Vol. 6 Ch. 120

TL Note: My dear friends, I apologize :)

There was a mistake in the translation of the clan names in the previous chapters.

The traitor was not from the Golden Thunder Clan, but from the Golden Scale Tribe.

To Leon, a crystal coffin wasn’t anything new.

Back when he had stumbled through a space-time rift and entered a future twenty years ahead, he had seen Rosvisser sealed within one of these crystals.

And Hefei, daughter of Constantine, had also been encased in crystal after being severely wounded by Warhammer King over thirty years ago—until Leon acquired the Ghost Lotus Herb from the Sea Dragon Tribe and saved her.

These crystals could preserve the bodily functions of someone on the brink of death, with a general time limit of around twenty years.

Even so, Leon found himself speechless at the sight before him.

A crystal coffin wasn’t rare. But lying inside this one, as plain as day, was… a woman.

She had striking, mature beauty, appearing around thirty years old. Her presence exuded elegance and allure. Her long hair, a mix of pale blue and pure white, fanned out beneath her. Her hands rested gently atop her abdomen. Her eyes were softly shut, as if simply asleep.

Even Safina was stunned by the sight.

Elusa, despite years of archaeological work and exploring ancient tombs, had never encountered anything like this. After arriving at the root chamber of the great tree, she had guessed it might be some important figure’s burial site. She’d already braced herself to possibly encounter the "corpse of the owner."

But all the bodies she had found in tombs were rotted skeletons. She had never seen a corpse as perfectly preserved as the woman lying before them now.

As for Safina, she couldn’t understand at all—why would such a stunningly beautiful woman be sealed in a crystal like this? Did the people of Samael have some kind of obsessive jealousy toward “beauty”?

“Who… is she?” Safina whispered.

But her question was answered only by the faint sound of water flowing through the stone cavern.

Leon forced down the shock rising in his chest and continued carefully observing the woman within the crystal.

Her clothing was unfamiliar. It wasn’t of Imperial or Dragon Tribe design—but Leon had seen something similar not long ago…

…

He frowned, thinking hard.

“The style… it’s from the Golden Scale Tribe.”

“What? Leon? You recognize her?” Elusa asked.

Leon refocused, pressing his lips together. After a moment’s hesitation, he said quietly:

“Not exactly recognize, but… I think I can guess who she is.”

The plant growth near the ancient tree's entrance differed drastically from the vegetation behind it—the entrance was likely created thirty years ago, as Elusa had theorized two days ago.

There had been talk of a defector from the Golden Scale Tribe—someone who fled with the Lightning Crystal Core ten years ago and was last seen in the Human Empire. That defector was named by Dimo, the Golden Thunder High Priest.

And there were traces of magical attacks on the stone wall outside—evidence that the Golden Scale Tribe had pursued someone here.

Then there was the crystal coffin, and the attire worn by the beautiful woman within—matching the Golden Scale style.

There was no doubt.

She was the traitor Dimo spoke of—

Hera.

“Then she is…?” Elusa asked curiously.

Leon’s expression was grave. He didn’t answer right away.

Seeing his hesitation, Safina immediately understood.

“Ah, I just remembered—I have a stomachache. I’m gonna go take care of that.”

“Stomachache? Right now? I’ve got medicine in my bag—do you want some?” Elusa asked kindly.

“No, no, just need the toilet.”

Leon sighed inwardly. Come on, big sis, if you're gonna make up an excuse to give me privacy, don’t pick “stomachache bathroom break”—it’s too jarring.

But then again… it was Safina. The logic made sense.

“You don’t need to go,” Leon said. “Oh, I mean—just wait. Listen to me first, then you can go.”

Safina blinked, then raised a pretty brow and grinned.

“Oh? I get to know too?”

“You can. It’s just a name anyway.”

Leon’s current relationship with the Void {N•o•v•e•l•i•g•h•t} siblings was delicate. They were on the same side—for now—and though they hadn’t clashed yet, they all understood the balance could shift at any time. In a way, they had reached a kind of “cooperative coexistence.”

Besides, Leon was curious about what they might share too. If he kept silent, Safina and Kaiser definitely wouldn’t open up in return.

“Alright then. Who is she?” Safina asked.

Leon lowered his eyes to the woman in the crystal and spoke slowly.

“Her name is Hera. She’s not human. And… I don’t think she’s dead yet.”

“Not dead? She’s sealed in a crystal coffin and you’re saying she’s not dead?” Safina couldn’t wrap her head around it.

“It’s not that strange,” Leon said.

“These crystals can preserve the body functions of someone near death. I think… long ago, Hera was either gravely wounded or… received a blow that would’ve been fatal. So before her death, she sealed herself inside the crystal.”

