◈ Episode 396. The Warlord’s Library (2)
A man manifested teleportation.
“Stop!”
Nash William, Imperial Mage. He sensed the fluctuating magic power and tried to hold the man back, but it was no use. As the man dispersed through the smoke, he spoke a single word.
“You will need me, young Seric Rose.”
The Emperor’s focus wavered.
The corner of the grotesquely contorted man’s mouth twitched one last time.
“I’ll be waiting.”
Once the man was out of sight, the servants crowded around the Emperor.
Dangerous in his unholy ways, they thought.
A mage of such skill.
Nash turned to the Emperor.
“Are you all right, Your Majesty?”
“I am fine.”
“Here comes my fault for letting that man into the palace. I should have recognised the disturbing undertones in his appearance, in his hair, in his mimicry of Lord Lee Hoyeol and no one else……!”
Brother Bensch would have seen through it.
Nash cursed his own inability to see through such magic.
Despite his subjects’ concerns, the Emperor remained silent.
-“Emperor, why did Seric Rose join in the destruction of Claudi? The reason is recorded in the Warlord’s Library. You foolish Seric Rose who knows nothing.”
The man’s words echoed in his head.
The chatter around him was right.
He should have dismissed it as nonsense.
‘It’s recorded in the Warlord’s Library…….’
The man added.
The Emperor was well aware of the weight of the Warlord’s Library. The treasure trove of wisdom that had kept the lowly Seric Rose in the imperial family. It was the Warlord’s Library.
However.
-“The moment you borrow the power of the Warlord’s Library, your authority as Emperor ends. Therefore, until you have chosen your successor, do not borrow from the library.”
That is what his father said.
And then, Father, you chose me to be the next Emperor. you set foot in the Warlord’s Library for the sake of the continent’s survival.
He asked the Warlord’s Library questions, listened to the answers, and died not many days later.
The Emperor speaks.
“Deputies, listen.”
Shhh.
The ministers bow their heads in unison.
“I intend to enter the Warlord’s Library.”
“……!”
The declaration brings a look of horror to the faces of those who know the weight of the library.
Especially Nash, the Imperial Mage, who had recently been told the truth about the Warlord’s Library by the Emperor himself.
Nash and his courtiers cried out.
“Your Majesty, how can you say such a thing? The crown prince is still too young to bear the weight of the throne.”
“Yes, Your Majesty! Moreover, the Arcana Continent is now in the Warring States Period. The empire is in dire need of your care.”
“Your Majesty……!”
The Emperor shook his head.
“I understand your concern. But do not worry. I intend to enter the Warlord’s Library, not question it.”
Why a library?
Serik Rose.
It is a library because it contains the answers our ancestors sought, the knowledge they sought. The Emperor was simply looking back at the answers his ancestors had recorded.
‘I just want to make sure.’
It was always a question.
A Great Family, Claudi.
They had suddenly vanished without a trace from the Arcana continent.
Erased from history.
It would have taken great power to do that.
There is only one such power on the Arcana.
‘…… Empire.’
The Empire could have wiped Claudi’s tracks clean.
He could have dismissed it as nonsense.
In this moment, it was responsibility that drove him to walk as an emperor.
Lee Hoyeol, or Grandfell Claudi Arpheus Romeo.
The hero of the Empire and the Arcana continent.
To be able to look him in the eye.
He wanted to make sure, even if it was a lie.
The Empire, Seric Rose, had nothing to do with Claudi’s destruction.
‘There can be no shame in his presence.’
jeobeog jeobeog.
The Emperor made his way alone to the basement of the palace, to the Warlord’s Library.
Suddenly, he remembered an incident from a while ago.
He had had this conversation with Sir Lee Hoyeol.
-“If you have any questions for the Warlord’s Library…….”
If he wishes.
The emperor was willing to sacrifice his life to use the Warlord’s Library. The empire was already more valuable to him than his own life.
However.
-“I will not allow you to enter the Warlord’s Library.”
