SIDE STORY 8

SIDE STORY – TO EARTH (1)

It had been half a year since Jude and Cordelia returned from Hell.

***

The Calamity War.

This war, which had a deep impact on the empire as well as the entire continent, finally ended when the capital of the empire was retaken, but the actual aftermath of the war still continued.

“But it’s almost over.”

Kaplan, an archeology professor at the Imperial Capital Academy, paused for a moment and stared at the map on the wall.

The new map he got a few days ago was a map of the Holy Nation of Judelia, and not the Argon Empire or the Sälen Kingdom.

As a map of a holy nation that stayed neutral, there was no political element in it.

Simple facts were just plainly drawn on it.

“The Holy Nation of Judelia…”

A smile spread across the face of Kaplan as he rose from his seat and stood in front of the map.

A small country located between the central and southern areas of the Sälen Kingdom.

It was a very small country consisting of one city and a dozen villages. It was smaller than a duchy, so as far as Kaplan knew, it was clearly the smallest country on the continent.

“But no one can ignore it.”

Far from ignoring it, the greatest powers of the continent, the Argon Empire and the Sälen Kingdom, paid close attention to this small country.

Not for its symbolic significance or for political propaganda, but because it was a country where gods literally lived and ruled.

‘It’s not a bad choice.’

As its name implied, the Holy Nation of Judelia was founded by Duke Jude August Bayer and Duchess Cordelia August Chase who were heroes in the Calamity War.

However, it was not because of the whims or determination of the two that the holy nation was established.

‘Because the Sälen Kingdom had no other choice.’

The first to advocate for the founding of the holy nation was none other than King Henry II of the Sälen Kingdom.

His public reasons were as follows:

One, Duchess Cordelia August Chase was a divine being after becoming an angel following the genealogy of the sun goddess Solari.

Two, the Calamity War proved that the protection of the sun goddess Solari still illuminated the continent. Therefore, for the revival of the Solari denomination, it was necessary to establish a holy nation that would be its center.

There were more reasons to it, but in the eyes of Kaplan who knew the situation, all of these were just poor and desperate justifications.

‘Yes, because you can’t treat gods as your subjects.’

Cordelia was publicly known as a Seraph, but Kaplan knew the truth.

She was not only a successor to the genealogy of Solari, but also a new archangel who possessed divinity – in short, she was truly a goddess of Heaven.

Jude was also a being who could awaken as the guardian god of Pleiades, although it was limited to when he opened the ninth door, so one could say that he was the same as Cordelia.

A fool would have liked to have gods under his command, but unfortunately for the empire, Henry II was not that foolish.

He not only had the wise First Queen and the clever crown princess, but also had the courage to listen to other people.

‘The relationship we have now is just burdensome and uncomfortable. Rather than maintaining a military relationship in appearance, it’s better for them to be independent.’

The First Queen agreed with the opinion of Crown Princess Daphne, and Henry II also agreed.

So what resulted was the holy nation.

That was not enough justification to make the duchy independent though, as there was still some doubtful parts.

‘And it’s also something that contain the wishes of the Sälen Kingdom.’

A holy nation.

A country of the gods.

So the nation should not interfere with the petty affairs of humans.

It was true that the existence of the two was a great help to the Sälen Kingdom, but it was also a burden at the same time.

From the standpoint of the royal family who ruled the kingdom, the existence of the two was a concern.

They were beings who could overthrow a country at any time.

Beings who were far more noble than the royal family themselves.

How could they rule the kingdom with such beings behind them?

‘It’s something the empire welcomes.’

The leaders of the empire also knew that Jude and Cordelia were gods.

Therefore, they were under a lot of pressure to establish a good relationship with the Sälen Kingdom, so the founding of the holy nation seemed to have eased their burden.

‘The families of Jude and Cordelia are nobles of the Sälen Kingdom anyway… so this relationship is definitely better than before.’

Moreover, since the holy nation was independent from the Sälen Kingdom, it was possible to strengthen exchanges with the Argon Empire.

Of course, as mentioned above, Jude and Cordelia were closer to the Sälen Kingdom since their families lived there, but at least, wishes like that of the Sälen Kingdom, ‘Please stay away from human affairs’ would be possible.

“But the Holy Nation of Judelia. Who in the world came up with that name?”

Jude and Cordelia.

Combined, it was Judelia.

A name that sounded like a pun of a child for the name of a country, and even that for a holy nation.

‘As expected, it’s… Lady Cordelia?”

