Chapter 1216: Records of the Great Library

The dimly lit red velvet chamber atop the palace fell into a heavy silence. Prince Nash and Benadette’s reflection in the mirror both seemed lost in their own thoughts. After an indeterminate stretch of time, the tall, slender prince, draped in a black robe, was the first to break the quiet.

“It’s just the two of us here. To be frank—do you think I’m a competent ruler?”

“That’s not a question you should be asking me,” Benadette replied solemnly, standing upright in the mirror as she had the day she first awoke, meticulous and composed. “You know I was created from the very beginning to be eternally loyal and trusting of Violet’s governance. I do not question your decisions, nor do I doubt the workings of the Violet Kingdom. That is the foundation of my existence.”

“A life predetermined from birth with a single purpose… In that regard, we’re not so different,” Nash said with a wry smile, absorbing her words. “We all come into this world with our roles already assigned—farmers, merchants, craftsmen, scholars, nobles, warriors… and me, the ‘Arcane Prince.’ You’re right, there’s no need to question how Violet functions. It’s a perfectly calibrated machine, set to run by rules established at its birth. We’re just cogs, turning in place.”

Today, Nash seemed more melancholic than usual. Benadette watched him quietly, her gaze calm and unsurprised. This was normal—after all, it was the “Day of Prayer.” On this day, the slumbering Lord would release His breath from the realm of dreams, listening to and responding to His people’s voices. Those closest to the Lord—the “Chosen”—were often affected, becoming sentimental, paranoid, or seeing and hearing things beyond the mortal world. Compared to others who might be raving for days, Nash’s reaction was mild.

She waited patiently for him to regain his composure. Soon, he moved toward the curved desk and picked up an opened letter, his eyes scanning it carefully, his expression serious and thoughtful. Curiosity got the better of Benadette.

“A letter? You’ve been staring at it for quite a while. That’s unusual… Where’s it from?”

“From the Empire of Cecil,” Nash said, holding up the letter. “The behemoth of the alliance.”

“Diplomatic correspondence? That’s not the first time,” Benadette blinked. “But I don’t recall you ever paying this much attention before.”

“This one was personally written by High Lord Cecil himself,” Nash’s face grew stern as he slowly set the letter back down. “It seems that energetic and far-sighted human ruler has finally found time to focus more on us. And he’s quite curious about our closed borders.”

Benadette’s eyes widened in surprise. She leaned forward, as if trying to glimpse the letter’s contents—of course, she couldn’t. Instead, she asked, “What does this resurrected human pioneer say in the letter?”

“Besides the usual formal greetings and an invitation to join the Continental Ring trade route, he mentioned something about mages from the Loren Continent traveling through the Violet Kingdom,” Nash said with a strange look. “At first, I thought he meant the apprentices in the City of a Thousand Towers, but apparently not. He’s referring to ordinary traveling mages. He’s asking whether the Violet Kingdom allows such traveling mages to enter the City of a Thousand Towers… I find it odd.”

“Why would he suddenly care about that?” Benadette frowned. “And speaking of traveling mages… It’s no secret that the heartland of the Violet Kingdom forbids outsiders. As a sovereign, why would he personally inquire about this?”

“He didn’t say outright, but I recalled the reports from our spies sent to the Northern Port and Winter County a few days ago,” Nash said calmly. “They reported that the Wilde family in northern Loren has suddenly begun investigating some very ancient records. Among the more public information, they found a name—‘Modir Wilde’…”

Benadette furrowed her brow. “Modir Wilde… That sounds familiar. Wait, let me check the archives.”

As the palace’s tower spirit and the Great Library’s curator, Benadette held the vast majority of the Violet Kingdom’s collective memory. She knew what the traveling mages had learned, the kingdom’s internal history, and countless secrets. Almost as soon as she spoke, the powerful artificial soul had already located the name Modir Wilde in the Great Library.

“Found him… An ancient figure from six centuries ago, once the head of the Wilde family. But rather than a nobleman, he was more passionate about adventure and travel,” Benadette said. Behind her in the mirror, the room transformed into an immense library, endless shelves stacked with ancient tomes spiraling into the distance. She conjured a large, ornate book in her hands, pretending to read as she nodded. “Records show he even tried to find High Lord Cecil’s secret sea routes and sought clues about the origins of the Silver Elves… Let me see what the end of the record says—ah, here it is.

“This great adventurer disappeared on his final journey. Records indicate he was last seen briefly north of the Mosswood Forest, continuing further north—that was his last trace in the mortal world. His disappearance caused a huge stir in Ansu. The Wilde family and the Ansu royal house mobilized half the country to search for their duke. The search covered nearly the entire northern continent… but, of course, they found nothing. That large-scale operation also caught the attention of our spies, so the information was sent back to the Violet Kingdom.”

Benadette closed the book, and the Great Library behind her faded back into the original chamber. She nodded at Nash. “That’s all the information. It seems the Cecilians suspect their long-lost adventurer might have ‘traveled’ to our side?”

Nash’s brow tightened further, his expression growing more puzzled. “That makes it even harder to understand—why would they suddenly think of searching for clues about someone who vanished six hundred years ago? And why focus their search on us?”

Benadette thought carefully before answering seriously, “Because they’re slow to react?”

Nash gave a dry laugh. “I’m not joking.”

