Chapter 99
It Rains
Translator : PolterGlast
"Ugh, damn that
old man..."
In the middle of the
desert, the boy let out a huge sigh. Next to him, his partner tilted its head,
its long tongue lolling out. "Good job," he said, patting its head.
It was a large, snake-like monster called a Sand Cobra. Only the boy could ride
it.
『Good work! I'll give you a hefty reward!』
The old man's voice
kept echoing from the communication device in his ear, making him want to throw
it away. A strange old man had been trying to enter a restricted area, so
mostly out of kindness and a bit of business sense, he had offered to guide
him. He had been told it was alright, but the old man had come back anyway and
grabbed him by the scruff of his neck.
The reward would be
hefty. That's why he wanted to hire him. It was possible that the land in this
area would sink further. When that happened, he wanted to entrust the
evacuation of the residents to him.
The communication
device, a magic tool, was placed in his palm, and while wondering what he was
talking about, he nodded as prompted. He had fallen asleep with the magic tool
he was told to keep close to him, and then the old man's instructions had come
flying in. He wanted to yell at him for being so sudden.
His exhausted body
felt like mud. Originally, since it was close to the restricted area, people
didn't come, but still, just in case. He had also sent messengers to the nearby
village. He kept watch to make sure no one approached or entered, and as the
old man had said, the land sank. Then, strangely, a new land was born. It
should have been barren land full of sand. But look at it now, there was a
fragile sprout that looked like it would disappear any second, but it was
definitely born and trying to live.
He didn't even know
what emotion his exhaled breath carried. He just kept staring at the barren
land.
"What are we
gonna do? Business is gonna be booming..."
Riding on his
partner's back, he glided over the sand. Only the boy could move so quickly.
Yet, even though he was verbally blaming the situation, the corners of his
mouth couldn't help but turn up. Flower petals were even raining down from
somewhere. He laughed and shouted into the communication device attached to his
ear.
"Hey, old man!
I'm gonna charge you, a lot! I'll guide you for what I get, so come see, it's
amazing!"
***
They had destroyed the
wall of wind, and all that should have been left was to strike Carsei. But the
other side was one or two steps ahead. Snow just gritted his teeth. He couldn't
win. He had lost.
"...Couldn't you
have done something more!"
"That was the
best I could do. And boy, am I frustrated."
He grabbed Shangra's
neck, who just grinned. He wanted to punch him for not sounding sincere, but
the eyes visible through the gap in his crooked sunglasses were frighteningly
sharp.
"...So, what do
you want to do now?"
"Having come this
far, how could I possibly go back in shame? If I return, I'll face battles with
the other countries. If I can't advance or retreat, then I'll bet on the
possibility of conquering this country."
"A quagmire,
huh?"
"Fine by
me."
He spat out the words.
Everything was for the
sake of the country's people. To create a land without hunger. The world was
not equal. If so, then all he had to do was take. He had made up his mind.
Suddenly, something fell from the sky. Pink flower petals fluttered in the air.
In the blink of an eye, they filled Snow's vision like a heavy rain.
"What... is
this!" He couldn't tell left from right. The soldiers were also confused.
Only Shangra looked up at the sky. "Petals from the World Tree..."
"What's that?" Snow shouted, ignoring his words, pushing through the
petals, and yelling at a communication soldier.
Hail Land had
developed a different culture from Soleil. The device that enabled
long-distance communication across national borders was called science.
"Hey! Check right now, are the same flowers falling in Hail Land?!"
The reply was like a scream. He immediately took out a large machine and rang a
bell. It didn't take long. Indeed, flowers were falling. Everywhere, throughout
the entire country of Hail Land.
"...Uh, um."
"What is it? Is
there anything else?"
"The snow, no,
the flowers, well, the snow that should have been falling in Hail Land, it's
all... flowers, no, petals, it's changed into petals."
"What?!"
Snow snatched the
machine from the soldier. But the other side just kept repeating the same
thing. The snow in Hail Land continued to fall without ceasing. His hometown
should have been a freezing country too harsh for people to live in. But look
at it now, it was sprouting as if the World Tree had breathed new life into it.
Snow just trembled. "So, what do we do now?" He glared with one eye
at Shangra, who shrugged, and closed his eyes. He threw the receiver away, and
a soldier behind him caught it.
"...Withdraw."
"With our tails
between our legs?"
"That's right. If
there's no need to invade, we'll tuck our tails in and run back right now. Our
cooperation ends here. Do as you like."
"Oh, come on.
Having gotten involved, I'll stick with you to the end. I don't really hate you
after all."
He was nonchalant.
Snow clenched his fist. "...What about your goal?" They had only
joined hands for the same purpose. Shangra shrugged.
"Opportunities
will come anytime. I don't particularly need to beat Vejasha right now. As long
as I'm the one laughing last, I don't care about the process."
Snow just clicked his
tongue at the grinning man. But this wasn't the time for that. From now on,
Hail Land would face strong headwinds. They had ruthlessly attacked another
country with a surprise attack. Leyshan, Cloudy Country—they wouldn't escape
the reprimands from the other leaves. They had to strengthen their defenses
immediately.
But, he held a small
hope in his heart. He sought a country where people wouldn't suffer. That faint
hope was budding in the young man's chest.
***
At that moment, many
people looked up at the sky.
They reached out their
hands to the falling flowers. Children stretched out their short arms, shouting
with glee.
"What in the
world is going on?" A woman looked out the window with a puzzled
expression. The sun was peeking out slightly from the gaps in the clouds. Even
in the Cloudy Country, the sun would occasionally show its face, but this was
quite strange, she thought, tilting her head. Then, "What is this?!"
she screamed. The storefront was completely buried in flowers. "Mom!"
she called out to her mother inside. "We have to clean this up, it's going
to be tough," she said, and her mother replied, "What are you talking
about?"
No, really, it was
going to be tough.
The door of
"Harapeko-tei" slowly opened. Holding a broom and a dustpan, she was
surprised. The whole town was full of flowers. She suddenly remembered the town
that had collapsed three years ago. And now, pink petals had appeared from
nowhere, coloring the whole town.
"It looks like
the petals aren't falling anymore..."
Well then, she put her
hands on her hips and frowned. What should she do about this? "That kid
was really good at cleaning..." Before she knew it, everything was
sparkling clean. It was as if there was someone else besides El. Now that she
thought about it, she felt like something had been there, she nodded firmly,
then shrugged, "Nah, that's impossible." She decided to stop running
away from reality.
"Alright, time to
clean up! Customers won't come in this mess. Harapeko-tei welcomes anyone who's
hungry, anytime, anywhere!"
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