Or was it Lord Jude who tried to fulfill everything that Cordelia wished for?

Kaplan smiled again as he recalled their faces.

And he was overcome with a strange feeling.

He had seen the two just a few days ago.

There were obvious changes.

It was natural for them to change since they became gods.

But there were some things that remained the same.

When the two saved him in the wild lands.

When the two saved not only his life but also his heart.

The two were the same as then.

‘They’re still the same flirting couple.’

Kaplan chuckled and looked at the entire map.

In addition to the Holy Nation of Judelia, there were many changes to the map.

***

“Is this the end of the war?”

Standing on the wall and looking east, Fran let out a sigh with various meanings.

“Haa.”

“Look at this youngster sighing.”

Fran turned his head to the side where the remark came and soon frowned.

Because the young and handsome Velkian, who only had his sarcastic tone left from his past self, was standing next to him.

“What is it? Are you unhappy?”

“Of course, I’m unhappy.”

Because there were strange rumors circulating about Velkian, whose handsomeness would even make ordinary handsome men cry, and a beautiful man who looked like a beautiful woman.

Or rather, it was not only just a rumor.

Several books were even published, including painted books with strange illustrations.

T/N: Velkian and Fran pairing, hahaha. There’s even doujinshi, hahaha.

“Anyway, it seems like the war is finally over.”

Since the return of Jude and Cordelia, the demon followers had completely lost their fighting spirit.

The gods of Pleaides who even defeated an overlord and became their enemies was also a problem, but the bigger problem was with the overlords of Hell.

“They were cleanly cut off, right?”

“From the standpoint of the overlords, Pleaides is no longer something they could easily touch… It’s no longer a loot overflowing with milk and honey.”

It was just as Velkian said.

The overlords gave up intervening in Pleiades.

In other words, the demon followers were abandoned by the overlords whom they worshiped as gods.

“Of course, they’re demons, so they will still try to do stuff behind our backs… But it will take at least a few years – no, perhaps tens or hundreds of years.”

So the demon followers gave up the war.

Running to the east and hiding was probably the best that they could do.

“Is it impossible for us to invade the east?”

“Impossible.”

It might be possible to go on an expedition with only the Guardians of the Holy Cross and proclaim a crusade, but it was impossible to do anything about the entire east.

“Because the empire also has to recover for at least ten years. The Calamity War lasted only three months, but the empire lost too much in those three months.”

Not only was the imperial capital devastated, but the imperial army was halved.

Dozens of cities were destroyed by the calamities, so perhaps even ten years was too short.

“Well, since the chancellor is gone, it shouldn’t be a problem. Even if the calamities suddenly appear, Judelia will hunt them down.”

“You’re right.”

So the only problem now was the demon followers who were still hiding like rats in the empire and the kingdom.

“About Maximilian. He’s said to be working hard, right?”

“Yes, I heard that he’s traveling around the empire with the Imperial Knights.”

The disciple of the Sword God.

He was an agent of Archangel Auriel, but joined the Imperial Knights and dedicated himself to eradicating the demon followers.

In hindsight, he was a war criminal, but he avoided punishment with the facts that he had been brainwashed and that his talents would be wasted. He himself was well aware of those facts, and seemed to have become a zealous demon exterminator because of his regret and suffering from what he had done.

“Haa…”

“Why are you sighing again?”

“No, it’s just because… I’m envious?”

His words came out of nowhere, but Velkian quickly understood it and had a bitter smile because of that.

“Yeah, I’m envious too.”

Landius and Lena.

The two had a wedding a few days ago.

The place was the former location of the Paragon Kingdom.

They had originally planned to gather only their close friends and proceed in a modest manner, but that was impossible.

The wedding was almost as grand as the wedding of Jude and Cordelia, with guests from all over the kingdom and the empire attending.

“They looked happy.”

“They should be happy.”

Both Landius and Lena had lost a lot.

So they should become happy now.

They had to be happy.

“But honestly, I’m a little worried about Lena. Don’t you think so, old man?”

At the words of Fran, Velkian coughed for no reason.

In fact, everyone in the wedding hall had the same thought.

Perhaps Landius grew in the midst of the Calamity War, as he was now 240 cm. Lena was still around 170 cm, so they had a huge difference of 70 cm in height.

Considering the size difference, they were more like an adult and child.

“Landius’ arms are as thick as Lena’s waist.”

Or rather, it might be even thicker.

“Lena is an angel, so she’ll be fine.”

“Old man, old man, aren’t you too harsh?”

