Translator: Cinder Translations
...
After silently mourning for his wizard friend and his daughter once again, Aldridge continued:
"In my interactions with Hewitt, I gradually became acquainted with his ancient family, a lineage that has maintained its traditions for over a thousand years—older than the histories of many civilizations. I was pleasantly surprised to find that his family preserved a wealth of mysterious and ancient documents. As I mentioned earlier, wizards are always associated with words like 'mysterious' and 'ancient.' These documents encompass a wide array of topics, including the wars between prehistoric humans and demons, and also the Ruinous Star that I was studying."
"I was thrilled to discover that Zico Hewitt himself was quite erudite and had also researched that mysterious meteor. It felt as if we had found kindred spirits—though my interest in it wasn't what drove me initially, I had invested considerable effort into the study. We happily exchanged our research findings and collaborated to search for new clues."
"Many of the clues were ancient texts that no one could interpret, disconnected from one another, just like the ones I had collected from various regions of the continent—this was normal. After all, civilizations rise and fall; countless brilliant ancient civilizations like Zorv have faded into the annals of history, leaving only buried tombs to testify to their existence."
"However, we at least discovered one thing: this Ruinous Star, as an ominous sign, had been feared by various civilizations over a long stretch of human history across different regions and eras."
"Through our efforts, the once fragmented puzzle gradually came together. We confirmed that each time the star appeared, it was followed by great disasters—devastating floods affecting multiple countries, protracted wars, volcanic eruptions that could instantly bury a city-state, plagues of locusts, and droughts that left fields barren, and so on. You must know that the decline of the Ancient Bela Empire began with a prolonged drought, and yes, the Ruinous Star appeared right before that terrible drought."
"Among the documents we collected, there was a horrifying prophecy."
At this point, Aldridge sighed. "Regrettably, I did not pay much attention to it at the time; otherwise, I would have been better prepared."
"Prophecy?" McDonald looked at Aldridge, who appeared somewhat regretful.
Aldridge spoke in a low voice: "With the tenth appearance of the Ruinous Star, the world will return to the initial chaos, just as it was when it first appeared."
"Uh..." McDonald stroked his beard, becoming somewhat "fascinated" by what Aldridge was saying.
"So did you ascertain what the first appearance of the so-called Ruinous Star was like?"
"We found it."
Aldridge's face turned a bit pale. "The traces of the Ruinous Star's first appearance were right before the ancient wars with the demons."
"In fact, in many human languages, words like demon, evil spirit, and ghost have different expressions and writings, but they all share meanings related to 'chaos' and 'disorder,' originating from the same root. Coupled with the myth of the war between humans and demons—an almost universally shared memory among human beings—we speculate that after the first appearance of the Ruinous Star, the catastrophe of demon invasion occurred. According to this prophecy, its tenth appearance will herald the return of the legendary demons to invade the human world."
Aldridge appeared somewhat dejected. "But as I mentioned earlier, my initial study of the Ruinous Star stemmed only from my mentor's regrets and my academic interest. Even when I deciphered this prophecy, I was somewhat skeptical since it dated back too far—so far that it left only faint traces in human history. However, just four years ago..."
The old scholar paused, and his junior remained silent beside him.
McDonald eagerly asked, "Your 'accidental discovery'?"
"Yes!" The old scholar, prompted by McDonald's question, suddenly exclaimed.
"Four years ago, that Ruinous Star depicted in the ancient texts from Zorv actually appeared!"
Aldridge realized he had lost his composure and took a few deep breaths to calm himself down.
Then he continued: "Initially, it was the court astrologer, Isa Rossi, on duty that day who discovered this star while observing the celestial phenomena. However, he simply recorded it as an ordinary celestial body. As someone knowledgeable in astrology, it was also the first time he had seen a meteor with that shape and color, so he described it in detail."
"And I, upon reflection, actually saw that meteor that night too, but I did not pay much attention to it at that moment. I am not an astrologer, so I lacked the necessary sensitivity and merely regarded it as a common meteor in passing. However, after I fell asleep, its image became increasingly clear in my dreams, ultimately waking me from sleep, and I found it impossible to fall back asleep."
As Aldridge narrated this, McDonald noticed beads of sweat forming on the old scholar's forehead.
"I still remember vividly that I felt as if I was driven by a mysterious force, haphazardly rushing to the observatory in disheveled clothes to review Rossi's recent records. Poor Rossi was startled by my sudden intrusion while on duty at night. According to Rossi later, I threw myself onto his desk without a care for anything, nearly frantically flipping through his notes."
Aldridge's voice trembled slightly, clearly uncomfortable recalling his state at that time, as scholars were known for their calm and composure.
"I meticulously reviewed page after page and ultimately found the Ruinous Star that had become clear in my sleep. The words Rossi left behind perfectly matched the image of the meteor I had seen in my dreams, which led me to think of the prophecy, and all the clues I had sought with Zico Hewitt."
"Our great enemy is about to arrive; the demons are about to invade this world again!"
"I returned to my residence and began to feverishly sift through the research materials I had previously devoted countless effort to and then neglected. Each record was no longer an elusive legend but transformed into chains that bound my body and soul, as if they were calling for my life."
At this moment, the old scholar started to become incoherent.
Aldridge's junior placed a hand on his shoulder.
"My respected senior, calm down! Calm down! You are a respected chief scholar of the Academy."
(End of the Chapter)
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