Chapter 790
Oterium.
That place was the capital of Vankela over five hundred years ago.
After the outbreak of the Holy Kingdom Protection War, Vankela's territories, including Oterium, became desolate lands where no one could live.
As a result, the kingdom relocated the entire country to the central part of the continent, and the former lands of Vankela, including Oterium, were left as unprotected zones.
During his time as a Provisional Flagbearer, Jin suppressed the dark magic society of Kinzelo, which conducted experiments with living golems in the old Oterium.
He also obtained Riol Zipple's legacy and faced Orgal for the first time there.
Jin and Oterium are intertwined in several ways, with unfortunate connections and ties.
"Old Oterium..."
Jin looked out the window, recalling the communication he had with Runcandel.Tasha was dealing with the remaining demons there.
At that time, thanks to her and other heroes' heroic feats, the Allied Forces of the Holy Kingdom Protection War were able to completely suppress the remnants of the demons.
However, they ultimately couldn't find the true nature of the Demon World.
In the end, the Holy Kingdom Protection War ended in victory for Vankela and the Allied Forces, and demons no longer appeared.
As a result, the Demon World Research Team disbanded without completing their mission.
It was because the two main clans had shed too much blood.
Several patriarchs died, and the deaths of knights and Magicians were countless.
"But curiously, there are very few records..."
Jin's words were met with nods from his comrades.
"That's right, my lord. Even if the two main clans considered it as an excessive loss and dismissed it, there are very few records remaining about Oterium."
As soon as the meeting ended, Leuth ordered the butlers and scribes to thoroughly search the remaining records of the Holy Kingdom Protection War in the current library of the Garden of Swords.
However, there was no record of the "location of the Demon World" anywhere.
"Runcandel has lost many records due to the evil god war, so it's possible. However, it's strange that there are no related records in the Holy Kingdom as well."
Siris immediately visited the Holy Kingdom, but even Lani had very little information about it.
In other words, both Runcandel and the Holy Kingdom lacked records.
"Even if Runcandel and the Holy Kingdom tried to dismiss the damage situation of the Holy Kingdom Protection War and hide it, it's strange to have such a large lack of records. They would have at least left some records that only the patriarch or king could access."
"There may have been external pressure not to leave records in Runcandel and the Holy Kingdom, or there may have been history manipulation... One of the two."
Jin reached that conclusion.
Otherwise, there was no way to explain the complete disappearance of such a crucial event, which could be counted on one hand in all of human history.
Either external pressure or history manipulation.
It could only be Zipple who could do such a thing against Runcandel and the Holy Kingdom.
The records that his current comrades couldn't confirm were also likely the work of Zipple.
"Dame Tasha said that Zipple wouldn't have had the power to pressure Runcandel. After the war, both main clans suffered significant losses."
"Then it leans towards history manipulation, my lord."
"Yes. Since they couldn't exert open pressure, they would have chosen the covert route of erasing history."
"Since Sir Alpen and Dame Tasha, who were crucial to the event, had already passed away, there would have been few obstacles to history manipulation. As Mrs. Leut said, Runcandel probably didn't have the Power of Existence that the two had."
-<Elona Zipple, along with 3,026 more Magicians, attempted to manipulate the history of Temar Runcandel, but she failed to break the immense Power of Existence he possessed.>
The Power of Existence.
Jin first confirmed this in Temar's third tomb, in the subspace where Leuth was.
Leuth speculated that if Zipple manipulated the history of the Holy Kingdom Protection War, it would have been possible because both Alpen and Tasha were absent.
"Zipple knew that the Demon World existed beneath this world. However, they claimed not to know the exact location."
"So, Zipple manipulated the history of Dame Tasha's search for the location of the Demon World, but they didn't know about old Oterium, the location discovered by the research team at that time?"
"For now, that seems to be the most likely possibility. Since Zipple wasn't part of Dame Tasha's research team. Only Dame Tasha and the Black Knights of that era knew the relationship between old Oterium and the Demon World."
The pieces of the puzzle were coming together.
"Sanna speculated that Zipple knew the location of the Demon World. But once she started cooperating with Zipple, they pretended not to know the location. That's why Sanna, through Zipple's power, is trying to destroy the surface to find the entrance. And the reason Sanna isn't collaborating with Orgal, who is presumed to already know the location of the Demon World, is because their goals are different."
"I see, Jin. And even if Zipple knows the location of the Demon World, they wouldn't easily share it with Sanna. According to Sheenu, Beradin and Sanna are in a mutually exploitative relationship. They have no reason to give each other what they want until they've squeezed everything out of each other."
"Beradin, Sanna..."
Jin thought about the two for a moment. The reason why they suddenly ended up together.
