The Failure Marquis Is A Genius [EN]: Chapter 179

21. Hero: The Familiar Scoundrel

I had come a long way.

I had been working tirelessly without rest to get to where I was.

It would be a lie to say it wasn’t difficult and painful, but the rewards were just as great.

My friendship with the Seven Stars was one of those rewards.

Count Gordon Lloyd, Karina of the Flame, the Pilgrim Tom, Paladin Johann, the Sage Orneo, Commander Hans, and King Gazel of the Desert.

I had some laughable incidents with some of them, but I got everyone to promise to cooperate with me and support me.

The reason I hid my identity and disguised myself as the adventurer Khan, despite having connections that would shock anyone who heard it, was because each of the Seven Stars wielded such a high level of influence.

I refrained from contacting them as much as possible because I was afraid that the entire continent would be shaken by their movements.

Knowing how far the Twilight’s power reached, I kept my sharpest blade for the very end, lest I be eaten alive if I rashly stepped forward.

But I didn’t need to cower anymore.

I was lucky enough to get rid of Gluttony in the Underwater City, and though it was a bit difficult, I also got rid of Arrogance.

Sloth betrayed them and joined our side, and Alex, the new Greed, was taken care of by Arrogance.

Since I had already dealt with Envy, (Old) Greed, and Lust, the only remaining leaders of Twilight were the Twilight Pope and Wrath.

At this point, wouldn’t it be okay to summon all Seven Stars and finish off the Twilight Pope?

I had also become a Sword Master, and the dragon Coco was slowly doing her part.

The Arnia Continent Conference was proposed based on these thoughts.

The Imperial Army and the Desert Army had made a temporary truce.

First of all, the Empire was too busy dealing with the aftermath of the war, and the Desert King was in a mood to put up with it for the sake of me and Pahel’s honor.

Rumors spread far and wide that a new hero had been born on the continent for the first time in twenty years, and that hero was summoning the stars and lords of the continent.

Naturally, not all the lords willingly accepted the summons.

It took time to send envoys and messengers to them several times to explain the current situation and have them accept it.

The official meeting date was set for two months after the summons was issued, as the Seven Stars, who were close to me, also had to wrap up their work and come.

Two months flew by in the blink of an eye, even though I was busy.

The most noticeable thing during that time was Coco’s growth.

Coco apologized to me for not being able to help during the battle with Arrogance because she was helplessly cursed.

I told her it was okay several times, but Coco seemed to have a lot on her mind.

It was a good thing, though.

She needed to worry now so that she could move more nimbly when she met a stronger enemy later.

The Lich King Arrogance was like a vaccination before meeting the Twilight Pope.

In any case, Coco took the opportunity to let go of a lot of pride in her race.

She also conducted personal training and steadily sparred with Campbell and Zion.

Thanks to that, Campbell came back half-dead every day, but well… training with a dragon isn’t something anyone can do, so wouldn’t it be a good experience for Campbell too?

Of course, I don’t know if Campbell thinks so too. It’s just my subjective opinion.

Not only did she train, but Coco herself grew a lot.

Ironically, what catalyzed her growth was the necklace she took from Arrogance.

The unidentified black tooth on the necklace was a medium for summoning the Abyss Maw [a powerful, destructive entity from another dimension], and Coco drooled over it because it contained a significant amount of magical energy.

“I want to eat that, kkyu!!”

At first, I hesitated a bit because I was worried about the Abyss Maw.

However, I figured that the necklace was only a medium for summoning the Abyss Maw, and that Coco, a dragon who had evolved to adulthood, would be able to digest it somehow, so I allowed it.

“Kkyu!!”

Coco swallowed the tooth and fell into a deep sleep for three days after coming into contact with the vast magical energy.

When Coco woke up a few days later, she was much bigger.

Her scales and wings were tougher, and her claws were so sharp that it was embarrassing to compare them to how they used to be.

Above all, her eyes were deeper, and I could tell that she had become stronger without even asking.

[Coco – Holy Dragon]

[Evolution Rate – 50%]

[When the evolution rate reaches 100%, it will evolve into an Ancient Dragon.]

The system window seemed to welcome Coco’s growth, giving her a whopping 50% evolution score, so I’m looking forward to Coco’s performance in the next battle.

