Extra in a Romance Fantasy

117 – Arrival (2)

Days had passed since Wade and his party arrived at the hero’s grave.

As time went on, the later arrivals began to show up, and with them, the crowd grew, eventually creating a population density around the grave akin to a bustling market.

There were quite a number of people gathered at the grave, and they had come from various parts of the continent.

Naturally, there were many different types of people.

Strong men, women, the elderly, middle-aged folks, youths, and even boys.

As such a diverse group of people congregated in one space, it was only natural that various issues would arise.

The phrase “there’s never a dull moment” fit perfectly, as the area around the grave became chaotic.

And most of the causes, needless to say, were disputes.

This was largely due to the high ratio of warriors among those gathered.

Even the children in their prime would get heated trying to determine who was stronger, so it was strange that with so many who made fighting their trade, conflicts wouldn’t erupt.

Of course, that didn’t mean all the fights started for grim reasons.

Sometimes, it was simply a desire to test one’s skills, or to gauge the prowess of an opponent, leading to polite requests for sparring.

…Well, those cases were only a small fraction, though.

Perhaps because they were folks who trained to fight better and strategized to fight better, even the slightest reasons could easily escalate into brawls.

The fortunate thing was that such fights rarely escalated into anything too serious.

This was due to the place and timing.

Knowing they would soon have to enter the hero’s grave, where who knows what awaited inside, they understood that engaging in a fierce fight and getting injured would only be to their own detriment.

—

However, as with all things in the world, there was one who belonged to the exception.

“What’s going on? Is it still not open? When the hell is it going to open?”

A relatively young man, his voice loud enough to echo around him.

Despite being a man, he had long, unkempt white hair that cascaded over his back, a sign that he had long since passed the time for grooming.

He spoke without regard for the glances of those around him, his voice raised to the point of furrowing brows. In a place like this, such behavior was likely to attract trouble, yet for some reason, no one dared to confront him.

In fact, there were even those who, casting wary glances, subtly distanced themselves from him.

This was because the people around knew the identity of the man.

A warrior from the island of Elamkurtan, at the southern tip of the continent, where the sea swirled—White Tiger, Kahim.

That was the man’s identity.

Kahim had emerged on the continent a few years ago and quickly gained fame as a warrior.

Not just any fame, but one earned through exceptional skill.

Of course, merely having good skills would only lead to a level of notoriety within the local area.

And such warriors were now scattered around the graveyard.

Kahim was different from them.

He possessed a reputation that was on a completely different level from those who merely strutted around their neighborhoods.

And the reason he could attain such a reputation was due to his overwhelming prowess.

To the extent that rumors circulated suggesting his skills were nearing the level of the Ten Blades.

With someone like that appearing here, it was impossible for attention not to be drawn.

At such a young age, there were whispers that he might become the next Ten Blades.

And the attention that gathered was expressed in a somewhat rough manner.

A few warriors approached Kahim, challenging him outright.

Most of the warriors gathered here were quite skilled.

And the more skilled they were, the stronger their pride tended to be.

There were quite a few who thought Kahim’s reputation was merely a rumor, not as impressive as it seemed, or believed their own skills surpassed his.

Thus, Kahim faced numerous challenges and provocations.

To put it simply, they all faced defeat.

No, it wasn’t just a simple defeat; they were utterly crushed.

With a gap so severe it was almost stark, they were left in a pitiful state.

Among them were even a few who were known to be quite skilled themselves.

After such events, no one dared to provoke Kahim again.

Even in this situation, the reason no one approached Kahim was precisely that.

However, it wasn’t as if he was completely alone.

“The grave will open in a few days. So stop chattering and be quiet for a while.”

There was a woman clearly admonishing Kahim, who was noisily rambling with a bored expression.

Her tone and demeanor were anything but gentle.

Considering the rumors about Kahim and the way he had behaved here, no one would dare to treat him with such familiarity, yet the woman was acting as if it were perfectly normal, despite the shock it would cause those around her.

However, what was even more surprising was Kahim’s reaction.

“A few days? So I have to wait in this boring state for how long?”

