Chapter 231: FOREST OF ETERNITY (3)

EPISODE 219 – FOREST OF ETERNITY (3)

The story development of Legend of Heroes 2 was largely divided into three.

In the first half, each character had their own circumstances.

Each of the eleven playable characters had a starting point, and the situation at their starting point was also different, so just like the saying, ‘no two men are alike,’ they all had different stories.

At this time, characters without overlapping routes were better, because if their routes overlapped, one side would be destroyed, corrupted, or killed in the story.

‘Like Cordelia and Lucas.’

It was impossible for the two to be compatible in single-player mode.

If one proceeded with Cordelia, Lucas would become a demonic human, and if one proceeded with Lucas, Cordelia would be completely corrupted and turn into a demon.

‘Moving on, the events in the northern, central, and southern regions were set in the early to middle parts of the game.’

Some characters began their stories quite early like Cordelia and Lucas, but most of them began their stories before and after those three consecutive events took place in the Sälen Kingdom.

‘Because the beginning of Kajsa’s story was her escape from Malekith’s attack.’

In the game’s storyline, the southern region was completely destroyed by Malekith and the Dragonflights.

Kajsa’s story was that she led her family as they somehow escape from the south amidst the chaos.

‘The Seven Major Calamities began in the middle part of the game.’

The Sälen Kingdom was already on the verge of destruction due to the successive events, and when the seven catastrophic beings appeared, it completely destroyed the kingdom and also led to the downfall of the empire.

In the game, all of the Seven Major Calamities were eventually defeated, but the damage accumulated in the meantime was so great that the two great powers collapsed in the end.

‘If it had ended here, I would have been more hopeful for the future, but…’

Unfortunately, the story continued in the latter half of the game’s storyline.

‘The final battle with the demon followers.’

It was the part where the demon followers, who had already been weakened by the Seven Major Calamities, began to actively gather.

The demon followers tried to begin the Great Summons while the heroes went into a final battle in order to stop them.

But it was the demon followers who eventually won the battle.

As a result, the Great Summons occurred, and the inhabitants of heaven and hell descended on earth. The overlords of hell and the archangels of heaven began Armageddon, which was a great war between good and evil.

‘And the world was roughly destroyed.’

The worlds of heaven and hell were not harmed.

Only the earth which had become a battlefield was destroyed.

All the countries established by humans collapsed without a single country left, and more than half of the remaining humans died in the aftermath of the war.

‘It’s terrible when you think about it.’

It was a reality now and not a story in a game.

Jude could find a way to save himself, but when he thought of Cordelia, Cordelia, Cordelia, Gaël, Adelia, and the others who would lose their lives from the war, that alone made his hands and feet tremble.

T/N: The repeating ‘Cordelia’ in the sentence above is not a typo. That’s just how important she is to Jude, hahaha.

‘Anyway, the middle part of the game is the fight against the Seven Major Calamities.’

One of them was Myriad Shapeshifter Jabberwock, who was just like its name.

‘Myriad Shapeshifter.’

A myriad of transformations.

A monster that could transform into anything.

Jabberwock was reborn as a real calamity when it combined with Jabberwock, a high-ranking demonic human of the Devil’s Horn who had the same name, and Jabberwock had the ability to transform into a creature that one feared the most.

‘Because of that, it became popular because its form in the boss fight was different for each character.’

The difficulty also changed depending on the playable character.

In any case, this was an opportunity to defeat Myriad Shapeshifter Jabberwock.

‘It hasn’t merged with Jabberwock yet.’

It had not yet become one with demonic human Jabberwock who had the same name.

Just like how they stopped the Snow Queen in the wild lands, it was now possible to get rid of Jabberwock early.

‘We can attack it again and again.’

They could kill it before it becomes a calamity.

And perhaps this could save both the Forest of Eternity and the elves.

‘Then we could rely on them.’

Because there were no such things as humans or elves in the face of a calamity.

They would surely be a strong ally in the upcoming battle against the Seven Major Calamities.

‘And now, we can get the help of the elves.’

It was a battle that they couldn’t refuse.

