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'Come to think of it, she had the distinct white hair characteristic of a pure-blooded Zipfel.'
In the ice pillar, the white-haired woman looked so young that one could hardly believe she was a mage of the Zipfel clan from a thousand years ago.
'Could she be in her thirties? She looks so young.'
Her long, snowy hair was full of luster, perhaps because she had frozen in the absolute coldness of the Myriad ice.
Her closed eyes appeared as if she were just asleep, and it seemed that her shining pupils would be revealed any moment.
The robe she was wearing had no visible blemishes, but it looked like it was made of tough leather, and the staff she clutched, which she had held tightly until she was imprisoned, was an ordinary object without any fancy decorations.
And she had a remarkably clear face.
With an appearance so benevolent that she seemed incapable of harming anyone, not even a small insect.
It was hard to believe that someone like her had been part of the forces of evil that once ruled the world a thousand years ago. It was also difficult to understand how she had ended up trapped in this ice pillar in such a vivid state.
The woman seemed as though she could break free from the ice pillar at any moment and move.
"Is this woman really the former mage of Zipfel?"
"Yes. A thousand years ago, the second master sealed this mage using the power of Myriad Ice."
Talaris said as she touched the ice pillar.
Jin noticed a wrinkle on her hand that hadn't been there before but didn't mention it.
"Is it because of the oath made by the Endorma clan that you mentioned earlier?"
"Yes. You must know that well. There's no power without a price."
As a thousand-year-contractor, Jin knew better than anyone about the cost and responsibilities that came with gaining a second life and a power and potential greater than any other genius of his time.
Of course, Talaris didn't know everything about the thousand-year-contractor.
But she believed that Jin already understood the concept of 'responsibility' when she saw him trying to save the native of Colon.
"Our Endorma bloodline also gained the power of Myriad Ice. We gained an overwhelming power far beyond what a human can possess, but in return, we received a mission to assist in resolving extraordinary phenomena in the world."
It was the first time Jin had heard this story.
'I always thought the neutrality of the Hidden Palace was merely due to their nature and influence. Are you saying there was such a mission?'
It was a story that very few people in the world knew. The promise made by the Endorma bloodline with 'Myriad Ice,' no, with the gods, had a slightly different nature than the typical 'contract' made by contractors.
"What type of extraordinary phenomena are you talking about?"
"If we talk about extraordinary phenomena, the calamities brought by Witch Helluram are the most representative. The previous masters of the Hidden Palace worked hard to stop that woman, and so did my mother."
"You're revealing too much to an outsider, Mother."
"An outsider? Daughter, how can my son-in-law be considered an outsider...?"
"Why the hell are you calling Jin son-in-law..."
"Anyway, most ordinary people don't know about it. If my mother hadn't stopped Helluram, the world's population would have been tens of millions, if not billions, less than it is now."
Ignoring Syris, Talaris continued speaking. Syris sighed, and Jin's eyes widened.
If what she said was true, then it seemed that everyone in the world, to some extent, owed a debt to the Hidden Palace.
"Five hundred years ago, the Holy Kingdom Protection War took place. Even then, the Hidden Palace's swords infiltrated the demon territory and killed high-ranking demons, greatly contributing to the peace of humanity."
Since the first master was chosen by Myriad Ice, the Hidden Palace had made countless significant contributions to the peace and prosperity of the world for the past thousand years.
Talaris herself had sacrificed greatly from her youth to the present to eliminate 'extraordinary phenomena' and was still doing so.
"This woman was also one of those extraordinary phenomena, I heard."
Jin shifted his gaze back to the woman trapped in the ice pillar.
"From my experience with numerous lovers, I've come to realize that you can't judge a person solely based on appearances. Sometimes, someone who looks innocent could be a tough and powerful individual, and vice versa. At first glance, this woman may seem incapable of even killing a single ant."
"That's true."
"Due to foreign invasions, detailed records about her were lost, but even from the records remaining in the Hidden Palace archives, I can say that this woman was as evil as Helluram."
Suddenly, the name of a woman that Jin had seen on the record device of the third tomb came to mind.
-What happened? Did you manage to destroy all the enemy's towers?
-No, it wasn't possible. If there were more mages like Elona, would you believe it? Sylderay. It was terrible; I destroyed about fifty of them and gave up, and then came back.
-What, really...!?
-I fooled you again, Sylderay. Hahaha! You are being fooled again. I can't stop playing this joke when you become a fool so easily.
-What? Are you saying that's a lie again?
-Yes, that's right. Who would believe there's another crazy monster like that in the world, huh? Anyway, you are so silly and cute.
Elona Zipfel.
Even the ten great knights of Runcandel at that time would shiver in fear at the mention of her name and the joke that there might be another similar mage like her terrified Sylderay.
