Ch.16052. Who Would Use the Term Original Enemy? (3)

# The Demon King’s Legacy

I knew little about that which transcends the standard of ability to the concept of divine power.

Until I heard about it from the Demon King.

Of course, I still didn’t know much about it now.

“If demons have magic equipment and magic armor, and we have sacred relics…”

-Are those two in the same category? Is that what you want to ask?

“…What’s the difference between a holy sword and divine power?”

-To put it nicely, a holy sword is made for the wielder to use. A divine artifact is… a weapon that only those qualified can handle, a shield, a belief, and proof of life. That proof manifests as divine power.

So.

-If you’re asking whether the Great Demon King’s legacy is the same as what you just handled… it’s both the same and different.

“In what way?”

-Because the Great Demon King wasn’t a god.

“……”

-What you just used is a divine artifact forged by a giant god with the greatest technical skills of the era, for a god born with the destiny to become the chief deity, in order to kill the current chief deity. No matter how special the Great Demon King’s legacy might be… it’s not quite at that level. Though, in a way, it could be compared to what you just handled. Vastly inferior in comparison, but still.

“…For something like that, you don’t seem to think it’s all that impressive.”

-I told you. Not just anyone can handle it.

“That’s true of holy swords too, isn’t it?”

Wouldn’t the Great Demon King’s legacy be the same in that regard?

-Then what about Grandeus handling a holy sword?

“……”

-The qualification standard is just burdensome, but anyone who wants to wield such things can do so. Ah, your father’s divine sword is different, though. For holy swords, ultimately anyone can handle them if the sword permits it. Think about little Leo. Did that child have the qualifications to wield and handle it?

“That means…”

-Normally, it would be impossible for you to properly handle either Aegis or Astrape. As the lender said, they were merely borrowed. So you were only able to handle them because the lender permitted it.

Well…

Even the minimum standard for handling them would normally be beyond your reach.

-So don’t focus on unnecessary things. You can’t fill your inadequacies or deficiencies with such things.

There’s no need to tell him separately right now.

If he thinks a little, he’ll understand without being told.

He can’t even realize that on his own?

Then he’s been studying in vain all this time.

“I never had any false expectations.”

And Kariel didn’t dismiss her thoughts carelessly.

Even if she hadn’t said such things, it was something he had already taken into account.

From the beginning, this was like a sword.

A tool.

A consumable that could be used and discarded, broken, or set aside at any time.

If you start mistaking something borrowed as your own.

In the end, when it’s taken back, how powerless would you become if you had relied solely on it?

Just imagining it makes his brow furrow involuntarily.

“…So, even with this, we can’t do anything about it.”

Although the aftershocks of the lightning fire were still writhing like a coiled snake on the giant’s body.

The giant’s body, though appearing damaged, seemed to have no material damage on the other hand.

In other words, the body was intact.

At least on the surface.

-Immortality and invincibility are no ordinary powers.

Moreover, those creatures.

-They’re a race that once fought against a divine realm and defeated them.

“Divine realm?”

“There is such a thing. The one-eyed magician. In the dual world classification, he was the son of Zefs in this divine realm, but became the chief deity in the other realm. In another place across, he was also the god of wisdom.”

“……”

There was something familiar about those words.

“Are you talking about Othinus… No, Odin?”

-That’s right. You know him?

“…Isn’t that a bit strange?”

The master of the warrior faith that the Viking Crew worshipped.

Eventually, they firmly believed that if one was born as a mere warrior but had their achievements recognized and gained fame, they would be reborn as an immortal warrior even after death.

Come to think of it, this had significant implications.

Not that they don’t die (不死), but that they don’t disappear. They don’t perish (不滅).

Immortal warriors.

Great warriors are called to their divine realm, their ideal place, where they can always eat and drink their fill, and focus on combat training.

In preparation for the day when destruction comes.

…Destruction, huh.

“From the context, they were gods before Zefs, right? But how could he become Zefs’s son?”

How could someone who was once the chief deity of a divine realm…?

-This is the limitation of primitive creatures. Where did you throw away the story of the World Tree?

Above all, if I were to speak based on the world of gods and their principles.

For them, past, present, and future are all opaque.

