My brother’s face came to mind again.
I lay down in bed in the middle of the night, but I couldn’t sleep.
I lay still and listened to Kevin’s breathing, evenly, in the bed next to me.
It was strange.
Lately, Edgar’s face kept coming to mind.
I got up out of bed feeling frustrated.
I heard Kevin tossing and turning, but fortunately he didn’t wake up.
I quietly got dressed and went outside.
The early morning air was cold.
I walked to the empty lot outside the village to shake off my distracting thoughts.
I thought that if I practiced swordsmanship there, my mind would be clearer.
From afar, I could hear the sound of a sword cutting through the air.
Whoosh… Whoosh…
It was a sharp and clean sound.
It was clear that someone was practicing swordsmanship.
I approached cautiously and saw the silhouette of a woman under the moonlight.
The trajectory of the greatsword was dancing in the air like a silver ribbon in the moonlight.
Hafel? At this hour?
As I approached closer, it was Hafel.
I could slowly see her swinging the greatsword under the moonlight.
Where was her usual arrogant expression?
She was seriously practicing her swordsmanship.
The huge greatsword glowed softly in the moonlight.
The beads of sweat on Hafel’s forehead caught the light and sparkled like crystal.
Her swordsmanship was amazing.
I could feel an overwhelming aura from the way she handled such a heavy greatsword as freely as a feather.
Movements without a single unnecessary detail.
Perfect balance.
This is the skill of an A-class adventurer.
My heart ached.
An A-class adventurer.
She had already reached that position, yet she devoted herself to practicing from the crack of dawn.
But I… have I really lived diligently?
I’ve grown quite a bit recently, but maybe it was natural for me to stay at C-class for 7 years.
Just as I was about to turn around, Hafel stopped her sword as if she noticed my presence.
“What are you doing at this hour?”
It was her usual arguing tone, but it was different than before.
Hafel’s attitude seemed to have changed subtly since meeting Lycoris.
Wasn’t she as sharp as before?
“I’m sorry. I couldn’t sleep…”
“Thoughts?”
It was a sharp intuition.
I nodded.
“Then do you want to join us?”
“Yes?”
“Sword practice. It’s better than doing it alone.”
I couldn’t believe it.
Hafel wanted me to practice with her?
This would never have happened before.
Hafel, who had been watching me hesitate, slung her greatsword over her shoulder and said,
“Why are you so surprised? I’m not ignoring you just because you’re a C-rank. I just…”
It was at that moment when her words trailed off.
A moment of light split the darkness.
A single ray of intense light rose above the Shia Kalt Mountains.
It looked like a thin thread, but the light was stronger than moonlight and purer than starlight.
“That is…”
Hafel muttered in confusion, but I knew.
What was that light?
A story I had heard countless times from my father.
The secret technique of Hindgar.
A sword technique that burns life force to temporarily gain great strength.
I never learned it, but Edgar…
Edgar must have learned it.
My heart was pounding.
That was Edgar’s light.
Was this why I kept thinking about my brother lately?
“Wait! Where are you going!?”
I didn’t even hear Hafel’s shout.
I was just instinctively running towards the light.
“Brian!!”
Hafel followed me and grabbed my shoulder.
“We have to go where that light is.”
“Why all of a sudden?”
“That’s… the secret of the Hind family.”
“The Hind family? That noble family of Genes?”
I nodded.
“I was originally… the eldest son of the Hind family.”
Hapel’s steps stopped for a moment.
“Then that light…”
“It must be my brother.”
There was no need for further explanation.
Hapel followed me silently.
My heart was pounding as we climbed the mountain.
My breath was heavy, but I couldn’t stop.
Hindgar’s secret technique was no different from swordsmanship, risking one’s life.
Edgar, the fact that you were in such a desperate situation that you would use it…
The sound of Hapel’s footsteps behind me was strangely reassuring.
She didn’t say anything, but she occasionally extended her arms as if to support me whenever my steps faltered.
Of course, she didn’t actually do that.
“Would you like… a break?”
Hapel asked nonchalantly.
I could hear the worry in her voice, trying not to show it.
“It’s okay.”
I answered, but my voice trembled.
Was it because of my physical limitations, or was it because I was worried about my brother?
I ran and ran.
The cold air before dawn seemed to bite my lungs.
My breath was pounding, but I couldn’t stop.
And finally, when I reached the place where the light was shining, I saw the entrance to the Great Labyrinth.
“Please…”
A fervent prayer came out of my mouth.
But reality was different from the prayer.
“Edgar!”
I couldn’t open my eyes.
His armor had disappeared without a trace, and only torn cloth remained.
His skin, frozen and pale, looked like frosted marble.
Blood was still flowing out from deep wounds here and there.
The sight of the red blood dripping onto the white snow was so vivid.
What was even more shocking was his breathing.
As a result of using Hindgar’s secret technique, his breathing was thin and irregular, like that of a hundred-year-old man.
