Chapter 289: 289 Reiger’s decision
That night.
Reiger sat on the edge of the bed, wiping his damp hair with a towel after a bath while looking at the beast-skin map he held in his hands.
His gaze first fell upon the golden sword held by the queen at the forefront of the altar, leading the masses, and then shifted to the cube on the altar, akin to a magic cube, where he sighed softly after a long while.
"Ancient magic civilization... huh?"
The magic civilization that had perished eleven thousand years ago seemed to have left behind many mysteries, many secrets.
And he, whether by fortune or misfortune, seemed to have developed a connection with this once prosperous ancient magic civilization.
Liz, who had come to his side bearing the sword of Moslo, becoming his attendant.
The divine artifact he carried with him, which he had found in the royal palace’s treasury, the Meloai God.
Then there was the dimensional magic cube that caused him to come to this world and gave him a second chance at life.
All these things obviously had significant ties to that ancient magic civilization.
Reiger felt as if there were an invisible hand behind him, orchestrating everything, drawing all things pertaining to that civilization to his side.
Truth be told, this feeling was not a pleasant one.
"Knock knock knock..."
Just as Reiger was lost in thought, someone suddenly knocked at the door.
"Who is it?"
Reiger snapped back to reality and asked instinctively.
"I, I am Liz, master."
Liz’s distinctly nervous tone immediately rose from outside the door.
"Liz?"
Reiger wasn’t surprised by Liz’s arrival.
After all, the little princess was surely as troubled as he was.
"Come in."
Reiger called out to Liz outside the door.
"Ex, excuse the intrusion."
Liz shyly pushed the door open and walked in from outside.
Tonight, the little princess wasn’t clutching her sword as usual, and she dressed unusually coolly.
Seemingly like Reiger, she had just finished bathing not long ago, her pale grey hair that reached the bends of her knees still releasing a trace of moisture. She also emitted a fragrance and heat from her body, stirring an urge to act.
The delicate figure of Her Highness the princess, not only fresh from the bath and dressed so coolly but also as if she had already gone to bed yet couldn’t sleep, suddenly running to someone else’s room, this scenario, undeniably, was provoking wild thoughts.
Especially when the little princess possessed a stunning beauty and a figure that was excessively good-looking, even Reiger couldn’t help but glance at her chest a few times, feeling a bit thirsty.
However, the little princess did not grasp the extent of the impact that her attire could have on the opposite sex and appeared heavy-hearted.
"I’m sorry, master." Liz said to Reiger in a soft voice, with tearful eyes, "I just can’t sleep."
This girl, she even blurted out a line that could flawlessly slay any man.
If Reiger wasn’t well aware that Liz was a sheltered young lady, innocent of the world and unaware of such implications, he might have got the wrong idea, thinking that she had purposely come to warm his bed.
"Take a seat."
Reiger quickly suppressed some of the inappropriate thoughts in his mind and said to Liz.
However, no sooner had he spoken than he regretted it.
"O-okay."
Liz nervously made her way over to Reiger and sat down next to him.
And Reiger was currently sitting on the edge of the bed.
Meaning, Liz sat next to Reiger, joining him on the bed.
"......"
Reiger fell silent.
Was this girl... really not doing it on purpose?
"Master."
At that moment, Liz spoke up.
She hung her head low, fiddling with her hands, and with some hesitation but also a hint of questioning, she asked Reiger.
"Master, why are you investigating the Hidden Land and Moslo’s matter?"
The first doubt and question that arose from Liz were expectedly these.
Reiger finally calmed the fanciful thoughts in his mind, settling down.
"Why?" Reiger smiled at Liz and said, "Do you think I don’t trust you and that’s why I’m investigating you?"
"No, no!" Liz immediately shook her head in panic, repeating, "I didn’t think that!"
"I know, I was just saying," Reiger signalled for Liz not to be nervous and continued, "The reason I’m investigating these matters is because they are not completely unrelated to me."
As he spoke, Reiger passed the beast-skin map to Liz.
"This is the sword of Moslo, right?"
Reiger pointed to the sword held by the queen in front of the altar.
"Yes."
Liz nodded her head.
This beast skin map had always been by Liz’s side, and she had looked at it many times, naturally recognizing the glittering golden sword depicted on it as Moslo’s Sword.
However, she had never considered before what it meant for Moslo’s Sword to appear on this beast skin map.
