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Chapter 387: The Story After (19). [Side Story 19]

“…Albraham? Wait. Seriously?”

“That’s how I remember it. Why? Is that a name you know?”

“It is a name I know, but… no, should I even say I ‘know’ it?”

Arkamis stammered.

“In this world, there’s an old fairy tale that’s been passed down among humans since ancient times.”

A distant past.

There was once a man.

His name was Albraham.

He was a truly great adventurer.

He approached the mighty and terrifying legendary dragons, risked his life, and became friends with them.

Thanks to Albraham, humans came to regard dragons not as mere objects of fear but as beings of wonder and mystery.

He approached the dwellers of the forest—the elves—and revealed the existence of spirits to the world.

Thanks to Albraham, humans became aware of nature’s mystical entities.

He approached the dwellers beneath the earth—the dwarves—befriended them, and brought forth ores like mithril and adamantium.

Thanks to Albraham, humans discovered mystical minerals.

And beyond that—fairies, magic, alchemy.

Most of the mysteries now widely known across the continent…

It was the legendary adventurer Albraham who revealed them to humanity.

Had it not been for him, mankind might still be tilling the earth with bare hands and lighting fires by rubbing sticks together.

The legendary adventurer bestowed endless knowledge and treasures upon mankind.

Then, declaring his task complete, he returned to the mystical realm from whence he came.

This is the legend of Albraham.

Ketal listened to Arkamis’ tale with an intrigued expression.

‘Feels like Prometheus.’

The figure from Greek mythology who brought fire to mankind—this Albraham seemed to play a similar role.

Such archetypal tales existed everywhere; nothing strange about that. The rightful source is NoveIＦire.net

But there was something odd.

“I’ve never heard such a story before.”

“Well, that’s because it’s more like an oral folktale.”

Whether such a person truly existed was uncertain.

Parents told it to their children, who then grew up and passed it on to their own children.

That was the kind of tale it was.

Arkamis swallowed.

“It’s the kind of story you’d struggle to even find written down. And… it predates the Emperor by far.”

The legendary Emperor, who challenged the White Snowfield, lost, and revealed the existence of the Barbarians within—that was mythlike, yet firmly recorded history.

But Albraham left no records at all.

He was a figure who existed only in fairytales, one whom nobody believed had truly lived.

Yet such a man had existed.

Albraham, in the end, went to the White Snowfield, met Ketal, and there concluded his journey.

She was, right now, conversing with someone who had met a figure of legend.

“…Hah.”

Arkamis couldn’t hold back a sigh.

She had known Ketal was from long ago, but never imagined he had met one who appeared only in fairytales.

She suddenly realized—

Every word she shared with Ketal right now held the weight of priceless treasure for historians.

It almost felt selfish to keep it all to herself.

“So… what happened after that?”

Arkamis asked, suppressing her excitement.

Her eyes glittered.

Ketal chuckled and continued.

* * *

Albraham gazed at Ketal with eyes full of wonder.

“And above all… your very existence is extraordinary.”

Albraham had only taught Ketal language for a week.

Given the circumstances, it had been rushed and lacking in resources, a crude form of instruction.

Yet Ketal was already conversing smoothly.

He could rightfully be called a genius.

But that wasn’t the most important part.

“You’re intelligent, capable of dialogue. Logical. You know how to speak in ways that persuade others. You hold values, your own convictions. And more than that—you possess countless knowledge that I don’t.”

Ketal had shared countless conversations with Albraham, including some about Earth.

“The other Barbarians here are nothing like you. You’re unique.”

Even as he lay dying, Albraham’s eyes sparkled with fascination.

“I’ve journeyed far and long, but never encountered a being like you. You are… the most extraordinary existence among all the mysteries I have ever seen.”

A distant past.

The first fantasy being to meet Ketal had evaluated him so.

“…Maybe.”

But Ketal had not accepted it.

“To me, everything you say is the true mystery.”

“Haha… for you, right now, yes. Cough! Cough!”

Albraham spat blood again.

This time it was black.

Ketal forcibly laid him down.

“Rest. Tell me the rest tomorrow.”

“If tomorrow comes… Ah… how sad, that I won’t see you step outside.”

“Whether I’ll ever leave is uncertain.”

“No. You will.”

Albraham spoke with conviction.

“Someone like you will never fail to achieve your goal. I swear it on my name: someday you will leave this place and fulfill your wish.”

