bookbashuk Page 211
Page 211
Overwhelmed with emotion, Dane's face was contorted in the firelight.
Even though he has inexplicably obtained a title that even the Warrior of Light couldn't achieve, he still doesn't think he can surpass that flawless hero in a short time!
Whether it's character, strength, achievements, connections, or even appearance, he can't compare to that brave warrior who has grown to where he is today at an incredible speed!
The demons' capture of Mino did not diminish his brilliance in the slightest; on the contrary, it highlighted the demons' cunning and terror, the kingdom's weakness and incompetence, and the strangeness and injustice of fate!
"You want to ruin the reputation of a disgraced hero by slandering a glorious hero of light?!"
Dane stared intently at Thanaus's expressionless face, wanting to confirm just one thing: "Are you out of your mind?!"
“I am clear-headed, Dane, clear-headed more than ever. If you were as clear-headed as I am, you would soon realize that what we are fighting against is not the hero Mino, but the reputation he leaves behind in the kingdom.”
"And reputation is the most fragile thing, easily manipulated, distorted, and alienated without one even realizing it..."
Thanaus raised his head and looked directly at Dane, whose pupils immediately dilated. Dane swallowed hard, seeing the burning jealousy and resentment in Thanaus's eyes: "Tell me, if Duke Moss can become the greatest nobleman of the year, the 'Duke of Light' who has trampled my ten years of effort and sweat under his feet!!!"
"Then why can't I also slander that Hero of Light as a shameless traitor who betrayed humanity, the instigator of all the kingdom's suffering and disasters, a complete coward and traitor...?"
Thanaus's voice was cold, a chill that seemed to seep into the bones even near the blazing furnace. Dane instinctively shivered, then suddenly understood something, and his voice trembled:
"You want to...you want to imitate those things by Tonks..."
"Yes."
Thanaus no longer concealed the deep malice in his eyes, and a mocking smile curled at the corner of his mouth:
"The methods that young pope, who was mentored by the hero, used in that noble selection process actually gave me quite a bit of inspiration..."
Chapter 307 Miracle * Origin
The Kingdom Library, ruins.
The rubble and piles of stones were swept away, and a simple, thin roof frame, resembling a large shed, was erected on the cleared ground.
Beyond its seemingly frail outline, a thin film imbued with a profound and sacred prohibition flows ceaselessly day and night, capable of withstanding temperatures as high as 40 degrees Celsius as well as sudden downpours and snow.
Due to repeated cuts in the kingdom's financial expenditures, the kingdom's library has not undergone thorough repairs after two months.
The majority of the funds flowed to the civilian district that was reduced to ruins on the night the God of All Weapons lost control. Now, that area has regained its former prosperity and bustle. Only the simple library that has been rebuilt before us remains, recording the disaster and turmoil of the past.
Fortunately, the second demon official, who was the Book Demon, managed to preserve the kingdom's 108,000 book reserves under the bombardment of the God of All Weapons.
Although some parts were lost in the battle, thanks to the repair and piecing together of the remaining pages by the kingdom's scholars, everything is gradually returning to normal...
The shelves were filled with a large number of books, which were displayed in an open space that looked a little insecure at first glance.
Therefore, the paladins, like patrolling guards, moved back and forth, stood guard, and stood watch in front of the rows of bookshelves, their numbers several times greater than before.
On the surface, these paladins were protecting these fragile books from further damage and theft, but only the rows of the best-equipped paladins and the plainclothes knights disguised as librarians and readers knew that what they were protecting was far more precious than that—
That is the second heart of the entire human kingdom, the capital of Kur, besides the royal palace!
The successor to the Kingdom's Morning Star, the key to the Kingdom's Night that is close to a prophet, the tree of wisdom that rivals the gods in human form!
The great scholar, Astrid!
The paladins clutched their wooden swords, inlaid with sacred runes, tightly at their waists, not daring to relax in the slightest. Only when they passed through the core of the library, in the closed and quiet room, would a hint of pilgrimage-like reverence appear in their eyes.
The open-air library was eerily quiet; not a single sound could be heard.
Countless paladins held their breath in tension, their gazes fixed on the room reserved for the scholars of Astrid, their eyes shining with an excitement greater than ever before!
Today, not only the great scholar Astrid, but also Princess Kalia, the jewel of the kingdom, the incarnation of a goddess, and the holy princess who saved the entire capital of Kur, is in that room at this moment!
The wooden sword at his waist trembled slightly, and the surrounding paladins were filled with overwhelming excitement.
What merit or ability did they possess to witness such a sacred and pure moment!
inside the room.
"Your Highness, Your Highness, Princess—?!"
Astrid's emerald green hair trembled violently, her eyes filled with fear and unease, and she nearly collapsed to her knees with a thud.
What merit or ability does she possess to be apprehended by the purest and noblest princess among humankind?!
"Don't be nervous, Scholar Astrid," Kalia said gently, having already heard that this scholar of the kingdom had a social anxiety that far exceeded that of ordinary humans.
“I’ve come today simply to seek the help of your profound knowledge.” Kalia stepped forward, gently grasping Astrid’s hands, her tone tinged with a hint of pleading and hope: “I believe that, Scholar Astrid, your wisdom and analysis can dispel some of the confusion in my heart…”
"W-W-I see." Astrid clutched her pounding heart, and it took her a long time to calm her somewhat frightened feelings.
Her face was still somewhat pale. She raised her voice and asked cautiously:
"Your Highness, what do you want to know?"
If there was anything that terrified Astrid more than that Prince Otto, it was this seemingly harmless princess before her!
I heard that during the defense of the capital, she single-handedly intimidated the five great demons led by Kletina! Terrifying! Absolutely terrifying!
