Chapter 53

Where is he? Jon asked, riding on his horse.

Characters: Jon (Qiongen)

Athos and Leila also turned their gaze to Creed.

Names: Athos, Leila, Creed

Keledes is the fourth son of Earl Hakelai, the younger brother of Ruikade, and the older brother of Ranger Luonahakelai. Qiongen waited for him in Earl Hakelai's hall for a long time before he arrived.

He didn't keep a long beard like his father and brother; it's clear he often trims his beard, stubble circling his round chin. He is short and stout, and according to Ruikade, he already has three sons and two daughters.

The eldest son is a bit older than Qiongen, riding behind him, named Beilong.

"I don't know either. We don't often go see him; in fact, we never talk about him with the clanspeople. I've only met him once while hunting in the forest. Ah, I can only estimate the range. It's not far; even walking this slowly, we could reach there by noon today."

Qiongen thought the children of the forest had long been extinct, never expecting that any still lived in the North.

Earl Hakelai keeps this deeply secret, unwilling to speak of it; now that he can go see in person, there's no need to keep asking.

His shock has long passed; now he only feels wistful.

In the wildlings' camp he saw the legendary giants, mammoths, and huge snow bears, and encountered various shapeshifters. He felt that perhaps in the not-so-distant future, other miraculous creatures would appear one after another, and all kinds of bizarre magic would unfold before his eyes.

If one wants to gain knowledge, obviously one shouldn't go to sea but become a night watch. He wanted to tell his sister.

"He, do you think he'll teach me?"

"Qiongen, I don't know."

Qiongen knew Keledes was unwilling to take on this task. He is sturdy and taciturn, and Qiongen felt he was the type who could silently chop trees with an axe all day long.

"Ah, Qiongen, you're not being honest; why didn't you mention the eagle affair when you were at my house?" Atuos complained.

"Sorry, Atuos. I thought I could solve it on my own, but Earl Hakelai reminded me, 'One must learn to seek help from one's own kind when facing problems.'"

"Forget it. I can't think of a solution either; you bringing this up is right. But do we really have to let this blockhead lead us to find someone?" Atuos pointed at Keledes.

"The old man can be found. As for you, you talk too much and are useless." Beilong said to Atuos, "Why don't you wait for our news in your uncle's hall? Bringing so many people—are you afraid we'll bully you?"

"Haha, Earl Hakelai isn't dead yet—how is this your great-uncle's hall?" Atuos mocked.

This made Beilong's face turn red.

Qiongen turned his head, gesturing for them to be quiet.

"After we arrive, Qiongen, you go in alone. I'll wait outside." Keledes' voice was rough but calm. At one moment, Qiongen felt he was very much like his father Aide.

His father made this expression when doing something unwillingly.

"Go in?" Qiongen wondered, "Is he in the woods or in a cave?"

"In a cave." Keledes sighed, "Qiongen, you must keep this matter secret. We don't want anyone to know about it at all."

He looked at Qiongen, then glanced back at Atuos, Laila, Beilong, and the few warriors following, his eyes full of deep worry.

"Keledes, what's troubling you?" Qiongen asked.

"Qiongen, yes. Very troubling. Fuyin may be the last child of the forest in this world; I don't want him to be harmed. The children of the forest are long-lived, but their numbers…… they will soon disappear from this world completely!" Keledes' tone was extremely sorrowful.

He looks sturdy, but his feelings are so delicate.

Qiongen thought of the song 'The Last Giant' sung by the wildlings beyond the border, thought of the hundreds of giants he saw in the wildlings' camp, and also thought of Yegeruite's tears after she sang this song with deep feeling.

"Why are you crying? It's just a song; there are still hundreds of giants..." Qiongen recalled saying this to Yegeruite, but she excitedly replied, "Hundreds! You don't understand anything..."

Now he understands.

"Keledes, I swear, I will not reveal this to anyone; I will do everything possible to protect his secret." He hoped his expression would appear sincere.

