The Song Of Sword And Magic

Chapter 54: The Devil Grass

[Translator — Asuka]

[Proofreader — Karane]

All of them trudged carefully across the grass that was taller than Niss. The grass swayed along with the wind as they caught a whiff of a putrid odor. 

“What kind of grass is this? It’s grown so tall and even started decaying. Doesn’t this only happen when the weather is torrid?” Fern frowned as he was amazed by the grass’s vitality. If it weren’t because of the grass, they couldn’t have circled around Ferrer Town with ease. 

Stan sized up the swaying grass and shook his head in puzzlement. “I’ve never seen it before. I wonder why the grass could grow so tall in this season.” He then picked one piece of it and rubbed it together in his hands. “I don’t think this grass originates from Doyle. The land is too barren to provide for its nutritional needs.”

Rae also picked one piece of it and rubbed it together in her hands before smelling it. With a darkened expression, she said, “The grass gives off a putrid odor, which isn’t because of the weather.”

***

Leaning closer to Rae, Niss picked up the grass from her hand and examined it. Just then, she thought she heard a voice, which sounded like a young woman sobbing. She raised her head to look around, but there was no one else other than her companions. When she heard the crying again, she was shocked to realize that the voice was coming from the grass in her hand. Shocked, she quickly slapped it away.

Noticing that something was wrong, Fern asked, “What happened, Niss?”

Without replying to him, Niss picked a piece of taller and yellowish grass. Then, she placed it in her hand and tried to sense it. This time, it was a male voice that was crying in her mind. The only difference was that the voice was lower, as though the person was helpless and trying to restrain himself.

“I can hear some people crying. Just now, it was a woman. And now, it’s a man.” Terrified, Niss raised her head and looked at her companions.

“We don’t hear anything.” Fern gazed at Rae and Stan, who shook their heads in puzzlement.

“Are you too tired because of all the walking? Furthermore, the weather is frigid, so you might have come down with a fever.” Fern gently touched her forehead and then his own. “You’re alright. We’d better cross the border now and look for a place to rest.”

Doubtfully, Niss stared at the grass in her hand. “The voice comes from the grass. I mean, the grass is crying.”

Rae raised her brow. “You can hear the grass cry? Are you sure it’s not auditory hallucination, Niss?”

With a frown, Niss shook her head. “I don’t know. Now I can’t hear anything. Even the crying from just now was faintly audible.”

***

Rae pursed her lips. “Let’s put that aside first. I have a question for you.” She looked anxiously at Niss. “Have you read about the Devil Grass from the books in the Magician’s Tower?”

“The Devil Grass?” Niss raised her head and decided to forget about the voices first. She then placed the index finger of her left hand on her lips and tried to recall it. “Yes, in ‘When the Dark Lord Comes’, the Devil Grass is mentioned.” She tried to recollect what she had read. “According to the book, the Dark Lord could affect everything in this world, and the level of influence depends on whether he has awakened and his distance with the thing.”

“That’s it. Damn it! The grass wasn’t here yet when I left Sara. I didn’t expect that after only a short period of time, it would appear at the border.” Rae bit her lip. Her scowl suggested the severity of the matter.

“What do you mean?” Despite having figured out the answer, Fern needed her confirmation.

“Yes… the Dark Lord has awakened.” Rae’s voice sounded despondent and fatigued as she hurled away the grass in disdain. “The apocalypse will come. Wallis will descend into darkness…”

Despite not understanding what she was saying, for some reason, Fern could feel that his fury was rising within him. “If that’s the case, what is the point for us to keep doing this? Even if we reach Mount Dagger and collect all the sacred seals, there’s no way we can stop the Dark Lord, right?”

Crestfallen, Rae gazed at him for ten seconds and heaved a long sigh. Becoming calm again, she said, “Whatever the case, we can only keep doing this. This way, at least we won’t feel so hopeless.”

Unwilling to give up any hope, Fern turned to look at Niss. “Is there no book that can teach us how to deal with the Dark Lord?”

Niss also appeared to be downcast as she shook her head. “Unless the Seven Gods show up, there’s no other way to deal with him.” She gazed at the green gemstone on her magic cane, which looked like it was laughing at all their hard work.

***

All of a sudden, Fern drew out his sword and slashed at the Devil Grass. Shocked, Stan hurriedly stopped him. Rae glowered at him and said, “If you don’t want to be killed by the Doylan soldiers before we even confront the Dark Lord, calm down immediately!”

Hearing that, Fern lowered his hands and did nothing again.

Seeing that the mercenary had calmed down, Stan let go of him. “Since that’s the case, there’s no turning back for us. We can only do our best. As for the outcome, I don’t think we should be too concerned about it.”

“Stan is right. We just have to deal with the issues at hand and not worry about the rest.” Rae nodded in agreement.

“Alright, whatever the outcome, that’s the only thing we can do.” Niss pulled herself together, readying herself for the following journey. “I can’t bring myself to return to the Magician’s Tower and wait for death.”

Stan gave her an approving look. “Niss, you’ve become so mature now. In the past, you would have started sobbing when faced with such a crisis.” Niss smiled bashfully upon hearing that.

However, Rae said coldly, “On the other hand, someone has become impulsive and hot-headed!”

Fern kept his sword as his head remained lowered. “I’m sorry. I’m fine now. Stan, please lead the way.”

Stan clapped his shoulder and went ahead. After giving the mercenary a worried look, Niss followed Stan’s footsteps.

With her arms crossed, Rae walked up to Fern and asked impassively, “Is it because of Niss that you’ve become so impetuous?”

“I just think that it’s unfair for her to bear the responsibility of the continent’s fate. Furthermore, if what you’ve said is right, the hardship she’s been suffering might turn out to be useless.” Fern appeared to be sympathetic.

After giving it a thought, Rae replied, “Fern, sometimes, we don’t do it because the outcome is positive. Even if the outcome is destined to be an unfavorable one, we have no choice but to do it.”

With his head still hung low, Fern never uttered a word.

Rae heaved a sigh and kept walking forward. “But you can’t say that what we’re doing is useless. As long as we’ve tried, then our hard work is meaningful.” Her voice faded. “Remember, your decision will affect all of our destinies. Think about it.”

Fern smacked his own head. What’s wrong with you, Fern? You have to be clear-headed all the time, remember?

***

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