Chapter 98 – The Envoy of the Lutein Kingdom (4)

[Translator – Night]

[Proofreader – Gun]

Chapter 98 – The Envoy of the Lutein Kingdom (4)

A dark figure stood in the center of the audience hall.

“...You!”

Elene’s face twisted in anger.

The being that had devoured and destroyed her kingdom was right before her eyes.

The Tower Master spoke.

[It’s a pleasure to meet you. I’d like to have a conversation with you, if that’s alright?]

[A conversation? Why should we?]

The entity refused the offer.

No, to be precise, it wasn’t a refusal.

It was a pure question of why they should engage in a conversation.

It was close to genuinely not understanding the need for it.

The dark figure, Nano, looked at Elene and Aaron.

[What are you doing? Why are you rejecting us?]

Elene’s face filled with anger at the question.

“How dare you ask that! Why reject you? Isn’t it obvious? You swallowed us up and killed us!”

The Lutein royal castle had been overtaken before they even realized it.

An unknown alien force had replaced all of them.

In that sense, Elene’s anger was justified.

However, Nano couldn’t comprehend her rage.

[We perfected you. Why are you angry? I don’t understand.]

‘Ah.’

Ketal nodded to himself.

‘So, that’s the type they are.’

“You, you!”

Just as Elene was about to explode in rage, Ketal intervened.

“Calm down first, Elene.”

“K-Ketal.”

“You seem to want her.”

Nano didn’t respond.

It looked at Ketal with a clear expression of emotion.

Ketal continued to speak with a carefree smile.

“But it’s strange. If you want her, you could just take her, couldn’t you? Why aren’t you doing that?”

The Nanos could exchange with each other.

When Elene’s movements were halted, the Blue-Green Knights disappeared and Adamat appeared suddenly.

This meant they had exchanged forms with each other.

More importantly, the Nanos had their own consciousness.

No matter what Elene’s will was, forcibly seizing her shouldn’t be difficult.

But Nano wasn’t doing that.

Nano spoke.

[There is no reason to answer.]

“Let’s not be so harsh.”

Ketal said with a bright smile.

“Humans don’t act without reason. Depending on why you want her, she might come with you.”

“What, what?”

Elene’s pupils widened.

She tried to say something, but the Tower Master stopped her.

[Stay still for a moment.]

The Tower Master chuckled and looked at Ketal.

[You’re quite sharp for a barbarian.]

“You want her, but as you can see, she won’t move as she is now. But if you explain in detail... she might come with you.”

[.......]

“I understand why she resents you, but that’s in the past. There’s something more important to focus on now, isn’t there?”

Nano fell silent, seemingly contemplating.

Barbosha swallowed nervously.

After a moment of silence, Nano spoke.

[We each have independent consciousness.]

Nano’s voice carried a genuine question.

[You are born and die in a moment, close to a mere instant. Were you born to return to a meaningless state? Surely not. Thus, you fear and dread death.]

It wasn’t incorrect.

Every human dies.

But they fear that death.

Throughout history, many rulers have sought immortality.

Living their brief lives in constant fear of an inevitable future.

Nano couldn’t understand that.

[If that’s the case, you should have been born without the existence of death in the first place.]

Nano looked at the lich.

[You are an entity that should have died but took a distorted form to avoid death. You are also proof of your contradictions.]

[I can’t deny it.]

A lich is a being that stores its life in a phylactery to avoid death.

An entity that rejects the death it was born to accept.

[It’s not just death. You beings are flawed and incorrect.]

You wish and desire things, but fear the accompanying circumstances and fail to act.

[A human born with a disease who cannot live long. A human who fears gaining weight and cannot eat freely. You are beings full of contradictions from the start.]

To Nano, humans appeared flawed and incorrect.

[It’s not just you humans. This world itself is flawed.]

Things rot and decay over time, and life eventually dies.

This unreasonableness and changing environment seemed like contradictions to Nano.

[But you are not at fault. You are simply unfortunate beings born that way. Therefore, we will make you perfect. You will no longer fear death. You will be able to act as you wish. You will live eternally, not just for a moment.]

Nano continued speaking very calmly without any change in tone.

[This world will maintain a perfect form.]

“...”

Silence lingered.

The Tower Master spoke with a wry smile.

[So, you intend to replace this world itself.]

[We will make the imperfect world perfect.]

[Do you think people will accept that?]

[What’s the problem?]

Nano’s voice genuinely sounded puzzled.

[Your consciousness will continue. What you fear will disappear. You will become perfect beings. There is no reason to reject it.]

Malice without malice.

The words brushed past their minds.

Ketal spoke.

“You seem to lack such contradictions.”

[We are perfect. Therefore, we will make you perfect like us. We are offering you a favor.]

[This is the worst.]

The Tower Master muttered.

It was the worst scenario he had imagined.

Laughing softly, he spoke again.

[One more question. Where did you come from?]

[I don’t know. We were in the place you call the forest.]

[...Humans visited that place, didn’t they?]

[They did. We replaced all of them with our presence. We acquired your knowledge then.]

[...]

The Enchanted Forest.

A forest that appeared ordinary on the surface but held no meaning.

However, any human who entered never returned the same.

The Tower Master was certain.

These were the owners of the Enchanted Forest.

They were the existence of the Enchanted Forest.

Unconsciously, the Tower Master looked at Ketal.

Ketal was looking at Nano with a peculiar expression.

[Until now, we were hindered by strange constraints, only replacing those who came to us... But those constraints no longer exist.]

Nano’s voice sounded somewhat excited.

[We will consume this contradictory world. And we will grant perfection to the world.]

[Translator – Night]

[Proofreader – Gun]