EIITAB - Chapter 60 < Duty Of Those Left Behind >

Even if it is Trampled and Broken

"Hestia."

To persuade Hestia, Aslan called her name softly.

"When I said I would take responsibility, it wasn't empty words. If I treat him, that's fine."

Hestia had a crying face as if she had been hurt. She took her gaze away from Aslan and looked back at the knights. She thought that she had to persuade them first so Aslan would be convinced, and eventually, she would be able to cure Jerome.

"I will use the divine power I have."

"We don't believe in that."

Northerners have long thought that God had abandoned them. So there were almost no people with religious beliefs.

Hestia took a short breath at Dean's answer and nodded with a stern expression on her face.

"I know it too. You don't believe in the power of God."

Hestia spoke again without being hurt.

"But regardless, it is clear that I can heal Sir Jerome."

Still, the knights remained silent. There was a clear look of hesitation. Hestia reprimanded them in a more stern voice to urge them to make a decision.

"Still don't know what's important? There is a way to save our precious comrade, but are you really going to just give it up and watch Sir Jerome's life disappear?"

The knights were silent. It was the same with Aslan. They were very confused now. What can they say?

It was as if Hestia had hit her own head hard with her words. Everyone was silent, but deep inside they were thinking the same thing.

'There is a way?'

Their breathing suddenly became shallower. The knights of Kalathi do not fear death. So, they have been fighting against the harsh winter without sparing themselves. But precisely because of that, they were quick to give up on life.

At first glance, it may seem ironic. But it was unavoidable. In the South, if you get hurt, you have many options such as rest, get it fixed, or get treatment, but not in the North. Getting hurt in Kalathi meant death. This was because environmental factors were too big. There was no other option but death. Because there were no priests, doctors, or medicine here. It was something that could not be done with strength and effort alone.

When those who had experienced such discouragement were presented with a choice for the first time, their hearts pounded. They almost forgot that the person who said those words was Hestia, a Saintess who was like their long-time enemy.

Meanwhile, Hestia's heart was pounding like crazy just like them. She said it out loud, but since it was something she had never done before, she wasn't confident about it either.

'Can I really do this?'

We have always used limited force in limited situations. She could not use her own sacred powers without the permission of her ministers. In the first place, her sexual power was insufficient compared to Anette's.

Therefore, this was a challenge that was like a departure for her.

'No one can detain me here.'

Unlike in the capital, she will be able to use the strength as much as she wants without hesitation.

'So I have to do it.'

She gritted her teeth, bracing herself for her weakening spirit. Her fists were filled with strength. Even though it will be hard on her body.......Hestia's purple eyes briefly touched Aslan. His colleagues will be more important to him than his own health. So it definitely meant something to him.

'If I can help this person even in this way, that's okay with me.'

She didn't have to hear a thank you. She never dreamed of anything like that. Hestia swallowed her dry saliva nervously. She waited a moment, hoping for an answer from either the knights or Aslan or whoever.

But he just kept quiet. But there was no more time. Even while he is doing this, the magic beast's poison spreading through Jerome's body will further eat away at his life. Hestia sighed lightly and spoke resignedly.

"I'll stop the bleeding first."

She gently placed her hand on Jerome's shoulder, which had been bitten by the wolf beast. At that time.

"No need, no!"

The youngest knight raised her voice with bloodshot eyes.

"Ugh!"

But even that seemed to be too much for him, as the boy frowned and groaned loudly. At that sight, the faces of Aslan and other knights also crumpled. Even though Jerome was gasping in pain, he did not relax his gaze as he glared at Hestia.

"To me..! Don't touch me! If I borrow the power of a dirty and cowardly temple... Ugh. It's better to just die like this!"

Hestia's eyes, which had been silently listening to what the boy knight said to her, changed completely the moment she heard that she was just going to die.

She looked at the young knight with her stern eyes. Jerome and the other knights were inwardly surprised.

