The 9Th Class Swordmaster: Blade Of Truth [EN]: Chapter 407

251. The Secret of the Millennium Ice Cave (2)

“In front of all these people?”

Gordon Fabian, upon hearing the words ‘Millennium Ice Cave’ from Carryl, looked around as if asking for confirmation, gesturing with his hand.

“Though the discovery was accidental, we haven’t revealed its secrets to anyone until now. Not even to the Emperor in the tomb.”

“So?”

Carryl retorted, as if challenging Gordon’s statement.

“So what…?”

“Is it such a profound secret that it needs to be hidden away so carefully?”

“What?”

The three people standing there couldn’t help but be taken aback by his words.

“Carryl, the secret of the Millennium Ice Cave is like bearing the weight of the world’s axis. It’s why the northern barbarians only grant access to their Great Warriors.”

“That’s your problem.”

Altemann finally fell silent at Carryl’s dismissal.

“Hiding it won’t solve anything. It’s a matter concerning this world, something happening on this land. So why conceal it and try to resolve it with just a select few?”

Carryl slowly scanned the people gathered.

“Or is there something you’re trying to conceal?”

His gaze settled on Altemann.

“Isn’t it time to stop hiding the fact that the barbarians are descendants of the Godslayer, the first Blader? Altemann.”

“……!!!”

“……!!!”

At his words, everyone in the Sky Castle widened their eyes and exchanged surprised glances.

“Of course. Now that the boundary between the Empire and the barbarians has crumbled, the word ‘heretic’ should disappear, and people should accept the truth.”

Carryl nodded.

“That’s right. However, as you said, these are minor things to discuss later. There’s something more important. Regarding the immediate problem, we can no longer hide it or try to solve it with just a few leaders.”

Everyone’s attention focused on Carryl’s words.

“Because it signifies the war that will begin now, a war that will determine the fate of this world beyond the continent.”

People had gathered in the Sky Castle’s plaza. The stage below the tower where the four archangels stood felt like a court delivering judgment.

“It’s tedious, but to begin the story, we must go back to the beginning. It’s not in the documents, but some of the teachings of the Order remain. Mael.”

He called the name of the Master Key [a being capable of unlocking divine secrets].

“The story that primordial dimensions existed, and by dividing those dimensions, multiple gods, not a single god, competed and fought to seize each other’s dimensions.”

[What do you want me to say?]

Woooooong…

As Carryl raised his hand, a blue serpent materialized above it.

“…….”

The three people watched him without saying a word.

“It’s simple. Everything you know.”

[You always make me do the troublesome things…]

Mael stuck out his long tongue and addressed Gordon and Quell.

[The point is this: that guy who claims to be Kaiye Eser’s comrade knows, as Carryl said, that God is not singular. That means there are compatibilities among the gods, like gears meshing together, strong against some and weak against others.]

He scanned Carryl’s body.

[That’s why things like the will of the Lycanthrope that the big woman is holding, or the Master Key like me, exist. Keys to help those who challenge God. Well, it’s like a story from another world to you humans.]

Mael still spoke to the three as if it were a bother.

[Those who possess the key to the divine seat like me can wield immense power, but even that is impossible without being chosen. It is the blood of the Blader who walked the path of the Godslayer.]

Mael looked at Quell.

[And you know that’s the blood of the barbarians, right? You confirmed that fact in the hidden Millennium Ice Cave.]

As if mocking, Mael fluttered his tongue repeatedly.

[Yulla, Lakshmu, Sekhmet… There were many gods, and the dimensions they governed were also different. They were the ones who ascended to the divine seat, so even as time passed, their essence did not change. They still wage war to steal each other’s dimensions.]

Boom…! Pow…!

Mael’s figure disappeared, and several shining lights, like stars, appeared in the blue smoke.

[But the gods can’t fight directly like in the primordial war. If they did, their own dimensions would collapse.]

The lights fell back onto the ground made of smoke, and the smoke transformed into models of countless races, fighting each other.

[So they came up with the idea. Not just humans, but elves, dwarves, gnomes… even demons and devils. They have been using all races as pawns, competing for each other’s power, and continuing the game of taking and being taken.]

