Dragon Sword Hrunti (3)
The first impression Theo got when he saw the Gwangryongje was very simple.
-You seem like a different person.
It was so different from what I had only heard about.
A madman. A murderer. A murderer. A monster obsessed with swords. An author who has abandoned humanity. A maniac driven by greed… … .
None of the appearances I had seen in my past or present life remained on that face.
The problem was that it didn’t appear to be just a simple mask.
Because the center of the Gwangryong Festival was still overflowing with madness and magic.
Whistle, whistle, whistle… … !
[A new virus has appeared.] [The administrator has upgraded the firewall level… … .]
“I’m talking to my grandson right now. I won’t make a scene like you did, so could you step aside for a moment?”
Gwangryongje smiled as he looked at the message.
Then the message suddenly disappeared with a lot of noise.
Cheeeeek!
‘Even the Gwangryongje can see this?’
Haven’t you seen Hilda either?
Theo couldn’t help but be surprised, since only Asin had been aware of the existence of the messages and the system.
“It seems strange that I am looking at this.”
The Gwangryongje smiled slightly as if he had read Theo’s gaze.
“Actually, I’m not seeing it properly either. I can only feel it. ‘This’ is something that only those who have been specially chosen among the original chosen ones can see. I can only sense it by borrowing some of the power of shame.”
Since the message is composed of the power of the Pantheon, can foreign media also detect it?
“Anyway, I wanted to talk to you somehow… … I’m glad that we were able to have a chance like this.”
‘As expected. It’s not a deception. If so, then this appearance is this person’s true appearance… … .’
Even after revealing [Spiritual], I couldn’t find any trace of the atmosphere where Gwangryongje was ‘forcing’ himself to act like he was.
If you spread madness like that, your words and actions will inevitably become more vicious.
That’s why Theo felt so unfamiliar with the Emperor.
Because the people related to the Gwangryong Festival that I’ve met so far weren’t like that.
Ed, Granada, the various vassals of Troyvan, and even Thorkel.
Weren’t they all equally sharp and had a possessed look about them?
“you are.”
“Are you asking if it is not the real ‘me’ but rather the thoughts remaining in the sword bead?”
This time my thoughts were read again.
“The thoughts that have inspired you all this time are clearly traces of another me that were left on the sword I used in the past.”
Gwangryongje smiled and placed his index fingers on both hands side by side.
“But isn’t there some madness that you have absorbed? Thanks to that, you are connected to the real me like this.”
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Bam.
The two index fingers tilted and the tips struck each other.
“I was created as I am now. The me you see is another will of mine in reality.”
Then, Emperor Gwangryong laughed bitterly.
“Of course, I know that this kind of meeting may be uncomfortable for you. Up until now, I have been close to trying to kidnap you by force, and you probably have strong hostility towards me. Perhaps even now, you may be wary of what I am showing you, thinking that it is a deception.”
Theo waited quietly for him to finish speaking.
“So if you feel uncomfortable meeting me like this, then just leave quietly. But please listen to my story at least a little bit. That’s what I want to say.”
“I will listen.”
There was no reason to delay.
“I wanted to meet you too.”
Theo looked at the Gwangryongje with an unfathomable expression on his face.
* * *
[The world begins to recover.] [Loading base data from other saved locations.]
Paaaaah… … !
A wave of blue light swept over the ruined forest.
Then, the blackened, dead ground turned green, and the sky, which had been like a broken window, turned blue.
And even a warm spring breeze.
It was as if the world had changed.
‘It’s a glass area.’
Theo sighed as he realized that this was the image the Emperor had.
Isn’t the glass area of normal inspection focused on destructive power to enhance strength?
At least the glass area of the Plum Blossom Palace reminded me of a garden full of plum blossoms.
Even that wasn’t dangerous because each and every one of the fluttering flower petals contained an aura, right?
“Sit here.”
In front of the Gwangryongje, there was a small table and two chairs.
Plus, there’s a steaming kettle and a tea set with a cute bear character on it.
“… … Was this your original hobby?”
For Ragnar’s former head of the household, he had a really cute eye.
Gwangryongje coughed in vain, perhaps feeling embarrassed.
The bridge of his nose was red.
“Hmm! That was the taste of your grandmother who died a long time ago.”
“… … .”
“Is this true?”
“… … .”
“… … Well, I didn’t hate it either, so I did this.”
“I will sit down.”
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Theo pulled out a chair and sat down across from Gwangryongje.
As I was looking at the kettle, I felt that the Emperor Guanglong was still staring at me without sitting down.
“Why are you doing that?”
“You too.”
“… … ?”
“You don’t look like Kyle.”
Theo felt a little strange.
-You look a lot like Kyle when he was young.
Because it was different from what Princess Plum had said one day.
I even remember Julius and the Black Dragon saying similar things.
It didn’t seem to be the Gwangryong Festival.
“Unlike Kyle, who is always blunt, he knows how to laugh and joke around a bit. Should I say that he’s not like Ragnar?”
Theo stared blankly at the Dragon Emperor.
“Oh, of course that doesn’t mean you’re not worthy to succeed Ragnar.”
“Don’t misunderstand. I don’t like Ragnar’s original family tradition either.”
“okay?”
Gwangryongje sat down across from me with a smile on his face for some reason.
Ttorr!
A teacup with a cute bear character drawn on it is filled with tea.
The scent of tea that came with the warm steam was so fragrant.
“Yes. I hate the family culture that promotes discrimination and treats people like nothing more than tools. That’s why, when I become the head of the family, I will change that kind of atmosphere.”
