Chapter 168

〈 Chapter 169 〉 Water Sage (1)

*

“I’m sorry. I’ll live more earnestly. Please let me live just once.”

Yusera sat down on the deck, hugging the structure tightly, mumbling something indistinct.

Meanwhile, I was busy keeping an eye on the Chaos Beasts trying to come up on deck while holding Albert in my hand.

“Lucy! How much longer until we enter the barrier?”

“Not much longer! Do you see the fog ahead?”

Just as she said, a fog-covered sea appeared in front of us.

“Is it just going to be a matter of reaching there?”

“Yes, we’ll sneak in through the Fog Sea.”

But entering through the Fog Sea means…

“Then we won’t be able to see the Chaos Beasts either, will we?”

The fog looked pretty thick.

So thick that we couldn’t even see right in front of us.

“There’s nothing we can do about that.”

“Nothing we can do?”

Could there be some method to it?

“We’ll just have to leave it to God.”

Saying that, she deftly turned the helm to avoid the Chaos Beasts.

But hearing that made me even more anxious.

The God she mentioned was right in my hands too.

‘Please save me. Please save me. Please save me.’

It was practically the same as Yusera.

‘Is this really going to be okay?’

I wasn’t fond of such extreme methods.

Of course, it wasn’t exactly my place to say anything after charging straight into the Leim Royal Castle, but there’s a difference between what I do and what I leave to someone else.

‘For now, this seems like the only method we have left, which is troubling.’

If what Lucy said was true and the High Priest’s orders had been issued, then there would be no safe place to go.

Even the Leim Kingdom, which had declared isolation until recently, wouldn’t be safe forever.

If that’s the case, I simply had to accomplish what I needed to do in the Central Sea System and resolve the misunderstanding with the High Priest.

‘And if I meet her on Library Island, maybe I can get help.’

The ship had already entered the Fog Sea.

There was truly no turning back now.

Thud.

I heard a sound from below the deck, as if something had bumped into it.

Probably a Chaos Beast.

It seemed Lucy was simply gripping the helm tightly to avoid losing direction.

‘Now it seems like I really have no choice but to pray for the gods’ help.’

Then it happened.

­God?

Suddenly, Albert reacted.

At the same time, the blade of Albert began to shine.

“Albert?”

It was a mix of multiple lights.

Colors swirling like auroras.

The light gradually spread, enveloping the ship.

“This is… a barrier?”

­That’s right. I created a small barrier.

Albert casually said something incredible.

Lucy, who was holding the helm, looked at him as if she couldn’t believe it.

“I had a feeling when I held it earlier, but what kind of sword is that?”

“Just Albert.”

Though Albert was simply a god.

Anyway, perhaps thanks to the small barrier Albert created, the Chaos Beasts didn’t seem to approach the ship anymore.

We entered the inside of the barrier.

The fog extended even into the barrier, and Lucy seemed to have judged that there was no need to increase speed, so she slowed down the ship.

­The barrier should no longer be necessary, right?

“Probably.”

­Ding-dong-ting.

What on earth was that sound?

“Stop making weird noises.”

­I have to let you know that it’s entering power-saving mode…

“Power-saving mode?”

­Yes, I just used up almost all of my divine power.

Well, even if it was a small barrier, creating it while infused in the sword must not have been an easy task.

“Thanks for the hard work, Albert.”

The sword had already gone quiet.

Once it shut its mouth, the ship was enveloped in silence again.

Only the creaking of the ship and the sound of the ocean waves could be heard.

‘Yusera…’

She too seemed to have collapsed after enduring the rough journey and was curled up in a corner, fainted.

It was better to let her rest until we arrived.

By the way, she was the one who tried to avoid getting wet during the trial but was already properly soaked in seawater.

‘Well, I’m the same way.’

With Wind’s Power, I could shake off all the water, but I couldn’t get rid of the saltiness embedded in my clothes.

I probably needed to change into new clothes as soon as we arrived.

‘We must be arriving soon.’

Shadows of an island began to appear beyond the thick fog.

‘Library Island.’

One of the many islands that made up the Central Sea System.

And perhaps on that island, ‘she’ would be waiting.

“Water Sage.”

At that, Lucy seemed to be stirred for the first time.

“She told me to come get you, right?”

No one else but her could give Lucy such an order.

So I had been obediently following Lucy.

After all, there were several reasons I had to meet her.

“I don’t know how she knew, but…”

Lucy calmly guided the ship to a dock made of logs.

Then she jumped off the ship and started tying the boat to a post.

“Get off quickly. She’s probably waiting in the library.”

I confirmed that Yusera was not merely sleeping but had completely fainted and then lifted her up.

Though I felt a lot through her soaked clothes, it was not a problem worth worrying about when dealing with an unconscious companion.

‘By the way, a library…’

In the game, it was described as the largest library among the existing ones, but due to graphic limitations, it wasn’t depicted properly.

There was no way I couldn’t be excited.

And that excitement was soon to become reality.

‘It really is impressively large.’

A small island shrouded in fog.

The building located in the center of that island seemed larger than most large mansions.

It resembled a small castle.

‘Is the Water Sage inside there?’

I felt again just what kind of being she was.

“It’s me. Lucy Teracia.”

