strength of the elves. That is what history has shown. And we cannot be late with our preparations, or we will be taken by surprise.”

And right as Kyle wanted to continue further—

“Cease your nonsensical ramblings! Even without the help of the elves, the demons pose no threat!” A heavily armored knight standing close to Garadoff roared.

His whole body was covered in metal armor, and he carried a lance bigger than his whole body, yet he showed dignity and pride as he stood between the king and Kyle.

“Leave it at that, Bogune.”

“But your Majesty…” Garadoff warned the man, but the man didn’t step down from that.

The other knights seemed to agree with Boune’s opinion, as they all closed in on Kyle. Yet, he remained as calm as before, as if he knew he was in no danger whatsoever.

“I don’t doubt your power. But I am saying that it won’t be enough. You probably would never understand…unless you’ve experienced the genuine deal.”

There, Garadoff remembered a certain rumor about Kyle.

“Are you referring to…”

“Yes. Back in Carran, I encountered an invading demon and was forced to fight them.”

That described the rumor that Garadoff had heard before. With that revelation, the room went silent.

“…So the rumors were true.” Garadoff showed an equally perturbed expression, but he didn’t laugh it off.

Out of all the rumors he had heard related to Kyle, this was the one that he couldn’t deny. It wasn’t an easy story to believe, considering that demons had last shown up no less than 300 years ago. However, having heard this rumor, paired with Kyle’s infamy and achievements, forced Garadoff to accept this fact.

“So you’ve learned how terrifying those monsters are.”

“Yes. And as this is a problem concerning all of humanfolk, I opted to come here. From the sounds of it and according to what I learned, there seem to be many more demons secretly hiding amongst us.” Kyle purposefully chose an uncertain but fear-instilling tone and continued. “And those demons were unbelievably strong. It would be hard to find a comparison, but they definitely could rival the strength of a dragon…”

More muttering could be heard in the audience room. Of course, he was greatly exaggerating, and the strength of the demons varied heavily depending on the individual. In fact, the demon Ganias that he fought in Carran probably wouldn’t have been able to stand his ground against the dragon Ghrud. However, Kyle’s main goal was to raise awareness of the danger the demons possessed, so it was better to exaggerate than to undersell. And he wasn’t completely lying either, since the renowned demon Three-Arms, one of the strongest even in the war 300 years ago, was definitely stronger than Ghrud. And only those who fought both demons and dragons would be able to tell if Kyle was lying or not. That said, this method seemed to work, especially against Bogune, who stopped arguing back at Kyle altogether.

“Gilbohl formed an alliance against the demons. We have not forgotten,” Garadoff answered bluntly.

And to them, it was a lot more logical and natural that they would first ask for help from Zilgus before they relied on the elves.

“Yes, but we don’t know if they can make it in time once the situation needs it. Please consider the Sangurd Mountain Range.”

Just as Kyle stated, the two countries were separated by the giant Sangurd Mountain Range, so even a rescue would take a long time to arrive.

“More than anything, Zilgus will probably be attacked by demons at the same time.”

Garadaff didn’t know where that confidence was coming from, but Kyle continued nonetheless.

“Not only that, but…an alliance between just two countries is not enough. Just like in the war 300 years ago, we need to come together as one united humanfolk…And you should be more than aware of this.”

In the war 300 years ago, the dwarven army worked with the elves, ignoring their differences for the greater good. In a way, this was a stain in the history of their race. Garadoff understood what Kyle was referring to, and the man around him all didn’t seem too pleased with this grim reminder, but none argued back.

“And it was none other than Garadoff the 1st who started negotiations and discussions with the elves on a regular basis, correct?”

As a matter of fact, Garadoff the 1st was seen as someone of divinity, and as many of the elves were still alive to fight with him, his name carried much weight for both races. The meeting was supposed to be held once a year with representatives from both sides meeting, but after Garadoff the 1st passed away, the tradition had been dead for more than two years.

“Though I was told that the regular meeting wasn’t completely canceled, and instead just put on hold all this time, correct?”

“I’m surprised you know,” Garadoff raised a shocked voice.

Just as Kyle stated, they never fully stopped the tradition, they simply put it on hold. The meetings were born out of the work of the hero of the dwarves, so nobody dared to cancel this tradition. That said, not many of the dwarves knew about this fact, and seeing that a human of all things pointed that out left Garadoff utterly baffled.

“There shouldn’t be any problem if you wanted to restart those meetings, no?”