Hestia always appeared weak and opinionated while accompanying their master. It was awkward to see her wearing such a stern expression for the first time, but at the same time, she looked good at it, leaving them speechless. Despite not raising her voice once, Hestia overpowered her opponent in an instant. She had a completely different spirit from Aslan.

Hestia asked Jerome.

"Do you have any family members that you lost during the Great Patriotic War?"

"... Why is that?"

Jerome asked back in a now hoarse voice. The vigilance did not subside one bit and remained the same. Jerome wanted to find out why Hestia was asking such personal questions and what her true intentions were.

Meanwhile, Hestia noticed Jerome's shaking eyes and she responded with a sigh.

"I can see that reaction."

She calmly opened her lips again.

"First of all, I pray for the peace of those who unfortunately passed away."

"... I beg your pardon? Anta, is it annoying?"

Jerome grabbed his horse by the pod with his teeth clenched. As if his anger could not go away, the boy shouted with half-closed eyes.

"It's as if you killed him! Even if you hadn't said that oracle to close the door! My parents and sisters wouldn't have died!"

It was almost like verbal abuse. Hestia accepted Jerome's anger, which grew stronger like wildfire, without saying a word.

After finishing speaking, the boy knight exhaled harshly, as if he could not overcome his anger. Hestia, who was staring at the scene calmly, finally took a trembling breath.

"That... It wasn't my will."

"Yes! I bet you do! Aren't you just reciting exactly what the guy named Shin, who only likes southern guys, told you to do? I hope you enjoy it! You have an excuse to run away and hide!"

Rather than understanding her situation, he sounded more like an accusation. Hestia paused for a moment. She had no intention of explaining her situation to Jerome and making him understand. She swallowed her sighs again and again and lifted the tip of her chin that was trying to go down.

She thought it would be better to just change the subject right away.

"Let's ask the next question. Then, do you have any family left?"

The young knight's breathing became heavier as if someone was thinking of him. Jerome turned his head to avoid Hestia's gaze, but she stared at him until the end.

"Can you really close your eyes with that person in mind?"

Jerome exhaled violently. Tightly closed lips. From the corners of his eyes, which instantly turned red, Hestia could tell that the boy was holding back tears. For a moment, Hestia's eyebrows drooped as she felt sorry for the young knight. But she made up her mind and continued.

"I may be presumptuous, but I still want to tell you something. Please... Do not forget. Those who survive have a duty."

"I have no idea what you're saying."

Jerome stubbornly kept turning his head away from her. However, from the way his chest was rising and falling at a faster rate than before, Hestia noticed that he was properly listening to everything she was saying.

"The story is that even if you die, you should close your eyes next to the person she hopes will return, not on this cold frozen land."

After hesitating for a moment, Hestia managed to put her last words into her mouth.

"It is our duty of respect to those who will be left behind."

That wasn't just said to Jerome. Dean and Martin, two lieutenants and other knights of Kalathi. And... It was her sincerity that she wanted to convey to Aslan.

'I survive somehow. I have to survive!'

That was a very small and insignificant amount of support she could give them. Meanwhile, a scream-like moan broke out from Jerome's lips.

"..... Ugh."

Hestia realized she couldn't waste any more time.

'Sir Jerome hasn't opened his heart, but I can't help it.'

She moved quickly.

"Excuse me."

She reached out to Jerome's shoulder again. Then Jerome, who was still in trouble, tried to get away from Hestia by struggling violently with her. However, it seemed that the demon's poison had spread considerably, so his body could not move as he wanted. So Jerome reacted more sensitively and sharply.

"It's not necessary! Shit! My words! Don't ignore me!"

Jerome continued to sharpen his blade. There must be a reason why his injury and the fear of imminent death are eating away his reason. The young knight's excitement did not subside at all.

"I am a knight of Kalathi! I have never once been afraid of dying on ice! Please grant me an honorable death, Your Excellency!"

As if his reason had been paralyzed, Jerome continued to pour out his harsh words without stopping. It was neither Aslan nor Hestia who stopped such a boy.

Previous Next