The Book Eating Magician Chapter 310:

Chapter 310 - Lairon, the Last Day (5)

‘Don’t tell me…’

Were the remains of the divinity, the cornerstone of the Lairon Church, sleeping in the golden coffin? Theodore kept moving while feeling dubious . The closer he got, the more the light pulled down at his boundaries . This divine light that warmed the living didn’t seem like Jerem’s trap .

Once he got within a short distance of the golden coffin, Theodore was able to see an unexpected sight .

“Well, there is no reason to leave the contents . ”

The inside of the golden coffin was empty . The lid was already open, and there was a shape engraved inside as proof that something had been there . Based on the marks, the owner of this golden coffin would’ve been a man with a height of two meters who had thin limbs .

Since a typical **** clan was larger than an ordinary human, this golden coffin was likely a divine relic that housed the ‘remains of the light . ’ The coffin might contain some clues .  Theodore carefully looked around the golden coffin and found the blurred outline of letters on the inside .

The production date of this relic was at least 3,000 years old . The carved letters were worn out, but the traces attracted Theodore’s eyes . They weren’t ordinary letters . There was a sense of incongruity when he followed it with his fingers . His head tilted as he faced the unknown phrase .

‘What? I can’t physically recognize the characters?’

His optic nerve didn’t respond . As soon as he cut off the magic power flowing to his eyes, the blurred letters disappeared without a trace . It meant they were letters that couldn’t be seen with ordinary people's eyes .

“Gluttony . ”

-Umm .

If there was something they didn’t know, don’t hesitate to ask . This was the philosophy of all magicians .  Theodore woke up Gluttony . Unsurprisingly, Gluttony replied readily, -Hoh, it has been a while since I’ve seen divine letters .  

“Divine letters? Are they letters of the **** clan?”

-That’s right . It is a system that deviates from the concept of ‘writing’ the way it is defined by other species, but it is still the same as ‘writing and reading . ’ It isn’t visible to the eyes of mortals or those without divinity .

“ . . . I see . It is thoroughly meant for the **** clan . ” Theodore was convinced and nodded .

Meanwhile, Gluttony continued explaining, -They’re called divine letters, but strictly speaking, they aren’t letters .  They form a sign that is inscribed using the will contained in the soul and are called divine letters .

“Then is it impossible to trace the source?”

-Usually, but it is possible for me .  Each pattern has their own characteristics .  It isn’t hard for me to distinguish between the letters of each **** .

Regardless of what was considered impossible, Gluttony quickly decoded the divine letters on the golden coffin .

It was the moment when the secret of the Age of Mythology was revealed in Lairon . This was the true reality of Lairon, who had been used as a source of false faith for humans . The truth resonated in Theodore’s mind .

-Here lies Baldur, **** of light, born as the second son of King Odin and loved by all .  The orator who represents the world’s goodness, a brilliance that doesn’t tolerate sin .  Whoever damages these remains won’t be able to find rest in the swamp of death .

The son of King Odin of the Aesir **** clan, Baldur—this was the identity of the **** called Lairon! Baldur was the **** of light, so the expression ‘the remains of light’ was fitting . It was the source of the divine power that had sustained Lairon for hundreds of years, a sacrifice that would be more precious than a dragon heart for a warlock .

This was the reason why Jerem had come to the divine king’s palace .

“Shit, it is already too late!”

The blank coffin proved that Jerem had achieved his purpose, causing Theodore to feel a sense of crisis . Baldur’s body was in the hands of a 9th circle magician . The scale of the disaster that this would cause couldn’t be fathomed . The ultimate magic circle left in this kingdom was only a gimmick, and the two magicians had arrived too late .

This was a fatal blow that couldn’t be overlooked .

-No, Baldur seems to have set up his own trick, Gluttony stopped Theodore’s self-blame .  

Simultaneously, the golden coffin started to emit an even brighter light .  It was the final radiance before death . Just like a candle about to be blown out, the remaining divine power in the golden coffin carried out its final arrangement .

Huuuuuuong!

The spectacular wave of light emitted from inside the coffin soon turned into a single image . It was a slender and long branch .

“What is this branch?”

Unlike its appearance, a pure divine power could be felt from it . Theodore looked at the shimmering branch with a puzzled expression .  He didn’t know what this branch had to do with Baldur’s ‘trick . ’ However, Gluttony’s reaction was dramatic in many ways .

-Mistilteinn! The branch of the mistletoe tree that killed Baldur, the **** loved by all .

Theodore was astonished by the words and looked at Mistilteinn, while Gluttony grasped the full story .

-It seems like Baldur’s soul isn’t inside his body . Instead, he fled to the branch that killed him .  He was awakened by User’s divinity in order to convey his last wish .  User, you will know his wish if you touch Mistilteinn .

“ . . . Okay . ” Theodore carefully approached Mistilteinn .  

It was a branch that emitted a warm light . The branch looked like it could be found anywhere, yet it was actually a relic of a legend that had killed Baldur . Theodore’s fingers stretched out slowly and eventually touched the surface of the branch .

Pahat! An unknown memory emerged from Mistilteinn .

[ . . . The calculations are out of order . Despite millions of lives being sacrificed, it isn’t enough to devour Baldur’s body . It seems like these lowlives aren’t worth anything . ] It was a cold and eerie voice, the voice of the incarnation of disaster itself which didn’t contain anything but evil .

The voice of Jerem, the warlock who threatened the world and wiped out the people of Lairon, whispered in Theodore’s ears, [More of Baldur’s divinity has been consumed than expected . I overlooked the fountain of human greed . . . It is also because my resurrection was too delayed . I need a new offering to fill this gap . ]

The root cause was Baldur’s soul escaping into Mistilteinn, but Jerem didn’t seem to know this .

