Book 6-5.2
“Who would dare to attack our Pareia’s warriors?! Is there a nation that does not know about the strength of the desert’s shamshirs? Edwin, you can relax. If something like that happens, we will compensate you for your losses and pay back the debt of that blood even if we have to go to war with that nation.”
Edwin’s jaws dropped once more at Yulian’s stern words. These two people in front of him had really made up their minds. Even if it meant taking a risk, they were set on increasing Pareia’s population. Of course with Pareia’s current strength, it was something that was within their powers.
Even the Silence Empire had asked Pareia for a truce because they were afraid. WHo else would dare to step forward and attack Pareia? Right now, Pareia was the fastest growing and one of the strongest nations in the entire continent.
“Okay. I will work with you. However, please do not forget your promise that you will protect my merchants.”
“Have you ever seen our Glow go back on his words? We will definitely protect them.”
Runa responded in Yulian’s stead and continued to speak.
“If it is Edwin-nim’s merchants, we have no issues with them moving under Pareia’s flag. Then there really should be no issues.”
Edwin responded with joy. It was because he knew very well about the meaning of a flag for Pareia. The different chiefs, the Glow, the Greatest Warriors, each of Pareia’s flag meant authority within the tribe.
From the moment Edwin left toward the Eastern Continent with a large caravan once more, the rumor that Yulian and Runa hoped for started to spread like wildfire. The people who were homeless and the refugees who could not farm to feed themselves started to migrate to Pareia in large numbers.
How could anybody resist when it was said to be even better conditions than the Rojini Kingdom?
In fact, some of the people who were living under oppressive and terrible lords were also using the chaos from the war to throw away their homes and lands to participate in this migration. There were so many people that even Runa, who was confident that they would be able to accept any number of refugees, was starting to get a bit nervous.
But thanks to that, Pareia’s greatest issue of the male to female ratio finally started to get better little by little.
Pareia started to prepare for their transformation one step at a time.
“Are all of the preparations completed?”
“Yes, Glow. But will it really okay for me to be gone for a while?”
“It’ll be fine. Relax and treat it like you are going on a vacation. Take good care of your wife while you are at it. Grace mentioned that your wife lives like a single mom.”
Runa started to laugh as if he was embarrassed after hearing Yulian’s words.
“Hahaha. It is true that I have not treated her very well.”
“That is why treat this like you are going on a trip to a foreign nation. Do not worry about the tribe too much. There are a lot of things we need to do, but we have enough hands to get it done.”
The Rojini Kingdom that had just completed their victory over the Silence Empire started to treat Pareia as a reliable ally after the significant amount of assistance that Pareia provided for them during the war. That was why the Rojini Kingdom’s king had invited important members of Pareia to visit them, and after thinking things over, Yulian decided to send the Red Storm and Runa.
It was a way to give all of them a short break as they were busier than anyone else in the tribe, but Runa had other reasons for agreeing to go.
The Rojini Kingdom, which has now pretty much become the strongest nation on the continent, had developed cultures, administrative offices, and methods of running a nation. By going on this visit, Runa would be able to see it all with his own eyes. Runa started to speak in a disappointed expression.
“I thought it would be great for all of us to visit together after we unify the desert.”
“There is nothing we can do about it right now. Just relax and don’t worry about anything while you are there.”
Yulian wished he could go as well, but he decided to stay back as he was still worried about the truce with the Shuarei.
“Haisha.”
“Yes, Glow.”
“Give Aizen my regards. I’m sure he will welcome all of you with open arms once he hears that you have arrived. Well, there should also be some entertainment as well?”
“Huh?”
Seeing that Haisha was confused, Yulian started to laugh.
“After seeing all of you last time, he was quite excited. He wanted to see how you would fare against hsi knight brigade. He mentioned that his knight brigade was touted as the strongest in the Rojini Kingdom, so there might be some sparring involved.”
“We will not embarrass you, Glow. The Red Storm is strong.”
As Haisha responded in disbelief, Yulian shook his head.
“No, I am worried about the opposite. I leave it to you to handle things in moderation. Do not attack them like you are attacking me. It will become complicated if you embarrass them too much.”
Haisha started to smile after realizing what Yulian was trying to say.
The Glow was telling him to make sure the Red Storm did not destroy the knights and cause a rift in the relationship.
“Do not worry, Glow. I will respond accordingly to the situation.”
“Make sure you emphasize it thoroughly with the warriors. Most importantly, make sure that nobody gets hurt.”
“As you wish, Glow.”
Yulian nodded his head and continued.
