Chapter 797: Your Wife Misses You
When Alistair was still Eivass, she had met the King of the Wild Hunt, Helchin, from Eagle Cape Village.
Helchin Dragonflame, the solitary White Knight, was the hero sung of in legends—pure as snow and brilliant as the sun.
He should have been clad in silver armor, wielding a Dragon Lance, and mounted on a Pegasus descending from the clouds… But the King of the Wild Hunt that Eivass encountered when facing the Prince of Giants was completely covered in an aura of dark resentment, stained pitch black.
This was because he had been an Undead for far, far too long… Although he had been pardoned by the Great Philosopher and gained wisdom to become a fearsome hunter, rage and resentment still surged within his heart.
While the inherent attribute of the undead was Earth, these negative emotions belonged to the Dark attribute. After all, compared to the “stillness” and “eternity” of Twilight, their essence was closer to “Corruption,” thus belonging to the Transcendent Path. They had even formed a “Fear Aura,” an ability originally belonging to demons.
And now…
—Alistair was incredibly surprised to discover that Helchin’s resentment had been purified by some power.
The current King of the Wild Hunt, Helchin, was no longer the withered skeleton clad in black armor, nor the Undead general roaring and charging relentlessly… but a translucent, pure white spirit shimmering with pure white light. Alistair could even faintly discern Helchin’s features.
It was exactly the same as the Helchin Alistair had seen during Eivass’s Ascension Ritual!
Under the stormy sky, the King of the Wild Hunt’s brilliant silver armor shone pure white like lightning!
His entire being was enveloped in majestic, cobalt blue lightning—just getting close made Alistair feel a smell of ozone in the air.
The dashing heroic spirit general halted not far in front of Alistair, twirled his Dragon Lance in an incredibly flamboyant flourish, its light and shadow dancing in the air. Then, he pointed it at Alistair.
Alistair gazed at the lightning-charged spear tip, and instead of fear, she laughed.
Because she could finally confirm…
The “Helchin’s spirit” she saw during the Ascension Ritual was indeed Helchin himself.
And Helchin, whether facing Eivass or “Child of the Moon Alistair in Eivass’s image,” could easily recognize them.
To an Undead, flesh and blood were merely shells, and race was just decoration. These things could not escape his perception.
“…Long time no see, Helchin.”
Alistair, in her “Eivass” form, chuckled happily, “It seems you’ve obtained new power.”
“—By the grace of the Lord of Scales and Feathers. I am grateful for your valor and steadfastness.”
Helchin slowly lowered the tip of his spear, then performed another flourish, gripping it tightly with the tip pointing upwards.
Helchin, who had spoken with almost no one before but possessed the ability of speech, also opened his mouth, uttering an ancient-sounding human language, “Fortunately, this body still possesses the Path of Adaptation. Now, I am a ‘Warrior’.”
Merlin’s ritual in the past had re-endowed the King of the Wild Hunt with the Path of Wisdom, and granted Helchin the ability to speak and think.
His voice was surprisingly young.
Although not as gentle and resonant as in the previous Ascension Ritual, it at least contained no deathly aura—it wasn’t the hollow and mysterious Undead voice of the Principal, but closer to a slightly distorted and echoing voice like a “school broadcast.”
Compared to an Undead’s tone, an Elven Tone was clearer. He sounded to be in his early thirties… What made Alistair stifle a laugh a bit was Helchin’s speaking cadence.
Helchin’s speech was too standard and precise, making it sound rather odd. It was like a news anchor’s delivery, or the voices in an English listening comprehension exercise—ordinary people would never speak so standardly and solemnly in normal conversation.
“Warrior… isn’t that some kind of advanced profession? Just a Warrior?”
“Now, as one who has passed on, I am but a shadow of my former self. Having received the grace of the Pillar God, and by chance obtaining a few fallen leaves from the branches of the living, I am already content.”
Helchin replied patiently and kindly.
It was evident—he had received some benefits from helping the Lord of Scales and Feathers fish back then.
The Boss was truly just! Alistair couldn’t help but exclaim inwardly.
The Silver Crown Dragon and the Hourglass had contributed the most back then, so they received the greatest rewards; Eivass was sent to cast the bait, facing the highest risk, and thus obtained a “chance at resurrection,” a benefit that defied the Hourglass’s balancing principles.
And Eivass’s ability to do so was at least partly due to the Wild Hunt skills Helchin imparted—rounding up, he had contributed something akin to a hook or fishing line. His contribution to catching this big fish was at least greater than that of the bench the angler sat upon.
