Chapter 330
Episode 102: Temar’s Third Tomb (Part 2)
Jin’s eyes widened.
“My enemies? Who would do such a thing? And how do you know that?”
Neru of the Catfolk didn’t answer directly, instead shaking his head silently.
[We don’t know the details ourselves. We only sensed an imminent danger, as if the cave might collapse at any moment. Our people have survived so far without being wiped out by humans thanks to that very instinct.]
The Catfolk’s intuition.
Jin wasn’t entirely convinced that mere instinct was enough to keep the Catfolk alive all this time.
But having just crossed from the cave to the island and experienced it firsthand, he decided to trust it—for now—since it seemed to be some kind of mysterious power.
“So, the ruthless fiends who will destroy this place and slaughter the beastfolk are your enemies, too? Is that also just a hunch?”
[No, that’s a logical deduction. Considering the chain of causes and effects, the only reason our space would be attacked now is because of the business you started with the Goldscale tribe. The reason we can’t pinpoint the exact enemy is because you have many.]
Jin having many enemies wasn’t just the Catfolk’s intuition—it was common knowledge. It wasn’t hard to guess the conflicts involving Ziphl and the Runeandel factions.
During the kingdom incident, even Kinzello got involved. From an outsider’s perspective, Jin was up against three major powers in the world.
But who exactly was it?
Were they planning to attack the beastfolk to interfere with his family’s business or to send him a warning?
Were they striking because Jin, a wanted man, was openly advertising himself? Or was Kinzello, since the Catfolk’s cave lay on beastfolk territory, invading with some hidden agenda…?
All three were possible, so Jin couldn’t jump to conclusions.
“If, as you say, the cave’s attack is my fault, then I’ll take responsibility.”
[You won’t have to. We’ll warn the smaller beastfolk. A safe place to escape has already been prepared.]
“That’s a relief. But what if the worst happens? I should go back and tell them to evacuate immediately.”
Jin didn’t want to witness the horrific massacre of the smaller beastfolk.
[If we warn them too early, the Goldscale and Watertail tribes might move prematurely, making things worse. Besides, our intuition says that would prevent us from fulfilling our promise to Solderet.]
“So you’re saying you’d risk the lives of the smaller beastfolk to keep your promise to Solderet?”
[Exactly.]
“Why go that far? What if the smaller beastfolk are wiped out? Once they’re dead, no one can take responsibility.”
A surge of anger flared up inside him.
Of course, all of this was just the Catfolk’s ‘intuition.’ That his enemies would attack, that the beastfolk might be slaughtered, and that warning them early could cause bigger problems.
But Jin couldn’t shake the ominous feeling.
[Jin Runeandel.]
Neru lowered his gaze with a bitter expression.
[Like always, we want to protect the smaller beastfolk. You asked what would happen if they died, but for us, the greater worry is failing to keep our promise to Solderet. A promise we’ve waited a thousand years for.]
Jin met Neru’s eyes without replying.
[How many sacrifices do you think were made to keep that promise? Your ancestors, my comrades, countless humans and dragons. Over five hundred years ago, one of my comrades was killed while being hunted by Ziphl.]
Jin sighed softly.
To fulfill his mission as Solderet’s contractor.
When he first made the contract with Solderet in his previous life, he never thought about this. He only dreamed of becoming an unparalleled magic swordsman, ruling the world, and taking a small revenge on the family that abandoned him.
But after reincarnating, he gradually realized that Solderet’s power came at a cost.
Given the circumstances, the reincarnation seemed to be Solderet’s doing, and everything prepared for Jin was enough to turn the world upside down, so the price didn’t seem excessive.
It just felt cruel—to Jin himself and to those sacrificed for Solderet’s plan.
Swish, swish…
Neru was finishing drawing something in the sand with a twig. The strange symbol was unlike anything Jin had ever seen.
[It might be hard to believe, but please understand that we want to protect the smaller beastfolk more than anyone.]
“What is the Catfolk’s relationship with Solderet?”
[Friends. The Cat God and Solderet were very close. He stopped Javier from massacring the smaller beastfolk several times. The smaller beastfolk all owe their lives to Solderet.]
Whoosh…
Suddenly, the symbol Neru drew began to glow with a violet light.
Unlike the dark magic recently used by Rontelgius, this violet light had a sacred, almost divine aura.
It was the phenomenon that occurred when the seal of the third tomb was lifted. It was also a power the Catfolk used to create special hideouts.
[If your enemies had arrived here before you, you would never have been able to enter Temar’s Third Tomb.]
“While I don’t fully understand your choice, still…”
Jin paused, staring at the seal.