“…Thank you.”

Ketal gave a short reply.

Those words fueled his resolve for a long time.

“…And what became of Albraham after that?”

“He died two days later. As per his will, I left his body and belongings somewhere in the Snowfield.”

“…Haah.”

Arkamis sighed.

The great adventurer who had met a Barbarian in the White Snowfield ended his tale there.

“…Do you still have any relics of his?”

“No. His will was for everything to be left in the Snowfield. Even if I had taken something, by now it would have rotted away.”

“I see.”

Arkamis smacked her lips in regret.

Ketal continued.

“After Albraham’s death, I gained purpose.”

Escape this accursed place.

Reach the realm of fantasy.

He decided to pursue that.

The first thing he did was walk aimlessly.

The White Snowfield was vast; no matter how far he went, only white stretched endlessly.

He had once believed it was the entire world.

But Albraham had shown him otherwise.

Ketal set a goal and pushed forward for months.

Eventually, he found the border between the Snowfield and Fantasy.

“But I couldn’t pass through.”

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An invisible barrier blocked him.

How could it be broken?

After much thought, he turned his gaze toward the Quests.

[4th Quest.]

[Rise to an important position in your tribe.]

At first, he had ignored the Quests, thinking the world meaningless.

But now, things were different.

He began completing Quests.

He poured all his strength into them, and naturally his influence among the Barbarians grew.

He gained power far surpassing theirs, and the tribe expanded rapidly.

Much time passed.

All the Barbarians who had known him died, and children grew into adults.

They came to follow him as their leader, and naturally, he became the chieftain.

The tribe had grown a hundredfold from when he first joined.

But with sudden growth comes conflict.

At last, they encountered one of the monsters ruling the Snowfield.

“It was the White Serpent. The beginning of a cursed bond.”

Ketal chuckled faintly.

* * *

“Uwahahaha!”

“Waaah! Die!”

Clang! Clang!

Weapons clashed as Barbarians fought to the death.

Ketal didn’t care.

At first he had tried to stop them, to strengthen the tribe.

But no matter how he beat them down, they never listened, so he gave up.

He was pondering something else now.

‘The Quest isn’t appearing.’

After expanding the tribe’s territory, no new Quest had shown up.

Until now, clearing one Quest had always caused the next to appear immediately.

This had never happened before.

Ketal was unsettled.

‘What does this mean?’

Was he to figure it out on his own now?

While he was deep in thought, his expression suddenly changed.

Something.

Something vast had arrived.

Not in mere size, but in overwhelming presence that crushed the world.

A sensation he had never felt before.

His body tensed instinctively.

He gripped his axe and rushed outside.

“…Ah.”

And he saw it.

A white serpent so huge it reached the heavens.

Ketal was struck dumb with awe.

The serpent’s form was closer to pure fantasy than anything he had ever encountered.

It flicked its tongue as it gazed down at the Barbarians.

[So these are the insects that have been defiling my Snowfield.]

“Ah…”

“U-uh…”

The Barbarians’ faces turned pale.

They did not fear death—in fact, they welcomed it.

But even they instinctively trembled before the serpent’s crushing aura.

[Noisy, wretched lower beings… staining my senses. Fine. I’ve decided.]

The serpent lowered its head.

The mere motion stirred a storm.

[I shall grant you all the honor of entering my belly.]

Its massive jaws opened wide.

Only then did the Barbarians scream.

“Uwaaaah!”

“Aaagh!”

They fled in terror.

Ketal shouted urgently.

“Scatter! Run!”

It was impossible to win.

That was a monster beyond the bounds of life.

Even as he ordered the Barbarians to flee, Ketal prepared to run as well—

[132nd Quest.]

[Drive the White Serpent out of your territory.]

“….”

The vanished Quest window suddenly reappeared.

At that moment, Ketal stopped thinking.

He gripped his axe tightly and stomped forward.

The serpent looked pleased as it watched the Barbarians scatter.

[Yes, flee, lowly creatures. I’ll chase you down and swallow you all one by one.]

But just as it moved to pursue them—

The serpent sensed something strange.

A Barbarian was flying toward its head.

[…What?]

A mere Barbarian… not fleeing, but charging?

The thought had never even occurred to the serpent.

It reacted too late.

The axe came down on its head.

Crunch!

[Keeegh!]

With a thunderous crash, the serpent’s head slammed into the ground.

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