The Wise Men Who Choose Eternity, Not Eternity (2)

“Where can you find such a man in the kingdom, hm?” the Marquis of Montpellier asked in a stern voice. He went on to express his deep concern, saying that if such a person suddenly came to the fore, it would be seen as evidence that the kingdom had violated the treaty and secretly trained sorcerers capable of erecting and maintaining towers.

He was just spewing a lot of hot air, for he had been assigned to watch over the kingdom, and if such a person existed, then he would be rebuked by his imperial masters for negligence.

“Elf,” I said into the sphere, giving the man a reasonable excuse to furnish upon his handlers. “My fiancé is one of the best wizards in her tribe.”

I had never imagined that I would willingly call the mad elf that, and I felt terrible as the words left my tongue.

But I had little choice, so I had closed my eyes and reinforced the public nature of my relationship with Sigrun.

She was far more of a magical swords-elf than a wizard, and elves who independently studied the mysteries of the universe were not attached to towers, but none of that was important.

The truth mattered little now; no, all that mattered is what I could make others believe the truth to be.

The Marquis had objected in no way to the explanations I had provided, so I mentioned the next task at hand. The state of the royal treasury and the kingdom’s decrepit economy was a problem, as well as the stubborn king who still ruled.

Regardless of whether the kingdom could afford the erection of a Spire, the king would never allow one to be built in the far north, beyond his sphere of influence.

In all likelihood, he would vehemently insist on building it near the capital, and if it is built there, it would be a good bet that not a single wizard would ever be sent north.

That was not what I wanted at all.

Just as the king would not want a Spire under my influence, I had no intention of sharing a Spire with the kingdom.

All I wished for was a complete tower in the north. Even if it was only up to the third level, a wizard tower remains a wizard tower.

Still, even if the northern nobles all pitched in to cover the cost, I wondered whether it would be enough.

“Where is the money that northern nobles got from those in your central kingdom, hm?” the Marquis asked as if having read my thoughts.

“Even if they still have it, you cannot afford the construction of a Spire,” he added firmly.

I wondered what I would do to get that amount of gold, which made me a little worried.

“I don’t know, if you can pay that big amount of money on your own? You have to receive it from nobles.”

How many nobles would willingly part with their coin?

“I have told you their secrets, no? Use that information, use their weakness. That is what you must do.”

The voice from within the crystal sphere had grown silent. I could see the sheepish expression of the Marquis in the back of my mind.

I could not even start to imagine how I would intimidate the nobles of this country and rob them of their wealth.

They were a nest of serpents who would sell their own kingdom, their own mothers if they judged it necessary, and their brains were only wired toward self-interest.

Simply put, there was not a smidgen of loyalty to be found in their hearts.

“The originality of my plan, it is great.”

“I like it, let’s do it.”

“Your Highness?”historical

“You wanted to uphold my interests, act in my name?”

The Marquis didn’t answer. He knew well that I was trying to establish the name of Adrian Leonberger as ruler of the north, even if that wasn’t my name. The blatant blackmail and impoverishment of nobles would be a big deal for the empire’s ambassador, as ripping off so many people would create discord within the kingdom.

“I’ll give you some parting advice, Marquis.”

“I am listening.”

“If you choose to be a dog, then be a dog down to your bones.”

No answer came from the man beyond the crystal sphere.

“Because, if you try to bite the hand that feeds you, both your former and current owner might just throw you into the gutter.”

“I.. I will keep that in mind, Your Highness.”

“And just before you get any ideas, don’t even think of cutting into my share. And if you rob these people, do it thoroughly, don’t assume that I don’t have my eyes watching your mangy arse.”

I did not even tell him what would happen if he betrayed me; I just infused my voice with the power of my soul.

I didn’t know if magical energies could be felt through the crystal sphere, but I sure as hell hoped so.

“I will keep it all in mind, Your Highness.”

As I heard the trembling timbre of his voice, I knew my magical intimidation had struck home.

“Okay, very good.”

I laughed happily after so easily solving the matter of financing the Spire.

* * *

The fluctuating mana slowly dissipated, and I took a long breath before opening my eyes.

“It’s not simple.”

The impressions had been engraved without my knowledge.

Through my battle with the Warlord, I obtained the [Heroic] poem I had hoped for and achieved a growth of my soul worthy of that poem.

It was now exactly three months that I had claimed my place as a hero by transcending even the extraordinary.

