The Gravekeeper of the Mausoleum (3)
“Huh? I’ve never seen that black one before? Where did it come from?”
When Theo returned, the first person to react was Wellington.
Theo looked down at his own behavior without thinking, then suddenly flinched.
On his back hangs Drake’s Blade, on his left waist hangs the Moonlight Sword and the Dragon Sword, and on his right waist hangs the Youngmyo Sword.
He only had four swords.
‘It’s definitely suspicious.’
Theo muttered something about the Tomb Sword and went to find the others.
“I heard that Arin woke up a little while ago, so both Shelford and Ray went over there.”
“Are you senior Arin?”
Theo walked towards it urgently.
* * *
“… … Is this the first time you’ve seen someone injured? Why are all of you here to watch?
As soon as Arin came to her senses, she was startled by the sight of people bustling around her bedside.
Shelford asked with a serious look in his eyes.
“How about the body?”
“I’m fine.”
“Is it really true?”
“… Where did you learn such words?”
“Is this what our orphanage Jammins use?”
“Don’t say such things so casually with an old face. You keep getting surprised because you think of your little brother.”
“Anyway, are you sure you’re okay?”
Arin knew very well why Shelford was suddenly checking her physical condition repeatedly with a voice, so she answered with the same voice.
“It’s true.”
“Don’t worry, I haven’t gone crazy enough to cause a fit of madness.”
Shelford nodded quietly without probing further.
Descendants of the Gwangryonghoe.
For those who have to live with the burden of being the seed of a rebel, they have to confirm this again and again.
Fortunately, there was no sign of madness in Arin’s eyes.
It was a blessing.
While Shelford was sighing in relief, Theo and the other party members, including Denglong, also visited and left.
The next day, Cassandra woke up safe and sound.
However, he had almost no memory of the Empress Dowager and could not remember what had happened over the past few days.
Because of this, I stayed in the hospital for a few more days in case there were other undiagnosed side effects.
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The group rested for another ten days before setting out again.
The original Theo party now had quite a large number of people, including Cassandra, Denglong, and Wellington.
“First, we will go through Dravin City and then move to Baektap.”
Phew!
The magic train started to run with the rough sound of a steam engine.
Clunk, clunk-
Sitting in the first-class cabin, Deungryong spread out a map and showed us the destination.
White Tower.
It was a familiar name.
The border between Ragnar and Troyvan, where fierce fighting is currently taking place in the Northern War.
But originally it was more famous as an ancient ruins site.
“Currently, Baektap is in a situation where both sides are engaged in a reckless war of attrition. Over a hundred people are being sacrificed just to secure an area of less than 5 kilometers… … It’s hell.”
Ray covered young Cassandra’s ears with earplugs to prevent her from getting unnecessarily scared.
Shelford asked.
“I heard that the number of troops currently gathered at Baektap is enormous.”
“Not only the White Armored Knights and Black Iron Knights, but also the Red Sword Knights will be deployed to the front according to the orders of the lord, and the Blue Sword Guards will also be moving in soon.”
“… … Is that so?”
If the White Armored Cavalry and Black Iron Cavalry of the four major units will serve as striking units and spread Ragnar’s majesty to the world,
The Red Sword Knights and the Blue Sword Guards were the guardians of Ragnar’s safety and order.
The Red Sword Knights are an elite group of the best from each unit, and are responsible for Winterer.
The Blue Sword Guards were like shadows that always followed the lord and only listened to the lord’s orders.
In other words, the fact that they even came forward meant that Ragnar was truly risking his life in this war.
“Honestly, I don’t understand. No matter how famous Troyvan is in the East, they don’t think we can avoid a fight to that extent… … .”
“Actually, it’s not to that extent.”
“But why?”
“The problem is those who are with Troyvan.”
The cool, sinking gaze of the dragon.
Shelford bit his lips for a moment.
This was because the forces he had encountered when escaping the manor came to mind.
“The Wandering Knights’ Union and the Ilgeomhoe are just small fry. Fanatics are also seeds without foundations, so they can be eaten. But what about the magicians of the Far East? What about the young beasts of the southern jungle?”
