TOFD 306

Lucky 306

Esmeralda finished the battle and there was a mountain of dead Aberrants behind her. 

Her gaze was so deep and heavy that anyone would instinctively avoid her gaze. Only strong and low-minded people could look at her without fear. 

"General!"

Someone greeted her.

"Where is the Matriarch of Cudgel, Kimmy, I want to talk to her."

Esmeralda heard something absurd and she wanted to hear the Matriarch's explanation. 

"But General--"

"I don't want to hear any excuses, take me to her."

The pressure she released was too frightening that the poor guy peed himself. 

"Y- yes!"

"Good, now get the fuck out, you are disgusting."

She frowned in disgust and the guy scampered like a rat. An off-road vehicle greeted her and took her back to the base. 

It did not take long for Esmeralda to reach Cudgel's base. 

"I greet the mighty General of Dellia."

The old woman who was holding a cane greeted Esmeralda. This woman was the first master of Cudgel. 

The woman who invented the Battlesuit and one of the pillars of their newly built country. Kimmy Cudgel.

"Kimmy, while I'm at the battlefield, I heard that you sold your Battlesuits to the neighboring countries!? Care to explain?"

The atmosphere became suffocating and tendrils made of darkness loomed around them. 

However, Kimmy was not affected.

"I'm already old for this. I'm not afraid of this power of yours, General."

Kimmy muttered and sat down. Her time was going to end and she was ready to accept death. If Esmeralda wanted to kill her, so be it.

Kimmy's father was a half-dwarf and she learned a portion knowledge of Runes from him. The knowledge about Runes was already washed by history and only small bits were preserved. 

Unfortunately for Kimmy, because there was only a quarter of Dwarven blood in her, she could not understand most of the Runes. 

This was the main reason why she looked old too because her human blood was stronger than her counterpart. She had the same lifespan of a human. 

"... Why?"

Esmeralda's expression was ugly. She felt betrayed.

"Esmeralda, fifteen years ago this place is nothing but a desolate land where every tribe fought to expand their territory."

Esmeralda recalled the past. She just came out of the Forest of Death and she realized that a lot of things changed. The target of her hatred was already dead and even the kingdom changed its principle-- erasing the discrimination.

' Even if this 'Junian' turned to the good side, it's impossible to erase the sins that they created.'

Esmeralda had to uncover the truth, she felt that Junian was hiding something. But even a DemiGod like her would never take down the powerhouse Junian. So she decided to build her strength. 

"The leaders made a treaty and created the country. Even now I'm afraid that this peace will end."

Fifteen years was not enough to solidify the standing of the country. 

"Selling the Battlesuits to Junian and Ancas will give us time to strengthen our country. Besides, the reason I created the Battlesuits is not for war. I created it to protect people against the threat of the Aberrants."

Most people did not have superpowers but the Battlesuits increased their physical capabilities. It was meant for protection against the monsters from the wild. 

"We made an arrangement, the King and President of both parties promised us two decades of peace. All we have to do is sell the Battlesuits to them."

Their country was weak and the two powerhouses could topple the peace that they tried to keep. 

"... So be it."

Esmeralda was still mad. It was hard to swallow the truth, that even her strength was not enough for everything she build.

"Thank you my friend."

Kimmy smiled. 

"I'm already old. I talked to my children and grandchildren, they promised that they will do their best to protect this country... Of course, they promised that they keep selling the Battlesuits to anyone who needs it regardless of their nationality."

"..."

"I just wish that they will not become greedy. Maybe one of them will become too smart, so much that they will control the industry, but I will probably be dead when that happened, haha!"

She laughed heartily. Kimmy slowly closed her eyes, she was already old and tired of war. She lost her parents when the Aberrants bulldozed their little hometown. When she became an adult, she was caught in the friction between the tribes and villages and lost her loved ones. 

"Thank you..."

The old woman never woke up after that. 

The General paused and her expression looked defeated. She sighed, perhaps holding her tears. 

"... I respect your decision. I will never interfere with your family unless they try to betray me."

She left the place. She heard the wailing of people after a few minutes. 

When she met the shining sun, Esmeralda recalled something that she had already forgotten. 

"Oracle, I lost everything. I think I will never find happiness again. Your prophecy is bullshit."

She spat the disgusting feeling out of her heart. All she wanted was the doom of Junian. 

"They are still a kingdom that is led by a king... That King probably knows something."

She walked away. Knowing that she would never see her friend again. 

.........

......

...

Calix, or to be exact, Lucky T. Tiko stopped by a bar to collect some information. 

'Esmeralda only said that her daughter is in Junian but she never said where... I feel like I'm finding a needle in the haystack.'

He sighed. He did not know where to start. Junian was too big. 

'Considering that Esmeralda is a Dark Elf, I have to start with that clue.'

Calix stepped in and asked the bartender for a shot of gin. 

"Ah..."

He sighed after drinking the smooth gin. He was already an adult and drinking alcohol once in a while was not bad. 

He looked around and saw people chatting, the usual scenes in a bar. 

There was a couple next to him who were giggling. 

"Hm, honey I will eat you like Jeffrey Dahmer~"

"Oohh~ Kinda kinky~ Let's see what you can do."

The couple walked away while holding hands. 

"Puh--!"

Calix instinctively spat his second glass of alcohol when he heard their conversation. 

'What the fuck is wrong with these people?'

Junian, the country of eccentric scholars.