Finally, Helchin also received benefits that satisfied him… His soul, polluted by hatred and rage to the point of madness, was purified again, and he even gained some Warrior power—all these were proof.
Realizing Helchin’s attitude was friendly enough, perhaps this fight wouldn’t be necessary, “Eivass” felt relieved.
She smiled, “How about it? Will you come with me? Your wife and child miss you dearly.”
Upon hearing this, Helchin’s translucent spirit-face showed a clear expression of confusion and remembrance.
“Fafnir and…”
Helchin paused, saying uncertainly, “Rhine?”
“That’s right, Rhine Dragonflame—he’s a very excellent child now.”
Alistair’s voice was gentle, like a teacher explaining to a parent, “Your child is excellent, just a bit shy.” This was not deliberate acting, but her genuine concern, “It’s just that…”
“…It’s just that?”
Helchin’s words suddenly became sharp, “Are they… in trouble?”
He emanated a battlefield-like, tragically desolate aura of war, making it certain—he was still the King of the Wild Hunt, the Lord of War.
“No, not really.”
Alistair shook her head, “It’s just that Cardinal Fafnir is too harsh on young Rhine. She beats Rhine according to dragon tradition to help him adapt to this power. And after the child turned one hundred, his day and night ascetic practice has never ceased.”
“…Dragons do have such traditions, but…” Helchin asked doubtfully, “Is the war outside not over yet? In our time, the world was dangerous everywhere. Without enough power, one could lose their life to various sudden calamities. But, in my opinion… this land is much more peaceful now.”
The King of the Wild Hunt wasn’t confined to Eagle Cape Village.
Whenever a stormy night arrived, it could ride out with the thunderclouds. While it might not have seen much of the world, it had at least traveled through a quarter of Avalon. Even though his heart was filled with resentment of betrayal, being cooked, and being devoured back then, he remembered…
In Helchin’s view, although this land was somewhat poor and backward, there was indeed no war or conflict. Even the war fortresses had few troops stationed, and everyone displayed a relaxed and leisurely attitude.
—That was the peace the generation of Helchin had pursued. For a Mediator, a warrior who sacrificed for peace, “boring peace” was the most beautiful vision. People should live in a peaceful and prosperous world; if prosperity was not achievable, at least peace should be. The humans of Avalon, the lives they lived could already be considered “human”… This was the purpose he and his followers had resisted the giants for. Precisely because of this, after the resentment dissipated, he could manifest in this more divine form.
—He was no longer a vengeful spirit, but a heroic spirit.
“No,” Alistair shook her head, “The outside world has been peaceful for a long time. Avalon hasn’t seen any war in four hundred years. And the Church remains the supreme power in this world; no one dares to challenge the Church. Young Rhine is in absolute safety.”
“Then… it’s already peaceful, why still…”
“Because that was your dying wish.”
Alistair replied slowly, her voice clear, syllable by syllable, “Cardinal Fafnir said, ‘I used my liver as his foundation, my spine as his weapon, and my scales as his armor.’ All of this was because your last words were your hope that Rhine would become the strongest warrior in the world.”
“…I was just worried that Fafnir would go mad and die of grief, so I wanted to give her something to do.”
“There’s no point telling me these things.”
Alistair shook her head, “You’ll have to tell Fafnir yourself. If you agree, then you will dissolve the contract signed with the Great Philosopher and become my follower. I can take you away, allowing you to manifest in the outside world again. You can leave Avalon and travel to the former Hrasal Empire, to the Church, to the desert… What you need to do is fight for me… If I can ascend to the Dream Realm in the future, I will also help you ascend to a higher realm together.”
“…I understand.”
Helchin nodded, “You are recruiting followers.” He once had his own followers and pursuers, so Helchin understood Alistair’s intentions.
“You can also understand it that way.”
Alistair replied.
Hearing this, Helchin laughed.
He gripped his Dragon Bone Spear, raised it again, and pointed it at Alistair.
“Then, let’s have a fight,” Helchin said leisurely, gesturing with his free left hand towards the silently arrayed Wild Hunters behind him, “Otherwise, if I just leave like this, I won’t be able to explain myself to the bros.”
Those Wild Hunters were still entangled by resentment, making it difficult for them to speak normally, only able to roar and howl—but as fellow Wild Hunters, they possessed intelligence and could understand speech.
“…It still has to come to this, huh?”
Alistair laughed happily.
The blond youth held his spear in his right hand, and slowly raised the Little Crow in his left arm.
And the Night Demon suddenly opened its scarlet pupils.
“It was bound to happen—”
Viness let out an ethereal and hoarse voice, revealing her true demonic form, like a fallen angel weeping blood, from the black and red lightning.
