Chapter 196: The Golden Companion (3)
「I do not wish for my name to remain in this world.
I wish my name, the name of this island, would not remain.
Someday.
As time flows and flows.
May an era come when even if someone hears a word identical to my name, they will not recall me.
However, just one thing.
I hope only he will remember my name.
I now know that God does not descend upon this world.
A created god attempts to fill that place, but it is lacking, and I know that only the uncreated seasons continue to flow.
But.
I earnestly pray to God.
Please grant my wish to be forgotten.
May I vanish within time.
And even if I disappear, may he find his peace.
—Prayer of the Nameless」
🔹🔹🔹
A desolate, rocky mountain.
Thin blades of grass grew between the crevices of the rocks, swaying like hair in the wind.
Unlike the bustling grand auction house visible in the distance, this mountain was nothing but rocks and soil.
“The scenery is beautiful.”
Cain turned his head.
The Mytilene Auction House was located on an island in the emerald sea, south of the empire.
From their high vantage point, the shimmering southern sea could be seen no matter where they looked.
‘It’s completely different from the cold sea of Ethelred.’
Even the color was different.
The seawater crashing against the coast of Ethelred was a deep blue that transitioned into a black sea, a cold place that felt as if one would be sucked into darkness if they fell in.
On the other hand, the sea here was clear.
The summer sun penetrated all the way to the bottom, making it transparent, and the land was enveloped year-round in the warm sunshine unique to the south.
Aurelia also nodded.
Although the Holy See was located in the south, it did not border a sea as clear as this one.
“I can feel the presence of His Radiance.”
Cain chuckled at her words, which sounded very much like something a cleric would say.
He thought it was amusing how someone who seemed to be at least a cardinal could be so sincere, yet also perfectly embody the image of someone who would curse Morning as a fiend.
As they approached the top of the rocky mountain.
It had looked fine from afar, but the closer they got to the temple, the more they could see that it was crumbling in many places.
At that moment, Cain spoke.
“Do you truly believe I am a hero?”
“Yes.”
Despite the sudden question, Aurelia answered without hesitation.
Cain half-drew Summer, revealing the blade that shimmered with a golden hue, somewhere between sunrise and sunset.
“Of course, I know that wielding a holy sword makes one a hero. But do you truly believe in the authority bestowed by such an object?”
“…….”
Aurelia stopped walking.
Cain also stopped alongside her.
Whooooosh—
The summer breeze, carrying the humidity of the sea, brushed past their hair, feeling more cozy than muggy.
[‘Summer’ says he’s a bit curious about this topic too.]
What constitutes a hero?
Is it simply someone who can wield a holy sword, or is there something more required?
In the distance, within Cain’s field of vision, he could faintly make out the warships of the Holy See.
The thought crossed his mind that it was absurd for the title of hero to grant him the ability to command the world’s most powerful army, even if it was in the past.
[‘Winter’ says that for her, both in the past and present, the only hero is Cain.]
Cain of the Great Wall, who wielded the magic sword, ‘Winter,’ was also considered a hero under the pretense of saving the world.
However, the only hero the world celebrated was Abel.
Cain had also asked the Chatterbox, a former renowned professor at the Holy See Academy, but he had remained tight-lipped.
So what would the cardinal say?
Cain posed the question that had lingered in his mind for a very long time.
“The Holy See relies on the authority of the Holy Crown, ‘Autumn,’ and the holy sword, ‘Summer.’ Professor Leonardo Van Kun of the Holy See Academy says that the 〈Sacred Treasures of the Four Seasons〉 are truths from beyond the universe.”
She implied that she shared the same belief.
Thud—
Aurelia began to ascend the barren, rocky mountain as if she were a pilgrim on a sacred journey, and Cain walked beside her.
“To be more direct, I believe that objects of the caliber of the 〈Sacred Treasures of the Four Seasons〉 will choose their owners wisely. However, I don’t believe that alone makes someone worthy of the Holy See’s allegiance.”
