Part 2 Episode 38
Republic of Containos, deep within the Legion.
On majestically spread marble tiles devoid of a single blade of grass, towering limestone statues stood in two rows, seemingly piercing the sky.
These sculptures filled with a diverse range of figures—men, women, elderly, youth, and children alike, bore only one name:
“Deus.”
Deus—the sole deity of this land, creator of all life who bestowed reason and morality upon humanity. The idol of the Western Continent who sometimes appeared as a child, sometimes a young man, or sometimes even an old woman to rescue the underprivileged before leaving.
Two devotees, their heads shrouded in white cloth, walked slowly between the statues. At each depiction of Deus, they bowed reverently. In their left hands, they carried sacred crucibles; with their right hands, they sprinkled holy water from the crucibles onto the statues.
“Bless your children.”
“Love your children.”
Behind them followed a knight clad in mesmerizing silver armor. Their pace was neither hurried nor sluggish, their eyes fixed rigidly ahead of them. A crimson plume streamed from their helmet like wind-whipped flames cascading down their back.
You could see a soaring obelisk penetrating through the Legion’s blue sky. The knight’s destination—the Abandoned Temple—lay just beyond this monument.
If the Legion’s hands and feet were the Civil Council and Senate, the Abandoned Temple across this path was its heart.
The oldest temple to serve Deus.
A sacred site guarded by Spolia, the demigod of the Western Continent.
As the devotees backed away, a figure standing beside the obelisk greeted the knight:
“Dunain, the brethren await.”
The knight removed their helmet and ascended the temple steps.
The face that revealed a woman showed no trace of emotion. The knight, Dunain, pushed open the thick door at the stairway’s end with ease.
Inside, a massive marble round table in the midst of the holy ambience.
Seven chairs.
Five attendees.
Creak.
As Dunain took her seat, the door closed as if awaiting this moment. The round table’s silence broke when the golden-haired man—Second Brother—seated behind her, spoke:
“Father has chosen Andert Fager, Dunain.”
Andert Fager.
That name, which had vanished eight years ago, had resurfaced. His survival had already been relayed to all, so no one was surprised.
“If Mother bears that man’s child, there’s a high probability that the most brilliant divine Knight among us will be born.”
Across from Dunain, a long silver-haired mage—Third Sister—curled her lips into an acidic smile:
“Talking bullshit. Do you assume every child mirrors their parents? Some hopeless trash might emerge instead. Such outcomes aren’t uncommon, as you well know.”
A black-haired middle-aged man—Fourth Brother—quietly interjected:
“You aren’t entirely wrong. But what if Andert Fagar has attained unity of mind and body? Could a child born between a God and another God truly be a waste?”
“Silence.”
Dunain, having calmed her brothers, took off her necklace and placed it on the table.
“Mother has allowed us to know two truths. Brothers, take out your tokens. They will reveal the answer.”
The four brothers at the table likewise produced their tokens—someone had a ring, another an earring, a mark on the hand, a sword. Though varied in form, they all shared one trait.
That is, the same luminous purple gemstone as Trevia’s was embedded within.
Second Brother scanned the group.
“What shall we ask?”
“Shouldn’t we ask about Andert Fager? Should he refuse Father, we’ll drag him here ourselves and offer him to him.”
“How could there be a mortal who’d reject Father?” The golden-haired Second Brother scoffed, fingers drumming the marble. “He’s a great demigod. All humans are instinctively captivated by him.”
Fourth Brother shook his head, his black-streaked beard trembling. “True—unless Andert Fagar has truly reached the unity of mind and body. That changes everything.”
The silver-haired mage, Third Brother, shut his eyes briefly, his lips twisting. “…Unbelievable. A man that young transcending the Fourth Wall? Ridiculous.”
“Yet plausible,” countered Fourth, leaning forward. “He returned from death itself. Calepa achieved it even younger than that, so it’s not impossible.”
Third Brother’s laugh dripped venom. “Or perhaps he merely hid after surviving to recuperate. Who knows? Maybe he became amnesiac from the shock for a while and only came to his senses recently, instead of coming back from the dead.”
“We lack clarity,” Second interjected, frustration sharpening his tone. “It has been less than a week since Andert Fager appeared. The details are far from sufficient.”
Tap. Tap.
All eyes snapped to the red-haired boy lounging at the table’s edge. He grinned, twirling a dagger. “Hey—enough circular drivel. If your stupid brains can’t figure it out, just ask. Didn’t you say father met him?” he sneered, nodding at Dunain, “just ask and you’ll get the answer.”
It was a rather rough way of speaking, but everyone’s eyes turned to Dunain as if they agreed with the words.
When she nodded,
Third Sister carefully lowered her earring—the violet gem glinting—and spoke with ritual precision:
“Venerated Father… Has Andert Fagar achieved mind-body unity?”
The four tokens blazed. Affirmation.
