Everyone is Young Except for Me

Chapter 140

Translator: rainbowturtle

Editors: LD & Jyazen

A loud snoring sound echoed through Metheus Village. If someone heard it then they might feel out of breath. A cold winter breeze swept through the village and Kerenos, the snorer, was slapped on the cheeks.

“Captain.”

“Um.”

“Captain, if you sleep here then your mouth will turn. Get up.”

The vice-captain of the Sylphid Knights, Becker, slapped Kerenos hard on the cheeks. However, the captain showed no signs of waking up. Why did he drink so much alcohol when he couldn’t even drink? Becker regarded abstinence as an iron-clad rule so he didn’t know how to drink. Based on what he heard, the money that the captain earned from gambling had flown away.

“Hrmm. Then it can’t be helped.” Becker had carried Kerenos on his shoulder multiple times over the years. His weight combined with the armor was quite heavy but it was still bearable. “Phew. Please stop drinking, Captain.”

It had been a long time since the captain drank enough to fall unconscious. Perhaps the last time was when he drank with his teacher Mugen. Kerenos used to only drink when he was in a good mood but today it was the opposite. “My moneeeey. Damnnnn.”

Was money so good? Well, a knight’s salary was a bit small. It was because they were knights that valued honor and money could encourage luxury. This was a tradition that had been passed down from generation to generation and knights made a living on a small salary. Well, there were other benefits.

“Um... You...”

“It’s Becker, Captain.”

“Ah, Becker...” Kerenos exhaled like there was still alcohol remaining. He sat up and spoke, “Hooooo. Where are the others? Did everyone get home safely?”

“Ah, that...” Becker started to tell the long story. It was about what happened while Kerenos was drunk and asleep. There was a woman called Helena from Garbage Village and left in a group. He reported it all to Kerenos.

“What?!” Kerenos shouted and removed himself from Becker’s shoulder. Then he scrambled around and started to look for his spear. “My spear... where is my spear?!”

Becker handed Kerenos the spear that had been placed in a corner. Kerenos hiccuped while stumbling. “Hiccup. Thank you. H-Hiccup!”

“Are you going to follow them?”

“Uh... Hooooo. Yes, this is my mission.”

“Mission?”

“Punghee is the future of Windia... hiccup!”

Becker nodded as if he understood. Kerenos was such a man. He thought about Windia the moment he woke up. There might be Jackson but Kerenos had been the guardian of Windia since he was born.

“Do you know where they went?”

“Kuoooh. I know. Garbage Village...”

It was a famous place so it was impossible for him to not know it. Kerenos’ magic power was seething. It was the precursor to the wind magic, Haste. Light green magic power dwelled in his feet. He pointed his spear at the ground and spoke, “Sigh. Please look after this place, Becker.”

“Be careful.”

“Yes. Ahh, there is one thing after another.”

Kerenos stumbled once again.

Becker thought, ‘I’m a bit uneasy about this.’

He didn’t know if it would be dangerous. An unknown anxiety wrapped around Becker’s entire body.

“Do you want some medicine to sober you up?”

“Uh... give me one if you have it.”

Becker always carried a medicine to sober up. It was a habit from being around Kerenos for a long time. He pulled out a small bottle and Kerenos swallowed it.

“Puhaaa. My nose is dead.”

“I’m glad it worked.”

“Then I’ll be going, Becker.”

“Yes, I wish you luck.”

The wind swept away and Kerenos was no longer present. Becker looked in the direction he had gone.

“...That is the opposite direction.”

It seemed that Kerenos was still a bit drunk.

* * *

“Chief? The chief of the area next door...?”

“Yes. This guy.” Aidan heard my words and laughed. He seemed to find it ridiculous. “Ha! It is absurd. A chief stopping me, Aidan...? Attendant! Let that old man sit down before me!”

“Yes!”

The loud voices of the soldiers rang in my ears. They started to surround me. According to Joseph, they were probably paid and hired by Aidan. Fortren’s system really was capitalism. By the way, where did Joseph go? He was invisible.

I summoned Solar.

“Hehe! Master, we meet again! It is nice to see you!”

“This is a battle.”

“I see. Understood! Hufff!”

[The sun elemental ‘Solar’ is proclaiming the curse of the sun.]

I suddenly felt the heat around me rise. The soldiers who surrounded me started to sweat.

“Hey, isn’t it becoming hotter?”

“Isn’t it winter?”

“What is this...”

Meanwhile, I sent a whisper to Kim Sujeong.

-Jackson:Do Firefly Concerto on the count of three.

-Crystal:I understand.I’ll be ready.

She fought a lot so I didn’t need to tell her many words. I took advantage of the soldiers’ carelessness to fire cobwebs at Kis and the old man in front of Aidan.

“Three!”

I quickly called out three without any signal. Their expressions were confused for a moment before they soon calmed down. It was due to the cushion I had made out of cobwebs.

“Firefly Concerto!”

A widespread fluorescent shield wrapped around the party, including me. The flustered soldiers struck with their swords but it wasn’t easily broken.

“W-What is this?”

“Who the hell are these people?”

“What are you? Get lost!”

Many soldiers started to strike at the shield but it was strong and showed no signs of breaking. There was just one problem.

“Over there! Aim for those who remain over there!”

