15. Dad’s Warning from Sirius
Starting November 2023, The Korea Daily is excited to publish the fantasy novel series “Sword of Malta – Lightning in 72 Years” on our website. This new captivating series follows a trio of young adventurers on their quest to uncover the mysteries of ancient civilizations, including the Maya and Inca. In an exciting development, Netflix is currently adapting the novel’s storyline into a film.
The ‘Sword of Malta – Lightning in 72 Years’ is the latest novel authored by Jeeyoon Ha, who created the “Pangaea series.” Ha’s debut novel, “The Pangaea: Finding Xibalba,” was selected by the Korea Creative Content Agency in 2022 as part of their initiative to support the global export of fantasy literature.
Readers can eagerly anticipate the online publication of two installments each month, with new chapters appearing bi-weekly, offering a regular escape into this magical realm. *Mark Oh translated the Korean novel into English.
“I can’t see anything. It’s pitch black.”
Suri flailed his arms.
“I can’t see… I can’t see…”
Maru kept repeating the same words.
The world seemed to have completely lost light, immersed in darkness. Then suddenly, a flash of light exploded, and in an instant, the entire sky was covered with lightning. Thunder roared down like a squall in the tropics. The air sparked with electricity discharged by the lightning, and the black land, which looked as if it had been terraformed, was even spewing out flames both large and small. The lightning matrix, with its seamless expansiveness, was so powerful that no one could keep their balance. It was a spectacular, dangerous, and beautiful spectacle of lightning.
“I can’t take a single step. It feels like my body will fall apart because of the lightning.”
Maru groaned.
“Is this the right place? Didn’t you say this is where the lightning that comes every 72 years arrives? But this place… It seems like a place where lightning strikes all day and night. We must have been deceived. What is this…”
Sabi grumbled, lying down on the ground.
“My eardrums feel like they’re going to burst because of the thunder. My ears hurt.”
Suri covered his ears with both hands and ducked his head. But in the blink of an eye, the lightning subsided, the electricity disappeared, and the flames died down.
“…The weather changed as if it was a lie. What is… what kind of… magic is this? It’s magic, right? Right? Guys…”
Suri stuttered in surprise.
“Suri… Look at that… Look at it! Hurry.”
Maru jumped up and screamed. Suri looked where Maru was pointing. The stone temple of Malta he had seen in his dream was right in front of him. It was a reality that had jumped out of a dream, but it was so surreal that it was unbelievable.
“We meet again….”
Suri waved his hand as if greeting a long-lost friend.
At the apex of the temple stood a silver obelisk, formidable and towering, with a golden pyramidion affixed at the top. The pyramidion was fiercely attracting lightning. The chunk of lightning drawn out from the universe swirled around the temple like a spiral galaxy.
“So… the lightning didn’t disappear. It’s still being sucked into the temple… phew, what a relief. I almost became a barbecue because of the lightning…”
Maru finally felt at ease.
“The pyramidion… What secret does it hold to attract all the lightning in the universe?… This is amazing!”
Suri saluted the Pyramidion.
Before they knew it, the Pyramidion was calm. Finally, the veil of darkness was lifted and it was as bright as midday. In an instant, thousands of phosphorescent bodies began to cover the whole sky, replacing the lightning. They flickered here and there, tearing up the sky with their noise. One prominent one charged menacingly towards Suri.
“It’s a Bolt Rider!”
Suri couldn’t help but marvel at the phosphorescent body that was firing lightning.
“Wow, this is incredible… This should be appearing in a game universe… What a waste, this should be looted.”
Maru frowned as if regretful.
“Guys, the Bolt Rider uses the power of lightning to move, see those wheels? It even has weapons that fire lightning… Wow, I want to ride it. I really want to!”
Suri walked towards the Bolt Rider as if hypnotized. The Bolt Rider hovered in the air, waiting for Suri. As Suri, who had arrived just below it, reached out towards the Bolt Rider, a long bolt of lightning came down from it and grabbed Suri’s hand. At that moment, Maru sprinted over and pushed Suri, causing him to fall over.
“Do you have a death wish?… You should Stop showing off.”
Maru grumbled, irritated. Suri fell with a thud onto the black ground where remnants of flames still lingered. He hurt his hip bone as he fell, and the flames seeped into the injured part. However, Suri didn’t feel anything.
“Not only is someone controlling the weather using lightning, but if you look at the Bolt Rider… It’s floating in the air, sucking in lightning, and gaining propulsion from the stored lightning. This is so impressive… I can hardly believe it. I think I might win the Nobel Prize for Discovery. Right?”
Suri reached out towards the Bolt Rider again. Suddenly, a powerful wave of lightning surged like a giant wave. A cylinder of lightning came down from the Bolt Rider. The flames from the black ground that had infiltrated Suri’s body began to move along his veins. Suri was sucked straight up into the Bolt Rider.
“…Warp drive…”
Maru stared blankly.
“…Hyper space…”
Sabi also had the same blank expression.
As soon as Suri got on the Bolt Rider, he sat comfortably in the driver’s seat. The flames that had infiltrated Suri’s body stopped. Suri’s body had become a ball of fire. Suri was not aware of his heated body.
“I think I’ve figured out everything about the Bolt Rider.”
Suri began to deftly handle the vehicle.
“I am known as the Winged Traveler. You can call me Traveler for short.”
The Bolt Rider spoke, causing Suri to startle.
“Winged Traveler?”
All the switches inside the Bolt Rider activated, making a buzzing sound. Then, it ascended vertically at the speed of light.
“Carmina Burana… The Cantata of Fate…”
Suri gritted his teeth and endured the high-speed ascent. It seemed like he could hear the music he had heard in his dream again. The Bolt Rider finally stopped.
“Wow… it’s Sirius…!”
Suri saw Sirius, shining brightly. At that moment, a screen popped up on the Bolt Rider’s front window, and his father’s face appeared.
“Dad…!”
Suri yelled out loud.
“Suri… You’ve worked hard to come all this way.”
His father showed a bright smile.
“…Sabi’s dad, Maru’s dad are also here.”
Tears welled up in Suri’s eyes.
“That’s right. Sabi and Maru are doing well, right? They must be doing well. They’re my children.”
Sabi’s father said with a smile.
“Of course… But where are you right now?”
Suri was dying of curiosity.
“We are… in Sirius. We can’t leave here. The wizards sent by the Nova Empire have cast a barrier on the Green Valley. We can’t find a way to break the barrier.”
Maru’s father remained calm as always.
“The lightning that comes every 72 years is… not going to the temple in Malta. The barrier is blocking it… Suri… go to the temple… there’s no time… time… is…”
The end of Suri’s father’s words gradually faded, and the screen disappeared. Suri shed tears drop by drop.
[To be continued…]