Third Sister exhaled sharply, voice trembling with revelation:
“Astonishing… utterly astonishing! And profoundly intriguing. Should he truly… refuse Father…”
Fifth Brother interrupted, slamming his palm on the table:
“We’d get to hunt a god!”
“What a tragedy that not all siblings are here to savor this! Why are Trevia and the Blade Demon absent? They might miss their chance to slaughter a deity!”
His raucous laughter echoed through the temple, but the frenzy died abruptly as Third Brother’s gaze frosted over:
“Cease your vulgar act, little sister. Why their absence? A pointless question—our esteemed Blade Demon brother has never graced this table.”
“Haha. So I should drop the ‘vulgar tone,’ but you’re not the one provoking me? It’s you, riding on Father’s favor and acting high and mighty—!”
“Maintain your decorum.”
Dunain curtly silenced the Fifth’s rising voice.
“Lower your voice before the Round Table. Raise it again, and I will expel you from the Knights of God.”
The Fifth sneered, lips twitching with defiance.
“Your tyranny never ceases to amaze, Dunain.”
“And Blade Demon has already arrived.”
“…What?”
Creak.
As he protested, the shrine’s door swung open softly.
The room fell deathly silent.
A hum, oddly harmonious yet dissonant with the tense atmosphere, soon filled the air.
“Well, well, well.”
Backlit by the fading sunlight, the man who entered was tall and slender. His short, tied-back golden hair gleamed, and his stride exuded ease. He did not bother glancing at the attendees, as though whoever was or wasn’t present meant nothing to him.
The chapel remained still.
Amid the silence, Blade Demon—now seated—suddenly rummaged through his robes and tossed something onto the Round Table.
Clink, clink…
The object, an emblem of the brotherhood, bounced in an arc before settling awkwardly. It was an unadorned raw gemstone.
In the frigid atmosphere, Blade Demon alone smiled brightly and said:
“Well? Carry on.”
The Fifth scoffed.
“Ha. Strutting in late like you own the place, huh?”
“Ah, he’s evolved. He’s at least decided to attend and grace us with his presence.”
The silver-haired mage studied Blade Demon with intrigue, nudging the emblem with her chin.
“Why not put it in an earring like me? A pretty thing like you could pull off something unique.”
“A lovely compliment, sister. Sadly, puncturing my body isn’t my cup of my tea.”
The Third watched his cheerful tone and radiant smile with satisfaction, unlike the others.
“Oh, is that so? And yet I’ve seen you wear that cute gem on one of your ears often enough.”
The Blade Demon’s smile deepened around the eyes.
His long fingers trailed up his jaw to brush the pearl on his right earlobe. As his well trimmed-nail grazed the creamy jewel, it seemed to sing a delicate note.
“It cannot be compared.”
“To what?”
“To anything.”
The Blade Demon’s wandering gaze settled on Dunain, who interpreted the look and commanded:
“Enough chatter. Let us resume the meeting.”
It was time to decide Andert Fager’s fate.
—-
So this is what the kid that Daisy gave her sword earring to grew up to be!
[Silly translator rambling, feel free to ignore]
HI!
It’s been so long, my dearest readers. A lot has happened in these past few months, so much that I find myself unable to tell it to anyone at all, afraid they would grow tired of hearing my stories. There’s been a lot of troublesome matters, but also good news and moments as well. I am in a bit of a pickle in some areas, but here’s to hoping I can figure that out in these two months of vacation. I’ve barely had the time to translate—if you see me updating other stories, it’s mostly because they’re modern and don’t have as many new characters and elements getting introduced to the story as plom (figuring out which takes a great amount of time as a translator who’s not particularly fluent in korean).
Admittedly, when I did have time, I got stuck between all of the things I had to do, and ended up doing barely anything at all. It was a total case of “how does everyone have the same 24 hours in a day and yet I seem to do nothing at all when people are out there hustling?” it must be because I’m still young and haven’t
We might just technically be strangers on the internet, but I do know you’re strangers with good taste and opinions, lol. I love to hear your thoughts, you know that, so I always appreciate the comments, even if they’re about something random.
There’s another thing. There is going to be a very huge change concerning the site in the very near future, and the announcement is going to be up at our discord, so I highly, highly recommend joining it. For any further questions, you can also connect with me personally (my discord ID is kindapitiedmielle (the one with the frieren pfp!)
I will continue to translate this novel as long as I can, so please bear with me and the irregular updating schedule.
Since you’re my readers and you love stories, here’s a silly little fact:
I twisted my ankle right before my last final and got confused about the timing of the exam, arrived 2 hours late to my 3 hour exam (thank god my professor let me sit for it thanks to my track record) and was barely able to finish in time, lol! But it was also an exhilarating experience. Hope i pass though, lol. It’d be troublesome if I didn’t!
With love,
Ami.