"Her name is Elona Zipfel, a pure-blood Zipfel, but she had never been the patriarch. Other than her name, there isn't a single piece of information known about her. Strangely there are no records about her. However, according to the clues left by the second master through Myriad Ice..."
They say she was a mage capable of wiping out an entire continent.
Talaris continued her explanation while infusing the ice pillar with Myriad Ice's power.
Suddenly, the pillar emitted a light, and several 'screens' appeared all around it.
'Recording devices? Videos!?'
Jin examined the pillar in surprise.
Unlike the recording device left by Solderet, the images that appeared from the ice pillar were not videos but still images like paintings.
Inside these images were scenes of Elona Zipfel in battle or the aftermath of the battlegrounds she had swept through.
Although they were only still images and not videos, Jin felt overwhelmed just by looking at Elona's appearance.
Elona with her staff raised, mountains in ruins, and thousands of humans gathered to confront her...
In the next moment shown in the images, there was no one left alive, only countless blood drops forming rivers and bones. Elona's clothes were not even slightly damaged.
"Perhaps even the second master couldn't kill this woman. It seems she barely managed to seal her using Myriad Ice's power."
"So, is this Elona Zipfel still alive?"
"Some records were lost, but there has never been any record of her being killed. It is said that her time is just frozen."
Suddenly, a chill ran down Jin's spine, and goosebumps appeared on his back and waist.
'What a monster!... She's just sealed, but she's still alive.'
They wouldn't be able to kill her even now.
If it were possible, the previous generation masters of the Hidden Palace, including Talaris, would not have left Elona unattended. And there was one part that was hard to accept.
'Why is there so little record about a mage of this caliber? Even in other historical texts, her name is likely to be absent, with only traces remaining in the Hidden Palace records.'
From the expressions of the ten great knights in the recording device and the traces left by the second master of the Hidden Palace while sealing Elona, it was beyond doubt that Elona Zipfel was the strongest mage in Zipfel's history. Even if she wasn't, her name should have been mentioned whenever the topic of the strongest was discussed.
Yet, Jin had never heard of Elona's name even when he was deeply immersed in studying magic in his past life.
When people spoke of the strongest mages in history, they mentioned the name of Riol Zipfel, not Elona.
In a way, she was a forgotten individual, like Chenmi or the countless people erased from Zipfel.
'Was it Zipfel who erased her?'
The first thought that came to mind was, of course, Zipfel's manipulation of history.
But why? Elona Zipfel was Zipfel's greatest strength at that time. The expressions like 'on par with patriarch' and 'half the full power of Zipfel' found in Solderet's recording device showed that.
'Was it necessary to erase the traces of the calamities caused by Elona Zipfel? Or was her power too overwhelming and uncontrollable? Seeing that she tried to manipulate the history of Temar, it doesn't seem like that was the case.'
Or perhaps something went wrong, and Zipfel itself suffered significant damage while defeating the Runcandel at that time.
Amidst all kinds of speculation, Talaris opened her mouth.
"For a thousand years, Hidden Palace has been hiding this woman from Zipfel."
Talaris had just revealed one of Hidden Palace's biggest secrets to Jin.
The reason they concealed Elona's existence from Zipfel was no other than this.
"If they find out, it means that this woman could become active again."
"A future I don't want to imagine. If a monster like her is added to Zipfel, which is already dominating, the balance will cease to exist."
That was indeed the case.
Runcandel, despite possessing the Genesis knight, Chiron, couldn't surpass Zipfel. Other forces like Vermont, Kinzelo, and Hidden Palace would naturally be absorbed or face destruction if the balance between the two collapsed.
Of course, Elona might no longer be fighting for Zipfel's cause. But that was wishful thinking, and it was an extremely unlikely scenario.
"I revealed the secret of Hidden Palace to you because you are investigating the tombs of the first patriarch of Runcandel and glimpsing into the past."
Talaris believed that Jin might find clues that could 'kill' Elona during that process.
Ways to restrain the extraordinary phenomenon of Zipfel manipulating history were also possible.
Furthermore, Talaris was anxious.
Jin could sense that emotion from her.
"Recently, the seal of Myriad Ice is weakening."
Upon hearing that, Jin looked at Talaris's palm again.
There were wrinkles that weren't there before. Considering her age, having wrinkles was a natural occurrence, but like many martial artists who get enlightenments, she had been significantly suppressing aging until now.
Moreover, the Endorma bloodline was especially immune to the effects of aging due to Myriad Ice's power.
The appearance of wrinkles on her palm indicated that the power of Myriad Ice, which was suppressing Elona, was reaching its limits.
Maintaining her body at its peak had become increasingly challenging.
"Then, how much time do we have left...?"
The moment Jin said that.
Crack...!
A crack appeared in the middle of the ice pillar.