Roberta touched her slightly parted lips, thinking about the owner of the tower. Aside from dwarves and elves, there were too many candidates.
According to the scriptures, when Dieus, the king of the heavens, built a bridge between heaven and earth, Keme, the mother of the earth, was the first to set foot on the ground. After that, all the gods, including Nenus, who contemplated the sea, came down and created offspring.
Though the number of gods was not great, their power was majestic, and countless lives were born under their great protection. Among them were the creations of the evil gods Kunkan, Takna, and Galpa.
Still, it was fine when the gods resided in the heavens. Even if the world was filled with life and mixed indiscriminately, the heavens coordinated everything. Even the creations on the side of the evil gods were embraced by the heavens.
However, when the master of the heavens disappeared, the races of the earth made all things their enemies, and countless lives perished.
Roberta speculated that the owner of the tower was one of those extinct races. The race itself had disappeared, so there were no oral traditions. How could they forget the past of the existing races?
Ulrich's answer was different.
"They were human."
Roberta blinked, thinking she had misheard.
"You mean humans built this tower."
"You're talking about humans from before history... right?"
"Yes."
When humans discuss history, they use the time when the first human empire was established as a starting point. When we say the era before our history, it encompasses the era of elves, dwarves, and gods.
The reason why it's lumped together so roughly is that there are hardly any records left by humans from that era. They were an insignificant race, to the point where even dwarves and elves didn't pay much attention.
Occasionally, a few heroes or myths were passed down orally and recorded, but there was hardly anything recorded as a civilization that has been passed down to this day.
Roberta looked again at the inscriptions engraved on the wall and ran her fingers over them. It was merely a fragment of an ancient civilization, and to her, it was just a bizarre pattern. It was the same even when she carefully examined the interior of the tower.
Even if she, who had never studied archaeology, looked at it, how would she know if it was made by humans or lizards?
But this tower was built by humans from before history?
"Around the time when the era of dwarves was waning, and around the time when the era of elves was rising, there were humans who lived here, trying to build their own civilization."
She wondered how he knew these facts again. Of course, even if she asked, the answer would be obvious, and she wouldn't be able to tell if it was true or false. But she asked, as always.
"That's also a story you witnessed directly, right?"
A strange light flickered in Ulrich's eyes.
It was fleeting, but Roberta saw it.
"...Did I say something wrong?"
"No, I just thought it was unexpected."
"Yes?"
Ulrich stroked his chin with his left hand and said,
"I wondered if you were asking because you believed what I said. If I were to answer yes to that question just now, how old do you think I would have to be?"
At least ten thousand years old.
Roberta made an uh, um sound, then closed her mouth. Ulrich smiled lightly at the sight and shook his head.
"Unfortunately, their demise has nothing to do with me. I didn't witness it. A lot of time passed, and I heard the stories passed down from mouth to mouth by their descendants."
The civilization that Ulrich heard about was a civilization built by a group of humans who settled on an island by boat. They had no king, and there was no hereditary succession of classes. Also, they formed a people's assembly in the city and elected two leaders every year.
The members had different talents and achievements, but they respected each other and treated each other with special care. Ordinary people gathered opinions and led the government, and the strong respected their decisions.
Since the gods of the heavens had left, the races of the earth had each put forward the logic of power to become kings and lords, so this appearance was unique.
He was curious and asked why.
Then the descendant replied,
- When the great beings of the heavens created humans, who was the king, and who was the seed of the lord? Only Hestio among us became a descendant of the heavens, but is he ruling us now?
Ulrich gripped the teacup tightly and nodded.
"Isn't it truly amazing?"
"Yes, well... it is amazing."
Roberta could only smile awkwardly.
The story of having no king and ordinary people electing leaders didn't really resonate with her. She was a person of an era where it was natural to worship gods, emperors, and kings.
The idea that someone stronger or of nobler blood should follow the instructions of ordinary people seemed unrealistic.
If she was like this, how would Duke Bailen, a descendant of the royal family, react? Looking at him, he frowned slightly as if he was a little displeased, but because the person he was talking to was who he was, he swallowed his words like her.
"In fact, there were many civilizations before our history besides this place. Humans of that era may have been physically weaker than other races, but they were mentally mature. Rather than begging for their lives under the mercy of other races, they tried to stand on their own."
It was praise, but it didn't feel like praise, Roberta felt.
Doesn't history tell us? There is no human history before the empire.
