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HELHEIM SCANS
[Translator - Prøks]
[Proofreader - Prøks]
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Chapter 133
"Fate... you say?"
Suddenly, after creating a heavy atmosphere, he was talking about fate?
It was such an unexpected remark that I was dumbfounded.
However.
"With your current growth, you will soon understand why I said that, disciple."
Ani Persson did not clear up my curiosity.
Rather, he simply responded with meaningful words.
"You're really not going to tell me?"
"You wouldn't understand even if I told you now."
"Hoo..."
My chest felt stuffy.
'It feels like it's an important story.'
I could sense it intuitively.
That this story was related to the rumors about Ani Persson that I had heard.
And that if I heard this story, all my doubts about Ani Persson would be resolved.
But since he didn't want to talk about it, there was nothing I could do.
So, just as I was about to move on.
'Wait, isn't it about time I could ask about this?'
A thought suddenly occurred to me, and I brought up a question that I hadn't been able to ask until now.
"Would it be alright if I asked you about the rumors from 5 years ago?"
Thump.
I brought up the story quite cautiously, but upon hearing the question, Ani Persson's movements stopped.
"......Rumors?"
What's more, he even reacted as if he was hearing about it for the first time.
It seemed that he was very reluctant to talk about it, but this time, I had no intention of backing down.
"It's no use pretending you don't know. Didn't you even mention it yourself when we first met? That people didn't come to you because of some strange rumors."
"Ah, that's right... yes, that's right."
Only then did Ani Persson nod his head as if he had remembered.
I didn't miss this opportunity and drove the point home.
"Could you tell me about it?"
Frankly, this was a very important issue.
It was an issue that would determine whether or not I could maintain my relationship with Ani Persson in the future.
No matter how outstanding an expert he was in light magic, I couldn't continue to carry this uncomfortable feeling.
Ani Persson seemed to sense that as well.
"Alright. I can see the look in your eyes. I can't avoid it any longer. Huhihi..."
He let out a meaningless laugh and then nodded his head as if he had made up his mind.
Soon after.
"Alright. I won't tell you everything, but I'll tell you about how those rumors came to be."
He said he would tell me the truth and opened his mouth.
"First of all, how much do you know?"
How much, huh...
Without hesitation, I revealed everything I knew.
"I heard that Rodveny Ashitan was learning light magic from you and then disappeared."
"......Hmm, I guess you know everything then. Alright."
Ahem!
Ani Persson cleared his throat and composed himself.
"To talk about this, we must first talk about Rodveny."
He continued, his face quite serious.
"Rodveny was..."
He calmly told the story of Rodveny, and I quietly listened to him.
It wasn't as complicated a story as I had expected.
The circumstances under which Ani Persson met Rodveny, the reason he started teaching him light magic, and so on.
It wasn't much different from the rumors I had heard, and that was all there was to it regarding Rodveny.
And, the important story continued from there.
"Rodveny, he was as sincere about light magic as you, disciple, and I, too, taught him diligently so as not to betray his sincerity."
"Diligently as in...?"
"It wouldn't be an exaggeration to say that I passed on all the knowledge I had about light."
Everything.
That one word showed how outstanding a disciple Rodveny was.
It meant that Ani Persson had passed on all the knowledge he was so proud of, knowledge that had reached the realm of the 9th circle.
And the beginning of the problem also started from there.
"As he learned more about light, he gradually went mad. Later, even I couldn't stop him. He even defied the king's orders and devoted himself to light magic, so I think you can imagine how crazy he was."
"Exactly how was he mad?"
"He didn't harm others. He was just frantically obsessed with and craving light."
Ani Persson closed his eyes gently and continued speaking.
His face looked as if he was recalling the past.
"And he finally reached the last knowledge of light."
The last of light.
I instinctively realized that this word was the key keyword in the current conversation.
At the same time, countless question marks began to pop up in my head.
What exactly does the last of light mean, is it a different kind from the "true light" that Dercion yearned for, and so on.
I asked him about that.
"I can't tell you the former, and I don't know the latter very well either. I don't know what the Aldeon academy was aiming for. However."
Ani Persson turned the conversation away as if that wasn't important, and then suddenly clenched and unfolded his fist in the air.
"The moment Rodveny was about to reach the last knowledge, he vanished without a trace."
"......Disappeared?"
"Yes, it was a complete disappearance. After that, no trace of Rodveny could be found anywhere. It's easier to think that he just went to another dimension."
"Another dimension?"
"Of course, that's just my guess. Puhihihi..."
Huh, suddenly another dimension?
Is it possible to travel to another dimension with light magic?
I couldn't grasp anything.
Unless Ani Persson told me.
Eventually.
"What exactly is that last knowledge of light?"
I further questioned him about the last knowledge that he was trying to hide.
Rodveny's disappearance, another dimension, everything seemed to be related to this.
From what I've heard so far, Ani Persson seemed to know about it.
As I thought.
"I will absolutely not tell you about that. The time has not yet come."
Ani Persson spoke with a nuance that he knew about the last knowledge.
Even though he didn't say it outright.
"I don't want to repeat the same mistake twice, disciple."
"......I understand what you mean."
I didn't pry any further here either.
This question seemed to be closely related to Ani Persson's wounds.
