Immortal's Ascending Path - 60
Episode-60< Returning Spring >
Roberta gazed at the bronze equestrian statue in the plaza.
The sun was at its zenith, and though there wasn't a cloud in the sky, the sunlight wasn't too hot. It seemed summer was passing and autumn was approaching.
In early August, she had left the Osnober Kingdom with her two companions. By the end of the month, they had passed through two small countries and arrived in the Duchy of Circap. This country was a vassal state of the Yokester Dynasty, and the northernmost of the vassal states.
Above it were several countries, including Osnover, but those countries were sovereign states. They might pay respects to the Emperor, but they were unrelated to tribute or investiture.
This was one of the characteristics of the Third Age of Humanity, the Yokester Dynasty. In the previous two ages, there were no sovereign states outside the empire. They were only subjugated under the empire, but today, the territories outside the empire accounted for half the world.
The territories were shrinking with each passing year. Just as the Osnober Kingdom had once been a vassal state but was not today, there were more than a few countries that wanted to shake off the empire's influence.
- Akean, Emperor of the Sole Empire
Roberta read the inscription on the base of the equestrian statue.
She had thought it was dedicated to one of the lords of this country, but it wasn't. It was an emperor's statue, something rarely seen in other countries that were busy erasing the remnants of the empire.
The statue itself was neither surprising nor strange. It was a trace that could occasionally be seen in vassal states. Since ancient times, emperors had launched frequent expeditions to protect or expand their territories, and if they succeeded, they left such traces.
What piqued her interest was the phrase that followed.
- And praising the eleven knights
Roberta took interest in the phrase "eleven knights."
She had developed a habit these days. A habit of finding connections. Since leaving Ulrich and Osnover, she had been trying to find connections to him in her experiences.
After all, Ulrich was involved in too many incidents, yet little was known about him, wasn't he? For her, who was curious, or rather, suspicious, it was an unbearable problem.
'Could that person be among them?'
So now, Roberta tilted her head as she read the inscription on the bronze equestrian statue. The names of the eleven knights were not on the inscription. Furthermore, even the reason why the emperor and they were praised was not written.
"You seem interested, Priest."
Roberta turned around and saw a young man greeting her. He smelled of alcohol, held a stringed instrument, and was very short. Even considering that she was quite tall, he barely reached her chest.
Perhaps he was a half-blood, she speculated. There was an old saying that short bards were descendants of Geheka.
Geheka, the god of play and abundance, had created the Nagl, a race of dwarves, and their blood harbored wanderlust. Therefore, half-bloods with Nagl blood tended to have gentle temperaments and were prone to indulgence in pleasures such as alcohol, gambling, and music.
The bard in front of her matched her first impression.
"It says that they praise His Majesty Akean and the eleven knights, but it doesn't say what they are praising. Do you know about this, brother?"
"Of course."
He plucked a string lightly and winked.
"Who would know if I didn't?"
She took a few copper coins from her pouch and handed them to him. He bowed deeply with an exaggerated gesture, then plucked the strings again and began to tell the story in a rhythmic tone.
"Long ago, there was a magician who dreamed of immortality. A foolish man who feared being judged on the scales of karma and wished to escape forever."
It was said that the magician feared falling into the world of evil gods after death, that is, hell. Therefore, he researched the magic of eternal life in order to become a body that would neither age nor die.
"Who in our world has ever possessed eternal life? Just as countless magicians and Alchemists pursue immortality even today but fail to do so, the magician of long ago inevitably met the death he had postponed."
But death was not the end.
While his flesh rotted in the tomb, the magician opened his eyes, emerged from the tomb, and roamed the world of the living.
"The magician who failed to avoid aging and death instead dreamed of resurrection. He believed that even if he died, his body would rise again before or after being judged on the scales of karma, and he would return to earth."
The magician achieved his wish. Although he met death at the end of aging, he came back to life after death. Even though his flesh had fallen off and only bones remained, he moved.
"But the magician did not return completely. Was it because the soul that had been judged was bound? Although the body, even if it was just bones, had risen, he was not in his right mind. He became a monster who hated the living."
Lord of the Dead, that became the name by which the magician was called.
It is said that when he gestured once, the dead rose from tombs throughout several countries. And the dead killed the living to make them his forces.
"The lords joined hands and resisted, but it was useless. The Lord of the Dead rose again even when destroyed, and the number of dead he commanded continued to increase. Many cities were ruined, and several countries faced crisis. Some said that the end of this era had come."
The bard paused his words for a moment and scanned the surroundings. Several spectators had gathered around the two of them. People who had been aimlessly wandering in the plaza had taken their places as the story continued.
"But how can evil overcome good?"
He smiled and continued with exaggerated words.
"At the moment when everyone in the world succumbed to the end, there was a man who rose up with high spirits. He was a farmer, but a man with noble blood flowing through him, Akean. And then, the knight in the top seat came to Akean and awakened his mission."
Akean and the knight in the top seat gathered ten knights from various countries and defeated the Lord of the Dead.
The Lord of the Dead sent his forces to attack Akean and the knights, but they were defeated, and the body that had risen several times could not rise again after being cut down by Akean's sword.
"After defeating the Lord of the Dead, Akean ascended to the throne. Because the blood flowing through his body was the blood of Yokester."
The bard pointed to the bronze equestrian statue behind him. The sunlight was shining intensely, making it seem as if it were covered in an aura.
"And the eleven knights each returned to their homelands and enjoyed honor. This country, the Duchy of Circap, was also founded at that time."
Following that, the bard told the afterstories of the remaining ten people. Some founded countries in ruined lands like Circap and became lords, some became Akean's empress, and some became wandering knights and gained fame.
