Chapter 126
Chapter 126
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Translator: penny
Chapter: 126
Chapter Title: The Beginning of the Turbulent Times (1)
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Martin headed straight for the Tyrant's Chamber as soon as he returned to the estate.
He met Arellia and explained everything that had happened: the curse on the emperor, the Klaus family's declaration of independence, and the ambitions of the imperial family and the Ferdinand house.
“What a mess.”
Arellia gave her succinct impression.
Hearing that, Martin smiled wryly.
“The gossips say the time of the Alteria Empire's founding was the most chaotic era. To think the founding family head, who lived through it, would call it a mess.”
“Of course, it was a total disaster back then. Hordes of people swarmed from all directions to claim the dungeon entrances. And that wasn't all—the founding emperor and the founding heads of the other three great noble families were too busy picking fights with each other while talking about building an empire.”
Martin listened intently to Arellia's words with a fascinated expression.
The era she described was undeniably real history, yet it was spoken of as myth, a time of such grandeur.
Hearing it directly from the person who lived it filled him with fresh emotion.
“But we didn't start out fighting as 10th Circle masters.”
“So you grew stronger in the midst of constant battles?”
“Exactly. Countless powerhouses killed and were killed repeatedly. I myself overcame death countless times and finally reached the 10th Circle realm. The founding emperor and the founding heads of the other three great noble families ascended to the same realm around the same time, and with that power, they fully seized control of the dungeon entrances.”
“The origins of the three great noble families and the imperial family.”
“That's right. The problem is, the hardships I endured are nothing compared to what you'll face. Unlike me, who grew by clashing with rivals, you have to confront absolute beings who are already at the 10th Circle.”
“On the difficulty scale, it's on another level entirely.”
Unlike Arellia, whose face was filled with worry, Martin replied in a calm tone.
He had known from the start that he couldn't match them yet.
‘Still, I have to struggle.’
Hadn't he resolved to endure until the end?
He had no regrets about the path he chose.
“Clashing head-on with the Klaus family will ultimately fall to the Ferdinand house and its head. Given the size of both families' forces, the war will drag on.”
“So you'll grow as strong as possible in the meantime. Since that's the first and last chance given to you.”
“Yes. Still, I think I'm lucky. I have elements that can lead me even higher—by mastering the final chapter of Arellia swordsmanship and analyzing it.”
Swoosh.
As he explained the situation to Arellia, Martin picked up the founding emperor's journal he had set aside.
Arellia reached out with a complicated expression and touched the journal.
The first emotion she felt was nostalgia.
After all, she could now directly witness memories of the past, for better or worse.
But soon, anger surged.
Because she had to confront the history of defeat.
“You know this too. Right before the Alteria Empire was formally founded, I defeated the founding heads of the Ferdinand and Klaus families. But I lost to the founding emperor, and in the end, it all came to nothing.”
“...It's a painful story for any direct descendant of the three great noble families.”
“As an ancestor, I feel sorry. In any case, after the empire was officially founded, we never fought among ourselves again. Then, right before that founding emperor bastard died, he came to us. He wanted to compare insights through dialogue.”
“If it's not rude, may I ask the result?”
“I'm just a remnant... but even now, recalling that path makes my blood boil sometimes. I spent my whole life striving, yet I could never beat that guy.”
With that, Arellia took a deep breath to steady her emotions.
“The heads of the Ferdinand and Klaus families are the greatest threats, but you should watch the First Prince too. If the evaluation that he resembles the founding emperor is true, he'll grow frighteningly from now on to drag you to ruin.”
“I'll keep that in mind.”
“Good. For now, store this journal in your subspace. It's not time for you to read it yet.”
“Then when should I read it?”
“At minimum, when you reach the 9th Circle. Of course, given your overwhelming talent, you might gain insight from it... but in that case, that's the problem. Your body won't withstand the enlightenment. Even if you strengthen it with the dragon heart blood you obtained.”
“Hmm. Being too talented is a problem too. To think it would hold me back.”
“...Can I smack you one?”
“Spare me.”
Martin grinned impishly.
Arellia shook her head and sighed.
But that lasted only a moment.
She quickly grew serious and gripped the hilt of her sword.
“Now, I'll explain the final chapter of Arellia swordsmanship, 'Chapter of Space.' In its basic framework, you can see it as an extension of the space sword. However, you need to apply everything you've learned so far. Watch closely.”
Rumble!
No sooner had she spoken than a storm-like aura poured from Arellia's entire body.
“Draw in vast power through the wind and become one with it.”
No sooner had she spoken than the mana in the white world was absorbed into her at terrifying speed.
It felt as if she had become one with the real world.
“Then, erupt the unified power like a flame all at once to maximize efficiency.”
Roar!
The moment Arellia assumed her stance, enormous power surged violently.
