Chapter 688: Promise (5)

"No?"

The man looking like Hilsman had an amused smile on his face as he shook his head about whether he was from the Thames family.

"I think anybody looking at him would be able to tell that he is joking around."

The silver kitten On mumbled with a look of distrust. Cale picked Hong, who was tapping his leg, into his arms. Hong then shouted with shock.

"Your hand is injured!"

"What?"

"What did you say?!"

On and Raon's gazes immediately turned toward Cale.

"Tsk. You are as clumsy as your mother."

Swish.

On, Hong, and Raon. The children averaging nine-years-old all turned their heads toward the fake Hilsman.
Smirk. One corner of Cale's lips twisted up as Cale slowly walked over to the seated 'Hilsman.'

"Alright, sir, you just have to answer one thing for me." (TL: Cale is speaking respectfully to this dude and 'sir' is really the best way to do it in English)

Cale stood right in front of the fake Hilsman and lowered his head. Cale could see the mischievous gaze in fake Hilsman's eyes as he sat there and looked up at him.

"Are you a Hunter?"

His biological mother, Drew Thames, had told him about the 'Hunters' who search for single-lifers.

"Why do you ask? What are you going to do if I am a Hunter?"

"What an easy question to answer."

Cale calmly answered back.

"I would have to take care of you."

The fake Hilsman's lips twisted up.

"…You truly do have the blood of the Thames."

His face was now completely serious and the mischievousness was gone, but he seemed satisfied with Cale's response.

"Yeah. Anybody with the Thames blood should loathe Hunters. It'd be a shame if you didn't have the drive to annihilate the Hunters."

'Hmm?'

Cale flinched for a moment.

'Annihilate?'

Cale was not thinking about annihilation. He just said that he would 'take care' of him. 'Take care' could mean many things.
It could be a negotiation to never hunt again or an agreement through conversation. If Cale had to use force on this guy, then there was the option of tying his arms and legs up so that he couldn't ever hunt again.
There were many ways to 'take care' of him.

'It's not like I'm trying to follow the Thames bloodline and get rid of the Hunters.'

Although his body had the blood of the Thames, the soul within was a completely different person.
Of course, he had some thoughts about helping the biological mother of this body, Drew Thames, if she had anger or a grudge against the Hunters. He felt the same way about the issues of the Thames family.

'But more importantly… I am worried about Choi Han.'

The biggest reason that Cale was wary about the Hunters was because of Choi Han.
Choi Han is a single-lifer. Yes, Choi Han is very strong, but they had no way of knowing the size nor strength of these mysterious Hunters. As a result, Cale couldn't help but be extremely sensitive about the existence of these Hunters.
Whether it was Choi Han or Cale himself…
They were the two people in the most similar situation since they both left Earth and found a home in a new world.

'I have a feeling there is a Hunter here.'

Three of the strong individuals that his father, Duke Deruth, had hired had disappeared.
If one of them was the White Star, there were still two mysterious individuals.
The fake Hilsman was not counted within those two people since he came with Duchess Violan from the Henituse territory.

"Yes… you do need to take care of all of them. Every single one."

Either way, the fake Hilsman in front of him seemed to have misunderstood Cale's definition of 'take care' as something a bit more vicious.

'…This is kind of scary.'

Cale got chills on his back seeing the fake Hilsman snickering seriously with the mischievousness completely gone. He felt the same way he felt on that first day when he opened his eyes as Cale Henituse and saw Ron.

'I…it…it feels like something new is starting.'

It was a terrible feeling for someone who was dreaming of a peaceful future, so Cale just decided to think that he understood it wrong.
He subconsciously rubbed the back of his neck as he opened his mouth.

"I guess I can at least conclude that you are not a Hunter."

This fake did not seem to be a Hunter. In fact, it seemed as if he loathed the Hunters quite a bit.

'He is either someone from the Thames family or someone connected to them.'

The fake Hilsman slowly nodded his head.

"Yeah. I am not a Hunter."

