Echoes of the Past

Chapter 40 Nan'an is the miracle we need

El Deer Manor, on the outskirts of Twin Crown City.

Calling it a manor is not an accurate description.

The main house of Erlu was just a three-story stone building with rough, exposed stone walls bearing deep and shallow marks of wind erosion.

The three or four accompanying warehouses are low-ceilinged.

Pastures are scattered all around, with flocks of sheep and cattle intently grazing on the grass.

The only thing that could be called a scenic spot was the expansive lake behind the mansion.

The lake shimmered with tiny golden lights in the afternoon sun, and when there was no wind, it was like an eye reflecting the fields, precise and clear.

However, this stunning lake view is not exclusive to Elu.

Looking into the distance, several distinctive castle towers stand majestically on the opposite bank.

If no one points it out, a passerby would probably never imagine that this unremarkable building is the oldest and most experienced headquarters of the Elruz, where the Elruz are dealt with the most nightmares.

Contrary to most people's expectations of the heavily guarded and elusive Ellu base, there weren't even any "no entry" signs around it.

The only security came from the guards and knights who served as shepherds within the manor.

The raven greeted the diligent shepherd knights and personally fed the flock some hay.

As he watched the gentle water buffalo leisurely chewing their food, he seemed to remember something. His cold, hard face softened, and he couldn't help but rub his large horns, which were almost identical to someone else's, before clapping his hands and stepping into the mansion.

Although the exterior walls of the building are mottled and old, the interior is surprisingly clean.

The marble floor was as smooth as a mirror, clearly reflecting people's shadows and the patterns on the ceiling.

The raven's boots stomped on it, producing a regular and clear echo.

He walked up the stairs to the third floor and pushed open the heavy wooden door at the far end.

Scrolls and books were neatly stacked on the floor on both sides of the desk, leaving only a narrow path for two people to pass through.

On the only table in the center of the spacious room, there were two dolls that had been dismantled into pieces.

A handsome man with flowing blond hair glanced up briefly before looking down again.

The crow carefully avoided the pile of books on the ground, making "tsk tsk" sounds.

He walked straight to the tightly closed floor-to-ceiling curtains on the balcony and ripped them open with a "whoosh".

The afternoon sun of midsummer burst in like a dam breaking, instantly dispelling the darkness in the room.

On the display shelves, the doll's limbs and organs, preserved in a magical potion, refracted countless fine light trails under the strong light, illuminating even the dust particles suspended in the air.

As darkness faded, the blond man sighed and put down the doll in his hand.

"Guen, I've always suspected that you actually have vampire blood."

Gunn Palka knew that the puppet research was doomed, so he simply placed the two elf puppets on the ground.

"Does appearing before me after so long mean you have to cause trouble?" He looked up, his pale golden eyelashes trembling slightly in the light.

"Is asking you to get some sun considered misbehaving?" Raven leaned against the bookshelf opposite, arms crossed. "Ever since you were little, you've liked to lock yourself in a dark corner, reading with the crystal chandelier on. Didn't anyone tell you that's bad for your eyes?"

"Bewildering Raven, I am 90 years old this year."

"It doesn't stop me from holding you and teaching you when you were little," said the crow. "There are no outsiders here, so it won't affect your reputation among girls."

It's hard for ordinary people to imagine that Huoya, who is difficult to get along with in most people's eyes, would have such a style of conversation in private.

Gunn was already used to it, and he began rummaging through the scrolls at his feet.

"Couldn't we just hire a court clerk to manage it?"

"Everything here is chaotic yet orderly." As he spoke, Gunn pulled out a thick stack of documents and placed them in front of the Raven.

The crow straightened its collar, leaned forward, and began to flip through the pages: "What does this have to do with me?"

"During your absence from the Double Crown, the Senate received a total of 11 charges against you, eight of which occurred after your arrival in Kren. The number of people accused is approaching one hundred."

Upon hearing this, Huoya listlessly tossed the document aside, scattering the papers across the table. He leaned back in his chair, his gaze fixed on the shimmering lake outside the window.

Gunn took out the list that had been laid out beforehand and glanced at it: "The more eye-catching ones are: condoning and protecting potential sources of pollution from the Nightmare God who attacked Arell, providing excessive treatment based solely on personal likes and dislikes, having private dealings with the Living Corruptor, and showing contempt for the Senate."

The crow clapped its hands: "That's enough to send me to the stake."

