Episode 1022 Starlight of Dawn (6)
Ancient Adventure, Chapter 2: The Starlight of Dawn.
At one time, many lights shone upon humanity.
Moon, dawn, sun, morning star, twilight.
The Morning Star, banished by the other lights, falls and draws in the moonlight.Just as the five lights were in harmony, the destruction of the Morning Star shattered the balance and caused the destruction of the other lights not long after.
O majestic radiances.
How trivial and ridiculous.
That arrogance, believing that they themselves radiated light and illuminated everything, led them to their deaths. They did not imagine the unknown sea untouched by the radiance, and for that reason, they were not wary.
The devil god faced the last morning star.
Will you obtain clues to the truth along with the starlight illuminating the dawn and swallow knowledge, or be swallowed by knowledge? Or will you be bitten by the fangs of a dragon? Thoughgreed may be harmful, it is the nature of an intelligent being.
In the adventure story, tasks of knowledge intertwine to create a new history.
Who will stand against whom?Who will survive?Who will obtain the ancient artifact in the capital of the Kingdom of Hersaon?
Perhaps inevitability might be proven.
* * *
The Knight of Dawn discerned the true nature of Verden from a divine perspective. It was not merely a matter of good intuition. She reacted as if she had accurately witnessed the divine power that Verden had fundamentally concealed.
‘The Knight of Dawn, a faint divinity emanates from his very body. This must be the cause.’
It is different from the Ruas Theocracy, which becomes a transcendent being of the faith realm through the Four Great Divine Artifacts. The Knight of Dawn was bestowed with divine power without any medium.
To put it simply, an incarnation of God… no, more intuitively, this word would be appropriate.
Apostle of God.
It was evident that the Knight of the Dawn had received power from the Goddess of the Morning Star, just as the Apostles who received power from ‘you’ did.
However, the old king seemed to have failed to recognize the divinity I possessed. The same goes for Bloodia. That insight might be a quality unique to the Knights of the Dawn.
Verden took a step forward.
The Knight of Dawn instantly moved his forelegs backward and aimed the tip of his sword. Divine power of a faint radiance flowed down like mist.
“Goddess of the Morning Star, Goddess of the Moon, God of the Sun, God of Dawn, Goddess of Twilight. Among these, there are two male gods, yet you are neither of them.”“Why do you think so?”“Because you do not match the appearance described in each scripture in the slightest.”
Extreme tension swept over her.
“Above all, a god symbolizing light could not possibly possess such a catastrophic divine nature……!”
A dark red haze flickered in the knight’s eyes at dawn. Destruction. In other words, she was seeing only the destructive side of Verden.Her limitation was a wisdom that could see God but could not observe the whole picture.
“Are you an evil god who survived the Great Divergence?”
It is said that the evil gods perished long ago, but the bodies they left behind were impossible to destroy and were sealed away in the Desert of Silence.Of course, this is not the case for all of them.Very, extremely rarely, remnants of evil gods have been discovered outside, just like the one she possesses. However, to this day, not a single living, moving evil god has ever appeared.
The Second Coming of the Evil God.
As a believer in the Goddess of the Morning Star who stood against the evil gods, it was perfectly natural to instinctively be wary of and hostile toward Verden.
It seems stories about the Great Divergence have been passed down until now. In effect, it seems history itself has been completely rewritten since the Battle of Destiny.
Clank!
Verden tossed the iron spear he had taken from the Kingdom Knight forward. It was his own way of showing that he had no intention of harming her.
“I am not the evil god you think I am.”“Then what do you govern?”“Right now, I am the god of demons.”“Demons…?”
The Knight of Dawn tilted his head slightly upon hearing the unfamiliar word. That was true. In this ancient age, the demon race did not exist.
All demons are a byproduct of fate, because they were born after the concept of fate was born.
Verden added.
“You may understand me as the god of the forsaken.”“……Why have such a noble god descended here?”“I have come to receive the starlight of dawn.”
The Knight of Dawn, momentarily conscious of his nape—or more precisely, the necklace inside his armor—raised his sword, which had been slightly lowered.
