297. Shadowed Sky (2)
“Some information reflection independence… no. The ‘Prophet’ told me something. In the coming future, all I see is doom… he said.”
“Well, isn’t that always the case with you guys.”
“That shouldn’t be the case.”
Fernandez looked down at Jerolen, who was sitting with his head lowered. Jerolen also looked up at him, carefully grasping the implied meaning within the context.
“That shouldn’t be?”
“…Yes.”
It wasn’t a childish denial. It was more like a denial born of conviction. As if the world shouldn’t end. As if there was no reason for it to end. Wrinkles formed on Jerolen’s brow.
“Were you a prophet too?”
“No. I… came back through time.”
“Through time…? Wait. You mean you came from the future?”
“Yes. Something like that.”
“Haha, this is something.”
Jerolen stared at Fernandez for a long time without saying a word. Soon, he shook his head and stood up. He was more than a head taller, with a towering build. His lion-like hair swayed in the wind.
With a gaze as sharp as a predator’s, he looked down at Fernandez as if searching for prey. Then, he relaxed his eyes.
“You don’t seem crazy. Though, if I had this conversation with a human lunatic, I would’ve been embarrassed. Traveling through time… that’s quite poetic. Did you come back after seeing the end of the world?”
“Yes.”
“So, you want to prevent the destined doom?”
“I should have. I killed most of those who aided the end.”
“Yet, the future didn’t change, which is strange. That’s why you came to me, right? You must have been looking for a condition that didn’t exist in the previous world.”
Quick on the uptake, huh. Fernandez simply nodded without answering. Jerolen stroked his chin, lost in thought.
In the distant future, if the world were to end, the elves would have disappeared. They would have vanished into the annals of history without influencing the world’s end. That’s the only future left for the elves.
So, if someone who witnessed the end of the world returned to the past… and wanted to twist the unchanging future, they would first contact the surviving elves. Understandable.
“Let me hear it. Exactly… what do you want from me?”
“What you just said. I need a connection to Emperor Charle. Perhaps, relics or legacies left by the Emperor. Or… even ruins built by the Emperor himself…”
“What? Haha, hahaha!”
Jerolen burst into laughter before Fernandez could finish. The tension disappeared, and he laughed so hard that tears welled up in his eyes, as if he had just heard a hilarious joke.
“This is really funny. The Emperor’s relics?”
“…Did I say something funny?”
“Ah, don’t be so serious. Sorry. I should’ve held it in!”
He coughed, stood up, and walked away without asking for Fernandez’s opinion.
“You’re already living in his ruins. Why look elsewhere?”
“What do you mean?”
“Emperor Charle. Carlos. Did he wield some divine artifact, receive immense blessings, or become a legendary blacksmith?”
What great technology could humans have had back then? Even if they used magic, it couldn’t surpass the elves’. Even if they forged iron, it couldn’t surpass the dwarves’ engineering.
Humans back then were only slightly better than wild beasts. Barely smarter than trolls. A thousand years ago, they were just a tribal society struggling to survive among the dominant races of the continent.
Even if some of their technology and relics remain, they would be nothing more than rusted swords or broken pottery, holding no significance beyond historical value.
If you need magically treated relics, it’s better to search the elves’ treasure vaults. If you need powerful ancient weapons, it’s better to explore the underground dungeons of the continent for dwarven relics.
“His ruins are your land itself.”
“What do you mean?”
“Don’t you get it? He was, of course, an excellent warrior and a great sovereign… but. Hey. Why do you think I compared you to him back then? Your looks? No. You’re more handsome. He was nothing more than a savage tribal chief.”
His relics… Jerolen continued with a smile.
“If anything, your existence, the civilization you’ve built, and this era itself are his relics. The land you stand on is his ruin. He was… how should I put it? A ‘symbol.'”
“A symbol?”
“A symbol of indomitability. A symbol of never giving up, even in the most desperate moments. A representation of will in flesh. Back then, many human tribes were captivated by his will and willingly submitted, forming your first kingdom.”
At his words, Fernandez stopped. A symbol of will. Indomitable symbol…? Even if that were true, the Emperor’s relics must exist.
“…What about the Crow Crown?”
“What?”
