Ch. 356 - Freshman (10)

In the capital of the Black Iron Empire, Golden Radiance District, an unexpected royal procession was underway. 

However, it wasn’t the Dwarf King leading the parade. It was none other than the Elf King.  

The sight of the Dwarf King and the Elf King walking side-by-side, accompanied by High Elves and Dwarves, through the heart of Golden Radiance District was a truly bizarre and rare spectacle.  

"Unbelievable..."  

"I never thought I’d live to see the Elf King and His Majesty together."  

"I noticed they’ve been interacting more frequently lately, but still..."  

For reasons lost to most, Elves and Dwarves had been bitter rivals for countless generations. Yet in recent years, their hostility had begun to soften, and relations between the two races were showing signs of improvement.

Of course, many scholars argued it would take far longer for the two races to truly see eye-to-eye, given their starkly different preferences and artistic sensibilities.

However, today’s visit by the Elf King was no ordinary affair. She had come to resolve the incident surrounding Golden Solstice Moon - one of the Twelve Divine Moons - whose legacy was deeply intertwined with the Dwarves’ heritage. This alone made the occasion monumental.

The Elf King's procession made a full circuit around the outer borders of Golden Radiance District before finally arriving at its center - the Gold Iron Tower - where the event concluded.

***

After dismissing the Elves and Dwarves, the Dwarf King, Geumgang Paljeong, retreated into his castle. But before stepping further inside, he turned back to glance at Florin one last time.

She wore a black dress that gleamed like polished obsidian, and a veil partially obscured her face.

Despite her delicate and frail appearance, Geumgang Paljeong couldn’t help but question whether the power she wielded was truly enough to confront one of the Twelve Divine Moons.

"Are you absolutely sure about this? There's still time to reconsider. We can handle this without risking any diplomatic fallout."  

"No."  

Florin lifted her head, her eyes meeting Geumgang Paljeong’s through the veil.  

"I saw it as we came here. Your people... They’re waiting for me. This is something I must do."  

"... You have a kind heart, thinking about my people so sincerely."  

With a heavy sigh, Geumgang Paljeong finally relented.  

"Very well. I suppose I have no choice but to entrust this matter to you."  

He turned toward the massive central pillar located within the hall.  

Unlike traditional columns adorned with elaborate carvings, this one was plain, etched with circuits and mechanical patterns. It served not only as a vertical elevator but also as a device for spatial manipulation, granting access to restricted areas.

Inserting a key into the lock, Geumgang Paljeong proceeded through fingerprint and iris scans, followed by multiple password inputs.

At last, a ‘CLEAR’ signal flashed, and the elevator rumbled to life.

“You’ll have to board it alone. I can’t go with you.”

Florin gave a silent nod before stepping inside.

Beep!  

With the press of a button, the elevator shuddered into motion.

Woooong!!!  

Feeling the distortion of space ripple around her, Florin closed her eyes. She drew in a deep breath to steady her nerves and clear her thoughts.

— You have arrived.  

A cold, mechanical voice accompanied the appearance of glowing green text as the doors slid open.  

Chiiiii—!  

A faint mist sprayed out, seemingly to sterilize her body, but the moment it touched Florin, it vanished. There was nothing to cleanse… her body was always immaculately clean.  

Click.  

Stepping out of the elevator, Florin immediately took note of two things.

First, the massive size of the chamber.  

Second, the golden light flooding the space.

And then, a sudden thought struck her.  

‘Lights...?’  

There were no visible sources of illumination. Even the flow of mana had been completely sealed off, leaving no magical traces behind.

So what was this golden glow filling the chamber?

— Oh... So you’ve arrived. 

“... Golden Solstice Moon!”  

A serpent.  

It was a golden serpent.  

But it wasn’t just any serpent… it was massive, so large that it could rival Florin’s own White Castle in scale.  

Coiled in the center of the chamber, its golden eyes brimmed with greed and stared intently on Florin as its head subtly shifted.  

‘As I thought... Something’s wrong.’  

Despite her rising tension, Florin refused to let fear take hold.  

‘The Twelve Divine Moons aren’t supposed to possess emotions like desire.’  

She was certain of this truth. It was something she had learned directly from the other Twelve Divine Moons.

Their creator, the Progenitor Mage, had stripped them of desire to ensure they could uphold peace for millennia without falling to corruption.

— Indeed, seeing you move only confirms that you are even more beautiful than I imagined... But look at yourself.

Something was undeniably wrong with the Golden Solstice Moon.