Naturally, if Jabberwock was stronger than expected, they could retreat and strengthen their power before attacking for the second time, but that was also something they would only know once they fought it.

“What’s wrong? Do you know anything about Jabberwock?”

Cordelia’s lip twitched at Princess Leica’s question, and Jude responded as naturally as always.

“Yes, the two of us are actually members of the Guardians of the Holy Cross. We’ve read about the forest monster, Jabberwock, at the headquarters of the Guardians.”

“Oh, the Guardians of the Holy Cross is still standing strong.”

When Princess Leica spoke with a very pleased face, Cordelia blinked her eyes and asked.

“Do you know about the Guardians of the Holy Cross?”

“I know about them. Before the Forest of Eternity’s barrier was activated, my ancestors helped establish the Guardians of the Holy Cross in the days when we still interacted with humans.”

It was a story of the past that was 500 years old at the most.

So Jude nodded his head and said.

“Yes, we still remember the help of the elves. There’s actually an elf who is still active.”

“Really? May I know their name?”

“Master Eltharion.”

“Oh… Eltharion. He is my great uncle.”

Princess Leica was delighted, while Cordelia tugged Jude’s sleeve.

[Jude, Jude. What’s a great uncle?]

[The brother of one’s grandfather.]

[Ah.]

He was more than 500 years old, and he was the brother of Leica’s grandfather.

It was a possible story since high elves lived for a thousand years.

“Then it’s better if you two belong to the Guardians of the Holy Cross. Of course, the two of you will help us, right? Then I will not only forgive you for trespassing into the Forest of Eternity, but also reward you for fighting together with us. Ah, naturally, I’ll also reward you for saving me.”

As Princess Leica smiled and spoke in a dignified voice, Cordelia pulled Jude’s sleeve again.

[I think our kingdom’s princess is better.]

Princess Daphne seemed to have more dignity.

Jude heard Cordelia’s comments and barely managed to suppress his laughter before he replied with a polite expression.

“We’ll gladly accept it.”

They would first try to fight together with the elves, and if they really couldn’t do it, then they could also run away.

‘It won’t take that long.’

Even though the Forest of Eternity was big, it was only at a level of a small country.

Moreover, the fact that they were still in the outskirts of the forest but met the punitive force could only mean that Jabberwock lived in the outskirts too, so they could face it in a day or two at most.

“I love your spirited answer.”

And around the time when a beautiful smile, second only to Cordelia’s, spread on Princess Leica’s face.

“■■■■ ■■■■■■■ ■■■■■!”

“■■■■ ■■■!”

The voices of elves came from beyond the bushes.

“■■■■ ■■■■!”

They seemed to be the knights of the punitive force, given that Princess Leica was relieved to hear their shouts as she also shouted loudly.

‘But what are they saying?’

The elf language was in his Memory Palace, but that didn’t mean he could understand their language immediately.

‘It’s discomforting.’

He was a little nervous because he couldn’t understand what they were saying.

But it was at that moment.

“●●●● ●●●.”

The elves’ words began to change when Cordelia placed her hand on Jude’s shoulder and whispered a spell.

“■■■■… ■■ safe, Your Highness.”

“But Your Highness, who are these people… eh? Humans?!”

“Don’t be afraid of them. They helped me. Moreover, they know about the Prime royal family.”

Princess Leica spoke a bit overbearingly to the elven knights who appeared through the bushes.

And Jude turned to Cordelia.

‘Wow, translation magic exists?’

‘Yes, it exists.’

Cordelia shrugged her shoulders as she puffed up with pride, and she continued with her eyes.

‘It’s a spell the witch used to communicate with demons.’

‘Oh, I see.’

He then understood that it was a universal translation magic.

‘You’re quite talented, huh? As expected of a wizard.’

‘Hehehe, praise me more. No, compliment me.’

It was at the moment when the elated Cordelia raised her chin.

“Count August Bayer and Countess August Chase?”

At Princess Leica’s call, Cordelia quickly lowered her raised chin and became embarrassed, while Jude calmly replied after suppressing his laughter that was about to burst this time.

“Your Highness may call us Jude and Cordelia.”