“Does the Devil God know that the starlight of dawn is our only sacred object?”“I realize it now. It is difficult to obtain information regarding the religion of the Morning Star. Not only do they rarely reveal their names to others according to their doctrine, but the remaining four religions are thoroughly erasing all traces of the Morning Star.”
The religion of the Morning Star bestows charity but does not reveal itself. Like that Morning Star, which is obscured by moonlight and barely visible, yet shines ceaselessly.
The face of the Knight of Dawn darkened as he once again realized that the destruction of the Morning Star was imminent.
“I cannot give you starlight.”“But you have already lost the starlight.”
Verden whispered the truth to her, just as he had done to the elf.
“Because he died a long time ago.”“Die? I am alive like this…”
The knight at dawn opened his eyes wide.
“Are…… you…… alive……?”
His gaze slowly dropped to the floor. His pupils darted about. His own vitality, which he had never doubted at all, suddenly felt empty.
Did the devil god do something?Is it a divine trick?
That’s not it!
The Knight of Dawn strained to sharpen his sword and clutched his forehead with his empty hand. A headache arose. His stomach churned like oil floating on water.
The soul surges.
Only then, having deeply contemplated her own existence, she took a deep breath. The divine power of the flickering morning star represented her turbulent heart.
The confusion… … did not last long.
“under.”
The Knight of Dawn let his blade hang low in self-mockery and looked up at the ceiling. His face bore the emotion of resignation rather than anger.
“How much time has passed since I died?”“Countless years have passed.”“I see.”
She asks cautiously.
“Has all the light… faded?”“The lights you know did not even remain in records.”
Verden told the soul of the past about the situation in the future.
“In the modern era, only the religion of light that worships the goddess Luas exists.”“Lua, S.”
The Knight of Dawn repeated the name Luas of Light a few times out loud as if hearing it for the first time, then nodded his head.
To think that the lights of the past have all fallen, it seems our revenge was not in vain. Though I never imagined that I would remain as a soul, playing into the hands of others.
Verden was inwardly impressed.
To perceive the setting of the adventure drama conjured by the host the moment one became aware of the state. Though one may lack the formidable physical power of ‘your’ apostle, one could say that one’s intuition is second to none as an apostle of God.
It was then.
[Battle. End?]
Alpha, who had vanished the moment he saw the knight at dawn, squirmed and poked his frame halfway out from the collar of his dark robe. He had acute appearance, the exact opposite of the violent god-like dignity inherent in Verden.
The knight at dawn opened his mouth slightly.
“That is…?”“It’s family.”
[family.]
Verden and Alpha answered together. Since that was the only way to define their relationship, they had no need to choose their words carefully.That very appearance served as proof that they were not the ancient evil gods. At least, that was how the Knight of Dawn saw it.
The hostility has almost vanished.
Whoosh… … .
He took the necklace out of the armor and carefully stroked it. The gem of the necklace was softly shining with a vivid and noble aura, like the starlight of the deep night sky.
“As you said, I have long since died. I have no intention of claiming ownership of the sacred artifact now. It would be right to offer it to a god from the distant future rather than leaving it to a being who toys with my soul.”
but.
“All light possesses power. The common starlight of dawn is no exception. Crafting the products of starlight is the task of a believer in the Morning Star. And because this is a divine artifact born by absorbing nothing but starlight for a full 985 years, no one who has not been chosen by the stars dares to become its master.”
Afterglow blooming from fingertips.
No matter who it is.
A streak of starlight flies toward Verden.
Is it some kind of qualification exam?
Verden reached out a hand and nonchalantly accepted the light. It was the moment when the starlight melted into his body… and his entire being flickered.
Paaaaaaaat───!
An overwhelming starlight pushed away the darkness of the area in an instant.
* * *
It is so brilliant that it could blind you.
That makes no sense.
It was a radiance that even the Knight of the Dawn himself had never seen before. Faced with a reaction far more intense than the scene she had expected, she stared blankly at the type of light Verden was emitting.
“It’s faint, but…… starlight is already dwelling within……? And not just starlight, but moonlight too? W-how did you get two lights in one body………”
The Knight of Dawn affirmed that light had long since permeated him.
