Translator: AkazaTL Pr/Ed: Sol IX
***
Those with golden blood running through their veins always chased after things that sparkled. Always.
***
Zeppelin Gold looked at the plains warriors swarming toward him.
‘If danger ever comes, always run.’
When the youngest left the Black Archipelago, his parents had given him countless treasures. The 「Sun Orb」, which borrowed the power of Spirits to turn its user into a giant for a short time. The 「Blue Blessing」, which allowed one to survive even under a rain of arrows. Many other items meant to save him in moments of crisis. Even the capital of the Red Bank would struggle to acquire such artifacts.
‘You are weak, but you are not foolish, little brother.’
‘If danger comes, do not face it—run.’
.
.
.
‘War is far more terrible than you imagine.’
‘I’ll say this clearly.’
‘Do not make your mother cry, Zeppelin.’
Zeppelin’s siblings had spoken one by one while looking over the precious items their parents handed down. Though their tone had been teasing, Zeppelin knew why they said it—because they worried deeply for their young and fragile sibling. Outwardly they were cold capitalists, rational nobles—but Zeppelin knew they cherished their family more than anyone else.
‘Child, it is fine even if you do not succeed.’
Thunk. A spearhead pierced his ankle. A scream burst out from pain he had never felt before.
‘Even if you lose everything you own, I will not blame you. Throw away everything in your grasp if you must, but keep your life. Even if the world looks like a gutter, survive however you can and return home.’
Zeppelin remembered his mother’s warm touch. His elder brother and elder sisters, who spoke little but always took care of him in their own quiet ways. His father, who pretended not to care but secretly supported whatever Zeppelin studied.
Returning to them was a matter of duty. Zeppelin had received more love than he deserved, and he needed to repay it. Returning what one receives was a Golden Family proverb.
“Look— at me—!”
But now, he realized he could no longer fulfill that duty.
“More— more of you, come to me!”
A brain-scorching pain. The demons of the plains climbed onto Zeppelin’s enlarged body.
The immense strength and size granted by the treasure meant nothing before the plains warriors. A large body was simply a larger target, and the warriors from the Great Land had hunted real giants by the hundreds.
Zeppelin’s body was being dismantled alive. Like prey.
“Look at me!”
As his flesh peeled away and his bones were exposed, Zeppelin enlarged his body once more. Blue smoke poured out, granting him mysterious power. But even if he gained a tough outer shell, Zeppelin’s essence remained untouched:
A coward.
A coward who had never fought once in his life.
A coward who could barely move his own body—not even throw a proper punch. His movements were closer to flailing.
“LOOK at me!”
A desperate struggle to draw even one more gaze.
A frantic last attempt to collect every last pair of eyes.
“WOOOOOO—!”
His roar was pathetic. The splendid garments once draping his body were now shredded. His exposed skin was drenched in blood, the torn flesh revealing muscle and bone beneath. The naked giant writhed and writhed again.
Look at me— Please, look at me— He pleaded desperately.
‘Go, please. Hurry.’
The Lord of Karavan, fooled by Zeppelin’s clumsy lie, would now give his all to escape. He would run forward without turning back.
Forward, ever forward. Toward where he needed to go.
‘Go forth, my lord.’
Fortunately, his lie had not been exposed. Had there been someone from the Sky Empire nearby, Zeppelin Gold’s lie would have been uncovered instantly.
‘The Eternal Ember’—how could House Gold possibly possess one of the rarest treasures in the continent, an item owned only by the Emperor and First Prince of the Sky Empire?
And even if House Gold possessed it, would they ever give such a treasure… to him, the worthless youngest? Never. Absolutely never.
‘Do not look back, my lord.’
The Karavan lord believed him without suspicion. Strange. Someone so deeply distrustful accepted such an obvious lie.
Had he been the Arhan Zeppelin knew, he would have immediately asked,
“How did you obtain such a treasure?”
“How does its revival mechanism function?”
