Episode 92.
After parting with Odd, I headed back to the Holy Empire of Epia.
“I’m sure he said he was in the capital of the Holy Empire of Epia.”
Ord told me that it was the capital of the Episian Holy Empire, to be exact, located inside the imperial family.
“But the sun doesn’t set?”
In fact, when the sun finally came up, I thought it might be because it was a sanctuary.
But the more I thought about it, the weirder it was.
“The location of the sanctuary is obviously…”
It was said to be in the basement of the imperial family.
But let alone the sun does not set, the sun is not even visible.
“Well, once you go, you’ll know.”
With vague thoughts, I headed for the Holy Empire of Epia.
***
“Is this… the entrance to the Sanctuary?”
It was right that he was in the basement of the imperial family of the Episian Holy Empire.
The guide told me that it was a sanctuary after passing through the huge door in front of me.
“I heard that it is a place where the sun does not set.”
I asked the guide the questions I had before.
The guide answered me with a gentle smile.
“You know that too. Go in and you will find out.”
“But how long can I stay in this sanctuary?”
Odd said it could be for a lifetime, but that was hard to believe.
“How much… When the ordeal of the sanctuary is over, he will come out on his own.”
“You’re going to come out on your own?”
“Whoops.”
After that, the guide said nothing more.
I looked at the huge door.
“But do I have to open this door?”
“If you are qualified, the door will open by itself.”
If you are eligible
“Are you saying that having an honorary status isn’t enough?”
“yes. An honorary status merely qualifies you to challenge the sanctuary, it does not grant you access.”
“Then, how is that qualification judged?”
“Yes, the person we serve will judge you by your soul.”
If we are talking about the people who are served in the Holy Empire of Epia, there are only two.
It was the existence of an emperor who actually ruled over the Holy Epia Empire, and a god who ruled over the Holy Epia Empire mentally.
Apparently, the existence of God judges my entrance.
‘But I don’t do things like pray?’
I didn’t believe in God
It was before returning.
So, I started to worry.
I was worried that the existence of God they were talking about would not allow them to enter.
“Come on, stand at the door.”
Following the guide’s words, I stood in front of a huge door.
‘Please, my God. Please let me in.’
I closed my eyes and prayed.
that pole.
There was the sound of something dragging on the floor.
“Congratulations.”
I opened my eyes to the voice of the guide.
“Is this… the Sanctuary…?”
It was dark, so I couldn’t see what was in front of me.
“You have been granted permission to enter the sanctuary. And the darkness in front of you is just the road to sanctuary. The center of the sanctuary is different.”
The guide gestured to me as if to go inside.
The fear of getting lost arose because of the darkness where one could not see an inch ahead.
“Can I get a torch?”
“Sorry, torches are not allowed in the Sanctuary. You just have to believe and go forward.”
“yes.”
Well, to be honest, there was no way there could be anything strange in a place called Sanctuary.
So I believed and entered the sanctuary.
As soon as I entered, the door started to close again.
The low voice of the guide heard at the same time.
“I hope there will be meaningful results.”
The moment the door closed completely, I was trapped in darkness.
“It’s really dark.”
The words I uttered were laid low.
I also feel a little bit of coolness.
At first, I walked forward.
“Um, shall we use mana?”
I decided to figure out the surroundings by spreading mana.
Gradually spread mana.
But I couldn’t figure it out differently than I thought.
“Is the mana dissipating, or is there no end in sight?”
I was trapped in the great darkness.
***
Epinia contacted the Mycenaean Empire.
And soon after, they boarded a carriage sent by the imperial family.
Ephinia stared out the window endlessly in the carriage.
“Thinking about it again, why did you leave without a word? Can you say goodbye?”
The coachman responded to Ephinia’s self-talk.
“yes?”
“it’s nothing.”
After shaking her hand at the coachman, Ephinia looked out the window again.
Soon, something familiar appeared in Ephinia’s field of vision.
“Stop the wagon right now.”
“yes?”
“Stop the wagon!”
The carriage stopped, and Ephinia immediately got out of the carriage.
Ephinia said towards the thick forest.
“Do you?”
“Wow!”
Har came out of the forest.
The escort next to Ephinia pulled out a knife, but Ephinia stopped it.
“He is my friend.”
Har was embraced in Ephinia’s arms.
Ephinia stroked such Har.
“Harya, where is Suhar going, are you alone like this?”
“Grrr…”
Ephinia felt insecure for some reason at Haru’s frightened appearance.
“For now, get in the carriage.”
When Epinia opened the carriage door, it was Har who got into the carriage with familiarity.
The escort next to Ephinia asked Ephinia.
“What do you mean, friends with that beast?”
“Exactly, a friend… an animal kept by a friend.”
“Then, where is that friend going…?”
Epinia pondered for a moment.
Was there something urgent enough to leave Haru like this?
Or did he leave Har like this because he believed in himself?
Still, it felt like the uncomfortable feeling was gone.
‘If it’s the former, it’s understandable that you can’t say goodbye to me, and if it’s the latter, it means that you trusted me in the end.’
