Chapter 25
Chapter 25
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Translator: penny
Chapter: 25
Chapter Title: Revelation and Cycle
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My first death was
when both Yurinel and I were still very weak.
I had separated from Yurinel and fought a desperate battle against a horde of goblins, only to fall off a cliff.
That was my first death.
—Apostle.
Isn't it strange? Even though I had died, I could feel the call.
Along with the bizarre sensation of someone dragging my body along the ground.
When I awoke again, I was in the place where I had last lit the candle in the sanctuary. It must have been a remote cabin where we had camped along the road.
—The life of one who has returned to the Lord cannot be taken even by death.
That was the moment I first saw the faceless angel.
—However, do not take death lightly just because you believe in the Lord's power.
The angel who bestowed the Lineage Sapling upon me was different—this was another servant of the Lord.
He warned me.
—The more you experience death, the more your flesh will crumble. The end of that path is ascension. It is a fate that will one day come to you.
Not only from experiencing death, but every time I used miracles or powers beyond my capacity,
my flesh, unworthy of such divine rank, would continue to crumble.
There was no way to reverse it. Just as the past that has passed cannot be turned back.
To delay the time of ascension and remain in this world as long as possible, I must never use my full abilities.
In any case, meeting such a being again like this, I felt a little glad, a little embarrassed, and a little awkward.
It's been quite a while since we last saw each other's faces, so it feels a bit distant. Yes.
Of course, that lasted only a moment.
—Apostle. The day you come to our side is not far off.
The words I heard didn't sound like a joke or a prank at all.
I looked at his face with a serious expression. There was nothing but an infinite abyss where a human face should be, but eyes, nose, and mouth are ultimately just human organs.
An angel could perceive the infinite world without such deficiencies.
—In truth, it's not just your story. Soon, a new cycle will begin in this world. More dramatic than any previous cycle, and likely the last.
"What do you mean by cycle?"
—The term for the deepest secret of this world, one you do not yet know.
What I had heard—what an irreverent and sorry thing—but
for a very brief moment, I ended up doubting the Lord's message delivered by the angel.
The angel waited for me patiently, and once I regained my composure, continued speaking.
—As you know, our Lord requires no faith. That is why He merely observes you mortals.
The angel extended a slender finger and pointed into the void.
There, instead of our house's ceiling, was a brilliantly clear night sky. Countless stars streaked across it, filling the heavens.
—Apostle. The number of possibilities is greater than the stars in that sky. But some possibilities are greater than all others combined. The elect call it fate.
The stars began to fade, starting from the east where dawn broke, swallowed by a brighter light.
The starlight was buried by the greater sunlight, and the sun rose. The angel pointed precisely at that sun and warned me.
—Behold. No matter how desperately the stars shine, no one sees their twinkle when dawn breaks. What is coming to this world is like that. All the clamor you humans create will become a silent cry and vanish forever.
—No matter what decisions you make, the outcome is already as good as decided in that distant place. Apostle. The Lord did not bestow the Lineage Sapling upon you out of mere whim. You, that miracle—they are nothing less than a hope He has given you.
The Lord, the one I serve,
had decreed the world's destruction. It felt like hearing the sky was collapsing.
My legs gave way, and I staggered without realizing it. But I soon regained my senses.
"I, a mere believer, have reached this point by the Lord's grace. If the Lord wishes to place me in the position of deciding the world's fate, I will gladly obey."
If He saw it that way, at least from my perspective, there was no room for disagreement.
He sees things incomparably greater than someone like me.
What matters is what I can do,
and what I must do. I asked the angel.
"What is the source of this crisis? Surely not Grimudo?"
The ancient demon king we could never defeat in the end.
Could it be that Yurinel and the Saintess ultimately failed to defeat him, and that would bring disaster upon humanity?
But the angel simply shook his head.
—Something more primordial. It harbors no malice toward you.
"Even without ill intent, it can become a disaster?"
—Because it has no reason to care for you.
The angel said no more, and I could ask no further.
