The North's Painful Truth
Everyone, let's realize the painful truth behind the harmonious and friendly North and head to the Central region. I spotted my companions returning from their exploration. They were chatting about what they'd found in their respective corridors, so I strolled over and waved casually.
"I've got some interesting information. Anyone want to see?" I asked, holding up the book in my hand. All eyes turned toward me. Bale and Owen showed particular interest, likely realizing the book dated back to the ancient civilization.
"Ooh! Don't tell me that's from the ancient civilization?"
"The condition is remarkably good. I've never seen anything like it."
I handed the book to the two who rushed over. Their expectant expressions shifted like a gradient as they examined it. With each page turned, their eyes wavered, their smiles faded, and their pace slowed. They looked quite shaken after learning the shocking truth.
The others grew curious about the contents after seeing their reactions. When I showed them the book as well, they had similar responses. Luna was the first to collect herself among those who learned the truth. She let out a sigh.
"So... the ancient civilization is the reason monsters went wild?"
"Judging from the context, it seems that way."
"Hearing such a shocking truth all of a sudden makes it hard to process."
The scribe's decision to store the book in a preservation barrier had been an excellent choice. Thanks to that, much of the content remained intact, allowing us to learn the rough outline of this hidden history. Of course, the material was too limited to believe everything outright, but at least this facility lent credence to the book's claims.
"The room I went to had a broken recording orb reduced to dust. Based on the book, it probably contained information about the ancient civilization."
"I found materials presumed to have been used during the ancient civilization era. Most of them came from the fortress beyond the front lines, though."
"I entered a room that looked like a research lab. Most of the equipment there was broken too, so it was useless."
Their words gradually turned my suspicions into certainty, and I let out a sigh. If this fact came to light in academic circles, it would cause enormous chaos.
'No, I'm not even sure we can reveal this fact in the first place.'
These were already turbulent times. The North was pouring all its strength into stopping the mountain dragons' southward advance. The Central region was on the verge of total collapse. The West was re-confirming the dangers of named monsters. I didn't know the exact situations in the South and East, but the South at least was preparing to help the North deal with named monsters. Revealing the truth now would only add to the chaos.
While those who had glimpsed a fragment of the world's hidden truth took time to process it, Adela—the only one relaxed in this situation—asked a question.
"So the ancient civilization people were all bad?"
"Not necessarily. Ordinary people might not have known about this. The ruler in charge of the North apparently opposed the plan to the very end."
If the book's contents were true, the Northern ruler had opposed it until the last moment. Adela, who had been re-reading the contents, looked at me and asked,
"If this is true, did monsters originally live alongside humans? Like me and Argo?"
"Who knows? I've never lived in that era, so I can't say."
Still, given how familiar Protisha acted, they were probably closely tied to daily life. As I was cautiously speculating, Adela struck at the core.
"Then Argo is a prince?"
"Huh?"
"It says so in the book. The rulers possessed the qualification to resonate and communicate with the world."
I was about to ask what she meant when I recalled the book's contents and closed my mouth. I had two worlds I was interacting with: my unique dimension and the Water Realm. One handled a large portion of my martial prowess, while the other served as storage and a living space for my tamed monsters. My expression showed the realization that, to others, this usage was anything but ordinary. I'd been using it so naturally that I'd overlooked it.
Realizing anew that the power I possessed was special, Neon cried out in surprise from beside me.
"That's right! Lady Krisnain said your bloodline was special!"
"She did. She mentioned some special blood mixed into my lineage."
Recalling the Archdevil's words, I made a startled face. Those who roughly grasped the situation began discussing it seriously.
"No wonder animals followed Argo so well. It was because the world favored him?"
"Then is this an ancient gene manifesting in the modern era?"
"Even with atavism, inheriting ancestral genes has a limit of three or four generations at most."
"Since it's a special power, it might manifest even if only remnants remain."
The discussion grew so interesting that even Rohan and Clorin, who had come as escorts, joined in. While it was true that the situation was fascinating enough to draw in people who normally had no interest in the ancient civilization, there was a more important issue at hand. For those who hadn't noticed it, I took the lead and asked,
"More importantly, what do we do with this truth? Revealing it seems like it would cause massive chaos."
"We obviously have to hide it."
"We're already short-handed fighting the mountain dragons, so it's best to keep it hidden for a while."