Coco’s growth is good news, but I shouldn’t rely on it too much.

The most important thing is my growth.

In the end, no matter how much people around me help, it’s useless if I can’t handle the Twilight Pope.

Besides, the final boss of is the Demon King Baal. There are plenty of reasons to become stronger than I am now.

Fortunately, I had been training steadily even before facing Arrogance, and after facing Arrogance, I gained some enlightenment and became much more familiar with handling energy.

[Mana Awakening Status.]

[Mixing Rate Status]

[Green Mana Awakening 75%] [↑9.0%]

[Blue Mana Awakening 75%] [↑5.0%]

[Dragon Blood Awakening 75%] [↑7.0%]

[Mixing Rate 70%] [↑10.0%]

All three original mana succeeded in breaking through the 75% mark, the third peak, and the mixing rate also increased by a whopping 10%.

The mermaid king’s orb that I swallowed in the Underwater City last time is still half left in my dantian [energy center located in the abdomen].

Moreover, I’m melting the Philosopher’s Stone that Coco gave me, so the awakening rate was expected to continue to rise.

*

I was currently visiting the Desert King’s ger [a traditional Mongolian yurt or tent] because I had something to ask.

Gazel, who was drinking, greeted me happily when he saw me.

“Who is this! It’s the Hero. I’m sorry for greeting you without my clothes on. When I drink, my body gets hot, so I take off my shirt.”

“It’s okay. Actually, I came because I had something I was curious about.”

“Hahaha!! Ask me anything. I’ll answer to the best of my knowledge.”

“Do you happen to know anything about a tree branch that emits a divine aura?”

I asked directly about the Golden Branch.

Recalling Merlin’s memories from the last Golden Branch test, the setting was the desert.

There, Merlin rode on the shoulders of a giant and swept away the resistance.

Although a thousand years had passed, I came to see if Gazel, who had been guarding the desert for a long time, knew anything.

Gazel listened to me, put his chin on his hand, and tilted his head.

“Hmm… a divine tree? I don’t know. There aren’t many trees in the desert in the first place.”

Was it another failure?

I hid my disappointment.

“It’s okay. I bothered you for nothing. Then I’ll see you at the Continental Conference.”

“Hey, why are you in such a hurry? Sit down first. Although I don’t know, I’ll call someone who might know.”

“Really?”

“There’s a shaman grandma in our tribe. She’s at least fifty years older than me, so she might know something.”

“I’d like to meet her. I’d appreciate it if you could arrange a meeting.”

“Don’t get your hopes up too high. The dry desert and trees are a really bad combination.”

It turned out that the shaman was staying in the Empire.

Thanks to that, the meeting was arranged quickly.

She was staying about a week south of the Melbus Plains, and when the war started, she led her old body all the way up from the desert.

Seeing her move herself instead of her successor at her old age, I could guess that she had considerable affection for the Vernus Kingdom and King Gazel of the Desert.

“Nice to meet you. I’m an old woman called the Eye of the Desert. Feel free to call me Grandma.”

The shaman I saw in person was the epitome of an old woman with white hair and wrinkled skin.

She supported her skinny body with a cane, and it looked like she would fly away in the wind.

My eyes naturally went to the black blindfold that covered her eyes.

Since she introduced herself as the Eye of the Desert, she seemed to have a special ability related to sight.

“I’m sorry, but only I can call her Grandma. Please call her Shaman.”

The title didn’t matter.

Holding my pounding heart, I asked her.

“Shaman, do you know anything about a tree or tree branch that contains a divine aura?”

Even as I asked, I secretly expected her not to know.

But the answer I heard was a complete reversal.

“I know.”

“Yes? Really? A divine tree?”

“Of course I know. It’s a sacred object that the desert shaman must have in order to open the Eye of Truth.”

The desert shaman has had the ability to discern the truth for generations.

Because of this ability, they are called the Eyes of the Desert.

In order to awaken their abilities, shaman candidates put a divine tree branch to their eyes around the age of twenty and live with it for about a year.

They never take the branch from their eyes when they eat, shower, sleep, or even defecate.

After this ordeal, only a very few awaken the Divine Eye, and the old woman called Grandma was also an awakener, according to her.