A greedy desire for beauty and obsession with possession - emotions the Twelve Divine Moons were never meant to have - were radiating from him with overwhelming intensity.  

He, who was once said to be the most righteous among the Twelve Divine Moons, had undoubtedly changed. There had to be a reason for it.  

'This isn’t something I can resolve completely.’  

Florin knew her limits. Even as the Elf King, she was painfully aware of how small she was compared to him.

That was why she needed to focus only on what she could accomplish.  

"It’s an honor to meet you, Golden Solstice Moon. I grew up hearing of you as the embodiment of justice."  

— Very well. Now, take off your veil.  

Golden Solstice Moon’s voice trembled with excitement as his head tilted upward. His impatience toward the veil covering her face was impossible to miss.

Reluctantly, Florin raised her hand to the veil. Seeing Golden Solstice Moon’s eyes widen in anticipation, she lifted it just slightly, revealing only her lips.  

"Wouldn’t it be boring to see everything at once?"  

— I have no need for games! Show me your face. Immediately!  

"Oh my, are you angry? Compared to you, I’m just a weak and fragile creature... If you act so harshly, I might get scared and bite my tongue to death out of fear."  

— What?!  

This was Florin’s first move… a gamble.  

It was a risky play, but one that promised significant rewards if it worked.  

Her entire strategy relied on one assumption… that Golden Solstice Moon desperately wanted to witness her beauty while she was alive.  

If all he wanted was to see her face, he could have simply demanded a statue depicting her unveiled image instead.  

— Are you... Threatening me right now?” 

“I’m the one being threatened here, Divine Moon. Please remember that I’m a very fragile and timid elf.”

Florin’s deliberate teasing, combined with her slight display of vulnerability, made Golden Solstice Moon freeze in place.

Forcing her to remove the veil felt too risky. This delicate elf looked like she might shatter if pushed too hard. And if he continued to threaten her, she might actually die of a heart attack out of fear.  

— Fine... Then show me your face slowly, when you feel ready.

Though Golden Solstice Moon was still visibly excited, he began to calm himself, at least outwardly.  

As he fixated on her lips, realization struck him. If even her lips were this exquisite, then the rest of her features must be more breathtaking than anything in existence.

To die without seeing that beauty would be an unforgivable loss.

He wanted to see it.  

He longed to witness the changes in her expressions and the vibrance of a living being!

If he could be mesmerized for ages by a mere statue, how much more enchanting would this living elf be?  

If this elf truly was the most beautiful being in the world, then observing her endlessly until the end of time might still not be enough.  

“You ask to see my face… but I’m afraid.”

— What?  

Yet Florin had no intention of revealing her face so easily.  

This was her only winning card. She had already shown her lips, leaving only two more parts—her nose and eyes.  

She had to drag this out as long as possible and wield those remaining cards carefully to sway him.

"I was ready to devote my entire self to the great Golden Solstice Moon, whom I deeply respect."  

— Then why?!  

"But..."  

Florin deliberately turned her head, avoiding Golden Solstice Moon’s gaze.  

"The way you are now... It’s not what I had hoped for."  

— … What? What do you mean by that?  

At last, the fervor in Golden Solstice Moon’s voice dulled. It was replaced by disbelief.

‘It’s working.’  

The Dwarf King Geumgang Paljeong had likely never dared to criticize Golden Solstice Moon.  

Who would dare to oppose a being revered as an ancestral god, the very source of their life and craftsmanship?  

But Florin could.  

Only she could muster the courage to do so.  

‘Words carry immense power.’ 

Strength and power can’t solve everything.  

Florin had witnessed firsthand how a single boy’s words could change the course of the world. Drawing courage from that memory, she stood firm before Golden Solstice Moon and spoke with bold conviction.

“Golden Solstice Moon, what happened to you? You, the great member of the Twelve Divine Moons, the strongest shield in the world, who upheld justice with unwavering resolve... How could you fail to resist mere greed?!”  

A shockwave rippled outward the moment her words left her lips.

— How dare you! 

“Ugh...!”  

Golden Solstice Moon’s fury erupted before she could finish. Yet Florin refused to retreat. She clutched her veil tightly and pressed forward.

“You are no longer righteous, Golden Solstice Moon.”  

— Silence!  

“Where is the great Golden Solstice Moon I once admired?”  

— I am still Golden Solstice Moon!  

“Then prove your righteousness.”  

Florin lifted her veil just enough to reveal her lips and nose.

In that instant, Golden Solstice Moon’s fury completely vanished, as though it had never existed.  

The sight of her beauty shattered his reason.

— Ooh...  