Squeak…! Squeeeeeak…!!

Mael’s laughter echoed through the Sky Castle.

Exordiar [Latin for “beginning” or “commencement”].

A word referring to the war of the divine seat, not recorded in human history.

[They are greedy beings. Isn’t it ridiculous to call such beings gods?]

Mael’s face appeared in the smoke.

[Lord.]

Chirik…! Chiririk…!

His tongue moved busily.

[That’s why we call the one at the pinnacle Lord instead of calling them God. Sekhmet was the being at the pinnacle among the gods.]

Carryl knew that Rael had referred to corruption that way in his past life.

Was it a petty prank filled with Yulla’s jealousy that she, who followed Yulla, attached the name of the supreme god to corruption?

[But it doesn’t really matter. It’s just a matter of another dimension anyway. We were already struggling with the problems in our own dimension. But you know.]

Mael wrapped his hand around Carryl’s hand.

[For some reason, a fragment of the divine power he possessed has been found here. That also means Sekhmet’s death…]

A fragment emitting an emerald light appeared on his palm.

[Just as humans have birth, gods also have death. It’s still an unsolved mystery why this fragment containing some of that power is here, but if we reverse the statement, it means that with the power of this fragment, one can become a god or even surpass a god.]

“That is…”

Quell looked at the fragment anxiously.

[Dimension Spiral. A byproduct of God called dimensional power.]

“And you must have realized that your anxiety, which had remained only as suspicion until now, has become a reality. Father.”

Quell looked at him with a hardened face as the word ‘father’ flowed from Carryl’s mouth.

“…Don’t call me that. I am not worthy of being called that by you. And didn’t you say that you are the king of a country and I am a knight of an enemy country? Now… I am a knight of a fallen country, and you have become the king of the continent.”

Carryl smiled bitterly at those words.

“It’s been a while since we talked in Heim. I still need the power of the Sword Master, who is revered as the best swordsman on the continent. But I have no intention of forcing you. I have even less intention of asking you out of familial affection. Just…”

He looked at Quell.

“It was a token of gratitude for giving me the opportunity to even begin to face these truths, which I would not have been able to do if you hadn’t brought me from the North.”

He knew well that they could no longer return to being an ordinary family. Perhaps this would be the last time Carryl called Quell ‘father’.

But even so, the reason he called Quell that was not out of gratitude in this life, but out of gratitude in his previous life.

‘You told me the secret of the Millennium Ice Cave when I fulfilled the oracle. The reason for that must not have been solely because of Kaliak, my biological father. Thanks to you, I was able to learn about the past of the barbarians and establish a justification in the process of unifying the continent. But…’

“Then I will ask you.”

Carryl looked at Quell.

“What did you see in the Millennium Ice Cave?”

After regressing, Carryl realized that the Millennium Ice Cave that Quell had told him about in his previous life and the Millennium Ice Cave of the barbarians that he had first discovered were different.

‘In the previous life where you told me the secret of the Millennium Ice Cave, the Ice Cave you wanted to show me was not the ice seal where the first Blader was, but something else.’

“Altemann.”

Carryl asked in a calm voice.

‘But without information, I didn’t know there were two Ice Caves, and things went wrong. Or perhaps you, who discovered the Ice Cave with Gordon, deliberately told me something different.’

Like Gordon, he was a close friend of Kaliak, so he was likely to know about the Millennium Ice Cave known only to the barbarians.

There were two options, but both had a common point: only Quell McGovern knew that there were two Ice Caves.

But Carryl turned his gaze to Altemann first, not Quell.

“You have something to report to me.”

“…….”

Why was it?

As the conversation between Quell and Carryl continued, Altemann’s face also gradually hardened.

“When you arrived, I asked you. What about what I told you to find out? And you clearly said it was as I thought. Isn’t that right?”

“…That’s right.”

“Good. I’ve heard the answer, so let’s put the pieces of the puzzle together one by one. I’m also looking forward to seeing what picture will emerge in the end.”

Carryl’s voice was as cold as ice.

Clang-! Clink! Clink! Clink!!

