[Translator - Peptobismal]
[Proofreader - Max]
Chapter 138
"Y-you caught all these alone?"
"Is it not enough?"
The hermit shook his head.
"N-no, it's enough."
He hadn't expected Zeke to catch ten monsters in less than an hour.
Even for a skilled knight, hunting monsters wasn't easy.
It required understanding the characteristics of monsters and the tracking skills to stealthily follow them.
Moreover, Mt. Ouroboros was a place with many monstrous monsters, so much so that even the Hermit of the Story himself had to settle there. Each one was a unique monster.
The hermit looked Zeke up and down with suspicious eyes.
"...Why are you looking at me like that?"
"Are you, by any chance, a Highlander?"
Zeke feigned ignorance and shook his head.
"What's that?"
Zeke, speaking nonchalantly, seemed like someone who genuinely didn't know what a Highlander was.
Seeing Zeke's desperate acting, the hermit shook his head.
"No. Hmm. There's no way. Hmm, even so, there's no way this is possible."
The hermit asked Zeke casually,
"Do you need a new job?"
"I'm already overwhelmed with my current work."
Zeke immediately cut off the hermit's words, worried that he might end up making a Highlander oath again.
The hermit smacked his lips and said,
"Hmm, that's quite a shame. Nigel would be very interested if he saw you."
Zeke almost hiccuped when he heard his master's name suddenly mentioned.
'Absolutely not in this life.'
Zeke didn't want to encounter his master, Nigel, even in his dreams.
He quickly changed the subject.
"Now, please tell me about the relic."
Since Zeke had passed the test he proposed, the hermit couldn't refuse to answer his question.
The hermit looked at Zeke and asked,
"Where did you hear about the relic?"
"I happened to encounter a subordinate of the 'Lord of the Lowest Depths' and heard that there was competition among the demonfolk for the relic."
The hermit dropped the fan he was holding at Zeke's words.
"W-what are you talking about!"
"...? I just answered your question..."
"S-say that again. Did the 'Lord of the Lowest Depths' really appear?"
"The demon itself didn't appear, but its subordinate appeared by borrowing a human's body.
The name was... Griesmodal, something that resembled a werewolf."
The hermit's face turned pale.
"C-crazy. Griesmodal? That's the famous demonfolk Beast Tamer, the master of 999 monsters."
"You know that demonfolk?"
"W-well, not personally. Anyway, that's not important. You're saying the demonfolk are competing for the relic?"
"Yes. That Griesmodal guy said so. He said if you bring the relic, your rank as a subordinate increases, and you can get the name of a constellation."
"Huh..."
The hermit slumped down with a dejected expression.
Zeke, seeing the hermit like that, asked,
"What does it mean for a demonfolk to have the name of a constellation? It's not like they become a demon."
The hermit barely picked up his fan and fanned himself as he spoke.
"That's what it means."
"Huh? What do you mean?"
"As he said, if you get the name of a constellation, you become a demon."
"A demon is a constellation?"
"Demons are also constellations. Constellations of the evil side."
"I thought there were only constellations like the Sun God, the Moon Goddess, and the Thirteen Zodiacs."
The hermit shook his head.
"Demons were originally constellations like them, but they fell and their essence changed. In the direction they desired. The 'Lord of the Lowest Depths' is one whose desires became their constellation name."
"So, for a demonfolk to increase their rank means to become a demon."
"Demonfolk are also bound by the limitations of mortals. By becoming a constellation, they can overcome those limitations and become immortal."
Zeke understood why the demonfolk were so desperate to seize the relic.
He asked the hermit,
"Does the relic have the power to turn a demonfolk into a demon?"
The hermit shook his head.
"That's impossible. The one who needs the relic is probably another demon. That demon would have the power to turn a demonfolk into a demon."
"If there's a human who finds the relic and offers it, it would be easy for that demon to grant them the dream of immortality."
"Immortality? Hmm, that's a bit ambiguous. But a powerful demon could make it similar."