“Then where is the Golden Branch now?”

“It’s kept in the temporary shrine where I live. I didn’t bring it today.”

“I have something to tell you, Shaman. Actually…”

I told her that I had been traveling all over the continent collecting Golden Branches, and that I had collected five so far.

And I also said that I wanted to get the sixth Golden Branch if possible.

This was a rather sensitive request.

Because the Golden Branch is a sacred object that symbolizes the identity of the desert shaman.

I carefully brought up the topic, anticipating a troublesome situation, but surprisingly, the old woman readily nodded.

“It’s okay. There’s a saying that has been passed down among our shamans for generations. 『The fragments of the Divine Tree do not belong to the desert. When the time comes, it must return to its owner.』 That’s what I heard.”

“That means…”

“Prove to me in front of me that you are the owner of the Golden Branch. If I’m convinced, I’ll hand over the sacred object.”

Gazel and the shaman’s eyes focused on me at the same time. How am I supposed to prove this?

-Kid, take out the giant tree you used to summon. In my opinion, that tree is like an ID card for a druid.

Fortunately, the Heavenly Demon made a good suggestion.

“Okay.”

[Life Control]

[Summon World Tree Sapling]

Kugugugu

The earth shook and the World Tree sapling soared from the ground.

Although it was a sapling, its size was no different from that of an ordinary tree that had lived for thousands of years.

“Your Majesty! Are you okay!”

The guards were startled and rushed over when they saw the tree that had suddenly broken through the ger.

But even they were captivated by the magnificence of the World Tree.

Saaaaa

A cool breeze blowing from the tree.

Just breathing in that wind gave me strength and uplifted my mood.

Moreover.

Birds flew in from all directions and sang on the branches as if they were chairs, and land animals lay down near the tree to rest. There was no distinction between carnivores and herbivores.

The blue area around the World Tree gradually expanded.

The grass that didn’t even reach my ankles rose to my knees, and the plants that had barely sprouted leaves were now in full bloom with beautiful flowers.

“Beautiful…”

A desert warrior said unconsciously.

That’s how grand the World Tree’s influence was, and each and every sight it showed was a miracle in itself.

Gazel also seemed deeply impressed.

The shaman, who was called Grandma, trembled her eyebrows and knelt in front of the World Tree to offer her devotion.

“You are the agent of the Divine Tree. You are more than qualified.”

Not long after that, I was able to obtain the Golden Branch.

A whopping sixth Golden Branch.

If I absorb this, there’s only one branch left.

I’m already using skills of tremendous power as a top-tier druid, so what will happen if I swallow more Golden Branches here?

I can’t stand it anymore because I’m curious.

I immediately reached for the Golden Branch.

[You have discovered the Golden Branch.]

[You must take a test to acquire it.]

[Would you like to take the World Tree test?]

[Y/N]

Yes, without even looking.

[You have responded to the World Tree test.]

[Entering the test.]

Spaaaaat!!

As expected, I entered Merlin’s body again to peek into his memories.

The time before last was the sea, last time was the desert, where is it this time?

I looked around and it was all ruins.

Cracked ramparts and a gate with a dangling door.

Flames soared from every house, spewing black smoke, and corpses with incomplete limbs were scattered here and there like garbage.

It was a scene of a terrible massacre.

I soon realized.

The culprit of this tragedy was me.

To be exact, it was Merlin, who I was possessing.

The outer castle was in ruins, not to mention the inner castle and the royal castle.

Nobles in expensive clothes, young ladies in fancy dresses, and kings wearing crowns were all dead equally.

Merlin was sitting on the ruins of the collapsed royal castle, looking at the sky.

Fortunately, Merlin’s face was reflected in the broken stained glass.

Drooping white hair and deep wrinkles on his forehead.

The time of the boy I saw in the forest had passed, and the time of the middle-aged man I saw in the sea had also passed.

Now he was a full-fledged old man in the twilight of his life.

The giant I saw in the desert last time and the giant octopus Kraken I saw in the sea approached Merlin.

“Benefactor, with this place as the last, all resistance forces against you have been annihilated. From now on, you are the undisputed ruler of the Arnia Continent. Congratulations.”