"...The Holy Land. Zipple's Holy Land is a land where the residual energy of the Sun God remains. Beradin is in the midst of using the special power of that land through Sanna. I don't think Beradin will become a follower of the Sun God; he probably wants to contain even the Sun God within the Demon God Orb."
In other words, Beradin is using Sanna to contain the Sun God within the Demon God Orb, while Sanna wants to resurrect the Sun God.
That was Jin's conclusion.
"Now I understand why Sheenu sought our help. Whether it's Beradin or Sanna, once either of them has achieved their goal, Sheenu will have no place. Zipple must have considered the core of the Demon God Orb to be the combined power of my shadow force and Sheenu's authority, but now there is a means to replace that."
Looking back, there came a point when Zipple stopped coveting the power of Jin's Shadow Force as before.
-I congratulate you on this surprise attack. However, you and your god will become the most crucial materials for the Demon God Orb, Jin Runcandel...!
-Secure Jin Runcandel! He must not be consumed by chaos!
Words spoken by Andrei Zipple on the desert island of the Empire and by Kelliark during the Battle of the Sword Emperor Castle.
Ever since Jin's status as a Shadow Contractor was revealed, Zipple had been making continuous efforts to contain the power of Shadow within the Demon God Orb.
However, since the evil god war, they hadn't shown such intentions.
It could be because Jin became a Giant, but Jin hadn't felt any sensation that Zipple coveted his power recently.
Instead, Beradin had shown confidence when he revealed the Holy Land and the living magical sword golem.
"According to Orgal, the Sun God is the beginning of this world. So, even if the Sun God possesses a greater authority than Solderet, it wouldn't be surprising."
"So, that's why Zipple abandoned Sheenu. Since you're not affiliated with Zipple anyway, there's nothing to discard or maintain in your case."
"Well, it seems we've discussed everything we can for now. I should go to Oterium myself."
***
Upon arriving at old Oterium on the Red Owl, there were remnants of the past when Jin had fought against the Dark Magic Society with Murakan.
Suddenly, memories of that time resurfaced.
The sacrifice of the citizens of the Holy Kingdom in the living golem experiments and the martyrdom of the Saint, Mutuel Scylla, who fought to reveal the truth until the end.
Jin closed his eyes momentarily to commemorate them.
His comrades did the same and offered their silent prayers.
"...The traces of battle are remarkable. Were you already 10 stars when you were a Provisional Flagbearer, Jin?"
Hedo commented as he looked at the location where the Dark Magic Society's castle once stood.
"No, Murakan handled most of the actual fighting at that time. And I was able to manifest a much stronger power than usual by harmonizing with Tess. Cold Joe brought out the golem created by a phoenix in front of Tess."
The destroyed site of the Dark Magic Society exuded a desolate feeling.
Along with the traces of battle, occasional areas contaminated by chaos left by Gliek caught their attention.
"It's like experiencing Jin's tales indirectly. Ah! What a joy."
"My lady, we are here on business."
"Shut up! I'm going to imagine Jin's heroic figure while feeling these sword marks. Take care of your business."
With Sandra leaving the scene immediately, the group was able to immediately focus on their investigation. Valeria rolled her eyes as she observed Sandra's behavior.
Valeria had accompanied them to old Oterium for the purpose of investigating the records of history.
Hedo had come as a precautionary measure, and Sandra simply followed him.
However, the records didn't contain any significant information.
"Perhaps it's because some areas have been contaminated by chaos that the records aren't well preserved. Or maybe there were no special records to begin with. When you were a Provisional Flagbearer, I came here to inspect the records, so I know."
-It would be best to acquire Riol Zipple's magic tome as soon as possible.
-Is there anyone else who is aiming for that magic tome?
-Yes. Recently, a Magician I've been keeping an eye on is aiming for that magic tome. She is a human girl named Arya Owlheart, a rather special person born with a rather special destiny, just like you.
Words spoken by Misha in the past when he informed Jin about Riol's legacy.
Just as Misha had said, Valeria had come here a few years ago in search of Riol's legacy, but she returned empty-handed.
"Although my skills have improved greatly since then, if the records aren't being observed, it means that Kinzelo hasn't visited this place recently. Or... underground. Sheenu said that the entrance to the Demon World is underground, right?"
"That's right."
"If Kinzelo took action in the depths of Oterium, the records may not be visible due to the distance. In other words, if the entrance to the Demon World exists several kilometers underground, we would have to get closer."
The area where an event occurred is a crucial factor in record magic.
Without proximity to the scene, related records cannot emerge.
Jin pondered for a moment before reaching a conclusion.
"In that case, we should start excavating this place from now on. Until something emerges."
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