After he said that, he looked toward Atuos beside him.

Atuos sighed angrily, and under the gaze of several pairs of eyes, he had to reply, 'I swear too!'

Laila and the several warriors followed.

"The best protection is to forget he ever existed." Keledes said.

Qiongen recalled Yegeruite singing 'The Last Giant' to him, recalling her humming the tune and the lyrics.

He couldn't remember many of the earlier words; he only remembered the last few lines, and then, unable to hold back, he sang them aloud in front of Keledes, Laila, and the others, starting softly, then growing normal, until the end:

"Ah ah ah ah ah ah,"

"I am the last giant,"

"Please remember my song."

"Because someday,"

"I will depart forever,"

"Just as if I had never appeared."

"But my song will not fade,"

"As long as the mountains and forests remain lush,"

"As long as the rivers continue to flow,"

"I will endure forever."

"Please remember my song."

The troop remained silent, only the bird calls and the hoofbeats' tapping.

"Where did you learn this song?" Laila asked after a while, then muttered to herself, "Lin Dong City definitely wouldn't sing this kind of song."

"Why wouldn't Lin Dong City?"

"In the stories I heard as a child, invading giants were always slain by the Winter King, and the Starks would hang the giants' heads on the walls of Lin Dong City to feed the crows. If you ask me, you Starks are the least likely to sympathize with giants, let alone write songs for them."

"I am not a Stark."

"I know, the Starks never sing, at least not for our mountain forest clan."

Qiongen could not answer.

"Cousin, if you want to listen, I can sing it for you." Atuos leaned sideways past Qiongen and said to Laila, "I'll sing lots—I dare say I'll sing everything the clan sings."

Laila ignored him, so he leaned back past Qiongen and continued, "I'll sing the mountain peddler and the smelly sea monster that goes up the mountain; if you want to hear the last wildling, I'll learn from Qiongen later—how about that?"

Beilong seized the opportunity, pulled the reins, sped up his horse, passed several people, and rushed far ahead of the crowd, muttering as he went, 'Listening to you sing, even the horses can't stand it.'

Qiongen was made to laugh by several people.

"Hey, you little brat," Athos pointed at Beilon and scolded, "Qiongen, don't take offense, children don't know better, I think you sing quite well. Otherwise, sing it again and I'll almost have it learned."

"He's talking about you, right!" Leyla gave him a cold smile.

"Leyla sister, how could that be? I haven't seen him before today, and I wasn't the one singing just now, right, Qiongen?"

"I'm the one singing. Thank you for the praise, I never expected anyone to compliment my singing." Qiongen shook his head.

"Then sing it twice more, I want to learn." He said.

Qiongen couldn't refuse his repeated requests, so he told him the lyrics. After hearing them twice, he recited them fully.

"Leyla cousin, I'm all ready, do you want to listen?"

"Call me older sister, and I can help you evaluate."

He laughed heartily, as if having received permission, and then sang loudly in a rich voice, line by line, both soaring and melodious.

The originally sorrowful melody, he sang it buoyant and optimistic, giving it a unique sense of openness, candor, and carefree detachment.

Qiongen glanced at him twice, began to like this young man, and couldn't help thinking, if only Yegeruite could also hear it.

Thinking of Yegeruite again, he felt a pang of heartache.

She was already dead. The heart-tree had already told him.

Cred also gave Athos a few more glances, as if discovering for the first time that he still had this ability.

"How about it, cousin?" Athos asked, full of pride, awaiting praise.

Leyla finally broke into a broad smile, "Younger cousin, you sing very well; now I know your voice is more handsome than your face."

Cred finally laughed out loud, and so they all laughed heartily together.

The forest in the mountains was lush, with tall sentinel trees and soldier pines taking root on the undulating ridges, interspersed with iron trees and night woods; clumps of snow dotted the shady slopes and treetops, together forging the mountain's tranquility, until the sound of their horses' hooves and occasional clear singing startled flocks of foraging birds, breaking the peace.