Given the rumors about his temperament and the attitude he had shown here, if someone had spoken to him in such a manner, he would have twisted his expression and bared his teeth immediately. Yet, for some reason, Kahim’s response was calm.

He didn’t seem to have any intention of nitpicking her tone.

Instead, he continued the conversation as if it were the most natural thing in the world.

“Right. So just wait quietly. Do you know how much attention your brother has drawn with his antics here?”

“Hey, who wants to fight? They started it first—”

“Shut up.”

“…I can’t even say anything.”

The term “brother,” and the natural flow of their conversation.

Above all, the white hair like Kahim’s, and upon closer inspection, the resemblance in their features.

With these clues, it wasn’t difficult to deduce the woman’s identity.

Her name was Pana.

She was Kahim’s younger sister, who had come to the continent with him when he left the island.

Unlike her brother, who was quite famous in the industry, not much was known about her.

She merely handled external affairs on behalf of her brother, standing by his side.

However, it was clear that she was also quite capable in her own right.

In any case, the Kahim siblings stood out even in this place filled with a variety of people.

Yet, they were not the only ones attracting attention.

“Um… Baron Kyung, may I ask for a sparring match…?”

Someone cautiously approached a man and asked.

The man had hair reminiscent of the sea, and an appearance that looked like a painting.

Just walking down the street… no, merely existing in that space seemed enough to capture the gazes of many women.

The man nodded with a sculpted smile.

“Is it a duel? Of course.”

“Am I really…?! Th-thank you…!”

The martial artist, having received the man’s permission, bowed his head repeatedly, his face beaming with joy.

The man, however, gestured for him to stop.

It was a warm and friendly scene, rare in conversations among martial artists.

The man’s name was Baran.

He was a man who drew attention for reasons different from Kahim.

Unlike Kahim, who had suddenly appeared like a comet on the continent, Baran had been quite famous from the very beginning.

And rightly so; he was the child of the renowned martial family, the Belorut household.

Born as the child of a famous martial family, Baran had followed the conventional path into the world of martial artists.

With talent that could only be described as genius, he quickly attracted attention.

Thus, the boy, equipped with both background and talent, was able to stand above the martial artists simply by walking the path laid out by his family and father. One day, however, he suddenly set off on a journey.

He wanted to see the world with his own eyes and experience it firsthand.

The boy, stepping into the world, saw and learned many things, using the martial arts he had learned from his family to help many in distress with his own strength.

Time passed, and the boy grew into a man.

His talent, which was called genius, finally blossomed after many experiences.

It became common talk that it was only natural for him to become the next Ten Swords.

With such outstanding skills, an unwavering character, and a sense of justice and sincerity that could hardly be described as merely kind, he also possessed striking good looks, and his reputation spread beyond the world of martial artists into the outside world.

In other words, Baran Belorut could be said to be a person who had it all.

He was a figure without any shortcomings, and with such a good personality, there were hardly any who disliked him; however, it was not entirely absent.

In fact, because he was excessively perfect, there were quite a few who envied him.

Especially among the martial artists of his generation.

So, it was not surprising that those who wished to tarnish his reputation appeared when he personally showed up here.

There were those who sought to prove that Baran Belorut’s fame was merely a facade created by his family’s prestige, formally challenging him to a duel.

And Baran easily subdued them all.

In some ways, it followed a similar pattern to Kahim, but the outcomes were different.

Unlike Kahim, who had shown a truly beastly demeanor during the duels, Baran maintained a consistently gentle and polite attitude throughout.

As a result, unlike Kahim, whom everyone feared and avoided, Baran found himself surrounded by people even now.

Thus, both Kahim and Baran were receiving considerable attention here.

However, that didn’t mean they were monopolizing the attention of others.

In fact, one could say that the attention they received was merely a fraction of what was possible.

The vice president of the “Crystal Society,” who had deliberately come here to witness the magic of Toberhavil firsthand, the next chieftain of the hunting tribe, who rarely revealed himself to the outside world, and the scholars of “Alundel,” dispatched to examine and document the interior of the tomb, were no exception.

They were individuals who would attract attention anywhere on the continent, yet they ultimately could not become the main characters of this gathering.

It was only natural.

After all, two of the Ten Blades were present here.