-If you heard about the truth of the stars from Grandeus, you should know by now, right? The stars and starlight you observe in the night sky are actually light from tens of thousands, hundreds of thousands, millions of years ago, or even before that.

“What does that have to do with this…?”

-The idea that the future is determined by the process is a criterion for an extremely small and limited world.

Why do you think the process determines the future?

Why not consider that the result and purpose weigh and guide the process?

Are you still unable to break free from the narrow human conception?

-The prophecies, foretellings, and visions of the future that you have are based on that. I explained it all to you before, didn’t I?

“…If what you’re saying is true, then the idea that we in the present can change the past doesn’t make sense, does it?”

-Back to your old question again. Is that really the case?

“If you phrase it like that and then act as if it’s not…”

-It’s a matter of will, I tell you?

You can’t go against a strong river.

But blocking the river is up to you.

Whether you use it or destroy it.

Even going against the river somehow, it’s all up to you.

“……”

She spoke as if it was nothing.

But from my perspective, there was something I couldn’t overlook.

If even that great god was frustrated and thwarted, how could a creature infinitely more primitive than him overcome it?

This premise itself seems completely wrong.

-What about those giants then? Did they win because they were destined to win?

“Didn’t Odin, who was actually the chief deity, struggle against destruction? Because of the prophecy given to him. And he was eaten by a wolf…”

-Really? Did you confirm it? Are you sure? Is he really dead? Is he really destroyed?

“……”

This leaves me speechless.

How am I supposed to confirm that right now?

-What’s the point of worshipping something you’ve just heard somewhere as truth and reality? Tsk tsk!

“Sigh. Fine, let’s get out of here first.”

-What about entering directly from here?

“I told Zora I would scout ahead and come back.”

-What if that actually puts that girl in danger?

Sigh.

She twists my words about exploring deeper inside first into something more palatable.

It sounds better than deceiving her and scouting ahead… but still.

“Neither she nor I are naive. She’ll make her own judgment. And I intend to fully convey what I’ve experienced here so she can make that judgment.”

-Sure, sure. That’s one choice too. I’m not saying it’s bad. Really!

“And if we’re talking about mythology, it would be better to hear it directly from her rather than from me.”

I take a moment to look up at the Demon King intently.

“…That is, if you don’t intend to tell me everything straightforwardly.”

She throws out clues and makes me think, ponder, and worry on my own.

…She says it’s to keep my mind from getting dull, but couldn’t she consider my position having to deal with this?

====

“It seems you’re talking about Ragnarøkkr, and there’s a story after that too.”

“…Is that so?”

Only now did the word Ragnarok come to mind.

In the Irenis faith, similar content appears in the Book of Revelation or the Bible… but judging by the fact that we’re all still alive, the final day hasn’t arrived yet.

“But it’s not important, and whether it’s real or not, nothing is clear. It’s just storytellers saying, ‘Maybe it happened like this, or maybe like that.'”

“If that’s the case… doesn’t mythology itself have no meaning?”

“That’s also correct. How one interprets a story is ultimately up to the person encountering it.”

Let’s say there’s a child who is inspired and moved by the story of a hero and dreams of becoming one.

Could that child have become a hero without knowing the hero’s legend?

Zora began to recite as if chanting a poem or singing a song.

“A story is entertainment for the living, a compass, a signpost… hope, a dream, an ideal, and perhaps a wish.”

“But if it’s not the truth…”

“Is the factual accuracy important? If even a falsehood can guide the living and bring about positive results, isn’t that fine too?”

A white lie? A blatant lie? Malice or goodwill?

“If you’re really curious, ask a god. You can commune with them, right? If it’s difficult here, shall we go to a temple?”

“……”

This is confusing in a different way.

“Let’s continue that conversation later. For now, according to what you said, it’s extremely dangerous inside there, right?”

“I almost died, so yes.”

…Whether I would have actually died is another matter.

“Give me your hand first.”

My blackened, burnt hand was temporarily covered in darkness, but it was just that—temporary.

It merely wrapped around my hand like a glove, but the condition remained the same.

“What happened to make it like this?”

Zora examined my charred hand with her eyes, not daring to touch it, looking disgusted.

“What? Are you going to try healing magic?”

“Other than white magic? But ordinary magic doesn’t work on you anyway, right? And this condition looks beyond any common remedy.”