They followed the winding mountain path, advancing gradually; only occasional wide stretches allowed several horses to ride abreast, a good chance to chat, but most of the time they had to silently follow the horse ahead.

Frost on the withered weeds beside the night path gradually melted into droplets that wetted passersby and riders. Before long on the trail, Qiongen felt his pant legs on both sides soaked through, and they were also covered with a bunch of fuzzy grass bits.

When the sun rose to midday, Cred began wiping sweat from his forehead, and Athos asked the question everyone was wondering.

"We still need to cross a small stream and go over a mountain," Athos replied.

"Hey, with so many of us, him, that, Fu Yin? Wouldn't he think we're here to capture him?" When they finally reached the stream Cred had mentioned, Athos asked.

"Nobody asked you to come along." Beilon led his silver mare upstream of the stream.

"I came to protect Qiongen," Athos said.

"You're afraid his sister won't let you have the castle!" Leyla crouched by the stream and fastened the leather water bag into it.

"How could that be?" Athos took hold of his and Leyla's horses, "But Father really said a good man must go out." He suddenly laughed, "Anyway, we can't be like Hakelai, with so many sons yet clinging desperately to the mountains." His eyes fixed on Cred and Beilon, who had already gone upstream. "Cousin, hurry up, Beilon needs to muddy the water."

Cred seemed not to have heard those words, tied the reins at the roadside, took the water bag down, and said, "You won't be going in."

"What do you mean?" Athos asked.

Qiongen led his horse and also looked toward Cred.

"Qiongen and I will go in, you stay outside to watch the horses and wait." After saying that, he led his horse downstream and let it drink its fill of the icy stream water.

"If we're not going, then we're not going." He turned to Qiongen and said, "Qiongen, if you learn to control the eagle, could you have it bring me an eagle egg?"

"I feel that eagle is male," Qiongen said helplessly, "What do you want an eagle egg for?"

"That would be bad. I've heard that many male eagles don't even look after their mates, like savages, and compared to our mountain folk—oh, even those of Winterfell—there's no comparison..." He realized he had misspoken and quickly changed the subject.

"Eagle eggs, of course, are to be hatched and raised. It's said that only by growing up together with an animal from youth can one more easily gain its trust and then shapeshift."

"You also want to become a shapeshifter?" Leyla asked, "Who told you all this?"

"Hehe, I just want to fly. Cousin, if I could fly, would you like me to deliver letters to you every day?" He asked.

"I'll take it over to make soup." Leyla ignored him, "Qiongen, are you familiar with that eagle?"

"How could that be? I've never touched any eagle."

"You see, there's really no need to grow up together." Leyla said to Athos.

As they continued onward along the mountain trail, after passing a finger‑shaped peak, Cred repeatedly turned his horse's head, observing in all directions. After a while, he hesitantly announced that they had arrived nearby.

Then everyone dismounted.

After parting with Athos and the others, Qiongen followed Cred as he pushed aside the thick vines cluttering the mountain's edge, heading into the dark thicket littered with fallen leaves.

Beneath their feet lay soft fallen leaves and residual snow, the leaves piled in unknown numbers of layers; each step produced a soft rustling sound.

Qiongen closely followed Cred, passing through this unnamed thicket of thorny brush, crossing a deep channel carved by mountain stream water, then climbing a steep slope. From the little exposed bit of rock, it appeared to be granite, etched with ancient symbols, just like the slab he had seen when he first entered the mountains.

Between the rocks, several fearsome soldier pines sprouted from the cracks, growing twisted upward along the fissures; their massive trunks astonished with power surpassing that of mortals.

He pushed aside the pine branches blocking his view, and through a narrow gap in Cred's body he saw a huge fish‑beam tree with pale trunk gleaming in the sunlight, its flamboyant red leaves blazing like fire.

He instantly understood that what he sought could only be found here.