475 Mystery

Meanwhile, Daneel was still sitting at his desk, conversing with the ancient dragon who had never expected to find himself in this situation.

"So…you want to use the Mad Doctor to blame Ashahell and put him behind bars, and in the process, you also want to remove the Mad Doctor as a threat?"

"Yes. What do you think?"

"That it's impossible!"

As Daneel heard this response, he chuckled, as it really would appear that way to anyone who heard such a crazy plan.

However, with time, he had to say that he had grown into quite the talented schemer.

It was his scheme which had allowed him to more or less win the fight against the Black Raven Empire Spirit, and it was going to be a scheme which was going to help him now, too.

So, he just replied with a confident voice, saying, "Just wait and watch. You'll see. But first: are there any secrets you want to reveal because I trust you now?"

Daneel had been looking forward to this the most, but when he heard Drakos's answer, he had no option but to be disappointed.

"Er…nothing that would be very useful to you. I am bound by very specific rules, you know. You still have to increase the Satisfaction Level if you want to unlock more seals."

Daneel was just about to curse, but Drakos continued.

"However, I can help you with a few things. For example, I could help you with my personal knowledge of formations, and non-essential lore regarding the Empire. And I can also identify the locations of the other Empire Spirits for you. Dragons are beings of honor, Young King, and I intend to earn my keep in your mind."

Hearing this, Daneel couldn't help but silently grumble to himself that his head had become a hotel.

First, it had been the system, and now, it was Drakos.

How many more 'guests' was he going to have before he was done?

…

As Elanev heard that statement from the figure in front of him who looked exactly like him, a fire lit up in his eyes, before he nodded, looking forward to whatever was in store of him.

Ever since that moment when he had left the Kingdom of Lanthanor in the pursuit of power, he had decided that he would never, ever feel weak and worthless, like he had felt in front of his junior brother.

Now, he must be stronger than him, right?

As if reading his mind, the figure in front of him spit out, "Wrong! I know what you're thinking, boy! But it's not possible! I bet that kid is at least an Eminent Warrior by now, or even an Exalted one."

Hearing this, Elanev opened his eyes wide, unable to believe it.

He had been training so damn hard! Ever since he had stumbled upon this weird guy in those woods by chance, he had resolved that he would always keep moving forward in order to be more helpful to his people, and his younger brother.

If anyone on the Central Continent knew that he had been just an Eminent Human a few months ago, they would definitely be shocked and say that he was spouting tall tales.

Yet, this old man was saying that his younger brother had surpassed even his speed?

How was that possible?!

Again, the old man replied to his thoughts.

"I don't know how it's possible, but I do know that it's true. That lad has…something inside him which is benevolent. I cannot compare to it, and if it weren't for the fact that he trained in one of the techniques I left behind, I wouldn't even have detected it. Whatever it is, it means no harm, and it just wants him to be stronger."

Frowning deeply, Elanev looked at the figure and said, "Are you sure you aren't reading my thoughts, old man?"

"No, you're just an open book. I was called Senior Fists of Justice in my time, you know, because I always did what I said."

"That name sucks, by the way."

"Humph. Not as much as your talent. If you're done bantering, go get healed before your wounds start to fester."

"Not so fast. You said you would tell me what that threat to the continent is if I became a Warrior."

Saying this, Elanev sat down on the ground with a determined expression on his face.

Seeing him sit like that, the figure sighed before starting to speak.

"Uh, first, can you change into your true form? It's kinda distracting to see myself. I know you told me it was for some symbolic method of beating my own self to become stronger, but that's hardly necessary now, right?"

Interrupting the figure, Elanev said this, which made the figure say "Fine," before changing form.

A moment later, an old man with a shining head was standing in front of him.

He was wearing a coat of sorts which was open at his shoulders, exposing his chest, and he had a long, white beard along with a drooping mustache.

He looked frail, but he was anything but that in battle, and Elanev had found this out painfully on one occasion when he had mocked the old man's figure.

Using a wooden walking stick that seemed to have been carved from wood that was at least a thousand years old, the old man bent forward and began to speak.

"The threat is the Church of Rectitude, boy, and all it wants is to make this entire continent flow with blood. Why they want to do that: I have no idea. But I do know one thing: they've been trying to accomplish this for many, many years, but this is the first real opportunity they've gotten."

"Flow with blood meaning, they want to kill a few people and take over all the forces?"

"No. They want to purge Angaria, which means killing all those on the continent except for a very, very select few. Think apocalypse, boy."

Elanev sucked in a deep breath as he heard this, unable to believe that those people whom he had seen in the air during their invasion in Lanthanor had such cruel intentions.

"But…why?"

Shrugging, the old man said, "Beats me. Maybe they gain something from it. Or maybe its just for kicks. Who knows? The point is that they've done it to many continents before us, and each time, only a few hundred or so live to tell the tale. Now then, there was one more thing I wanted to tell you after you became a Warrior. Do you really think that it was just luck that you found me in those woods when you were in such a critical condition?"

Frowning, Elanev asked, "Yeah, what else could it be?"

This made the old man furrow his eyebrows before saying, "For once, use that head of yours, boy. Don't you think too many 'coincidences' have been happening around this Kingdom in particular?"

This made Elanev feel quite confused, but he still closed his eyes and started to think about everything he had seen and found out recently.

Slowly, with shock, he started to understand what the old man meant.

In all of his life, he had never been very lucky, but the moment he had been about to die, he had happened upon a strange stone structure that had been covered by vines which had saved him after telling him that the he was the true ancestor of the Fists of Justice Training Hall.

This had utterly shocked Elanev, and he hadn't been willing to believe it until the man, or spirit, or whatever it was had given him an advanced form of the Hidden Kill Fist which he had used to high effect during the Olympics, and during his travels through the continent.

It was so much of a coincidence that Elanev wondered how he had been so dumb as to not notice it.

Thinking about the other things he had found out or seen, he realized that the old man was right.

Tracing them all, Elanev started to make a list.

First, he, a member of the Fists of Justice Training Hall, had by 'chance' found the spirit of the real founder and ancestor of the Training Hall, who had taken him on as a disciple after entering his head.

Second, his younger brother Daneel had some fantastic kind of help along with him that was much more potent than the one in his own head.

Third, Faxul had turned out to be 'real' King of the Black Raven Kingdom, and he had taken the throne.

Fourth, Luther was revealed to be the adopted son from a prominent figure in the Hidden Kill Sect, and he had become the sect master of that sect with the help of some mysterious figure.

How were so many miraculous things happening around those from Lanthanor?

"You're right! So how are so many coincidences happening?"

"So you've finally realized it? The answer is…"

Unable to control his curiosity, Elanev leaned forward, waiting to uncover the truth.

However, suddenly, he found a wooden walking stick flying toward his face, which made him jump to the side with panic.

Rolling on the ground and wincing due to the injuries that were already present, Elanev shouted, "What the f*ck was that for?"

In a flash, the wooden stick flew back to the old man, who leaned on it again before answering with a wise tone.

"That, boy, is why the coincidences are occurring."

As Elanev took on an even more confused expression on his face, the old man chuckled before continuing to reveal something that would have shocked Daneel to the core if he had been present in the room.