[Translator - Peptobismal]
[Proofreader - Max]
Chapter 72
"Grandfather."
Zeke tightly grasped Rufus's remaining hand.
Rufus then embraced Zeke.
"I finally get to hold you."
Because of the curse, Rufus had suppressed his emotions and couldn't properly hug Zeke even when they first met, for fear of harming him.
The other elders of Agamemnon also approached and hugged Zeke.
They were all so large that Zeke was soon buried among them.
But as everyone looked at Zeke with eyes full of affection, he didn't feel the slightest discomfort.
Rufus finally ended the hug with Zeke and said,
"This isn't the time for this. Let's quickly go to the castle. We must properly treat the benefactor of our clan."
Then, another elder next to him shouted with joy,
"That horrible herb soup is finally over!"
"Damn it, we ate that stuff for 50 years because of that damn curse."
Felix, who was behind them, breathed a sigh of relief at those words.
'So it wasn't just me who found that soup strange.'
Thus, Zeke and Felix headed to the castle with the elders of the Agamemnon clan.
The atmosphere of the castle had completely changed.
The cramped and old castle now had wide corridors decorated with elegant ornaments.
Felix's jaw dropped as he looked at the castle.
"N-No way, Master. H-How could the castle... in just one night..."
He couldn't believe he was witnessing a legendary situation where the castle regained its original beauty after the curse was lifted.
Unlike Felix, who was amazed as he looked around the castle, Zeke recalled the message window that had appeared earlier.
'It definitely said 'Emergency defense mode deactivated'.'
It seemed that, like the Dragon Slayer's Sanctuary and Kaisir's Sanctuary, it could use various functions by linking with the system.
Zeke thought that the ability of his system was related to the Elder Dragon artifact he had discovered before he died in his past life.
'Could Cain's Hercyon and this mask also be related to the Elder Dragon?'
Lost in thought, Zeke arrived at the place where they had eaten the soup yesterday.
Like other parts of the castle, the dining hall was completely different from yesterday.
Beautiful stained glass adorned the walls, and bright sunlight streamed through the windows, giving the entire dining hall a refreshing atmosphere.
As Zeke, Felix, and the elders took their seats, the maids brought in the food.
"Young Master Zeke with black eyes! We have put our skills to use for the first time in 50 years for the savior of the clan."
It wasn't the hunched old woman from before, but a gentle-looking lady in a neat maid uniform, speaking in an elegant voice.
Felix was surprised again.
"I-Is that the same person from yesterday?"
"Hee hee! Hee hee! Of course."
The head maid said playfully and began serving the food.
Their bodies had been collapsing due to the demonic corruption, but Zeke's Grand Purification had cleansed the demonic energy and restored their bodies to their original state.
This time, instead of the thick soup, elegant aristocratic dishes filled the table.
Rufus looked at the food and said,
"Under the curse, we couldn't see the sunlight and couldn't even eat proper food. As a result, our conditions worsened, our tongues stiffened, and we couldn't even speak properly."
The elders nodded in agreement.
They were able to eat warm food for the first time in 50 years.
Zeke, following etiquette, focused on eating without speaking.
The elders also enjoyed the food that the head maid had carefully prepared.
After the meal, they moved to the garden to have tea.
Zeke, sitting across from Rufus, took out the golden mask from his pocket.
Rufus's face was filled with emotion at the sight of the mask.
"The Golden Mask of Agamemnon. I can't believe the symbol of the clan has returned."
Zeke asked Rufus,
"Lord, can you explain what happened?"
Rufus nodded.
"Yes. Zeke, you have the right to hear all the secrets of our clan."
He stroked the Golden Mask and said,
"Fifty years ago, a great plague swept through Mycenae."
"This is the first time I've heard that there was a plague 50 years ago."
Rufus nodded.
"That's to be expected. Our clan used every means possible to prevent the plague from spreading outside of Mycenae. Back then, I was just a young man who had just come of age."
Rufus looked into the distance, recalling the past.
Then he continued,
"The elders of the clan gathered those infected with the plague and brought those who weren't into the castle, trying to thoroughly quarantine them. But the plague spread too quickly to be contained."
"Do you remember what kind of disease it was?"
Rufus nodded.
"It was a terrible disease. Those infected suffered from high fever and red spots on their faces, and most of them vomited blood and died within three days."
Zeke was surprised to hear Rufus's words.
'Could that plague be the Red Flower Plague?'
Although the time it took to die was different, the symptoms were very similar to those of the Red Flower Plague spreading in the Alencia border region.
In his past life, the Red Flower Plague spread, and the countries of the Central Continent had to pay a heavy price.
Fortunately, a cure was developed and the disease was contained before it spread further, but if it hadn't been, a disaster would have occurred.
Rufus continued slowly,
"But the problem wasn't the plague. When the sun set, terrible things happened."
"What do you mean?"
Rufus's hand trembled slightly.
"At night, those who died from the plague rose up and started attacking the living."
Zeke's expression hardened as he heard the unbelievable story.
"You mean they became zombies?"
"It was different from the zombies summoned by dark mages. When the risen dead bit the living, that person also rose and attacked the living."
"So it was contagious, like the plague."
"Yes. We could only explain it as a curse on Mycenae. During the day, people died from the disease, and at night, the dead rose and attacked the living."
The scene Rufus described was truly horrifying.
