Chapter 245

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Chapter 56. The Truth Revealed (1)

After subduing the Lord of the Immortals, Astevan.

The group successfully escaped the crumbling maze, chasing after the White Wolf.

Shortly after, they returned to the ruined Shulfern, took a brief rest, and then headed towards the commercial city of Murka in the Serne Kingdom.

Once they arrived in Murka, the hero party stayed at a hotel for a whole week. There was a very good reason for this.

‘A lot has happened during that time.’

The first reason was Laurea.

After successfully wielding the star’s divine power, she fainted and woke up three whole days later.

Consequently, Kadel and the Knight Order were also stuck in Murka. They couldn’t leave without the fallen Saintess.

‘Well, at least she’s awake now.’

The other members of the group also managed to recover their strength thanks to the ample rest.

Ivella had become vigorous enough to swing her sword every morning, and Sven, Ian, Delia, and Fertisha had all returned to their usual selves.

‘On the other hand…’

Ulan still hadn’t woken up.

It was expected, considering he had overexerted himself using the Transcendent Domain.

This was the second reason why the group hadn’t left Murka yet.

‘Lastly…’

It was the wreckage of the Magic-Powered Train.

This invention, something Plume Workshop prided itself on, had completely broken down during the battle.

However, they couldn’t just leave it carelessly, now that it had become a hunk of scrap. There was a risk of leaking confidential information about the invention.

‘So Professor Melt and the magic engineers stayed behind to prevent any leaks.’

Meanwhile, the captain of the flute’s guard, Owen Hiraes, led the knights back to the Endrak Kingdom.

He also promised to inform those at Arsen Academy who might still be there about Ulan and the group’s situation.

‘They’ve probably all gone back by now.’

It had long passed the school trip period.

Other students and professors had most likely returned to Arsen Academy. With that thought, Noa finished reminiscing about the recent events.

Not long after, Noa pulled out the reward obtained from defeating the Lord of the Immortals, Astevan.

A shimmering sand-colored potion.

It was the Elixir.

‘The Elixir of Protection.’

Even Noa, who had never seen this Elixir before, knew that drinking it would grant complete immunity to all poisons, curses, and necromancy existing in the world.

Not to mention, it also provided strong resistance to magic and made one resistant to extreme heat and cold. Taking away Astevan’s strengths, so to speak.

‘This is ridiculously good.’

Unlike other elixirs, the lack of side effects was a major plus. This was indeed a reward worthy of taking down the number one lord.

‘Anyway, I should give this to Ulan.’

That would certainly make Ulan even stronger.

A faint smile bloomed on Noa’s face.

Afterward, she recalled a new piece of information she had gained along with the Elixir. She gazed intently at the system message that appeared before her.

【Notification】

*Eighth Hero’s Trial

*Move to the desert for the trial.

*Time remaining until opening: 93 days

This notification appeared after defeating Astevan.

It was the ‘Eighth Hero’s Trial’, which had consistently appeared every time they defeated the Lord of the Abyss.

The trial’s location was in the heart of the desert. Noa focused on the desert space itself.

‘…Southern Desert.’

A den of cultists and the place where Kazan Rudrik operated. Additionally, she had discovered that Astevan had some sort of connection to the desert.

The structure inside the Abyssal Magic Palace resembled the buildings of the Desert Order, and Astevan’s origin was based in the desert, as well.

‘If we are going to the desert…’

It might be worthwhile to investigate this connection. Noa’s eyes sparkled with determination.

And one more thing.

There was something else on her mind.

Something Astevan had said before disappearing, while looking at Delia and Fertisha.

「-Einar, Artina.」

Einar Mel Arpen.

Artina Muen Arpen.

Two twin fairies. They were linked to the founding of the Arpen Duchy and shared a connection with Kazan Rudrik.

Astevan seemed to know both well. At that moment when he mentioned their names, there was no hint of hatred at all.

Suddenly, a hypothesis struck her.

‘Huh? Now that I think about it…’

Einar was a bard who could handle spirits.

Artina was someone loved by mana and was a renowned high mage of her time.

Comparing them to Fertisha and Delia, there were many commonalities.

Could this really be just a coincidence?

Noa’s answer was ‘no.’

‘They are definitely related in some way.’

Even if she couldn’t immediately articulate why, she intuitively felt certain. This too needed to be looked into later.

Knock knock!

Suddenly, there was a knock at the door. To her surprise, an unexpected person appeared when she opened it.

“Oh? Sven?”

The giant-race hunter, Sven Isaac.

He was a hero who participated in the subjugation of Astevan, but they weren’t that close.

That was expected, as they hadn’t even known each other for half a month.

‘But…’

What was he doing here alone without the others?

As Noa pondered, Sven shared the reason for his visit.

“The big guy’s awake.”

“Big guy, you mean… Ulan?!

“Yeah, everyone went over there. What do you want to do?”

It was a question that required no contemplation.

Noa leaped from her seat as her answer. At that, Sven shrugged silently and headed towards the room where Ulan was.

2.

On the dawn of a new day.

The sound of birds chirping in the garden lightly tapped against the window. In tandem with this, the bed, which had been completely still, shook slightly.

“Mmm.”

The sound that slipped through parched lips.

After a moment, eyes that had been tightly shut for a long time began to slowly open. Their crimson pupils slowly began to glimmer with light.

“Where is this…”

A strange ceiling.

Ulan, with a dry voice, looked dazed, as if he couldn’t piece together the situation.

But that lasted only for a moment, as his hazy mind cleared, and his gaze steadily became sharper. He then looked around the room.