As Altemann reached into his chest, dozens of sharp swords aimed at his neck, as if waiting for it.

“If you do anything foolish, you’ll die.”

Among them, Aidan had already hidden himself in the shadows and appeared behind Altemann.

Aidan warned, stabbing the tip of the Thunderclap Sword into Altemann’s waist. Altemann raised one corner of his mouth and smiled bitterly at his words.

“A sword… The feeling is unfamiliar. I thought we had become quite close, suffering together in the Dragon’s Sanctuary.”

“Close or whatever, that was then. What are you doing here after not showing yourself all this time? What can we trust about you, who we don’t know where you’ve been or what you’ve been doing?”

Everyone nodded at Aidan’s growling words.

As an assassin, he had an excellent eye for reading the atmosphere.

The moment Carryl asked Altemann a question, Aidan knew that he would become the central figure in this conversation.

“We’re not having a tea party here, are we?”

And he also knew that being the central figure in this kind of conversation was never a good thing.

Altemann let out a low sigh and took his hand out of his chest. In his hand was a small scroll tied with string.

“It’s okay. Lower your swords.”

Carryl confirmed it and said to Aidan.

“However…”

“He can’t harm me. Of course, it’s possible if I want to kill him.”

Then he raised his head.

“Altemann. After returning to the Demon World, I secretly ordered you to check the Millennium Ice Cave.”

“To see if the seal on the northern Ice Cave where the first Blader is sleeping was broken.”

“That’s right. Yes. How was it?”

“…The seal was still intact.”

Altemann carefully answered Carryl’s question.

“Hagane.”

Carryl turned his head away from him and looked at the sky. A dimensional gate appeared in front of him, and the Demon King emerged from it.

“What is your command?”

Altemann’s eyes flickered with a slightly bewildered look as he saw the Demon King of the Demon World showing respect to Carryl.

“When Kaiye Eser made a contract with you, he mentioned two people regarding the secret of the Millennium Ice Cave and his essence.”

“That’s right. The Platinum Dragon and Altemann. Those were the two.”

“Did he tell you anything else about those two?”

“The Platinum Dragon has lived for a long time since the beginning. And I also lived in the same era. I knew well what kind of dragon he was, so I didn’t try to ask or need to ask.”

“Then Altemann?”

“Well… I was a little interested in him being a comrade of Kaiye Eser, but he’s just an elf who can only live for a few hundred years… I’m seeing him for the first time today too.”

Hagane shook his head lightly.

“Altemann, you told me that as someone with elven blood, you are the only one alive among Kaiye Eser’s comrades from 250 years ago.”

“That’s right.”

Altemann slowly nodded.

“That means you are the one among these three who is most likely to have known that there are two Millennium Ice Caves. But why didn’t you tell me about the remaining one?”

“What are you talking about…”

“Are you really a comrade of Kaiye Eser?”

Carryl asked in a calm voice.

“Why did you hide it from me?”

But people knew that when he spoke in that voice, which felt so emotionless that it was dry, his sword had definitely been stained with blood.

“The reason I ordered you to check the Millennium Ice Cave was to give you a chance to see it again and reflect on your actions. Since you knew I had been to the Demon World, I wanted you to realize that further lies were meaningless.”

Swish-

Carryl pointed his sword at Altemann.

The oppressive force that pressed down on the space was incomparable to that of Aidan a moment ago.

“Gordon Fabian, Quell McGovern.”

He called the names of the two without taking his eyes off Aidan.

“It’s not just him. I have questions for you too. From now on, no one should think of returning alive unless they tell the truth to my questions.”

Swoooooosh—!!

Thud-!!

Carryl pulled out the Ice Claw he was wearing on his side and threw it with all his might.

“…….”

The Ice Claw was embedded in the center of the tower that had been built.

“That goes for you too.”

Deryl Harian, who was standing precariously next to it by a hair’s breadth, did not even think of brushing off the debris of the collapsing tower and wore a hardened expression that was impossible to know what he was thinking.

“I said it would get noisy when Gordon came, right? How about it, is it a little troublesome now? The commotion won’t be made by him, but by me.”

Carryl slowly turned his head and said coldly.