“Oh?”
Cain’s eyes widened slightly.
He had thought of the Holy See as nothing more than fanatics obsessed with sacred treasures, but listening to her, it seemed that wasn’t entirely the case.
Aurelia gave a wry smile at Cain’s reaction.
She brushed back her silken hair that fluttered in the wind and opened her lips.
“In the case of the Saint, we carefully select and raise those who are qualified for the position based on strict criteria. We nurture children with potential and raise them righteously.”
“For all that, Caterina is…….”
Her smile deepened.
As one of the cardinals who knew the most about the Saint, she knew Caterina better than Cain did.
“She is quite a unique Saint. But she always makes the right choices.”
“Is that your faith in the Holy Crown speaking?”
Aurelia shook her head. Then, she looked at Cain with clear eyes.
“As a colleague who has watched over her from her birth until now, I speak from experience. While I acknowledge the authority of the Holy Crown, we are all ultimately human. What makes humans trust other humans is time.”
“Time, huh.”
Cain nodded.
He had thought they were blindly devoted to the sacred treasures, but listening to her, they seemed to be quite reasonable people.
Aurelia chuckled at Cain’s reaction.
“Are you surprised?”
“A little, I suppose.”
“In the same vein, if a hero worthy of wielding the holy sword appears, we bring them to the Holy See.”
“To spend time with them?”
“Yes. Historically, statistics show that those who draw the great holy sword, regardless of gender, are in their late teens. We can’t simply hand over the authority of the Holy See to such a young person.”
[‘Summer’ says that they usually bring them in and train them rigorously for about ten years, make them work, and hang out together.]
Summer glimmered, and Aurelia smiled.
It was the first time Cain had seen her, who always wore a stoic expression like an ancient tome, smile so gently.
“Is the holy sword saying that I’m right?”
Cain nudged Summer.
“He says they spent about ten years with the Holy See.”
At that moment.
Aurelia’s eyes widened.
She stopped in her tracks and looked back and forth between Cain and Summer with a bewildered expression, then asked in a trembling voice,
“A, Are you perhaps hearing the holy sword’s voice?”
Cain was puzzled by her reaction.
“You saw me communicating with the holy sword, didn’t you……?”
“Even with the Holy Crown and the other 〈Sacred Treasures of the Four Seasons〉, humans are far too inadequate to fully comprehend their will, only managing to understand their intentions through faint glimmers.”
“Ah.”
“Even the Saint can only see images at best, but you’re saying you can directly converse with it?!”
[Winter says that she was just an ordinary best during her time in the Great Wall.]
At ‘Winter’s message, Cain realized he had misspoken.
Something so natural to him was apparently a remarkable feat to others.
“My light━—”
Aurelia’s demeanor became even more respectful, if that was even possible.
Cain cleared his throat and turned his head.
“It happens sometimes, just sometimes.”
“I understand. Your word is my command.”
“……Actually, even the formalities are a bit burdensome, you don’t have to be so reverent. Please, continue what you were saying.”
Aurelia, who had been continuously making the sign of the cross, spoke in a solemn tone as if receiving a divine decree.
“It seems you are curious about the fact that simply drawing the holy sword grants you enough authority to mobilize the Holy See’s army.”
“Yeah, well…”
“Originally, that’s not the case. As ‘Summer’ mentioned, you would normally undergo about ten years of training.”
“Then why am I an exception?”
Cain tilted his head.
To be fair, he could understand mobilizing the empire’s forces.
He had the backing of the Administrative Duke, and since he knew about the massive incident that was about to occur in Academy City Märchen, they had to catch the culprit.
On the other hand, the Holy See had readily dispatched the Southern Fleet at Cain’s request, without any objections, simply because he was the ‘hero.’
He had thought they were just fanatics, but the more he listened, the more reasonable they seemed, which only deepened his confusion.
