The Tenth Research: Sacred Kingship (2)
Since the dawn of civilization, power had always been distributed unequally. Among those who wielded it, individuals granted exceptional authority were called monarchs, and among monarchs, the truly extraordinary were known as Great Kings.
“And among even those Great Kings, there was one who stood above the rest in magnificence. He was the man who reduced every ruler who came after him to a mere shadow suffering from Great King syndrome.”
King of Kings Zaherion.
Megas Zaherion.
Conqueror Zaherion.
The man known simply as the Great King was the greatest conqueror the human race had ever produced. Rulers who governed larger territories were rare, yet none before or after him had lived a life so brilliant and fiery. That was why humans still remembered the Great King with romantic longing through folktales and legends.
Legacy of the Conqueror King
Experience +10
Lore Points +1
Progress to Level 26: 60/100
Lore Points: 36
“Belladia.”
“Yes, Master.”
“From today onward, your progenitor is Zaherion the Great.”
“Pardon?”
She tilted her head. What was he talking about?
“My paternal ancestor is the Iron Lord Harrington.”
“Correct.”
“And my maternal ancestor is the Ordinary Marquis Gabrio.”
“Also correct.”
“Then how…?”
The Lore Master spoke with an utterly serious expression.
“In truth, your maternal grandfather, the Ordinary Marquis Gabrio, was a direct descendant of Zaherion the Great. The bloodline was simply concealed for the safety of his descendants.”
Belladia wondered for a moment if her master had been drinking in the middle of the day. Yet there was no sign of intoxication, and he was not one to indulge anyway.
“Belladia. What is truth?”
“Physical truth? Or social truth?”
Good. She had learned well.
“Social truth.”
“What you and I believe in.”
“Correct.”
He gave a satisfied nod.
“Therefore, you are the hidden descendant of Zaherion the Great—the promised queen destined to save the central region from the unprecedented catastrophe known as the Three-Headed Dragon’s Descent.”
Belladia stroked her sharp jawline, lost in thought. The logic was not difficult to follow.
“I understand. However, I have many questions.”
“Ask them one at a time.”
“Why did my ancestors hide the bloodline?”
“Because the Great King had an enormous number of enemies.”
Zaherion had set out to war at sixteen and, until the day he died at thirty, conquered fifty nations and subjugated twelve races. He had taken princesses from each subjugated race as his wives.
“The goblins in particular were dangerous.”
Except for the goblins.
“Zaherion the Great always treated the defeated with generosity, but the goblins were the sole exception.”
Belladia recalled the lesson. Hadn’t the Great King exterminated the goblins to aid the high elves who were in peril?
“I have a question.”
“Go ahead.”
“Why would he fear mere goblins?”
From a modern perspective, goblins were nothing but repulsive vermin. They lived in remote wilds beyond the reach of civilization, waiting for chances to raid food and women. They were low-grade monsters, and disgustingly weak at that.
“Most goblins have indeed fallen to the level of low-grade monsters today, but the species still possesses more latent power than appearances suggest. There remain clans that preserve ancient legacies.”
Ancient legacies? For goblins?
“I will lecture on the rise and fall of the goblin race another time. The important point is that the mere existence of Zaherion’s descendants draws the hatred of the goblins. They are irreconcilable enemies.”
Legacy of the Goblins
Experience +10
Lore Points +1
Progress to Level 26: 70/100
Lore Points: 37
“What specific danger are we talking about?”
“When a descendant of Zaherion appears, the ancient goblin clans dispatch their Slayers. They are terrifying assassins who have sworn their lives to the revenge of their race and inherited the martial arts of the ancient goblin kingdom.”
Belladia blinked, unable to fully accept the explanation. What was he saying? The creatures that went “kieek” all day knew martial arts?
“Anyway, I understand that such a danger exists.”
“Therefore, if you reveal yourself as Zaherion’s descendant, the Slayers will come to assassinate you. That very threat will serve as evidence supporting your bloodline.”