On's ears twitched as she looked at him.
This guy looked like Hilsman, but the way he looked so tired reminded her of Cale or even the White Star.
He seemed uninterested or bored.

'…He kind of reminds me of Eruhaben-nim too.'

Yes, he seemed more like Eruhaben than Cale.
He reminded her of the old Eruhaben, the one who seemed distant from the events of the world. This fake Hilsman seemed disconnected like that.

'But the anger in his eyes earlier was real.'

On thought about something two people told her in the past. They each had placed her on their laps and said the following.

'From now on, you will hold information in your hands. The first thing you need to do for that is to observe people well.'

She had heard that while on Ron's lap.

'If you see someone you think has gone completely nuts, just ignore them and go on your way.'

This one was from Cale while he was petting her.
They were both useful suggestions, so On nonchalantly looked away from the fake Hilsman while paying attention to Cale and fake Hilsman's conversation.

"I came to see Duke Deruth. I have something to tell him and something to get from him."

"From my father?"

"Yes."

The mischievous smile appeared on fake Hilsman's face again as he continued in a relaxing manner.

"You can hear about my identity from Deruth."

"…My father knows who you are?"

"He'll probably figure it out."

'Mm.'

The fake Hilsman looked up and down at Cale slowly before saying something else.

"If not him, then you can ask the king."

"…King?"

Cale wondered who this guy was talking about.
He then thought of someone.

Zed Crossman.

The old guy who was the current king but chilling in the back while leaving most of the Roan Kingdom's politics to Alberu. He had become king at a very young age.
People were thinking that Alberu Crossman could inherit the throne from Zed Crossman whenever he decided to do so.

'Now that I think about it…'

Cale had had questions about how the Thames family had disappeared.

One of the Roan Kingdom's noble families had suddenly perished.
However, nobody seemed to have cared about it at all.
It wasn't that long ago since it happened when Drew Thames was young, but for some odd reason, the Roan Kingdom had no information on the Thames household.

'…The meaning changes if the answer to those questions is Zed Crossman.'

If the Thames household had some connections to Zed Crossman, or if there were some hidden conversations between them…

'Then I can understand to a degree why there is no information about them.'

Furthermore, Duke Deruth, who had been a student when he met Drew, had said that he knew nothing about how the family had perished. This would make it understandable why he would only know that the Thames family perished.
It was not information that someone at Duke Deruth's level would be able to know.

'…This...'

Cale got the chills.

'I feel like there's some serious secret history in there.'

Cale felt as if something so big was approaching him that he would even drink lemonade for a whole week to avoid it.
Cale had a feeling that this thing would have so much impact on him that it would be like a meteor crashing down.

He would live if he managed to avoid impact and die if he couldn't.
He felt that something that serious might happen.

"…I'm crazy."

Everybody looked at him oddly after hearing him mumble but he couldn't pay any attention to them. He just shook his head.

'I'm crazy. How can I have such a thought?! Let's not think terrible thoughts. I will only have good positive thoughts.'

Cale put Hong down for a moment and touched the golden plaque in his inner pocket.
He naturally started smiling after thinking about how angry the White Star must be while stuck in the plaque.

'Ah, the mind really can only be at peace when you think good thoughts.'

Cale smiled brightly after feeling much better.

"I didn't realize that your identity would be related to his majesty as well."

"That's right. Aren't you curious about it?"

"No, sir."

"…Hmm?"

"It's not like I need to know, do I?"

Cale couldn't help but have a look of disinterest.

'It's something I can easily find out if I want to do so.'

He just didn't want to learn about this gigantic secret history.

'Zed Crossman? My sworn brother will soon be king. I can easily ask him to organize the former king's records.'

He had an extremely useful worker, no, hyung-nim, who would grumble but still get them all organized for him.

As for the Hunters?
He could think in simple terms with them as well.

'They want to mess with me? …I'll just make them like the White Star in the golden plaque.'

Smirk.

The corners of Cale's lips curled up.

