Chapter 222 – Cracking Snowflakes
Wolfgang stopped awkwardly in the same posture he was trying to support by reaching out his hand.
His expression slowly hardens as he faces Astrid.
Of course, he wasn’t fooling around with the idea that he wouldn’t be discovered at all.
The two of them knew very well how to fight each other if they went into battle.
It was something she had been prepared for from the moment she set out to save her.
Since when did you hear about it?
From the time you used your imagination to mercilessly crush your enemies?
Ever since he unwittingly displayed the habit of being a little arrogant when he was sure he had won?
Or, from the time when there was a domineering spirit that could not be hidden even in the monotonous trace of the sword?
A lot of possibilities flashed through my mind.
It may not be all, it may be all right, or it may be for a completely different reason.
But more importantly, rather than the fact that he was uncovered.
It was Astrid’s attitude toward Wolfgang.
—Beetle…
Exhausted from the fierce battle, her body had already reached its limit from the beginning.
Cut scars all over the body. Blood flowing from nose and mouth. Even though her legs were weak and staggering.
The reason she can still stand on her own is probably because of her pride as a warrior.
“Why…?”
Astrid’s expression was so complex that it was difficult to describe.
Passion, confusion, anger, pain, relief…
Her small face was distorted, as if it were difficult to contain all the emotions.
On the contrary, she was Wolfgang, who met her gaze quite calmly.
It was the same for him that he couldn’t find the right answer and only opened his mouth.
I don’t know if it’s because he’s out of energy, but it’s because something is very different from the reaction he expected.
You feel very ashamed for being helped by the enemy.
Dare to deceive yourself and run amok.
A sense of goodwill boils over the enemy he has faced in a long time, and he wields a weapon without hesitation.
Either he or she just pours out a lot of profanity.
No matter how extreme the situation is, she is a woman who will remain strong enough.
“You… What the hell are you?”
This was something strange.
What is this subtle, unmatched reaction, as if meeting an ex-lover?
‘Why is this woman like this?’
Wolfgang fell into cognitive dissonance.
Could it be that the woman in front of me wasn’t Astrid, but someone else who looked similar?
The girl he knew was a ferocious woman who did not hesitate to abuse her, even to strangers she had never seen before.
What about her and what about herself?
In the past, Wolfgang mercilessly slaughtered the northern immigrants to the extent that he was nicknamed a slayer.
From her point of view, of course, she is a fierce enemy who doesn’t even have to think about it.
He hesitates, not knowing what to do in front of such an enemy.
It was a bizarre scene that Wolfgang could not even imagine.
If you see a snakehead flying in the sky, you must feel like this.
‘No way… Haven’t they been caught yet?’
No matter how you looked at it, it had already been caught, but it was around the time I even had that ridiculous thought.
“Eww…!”
Astrid’s body completely lost her balance and staggered with a strange moan as if she was enduring something.
Wolfgang then supported her with her reflex.
It was an impulsive action.
Come to think of it, it didn’t matter if I fell and rolled on the dirt floor or not.
‘Damn. I feel like I’m getting weird too.’
Was it a sudden awakening of respect for an old rival?
Or is it because of his animalistic instinct as a male who cannot ignore a female who has weakened in front of him?
It’s just, I feel like she doesn’t want to see her on her knees so vainly.
Her Wolfgang, of course, is also not without her ill feelings towards her.
However, the position of the winner and the position of the loser are completely different.
Astrid may hate Wolfgang.
To Wolfgang, Astrid was, to put it mildly, a rather irritating enemy.
It is a difficult enemy to attack because it has excellent basic combat power and has a troublesome image specialized in one-on-one combat.
If you ask her if she doesn’t like it, she’ll say yes right away.
If you ask her if she hates her, she will reply that she doesn’t think so after a moment’s thought.
During the war, for Wolfgang, life and death was nothing short of an everyday affair.
The Imperial Army and the northern migrants’ coalition killed and killed each other to such an extent that the preciousness of life seemed like an extravagant language for those who were full.
Of course, because he was cold-blooded, it wasn’t that he wasn’t outraged by the death of his compatriot.
Because there was someone else he truly hated.
To put it a little harshly, there is no reason to spend intense emotions on losers.
In conclusion, what is Wolfgang’s dislike for Astrid?
It was such a warm and lukewarm feeling that one could easily be blunted by sympathy for the weak.
No, beyond that, she was favored for giving her life for her tribe.
It was to the extent that, for a moment, Astrid seemed to overlap with her former self.
“First, go to a safe place. The story will follow.”
Wolfgang put her right arm around Astrid’s shoulder and tried to help her walk on her own.
But her posture, which was completely exhausted, kept breaking down.
“Get your hands off me…!”
Perhaps because of his pride, he keeps throwing away his hand to help me.
OK.
“Stay still.”
“Hiyaaaaa
In the end, Wolfgang had no choice but to forcibly embrace Astrid.
She doesn’t care if she freaks out or not, she just walks over her fence and heads inside her fence.
You can’t fight forever with someone who can’t even walk properly.