“There will probably be a lot of backlash, right?”
“In that case, wouldn’t it be enough to just press down on it with Ragnar’s Law?”
“Hahaha! That’s funny. You’ll reform, but you won’t hesitate to use force when necessary? In that sense, you’re definitely Ragnar.”
It seemed that the Gwangryongje liked Theo’s idea.
Then, I took a bite of a snack that was on the snack table.
Again.
“What a pity.”
“What is it?”
“Thorkel. That child had similar thoughts to you. If the two of you had not clashed as enemies from the beginning and had had a chance to speak your minds freely, you might not have had to endure such a tragic fratricide.”
Theo thought of Thorkell’s face.
That guy who’s always being chased by something?
“No, but we would have fought each other anyway.”
“Huh? Why?”
“Because there is only one place that each of us wants to be.”
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“… … .”
“Neither I nor he would have intended to compromise with each other.”
Gwangryongje stared at Theo for a moment without saying anything.
Theo brought the teacup to his lips, but did not avert his gaze.
He was also curious about what kind of person Emperor Gwangryong was.
“… … I’ve been feeling this for a while now, but this makes me realize it for sure. You don’t look like Kyle at all.”
“sure?”
“Rather, you resemble me.”
Again.
The cookie that Gwangryongje was holding broke once again.
“And Kyle probably knew that too. That’s why he handed my sword over to you.”
This was another guess I had never thought of.
“You’re going to forge a sword that is as similar as possible to me and use it against me… … As expected, he is my son, and he really is an amazing kid.”
‘This person also ultimately thinks that the father is a cold-blooded man who sees his son as nothing more than a mere tool.’
Only then was Theo able to clear his mind.
Dalgrak.
He quietly put down his teacup and opened his mouth.
“You said you wanted to see me, right? Before that, I want to ask you something. Why did you join the Holy Demon Church?”
“I think you already guessed it?”
“Are you trying to regain your ability to regress?”
“That’s right. If I could go back to my childhood. Or back to when I first sat on the throne. I would set things right. I would make sure that something like this never happens again.”
There was only one emotion in his voice.
Regret.
“Don’t you think the same way? Families, the law of the jungle, the pride of the strong, conflict, internal strife, war… … I just want to turn it all upside down and make it peaceful. If that’s the case.”
Gwangryongje stopped talking and looked at his teacup.
The face of a teddy bear smiling brightly.
On the contrary, the gaze of the Gwangryongje was somehow sad.
At that moment, Theo intuitively realized what the Emperor Gwangryong wanted to correct.
-It was the taste of your grandmother who died a long time ago.
‘Come to think of it, was it true that the rumor that the hostess who tried to stop the internal strife of the Gwangryongje was assassinated?’
Theo shook his head blandly as he recalled past memories.
“But the <Nameless Monarch> is trying to drive the world to destruction. It makes no sense at all.”
“Use it if necessary. This is also Ragnar’s teaching.”
“… … So you are trying to throw Ragnar into further confusion?”
“You just have to rewind it. Then you can start over.”
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Theo felt that his conversation with the Emperor of Light was going on in parallel lines.
And even the madness hidden within it.
‘I’m saying that it doesn’t matter since I can regress as long as I regain my abilities.’
“What are you going to do if you start over and fail?”
“Then we have to start over again.”
“What if it fails again?”
“The blessing of the chosen one is that he can [edit] as many times as he wants until he gets what he wants and until he corrects what is wrong.”
“Of course, in that world, there is no such thing as my free will.”
“But there is a [changed] Ragnar that you are trying to draw.”
This is it.
Theo seemed to know why Thorkel followed the Light Dragon Emperor.
For him, who hated the current Ragnar, Emperor Gwangryong, who set out to set everything right, would have seemed like a savior.
And I thought that Troy Van’s Gasols might have been similar.
Tributaries that failed to become the main stream.
If the Gwangryongje regains his powers, those tributaries will become the main stream.
In fact, and historically.
The lord of a great family that rules over both the vast north and east.
Isn’t this a picture that any ambitious person would dream of?
Theo shook his head.
“Until a better world comes, just trust in yourself unconditionally… … I don’t understand.”
This time, Emperor Gwangryong tilted his head.
“Hmm? Why don’t you just relax?”
“Even if you are reborn in a world that you have changed, you will eventually have other worries when you get there. There will be things you want to fix. That is why I do not want to entrust my life to someone else.”
Knock knock.
Theo slowly got up from his seat.
“And honestly, I’m not even sure that the world you’re going to change will be the right one.”
“… … You’re saying the same thing as Kyle.”
Gwangryongje wiped his face with his hand. His face looked tired for some reason.
There was a bitter taste at the corner of his mouth.
“You may be right. After all, you are the one who chooses, but you only think about moving forward, and I only think about going back. From the beginning, the directions we both want to go are completely opposite, so persuading us may have been impossible from the beginning.”
With this, the persuasion was mutually ruined.
Theo reached out to the Yong Hwal Geom and Yong Sal Geom that had been placed upside down on the floor.
Because you never know when the madness of the Emperor of Light will stick to your neck like a blade.
“There’s nothing to worry about. A grandson can harm his grandfather, but how can a grandfather harm his grandson?”
what?
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Words I never thought of.
Theo’s eyes grow wide.
Dduk dduk!
Suddenly, the space behind the Gwangryongje opened up and a passage leading outside appeared.
As if his words were never a lie.
[The ‘door’ appears.]
“Go out there. Your father will be waiting for you. Tell him I said hello.”
How the bastard of the Return Sword Family lives
