CHAPTER 6

THE DECISION

  As Hans spoke with biting wit, Samwell couldn't help but be reminded of his younger brother's taunts. He was impressed by the child's boldness and cleverness, so much so that he clapped in awe without even realizing it.

"Boy, he is something," Samwell exclaimed, turning to Sierra with respect. "If I wanted to use the child, I could easily depose you, but I'm not using him. Please consider my sincerity."

Sierra was quick to call out Samwell's flattery,

Your sincerity is that you are threatening me.

But Samwell shamelessly replied,

Just as the child said, choose what is more valuable to you. Indu can survive without you, but your boy can't...

  Despite her protests, Samwell's words had an undeniable impact on Sierra. She was offered a deal that seemed to force her hand in ceding the ruling title to Samwell's chosen candidate. The only silver lining was the involvement of Concordia, which had always wanted to reclaim Rudolf, the famed prodigy raised in that place.

Sierra turned to the child and asked with concern,

Are you okay, child?

  Hans, who didn't fully understand the complexities of being human, didn't like the pitiful gaze he was receiving from others. He turned to face Samwell and said, "What's so cool about being a human? They come into someone's house and force them to do things they don't want to."

  Rudolf couldn't help but stifle a laugh at Hans's words, happy to see Samwell silenced. But the silenced man seemed more intrigued than angry, recognizing the child's efficiency with words, much like his younger brother.

on the other hand, for Hans, the laughter was jarring, and he turned to Rudolf with a deep sense of discomfort etched on his young face. "Gramps, are we being oppressed?" he asked. "Because I feel like we are oppressed here. I don't like this feeling. I wanted to leave this shitty place on our terms, not because someone forced us to do it."

  Hans was riding the momentum, it was Rudolf's turn to be grilled after Ekamir and SamwellHe couldn't stand the way Rudolf was letting them run rampant with their tongues. But Sierra intervened and stopped Hans from going further, saying to her husband, "I'll follow whatever you choose," before taking Hans inside with her.

Hans had no choice but to follow her, but he couldn't help but ask her, "Granma, why are we listening to them? They aren't stronger than Gramps, right?"

  Sierra knelt down and took hold of the child's shoulders with both hands. "You asked me why the sword is strongest in the sheath," she said. "This is a prime example of that. They may be weaker than us, but we have to obey their will. In civilization, the powerful do not always win, but those who win are considered powerful."

  Hans still didn't fully understand the situation, but his immediate concern was with the identity of the people who could force Rudolf to do something he was not willing to do. "Granma, who are these people?" he asked, sensing Sierra's attempt to eavesdrop on their conversation.

Granma, who are these people?

  Sierra's response was delivered with a heavy heart, as though the words weighed down on her. "The people you see here are from Genas's land, the very place you've been yearning to go," she said, her voice tinged with a sense of resignation that spoke volumes about her feelings on the matter.

Hans, buzzing with excitement, pressed on with his questions, ignoring Sierra's resigned mood.

"Which country?" he inquired eagerly.

Sierra countered with a question of her own,

How many are there?

Hans stretched out his fingers and began counting them off one by one.

First is Grimgar in the centre, Parv in the east, Sunfall in the west, Utar in the north, and Indu in the south.

Sierra gave him a pat on the back and added,

You missed the non-human ones.

Hans quickly interrupted,

Clandor of Elves, northeast of the continent's end and ForgeLand of Dwarves at the west end of the land...

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Sierra nodded, acknowledging Hans's quick response and added,

There are two more places not mentioned in the books brought here. One is called the deadlands, a place ruled by extraterrestrials called red demons. They took over a vast region of Utar, but the people of Genas stopped and encased them in the grand Utar barrier. Another one is Madaruka, you don't need to know about it right now."

Sierra went on to explain,

I was raised in Indu as their chief priestess.

Hans, not understanding the term, made a questioning face. Sierra elaborated,

Treat it as a chosen queen.

Hans smirked, impressed he said,

So you were something BIG.

Sierra chuckled, forgetting what was happening outside for a moment and defended,

Your grandpa is from the current strongest nation, Grimgar and he is pretty famous too.

  Hans was still preoccupied with Sierra's previous explanation of the unfamiliar places, which were absent from the books in the house. He couldn't shake off his curiosity and asked her about the red demons.

