Chapter 82: Sword of Fire(4)
Hus Allemier, the second son of the Allemier family and the hero of knowledge, looked at the passage in front of him with a serious face.
A secret passage that led to the underground of the temple.
There, Aurora, who was holding a lantern, was leading the way.
Hus had been in the temple of knowledge for quite some time, but even he had never faced the underground space of the temple.
Even the high priests of the temple had never told Hus that such a secret passage existed.
Even though Hus was the one who had to be protected first in case of trouble in the temple.
Hus asked Aurora, who was going down the passage with a lantern, as he followed her.
“Holy maiden. What is this passage?”
“It’s a place that is treated as a top secret within the holy land. Only I and the direct priests of the Holy Emperor’s Court who received the order of His Majesty can enter this passage.”
Only Aurora and the direct priests of the Holy Emperor’s Court who received the order of the Holy Emperor could enter the underground passage of the temple.
It also meant that only Aurora knew about this passage in the temple of knowledge.
Thud. Thud.
The sound of their footsteps echoed in the dark passage.
The passage that led to the underground was stuffy and narrow.
“But is it okay for me to enter this place?”
“It doesn’t matter since you will find out anyway.”
“I will find out anyway…”
“It’s because what happens here is not completely unrelated to the heroes of knowledge.”
Flicker. Flicker.
Candles lit up around the quiet passage and brightened up the dark passage.
It was a magical device that was made with a lot of cost at a glance.
It was a sight that suited the temple of knowledge, which focused more on magic and technology than other temples.
Hus scanned the structure of the underground passage that was twisted and turned.
The passage to the secret space was like a maze.
“The passage structure is very complex.”
“It’s because of an important space that existed here before Crossbridge was built.”
“This is a highly classified area within the holy land. Only I and the priests who have received the order of His Majesty the Holy Emperor can set foot here.”
Only Saintess Aurora and the direct priests of the Holy Emperor’s Court who had received the Holy Emperor’s order could enter the underground passage of the Temple of Knowledge.
It also meant that Aurora was the only one who knew about this passage within the Temple of Knowledge.
Thud. Thud.
The sound of two people’s footsteps echoed in the dark passage.
The passage leading downward was stuffy and narrow.
“I understand that this is a place where no one can enter. But is it okay for me to come here?”
“It doesn’t matter, since you will find out sooner or later, Mr. Hus.”
“Sooner or later…”
“What happens here is not completely irrelevant to the heroes of knowledge, you see.”
Whoosh.
Candles lit up around the quiet passage, brightening up the dark passage.
It was a magical device that had been made with a huge amount of money at a glance.
It was a typical appearance of the Temple of Knowledge, which focused more on magic and technology than other temples.
Hus scanned the structure of the underground passage that was twisted and connected.
The passage leading to the secret space was like a maze.
“The structure of the passage is very complex.”
“It’s because of the important space that existed here before the Crossbridge was built.”
“An important space?”
“The Crossbridge is a place where the six temples hide something very important. That’s why the passage leading to this space only exists in the Temple of Knowledge and the Holy Emperor’s Court.”
What came out of Aurora’s mouth, the Saintess of Knowledge, was a story that had been passed down from long before now.
A mysterious secret space that had existed since the time when the Crossbridge was being built.
The passage that Hus was standing on now was a staircase leading to that secret space.
The moment Aurora and Hus reached the end of this passage, he would learn the huge secret that the Crossbridge was hiding.
“I understand that it’s connected to the Holy Emperor’s Court, but why is the Temple of Knowledge connected to this place?”
Hus could also understand that there was a big secret under the holy land.
But even so, it was strange that only the Temple of Knowledge was allowed to enter the secret space.
Aurora smiled lightly at Hus’s question.
The flame of the lantern in Aurora’s hand flickered and scattered around.
“It’s because the Saintess of Knowledge has been managing this place continuously.”
“Are you saying that you are managing this place yourself?”
“Of course, I’m in charge of it now. That’s why only the current Saintess of Knowledge has the knowledge of this place.”
Hus nodded at her words as he passed through the rough curve in the passage.
