Ending Maker

Chapter 53 – EPISODE 53 – INTERSECTION (3)

Great Monarch is now Overlord – Technically, ‘great monarch’ is a correct translation, but ‘overlord’ sounds more villainous and gives off a last boss vibe, so ‘Overlord’ it is.

Terms used in this chapter:

Nodachi – A large and long Japanese sword, having a long handle suitable for multiple two handed grip positions.

The Lankebuste auction house had one special rule.

‘All participants must cover their faces with masks.’

Partial masks that could somehow make it easier to recognize the face was not allowed. Only masks covering the entire face was permitted.

Of course, sex and age could be inferred to some extent from one’s height and body type, but the existence of masks were bound to guarantee considerable anonymity.

“They’re selling stuff that you can’t buy if your face is revealed?”

“Well…there are quite a few items that are considered shady. Right now, it’s buying those kinds of slaves.”

In the Sälen Kingdom, slavery was somehow regarded as an old-fashioned evil practice that was slowly disappearing.

Moreover, most of the slaves traded in Lankebuste were not slaves for labor, but slaves for dirty and shady purposes, such as playthings for sexual entertainment, subjects for body experiments, and combat slaves for gladiator competitions.

“I want to save her quickly.”

Although Jude did not give a specific example, Cordelia already knew the truth to some extent.

That is why she wanted to save Red Wind as soon as possible.

“It’ll be all right. We’ve got enough money. Let’s not struggle in a vain bid, but just buy her promptly with an immediate offer.”

“Yes, yes, because it’s exhausting to participate in a competition just to fail.”

According to the flow of the original story, Red Wind was sold once at this point of time.

And then she came back as a returned item.

‘Whatever the reason may be, it just meant that there was a buyer.’

There was the concern of getting tired in a fruitless competition as Cordelia said, and it would also draw people’s attention unnecessarily.

In any case, Jude and Cordelia were ‘fugitives,’ so it was better to do things as quietly as possible.

“Hmm, good. I tied it well today. As expected of me.”

Cordelia smiled and praised herself after tying up Jude’s tie neatly, while Jude thanked her without any complaints and then took out the masks they would be using.

They were white masks that covered the entire face and did not have any patterns drawn on them.

“I dyed my hair too, so if I wear this, no one will recognize me.”

“I don’t usually wear a pink dress, but dyeing my hair was worth it.”

Cordelia said something a little unrelated, and after wearing her mask, she looked at Jude who gave a small clap.

“It looks good.”

“My face is all hidden, but I still look good.”

Cordelia answered with a giggle and led the way as if she wanted to go quickly. Jude stared at the back of Cordelia and admired her again even though he already knew it.

‘Pretty, she’s really pretty.’

She wore a mask that covered her entire face, but he still felt that she was beautiful.

Cordelia wasn’t just an incomparably beautiful girl for no reason, as her qualities and body itself were pretty.

“Of course, I’m an absolutely handsome boy.”

“What are you saying all of a sudden?”

“Recharging my confidence?”

“Just come quickly and stop with the nonsense.”

“Yes, Madam.”

Jude quickly answered as he wore his mask and caught up with Cordelia.

A dozen minutes passed like that.

Jude took a deep breath once they entered the auction house right next to the casino.

“Hwoooo…haaaaa… good, it smells great.”

“What smell?”

“The smell of treasure.”

At Jude’s remark, Cordelia snorted and sniffed in the same way. She then blinked her eyes and said.

“Oh, it’s real.”

“Huh?”

“It smells like treasure.”

Jude unconsciously became nervous at Cordelia’s words.

Because it was Cordelia’s words and not anyone else.

“Where is it? What’s the grade? Is it perhaps Myth grade?”

“What is this crazy bastard saying? I was just kidding. How can a human smell treasure anyway?”

“You’re an animal.”

Cordelia tried to naturally open her mouth to bite Jude, but it was useless because of her mask that covered her mouth.

“Anyway, let’s stop this nonsensical talk for the moment and get Red Wind first.”