Velkian coughed at the sharp remark that stabbed him, but it was only for a moment.

He soon regained his composure and changed the topic.

“Anyway… What are you going to do?”

It was not a typical question of an old man like ‘Are you not dating anyone?’

Fran also understood right away what he meant, so he gave a proper answer.

“I’m sorry, but I… don’t want to go back yet. I’ve only been training for the past ten years, so I have not been able to travel like I’ve said before. Right after I came out, I’ve only been dragged into battles with you, old man.”

“I see, that would be nice too.”

“Old man, what about you?”

“I’m going to help.”

The reconstruction of the Paragon Kingdom.

Both the kingdom and the empire were reluctant to enter the contaminated land that the Demon Prince had polluted, so even after 10 years of its destruction, the old site of the Paragon Kingdom remained unoccupied.

“Kamael said that he did not want to become a king… so the genealogy of the Paragon Kingdom would not be properly continued. But if Landius is there, and Lena is there… that would be our Paragon.”

Fran nodded at the words of Velkian.

Refugees from the Paragon Kingdom had already heard the news and were gathering from all over the continent, and Jude and Cordelia hastily made and published a map of the newly created Paragon Kingdom.

This was originally based on the claim of Jude that the perception of people was important, but it was not bad thing anyway.

Or rather, it was something that they liked.

“By the way, where are those two going?”

“They’ll be leaving but not for a long time, so they asked us to take care of Pleiades in that time.”

A letter from the two had arrived last night.

It was not their runaway letter of love that had become a trend throughout the continent, but the content was the same.

“No, isn’t this still a runaway letter of love?”

After all, they were leaving their house.

At the sharp point of Fran again, Velkian did not respond.

He just smiled and looked southwest where the Holy Nation of Judelia was located.

***

“Agugu ehehe! Auntie isn’t here!”

Cordelia said as she covered her face with both hands, and the babies lying on the small bed widened their eyes.

“Again!”

When she put her palms away and showed a big smile, the babies burst into giggles as well.

In the case of babies whose cognitive abilities had yet to develop, they tend to perceive the other as having ‘disappeared’ when they were not visible, so it was like a game of existence and non-existence.

‘That’s the weird explanation Jude gave.’

After thinking about the face of Jude for a moment, Cordelia smiled and held the small hands of the babies.

“Aww, what should I do? They’re so small. So cute.”

The babies on the bed.

Twins born to Adelia and Gaël.

“You’re really cute and adorable just like angels. No, come to think of it, are you really angels?”

Because their mother, Adelia, was an angel.

“Ah, seriously. This is so nice.”

Those small wriggling hands.

Those adorable smiles.

Although they were twins, one had dark blue hair like Gaël and the other had blonde hair like Adelia.

‘The older sister has dark blue hair and the younger brother has blonde hair.’

What will they look like when they grow up?

Will she be a female version of Jude?

Cordelia momentarily imagined Jude as a woman and burst out laughing.

Because she remembered the past Jude who was like a woman when he was still suffering from an illness.

‘A weak and beautiful girl is cute.’

But it was bad when she thought about it.

Because such an angelic child should not be weak.

Being healthy and strong was always the best.

“Come here now. It’s time to put the kids to sleep.”

At the words of Adelia, Cordelia said goodbye to the babies with a face full of regret.

“Auntie will be back, okay? I will be back soon, okay? Yes, I will. Huhuhu.”

Adelia watch Cordelia become teary eyed and laughed out loud at the absurdity.

“Whoever sees you will think that you gave birth to them.”

“Hmph, it’s my unnie’s kids, so they’re no different from mine.”

“No, it’s not. These are the children I gave birth to, okay?”

The babies were born two months ago.

Adelia had been sick right after giving birth to twins, but now recovered much of her health.

“You’re really amazing. Angels have a harder time having children than elves.”

She could not believe that they had children after half a year of marriage.

It was indeed an amazing achievement.

“You just have to work hard. Yes, work hard.”

Cordelia giggled at the reply of Adelia, and said as she turned to the bed again.

“You’re still thinking of names?”

“We’ve decided on nicknames, but father is still thinking of their real names. Ha, seriously. He already has a thousand name candidates, you know?”

Cordelia laughed at the complaints of Adelia.

It was possible if it was their father.

“More than that… Is this letter real?”

A letter from Jude and Cordelia that had arrived last night.

Cordelia nodded at the question of Adelia.

“Yes, but not for a long time… We’ll just go for a while.”

Adelia was unable to properly remember the memories of her past lives.

