Chapter 109: A New Ruin

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“…….”

Luis furrowed his brows.

What? I’m going too?

‘Anyone would think I was invited.’

He had come across so confidently that he almost answered casually without thinking.

He didn’t like how he had suddenly barged into a conversation with Carl, and now he was even hijacking the invitation.

“…….”

Luis looked at Nerian with narrowed eyes.

Nerian, in turn, stared back without showing any emotion.

A silent standoff ensued, neither willing to yield an inch.

The first to speak was Luis, stepping in front of Carl and blocking him with his body.

“I just wanted to thank Carl for the help he gave me. If you want, we can set up a separate place so the three of us can talk more comfortably.”

“There’s no need to go through the trouble. I can convey my thanks well enough.”

“I’ll set up a separate place anyway.”

“Is that necessary?”

“…….”

Luis stopped moving with a smile on his face.

He had tried to handle the situation as smoothly as possible and leave the rest for later, but the other party refused.

‘Still as greedy as ever.’

Nerian found Luis equally bothersome.

Couldn’t he already tell just by looking at the gang under him?

He had gathered nothing but subordinates who were easy to manipulate at his whim.

Those lacking ability would follow Luis around, picking up the scraps that fell from him.

He didn’t have any complaints since they got along well with each other, but if his influence extended to Carl, that was another story.

‘Even a treasured sword isn’t something everyone can handle.’

If a chef wielded it, he would cut ingredients; if given to a hunter, he would stab beasts.

Each had their use and purpose, so how could he hand a sword like Carl over to Luis?

‘Not appropriate.’

Luis might be superior to ordinary people, but that alone wasn’t enough reason to let him wield Carl.

“…….”

Amid their standoff, Carl let out a wry smile.

‘Did I make them feel too competent?’

He had tried to build a connection with both of them while handling the situation.

After all, both Hopfenheim and the Wolfsburg family were prestigious names in the Empire.

‘In central terms, I could say they’re like the Nangong and Hebei Peng families.’

The family names themselves were top-tier.

Nerian and Luis were late-generation heirs vying for succession within their direct bloodlines.

If one compared them to central powers, that would be accurate.

“…….”

When silence fell between them, the atmosphere turned icy in an instant.

Neither side had any intention of yielding.

Soon, it looked like they might throw a punch at each other.

Of course, Carl didn’t need to step in himself.

A third party was coming to resolve the situation.

“Carl?”

From the other side, Lacis peeked her head out, saw Carl, and called to him.

She approached quickly, then tilted her head in curiosity at the three men locked in a standoff without saying a word.

“Nerian and Luis? That’s not exactly a compatible lineup.”

“Lacis.”

“Oh, Carl. I thought the club meeting was about to start, so I assumed you’d already left the lecture hall. But here you are.”

“You sent a message. I apologize.”

Carl suddenly remembered the message alert from the Archive.

Lacis shook her head as if to say it was fine and then looked at Luis and Nerian.

“You’re not dealing with something else, are you?”

“No, we were just having a short conversation together.”

“Then I’ll take Carl with me. You two can continue your discussion.”

Lacis bowed slightly to Nerian and Luis, then grabbed Carl’s wrist.

As he was being led away, Carl gave a sheepish smile but spoke to them.

“See you later, then.”

“……Yeah, we’ll talk later, Carl.”

“Let’s do that.”

Luis clicked his tongue inwardly.

Still, with a prior commitment, there was no reason to stop him, so he let Carl go willingly.

He could just continue the conversation somewhere Carl wasn’t.

After walking together for a while, Lacis let go of Carl’s wrist and turned her head.

“Did I interfere too much? The atmosphere didn’t look good, so I just jumped in.”

“It was perfect timing.”

“Right? I don’t know what was going on, but they seemed ready to throw a punch at each other.”

“That’s just how they are.”

Carl shrugged.

The rivalry between Nerian and Luis had been well known since the beginning of school.

Lacis seemed unconcerned and nodded lightly, moving on.

She then headed straight to the clubroom.

By the time they arrived, most of the members were already seated inside, barely making it on time for the meeting.

“You’re here.”

“We can’t start the meeting without the next president.”

“Everyone, please sit. Looks like everyone’s here, so let’s begin.”

Carl bowed to them and took a seat in a vacant spot.

Lacis naturally sat next to him.

“Now, the topic of the regular club meeting is the next ruin exploration!”

Thump.

Dean, the club president, hit the wall once, and a sheet of paper fluttered down, unfolding completely at the bottom.

“Oh?”

“A map?”

“This is huge.”

The sheet on the wall was a gigantic map.

Everyone marveled at its scale and slowly pulled their chairs closer.

Standing beside them, Dean spoke with a proud expression.

“I asked Professor Luiden to help, and we tracked down traces and maps of ruins circulating underground. Normally, these are very hard to find, but we got lucky this time. The condition is quite good, too. Verification that this map is genuine has already been completed.”

“Where is it located?”

“It’s the southern Bierun region of the Empire.”

“If it’s Bierun……”

Hearing the familiar place name, Lacis lightly pressed her lips together.

Carl, who was beside her, let out a low murmur of admiration and spoke.