He was in a large space.

It was a place furnished with a large sofa and table for several people, and the bed he was lying on was the only other thing there.

Before opening his eyes, he tried to recall what he last saw.

‘…Astevan.’

The first thing that came to mind was undoubtedly the memory of battling Astevan. Ulan had desperately protected Laurea, and in the meantime, the star’s divine power was completed.

Then, the creature met its end.

‘I certainly took it down.’

The last scene he saw before losing consciousness was Astevan’s origin being destroyed.

From that, it was easy to guess what happened next.

After all the fighting was over, the group must have moved him to a safe place after he lost consciousness.

Having deduced the situation, Ulan slowly began to raise his body. He felt as if his muscles had stiffened from lying down for so long, but he didn’t mind.

Activating his Spirit would resolve that issue.

Just as he was about to channel his Spirit, Ulan’s eyes widened in shock.

“…!”

Something was different about the perfect Spirit.

Realizing this, Ulan immediately focused his mind and soon realized something else.

“The Spirits…”

The number of completed Spirits had increased.

When he faced Astevan, he had three Spirits, and now there were five in total.

What the heck is going on?

Unable to hide his astonishment, Ulan suddenly recalled a thought that flashed through his mind.

‘Astevan’s origin.’

The last scene he saw before losing consciousness.

The sight of the shattered origin pouring down like rain and being absorbed into him and his party emerged in his mind.

It seemed that during this process, Ulan’s body had absorbed the origin based on his previous experiences, resulting in this newfound power.

“Incredible.”

Ulan openly expressed his admiration.

Five-star Spirits. This was akin to reaching the peak of his past life. It felt as if he had transcended thirty years of time.

“So this is why they say he’s the number one lord.”

He muttered softly, smiling.

It was a satisfying smile. By possessing five-star Spirits, he had finally obtained the qualification to challenge the Realm Beyond Mastery.

‘Now all that’s left is…’

The Eye of the Abyss, Rakus.

The Giant King, Rargtan.

The unidentified monster seen in the Abyss.

If he could eliminate these three, he could prevent the Abyssal War from raging on. Just as he tightened his fist at the thought of his remaining foes.

“Hmm?”

Ulan’s ears twitched momentarily.

A familiar voice echoed from beyond the hallway. A jabbering yet lively tone. It was Ivella, Delia, and Fertisha.

“So I really can do this on my own!”

“…What makes you think I would let you do it alone?”

“Rather, going together is better.”

The three were bickering back and forth.

After a while, the door swung open, and the three girls stepped into the room. They stared wide-eyed at Ulan, who was sitting at an angle on the bed.

“U-Ulan?!”

They rushed forward, with surprise etched on their faces.

“Are you okay? Are you feeling better?”

“Is there anywhere that’s uncomfortable?”

“Do you need anything?”

Ulan nodded quietly at their avalanche of questions, signaling he was alright.

“I’m fine. But…”

“But?”

“I’m a bit hungry.”

The reply earned chuckles from the three.

It was a very Ulan-like answer.

“Well, it has been a week since you last ate.”

“No wonder you’re hungry.”

“Then we should prepare a meal right away.”

There was talk of getting food ready, but no one left the room.

“Huh? No one’s going?”

“The last person to speak should go.”

Delia shot a glance at Ivella.

It was a silent pressure. On the other hand, Ivella narrowed her eyes and shot back.

“…What are you trying to do while I’m not here?”

“We aren’t doing anything. So just hurry up and tell someone to prepare a meal.”

“Right. I’ll just stay here quietly.”

“How can I trust what you’re saying?”

The three started bickering again.

A subtle tension unfolded, but it didn’t last long. This was because Laurea and Ian had arrived after hearing the commotion from the next room.

“Ulan!”

“You finally woke up!”

Laurea’s eyes were filled with tears, and Ian sighed in relief. Soon, Sven and Noa also showed up, wrapping everything up.

After a brief commotion settled.

All the party members gathered in one place.

Ulan in the center, with Ivella, Delia, Fertisha, Laurea, Ian, and Sven surrounding him.

The original seven heroes.

And with Noa included, a total of eight members shared what they hadn’t had the chance to discuss so far.

Most of it revolved around what had transpired during the week Ulan had been unconscious.

“Gah, I feel sorry for Professor Melt.”

Ulan swallowed hard at the news that the Magic-Powered Train had been destroyed.

In particular, Ulan’s Magic Armor had practically been lost entirely since he hadn’t been able to collect it after the fight with Astevan.

On another note, Ivella and Fertisha seemed to tell him not to mind it.

“Oh, he said it was fine.”

“Exactly. He said not to worry since they gathered the necessary data for future research.”

“Then that’s a relief.”

Ulan’s expression brightened significantly.

On the other hand, Noa wore a slightly awkward demeanor.

It was technically inaccurate.

‘Of course, it’s true he said that…’

Before those words were spoken, the faces of the engineers were etched in her mind, looking despondent, as if they had lost a nation.

However, she didn’t wish to burden Ulan, so she kept quiet. Thus, after finishing the discussions that had occurred so far.

……

A moment of silence fell over the room.

Not because there was nothing to say. More importantly, significant matters still needed addressing. Therefore, the group fell quiet for a moment to gather their thoughts.

Shortly after.

“Alright, then…”

“Now, it’s your turn to share.”

Ivella and Delia opened their mouths simultaneously.

At the same time, everyone else’s eyes turned to a single point. That is, to Ulan and Noa, along with Laurea.

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