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Chapter 113
Chapter 113: Asking the Black Sea, Four Questions (1)
The sea swelled.
There was no other way to describe it. A welt formed on the calm horizon. A roundish lump suddenly welled up and was surging towards the land.
Monsters. A swarm of monsters. They only looked like a single mass because there were so many, but monsters were striding across the sea's surface. Everyone knew this. The monsters that surged from the sea from time to time. How they treaded the water to reach the land. And how they wandered in search of prey. For the residents of Portsmouth, it was an everyday event.
“There are a lot of them.”
Wе b n о̃ ṽēľ Eňu ṁа
The village chief of Portsmouth, Robert Olmstead, muttered.
He made a visor with his hand and looked towards the sea. As always, it became distant. The swarm of monsters, with the setting sun at their backs, was becoming clearer.
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“Please give us your will, Miko-nim.”
Robert's gaze turned downwards.
A girl was standing there. A girl dressed in stained attire. Numerous ornaments surrounded the girl's body. Neither gold nor silver, without a single gem mixed in. Such worthless ornaments swayed with the girl's steps.
Jabak, it went.
E n ū ṁа.і̄ d̊
The girl stepped on the sandy beach.
It was full of corpses. The corpses that they hadn't been able to bury yet were decaying on the sand.
“──In the name of the sea god, Cthanid-nim, I speak.”
The girl opened her mouth.
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She put strength into her voice, but it was ultimately young.
The sea breeze shook the girl's hair. While her dark blue hair fluttered, a crowd was reflected in the girl's eyes.
Ên̆ u ḿа̃
“Yesterday we died, and today we will die too.”
The members of the vigilante corps.
The few young men left in the village were standing there.
At best, they were crude weapons. What the young men held.
They had either hammered a bundle of iron nails into a club, or tied a couple of kitchen knives to a tree branch to make a long spear.
“But rest assured. The end of our trials is not far. Cthanid-nim has given us a revelation.”
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The girl wore a thin smile, but the expressions of the young men were dark and sunken.
“People will arrive from the capital. They will help us. So please……”
Take courage, she said.
The girl muttered quietly, but it was ultimately young.
The young men were not looking at the girl. The small child's body did not even enter their eyes. They were just vaguely staring into the distance.
Clumsily made wooden obstacles. Weapons thrust into the sandy beach like tombstones. The monsters that they had managed to defeat but were still relentlessly menacing. The corpses of their neighbors. Despair.
Е n ũ m а̊.
The calamities that were once again encroaching on the coast.
“……Sea God, Cthanid-shi-yeo.”
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The girl stood with her back to the young men.
She mumbled her lips and was silent for a moment.
Then she bowed her body. She thrust her knees into the ground, and her forehead into the ground as well, and offered a bow, enduring the stinging grains of sand.
She whispered in a small voice.
W еb̌ n̊ о vе̇l̈ Е n ũ m а̊.
“Grant us your grace──.”
“──Arise.”
The girl's eyes widened.
She lifted her head and looked straight ahead.
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A man was walking. A man with silver hair close to gray, dressed in thin formal robes despite it being the middle of winter. The bastard sword in the man's hand was bleakly worn.
The man stood facing the sea, and a stir began to spread from all sides.
Е̃n̄ ù m а_.іd̄
The girl got up. She looked around, drenched in bewilderment. The voices welling up beside the girl were young. Two girls and two boys, and one young man. Strangers wrapped in fur robes were busy among the residents. Food, clothes, and various relief supplies began to decorate the sandy beach.
“I am Abel Argento, a professor at Cia-Harphe Academy.”
The man, Abel Argento, said.
“I have come in response to a request for aid. I will take charge of this battle.”
Abel's tone was stoic as he looked back at the residents.
The girl looked at Abel with her mouth shut. His unfocused dark blue eyes were like a mire. And what of his expression? She couldn't read any emotion. He was like an old stone statue, not a human. If that were really the case, she felt she could understand. For the sword in Abel's hand was also quite old.
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“Wait!”
The girl opened her mouth.
As she strode towards Abel.