Oh. So it could be used that way.
As expected of Professor Tellorian!
“I’m allowed to play with any goblins I capture alive, right?”
“They won’t be easy enough opponents to capture alive.”
“Hehe! I’ll still try!”
A spark of interest lit up Belladia’s teal eyes, which had been fighting off drowsiness. She straightened her posture and listened attentively to the rest of Tellorian’s story.
“What exactly is the Three-Headed Dragon’s Descent?”
“It is the collective term for three great catastrophes that will devastate the central region. The orc invasion, the outbreak of the undead plague, and the uprising of demon worshippers. Each one is named as a disaster equivalent to the appearance of a dragon.”
She nodded.
Next question.
“And the promised queen?”
“There was a prophecy that a queen carrying Zaherion’s blood would prevent the Three-Headed Dragon’s Descent. It means you possess the legitimate right to ascend the throne.”
She nodded again.
“I understand. But what exactly did the prophecy promise? That I would defeat someone at a certain time and place, or accomplish a specific feat…?”
I have no idea.
“…Pardon?”
I will simply fabricate the details to fit whatever situation arises at the time. Most prophecies are like that anyway.
“Hmm…”
Belladia slowly mulled over her master’s words. Thanks to him, she now understood how prophecies and legends were manufactured.
“It’s like a fortune-teller’s stall, isn’t it?”
“You’ve grasped it perfectly.”
“Very well. It’s a flawless plan.”
She grinned with genuine interest.
Deceiving the entire world sounded incredibly exciting!
“One last thing. Since a thousand years have passed since the Great King’s death, others will find it difficult to believe my bloodline. Did he leave behind any symbolic artifact for his descendants…?”
There is none. The goblins destroyed them all.
“Then how will you convince others?”
“There may be no token to prove Zaherion’s blood, but there is a witness who can testify that you are his descendant.”
A witness?
More than a thousand years after the Great King’s death?
“A thousand years.”
An incomprehensibly vast span of time.
At least for us humans.
“The witness doesn’t have to be human!”
“Do you remember?”
Conqueror Zaherion had subjugated twelve races and taken their princesses as wives.
“You also taught me that he exterminated the goblins to save the high elves who were in danger, correct?”
Oh?
Oho?
Oh ho!
“Kyahahaha!”
Belladia exercised her historical imagination to picture the scene. A boy conqueror burning with ambition marches at the head of the army that would one day be called invincible. Then, before the boy’s eyes, a high-elf princess appears, beautiful as an angel, tearfully begging for aid…
“So that’s how the goblins were ruined! Kyahahaha!”
High elves are surprisingly skilled at politics, aren’t they?
“It’s not surprising. They are the originators of the art.”
High elves.
A race that has reached the pinnacle of political scheming.
Even humans must concede several moves to these venerable predecessors.
“Weren’t elves supposed to be innocent, gullible fools?”
“The image of elves as pure and harmless in human folktales is the result of deliberate cognitive manipulation by the high elves. If they had truly been an innocent and harmless race, they would have gone extinct long ago.”
Legacy of the Elves
Experience +10
Lore Points +1
Progress to Level 26: 80/100
Lore Points: 38
“In any case, the crucial fact for us is that the legitimate wife of Conqueror Zaherion is still alive. Anyone who receives her official recognition will be able to claim the authority of Zaherion’s descendant.”
A fine strategy.
“But why would the Great King’s legitimate wife acknowledge me as his descendant? From her perspective, she gains nothing.”
Who knows.
That remains to be seen.
High elves are always in need of human collaborators.
“Like Zaherion himself?”
“Exactly.”
Therefore,
he had invited the high-elf delegation.
To discuss the terms of their alliance in person.
Kiyoooo!
The cry of an eagle announced the arrival of the high-elf delegation. The citizens of the royal capital paused their daily labors, poured into the streets, and gasped in admiration at the sight.