“Thank you. I don’t know what else to say.”
[…Don’t worry too much. Like I said, since we sensed the danger early, once you return from the tomb, we’ll evacuate the smaller beastfolk. To a place where they’ll never be found.]
Whoooosh…!
Spiritual energy began to rise from the violet symbol, soon forming an oval-shaped door.
[At last, we can keep the thousand-year-old promise. Go ahead, Jin Runeandel.]
“I’ll return as quickly as I can. I’ll make sure no one gets hurt.”
[Good. And one more favor.]
“Please, tell me.”
[Tell the friend inside that he’s done well. On behalf of the Catfolk, Neru thanks him for a thousand years of lonely toil. No matter how hard I try, I can’t remember who he was…]
Neru’s voice was tinged with sadness.
—Olamango, do you know who the guardian inside the second tomb is?
—I can’t answer that.
—Why not?
—All memories of him have vanished. No matter how hard I try, only a faint image remains.
When Jin met Olamango and found the second tomb, something similar happened. Like then, Neru seemed to have forgotten who the ‘friend’ who guarded the tomb for a thousand years was.
It was the result of Ziphl erasing them from history.
“I understand.”
Jin stepped through the door of spiritual energy.
Unlike the first and second tombs, the third showed no signs of damage or distortion.
The space wasn’t filled with dark energy either. It looked like the central hall of a castle. It even felt familiar, and Jin soon realized why.
“It’s exactly like the interior of the Storm Castle I saw in the first tomb—the central hall.”
It wasn’t surprising.
He had already seen people replicated with spiritual energy through Misha, and met guardians modeled after their thousand-year-old selves. There was no reason the space couldn’t be recreated.
Though he wanted to examine the Storm Castle’s thousand-year-old interior in detail, he quickened his pace. He was anxious that the beastfolk might be in danger if he delayed.
This was Jin’s first time visiting Temar’s tomb alone.
The first time was with Murakan, the second with his comrades.
Until now, every time he found a tomb, there had been formidable guardians—Silderei Runeandel, Sara Runeandel—both far too strong for Jin to handle.
But this tomb was different.
“Olamango said there’s no such guardian here, so I won’t have to fight.”
Like Neru, Olamango didn’t know exactly who was inside the third tomb. But Olamango retained a bit more memory about it.
—I heard the third tomb holds the butler of the Runeandel family from that era.
The butler.
The person who handled all sorts of affairs for the magic swordsman family Runeandel a thousand years ago.
“Even now, the family’s butler holds more information than most knights. Heinz, my father’s trusted butler, might even know more family secrets than Joshua.”
It was the same a thousand years ago. In any group, the person in charge of the family’s affairs inevitably knew the most.
“But the butler here might not be mentally or memory-wise intact. Lady Sara’s mind was severely worn down after enduring a thousand years…”
Step, step, step.
At the far end of the central hall, someone bowed toward Jin.
[I’ve been waiting for you, Lord Jin Runeandel. It’s an honor to meet you.]
“You know my name. Are you the old butler of the Runeandel family?”
[Yes. Solderet has told me the name of the thousand-year contractor several times. I am the Runeandel butler, Luet Damiro Yul.]
Luet Damiro Yul.
The butler who introduced herself had striking red hair, the same shade as Valeria’s. She looked like a young human woman, but she was not human.
Anyone could tell at a glance. Her eyes sparkled like a flowing galaxy, her ears were sharply pointed, and a round jewel was embedded in her forehead.
She was a fairy.
“A fairy serving as the old butler of the Runeandel family… I thought the fairies had already gone extinct a thousand years ago, with only descendants surviving.”
The fairy folk had vanished, and very few records about them remained.
Only the “descendants of the fairies,” who brewed the legendary “Ga-wangju” on special days, at special times, for special people, still walked the world today. Even they were rare to encounter.
Though almost no related documents survived, it was still widely accepted that the fairies’ perception of time was the same as the dragons’.
Perhaps that was why Leet had endured a thousand years alone without any sign of madness or collapse.
“Leet Damiro Yul. Neru of the Myoin tribe, speaking on behalf of the Myoin people, asked me to convey their gratitude for your efforts. I share that sentiment as well.”
Leet gave a faint, wistful smile.
[I can’t quite recall what kind of friend Neru was… Only this strange, lingering sense of longing remains.]
“…Is that so?”
[Sir Jin Runkandel, once you leave this space, you will forget my name. You won’t clearly remember what I look like or the conversations we shared.]
Click.
Leet pulled a small box from within his robes and opened it. Inside lay a spirit energy orb.
[But through this recording device, you will be able to remember what you see here.]