Episode 1072 Legions (4)
The Adventurer’s Guild Headquarters is an island in the sea located between the Central Continent and the Eastern Continent.The exact location is in the center between the Great Forest and the southern part of the Eastern Continent.
The technical capabilities of the headquarters facility, which oversees the appointment of regional guild leaders, promotions and demotions of Mithril ranks and above, and manages all adventurer guilds, are truly on par with the best in the international community.
If the Magic Tower ushered in the Age of Magic, the Adventurer’s Guild made ordinary citizens realize what everyday peace is.
That is the kind of being an adventurer is.Even at this moment, adventurers are building the foundation for the safety and peace of everyday life.
It is not for nothing that the Adventurer’s Guild is also considered a powerful force.
“…….”
The Transcendent—Tearel, the Black Sea—who had returned to headquarters for quite some time after concluding a summit with Arcadium, was sitting at the edge of a cliff as usual.Watching the endless waves was her habit and hobby.
Of course, the impression was quite different from before.
The terror of the sea that Thearel targeted is no longer something vague. It has a clear substance. And it was greater than imagined.
Host.
It is the name of the monster that rules the sea.
Thearel must kill the Host. For eliminating the terror of the sea that would engulf the world was the ideal she had so desperately longed for.
however…….
Thearel’s ideal was not just her own dream.
Seed of Resistance.Adversary of the Apostle.
The first Demon King artificially intervened and made Tearel walk that path. There must be only one reason. To use them as a weapon against the Host.
Whoosh!
The waves crashing against the cliff shatter into pieces.
The sea reacted to Tearel’s emotions and turbuled violently, but like any other wave, it eventually failed to maintain its form and collapsed and scattered.
Tearel tilted his head crookedly.
‘monster.’
My thoughts are mostly sorted out.
The first Demon King is an unidentified monster that surpasses that host. Or is it something divine?Or perhaps an incomprehensible thing that overwhelms both monsters and gods… Yes, if one were to describe him in human vocabulary, ‘The Absolute’ would be the most fitting title.
I can’t kill him.
The eyes that held the deep sea grew even deeper.
It would be easier to destroy the world than to kill.
I pictured the first Demon King described by the history of magic time and time again. And I superimposed a secret unknown to the world upon him.
Something in human form was completed.It was shrouded in darkness, with only the glow of its eyes shining.A gaze devoid of any emotion stared intently at her. Even now… it is an imagination, yet it cannot be dismissed as a delusion.
Because the first Demon King is alive.
On top of that, there is one more being named ‘you’ who defeated the first Demon King.
We must look at the world again.
History is a lie.
You must overturn your perspective. Unless you do so, you cannot change your vision. If you cannot see properly despite having eyes, you will merely be exploited.
I am Thearel.
Tearel re-recognized his self.
Black Sea, Thearel.
Not only memories and emotions, but even a single strand of hair belongs entirely to Thearel. It is the same regardless of who interfered.Therefore, one must pursue the truth. That is the only way to properly perceive the invisible yoke.
It was then.
“……You’re here.”
A longed-for presence approached.
The shadows of the adventurers with their backs to the sun fell over Tearel’s head. They were not just ordinary adventurers. Unlike Tearel, they were retirees who had stepped down from active duty long ago.
“You’re still as pathetic as ever, staring blankly at the sea, Tearel.”
Agile Dual Swordsman – Red-haired Yurval.
“Was it forty years ago? Memories of us all watching the sunset over the sea in a coastal city are coming back to me vividly. How I miss it, how I miss it! Ah, the passage of time!”
Huge Fighter – Hoak, Daredor Calv.
“It was exactly 43 years ago, Daredor Calv. Right, Tearel?”
The Tall Mage – Evran, Liberator of Valonsel.
“I can’t believe our party is reunited as a complete group like this. It would be great to have a drink together.”
Alluring Greatsword User – Zaku Ying, Latylla Bennett.
“It’s been a while, Tearel.”
Magic Swordsman – Dael.