When the afterstories ended, the audience dispersed. A few coins had accumulated in the hat that the bard had placed in front of him. He smiled contentedly, took a long breath, and approached Roberta.
"How was it? Have many of your questions been answered now?"
"Yes, thanks to you."
Roberta touched her dry lips.
She answered, 'Many have been answered,' but that wasn't the case. Although she had heard a lot, there was no connection to her purpose.
"You said that the knight in the top seat became a court mage?"
"Ah. If you're talking about Chief Mergius, yes, that's right."
He added that he had entered the court following Akean. Her interest waned at those words. His actions were too different from someone she knew.
It would be one thing if he had finished his work and left, but becoming a court mage? The fact that he had remained by the emperor's side and obtained a position managing the court did not match Ulrich's actions.
'Well, it's an exaggerated story anyway.'
The bard's story was full of exaggerations.
He asserted that the end of the world was near, but in reality, it was just an incident that occurred in a remote area. Roberta, who was quite knowledgeable about history, had never even heard of it.
She asked about the source of the story, but the bard simply replied that he had just heard it.
In the first place, the bard was not a historian, so it couldn't be helped. He was a person who wrote poems and songs, not a scholar, so there was no need to determine the truth.
"But did you know?"
When she looked at him with a questioning expression, he said,
"It is also said that there is someone who has learned the magic used by the Lord of the Dead."
"The magic of eternal life?"
"Yes. It is said that one of the knights could not resist the temptation and learned it, but he was cursed in a different way from the Lord of the Dead. So, there is a backstory that he was cut down by the sword used by His Majesty Akean."
"That's quite a disturbing ending."
The bard shrugged.
"It's not a story that is recognized among us because it makes a good story disturbing and can make us disliked by the descendants if we say unnecessary things."
Even after the bard left, Roberta pondered while looking at the bronze equestrian statue, and then turned around and walked to the inn where her companions were staying.
#
Knock, knock, she knocked on the door, and the answer came back immediately, "Come in." Roberta carefully opened the door to the room. Ulrich and Fritz were inside.
The two were sitting in chairs facing each other, and Fritz was holding wet firewood in both hands and closing his eyes. And Ulrich rested his arm on the armrest of the chair and leaned crookedly, looking at the boy.
Roberta felt the rapidly moving flow of mana from Fritz's body. Because it was a small room, even a small flow was easily felt, and she could see what the flow was trying to do.
'Oh no.'
In an instant, the firewood caught fire.
It was too late when the boy opened his eyes with a start. Blue flames flickered at the top end of the wet firewood. Ulrich immediately reached out and grabbed the burning firewood. Then the fire went out and white smoke rose.
"The flow is too much."
What Fritz had done a moment ago was training to evaporate the moisture in the firewood by moving the mana in his body. The purpose was to handle mana delicately through this, but if he failed, the firewood would break or catch fire.
"It's because you're impatient. Try to move little by little, and slowly, to the point where you think it's okay to do this."
Ulrich picked up another piece of firewood and handed it to Fritz. The boy took a breath with a tense expression and picked up the firewood.
He seems to have experienced quite a few failures. Pieces of broken firewood were scattered here and there in the room, and Ulrich's clothes had obvious traces of scorching.
While Fritz closed his eyes and moved his mana again, Roberta pulled up a chair and sat near the two.
"You're up today."
"If I had stayed in bed longer, wouldn't you have woken me up?"
"I would have done that after watching for a few days."
He had fallen into a deep sleep for two days. There was no warning. He arrived in the city around sunset, booked a room, and was going to leave the next day, but he didn't wake up all day.
She had seen him sleep deeply for over a month in Ditmarsken, so she knew the situation, but she was at a loss.
As far as she knew, the reason he fell into a deep sleep was boredom, but where was the boredom?
Didn't he have to go to the Pantheon to have his excommunication and summons revoked?
"Then I should have given you a little more time."
Roberta stared at Ulrich's face.
"Are you serious?"
The corners of Ulrich's lips turned up slightly.
"I'm sorry if I worried you. Sometimes, there are times like that. Dreams are indistinguishable from reality, and sometimes they are so enjoyable that you don't want to wake up."
Isn't that right for you too? he asked.
"Of course, there are times like that. But I don't think there's anyone who sleeps all day, or even for more than a month, saying they'll sleep a little longer like you, Ulrich."
What was she thinking when she looked at his face with Fritz this morning?
She was worried that he might sleep for more than a month as he did in Yeongji, and if so, she was very worried about what to do.
"Yes, there won't be now."
"It sounds like there used to be."
"Hmm."
Feeling the mana flowing little by little through the firewood, Roberta asked,
"Is it okay if you don't hurry?"
"It's okay. The problem you're worried about won't happen. Someone faster than us will be moving. There are more eyes watching me than you think."
The moisture sublimated and the firewood began to dry. After looking at the white rising steam, Ulrich said, "Stop."
"The excommunication and summons will be lifted immediately. Just the fact that I'm looking for the Pantheon means that the children's wishes have been achieved to some extent. So, there's no need to rush. Of course, that doesn't mean I can wander in dreams forever."
"If you're going to sleep, I wish you'd at least give me a heads up."
Roberta gave a bitter smile.
"I'll consider it."
Ulrich handed another piece of firewood to Fritz.
"Then... you're not going straight to the Pantheon this time either."
"I won't be going far. There's something I want to check for a moment."
She swallowed the words that she had heard the same words several times.
Whatever he wanted to check, it must be a connection related to Ulrich's old past. The longer the journey, the more she would learn about him.
"Where are you going?"
"A place called Roslayen. I don't know if you know it, but it's the land of a count, a day or two west of here."