“I am the miko of this village, Eleanor Portsmouth! Are you saying you will confront the monsters alone? Look at the sea! A swarm of at least several dozen monsters is charging!”
Miko?
Abel tilted his head.
Wе b̃.ň о̃ v ӗ l E n̆ úm̄а
Had a folk religion developed? The Platinum Round Table Orthodoxy had never instructed the existence of miko. Even so, it was understandable. Religion was a cultural system for one to lean on, and it would form a focal point based on the belief in a supernatural order.
“Do not worry.”
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The more chaotic the situation, the more religion thrives.
In a remote region like Portsmouth, in a village that had been dangerous for a long time, it was more rational to strengthen their sense of belonging through a folk religion than the Platinum Round Table Orthodoxy. For there was a hierarchy in religion as well.
“I alone am enough.”
Kwaak, it went.
Wе b ñovēl̃ Е̄n üm̃ ӓ
Abel gripped the hilt with both hands.
A margin-white aura enveloped his beloved sword. A hollow radiance spread along the blade. Eleanor stared, mesmerized. How could a color be so empty? It was as if it was mocking the very idea that light guarantees. It held no honor, and it could not guarantee any dignity.
Sreuk, it went.
Abel tilted his sword back.
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A stance to strike with all his might. But the swarm of monsters was far away. Was he trying to cut down the sea breeze? Eleanor thought, tilting her head, and,
──Pajit!
Е̌ n̄ ūm̆ à
The radiance began to swirl.
The scenery around Abel began to distort. Grains of sand rose one by one and melted into the aura, and the calm waves swirled particularly towards Abel. Abel took a small breath, and then,
Tuduk, tuk…….
Ignoring the large and small wounds that spread on the hand holding the hilt, and the drops of blood that flowed from them,
Silence.
In the midst of the silence, he cut.
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Or rather, he fired.
‘What is this…….’
Eleanor blinked blankly.
She couldn't hear any sound. She couldn't see anything properly. It seemed as if the horizon had split for a moment. Horizontally, stark white.
That's right, the scenery itself had been cut. He had launched a sword strike aimed at the scenery. Eleanor was certain, staring endlessly into the distance. The swarm of monsters that had been moving in a mass was gone. And that wasn't all. Even the uneven horizon had become a neat straight line.
Empty.
Е̌ nũmă
Just empty.
No other impression came to mind.
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“Please provide one chair and one table.”
Abel's words also held that meaning.
Abel, with his back to the sea, took a step.
He passed Eleanor and opened his mouth to Robert.
Ěň um̂ã
“From now on, I will use this place as my office.”
***
Swaaaa──!
As the sound of the waves echoed loudly,
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“Professor Argento.”
Lizer stood on the sandy beach.
Ӗ_n u̇ m̃ӓ
The night wind was ruffling Lizer's red hair.
“All the relief supplies have been distributed. The children are resting in their lodgings. They have just finished dinner.”
Abel nodded once.
In the middle of the sandy beach, a small round table was placed. The shape of the round table on the fine soil was crooked. Abel was no different. Abel's body, sitting facing the round table, was tilted.
“Are you going to stay here?”
“That is correct.”
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Abel answered in an indifferent tone.
Portsmouth was a fishing village bordering the beach, and the monsters had made their nests in the sea. It was a blessing in disguise. For the invasion route was limited to one.
According to Robert, the village chief of Portsmouth, the monsters had been invading without notice. Day or night, large scale or small scale, they were carrying out invasions as if suddenly craving a snack. Therefore, guards would have been needed, and night watches would have been required. All the residents must have been living in extreme tension.
“It will be fine for a while.”
Flutter, it went.
Abel turned a page.
W e̊ b̃nо v_еl Е̄ ňů ṁа
“For now, I can hold them off by myself.”
<BRAVE QUEST>.
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A hero's fairy tale was held in Abel's hand.
It was a book he had received to relieve his boredom. The story of the hero was circulating even in a fishing village filled with death.
“The residents……, are wary of you, Professor.”
Lizer whispered with a cautious expression.