The comrades of fond memories who once adventured with Tearel gathered at the Guild’s earnest call. Ithad been well over 30 years since each of them joined the party and had been active for just as long, so none of them were at an age where they could hide the passage of time.
Only Tearel, who awakened as a transcendent being at an early age, remained the same as before.
“Hello, everyone. You’re back so quickly.”“Yan-nyeong, everyone. You’re back in no time. Do you think you’ve grown up just by speaking so calmly? You’re younger than me.”“I’ve been telling you since we first met, it’s only a three-year difference.”“But I look much older now. So I’m the more mature one. If you don’t admit it, you’re the younger one.”“Yurval, you’re childish.”“Tearel, you’re still cute, even after all this time.”
Yurval roughly stroked the hair that was slouchy and deep-sea-infused, and Laetila hugged Thearel while rubbing her face against his cheek.
In the current Adventurer’s Guild, Tearel is a figure difficult for anyone to approach.That is the nature of a Transcendent being to begin with, and to the adventurers, he is truly a living legend. Tearel is the oldest active adventurer.
but.
Far from finding her difficult to deal with, the five retired adventurers treated her lightly. To them, Tearel was a colleague, a best friend, and the youngest member of the party.
Tearel spoke, accepting the two’s touches without hesitation, as if it were a daily routine.
“You all look healthy. Though you’ve gotten old.”“Of course wrinkles are increasing with the passage of time!”
Whoosh, whoosh! Bang!
Daredor’s fists and kicks struck the air in an instant. The sound of rushing air. Although his physical strength had diminished, the perfection of his technique seemed unchanged.
“Ugh, if this were the old days, I would have thrown another punch. Age is truly cruel. If I’m not careful, I’ll be humiliated by the younger guys. To think that weakening as the body ages is inevitable. Who created this world!”“I have become stronger, though.”“Evran, you’re a wizard! But even you have aches and pains all over your body now, so you wouldn’t be able to roll around if push came to shove.”“At this age, at this level, I have no intention of living by rolling on the ground. You go ahead and roll around all the time.”“Hehehe! You’re the one with the toughest lifeline among us. Let’s see if you can roll around.”
Daredor and Evran bickered just as they did in their twenties. A faint smile appeared on Tearel’s expressionless face.
“Well, even if you aren’t in your prime, you haven’t aged enough to lose your mastery of the martial arts. Tearel, you seem a bit different from before.”“What do you mean?”“You look frustrated in many ways. Yet, you also look refreshed. You’re like a wizard who has discovered the unknown only to face yet another unknown.”
Dael smiled.
“Has there been any progress on the ideal?”“Yes.”“That’s a relief.”
Dael, who had retired from active duty and was spending his old age as the guild master of the Adventurers’ Guild in a quiet frontier region, stood beside Tearel, treading on blades of grass.
“They say we have to wage war against the ancient Undead Empire.”“Yeah.”“This is the first time in the Guild’s history that a total mobilization order for adventurers has been issued. Even for us retirees.”
Dael took in the vast ocean.The adventurers withdrew their playfulness.In the heavy atmosphere, Dael placed his hand, covered in age spots, on the magic sword.
“Are you confident?”“What kind of question is that?”“It looks like even the leader has gotten soft-hearted as he gets older.”“Asking if I’m confident? Isn’t that too roundabout a way of saying we’ll kill you if you run away?”“Even though we’ve retired, we still have our plates.”
Laetylla, with a greatsword strapped to his back, took out an adventurer’s plate necklace.Crafted from processed obsidian, it was the ultimate symbol of an adventurer.
“Considering all the adventures we’ve gone through, we should take this to the grave. Don’t you agree?”“Yeah, we are adventurers.”“……I see.”
Dael pulled his chin.
