EP.202 The Land of Ashes (2)
There was no difficulty in applying for a month-long vacation.
On the day I went to submit the paperwork at the president’s office, Dean Aaron merely nodded. Without any further questions, he said to me:
“Thank you for your hard work. I’ve heard from the Royal Guards that you were a great help in protecting the students.”
His soft voice and kind smile.
“I heard you were badly hurt. Make sure to rest well for the month. I owe you a great deal for the last betrayer incident and again this time.”
It was at this moment that I understood why so many professors respected him and why my Master said Dean Aaron was a ‘good person.’
Anyway, the vacation paperwork was approved without any issues.
All that was left was to find someone to fill in for me during my one-month absence, but that wasn’t too difficult. After all, there was already a superhuman-level mage in Apuria.
“Substitute for the class? The subject you were handling… Ah, Mana Trading Studies.”
The superhuman mage, Kelharlem.
“I know well. I’ve planned various lectures on Mana Trading and Balance before—it’s been a little over a hundred years, but I remember.”
He was more commonly known under the name Braver, but Kelharlem had previously operated the largest academic city in history, Artiya.
“Honestly, he seems to teach ‘certain’ subjects better than I do…”
His experience as an educator was unparalleled. My Master and even Dean Aaron would have to bow down to him. There was no doubt about his qualifications as a teacher.
“…A special lecture for Resti Elenoa?”
I also entrusted him with a special lecture. In the case of Chloe, Kelharlem had shown resistance, but with Resti, he seemed reasonably okay with it.
“Above all.”
Resti’s talent and class.
When it comes to teaching her, I thought Kelharlem, who had already taught her once, was more suited than I was.
“I’ll do my best.”
Kelharlem responded, and with that, all tasks to tie up before my month-long vacation were completed.
On the early morning of the promised day.
I was waiting for Cardi outside the castle wall.
“Hoooh!”
I stretched like a lazy cat and leaned against a tree. The appointment time was approaching, so it wouldn’t be long before the old elf would show up.
Tick-tock.
As I glanced at my pocket watch to kill time, I heard footsteps. Light footsteps. I slightly turned my head to look back.
“So you were already here.”
At the exact time of our appointment.
Not a minute early or late, Cardi arrived punctually, and I let out a short sigh.
“Does it hurt to come a bit early?”
“It’s been a while since I went out, so I had a lot to prepare. But I made it on time, didn’t I?”
Cardi straightened his clothing.
He tugged at his robe’s collar a couple of times, and the robe billowed dramatically. I couldn’t take my eyes off the fluttering robe.
A robe built on a white base, embroidered with platinum-colored threads resembling starlight. The embroidery, resembling constellations, was truly a work of art.
The symbol of the first Master of the Tower.
It was a robe I coveted deeply.
“………”
I looked down at my own robe in silence.
It had a neat design and was practical. While it was less impressive compared to the one I wore during my days as an Ashen Mage, it didn’t fall short of any ordinary robe.
But for some reason, today, my robe felt particularly shabby.
“Tsk…”
I glanced at Cardi’s robe with longing.
“What are you staring at?”
“Um, nothing…”
“Speak. Just say it.”
After a moment’s hesitation, I slowly opened my mouth.
“Hey. Can I try that on just once?”
I’ll return it after wearing it. I promise.
—
“I’d like to entrust you with investigating the ruins.”
In the tent of the Knights Order, Commander Heinkel faced the hero known as the hope of humanity.
“Did you say investigating the ruins?”
Hero Kyle Toven.
He set down his sword’s sheath on the floor as he replied. Heinkel nodded at the question.
“You must be aware that a Sword Demon has recently joined the battlefield. Moreover, he is under a subordinate contract.”
“…I’m aware.”
Kyle had encountered the Sword Demon on the battlefield not long ago. The sight of it carelessly sweeping aside monsters with hollow eyes was—truly like a specter.
‘It was a broken version of him.’
