Game’s Dogma

The black-haired young lady stiffened. Her shaking body suddenly came to a halt. Tears silently crept from her eyes along with blood from her wounds, pitter-pattering onto the ground.

The man’s shaking voice was hoarse. “Stygien… Is that you? Please… It has to be…”

His hoarse voice suggested that he hadn’t spoken in a long time. It contained a looming fear—fear of disappointment, but also his yearning for a lost loved one.

Finally, the young lady turned around and showed her delicate face, now stained with tears and blood, as well as a beaming smile.

“Little Hagrid, you’ve grown up.”

The man named Hagrid was stupefied as if he had seen something utterly unbelievable. Hagrid’s rotting brown hair gradually turned golden. His skinny and pale face, one that lacked life, was regaining its vigour as well.

Considering the man’s strength, his body naturally wouldn’t be in such tatters; his emotions were the cause of everything. Having lost hope, his body reflected his dying mind. Now that his purpose of life was rekindled, so did his body.

Hagrid turned out to be a rather handsome young man. Speaking through tears, he said, “I’ve searched six hundred and thirty-two worlds… For twenty-seven years… I’ve finally found you, at long last…”

The man who was as almighty as a god, the man who could turn the skies into a star pattern with a single wave, was now weeping like a child. His hair had now completely turned golden and sparkled under the starry sky.

Drako Yau had a feeling that Hagrid’s hair was originally golden. Greenstone walked over to him with Chau Yu silently. Chau Yu, whose eyes were still slightly bloody, had truly given it his all when fighting Tigeroar.

In the spacious village, all those who remained sentient were the three of them along with a white tiger that lay on the ground, not daring to even tremble. The NPCs were all frozen in place, some of them still in the pose of attacking the now-deceased bandit bosses.

The three of them watched the pair of protagonists of the world in silence. The young lady slowly walked forth and reached for the man’s head. She embraced his highly-hung head into her bosom and said with difficulty through her sobs, “I’ve… been waiting… for you too… All those years must’ve been… tough.”

The man shuddered, then hugged her. “I’ll never let you leave my side again! Never!”

“Mhm!”

“Greeny, come and heal your sis,” the man said.

Willed by his words, the leaf-shaped tattoo on his right middle finger gave off a verdant glow and gathered into a streak of light which landed on his shoulder. Soon, a palm-sized sapling showed itself. It had a little crown of leaves that looked like its hair.

“Sis! I missed you!”

The little sapling hopped onto Stygien’s shoulders and kept rubbing against her face, all while radiating a warm glow. At the three players’ startled stares, the wounds on her forehead healed instantly and vanished along with the streaks of tear and blood, as if everything had never appeared at all.

“Oho, good Greeny. You’ve grown bigger too! Look at the crown you’ve got,” the young lady said with a chuckle, her cold expression nowhere to be found. She tickled and played with the sapling with her tender fingers, making it giggle. Everything seemed so smooth and naturally almost like it had taken place countless times before.

Only then did the man notice Drako Yau, Greenstone, and Chau Yu. He gave an apologetic smile and said, “I apologise for the unsightly behaviour. I roughly know what happened from reading those people’s minds. If not for the three of you, I wouldn’t have made it in time. I am truly thankful.”

The man who could annihilate everyone present with a snap of his finger made a full ninety-degree bow. Such a gesture took them by surprise; it was no different from an emperor bowing to a lowly plebeian. What surprised Drako Yau more was that the man wasn’t speaking in a language he knew based on lip movement, but those words were somehow translated into the common language automatically.

Drako Yau responded, “You give us too much credit.”

The man shook his head. “No, she is my life. Saving her is no different from saving me. This is nothing when you all are my life-saver. Ugh… Look at me, such unsightly behaviour.” Now that he had regained his youthfulness, the man appeared to be similar to Drako Yau in age. “I’m Hagrid Leos. Just call me Hagrid.”

The five of them sat in a circle. It was unthinkable to think that such a powerful person was so approachable and easy-going. His loving gaze directed towards the girl named Stygien from time to time was also unreserved.

“This world’s an intriguing one. It’s the first time I’ve encountered a world with such a structure.” Hagrid looked around curiously, sometimes into the ground and other times into the sky. However, his gaze wasn’t directed at the physical substance itself; he seemed to be peering through the physical world into something more, something greater behind the scenes.

“Um… Would you mind explaining what this is all about?” Chau Yu was the one to speak up. Having glanced at Drako Yau and Greenstone, he decided that the two were like two mute pieces of logs. The thought of them striking up or directing a conversation to the desired topic was but a wild dream.

“Oh?” Hagrid only noticed Chau Yu’s presence when he spoke up. “Greeny.”

“Uh-huh,” said the sapling perching on the young lady’s shoulders as it radiated the warm aura again. Chau Yu felt vitality surging within him, and the heaviness in his head was swept away completely.

Hagrid suddenly fixed his eyes on Chau Yu. “You… Your surname is Lee?”

It was an interesting question, but Chau Yu merely replied, “From what you just said, you probably can search through others’ memories. In that case, why the need to ask when you already know the answer?”

Hagrid smiled and shook his head. “I never use that ability on my friends. Your cultivation style is why I know your surname. The styles you cultivate are the Divine Purple Arts and Stargaze, right?”

“Huh?” It was Chau Yu’s turn to be taken by surprise. “How did you know?”

“Ahahaha!” Hagrid started laughing heartily. “Did you meet a man… Hmm, with eyes that can suck you in like a black hole, a mind full of pesky tricks, and a heart full of evil intentions?”

Chau Yu was so dumbfounded that he was at a loss for words. Considering Hagrid’s strength, he had no reason to lie about not peeking into their minds, nor was Chau Yu doubting him about it. In that case, how could Hagrid know about his encounter quest in such detail?

Hagrid’s laughter influenced everyone and loosened them up. He then said, “That man is my brother. Who would’ve thought that kid has the strength to travel through space-time too?”

The young lady sounded flabbergasted as she asked, “You mean Lee Shun?”

“Who else?” Hagrid chuckled. “Divine Purple Arts and Stargaze both have great restrictions on who can cultivate them. Those without the Lee family’s blood in them cannot cultivate even if they are insanely talented. My guess is, our friend here is a descendent of the Lee family’s ancestors who travelled to this world long ago. Lee Shun then saw his potential and bloodline, so he passed the styles on.

“Oh, Lee Shun… Tin Shan… Ling Ching…” Hagrid thought about his past companions. It’s been over twenty years. Are you guys doing fine?

Author’s note:

Hagrid, Lee Shun, Stygien, and the other characters are all from my previous novel, Martial Summoner (tentative name in English as it is untranslated).

Martial Summoner is my first full-length novel, the starting point of my journey. Precisely because it’s where I started, there’ll be crossovers between my other novels in the future. You’re seeing Hagrid in Game’s Dogma now, maybe you’ll see Drako Yau in my other novels, who knows?

If anyone is interested, you can read Chapter 463 of Martial Summoner, the chapter of Hagrid and Stygien’s parting, to learn more about their relationship and connection. Of course, not reading it won’t affect your reading experience with Game’s Dogma in any way.

This chapter’s title, “A Search For Her Amongst The Crowd”, is a tribute to Hagrid and Stygien, a memorial to their connection.

Translator’s note:

Since Martial Summoner is currently not being translated, the chapter that the author recommends reading isn’t available in English as well. Do leave a comment about whether or not you’d like to read it though, and I might translate that chapter alone ;)

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