"I refuted the accusations against you in the Senate, but there is still a lot of controversy surrounding Suiyue." Gunn pulled out another document and handed it over. "You may not know, but not long ago, Suiyue first repelled the attack of the Living Eclipse on the Tearfire students, and then killed six Living Eclipses alone on the main road of the Sickle Water Canyon."

"This seems to prove that my judgment of people is as reliable as ever."

"If you only look at the battle record, I'll also admire Suiyue's ability, but wouldn't you like to see the detailed report?"

The crow turned the page in confusion.

"hiss……"

Even a seasoned shrewd raven was stunned the moment he saw the messenger's description.

He pulled out the rotting skull from the fleshy monster formed by necromancy.

He grabbed the zombie's mangled body and beat it.

Scorpion, the on-site producer.

It pierces through the eroding chest, seizes the spine, breaks it to use as a weapon to shatter the heart, and churns the chest cavity into a complete mess.

There were obvious signs of headhunting on the body.

Compared to these operations, the "bending the living spine at a 90-degree angle" mentioned at the end of the report, made into a folding model, can be considered a merciful end.

"These things have nothing to do with Suiyue herself." Bewitching Raven closed the document, her voice calm. "It was the work of her summoned creatures. Besides, even today, I would still kick the head of the Living Eclipse like a ball."

Gunn knew that the Raven could do it; if he were a few decades younger, he would have pissed on it again.

"Very well, now we'll discuss the summoned creature named Nan'an. Is he truly a Heroic Spirit?"

"You have the right to browse the Gray Star Era's collection of books, but you shouldn't have asked this question," the Raven warned. "Among the Heroic Spirits, there are special individuals who are inclined towards assassination and berserk behavior; their cruel and bloody combat skills are consistent with their lives."

"I know, but I must remind you, Nan'an could also be an evil spirit." Gunn stared at his friend. "Summoning rituals don't always follow the summoner's wishes. Even in the Gray Star era, there were instances of distorted summoning requirements, let alone now."

The crow stroked its chin and fell silent.

"Suiyue is only at level 3. With her limited magical capacity, even if she summons a powerful creature, how could she possibly unleash its full power? Look at her record: she easily takes on ten opponents at once, and the Aging Demon Eye can only fail to achieve anything. She is ravaging the Living Eclipse in a way that we cannot understand. It's unbelievable."

Seeing that the crow remained silent, Gunn tapped the table lightly.

"The way you handled Nan'an Suiyue's matter is very unlike you... What made you complete the selection without further assessment? You were too hasty. If it weren't for a group of people speaking with such certainty, I wouldn't even believe that you directly promoted her to the position of head of the Keren region."

Gunn took a deep breath: "Tell me the basis for your judgment, and why you did it this way. I can convince myself when I and the Senate make up reasons."

"While everyone else is fleeing, Suiyue is charging towards the Living Eclipse. Does that count?"

"That only proves Suiyue's character, but what about Nan'an's?" Gunn glared at Huoya, unable to resist slamming his fist on the table. "I can find examples of summoned creatures influencing summoners in Gray Star's literature too!"

"Nan'an and Suiyue saw the tower in the black fog."

"Tower, what tower?"

Gunn didn't react for a moment, his tone tinged with annoyance.

But as he carefully examined the crow's face, which had somehow become serious, he suddenly shivered.

He casually reinforced the soundproofing array, while simultaneously raising his voice to release the trembling deep within his heart.

"Was 'that thing' ever seen in the mysteriously vanished black mist of Kren?"

"What Nan'an and Suiyue were thinking was reflected in the image. According to them, after temporarily repelling that thing, they saw the tower while fleeing."

Gunn swallowed hard and couldn't help pacing in the cramped space.

He turned around abruptly: "Vahdine, he..."

The crow nodded: "The reply was that she did indeed sense the auras of two beings in that vicinity. The one with horns was full of blood energy, and the other... she couldn't quite feel it."

"Not realistic?"

"Vahdine relayed her exact words: 'Like a cloud, so warm, I want to hug it.'"

Guen could not hide his shock.

He kept rubbing his cheeks, savoring the short, childlike comment, as if it contained a profound mystery worth pondering repeatedly.

"Now I understand... Why didn't you tell me beforehand? Do you know how difficult it was for me in the Senate?" Gunn couldn't help but complain.

"What good would it do to inform them in advance?" the Raven retorted. "Of all these matters, which one can be discussed openly?"

Gunn was speechless.