He had not heard many details.
All he knew was that the Ashen Mage had suppressed him after he tried to incite an incident in the North.
‘That guy again.’
Kyle let out a short sigh at the unseen presence of his old comrade.
“So, is the Sword Demon a problem?”
“I heard a few things from him. Specifically, the internal circumstances around the incident he tried to incite in the North.”
Muttering this, Heinkel placed something on the map cluttered with various tactical books and markers. It was a bone fragment from someone.
“…What is this?”
“They say it’s a finger of the First Saint.”
Kyle narrowed his eyes.
“…The First Saint?”
“She’s a special individual only mentioned in the Forbidden Books of the Deloheim Church. Until now, she was believed to be a fictional character passed down through legend… but the Sword Demon presented it as a trophy. He intended to use it for a miracle of ‘revival’.”
Heinkel let out a lengthy sigh.
“I didn’t hear the full details, but it seems revivals come at the cost of many lives. It was an act that clearly crossed the line. That’s why Raniel must have used extreme measures to subdue him.”
“…Is that so?”
“So, you must be wondering why I’m showing this to you and what it has to do with the investigation of the ruins.”
With a tap-tap, Heinkel knocked on the table.
“This bone fragment was found in the Land of Ashes.”
The Land of Ashes.
That name sounded familiar.
“Are you talking about a place full of pollution?”
“Yes. It was discovered in the ruins related to the Deloheim Church, located on the outskirts of that area, where pollution has only just begun.”
“…That’s a place we can’t enter, isn’t it?”
“It seems they used some sort of trick. Anyway, I want to entrust you with investigating that location.”
The Land of Ashes, a contaminated area.
The mention of entering there to investigate ruins didn’t sound pleasant to Kyle. He intertwined his fingers under the table.
“…Is this really my job?”
“It’s something only you can do. I don’t want to put this on you since it would have a large impact on the frontline if you were absent, but… all the other heroes have failed.”
Including Galahal, the Spear of Destiny.
Even the cowardly Destel had failed, Heinkel said. Kyle questioned the reason they must proceed despite experiencing their failures.
“What do we stand to gain from this?”
“A Holy Grail that can bring someone close to superhuman status to that level without losing anything.”
“…A Holy Grail?”
Kyle blinked.
This was a statement contrary to the common belief around superhumans. Kyle pointed this out.
“Isn’t it that one must lose something to become a superhuman?”
“Normally, yes. But not at the Sacred Site of the Sword. According to the records, those approaching superhuman status will undergo a specific ‘trial’.”
And if they manage to complete the secret trial… they could become superhumans without losing anything.
“Upon comparing what the Sword Demon investigated with the records of the recovered Forbidden Books from the church, I found a clue.”
Heinkel spoke.
“Three cups containing three lights. A Holy Grail symbol created to act as the saint’s blessing, both a star cup and a holy grail.”
That was what the Sword Demon sought after with zeal, digging through numerous records and ruins to identify the possible locations of the Holy Grail.
However, the Sword Demon failed to obtain it.
“One is in the Sacred Site of the Sword, Galatrik.”
Naturally, that was unobtainable.
The Sacred Site of the Sword had become the domain of Ganikalt, the Death’s Blade.
“The second is in the black fields, the center of the Phantom Territory.”
That, too, was unobtainable.
Since it was located where the King of Beasts devoured everything that approached.
“The last one is said to be hidden beneath the Deloheim Church in the Land of Ashes.”
A place with more potential than the first two.
However, for Draka, reaching there was also out of reach.
For a door only those with starlight could unlock blocked the way.
“But, you can.”
Heinkel pointed at Kyle.
“Among all the heroes, I believe you, the one with the strongest starlight, could manage it.”
He handed Kyle the fragment of the First Saint’s bone.
“If you carry this, and with the help of the saint accompanying you, I believe you can pass through the Land of Pollution. I’m counting on you, Kyle.”