He refused even that with great pride.
Yes, for the dialogue was fresh in his memory.
The Emperor dismissed it as nonsense.
He had no choice but to walk on.
Soon, a beam of light from thin air tickled the emperor’s eyes.
[Warlord’s Library]
[Appropriate Level: Unmeasurable]
[Collapse Progress: 92.7%]
Not a player.
The Emperor saw no such message.
All he could see was the brilliant light of the rift.
He instinctively hesitated, knowing that this was the Warlord’s Library who held his life in its grasp.
Even if it was a library where the knowledge of the ancestors lay dormant, he wanted to stay away from it if he could.
That light looked like the gaping maw of a monster.
He didn’t want to know the knowledge of his ancestors’ deaths. But things had changed. The Emperor instinctively suppressed his need to survive and stepped into the light.
And there it was.
seuleuleug.
One sheet, two sheets, three sheets…….
The parchment flipped over.
Among the many answers inscribed on those parchments.
The answer from the library that exchanged his father’s life.
Shhh.
The Emperor picked up the parchment and read it slowly.
“……!”
The Emperor’s pupils began to flutter wildly.
It was written.
Why the Empire had joined in Claudi’s destruction.
The Emperor opened his mouth in vain.
──────
Claudi will lead the Arcana continent to ruin.
──────
“……Why, why, why!!!”
*
Muon, holy land of the Goddess Church.
Talim Eber, leader of the Paladins, gazed at the saintess Freyja as she knelt before the statue of the Goddess. Truth be told, she was still an unfriendly creature to Talim.
Freyja, a saintess resurrected from a past time line.
‘…… She’s even older than me.’
But Freyja’s appearance was that of a girl.
Talim wore a neatly trimmed beard.
Nevertheless, Talim treated Freyja as a full-fledged saintess.
Her divine powers were the greatest proof of this.
Freyja prays to the Goddess.
Divine power flowed from her body. Since the fall of Muon on the Arcana continent, no paladin, priest, or church member has received a response from the Goddess.
Freyja was the only one to receive a response. As she prayed, Talim, her protector, approached her after she had finished.
“Thank you as always, Lord Talim.”
“No, my Lady.”
Talim studied Freyja’s expression as she bowed her head.
Her face was dark as ever.
‘The Goddess has given a revelation.’
Was it always a bad look?
Talim was both curious and concerned.
After much hesitation, Talim mustered up the courage to speak.
“Saintess, is there something that is troubling you?”
In response to Talim’s question, Freyja repeated.
“Lord Talim, do you have any doubts about me?”
“What a sudden doubts…….”
As mentioned earlier, Talim had erased his doubts about Freyja.
To doubt divine power was to doubt the Goddess.
But there were other questions.
Talim spoke, his face serious.
“If you say so……. I do have one doubt. I still don’t understand why you invoked the Goddess’s judgement on Lord Lee Hoyeol, Commander-in-Chief of the Holy War Alliance.”
It was an odd statement, even for Talim.
It was as if she had anticipated the question.
Freyja answered calmly.
“I was expecting you to have questions. Perhaps that’s why I kneel before the Goddess every day, praying to her, because I still have doubts myself.”
“……!”
Talim paused.
Why did Freyja’s complexion not look better after her prayers?
He guessed why.
Freyja opened her mouth.
“That’s right. The Goddess’s revelation of the Infinitely Deep Darkness has not changed yesterday, today, or just now. According to the revelation, the Infinitely Deep Darkness will one day engulf the Arcana continent in deep sorrow.”
kkug.
Freyja clutched the pendant.
She was a saintess, a revelator of the Goddess who must not betray her will.
But in this moment, she wavered.
“As a holy woman, I have followed the darkness, the infinitely deep darkness, on this earth, and I have been confronted with contradictions, and his deeds……. so noble that not even we, the Goddess Church, dared to follow.”
Lee Hoyeol.
His tracks were not hard to find.
