Chapter 598
Chapter 598: Let Me Tell You an Old Tale. (3)
Ereness gazed at Yulien with trembling eyes.
‘You…’
If he were the adversary, he wouldn’t be like this. He wishes to eliminate humanity. He would never fight to protect people.
But look. The author has fought the rifts and battled the Salvation Society until now. Now, he does not hesitate to confront dragons.
There’s not a hint of selfishness within him. He sacrifices everything solely to protect the people.
That was the figure of the hero she had once known.
‘Savior.’
In the ancient war, the hero was also called the Savior.
And when she obtained information about Yulien, she learned that he was also referred to that way in the Kingdom of Turian.
That was why she couldn’t help but feel more confused. Now, she couldn’t even be sure that the author was an adversary.
Her heart ached. That face kept stirring up old memories.
Ereness tried hard to quell those memories and emotions, speaking coldly.
“No matter how strong you are, you cannot defeat him. The dragon is called the strongest being and the supreme entity for a reason.”
At her words, Ghislaine nodded. He knew the power of dragons well from his past life experiences.
Himself, Yulien, Jerome, Parniel, Aiden.
Five of the seven great powers of the continent faced off, leading their armies. Yet they all found it difficult against Arterion’s formidable strength.
And there were still stories to verify. A bit more organization was necessary.
“Yulien, I cannot allow you to go after the dragon alone.”
“It’s fine. The dragon will come looking for me, so I’ll handle it myself.”
“Why do something so fun alone? If you’re going, let’s all go together.”
“…”
“Ereness, why are you so certain that the adversary has been resurrected? From what I hear, that guy died in an ancient war, didn’t he?”
“That’s right, he’s dead.”
“A dead person cannot… resurrect.”
Ghislaine trailed off. While speaking, he remembered.
Wasn’t he the one who held a grudge and died, only to be resurrected?
To be accurate, he had returned to the past.
Ereness responded with an indifferent expression.
“It is certain that the adversary is dead. But before his death, he foretold his resurrection. He cursed us, as well.”
“No matter how much he prophesied, isn’t it strange to believe that?”
“We thought it was just a curse fueled by resentment. But we were indeed cursed… and the curse has just now lifted. That’s why the dragon and I can now move.”
People fell silent, rolling their eyes. They wanted to believe in some way, yet it still sounded absurd.
Even Ghislaine felt hesitant to speak confidently on this matter. After all, he had little confirmation from his dreams.
Vanessa the mage simply summarized the situation.
“So… a long time ago, Ereness and the dragon fought against the Salvation Society… they killed their king and won… and that king prophesied his resurrection… now he has returned?”
“… Yes.”
“So, the Salvation Society believes in that prophecy… they are searching for their king… and Ereness and the dragon are trying to find him to kill him?”
“… Yes.”
Even a cult follower would struggle to believe in such prophecies to this extent. It seemed even less credible from Vanessa, a mage.
Thus, she offered a reasonable hypothesis.
“Uh, um… Isn’t it difficult to believe he resurrected just because the curse was lifted? No matter how strong a curse, it will eventually break over time.”
Ereness nodded. She had thought that way at one point as well.
So she presented another argument.
“Even if the demon lord’s remnants are sealed, they don’t completely disappear. They’ve already spread widely in this world. I don’t know the details, but… I believe it has long since become part of the world.”
“What do you mean…?”
“Only those from the Salvation Society can wield the power that has spread throughout the world. Others cannot see or feel it.”
People tilted their heads.
They knew the Salvation Society wielded special powers. According to Ereness’s legends, it was the essence left behind by the demon lord.
But how was that related to the adversary’s resurrection?
Yet Ereness continued calmly.
“As the adversary’s power grows stronger, the power spread across the world grows stronger as well. The adversary is the one who etched the purest essence of the demon lord onto his soul.”
Her gaze became distant, as if reminiscing about someone from her memories.
“Those connected to him are also affected. The first are those who wield the power of the Salvation Society, and the second are those cursed by him.”
Only then did the people nod. Regardless of whether the power of the Salvation Society had indeed grown, the basis for the dragon’s movement after the curse was lifted seemed solid.
But soon, shocking words slipped from her mouth.
“The third is the rift. If we investigate, there will surely be some anomalies.”
“…”
The faces of the people stiffened. Jerome and Vanessa reacted especially violently.
Recently, peculiarities had appeared in the rift, prompting all the mages to gather for research. Yet, they still did not know the cause.
But if Ereness’s words were true…
Jerome muttered to himself unconsciously.
“Is it that the adversary’s resurrection and the strengthening of his power caused anomalies in the rift?”
Ereness looked at Jerome.
“What kind of anomaly?”
“Uh, the size of the rift we had suppressed with the magic circle has grown slightly.”
She nodded. It seemed she had expected that.
“Indeed, the rift is influenced by the demon lord’s power. The adversary has certainly been secretly growing his power somewhere. That might be why he hasn’t shown himself until now.”
It seemed Ereness’s faith in Yulien turned into doubt.
Jerome asked Ereness.
“Is the essence of the demon lord truly something we cannot feel? Is that possible?”
He was at the 8th circle, more familiar with the flow of the world than anyone else.
Yet even he had never felt such strange energy during his life.
Ereness nodded.
“The energy spread across the world is beyond our perception. But it is a real presence. Isn’t it now widely known that the Salvation Society wields foreign powers?”
“Then how can the Salvation Society utilize that energy?”
“I don’t know either. They must have their own methods.”
“… Hmm.”
“Think of it like spirits. Those with absolutely no affinity cannot feel them.”
Jerome found that reasoning agreeable. It certainly made sense.
The essence wielded by the priests of the Salvation Society still had its identity unclear.
