Chapter 69 - Twenty-Second Episode - Zeshum Ruins (13)
Chapter 69 - Twenty-Second Episode - Zeshum Ruins (13)
We walk through the corridors of the ruins.
Ebelheid touches the door that had been closed all along.
The pedestal where the gryphon had been is now empty.
“Open.”
As Ebelheid chanted, the stone door was raised.
At the same time, a loud noise could be heard from outside the ruins.
“It looks like a window has been opened.”
I knew at a glance that it was structured that way.
“…… it looks like it.”
Ebelheid replied shortly.
Although he seemed to be voluntarily restraining himself, I could feel the exaltation in his voice.
You should be honestly happy at a time like this, but you really have a hard-headedness set in.
“Hoho, finally, the treasure that is called the Arrow of God ahead……! Wait, Ebelheid, this Wegener will take the front……”
Wegener said halfway through and then scooted back as Ebelheid stared at him.
You, what are you really doing here……
Beyond the door was a long passage.
Inside the door, there was a magic stone on the inside of the door. It’s the driving force of the warding.
A king grade. There are a number of them placed on the floor.
If we take a detour instead of going straight in, we should be able to find many more.
2,000-year-old elves are a real badass.
The value of these will be greatly diminished as they continue to be consumed by the wards, but they are still a treasure trove.
I was going to go after collecting them, but Ebelheid went deeper and deeper.
I guessed that it didn’t seem to be that kind of mood, so I decided to put it off.
I can read the atmosphere of that kind too.
It’s a shame, though. It’s a hell of a shame.
But is there really enough treasure ahead of us to ignore that one?
Back then, when it hadn’t deteriorated, it would have been worth nearly ten billion combined.
Maybe the market price of the magic stone was different, and in the Elf’s hometown, sky country of Alfheim, it’s possible that there was a few king grade magic stone that were brought out.
Elves are basically exclusive, so they wouldn’t go down for trade or anything, and others would not allow that to happen.
It wouldn’t be surprising if the prices were very different.
Ebelheid walks down the aisle and opens his mouth.
“I am grateful to you, Abel. I am not long in the game, and I am glad to be alive in time to before I die. I have no descendants to entrust with my longing.”
“Again with the humility. Ebelheid-san would have managed it somehow.”
“In analysis, one oversight can be a decade’s drag. I’ve talked a lot about this for a long time.”
“Wow, Ebelheid-san, you don’t have any kids. Somehow Mea’s surprised.”
Mea, who was walking along with me, butted in.
I covered Mea’s mouth in a big hurry.
“Wait, what are you doing, Abel!”
“Guoh!”
“It just came out normal.”
I was normally shaken off.
It’s so embarrassing.
“N- no, that talk’s somehow a taboo……”
“…… It’s fine.”
Ebelheid says as he looks forward and continues to speak.
“Elves on earth, where the magic of the Moon din can barely reach them, and their physical abilities diminish with each passing generation… Especially is the ability to give birth. Even the elves of Alfheim, the land of the sky, originally had to wait for the approaching day of the moon din to conceive a child.”
That is why in the Celestial Land of Alfheim, as superior to those who are not, are often called High Elves.
Many elves have high self-esteem, or so I’ve heard.
This sorting must be very humiliating for Ebelheid as well.
“I was born nearly three hundred years ago, but finally I could no longer have a child.”
………I thought Ebelheid was over four hundred years old, but he was three hundred years old.
It must be starting to degenerate on the longevity side as well.
Elves have a strong tendency for species supremacy.
It seems that Ebelheid also had no choice but to have children with other races.
“Ever since I was born, I’ve devoted my life to lifting the wards of these ruins.”
“Three Hun…”
“I’m not the only one. My father and grandfather, generations have tried to break the warding. Finally, in my generation, the outermost part of the warding has been broken.”
No wonder the note should have been put together as if they had seen it.
It’s so tightly packed that the person who gave the seal to him must have left a hint to his descendants. I had a hunch that this was not the case.
It was the culmination of a thousand years of work.
If it wasn’t for that, I wouldn’t have been able to do anything about it.
“At last, at last, I’ve taken myself here…… I have made it in time.”
Then Ebelheid covered his mouth with his hand.
For the first time, he laughed firmly.
But that laugh was a bit of a nasty kind of laugh.
I feel my mouth twitch as I try to laugh back.
I couldn’t help but stop myself.
Ebelheid leaves me behind and walks onward.
“Ebelheid…… -san?”
I mutter, standing still.
Then I think about it.
Regardless of the others, Ebelheid should have absolutely known the value of the magic stone.
How could he ignore it and decide that he should prioritize what’s in the back without hesitation?
Ebelheid had said that he wanted to unravel what was in the Zeshum Ruins.
That’s why Ebelheid shouldn’t know what was behind the ruins.
I can interpret that he could ignore the magic stone so that in favor of looking deep into the ruins,
I can, but somethings off.
I can’t help but notice the smile on his face before too.
“Is something wrong, Abel?”
Mea, who was walking beside me, called out to me.
“N- no…”
It’s all in my head.
I’m sure it’s all in my head.
“You got a bad feeling about this, don’t you? I know, I’ve got good instincts too. Listen, stay close to me. It’s one of the roles of a swordsman to be a sorcerer’s shield.”
Maizen, who was walking behind me, came up to me.
“…… aren’t you just saying that thinking that the safest place is to be near Abel?”
Mea tugs on my right shoulder.
“Of course it does! If it is, is it bad! I’m sure I’ll be safe with support, and Abel will be safe because I’ll be able to prevent a surprise attack! And there’s some pragmatic efficiency, too!”
Maizen is pulling on my left shoulder.
What a nasty composition.
“Hey, stray sorcerer. Guard this Wegener…”
Anyway, I quickly resumed my steps and followed Ebelheid.