Aidan’s voice was loud as he pointed to the residents who hadn’t entered the shield. Firefly Concerto only protected an area with a diameter of 100 meters and it couldn’t contain all the residents of Garbage Village. Once they started to be attacked, I rushed there and launched Rising Sun. Then I used Sun Road for the first time in a while. A massive fire blocked their way forward but it didn’t last long.

“Hurry and run away.”

“T-Thank you!”

“Grandfather! I’m sure you’ll win!”

A little boy cheered me on with his fists.

Of course I would.

“Bring it on, you newbies.”

The sentence made all the soldiers grit their teeth. The hem of my clothes fluttered while Punghee left her position and flew into the sky. A soldier was thrown down. I lightly dodged an attack and launched a series of attacks. The soldier screamed.

“Kuock. Strong.”

“Everyone, be careful. He is strong!”

“Don’t be careless!”

Nevertheless, they all fell like autumn leaves. The sun attribute had the nature of ignoring defense. Additionally, the armor they wore had good heat conductivity and I could cause massive sun and fire damage. In this period of time, I hadn’t slacked off and became quite strong.

One shot at a time. I stepped lightly with this mindset. Just then, I felt a chill on the back of my neck. I quickly twisted my body to avoid that spot and there was an explosion. The ground split apart and shook. There was a man who descended from the sky. It looked like the captain had appeared.

“Huhuhu. You are a strong old man. What is your name?”

“What’s the use of knowing? This guy.”

“Indeed, that’s true. Huhu. Then accept my fists!”

His outstretched fist touched my feet.

Then I became flustered.

“...!”

It didn’t explode. No, it looked like it was being absorbed. What were these gloves?

“Huhuhu. Good. Good. They are Explosive Gloves. It has the ability to accumulate and store any explosion. It is quite expensive.”

“...This is nonsense.”

At the same time, the man’s hand caught my leg and threw me toward the village wall at the entrance. I suffered a strong shock and became dizzy. A loud voice could be heard through the rubble of the collapsed building.

“I’ll take care of this old man. The two of you chase after the residents of Garbage Village.”

“Huhuhu. Good, I’ll leave it to you.”

“There is a beautiful woman there. Can I have a bit of fun?”

“Make sure you aren’t caught. They’ll probably be sold to slavery now.”

“Huhuhu. Thank you, Captain.”

Two soldiers chased after the villagers. Shit. He truly was the captain.

I walked out of the rubble. I might be overdoing it but it couldn’t be helped.

-Jackson:Sujeong.

-Crystal:Yes.Are you okay?

-Jackson:Well...somewhat.In any case, it isn’t a problem. Use Nonsmoking Fireflies.

-Crystal:Huh?Then Father is in danger...

-Jackson:Don’t worry, I have an idea.

There was no reply from her afterwards. The answer was clear due to this. Two giant fireflies soared into the sky and fluorescent lights that looked like snow started to fall toward the ground. There was an explosion as the surroundings shook.

“Groan. What is this?!”

“Ugh. Fuck!”

“The shields!”

The soldiers gathered tightly and used their shields to prevent the bombardment falling from the sky. The big one in front was busy blocking with the Explosive Gloves and he bought some time. Still, there was me...

I pulled out a dagger from my inventory.

“Shadow Play.”

It seemed I hadn’t used this skill in a long time. I didn’t have much use for it in the meantime but it was good for evasion. I should use it more often. Suddenly, Nonsmoking Fireflies was over and I returned to my original position. I was worried about those who chased after the villagers but it couldn’t be helped. If I left this place then Sujeong would be in danger. In fact, this shield couldn’t last for a long time.

-Crystal: Father,this...

-Jackson:I know.Hold on a little longer.

-Crystal:Please.

She was probably in a difficult condition. It was just like the last fight with Remus. She was done after using Firefly Concerto. Well... It couldn’t be helped. This was the best for now.

“Hey, you bastards! Don’t you want to get paid? Do it properly! Smash that shield!”

Aidan’s shouting was getting worse. I should’ve taken that guy hostage...

I regretted it for a moment but it was too late. He was surrounded by soldiers.

“Hey, hey, old man. Don’t forget me!”

His fists struck and there was an explosion. It was a familiar explosion. They were the flames of Rising Sun.

“You...!”

“Huhuhu. I can cause an explosion just like the ones it absorbed. It’s very expensive!”

His subsequent attacks were fierce. The place where the explosion took place was now a pit and charred. I was busy blocking his attack. He absorbed my flames, I reabsorbed the flames he returned to me, we constantly switched between attacking and defending.

Five minutes passed.

“Huhuhu. You’re pretty good, old man. You’re hard to kill.”

“Don’t talk nonsense, you bad guy. Today is the day you die.”

The soldiers who had been rushing at me were all focused on breaking the protective shield. There was good luck in misfortune but I didn’t think it was good luck. At this time, the wind blew.

“Whirlwind!”

A whirlwind suddenly appeared and engulfed the big captain, blowing him away. I recognized this wind. Kerenos? He carried a long spear on his shoulder as he came here with a puzzled expression. Why did he appear here? In any case, it was lucky. If it was Kerenos, I could leave this place to him...

“Uweeeek!”

...I was mistaken.