W̄ е̂ bn̄ôv e ĺ Еn u mӓ
“It must be because you are unfamiliar. They have been fighting the monsters, risking their lives, but you finished them off with a single stroke. It must be more disheartening than impressive. And in this state……”
To always stay on the coast,
To refuse meals and also refuse sleep,
To volunteer to stand guard day and night.
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“You will feel like a monster, not a human.”
“I know.”
Ě n ū m a
Abel closed the book.
Thud, it went. The old fairy tale was placed on the round table.
“An intelligent species must be spying on Portsmouth. I intend to provoke it. It will be flustered when it notices me. Unlike the residents it has faced so far, some madman is subduing the monsters alone.”
An all-out war is inevitable.
Then we must search for each other.
Abel intended to probe the intelligent species' ego. To what extent it could control the monsters, and how it would react to Abel's presence. He planned to formulate a strategy after observing this.
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“……I see, Professor.”
Lizer understood Abel's inner thoughts.
There was no need for a detailed explanation. Unlike the other students, Lizer had been active outside of CIAR. He had also fought in several village-level battles. Therefore, he could advise.
“As you may know……, we must not only be wary of the intelligent species. We have another matter to attend to.”
“Yes.”
Abel readily agreed.
W е̊b̆ n̆о̂ ṽ ӗ l Е̌n̄ŭm.а̃
“Lizer Leinhart, do you like stories of heroes?”
“You mean this?”
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Lizer fumbled with <BRAVE QUEST>.
The worn fairy tale book was sticky from the salt.
“Why would I like it?”
Lizer shrugged his shoulders.
Wеbn̆ о̂v̆ ėl Е́ǹ umа́
To adapt the hero's journey into a fairy tale. It was just ridiculous.
He knew. The history of Epezeria before the regression. He had heard it all from his father, who was ‘The Mother God's Left Hand’. Even how he himself would die. The hero's journey was riddled with tragedy, and the one who made the hero despair was not just the Demon King.
“Saving the innocent residents of a remote village……”
Abel muttered with a somber expression.
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“The hero is rightly praised and then leaves on his journey……”
That's not how it is.
Е́ń u.m ӓ
I do not believe it, he said.
Abel whispered, shaking his head.
“So Lizer, please investigate this village thoroughly.”
“Of course, I was planning to.”
Lizer wore a smile.
He lightly turned his head and gazed at the sea. The edge of the ocean, soaked in the night, was as dark as a blackout curtain. Lizer could see the spirits tilting their heads in the gaps. He could face them, and he could smell them. He could taste them clearly, and he could hear them incessantly.
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“They are cursing.”
The spirits are cursing.
Not the monsters, but the people of Portsmouth…….
Lizer whispered so.
***
At the same time, the 2nd floor of the Portsmouth village chief's house.
Е nu mа . i̇d́
While Monika lifted the curtain and looked outside,
“My goodness. It's too gloomy.”
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Ernst opened his mouth with his arms crossed.
The students of Abel's class were chatting in one place. They were resting after finishing dinner.
The students were staying at the village chief's residence. Monika and Roberta would share a room, and Demian and Ernst would share a room. The attic was designated as Lizer and Abel's chamber, but Abel was standing guard on the coast after setting up his office there.
“Why on earth are there barnacles in the house? Was it submerged in water or something?”
Еnù m̃ а. i̊d
Ernst's eyes narrowed.
There were barnacles in every corner of the walls. The scutes of the barnacles clinging together were disgusting.
“Don't complain, Er.”
Demian said, sitting on the edge of the bed.
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He was in the middle of wiping a blade with a towel. The treasured sword of the Farenheit family was sparkling next to the oil lamp.
“This is a room given to us by the village chief. We must be polite. Besides, we're going to be knights. There will surely be many days when we have to sleep outdoors.”
W е b nо̊vе l̄ E n u m̈а̇
“I'm not complaining, you brat.”
It's because it's suspicious.
Ernst muttered so.
“I'm done washing!”
Meanwhile, Roberta entered the room.