I knew it wasn't that he wouldn't tell me, but that he couldn't.
"What must I do? What can I do?"
I clasped my hands together in prayer and simply asked.
Surely, to the angel who possessed wisdom far grander than mine.
—Simply do what you desire.
He reached out and gently stroked my head.
After a moment, he withdrew his hand and vanished. Whether it was a dream or a vision, the walls and ceiling disappeared, leaving only a void around him.
—The Lord will guide you to your fate. The Lord will guide you to your choice.
As he grew distant, my mind felt like it was drifting away too. Am I fainting now? Or have I already fainted?
Either way, one thing was certain: this was no mere dream. I could be sure it was no illusion.
Apostle. Save your own world.
Before you can no longer endure and come to our side.
Those were the last words lingering in my ear.
*****
“...Lord. My Lord!”
“Saint, are you alright?”
I had dozed off briefly and opened my eyes to find Roca straddling me, calling out desperately.
Ldein was standing in front of me, looking apologetic.
“You must have exhausted yourself greatly healing me. To receive such a great favor with nothing to repay it immediately, I can only feel sorry. Are you greatly fatigued?”
“No, I'm not tired. My body feels light.”
I stretched lightly and, stroking Roca's head as she sighed in relief, replied.
She must have been beside herself thinking I was in danger. Thank you.
“By any chance, is Ldein's real name Ardein von Illumina?”
“Yes, I am Ardein... How?!!”
“I received a revelation. I hoped to the end it was a joke, but of course an angel wouldn't lie to someone like me.”
Even as a princess, she was still a guest who had come seeking the Lord.
There was no need to treat her with utmost deference or kneel. My knees aren't made of steel, and I'd do it if asked, but I had no reason to bow first.
I had heard much about Princess Ardein von Illumina.
The Empire's Iron Princess. The undefeated war hero. But cursed by the gods, afflicted with a rotting disease, scorned by the people, and fallen.
All of it was mere rhetoric.
You can't know a person until you see them yourself, and I cleared those prejudices from my mind.
She was no one else but the Lord's guest, Ldein. Nothing more, nothing less. I would simply treat her with courtesy.
“A revelation... from the one you serve, Saint?”
“No. From another of His servants. One of the many angels in His service. An revelation I truly didn't want to believe.”
What is a cycle? Can Yurinel stop it? How, by what process or method, will it plunge this world into crisis?
I knew nothing at present. My head was complicated.
“Princess, does the word 'cycle' bring anything to mind?”
“Cycle...? No, nothing.”
“Roca, you?”
“Roca doesn't know that stuff.”
Roca hugged me too tightly for a moment, and it hurt a little.
“I only know about Master.”
“Yes, yes, thank you.”
I need to teach her some learning.
In any case, realizing that even the three of us put together had no answers, it was time to seek wisdom from outside.
But who should I ask about something like this? Who could I ask?
If there were the wisest person in the world, I'd ask them, but no such person exists. In the end, do I have to set out on a new journey to find someone who knows about cycles?
“Cycle... No matter how I think, nothing else comes to mind. Since you've figured it out anyway, I'll reveal it: I am Ardein von Illumina. Once a brat who acted like the Empire's number two, pushing aside even my brother. I've heard and seen much, but I don't recall the word 'cycle' being used in any other sense besides its dictionary meaning.”
As expected.
But the princess continued.
“If the word 'cycle' has a special meaning, perhaps only the oldest demon king, Grimudo, would know. At least in the Empire, you won't find answers easily.”
It seemed like just a casual remark,
but there was definitely a possibility.
'Grimudo might really know.'
The being shrouded in mystery, whom countless heroes had tried and failed to defeat, none surviving. The ancient demon king who had lived through eons.
The one hated most by everyone in Yurinel's party, and by me too.
He, who held many secrets, might know the true meaning of cycle.
'I might have to go back to Grimudo's North Star Citadel.'
If I could just learn the meaning of cycle, I wouldn't fear even if he killed me.
He might destroy my small body, but not me myself.
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