“That’s where the Heroes’ War took place.”

“Yeah, it’s famous.”

“However, we haven’t pinpointed the exact location yet. Starting next week, the people we hired will begin the exploration.”

Carl looked at Dean with genuine admiration.

‘Not the scale of a cadet.’

Perhaps because of his merchant family background, his decisiveness was extraordinary.

Combined with his passion for history and ruins, it was so intense that Carl, who followed the traces of heroes, felt nothing but gratitude.

“The ruins are quite large, so exploring inside will take a considerable amount of time. It’s impossible during the semester, so we’ll aim for the break. Since it’s not guaranteed to be safe and the ruins may have traps or monsters, we’ll also hire guards. Everyone should keep that in mind when signing up.”

“This is exciting.”

“During the break, then. The timing works.”

“Are we putting our names on the society records again this time?”

Despite Dean’s warning about the dangers, everyone seemed full of enthusiasm.

‘It’s inevitable.’

Having already excavated a previously undiscovered Hero’s ruin, they had proudly put their names on the Bavarian cadet society records.

It would count as significant experience if they entered related fields.

Finding a new ruin naturally sparked their excitement.

“Participants only need to prepare their own equipment properly. The club will cover the rest of the expenses. Also, some senior members plan to join, so be aware.”

“This will be quite a large party, then?”

“The ruins are equally large, so we must be well-prepared as well.”

“True, that makes sense.”

At Dean’s words, Rubel nodded.

It was only proper to be thoroughly prepared since they didn’t know what they might discover.

“……Um.”

Lacis cautiously raised her hand.

“Go ahead, Lacis junior.”

“Is it possible for cadets who aren’t club members to participate? I think a magician could be helpful.”

“A magician?”

“Yes. Yuriana, a first-year cadet like me.”

“You mean the junior who is the Successor of the Gray Magic Tower. That’s actually a welcome addition. There will be various magical mechanisms, so we could ask for her advice.”

Dean nodded readily.

The value of a magician was high.

Hiring a magician of that caliber wasn’t easy, so it was welcome if she offered to join.

“Yuriana wants to go?”

“She said she wants to be included next time since she wasn’t able to go to the ruins. She wants to come along. She’s very interested in heroes.”

“Of course, starting with the founder of that Magic Tower, they are a hero themselves.”

“Exactly.”

The founder of the Gray Magic Tower.

The Archmage of 《Eternity》.

It wasn’t surprising that Yuriana was interested in heroes.

“If there’s anyone else you think should be recommended, let me know anytime. We can’t take everyone, but the officers will consider it after the meeting.”

Everyone nodded at Dean’s words.

Since it would be a large party, adding a few more wouldn’t be a problem.

And Bavarian cadets were practically guaranteed to be competent.

‘On my side, maybe Luna.’

Alternatively, taking one of the Black Label members as personal guards might be a good idea.

Just in case of emergencies.

‘Ruins related to the Heroes’ War.’

In the bustling clubroom, Carl crossed his arms and stared at the map.

He was curious what they might have left behind this time.

At the Imperial Palace, 《Justice》’s legacy had been unleashed, and he had obtained the divine sword, Tianlei (Heavenly Thunder).

Considering their tendency to leave something behind, there must be something else left here as well.

‘For me, records are more interesting.’

Carl was more interested in documents or wills that could help him understand the context rather than relics themselves.

Who were the heroes, where did they come from, and what did they fight?

……And, if possible, how to return to Central Plains.

‘Records indicate that all heroes reached a state surpassing humans.’

It wasn’t merely referring to the path to immortality.

Even terms like the path to immortality or godhood were just metaphors; they weren’t truly omnipotent.

They simply could wield martial arts faster and more efficiently than others, able to kill opponents.

Carl had failed to reach the path to immortality in Central Plains, but he knew they weren’t perfect beings.

Otherwise, they wouldn’t have given their lives to him.

‘This is exciting.’

What might the heroes have left on their battlefield?

Thump, thump.

Seira neatly organized the returned books and placed them on the empty shelves.

Her daily routine as both a librarian for the Bavarian library and cadet was simple.

After attending lectures until the designated time, she spent the rest of her time at the library handling librarian duties.

Officially, it was to afford the expensive tuition.

In truth, she had more than enough money saved.

“Serena, I’m hungry……”

“Rachel. Ah, is it already meal time? And here, you should call me Seira.”

“We’re alone, so it doesn’t matter.”

“Habits are important. You might make mistakes if you’re with others.”

“……Okay.”

Rachel slumped at the library counter, complaining about her hunger.

Seeing this, Seira smiled and patted Rachel’s head.

“Just wait a moment. I’ll finish organizing first……”

“That guy also looked tasty.”

“……Him? Who are you talking about?”

“The boy I saw at the infirmary the other day.”

“Carlos?”

“I don’t know his name. Red hair and [eyes].”

“…….”

Seira narrowed her eyes.

Rachel’s ‘tasty’ didn’t refer to food.

Her sense of taste reacted to people above a certain strength level.

‘Carlos. Carlos, Leipzig.’

Even though he had appeared in her sight a few times, she hadn’t paid much attention.

But now… was there something there?

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