The Forgotten Grand Temple of the Pantheon (1)
Riat Professor said,
"To think there's a case where the Mana Road distribution is this complex. Unbelievable."
Muttering to himself, he spent a long time using my Mana Road diagram as an example to continue the lecture.
"Examples of structures like this are exceedingly rare. No, since the Mana Road structures of the ancients have been lost to practical use in modern times, you could say this is practically unique. Especially in this case, the complexity of the Mana Heart is incomparable to that of a typical mana awakener."
Even without the professor's difficult explanation, just looking at the diagram Lilia had created made it clear.
"With a structure like this, it would require far more mana than a standard awakener's 1st Tier circulation. Moreover, given the complexity, ordinary mana cultivation methods would make mana refinement impossible."
He drew red circles between the lines of the unfurled diagram. The number of those circles was close to dozens.
"And as you can see, the Mana Roads are blocked in places like this all over. With so many fine pathways distributed throughout the Mana Roads, clearing them all takes a long time. Even with the aid of a highly skilled healer, expensive spirit medicines, and one's own desperate efforts, unblocking all these obstructed Mana Roads wouldn't be easy."
The classroom fell silent for a moment. I had a special Mana Road, but that very specialness was now the problem. And the owner of that flaw happened to be Lilia's fiancé—me.
So the professor's expression wasn't great either.
Sure enough, after the lecture ended, he came over to where we were sitting.
"Your Highness Lilia, I apologize for what happened during the lecture earlier. Even if it was for the sake of teaching, it ended up looking like I was pointing out Count Yulian's flaws..."
"No, Professor Riat. It was something I already knew. I was the one who projected Yulian-nim's Mana Road during the practical session, after all."
"But don't worry. Our order can provide the highest-level healers. And given Count Yulian's high status, we should scour the entire empire for rare spirit medicines and have him take them as soon as possible..."
"I see. You're right, Professor."
"However, as Your Highness can see, with Mana Roads this severely blocked, it might not be possible in a short time. At least half a year..."
Riat Professor said with a serious expression.
'Half a year...'
Absolutely not. The conditions were already harsh, and half a year was far too long.
It meant that even creating just one ultimate art from a single chapter would take that much time. Even with my status, which could secure the continent's rarest spirit medicines as the professor said, it would still be that long.
'White Night is an ultimate art based on 3rd Tier refined mana. So even after half a year, my level would barely reach that point.'
In other words, after that much time, I'd only be at the level of Chloe or Rozette, who were currently at the 3rd Tier. Nest攻略 would be impossible, of course.
Lilia said,
"Thank you for thinking of this, Professor Riat. But we'll find a way somehow. I'll look into it myself."
"Understood. However, Count Yulian is still young, so half a year isn't that long. Once all the Mana Roads are cleared, his growth afterward will skyrocket."
The professor bowed his head and stepped back. At the same time, Lilia looked at me with worried eyes. But as the person involved, I wasn't as concerned as she was.
'Because I already know the solution.'
If ordinary spirit medicines wouldn't work, then procure ones far superior. The hidden treasury accessible only to imperial family members.
There, I could obtain the special spirit medicine I wanted. And by my side was someone from the imperial family with whom I'd promised my future.
'Of course, not every imperial can do it. But Lilia can.'
As I sat there silently with a serious expression, Lilia said urgently,
"Yulian-nim, what are we going to do... We heard such bad news. And right now, when you're actively participating in the Roia Order's training and working hard to improve..."
"It's fine. Half a year is long, but also short. Rather, it could be a good time for reflection, as punishment for slacking off until now."
I said that and put on a thoughtful expression, looking a bit dejected. Lilia fidgeted anxiously, stroking my head repeatedly.
"N-no, we can't have that! Yulian-nim is no longer that worthless playboy from before! I can't let the man who will be my husband lose his spirit. I'll find a solution right away."
With that, Lilia hurriedly stood up.
"I swear on the name of the princess that I'll heal Yulian-nim's condition immediately!"
Lilia left the classroom. She moved as if it were her own affair. Well, since I was her fiancé, it might as well be.
With this, the problem was half-solved.
Two days later. Friday night. As expected, Lilia had found the solution.
After receiving her message in the afternoon, I stayed at the Pantheon instead of leaving.
The Medica Hall, resembling a temple. And one of its auditoriums. I waited for Lilia outside the solemn auditorium.
Inside, the Medica Order's holy priests and healers were holding an all-night vigil prayer to Medica God on Friday nights, proving their faith.
Prayer chants drifted out from within. But the content was no different from reciting specialized medical texts, so it sounded a bit funny to outsiders.
"When the patient's condition doesn't improve, combine 2nd Tier holy magic with physical surgical procedures simultaneously..."
With content like that as prayers. Other orders had similar faith-proving rituals, though the methods and forms varied slightly.
'The Roia Order sings brutal military anthems as hymns to prove their faith.'