Then Aurelia smiled faintly.
“The Holy See has eyes everywhere.”
“…….”
“We know everything about you, from the moment you were born to the moment you left Airian.”
What the Holy See desired was time.
Not just a hero who had drawn Summer, but time to prove that he was a true hero.
“From this past spring to this summer, albeit a short time—”
The Holy See had been observing Cain.
“—You protected the weak and did not tolerate injustice.”
The reason they had sent a cardinal to accompany Cain on his journey.
“You have been a hero.”
[27.7% of the world smiles.]
Cain had been a hero to the extent that he had changed the world as ‘Cain.’ That was the conclusion reached by the Holy See, who had tracked and observed his every move, leaving Cain speechless for a moment.
Deep down.
One of the childish thoughts he had always buried in his heart suddenly surged forth.
‘Recognition is quite sweet.’
He was both amused and surprised that such a surge of emotion could exist within himself, someone who had been through countless battles and hardships.
“Of course, there were controversies. There were many concerns about your unusual involvement with witches.”
Aurelia approached the white temple on the hill, her expression unreadable, as if she had sensed Cain’s thoughts.
“However, the issue of witches’ heresy is still under debate, so we decided to observe for the time being.”
“With your own eyes.”
“Yes. I intend to witness the journey of the new hero with my own eyes.”
They had arrived.
Although he had seen that it was somewhat broken when he was coming, it was so broken when he arrived that it was more like ruins.
Moreover, the sound of the heartbeat that had been guiding them had also disappeared.
If it were truly an important place, the Commons from the Mytilene Auction House would have been guarding it, but they hadn’t encountered any of them on their way here.
It was literally just a ruined temple on top of a hill.
‘Is this the right place?’
Cain asked, tapping the holy sword at his waist.
…….
However, there was no response.
Seeing this, Cain smirked.
It was the most definitive answer he could get.
“Let’s take a look around.”
“Very well.”
They split up and began to explore the area.
They saw pillars and platforms made of a pure white stone that seemed to originate from this island.
There appeared to have been several rooms, but the structure was more akin to a dwelling for ordinary people than a typical temple.
Thud—
Cain kicked away some rubble with his foot and discovered strange engravings.
“A magic circle?”
Cain was familiar with simple magic circles and could piece together the few fragments he had found.
Aurelia, who had been looking at something else, came up behind Cain and examined the engravings.
“It’s a water magic circle. It was probably inscribed to draw clean water.”
“This place seems to have made good use of magic circles.”
They found numerous small magic circles scattered throughout the area.
It was as if someone had gathered various circles for practical purposes, such as drawing water, starting fires, and cleaning with wind.
Cain looked up at the sky.
A sky filled with white clouds and a sea of blue.
Crackle—
He instantly drew upon the power of ‘Winter,’ and pure white lightning surged around his body.
Aurelia quickly moved out of the way.
Woosh—!
Cain shot up into the air.
From dozens of meters above, he looked down at the temple.
Although it was completely in ruins, he could see something.
Assuming the destroyed parts were intact, the magic circle that became visible was something Cain had never seen before, but he instinctively knew what kind of magic it was.
“A teleportation magic circle.”
He saw a spatial teleportation magic circle, a type of magic that had been banned in modern times due to numerous accidents.
At that moment.
Thump—
As if recognizing that Cain had found the answer, the heartbeat resumed, and this time, it was clear.
[‘Summer’ says to thrust him into the center.]
Shing.
He immediately drew the holy sword and hurled it into the center of the magic circle.
And then.
Wooooooong—
Summer’s golden light began to flow through the broken segments, and as the magic circle regained its original color.
It engulfed both Cain and Aurelia.
“Holy crap.”
And on the rooftop of the Colosseum.
The person who was observing the two from afar through a telescope opened his mouth in surprise. And he quickly picked up the communicator and shouted.
“Emergency! Emergency! The hero has opened the golden passage!”
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