“Yes, that would be better. Then, Jude and Cordelia, let us go to my place. Let’s talk about the details there.”

“We shall obey your command.”

Jude had a small smile as he once again politely answered.

***

“Take a rest here.”

“Yes, Your Highness.”

The Forest of Eternity was not a place that was full of trees from the beginning to the end.

On the contrary, it was not an exaggeration to say that the inside was actually an open space except for the outer part.

‘Because there are meadows and lakes inside.’

The camp of the punitive force was also set up in the open space, but it was not that big since elves only had a small population.

‘Are there only 20 people in the punitive force?’

One could say that it was too little for a punitive force led by a princess, but it was acceptable if everyone was a knight.

[Why? Just because they have a small number doesn’t necessarily mean that they are elite knights.]

[I mean, they’re elves. You understand what I mean?]

[Something like your next door neighbor is a Sword Master, your other next door neighbor is an Archwizard, and the neighbor behind your house is a Bow Master?]

[Yes, something like that.]

Even an ordinary villager, who was not related to the royal family, was an elf who could live for 500 years.

500 years.

For as long as 500 years.

The skill levels of elves were naturally incomparable to humans.

Even if they just swung an axe every day for a hundred years, they would inevitably become masters after two hundred years, regardless of whether they had the talent or not.

‘Those who say that elves are slow learners are just speaking nonsense.’

Sometimes, there were games and novels that introduced the setting ‘Elves are slow learners because they have a long lifespan,’ but it was something ridiculous for Jude.

The elves were not a slow-witted race just because they could learn swordsmanship in a hundred years that a human could learn in ten years.

Even if it took them several times as long when compared to a human, their level of proficiency was still different from a human.

[Legolas was amazing too.] (Jude)

[The one from The Hobbit?] (Cordelia)

[No, the one in The Lord of the Rings.] (Jude)

[What? Did you watch The Lord of the Rings at the theater?] (Cordelia)

[Yes, when it was re-released. You haven’t watched it?] (Jude)

At the time of the movie’s first release in theaters, Jude was living in some remote place, so he didn’t know about the existence of The Lord of the Rings. And even if he was in South Korea then, he still wouldn’t be able to watch it because of the age limit.

[I didn’t watch it because it was too long.] (Cordelia)

[Then, why did you watch The Hobbit?] (Jude)

[Because the main character was very handsome. Ah. He starred as Watson too.] (Cordelia)

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[Do you like Sherlock?] (Jude)

[Yes, I like it.] (Cordelia)

Jude then recalled that Cordelia had once said that she watched Sherlock, so she knew about the Memory Palace.

T/N: Let me explain to those who don’t know. The Lord of the Rings (LOTR) film series was released first in theaters on 2001-2003. Despite LOTR being actually the sequel to The Hobbit, The Hobbit was only released on 2012-2014. Which means that Jude was still a minor in the years LOTR was first released.

And then, Martin Freeman, the actor of Bilbo Baggins who was the main character of The Hobbit, also played the role of Dr. John Watson in the British TV series, Sherlock, which aired on 2010-2017.

[You like British TV shows, huh?] (Jude)

[Yes. Anyway, they’re looking at us.] (Cordelia)

Jude came to his senses at Cordelia’s words, and he looked in front of him again.

Princess Leica stepped inside a large tent erected in the center of the camp together with knights that seemed to be close to her, and a young female elf was looking at the two with curious eyes.

“I am called Talanda. Ah, I have to speak in the human language. I am Talanda. Follow me. I’ll show you where to rest. Besides Princess Leica, I’m the only one who knows how to properly speak the human language. So if you have anything to say, find me.”

Although her pronunciation was a bit awkward, they had no problem understanding it. Because they had translation magic in the first place.

Therefore, Jude responded appropriately and followed Talanda as they stepped inside a small tent.

“You can rest here. I’ll be outside.”

Talanda went outside, so Jude and Cordelia looked around the inside of the tent.

All the furniture had a luxurious feel, which was to be expected of the elves.

‘They have a lot of time.’

So it was common to put a lot of effort in creating just one piece of furniture.

