Amber is also said to be a gem that contains time.
This jewel, which is made by hardening tree sap over a long period of time, hardens just like the environment surrounding it, such as leaves and insects.
"Is it clean?"
[Mmm.]
However, the amber stone that Vlad held showed none of that.
You could even see a speck of dust somewhere, but it looked so dry you wondered if it was amber.
"A field with maples... Is this by any chance magic?"
However, even though nothing was visible, the amber stone given by Alicia clearly contained time.
This is because the amber seen in the world of the voices contained the tranquil landscape of an autumn day.
[I don't even know how to get there.]
If you look closely, you'll feel as if you're standing there.
Inside the jewel was a landscape of reeds swaying in the wind under red maple trees.
"This doesn't make sense..."
Right eye, left eye.
Vlad, who took turns opening his eyes, couldn't help but put on an incomprehensible expression at the appearance of the amber stone, which changed significantly depending on the world he was looking at.
"Anyway, it might have something to do with the elves."
[I believe so too.]
Even if an inexperienced boy and a voice without memories tried to understand it, they wouldn't find an answer.
In the end, Vlad thought he would only discover the exact reason by turning to the elves who had given him this jewel.
"It's very far, but..."
Vlad, who had promised to find the memory of the voice, has now found a new clue.
And the place pointed to by the clue was the eastern part of the empire, where the forest of the elves was located.
Knock, knock, knock
Vlad, who had been thinking for a while about how he could reach the forest of the elves, turned his head when he suddenly heard a knock.
It wasn't the sound of someone knocking on the door, but the sound of someone knocking with their mouth.
"What's up."
Vlad hurriedly hid in his arms the amber stone he had received from Alicia and opened the door.
Outside the door, a red-haired girl holding a pile of dirty clothes as big as her body looked at Vlad.
"...Is anyone there?"
Zemina stood in the hallway, surveying Vlad's room with a sad look.
Although the scene seemed like some sort of inspection, Vlad was briefly surprised, but soon found himself obliged to pick up the heaps of clothes thrown at him.
"Why are you like this?"
Zemina quickly looked around the hallway, ignoring the question she was hearing, and after confirming that there was no one outside, quickly pushed Vlad inside and closed the door.
"Why should our voices be heard if there's no one here?"
Vlad's voice flowed through the silent hallway with no one around, as if he were talking to someone.
However, now that Zemina realized that there was only one person in the room and not two, she was looking at Vlad with her eyes wide open.
"Do you still talk to ghosts?"
"..."
Vlad wanted to say no, but the moment he looked Zemina in the eyes, he couldn't.
In my whole life, there have been more days when I knew about Zemina than days when I didn't.
The two people who were falling down from the bottom were friends, comrades, and sometimes even accomplices.
"...It's not a ghost."
That's why Vlad couldn't hide anything from Zemina.
She was the person who had seen Vlad closer than anyone else in the world.
Long ago, and even now.
"...Move your room."
"Where to?"
"To the end of the hallway."
With those words, Zemina sat on the bed and let out a small sigh.
"Then I'll go to the room next door."
Zemina pushed Vlad to the end of the hallway and told him she would take the room next door.
So that no one would notice that Vlad was talking to a sinister being.
Zemina now said she was willing to become an accomplice.
"Are you really okay?"
"...Eh."
A look full of concern penetrated Vlad's eyes.
Even without saying a word, Vlad could read Zemina's sincere intentions.
"Take care. You can't hide anymore."
A boy from an alleyway whom no one paid attention to could easily slip into the darkness, but the Bayezid knight, Mr. Vlad, couldn't.
Now that Vlad had become a knight, he had become someone who attracted people's attention wherever he went.
"You should go to church."
However, whether he was a boy from a dilapidated alleyway or a shining knight, Vlad was always the one in the girl's concerns.
"Zemina."
"What's up?"
Vlad took out a small bag from his chest and called Zemina, who was about to leave.
The first salary I received in my life.
When Vlad received it from Bordan's hands, the first thing that came to his mind was a red-haired girl.
"Is there something you want? I'll buy you something."
Even if the value of 1 gold is the same, the meaning is different.
It may be money that can be easily given to a rich person, but for a poor person it can mean everything.
"What do you wish for?"
And that day, the girl who was in the blacksmith's shop gave up everything she had and gave Vlad a sword.
Although it was a sword worth 5 gold, for Zemina it was money that she spent on everything she could, including her present and future.
"Take care. Idiot."
However, Zemina didn't expect anything in return from Vlad.
Because everyone knew that the shiny gold coins the boy had in his hand were the price of his life.