Seeing his serious expression, Benadette dropped her teasing tone. After a moment’s thought, she broke the silence. “It seems that incident from long ago didn’t end with Modir’s disappearance. To this day, something new must have happened regarding that ‘ancient’ figure—something significant enough for the ruler of the Cecil Empire to personally intervene…”

“New developments… another resurrection, perhaps?” Nash said casually, but his eyes were sharper than before. After a brief pause, he looked toward the mirror, seeking confirmation. “Search your archives again—did that human mage named Modir ever actually visit Violet? The Cecilians wouldn’t take this lightly if they had no reason…”

“I already checked when I was joking with you earlier, Nash,” Benadette shook her head regretfully. “Unfortunately, that great adventurer never came here. You know as well as I do—no one can slip past my gaze near the heart of Violet. Under the ‘Night’s Eye,’ everything in the City of a Thousand Towers and its surroundings is recorded in the Great Library’s countless volumes.”

“No one can escape the Night’s Eye…” Nash muttered softly, then walked to the bay window at the room’s far end. Through the crystal-clear glass, he gazed down upon the City of a Thousand Towers, then beyond the ancient, layered cityscape, past the city walls, and out toward the seemingly endless, lush forest beyond.

In the heartland of the Violet Kingdom, no roads connect the cities. The City of a Thousand Towers is surrounded by impenetrable forest. Between regions lie forests and mists that cannot be crossed. For outsiders without invitation, even if they had some way to navigate through the woods and fog, they could never reach the city.

Because the “paths” simply don’t exist—in the true “Sight,” vast voids separate the cities, impassable from the mortal realm. The forests and mists are mere curtains, like stage scenery hiding the gears and mechanisms turning beneath the stage.

How could any “human traveling mage” have crossed those forests and mists, lost inside the City of a Thousand Towers?

Nash shook his head with a smile and returned to his desk. Benadette, curious, asked, “What are you going to do?”

“Basic courtesy and respect are necessary. I’ll write a reply first,” Nash said, reaching for paper and pen. Then, hesitating, he added, “Also, I’ve decided to accept part of that ‘alliance’ invitation. The outer cities of the Violet Kingdom will join the Continental Ring trade route as ‘autonomous trading cities.’”

Benadette’s face showed surprise. “But you’ve never been interested in that trade route before.”

“Who said I wasn’t?” Nash raised an eyebrow. “I’m just not interested in their so-called ‘trade.’ But the shifting situation on the Loren Continent? That’s always been fascinating to me. Besides, our Lord just decreed that we maintain involvement in Loren. Now is the perfect time to have some of our outer cities join the trade route. There’s plenty of reason for it.”

…

Late afternoon sunlight slanted into the study, casting bright spots on a metal ornament at the edge of the desk’s surface, which was covered in blue velvet. High Lord paused his review of documents and looked up at Amber standing opposite him.

“By my calculations, Victoria should be nearing the Eternal Storm Sea by now, right?”

“About that, yes. She flew straight there—much faster than by ship,” Amber replied casually, her eyes darting playfully. “Hey, what do you think that Ice-Face’s expression will be when he finally meets his ancestor? Assuming that Modir really is the Modir Wilde from six hundred years ago…”

“I don’t know, and I’m too lazy to guess. All I know is that Victoria is a steady person—she wouldn’t be knocking on ancient coffins like you,” Gawain said, casting a sidelong glance at the half-elf. Then he shifted gears. “Any new updates on the ‘Gate’ project?”

“Everything’s progressing smoothly and quickly,” Amber replied immediately. “The energy section we’re responsible for uses mature technology, and with Kamail personally overseeing it, it’s mostly just a matter of following the construction steps. As for the Typhon side… their ‘gate-opening’ tech seems quite advanced too. Many of the portal components are already pre-assembled back in their country and just shipped here to Covenant Hold for installation. According to Kamail, the Typhons are very confident about this, showing genuine sincerity and enthusiasm for the work…”

“Well, their tech should be mature,” Gawain chuckled and nodded. “After all, the Augustus family got their hands on ready-made knowledge straight from the Eye of God. They probably even stole the blueprints. If it weren’t for the fundamental energy part that can’t be skipped, they might not even need our help to open the gate themselves.”

“That makes sense, since it’s all ready-made…” Amber nodded, but halfway through her sentence, her expression suddenly shifted to one of surprise as she looked out the study window. “Ah, are they here already?”

Before she finished, Gawain sensed the presence too. He turned toward the large floor-to-ceiling window just in time to see two figures about the size of a dog wobbling and crashing through the air—two blue hatchling dragons with shimmering scales and bright eyes. They were flying in from Embassy Street, struggling awkwardly to slow down before nearly crashing onto the small platform outside the window. Gawain barely had time to utter “Hey” before he heard two loud thuds—one hatchling slammed into the window frame, the other into the platform.

If this had been a normal human, they’d be seriously injured—probably permanently.

But the two hatchlings only panicked briefly before quickly shaking off the dizziness. They tumbled to their feet, pushing and shoving their way to the glass, glaring wide-eyed at Amber and Gawain inside. Then, almost in unison, they lifted their heads and began banging their hard snouts against the window with a loud “clang clang.”

“Hey, what are these two little troublemakers doing here again…? And it’s only been a few days—they actually flew all the way from the embassy?” Gawain muttered in surprise. Then, realizing the flimsy window probably couldn’t withstand their antics, he hurried to open it. “Hey, stop, stop! Don’t bang anymore, I’ll open the window for you…”

Amber watched the scene with wide eyes, then suddenly realized something. “Hey! You treat them so differently from me, even though we’re all coming through the window! And didn’t you set shields on all the windows before? Why aren’t they there anymore?”

(End of chapter)