The white sword was emitting a powerful Spiritual Energy as though it was alive. He thought this white sword would be similar to Ardagan, but when he asked Ardagan about it, he realized that his assumption was wrong.
"This is a Spirit Sword. Even though I call it a Spirit Sword, this sword doesn't have any spirit we know so far. However, it contains a lingering will of the previous wielder, allowing it to exude such Spiritual Energy."
"Oh…" Noel was impressed. He heard about Ardagan and his ancestors, but Ardagan surprisingly responded to him.
[The will doesn't have complete intelligence. Instead of saying it is a will, it's more like a lingering instinct of the previous wielder. It can detect danger or anything, but it is by no means alive.]
'It's rare for you to speak to me when encountering an item. Don't tell me, you're jealous and want to tell me that you're superior?' Noel replied inwardly. Unfortunately, Ardagan didn't reply to him afterward.
Old Ru guided them inside, where they found a long table. The ground beneath the table was dug completely, allowing them to slide their legs inside. This way, they could sit down on the floor without any trouble.
"Please." Old Ru asked them to take their seats.
Damian and Dimitri took one side, while Nicole and Anna took the other side. Meanwhile, Old Ru and Noel sat diagonally to them, with both of them facing each other.
"I know that you are tired from your long and dangerous trip. Hence, I won't take too much of your time. I'll just tell you the reason why I agree so easily." Old Ru pointed at Noel without hesitation. "It's because of you."
"Me?" Noel pointed at himself, confused.
"Yeah. Do you believe in fate?"
Noel nodded. "Of course, I believe it."
As someone who wanted to gain freedom even from fate itself, Noel definitely believed in fate.
"You could say that our meeting here is predestined. To make it simple, you can say that it's fate that brings us together. However, the real reason is more complicated."
"Do you know that something that has to happen will continue to happen no matter how you try to change it?"
"Hmm?" Noel was confused. "Do you mean that I'm supposed to meet you and I can't escape that fate?"
On the other hand, Anna fell silent for a moment. She was completely shocked by this statement as though this was a statement for her instead of Noel.
"You shouldn't think that way. Instead, I'll give you another example. Let's say you have to take a breath right now so that you can live, will you take a breath?"
Noel nodded.
"That's right. You will definitely take a breath. But what if the moment you breathe, you end up inhaling poison? Will you take a deep breath?"
"No. I will only be poisoned. I'll definitely hold my breath for a while and get into safety."
"Then, after that, will you take a deep breath?"
"Yes. If not, I will die…" Noel looked down for a moment, realizing what he wanted to imply. "I see. So, our meeting has been predestined. No matter how you're planning to twist that fate, it's going to happen. I might come a bit faster or slower. I might come with other people or by myself. In the end, it will only change the process, not the result."
"Exactly." Old Ru smiled.
"!!!" Anna's body shook. When she heard that the result couldn't be changed, she couldn't help but think, 'Don't tell me… Even with all this knowledge and Noel's cooperation, we can't still fight against the betrayal. We'll definitely die no matter how we twist the history?'
"Still, are you saying that we can't escape fate?" Noel asked.
"No, not at all." Old Ru shook his head. "You can change your fate. Instead of being fixated on something that can't be changed, how about we change our perspective?"
"What do you mean?"
"I want to stand in front of you! To do that, I have to take a few steps, right?"
"That's correct," Noel confirmed without hesitation.
"In that case, what if I walk with a blade?"
"My comrades will surely try to stop you."
"Exactly. But because I'm strong, do you think your comrades can stop me from standing in front of you?"
"Not at all."
"Then, what if we change the perspective this way? I want to save your life. But in order to do that, I have to wield my blade and stand before you."
"Hmm?" Noel raised his eyebrows. "Are you telling me to look far ahead?"
"Exactly." Old Ru lined up three cups in front of him and called them A, B, and C. "Take a look at this. If I am at point A and want to get into point B. Between them shall be the progress, right?"
"Definitely. But if we change our perspective and think that we're at point A. But instead of getting into point B, we want to reach point C. This way, point B will become the progress itself. In the first case scenario, the progress will be the empty space between the two points. But in the second case scenario, the progress will be point B entirely. In fact, you can even add two empty spaces between those three points." Noel gasped, understanding the concept.
"If we can't change fate, then we should change our perspective of our result and see farther ahead. Maybe, once we see that new goal, we will have a different perspective and everything that is supposed to happen will change." Old Ru smiled. He had expected Noel to understand, but it was still quite surprising that Noel could follow him this fast.
"If I want to escape fate… Instead of thinking that way, I should set a goal farther ahead where escaping fate is simply a means to reach that point." Noel looked down for a moment. "But what kind of goal is it?"
"Unfortunately, I can't answer that question. It's beyond my imagination after all. But as long as you keep seeking that answer, you might find it someday. And you might even be able to go even further." Old Ru smiled.
Even though both Old Ru and Noel were engaged in high-level discussion, there was one person who didn't care about it. She only had one thought in mind.
'Does that mean that if we have a further goal where betrayal is something that is meant to be avoided, we can avoid it?' Anna clenched her fists.