“Jude, shall we talk about Sherlock? What’s your favorite season? Mine is season 3.”

The slightly excited Cordelia was very cute, but Jude said as he held up a finger between his lips.

“Shh, let’s listen to their talk outside.”

At Jude’s words, Cordelia blinked once before nodding. Because she could hear the elves’ conversation with her ears that were much more sensitive than Jude.

“Humans? You said that they are humans?”

“Yes, it’s the first time you’ve seen one, right? I’ve never seen one either.”

“But aren’t humans ugly? They are good-looking.”

“He said that she was the most beautiful human.”

“I think I understand. My pig is really pretty. That’s why it’s cute.”

“What are you talking about? Anyway, I think that they will join the subjugation.”

“The humans? How old are they? 40 years old? 50? Aren’t they still babies?”

“Well… They said that humans get old quickly. Maybe they’re around 30 years old.”

“They’re like newborns then. So how will they be useful?”

“They’ll definitely be useful since they were brought here. And perhaps the legend is true.”

“That only humans can defeat Jabberwock?”

“Yes, that one.”

The elf was right. The reason why the elves of the Forest of Eternity couldn’t defeat Jabberwock for hundreds of years and only sealed him whenever it woke up was because it was born with a curse that it could only be killed by a human.

Only a human could kill it.

In short, they could not kill it because they weren’t human.

“But is it all right if we’re this noisy?”

“It’s all right. My grandfather said that humans have poor hearing unlike us, so they can’t hear us even if we’re just a bit far away from them.”

“What a pitiful race. They have a short lifespan, their hearing is poor, and they have ugly faces.”

“Instead, they have a lot of children. They grow up quickly too.”

“It’s quantity over quality. Somehow, they resemble the orcs.”

“That’s right. So let’s be nice to them. They’re a pitiful race.”

“Okay.”

“What the f*ck are they saying?”

The last one was obviously Cordelia.

She spoke in a low voice so that only Jude could hear her, but when he looked at her face, she seemed to be angry.

“What the f*ck is wrong with them? Just what the f*ck.”

As Cordelia let out F-words from her mouth, Jude realized one thing.

‘That’s right, Cordelia was a girl who liked to curse.’

A girl who liked to speak the F-word.

He had forgotten because he hardly heard her swearing these days, but it reminded him of the past, and he found it nice to hear it after a long time.

‘Well, I’m not normal either.’

I also like to use the F-word.

But it was at that moment.

Cordelia noticed Jude’s gaze and flinched before she pressed and wiggled her pointer fingers together and said.

“Uh… Jude.”

“Yes, Cordelia.”

“Do you hate… people who swear?”

Like those who constantly use the F-word.

At her timid question, Jude felt as if his heart was about to stop.

Because the Cordelia who was worried that he hated cursing was very cute.

‘Is it because of me that her swearing has been reduced these days?’

I thought that it was because her memory of the present life was stronger than the previous life.

If it’s really because of me, isn’t she such a lovely creature?

“Jude?”

When Cordelia asked again as she wiggled her fingers, and Jude smiled before answering her.

“No, it’s all right. F*ck is an exclamation, right?”

“Really?”

“Yes, really.”

Jude answered again and Cordelia said with a big smile as if she was on top of the world.

“That’s right, that’s right. F*ck is an exclamation.”

“Yes, it’s an exclamation.”

“Yes, f*ck.”

“Yeah, f*ck.”

“Oh my, you f*cking b*stard.”

Jude and Cordelia got along well as they repeatedly exclaimed the F-word and giggled, while Melissa inside Moonlight thought that the two weren’t normal.

And around 20 minutes later.

The door of the tent opened around the time Jude and Cordelia were having a heated discussion about the ending of Sherlock’s season 4.

“Princess Leica is looking for you. Follow me.”

The two went outside following Talanda’s guidance, and they noticed a lot of people staring at them.

It seemed the rumors about them had already spread to the entire camp.

‘There’s only 20 people after all.’

Jude and Cordelia reached Leica’s tent after receiving the attention of the knights, and they underwent a light physical inspection before going inside.

“You’re here.”

