163 The Edge of the Cliff (1/2)
He had anticipated that the day would finally come, soon or later. When he would be forced to reveal the hidden secret to his grandson. The Great Lie -- that which kept the peace in Mulia, even to this very day. Still, he had not expected that the day would have arrived so soon.
It is this accursed 'Eventide of Faith,' nonsense that has ruined my plans. Sped them up past what my schedule's limits... but if this is how it is meant to be, then I will not defy Her will.
Velvund, Reed, and Lu'um were in a place not known to many a Chosen, much less any Mortal. It was an erased location, hidden away from prying eyes. Only those who earned the title of King were privy to the secret location nestled within a remote mountain range in...
Reed observed the massive, decrepit tunnel that had been carved into a random mountain in the [XXXX] province of the [XXXXXX] region of the [XXXXX]. From what he knew, it appeared that the man-made tunnel had been constructed literal ages ago. It was already on the verge of collapse, half-crumbled already and in state of total disrepair.
”You brought us all the way out here... for this prehistoric tunnel? How is this going to solve the question I asked? Are planning on showing us some fossilized remains of an alien creature, or something?”
A day ago, Reed had finally brought up the topic Velvund feared the most and asked a very important question.
”...Well, of course, we're going to save the continent, Gramps. I'd do it on my own if I had to, you know. But that topic's brought up a chance for me to ask something I've been wanting to for a while, now...”
Velvund stroked his chin and said, ”What might that be, my son? What is troubling you?”
”The world's in danger, right?”
”Yes, that is correct. ...And?”
”...And now, more than ever, we need strong, capable people to help us close the fissure, would you not agree?”
”Well, yes... you are right. Every Chosen in Mulia has been rallied to assist in the fight to slow the growth of the fissures. We have been working against this plague for the last year and a half, even before you returned.”
”Right, right. That sounds great and all, but when you say 'every chosen in Mulia,' do you really mean that or is that just a figure of speech?” said Reed as he lovingly caressed his new cloak.
Velvund paused for a moment and then said, ”Yes, we have mobilized every single Chosen currently not stationed out on patrol in the Shadowlands for this cause. It is a world-wide threat to the continent and the Four Empires have responded according--”
”Then why have I not heard of the Four Sovereigns' response to this mounting threat since I have returned?”
Ah. It's finally happened. I can no longer keep it from him.
Valid questions worth their weight in gold. ... I cannot lie to him about it, not anymore now that he has finally caught on.
Velvund bitterly smiled and said, ”...You know, my son, where you to have asked these questions to anyone else, you would have taken by the Dreaming Council. They would have stripped your mind clean and left you a babbling idiot out in the Shadowlands as prey for the Infested.”
The temperature in the room dropped considerably after Velvund explained himself. It was a chilling thing to hear Velvund someone casually mention what seemed like an inhumane execution with what had been the warmest tone he could manage.
What... the hell? Was... W-Was I just threatened... by Gramps?
Lu'um observed Reed and Velvund with an indifferent expression on her face, as if she had not even heard what had come out of the old Alf's mouth. She knew the secret, too, but had chosen to hide it from Reed, not because she was intent on keeping it from him. During their journey across time in Silvermoon Grasslands, she could have to him the truth, but she had decided against it in the end.
She just did not want to be the one to tell him about it and by extension, become associated with that ugly truth as the one who had revealed it to Reed. In any case, the blame did not fall on her at all, since she was not in any way, shape, form involved with Mulia's history past the Great Barrier War five thousand years ago.
Lu'um inspected her silver cloak in silence and thought to herself, ”...That's your business, Alf, and none of my own. You carry your own sins and I'll carry my own. I will have nothing with what you will have to explain...”
Velvund retracted his statement and said, ”Ah, but don't worry, son, nothing will happen to you since I have already whitelisted your name in the Dreaming Council's Book. They won't come for you, but even so, please do me this favor, my son...
Speak of the Four Sovereigns and other matters such as this only in secret, where no prying ears may fall around you. Although you will not be affected, those around you will. They, after all, will not have been granted the same privilege I have given you... You would not want your precious friends to disappear one day, yes?”
A clear warning. Astor, Horatio, and Ophelia's faces flashed in Reed's head and after a moment of contemplation nodded his head.
”Good. I would not you to be beset with any more undue grief than you have already experienced, my son. Know that I tell you this not because I wish to scare you, but because I do not want to see you feel loss again. Not by your own hand, at the very least...”
”Who are these... people and what do they have to do with my... original question?”
Velvund nodded in approval of Reed's verbal maneuvering and said, ”Better.” He snapped his fingers and a sphere of Anima covered all three of them, sealing out all sound inside of the sphere. Even their bodies were hidden as a thin layer of mist formed on the outside of the sphere...