Cale crunched through the snow with steady footsteps, scanning the area. He didn’t see many people. The occasional passersby chatted with one another in hushed voices, but they seemed happy; the mood was quiet but not solemn. All the while, Cale ambled along as if taking a stroll through the park.
‹Not only are there guards at the entrance, but there’re also a bunch of soldiers on patrol!›
Now that Raon was one year older, Cale found the black dragon’s initiative quite gratifying. I don’t even need to tell him what to do these days.
Choi Han stepped closer and whispered in his ear, “They said we can’t go to the northern section of the lake because they’re preparing for the offerings, but if we want, we should be able to sneak in anywhere.”
These days, Choi Han was always prompt with his reports as well. His growth was just as satisfying as Raon’s. Both the black dragon who used to leave wild boar carcasses for Cale and the young man who once followed him for food had come such a long way. Cale regarded the two of them, heart swelling with pride.
It was then that Hong tapped him on the arm. Pat. Pat. When he got Cale’s attention, the aghast cat pointed forward with a paw. Unable to speak openly, Hong mewed and asked with his eyes, Isn’t this the place we’re going to set on fire?
Cale quickly understood. “Yes, this is the place.”
Hong and Rosalyn stared at him, speechless. Rosalyn pivoted to check on the two whales; they’d been standing in stunned silence for a while. She had a solid guess as to what they were thinking.
It’s massive.
The Lake of God’s Tears stretched out before her. It was completely empty, its floor latticed with cracks.
After following the wide path from the plaza to the northern edge of Faern’s capital, they had come upon the large, dried-up lake. The sheer size of it gave everyone pause the moment they laid eyes on it.
Rosalyn approached Cale with measured steps, asking cautiously, “Lord Cale, isn’t this essentially a third of Bago?”
“So it seems. It’s smaller than I expected.”
Smaller? Really? His remark caught her off guard.
Cale put Ohn and Hong down and walked along the lake’s edge, clearly in no rush. “Let’s split up and enjoy the view before we reconvene,” Cale said, venturing away from the others. Only the invisible Raon went with him.
He had done a great deal of research on the Lake of God’s Tears. The lake’s northern section, where a small temple and an altar were located, were closed off for the festival, but the rest was open. He headed for a spot that wasn’t too crowded and stopped in front of an information plaque.
The Lake of God’s Tears
According to the legend of this lake’s creation, a god took pity on the ever-frozen Kingdom of Faern and bestowed upon this land a lake that would never freeze. At first, the people celebrated these eternal waters. Yet they soon lusted for more, and after a time, they coveted something that was never theirs to hold. This prompted the god to drain the lake, shedding tears all the while.
Rooted to the spot, Cale read on.
When at last the people realized the extent of their avarice, they acted to protect this place. To this day, they pray for that god to bless this lake with water once again.
The plaque intrigued Cale. This was information he already knew, but each time he read it, he found himself wondering, Who was it? Which god made the lake?
One day, when water fills this lake anew, we will know that the god has returned from the south.
“The south…”
Pondering this, Cale looked away—and was taken aback by what he saw. A white-haired man was staring at the bottom of the dry lake.
‹Why do you look so surprised, human?›
Raon called out to Cale, concerned by his reaction, but Cale ripped his gaze away. Why is that punk here?
A line from Birth of a Hero popped into his mind:
Looking at the white hair characteristic of his family line, Clope solidified his resolve to turn the legend into reality.
Sneaking another peek at the man to confirm his suspicions, Cale remembered another tidbit from the series:
He would bring the story of the wyvern knight brigade to life. Clope, successor to the Guardian Knight household of Seca, had made up his mind.
It was Clope Seca, Faern’s Guardian Knight, in the flesh. This man was the leader of the wyvern knight brigade—the focal point of the northern alliance.
Cale couldn’t suppress his shock. “Wow…”
I never expected to see Clope here. It was a surprise, but not an unwelcome one.
‹Are you acting like this because of that human over there? Hmm, he is a bit strong.›
He is? Cale thought, stunned by Raon’s evaluation.
Clope had appeared even less frequently in the first five volumes of Birth of a Hero than Prince Adin, so Cale didn’t know much about him. He had one useful detail, but nothing more to go on.
‹He’s as powerful as Mary.›
Mary? He’s at the same level as that necromancer?
Since Mary sat between Choi Han and Rosalyn in strength, Guardian Knight Clope had to be quite powerful.
‹Choi Han is coming, human!›
As the dragon said, Choi Han was striding toward them with a stiff expression on his face. Though Choi Han didn’t know Clope, he’d probably noticed the man’s strength and was coming closer just in case.
At a wave of Cale’s hand, Choi Han came to a stop. Signaling for him to stay put, Cale walked off—toward Clope, of course.
‹There’re two or three other knights around that white-haired knight.›
As he listened to Raon—his reliable danger detector—Cale remembered more from Birth of a Hero.
Clope believed in the legend. He was the sort of man who put his faith in myths, fables, and superstitions.
Cale’s lips twitched. Why had he come here in a priest’s robes, with his hair dyed white? Why did he plan to create a pillar of fire in the Lake of God’s Tears and call it a god’s rage?