Side Story 08
Yeon Ji-ho let out a short groan at hearing that Hadad was still the current emperor. He couldn’t even imagine what would happen if news of his return to Asterra reached Hadad’s ears.
No, more than that, he was amazed at what kind of country Asterra must be that an emperor who had abandoned his nation could return to power. Yeon Ji-ho had assumed that Hadad would have been dethroned by now and relegated to some obscure position.
“…As you know, there’s no other bloodline left to inherit the throne except for him.”
“Ah…”
A sigh escaped Yeon Ji-ho’s lips. This was content that had briefly come up in The Star of Hadad. Hadad, the emperor’s lost child, had been able to ascend to the throne because of an incredible twist of fate.
“Then going to the imperial palace would be difficult, I suppose.”
“That’s hard to say.”
“Pardon?”
“…”
Shango hesitated to answer. He was choosing his words carefully.
Yeon Ji-ho and Set had been busy having Seho and getting married, so they had no time at all to visit Asterra. Though Chronos occasionally crossed over to Korea and shared news, he never went into detail about Asterra’s circumstances. There was no need to.
Unlike them, Shango, Isquis, and Apophis would sometimes cross over to Asterra when they had business or felt homesick. Shango, in particular, had to go frequently, if only to repair the axe made by dwarves.
During these visits, Shango often heard news about the Asterra Empire’s situation as he traveled through various villages. The news he had heard about Emperor Hadad was surprising.
“…They say he has become a virtuous emperor unprecedented in history.”
“What? Who has?”
“Hadad…”
Yeon Ji-ho asked again, genuinely unable to believe it. That Hadad he knew had become a virtuous emperor? Shango shared even more unbelievable details.
“They say he spends all his time on imperial duties, with no personal time…”
“What?!”
Yeon Ji-ho had to doubt his own ears at the news that Hadad—who couldn’t get enough of fun things and had fled because he found governing the country boring—was now working hard for the nation.
Until now, he hadn’t been particularly curious about Asterra’s news, but after hearing about Hadad’s transformation, he felt quite interested. However, he still had no desire to visit the imperial palace where Hadad was.
“Still, going to the imperial palace seems difficult. Hmm… Yggdrasil, I think we need to meet someone who knows mythology well first.”
Someone who knows mythology well. Yeon Ji-ho thought about who typically knows about mythology or history in fantasy worlds. Usually, it would be a sage, long-lived elves, or dwarves as an unwritten rule.
“Where should we go to meet elves, dwarves, or a sage?”
“That’s…”
Shango showed a troubled expression at Yeon Ji-ho’s question. With limited education, Shango wasn’t clever enough like Apophis to immediately provide answers to questions. All he knew was the location of dwarf villages.
“There’s a dwarf village… if you go north from here.”
“How long would it take?”
“…About two months on foot…”
As he said this, Shango glanced at Yeon Ji-ho’s legs, which were much thinner than his own. Though he didn’t explicitly say it, he probably meant it would take about two months at Yeon Ji-ho’s pace.
“Two months seems… too difficult.”
In truth, he knew there would be trouble if Set discovered he hadn’t gone home today. If possible, he needed to find at least a clue to a solution by the end of the day. So he first eliminated the dwarf village, which was said to be farthest from here.
That meant he would need to meet either elves or a sage next, but neither existed in Shango’s knowledge. As Yeon Ji-ho let out a groan at this difficult situation:
Rustle…
A strange rustling sound reached their ears as they stood at the edge of the flower field. Shango reacted before Yeon Ji-ho. He took out the axe hanging on his back and aimed it sharply at the air.
Soon, something leaped up from the flower field as if it had been waiting. It was then that Shango, without hesitation, swung his axe down toward the object.
“Uwah!”
Shango barely changed the direction of his axe after identifying the other party. But the nimble figure had already dodged Shango’s axe, and then jumped into Shango’s broad chest.
The person cradled in Shango’s arms peeked up to look at him.
“…Ganesha?”
“Shango! Did you come to play with me?”
Ganesha, slightly larger than three-year-old Seho, swished his tail and grinned broadly. It was such a wide smile that his fangs protruded.
“Where’s Appo? What about that stupid Isquis? Oh, what about the Captain?!”
“…”
“Shango’s the most boring one, and only Shango came?”
“…”
Ganesha didn’t give Shango any chance to answer. His attitude was innocently straightforward, just like a young child. Then Yeon Ji-ho, who had been watching from the side, approached and greeted Ganesha with a slight nod.
“Ganesha, it’s been a while.”
“…Huh? Ah! You, you’re…”
“Did you enjoy the tangerines I gave you before?”
“Yes! Give me more of those!”
As soon as Ganesha saw Yeon Ji-ho, he started to whine with drool dripping. It seemed that to Ganesha, Yeon Ji-ho was imprinted as someone who gives delicious food.
During this time, other knights often visited the pension and maintained contact, but there were only two people Yeon Ji-ho couldn’t see: Ganesha and Baal.
He had heard that Baal disappeared immediately after everything ended and no one knew where he had gone, while Ganesha was difficult to meet because he wandered around as he pleased.
Ganesha, whom he hadn’t seen in a long time, maintained the same small physique as when Yeon Ji-ho had seen him three years ago. With a welcoming expression, Yeon Ji-ho patted Ganesha’s head and said:
“I don’t have tangerines now, but all I have is this…”
Yeon Ji-ho reached into his pocket, rummaged around, and pulled something out. It was a lollipop he usually carried for Seho. Yeon Ji-ho unwrapped the candy and held it out in front of Ganesha’s mouth.
“If this is okay, would you like to try it?”
“Haup.”
Before Yeon Ji-ho could finish speaking, Ganesha opened his mouth wide and took the lollipop. He rolled it around in his mouth until both cheeks bulged, and gradually his eyes widened.
For Ganesha, this was his first taste of artificial sweetness. He started licking the candy with drool dripping, as if possessed.
“How is it, delici… seems like you like it.”
“More, do you have more of this?”
Ganesha looked at Yeon Ji-ho with desperate eyes that even Shango had never seen before. He looked like he might worship Yeon Ji-ho as a god if he were to give him chocolate.
In response, Yeon Ji-ho silently took out a few more candies he had been saving for Seho from his pocket. The one he had just given Ganesha was orange-flavored, and the ones in his hand now were different flavors—from strawberry milk to chocolate and grapefruit.
Just as Ganesha reached for the candies in a trance-like state, Yeon Ji-ho discreetly hid them behind his back and said:
“If Ganesha helps me a little, I can give you all of these candies.”
“Yes! Yes! I’ll help you!”
Ganesha nodded his head so vigorously it looked like his jaw might fall off. Yet, the candy in his mouth didn’t drop to the ground.
“I want to meet a god.”
“…A god?”
At those words, Ganesha’s frantic nodding abruptly stopped. He brought his orange eyebrows together in the center and rolled the word ‘god’ around in his mouth a few more times.
Then he finally spoke.
“You can’t meet a god right now.”
“…Is there a set time when gods can be met?”
“Yes, Yggdrasil only opens when the god is in a good mood.”
Yeon Ji-ho’s mouth fell open in shock. He hurriedly asked Ganesha consecutive questions.
“Is the god not in a good mood now? Why?”
“Well, gods are as mischievous as I am.”
“…”
Ganesha said with a snicker.
“They’ve fallen asleep because it’s sooo boring right now.”
Author: Hyacinthus B
Hyacinthus
Ah, eu também estou que nem os deuses com os extras parados