MTM 76

[At the end of the cycle of war and conquest, a kingdom soaked in blood will build its own grave.

You burned the creations of the divine, and you buried the cries of beasts under silence.

You offered red essence on an altar built with blood, and prosperity will soon turn into the seed of a curse.

On the day the flower plucked from the land of purification withers, a single radiant light will cut through the darkness.

When the wind blowing from the north becomes a blade and it grazes the earth.

When the star of the desert awakens, and it cuts the sky, and the light finds its path and it crosses the forgotten land and the ironclad mountain range.

When the river that flowed out of the forest of death burns red again.

Only then will the breath of evil that awakened from sleep cover the world.

From “Book of Prophecy” by Lior Albas– The 13th Guardian of the Oracle.]

This Book of Prophecy came from the fingertips of the great prophet Lior Albas. The prophecy began in the forgotten kingdom of the east where ashen snows drift, a place where even life no longer exists.

The kingdom had once been a radiant paradise that held a forest of life, and it had been a city of inspiration where art and aesthetics bloomed. Painters and poets and musicians all gathered there, and each carved their own soul, and it had been a country of romance.

However, that year, Lior Albas, who had been appointed as the guardian of the kingdom’s 13th oracle, made a prophecy on the night of the kingdom’s oldest festival.

“Before the first snow falls, the kingdom will turn into a hell of fire.”

That one sentence entirely shook the fate of the kingdom. The king and the nobles trembled with fear, and they abandoned governance and fled, the soldiers deserted, and the order of the kingdom collapsed. With the situation like this, even the citizens, who had not believed the prophecy at first, became anxious and started to leave.

A riot happened once. Fortunately, it died down quickly, yet the name of Lior Albas went from mouth to mouth like a symbol of a curse. Citizens blinded by anger drove the prophet into the execution ground. As the flames spread, Lior Albas’s house turned into ashes, and his family lost their lives one by one.

Even so, Lior Albas blamed no one. He knew the consequences from the moment he let the oracle leave his mouth.

When the situation deteriorated, distant empires and foreign kings judged the matter as serious and sent relief supplies. The king and the nobles who had fled returned one by one and took seats of power again. Among them existed merchant nobles who had already collapsed. People were greedy even in the moment of crisis.

A few days later, Lior Albas, who barely survived, hid his traces. The only thing he left behind was The Last Prophecy.

One month after that, Hartiros swept through the kingdom like fire.

Snap.

“Hey, bookworm! What are you reading with such a serious face?”

A guard wearing armor engraved with the insignia of the Regnovar Empire snatched the book that his companion had been reading.

“You, you startled me! Kailen! I thought you were the captain. Why did you call me like that.”

“Haha! I tried an imitation of the captain. Anyway, what is this, you are holding two books? Even a translated version?”

Kailen raised his eyebrow as he checked the translated version.

“Serdin, do you actually believe that prophecy book?”

“Of course I believe it. It is fun.”

Serdin smiled and he took the translated version back. Kailen did not seem to have any real intention, and he shrugged and stepped back.

“Then I will go relieve myself.”

“Me too.”

“What? Who will guard this place?”

“What does it matter? They even set a barrier around the inside of the carriage so that no one can enter.”

Serdin spoke as he he looked toward the giant carriage behind them.

The carriage placed in the middle of a forest path where no one passed held a form that could not be seen anywhere else in the world.

On the pattern engraved with golden embossing existed a crow scattering feathers, a snake, a lizard, and a spider with colorfully jeweled eyes that reflected light.

Anyone could take off only one ornament and get a good amount of money, but no one approached because of the atmosphere exuding from the carriage. Something unseen surrounded the carriage. Even a person who knew nothing about magic felt that the carriage was not ordinary.

“True, if it were me, I would probably pass by.”

Kailen accepted Serdin’s words and moved on. Serdin put the prophecy book and the translated version inside his coat, and followed behind him.

“…….”

“…….”

Inside the carriage surrounded by a magic barrier, a blond man and woman sat bound hand and foot. Their eyes and mouths were also covered with cloth. Leaning side by side against a sofa decorated with gold, they listened to the sound of footsteps fading away.

Apart from each other’s breathing, everything was dead silent. The man moved first.

“Ugh!”

Crack. When he lifted his shoulders and strained his arms, the rope binding his wrists loosened. He immediately untied the cloth covering his eyes and mouth, revealing his blue eyes and young face. It was Ser, the most expensive and popular prostitute in Honey.

Ser frowned as he untied the rest of the ropes and looked around. His eyes widened. He knew they were inside a carriage, but this was completely different from any carriage he had seen before.

The space was decorated like a large room, filled with gilded furniture, ornaments, jewels, and clothes. Everything looked extremely expensive.

“What kind of bastard is this…”

Ser muttered under his breath. Among the clients who came to Honey, there had been odd ones who even took the underwear of their partners, but he had never met anyone this obsessed with gold.

“…Mmph! Mmph!”

Just then, a muffled groan came from beside him. While Ser had been busy looking around, the woman struggled as if asking to be freed.

“You’re in a hurry, huh. Hold on. Ah, when I untie you, keep your voice down. We don’t know when they’ll come back.”

Ser untied the rope around her ankles and spoke in a low voice. The woman nodded quickly.

“…Puh!”

A moment later, when all the ropes around her wrists and ankles were undone, the woman roughly tore off the cloth covering her eyes and gag. Breathing heavily, she revealed moist violet eyes. She looked a bit irritable. It was the fortune teller, Reina.

Ser recognized her immediately, but Reina just stared at him for a moment before her eyes widened.

“Huh…? You’re….”

“Let’s skip introductions for now. We need to find a way out first.”

“Can we even get out of here?”

“We’ll see.”

The carriage door was easy to spot. It looked like the door to a luxurious room, and it seemed like they could walk right out if they opened it.

Reina’s face brightened with hope when she saw it, but Ser immediately shook his head.

“Don’t even think about opening that door.”

“Why not?”

“You heard what they said earlier. There’s a magic barrier. It’s the same inside and out. If you carelessly touch it, you could end up trapped forever.”

“Ah…”

Reina swallowed, her shoulders trembling. Ser left her alone and started inspecting the items one by one.

“See if there’s anything useful. If you’re going to grab something, it’s better to take what’s worth something.”

“What, so the queen bee of Honey is just a thief now?”

Reina sneered, but she soon started rummaging through the belongings just like Ser. Her hands moved even faster and more skillfully than his. It was clear she’d done this more than once before.

She even gave Ser a piece of advice.

“Stuff like what you’re talking about is usually hidden in places like this.”

Reina pushed herself deep among the pile of luggage and pulled out a small bag from a shelf. On the outside, it looked like ordinary enamel leather.

“It’s locked.”

“Wait a second.”

Click.

In less than a minute, Reina picked the lock. Ser realized then that she wasn’t just a fortune teller.

“Here. Now, let’s see what’s inside… huh?”

Reina slowly opened the bag and couldn’t hide her disappointment. Inside, on a red velvet cushion, lay a small glass bottle that glowed blue.

“Hmm… what do you think? Does it look expensive to you?”

Without even looking, Ser shook his head.

“Glowing glass bottles were popular a while back, but they’re out of fashion now.”

“Ah, right, I think I’ve heard of those too.”

Reina nodded in agreement and quickly lost interest, turning to search through other things again.

While they were doing that,

“Mmm…”

Inside the glass bottle, Harto, who had been trapped and asleep, slowly opened his eyes.