"So what happened?"
"We completely isolated Mycenae from the outside, fortified the castle, and waited for the plague to pass with the living. But the number of dead only increased."
Rufus's voice trembled slightly.
Then, he stroked the Golden Mask and said,
"Zeke, this mask is a sacred object passed down through our clan for generations. From the ancestors of the ancestors of the ancestors of Agamemnon. It has been passed down from the oldest ancestor."
"Do you know who made this mask?"
Rufus shook his head.
"That wasn't passed down. Most of the records from before the Golden Age have disappeared."
Zeke was disappointed to hear Rufus's answer.
He had hoped to get a clue about the Hercyon.
Rufus continued his story.
"This castle and the Golden Mask have been symbols of the Agamemnon clan for generations. Perhaps because of the sacred power it holds, the dead couldn't enter this place. But even holding out inside the castle had its limits. In the end, my aunt, the head of the clan at the time, made a decision."
"What decision?"
Rufus swallowed and replied,
"To sink the dead into the sacred lake and purify the unholy energy. The head of the clan and the elders of the clan at the time volunteered to be bait."
"The painting you showed me earlier was about that."
"Yes. With the sacrifice of the head of the clan and the elders, they succeeded in luring the dead to the lake and drowning them. But a problem arose."
Zeke had a hunch.
"The unholy energy of the dead tainted even the sacred lake."
Rufus nodded.
"You're right. The sacred lake turned into a swamp, and even the guardian deity of the lake turned into a monster due to the unholy power."
Zeke understood why Nahuel, who was a divine beast, had turned into a monstrous beast.
Rufus said with tears in his eyes,
"So, the head of the clan took the Golden Mask, which held sacred power, and jumped into the unholy lake herself. To purify the unholy power, no matter how long it took."
Zeke recalled the Golden Mask that was emitting light at the bottom of the lake.
'She used the Golden Mask's purification skill. To purify the demonic energy.'
Even after her death, the head of the Agamemnon clan had been activating the power of the sacred object for 50 years, continuously purifying the demonic energy of the lake.
But the demonic energy was too strong, overwhelming the purification and even eroding the surrounding territory.
If Zeke hadn't come, the Agamemnon clan might have been completely consumed by the demonic energy, turning the land into a lifeless wasteland.
Zeke looked at Rufus and said,
"You spread the rumors of the curse to protect the citizens, didn't you?"
Rufus nodded.
"Yes. It was a measure we came up with in case any remnants of the plague remained."
"The curse that killed children must have also been the influence of the unholy power."
"That must be the case. Even our trained bodies couldn't withstand the power, so the frail children wouldn't have been able to."
The truth behind the curse on the Agamemnon clan was revealed.
The Agamemnon clan, who had nobly sacrificed themselves and shouldered the stigma of the curse for the sake of the people of their territory and countless others on the continent, deserved respect.
Zeke was relieved that his mother's clan was such a noble one.
He bowed his head to Rufus with sincerity.
"I express my respect and admiration for the honorable sacrifice of the Agamemnon clan."
At Zeke's sincere greeting, not only Rufus but also the other elders looked at him with warm expressions.
Rufus looked at Zeke and said,
"The more I see you, the more you resemble your mother."
Zeke looked up at Rufus and asked,
"Grandfather, I want to hear about my mother."
Rufus's expression hardened.
"Didn't Arthur tell you about your mother?"
Zeke shook his head.
"I don't even know my mother's name. Everyone in Draker was reluctant to talk about her."
At those words, Rufus clenched his fists and trembled.
He shouted with an angry expression,
"That Arthur bastard, I should have stopped Laura from marrying him!"
'Laura Agamemnon.'
Zeke learned his mother's name for the first time.
He asked Rufus,
"I heard that the Agamemnon clan was once the strongest of all the Draker blood alliance clans."
Rufus scoffed.
"Draker's blood alliance! Ha, Zeke. Originally, the Draker clan was an allied clan of our Agamemnon."
"An allied family, not a blood alliance?"
"During the Holy Empire era, the Draker clan was a rural knight clan that only held power in the corner of the western continent. They wouldn't have been able to advance to the Central Continent with the Dragon Slayer legend without the help of the Agamemnon clan, the ruler of the Central Continent and a clan with a tradition that continued from the Holy Empire era."
Rufus continued his explanation.
"Midland also originally started as a city alliance centered around Mycenae after the collapse of the Holy Empire. But Draker took advantage of Mycenae's collapse due to the plague, swallowing up Mycenae's blood alliance clans and growing in size."
Rufus's voice didn't sound deceitful or boastful.
Zeke, who knew the political nature of the Draker clan, which pretended to be a knight clan that only knew swords, found Rufus's words more credible.
'Those Draker bastards are capable of that.'
Zeke asked Rufus,
"My mother must have known all about the Draker clan's behavior, so why did she marry Arthur Draker and give birth to me?"
Rufus let out a deep sigh.
"Laura was my daughter, but she was a child I couldn't understand. As children continued to die in the clan due to the unholy power, my now-deceased wife and I had given up. But then, miraculously, Laura was born."
"That's amazing. That only your mother was born and grew up unaffected by the unholy power."
Rufus nodded and said,
"There's a reason for that."
He lowered his voice and said,
"Zeke, your mother was a Healer class."
[Translator - Peptobismal]
[Proofreader - Max]