Chapter 23 : Before The Festival II
"Father, what are you doing in the capital?" asked Mother. "Last time I heard, you were on vacation in another kingdom."
"I heard that [The Festival of Avalon] is being held again. I'm quite curious," replied Grandfather.
"By the way, where's Mother?" asked Mother.
"She's asleep. It's quite exhausting for her to use spatial magic," replied Grandfather. "I'll wake her up for lunch."
"I see," Mother replied.
Behind them, Van, Oliver, and Olivia followed quietly. After being told by Olivia, Oliver finally understood that the man he had just called 'old man' was his Grandfather.
They eventually arrived at the dining room and were greeted by a variety of luxurious dishes on the table.
"It's a shame William and Wilbert aren't here. I asked the chefs to prepare their favorite dishes," said Grandfather glumly.
"What else can we do? William needs to go to his territory to prepare for [The Festival of Avalon]," replied Mother.
"Well, it's fine. At least I have you all," said Grandfather, smiling widely.
"It looks like you're having fun."
A hoarse woman's voice echoed through the dining room.
Everyone turned to the side and saw an elderly woman walking toward them.
'Grandmother. Marie Gold,' thought Van when he saw the elderly woman.
"Hey, Marie. I was just about to wake you up," said Grandfather.
"I woke up because of the vibrations from the courtyard. What's going on?" asked Grandmother, confused.
"Nothing. It's just your feeling," replied Grandfather nervously.
"Grandmother, Grandfather attacked us," Oliver said with a pleading face.
Oliver's sudden remark made Grandfather's face freeze.
'This kid,' thought Grandfather, glaring at Oliver.
Seeing Oliver smile at him made veins pop out on Grandfather's forehead.
"Is it true what my grandchild said, Wilhem?"
Grandfather felt an invisible pressure on him and nervously turned to his wife.
"I-I was just joking," he stammered.
"Grandfather attacked us with a sword covered in [Mana]," Oliver said, pretending to cry in fear.
'That kid. I'll make sure he goes through hell,' thought Grandfather angrily, but his face remained nervous.
"We'll talk about this later, Wilhem," said Grandmother, smiling coldly.
"Okay," said Grandfather, glaring at Oliver.
'Hehehe. Let him feel that!' thought Oliver, giving Grandfather a thin smile.
- - - - -
After lunch, Mother, Van, Oliver, and Olivia parted ways to their respective rooms.
After walking for a while, Van finally arrived at his room.
Van then lay down on his bed, thinking about plans for the future.
'What should I do? I don't have any information at all for this event,' thought Van.
[The Festival of Avalon] certainly brings great benefits to the Avalon Kingdom.
However, this festival is also a double-edged sword. Terrorist organizations or even worse, the [Gehenna Cult], might take advantage of this festival to launch an attack.
Van shook his head, not daring to think about it, imagining himself walking through the crowds, suddenly stabbed from behind or kidnapped.
'[The Gehenna Cult] will not stay silent. They will definitely use this festival to launch an attack. After all, the organization is filled with madmen. In the novel, that crazy cult also attacked [The Festival of Avalon],' thought Van.
The madmen in [The Gehenna Cult] were beyond saving. Even though they were insane, their intelligence should not be underestimated.
The reason they survived for 1,000 years was that they managed to infiltrate the human world. They operated from the shadows or even took direct action.
Some became nobles in certain countries.
Some controlled entire kingdoms.
Some became high-ranking knights.
Some were wealthy merchants.
Some were famous adventurers.
They were a group that loved destruction, death, despair, gloom, darkness, and other negative things.
During the World Wars, they were the ones that gave kings and queens headaches.
Just imagine, who would suddenly drop a meteor on the capital city in the middle of the night?
Even though the mad cult relied on the [Demon King Gehenna], the power of their leaders should not be underestimated.
In the cult, there were seven leaders with tremendous strength. Their power came from contracts with the 7 demons named [7 Princes of Hell].
These cult leaders were so powerful that each one could easily destroy a city.
Besides the leaders, there were also other members with terrifying power.
'Who will cause chaos this time?' thought Van, confused.
*TUK
Hearing a knock on the door, Van snapped out of his thoughts and asked, "Who is it?"
"It's Arthur, Master. Grandfather has asked to meet you in the library," answered Arthur from behind the door.
"Alright," Van replied, walking toward the door and opening it.
Van saw Arthur standing and waiting next to the door.
"How's the mansion?" asked Van as they walked toward the library.
"Decent. The knights here are stronger than those at home," replied Arthur.
"I see," said Van.
After a brief conversation, Van arrived at the library door.
"You can go ahead. I'll handle this myself," said Van.
"Alright. If Master needs me, I'll be in the training area," said Arthur, walking away.
Van then opened the library door and entered.
'Spatial element,' thought Van as he opened the door.
Van couldn't help but be impressed when he saw the massive, grand separation before him.
"Impressive, right? This library is in a different space,' Grandfather's voice echoed in the library. "Its purpose is to protect its contents from the outside world. This library contains the history of the Black family."
Van saw Grandfather sitting at the table in the middle of the library. In his hands was a book.
Van then approached Grandfather while looking around. This separation felt like a dome with walls made of bookshelves. Some of the books were even covered with special runes to prevent them from decaying.
As Van got closer, Grandfather suddenly threw the book in his hands.
Van caught the book and saw its title.
[101 Shadows]
Upon seeing the book title, Van was filled with questions.
"This book is a record of the Black family ancestors regarding the [101 Shadows] skill. I learned from your father that you possess the same skill as the Black family's ancestors. You might need this," said Grandfather, walking out of the library, leaving Van alone inside.
Looking at the book in his hands, Van couldn't help but want to laugh at his Grandfather.
He was the one who wrote this novel. He was also the creator of the [101 Shadows] skill. Now, the creator of the skill had to read an incomplete record of his own creation.
"Rather than the [101 Shadows] skill, I'm more interested in how to improve [Mana]. Maybe the records left by the ancestors will give me some methods," thought Van.