༺ Gorgan (4) ༻
Not surprisingly, the stomach that had been pierced by Gorgan in the realm of consciousness had healed.
Other than that, there were no other scars, and his condition was better than ever.
Vera lifted his head and looked at Gorgan.
The white arm stretching out from the spine of the beast was looking down at him.
It stroked the beast’s head and spoke.
[…Thank you.]
It was a gratitude without any further details, but Vera could tell.
It was a thank-you for breaking him free of Alaysia’s chains.
In the brief silence that followed, Vera smiled and replied.
“I’m glad to hear it.”
He didn’t know what was on Gorgan’s mind.
However, he pitied the emotions that flowed to him, and the outcome was positive, so he only thought that everything would be okay.
“How are you?”
[Very good. I don’t know how long it’s been since I’ve been this clear-headed.]
After uttering those words with a chuckle, Gorgan called Friede.
[Hey, elf.]
Friede’s head turned towards the voice.
On Friede’s face was a vague, somewhat sorrowful expression.
“…Yes.”
[I won’t hold you responsible, but that doesn’t mean I forgive you.]
Friede’s fists clenched, a woeful smile creeping across.
“You don’t have to…”
[It’s nothing to do with you.]
Gorgan turned to face Friede directly and added.
[It’s between me and Aedrin. And before that, Alaysia. I’m not someone unreasonable.]
There was a pause.
Gorgan thought back to the rampage he had just caused.
[…If I were in my right mind.]
The Karel whined at the awkwardness Gorgan exuded.
It nestled its head on the hanging white arm.
It’d be a lie to say that they didn’t feel uneasy at the tame sight of the beast that had made such a rampage.
Vera, unable to find the words, laughed for no reason and then asked Gorgan.
“What will you do now?”
[I’m going back to the west until the day Alaysia shows up.]
“Pardon?”
[I can tell without having to look for her.]
Gorgan’s hand gently scratched the Karel’s jaw.
Karel squinted its one eye and purred.
What followed was a single word.
A word that made Vera and Renee’s expressions harden at once.
[Tenth.]
The tenth.
It was something he had clearly seen in the vision.
A fetus covered in blood, with ten horns and seven faces.
Vera swallowed dryly at the mention of it and asked.
“…What the hell is that?”
[A false idol. A symbol that should not exist.]
At the bits and pieces of the answer, Vera felt a sickening disgust.
[Alaysia’s objective is to create the Tenth God.]
Gorgan’s arm wrapped around the Karel’s neck.
[She’s trying to break the current order and open a new Heavenly Realm. To achieve that, she needs Ardain’s soul.]
“If it’s his soul…”
[Yes. It’s been torn apart, but that doesn’t mean there’s no way to get it back. If it’s been torn apart and spread across the continent, then all she has to do is gobble up the entire continent and swallow it, and she’ll have all the pieces of his soul in her stomach.]
It sounded like a ridiculous story.
It would be right to judge it so, but Vera couldn’t deny it.
After all, that was the world before the regression.
A world torn asunder by the Demon King.
Renee, who had failed despite the heroes’ efforts.
And himself, who had already died in that timeline.
Using that as the reason for all of that made for a plausible causal chain.
[She’s a tenacious bitch, a feisty bitch. As such, I’ll know right away when she starts to make her move, so all I have to do now is wait and recover.]
The atmosphere toned down at Gorgan’s words.
More accurately, everyone was dumbfounded by the great scale of the story.
In the midst of the tension, Gorgan laughed faintly and turned the Karel’s body.
[Don’t worry too much. We won’t just be sitting ducks.]
Gorgan didn’t say it as a reassurance.
In fact, he was convinced that Alaysia wouldn’t be able to fulfill her purpose.
Borrowing the Karel’s eye, Gorgan looked at Vera.
A grim man with black hair and ashen eyes.
He felt an inexplicable sense of déjà vu from him.
‘How strange. He doesn’t look anything like him.’
For some reason, Vera reminded him of Ardain.
A friend, brother, and father who made him feel like he could do anything, like he had nothing to fear just by being with him.
Gorgan shook off his train of thoughts.
[…I’ll go now.]
He led the Karel away.
To the west, from the way he had come.
‘…I’ll know when the time comes.’
Whether this was simply his own misunderstanding, or if this was another arrangement from Ardain.
“Grrr—”
[Yeah, it won’t be long.]
It wouldn’t take long to find out.
[She’s an impatient bitch, after all.]
Alaysia was an impatient one, and Ardain was someone who knew her best.
In the near future, he would be able to face the truth.
***
The situation after Gorgan’s departure was chaotic.
This was due to the new information he had left behind: the Tenth.
This was no longer just a war, but a continental crisis.
It meant that the other nations had to stop being on the defensive and start preparing in earnest.
In a marketplace somewhere, wizards communicating with their homeland were shouting urgently.
The soldiers shed their sweat in preparation for their return.
Amid this, Vera, who had already completed his preparations, was bidding farewell to his companions to return to the Holy Kingdom.
Albrecht said.
“Next time…”
His words trailed off.
His expression was crumpled, uncharacteristically of him.
The reason was because he was resentful of himself for having fallen with only a single swing of his sword.