“This is your last chance, Golden Solstice Moon. Unless you prove your righteousness, I will never show you my eyes.”  

— ... What?  

“I would rather pluck out my eyes and cast them away than show them to someone unworthy of justice.”  

It was the most ridiculous threat in the world… To stake her beauty and life as bargaining chips.  

But what was even more ridiculous was that it worked.  

— No! That cannot happen!  

The mere thought of her destroying her own eyes before he could gaze upon them was an unbearable catastrophe.

“I don’t want to die either, Golden Solstice Moon. Please show me that you still have justice left within you.”  

— Th-that... That...  

Golden Solstice Moon began grasping his head, as if his mind were being torn apart by a splitting headache.  

‘It’s working.’

Florin silently praised her decision to consult Silver Autumn Moon before this encounter.

‘If the Golden Solstice Moon has been corrupted by desire, then the Thirteenth must be behind it. Though such emotions may seem overwhelming, the solution is surprisingly simple.’

True to his reputation as the wise one, Silver Autumn Moon had provided a clear answer.  

‘We, the Twelve Divine Moons, each exist for a single belief that defines us. Remind him of that belief. Its strength far exceeds any desire forced upon us.’

For the Golden Solstice Moon, that belief was ‘justice.’

He was the final shield, sworn to protect even the last flicker of life in the world, no matter how much everything else crumbled around him.

"Golden Solstice Moon."  

"I am Florin, the King of all fairies and elves. I am the only elf spiritually connected to the World Tree, and countless lives depend on me for their survival."  

Golden Solstice Moon shook his head as though trying to shut out her words. Yet, no matter how hard he tried, he couldn’t bring himself to cover his ears.

"My life alone may seem insignificant. But if I die, countless lives will lose their hope. My death would not hurt me... But imagining the sorrow of those who would mourn me is unbearable."  

— That...  

Golden Solstice Moon tried to respond, but his words stuck in his throat.  

"Golden Solstice Moon, are you still righteous? Would you cast away so many lives just to fulfill your personal desire?"  

— Ugh...  

Unable to respond, Golden Solstice Moon clutched his head and groaned.

The implanted desire urged him to tear off Florin’s veil that very instant, but her words awakened something long buried within him… the sense of justice.

For the first time in ages, it surged to the surface.

It had been buried deep inside him, but being buried didn’t mean the flame of justice had been extinguished. 

It had simply lain dormant for centuries, quietly gathering strength, waiting for a reason to awaken. And now, after so long, it roared back to life… igniting Golden Solstice Moon’s heart in an uncontrollable blaze.

— I... See... 

For hundreds of years, he had forgotten justice and retreated into the depths of the earth and pursued only desire, seeked only beauty.  

Something beautiful.  

Something even more beautiful.  

Something beyond perfection.  

— I almost... Forgot my sense of justice. 

But now, just as his greed burned at its brightest, as he stood on the verge of claiming the most beautiful thing—  

He remembered.  

For the first time in ages, he remembered justice.  

Golden Solstice Moon’s gaze, which had been clouded with desire, now steadied. They cleared, becoming sharp and resolute as they met Florin’s gaze.

The transformation was so profound that Florin could barely believe he was the same being.  

And with that, she removed her veil and tossed it aside.  

— ... You are beautiful. Far too beautiful for someone like me to even think of possessing.  

Lowering his head, Golden Solstice Moon bowed to Florin. For one of the Twelve Divine Moons to bow to a mere elf was an act so unthinkable that it defied reason.

Yet Florin stood unwavering, accepting the gesture with calm composure.

— I disgraced myself. I offer you my sincerest apologies.

“It’s alright. If you truly feel remorseful, the first step would be to apologize to the Dwarf King.”

— I suppose you're right. However, the fact remains that I tried to claim your soul. I must offer proper compensation for that. Speak your wish, and as long as it is within my power, I shall grant it.  

"A wish?"  

An unexpected opportunity.  

A wish granted by Golden Solstice Moon, one of the Twelve Divine Moons. How could anyone hesitate to accept such a gift?  

'But... Can I even accept it for myself?'  

Florin shook her head.  

No single person could bear the blessings of two of the Twelve Divine Moons.

Even if it were possible, she wouldn’t do it.  

Instead, someone else’s image kept appearing in her mind, someone she dearly wanted to gift this blessing to.  

"I do... Have a wish."  

For once, Florin’s eyes sparkled like a child’s as she clasped her hands together, making a wish.  

And, in true Florin fashion, it wasn’t a wish for herself. It was one made for someone else. 

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