Epinia replied with a soft smile at Howie.
However, it was an escort whose meaning was unknown.
“Now, let’s start again.”
Ephinia climbed into the carriage, and the escort also took a seat next to the coachman.
Epinia’s chariot headed for the capital of the Mycenaean Empire.
‘As long as I have Har, he will definitely come back to me.’
For some reason, it was Epinia that made me feel better.
***
I’m lost in the dark
“Is it true that I am still moving forward?”
I lost my direction in the darkness where I couldn’t see any light.
The fear was overwhelming.
“Ah, but you can just go.”
It wouldn’t be a prison called Sanctuary.
I had faith that there would definitely be an end to this road, and that at the end the sanctuary I could think of would await.
After that, I felt more and more comfortable.
“Anyway, this is also a problem.”
It is not difficult to keep walking.
But I have nothing in my hand.
All he had was a single sword.
“There must be water and food.”
I was worried before coming in about it.
But the guide said.
– You don’t have to worry. The sanctuary has endless springs and many kinds of feasts.
From nob le mt l. co m
No matter how much I thought about it, I couldn’t see anything like that.
Or is it that you can eat food only when you reach the end of this road?
I haven’t been hungry yet, so I’m glad I was unhappy.
“aaagh!”
I shouted out loud.
It was in the hope that an echo would resound or someone else in the sanctuary would discover it.
“The echo doesn’t ring, and no answer comes from anyone.”
Well, it doesn’t matter.
I didn’t think that a sword master would die in a place like this.
“More than that…”
It was very different from what I thought of as a sanctuary.
The sanctuary was thought to be a place overflowing with divine power.
However, contrary to his thoughts, in the darkness, he did not feel as much divine power as dust.
“Isn’t the sanctuary the same?”
I wanted to believe that there was no divine power on the way to the sanctuary.
If not, there is only one way left for me to do it.
‘Accepting demonic energy and being reborn as a half-body.’
I continued to walk with hope.
It’s something you can’t go back to now.
Then, suddenly, hunger came.
“You’re about to get hungry.”
The moment I heard a sound in my stomach, a bright light appeared.
“Could that be…?”
You mean inside the sanctuary?
Like someone possessed by something, I approached the bright light.
And when I entered the place where the bright light was emitted, the scenery around me changed dramatically.
“Paradise on earth…”
It’s hard to believe, but the sun was rising in the sky.
The green grass was spread out, and clear spring water was flowing.
There was a small hut-like house next to the spring water.
A delicious smell wafted from the house.
“if?”
I went into the cabin
And I checked the food on the table.
“feast.”
Food that can be described in one word.
I sat down and ate the food on the table.
All of them tasted like heavenly flavors.
“It’s really delicious.”
I ate enough to fill my stomach, but there was still a lot of food left on the table.
“I need to drink some water before cleaning up.”
I left the hut and drank water from the spring.
Even the water was delicious.
Back at the cabin, I couldn’t help but be surprised.
“Is it gone?”
I was so taken aback that I thought I might have been possessed.
The food was neatly put away like a lie.
As if it wasn’t there in the first place.
“This is amazing.”
The comparison of sanctuary to heaven began to make sense.
If I were to choose a place to live in the future, I immediately thought that this would be the place.
But this was close to impossible.
“Because there is no second chance in the sanctuary.”
It is impossible to stay here indefinitely.
He had to rise to the level of a demigod and stop Veles.
So, I had to leave this place someday.
“It is unavoidable.”
Veles is the enemy of my later life.
If Veles is not stopped, mankind will perish.
And I didn’t want to see humanity perish.
“Um…but…”
It was a space where divine power was still unfeeling.
Concerned, I thought I wanted to go outside for a while and move my body.
I immediately moved my body and left the house.
And I checked the scenery that was different from before.
“A training ground?”
Outside has changed once again.
A place for knights to train.
“Could the sanctuary become the place I thought it would be!”
The first Sanctuary was exactly what I had imagined.
It made sense.
After returning home, I thought of Sanctuary, the original paradise on earth.
When I opened the door, it changed to the sanctuary I saw when I first saw it.
“I don’t know what the principle is, but it’s really amazing.”
In fact, I thought it might be a paradise wrapped up as a sanctuary.
I went back home and opened the door thinking about the training ground.
“I have to think while swinging the sword.”
Swinging a sword now doesn’t help me much.
But the habit was scary.
His head turned better when he swung his sword than usual.
Thinking of the situation I was in, I started swinging my sword.
***
He swung his sword until he was covered in sweat.
There was no discomfort in swinging the sword because a pleasant wind blew whenever he was exhausted.
“Hmm… I don’t think it’s time for this.”
From nob le mt l. co m
No matter how comfortable this place is, I had a goal.
It was impossible to stay here forever.
“You must find the divine power.”
This is a mysterious place, but I didn’t feel the divine power.
I went home
And I found a letter I had never seen before on the table.
It was something I hadn’t seen before.
“if···?”
the guide said
There are trials in the sanctuary.
I guessed that it might be a letter with the ordeal written on it.
I decided to check the letter right away.