All of Cale’s crew gathered at the entrance of the, ‘Path of No Return,’ two hours later. They were not the only ones there.
Cale ordered Hans.
“You get a list of names.”
“Yes sir.”
Hans looked toward Cale before moving away to speak to the villagers. Hans would probably find out the kittens’ secrets during this trip.
At Cale’s gaze, Maes, the Wolf children, and Hilsman all got in a single line. They seemed as disciplined as a knights brigade.
“On will take us over and then come back with Hong. After that, all of you will be responsible for going in and finding the remains inside the forest.”
Maes and the Wolf children vigorously nodded their heads. While Cale was watching them with satisfaction, a very timid voice came from below him.
“Y, young master-nim, why am I included? I need to create the blueprint.”
Muller was shaking between Cale, Hilsman, and Beacrox while looking up at Cale. Cale felt like Mueller really was a mess. He couldn’t leave such a mess alone.
“Just do as I say before I get angry.”
He didn’t want to have to grab Mueller’s neck or hold him to the side again. Cale didn’t know how Mueller understood that statement, but Mueller quickly turned pale and nodded his head. Mueller was carrying a large bag filled with papers and pens for the blueprints.
Cale headed over to Litana, who was a bit away from him. He had a gentle smile on his face.
“It looks like we can head out now. I’m sorry for making you wait two hours.”
“No, it is okay.”
Litana answered like that while observing Cale’s group.
She had expected Cale’s knights to have average strength because Cale was average and had no martial arts training.
‘A very interesting person.’
However, that was a severe misunderstanding. There were a lot of strong individuals around Cale, as well as an individual whose strength she could not see through.
Although they were too far away from Cale’s group to be able to listen to their conversation, Cale seemed to be very charismatic when he was talking to his crew.
On the other hand, Cale’s crew all had varying reactions after seeing how gentle Cale was with Litana, but they did not let it show. Cale had already told them in advance.
‘Match my demeanor.’
All of them would do well since they are all sharp people.
“On, let’s go.”
Meeow.
On took the lead while everybody else followed.
“Excuse me, Cale-nim.”
Choi Han approached Cale, who had been walking in the front with On. He seemed like he had something to say.
Cale made sure Litana’s group was a bit away behind Rosalyn before looking back at Choi Han.
“What is it?”
“Is the jungle fire their doing as well?”
It was a cautious yet sharp gaze. Cale immediately knew who the, ‘they,’ that Choi Han was referring to were. The secret organization that caused the Plaza Terror Incident. He was talking about them.
“No, it is not them this time.”
Originally, Choi Han would run into the secret organization at the capital and then lightly in the Breck Kingdom. However, it did not seem like he had run into them while he was there.
“I see. I thought it would be another bit of information about them since you happen to know about it, just like the terror incident.”
“I still remember my vow.”
Cale reminded Choi Han once more.
“I will let you know when I find out their identity. So don’t worry.”
“Yes sir.”
Choi Han could see Cale cutting through the fog like his usually confident self. He opened and closed his lips a few times before finally starting to speak.
“Don’t try to do all of the hard stuff on your own.”
‘What is he talking about?’
Cale looked doward Choi Han with disbelief. It was at that moment.
“I agree with that as well.”
Rosalyn, who had been in the middle in order to keep Litana’s group away from Choi Han and Cale, started to smile. Cale found it hard to understand the two of them.
‘Hard stuff.’
“I really don’t know what you are talking about. I don’t plan on doing any of the hard stuff at all.”
‘Why would I do the hard stuff when there are so many people I can use around me?’
Cale looked toward Rosalyn with confusion as he answered. However, Choi Han and Rosalyn just looked at each other before starting to smile, thinking that Cale never changes.
Those expressions made Cale feel significantly bitter. However, he just stopped asking and started to walk again as time was of the essence.
Finally, after walking for the entire night, except for a short break, they were able to head out of the, ‘Path of No Return,’ the next day.
“Mm.”
…My gosh.”
Cale’s crew were all shocked once they got out of the forest.
Black smoke.
They would need to travel another day to see the Jungle, but there was a lot of black smoke approximately where the Jungle should be.
They could also see some of the fire, as they were now on a clear plain.
Litana bit down on her lips. It was not because it was her land. It was because she was thinking about her family and her people who were still struggling because of the fire.
“Let’s hurry.”
She turned her head in order to look at Cale. This journey was probably difficult for this noble. He definitely looked like he was brought up without any difficulties.
“Yes. We will guide you from here.”
However, Litana still needed to hurry. That was why she was thankful.
Five of her subordinates stepped forward once she motioned. Litana was in the vanguard. The head of a tribe always had to stand in the front.
“It might be a rough trip because we need to move as quickly as possible.”
“That is fine.”
It was a gentle, yet stern response.
“Let’s go.”
Litana started to walk instead of saying thank you. They headed toward the black smoke. After traveling for another day, the exhausted group could see the large fire right in front of their eyes.