Not human! She couldn't possibly be human! She almost got fooled by Prince Ota and his people... Humans are far more terrifying than she imagined. Although Astrid was a great demon, she was overly cautious, swallowing hard as she stared at the gentle-looking Kalia.
Who knows, this seemingly frail princess might actually possess a divine being within her!
"I'll confess! Oh no... I'll tell you everything."
Astrid forced a dry smile and said weakly, "So, please ask whatever you want, Your Highness."
“That’s wonderful! Scholar Astrid!” Kalia’s smile brightened. “You are indeed a warm and kind person.”
Looking around the room where only she and Astrid were, Kalia pursed her lips. She had deliberately dismissed her paladin and head maid Lucy, not wanting anyone else to worry. Looking into Astrid's clear eyes, which held a hint of wisdom, Kalia was about to tell her about the auditory hallucinations she had been having these past few days.
The words were on the tip of her tongue, but then that word suddenly popped into Kalia's mind again. Her heart skipped a beat, and the words that came out of her mouth abruptly changed. Raising her captivating eyes, Kalia softly asked:
"Scholar Astrid, have you ever seen descriptions of 'miracles' in ancient books or some hidden scrolls?"
"Miracle?"
Astrid was slightly taken aback, not expecting that the princess's troubles would be expressed in such unrealistic terms.
As her mind began to work, Astrid subconsciously recalled that as a great scholar who had gradually made a name for herself in the capital, her knowledge and cultivation were not bad. Although she could not compare to a book demon like Svir who was born with a vast amount of knowledge, after lurking in the human kingdom for so many years, her research on human history and secrets was much more in-depth than Svir's.
“Princess Kalia, I have indeed seen some fragmented records in some deciphered ancient scrolls, but I don’t know if they meet your expectations.”
Looking up, Astrid met Kalia's pure eyes, and a slight unease crept over her. She quickly lowered her head again and said honestly:
"Miracles appear in many historical records and legends, such as the praise of the achievements and benevolence of monarchs, the record of some strange phenomena that science could not explain at that time, and various seemingly one-in-a-million coincidences that are actually examples of survivorship bias."
"In my opinion, if what you want are phenomena that seem magical but are actually reasonable, most of them can be described as miracles."
"Or they could be called false miracles."
As she carefully considered her points, shrugging her neck, the timid Astrid observed Princess Kalia's expression.
Seeing that the other person was frowning and seemed not to have received enough satisfaction, Astrid gradually relaxed, certain that her next words would not be regarded as those of a witch or heretic, and she would be nailed to a cross and burned alive.
"But I also pieced together some rather vague secrets from the most crucial encrypted texts in the library..."
The timidity in Astrid's eyes faded, replaced by a gleam unique to scholars, born from an intense thirst for knowledge.
"That might be... a true 'miracle' that even the gods cannot achieve!"
Chapter 308 Should we eat first, take a shower first, or...?
"A real miracle?" Kalia asked, slightly puzzled.
“That’s right, a true miracle.” Astrid nodded, then looked at Princess Kalia: “Your Highness, what kind of thing do you think qualifies as a true miracle?”
"I guess... it's something like a goddess bestowing blessings?" Kalia asked hesitantly.
As a princess of the royal family, Kalia held reservations about many of the recorded miracles, but was unable to articulate her thoughts clearly.
“Very close,” Astrid replied.
"A miracle is something that is absolutely impossible to achieve in this world."
“Absolutely impossible… to achieve?” Kalia murmured, pondering the true meaning of her words.
“That’s right.” Astrid nodded slightly: “Like humans defeating demons, demons annihilating humans, even like that terrifying, uh, I mean adorable Mino hero, who single-handedly severely injured the nine great demons and created countless legends belonging to the hero of light, but that still doesn’t count as a true miracle.”
"Because that is something that is theoretically possible for humans, even if he maintains his undefeated legend, sweeps through the Demon King's castle, and kills the Demon King of that time, it is no different from those false miracles."
Holding up a finger, Astrid concluded, "Ultimately, those are all things that are 'possible' to achieve, and there are infinite possibilities inherent in human beings."
"But.
Inside the room, Kalia was still somewhat puzzled. She looked up at Astrid with a strange expression:
"If that's the case, then miracles simply don't exist."
“That’s the crux of the matter.” At that moment, a surge of intense excitement welled up in Astrid’s emerald green eyes:
"Since it is something that is impossible to achieve in this world, to make it defy common sense and truly come to fruition, we need external force, real external force!"
With great excitement, Astrid explained:
"The power to create miracles is a power that does not belong to this world!"
“Not belonging to this world…” Kalia was even more confused: “Where would something like this go…”
“Yes!” Astrid said with certainty, “Powers that do not belong to this world exist!”
“Your Highness, this is a conclusive conclusion I have unearthed from ancient human scrolls: things from outside the world occasionally intrude into this world.”
"Some of these things are insignificant and will disappear without anyone noticing; but others, once they enter this world, will produce unpredictable chemical reactions, break the world's usual rules, and bring about impossible changes."
"Those can be said to be... the origin of miracles."
……
Kalia remained in a daze for a long time after leaving the Kingdom Library.
A power that doesn't belong to this world, an impossible principle, a miracle... I seem to have a vague concept in my mind, but I don't know how to materialize it.
"It sounds just like Mino's older brother..."
Looking up at the golden sun in the sky, Kalia felt inexplicably that all of Mino's characteristics were very similar to the "miracle" that Astrid had described. Although Astrid had clearly separated Mino's achievements from the concept of a miracle, Kalia felt that all of Mino's characteristics were very similar to the "miracle" that Astrid had described.
"In the end, we still haven't figured out the source of that sound." Kalia frowned, looking slightly troubled.
A gentle breeze blew by.
That voice quietly resurfaced in my mind.