‘Magician’ was a derogatory term used to disparage the Magic Tower, and ‘beast’ was a derogatory term used to disparage the Beast Race Front.
All of the electors, like Ragnar and Troyban, have the right to elect the emperor.
“Those who milked sheep in the western steppes, those cannibals who would still be committing incest on the highlands if it weren’t for us, those who ate dirt on the great plains! They are all waiting for the moment when our Ragnar will fall.”
From the Silk Road Brotherhood of the Western Plains, to the Native American Protection Organization of the Southwestern Highlands, to the gentlemen’s guilds that dominate the Great Southern Plains.
Of course, Shelford, as well as Arin and Ray, felt breathless.
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So many places are hostile to Ragnar.
Isn’t this like turning the entire world into an enemy?
‘It was inevitable.’
The only one here listening to the story with a calm look on his face is Theo.
“It’s a mess?”
‘You could think of them as seeds that Ragnar scattered everywhere.’
Theo smiled bitterly at Lordbroke’s scolding.
‘The karma Ragnar has committed over the past hundreds of years is not small. That discontent has exploded because of this incident.’
Ragnar never compromises.
What if a dispute arises?
I just trampled it down with force.
What if a conflict arises?
He too was defeated by force.
Naturally, there was a backlash after that, but Ragnar turned this into a mess so that he could never raise his head again.
So, the other powers had no choice but to look down on Ragnar and fear him, and they had no choice but to suppress their discontent and resentment inside.
The number of years was a thousand years. A thousand years.
To that extent, numerous prejudices pile up to become the truth.
Now in the world, the ‘North’ was like a devil’s land that should never be touched.
“It seems like Troyban or something has really been causing trouble for other places.”
‘Yes, that’s right. Right now, we’re just at the level of helping Troyban… … .’
“If I show any weakness here, he’ll just bite my neck off?”
‘So, we decided to crush Troyvan so that he wouldn’t even dare to dream of such a thing in Winterer.’
『That’s a Ragnar-like idea. No, should I say that it’s perfectly faithful to the laws of the ecosystem?』
If the leader of a pack of beasts shows weakness one day, will the other beasts feel sorry for him?
No. Rather, I see it as an opportunity to cut off the airway.
So the leader needed to occasionally display overwhelming power so that no one could challenge his authority.
“We can’t just leave it like that. This is the time to crush all the buds of discord. That’s the way our Ragnar has proven why he is Ragnar.”
Even though Denglong usually appears to be a good person, he is also Ragnar.
They had no intention of forgiving those who dared to set their teeth on them.
“… … .”
“… … .”
“… … .”
Shelford, Arin, and Ray were speechless in the suffocating atmosphere.
Wellington, even though he already knew all this, still trembled slightly.
The phone was now getting louder and louder, out of control.
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And that phone call,
It will burn even more fiercely while you are at the White Tower.
“All the power that was scattered throughout the land is gathering at Baektap. That’s where it is.”
The dragon’s eyes shone fiercely.
“It will be the place where Troyban’s life will be cut off, and where Ragnar’s hegemony will be completed.”
Looking at that sight, Theo couldn’t bring himself to say the words that were in his mind.
‘No, Denglong. Troyvan is just the beginning.’
* * *
『The time that humans perceive is an absolute and infinite straight line that only moves forward. This is why the tenses (temporal grammar) and aspects (temporal thought) of past, present, and future were created. However, unlike what you have long thought to be the truth… … .』
The northern territory was very large, and it took several days to reach Baektap by riding the magic train.
Of course, it is a time when you have no choice but to float in the air.
Theo spent most of that time learning the basics of time magic.
Progress was relatively fast.
Not only was the magic system left behind by the Dark Empress very solid, but there was also an outstanding teacher named Lordbroke.
Learning it was fun in a different way from swordsmanship, so it was easy to concentrate.
“Are you in the right place again? You really are so untimely.”
It was fun teaching Roadbroke too.
At first, I was going to teach it a few times to kill time, and then just give up if he didn’t understand what I was saying.