The reason the world of adventurers is so safe.
It was because of him alone.
Moreover, the Goddess Church was intact.
Even the vast donations were said to have come from him.
But above all material evidence.
“But what I believe in is not what is seen, Lord Talim. Just as even the Goddess, who is our everything, is invisible to me and Lord Talim. Perhaps I am…….”
“…….”
“Perhaps I am believing in things that are not seen.”
And so it was.
Freyja withheld judgement.
As if she dared to doubt the Goddess’ will.
There were many reasons to pray and check the revelation again and again.
Lee Hoyeol, he is not a infinitely deep darkness.
“The Infinitely Deep Darkness.”
“…….”
“With a Ray of Light shining through it.”
Talim understood it all now.
Thanks to him.
Now he could answer with confidence.
“I dare say, Holy Lady.”
“……?”
“That Ray of Light will never disappear.”
Freyja forced a smile.
“I hope your faith is not misplaced, Lord Talim.”
*
I threw a fishing rod with a large bait called a bad omen.
‘I wish he’d just bite.’
Raymon Sean.
The result of compiling the testimony about this guy.
In the end, no one on this planet has ever encountered the real thing. And even if they did, we wouldn’t be able to trust them completely. The bastard could do any number of human impersonations with a prototype.
‘It’s so bad that I doubt he’s even human in the first place.’
Now it’s different.
I’m the fisherman, Raymon Sean, and he’s the fish that needs to be caught and reeled in, and there’s no sense that he’s going to take the bait easily.
Maybe it’s because I don’t see any humanity in him.
“There is no time to waste on trivial thoughts.”
Of course, I’m the only one with a shitty mind.
My body was going through its usual routine at this moment. First and foremost, I conveyed my congratulations on the victory through Hiel.
“I will grandly praise your achievements.”
Now I’m completely the commander in chief.
But I won’t argue, because motivation is important in any work. By the way, you said that Discus’ body didn’t provide a reward?
‘……I know the feeling, I know it better than anyone.’
A demon possessing someone gives no loot when hunted. I swallowed back tears as I thought about the loot I’d missed out on, the Seven Deadly Sins of Greed.
But it didn’t even give me any experience points.
‘I’ll have to reward them at my own expense.’
This victory meant a lot. Especially the growth of Nam Taemin and Hisagi. Perhaps it was the synergistic effect of the buffs flooding the Arcana continent.
“It’s only a matter of time before the hard work pays off.”
……Yep, you guessed it.
Anyway, I’m the Commander-in-Chief, so I have to lead by example.
If I skip a day, I’ll get thorns in my side.
If you ask me if I want to do some physical training.
‘No, that wouldn’t even be an effort by Grandfell standards, would it?’
I will show you the message in my vision.
[Understanding Darkness (Curse): Greatly increases your affinity with suitable magic. However, you must confront the past that is the source of this power. – Current Suitable Magic Affinity: 10%]
Yes, this is what you would call hard work by Grandfell standards.
Both physically and mentally.
To be honest, I wanted to turn away.
It’s a one-time thing, but I have been there, right?
The after-effects of looking into Grandfell past, ‘that day’.
But the words came out of my mouth. I will enter the Demon World. To enter the Demon World, I can’t rely on Grandfell, I have to grow my own abilities.
I can’t help it.
[Enters Curse, ‘Understanding Darkness’].
Truly, it’s always so deep, this darkness…….
.
.
.
So what is it this time?
My vision fades.
A searing heat irritates your skin.
And the world gradually becomes brighter.
“!
I witnessed.
A nameless city in flames.
Grandfell in the middle of it, holding a scarf in his hand.
A series of memories flashed through my mind.
Grandfell’s actions after ‘that day’.
Grandfell’s emotions.
Finally, a new truth.
『Grandfell is not merciful.』
‘No way.’
The screams of the humans echoed in all directions, like hell.
Soon, I come to a conclusion.
This…….
‘…… Was this all your doing, Grandfell?’