Even as a remnant—a thought projection—she had repeatedly evoked awe in him until now, but at this moment, she made him truly feel what an absolute being was.
‘The heads of the Ferdinand and Klaus families are even stronger than this. That's the problem.’
He decided to set aside outside matters for now.
Right now, he had to imprint the scene before him into his mind as much as possible.
“Amplify the power with gravity, then fix and separate it to achieve resonance. And finally—”
The platinum energy gathered around Arellia's body transformed into a total of five rings.
All the rings, through resonance, displayed even greater power than before they split.
“Transcend the world itself with the power of space and slash everything.”
With those calm words, Arellia swung her sword.
At that instant, Martin's eyes widened.
‘The sword multiplied?!’
The five rings of light all became swords.
It was a realm beyond simply splitting or transforming the power of the space sword to increase its number.
Because all the rings simultaneously transformed while holding the same power.
Slash!
Adding to the original sword, the total of six blades shot toward every direction.
If there had been a target, it would have been shredded into pieces by that single strike.
“What did you feel?”
“...A strike that transcends the limits of space.”
“Then what seems different about it?”
“It seems to interfere with the domain of time.”
“To recognize that at a glance—you really take the fun out of teaching.”
“...Honestly, I still can't believe it. Even though I said it myself. Unique abilities related to time have never appeared once across the entire Crasian continent, have they?”
And yet, the final chapter of Arellia swordsmanship clearly touched upon time.
His shock was well-founded.
“Mages say space and time are connected. I have no confidence in explaining the theory in detail, but I gained one insight. About understanding this world. And it reached the realm of dimensions beyond space.”
“Even reaching the 9th Circle... I don't think I could execute it.”
“You're stating the obvious. When you reach the 10th Circle, you can complete Arellia swordsmanship. At the same time, you'll perfectly master all Adalbert swordsmanship written by past family heads.”
“Even with Distortion of All Things, it's this much—how about with Space Domination...”
“Manipulating space gives Space Domination the edge over Distortion of All Things. So, insight into the dimension itself comes faster to those who manifest Space Domination. But it has its shortcomings too. It's harder to interfere with other systems than Distortion of All Things, making it difficult to grasp the previous three insights.”
“So they each have pros and cons.”
“Something like that. Anyway, I've shown you everything. Keep coming here and swinging your sword until you reach the 10th Circle.”
“Understood. But today, I have other business first.”
“Hm?”
Hum.
Leaving the puzzled Arellia behind, Martin retrieved a vial of dragon heart blood from his subspace.
He also took out the world tree leaves he had gathered from the elf village.
“World tree leaves... Come to think of it, you said there was no pain when you applied the blood of a wyvern infused with world tree mana.”
“Yes. So I brought these just in case. I hope they work.”
“Even so, using dragon heart blood multiple times—something others can't endure even once—you're one tough bastard.”
“If it fills my deficiencies, of course I have to.”
With that, Martin removed his upper garments and carefully dripped the heart blood onto a world tree leaf.
Then, he slowly began to drink the blood that touched the leaf.
Crunch!
‘I'm screwed.’
It hurt less than the first time he drank heart blood in the Tyrant's Chamber.
In that sense, the world tree leaf definitely had an effect.
But what did that matter?
The agony was the same.
Martin gritted his teeth.
While reassuring himself that the effect was real.
* * *
In terms of results, this heart blood restored his prime physical abilities to 80 percent.
‘If I raise my swordsmanship to the 5th Circle, I can surpass my prime.’
It was the same 8th Circle as before his regression, but compared to when his swordsmanship reached the 5th Circle, his physical abilities would inevitably fall short.
But with just a little trigger, he could reach the 5th Circle in swordsmanship, even the 9th Circle realm.
That alone was tremendous progress, so Martin decided to think positively.
But then.
“Big trouble, Young Master!”
No sooner had he left the Tyrant's Chamber than Kurt Steinhoff rushed up at great speed.
He was so flustered that his usual impassive expression was badly distorted, and his face was deathly pale.
Seeing him, Martin immediately sensed something serious had happened.
“What's wrong?”
“The Second Prince and Marquis Nicholas von Loys have officially declared their support for the Klaus family's independence!”
“...This is insane. No matter how much they crave the throne, to go this far.”
Martin sighed in earnest.
The implication of that declaration was simple.
The two had openly rebelled against the emperor and the empire.
The Klaus family head had clearly swayed them to tie his own feet.
‘I wanted to leisurely build strength while the Ferdinand and Klaus families beat each other bloody.’
But that plan was ruined.
Because his and Claudia's opponents were now set.
So Martin sincerely cursed Nicholas.
The Second Prince was one thing, but that guy was truly fated enmity.
“Call everyone.”
“Yes, sir!”
He had tried to escape the aftermath of the turbulent times a bit, but fate was merciless.
Martin accepted that the true turbulent era had now begun.