The delegation passed through the filthy streets of the commoners and entered the royal palace. Elf warriors clad in golden armor lined up in perfect formation inside the audience chamber.
“Alari! Lumen!”
“Ha!”
The elf warriors standing on both sides crossed their long spears, displaying flawless discipline. There was not a single gap in their movements, and the weapons forged from sunlight itself gleamed with magical radiance.
Moreover, their bodies were tall and solid as oak trees, and their sharp eyes held both the wisdom of the elderly and the passion of the young.
“Short-lived ones.”
They were the high elves.
The strongest warrior race.
“I am Glorimmar, Grand Duke of the Silver Eagle House and plenipotentiary ambassador who negotiates with the human chieftains on behalf of the most exalted Eternal Queen.”
The elf knight leading the delegation removed his helmet. For a moment it felt as if the entire audience chamber had grown brighter. Belladia momentarily forgot her possessive feelings toward Tellorian. Her master suddenly looked no better than a squid.
“The Eternal Queen who rules the Eternal Court sends her regards to the new chieftain of Essil. You may praise this favor as though it were the grace of the moon.”
Glorimmar’s ears were long.
And pointed.
“Hmm…”
The Protector Duke seated upon the Swan Throne rested his chin on his hand and glared at the eagle knight. A diplomatic envoy who did not even bow his head upon meeting the ruler of another nation—this was arrogance not permitted by custom, yet…
“You lot.”
Rodrick was a formidable warrior who had survived countless battlefields. Thanks to that experience, he could gauge an opponent’s level of martial skill with nothing but a glance.
“You have the right to be arrogant.”
Rodrick, the Iron Lord who ruled the Essil Kingdom, accepted the situation. There was value in enduring humiliation to meet with the high-elf delegation.
A welcoming banquet for the high elves was held in the inner courtyard. Yet the elf ambassador merely sniffed at the feast prepared by the kingdom before tossing it into a trash bin.
“…What is the meaning of this, Ambassador?”
“Do humans serve garbage to their guests?”
“…You’re calling the food we prepared garbage?”
“Tsk tsk. You’ve been eating garbage your whole lives and don’t even know what real food is. I shall specially teach you what true cuisine is.”
The elf ambassador sneered and clapped his hands, ordering his attendants to place their bread upon the table. However, in such a murderous atmosphere, no one dared reach for the food.
“Father.”
“…Belladia?”
“This is incredibly delicious, you know?”
“…What?”
“Why don’t you try it and judge for yourself?”
Rodrick’s insides boiled with fury, but he could not rebuke his successor in a public setting. Such behavior would endanger both the family and Belladia herself.
“…Very well.”
Gulp.
In that instant,
the Iron Lord Rodrick remembered.
The taste of his late mother’s cooking…!
“Tellorian! Tellorian! Tellorian!”
“…”
“Stop lurking behind the curtain like some shadowy mastermind and come enjoy the meal with us! It’s the high elves’ manna bread! This isn’t an opportunity that comes every day!”
…Even if I eat, digestion will only slow my thinking. But if the Iron Lord forces the issue in an official capacity, I have no choice but to at least pretend to eat for the sake of his dignity.
Medieval bread is still medieval bread no matter how good it is…
Crunch.
He held it in his hand.
Then swallowed.
This is…!
The taste of modern Korea!
The flavor I left behind in my previous life…!
Tasted High Elf Manna Bread!
Experience +10
Lore Points +1
Progress to Level 26: 80/100
Lore Points: 38
“Grand Duke Glorimmar.”
“Speak, Grey Sage.”
“Share the manufacturing method for the manna bread with me.”
?!
He already knew?
That it was bread created through magic?
“If you do, I’ll take it easy on you during the negotiations.”
I swear on my lore that this is not a losing proposal for you.
New Unique Spell Acquired!
Unique Spell: Manna Bread of Eternity
Creates magical bread that reproduces the taste the taster misses most exactly as remembered. A single piece provides the satisfaction of a full meal, and consuming one counts as an entire day’s sustenance.