Chapter 363: The Mural of the Ruins

363 – The Mural of the Ruins

Next, I ask Eldia about these ruins. I’d lost sight of it because of the surprise reunion with my parent, but my main objective is investigating why there were jumbled letters from my previous world carved into these ruins.

『Very well, I shall inform you.』

He puts on a haughty attitude, but I still get the impression of eagerness. As I thought, this dragon is itching to talk. He looks at me sullenly as I think that, so I shake my head and avert my eyes, desperately trying to think of something else.

I saw some strange letters in these ruins, so I was super curious. Eldia-san looks cool and really strong, funfufunfufuun…

『…Hmm.』

He points his nose away, looking slightly uncomfortable as he resumes talking… No good, this is no good, I need to be more careful that superfluous thoughts don’t get picked up.

『When I first came here, these ruins were already abandoned. However, Demon Lord-sama seemed to like this place, and would often fly here…』

Starting with that, he tells me about this island. It seems the previous Demon Lord took a liking to this island and these ruins, and would come to visit every now and again.

Eldia moves his huge body to reveal the wall behind him. Carved into that wall is a huge mural, and around it, letters that look like Japanese characters and the alphabet letters are carved. As always, I can’t discern any meaning from the string of characters and, looking closely, I can see a letter that’s a strange fusion of『ら』 and 『る』… Could this perhaps be a completely different language? No, that can’t be possible. Not when they’re all together like this…

The mural looks so abstract that it’s hard to get much meaning from it. A giant eyeball is floating, and six humans are lined up below it. They lack a lot of detail and look rather stylised, or rather each person is only carved from about ten lines, giving them a rough impression. The eyeball monster is just drawn with circles, producing a simple impression.

Umm… Eldia-san, what is…?

『Demon Lord-sama said that this showed the evil god Foren, and the Six Great Sages who opposed Foren. An unimaginably long time ago, Foren descended to annihilate the sky, the seas, and the land. The Six Great Sages consisted of the greatest of each their respective worlds: the humans, majin, monsters, magic beasts, angels, and demons.[1] After a long period of fierce fighting, the Six Great Sages successfully sealed Foren.』

It sounds like a myth of this world. Indeed, looking at the mural, they’re bipedal, but one seems to have a wolf’s head, another has wings, and another looks like a skull from the head up.

The scale is so big that I’m able to just about tell them apart… Wait, this doesn’t have anything to do with my previous world, does it? Careful that my interest isn’t picked up on, I desperately return my focus to Eldia’s story.

…But majin? I’ve heard of ajin, but this is my first time hearing of majin. Plus, I’m surprised to hear there’s a distinction between monsters and magic beasts.

『They are races of antiquity. With the exception of Heaven where angels live and the Underworld where demons live,[2] the four worlds are mixed together, and the distinction between humans and majin, as well as monsters and magic beasts has faded away. The only distinction that remains now is that of humans and monsters. Nevertheless, there is proof that humans and monsters came from different worlds. That proof being…』

Ah… The ability to evolve…

Perhaps annoyed that I said it first, Eldia stares at me. S-sorry…

I ponder the matter as I avert my gaze… Certainly, evolution seems strange. Within the system that binds this world, the meaning of levels changes greatly with evolution. From my perspective, it almost seems like it’s been forcibly attached with how inconsistent it is.

This world has no normal animals. Everything is divided up into humans and monsters. Humans and monsters are linked in that they both have skills and stats, but there’s the difference of evolution and ranks.

Despite those differences, the myth Eldia told me sounds more like a rationalisation by ancient people to explain the inconsistency of the world… Plus, to be honest, the story is too abstract for me to get much from. Glancing to the side, I see my partner nodding off, her head slumping down.

Eldia glares at her, so I touch the base of her throat with my foreleg. Hey, wake up. Eldia-sensei is teaching us history.

She looks up at me gloomily, then shifts her eyes towards Eldia.

『That tale, who’d the Demon Lord hear it from?』

H-hey, partner-san. It might be bad if you annoy him. But contrary to my worries, Eldia laughs proudly, baring his gums.

『A similar legend is spread among the humans. However, my master, Demon Lord-Sama… Heard it directly from the Will of the World. 』

F-from God’s Voice…!? Mistaking my reaction as interest, Eldia snorts in satisfaction.

『There is still more. Because the appearances and way of thinking of us monsters differed so greatly from those of humans, coexistence was impossible. Regarding each other as dangerous, each side gathered their war potential. However, as the four worlds had merged together, they could not become separated again. The humans tried to expel the monsters. The monsters tried to destroy the humans. However, most monsters did not know how to form groups. Though we have great power as individuals, eventually our numbers were chipped away.』

…I have experience of that. A difference of appearance or nature can create a huge gap. Even for me who should have the same way of thinking, just how much have I suffered as a result?

『However that is not all. In order to maintain the seal on Foren long after their deaths, the powers of the Great Sages, now dwell in others. The one who possesses the power of the Monster Great Sage is able to freely control a swarm of ignorant lesser monsters. And thus, a large-scale war came about. The power of the Monster Great Sage came to dwell in Demon Lord-sama, who conveyed this tale to me. Demon Lord-sama is reborn time and time again, destined to overthrow the humans.』

My partner squints in doubt, but I’m not able to dismiss his story out of hand. I see… So that’s what the divine skill is.

【Divine skill [Human Realm]】

【Grants authority to rule the human world. Although the original power is lost, a great influence on the evolution path is conferred.】

When I killed the Hero, this skill was transferred to me for some reason. The skill’s explanation is a bit lacking. But I can see how it matches.

『…Hey, partner, what is it?』

My partner looks up at me, displaying unusual concern me. Wary of Eldia, I lift my upper body slightly so that I can move at any moment.

『What are you fretting over?』

The myth is so abstract and vague that I still don’t feel like I understand most of it. However, there’s something I know now. Most likely, God’s Voice is somehow related to the evil god Foren or to the Great Sages, or is perhaps is actually them. The myth, and the clash between the Demon Lord and the Hero… All of it is farce orchestrated by God’s Voice.

And unmistakably, the world is once again being dragged in that direction.

[1] For those curious, these races are ningen (human), majin (magic/demon people), mamono (monster), majuu (magic/demon beast), tenshi (angel) and akuma (demon). The word for demon is the same as is used to describe the hands produced by the sirens and the witch.

[2] This is the first time hearing about Heaven, but Azalea tells us in c307 that the Great Demon Sariel guards the entrance to the Underworld, and Tolman in c321 wonders if he’d wandered into the Underworld.