"Truths people can't handle have always caused accidents."
Bale, Luna, and Owen answered without a moment's hesitation. The majority agreed that it was best not to reveal this truth immediately. More precisely, they leaned toward gradually releasing the information rather than hiding it indefinitely.
"We can't hide it forever, so we should at least inform my father and His Highness the Archduke."
"It would be better to release the information gradually, starting from the top. If the nobles maintain their composure and calm the chaos, we can minimize the fallout."
"Think about it. If your parents burst into your room while you're sleeping soundly and announce that you're adopted, how would you feel? If they prepare the atmosphere on a special day like a birthday, you'd at least think, 'Ah, something's up,' and mentally prepare yourself."
Everyone nodded at Neon's perfect explanation. We needed to give people time to prepare to accept this truth, or the chaos would only grow. Even just thinking about the problems that would arise if we revealed it immediately, the massive wall called religion came to mind. Considering the details, how much chaos would actually erupt?
The religious issue made me sigh unconsciously.
"I wonder how the Church will take this fact."
"We'll have to talk to them first. They'll probably be the most shocked."
As Bale said, aside from the North, the Holy Kingdom and the Church were the factions that needed to learn this fact first. Even if the nobles kept their composure, everything would be for naught if the religion wavered. We were pondering how to handle a problem that could potentially cause a grand catastrophe when we decided to dump it on someone else.
"Ah, whatever. No matter how much we think about it, the higher-ups might have other plans anyway. Let's just leave it to the Count and His Highness the Archduke."
"Good idea."
"That sounds best."
"We're adventurers, after all. What right does a mere warrior have to discuss continental politics?"
Everyone agreed as if they'd been waiting for my words. I could vividly imagine the nobles' reactions to suddenly being saddled with a bomb without knowing why, but we unanimously decided to cheer them on. We believed they would handle it well, since that was what nobles were for.
After putting the book in my inventory and gathering everything worth taking, we boarded the elevator heading to the surface. Inside the quiet elevator, Neon spoke up.
"But will it be okay once this fact is revealed?"
"What will?"
"Think about it. If this is the truth, it means Argo has the blood of a ruler flowing through him."
"When you put it that way, yeah."
"Then won't it get complicated with issues of legitimacy or politics? Like nobles trying to kill Argo or something."
At Neon's suspicion, we looked at each other's faces. It was certainly a reasonable concern regarding legitimacy. Considering humanity's desire for power, it was entirely possible. The ancient civilization that had destroyed itself through its own arrogance was proof of that. However, Neon only knew one side of the story. In the Central region or elsewhere, it might be different, but in the North, problems would arise in a direction opposite to what Neon feared.
At Neon's worried words, Bale muttered seriously.
"If things go wrong, His Highness the Archduke might take Argo in and treat him as a ruler."
"What?"
"You've seen him too, haven't you? He's closer to a warrior than a ruler. He's only sitting in that position out of a sense of responsibility. He's the type who always sings about wanting to escape from the administrative throne during official duties."
"Ah."
Recalling Arthur's appearance from what he'd seen, Neon made an enlightened expression.
"Someone who's reached the pinnacle of the North must be obsessed with swords and training. The moment you see His Highness the Archduke's face, trapped in his office dealing with work pouring in from all over the North when he'd rather spend every second training, those thoughts will vanish."
"That's why not many Gold-class adventurers refuse noble titles for no reason."
"The tradition of placing retired high-ranking adventurers in guild branch chief or high positions was created so you lot wouldn't just enjoy a comfortable retirement but would keep working."
Before chronic manpower shortages, everyone was equal. Why did Northerners respect and revere nobles and warriors? Because in the North, where everyone was ground down equally, nobles and warriors were ground down the most. If you assigned administrative duties to warriors who had spent their lives fighting monsters and focusing only on getting stronger, they'd experience the magic of muscle pain in their brains.
I looked at everyone with serious eyes as I quietly listened to the conversation.
"What if we hide the truth forever?"
"Absolutely not."
"I'll try to stop them from dragging you away."
"The truth must be revealed someday."
Look at them being so heartless because it wasn't their problem. I stared at the nonchalant people with resentful eyes. When the elevator arrived at its destination and the doors opened, I forced my unwilling feet to move and stepped out of the cave.
Surely they won't actually drag me to the administrative throne.