He was silent for a while before coming up with a wicked idea .  [That reminds me, there is a young world tree in the northern part of the continent . Furthermore, if I offer the souls of the elves . . . it should be enough . It is fairly easy to calculate the power that will be consumed in the process . ]

Elvenheim’s world tree . . . !

Maybe it was because Jerem had occupied Theodore’s body for a while, so he remembered some suitable offerings using those memories . The world tree was a symbol of endless vitality, a sacrifice suitable for Baldur’s body . The beings of darkness yearned for a life and light that they couldn’t produce, so the value of the world tree was incalculable .

[Kuhuhu, I can play with the elves after a long time . ] Finally, the monologue trailed off, and the voice could no longer be heard from Mistilteinn .

This was the only thing that Baldur’s soul could do with the weak power it had remaining . As Mistilteinn faded away in his hand, Theodore nodded like he was responding to Baldur’s will .

“I understand your will, Baldur . ”

Baldur was a soul who cared for this world even though he was dead .

“I will surely stop him . ”

Mistilteinn shone once again, as if Theodore’s voice had been heard .

Flash!

The tree branch crumbled like it was burnt, and the light penetrated Theodore’s body .  It was a blessing from Baldur .

‘This . . . !’ Theodore was shocked the moment he realized what blessing he had received .  It was Baldur’s blessing from the old myths, where nothing could harm him but a branch of mistletoe .  This was an invincible blessing! The top blessing, which could negate the power of a **** just once, was nestled inside Theodore’s body .

It was Baldur’s farewell gift as he left without any resentment .

 

*     *     *

 

“Veronica . . . Not yet . ”

Theodore climbed back up to the first floor and looked around the empty auditorium . He couldn’t find any more clues apart from Mistilteinn .  The great magic circle, the original target of the two people, must be on the top floor with Veronica . The undead hadn’t been able to come underground because of the divinity, so there must be a lot of security around the magic circle . It wasn’t a bad idea to join her .

“―Um?”

It was at this moment that . . .

Kwaaaang!

Suddenly, the ceiling collapsed, and a pile of rubble fell down . Of course, it wasn’t enough to injure Theodore . However, he couldn’t help feeling confused .  It was because Veronica could be seen from the ceiling . The red tower master didn’t destroy things for no reason . She couldn’t destroy the door of Meltor’s royal palace, but she could ruin this building because the kingdom was already dead .

“ . . . Veronica, what is that in your right hand?”

She was holding something like rags in her hand .

“Oh, this? It is the former pope . ”

Veronica shook off the smashed skull and threw the lich in the luxurious outfit onto the ground . There wasn’t any part of its body that hadn’t been smashed, and a strong magic power was leaking from it . The elder lich was a senior undead, but it was placed into a critical state by Veronica who didn’t have any divinity .

“The pope?” Theodore’s eyes shook at the words .  

Veronica shook both hands and grumbled, “Yes, he said he was an agent of Lairon . I was nervous because he was an arch lich, but it seemed he didn’t know how to use the power . ”

“Well, he wasn’t a magician, so it can’t be helped . ”

It would be hard for the two magicians to know if they would win or lose against an arch lich at its peak . After all, it was difficult to destroy these monsters without divinity, and they were monsters that cast a shadow on the material world . However, an arch lich that didn’t know how to use its power was just a skeleton . Veronica proved this by smashing it in a few minutes .

“Did you interrogate him?”

“Of course . I burned him a few times, but he doesn’t know anything . He didn’t even see the warlock’s face . ”

“There is no point leaving him here . Finish it . ”

Veronica’s fire neatly incinerated the arch lich, the former pope .  It was a lich who hadn’t  been made through the right process, so there was no way for it to survive once the body had completely disappeared . In case of another situation, Theodore used the light wave to make sure the lich was gone .

“What about the magic circle? It looks like it hasn’t been destroyed yet . ”

Magic power was still overflowing in the city, proving that Pluto’s Palace was alive and supplying strength and immortality to all bodies in its sphere of influence .  Perhaps the magic circle wasn’t on the top floor? Theodore was feeling confused when Veronica rummaged through her pocket with a grim expression .

“I found it . The problem is that I couldn’t destroy it . ” 

She held a strange purple crystal in her hands .

“This amethyst . . . ”

“It was the core of the great magic circle . No, this amethyst is probably the magic circle itself . ”

“The magic isn’t canceled despite it being separated from the magic circle . Once the crystal is activated, it only exists as the source of power . ”

As a magician, they immediately understood the cryptic explanation, and the two people looked grimly at the amethyst . It was a small gem on the surface, but the inherent power and ominous feeling it gave off made it incomparable to the senior undead . Handling it carelessly could cause a catastrophe beyond the current one .

This was why Veronica said that it couldn’t be destroyed . However, it would reveal the evil intentions of the creator when the magic circle reached its maximum, so it couldn’t be ignored .

“Gluttony . ” However, a third choice existed for Theodore . “This thing, can you digest it?”

- . . . . . .  Silence was the response to Theodore’s question . -I am not weak, User!

Before Theodore could say anything else, the tongue swiftly stretched out and swallowed the amethyst .

 

[‘Nídhöggur’s Bloodstone’ has been consumed . It is difficult to measure the amount of magic power that is contained . ]

[The ritual magic Pluto’s Palace has been destroyed . ]

[It will take seven days to completely digest . ]

[Nídhöggur has noticed User’s presence . It has threatened you for going against its contractor . ]