A faint smell of shampoo filled the air. Roberta, who had approached Monika, took a towel.
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“Monika unni, you should go wash too. By the way, the water tasted salty? I wonder if it was mixed with seawater.”
“Give me the towel, Roberta. I'll dry it for you.”
Monika whispered with a faint smile.
She looked around while drying Roberta's hair with a towel. It was certainly strange. Not only were there clusters of barnacles, but it seemed like the wood of the house was soaked with water. And what of the air? Her nose stung from the saltiness. It was a sensation she couldn't feel on land. She felt as if she was staying inside a shipwreck.
“Is Professor Argento going to stay there?”
Suddenly, Roberta asked, looking up at Monika.
Е nu m̀ а.і̌ d̊
Curiosity was in Roberta's wide-open eyes.
“Well……”
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Monika pursed her lips.
She thought for a moment, then answered in a sigh-filled voice.
“Probably.”
It seems he doesn't sleep much.
Wеb̈n̈ o vе̂ l̃ Е̌ n̈ ǔm а
As Monika whispered so,
“Professor Argento is strange.”
Demian opened his mouth.
“Sometimes, or always……. He exudes an aura that doesn't seem human. I wonder if he is the hero from the prophecy.”
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“I told you there is no hero.”
Ernst frowned.
Ŵ е̃b̈ nо̃ vѐl Е ñ u m.â
“That man is the Sword Saint. You all know, right? The Sword Saint appeared in the Saint-Pierre domain. The Papacy is keeping silent about what happened there, but the rumors must be true.”
The religion of the apostates.
The giant of fire, the Sword Saint clad in platinum armor.
And a giant flower. The anomalies observed in the Saint-Pierre domain.
Ernst recited the rumors about them, but,
“Don't talk about the Saint-Pierre domain.”
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Roberta's expression hardened.
“What about the Sword Saint? I guess you can talk about it already, Ernst oppa? About Fleur unni……”
“No, I……”
Ernst scratched the back of his neck, and,
“Apologize, Er.”
“Apologize, Ernst senior.”
Ẽnumа
Monika and Demian said at the same time, and,
“……I'm sorry.”
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Ernst muttered with his head bowed.
‘But it's all true.’
Monika thought with a stoic expression.
Though everyone was just guessing based on rumors, Monika was different. She knew what had happened there. The giant flower, the Sword Saint clad in platinum armor, the giant of fire. They were all true. She didn't know anything about the religion of the apostates, but that must exist too. She could tell because she had overheard the conversation between Abel and Penelope. Did they say that the cardinals of the distant past had become apostates?
Е̃ num̂.ä.і̀ d̀
‘Abel-sensei is…….’
Monika thought, peeking through the window.
‘What on earth is he.’
A hero, or the Sword Saint?
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That was not important.
Monika held a more fundamental question.
Web̃ n o vel Е̂ǹ u̇ mа́
Is it right to refuse meals? Is it right to refuse sleep? She should think differently now. Is it not that he cannot eat well? Has he not become unable to sleep much?
‘Is he really human.’
As Monika tilted her head, wondering so,
“Everyone, are you there?”
Knock, knock, it went.
The sound of a knock was heard.
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It was a familiar voice. Eleanor Portsmouth. She had said she was the miko of this place. Ernst opened the door, and Demian got up from the bed. Roberta's eyes widened from between the towel, and Monika stared at Eleanor with a blank expression.
“Did you enjoy your meal? Thanks to the supplies you all provided, we were able to catch our breath.”
Stained attire.
An old habit was wrapped around Eleanor.
It was not of the Platinum Round Table Orthodoxy. It was closer to blue than white, and abundant ornaments were hanging all over the habit.
“So I propose……”
Е̇ń u mа̌. ìd́
Even if they were ornaments, they were shabby.
They were just made of seashells, the tail of a horseshoe crab, and horned turbans.
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The ornaments clinked every time Eleanor moved.
“Could you spare a moment?”
I would like to show you around Portsmouth.
Eleanor whispered so.
Еn ǔ m_а
With a painted smile.
“The residents of this place would like to say hello.”
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