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Translated By Arcane Translations
Translator: Wjin
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“This is quite a large library.”
I wasn’t just being polite. The Reedval family library was indeed large for a private residence.
The head of the family gave a wry smile.
“Yes, our residence is outside the royal palace. It’s difficult to access the royal library. And books are quite expensive, so we don’t have many recent publications. Mostly old texts passed down through generations.”
Old texts. I might peruse them later, after saving the Lodreim Kingdom.
‘There should be even more ancient texts in the Central Sea Archipelago.’
But for now, I needed one specific piece of information: the Last Knight of the Lodreim Kingdom. Libero’s story.
‘Libero…’
As I thought about him, the head of the family spoke.
“Here it is.”
She returned with a book from a corner shelf. Elsie was already engrossed in several other books.
“The story about the Last Knight begins around the middle.”
“Thank you.”
I took the book and opened it, then frowned.
“The writing…”
It wasn’t bad handwriting, but some of the characters were different from what I recognized. The head of the family noticed my confusion.
“Oh, of course. This book uses some archaic Lodreim Kingdom script… Would you mind if I…?”
I handed her the book. She skimmed through a few pages.
“I vaguely remember this. My sister and I read it countless times when we were young. Perhaps I should summarize it for you?”
A summary. I preferred reading the entire text, but judging by the book’s thickness, that wasn’t feasible today. And it seemed to contain more than just Libero’s story.
“Yes, please.”
She began recounting the tale of the Last Knight.
“He was destined to become a Royal Knight, following in his father’s footsteps. But his frequent contact with the princess displeased the royal family, and his father was banished to the Black Knights.”
“Was that princess the Nameless King?”
“Yes, that princess later became the Nameless King. That’s why the book doesn’t mention her name or appearance. But there were rumors that the Last Knight continued to meet with the princess even after joining the Black Knights.”
The story continued, reaching the era of ‘Chaos’.
“When Chaos approached the kingdom, it was divided. The Queen’s faction, who believed they should resist, and the Relocation faction, who believed they should abandon the kingdom.”
The Queen couldn’t force the Relocation faction to stay, so she allowed them to leave. Only the enemy knights, the White Knights, and the Black Knights remained, excluding the Royal Knights. They fought valiantly against the invading Chaos Beasts.
“The Chaos Beasts invaded before Chaos itself arrived. Our enemy knights were on the front lines. The Rose Sword, wielded by the head of the family at the time, was practically Lodreim Kingdom’s only hope. The previous King, who wielded the royal sword, had abdicated due to old age, and the Nameless King had no talent for combat.”
But there was another knight who fought valiantly alongside the enemy knights.
“The Last Knight. While the head of the Reedval family was Lodreim Kingdom’s only hope, it was he who slew the most Chaos Beasts. This is recorded by the head of the family herself, who fought alongside him, so it must be true.”
He’d slain an unbelievable number of Chaos Beasts, a feat that seemed impossible for a single person.
“Back then, Lodreim Kingdom had both day and night. The Last Knight fought day and night, collapsing from exhaustion only to return to battle as soon as he regained consciousness.”
He continued to fight even as Chaos approached the kingdom’s doorstep.
“He cut what couldn’t be touched by a sword. He cut what shouldn’t have been cut. Yet he couldn’t cut Chaos. The head of the family seemed aware that something was wrong with the Last Knight’s body. In hindsight, it must have been Chaos accumulation.”
Chaos accumulation. We were safe inside the barrier, but proximity to Chaos caused it to accumulate within the body. And when it reached a critical point…
“Our ancestor’s record of his final moments wasn’t pleasant. That’s why the fact that he succumbed to Chaos wasn’t revealed to the public. But even as he was consumed, he took dozens of Chaos Beasts with him. His will must have been extraordinary.”
His will likely stemmed from his promise to the Nameless King. And I began to understand the nature of that promise, which I’d previously understood as simply granting a descendant’s wish.
‘Libero would either slay Chaos, or if he failed, the Nameless King would sacrifice herself to save the Lodreim Kingdom.’
That’s why Libero was so desperate, so obsessed with reaching the pinnacle of swordsmanship that he’d even forgotten the reason why. But he couldn’t cut Chaos.
“He vanished beyond Chaos. That’s the end of his story.”
That wasn’t the end of my story with him. But my ending with him wasn’t much different. He never reached the pinnacle of swordsmanship, never cut Chaos, even after 500 years.
