Soul of Searing Steel

Chapter 342: Prophecy

Although Joshua now had an idea of what he should do, there was no rush.

Right now, Israel should indeed be under the torment of his dark wounds, but there is still a long period before his death. As long as he did not do something ridiculous and seek some farcical treatment, he will live for another one or two decades.

For now, Joshua had to explain the Shroud incident clearly.

As he walked alongside Nostradamus on a partition of the Avenue of Truth towards where the crowd was gathered, Joshua summarized everything he experienced within the Imperial Mage Guild. He explained a little regarding the divine seal within the Chest of Erebus as well as the phantom that was the God of Fortune of Despair to give the archmage a general idea.

“Gods who had fought against the Abyss in prehistoric times, huh… So that black shroud just now had been contaminated?” Nostradamus asked, making a rather imprecise but not exactly mistaken conclusion.

Too lazy to correct him, the warrior left the mage to his own devices as the old man sighed. “The brats were right, you raise a ruckus wherever you go.”

“That’s right!”

“Yep.”

Beside Joshua, the silver-haired girl nodded furiously, while the black-haired boy too replied in agreement.

“I knew you two were going to be noisy… But let’s leave those aside for the moment. Nostradamus, we came here to the guild originally to find someone who would come with me to my domain and collect some samples of the plague.”

After glaring at the divine armaments for a bit, Joshua turned slightly to look at the guild building which was not corroded by the black shroud. While the spells keep everything including the equipment intact, the guild would still definitely fall into a certain period of static.

“Well, now, things are complicated.”

“You’re right, but there’s no need to worry.”

Nostradamus smiled lightly and pointed towards Moore, who had just awakened and was listening gravely to Vera’s narration of what transpired.

“I’ve already thought about the outcome,” the elderly mage said with a low voice. “Which is why we should not waste any time against the Plague. Later, my friend Tamara Moore and his apprentice would come with you to Moldavia and collect those Plague samples.”

“Ha-ha. And also spare them the Emperor’s wrath.”

Joshua shook his head; he could naturally see through Nostradamus’s intentions.

The seven mages’ error in their experiment within Research Lab 2 had set the black shroud loose, corroding more than half the buildings along the Avenue of Truth.

Damage to the economy alone would amount to over eight hundred thousand gold coins – it would be incredible if Israel did not hang them up for some almighty spanking, not to mention they would be dragging other Guild members into the mess.

Thus did the quartet returned to the crowd.

This night, every citizen around the Avenue of Truth had been rushed to the Church and near the Town Hall. The city guards were busy escorting them and maintaining order.

Although the appearance of the twin-headed giant shocked them to their core and raised their alert level, they never ceased the work at hand and instead requested the residents to evacuate even more urgently.

The Church, on the hand, was comparatively quiet.

Saya, too, had summarized the incident for Robzek. The silver-haired middle-aged man frowned in thought after hearing the story.

Still, it was not too important whether it was a test within his dream or to wonder about what on earth happened. When he sensed that Joshua and the others were returning, he went to them and expressed his gratitude along with the Great Nun.

Afterward, Robzek led the Church knights to the residence of the diplomatic corps. He still looked somewhat unwell, not even asking about what Joshua saw in the underground lab or what the black shroud that hypnotized human souls was. It was a negligence of duty to some extent, but the warrior understood him.

Ultimately, he did tear apart more than ten of his former comrades in his dreams. However sturdy the human was, it would still be jarring and uncomfortable. Despite that, it would be temporary given Robzek’s spirituality—the cheerful commander of the knights would return by the next morning.

“My sincere thanks for your help, my liege. Commander Robzek’s safe return was all thanks to you.”

Saya bowed lightly to Joshua just before leaving; her expression was tranquil with the hint of a smile. “If there is a chance in the future, the Church would definitely show their utmost recognition. We would also do our best to assist you if the need arises.”

“It’s nothing. It’s what I should do.” Joshua replied nonchalantly. Watching the clergies leave – especially Robzek’s rather lonely back, he muttered, “It’s no wonder he would advise Roland to put down the burdens in his heart as soon as possible. It is dangerous being a holy knight.”

“That’s for sure. Whatever the case may be, the Church is the organization that has been holding the frontlines in the battle against evil.” Nostradamus replied quietly and shrugged, before looking pointedly towards the sky.

“Though mages are mostly atheist, it should be said that the gods of our time are completely different from the gods recorded in history books. They might be tempestuous, uncompassionate or even uninterested about anything going on in this world, they definitely hate evil and Chaos.”

Then, noticing that he had spoken too much, the old mage shook his head. “This isn’t the time for nonsense, I’m meeting His Majesty later.”

“Oh, right—didn’t you mention you were hungry? There’s a feast prepared for you at the Royal Avenue. Joshua, please be so kind as to not refuse.”

As Joshua and his party headed for their feast, Saya and Robzek were whispering amongst themselves in the company of the clergies.

“You’re saying that there’s divinity on him?” Robzek mumbled doubtfully. “But how old is he? Even His Holiness was on his own journey at his age, how would he…”

“His Holiness did mention it before—the count of the Northern Realms possesses the Sage’s Legacy.” The Great Nun shook her head lightly. She stared rather distractedly at the crux-shaped protective amulet in front of her chest and sighed. “If the dual blades of the heirs of Kaos are a Sage’s Legacy too, you should know what it means.”

Robzek paused and clenched his fist.

“Of course I do,” he mouthed each word gravely. “When the Sage’s Legacy gathers, the prophecy would be fulfilled.”

–At the beginning of heaven and earth, deep within the mountains and oceans, the tinders of the flame of creation spilled. Heat and gale thus scorched the seas while fiery clouds and ash blanketed the skies.

Stars fell, the dark abyss opened. Mountains crumbled into plains while valleys rose and became peaks.

The end of the human’s world was nigh.

“It’s still too early, commander. Your anxiety is premature.”

Pursing her lips into a smile, Saya shook her head again. “The Far South may be dire at the moment but it’s not that worrying yet. Each nation in Mycroft has great power—they won’t be defenseless even as the calamity descends. But let’s leave that aside for a moment. Commander, what do you think about inviting the count to join that project?”

“What?”

Robzek had quickly grimace at those words and turned to look at Saya. However, the Combat Nun from Glaydon Abbey was tranquil, her eyes concealed behind her eye-shield and unaffected by the holy knight’s glare.

“He possesses divinity,” she continued seriously. “He could enter the Anos Abyss even without Sacred Items and is so powerful that the berserker dragons could never stop him.”

“You’re right… but this is within the Church.” Robzek nodded a little before declining. “We can’t let outsiders get involved. And if we succeed, we would wipe those things off with a single stroke.”

“Perhaps. I’m just suggesting.”

Saya suddenly appeared to be simply mentioning an idea; she did not seem to mind the refusal that much. “Nevertheless, we need to pay attention to the Liege of Moldavia.”

“On that and only that.” Robzek nodded deeply, silent for moments as he recalled his experience after being drawn into the dream world.

“I agree.”