"This is a very… Very easy problem."

The fake Hilsman got an eerie feeling while looking at Cale.

"You- you are pretty much the same as Drew Thames when she was younger. Great disasters would happen when she smiled viciously like that-"

As he was saying that…

Baaaaaaaaaang-!

There was a loud noise and a bright red light flashed in through the window.

"Human! It's the second stage!"

Cale turned his head and looked outside.
The Lion Dragon's mouth opened and a dark red light shot out toward Eruhaben and Alberu.

"It's exactly as the crown prince said!"

The information Alberu Crossman heard from Earth 3's Ahn Roh Man regarding the 'information to take down the Lion Dragon.'

The Lion Dragon's attack had five different stages.
The first stage was using just its shield and claws while the second stage was releasing this dark red light in its mouth toward its enemies.

"They're dodging so well, nya!"

Hong's eyes were sparkling as he headed toward the window.
Cale followed behind him and picked up the cintamani on the ledge.

– Rok Soo.

He could hear Lee Soo Hyuk's voice through the cintamani.

– This looks like big trouble. Am I wrong? Would Han, the Dark Tiger, and the you I know have expected such a situation?

Flinch.

Raon flinched after hearing that and peeked toward Cale.
The fake Hilsman nonchalantly commented.

"That ancient Dragon and the crown prince are doing a good job leading the monster's attack to shoot into the air or in directions with no people, but… That attack will head toward the people if they make the wrong move."

The dark red light was releasing nonstop from the Lion Dragon.

Baaa- baaaaang, baaaaang! Bang!

Sometimes it shot out into the air while other times it shot down to the ground where there was nobody standing. The nearby area was crumbling from the attack that was shooting out in all directions.

"Cale Henituse, there is the barrier that you created… But I feel like that barrier will immediately be destroyed by the monster's powers?"

"…The fake Hilsman is annoying!"

"That's right, he is annoying nya!"

Raon and Hong were peeking at Cale while saying that.
They were looking at Cale the same way Rasheel was looking at Mila and Alberu.

"Fuck!"

Bang, bang-!

Dragon Rasheel's mind was quite chaotic as he heard the endless explosions.

"Try to be more like my mom!"

"Shut up!"

Rasheel ignored the pink curly-haired Dodori's comment as he agilely moved his large body.
His eyes were focused on the Lion Dragon, Eruhaben, and Alberu as he did that.
Eruhaben's wings were flapping without stopping in order to prevent the Lion Dragon's attacks from reaching their allies behind Cale's barrier.

Tang- tang!

Alberu was also releasing bullets without stopping to aim for any openings the Lion Dragon might have.

"Roooooooooooooooar—!"

Six of the Lion Dragon's eight wings were already destroyed. The Lion Dragon was losing its aerial advantage.

"Hey!"

However, Rasheel still couldn't hide his anxiety and shouted.

"Those weak little humans are going to die if you continue like this! You said that the Lion Dragon will soon reach the third stage!"

The five stages of taking down the Lion Dragon…
They changed based on the Lion Dragon's attacking condition.
The second stage was launching focused attacks against the threatening enemy.

The third stage was attacking anybody in its way.
In simple terms…

"You said it's going to try to kill everyone! Who the hell is going to protect those extremely weak humans?!"

Rasheel raised his voice.

"We can't even use magic!"

Normally…
If a mana disturbance tool had not been used like this…
Mana would have been stable.
Raon, Eruhaben, Dodori, Rasheel, and Mila… The five Dragons had planned on casting a spell together.

Once the Lion Dragon launched the attack on everybody…
Their spell would have protected the people and Puzzle City from the monster's attack once it reached the third stage.

However, they could not use magic right now because of the mana disturbance that started from City Hall.

"You said that this monster's attack doesn't rely on magic!"

But since the monster's power was not based in magic… It could launch its attacks as it pleased unlike the Dragons who could not use magic right now.

"Damn it! If so many people die…if they die…!"