As Lucy spoke, the sound of machinery began to whir, and the enormous doors of the library opened automatically.

I followed her into the library.

The library flowed with an eerie stillness as if time had stopped.

It was spacious, but there was no one in sight.

Yet, the floor was completely dust-free, as if someone had cleaned it.

‘Or perhaps it’s an environment where dust can’t even accumulate.’

If dust had a source, it would be either people or external debris.

But this place was devoid of people, and all the windows were closed.

Was it really okay for us to be here?

As I entered the main hall through the long corridor that stretched from the entrance of the library, I spotted someone standing on the second-floor balcony.

Curly blue hair cascading down to her waist, a large monocle covering her left, similarly colored eye.

Finally, her indifferent gaze looking down at us.

Her identity was clear.

‘Water Sage.’

And at the same time…

“Thanks for bringing him here, Lucy.”

The Water Sage, who sounded a bit grumbling, was Lucy Teracia’s younger sister.

Luel Teracia.

“Thanks for all your hard work, sister.”

She then turned to me and spoke.

“Allen Pleuk. You’ve also had a tough time coming here. But…”

Her expression darkened.

“I trust you can feel that the current situation is not good for you.”

*

I left Yusera with Lucy for a moment.

Then I moved into Luel’s study with her.

Once inside, she said, “I apologize. There isn’t exactly a place to sit.”

Just as she said.

Like the outside library, her space was surrounded by books, leaving no room to sit.

“I usually read standing all day long.”

Well, she wasn’t a hero, but she shared the same Stigma as her sister, Lucy.

Standing all day long wouldn’t likely affect her stamina at all.

“Still, it’s better to sit somewhere for a calm discussion.”

She decided to perch on the very top of a ladder for the books.

I searched for a place to sit and ultimately settled on a vacant desk.

“Okay, then it would be good to organize the current situation first, right?”

“Yes, that sounds right.”

It was the right time for that.

The misunderstanding with the High Priest, the bounty placed on me.

I hadn’t processed it all properly since I heard it chaotically on the ship.

Furthermore, if there was any other information needed here…

“And I also want to know what the exact situation of the Central Sea System is right now.”

Information about the Central Sea System was also necessary.

I knew my situation was dire, but that didn’t change the fact that I still had to solve the issues in the Central Sea System.

Also, there were some strange aspects to it.

“Understood. Then I’ll start with explaining your current situation.”

She reiterated the grim circumstances I was in.

“You are currently wanted for deceiving the High Priest.”

“That’s a misunderstanding. If I join the front lines of the Central Sea System, it might get lifted…”

“I’m afraid even if it’s a misunderstanding, it’s impossible for you to join the front lines of the Central Sea System.”

What was that all of a sudden?

“Impossible to join?”

This was one of the strange aspects I had thought of.

In a situation where I was facing the Demon Kings, they were issuing a bounty on me, someone who could be a considerable asset.

Even if the bounty was valid, I had assumed it was one intended to pull me into battle.

‘Though if that were the case, there would be no reason for them to bring me secretly to the library.’

It seemed like the bounty was quite serious.

As proof of this, she said, “The moment you are caught, you will be sent straight to the church without a chance to defend yourself.”

“But I saved the Leim Kingdom.”

That was certainly an achievement everyone could acknowledge.

It was a feat worthy of calling myself a hero, even though it felt embarrassing to say.

“Yes, you did. But while you were saving the Leim Kingdom, the public opinion among the heroes had already solidified against you. If only you had remained quiet, it might not have been so bad, but by saving the Leim Kingdom, you only worsened the already negative perception.”

“Worsened?”

I thought it was nonsense.

Nonetheless, she spoke her points precisely.

“If you had told the High Priest that you were going to the Leim Kingdom, some heroes bound for the Central Sea System would have headed there instead. But instead, you chose to head to the Leim Kingdom, and deftly raided a home left vacant after all the Demon Kings left for the Central Sea System. What reason could there be for that?”

Damn it.

Something was going oddly.

I had only one reason in mind as I considered this.

“To monopolize the credit?”

“You know that well. In the meantime, a significant number of heroes sacrificed themselves in the effort to recapture Central Island. So naturally, the public’s perception of you is at its worst right now.”

“But…”

This was odd.

I could understand the public sentiment well enough.

But I couldn’t grasp the High Priest’s intent in allowing such negative sentiment to fester.

“This isn’t merely a misunderstanding.”

It was as if the High Priest was deliberately orchestrating this situation…

“Then are you saying it is a misunderstanding?”

Suddenly, an unfamiliar voice broke in.

It was a man’s voice coming from the entrance of the study.

I quickly hopped off the desk and began to watch the figure cautiously.

‘Who is that?’

Was there anyone besides Lucy and Luel on this remote island library?

As that thought crossed my mind, he slowly emerged from the shadow of the doorway.

A slender yet sturdy-looking figure.

And hair as clear and transparent as ice.

He was someone I already knew.

Second-ranked Hero.

Schurz.

As my companion Stella said, ‘a lanky guy.’

As Freira and Sigritt remarked, ‘an already satisfied person.’

But ironically, he was still one of the ‘strongest of humanity’ that terrified the Demon Kings.

He spoke to me.

“The High Priest betrayed you. Or what else could it be?”

*