◈ Episode 270. Too Much to Refuse (2)

A report on the Imperial Palace basement.

As expected, there seemed to be a lot of great items stored there.

As soon as the Emperor declared the treasury open.

the vassals expressed concern.

‘Actually, that’s a normal reaction.’

As long as the empire is intact.

I am a man with a conscience.

Seriously, I didn’t mean to…….

Crossing Antonium in shame, I saw the reality with my own two eyes. I wouldn’t be surprised if they were to go without food starting tomorrow.

‘It’s not like eating a flea’s liver.’

There was no sincere intention of raiding the Empire’s underground treasury, which would be difficult enough, so I didn’t mind if his vassals hesitated and objected.

No, it went beyond that.

“Do you think I want this in return?”

That’s the Grandfell way of saying no.

Of course, I, Lee Hoyeol, swallowed my bitterness, but…….

Knowing when and where to say no.

After all, accumulated contributions don’t just disappear.

So I made a decision.

‘When the empire is fully restored to power, then……!’

I’m not going to give the Empire a pass.

I’m going to be cool and collect my rewards.

But once again, the big mouth went berserk.

“Ugh…….”

The Emperor grunts, and his vassals look between me and him. The faces of those who had voiced objections, especially the ones that hadn’t been heard, were grim.

I hear an Imperial mage mutter.

“……No, you can’t talk like that without looking into a crystal ball!”

Seriously, this guy’s way with words is optimized for misdirection. Yeah, I’ll have to clear up the misunderstanding right away. I’m about to break the silence and open my mouth.

The emperor slapped his hand.

“In the name of the Emperor, I command you. From this moment on…….”

The Emperor’s command.

That would mean that his vassals dare not interfere anymore.

I wondered what he was trying to say, anyway.

I’m dumbfounded by the question.

“The deepest level of the Imperial Palace’s underground treasury to Lord Lee Hoyeol.”

……Excuse me, Emperor?

“And I will grant you access to the 『Warlord Library』.”

That’s not what I meant, is it?!

No, if anyone hears me, they’ll think I’m crying because I don’t like the reward……! I’m just being as innocent as I’ve always been!

The emperor looked at me and said.

“I apologize for the unnecessary fuss, but please forgive me. They are not doubting your abilities by any means; they are only speaking out of loyalty to the Empire and sentimentality.”

The Emperor apologizes sincerely.

‘How could they be silent?’

They bow in unison toward me.

Cheog─

“I apologize for my behavior!”

I’m so sorry that I can’t lift my face…….

The Mouth of Doom always makes me suffer.

Part of me wants to hang my head in shame.

But I can’t.

‘It’s too late to make it right now.

So, you’re rebuking me again, this time on the pretense of innocence?

Judging by the emperor’s reaction…….

I’m sure he’ll give me the throne with just the right amount of exaggeration.

So let’s be flexible here, Hoyeol.

And.

‘The reward is too good to refuse.’

Take it, dignity.

Wouldn’t it be rude to keep turning down pure favors?

Besides, there was something in the Emperor’s words that I wanted to check.

『The Warlord Library.』

It doesn’t seem out of the ordinary.

It exudes a sense of urgency.

With such a desire, I opened my mouth.

“I will graciously accept.”

.

.

.

And now it was.

[You have entered the Imperial Palace, ‘Underground Treasury’].

I was an Imperial mage, looking into a crystal ball.

I entered the Underground Treasury with a few servants.

The Emperor looked so eager to lead me through, hand in hand.

‘You shouldn’t do that.’

Haven’t I said it before?

If only to keep me from sinking into overwork.

An emperor must remain an emperor for as long as he lives.

The Yusra Kingdom is enough for a non-secretary.

To preserve the Emperor’s majesty.

I rejected the Emperor’s kindness and headed for the underground treasury with a group of servants. I looked around. It’s very dark underground, with no light.

The Imperial Mage speaks in a proud voice.

“The magic of the Oath is constantly manifested in the underground treasury. No matter how many enemies break in, no matter how many magic tricks, no one can take the treasures of the Empire.”

Does this mean it’s a magically neutralized space similar to Mugan?

Obviously, no magic, no light.

I lowered my aura again, thinking I was holding a torch.

In the midst of my musings.

The Imperial Mage stuck out his tongue.

“I never thought you could penetrate such an imperial underground treasure trove……! But now that I’ve seen you in person, I understand. Indeed, if you were Dark Dragon, you would be able to see through it.”