Heinkel’s eyes were fixed on Kyle.
“With the absence of the Ashen Mage, your defeat is weighing heavily on the frontlines. For maintaining the status quo, we need a new superhuman.”
One superhuman can change a battlefield.
Now that the Ashen Mage who even surpassed superhumans was gone, the battlefield was yearning for a new superhuman.
“I ask for the retrieval of the Holy Grail.”
Heinkel bowed his head.
Watching him, Kyle found it hard to refuse. He realized the enormous repercussions of his defeat on the current front lines.
“…I understand.”
Reluctantly, Kyle accepted the proposal.
—
“So, why are you going to the Land of Ashes?”
Suddenly questioning, Raniel directed her gaze at Cardi, who supported his chin.
“I heard the Hound lost his eyes.”
“Kalt?”
“Yeah. And you are looking for a way to restore his eyesight, right?”
“Well… I was planning to drag that crazy girl, Sara, back by her hair if needed.”
She spoke as if handling an object.
What kind of person could the saint of this era be… Cardi thought, continuing his explanation.
“In the Land of Ashes, my homeland, there are ‘various means’ available. Using those, I might be able to restore his eyesight. Moreover… I could potentially make him a superhuman.”
“…You can make him a superhuman?”
“My homeland had many special items.”
A smirk appeared on Cardi’s face.
He purposely left out the fact that most of those items were things he and Gleria had collaborated on.
“That’s some reassuring news. Kalt has been looking rather pitiful with that eye patch.”
Raniel didn’t inquire further.
She let out a breath of relief and simply smiled gently. Seeing this, Cardi sighed.
“…Your body doesn’t look like it could afford to worry about others.”
“I’m fine, it’s nothing new for me.”
That was how it always was.
Raniel’s condition reflected in Cardi’s eyes was already severely deteriorating. Putting aside her lifespan, the cracks spreading within her soul were gnawing away at her body, hastening the shortening of her life.
‘…It has worsened since the last incident.’
Cardi calculated internally how long Raniel could live if this continued. To an elf, that duration was mere moments. Even from a human perspective, it wasn’t that long.
“Raniel.”
Cardi called her name in a calm voice.
“You know your lifespan is being consumed, right? That the wear-and-tear of your soul is accelerating, too.”
“…I’m aware.”
“This trip is to resolve that. Even if we can’t recover your lost lifespan, there should be means to halt the acceleration of the wear.”
“…But you mentioned you’re going to find a way to fix Kalt’s eyes?”
Cardi shook his head.
“That’s just an auxiliary goal. The main purpose is to stop the acceleration of your lifespan… and to grant you a qualification.”
“A qualification?”
“The qualification to glimpse the truth. If you can reach the core of my homeland and ‘understand’ something, I can reveal the truth to you.”
Saying this, Cardi gazed at Raniel.
In a human life that lasts but a brief moment, her steps shattering centuries of quietude seemed astonishing every time he witnessed them.
‘In less than half a century, she’s come close to the truth.’
Moreover, after this incident, the amount of information accessible to her had increased even more. She had taken another step closer to the concealed truth.
‘You recognized the name of Arcadia.’
That indicated that the time had come.
Three contracts tied to the stars. It was time to reveal the second contract, Cardi sensed.
“Once you’ve heard that, only one will remain.”
“Something like that.”
Walking side by side, Cardi glanced sideways at Raniel, whose eyes were half-open.
“By the way, Raniel.”
“Hmm? Why?”
“How long are you planning to keep wearing that robe?”
You said you’d only wear it for a moment but haven’t handed it back.
At Cardi’s question, Raniel shrugged briefly. Then, glancing away, she muttered in a softer voice.
“…Until we arrive.”
“Give it back.”
—
#No Heroes Appearing
…I thought it would be like this, so I have decided to reintroduce a hero after a long time in this episode.
I originally considered introducing him in the next episode but decided to bring him in a little earlier since many of you were curious. 😀
