Chapter 159 - Inherited Resolution (1)

He was having a dream.

He had never been there before, and he was aware of that fact. However, it was a dream where he was able to meet someone that looked very familiar to him.

It was a space where the light reflected off the surface of the water. The reflected light danced on the wall. Normally, it was supposed to be an underground space where no light should be able to reach the place. However, the magical light that was emitted in the middle, and it was creating a wondrous sight.

<You've finally reached this point, Azell.>

He knew this person better than anyone, yet his voice sounded so foreign. He spoke towards Azell.

It was a very bleak voice. It was as if the deepest darkness below had been squeezed to create this voice. It felt as if his lifespan shortened by listening to this voice. It sounded similar to the voice of an Undead, but it was a voice that incited a more basic fear from the living.

Azell looked at the owner of the voice.

Water had gathered at a corner of the space. There were fragments of light dancing above the water as if they were fireflies dancing in the summer night. The light was so faint that it was as if it was about to be eaten by the darkness. However, the fragments of light continued to be reflected as the beautiful dim light remained.

In the middle of it all, there was a silhouette surrounded by darkness.

Fragments of light was dancing around him, yet his face couldn't be seen. It wasn't, because of the darkness cast by the worn out hood. It was probably caused by the ominous energy surrounding his body.

His body was wrapped in a ragged robe, and something was planted deep in his chest. The end was rounded, and it was embedded with a clear gem. The wooden staff was pierced through his chest as a quiet darkness emanated from it.

There was a rectangular pillar made out of silver erected behind him. Black chains were tying him to the silver pillar, and darkness crawled up the surface of the pillar in the shape of letters. It was a bizarre sight.

Azell called out to him.

"Carlos……."

He was the magician that has founded the Guardian Shadows. He was Azell's closest friend Carlos.

Carlos laughed. An eccentric laugh rang out. It sounded completely different from his previous laughter.

"I also know that I'm not seeing you in reality right now."

<Yes, this is a message I left within them.>

"Is this like the thought construct you left behind when I woke up?"

"What message?"

Laus was the highest mountain on the continent. It was located northeast of the continent, and it was part of the Atisan mountain range. This mountain range was like a natural barrier that bisected the mountain range of Darkness and the Demon lands of Albatan.

"I have a mountain of questions I want to ask you…. I'm guessing I don't have much time?"

<Yes, I didn't give this thought construct much time.>

"I can see from your state that you didn't endure the ravages of time with a living body. Still, I never expected the Dragon Demon king worshippers to get this right. You were able to create the Guardian Shadows with such a body. Did you do it as a pre-emptive move to block the revival of Atein and the Dragon Demon generals?"

Carlos cackled as he laughed.

"Do you mean the fall of the empire?"

<I'm not talking about such worldly problems. Of course, that was a very big event, but that occurred after I retreated from the forefront of history.>

The empire broke apart after Carlos was officially declared dead.

"What do you mean?"

"Mmmm……."

Azell furrowed his brows. It was a truth that had been revealed when Carlos dug into the past of Atein. Whether it was the past or present, Azell was having a hard time accepting it as truth.

<Somehow, I was able to block those two calamities, but I ended up like this. I wasn't capable of stopping any troubles that occurred afterwards.>

"Did this occur during the time when your death was officially recorded?"

<That's right. I did die in some fashion.>

Carlos shrugged his shoulder.

Azell tried to ask another question.

"Then……."

<Ah. We really don't have much time left. I'll tell you the rest when you visit me. I'll be waiting for you.>

When Carlos' words ended, Azell's surrounding blurred.

In the end, the dream came to an end, and Azell's consciousness surfaced into reality.

Cheep cheep, cheep cheep cheep…..

When he opened his eyes, sunlight streamed through the dense foliage of the tree, and the chirping of birds could be heard. For reference, it felt as if he was in a classic situation that was often seen in stories. Azell pulled himself up as he had such thoughts.

Then he became surprised.

'My body…..'

His body had been halfway to being a corpse, but now his body felt light right now. It felt as if he could fly away. For a brief moment, he circulated his magical energy through his Energy Pulse, and he realized that his body had completely recovered.

No, it hadn't stopped at his recovery.

'My Dragon Demon magic has deepened significantly.'

His body had become much sturdier than the body he possessed before his injuries. Most of his magical energy within his body had been converted into Dragon Demon magic.

Moreover, he felt the presence of 10 Dragon weapons.

Moon Sword.

Wings of the Storm Dragon.

Box of Hate.

Underworld Ruler's Marksman.

Chain of the Earth Dragon.

Defender of Dawn.

Unyielding Fortress,

Cry of the Phoenix.

Master of Raging Waves.

Lastly…. The Sky Splitter no long needed to be summoned through the Dragon sword. It had recovered completely. The Sky Splitter was whole now.

Suddenly, Azell felt a wave of ominous magical energy, so he turned his head. He saw the Undead that had always accompanied the Keepers of Prophecy. It was Theta.

"You are… Didn't you say you were Theta?"

<That's right.>

"You are the one that brought me……."

At that point, Azell sensed the presence of his comrades, so he surveyed his surrounding.

At an open clearing, the messed up forms of Kairen, Laura, Yuren and Leticia could be seen. They were laid out next to each other.

"This……."

<I've done some first aid, but they aren't in good condition.>

"An Undead saved the lives of the living, and you even did some first aid. It does sound like a joke."

At those words, he carefully looked over Theta.

Azell realized Theta was truly in a bad state.

'The magical energy maintaining the Undead is fading away.'

It wasn't, because he was exposed to sunlight. Unlike other Undead, Theta was special. He was a high rank magician, so sunlight wasn't a critical weakness.

Currently, Theta looked like a being that was reaching the end of his lifespan. Azell knew the underlying reason behind it.

