I'm A Sucker For Extras - Chapter 56

Chapter 56

As Brody continued to show interest, Teddy’s eyes lit up, and he asked.

“Have you ever heard a northern tale? Do you want me to tell you one?”

This simple-minded, loyal, and cheerful young man was obviously quite fond of stories about the North.

‘Northern tales, of course.’

Aidan’s face crumpled into a grimace.

He started to say something to restrain Teddy, but Brody interrupted him by answering first.

“Okay, I’m in the mood.”

Brody urged Teddy on.

She knew what the story was about; she didn’t need to hear it to know. But since she was already awake, she didn’t want to sit awkwardly alone with Aidan.

Besides, he’d brought his instrument, so she thought he might have come with the intention of singing a tune for a folk tale.

The soldiers, who had been hesitant to approach because of Aidan’s harsh expression, began to take seats near the two, one by one, as Brody created a welcoming atmosphere.

Perhaps the presence of Brody between them had broken down one of the layers of ice.

Teddy waited until the crowd had settled down before he ran a lanky hand over the wood-colored instrument, which was slightly larger than a ukulele and had eleven strings.

He plucked the strings, and an archaic sound, similar to a guitar, mingled into the cold winter night air.

The crackling of the campfire provided an oddly natural rhythm to his playing.

Teddy began to sing, his voice surprisingly clear.

~~It began with a warm breeze from the south.

A beautiful deer spirit with soft fur and beautiful antlers,

Cloria, trotted dreamily across the ice.

Her warm breath interrupted the nap of a cold sigh.

In the face of the icy roar, the deer simply smiled.

Who knew a smile had the power to melt loneliness?

And so it began.

The spring of winter.

Cloria to Hildieta,

To those who do not know the existence of the mind,

It showed me the location of the heart.

Hildieta knew the joy of the heartbeat beating together.

He presented his beloved with a ten-thousand-year-old glacial stone.

and the glittering blue dew never dried on her beautiful horns.

Those were happy days.

Cloria’s heart froze to death,

until the day Hildieta’s heart melted and flowed.

Hildieta cried icy tears, and the north wind tried to push her away.

But she grabbed his cold heart.

-I love you, I won’t leave you alone, don’t let me leave you.

The beautiful horns shook, and the withered gems made a clear sound.

Blue and cold.

At the same time, Cloria’s rich eyes closed.

Foolish deer. Foolish ice.

Oh, how he wished they had never met.

Deer in the warm southern flower petals.

And the ice, in the glacial forests of the north.

That’s the way it’s supposed to be.

Fools, you who defy fate.

What is love?

A fiery madness that brings even one’s political opponents to their knees.

With the quickest regret, ascended to Kalihiel.

To borrow the hand of the Sun Spirit, the one who melts all things.

To the south. To the melting south.

But even the quickest regrets are late.

The Sun Spirit’s head swayed absentmindedly from side to side.

The ice spirit clung to him.

Even if his hands melted, even if his tears melted, even if everything he was turned to dew,.

He held on to the blazing sun.

I’ll do anything, do anything, do anything.

The Sun Spirit was overwhelmed by the plea of a coldness he had never seen before.

The Sun Spirit took Cloria with him, heading further south.

Cloria shook her head helplessly.

Please don’t let me go. Please let me stay with you.

Her eyes pleaded.

But Hildieta turned his head away.

Why did he have to show his backside one last time?

In the Medici, in the City of the Sun.

A fiery aura enveloped the frozen deer.

The ten-thousand-year-old icebergs on its antlers melted, one by one,

and the icy beasts on his body disappeared one by one.

But the frozen heart was helpless.

Just when my heart was about to melt,

Unable to overcome the heat, everything he had turned into ashes and flew away.

What Hildieta got back was

not a beautiful smile

but the cold ashes of death.

The ice spirit stretched out his hand, his face desolate.

As if to catch a glimpse.

But can you catch the years, can you catch time, can you beat fate?

Shards of ice burst out of his roaring heart.

The whole continent was immersed in winter.

Drowned in the sorrow of the ice spirits.

But remember.

A ‘promise’ is a heavy thing.

Protect the North. Defend the Empire.

Knighted by the Sun Empire, handcuffs of fire filled with ice.

The Ice Spirit could not be driven mad.

Hildieta’s anger and grief poured out in the north.

The eternal winter exterminated the evil monsters.

Life is ironic.

His suffering brought peace to the North and glory to the Empire.

All of creation honored the Sun Spirit’s virtues and crowned him king.

Now, everyone. Raise your eyes and look to the north towards the north.

The unfortunate spirit who guarded the north with love.

Shut your mouths, close your eyes, and lie beneath the ice of ten thousand years.

Where Hildieta sleeps, winter has fallen forever.

Who got everything?

Who lost everything?

The warriors of the north look to the north of the north.

The weather that protects the world with its icy heart.

The warriors of the North look to the North of the North. With hearts of ice, they guard the world.~

Ting ting ting ting. Low-voiced warriors began to sing the chorus to the tinkling strings.

Their faces looked solemn in the dark orange glow of the campfire.

Brody savored the lyrics, lost in thought.

‘This isn’t the story I know.’

What Brody had read in the book was an Imperial tale.

It was said that there was one truth, but many truths. Different perspectives and interpretations are depending on who wrote it.