The cause was obvious.
Verden recalled the significant connection he had in the Bard Mountains of the Principality of Libyant.
───Cough, cough! Ha… … I see you can feel it, too. The unfamiliar and strange magical power contained within that potion. It took a whole 15 years to make this.
Harkan Dajest, the Sage and one of the eight founders of Black Hour.
───This is… … a key that allows a wizard to possess ‘non-existent attributes.’ If you take it, you will be able to step into a realm that no wizard has ever reached.
For over fifteen years, Harkan gathered and ground rare herbs, forging them with moonlight and starlight, and thus refined potions imbued with sublime light at the cost of his life.He also established divine attributes and magic befitting this.
In order to prevent the Black Hour commanded by the Dark Moon from trampling this world… …with a body afflicted by the Flame of Destruction, he became one with the celestial body while waiting for a suitable successor to inherit his legacy and for a transformation.
Harkan, who possessed particularly outstanding knowledge of astrology, saw the star of the reverse heavens.
A product of starlight forged by magic, not divine power.
Verden drew a constellation with his hand. Gray starlight lingered in the air like an afterimage before clearing away with a rough starlight.
… … .
The light vanished.Darkness gathered again.
The knight of dawn did not even move his eyelids, as if the lingering resonance had not yet faded, while tightening his grip on the hand holding the starlight of dawn.
“……A new star.”
Her eyes came alive.Intense yearning.With trembling hands, she unfastened the clasp and removed the necklace from her body. With utmost politeness, and slowly as if reaching out toward hope, she holds out the starlight of dawn.
The moment I obtain that starlight, my task is over. I will be banished from the adventure immediately. But there is still something I want to know.
Verden paused her actions for a moment and spoke in a low voice.
“Before that, I have something to ask.”“Yes? What is it…”“In this primeval era, gods must exist in reality, not abstractly. Where is the Goddess of the Morning Star whom you worship?”
Verden pointed to the half-open coffin.
And who is that man?
The Knight of Dawn, as if his guard had been completely lowered, answered Verden’s question without any reward and without hesitation.
The Goddess suddenly disappeared one day.
[Missing?]
“As soon as all revelations ceased, the Goddess’s Star began to occasionally vanish. It was after that that other religions began to pressure us… Although I still do not know the exact reason, other gods of light must have pulled off some despicable stunt. This remnant of an evil god, which we obtained by chance, is nothing more than an excuse. It is to blatantly trample the Morning Star…”
The Knight of Dawn stared at the part of the evil god’s body lying on the opposite side of the coffin. It was the source of the massive monstrosity currently destroying the kingdom’s capital.
Next, she quietly gazed at the man in the coffin who had passed away.
“This is the Archbishop who was sacrificed when the headquarters of the Morning Star was massacred. Deeper in compassion than anyone else…… and the one I love…….”
The man looked to be in his 40s, and the Knight of Dawn looked to be in her 20s, but appearances were not the truth. She was of a similar age to the man.Perhaps her age was not fully revealed because she was an Apostle.
Verden asked.
“Do you have any lingering regrets?”“As a former soul, I have no regrets. Besides, since the Archbishop’s soul has departed like this, he will not be playing around like I did. However… I only hope that there will be a chance to meet again someday.”
The Knight of Dawn smiled a sad and relieved smile as he looked at the Archbishop, his lover and husband.
“May the Morning Star always be with Archbishop Hadras.”“……What?”
Verden’s face froze for a moment. He wanted to believe he had misheard, but all his senses screamed that it was true.
Hardras.
He shares the same name as the commander of the legions of Noxias, the Great Demon of Darkness, and a powerful demon who became a follower of Verden in the Rift of Worlds.This was no mere coincidence.
“for a moment…….”
thud.
A heavy echo spread through the basement.Alluring and eerie voices were heard from all directions.
So you were here.
Verden and Alpha immediately realized the identity of the voice. Reflexively, they tracked the source and glared at the dark ceiling.
Bloodia.
The apostle of fate has come.