Albrecht, by nature, had a strong attachment to himself.
As such, the disappointment he felt when he failed to meet his own expectations was greater than that of others.
Therefore, he made a promise to himself.
“…Next time, I won’t show you such a ridiculous sight.”
His golden eyes gleamed with determination.
It made Vera laugh.
It was a much more manly look than his usual annoying expression.
“I’ll look forward to it.”
Needless to say, the added touch of friendliness surprised Renee.
‘Vera… isn’t swearing at the Second Prince?’
She felt this was odd as Vera, who always clicked his tongue whenever he saw Albrecht, spoke so warmly.
“Take care on your way home.”
Hegrion said, followed by Friede and Miller.
Friede didn’t add anything else and just stared at Vera and Renee.
Miller scratched the back of his head and laughed.
As he had traveled with Vera for the longest time, he was feeling a little emotional.
Now that the long journey was finally over and the real end was approaching, many thoughts crossed his mind.
However, there was a part of him that was too embarrassed to show it, so Miller simply smiled and said goodbye.
“See you later. Oh, and tell Jenny to study sorcery as well.”
With that, the exchange of goodbyes was over.
And so, Vera, Renee, and Rohan returned to their homes.
***
A few days later, in the flower garden of the Grand Temple.
Vera had returned and was facing Vargo, who was tending to the flowers.
“How was it?”
The question was missing the topic, but Vera answered nonetheless.
“I feel like it’s better than before.”
“Are you sure it’s not just you?”
“I didn’t collapse from awakening my Intention. I’ve been able to see what I really needed to see.”
Pride surfaced on Vera’s face as he rambled on about his progress.
It was a look of satisfaction that he was no longer merely an inexperienced man like before.
Vargo laughed heartily as he saw that expression.
“You’ve grown. You’ve stopped talking about how you’re lacking.”
“I’m still far from you, Your Holiness.”
“Enough with your flattery.”
The red divinity that enveloped the flowers faded.
Vargo rose to his feet and turned his head straight toward Vera.
“You said the Tenth.”
“Yes. I’ve also confirmed it through the vision Orgus showed, so we need to investigate it.”
“So, are you saying we need to open the Library?”
The Library.
A treasure trove of history, hidden deep beneath the Temple, housed all of Elia’s records from the past.
It was the reason Vera was facing Vargo now, and it was also the reason why he was so nervous.
That place would definitely hold information about the beginning of Elia.
In other words, there would be words and information that Ardain had left behind as he built this Elia.
“…Will you allow me?”
“Do you realize that what you are doing is against the law?”
“I just know that it’s something I have to do.”
“You are setting a bad precedent.”
“What good is that precedent if there are no future generations to follow it?”
What came back was a relentless aggression.
Vargo laughed.
“How insolent.”
He didn’t know exactly what happened when Vera met Gorgan.
There was something about that moment that couldn’t be felt just from listening to the story.
Nevertheless, Vargo could tell.
That Vera had grown up and that he had risen to another level internally, and not in physical power.
“You don’t need my permission. You are now my proxy.”
“Are you talking about your retirement?”
“I’ve done enough. I’m tired of using my brain.”
A chuckle escaped Vera’s mouth.
“I’m still lacking.”
Vargo also laughed loudly.
“You rascal. In what world does someone become incompetent in that short time?”
Realizing that his innocent facade was a little hard to tolerate, Vargo waved his hand.
“I’ll go tell Trevor. To at least find something.”
“I can do it my…”
“If you coop in there, who will take care of Elia?”
Vera paused.
His eyes narrowed.
“Was that the problem?”
“Then would there be anything else?”
Vera sighed at Vargo’s wicked smile.
“…I understand for now.”
Perhaps he had been enjoying his break too much.
Suddenly, that thought filled Vera’s mind.
***
It was a situation where Alaysia completely hid her whereabouts.
Gorgan said that ‘he would know when it was the time’, but they couldn’t just do nothing because of that.
The nations, which had been staying vigilant of each other, had begun to cross borders and train together, and a change followed that.
The other groups of the continent also responded to the rumors that spread widely.
The merchants emptied their vaults and searched for explorers.
Needless to say, all of the continent’s explorers began to race for the lifetime’s worth of reward.
Scholars stopped their research and began studying ancient records from the Age of Gods.
And the underground intelligence organizations began to mobilize their resources to voluntarily dig up information and release it to the surface.
The entire continent had united under a single purpose.
Someone commented on it.
Maybe it would be the first and last time in the continent’s history that there will be no war.
Of course, Vera laughed it off.
For a time without war, this whole thing was a preparation for one.
“It’s loud outside.”
“Hmm, Vera must be busy, too.”
On a terrace at the Grand Temple, Renee said that pitifully as Vera told her about the situation outside and pondered.
‘I wonder if there’s anything I can do…’
Vera hadn’t been getting any breaks lately.
She felt sorry for Vera, who was overworking himself, even though it couldn’t be solved just by pushing himself too hard.
Her thoughts continued for a while.
At the end of it, Renee spoke up.
“Vera.”
“Yes?”
“How about we go on a date? It’s been a while.”
Vera tilted his head.
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