‘It’s a pretty fierce one, Who gained everything? Who lost everything? It’s a provocation to the empire.’

A precarious relationship under a forced knightly oath. That is the essence of the conflict between the Empire and the North, and it is only the North’s pride in protecting the Empire and its people from monsters that have kept it strong; otherwise, it would have turned its back on the Empire long ago.

Brody recalled the tales of the Empire.

After Cloria was frozen to death, Hildieta went mad and rampaged.

She pacified the monsters of the north, but she also froze the entire world.

The Sun Spirit, unable to bear the sight of his people weeping before the frozen plants, stopped him and forced him to yield.

Looking at Hildieta kneeling before him, the Sun Spirit demanded a heavy, serious ‘promise’.

“I want to create an empire. An empire where humans can live in peace. You will become a knight of the empire and go to your hometown. From there, protect the north and the empire.”

It’s about living up to that promise. It gave him meaning, and it helped the world.

‘The story ended with high praise for what a wise and gracious ruling it was.’

As Brody thought, the lute dipped and faded into the air with a shuddering final note.

After a moment’s pause, applause broke out among the knights, starting with Brody’s own small “wow”.

“Son, why did you have to keep your talent like this?”

“Man, that’s good. Well, it would be perfect to have a drink at the pub.”

“Hehe, thank you, thank you, thank you.”

To their delight, Teddy stood up and bowed politely, generously displaying his petite bard side.

“Ha, it’s been a while since I’ve sung, and I’m getting tired.”

He sat back down, hugging his lute.

“He’s a hero of the North, but he’s gotten nothing out of it, and even now he’s probably in a long sleep trying not to remember Cloria, it’s a bittersweet thing.”

Teddy sighed and waxed sentimental.

“I wish I’d never fallen in love in the first place.”

It was a foregone conclusion.

One of the onlookers, “the one Teddy used to call brother,” stroked his chin.

Ta-da. A small spark rose and fell from the embers of the bonfire Aidan had been rummaging through.

The men looked at the flame, which unconsciously created a small commotion, then turned away, lost in their own thoughts.

The dapper knight shrugged his shoulders and added.

“But it is true that it has brought peace to men. How ironic that a love that defied destiny should create a new destiny.”

The bold knight blurted out loud words.

“Yeah, the north sacrificed so the empire could be at peace. Damn it. That’s the end of that.”

Then the knight next to him nudged the bracketed knight with his elbow.

“Hey.”

Judging by the direction of his gaze, he seemed to be concerned about Brody, who was ‘from the imperial capital’.

Picking up on the vibe, Brody offered a faint smile.

It meant it was okay, it didn’t matter.

But the mood seemed to subside a bit, so Teddy spoke up, his voice bright and cheerful.

“Uh, how was it my lady?”

He was suddenly the center of attention.

Coupled with the curious glances from the knights, Brody felt a little uncomfortable.

Even Aidan’s eyes glanced away from the campfire as if he were curious about her assessment.

Without hesitation, Brody shared her impressions.

“To be honest, I felt a little bad.”

Gulp. The thick udders of the sturdy northern knights rose and fell in unison.

‘As expected, this is a bit of a story for someone from the empire to hear.’

‘Why did you say you were singing folk tales without notice?’

‘No, I just thought of Kalihiel when you mentioned it, and the song itself is beautiful.’

They exchanged glances.

But Brody didn’t let that stop her.

“Hildieta’s Choice.”

Hildieta’s choice? She’s not offended by the Empire? The knights turned their attention back to Brody.

“I don’t think he should have forced her to go; she wanted to be with him, and he should have respected her wishes.”

Teddy pouted his lips, joining the conversation.

“But if you want to keep Cloria alive, you have to…….”

“Did she ask to be kept alive?”

“Not really, but……. after all, it was Hildieta’s attribute that caused her to die, so he has to do something, right?”

“Do you think she didn’t know that? No, she must have known from the beginning, from the moment she began to love him, what awaited them.”

“…….”

“In the end, it was the fire that killed Cloria.”

The knights scratched their chins, shook their heads, and blinked their eyes, revealing their own thoughts.

She had often thought about Hildieta’s feelings, but this was the first time she’d seen the story from Cloria’s point of view.

Brody kept her eyes fixed on the campfire as she spoke.

“If she hadn’t died like that, it wouldn’t have ended the way it did now. For example, if she had closed her eyes next to Hildieta……?”

“Wouldn’t she die anyway?”

“It’s not ‘dying anyway;’ there’s a big difference between the two.”

“Depending on whether you’re next to Hildieta or not?”

“That too, but more so because it’s her choice. In the song, doesn’t she keep saying precisely and clearly that she wants to be by his side? “

Aidan turned his head to look at Brody, who was lost in the story. The campfire reflected deep shadows on the side of his face. The soft, wheat-colored hair glowed serenely with a hint of orange.

Brody’s lips parted again.

“Cloria chose to love Hildieta until she died.”

Aidan felt goosebumps.

-Whoa, whoa, whoa, whoa, whoa!

Hmph.

The pack, soaking in the atmosphere of the old tale, shuddered as a group at the creepy sound.

The wolf pack’s howl had changed. It was enough to make even the most seasoned northern knights’ hair stand on end.