“We had our retirement ceremony decades ago, but I guess it still wasn’t enough for us. Seeing as we still have lingering regrets even though we’ve done everything there is to do as adventurers.”“Hmm! That’s the spirit of adventure.”“Just like how we headed to headquarters before the Director even declared the general mobilization.”“They say the undead legions are swarming across the continent like bedbugs; how can we just sit still?”“Even for us, this is the first adventure of this magnitude. We probably won’t ever experience it again. Not in the rest of our lives.”
Originally, Thearel’s alias originated from her, but it did not refer to her alone. It was Dael who first gave her the nickname.
Obsidian Grade Adventurer Party – Black Sea.
“Urval, Daredor. Evran, Laetila, Tearel.”
Dael, the leader of the Black Sea, declared.
This is our last adventure.
Five humans reunited around the transcendent being who had been left alone, detached from humanity. The five extremes returned to the scene.
To fulfill my duty as an adventurer.
and.
For an addictive adventure.
* * *
Verden, having authorized Isabella’s subjugation of the Demon Realm, returned to the Dwarf Fortress.Of course, he took Isabella with him. He intended to introduce Eloris while he was at it.
Eloris passed Gharun’s qualification test and succeeded in securing the commission to craft the armor. It is said that Gharun, his disciple Linus, and Oesu will work together on the project.
───So this gray is your divine power… …At this rate, Eon itself will become a religion.
Verden cannot unleash a divine being unless the dimension is entirely different, like a rift between worlds.Because it is a god.This is because the repercussions are so great that the gods of the Luas religion would notice. Even though divine power was thoroughly concealed at the summit, the Saint, the Pope, and the Holy Son each exhibited their own abnormal reactions.
Therefore, Verden was unable to demonstrate his full divine power to Isabella or G’harun… but Eloris took on that role instead.Even though she was resurrected as the remnants of an evil god, she was not a god, but an apostle and a priestess.
“Since he’s the God of Demons, if I shorten it, he’s the Evil God… Hmm, I don’t think there’s any need to shorten it.”
Verden cleared away the useless thought that suddenly popped into his head.
Once the armor is finished, Eloris sends it to my temple along with the communication device.
In the Second War of the Transcendents, not even a speck of divine power must be revealed. If this must be done, there are two possibilities.
One is on the verge of defeat, orthe other is able to seal the victory with that number alone.
Of course, the former is not good, nor is the latter.
You must fight fiercely, but avoid being driven to a dead end. It is better to fight while there is still room to retreat, even if it means shedding blood.
That is also the role of the World Union leader.
Perhaps it was because there were so many matters to handle, ponder, and verify personally, buttime seemed to be flowing slowly.
It has been half a day and a day since the emergency summit ended. In another day or two, the preparations for the subjugation legions will be completed one by one.Progress is already being reported directly to Verden from all over the continent.
Five days left until the meeting with Akand.
Verden never missed the movement of the clock’s second hand as he envisioned it in his mind.He used his time as efficiently as possible.
It is the same now.
This meeting was more than worth Verden personally dedicating his time to.
“Welcome, Elder Sheorn.”“Haha! Thanks for the welcome, Verden. I came here to avoid taking up your time as much as possible. The gray robes suit you very well.”
Sheorn Kernoden, a transcendent of space and one of the three elders of the Ark, descended upon the masterless land.As the Watcher of the North said, together with the Keeper, Acetro Oldin.
“Are you making good use of the concept of space?”“Yes, thanks to you.”“Even without me, you would have reached that level someday. On your own, too. Anyway, the reason I sought you out is related to space…….”
Elder Sheorn had been staring at Verden with a burdensome gaze for some time.A brief silence cut off the conversation.
“……?”
It was the moment when Verden and Acetro simultaneously raised question marks in their minds.
“Acetro, could you let the two of us be alone for a moment?”“Yes, Elder.”
Acetro had doubts but did not question back, and immediately left the room. The Elder of the Ark is respected by all the captains.
Having escaped the distorted space, Acetro can no longer hear the conversation between the two.
Elder Sheorn said.
“Verden.”“Speak.”“Are you human?”
It asks whether a group for the sake of the human species is human.