Merlin ruled the world.

I was surprised inside, but I continued to recall the memories.

“Benefactor, decide. Will you annihilate all intelligent beings as originally planned to destroy the continent, or will you give the remaining vermin a chance to prolong their lives?”

“That’s a bit difficult? Humans are delicious. I absolutely can’t have a big cleanup. At least leave me some snacks!”

The Kraken, who was listening to the story next to him, grumbled.

Merlin, looking at the ruins with cloudy eyes, opened his mouth.

“Since I was young, my life has been a series of hardships. Back then, I thought the elves were the devil themselves. But I was wrong. Outside the forest lived a devil called humans, who were worse than the elves.”

Merlin’s calm tone had the power to focus the listener.

“I’ve traveled around here and there for a long time and experienced many things. The only purpose was to see if there was any point in keeping intelligent beings alive on the Arnia Continent. I tried to find the necessity somehow. I wondered if there was a good side to the world that I hadn’t seen.”

“So did you find it? Are humans and elves worth living on the continent? I want to hear the benefactor’s conclusion.”

Merlin looked around the ruins for a moment and shook his head with a heavy expression.

“Unfortunately, they have no chance of rehabilitation. The only good thing they can do is disappear like this.”

“I see.”

“I’ll rest here for a while and then move on. I’m going to go around the continent and kill all the intelligent beings I see.”

“Understood, benefactor.”

Merlin was trying to destroy the world…

I already knew that he had been continuously exposed to harsh environments and had a rough soul.

This was also confirmed in the Elven Forest.

At the time, Merlin’s soul fragment, possessed by Elder Richard, vowed to destroy the world.

Frankly speaking, I had some sympathy for Merlin.

As someone who had experienced his life and sympathized with his joys and sorrows, I couldn’t help but feel biased.

I also felt a sense of kinship as a fellow druid and half-elf.

But when I faced the scene of the terrible massacre, those thoughts disappeared.

Sure, there are countless humans who have committed cruel and terrible acts against Merlin.

But that doesn’t justify the massacre he committed.

Look at the people who died in those ruins.

They don’t even know who Merlin is.

They’re just ordinary merchants, farmers, guards, someone’s father, mother, and son or daughter.

Why did they have to die with their eyes open and full of resentment?

‘No. Stop the killing and stay like this…’

[Recalling memories]

[Intervention is not possible]

I guess I can’t help it.

One question came to my mind here.

Why didn’t the world end?

All the resistance forces had been dealt with.

Even after a thousand years, humans and elves were still thriving.

“Huh? Look over there.”

The Kraken looked somewhere and muttered questioningly. Naturally, my eyes focused on where his octopus leg was pointing.

An old man was walking through the ruins.

His clothes were unusual.

The black robe with wide sleeves was never seen anywhere on the Arnia Continent.

The sword he wore on his waist was somehow familiar.

The old man, who was walking with his hands behind his back, stopped in front of a broken store.

He stared at the remains of the building for a long time and said.

“I have something to ask you. Have you seen a woman who used to sell fabrics here? She was a very beautiful woman with beautiful hands.”

The Kraken chuckled at the old man’s question and stepped forward.

“Has this crazy old man gone senile? Can’t you tell by looking? Beautiful hands or whatever, everyone here is dead. You’ll be following soon. Old humans don’t taste good, so I’ll just crush you to death.”

The Kraken raised his leg.

But whatever.

Even in the face of imminent death, the old man was calmly looking at the collapsed store.

“…I see.”

“Die!!!”

The giant octopus leg struck down.

And at the same time…

Seogeok!!!

What did he do?

I couldn’t even see it.

Before I knew it, the Kraken’s leg was in 16 pieces.

The old man still had his hands behind his back.

“Kkeuaaaaaak!!! I’ll kill you…”

“Get out of the way!!!”

The giant hurriedly pushed the Kraken aside.

At the same time, blood splattered and something flew into the sky.

It was the giant’s pinky finger.

What if the Kraken had been there?

His body would have been split in half from head to torso and he would have died instantly.

Now I knew who that old man was.

I also realized why the world hadn’t ended.

No wonder it felt familiar.

The Heavenly Demon was the same as he was a thousand years ago.