TL: Zimmings
âAre there people you can trust?â
When I asked, Jin replied.
âPeople I can trust?â
I laughed meanly.
***
With his eyes closed, Archduke Locard pressed his throbbing temple.
Five minutes after the kakan (tribe leaders) meeting began, there were many shouts.
Meetings continued day after day with the agenda of destroying the temple, but every time it failed to exceed 10 minutes and became a mess.
âWe cannot agree with the destruction of the temple!â
âWhy is the Armatal(leader) election delayed? The destruction of the temple is a foreign countryâs business. We canât do it!â
âThe temple is not unique to its own country. Youâre going to prioritize power struggle over the worldâs fate?â
âArmatal, itâs up to you to plan for the future.â.
The meeting was a mess as always.
His only son Lionel, who was dispatched as an envoy with him, whispered.
âI donât think there will be a decision today dad.â
âIs there no news from the empire?â
âYes⦠I guess itâs to the point where they canât even communicate.â
There was not much time left, but the Athar Tribe did not give any answers.
Rather, if they conclude that the temple cannot be destroyed, they would have to destroy it by force, but since the conclusion itself is not reached, they couldnât think about it.
In his last communication with his mother, she said,
[We left the capital, and most of the nobles already fled. Son, you must hurry.]
When Archduke Locard clenched his fist, Lionel called his father in a worried tone.
âFather?â
âIâm worried about your grandmother and mother. Both of them are stubborn, will they really leave the mansion and escape safely?â
ââ¦â¦.â
Locardâs expression darkened.
Todayâs meeting was also canceled without a conclusion.
A leader of a tribe became very angry and punch another leader.
It became q dog fight after guards from each tribe jumped into the fight.
The escorts and heirs of each tribe rushed and took them out, and the leaders shouted at each other until the end.
âI will not deal with the dull white mountain (a tribe name)!â
âOur tribe, as soon as we return, we will subdue the red spider (a tribe name)!â
It was the same for other leaders. One envoy of the empire who watched it shook his head as if he was tired of it.
âWhoâs a savage-â
âLord.â
The envoy flinched when someone said in a low voice.
The athar tribe leader was still in the room.
The old man glanced at the people from the empire. His hair was all white, but his physique was excellent, and the aura of a person who reigned at the top of the 12 tribes for more than half a hundred years was strong.
He gave off such a pressure that they get goosebumps just by receiving his attention.
The leader, who got up from his seat, said while holding his back.
âRemember, strangers. This is Athar. Itâs a land of beasts, where itâs easier to bite the nape than to talk.â
Archduke Locard bowed his head on behalf of the envoy.
After the leader left, the envoys talked about him.
âSahad, the leader of the Athar Tribe, is a barbarian, so he is not a man to be ignored.â
âBut isnât he just an old man with missing teeth?â
âEven if his teeth are missing, he is a beast. He had been dealing with other countries for nearly 50 years. Do you think itâs possible with his body?â
âThenâ¦â
âItâs because his leadership was better than any other generals.â
The envoys and Lionel sighed.
âIf only the position of the current leader of could be strengthened, it would be possible to destroy the temple.â
âBut thereâs no time. Now that Athar has come to this point, it is inevitable that the current leader will be pushed out.â
âIs there really nothing we can do other than wish us good luck?â
The expression of the envoys darkened.
But that night, the luck really came.
***
At midnight, Archduke Locard hurried down the stairs.
âIs it true that the red spider tribe was attacked by the white mountain tribe?â
Lionel answered with great excitement.
âYes! Itâs not a battle between warriors, but the tribesmen faced each other quite fiercely. The red spider tribesmen seemed to have suffered quite a lot, so they were angry.â
âIf all goes well, there will be a proper war between the tribes.â
Then Athar will be destroyed.
Thr tribes did not have to follow the decision of the meeting, and the temple, which is under the Nahshalk Tribe, could be destroyed at will.
The envoys cheered.
âWhat a great luck, archduke!â
Lionel also hugged his father as he was overjoyed and cried out.
Archduke Locard narrowed his brow and looked outside.
âA battle ahead of the election?â
No matter how harsh the nature of the white mountain people is, it does not make sense.
âHow could that happen?â
As if someone had directed it, things were flowing in the direction the empire wanted.
At that time, their leader, Sahad was rolling a walnut in his hand listening to his son-in-law.
âThe red spider and the white mountainâ¦â
âIsnât that a good thing? The people will forget about the leader selection, now what are we most afraid of?â
âWe are only strong when we are one. Yesterdayâs comrade will be a fearful enemy since they knew us well.â
ââ¦â¦.â
âEnough. We must find a way to survive! If this country collapses, any tribe will try to hold our hand first.â
Sahad, who looked at his sullen son-in-law, continued.