Besides, it didn't seem like he would never tell me.
If that were the case, he wouldn't have mentioned that the time wasn't right.
Anyway.
Now I had figured everything out.
The relationship between Rodveny and Ani Persson, the events that had occurred there, and the reason why strange rumors had spread.
'So, Rodveny's disappearance wasn't something Ani Persson wanted.'
It was just something that the royal mage, Rodveny, had done on his own, driven by his greed for light magic.
That is, if everything Ani Persson said was true.
"Was this explanation sufficient, disciple?"
Ani Persson asked as if he was satisfied.
Well, honestly, not all of my doubts were resolved, but this was enough for now.
"Yes. Thank you for kindly telling me, even though it must have been a painful memory, Master."
As I bowed my head, Ani Persson wore a faint smile.
"Let's end today's lesson here."
With those words, he once again concentrated on his research.
It was a sign for me to leave.
"I will come back to learn again next time."
I also shook off my lingering attachments and turned my back.
Meanwhile, only one thought was on my mind.
The last knowledge of light.
The cause that led Rodveny to disappear.
I also had a feeling that I might reach it someday.
***
"It-it's confirmed?!"
Two days after receiving Ani Persson's teachings.
Thompson cheered loudly upon hearing the news.
"Hehehe, is it really true? Is this not a dream, Mr First Place?"
"Yes, it's confirmed."
Through Elbert, I had received word that the first gate of the Royal Commander test, which we had been waiting for, had been passed.
And that included all of my party members.
"......I never expected that I would get to go to Sector 1, either."
"You guys, I'm the most surprised, you know. Who would have thought that I, who came from Sector 7, would get to go to Sector 1?"
"It must be quite a special feeling for you, Ms. Kayla."
My party members talked about their own feelings and made a fuss.
It's just visiting Sector 1, but I wondered if they were getting too excited, but I didn't have anything to say.
Ironically, I was also just as excited.
'......Why am I so nervous about something like this?'
I had been to Sector 1 of Asternon many times in the game.
But now, I was not going as a game character but actually setting foot in Sector 1 myself.
It was only natural to be nervous since I was going directly to the place where only royalty lived.
Of course.
'......Nothing bad will happen, right?'
On the one hand, I was also worried.
Just because they were royalty didn't mean they were any more gentle than the nobles.
No, rather, they were often worse.
They had the power to cover up any kind of unreasonable behavior they might exhibit.
Thinking about the things that the Asternon royalty had done in the past, there were many things that were beyond what a normal person would do.
And, of course, most of them were on the negative side.
'If a serious situation arises... I'll leave Asternon immediately.'
Just as I was secretly making this plan.
Clatter, clatter.
"Have you been waiting long?"
Elbert appeared, riding in a golden carriage.
Since the Royal Commander evaluation was important, he came to pick us up himself.
Thanks to that.
'......Everyone, absolutely don't raise your heads.'
'If you even make eye contact, you don't know what kind of tyranny they might inflict!'
'Oh God. Please don't let me have any harsh trials.'
'Move aside! Move aside!'
The residents' attention was thoroughly captured.
Everyone was muttering something and hurriedly moving out of the way.
Well, who would come to Sector 6 riding in a carriage full of gold decorations?
Perhaps the residents might have thought that Elbert was royalty.
"......Let's hurry."
"......Okay."
We quickly boarded the carriage before the people's attention became even more focused.
Thompson wiped his forehead with his hand, looking nervous.
"Hoo, this is the first time I've ever received this kind of attention."
"......What kind of people do you think they thought we were?"
"Well, wouldn't they have thought we were butlers or servants?"
Meanwhile, Barundel, who was looking around the inside of the carriage with admiration, asked Elbert a question.
"How much does a carriage like this cost?"
"I don't really know. It's something that's hard to get with money in the first place. Usually, when you gain a position, the royal family gives it as a reward. I received it after becoming a commander."
"......A carriage bestowed by the royal family. I can tell how precious it is without hearing more."
I let that story pass through one ear and concentrated on the scenery outside the window.
Clatter, clatter.
The carriage had already departed.
The pleasant sound of horse hooves and the moderate swaying helped me to get lost in my own thoughts.
'He said it would take 6 hours.'
According to Elbert, it would take about 6 hours to get to Sector 1.
As expected, it took a long time since it was the innermost sector.
Fortunately, there was no time to be bored.
"Ehhahaha! So, even the commander had such times?"
"......It's not like I was an adult from the beginning. Is that so funny?"
"Of course! Who would have imagined? Elbert Tyran, a seven-year-old who wet his pants. Kekekekeke."
"Tsk, I shouldn't have said anything."
More interesting stories than I expected were exchanged.
They had so much to say that the conversation didn't seem to stop.
How long had it been like that?
"We've arrived."
Clatter.
The carriage stopped with the words that we had finally arrived.
When I glanced out the window, a magnificent golden entrance caught my eye.
Next was the sight of dozens of royal soldiers in golden armor, raising their spears.
Clack! Clack! Clatter!
Seeing that, I already felt a sense of awe.
Because I realized once again where this was.
'Sector 1......'
We had finally arrived at the innermost sector of Asternon.
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HELHEIM SCANS
[Translator - Prøks]
[Proofreader - Prøks]
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