To be specific, they could also see many tents surrounding the large fire. However, none of the members of Cale’s crew paid attention to them.
“What kind of fire-?“
The Wolf boy Lock subconsciously took a step back. It was like a volcano had erupted and covered a mountain.
The fire was shooting up as high as a mountain. None of them had ever seen such a sight.
“Ahem.”
Choi Han subconsciously let out a fake cough and took a breath.
It was difficult to breath.
Even the extremely strong Choi Han, who had lived in the Forest of Darkness for years, had never seen such a massive fire. Section 1 of the Jungle. This fire covered the entirety of that large section, and was as tall as a castle.
Nature. The power of nature was not something that the human mind could comprehend.
“That fire?”
The mage, Rosalyn, looked toward Litana’s group and asked. Her eyes were shaking in disbelief.
It made sense.
It was currently raining right now.
The jungle was in the season where it would rain multiple times a day as they headed toward the summer. It was their rainy season. The sky was cloudy and it was raining.
However, the fire remained the same. It remained a source of light in the cloudy day.
That was the weirdness of this fire.
“Yes it is this one.”
Litana looked toward the fire with a bitter smile. As it had been until now, the fire remained in Section 1 without moving at all.
“…The jungle is dying.”
She could see Lock taking a step back.
She bit down on her lips. This scary natural disaster that was beyond human comprehension brought fear to everyone. Even the Southerners were too afraid to approach it and could only stay near the boundaries of the Jungle.
Litana turned toward Cale, who was quietly observing the fire. Would he still try to approach the fire after looking at how strong it was?
She did not dare to say, ‘let’s go.’
It was at that moment.
“It’s hot.”
She heard Cale’s voice as he took off his raincoat and jacket. After taking off the simple, yet luxurious jacket that made it obvious that he was a noble, he pulled up the sleeves of his white shirt.
He then turned around to look at Litana.
“Let’s go. I think I will need to go as close as possible to the fire. I may even need to go past the boundary.”
He seemed as relaxed as if he was on a stroll. Litana looked around to see Cale’s subordinates looking as if they had expected Cale to act like this. She then turned around to look at her subordinates before looking back at Cale.
“I will take you there.”
“I can go on my own.”
Cale wanted to go on his own because he already knew how Litana was planning on taking him there.
“No, it is dangerous.”
Litana turned her head around to see some people running toward them from the tents.
“Your highness!”
“Our Queen!”
“Leader-nim!
She could hear them calling her from afar. Litana gently smiled to Cale, who seemed to be shocked at their calling her Queen.
Of course, Cale was just pretending to be shocked. He was also shocked for real, but it definitely was not because Litana was a Queen though.
‘Wow, so big.’
A large animal was running toward Litana.
“Grrrrr!”
“Ten!”
The large Black Panther rushed over at Litana’s calling almost as if it was flying. Litana easily jumped on the back of the Black Panther that stopped in front of her.
Litana, the Queen of the Jungle, and her Black Panther, Ten. Cale understood why this pair had the nickname of, ‘the reaper of death.’
The Black Panther, that was a very dark blue color, was at least the size of two or three adult men. She started to speak while sitting on top of the panther.
“Ten and I will take you there.”
At that moment, her subordinates who had run over from the tents looked back and forth between her and Cale.
“Your highness, these people are?”
Litana did not answer the question right away. Instead, she looked toward the people who were slowly starting to come out of the safe zone after hearing that she was back. She could also see some animals as well. These were the people who used to live in Section 1.
They were probably waiting for her. That was why she needed to come back with the dragon from the legends.
“He is a dragon.”
“Excuse me?”
Litana smiled at her subordinate, who looked toward her with confusion. She then reached her hand out to Cale.
“Please get on, Mr. Cale.”
Grr.
Cale did not want to get on after seeing the Black Panther start to growl. The Black Panther, Ten, was staring at Lock.
At that moment, one of Litana’s subordinates who were with Cale stepped forward. He explained to the rest of the subordinates in Section 1.
“We escorted this sir here because he believes he can put out the fire.”
“Can he really put out the fire?”
All of the shocked gazes turned toward Cale. Choi Han and the rest got in front of Cale to defend him.
“Cale-nim, it is dangerous. I will escort you to it.”
“No need.”
Cale shook his head at Choi Han’s question.
“That heat will make you get burnt if you get close. It is dangerous. All of you just stay in the safe zone.”
They would just be baggage if they came with him. The fire did not need anyone else’s strength to put out.
“Miss Rosalyn, shield please.”
“…Sure.”
Rosalyn sighed before putting a shield around Cale, Litana, and Ten. Rosalyn already knew about Litana’s true identity, although Litana didn’t seem to know about Rosalyn’s.
“Since she is the Queen of the Jungle, she will escort you there through the safest and best path. Have a nice trip, young master Cale.”
‘I don’t want to ride this Black Panther!’
Cale just needed to rush over with the Sound of the Wind.
He continued to stare at Litana, whose hand was still reaching out to him, his crew, and the confused Jungle people before sighing and grabbing Litana’s hand.