âBring Jin back right now.â
âHuh?â
âThe white mountainâs kakan is foolish, but he had a great instinct. The red spiderâs kakan is wise but timid. They wouldnât fight each other. Who would have created this mess?â
âNo way, Jinâ¦? But even so, itâs something to be commended, father.â
âPraise? You still donât know your son.â
âPardon?â
âDoes it seem that the child came up with this method belatedly and separated the tribe only now?â
ââ¦â¦.â
âHe created this! Even if he seems to be more skillful that we thought, he is the one who loves this country the most. Heâll know that being destroyed is a loss to us in the long run!â
âThenâ¦â¦.â
âThat guy has someone next to him whoâs like a snake. It doesnât matter if this country is torn apart.â
The son-in-lawâs expression hardened. As Sahad waved his hand, Huihui, the son-in-law quickly ran out and said, âBring Jin!â
***
âAkira (the leaderâs son-in-law) is looking for you.â
At Vipashaâs words, Jin raised his eyebrows with an expression as if he knew the time had come.
He looked at me.
âSo? What are you going to do now? Grandfather is a wise man. Thereâs no way he doesnât know what weâre up to.â
âWhat do you mean?â
Jin sighed. Then he changed his expression in an instant.
It seemed that Jinâs cold expression, which was usually hidden under his playful expression, was finally revealed.
âThe destruction of the temple wasnât the only goal, right? The Athar Tribe will be the most annoying enemy when Dubblede becomes independent. Werenât you trying to break us up in advance and deal with it?â
Vipasha opened her eyes wide and looked at me.
I drank tea and looked at Jin with an indifferent look.n/o/vel/b//in dot c//om
âThen why did you follow my plans?â
ââ¦â¦â
Jin said while grabbing his hair.
âI followed you because the priority is to prevent the collapse of the world. Destroying the temple is the fastest way.â
âYes.â
âBut if this causes problems for Athar, we will become enemies. You know that?â
I got up from my seat, looked at Jin and smiled.
âArenât you going? Theyâre calling you.â
ââ¦â¦.â
âIf youâre not going, them donât.â
âIâm going.â
Jin left the room as if he couldnât help it, and I followed him.
When he reached the leaderâs room and knocked, a man who seemed to be Jinâs father came out.
âWhatâs wrong with you⦠Lady Dubblede?â
âNice to meet you, Akira. Iâm Leblaine Dubblede.â
âWere you the snake that was attached to Jin?â
People call me snake many times, so I wasnât surprised.
When I smiled brightly, the Akira sighed and opened the door.
When I went inside, I saw an old man sitting on the sofa. The old man had a great physique and dignity flowed from him.
âItâs the face I expected. Iâve heard that they caught the lady at the border.â
âItâs an honor to meet you, Armatal.â
The leader of the tribes, who looked at me, slowly opened his mouth.
âYouâre an immature girl. You know some things but do not know the others.â
âTell me what I donât know.â
âYou think you got everything you wanted with my grandson, but youâre wrong.â
ââ¦â¦.â
âLady. As the Athar Tribe leader, I was going to cooperate in the destruction of the temple, but as a âNashalk Tribe leaderâ, I will never destroy the temple.â
âWhy?â
âFirst, the temple is a symbol of the union, so if we destroy it now, it will be a declaration of our breakup, and secondly, the temple is needed in Nashalk for battle after the collapse, and thirdlyâ¦â
The old man who put walnuts on the side table looked at me.
âIâm annoyed. How dare you touch us by bringing my grandson in?â
As the old man grabbed the sword handle, Jin hurriedly exclaimed, âGrandpa!â
I said in a gentle tone.
âYouâre correct, but not completely.â
ââ¦â¦what?â
Then, this time Jin and his father frowned with bewildered expressions.
âLady!â
âLeblaine.â
I said.
âThe tribe will not breakup.â
âYouâre not going to break things up by making things happen?â
âYes. Red spider and white mountain have never had a battle.â
ââ¦What?â
âItâs true. There has never been a battle. The fight with the red spiderâ¦â¦.â
For a moment, a black tiger was laid under my feet. Those wearing masked with horns appeared in the fog.
What was unusual was that they had Atharâs outfit.
âTheyâre my ghost soldiers.â
ââ¦â¦!!â
I said holding the shoulder of a ghost standing in front of me.
âI called out the ghosts of people from white mountain that died in the great drought this year. Iâm sure the other tribe think itâs the white mountain.â
ââ¦How?â
âBecause I had to show the needs of all tribes. The reason why those different tribes have been maintained so far.â
ââ¦â¦.â
âEveryone should now know itâs because you are at the center of it.â
The three men looked at me frantically.
The old man who was looking at me with a firm face soon burst into laughter.
âYou really are the treasure of the empire! What a waste. If I had such a granddaughter-in-law, Nashalk would have embraced the world!â