And she did not even know everything that had happened to Jude and Cordelia.

Therefore, she could not fully understand what was written in the letter, but she nodded her head.

“Yeah, it’s something that you two have decided. I’m sure it’s important.”

At the words of Adelia, Cordelia felt a bit guilty, but she did not say anything else.

In fact, it was not that important.

‘No, it’s important, right?’

It might not be important to Pleiades, but it was very important for Cordelia herself.

“Go. Don’t take too long. We have to watch my babies grow up, okay? Children grow up pretty fast. Don’t miss all the good scenes and come back on time, okay?”

“Yes, unnie. We’ll be back. Yes, for sure.”

“Okay, let’s hug.”

Adelia said and spread her arms out, and Cordelia tightly hugged her.

Since becoming a mother of two children, the personality of Adelia had softened a lot and she had become more relaxed, but there was still one thing that had not changed.

That she was the one and only older sister of Cordelia.

A dear family.

“I’m going then.”

“Okay.”

Cordelia bade farewell to the babies of Adelia one last time before leaving the Bayer mansion.

And a few hours later, she faced Jude at the mansion of the Holy Nation of Judelia.

“You’re done cleaning up, right?”

“Yes, I’m done.”

Jude nodded at the question of Cordelia.

While Cordelia was saying her goodbyes to Adelia, Jude was finishing a must-do before leaving Pleiades.

Keynes.

He was the only villain among the playable characters in Legend of Heroes 2.

Having already been a heinous criminal even before the beginning of Legend of Heroes 2, he had also committed many evil deeds before and after the Calamity War.

It was impossible to ignore his existence when they knew that he was definitely committing evil, even if they did not know what it was.

“Leon and Sarah took him. The empire will decide what punishment he will face.”

At the words of Jude, Cordelia nodded and began counting with her hands.

Because she wondered if she had missed anything.

“Maximilian joined the Imperial Knights, Landius-nim and Lena-nim got married, and Leon and Sarah also said that they were getting married soon… Red Wind would have a child in half a year… Kirara became one of the Guardians of the Holy Nation…”

Everything seemed to have been settled, except for her personal wish for Maja and Dahlia to find a mate soon.

“But just in case, wait a minute.”

Cordelia said as she took out her diary and began to read the last pages seriously.

Instead of using his see-through ability to peek at the diary, Jude waited for her and got his desired answer a few minutes later.

“Okay, we can really go now.”

As Cordelia closed her diary and widely smiled, Jude asked one last question.

“By the way, Cordelia.”

“Yes, Jude.”

“Why are we wearing Imperial Capital Academy uniforms?”

It was true.

The avatars they would be using for moving between worlds were wearing the uniforms of the Imperial Capital Academy.

What Cordelia was wearing was the female uniform of the Imperial Capital Academy, a light gray jacket lined with black fabric around the collar and cuffs and had blue designs, a white blouse, a blue ribbon, and a short black skirt that started just below her chest. And what Jude was wearing was a male uniform with the same color scheme, but with trousers instead of a skirt.

These were things they got when they went to see Kaplan, but for some reason, their avatars were the ones wearing it.

“It’s pretty. I’ve liked it so much since last night.”

“Ahem, ahem. That’s true.”

Jude coughed at the words of Cordelia before looking at their avatars again.

Avatars they had specially created for traveling between worlds.

Since Jude and Cordelia were already divine beings, moving between worlds was not easy.

Therefore, they decided to mobilize a little expedient.

‘We can put our consciousness into the avatars and send it.’

Their main bodies would be in Pleiades, and only a part of their consciousness would be sent with their avatars to Earth.

“In a way, this feels like we’re playing a game.”

Just like making an avatar and logging in to an online game.

Jude nodded at the analogy of Cordelia.

“Anyway, let’s go now.”

“Yes, let’s go. I can’t wait to go.”

To their family and friends who remained on Earth.

And to Kang Jin-ho and Hong Yoo Hee who were also themselves.

What had happened to the two?

Had they really become lovers after a fateful meeting?

Or were they still arguing with each other online now?

“We’ll find out when we go.”

“Yes, so let’s go.”

Jude and Cordelia sat besides each other on a chair and held hands.

A part of their consciousness were slowly sent to the avatars.

And the gate for moving between worlds was opened from the ritual they had prepared in advance.

The avatars of Jude and Cordelia stood in front of the blue gate portal and looked at each other.

As always, they took a step inside the gate while holding the hands of the other.

“To Earth.”

Their movement between worlds began.