Of course, no one knew what the girl was thinking… and there was no need for humans like them to worry about Xue’er’s funeral arrangements.
Ileya simply called Jerry out from the crowd, where he had been comforting Xue’er’s mother.
“We’re very sorry about what happened this time…” Ileya looked at the weeping ratmen, her face showing a pained expression.
Although she was mostly acting, the Lady could still empathize with the feeling of losing a loved one.
However, for someone she had almost no connection with… the Lady couldn’t truly muster up genuine emotion.
“Sigh… as long as one lives, things like this can happen. No one wanted this.” Jerry shook his head slowly.
“It’s good that you understand. Actually… we came here for a purpose.”
Ileya nodded and, getting straight to the point, asked about what she wanted to know.
Jerry remained silent for a moment before giving Ileya a deep look.
“You’ve worked hard to help my tribe before. It’s only right that I take you to see it… Follow me.”
As Ileya suspected, the Ratman Race—or any race for that matter—would never destroy a statue of their faith.
That would be a great act of disrespect. Thus, under Jerry’s lead, the group passed through several caves and arrived deep underground.
Just like the cave where the Giant Tree was kept, this place was dim and desolate yet spotless. It was clear that ratmen came here often to clean.
“That is the statue you’re looking for. Do not damage it or do anything disrespectful. Otherwise, feel free.” After saying this, Jerry tactfully turned around and left the cave.
Ileya stepped forward a couple of paces, unable to hide her eagerness.
Glowing moss was planted at regular intervals around the cave, so while it was dim, it wasn’t dark enough to obscure the objects in front of them.
Of course, in the eyes of a Necromancer like Ileya, this level of darkness was actually quite bright.
She immediately saw the two-meter-tall group of stone statues before her.
These… were indeed statues of the Golden Apple Adventure Group. Ileya had seen an identical set at the Adventurers Guild in the Crystal Capital.
Although the ones there were much newer, they lacked the sense of history and gravitas that came with age.
Furthermore, the statues in the Crystal Capital seemed to lack some of the details found in these ancient carvings.
After all, these statues were much older; they might have even been carved based on the actual members of the Golden Apple Adventure Group.
It was natural they would differ from modern versions based on scrolls that had been diluted over time.
Of course, Ileya wasn’t an archaeologist. She had no interest in those details.
Her only interest was the person standing in the second row, behind and to the left of the Heroic King.
In this stone sculpture, the girl wore a wide magic hat, and beneath its brim was a pair of… pointed ears.
‘As expected!’ Although she had already suspected it, Ileya’s heart still beat faster.
She slowly turned her head and glanced at Ya’qi, who was still holding that boy.
He was also staring at the girl with pointed ears in the statue. His gaze was distant, as if he had fallen into a memory.
The Lady didn’t try to interrupt him. She simply turned back toward the maiden beside her.
“Amisa… who is this?” She pointed at the wizard with pointed ears.
“Lady… if I remember correctly, this person should be [Liliaro Ryserredon]. She was one of the core members of the Golden Apple Adventure Group, known as the [Saint Witch].”
‘Tiyaluo Ryserredon… why does that name sound so familiar?’
Ileya was stunned for a moment. Then she suddenly remembered what her Mother had told her back in that pure white garden under the moonlight.
“Baiteer Yaluo was a name personally given by the first Heroic King…”
‘So that white, rose-like flower was named after the Saint Witch?’
A natural Transcendent… a core member of the Golden Apple group…
In that instant, several things became incredibly clear.
The mystery Ileya had been investigating was finally coming to light. Liliaro Ryserredon… this being had no inheritance of power; she had already stepped into the ranks of the Transcendent at birth.
The reason she had pointed ears was likely because she wasn’t human—or at least not a pure-blooded human.
Yet for some reason, she joined the human camp and earned the title of [Saint Witch]. She had even helped the Heroic King slay the [Ancient Rock Dragon], paving the way for the civilization of the Human Kingdom.
“What happened after that? After the adventures with the Golden Apple Group ended, where did this Saint Witch go?” Ileya asked Amisa again.
“Well… there are many versions of the legend. Some say she lived in seclusion, ignoring the world. However, some stories and bards tell of how the [Saint Witch] confessed her love to the [Heroic King]. After being rejected, she left the Human Kingdom in despair. It’s a very popular tragic romance…”
“Bullshit!!”
Boom!!!
Before she could finish, Ya’qi interrupted Amisa.
Crack…
With a crisp sound, the ground beneath Ya’qi’s feet instantly splintered! The cracks spread in all directions, even reaching the walls…
“Eh?!” This aura forced Amisa, who had been speaking, to reflexively take two steps back. She felt as if her body were about to melt into a shadow.
“Ugh…” Reliel stumbled back two steps, her head spinning. She fell directly into a soft embrace.
“Ah…” Holly was even worse off. With no room to resist, her eyes rolled back, and she simply fainted.
Fortunately, Ileya was close enough to the two of them. She had no choice but to take the burden, catching both of them in her arms.
Instantly, her red eyes glared unpleasantly at the white-haired old man. She didn’t understand why he had suddenly flown into a rage.
He had always harbored a strange sense of resentment toward the Heroic King.
“Calm down first,” Ileya said, frowning as she watched bits of stone crumble and fall from the walls.
She rubbed her temples. “If this continues, the cave will collapse.”
“…My apologies.” Ya’qi immediately realized the impropriety of his actions and withdrew his terrifying aura.
He gave the statue one last look before wordlessly carrying Franlot out of the cave.
‘It seems this guy still doesn’t plan on saying anything…’ Ileya shook her head as she looked at the two people slumped in her arms.
If it weren’t for her unusual soul, she might not have been able to withstand that pressure either.
Unfortunately for him, a Necromancer with a powerful soul possessed a natural resistance to pressure and auras.
An aftershock of this level was like an itch being scratched… it was completely useless against her.
‘However… seclusion?’ Ileya turned her gaze back to the statue.
That meant…
[Saint Witch] Tiyaluo Ryserredon = [Supreme Being] Red-Hearted Witch > [Supreme Being] Crystal Giant Tree?
Then… among the [Red-Hearted Witch] and the [Crystal Giant Tree]… or even the [Saint Witch], which one was the persona and which one was the true self?
Connecting this information to the War One Year Later… Ileya’s eyes slowly narrowed.
‘Could it be… humans did something to wrong the Red-Hearted Witch in the past?’