Perhaps the urgency of the moment clouded his judgment. Urgency always clouds judgment…
‘Thank you.’
But in truth, Zeppelin knew: The Karavan lord didn’t accept his lie because he couldn’t doubt it, He accepted it because he chose not to doubt. After all the hardships together on this foreign Southern Continent, we had become friends.
Zeppelin knew the truth: The Karavan lord seemed cold and suspicious of everything, but he was deeply warm inside and never judged his own people with suspicion.
Yes—Arhan Karavan was that kind of person.
‘Thank you, my friend.’
If he had spoken honestly, the Karavan lord would never have left him behind. He would have taken Zeppelin with him no matter what. And if they had reached the ship, Arhan would have pushed himself to the brink trying to save everyone through the raging sea.
But to Zeppelin, that was impossible. This was his exit.
A man with no ability needed to step off the stage now—so the main actor could shine.
‘May you learn of my death late. You are a warm person—my death might shake you. But… someday… I hope you cry for me, even briefly.’
Looking back, the time he spent—from the outskirts of the Iron Kingdom all the way to this Southern Continent—had been shining. Perhaps the most valuable time in his life.
A man who always spoke of a bright future yet failed repeatedly.
A man who never knew success witnessed dreams becoming reality.
He tasted success. He felt recognition. He learned how joyful it was to chase something bright and shine alongside it. How happy it was.
‘How regretful.’
He wanted a little more. To stay in these sparkling moments. To help Arhan save more lives, to see smiles return to the grieving, to stamp his name on the corner of buildings, to be praised by stunned eyes—Zeppelin, Zeppelin— to hear them call his name again loudly, smiling.
He wanted to sit around a fire in the city at night, clinking mugs of golden beer, dancing, singing.
He wanted to laugh at silly jokes, cast aside worries, hold a huge party—A party where everyone could shine.
“Raise your head, child of gold.”
Lost in sweet fantasy, Zeppelin heard the voice calling him.
Snickers followed around him.
“Sun That Never Sets, he cannot raise his head. He’ll spend his life with his head bowed—we have already shattered his neck to suit someone so weak.”
“You made him pay.”
“We did.”
Zeppelin could not move a single finger. His body was destroyed beyond belief.
The plains warriors had severed every tendon and muscle, shattered every bone—ensuring he could not move of his own will. Death was not allowed.
One who dared speak the Sun That Never Sets’ name in vain could not be granted peaceful rest.
“Make him raise his head.”
A foreboding voice. Someone grabbed Zeppelin’s limp hair and yanked it upward. His head snapped back—unbearable pain. A torn groan escaped his lips, like air hissing out of a deflating balloon.Through the shaking of his breath, Zeppelin saw him:
The Descendant of Khan. A Swordmaster whose eyes burned like flames.
“Pitiful child of gold, I have seen your little trick.”
“……”
“I cannot resist my curiosity. Why did Rhapsody and Gold… why did two of the Five Great Houses struggle so desperately to save the ‘Last Karavan’?”
The Descendant of Khan drew his sword. Shrring—a cold blade-song rang.
“I understand that all you did was to keep the heir of Steel alive. But I cannot fathom it. Do you have any reason to save Karavan?”
“……”
“Did he promise you something? Or perhaps he told you something? Speak honestly, and I will spare your worthless life.”
A sharp blade neared Zeppelin’s neck.
“Not only that—I will give you every honor we reap from the Southern Continent once it is scorched bare. And in the war to come, we shall purchase all needed supplies through you. How sweet is that?”
The sword came closer. So did the Descendant of Khan’s face.
“This is an opportunity, child of gold. Take our hand. The Great Land has more gold prepared for you than you could ever desire.”
His voice was impossibly seductive. He was one of the Six Masters—one of the gods’ Great Warriors. His promises were ironclad. If Zeppelin accepted, he would gain more success than he ever dreamed of— A new legend would be written.