“…”

Garadoff started thinking. Kyle carried reason with his words. Now that he had learned the danger of the demons, he judged that all humanfolk would have to come together to defend against this enemy. And at the same time, he felt worried about the rift between the elves and dwarves. Just standing here, making this request, showed the perfect capability of Kyle being a hero. If the demons were to launch an assault right now, then Gilbohl would suffer the harm right now, probably leading to utter annihilation. Way before help from Zilgus could ever arrive. Instead, having allies in the elves in the Forest of Evenro would be much better. However, that didn’t mean that Garadoff could simply run off and speak with the elves. Thinking about it logically, what Kyle was saying made perfect sense. But even so, that wouldn’t allow them anything.

“…We cannot start the meetings ourselves, it all depends on the elves. As long as they do not offer to attend the meeting, we will not be able to restart anything.”

Even if it was wrong, Garadoff decided that they would not make the first step themselves. Because even if he agreed, the ministers and the inhabitants definitely would not.

“So you’re saying you would be willing if the elves were to agree?”

“I would consider it, yes.”

But he naturally thought that the elves would never agree to such terms. Garadoff respected Kyle’s efforts in bringing humanfolk together, and he certainly wasn’t against the idea. But the elves were a seclusive race, so Kyle even getting close to their settlement seemed close to impossible.

“Just hearing that is plenty…Thank you very much for allowing me an audience.”

Kyle obviously knew this but judged that this was enough for today and simply lowered his head.

***josei

Kyle and his party walked down the main street of the kingdom. Most people they walked past were dwarves, with a small number of people being humans or beastmen. They heard the sound of metal hitting metal in the distance, which sounded like the heartbeat of the whole country. And since the dwarves were especially fond of alcohol, the bars were already open even in the middle of the day. It was a loud, noisy, and lively town.

“I swear, that man…Inviting us here, and yet that treatment.” Shildonia grumbled as she trotted after Kyle.

She must be talking about what happened earlier in the audience room. Out of his whole group, only Kyle was present, but Shildonia obviously inhabited the sword in Kyle’s hand, so it was the same as being present.

“Why did you have to take my sword from me, too…” Owner of the Holy Sword Rand, Seran, complained all the same.

It was only momentarily, but he felt restless for each second that Rand was not by his side. Now that he had his beloved sword at his side, he could finally sigh a breath of relief.

“What else was I supposed to do? That king is famous for gathering valuable weapons, so I had to get on his good side first. You should’ve seen how excited he was,” Kyle argued with the two. “It’d be much better to have both of them instead of just Shildonia. Thanks to that, everything worked out.”

Because Garadoff was so entranced by the two swords, Kyle could easily persuade him regarding the discussions with the elves.

“Plus, King Garadoff is still a king, he wouldn’t act so foolish as to forcefully take it from me.”

He may mix private with public matters at times, but Kyle was confident that he would not use his right too excessively.

“But in the end, he’s still not gonna talk with the elves, right? Urza got it all right in the end.”

Lieze countered Kyle’s point, suggesting that the king wasn’t as great as he might seem. As a matter of fact, Urza couldn’t even enter the country, now acting separately with Minagi. She even stated that she was confident these discussions between elves and dwarves would never take place.

“Not really. I did feel a bit of a response. In fact, it’s better than I expected.”

Of course, his dream outcome would have been that the dwarves approached the elves in a request for another discussion, but he knew from the start that this would be relatively hard to accomplish. And if Garadoff hadn’t said that he would consider, Kyle would have been forced to approach him many times over in the future.

“It also looks like that encounter with the demons was rather impactful to them.”

Kyle never told anybody the details of his battles with the demons, and only those directly involved from Galgan and Zilgus, knew to some degree.

“Seems like I’ll have to raise more awareness toward the demons in the future.”

“But…”

Lieze seemed like she wanted to say something, but ultimately closed her mouth again. Kyle knew what she was concerned about, yet he was powerless to say anything. Having fought with demons before, he knew that they weren’t all too different from humans. Especially since Yuriga, a demon they had fought side by side with before, was already like a friend to Lieze. In fact, Kyle had already formed something of an alliance with the current Demon Lord Luiza. However, he could not afford to stop just at that. Even if he formed these valuable connections, humanfolk and demons could never fully see eye-to-eye.

“So, your business here is done, right? Time to get out of here,” Seran may or may not have known about the gravity of the situation, as he nonchalantly suggested this.