Each order tailored their faith-proving time to their nature, increasing the proportion of divine power in their mana.
Divine power was especially crucial for resisting the demon aura of monsters filling dungeons. So it was essential time for Pantheon cadets.
Of course, it had nothing to do with me. Spending that time in vigorous sex with the women was far more beneficial for growth.
'Plus the Saintess's Son title quest and Agnes's Rosario. Getting Jedin's divine power that way is much better.'
As I pondered while listening to the drifting prayers, a cadet in a nun's habit emerged from the auditorium. It was Lilia.
"Sorry, Yulian-nim! You must have waited a long time?"
"No. I spent the time outside reciting prayers to Roia God."
"Oh my! So diligent. You must have sung military anthems. As expected of the man who will be my future husband!"
Lilia tightly gripped my hand. Then we carefully moved to another spot.
"Today, I used the all-night prayer as an excuse not to return to the Imperial Palace. And with the Medica Hall people focused on prayer in the auditorium, now's the perfect time to move."
We headed to the central clock tower of the Medica Hall. And carefully ascended it without drawing attention.
"No one will come here at this hour, so don't worry, Yulian-nim."
As Lilia said, the place was quiet. The clock tower pointed to 10 p.m. With nothing but the tower itself, foot traffic was sparse even normally.
We entered its interior and climbed to the top.
Clank—clank—clank—
Inside, countless gears turned busily.
"You must have been surprised to be called to a place like this suddenly, Yulian-nim?"
"If it's Your Highness Lilia, there must be a reason. I trust you."
At those words, Lilia squeezed my hand tighter with moved eyes. But she soon composed herself and explained why we were here.
"You know that the Pantheon hasn't been around for very long, right, Yulian-nim?"
Lilia was right. The Pantheon was established after the Great War, built to carry on Saintess Agnes's will.
So the Pantheon's history was about the same age as us.
"Then, do you know what the site was like before the Pantheon was built?"
Lilia continued her explanation. Before it was called Imperial Capital Teria—from the old imperial capital—the name was the Holy City. And the Pantheon site originally held the grand temple of the six gods.
"It was a grand temple that existed from the time the Holy Ramir Empire was founded, long ago. But 20 years ago, during the Great War with the demonkin, it was completely destroyed. And to make matters worse, it suffered monster attacks, turning it into literal ruins."
Built atop that wasteland was the Holy Academy Pantheon. I knew well what Lilia meant by the six gods' grand temple.
The traces of the grand temple remaining in the Pantheon. And its hidden space. It was a crucial hidden piece for Demon King Slayer.
'Without the trial of that grand temple, nest攻略 is a pipe dream.'
But pretending it was my first time hearing, I kept listening to Lilia with a surprised expression.
"Now, almost no traces of that grand temple remain. Each order's headquarters stands where it was. However, there's a secret known only to the imperial family. A way to reach the mysterious place of that long-lost ancient grand temple."
When the grand temple existed, there was a hidden place accessible only to the imperial family.
The Asterik imperial family had used that hidden space to store secrets and treasures known only to them.
"Like a kind of imperial treasury. But ultimately, that place is part of the Medica Hall. So it's just a portion of the Medica Grand Temple. The hidden spaces of the other grand temples were taboo even to our ancestors. The ancient records passed down in the imperial family mention it as a place sealing something one shouldn't know."
It must have been that dangerous to hide secrets and treasures there. So the treasury had long gone unused by the imperial family.
"Since it's not an ordinary treasury, entering requires a kind of qualification proof. It's truly dangerous."
In the early days of the empire's founding, the Asterik imperial family still had heroic spirit. Like the founding merit house Reinhardt, they were a heroic lineage.
But living as the empire's highest status for so long, they didn't need to risk entering the dangerous treasury for treasures—their wealth and power overflowed.
The current emperor was closer to a lazy, incompetent pig than a hero. The other imperial family members weren't much different.
'Risking lineage extinction from a failed challenge. That risk is greater.'
So the imperial treasury had become a forgotten legend even among the imperial family.
But Lilia was resolved to enter that dangerous place for me.
"If it's that dangerous, there's no need to push yourself, Your Highness Lilia. I can wait half a year."
"No! The representatives of each order have already reached the 3rd Tier realm. My holy magic is at the 3rd Tier too. Delaying reaching that realm by half a year... It's the same as giving up everything I can learn at the Pantheon in that time!"
With that, Lilia lightly bit her finger. A few drops of blood seeped from the small wound.
"I want to grow strong together with Yulian-nim no matter what. So don't worry. With the two of us together, the Medica Hall's hidden space won't scare us."
Lilia dripped a few drops of her blood onto the clock tower's gears. Suddenly, the surroundings were enveloped in bright light, and the gears spun at ferocious speed.
"Will you hold my hand?"
I tightly grasped Lilia's outstretched hand. And shortly after, the two of us entered the forgotten grand temple of the Medica Hall.