Truly, enormous success awaited him.
But
“……No.”
But that… did not shine.
“In a world burned to ash, what use is gold? In the endless ocean, adrift on a shattered boat, what is needed by an old man—one bowl of soup, or jewels and gold?”
“……”
“In a world that does not shine, gold loses its light.”
Those with golden blood always pursued what shimmered.
“The blood of gold chases what shines.”
Zeppelin had seen light in the Karavan lord. He had been certain that Arhan’s path forward would shine. He wanted to walk with him. He wanted to see Arhan shine brighter, to see his village glow brilliantly, and to share even a small piece of that light. But he could not.
Then… he would at least protect that light.
“……As expected, one cannot reason with a Gold.”
Zeppelin remembered the Golden proverb: Give when asked. If you give, earn in return.
“Lock him up somewhere. Make sure he stays alive.”
The descendants of Gold were known for placing astronomical ransom on their kin.
But Zeppelin’s wish was simple: That the light he chased would not be extinguished.
He could not achieve that by himself. He was weak. He had nothing. His life was fading. So in order to achieve what he wanted, he had only one thing left to give—His life. Worthless in coin, perhaps— but powerful enough to provoke someone across the world.
“……Damn!”
The descendant of one of the Five Great Houses, a man who had never held a sword, born last and considered useless—If others appraised his life, they’d price it cheap. But his blood—his kin—would never do so.
Zeppelin Gold placed his life on the scale.
“Warriors! Save him!”
“W-we cannot! He didn’t simply bite his tongue—he crushed a treasure he was keeping hidden in his mouth! It seems to be a treasure that erases even the soul. Not even the gods could stop this—”
If his death erased even his soul so completely that not even the Spirit World could find him.
‘I am sorry, Mother. Father. Brothers, sisters. Godmother. My people…’
The treasure, 「Eternal Night」. A relic capable of permanently erasing even spiritual beings. It exploded inside Zeppelin’s mouth—turning his soul and body into sand. In that unreal sensation, Zeppelin felt as if he were falling asleep— into a deep, peaceful dream.
‘Ah…’
And Zeppelin thought: If this is not death but a long sleep— then perhaps, when everything ends, someone might wake me.
A world with no war, where the innocent do not die unjustly, where joyful people can dance and sing freely.
A world where being weak and afraid is not a flaw— In such a world, wake me… please…
“……”
And with that— Zeppelin’s life ended.
***
“Damn…”
The Descendant of Khan looked at Zeppelin Gold’s body crumbling like sand.
Damn Gold. The sea-scented vermin had sabotaged them even in death.
As soon as he confirmed Zeppelin’s death, the Descendant of Khan shouted:
“We leave this place!”
“Eh? But the fugitives—”
“Ignore them! They will be far away by now.”
“If you permit, we can still pursue—”
“—No. Fall back immediately.”
A descendant of Gold had died here. And not just any death— his soul had been utterly destroyed.
This news would soon reach her ears. And,
“Get away from the sea. Immediately.”
The ruler of the sea would appear.
One of the Six Masters. A Swordmaster who had existed since the Age of War.
***
“Ah.”
There once was a child who sparkled.
“Aaah.”
A child lacking many things, yet always shining with a pure brightness. A child whose glow could not be hidden by anything.
That radiance was so beautiful that she wanted to give him everything.
She wanted to watch him grow old, find true happiness, and live out his life.
It was the joy of twilight— humble, yet precious.
“Prepare the ship, children.”
“What has happened, Godmother?”
The sparkling child— among all the treasures owned by the greatest woman of the sea, he had been the most precious.
The most beautiful. And that treasure was now gone.
Her life entering twilight— the woman had lost her light.
“Someone has taken my treasure.”
Golden blood flowed within her.
“……Then they must be prepared. Enough gold must await them.”
Those of golden blood chased after what shimmered.
“Otherwise… I will take everything they possess.” Always.