“This place isn’t so bad though, surprisingly. That said, an underground city like this is a lot crazier than I thought.” Seran looked up at the ceiling, where normally the sky should have been.

The country of Gilbohl was located in a massive cavity within the earth, where thousands upon thousands of dwarves lived.

“It’s a lot more pleasant than above ground, at least. How do they do that?” Lieze looked around and voiced her admiration.

It was definitely underground, but using magic items, they created plenty of lighting, and although it was still pretty dim, there were no complaints regarding daily life. They had the same cycle as the outside world. Although it was unclear how they accomplished it, they even kept a considerate temperature fitting the season, and the airflow worked just fine so that it never felt stuffy. There was even a river running through the town, with fields and crops growing en masse, allowing them to stay isolated for years to come.

“And they boast themselves it is the best defensive location all of humanfolk has to offer.”

The walls around them were made of bedrock, after all. In order to reach this place, they had to journey through several tunnels. No other country would be so protected from invasions as Gilbohl. It was one factor contributing to their confidence and the reason that even Galgan did not dare make its way here.

“And that is why they fell to the demons, who overwhelmed them with raw strength,” Kyle muttered in a quiet voice, but all his allies went silent when they heard that.

In the future that Kyle experienced, Gilbohl was the first country that fell because of the [Great Invasion]. And in a single attack, no less. The demons appeared out of nowhere and completely overwhelmed Gilbohl’s defenses. The tunnels made it so that only a limited amount of people could move, but a single demon alone could defeat thousands of humans, so this limited space only worked in their favor. And with these paths limited, so are there means of escape. Naturally, they tried to fight back, but it was not enough to defend against the demons.

“Demons could easily break through these defenses, yes.”

“And most of the demons back then were dead soldiers too, right? Once they get close, you’re pretty much lost.”

Both Shildonia and Seran gave their own comments. Kyle’s party envisioned the sight of demons rushing down the tunnels, prepared to die and yet press forward. Lieze imagined the children running past her burning away in hellfire, as the pain gripped her heart.

“On top of that, the supposed help from Zilgus…never arrived. Because they were attacked by the demons at the same time.” Kyle grit his teeth.

Not only that, but even Kyle’s hometown Rimarze suffered an attack. As a blessing in disguise, the demons seemed to have prioritized the attack on Gilbohl, which gave Zilgus time to restructure. And although he should have gotten in contact with Gilbohl and helped against the demons, the king of Zilgus, Remonas, was swallowed by greed. He wanted to create a favor with the dwarves and said to only depart for aid if they asked for it. Of course, fortifying their own defenses was also the right choice, but leaving Gilbohl to themselves was a fatal error. Because it only took a few days for the country to fall completely. Completely as in, every single dwarf living here was killed mercilessly, as the area fell into demon territory.

News of this spread like wildfire, causing a continent-wide panic, because Gilbohl was a country nobody thought could be taken over like this. Humanfolk tried to form contact with each other, but as the demons had already snuck into their rows, any communication was cut off, and each country was finished without being able to offer much resistance. This failure at the initial response was repeated with other countries, which was one of the reasons why humanfolk was brought to the brink of ruin.

“We cannot let that repeat. So far starters, we have to ensure that the dwarves and elves repair their relations.” Kyle formed a fist strong enough for his nails to bite into his flesh, as he declared so with a strong conviction.

“B-But at the very least, he did respect you for what you’ve done, right?” Lieze tried to dispel the heavy atmosphere.

That was one of Kyle’s biggest goals. He achieved a hero status so that he held enough power to influence the path of the humanfolk. His swords and actions reached a level that not even the kings of the countries of this continent, Garadoff included, could ignore. His hard work so far wasn’t for naught. And hearing this being reaffirmed by his allies was strengthening Kyle’s resolve.

“Yeah, they’re lending me their ears. But them moving accordingly is an entirely different matter.”

Becoming a hero was just the means in this case, so he couldn’t afford to feel satisfied with just that. Especially considering his next destination—the elves.

“The elves, huh? I guess we can only put our hopes into Urza. I hope everything works out there…?” Lieze thought of their allies not present, as she commented with an anxious tone.

The forest of Evenro was also the place Urza was born, so they sent her there ahead of time to prepare for discussions. Everyone knew how difficult of an undertaking this would be, but they had faith in her success.

“We can only believe in her,” Kyle muttered as he looked in the direction of the forest in question.