‘However…’
There was one difference. While he vanished, his swordsmanship didn’t. I inherited his swordsmanship, his will.
“The pinnacle of swordsmanship lies in will…”
His words echoed in my mind.
“What?”
The head of the family tilted her head, curious about what I’d muttered. I shook my head.
“It’s nothing. Just remembered something someone told me. Thank you for the story about the Last Knight. This is enough.”
“I’m glad.”
She closed the book and looked at me, her gaze warm and gentle. Or rather, she seemed to be looking past me, at Elsie, who was still engrossed in a book.
“She’s my sister’s student. And you’re her comrade, you said?”
She studied me intently.
“My sister always had a discerning eye for people.”
“What?”
“Of course, she was even more discerning about skill.”
She smiled happily.
“My sister… wasn’t fortunate. She manifested the stigma.”
“What does that mean?”
“The Rose Stigma. It grants immense talent, but it also halts physical growth and drastically shortens one’s lifespan. Finding the Rose Sword restores physical growth, but it also accelerates the shortening of one’s lifespan.”
“What do you mean by ‘wasn’t fortunate’?”
I was curious. Due to Gwen’s tendency to leave the family and travel the world, other Reedval family members rarely appeared in the story, but most of them didn’t have the Rose Mark. The head of the family, for instance.
“Since the stigma is usually inherited through blood, other families try to avoid diluting the bloodline. The royal family practiced inbreeding until the current king. But our family desperately tried to dilute this cursed blood. Even with the demonic talent and the ability to wield the powerful Rose Sword, there was no happiness.”
A hint of bitterness lingered beneath her happy expression.
“We tried everything. We arranged marriages with various bloodlines from around the world. And thankfully, our efforts paid off. The Rose Stigma rarely manifests in the Reedval family now. Everyone can live a normal life, raising children, even if their lifespan is slightly shorter. Except for the occasional exception.”
“And that exception was Gwen.”
“Yes, my sister wasn’t fortunate. Everyone in the family thought so. But she didn’t seem to mind.”
She didn’t despair. Instead, she set out to find the lost Rose Sword, break the curse of stunted growth, and restore the family’s honor. And she met me at a shabby inn in Basil. Small stature, long red hair, and cold eyes. I recalled my first impression of her.
“Please take care of my sister.”
“Of course. I intend to see it through.”
I owed Gwen a lot. And now that we were true comrades, I was serious about taking responsibility for her. I also felt a twinge of guilt, having suggested she continue her swordsmanship training even in her old age.
She refused, of course, but the guilt lingered. It was Seo Yoo-rang who’d suggested it, but Seo Yoo-rang was a part of me now, so I bore some responsibility.
“Then… can I call you brother-in-law?”
“What?”
Elsie, who had been engrossed in her book, suddenly looked up. A cold sweat ran down my back.
“No, you must have misunderstood. I didn’t mean it like that…”
I desperately tried to explain to the head of the family.
“Well, I did tell Master that I’d consider it” Elsie said, a mischievous glint in her eyes.
“Elsie? What do you mean?”
I must have misheard. But Elsie just grinned and shook her head.
“It’s nothing.”
It was definitely something. They must have had a strange conversation while I was gone. The only opportunity they would have had was during the graduation competition.
I was amazed they’d managed to discuss such things in such a short time.
“Perhaps…”
The head of the family looked back and forth between Elsie and me.
“I seem to have overstepped. My apologies.”
“No, I’m the one who should apologize for my misleading words.”
The awkwardness ended with the head of the family’s apology. My business at the Reedval residence was concluded. I needed to return to the inn with something delicious before Yousera got upset.
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“Then, we should be going.”
Two heroes leaving the Reedval residence. One was Gwen’s student, the other her comrade. Their visit had been a godsend.
‘I almost lost my entire family on Nameless Day.’
The man who called himself High-Ranking Hero Allen Blake had delivered shocking news. But he had evidence to back up his cLodreims, and she had no choice but to believe him. And…
‘She’s…’
Her gaze lingered on the female hero walking beside him. She recalled the aura of authority she exuded. It was unmistakable.
‘The princess…’
She didn’t understand why the princess, who should have been in the palace, had become Gwen’s student and a hero. But her instincts told her that she was the princess. And the princess, from the beginning, had wanted to help the royal family.
‘But the princess chose to trust me.’
It was a stroke of luck. …No, it was all thanks to that man. It was better to express her gratitude to him than to attribute it to luck.
‘Thank you.’
She offered a silent thanks to the departing man’s back.
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