Princess Leica was seated at the head of a long table in the middle of the tent, and two elven knights stood on her left and right, but neither of them had a good look on Jude and Cordelia.

‘I can’t tell their age.’

Because the elves basically age very slowly.

The male knight on the right looked like a human in his mid-30s, so he was highly likely to be a veteran around 400 years old.

‘The left one is definitely young.’

A female knight who seemed to be in her early to mid-20s.

But in the case of elves, they all look to be in their early to mid-20s when they were 100-300 years old, so it was hard for Jude to guess her age.

‘So how old is Princess Leica?’

Given that she looked to be around in her late teens, she seemed to be less than a hundred years old.

“We’ll be fighting together in the future, so you should introduce yourselves.”

At Princess Leica’s order, the male knight said with a rather uncomfortable face.

“I’m Midas Karlov, the princess’ advisor.”

Apparently, he did not like Jude and Cordelia appearing here.

‘It’s to be expected.’

Aside from the fact that they were from a different race, two people he had never seen before had suddenly joined the punitive force.

However, the woman on the left said with a big smile as if she was enjoying the situation.

“I’m Vanessa Pine, the princess’ attendant.”

“I am Count Jude August Bayer of the Sälen Kingdom.”

“I am Countess Cordelia August Chase.”

Jude and Cordelia courteously greeted them, and the male knight, Midas, narrowed his eyes even more, while the female knight, Vanessa, tried to pronounce their names silently.

“Both of them have learned the human language as part of their education, though they’re quite unskilled. But it’s still possible for them to understand it. So let’s proceed with our conversation by speaking in the human language.”

“Thank you for your consideration.”

There was no need for the two to tell the other side that they could understand elven language.

‘If they think that we can’t understand their language, they’ll loosen their tongues.’

Although they held hands because of the necessity, the two still knew little about the elves, so it was not wrong for the two to be careful of the other side for now.

“Since you already know about Jabberwock, I’ll get straight to the point. Let’s look at the map first.”

The map unfolded on the table was so pointlessly detailed, though that was typical for the elves.

The shapes and sizes of the trees were all different, so it felt like they were looking at satellite pictures.

“Our current location is here. Jabberwock is located north of here.”

Princess Leica’s long and slender fingers crossed over the map.

But it was at that time.

Cordelia studied the map and suddenly widened her eyes in surprise before she slightly raised her hand.

“Do you have any questions?”

“There’s… something I’m a bit curious about. Is this a lake?”

A small lake located not far from the ‘cursed land’ where Jabberwock was located.

Princess Leica nodded her head and said.

“Yes, that’s a lake. It’s known to be the home of Spring Fairies. But I’ve never seen them before.”

It was too close to the cursed land, and the elves did not always interact with the fairies.

But regardless of that fact, Jude and Cordelia’s eyes began to sparkle.

‘Spring Fairy?’

‘Spring Protection?’

The fairies of Pleiades were largely divided into eight types.

There were the seasonal fairies with the power of spring, summer, fall, and winter, and the four elemental fairies with the power of earth, fire, wind, and water.

Among those fairies, Jude and Cordelia had interacted with the summer, fall, and winter fairies, and the wild fairies who symbolized the earth.

But if the spring fairies who symbolized the spring was added, they would get the Spring Protection.

‘The Great Protection of the Four Seasons.’

It was an S-rank Protection that could only be acquired by fully collecting the Spring, Summer, Fall, and Winter Protections!

Smiles spread on the faces of Jude and Cordelia.

Princess Leica tilted her head in response to the sudden reaction of the two, but the two did not stop smiling.

In fact, it wasn’t just the Great Protection of the Four Seasons.

‘Did you see it?’

‘Yes, I did.’

Before and after the forest’s destruction.

It was naturally different. Many things had changed. But the location and terrain did not significantly change, such as the lakes and hills.

Therefore, Jude and Cordelia were able to easily compare the map in their minds with the map in front of them, and they realized one more fact.

At the lake that was the residence of the spring fairies.

Another treasure that lied deep in it.

‘Hehe, hehehe.’

‘Hehehehehe.’

Jude and Cordelia looked at each other and exchanged dark smiles.

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