He seemed to understand why even the Empire's emperor was involved in searching for the Lubern bloodline.
Princess Arina thought that the Holy Kingdom and the Rom Empire were looking for a Healer who could perform miracles and heal any wounds, but that wasn't all.
'Using the Lubern bloodline to find the relic and offering it to a demon to gain immortality. That Mad Emperor would definitely do that.'
Zeke thought he had to find the relic first no matter what.
The hermit pondered and then asked Zeke,
"If even demons and demonfolk are involved, it's a really big deal. Hmm, with something like this happening, why isn't Karma showing any unusual signs?"
Zeke was surprised to hear the hermit mention Karma and asked,
"You know about Karma?"
The hermit was rather flustered by Zeke's question.
"Karma? I know about it, but how do you know?"
Zeke calmly replied to the hermit's reaction,
"I found that word in Terakan Draker's sanctuary that I discovered before."
"Terakan Draker's sanctuary? Huh. I think I've been more surprised today than in the past 300 years."
"What exactly is Karma?"
The hermit pondered Zeke's question and slowly opened his mouth.
"Karma is, in short, like a collection of causality."
"Causality?"
"Yes. If I plant a seed in the ground and a hundred years pass, a large tree will grow in that spot. There's a lot of causality between that seed and the tree. And Karma refers to that causality between concepts."
"...That's difficult."
The hermit stuck the fan he was holding into the ground.
"So, will a tree grow if a hundred years pass like this?"
"I don't think so."
"There's no proper causality between the fan and the tree. But..."
The hermit waved his hand towards the fan.
Then, small branches suddenly sprouted from the fan.
Zeke asked in surprise,
"Is that magic?"
"Magic is also a means of adjusting causality. But this is directly adjusting Karma to narrow the causality between the fan and the tree. That's why sprouts and branches appeared on the fan, which can't become a tree."
Zeke gradually understood the hermit's words.
'Then Karma points are a numerical representation of Karma that can adjust causality. That's why it's possible to do things that are impossible using Karma points.'
The hermit waved his hand again, and the fan returned to its original form and was held in his hand.
"Anyway, getting back to the original topic, neither demons nor demonfolk can appear in this world."
"You're saying that for such beings to appear in the world, a lot of causality needs to be adjusted."
"Oh, you're smart. That's right. The world is ultimately composed of causality. If it leans too much towards one side, the balance will be broken. When that balance is about to break, Karma shows unusual signs, but it's strange that I don't feel any of that."
"Maybe the demons figured it out. A way to adjust causality without triggering Karma's signs."
"For now, it seems that's the case. Hmm. I suddenly have a big worry. I'll have to convene the High Table after a long time."
Zeke was surprised to hear the hermit's words.
The High Table were representatives of Highlanders scattered throughout the continent, with the authority to adjust guidelines based on the oath.
His master, Nigel, was also a member of the High Table, so Zeke knew the concept.
'To think I'd see two members of the High Table in my two lives. Should I call it lucky or unfortunate?'
The hermit pondered and then said to Zeke,
"It's a bit sudden to say this, but I think you need to find the relics quickly."
"That's why I came here."
The hermit nodded and waved his fan again.
Then, a book appeared in his hand.
"Let's see. The story about the relics... Yes, here it is. The relics were created by the Elf King for humans. Do you know this story?"
Zeke nodded.
"I heard it from the inheritor of Lubern."
"Then it'll be a quick story. There are three relics in the world. Among them, I only know the exact location of one."
"What about the other two?"
"Hmm, I'll ask the other members of the High Table. They've all lived long enough, so there are definitely some who know."
"Okay. What is the one you know?"
"The relic I know is the 'Holy Grail.' Have you heard of it?"
"This is the first time I'm hearing about it."
The hermit closed his fan and began to explain.
"The Holy Grail is a relic related to Terakan Draker and Lubern, whom you mentioned earlier."
"How so?"
"You know that Terakan Draker defeated the evil dragon Bahamut and created the legend of the Dragon Slayer, right?"