Of course, they were going to search for treasure, but their top priority was to secure Red Wind.

Nodding at Cordelia’s words, Jude spoke as he looked back at the auction house’s interior.

“There are two possible ways that you can choose in Lankebuste’s auction house.”

“Are you talking about the market and the proper bidding ceremony?”

“Well, it’s not precisely the correct term, but it’s roughly correct.”

In front of Jude and Cordelia right now were the items to be sold in the auction. They were displayed in regular intervals like that of an art gallery or museum.

‘If there’s an item a person wants, they write down their bid first, and after a certain period of time, the item is handed over to the person who had placed the highest bid.’

It was a simple and clear but very time-consuming auction method.

“We’re not going to participate in the proper auction?”

“Yes, because it’s going to draw us some attention. We also don’t know if we really want the items that will come out.”

The auction was scheduled to be held in the next two hours, in which the moderator introduces the item, and each purchaser attempts to bid by raising their panel, just like what was commonly seen in movies.

“Let’s buy everything that we want and then get out of the auction house.”

“Are we also getting out of Lankebuste then?”

“Yes, that’s correct.”

Jude’s mind was troubled by the Devil’s Hand, aside from Count Hræsvelgr.

It was best to cross the border before being spotted by any of them.

“Okay, moving on, let’s go and buy Red Wind first.”

“It’s probably this way.”

Thinking of Lankebuste’s auction house that he remembered when he played Red Wind, Jude seemed to be taking some cautious steps forward first, but he soon led Cordelia with a confident manner.

1^st basement floor.

Unlike the bustling atmosphere of the 1^st floor, the place had a gloomy, dreary, and subdued atmosphere.

Inside the glass cases erected at regular intervals, the slaves for sale were almost in the state of being naked.

“I don’t like it.”

Cordelia clicked her tongue and stepped forward at once in big strides as they headed to the place where Red Wind was.

“Red Wind.”

Jude’s eyes finally saw her.

A girl from the Great Storm tribe that was 16 years old this year.

As she inherited the Winter Elf’s blood, her pure white ivory skin and azure hair reminiscent of the clear blue sky were very memorable.

Her long hair that came down to her hips, were deliberately tied to the back to make her long ears visible.

Cordelia gritted her teeth as she saw the chains tied to Red Wind’s slender ankles, before looking at Red Wind’s face again.

Perhaps because she was confined in a case where she could only see the inside but not the outside, there was a deep fear in her blue eyes that couldn’t hide her anger and hostility.

“Let’s buy her right away.”

“Yes, so just calm down a bit, okay?”

“Okay.”

Cordelia gave a short answer as she looked up at Red Wind again, and Jude immediately filled in their purchase price in the bidding column placed next to the case.

“The auction house staff will come now.”

At Jude’s words, Cordelia tightly shut her mouth instead of answering, because she didn’t want to cause any unnecessary trouble.

And after a few seconds.

A neatly dressed auction house employee approached them as Jude had expected.

“Oh, that’s an excellent choice. It’s hard to find such a beautiful woman among the northern barbarians. However, she’s a little fierce, so please be careful about that part.”

Cordelia reflexively lost her temper at the auction house’s employee’s words, and Jude quickly blocked Cordelia with his body and shamelessly smiled as he said.

“The fiercer she is, the more delicious it is to tame her.”

“Haha, that’s right. That’s the true pleasure of rearing.”

The auction house employee laughed and smiled, and then handed out some documents to them. After checking Jude’s ability to pay, he spoke again.

“It takes some time to pack, so why don’t you look around for other items in the meantime? Between the next 20 minutes from the start of the auction and until its end, you can come to the sales office on the first floor.”

“Yes, I will do so. Thank you for your kind guidance.”

“Thank you very much. We hope you enjoy your shopping.”

When the employee made a gesture after politely bowing down to them, the light in Red Wind’s case went out.

Perhaps they were going to take out Red Wind through the glass case’s floor or through the wall behind it.

“Now then, shall we go too?”