"Why don't you take care of yourself and that team?"
With those words, Zemina returned the pile of dirty clothes and went out into the hallway again.
The piles of dirty clothes seemed difficult to handle for her small body, but Zemina simply walked through the hallway and down the stairs without the slightest hesitation.
"..."
Some awaited it, others demanded it.
However, the girl expected nothing and simply cared.
"Just ask for something."
Favor without compensation is too heavy.
That's why Vlad always felt indebted to Zemina.
***
The lively smile of a Rose.
Although the sun had not yet set, Marcella's inn was as lively as ever.
"Business is good."
"This is the only place I can go to right now."
Rose's Smile, which used to be a guesthouse but is now an elegant inn.
Marcella opted for this radical change in her business because she had confidence in it.
"We'll all warm up here before we get serious."
A young man who has enjoyed nightlife from an early age.
People who want to have fun but don't want to delve too deeply.
Marcella saw the potential for a new business and generously applied her skills to create a new rose smile.
"Aren't there enough people? Is someone looking for a fight?"
"A fight?"
Marcella chuckled at Vlad's innocent question.
The boy in front of me still didn't know his whereabouts.
"Who would dare?"
The reason she was able to boldly pursue business as she did now without the protection of an organization was because she had a reliable backup.
"Who would dare argue here with the Knight of Soara?"
"I'm glad I helped."
"So I won't charge you for the inn."
Marcella looked at Vlad, who was leaning his arm on the railing and looking down at the first floor.
I definitely thought he would be big, but I really didn't expect him to be on such a different level as he is now.
"Take him."
"Who?"
The boy has become a man and now looks at a bigger world.
If so, someone will have to support you.
"It was a waste of his size to have him in our store where he doesn't fight."
Marcella laughed and nodded towards somewhere on the first floor with the tip of her chin.
The Rose Entrance smile.
There stood a black, burly man, with his arms crossed.
"Since I fed him well, he gained some muscle."
"Are you okay?"
Even if the alley bosses don't mess with you, the presence of a strong man will be necessary.
This was a place where alcohol was sold, and an unexpected situation could occur at any moment.
"There are many kids who want to be on guard."
However, there are probably few people in the alleys who have a deeper connection with Vlad than the dark-skinned man over there.
Marcella, who knew this, had no regrets at all about giving Otar away.
"As long as you stay at our inn from now on, you're free to take whatever you want."
"I will."
No matter how deep your relationship is, if you trust it, eventually you'll get tired.
Marcella, who knew this well, was willing to invest any amount of money to secure a connection with Vlad.
"If there's anyone you want to work with, feel free to bring them in. There are plenty of rooms on the fourth floor."
A give-and-take relationship.
Marcella was saying she would provide Rose's Smile as a base for a knight named Vlad.
"It's a good deal."
The knight of the last remaining courtesans smiled at Madame, who was no longer a prostitute.
Now you can protect someone without having to wield a sword.
That was what Vlad liked most after he became a knight.
***
Where the sun sets in the city.
Feeling the air change slightly, Vlad walked towards the pier.
"It's a bit of a waste."
[The more expensive it is for people, the better.]
There were a total of three bottles of whiskey that Joseph gave Vlad to commemorate his appointment as a knight.
One bottle of whiskey has already been used in the white snake, so there are only two bottles of whiskey left.
Vlad was currently on his way to Captain Hoover's headquarters with one of those bottles.
The smell of fish from the water that came in with the cold river wind.
The smell of dried fish floating everywhere.
It can't be said to be a very pleasant smell, but when Vlad smelled it, he actually felt comfortable.
"Nothing has changed here."
Being someone you can trust is truly valuable.
Whenever he was tired or worried about something, Vlad always passed by this place.
Because at the end of this street was a brown-haired man who always welcomed him.
"Let me in."
"Yes? Yes. Yes, that's correct. Sir."
Vlad passed by the gatekeeper, who looked at him sheepishly, and entered a narrow hallway, stepping on creaky wooden boards.
The end of the increasingly narrow hallway.
The door that was hanging there in poor condition was where Vlad was headed.
"Is anyone there?"
"Eh?"
The person inside seemed surprised by the sudden sound of words and he heard the sound of a chair being pulled away.
Drip, drip, drip.
Although it was a small room, the owner couldn't leave after a month.
"What's up? Vlad."
His face grew paler than when I last saw him and he smiled at the customer who came after a long time.
"It's nothing special."
Vlad shook the whiskey bottle he held with an ironic smile upon seeing Harven, who seemed to dry up every time he saw him.