It was natural that she knew about this place if the Saintess of Knowledge had been managing it for generations.
The reason why only the Holy Emperor’s Court and the Temple of Knowledge were connected to the passage would be the same.
“I think I understand a little bit after hearing your story.”
“The most noble knowledge has always been inherited by the Saintess of Knowledge. The same goes for the huge secret located under this temple.”
Thud. Thud. Thunk.
Aurora stopped in front of a huge stone slab after walking down for a long time.
Hus and Aurora had arrived at the secret place of the Crossbridge by now.
The thick stone slab with the emblem of the Holy Emperor’s Court was blocking their way forward.
Aurora placed her palm on the stone slab that was blocking the passage.
Krrrrrrrrr—.
The stone slab started to move aside with a heavy vibration.
Hus looked at Aurora’s palm that was touching the stone slab.
He didn’t know exactly how the security worked, but he was sure that it recognized Aurora and opened the door for her.
There was a level of security magic installed here that was hard to find even in the empire.
“It’s been a long time since a hero of knowledge entered this place.”
Aurora said as she stepped forward after disabling the security magic.
Hus also followed Aurora naturally and headed to that place.
The moment the stone slab that blocked their sight disappeared, the secret space of the holy land that was wrapped in a veil was revealed.
A sigh of admiration naturally escaped from Hus’s mouth.
“Ah…”
Beyond the passage where the stone slab had disappeared.
A huge space filled with all kinds of crystals appeared.
The secret space that Hus saw was a place full of all kinds of magical equipment.
It was nothing less than a magical research facility.
Hus’s eyes wandered around and headed to the huge crystal located in the center of the research lab.
The crystal in the center of the lab shone brightly and emitted a clear radiance.
“What is that······?”
Hus immediately walked toward the crystal as soon as he saw it.
The crystal in front of Hus was emitting a warm and clear energy.
Inside the blue crystal, something unknown was moving like a pulse.
Hus unconsciously reached out his hand toward the crystal in front of him.
The moment Hus’s hand touched the crystal, he felt his magic twist inside him and stepped back.
“Ugh—!”
Hus looked at his palm that had touched the crystal.
His palm was reddened by the backlash of magic resistance.
Seeing his palm twitching from the sudden shock, Hus frowned and used magic on his hand.
Cure.
It was the healing magic that Hus learned for the first time after coming here.
The low-level healing magic wrapped around Hus’s palm and quickly eased the spasm.
“Are you okay?”
“······I made a fool of myself.”
Hus hid his healed hand behind his back and spoke to Aurora.
Aurora looked at him with a faint smile, then approached him and looked at the giant crystal.
The blue light from the crystal dyed their pupils blue.
Aurora pointed at the crystal in front of them and explained its identity to Hus.
“This crystal is the reason why Crossbridge was built.”
“This thing··· is the reason for Crossbridge’s existence······?”
“That crystal you see is the remains of a god that he left on the earth.”
The remains of a god.
Hus closed his mouth after hearing Aurora’s words.
The jewel that was pulsing in front of him was not an ordinary thing, as Hus expected.
No, it was much more important than that.
It was a thing that could prove the legitimacy of all six temples.
Aurora stretched out her hand toward the crystal that injured Hus and continued her explanation.
“The holy relic, the Heart of Origin. It is the power source of all the divine barriers in Crossbridge, and the only perpetual machine in the world that emits divine power without any power source.”
“A thing that emits divine power······.”
“Crossbridge is a space designed to concentrate the efforts of all the temples and protect the Heart of Origin.”
Although it was called a holy relic, Hus understood that the Heart of Origin was different from any other holy relic.
It was a level of divine power that could shake a mage’s magic just by approaching it.
It was an amazing thing that it emitted such a powerful divine power endlessly.
Depending on how it was used, it could create miracles of unbelievable scale.
If it was such a thing, then it was understandable that Crossbridge was built to protect this one thing.
The thing in front of him was nothing less than the hope of all humanity.
“To protect the remains of a god, Crossbridge was created··· There is an unbelievable thing here.”