"Your existence was tied to the Keepers of the Prophecy."

<Correct. We are the 'Sleepless Guardians'. We exist, because we were chosen by the Keepers of the Prophecy.>

As a result of the Keepers of Prophecy being gone, Theta couldn't maintain his existence.

Azell asked a question.

"The Keepers of the Prophecy… What happened to them?"

"……."

"I knew it, but….."

When they became Keepers of Prophecy, they no longer aged, and they only died when they were murdered. They had been in a constant state.

When Leone revealed this truth, it had sounded ridiculous, but Azell understood it now.

When they suffered their first death, they were able to become a part of the Guardian Shadows. It was a great magic that changed the order of the world.

Moreover, Carlos had used the fact that they were of Azell's bloodline to safekeep his Dragon weapons.

The combination of the Dragon weapons, and the profound magic connected to Azell's bloodline had kept the Keepers of Prophecy alive. They neither aged or developed.

This was why their lives ended when they transferred the Dragon weapons to Azell.

After finishing their mission, they used their remaining power to fight. They allowed Azell to be moved to safety, and they were exterminated.

'Carlos, why did you choose such a method?'

Azell couldn't understand it.

He knew that Carlos had made the Guardian Shadows, and he knew the purpose that the Keepers of the Prophecy had served. Still, he didn't understand why his Dragon weapons had to be transferred to him by creating such unfortunate beings.

Before he was put to sleep, Azell had given all his 12 Dragon weapons except his Sky Splitter to Carlos.

Of course, he thought Carlos would find new owners for them. However, he had assumed that Carlos had died before being able to transfer the Dragon weapons his descendants. Even if he was able to, the Dragon Demon king worshippers were killing all the humans that possessed Dragon weapons. He had assumed the line of succession of his Dragon weapons had ended.

He never would have expected his Dragon weapons to be preserved in such a manner...

'This bothers me on many level, but… It seems I'll be able to meet Carlos.'

Theta, who had been observing Azell for a brief amount of time, spoke.

"…this is the Albatan forest?"

"How much time has passed……."

Theta explained all the events that occurred leading up to their arrival in this place.

The Guardian Shadows could move as if they were sliding across the surface, so there hadn't been any turbulence as the members of the party was moved. The Guardian Shadows had kept them safe. After Theta put the party members into a state of suspended animation, he slowly put his own life energy into them. Theta had kept them alive until they reached this place.

Azell bowed his head.

"Thank you."

<That's unnecessary.>

Theta shook his head from side to side as he spoke.

"I see."

<However… We feel the same way as them. We consider you to be the hope. Please bring about the prophecy.>

"I'll bring it about no matter what."

Azell didn't hesitate as he gave the answer.

Theta was like a candle that was about to be extinguished. Azell didn't know if the soul exploited to make an Undead could find peace….

However, he didn't hesitate to show Theta his unwavering resolve.

Theta let out a satisfied laugh.

The Dark magical energy maintaining the Undead exited, and the skeleton crumbled to the ground. The will infusing the bones was no longer there.

Azell gazed at the spot for a brief moment before he approached his comrades.

"Ooh-ook……."

Kairen opened his eyes. He had a headache, and it felt as if his head was about to be shattered into pieces.

The first thing he saw was Yuren stuffing his face as he pushed his life energy into Kairen. Kairen furrowed his brows.

"Something is really… I feel fortunate for my current situation, yet it feels unpleasant at the same time."

"I tried so hard save your life, yet you say such words to me? I didn't even have the time to take a break for a meal. I had to continuously inject the life energy into you."

Yuren grumbled. Kairen complained.

"I'm thankful for that part,but…. Ooh-ook."

He was about to raise his body, but he lowered himself when pain washed over him. He let out a groan. Yuren shook his head from side to side.

"Please stay still and lie down. Your body is in a rough shape."

"Mmm. It seems you are right. Could you enlighten me a little bit on our current situation?"

"We are at the Albatan forest."

"…what?"

Kairen became surprised. Yuren spoke as if he was having a hard time believing his own words.

"We haven't entered deep into the forest. We are located at the edge. According to Azell, the Guardian Shadows transported us here."

"I have know idea what's going on….."

"It is the same for all of us."

"Everyone seems to be alive, so that's a blessing."

"Duke, you were the last one to wake up."

Azell woke up Laura and Yuren first. Then Azell asked the Guardian Shadows to catch the small animals nearby. The two magicians used their black magic to steal the life energy from the animals, and they healed themselves.

After they recovered themselves, Laura took on the task of healing Leticia, and Yuren was assigned to Kairen. Leticia and Kairen was slowly brought to consciousness.

Kairen asked a question.

"What about Azell?"

"He went out to catch some beasts."

"Mmmm?"

Kairen had a baffled expression on his face. From what he remembered last, Azell's body was in a broken state, yet he went out to catch wild animals?

"Did I fall into a hibernation for a very long time? Has it been a month?"

There were cases where Dragon Majins fell into hibernation when they suffered a critical injury. It was a mechanism for recovery. This was why he brought up this possibility, but Yuren shook his head.

"No. It has been only two days."

"…then what happened?"

"It seems the Keepers of Prophecy had kept Azell's Dragon weapons in safekeeping. When the Dragon weapons were transferred over to him, he made a complete recovery….. It isn't just the fact that he looks completely normal now. He became much stronger than before."

"Are you sure I'm not dreaming right now? Somehow I am having trouble keeping up with our current situation."

"This is reality."

"Mmmm."

"Since you've recovered enough to wake up, I can relax now. I'll heal you once again after I finish my meal. Azell said he would give a more detailed explanation of our current situation when everyone woke up. Let's wait for that."

"Understood. Hoo-ooh……."

Kairen let out a sigh.

previouscatalognext