He noticeably paused when he mentioned “a fatal blow.”

Even the usually cheeky Safina and analytical Elusa could sense what that pause meant.

In that other future—thirty years ahead, a future without Leon Casmod—Rosvisser had exhausted her strength and had been sealed by her grandmother Veronica within a crystal.

So every time something related to this came up, Leon couldn’t help but remember.

It was a wound he could never fully heal from. It was the reason he now fought so fiercely to protect Rosvisser and their daughters.

“That’s it? Nothing more?” Safina asked.

Leon shook his head. “These crystals last thirty years. And based on Elusa’s team’s assessment, this chamber was likely built thirty years ago.

So the crystal’s time limit is almost up. When it lifts…

We might be able to ask Hera directly what happened.”

“Cool… So are we gonna carry her and the whole coffin back?”

Leon shrugged. “What else? Elusa already said it—once we leave, we might never find this place again. Come on, follow my lead. On my signal, lift together.”

He moved behind the crystal coffin.

Safina jumped forward with a mock hug and shouted, “Damn, even the heavy lifting’s on you?!”

Still grumbling, she got into position at the front of the coffin, crouched down, and prepared to lift.

“I’ll help too,” Elusa offered as she stepped forward.

But Leon stopped her.

“This kind of crystal is heavy. You’re not built for lifting—you’ll just end up hurting yourself.”

“But I—”

“Hey! Casmod! What’s that supposed to mean? I’m not a girl?”

The voice rang out from up front.

“You’re a trained girl. Not the same,” Leon replied.

Safina gritted her teeth.

“‘You’re a girl, can’t lift~’ Hmph!!!”

“Alright, enough chatter. Let’s lift!”

“OK!”

But just as Safina heaved up the crystal, she noticed the rear wasn’t budging.

She stuck her head around and called back, “Hey, what are you doing back there? Help me lift! Don’t just stand there!”

“Leon? What’s wrong?”

Thud—

Safina set the coffin back down with a muffled thump and rushed to Leon’s side.

Elusa followed close behind.

They found Leon resting one hand lightly on the surface of the crystal.

His eyes were blank, pupils unfocused—as if he had fallen into a deep… memory.

“Hey? Leon? Can you hear me?”

Elusa waved her hand in front of his face.

No reaction.

“What the hell? Did he get possessed?”

Safina muttered, nudging his shoulder.

Still no response.

“Leon! Leon, don’t scare me…” Elusa called out in growing panic.

Safina kept shouting his name.

“Leon! Answer me, Leon! Say something!”

“Leon!”

“Leon!!…”

…

At that moment Leon’s consciousness was drifting in a space of absolute black.

Elusa and Safina’s voices slowly faded from his mind.

In their place came a flurry of fragmented images, like slides flickering before his eyes.

“What are you doing?! Leave it behind! Otherwise, you’ll become a traitor to the entire Golden Scale Tribe!”

“…I’m not a traitor—”

“Catch her! She’s there! The High Priest gave the order—kill her if needed, but retrieve the Crystal Core at all costs!”

“Dimo lied to you! Stop throwing your lives away for him!”

“Shut up, traitor! Hand over the Core!”

“You could’ve avoided all this pain.”

“This was left by the Ancestors—it is the foundation of Samael. I can’t let it fall into the hands of evil.”

“Then you must know… you’ll spend the rest of your life running. And at any moment, an assassin might strike you down.”

“I know. I’m prepared.”

“No one can run forever. You can’t protect the Core alone.”

“I understand. I’ve come up with a solution.”

“What is it?”

“The Human Empire.”

“That race… so young, yet so full of potential.”

“Yes.”

“Why choose them?”

“To entrust a lifetime’s work to the next generation, and go peacefully to death… that’s how humanity grows—slowly, but with greatness. I believe only a race like that can guide the Lightning Crystal Core… onto the right path.”

“Found her! Kill her! Get the Core no matter the cost!”

“What’s she doing?! Self-detonation? Is she insane?!”

“No—it’s not detonation! It’s a magic conversion technique that drains all power—she’s trying to—”

“No way?!—”

“Stop her!”

“You were born in thunder and storm—carrying the final will of Ancestor Reiss.”

“You are destined for an extraordinary future. Go, in the shape of a human, and fulfill what the gods could not.”

“I can only walk you this far. But from here on… you won’t be alone.”

“Go now, child of lightning.”

“I hope that by the time you learn the truth, you will already have the strength to change this world.”

“I am Hera. I will protect the legacy of the Primordial God Reiss… until my final breath.”