However, I did not expect any exceptional levels of growth in the near future.

This damnable body was the problem; its fleshy prison was holding me by the ankle.

I had, up to now, bared my soul whenever necessary and marshaled the powers of Muhunshi so that I could endure as much as possible, yet I had reached my limits. My Mana Response was only on a normal level at the moment. For this reason, I had forcibly developed my body’s talents through dance poetry, but I still had to sigh at how dull Adrian’s corporeal vessel was.

Due to the inadequacy of his flesh, I was unable to take a single step toward the wall of becoming a Sword Master.

It was the cruel truth of nature.

One does not become a Sword Master just by accumulating a lot of mana, and one does not simply become one by gaining enlightenment.

The Sword Master could only be called as such if his body, soul, and mana were all in harmony, even if their development has reached completion.

The only thing I possessed that met the requirements of becoming a Sword Master was my soul.

Both the mana and the physical state of this body were a crime against nature. The vessel was far too small for what I wanted to stuff into it.

There was only one way to solve my quandary in a short time: I had to reconstruct this body.

However, such a reconstruction could only be supported by requisite talents and skills.

To rise to become a Sword Master, you need to rebuild your body, and to rebuild your body, you must rise to become a Sword Master.

The situation was the same, no matter the angle one viewed it from.

If things went on like this, Adelia would become a Sword Master before I did.

Contrary to me, her soul did not match her physical prowess. However, her enormous innate talents could overcome the disharmony and incompleteness in her being. By my estimate, she would soon become at least a half-swordmaster.

And it wasn’t just her either, for Arwen continued to fight day by day and had already woven her third ring. Even now, she was patrolling in the mountains and growing at a rapid pace.

It was probable that Arwen would reach the rank of Sword Master before Adelia. That was one of the reasons that the people of this age preferred mana rings.

I did everything that I could, but I would be the last one to ascend if things went on like this.

I just hoped I would not be impatient and find a solution sooner rather than later – before that lunatic elf, that physical reincarnation of destruction and entropy, revealed her true colors.

Before the greedy Burgundian empire realized what I was planning and before the rubbish nobles and the incompetent king completely destroyed their country.

Meanwhile, I just had to be patient to reach the level I wished to reach.

Of course, if I just waited, nothing would be accomplished. My body would never be completed, and I would be unable to face the things I had to deal with.

Some time ago, I received news that the royal family’s secret knights would soon be brought to Winter Castle. Those that could not be persuaded to come have been forced here by more radical means. Most of the knights on Antoine’s list were on their way.

I could not guess what thoughts raced through their minds when they first were told that they would be coming to Winter Castle, so some of them could be coming with swords in hand, or dragged here by the Silver Foxes.

There were many more things to do besides awaiting their arrival.

In order to further strengthen the defenses of the fortress, talented people were selected from the barracks and put into squads that were trained separately.

Senior mercenaries of the Silver Fox Company were also placed within these squads, with Bernardo Eli appointed as the overall training instructor.

He was both a strict teacher and a thoughtful commander, who knew when to punish and when to praise his soldiers, when to push them and when to let them rest.

I watched it all happily, knowing that he had proven his skills and the trust I had placed in him.

From the moment that I had seen him in that demeaning social club, I knew that he was not an idiot, unlike his fellow exiles.

His status screen had been a wonderful thing and showed that he was merely a young man frustrated by his family’s fall and had so chosen the wrong path and the wrong friends. After the war was over, I had held a conversation with Bernardo.

“What is the reason you asked me to come to you before I was taken to the judge?”

“I wanted to hear your story. I wanted to know why the family that held the secret of mana hearts had fallen from grace.”

“Well, originally, the Eli men are famous for being stubborn. My grandfather and father were, so I just wanted to prove that the Elis were right, and not merely hardheaded.”

Through our conversation on that day, I had learned that the Eli family still believed in mana hearts and Muhunshi and that they had made countless attempts to overcome the Knights of the Rings.

Although they all failed, their failure became the fertilizer within the heart of a man named Bernardo, and that fertilizer was tilled into the soil from which the new knightly candidates in Winter Castle would blossom. I recalled another conversation.

“Why did you pretend to be mad?”

“It is because funds are needed to rebuild a completely ruined family.”

“Ah, but you caught Hogu, you grew some hair on your chest.”

“There are many noble words for water, and one must be as adaptable and calm as a stream.”

“So, am I also a water lord? Do I qualify?”

“Great water flows through you, yes.”