Sierra's face grew sombre as she recounted the past. It was a time of great turmoil and loss for the Genas. She began narrating the story that had almost consumed their youth.

"It was twenty-six years ago, in the year 1036, when our child Samson turned nine. A massive tear appeared in the sky above the North Sea, near our shores. That was a harbinger of the impending War of Survival, also known as 'The Great Northern War,' in which we suffered greatly and were eventually forced to flee. We do not have records of this war here."

Sierra continued, "Before its downfall, the region was a vital trading hub with a delicate diplomatic relationship between humans and elves. But that day, out of nowhere over the Geni Port, a bright purple light lit up the sky, turning everything within the radius of hundreds of kilometres into charred black ruins. On that unfateful day, the busiest port on the continent was transformed into a graveyard, as silent as death itself."

"The story did not end as they came whom we call Red demons, armoured in red, some had multiple arms and bug-like wings. They were skilled in unknown magic and began killing the people of the North, earning that cursed name"

Not a single citizen survived the massacre. Rudolf and some powerful men went to confront them but barely escaped with their lives. We managed to gain a foothold in the struggle in later years, but we had already lost half of the territory to the north - the northern part of Utar."

  As She reminisced about the past, she felt a wave of unease wash over her. The breach in the barrier meant the end of their long-lasting peace, and she knew it was only a matter of time before they would have to leave. She looked at Hans, unaware of the gravity of the situation and spoke,

it looks like your wish to leave will soon come true.

  She sighed, as the sole possessor of Divine Mana, it was Sierra's duty and obligation to heal others. In case of a breach and invasion, her mere presence guaranteed fewer deaths. In contrast to what she thought of Hans, the boy had also realised that something terrible must have happened for King Grimgar to act personally.

   Meanwhile, Rudolf was having a discussion away from them, and his expressions supported Hans's thoughts. The old man turned, his eyes searching for his wife from afar and his grim expression meant many things but Hans only caught that he will really soon be able to leave this place.

Rudolf returned, and upon seeing Sierra's worried face, he broke the news.

It seems like we have to go back," he said, his voice heavy with concern.

"When?" Sierra asked urgently.

"Not right now," Rudolf replied, "The crack was big, but they pretty much handled it with Concordia's reserves."

Sierra's impatience was palpable as she asked, "So when?"

Rudolf's response was calm and measured. Within two years, approximately.

  It was much later than he had anticipated. Nevertheless, the news was good, and the simple-minded child was overjoyed. As he looked around, he noticed that Samwell was standing there, staring at him.

  Hans's face suddenly contorted as he realized the reason behind the heavy rainfall over the past few days. Someone was trying to open a SpaceDoor here, and it was causing all sorts of problems. He reprimanded Samwell, imitating Sierra's obnoxious tone.

"So, King Samwell was the reason for continual rain over the past few days," he exclaimed.

  Samwell looked at Hans with confusion, unsure why the child was looking at him as though he had stolen his toys. Nevertheless, he apologized, saying "Sorry, little fella."

Hans was not pleased with Samwell's tone. "Who is a little fella? I'm eight, not a kid or little one, and my name is Hans. Do you have any idea how boring it gets when it rains here?" he retorted.

  It was true that the bad weather was caused by the men who were trying to bypass the Ghost Isles' mana for days. Faced with a barrage of questions from Hans, Samwell sought help from the elderly couple. But all he received was a look that said, "It's your problem. Deal with it yourself."

Samwell sighed, finding himself alone to deal with Hans, He said,

You are more arrogant than royalty, you know.

Hans had no inkling of how strong these people were and even if Sierra said they have to follow their wishes, Hans felt differently. They were afraid of Rudolf so he replied with even more arrogance,

Well, you are in our territory, mister. Things die like flies here.

  When the group heard this little boy's manner of speaking, everyone became silent. If his earlier manner resembled Samson then this time it was When the group heard this little boy's manner of speaking, everyone became silent. His demeanour was eerily similar to Rudolf's, but instead of cursing, he made witty comments. Samwell turned to Rudolf for justification, but he only met his eyes, filled with nothing but pride.

"I raised this one too," Rudolf said with a smile. "What were you expecting, a cow before the harp?"

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