He then got on the Black Panther. He was scared of falling off, so he clenched onto the Black Panther’s fur.
“Let’s go.”
Litana sat up straight before turning around away from Cale, who was looking at the fire that was off in the distance. She then crouched down and spoke to Ten.
“Ten, take us to the fire.”
“Grr!”
Litana sat back up and the large Black Panther started to move. The Black Panther and black haired woman rode toward the fire with the red-haired man.
They soon crossed through the safe zone and toward the boundary.
“Your highness!”
“Ten!”
“What is going on?”
She could see the people calling out to them as they rushed past the tents. Everybody looked haggard. She bit down on her lips.
“Let us go even faster.”
She could hear Cale’s voice coming from behind her.
“Ten, faster.”
Ten started to move faster in response to Litana’s command. Cale’s crew and Litana’s subordinates followed behind them, but they were too slow.
Rustle. Rustle. Drip, drip.
The leaves, grass, and rain all landed on Cale’s shirt.
However, the dampness instantly disappeared.
“It is enormous.”
Cale got off the Black Panther once they got to the boundary. He could feel intense heat from the fire. Sparks of fire were whirling around like hail inside of the boundary.
‘Imperial prince, you crazy bastard.’
Looking at the fire in person made Cale realize that the Imperial Prince really was a crazy bastard.
He could hear Raon’s voice in his head. Cale sternly spoke to Litana who was approaching him.
“Miss Lina, please step back.”
“But!”
“It looks like I will need to go closer to the fire.”
He would need to use about a third of the Fire Suppressing Water to put out this fire. Seeing it in person, he could tell that this was worlds apart than a normal mountain fire.
‘I’ll need to use a good amount since I don’t know the strength of the water and the necklace.’
He would just need to use more of it if it didn’t work. Cale thought about it simply before speaking to the two who came with him. Litana and Ten would get in his way from here on.
“Please step back.”
Litana could not respond after seeing Cale’s stern demeanor.
“Grrr.”
At that moment, Ten pulled on her clothes to move her back.
“Ten?”
Litana looked toward Ten with an odd expression. The Black Panther Ten did not run away from anything. Litana found it weird that such a child was telling her to step back and leave Cale here. At that moment, she heard Cale’s voice.
“It looks like that child trusts me.”
“Excuse me?”
The man with hair as red as the fire started to smile. It was a relaxed smile.
“I will not get hurt. I will return after putting out the fire, so please step back and watch. Well, you can always save me if it looks dangerous."
With that, Cale entered the boundary without any hesitations. Litana watched him walk in before taking a few steps back. Ten crouched down and she got on his back. It was so that both of them could rush in right away to save Cale if it looked dangerous.
Cale did not know about this as he got right up to the fire.
‘It would have been dangerous if I didn’t have the Vitality of the Heart.’
The heat was intense. However, he did not feel any pain. It was because of the strength of the fire suppressing Water inside the Absorbing Necklace that could absorb any natural power, as well as his recovery thanks to the Vitality of the Heart.
Raon was loudly chirping in his mind, but Cale stood right in front of the fire before turning around. He could see Litana and Ten, as well as the tents in the distance. He could also see people approaching them from the tent.
‘I told them not to come.’
He was sure it was his crew.
Cale clicked his tongue and opened up his arms.
Drizzle-
Crackle-
Cale listened to the sound of the rain and the fire as he used the power of the, ‘Absorbing Necklace.’
Ooooooo-
A crying noise started to echo out from Cale. At the same time, the necklace started to glow blue. Cale could feel the power of the water inside the necklace as he closed his eyes.
‘If the fire is like hail.’
Then he just needed to create real hail.
The water that suppresses and dominates fire.
Cale generously took out a third of that water.
Splaaaaaaaaash-
The water shot up from Cale’s hand into the air.
Oooooo- Oooooo- Oooooo-
The crying noise became louder as a giant wall appeared above Cale. It was a wall of water. He kept his eyes closed as he started to imagine a hailstorm.
“…My gosh.”
Litana subconsciously let out a gasp of admiration. At the same time, Ten subconsciously stepped back. A large wave was being created in front of them. Watching this gave Litana the chills.
Oooooo- Ooooo-
Drizzle-
The rain and crying seemed to resonate with each other. The water that shot out was a dark blue color. The people rushing toward the boundary, as well as the people watching them from the tents all stopped to blankly stare at this water wall.
The fire in this area seemed like it was shooting up to the sky. The wave started to grow in size to match the fire. In the end, a giant wave that seemed like it could wipe anything out was created in the air.
Cale opened his eyes and lifted up his head.
“Mm.”
‘Was ⅓ too much?’
Cale was a bit flustered. The wave that he created looked amazing and strong even to him. At that moment, he could hear Raon’s voice.
Cale started to smile.
Yes, let’s wipe it out.
Oooooo-
The crying noise suddenly stopped.
Boom-!
The large wave crashed to the ground with the blue water wall covering the fire and the earth.