The tower, she, and everything that Nan'an Suiyue had faced were all top secrets of Solitz, known only to the highest-ranking chiefs in the Senate.

"Let me tell you something else. As soon as Nan'an Suiyue left that area, the black mist showed signs of dissipating."

Gunn's eyes widened little by little.

There were just too many things that shocked him today.

The crow slowly got up, strolled to the balcony, gazed at the shimmering lake, and smelled the moisture brought by the gentle breeze.

Gunn silently processed the massive amount of information, then looked at the retreating figure of the Bewitching Raven and asked.

"Your application to access the Gray Star documents is related to Southampton, isn't that right?"

"It seems we've received permission. Let's go."

It wasn't until Gunn was put on the carriage that the Raven revealed the nameless "nerd" to his friend.

Gunn lowered his eyes and pondered for a moment, and fine beads of cold sweat appeared on his forehead.

"Stop the car." His voice suddenly tightened. "Turn around and go back immediately!"

He grabbed Crazy Crow's arm abruptly: "Are you crazy? This is a classic case of cognitive interference, a clear precursor to contamination! Crazy Crow, I'm going to put you through a velvet test right now."

Before the words were finished, the unmanned Pegasus sensed the commotion inside the carriage and let out an uneasy neigh, causing the carriage to shake and sway.

The chaotic struggle ended with Gunn being pinned to the forehead by a Windgrass Crystal from a Bewitching Raven.

The cool crystals clung to my skin, their pale green light flowing calmly without any turbidity or fluctuation.

"I'm more sensitive to Divine Nightmare than you are. The basic and advanced tests have already verified its accuracy," said the Bewitching Raven. "Just pretend you don't know anything and do me a favor."

Gunn, panting, slowly sat back down on the cushion.

He stared at the still clear crystal for a long time before saying in a hoarse voice, "The old you would never have done something like playing with fire."

"The past is the past, and the present is the present." Raven paused. "Nearly a century of peace since 283, I don't think it will last. Didn't the Senate bring up the topic of the Living Eclipse in anticipation of a rainy day? For Nora's future, Solitz and Onzer should make some changes."

Even if it's risky?

"We both know perfectly well that the peace and tranquility that Solitz and Onzer enjoy every day is an illusion built on miracles. Hoping to dispel the black fog without taking any risks is nothing but wishful thinking."

A few birds flew across the sky, leaving fleeting trails beneath the white clouds.

"Taking risks now, at least for us, Nora's next generation, there's still room for error," he added in a low voice.

"You have high hopes for Nan'an and Suiyue."

"To be precise, we're optimistic about Nan'an," the crow said hesitantly. "We see no hope in following the established path. We need a miracle, a series of miracles... Assuming the dissipation of the black mist was indeed his doing, no matter how he did it, it's worth taking a gamble."

"It's a pity that the summoning ritual cannot be replicated," Gunn said with a sigh.

After the implementation of the "Limited Learning Act for High-Level Magic," the Twin Crown Mage Tower and the Senate jointly constructed several libraries to classify and store knowledge.

The contents of the Gray Star era are sealed in the Museum of Literature and History. Its structure is very similar to the Kren Cavern, the secret base of Ellu. The family of Gunn Palka, as one of the members of the Senate, has the right to access the blueprints. Therefore, the Raven only needed to make a few modifications to successfully recreate the underground wonder.

After taking the elevator to the deepest part of the museum, the members of the mage tower who were guarding the museum emerged from the shadows and examined Gunn's Senate approval document one by one. Each of them was meticulous and did not relax in the slightest because of Gunn's familiar face.

As they traversed the long tunnel, a magic array made of magic crystals circulated back and forth, sensing the magical aura of the two, as if it would launch a fatal attack at any moment.

Almost every library is equipped with offensive magic arrays far exceeding those used to annihilate high-level mages. As far as Gunn knows, each deep cave has a self-destruct mechanism as a last resort; if the invasion fails to be resisted, all knowledge will be destroyed.

Of course, the necessary backups have already been prepared in some unknown corner.

The heavy metal doors slowly slid open to the sides the instant Gunn inserted the crystal key, and the librarians, who had already been notified, waited quietly behind the doors—each one a high-ranking official.

"The history and culture of the Gray Star Era... Palka, why do you need to look into this kind of knowledge?"

"Our work requires us to follow our rules."

Erlu's authority was once again demonstrated. Upon hearing this, the surrounding librarians exchanged glances and dispersed.

When they were alone nearby, Gu En asked, "In what year did Nan'an die?"