“It seems that you quickly understood the value of the Heart of Origin.”
“This is a dangerous thing. It would be the same as falling into the hands of an evil god, but it could also be abused by wicked humans······.”
“······.”
As Hus was about to mention the endless possibilities of the Heart of Origin.
Aurora gave a bitter smile and looked away after hearing Hus’s words.
Hus looked at her with a suspicious expression, seeing her attitude different from usual.
“······Lady Saint?”
“Unfortunately, the Holy Blue Empire is also using this thing for a dangerous purpose.”
Aurora’s gaze moved to the glass tube on the opposite side.
Hus’s gaze also followed Aurora to the direction where the glass tube was.
Inside the glass tube connected to the Heart of Origin.
There was a man who was sleeping with his eyes closed.
Aurora stared at the man in the glass tube and said.
“Arain Crost. The former hero of knowledge.”
***
The headquarters of Cloud, located on the island.
There, Van Krite, who attended the meeting, looked around at the people in the meeting room with a dissatisfied face.
The people who attended the meeting at the headquarters were all top-class investigators classified as special agents.
They had been granted the right to execute anyone by the emperor who ruled the empire, and they were the strongest in the empire except for the royal guard.
At the meeting where they gathered, Van slammed his fist on the table and opened his mouth.
“There is a black mage causing trouble in Alterius province. I’m sure I reported it.”
Kwang!
A crack formed on the table with a dull sound.
The documents that were swept by Van’s fist also scattered in all directions by the gust of wind.
The secret society of black mages who moved in the shadows of the empire, Abyss.
They were the documents that Van had collected information about them and submitted to Cloud’s headquarters.
They were the information that he had obtained by traveling around the northern part of the empire for nearly a year.
But the answer that came back to Van who submitted the report was the opposite of what he expected.
“Van, investigator. Didn’t I just say it? You have to participate in the subjugation of Kueverg in the sanctuary.”
The leader of Cloud, Levenov, stroked his mustache and said.
It was an answer that had nothing to do with what Van had been investigating, the subjugation of Kueverg.
Grit.
Van clenched his teeth after hearing Levenov’s answer.
The special investigators of Cloud had strong autonomy, but they still couldn’t completely ignore the orders from above.
If Levenov, the leader, made such a decision, it was a situation that Van couldn’t ignore.
“Levenov. Did you read the report?”
“I already checked the content of the report you sent.”
“And you still tell me to go on another operation?”
“I’m talking about the priority of work. To restore the fallen status of the empire, it is necessary for the special investigators to join the subjugation team.”
It was infuriating for Van to hear that.
There was no one in Cloud who could follow Van in investigating the black mages.
And it was a situation where Van reported that the contractor of the Death King might be active.
Moreover, the hiding places of the mages became stronger and more solid as time passed.
If he couldn’t subjugate them when he found their traces, it would become harder and harder to find or attack them.
But Levenov only talked about the subjugation of Kueverg in this situation.
Van felt frustrated and frowned at Levenov.
“The black mages who contracted with the Death King might be active. But you tell me to watch the heroes kill monsters.”
“You were the one who refused to lead the subjugation team last time.”
“Gedur was in charge of it. He was close to becoming a special agent.”
“He failed anyway. The gap between experienced special agents and those below them is clear.”
“······Levenov.”
“And I didn’t say you should just watch. You can finish off the monsters if you want.”
He meant he should come back with some achievements.
Van sighed deeply and rubbed his forehead.
He had said everything he could say.
He couldn’t think of any more excuses to resist the order.
He gave up and asked Levenov one last question.
“Can’t you send another investigator at least?”
“What can I do when other investigators are busy?”
“······Ha.”
“Of course, Cloud understands the seriousness of the black mages. We will support your investigation with full force after this subjugation is over.”
It was all because of his age.
Van bit his lip at the work that came to him by rotation.
Kwang.
Van slammed the table again and covered his face with one hand.
He thought he had almost found all the traces of Abyss, but he was in a crisis of having his investigation delayed for months by the headquarters.
He was Van, a young genius who had a headache from his tragic fate.