“…okay.”

Cordelia answered in a low voice, and Jude grasped her hand as they hurried up to the first floor.

“Hooo, okay. Now that we’ve finished the trade without any problems, let’s really enjoy the auction. There must be a lot of good items.”

When Jude intentionally spoke in an energetic voice, Cordelia pouted her lips several times before she nodded.

She was angry because of Red Wind’s situation, not because of Jude. But she couldn’t unreasonably vent out her anger on this place.

“Since we’ve come here, let’s find the true treasure. I will trust in your feeling.”

Jude added some words again, so Cordelia also spoke in quite a cheerful voice to match his rhythm.

“Do you mean, something like a treasure with a stupendous performance, but others don’t know its true value because of its outward appearance, like what is common in novels and manhwa?”

“That’s correct.”

Of course, such an occurrence couldn’t have been really common.

The people at the auction house weren’t fools either.

After all, they had a group of experts working for them.

But it was just at that moment that they had thought so.

“Ah, isn’t that the Heavenly Judgment?”

“Yes, you’re right.”

Jude unknowingly replied in a blank manner as he promptly opened his eyes wide. And it was the same for Cordelia.

““Why is that appearing here?!””

The two rotten waters spoke almost at the same time, and they approached the glass case in hurried steps while trying to be inconspicuous as possible.

“I’m sure of it, it’s currently in the state before its seal was released.”

Cordelia blinked her eyes at Jude’s words. It wasn’t because the Heavenly Judgment suddenly appeared before her eyes.

It was because Jude spoke in Korean instead of the continent’s official language.

“Ko…rean?”

It’s been a long time since she used it, so Cordelia nodded and spoke Korean with a slightly awkward pronunciation.

“Because no one else can understand it.”

It was like the time he used the Korean language as a password substitute when he first wrote a letter in the past.

The only people who could understand Korean in Pleiades were Jude and Cordelia, so it was a perfect counterintelligence measure.

“Ah, it’s somewhat awkward and strange. Moving on, I’m sure that it’s the Heavenly Judgment.”

“I wandered around, trying to find it prior to when the seal was released, and now, it was actually here.”

Jude admired it again as he recalled the Heavenly Judgment’s setting.

“Heavenly Judgment.”

It was one of the hundred swords that the Archangel of Judgment, Auriel, forged for her warriors. She was one of the Four Archangels of Heaven, symmetrical with the Five Overlords of Hell.

As a sword forged by an archangel, the sword’s performance itself was tremendous and amazing, but the true value of Heavenly Judgment was unlike any other.

‘Day of Judgment.’

It was the name of the Ultimate skill inherent to the Heavenly Judgment and could only be used by the Heavenly Judgment.

Although there were some differences in the power or range depending on the user’s abilities, if the user uses it, the day of judgment will arrive as its name suggests.

Numerous blades of light would come pouring down from the sky like a heavy rain.

It did not cause any damage to heavenly beings, but it was not an exaggeration to say that it was a skill that rained down death from the heavens for the opposite existences of the heavenly beings, which were the demons and the undead.

“The long war between heaven and hell had destroyed most of the hundred swords, leaving only a few…”

“And one of them is here.”

Cordelia and Jude simultaneously gulped.

“I’m glad that it was sealed. It seems like its appearance was just recognized as a ceremonial dress relic.”

“We must buy this one.”

The Heavenly Judgment in front of them was sealed, so it was nothing more but a little fanciful ceremonial sword as Jude had said.

Its blade was blunt so it was no different from a club, and the decorations were excessively flashy, which would interfere with its use.

“But it will all change once you unseal it.”

“That’s right, and it is only a heavenly being who can release that seal.”

Heavenly being.

Angel.

And what that implied…

“Cordelia can unseal it.”

Of course, it was a story after she awakened as an angel through the Ancestral Regression technique, but the fact that it could be solved was somehow important.

“Hahahaha, I want to buy it quickly. I’ll buy it and hug it every night when I sleep.”