Rasheel looked toward the humans who were trying their best to help them out from behind the barrier and couldn't help but shout.

"I won't be able to sleep well at night!"

"It is okay."

"What? It's okay if they all die?!"

Swish!

Rasheel's head turned to the side.
He was glaring at Choi Han, who was on Mila's back.

Tang!

They heard another gunshot followed by Alberu's shout.

"Entering the third stage!"

The Lion Dragon's eyes slowly turned black.

"…Dangerous area determined… Preparing to launch indiscriminate attack..."

'Fuck!'

Rasheel was about to swear again before someone spoke before he could do so.

"Dodori-nim!"

"Hmm?"

Alberu suddenly called for Dodori, whose eyes opened wide from suddenly hearing his name as he looked at Alberu.
But Choi Han was the one who calmly told him something.

"Dodori-nim, don't look over there. Please look toward the window."

Cale reached his hand out at that moment.

Creeeeeak-.

The slightly opened window opened all the way and he could see Dodori looking at him.

"Raon."

This was the only place magic could be used right now. Cale asked Raon to cast a spell.

"Send a message to Dodori for me."
"I got it human!"

Dodori soon heard Cale's words in his mind via Raon.

– We are going to start your lesson. This is a power you will soon use as well, Dodori-nim.

'A lesson? He's starting a lesson all of a sudden? And a power I will use?'

Dodori's eyes opened wide.

"T, the rocks-!"

Dodori subconsciously looked around. He even turned his body to look at all boulders around Puzzle City in every direction.

"Human, will you be okay?"

"Yeah. This is why I didn't use much of my powers when I was catching the White Star."

Cale smiled toward the children averaging nine-years-old and looked forward.
He recalled the moment he first came to Puzzle City.
He remembered something Deputy Butler Hans said to him.

'We don't know why this city was disowned by the gods. However, some of the people in this city started gathering in groups to stack multiple rock towers. Apparently it was their way of praying.'

Puzzle City was famous for their ruins that were full of rock towers, but there was something else they were famous for as well.
It was also famous for the small rock towers at every home.

There were rock towers outside every window of every home, no matter where you went in Puzzle City.
They were all small with less than ten stones, but they existed in every house.
Cale had asked Hans if the people's wishes had been granted after stacking those rock towers.

'Did their wishes get granted?'

'Not at all.'

A city disowned by the gods. The gods did not grant the wishes of the people in that city.

'They said that none of the prayers were answered. That is the reason there are no temples in Puzzle City.'

'There's no reason for them to worship a god when they've disowned them? Is that it?'

'That is correct.'

However, rock towers continued to get stacked in Puzzle City.

'These rock towers became a sort of promise after that. It was a promise between people and sometimes even a promise with themselves.'

'What kind of promise?'

Deputy Butler Hans had told him about a rule that had been passed down in Puzzle City.

'A human who has achieved his wish will destroy his rock tower.'

'They had to achieve their dreams with their own hands since they were disowned by the gods. Destroying the rock tower symbolized that they 'overcame' the obstacle.'

The numerous rock towers in Puzzle City were stacked by people who resolved to make their own wishes come true.

Cale quietly observed the Lion Dragon before slowly moving his gaze.
He heard the Super Rock's voice.

– Cale. This is the greatest battlefield for us.

Whether they were small or large… Numerous rocks of all shapes and sizes started to float up into the air.
If Cale's barrier was not enough to protect everyone…
He just had to use the rocks that so many people had gathered until now.

"A guardian protecting a god…"

He had to stop that guardian right now.
A confident smile appeared on Cale's face.

"At least I would have a good excuse to tell them."

He could tell them that he needed to use their rocks.
He could ask them for their understanding.
Cale internally thought about the numerous people who would have stacked these rocks with different goals and aspirations on their minds.

***

If you find any errors or have suggestions, please feel free to provide feedback.

Thank you for reading!

[Author – Yu Ryeo Han]

[Translator – Anowa]

[Proofreader – Rai_Mayank]