In the desert region, when my skin got scratched, Zora had casually attempted to heal it through magic, but it was all meaningless.

A body where mana doesn’t apply is troublesome for this reason.

…Unless you have abilities that transcend common sense, like my mother.

In situations like this, I can’t help but recall.

That a miracle was right before my eyes.

…Yet it was a miracle I could hardly welcome.

“Then I’ll use this.”

She pulled out a small stone from her bosom.

“Since we were talking about Odin, do you know that the magical structure from that side differs from the common magic used in your continent?”

“…I’m not sure.”

“Just as your ability is of unknown origin, each region and foundation has its own powers and techniques.”

The same goes for the demon realm and here.

“In areas rich with trees, it’s easy to obtain wood, so they build wooden houses. In places without trees? They build houses with sand mixtures or stones. You can think of it as similar to that principle.”

We’ve all adapted according to our environment and circumstances, and acquired related skills.

“Faith is similar. The culture and belief system that worships Odin and warriors, as I just mentioned, developed because their region was barren and difficult for agricultural culture to flourish. Survival was hard, so the way they confronted survival became incredibly fierce… Ah, would it be boring if I explained further?”

“…It’s fine. I enjoy such stories.”

“You might like it, but I don’t.”

She held the stone over my hand.

Then she whispered something, and a faint green light flowed from the stone.

Amazingly, my charred hand began to show signs of recovery.

“Why isn’t it healing completely?”

“It is healing, isn’t it?”

“No. It should have healed instantly.”

“……”

“Just so you know, this technique has nothing to do with mana. Do you think I tried it without knowing that?”

She threw the stone behind her and pulled out a new one from her bosom.

After consuming a total of four stones… my hand finally returned to normal.

“…Do you know what this means? These stones could have bought a building or two in any city and still had change left over.”

“Now that you’ve told me, I know. Thank you.”

She has an interesting way of telling me to be grateful.

“There won’t be a next time. Not because I lack compassion, but because I literally don’t have any more, so be careful with your body.”

“I’ll keep that in mind.”

So what should we do now?

“First, let’s decide whether I follow you or not based on whether this works or not.”

With that, Zora followed me back to the massive door, the entrance of the relic building.

There, she waved her hand slightly, and something like a bird’s feather emerged.

The red-quilled feather was impressive, but what came next was even more so.

The red quill suddenly transformed into a bird with lush, bright red feathers.

“Take this one in with you. It’s a familiar, and if sensations are shared, I won’t need to put myself in danger unnecessarily. So no one needs to worry.”

“……”

I enter with the bird perched on my shoulder.

“How is it?”

The bird taps my cheekbone with its beak.

When I turn my head to look toward the entrance, Zora appeared to be standing far away.

[It seems fine on this side. Since you won’t have slow me tagging along, why not make full use of your precious mobility?]

“……”

It’s nice that she acknowledges it, but her compliment feels somewhat stingy for some reason.

[By the way, I can’t see properly. Can you see well?]

“If it’s about sensing rather than seeing, I’m fairly used to it.”

[That sounds abnormal in its own way.]

…You’re not exactly normal yourself.

“I’ll move now.”

[No need to report every little thing?]

After giving a snort, I enter the building.

The giant I encountered near the entrance was still unconscious.

If that one wakes up again, it would be quite troublesome, so I deemed it essential to move quickly.

However, there was something I overlooked.

“……”

There wasn’t just one.

The deeper I went into the building, the more massive its scale became.

And there, giants were sprawled on the floor or sitting, or leaning their heads against the wall with vacant expressions as if their souls had been drained.

…I could sense at least dozens of them.

Thanks to moving along the ceiling and suppressing my presence, there seemed to be no immediate problem.

…I wanted to avoid provoking them as much as possible, not knowing what might happen if I did.

But then.

Suddenly, the space split open.

—!!!!!

The sleeping giants began to react simultaneously.

They were responding not to me, who was suppressing my presence on the ceiling, but to the phenomenon of the splitting space.

Strangely, the darkness seemed to be tinged with red.

And whatever was emerging through the space.

For some reason, like a red star blooming in pitch-black darkness.

Or like a red flower.

It was intensely… red.

For some reason I couldn’t understand.

My heart began to race.