“Alright. And I am saying this just to be safe, but Runa and the Red Storm. At least for this trip, do not fight with each other. I will be very angry if I hear about any conflict once you return.”
“There will be no such issues when we are in a foreign nation.”
“You are worrying too much. Please rest assured that we will be responsible.”
Yulian seemed to have said everything on his mind as he had a satisfied smile on his face.
“Then go ahead and go.”
“We shall be on our way then, Glow.”
Pareia’s caravan to respond to the Rojini Kingdom’s friendly invitation started to head out. Because it was an invitation from the king, the size had to be large in order to give face to the king.
The important individuals were Runa, Orca, and all of the Red Storm.
Yulian had originally wanted to send Pere, Egane, Vibli, to represent the Greatest Warriors, but Pere gave his education as an excuse, and the other Greatest Warriors just said they did not wish to leave their homeland at their advanced age and declined.
As for Grace and Violet, they naturally did not want to go after knowing Yulian will be remaining in the tribe.
But there was someone just as important as Yulian and his wives included in the delegation. That person was none other than Yulian’s son, Verikan.
At first, Yulian was not going to send Verikan because of his young age and Grace and Violet’s opposition, but as it was a personal invitation from the king, they needed to give him face. Furthermore, Runa also suggested that this trip could benefit the Young Glow’s future.
In the end, since the Rojini Kingdom had Aizen and both Runa and all of the Red Storm warriors were going as well, Yulian finally managed to convince his two wives to have Verikan join the delegation.
Since Yulian only had one son, this was showing a significant amount of respect to the Rojini Kingdom’s king.
Verikan, who was now seven years old, was a bit nervous at the fact that he was leaving the desert for the first time. He held onto Runa’s hand and asked about anything and everything he could see, and Runa did not seem to be annoyed even a little bit as he even thoroughly explained the things that Verikan did not specifically point out.
“Runa ahjussi [1], is it true that once we get out of the desert there are lands that are green?”
Although Verikan was the only son of the king and the Young Glow, warriors were existences that always needed to be respected in the desert. There was no way anyone, including the Young Glow, who had not had his coming-of-age ceremony could talk down to the warriors.
Furthermore, with Yulian’s teachings being extremely harsh as they all knew, Runa and the Red Storm were always trying their best to raise this Young Glow’s spirits.
“Yes, Young Glow. Once it becomes fall, that green land will become a golden land. The fields can then be harvested to become the food that we eat.”
Verikan thought for a moment about Runa’s response before asking another question.
“Then why is there only sand in the desert?”
“Each area has their own specialties. Just like how there are men and women, the different lands are divided as well. There are fertile lands you can harvest crops, forests with a lot of trees, and far far away, there are even lands that are entirely made of ice. Our Pareia just happens to be on top of the sand.”
“So that’s how it is.”
As Verikan nodded his small head in understanding, everybody around him started to smile.
Once the delegation crossed the Henkel Plains and arrived at the entrance of the Henkel Gate, Verikan started to speak once more.
“My mother told me about this. She said that a lot of warriors shed their tears and blood to give us the Henkel Gate and the Henkel Plains. That is why we must make sure to never lose it.”
Everyone’s expressions changed. They had recalled the events of that battle.
Yulian had warned Orca before they left. Yulian explained that Runa and the Red Storm had some issues because of the Henkel Gate, but that they all let it go because they agreed it was the best method to achieve their goal. However, Yulian warned Orca to not touch on that painful memory.
“Verikan.”
“Yes, uncle.”
“It is very important to remember history. However, let’s talk about something else right now. Is there anything else you are curious about?”
Verikan smiled at Orca’s question and asked.
“I heard that the continent is very different than our Pareia. So I’m really looking forward to seeing it.”
“Good. You must be tired. Let’s go in and get some rest so we can continue our trip and show you the continent.”
Haisha, who figured out what Orca was trying to do, quickly smiled and started to speak.
“Nobody knows what will happen in the future. It is possible that we will lose this place to the enemy. However, we just need to get it back then. Young Glow, the important thing is that our warriors not lose their courage.”
“I would prefer to learn the ways to prevent losing this place at all. My father has said that I will be allowed to train with the Red Storm ahjussis once I turn fourteen. I will learn diligently so that I can make sure we do not lose this land that the warriors have sacrificed so much to gain for us.”
Runa and the Red Storm smiled once more at Verikan’s cute words.
Once they entered the gate, Runa gathered the administrators to get a report on how things have been running. While Runa was delivering Yulian’s message as well as his own message to the administrators, Orca was discussing their travel route with Haisha.
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[1] Korean term for Mr.