I sat up from the floor, looking at the sun shone from the windows blankly. The dream was horrible, but because it's too horrible, I can't remember anything of it. Since I feel like something is pressuring deep inside my brain, I can't even focus my eyes, I can just sit there.
"If you're awake already, go tidy up, wash your face."
Although the words of father have been entered my ears, it took a long time before I understood the meaning of those words. Finally Dad kicked me back, when I just managed to stand up, I slipped and fell again.
"Ah, Dad. My legs are completely petrified!"
"You have the nerve to say this. Won't you get up?"
"I told you my legs are
petrified?"
"Then stand up and walk, it will get better. Didn't I tell you, that your grandfather's legs started to get petrified a year before he passed away."
I am now a paraplegic patient because of the words of Dad. I muttered to get up, threw off the blanket wrapped on my body and threw it to the bed. The bed belongs to Dad, I usually sleep on the floor with the blanket.
"Why don't you make a bed for me. Sleeping on the floor makes my bones sore."
"Does it? Your grandfather had such symptoms 3 years before he passed away."
This time I am like a neuralgia patient. I have to give up and go outside.
Next to the hut my father and I live, is father's workshop. So called workshop, but we actually just extend the roof of the hut to there, plus a few pillars. I put my head into a bucket in the workshop. Because I didn't sleep with top, so I can begin to wash my face just by immersing my head into the bucket.
"Poof!"
Once it's immersed into the cold water, probably because of the consolidated alcohol in my brain, I had a headache like getting beat up. I trampled a few steps, finally caught my balance, then I was able to wash my chest and arms. Dad looked at my appearance, with an expression of pity, kindly said to me:
"Well done, boy. Dared to drink, really cool huh. Never thought that you can still walk."
"The ordered candles, we have prepared, isn't it? So no work to do today, right?"
"Why not? You kid! Collect honeycomb today. Find grease tomorrow!"
"Huh? Still have to do that?"
"An urgent order came from the castle. That's for the Amurtaat Crusade. "
Amurtaat Crusade. It should be the ninth?
Since the White Dragon Cathselprime has already arrived from the capital, the most important part of the Ninth Amurtaat Crusade is ready. Anyway even if we gather hundreds of people to fight, we can't do anything about Amurtaat. Amurtaat is the Source of Terror of the Gray Mountains, the Root of Pain of the Central Avenue. To deal with this huge dragon, if human does reckless attacks, probably not even a bone can return home. Because if he's not burned completely, then he is swallowed completely.
Leave dragon to dragon, this is the way. So after the sincere requests of our thane with "sincerity" (according to my and Karl's speculation, apparently he sent a lot of bribery. Our thane is really poor. He doesn't have much money), finally the little Ninth Amurtaat Crusade can fight alongside with the capital Cathselprime.
I am putting the breakfast on the table in the yard:
"Dad."
"Why?"
"Can Cathselprime beat Amurtaat?"
"How would I know? I don't often see this kind of battles. But if it's you versus Jamini, I might know who will win."
"Who will?"
"Oh you want me to mention your previous records? You becaused of Jamini, broke your arm once, broke your legs twice, you even broke your bridge of nose. And caught cold after falling into a puddle, can't even remember the number of it."
Ah. When I was a child I really got pranked by Jamini badly. I can feel my old resentment towards Jamini are burning now. But Dad is not done yet:
"I am most impressed by one thing, that you showed your little brother to Jamini, she suspected that thing was fake, so she did a hard pull..."
"Dad!"
"So I had to carry my tears, went begging Jamini's father to take you as son-in-law. That bastard. Don't you think that the gender roles of you two swapped?"
By that, I became a dumb son whose virginity got stolen by a girl. If allow him to continue to talk, don't know what past will be broken with ridiculous exaggerations, so I hurriedly prepared the breakfast.
After the breakfast, Dad wiped the wine soiled in the goatee, said:
"Starting from today, you are responsible for making candles."
"Huh?"
"I would become more busy. I have talked to Mr. decaon, I mentioned the quality may drop a bit, but I insisted to let you do it. He agreed."
"Forget about the quality. What business do you have?"
"This time I will join the Amurtaat Crusade."
I am suddenly speechless. Not that I have nothing to say, but I have too much to say, don't know where to start at a moment. So later the first sentence was very ordinary.
"Dad, you don't know how to use a spear, right?"
"So I'm going to start practicing today. I also joined the training of the crusade."
"You think you can come back alive?"
"Don't worry. Jamini will take care of you. You must strive to win Jamini's love!"
Even though my father is trying to joke, but I can't calm down.
"Stop kidding. You won't be able to come back, isn't that suicide?"
"I've listened to the army strategy plan. It mentioned, hopefully the casualty would be 30%, so the probability of my death is also 30%."
After hearing the unfamiliar excuse, I am suddenly agitated.
"That's just a plan, isn't that! The armies went to fight Amurtaat before, they were 100% killed!"
"You are right. But this time Catheslprime is also going, it should be much better."
I said angrily. But father is still poised.
"Why? Honestly why? Why are you going?"
"Because speaking of who has the right to watch Amurtaat die, I am one of them."
"Do you think if you do this, Mum will be pleased?"
Father's face had a shadow passed by for the first time.
Dad picked up a bottle on the table, and filled the empty cup again. I can feel that fingers around the bottle are trembling, is it just illusion? I am breathing deeply while looking at that, Dad suddenly drank all the water in my cup, and filled it with wine.
"Yesterday when you were sleeping, you made a lot of bacchanal."
I gazed at the cup. It's like the wine presented for father's death. Dad raised his cup, he said: "Toast."
I raised my cup. I headed down, was afraid to look at father's face.
"I am not going to die. In the name of your dead mother I assure you, I will come back alive."
I looked up. Dad is smiling.
"Really?"
"With a son who always gets messed up by girls, how can I leave you..."
"I trust you."
"Then toast for my survival! "
If that's the case, no matter how much wine, I can drink it all. Father and I clinked the cups, and finished the wine.
"Dad...."
"Why?"
"You must not die."
Dad sighed deeply. I looked at father worriedly.
"I don't want to waste my live to a thing that toke my wife's live. If it is my souse son's live, I will think about it"
My eyes changed. Dad laughed, and looks like he mistook the meaning of my face.
"Let's do this. I'll replace you."
"Dumb. You don't know there is minimum age requirement for army levy? You are only 17."
Dad shut me up with a simple sentence.
"....There is no maximum age?"
"There is, but I am not over that yet. Mad?"
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