Chapter 222 214: Breakthrough!

Agares was a demon of many things, but language was one of its abilities.

"Isn't that right? Dantalian?" I nudged the cat with my foot as I made my way to the library. The elective classes I had chosen were mostly all theoretical classes, magic and energy research, dungeon research, archeology and artifact sciences. I needn't go for any of those.

"Agares is a tough cookie, I say. I doubt you're strong enough to defeat him already."

"Is it?"

"Yup, he's a demon controlling a large part of hell and the personal servant of Grand Treasurer Lucifuge, he's tricky. But yeah, he can tell you all about any language in all of the world, that's his authority."

"Eh, I thought you were going to find that yourself?" Titania muttered.

"I will, I will. What do you think I am going to the library for? But if it's faster to bring that demon out and get him to teach me the language why shouldn't I?"

I soon found myself in front of the library.

A quiet spread through all the floors in sight as I stepped in.

"Hide your books!"

"Ah! He's here again! The story of the knight and the dame just released... But I don't mind giving him the book, he did treat us."

"Which fucker said he gave up? The tyrant is back."

Now, now, I guess my image sure was on an upward trend. Not that it mattered. I ignored all the voices and jumped up the stairs. I had to tread through fifty floors, though, so instead of walking up, I started going on a one-finger handstand.

Gasps rang out as I passed the students walking on both feet with a single finger. Not long after, a stout student came around me and started mumbling at a rapid pace.

"My lord, you're here. Should I bring you some wine, or maybe some sandwiches?"

It was the kid I was apparently bullying.

"You're here again? Don't you have a class to attend?"

"Uh… I have taken literary research as my elective…"

"Fair."

I for one had no use of the library after finding the books and deciphering them, so I chose other electives.

The boy followed me up to the fiftieth floor without a word of complaint. Since I was already doing a one-finger handstand, I decided to continue it as I moved toward my personal pile of books. We had to leave a note on top to not move this, and the librarian would leave those books alone.

To think that single old man was maintaining all hundred floors was quite something.

"Carry those books, Catene."

The chains stripped off of my arm and rushed to bring the books over to me. I nestled myself in a corner, placed the book below my face on the ground, and started performing some push-ups as I read.

Catene flipped the page every fifteen seconds for me, just as I had trained it to.

As I was reading through, a head appeared near the book.

"My lord."

"Just call me Eugene, please."

"My Lord Eugene…"

"Whatever man."

"Uh…" the boy perked up his glasses and spoke, hesitant. "Are you really able to read all this?"

"Hm? Weird question. What do you mean?"

"I mean… are you not just flipping through the pages?"

"Do I look like that type of a guy?" I frowned. "Of course I can read it all, this language is about three thousand years old."

"T-three thousand…?" The kid was stumped.

"It took me a lot of time to figure it out. There's also not a lot of older surviving books so I can't trace things back more."

"You mean you figured out the language right now?"

"I can't read all the words, but enough to get a context of things. Nouns are tough, for one. Empirical evidence from the derivative languages says enough, but it is more than possible that I am getting most of it wrong too."

"But it makes sense?"

"It does. Languages follow a ruleset, and as long as the ruleset can have the words make sense…"

"… it can be interpreted as the truth. Amazing, My Lord Eugene!"

"Why did you bring this up?" I asked, still going down on the pushups after switching my fingers.

The boy jerked up to his feet with an 'ah!'

"What here for a second!" He said before rushing away. He returned in almost no time with a very small pouch in his hands. "I am actually the youngest son of a family of wizards in the east, beyond the Atreus empire."

"Oh?" One of those places that were pretty much the empire's vassal states.

He slowly reached into the pouch and pulled out a book that was way oversized for that pouch to hold. Spatial magic.

The boy carefully held the book below my head and flipped it open.

"These characters, lord Eugene. They are the ancient scriptures of our family. There used to be a powerful form of magic in the east. Our family was a pioneer of that."

My eyes shifted from side to side as I scanned the lines on the book. The paper was yellow and frisk, but the book was clearly very well preserved.

The east was a treasure trove of history and culture.

"The words…."

"They are similar to the book you were reading, sir."

My push-ups stopped and my breath was almost stuck. I immediately got back down on my feet and lifted the book with one hand. With a snap of my fingers, the black book I had taken from the marquis popped up in my other hand.

"Meow."

"Interesting, Eugy, interesting."

-Rattle

Dantalian, Titania and Catene all peeked over my shoulders and my head and observed the two books.

…

This.

There was no doubting it…

"Hey, you."

"Yes, My Lord Eugene?"

I tossed them both to Catene and grabbed his collars.

"More! Where can I read of more of those!?"

It was perfect! Characters that resembled both the language I had interpreted and the one used in the book! A clear middle ground.

"Do you have more?" I started shaking him wildly. People around whispered about books and whatnot, but that didn't matter.

"I-I don't! But…"

"But?"

"Similar characters… are on most ancient artifacts my lord. Ah, I can't breathe…"

"Ancient artifacts…"

"Tap out, tap out…"

I let go of the bastard and crossed my hands.

"What elective…"

"Ahak, ahak… for more artifacts, My Lord Eugene?" the boy was down on all fours, coughing out, but still didn't ignore my words. "You can probably find them in the artifact classes!"

I crossed my arms and thought. Artifact classes were bound to have more artifacts. There was also a production unit in the academy, which made the video devices I had used in Deep Down Dive and also the upgraded versions that the receptionist had given me and the one used in the academy's entrance test, but that department was only open to students from their second year in the course.

For us….

"Artifact sciences."

One of my electives.

"Oh, do you want to research it sir? If you need, I can talk to them and get you in! I am a model student."

I narrowed my eyes. "You are in it too?"

"Too? Ah…"

The boy lowered his head in disappointment.

It seemed he wanted something from me. That said, his usefulness wasn't gone. Considering his lineage wrote the book he showed me, I could probably use him.

It was clear he wanted to use me too, after all.

"You, name your price," I said.

"What for…?"

"Bring me all the books and items that are even remotely close to the book you showed me, along with whatever you can interpret. In return, ask me for what you want."

He awkwardly scratched the side of his head.

"That… I have not met anyone who can decipher languages to your level."

That made sense. The people of this world likely did not have the techniques of the modern world. Cognate-based decipherment could only take you so far without statistical-decipherment in play, and even then getting things accurately was a long shot, especially so with languages that might have hints of ideographs in them.

"I'll bring you everything you need! My entire family will support you. So please, even if its a hint, let me try to revive the ancient magic in this book. It is our family's pride that was lost five generations back."

"Great job, bring me some romance books too."

"Romance? Well sure!"

A smile spread through my face.

Perfect. This was a win-win deal.

"You got it."

"Great! should we start tomorrow, My Lord Eugene?

"Are you stupid?" I grabbed his hand and yanked him along. "We start now. To the artifact sciences class!"

"Already? But the classes would have ended!"

"We go anyway!!"

***

"We go anyway, was it, Eugene Hall?"

A sigh left me at the words of the person in front of me.

"I warned you to come to my office straight away after class time, but what's this, you weren't just bunking, but were also running away?"

Standing in front of me with her arms crossed, leaning against the wide desk of her office, was the Professor of Battle Arts, Irina Lester.