"I was thinking of returning the money to the Captain that I received last time."
"Oh oh."
Just by the sound of the splash, Harven could tell that the whiskey Vlad was holding was not an ordinary item.
A customer who arrived after a long time had in his hand a valuable item, so it was impossible to refuse.
"Come in quickly. Hurry up."
Vlad, who entered the room under Harven's guidance, let out a small sigh when he saw his study, which was no different from before.
Harven's study is so small that barely fit a desk and a chair.
Perhaps because it was right next to the river, the place smelled of fish, but still there was no better place for Harven, who was disabled.
"They say they don't hunt black-furred animals, but blonde fur is different."
"What are you saying now?"
After clearing away the stacks of papers piled up here and there, Harven satisfied his appetite and quickly created a place to have a drink.
"Have you finished your work?"
"Work never ends. It just continues."
Harven uncorked the bottle with words filled with the hardships of life and pulled out a dusty glass that had been in a corner.
"Wait a second."
Harven is wiping a chipped wooden cup with his jacket.
Still, Harven, who gave Vlad the most appealing glass as a guest, poured the whiskey with a smile.
"Well. Well. What's going on now? I'm not asking you to lend me money."
"That's not all."
Seeing Harven happy even with a bottle of whiskey, Vlad felt a bitter taste in his mouth.
Because he knew very well that he wasn't the kind of person who deserved to be here with such a sorry appearance.
"Even today it's like this. Are you looking at navigation methods, constellations, or something like that?"
"Oh that?"
Harven, who finally had a sip of whiskey, happily frowned and looked at Vlad.
"I stopped doing that."
"…Why?"
No matter how hard you try to shine, if no one looks at you, eventually you will wither and die.
Because not everyone can seize the opportunities presented to them like Vlad.
"Who would hire a disabled person as a navigator? No matter how you look at it, it's impossible to get there."
Harven, who didn't even have the qualifications to dream, was also fading away in this narrow room.
"…You said you wanted to go on a ship."
The smell of the river still passes through my nose.
Harven was a person who dreamed of someday escaping from here and taking a boat to a distant place.
"This is enough. A person must know their limit."
However, Harven's dream ended up trapped in a narrow room at the end of a dark hallway.
The weight of reality has always prevented dreaming.
"…Yes?"
Although we dream, not everyone can achieve it.
No matter how hard you try, you won't be able to have it unconditionally.
Vlad knew this well, so he didn't tell Harven anything.
This is not Harven's fault.
"Here's where the mistake lies."
"Eh?"
Harven's eyes widened as he saw Vlad suddenly stand up, refusing to drink.
"What's wrong?"
"…"
A bird kept in a cage for too long forgets how to fly.
People who have been trapped for a long time in a narrow and dark place also forget their potential.
You can't say that the blame lies only with them.
Burst! Burst!
"Vlad!"
While Harven shouted, Vlad began to kick around.
Creak! Creak!
"Hey. Hey!"
"It's all their fault!"
The same walls that block Harven and the river.
These bastards, which could break with a single kick, have been devouring Harven's dreams.
"All of this is wrong!"
Hit it with the scabbard and kick it down.
So Vlad began to knock down the walls that imprisoned poor Harven without stopping.
Creak! Creak!
If you can't do it, I'll do it for you.
Because you also did it to me.
Because it showed me that the goal was up there so that they wouldn't be devoured by the darkness of the alleys.
"Vlad…!"
With a loud noise, Harven's room was getting bigger and bigger.
Disability and reality. Using them as walls, Vlad was tearing down the walls that trapped poor Harven.
"You're crazy! Stop!"
Harven shouted in panic as the reality he had worked so hard to establish shattered, but Vlad didn't stop.
No, he had no intention of stopping ever.
Thanks to his efforts, Harven let Vlad know that there was another world.
If it weren't for the world that Harven taught him, Vlad would never have dreamed of becoming a knight.
"I can finally see it now!"
This was a place where there were no stars.
That's why Vlad had to destroy Harven's walls.
Because he thought he was a person who deserved to dream.
"…"
Harven saw a ray of light shining over Vlad's shoulder, who was breathing heavily.
A red light that not even the rising dust could block.
The Soara River was there, tinted red by the sunset.
The river wind blowing.
Documents flying in all directions following the wind.
The realities that had been delaying Harven for so long were being taken away by the wind.
"…It's refreshing."
The river was still there.
You just forgot what you dreamed.
Harven took a sip of the whiskey he held along with the cold winter wind.
I felt like my head was getting drunk, but my soul was waking up.
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