There was no helping it; Liz had always regarded the beast skin map as a somewhat special painting, never questioning its origin, or what the scenes it depicted were all about.
It went without saying that Liz was also unaware that this scene was a record of the ancient magic civilization from 11,000 years ago.
Now thinking about it, Liz realized that this beast skin map might also be a product of the ancient magic civilization; at the very least, it should be a part of history recorded in ancient ruins and sites like the previous mural rubbings.
And Reiger was the second person, apart from herself, who could see this part of history.
This, in itself, was enough to explain a lot.
"Then do you know what this is?"
Reiger pointed to the cube resembling a magic cube that was being worshiped on the altar.
"What is this?"
Liz looked puzzled, clearly never having thought about this question before.
"I want to know too." Reiger sighed and said, "This thing is now on me, and it’s very important to me; it has had a huge impact on my life."
Reiger finally revealed the existence of the dimension cube to someone else.
He hadn’t planned on keeping it a secret forever. Whether it was Loki or Yuri, if they were to ask about the secrets appearing on him and wanted to get to the bottom of it, Reiger was willing to trust them and be honest with them.
So, Reiger always thought that the first person to know about the existence of the dimension cube on him would either be Yuri or Loki.
He hadn’t expected that the first person to become aware of the dimension cube’s existence would be this innocent little princess who had been sent to serve as his Attendant.
"This?"
Liz looked at the magic cube on the beast skin map, her face showing an expression of disbelief.
Even though she didn’t know what that cube was, the mere fact that it was enshrined on an altar and worshiped by myriad people showed that it was definitely not something ordinary.
And now, this thing was on her master’s person?
No wonder the master could see the things painted on the beast skin map; it turns out he, like her, possesses a mysterious treasure that seems quite important in the ancient magic civilization.
Upon realizing this, Liz’s first feeling was not something else but joy.
At the very least, it proved she was not alone, not having to bear the secret history she learned today by herself.
Seeing that Liz had suddenly relaxed, Reiger also gave a slight smile.
"I want to investigate the Hidden Land and your Moslo; the reason lies right here." Reiger revealed the truth to Liz, "I want to know what this cube is, where it comes from, and why it appeared on me."
"It may relate to my entire life, to my past, and also to my future."
"The beast skin map you brought undoubtedly tells me where I should start looking for these clues."
"That’s why I had Yuri help me investigate the Hidden Land you mentioned, and your Moslo’s Sword."
All signs were suggesting that Liz’s origin, like Reiger’s, was not as simple as it seemed on the surface.
Seemingly just an illegitimate daughter the King had outside, she was born with Moslo’s Sword and the beast skin map by her side; the grandmother who raised her also seemed to know something about Liz’s origins enough to let her take the beast skin map and seek out the so-called Hidden Land—all these were telling others that Liz’s background was not simple.
Especially when both Moslo’s Sword and the beast skin map were likely products of the ancient magic civilization, and even Yuri, a Marquis of the Kingdom of Genass, couldn’t find a hint of the location of the Hidden Land, Liz’s identity had suddenly become enigmatic.
How could Reiger not investigate, when the beast skin map which she carried with her depicted the existence of the dimension cube?
"So, that’s what it is..."
Liz finally understood why Reiger was investigating the Hidden Land and Moslo’s Sword.
It wasn’t because he wanted to know her origins or that he didn’t trust her, but because it was related to him and was very important.
This made Liz feel even more at ease.
At this point, of course, Liz could not fail to perceive that there was a great secret concerning her own origin.
After learning a little information about Moslo’s Sword and the Hidden Land from Yuri, Liz had been feeling very uneasy, very anxious, not knowing what to do.
Lost.
Confused.
Fear of the unknown.
All such emotions assaulted Liz’s still-young heart, making it impossible for her to sleep.
That was why she couldn’t help coming over to find Reiger, hoping to find some comfort.
Who would have thought that Reiger would provide not just comfort but also empathetic companionship?
This undoubtedly gave Liz a great sense of security, no longer feeling lost and anxious.
Because this was not just about her alone.
"Then... what does the master plan to do?"
Liz asked Reiger this question.
In response, Reiger closed his eyes for a moment and then opened them.
He did not answer immediately but silently took out a map and a rubbing of a mural.
This was what Yuri gave him after explaining everything.
Reiger looked at the place on the map marked with a red ’X’ and made up his mind.