[Trantor - Helga ]


    [Proofreader - Lucky]


    Chapter 187


    d calmed his mind and knelt before the statue.


    “Zero, why don’t you join me in prayer?”


    “Why should I?”


    “Praying together will double our sincerity.”


    “Oh, that’s true!”


    Zero quickly moved beside him and knelt as well.


    sping his hands, he closed his eyes.


    ‘Lord ta, please appear before me. I want to prevent the chaos in Rehinar.’


    ‘Lord d is earnestly seeking you, Lord ta. As the only friend of His Grace the Duke, please save Rehinar from this turmoil.’


    d and Zero shut their eyes tightly, fervently crying out in prayer.


    But ta did not appear.


    Their prayers continued.


    Thirty minutes.


    An hour…


    Half a day.


    Before they knew it, a whole day had passed, then two days.


    Only one day remained.


    Time was running out.


    Yet, despite their prayers, ta did not appear.


    “Zero, are we even praying correctly here?”


    “Could it be because we’re praying silently?”


    “Then should we speak our prayers aloud with more sincerity?”


    Zero nodded.


    Determined, d and Zero resumed their prayers.


    “Great and mighty Lord ta! Please appear before us!”


    “We humbly beseech the descent of the strongest ta in all the world.”


    “Only you, Lord ta, can save Rehinar in its time of crisis.”


    The atmosphere shifted.


    The eyes of the statue shed for a brief moment before dimming again.


    After a long time spent praying, d opened his eyes and turned to Zero.


    “Ah! I made a mistake!”


    “What mistake?”


    “We shouldn’t have referred to him as Lord ta!”


    “Then what should we call him?”


    “dimir Bu Pavil Legilere?”


    “Ah, you mean by his full name?”


    “Yes! I’ve heard that only grandfather is allowed to call him ta.”


    “Who told you that?”


    “My grandmother.”


    “Then it must be true.”


    d’s grandmother was Desdemona. If she said so, it must be correct.@@novelbin@@


    With that, the two corrected themselves and fervently called out.


    “Holy and magnificent dimir Bu Pavil Legilere, please save Rehinar!”


    “We earnestly beseech the descent of dimir Bu Pavil Legilere, who rivals His Grace the Duke in might. Please, reveal yourself before Lord d!”


    Had their desperate cries reached ta?


    A shadow that had been watching from the darkness stepped down from the statue.


    “You were looking for me?”


    “Wah!”


    "Ah!"


    d and Zero jumped in surprise.


    Their startled reactions caused the shadow to flinch as well.


    "Yikes! You scared me!"


    It was an awkward moment for all of them.


    The shadow, ta, quickly regained itsposure, striking a pose full of grandeur.


    d cautiously asked, "Wh-Who are you?"


    "You were the ones who called me," the figure replied.


    "V-dimir Bu Pavil Legilere?"


    This was d and Zero''s first time seeing ta.


    In the stories passed down, ta was described as a powerful and fearsome figure.


    But the being standing before them?


    It was theplete opposite of fearsome.


    He was… cute and endearing.


    So much so that they doubted whether this creature was truly ta.


    "Is there anyone else who dares use my name? Who would you confuse me with, to the point of doubting my identity?"


    The temple was suddenly filled with a whirlwind of energy.


    It felt as if the very foundation of the temple might crumble under the sheer force of ta''s annoyance.


    d stammered in response to the overwhelming aura.


    "N-No, that''s not it. It''s just that the dimir Bu Pavil Legilere. I know is depicted as an awe-inspiring, unapproachable figure…"


    The tremors vanished as if they had never existed.


    ta''s eyes sparkled, a look of smug satisfaction spreading across its face.


    "Ahem. I do exude an aura that cannot be easily approached."


    Despite the passage of time, it seemed ta still enjoyed being ttered.


    "Are you really the one we’ve been searching for?"


    "I said I am!" ta snapped, then quickly rposed itself.


    "What is your purpose in seeking me out?"


    "My grandfather told me to find dimir Bu Pavil Legilere.," d exined.


    ta studied d closely.


    "You bear an uncanny resemnce to Kane. What’s your rtion to him?"


    "He’s my grandfather."


    "I knew it! You look so much like him that I suspected as much. And the one standing next to you—he must be a descendant of Mikhail, right?"


    "How did you know?" Zero asked, wide-eyed.


    "You can’t hide what’s in your blood. Is Mikhail still obsessed with forging weapons?" ta inquired.


    Mikhail, though known as amander on the battlefield, was primarily a cksmith.


    After each battle, he would retreat to his forge, spending his time hammering metal.


    Politics had never interested him.


    "So that''s why Kane made Mikhail his right-hand man."


    "He''s too old now to wield a hammer," Zero added.


    "That makes sense. He was five years older than Kane, after all," ta reminisced.


    It had been so long ago—at least, in human terms.


    Time flowed differently for ta, so it didn’t feel like much time had passed at all for him.


    "But why is Kane looking for me?" ta asked.


    "It''s because of the internal strife in Rehinar," d said, his voice heavy with guilt.


    As the eldest grandson, d felt responsible. His ipetence had allowed the situation to spiral, forcing his dying grandfather to step in and restore order to the family.


    "If you’re Kane’s bloodline, I guess it’s fitting. He must have plenty of talented descendants. If you’re the one seeking me out, you must be the eldest, right?"


    "Y-Yes," d stammered.


    "Ah, but youck ability—or rather, your abilities haven’t manifested yet. That’s probably why Kane sent you to find me."


    "Could you... would youe with me to Rehinar?" d asked hesitantly.


    "Fine. It’s been ages since I’ve seen Kane. I wouldn’t mind catching up."


    "R-Really?"