"Of course, since I'm also a Draker."
"There are many missing parts in the Dragon Slayer legend passed down to the current Drakers."
It was something Zeke felt while investigating the Dragon Slayer legend before.
Since the Draker clan censored the Dragon Slayer legend and unified the versions into one, the information wasn't properly preserved.
The hermit waved his fan and took out another book.
Several books appeared.
"The story about the Dragon Slayer legend... Found it. Whew, the Dragon Slayer's side is so complicated, it's confusing. By the way, not everything I say is correct. I'm just reading the revealed and recorded stories."
Zeke looked at the books floating around the hermit with curiosity.
Even while sensing Zeke's gaze, the hermit didn't mind and began to tell the story behind the Dragon Slayer legend.
"Actually, the Dragon Slayer doesn't only refer to Terakan Draker. It was a term for a kind of unit."
"The Dragon Slayer unit?"
"Yes. Terakan Draker was indeed the leader of the Dragon Slayer unit. But if it were only him, the Liberation War would have been lost. If not for those who helped him."
Zeke recalled the past video of the Liberation War era that he saw at the 4th Protective Base.
Led by Terakan Draker, many races joined forces to fight off the monsters and dragons.
The hermit slowly opened his mouth.
"One of them was the 'Mage of Brilliant Light,' Claudia Lubern."
"Lubern? This is the first time I'm hearing that the founder of Lubern was a mage and helped Terakan Draker."
"It's more than that. Claudia and Terakan were lovers."
"What?"
"Claudia used the relic, the Holy Grail, to create light magic and weapons effective against demonfolk to lead the Liberation War to victory. Thanks to Claudia's power, Terakan Draker was able to lead the Dragon Slayer unit and defeat the evil dragon Bahamut's monster army."
"So the ability of the relic, the Holy Grail, is to create light magic?"
"No. The original ability of the Holy Grail is to make the person who drinks water from it live a long and healthy life. Claudia drew out the power of the Elf King dwelling within the Holy Grail to create light magic."
"Then the Lubern bloodline is descended from Claudia Lubern. That's why light magic is only passed down to the Lubern bloodline."
"That's right. A child was born between Claudia and Terrakan, and that child is the founder of the Lubern dynasty."
Zeke was surprised to hear the hermit's words.
"You're saying the Lubern dynasty is related to Terakan Draker?"
"To be precise, they were closer to Claudia's side than Terakan's. Their child was a Healer class."
"A-a Healer?"
"Yes. The power Claudia created using the Holy Grail created the bloodline ability called Blessing of Light."
"Oh my god."
The fact that Terakan Draker's child was a Healer wasn't mentioned anywhere in the Dragon Slayer legend.
Then, Zeke asked the hermit,
"Then, after their first child, who was born as a Healer class, did Terakan Draker have other children? With the talent of a swordsman?"
The hermit shook his head.
"Claudia unfortunately passed away during childbirth. And Terakan loved Claudia so much that he had no intention of marrying another woman."
Zeke's face hardened.
"Then what about the current Dragon Slayer clan? It's known that Terakan is the founder..."
The hermit waved his fan and opened a new book.
"The Draker clan has a complicated history. Let's see. Terakan Draker... Terakan, here it is. Actually, the Draker clan existed before. Since the Hero King era."
Zeke knew that too.
Because Saturn, the Noble Knight and Sword Saint, had the surname Draker.
'Is Saturn Draker really the founder of the current Draker clan? Then why is the founder of the clan recorded as the Dragon Slayer Terakan Draker, not the Sword Saint Saturn Draker?'
Just then, the hermit continued,
"There's an interesting story written here. Terakan Draker was someone who wasn't recognized by the Draker clan and was expelled."
Zeke had an expression as if he had been hit on the head with a hammer.
"Terakan Draker?"
The hermit slowly continued,
"The name Terakan was given to him when he was a free knight. His original name was..."
The hermit slowly opened his mouth.
"Siegfried."
[Translator - Peptobismal]
[Proofreader - Max]