Theo followed along much better than she had expected, so she was actually surprised.
Sometimes I even doubted if this guy was really Ragnar, with his brain full of muscles.
But what surprised Lordbroke most was how easily Theo fell into a trance.
A state where consciousness and unconsciousness merge into one, reason and instinct become intertwined, and the distinction between self and other disappears.
During a trance state, knowledge that was usually scattered throughout the subconscious is connected into a single network, and the neural networks of the brain are strengthened, allowing new creativity to burst out.
The sensation you experience at that moment is something you will never forget.
It feels like I have infinite power in my hands.
‘Ecstasy certainly gives us new perspectives and leads us to a state of constant ascent. But it’s not so good when it happens too often.’
Creativity is born when newly accumulated knowledge is connected to each other.
But if ecstasy is repeated too many times, there is no room for knowledge to accumulate, and thus the creativity that can be created is limited.
The problem is that the joy and aftertaste of ecstasy do not diminish. Soon, repetition of ecstasy leads to addiction.
From this point on, madness was born.
But the area that Theo was standing on was exactly the threshold of the entrance to madness.
‘It’s okay for now because magic and swordsmanship are being mixed, but I’ll have to hold back for a while.’
Lordbroke had no intention of letting his long-time favorite companion go to waste like his previous choosers.
-The next stop is Dravidian City, Dravidian City. Those who wish to get off… … .
Theo opened his eyes again when the magic train had almost reached its destination.
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To get to Baektap, you had to transfer here.
“Your companion.”
‘Yes, I know. Don’t worry.’
“Haha. I guess I’ll get paid enough for the lecture. ”
But before transferring, Theo had a place to stop.
I gently touched the note in my pocket.
One of the secret vaults of the past emperors was located in this city.
* * *
“Want to take a quick tour of the city?”
“Yes. Fortunately, there are about five hours left until the train to Baektap arrives, so I’ll quickly check it out and come back.”
Theo answered Dongryong’s question calmly.
If you just look at the answer, it seems like he was just a young country bumpkin who was crazy about the big city he was visiting for the first time.
Phew!
Denglong just smiled without saying anything.
As if I don’t know what you’re up to again.
Theo was stung, but he tried his best to act shameless and not show it.
“I will be back soon.”
“Yes. Traveling the world is one way to gain knowledge. However, it is dangerous to go around alone, so move with Ray and Wellington.”
Theo secretly wanted to move on his own, but given the current situation, he quickly and loudly answered.
“Yes! I understand.”
“Good. Well, I also happened to be here doing some business, so let’s meet back here on the platform in exactly four hours.”
What does Denglong do?
Theo hesitated for a moment, but soon thanked him and left the platform.
Wellington and Ray were also hanging behind him.
“Ugh! After being plagued by battles all the time, it feels refreshing to finally be in a place where people live.”
Somehow Wellington looked in a very good mood.
“I guess you’ve been driving on rough terrain all this time, Mr. Deungryong?”
“… … Hmm! I hope you don’t create discord in the peaceful priest-disciple relationship with useless words.”
“That’s right.”
“I will not comment.”
Wellington spread his arms wide in excitement.
“Anyway, it’s warm! The wind is cool! The sky is clear! It’s great weather for walking around! So where are you going? I heard that Dravin City is famous as a shopping city.”
Ray pricked up his ears at the word shopping.
At that time, she also wanted to change her mood and buy some pretty new clothes.
“I’m going to go shopping, but there’s a place I need to stop by first.”
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“Aha, look at my mind. I definitely have to go there.”
“That’s right, that’s right.”
“… … ?”
Ray nodded silently at Wellington’s incomprehensible words.
Theo blinked quietly.
I don’t think he ever mentioned anything about the imperial vault… … ?
But Ray seemed to know something too, so I couldn’t say anything rashly.
Just opening your mouth like a goldfish.
Wellington also seemed to realize only then that something was strange.
“Huh? Weren’t you planning to visit the <Hi Theodore> shop that opened here?”
“… … !?”
Is your mother’s store here?
Theo’s eyes widened.
How the bastard of the Return Sword Family lives