“Let go…! Let go…!”
—Puck, puck… !
Astrid struggled with all her strength in Wolfgang’s arms.
She pretended to be strong, but was completely exhausted. Her kicks and punches, which had the same weight as a tiger’s strike, had degenerated to the point of a neighborhood cat’s knuckles.
And even that was barely a few tens of seconds.
After a while, Astrid was completely drained of energy and hung up.
Wolfgang was taken aback by the heat he felt in his arms.
“Oh, my whole body is hot. Did I get poisoned?”
“Haha…!”
Perhaps the arrow or blade that had grazed her body had been poisoned, and her face was so red that it couldn’t be more red.
The sound of breathing is also very rough and irregular.
It’s a situation that doesn’t seem strange even if you run out of breath right away.
“You… I will never leave you alone…”
“Stop talking nonsense and be patient.”
Wolfgang’s footsteps became faster and faster.
* * *
Several days have passed since the struggle between the two tribes.
“Hey, stranger bachelor. Try this!”
“This… What is it? It looks a bit unusual.”
“Goat balls! These are great for men!”
“Um, I only take heart.”
Wolfgang was a great benefactor to the Frosttooth Clan, who still did not know his true identity.
He defeated the enemies who invaded his tribe and even saved Astrid’s life.
No matter how much he came from the Empire, he couldn’t ignore that level of grace.
In addition, there is even a custom that the northern immigrants yearn for strong warriors.
Residents are bound to be very fond of him.
The other members of the party also did not stay still.
“I thought strangers would come and play crap. I was worried for nothing.”
“Since that so-called nun protected my grandchildren, shall I go out to that place of worship as well?”
“Hey, go to the wizard once. I heard that if you tell me about this area, you will share the gold.”
“The kid brought by the alien warrior was also quite good. The kids in my house who kept wandering around listened to me like ghosts after being beaten by him. If he was just a little bit older, I would have wanted to make him my son-in-law.”
Taking advantage of the process of rectifying the chaos of battle, they quietly melted among the tribesmen in different ways, and in a short time, they wielded a great influence on the entire Frosttooth tribe.
On the other hand, it would be unpleasant for the chieftain if there were a lot of outsiders running around.
On the contrary, Bjorn seemed to welcome such an atmosphere.
Of course, he promised the Empire unconditional cooperation on the condition that her daughter’s life be saved.
However, it was unexpected for Wolfgang to go beyond that and encourage the activities of strangers.
“Are you really okay?”
“What. There’s no problem. Rather, I haven’t had enough energy for a long time. For me, I would like your party to stay as long as possible.”
At this level, the way of thinking has gone beyond the level of openness.
If you don’t do it right, you could be looked at by the coalition side, saying that you are openly sticking with the empire.
If the local collaborator, which was created at best, eventually deteriorates or perishes due to hatred from neighboring tribes, wouldn’t it be like the efforts made so far are in vain?
I couldn’t help but worry because it was the Frosttooth tribe that had suffered an invasion by another tribe not too long ago.
“Isn’t there a thing called notice around you? I know that the alliance is still in good shape.”
Although it was Wolfgang who had a private meeting with the chieftain and pointed out the point.
“Geuk… Union? As you can see, the Union just watched us bleeding out after being stabbed by a comrade. Now it’s more than disgusting. What a united union…”
Bjorn was in a state where he was sick of hearing just the letter ㅇ of union.
He spat and spat at the Union flag hanging inside the tent.
White saliva drips down the red snowflake pattern that once terrorized the empire.
It was a very contradictory sight.
Because it was the Frosttooth tribe who held the banner of the past alliance and spearheaded the war of aggression before anyone else.
Wolfgang, who felt complicated emotions for a moment, said anxiously.
“Still, the Empire cannot continue to protect the Frosttooth.”
“I don’t want that. I’m just saying this because it happened anyway, but in fact, there are already many tribes other than us who have gone through a similar situation. I plan to cooperate with them while slowly withdrawing from the alliance.”
“Um, if that’s the case…”
Even in the midst of this, you are trying to find a way to survive.
Indeed, Chief Bjorn was an unusual person.
Wolfgang was convinced that if he had been born in the Empire, he would have been more than enough to become a central political magnate.
And, the chief, who had been stroking his beard for a while, widened his eyes as if he had remembered something.
Wolfgang paid all his attention to the topic that followed.
“Ah, that’s right. That’s what you asked about last time. Did you ask about the recent trend of the coalition?”
“Yes. Do the children of winter want to bleed again?
“That’s what…”
Just like that, the moment important information directly related to the purpose of the mission was about to leak out of Bjorn’s mouth.
—A jump!
“Come out immediately. Did you think you wouldn’t be able to come in if you ran away?”
Astrid, who had suddenly arrived without any sign of anything, glared at Wolfgang.
Bjorn laughed at the appearance of her daughter who intruded at such an exquisite moment.
“Haha! Let’s go. We’ll talk a little later.”
“This…”
Wolfgang was filled with indescribably deep annoyance.