Jude strongly agreed to Cordelia’s words, and he hurriedly looked into the bidding board.

There was no immediate purchase price, but without any hesitation, Jude promptly wrote down twice the original purchase price. In the eyes of others, it was just an ordinary ceremonial sword, so there was no one who would challenge this amount of money.

“Let’s look around other places quickly. I really think that there would be more like this.”

“Yeah, it really smells like treasure.”

Sniffing with her nose, Cordelia headed to a certain direction, as if she was a person being lured by the treasure with her ‘senses.’

And about an hour later…

“The Cursed Reaper’s Garment, the Ancient Crest, and even the Eastern Warrior’s Sword.”

Cordelia had a silly snicker behind her mask, and Jude said as he abruptly hugged Cordelia.

“We hit the jackpot.”

“That’s right, Daddy. We hit the jackpot!”

Cordelia likewise hugged Jude and rejoiced with him.

Because they really hit the jackpot.

As its name suggests, the Cursed Reaper’s Garment was a garment that was cursed.

However, if the curse was removed, it could be used as a Reaper’s Garment, and the effect of the Reaper’s Garment was as follows.

‘He who wears the garment of the reaper will exude the force of the reaper. Those who attack a person wearing the reaper’s garment will fall under the reaper’s curse.’

In a word, it was a defensive gear that caused a weak Fear effect to a wide area, and applied debuffs to those who attacked.

Since it was a fluttering robe, it was perfect for Cordelia to wear it.

‘It goes well with the witch series.’

Whether it was a witch, a reaper, or a demon, they were all associated with the power of hell.

“The Ancient Crest is a necessary item for the Ancestral Regression technique…and this Eastern Warrior’s Sword is also really good.”

What was in Jude’s hands was something like a Nodachi that was much longer than a normal longsword.

As its name suggests, it was a fantasy item from the Eastern continent that existed across the continent where the Sälen Kingdom was located. The performance of the sword itself was outstanding, but what was important was the fact that it also had an inherent Ultimate skill like the Heavenly Judgment.

“Hell’s Blood Slash.”

It was a powerful skill with an impressive name, but it was a skill that he couldn’t use even if he got it later because at this point in the early half of the scenario, the skill wasn’t that good and was even overkill.

“It’s a real jackpot, and most of them are cursed or sealed, so their prices are cheap.”

“Yeah, and even though we’ve bought this much, we still have some money left.”

The Reaper’s Garment was cursed, and since the ancient crest was kind of a puzzle, it would not function unless it was solved with the proper solution. The Eastern Warrior’s Sword was also sealed, so a ceremony was needed to release the seal.

“JudeWiki, can you do it?”

“Of course I can, Madam.”

It was the time when Jude answered with a smile.

“But Jude.”

“Yes?”

“Are you…going to continue using fist and foot techniques?”

“Fist and foot techniques?”

“Yes, you’ve been continuously focusing on punches when fighting.”

When Cordelia pointed it out, Jude reflected on himself.

As she had said, the weapons that Jude had used recently involved the use of his two fists, which included the Lightning Punch, the Lightning Strike Fist, and the God’s Fist of the Guardians of the Holy Cross.

“Why don’t you take this opportunity to slowly change to a sword? Landius is also a swordsman.”

Despite Landius’ shocking appearance, he was also a swordsman.

According to him, he would only use his sword in a real crisis.

Moreover, Jude was the child of Count Bayer, one of the ten great swordmasters in the Sälen Kingdom.

Most of the warriors of the Bayer family were also swordsmen, and most of the treasures that were handed down were related to the sword.

In other words, it was right to use a sword to receive the family’s favor.

“Hmm…is that so? But in the original story, Jude also used everything from swords, spears, to fists.”

“Because of his Cheonmujiche.”

His Cheonmujiche made him be good at everything that he did with his body.

Even in the original story, Jude was a multi-weapons user who could handle virtually any existing weapon, just like Maximilian.

“I see…you’re right, Cordelia. Since I already got the Eastern Warrior’s Sword, I can slowly take the swordsman route.”

