Chapter 213
I gazed at the peak with the tree.
It was quite far away, so I couldn't just leap across.
"Yuri, can you fly in your current form?"
"Of course."
Yuri's body began to float up.
Just like when we'd gone to the ancient king's tomb, our party members started clinging to Yuri's hands and feet.
If anyone were to fall, Yuri would instantly transform into a dragon to rescue them. It was only going to be a brief flight, so we could manage. We clung to Yuri and slowly flew across.
We arrived quickly and all jumped down onto the peak. The tree was bigger than I'd expected. Though there were other trees on nearby peaks, their branches were bare, while this one was covered in full bloom.
The bow was attached bizarrely to the tree. When I tried to pull it off with my hand, light flickered and—thud—it fell off, as if a spell had been broken.
Rod's dagger and Iren's staff must have been the keys to dispelling the magic.
I picked up the fallen bow.
It was very old, the string had snapped, but it was still in good condition. This was Yan's bow, made from buffalo bone and sinew. Which meant it had been Rod's bow.
The stone of the gods was embedded in the center of the bow.
I carefully placed my hand on the stone.
Suddenly, light exploded.
It was then—a strong light spread out, and I began to see something like a bridge appear. Transparent bridges, their outlines visible only between the peaks, as if tinged with green.
As the light expanded, stairs even became visible on the tallest peak in the area. It seemed there had always been a bridge; it just hadn't been visible.
"There's a door there."
On the peak where the stairs had appeared, a square object came into view. When Rod said a door would appear, I thought it'd be the door of light, but it was literally the form of a door. The key had been the bow.
Clunk, clunk—
Yuri tapped the transparent, glass-like bridge. She climbed up without hesitation.
"Wow! It's a real bridge!"
Yuri ran around excitedly.
From this peak to the next.
A spiral staircase on one eastern peak stretched dizzyingly to the ground. This stone of the gods had the ability to reveal hidden things. There were other abilities too.
The reason this stone was embedded in the bow:
It allowed you to hit things hidden by the arrow of light.
Since you could see things even if blocked by walls.
"It's a bow that summons homing arrows."
"What's that mean?"
"The arrow can hit hidden or moving enemies on its own. I think it might have other arrows too. Tuji, let me see your bow."
"Here it is."
Tuji handed me his bow.
I took the bow and the stone at the same time.
Soon a green light flowed into the bow.
When I drew the string, an arrow of light appeared, its power immense. I drew it all the way and immediately released it.
Twang—
With a sharp sound of air splitting, it flew toward one of the peaks. I thought it would simply land, but it didn't.
Boom-boom-boom—
When the arrow struck, there was an explosion at the top of the peak, and as a section was destroyed, it crumbled down.
"My goodness."
Everyone fell silent in astonishment.
The power was incredible.
The peak was about seven meters wide, and half of it had been shattered and blown away. It was made of solid rock. Even Allen couldn't have broken it like that with a giant hammer.
"Can you string it?"
"Of course. It's Yan's bow after all."
Tuji took a string and quiver from his pack. Because the bow was the same in shape and size as the ones the brothers used, Tuji easily strung it. He held the bow out to me.
"Don't you want to keep it?"
"Not at all. If I use homing arrows, my own skills will deteriorate. Besides, I don't think I can handle a bow this powerful."
Uson nodded in agreement.
Who wouldn't want it?
It was just that the divine bow felt too burdensome.
"Here you go."
I accepted the quiver from Tuji, slid the bow into it, and slung it over my back. The Tuji brothers had always just carried the bow itself, since the quiver was cumbersome, and with the spirit's bow they didn't even need arrows.
I planned to keep this bow with me, then hand it to Eilin in combat situations. It'd be better if she supported us in battle. We'd have an extra archer that way.
Everyone crossed the transparent, green-tinted bridge. We headed toward the distant, towering peak. We crossed several bridges and climbed the stairs leading up to the highest peak.
At the top of the stairs, we stood before the door.
This transparent door was also glowing with green light.
It was a square shield of light.
I put my hand through it first.
Then cautiously poked my head inside.
Where could this be?
I stepped straight in.
It was truly a strange and mysterious space.
Everything was snow white. Since we stood upon it, there must've been a floor, but there were no walls or ceiling.
And far away, a box was placed.
We all walked toward it.
"There's a huge amount of holy power here."
"Could this be the world of the gods?"
"Maybe so."
The holy power of light was considerable.
Even if this wasn't the divine realm, it felt connected to the world of the gods. If such a world existed, that is.
We stood in front of the box.
It was a wooden box shaped like a coffin.
We immediately opened the lid.
Inside were dozens of one-handed swords.
"Holy swords."
"All of them?"
"Yes. They look just like mine."
Now that she mentioned it—
They were identical in form to Eilin's holy sword. Only, the holiness was weaker than the sword she had.
I took out all the swords.
There was another small box underneath.
Next to the box was also a book.
I began by opening the box.
Inside were two keys. There was no essence of the devil left after Rod died.
I then opened the book to the first page.
At that moment—
A faint image, like a vision, appeared above the book.
Similar to when the ancient king had appeared.
A person sat within the image.
"Isn't that Rod?"
"It must be."
A middle-aged man was seated with a book on his knees, writing something. The image seemed to be some sort of magical recording. The content he was writing appeared different from what was being displayed.
Rod looked up.
Gray hair and gray eyes.
He'd aged, but it was definitely Rod.
—Roger. And Eilin.
Eilin looked at me.
So he even knew our names.
—Those names are dear to me now. It feels like just yesterday when I shared so many stories with Roger. I suppose, for you, it will be events still years in the future.