You could see the frozen blue blood vessels under his skin.
It was as if his very life force had frozen.
Was it because of the side effects of the secret technique and the extreme cold?
For a moment, I remembered my childhood.
The moment when I first held a sword and helped Edgar maintain his stance.
Back then, he was just a bothersome younger sibling who followed me around…
Now that I look back, how precious those days were.
It’s been 7 years since I saw my younger sibling like this.
The kid who was called a genius when he was young and always proudly active was now groaning on the brink of death.
I couldn’t do anything for him as an older brother, but now I’m meeting him like this.
My eyes were getting hot.
“Edgar…”
I reached out and touched Edgar’s face.
It was cold.
It was so cold that my heart almost stopped.
I saw my younger sibling’s lips tremble.
He’s still alive.
But how long…
My mind was dizzy.
Then I heard Hapel’s voice.
“Wake up!”
Hapel took out a red potion from her bosom.
An intermediate vitality recovery potion.
The red liquid in the sparkling bottle rippled as if it were alive.
I could see Hapel’s hand trembling slightly.
Was she nervous too?
“Open your mouth.”
Hapel carefully poured the potion between Edgar’s lips.
With each drop, his heart pounded.
Please… please, let it work.
But the effect was minimal.
His pale complexion seemed to have improved a little, but he still looked precarious.
I felt Edgar’s pulse with my fingertips.
He was getting weaker.
At this rate, it would be difficult for Marianne, who had recently grown explosively, and even for the saintess.
Despair washed over me.
“Let’s go to Licorice.”
I raised my head at Hapel’s words.
“It could be possible with Licorice’s recovery pollen.”
Hapel said…
You believe in Licorice?
Until last time, Hapel was wary of Licorice…
But she was right.
Licorice pollen had amazing healing powers.
The mysterious being I had met on the mountain a while ago came to mind.
I remembered the story the warrior and the saint had told me after meeting Licorice.
Licorice had moved to the depths of the Great Labyrinth, and Prostia had also left.
I was also at the entrance to the Great Labyrinth.
I looked up at Hapel.
“Hapel, would you please tell my colleagues that I have entered the Great Labyrinth?”
Before I could finish my words, Hapel widened her eyes in disbelief.
“What? You want me to just tell you? Of course I should go with you.”
“Huh? I’m already grateful that you came all the way to the mountain range…”
“If you go alone, you’ll die.”
Hapel’s tone was blunt, but there seemed to be some worry in it.
As I stepped into the Great Labyrinth, a cold air enveloped my entire body.
A cold air seeped out from the ice-covered walls, and the sound of my footsteps echoed through the empty space.
Drop… drop…
The sound of water dripping from afar could be heard intermittently.
The bloodstains were divided into two.
One was a trace of someone staggering, and the other was a trace of someone supporting the other person.
It must have belonged to Edgar or someone else.
Fortunately, not a single monster was in sight.
I should have encountered at least ten at this depth.
Was it the influence of Licorice?
Or was there another reason?
It wasn’t easy to take a single step while carrying Edgar.
The cold emanating from his body was so strong.
My whole body trembled as if I was carrying a block of ice.
“Give it to me.”
Hapel suddenly held out her hand.
“I can…”
“I can see you shivering right now.”
Hapel was already shivering from the cold, but her hands that held Edgar were surprisingly careful.
Where did her usual rough appearance go?
We moved forward slowly, very slowly.
It got darker and darker as we went deeper into the labyrinth.
It was probably the time when the sun had risen, but it was still pitch-black here.
Fortunately, not a single monster was in sight.
I should have encountered at least ten at this depth.
Then Hapel suddenly stopped.
“Wait a minute. Didn’t you get attacked by your sister Licorice?”
I shook my head.
“Licorice can’t use ice attacks like this. It has root attacks and various pollen abilities, but…”
“No, there are ice bugs that Licorice rules over.”
I looked at her again, doubting whether it was true.
There were suspicious small wounds here and there, but most of them were huge wounds.
They were wounds that Licorice’s bugs couldn’t have made.
“No, look at these wounds. No matter how big Licorice’s bugs are, they’re only the size of a palm, so they can’t cause such large wounds. This looks like… the work of something much larger…”
“Now that you mention it, that’s right. These torn wounds… can’t be explained by the size of a normal monster…”
“Then, could it be that Frostia has returned?”
There was tension in Hapel’s voice.
“That’s even more unlikely. If I had encountered Frostia… I wouldn’t have been able to escape alive.”
As soon as I finished speaking, a chill ran down my spine.
Then, who on earth…?
After following the blood trail for a while, Hapel suddenly stopped.
“Shh.”
Her sharp eyes pierced the darkness.
“Someone is coming from behind.”
After a while, a voice was heard.
It was a human voice.
Who else could be in this deep labyrinth besides us?
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