Suddenly, Dark Dragon……?

Is he trying to be funny?

No, more than that, who saw what?

‘What are you talking about?’

It seemed like a story about the [Milky Way Whetstone]. When I requested to borrow the Milky Way Whetstone from the underground treasury, they seemed to think that they had discovered the neutralizing magic of the underground treasury.

‘……Seeing through is a piece of cake.’

I thought it was just an effect of the Map of All Things.

It’s just something I’ve been feeling lately…….

It was right to nip unnecessary illusions in the bud.

You never know how a small illusion can come back to haunt you, or anyone else. Of course, I couldn’t be honest this time, even if I wanted to.

‘Because it evaporated and disappeared, Map of All Things.’

I don’t have the proof, so I can’t say anything.

But even if I did.

The Imperial Mage continued on his own terms.

“So I suppose you don’t really need a guide, since you already know what treasures are in the palace’s underground treasury and where they lie.”

No, I really didn’t know anything.

I’m excited because I think I’ve found a real treasure trove.

I bow politely, not sure if he knows my secret or not.

“Nevertheless, it is Imperial procedure, so I hope you’ll bear with me, and if there is anything I can do for you, please feel free to ask.”

And-

With those polite words, I begin to look around the report in earnest.

Until I entered.

I thought it would simply be like the Garnet Hall in the Magic Tower.

The Garnet Hall is where the majority of the magic tools in the Magic Tower are stored. In terms of sheer numbers, the Empire outnumbered the Magic Tower by several orders of magnitude, so I assumed it would not be as rare as the magic items in the Magic Tower.

But…….

Look around here.

Or over there.

There are items as far as the eye can see.

I’m not surprised.

It could be a simple difference in the number of items available. Why, unlike the magic towers, where only mages had magic tools, the underground treasury of the Imperial Palace had no such class restrictions.

I murmured.

“It’s more like a department store than a specialty shop.”

At this point, someone interrupted me.

“……What did you say?”

“I was talking about anomaly.”

“……Anomaly? I apologize for not being more helpful.”

There’s nothing to apologize for.

Something got mixed up anyway.

It’s probably just my big mouth, which is grandiosely packaged as anomaly.

But unfortunately, I didn’t have time to unpack it and explain it to him.

Neither will he.

[Rating: Epic]

[Rating: Epic]

[Rating: Epic]…….

I couldn’t believe the level of items I was seeing!

So many Epic items.

Not only the variety, but also the quantity was unheard of in Magic Tower.

‘It doesn’t really make sense.’

Mages are known for their complex and eccentric personalities.

Most mages, especially in the Magic Tower, did not welcome the use of magic items. It was the mages of Matap who sought to prove their strength without resorting to other means.

‘I have no choice but to be relatively uninterested in magic items.’

Equipment, including swords, bows, shields, and armor.

Monocles, ornaments, pocket watches…….

And sundries whose effectiveness I cannot fathom.

Naturally, my words were preordained.

“Indeed, what the Empire would consider treasure.”

That’s about as high praise as you can get in the Grandfell style.

Part of me wants to see all the effects, one by one.

The message piqued my greed.

[Imperial Palace Underground Report]

[Items can be exchanged for accumulated contributions].

[Contribution: 1,001,260,000P]

I’ve accumulated a billion contributions.

My conscience is pricked because I accumulated that in half a day…….

Didn’t you think we should just shamelessly accept it?

Yes, because there were solid contributions.

No matter how great an item you pick.

I thought I could at least swap a few of them.

‘Of course, not now.’

At this moment, I couldn’t put a straw through the empire if I tried.

It’s too big to suck.

But, like I said.

It’s not polite to keep saying no.

‘I need to check it out.’

A certain amount of contribution points,

how many items I can trade for.

And…….

to see what the Warlord’s Library is all about.

So I grimly looked away.

“I’ll continue to ask for guidance.”

“By guidance, you mean the Warlord’s Library, right?”

“That’s right.”

The Warlord’s Library.

From the looks of it, it was…….

Everyone but me seemed to be familiar with the Warlord’s Library, so I guess I should ask first. I turned to the Imperial mage in front of me.

“I’d like you to give me a brief tour of the Warlord’s library.”

“Oh, of course!”

I relaxed.

Despite first impressions, you’re a good storyteller.

The more I look at you, the more you remind me of someone…….

Anyway, to summarize the Imperial Mage’s story.

The Warlord’s Library was a kind of search bar.

You could ask any question, and as long as the answer existed on the Arcana Continent.