I could only laugh at Bernardo’s answer, for his brain became extraordinary when dealing with me.

“Well, I don’t understand why you pretended to be such an idiot all that time.”

I just kept on laughing instead of answering, so he puffed up his cheeks.

“I suffered under the king’s rage. All the assets I had struggled to collect were seized, with the officials saying that I had gained them through improper channels. I suffered a great loss.”

I had known then that Bernardo held me responsible for that.

“All the years of loyalty and service by the Eli family will be rewarded.”

Even while everyone had given up on the path of transcendence, the Eli knights had not, until the very end. The Bernardo I knew was just as hard as the winter boys, and I spoke more freely with him than with Arwen, who rarely even looked at me.

Regardless, the new training of troops had another goal at its heart: Members of the northern nobility had to serve as commissioned officers in Winter Castle for a time so that their families never forgot the truth of winter again.

The descendants of the Blood Lions were also growing their skills, so everything was proceeding smoothly.

I was prepared to leave Winter Castle without any regrets.

I left with three rangers to guide us, along with Arwen, Adelia, and Boris.

Then, we headed deep into the mountains, beyond the Blade’s Edge Mountains and into the Frost Mountains, where the land was primal and the winters far more ferocious and unbearable.

“From here on out, we know nothing of the lands beyond,” the rangers said as they bowed their heads, saying that it would be difficult for them to guide us further. I commended them for guiding us this far through the cold, not one of them possessing mana to keep themselves warm.

Then, I ordered them to head back. I had planned to let Boris guide us from there.

“Hmmm,” she mused as she glanced at me.

I was worried to an extent, me being out here with only female companions. Maybe it was the same old rumors, calling Adrian out for horniness, that bothered me. Arwen and Adelia wondered at my behavior as well, as I usually had some men accompanying me. They did not say anything, but I saw the question in their eyes.

I then explained to them my purpose for heading this deep beyond the Blade’s Edge Mountains. Their expressions hardened at once upon my explanation.

“Firstly, keep what I said in mind and try to follow my strategy even if things go awry,” I explained as we headed further into the Frost Mountains.

“Your Highness, how can you walk with such confidence?” Boris asked me. She seemed to be asking what we would do if we got lost.

“Have no worries,” I told her as we pressed on. “This is a place that I know.”

And I knew it, even if hundreds of years had passed, the rugged mountain peaks that unfolded before us were familiar to me as if I had seen them a day before. It is the path that Leonberger’s army took when they went to battle Gwangryong, and I spent a few months here during those battles.

What I sought now were signs of those who had been here before, so many centuries ago.

“Halt.” I approached the entrance to a large cave and looked around for a while, laughing under my breath.

“We have come to the right place.” The terrain was as I remembered it, and the differences that nature had wrought through the ages insignificant.

“I’m heading in alone, so wait here,” I told my companions as I stepped inside. After sifting through my memories and exploring the dark cavern for a while, I found what I was looking for.

“Ugh!” I heard someone utter her disgust as I left the cave. They were not disgusted at me, but rather at what I held.

In my hand was a black heart, still beating as black energy was sucked in and out of it, in and out like a cruel parody of lifeblood.

“I feel the sinister energy, as Your Highness has said,” Arwen said with a pale face. Her expression was one of caution as she looked at the heart absorb and expel dark energies.

I had come here for this, and not only because it was some bizarre object.

It was the last piece of his body that a wizard had left in the world, a wizard who had chosen eternal exploration over eternal rest, and this artifact of his flesh was a promise of imperfect immortality.

It was the Millenium-old High Lich Life Vessel. I squeezed the heart in my hand, strong and hard until it looked like it would burst.

‘Aaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaah!’ the echoing scream soon came, reverberating against the cliffs around us.

‘How dare thee!’

Black energy took over the sky, and it seemed as if day had in a moment turned to utter night.

‘You! You were with those guys!’

The black energy gathered into a single circle high up in the blue sky and rushed toward me.

“Yeah, it’s been a long time,” I said.

The blob of midnight came to float before me, slowly hardening, and then, a man stumbled from it, still wreathed in darkness.

“Our appearances may have changed drastically, but it is fortunate that we still have eyes to recognize one another,” I told Smurmsmul as the night finally left him and revealed his features.

“Yes! Nice to meet you again,” he said, all while I was grabbing onto the heart that looked as if it would burst at any moment.

“I greet you, white night’s mage.”