They extracted life force from people, but it was different from the power wielded by necromancers. Even Helgenik could not accurately ascertain its source.
If it was indeed something crafted from the demon lord’s energy, that would explain it. Just like ordinary people utilizing mana.
“Hmmm…”
Ghislaine fell into thought for a moment. He had risen to a realm where he could momentarily glimpse the flow of the world, yet he had never felt such strange energy.
Perhaps it was due to his still-low realm, but there could be other reasons.
Regardless, it was undeniable that the energy indeed existed. The priests of the Salvation Society were wielding it expertly.
As the brief silence passed, Ereness looked around at everyone.
“I believe you’ve grasped the general background by now. Of course, I understand it’s hard to believe since it’s mixed with myth. I don’t know all the truths myself. But it’s certain that the adversary has resurrected, and that influence is gradually growing.”
“…”
Some people glanced at Yulien. When applying what they had learned to Yulien, the pieces fell into place.
Yulien was indeed getting stronger faster than anyone else.
Yet they swiftly shook off that thought. Someone like him couldn’t possibly be the adversary.
Ghislaine was also convinced that Yulien could not be the adversary. He had seen a hero resembling Yulien in his dream.
Even if reborn, he was more likely to become a hero rather than the adversary. After all, doesn’t he still fight for the people’s sake?
Then who could the adversary be…
Ghislaine subtly glanced around before closing his mouth.
‘Ah, why does he have to resemble me so annoyingly.’
— Master! Isn’t that totally the master? Hurry up and say it honestly, and beg for forgiveness! Give up on world domination!
‘Shut up.’
In the dream, the adversary seemed to have used the power of Dark, just like him. So similar that Dark didn’t even question it.
Ereness had also attacked him the moment she saw him before. After acknowledging her misunderstanding from experiencing the energy of Dark, didn’t that mean the adversary resembled Ghislaine?
Ghislaine couldn’t shake off the uneasy feeling. Because of that dream, he too was thoroughly confused.
Everyone fell silent, lost in their thoughts. Ereness’s words were shocking, but they certainly helped clarify their curiosity about the Salvation Society.
While everyone was wrapped in their own thoughts, Jerome stepped forward as if he had made a decision.
“Um… actually, there are some records concerning the adversary.”
At those words, Ereness looked surprised.
“What? There are records?”
“Yes. Our mage tower has records about the Salvation Society and the adversary. To be precise, it’s not solely about the Salvation Society but just darkness that has enveloped the world…”
“What records?! What records are left?”
Ereness stared at Jerome with fiery eyes. Jerome gulped.
“Actually, I don’t know the details. I just heard that the founder of our tower created magic to combat the adversary. The magic I used against Gathros before is that one.”
“Anything else?”
“Uh… no? Just that if we meet the adversary, we must use that magic… that was the mission of our mage tower.”
“Who is the founder of the mage tower?”
“They’re unknown.”
Jerome’s master, like the previous inheritors, had concealed their identity for a long time. They simply continued the mission passed down through generations.
Jerome hesitated to speak up at first. It was a secret that the tower had long kept hidden.
However, Ereness’s story perfectly matched the ancient legend of the tower. It could no longer be considered a secret.
So he spoke, but Ereness’s reaction was strange.
She looked at Jerome again and asked.
“Really, really, there are no other records?”
“Yes, truly, there’s nothing else.”
People looked at Ereness with suspicion once more.
Just before, she had calmly stated she didn’t know why the records had been erased, yet why was she suddenly so intent on them?
Noticing their expressions, Ereness shook her head.
“I asked because it might be a record left behind by someone I know from that era. If that’s the case, it would have been someone who fought alongside me. I merely wished to revisit old memories.”
Jerome clamped his mouth shut as if he wanted to say something.
He knew that the founder of the mage tower was an ally of the hero and the saint. Yet somehow, he felt it was not the right time to say that.
Ghislaine eyed Ereness suspiciously. It was clear she was still hiding something.
‘She’s not someone who would force herself to spill.’
Still, just learning this information was a big deal. In his past life, they hadn’t even shared this with him.
What could be such a tightly guarded secret? Surely, it must pertain to the war a thousand years ago.
But Ghislaine didn’t press Ereness for it.
‘The information I have is sufficient for now.’
He would learn more in his dreams. The dreams were sure to show him that war.
Yet there was something he needed to know right now.
Ghislaine looked at Ereness and said.
“Alright, I’ve mostly satisfied my curiosity. If anything else comes to mind, I’ll ask. It seems hard to find the adversary immediately, so we should focus on stopping the dragon first.”
“Indeed. Right now, stopping the dragon is more important than anything else.”
“But… I’m a bit curious about the end of that war?”
“Didn’t I say humanity won? That’s why it could flourish like this now.”
“I know that… but what happened to the saint and the hero? Didn’t those two receive curses?”
“The two… poured all their strength into purifying the demon realm and sealing the demon lord’s corpse. Thanks to their sacrifice, the Salvation Society lost their land and had to hide away.”
“I see. That’s truly the kind of behavior befits the saint and the hero.”
Everyone nodded. The two who sacrificed themselves for the world deserved praise from all.
Just when it seemed the conversation would end, Ghislaine suddenly asked.
“Where was that demon realm? Does such a place exist on this continent?”
At those words, Ereness paused. She was silent for quite a while.
After hesitating several times, she sighed deeply and then spoke.
“That place… is known by everyone here.”
“Where? We haven’t heard any such rumors or legends.”
Ereness looked at the enormous map mounted on the wall and pointed to one location.
“In the Ruthania Kingdom…”
Everyone’s gaze followed her finger. As they confirmed the position she was pointing to, their expressions turned serious.
Ereness’s voice echoed in everyone’s ears.
“It’s the Forest of Monsters.”
