Chapter 61: Chapter 61: Deosa
[Volume 2: The Ruler Of Kegali.]
The Kegali forest... A vast forest teeming with creatures ranging from monsters to humanoids. Kegali regained its independence over a thousand years ago and was never conquered again. Many had tried, but none had succeeded in subduing the forest dwellers. Kegali's free people would never give up their liberty so easily.
Other five kingdoms claimed ownership of Kegali, despite the fact that they did not actually own it. Countless wars had raged between Kegali's inhabitants and the five kingdoms in the name of claiming Kegali... However, not a single time did those five kingdoms decide to band together to defeat their common foes. They despise each other more than they want to conquer and share Kegali with others. Furthermore, those five kingdoms were sometimes the ones fighting.
Until 100 years ago, before they ran out of resources due to those futile wars, the five kingdoms had agreed that Kegali was indeed impossible to conquer. They would rather accept defeat than admit they needed each other's assistance to finally claim the rich forest. Also, they were all claiming to be the owner, and they all knew that a much larger war between the five human kingdoms would break out soon... It had only been a matter of time.
These five kingdoms came to be known as the Five Pillars of Kegali. And each of those five kingdoms had lived within the vast forest's borders. Occasional clashes continued, but none of them escalated into a full-fledged war because everyone knew that if a true war broke out, they would need their resources.
A massive war would break out soon... However, it was not what they had anticipated.
***
A massive kingdom reigned in this territory, which was located at the mountainous southern borders of the great forest of Kegali. The Kingdom of Deosa was a human kingdom that was one of the kingdoms that dominated Kegali's borders.
Despite being the youngest of five kingdoms established 1000 years ago, Deosa withstood the test of time against the more powerful and older four kingdoms.
The kingdom's capital was a massive settlement surrounded by great stone walls, which served as their main line of defense against sieges. It housed over 500,000 people. It was currently a prosperous kingdom, thanks to the leadership of their current king, Garen Desmael. The king who was admired by his people for carrying on the prosperous reign of the kings before him. And as a result, even the smallest towns scattered across the kingdom's borders prospered. And the current crown prince was expected to continue this feat.
The kingdom's castle was located right in the heart of the capital. It was the largest and tallest infrastructure in the entire capital, visible from a long distance. It was a cream-colored infrastructure with three red-colored peaks. There were three flags waving in the wind on those three peaks. The kingdom's banner depicted the head of a yellow deer with flaming horns and blue eyes.
During the day, the capital was alive and bustling. Many of the infrastructure, particularly in the kingdom's marketplace, was made of bricks and chiseled stones. Numerous carriages drawn by horses passed through the yellow brick roads at the roundabout leading to the marketplace. Some carriages were made of wood, while others were made of steel. Some had simple designs, while others were adorned with costly ornaments such as gold and even rare metals.
Passing by on the side of the road were pedestrians wearing tunics and thin jeans, as well as some showing off their colorful dresses and suits. Many of them were holding parasols to shield themselves from the afternoon sun.
People passing by had to walk through a small park located on the road before reaching the marketplace. It was a vast area with nothing but grassy planes and tall trees providing shade for the resting people.
This park was known as Deer's Haven. People believed that this park was where a certain hunter met a mystical deer with flaming horns and blue eyes, who told the hunter to build a kingdom here. Some claimed it was a god, while others claimed it was simply hallucinations caused by the hunter's exhaustion after a long day of hunting, but there was one thing everyone agreed on... That hunter was Deosa's first king.
Many onlookers stopped walking when they heard someone singing in the middle of the park. The gentle flow of voice was accompanied by the strumming of a guitar. People began to crowd around the singer because his voice was so appealing. A bard who was new to this location, which was normal because bards tended to wander around.
When the bard noticed the curious look on the faces of those gathered around him, he smiled. He was wearing a brown leather hat, but his blonde hair was visible through it. He had fair skin, which complemented his brown leader blazer, white tunic, and blue pants. While sitting on the root of a tree, his thick brown shoes moved to the beat.
He strummed his guitar smoothly as he finished his song, his aquamarine eyes darting to the children in front of him. He returned their smile with a small but lovely smile. He raised his hand after his final strum, removed his hat from his head, and placed it on the grassy floor to collect donations from his audience.
"And that's it, that's the story of the snow-capped mountain," he said, his gaze wandering in the crowd around him. "With just one call of its name, the unstoppable snow mountain crumbles."
Then a round of applause erupted from the children and the majority of the adults. However, not everyone liked what they heard and chose to express it. One man with combed black hair and dressed in a black suit from a wealthy family walked forward, his condescending gaze fixed on the bard. Behind him stood a younger young man who bore a striking resemblance to him—his younger brother. Their magnificent carriage, adorned with silver ornaments and steel wheels and drawn by four white stallions, was parked on the park's outskirts.
The nobleman took a step forward. The bard simply raised his head and smiled at him.
The nobleman began by snapping his fingers together. "I'd say you have a great voice, a very interesting talent, but your song has a lot of mistakes. Shouldn't the snow mountain be immovable or unbreakable— not unstoppable?" He sighed. "Also, mountains, as far as I know, cannot move or crush other mountains; it is physically impossible."
The bard nodded and smiled. "You're correct, Mister."
"Also, why would a lion live in a cold wasteland of a mountain? Lions belong in the jungle, not on top of an empty snow mountain, as anyone who can read a book knows," the younger brother behind said condescendingly.
The children who were supposed to be cheering came to a halt and looked down.
One of the girls stared at the bard's guitar; she had brown long curly hair and was dressed in a plain white dress; she was a commoner. "I'd like to see a lion..."
The bard gently chuckled and patted the girl's head. "Don't worry, you'll meet a very kind lion someday..." The bard then returned his gaze to the noblemen. He then stood up and smiled as he faced them. "About what you're asking, fine gentlemen; I know my story sounds unbelievable; even I was surprised that's possible." He smiled wider. "This world truly is full of marvels."
He then took up his hat. He walked away from the audience, leaving everyone staring at him. "Oh, I made a fortune. Just for staying here for one day, I've got more than enough to last a week. People in this kingdom are very generous and smart. Meat for dinner it is," he chuckled as he slipped the copper coins into his pocket.
Then there were loud chuckles from the audience, except for the two noblemen who thought the bard was lying to get donations. They were, however, far from aggressive; they were simply attempting to call out what they perceived to be a blatant lie or a sign of having incorrect beliefs.
"Where are you going now, Mister Bard?" one of the children inquired.
The bard came to a halt. "You should all prepare your coats..." he said, without answering the question, and darted his gaze in the direction of Kegali forest. "Winter is coming," he said as he walked away without looking back.
"Wrong again! Winter is still far away!" yelled the nobleman, raising his hand, but ending up just shaking his head and sighing.
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