    "I don’t lie," ta said firmly.


    d and Zero exchanged nces, their faces lighting up with hope.


    dimir Bu Pavil Legilere was not just any mystical creature; he was a symbol of Rehinar itself.


    If they brought him back to the family, the internal conflict would surely be resolved.


    Meanwhile, back at the family estate…


    "Cough, cough!"


    Kane’s frail body shook with violent coughs.


    His strength was waning.


    He was only holding onto life through sheer force of will, but even that was slipping away.


    "Any news from the boys?" Kane rasped.


    "None yet… It seems Lord ta is deliberately hiding," one of the attendants replied.


    "Tsk, the way to summon that brat is so simple. Did they not bother to study our family’s history properly?"


    "Maybe Lord ta is following your lead?"


    "ta, following me?" Kane chuckled weakly. "That rascal thinks of me as a friend, not a master."


    Though people called ta a "pet," he was far from it.


    ta was the apex of the ferocious species, a being feared as the mightiest of his kind.


    A demon.


    It was a demon that served the Great One.


    In hindsight, ta’s true nature could have been deduced from his name alone.


    dimir Bu Pavil Legilere. Strip away the long name and rearrange the sybles, and you get Bu-ér, the demon of protection.


    A demon of protection tied to a family of guardians.


    Water and shadow.


    Buér was also a demon of shadows.


    As for the connection to blood—it was tied to the Great One he served.


    The fallen angel who descended from Heaven to Hell.


    Lucifer.


    Kane had always suspected as much. He simply hadn’t spoken it aloud.


    What puzzled him, though, was why the one ta served had never shown themselves.


    Perhaps it was because of Kesh Meyer’s atrocities? Because ta and Kane stopped him before Heaven could express its wrath?


    If Heaven had descended upon the mortal realm, would Hell have opened as well?


    Kane didn’t know the full story; he could only specte.


    Lost in thought, Kane was interrupted by a knight rushing into the chamber.


    “Your Grace, Young Master d has found Lord ta.”


    “Summon everyone,” Kane ordered.


    ***


    The family hall was soon packed with Rehinar’s bloodline and vassals.


    Irel Rehinar’s close allies all wore grim expressions, their faces sour with distrust.


    They had mobilized every resource at their disposal to search for ta’s traces,bing through every corner—even scouring the grand cathedral where dimir and Zero had prayed. But they found nothing.


    Yet now, d Rehinar imed to have found ta.


    They assumed he was lying.


    Until—


    A shadow darted toward Kane.


    Hop!


    The shadow leapt into Kane’s arms.


    It was an impossibly cute, sleek, agile tiger cub—not the chubby creature it had once been.


    “It’s been a while,” the cub said.


    “How have you been, Kane?”


    “More or less the same,” Kane replied casually.


    As Kane conversed with the tiger cub, the faces of Irel’s allies twisted in disbelief.


    The ta that d Rehinar had brought back was undeniably real.


    The powerless young duke was now poised to inherit the title of the Great Guardian of Rehinar.


    This revtion threw Irel’s allies into disarray.


    If dimir became the sessor, all of Irel’s supporters would inevitably face purges.


    Desperate, they began their final attempt to resist.


    "Our Sour family cannot obey the Duke''s orders."


    "The Veleno family feels the same. Please reconsider."


    "And, too, cannot agree to this."


    These were all noble families that had recently risen in the ranks of Rehinar.


    Old and prestigious houses, however, followed d Rehinar.


    There was one reason why d''s inner circlecked strength:


    If the nobles built their own power bases, it would bring trouble to their lord.


    To prevent that, the old families kept their influence moderate, refraining from expanding.


    This restraint allowed the newer nobles to grow instead.


    “There are those in Rehinar who deny you,” Kane said, his gaze sweeping over each of them.


    "Let’s kill them all. When did you ever leave such pests alive? Even if your end is near, this weakness is unlike you."


    "Even if we kill them all, there will always be those who rise once I’m gone."


    “Then just crush thempletely so they never rise.”


    “I don’t have much time left.”


    ta scanned Kane’s body carefully.


    The powerful blood mana that once surged through Kane was now dissipating.


    It was barely held together by the flow of natural energy.


    But even that wouldn’tst much longer.


    “This is why you sought me out?”


    ta turned his gaze to d Rehinar.


    A mere 1st ss warrior.


    Among Kane’s bloodline, d possessed the weakest blood rune.


    He was a durd.


    But there was something unique about him.


    [A Blood Pr Body? Not one of the Five Elements that Kane had, but just focusing on Blood mana without anything else hindering it?]


    [I knew you’d recognize it.]


    [Now I understand why Kane wants to entrust the family to that child.]


    If the child’s potential were fully realized, he would wield the most formidable power.


    The problem, however, was hisck of influence.


    Pairing ta with him would resolve this issue.


    “You’re the only one I can trust.”


    “Hehe, am I not reliable?”


    ta chuckled lightly, but then sent a secret voice message to Kane.


    [Kane, you’ve already assimted the five elements and reached 10th ss, so why are you so willing to die? Unlike Kesh Myer, you could ascend to the Celestial Realm.]


    [I’m currently undergoing the Trial of Death. I hope this is the final test bestowed by the gods.]


    [So, in the end, you’ve chosen reincarnation as a human. You haven’t changed—then or now.]


    ta’s voice carried a trace of bitterness.


    As his cryptic words lingered, Kane’s consciousness began to fade.


    “Master!”


    “Your Grace, the Duke!”


    “Please stay with us!”


    Familiar voices, including Desdemona’s, echoed around him.


    But he couldn’t respond.


    Before his dimming vision stood only ta.


    ta, revealing his true form, gazed silently at Kane.


    [Trantor - Helga ]


    [Proofreader - Lucky]