“That’s good, that’s good. If it’s a sword, it will be easy to change items.”

The most common weapon in the Legend of Heroes series was the sword.

Even the Heavenly Judgment they got right now was a sword.

At Cordelia’s words, Jude spoke after he pondered for a moment.

“Umm…Cordelia.”

“Yes?”

“Would you like to learn hand-to-hand martial arts?”

T/N: The term that Jude actually used is Che-sul (체술), which means body technique/skill. However, in Japanese, it is commonly known as ‘Taijutsu.’ Using the word ‘Taijutsu’ in a Korean novel felt weird, so I opted for a short description of Taijutsu, which is ‘hand-to-hand martial arts.’

“Hand-to-hand martial arts?”

“Yes, hand-to-hand martial arts. Maybe a little swordsmanship too.”

They were two people who had already disrupted the original story.

Then, it wasn’t no longer necessary for them to follow the flow of the original story as well.

Unlike the original Cordelia, the present Cordelia had a sense of combat that could only be described as crazy.

Melee combat was not possible for the original Cordelia, as it was sealed in the game for balance adjustment, but it would be possible for the present Cordelia.

“Uh…you want me to learn Ninth Heaven’s Nine Doors?”

“No, that’s impossible. It’s a martial art that can’t be learned unless you have Cheonmujiche or have crazy muscles like Master Landius.”

He could tell that now since he had opened the door.

Ninth Heaven’s Nine Doors was a new technique developed solely for Cheonmujiche. Unless the person was an iron man like Landius, one wouldn’t be able to overcome the burden of Ninth Heaven’s Nine Doors, and the person’s body would be ruined.

“Since Twenty-Four Gale Steps seems to be related to Ninth Heaven’s Nine Doors, I’ll exclude it from the list, and teach you how to protect yourself with Count Bayer’s footwork techniques. It will be helpful.”

“Swordsmanship too?”

“You’ll become magic swordsman Cordelia. Isn’t that cool?”

After hearing Jude’s words, Cordelia imagined it for a moment, and soon had a faint smile.

And Jude thought while looking at such Cordelia.

‘I feel like a real princess maker.’

Of course, no matter how crazy Cordelia’s sense of combat was, it was impossible for her to develop as an expert swordsman like Lucas.

This is because the inner Qi of the warrior and the mana of the wizard were similar but also different.

Even if Cordelia learned the basic footwork techniques or ordinary martial arts, she would not be able to properly learn higher martial art techniques.

So she should focus on her magic first.

Then he’d develop her into a ‘wizard capable of close combat’ by adding hand-to-hand martial arts and swordsmanship into her main skills as a wizard.

“My daughter, Daddy will also let you learn ‘Mushindo.’”

T/N: I just said that I didn’t want to use Japanese words here, but Jude kept using it so…here’s the definition of Mushindo.

Mushin in Japanese translates to “no-mind,” which is a mental state that martial artists are said to enter during combat. It is a condition in which ego and emotions are absent and the warrior reacts intuitively and moves instinctively. ‘Do’ means method/way, so it’s ‘no-mind method’ or something like that.

“Yes, Daddy. I only trust in Daddy.”

One way or another, the two were rotten waters of Legend of Heroes 2.

For them, the growth of their characters were more enjoyable than anything else.

“Now, let’s go quickly. I’ll let you know the methods and direction of the Tempest Step technique, which is the footwork technique of Count Bayer.”

“Yes, Daddy. Let’s go quickly.”

They would become stronger.

They would also strengthen themselves with means that they could not originally use when it was still a game.

The two rotten waters excitedly and hurriedly left the auction house after taking the Heavenly Judgment, the Reaper’s Garment, the Ancient Crest, and the Eastern Warrior’s Sword.

And around twenty minutes later.

When the two arrived at their accommodation, they simultaneously remembered one fact.

““Red Wind!””

The reason why they went to the auction house in the first place.

The two had completely forgotten her existence because of their unexpected jackpot, and hurriedly turned their way back.