“The Prophet said something. Find Emperor Charle’s Crow Crown. What do you think that means? If the Emperor’s relics or ruins symbolize our very existence. Of course, it’s a noble and romantic notion. But doesn’t it mean to find something tangible?”
“Crow Crown…? Crow Crown…”
Jerolen fell into deep thought.
“If such a thing really exists, it wouldn’t be in the sea. He never operated at sea, and if there were a powerful relic found there, it would have been acquired by one of the three dynasties.”
“It’s not on the continent either. It’s a relic that never appeared until the world’s end. I’ve only heard of it in this life.”
“Then the answer is obvious.”
“…Obvious?”
“If it’s not in the sea or on land, it must be underground.”
“…You mean ancient dungeons?”
There were many dungeons scattered across the continent, still not fully uncovered. They could be ancient dwarven ruins, facilities buried by tectonic shifts during the Celestial War, or mechanisms installed deep within the rock for sealing or concealment purposes.
Fernandez was familiar with the existence of underground dungeons. But even he couldn’t know, let alone grasp, all the dungeons buried underground. There was no way to know where, in what location, or what kind of dungeon was buried.
However, Jerolen shook his head.
“Not just any dungeon. If it’s the Crow Crown, it must be something special. Something tied to the Emperor’s will, his indomitable spirit. It’s not just a relic; it’s a symbol of his unyielding resolve. So, it must be hidden in a place that reflects that.”
“Then where?”
“Where else? The Capital City. The heart of the Empire. If there’s a place that embodies his will, it’s there. But not just any part of the city. The deepest, most secret part. The place where the Emperor’s true power lies.”
“The Capital City…?”
“Yes. If you want to find the Crow Crown, you’ll have to go there. But be warned, it won’t be easy. The Capital City is not just a city; it’s a fortress of will, a testament to the Emperor’s unyielding spirit. You’ll need more than just strength to navigate it.”
Fernandez nodded, his resolve hardening. If the Crow Crown was the key to changing the future, then he would find it, no matter the cost.
“Then to the Capital City we go.”
“Indeed. But remember, the journey will test not just your strength, but your will. The Emperor’s legacy is not just in relics, but in the spirit that built them. If you can’t embody that spirit, you’ll never find the Crow Crown.”
“I understand. Thank you, Jerolen.”
“Don’t thank me yet. You haven’t found it. But if you do… well, maybe the future isn’t as set in stone as the Prophet thinks.”
With that, Fernandez turned and left, his mind set on the Capital City and the Crow Crown that could change the fate of the world.
“He’s talking about jade.”
“Does that mean the demons of hell possess it?”
“If so, it makes sense. In the later years of Carlos, his death was due to the demons. He died from a curse he received while fighting the Great Demon.”
“I’ve never seen such records.”
“Of course not. It wasn’t a known story. How many Great Demons do you think there are?”
“Five.”
“There were five back then too.”
Mumto and Sadarkelisa are relatively young demons. They were beings who fell after the Celestial War. Including them, if we say there are five Great Demons closest to the divine… it means there were five back then.
“One was me, and the three of us faced it. Another was confronted by Carlos.”
“But the Great Demon who died during the Celestial War…”
“There was none? Why do you think history was recorded that way? We hid it because it was a shame for our people. But Carlos, do you think he wouldn’t have left any records after completing such a task?”
“Enough with the riddles.”
“Alright, enough. It’s because the gods of your Temple of the Gods wanted it that way. The reason for hiding the death of the Great Demon was that.”
“Why? Why would the celestial gods forsake the best opportunity to elevate themselves?”
Jerolen opened his mouth to speak but paused, looking into Fernandez’s eyes. As if gauging whether he was ready to accept the truth.
A moment later, a brief resignation flickered across his eyes.
“It was a promise from that time.”
The rain began to fall. As predicted, the heavy rain over the ocean without a light source looked like a black curtain sweeping down from the sky. In the dark, ink-like raindrops, Jerolen closed his eyes and spoke.
“The condition was that the heavens would abandon interference in the Material World, and the Great Demons of hell would declare a truce and be sealed. The condition was to return the sovereignty of the Material World entirely to material civilization. Carlos, that mortal, promised to confront the Great Demon alone and eventually plunge a sword into its neck… that was the condition.”