—The holy swords I left in the box are the swords of the ancient Holy Knights. My Apostles personally instilled them with holiness. Use them with your companions.
Rod picked up his own sword.
—This sword originally belonged to my wife, iren, a gift from the gods. I possess it now, but Eilin, one day you will hold it.
—So I chose to leave a record within this sword, to contain the future of Roger and Eilin. I wanted to let you know that this long journey has finally come to an end.
—I plan to hide this sword in a monster lair in Verttern's central region. Roger, you met Eilin there, didn't you? That memory from thirty years ago is hazy now.
That's right.
The holy sword had been placed there by Rod. The vision within the sword had also been given by Rod.
—I didn't know at the time, but I met Roger several times again. It was then I heard stories about Eilin. The vision in the sword came from memories you gave me.
It was my own memories in the vision.
Someday in the future, I would transfer my soul to the past, meet Rod, and share my memories with him using magic.
—Thanks to you, Roger, I killed the devil general and obtained the orb of power. I suspect I will die after returning here. There are two doors somewhere in this place.
Everyone glanced around.
Only the door we'd entered from could be seen.
—I'm leaving two keys behind. They can each open a door to a different world. If you can't see the doors, it's because you're not ready to enter those worlds.
—Especially the door on the left. It is forbidden to meddle in that world, so you can't enter recklessly. It is truly a different world. It isn't even a place where holy power dwells.
—At any rate, I plan to enter the door on the right and die there. It's a world built by Elin's Apostle. If I go there, I can be reunited with my beloved Iren.
Did Iren pass away first?
Her lifespan should've been much longer.
—The eighth year after the Great War, on the day the long monsoon ended and a rainbow rose over the northern Arshaire mountain range, that's when I first met you, Roger. The reason I'm telling you this—
Rod smiled as he spoke.
—Is because you asked me to let you know this way. So you wouldn't waste time searching for me. In fact, you found me right away.
—There were many things you told me, but you asked me not to tell you. Said life would be boring if you knew too soon. And you figured most things out yourselves, anyway.
—By now, you're probably reviving Yan's Apostle and searching for a way to save Elin's Apostle. I don't know how. But I trust you two will find a way.
—There's a map in the back pages of the book. When you carry my bow, you'll see things hidden before. If you have the green stone of the gods, you won't be affected. Go on in.
—Don't enter if the stone of the gods is not in the bow. You'll become trapped by sorcery and never escape. Your companions may enter after touching the stone.
—Keep this book safe. One day, you'll be able to read it. In truth, I was only able to instill the vision in the sword because of this book. And finally...
Rod gazed at us quietly.
A faint loneliness mingled in his eyes.
Along with a deep yearning.
—I may not know what these words mean now. But now that pain is over, only happiness remains. So go forth without fear. Apeon's blessing will always be with you.
With that, the image vanished.
The pain is over, and only happiness remains. Somehow, it felt as if he was saying those words more to himself than us.
I turned to the next page.
All I found were bizarre letters etched there. They seemed to contain the power of creation. Perhaps I'd understand if I became worthy enough.
I checked the last page.
It was a map of northern Aindel.
The place where the stone giant had been.
Then I picked up the two keys.
First, I tried going right, but since there were no walls, I just kept walking. There was no end in sight.
It was the same when I tried the left.
Rod's devil essence should have been behind the right door, but it meant we still couldn't enter that world.
Perhaps when I am ready to claim his essence, the door will appear. Since Rod possessed holiness, the devil essence would have become a divine essence.
"Take a sword each."
Everyone took a holy sword, and the remaining ones were placed in the magic bag. The book and keys, too.
We immediately headed back out onto the peak.
After moving to a peak suitable for Yuri to transform, we mounted the transformed dragon and flew.
Since we had to head north anyway, we planned on finding what Rod hid along the way and also to visit beyond the Wall of Ice nearby.
"Young master! The magic shell materials are also up north!"
"You said it was called Isron?"
"Yes! It's a white amplifying stone!"
"All right, let's collect that too!"
I had almost forgotten about the magic shell materials.
We'd find those on the way there.
/ / /
In the distance, the Wall of Ice came into view.
We walked across flat plains not far from the canyon we'd visited before. But it was hard to find the material called Isron.
No humans, not even Elin, ever came to this shadowed northern part of Aindel, so there was no one to ask. In any case, we followed the map.
The grand duke had used magic shells. So it was possible to come to northern Aindel. You'd need the materials to craft them, after all. He must've crossed the ice wall where the mutant Gadisil was.
We'd reached a landscape resembling the one on Rod's map, but it was just barren plain. There was a mark on the map, but it was too big for the scale.
We continued northward.
There was nowhere to hide anything on the plain. No caves in sight. The ground sank a bit in places.
"The ground is odd here."
"You're right. It's been carved out in a vast circle. This is where Gadisil once lived, but no ruins can be seen."
The terrain was like being in a massive crater. You couldn't call it a basin, since there wasn't anything higher around it. It was as if a god had scooped up the land and moved it elsewhere.
As we walked further, there was a strange area.
Just like the traps on Devil Island, there were places where the air shimmered vertically. Even the air flowed differently there.
I pulled out the bow and touched the stone of the gods.
It startled everyone.
This was the very place Rod had spoken of.
As the green light spread—
A gap appeared suspended in mid-air. Inside the rift, a scene of battle was frozen.
Just as it had been at the height of war. Devils floated in midair, lunging at Gadisil's mages, who unleashed fire from their staffs.
But—everything was not frozen.
Looking closely.
Everything moved, ever so slightly.
It was a crack in space and time.
Within the rift, war was still ongoing.
Only, for them, everything moved at an extremely slow pace.
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