It was a search engine that would bring the answer to the questioner.

In other words.

‘Higher Level Compatibility of the Map of All Things.’

[The effectiveness of the Map of All Things was great, but it was limited to objects. The Warlord’s library would be more versatile without such restrictions.

A servant who was listening chimed in.

“In fact, the Warlord’s Library is not only the foundation of the Empire’s power, but also the Empire’s greatest treasure, as our predecessors have said that whenever there was a crisis in the Empire, they looked to the Warlord’s Library for answers and resolved the crisis.”

I see.

I hear you.

I can see how an empire with less power than the Magic Tower could dominate the Arcana continent. Yes, because they had a cheat key like this, and it kept them afloat for generations.

‘If only I could utilize it…….’

Maybe it could replace [Map of All Things]?

That was a huge piece of news.

In that case, I’m looking forward to it.

The Warlord’s Library are now being revealed.

As for the results.

The Warlord’s Library did not betray my expectations.

[Unmeasurable]

However, I just responded unexpectedly.

“I see.”

Impossible to measure.

When I saw the message.

I wondered if there was a new item tier I didn’t know about.

Like there was a [Legendary] tier above [Epic].

[Legendary] I thought it was a higher level item.

But it wasn’t.

“Don’t you feel reverence right from the moment you enter?”

It may have seemed that way to the Arcanians.

Not to me.

My vision was superimposed on the message.

It is.

[Warlord’s Library]

[Appropriate Level: Unmeasurable]

[Collapse Progress: 92.7%]

The Warlord’s Library.

It was a rift.

A dinging sensation is sent to the back of my head.

However, my steady posture shines through in times like this.

Thanks to that, I have the same expression as always.

I looked at the rift, at the Warlord’s Library.

I began to understand.

I thought the effect was too deceptive.

“So this was an anomaly after all.”

The effect was only possible because it was a rift, a space of [Anomaly].

Now that I know the truth.

I needed to dig deeper and deeper.

In the Arcana system, the proper level does not exist for nothing.

The fact that it is unmeasurable.

It means that there are truly unmeasurable dangers lurking.

‘But how did the previous emperors get into the library?’

Even if they didn’t see the message.

The moment you enter, you realize the danger.

I’ll have to talk to the Emperor about that.

Just in time.

Can’t be replaced with anything.

The golden tea time has arrived.

.

.

.

The Emperor looked out the window from his library.

He could see the people in the streets.

Had the news from beyond the walls reached them?

Their faces seemed more than brightened, they seemed energized.

The emperor opened his mouth to speak.

“A truly Antonium sight, indeed.”

The emperor remembered the words of his father, the first emperor.

-“My son, remember that peace requires sacrifice.”

He didn’t fully understand his father’s words then.

But when the empire faced a true crisis.

The Emperor realized.

It wasn’t his vassals, it wasn’t his people, it wasn’t anyone.

It was himself, the emperor he was born to be.

As emperors before him had done.

“Perhaps it is time for me to bear the weight of the crown.”

The emperor wanted to ask his heavenly father.

‘Father, how did you feel?’

How does it feel to have lived a life that you will one day have to end yourself?

Actually, I know without having to ask.

” ……, so you didn’t tell me.”

You always had that lonely look on your face.

The Emperor thought.

Maybe, at this moment.

Maybe he was wearing the same look as his father.

But the Emperor hid his expression.

“I am weak.”

I can’t show this emotion.

No, he shouldn’t.

He must not allow himself to be shaken by any circumstance.

Calming himself, the emperor left the library.

He went to greet Hoyeol, who had returned from his underground treasury.

‘I will accept any request.’

No matter what treasure it is.

No amount of money could compare to the miracles Hoyeol had performed.

But.

“I hope you like it.”

What Hoyeol gave after returning from the underground treasury was not a request.

It was simply a word.

One that the man born to be emperor had never heard from anyone in his life.

“I suspect I know what troubles you.”

“……?”

“You may lay that weight down before me.”

“……!”

It was comforting.

.

.

.

It was so nice up until that point.

……Doesn’t it feel good to just accept the tea that’s being served to you?

The emperor says, waving the tea bag this way and that.

“This is an interesting tea, the way you brew it.”

I chirp shamelessly.

“Integrity and innocence.”

“Is this the tea that symbolizes innocence?”

“At the same time, it symbolizes the greatness that can only come naturally.”

“Oh my…….”

“It’s a green tea.”

……Seriously, even this much hype is a scam!