During the Celestial War, humans had no need or reason to confront demons. From the demons’ perspective, humans of that era were no match, and humans lacked the ability and leisure to deal with demons.
But Charlemagne… that strong-willed mortal promised the celestial gods to kill the Great Demon. In exchange for blessings, and on the condition that they would no longer directly interfere in the Material World.
The death of the Great Demon meant the annihilation of its legions. If they could kill it, it would be a decisive move to tip the scales in the long war between hell and the heavens.
After a long struggle, Charlemagne succeeded in killing the Great Demon of that era. The celestial gods withdrew from the earth, and hell, having lost its power, chose to be sealed until it could regain its strength.
“Why? Did humans need to reject divine intervention? The gods were their only allies back then.”
“Allies! Haha, to the immortals, mortals are nothing more than pawns… To Carlos, it didn’t matter whether it was a demon or a god. Both hell and the heavens viewed humans similarly. It was just that the gods’ deal was more trustworthy.”
So they hid it. Back then, there was a church, and in an era when gods walked the earth, they were even more bound by the madness of religion.
Especially for Charlemagne, who had to unite the fragmented human tribes, it was a record he had no choice but to conceal. Fernandez frowned and looked at Jerolen.
“How do you know that?”
It happened after the elves were driven from the continent, and chronologically, it was a secret from the late Celestial War. How does the sovereign of the elves know a secret not even told to his own kin?
Jerolen shrugged and answered.
“The demon he killed was deep within my lair, and it was nearly impossible for a human to infiltrate alone. Carlos couldn’t receive help from humans at that time.”
“You couldn’t set foot on the continent either, could you?”
“It seems the sky wasn’t included in the continent’s boundaries.”
Jerolen, the ancient hero, laughed heartily.
“And back then, I was an undefeated griffin rider in the skies.”
Carlos… the image of the bold and mighty warrior who suddenly sought him out in the storm, asking for help, was still vivid. A human he could call a friend, though there were few like him.
A man who carried a single sword, cutting down monsters, demons, dwarves, and ancient dragons, ultimately building human cities. A man who became, or had to become, the symbol of an era.
To whom does a god pray at the moment of death? If there’s an answer to that question, he was the closest to it. To whom does a human who doesn’t believe in gods pray in moments of despair?
[You don’t believe in gods, do you? So, have you never prayed?]
[Why wouldn’t I have?]
[Oh? Was there a religion?]
[Not believing in gods… isn’t that a ridiculous notion? Can you deny the existence of gods? I just don’t follow them. And prayer… well, of course, I did it when I was tired, when I was struggling.]
The massive warrior, covered in hard muscles, spoke with clear brown eyes that seemed almost innocent.
[Lord, just be there. The trials of the world and the hardships of the earth are all our touchstones, our daily bread and the virtues we praise are all our harvest.]
Humans must advance by their own strength. Not as anyone’s pawn or puppet. The corruption of demons and the attention of gods are no different in weight. The man of that era smiled and said so.
Thus, Jerolen thought that if there was hope and a future for the elves, it might not be this race. For those who, in the name of a racial god, seek salvation from gods only to find themselves closer to ruin…
“Transcending religion and faith, proving one’s destiny through one’s existence. I thought that should be our future.”
So he flew through the skies with him. Tearing through the swarming demons, straight towards the Great Demon’s lair. Jerolen did not see the end of his journey. The curse borne by the Great Demon was something a mortal body could not withstand.
Watching his friend charge at that dreadful immortal, he had to turn away. He had a duty to save his own race.
The era of madness called the Celestial War ended, but the Material World was still not free from the influence of heaven and hell. But in this era, if there is still hope as the end approaches, it will come through beings with unyielding spirits, like the heroes of that day.
“Where is it? The place where the Great Demon and Charlemagne clashed?”
“South of Kirzat, further south. If you go straight, you’ll reach a plain. Where the ancient cities built by demons are buried beneath the earth.”
“The land of the White Demon Tribe…”
Fernandez clicked his tongue and frowned. If things have come to this, Karadskar might not just signify the existence of a single human.
Things are getting complicated. Fernandez sighed as he looked out at the rain.
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