The civilization that Ulrich is praising went extinct a long time ago, and even its name has not been passed down. Today, the human civilization before history may not exist, it's just a realm of speculation. No one knew where they were, what they were doing, or how they went extinct, and no one even cared.
"But they failed. No matter how much they rise with ideals, they are just a handful. Even if you gather dust, who will wait until it becomes a mountain? All civilizations perished with their birth."
That's right, Roberta thought.
According to some documents, it was an era when one person's power could overturn a mountain. Ulrich also said that the elves dragged an island and merged it with the land. It wouldn't have been easy for humans to survive in such an era.
Humans before history may have respected others and treated them rationally, but other races wouldn't have. There was no reason to respect a different race that had no blood ties and was even weak.
Unless it was an era where wealth was abundant and the value of life was high. Such an era has not come even today, so the strong have more. And the weak serve the strong.
"The scriptures praise Hestio as a kind father, leading his people until just before human history began. But in other words, doesn't the name Hestio mean that he failed to open history?"
"That's—"
Ulrich raised his hand to cut off Roberta's words.
"This tower is the result. It is the end of the civilization built by Hestio's descendants. A kind father built a family, but a family is too small a unit."
"······."
"Only after a very long time after the gods left did they realize that. What that era needed was not harmony but integration, and not a kind father but a cold-hearted master."
She knew without hearing the rest.
It was a story that the scriptures explained in detail. Humans grew up in Hestio's arms and spread out into the world, but they went their separate ways and met an unfair end.
It is said that Hestio was saddened when so many of his descendants were killed and the human race itself was threatened.
So he gathered humans in one place to form a group, and when the era of the elves waned, the group took a human as their master and built a civilization.
That was the first empire, the first emperor.
"I said a little while ago that history is what appears when you finally succeed after repeated failures. Because people change through failure. Otherwise, they will only be eliminated."
Ulrich stroked the inscription as if caressing it.
"The civilization before history is like that. It may feel worthless to you today, but these failures left the name Hestio before history and created the emperor."
As soon as he finished speaking, silence filled the tower. As always, after listening to the story, she could only worry about what to say. Roberta closed her mouth and quietly watched the bonfire.
#
Roberta opened her eyes. Judging by the way light was seeping through the gaps in the tower, it was morning. She lay down and stared at the ceiling for a while before shivering. Even though she was wearing several layers of cold-weather clothing and covered with a blanket, the cold was biting into her skin.
Crack, crack, turning her head at the sound of firewood burning, Ulrich was sitting in front of the bonfire. He had a teacup in his right hand, and as always, he had brewed Songhwa tea.
'Really, an incomprehensible taste.'
Ulrich didn't seem to notice that Roberta had woken up and was peeking at him. He drank tea and put dry firewood into the fire.
What is he thinking about? She wondered what that young-looking old man was thinking about in the silence. Maybe he was thinking about the next story to tell.
After lying there for a while and watching, she raised her upper body.
"Did you wake up?"
"Good morning... or maybe it's not so good, Lord?"
"Well, if you didn't have a nightmare, it's a good morning."
Ulrich smiled gently and picked up another teacup from the bonfire and handed it to her. Fortunately, it wasn't Songhwa tea. It was just plain water with melted ice.
She was craving something a little sweet, but she didn't show it and quenched her thirst. As the heat passed through her throat, she felt a little less cold.
"Shall I wake the others?"
"Let them sleep a little longer. There's no need to rush now."
Roberta sat next to him and tilted the teacup.
"You mean we're almost there?"
"Yes. We'll arrive as early as today."
"That's faster than I thought."
Today, she thought of the mountain she was aiming for. Wasn't it quite far to arrive in a day? It seemed like a distance that couldn't be reached even if she walked at a fast pace all night.
Ulrich had never said anything nonsense. There must be another way. She believed so and smiled silently. The thought that the end of the ordeal was finally in sight naturally eased her mind.
Of course, there was still the way back, but she could think about that when the time came.
"Roberta, have you ever experienced the Demon Realm before?"
"Yes. Alonso asked me to accompany him. But back then, I didn't really think it was as dangerous as this place. No, it was dangerous, but how should I put it."
"It wasn't terrible, was it?"
"...Yes. It was."
Roberta waited for Ulrich to continue speaking, but he closed his mouth. Then only the sound of the bonfire burning remained between them, and she fidgeted with the hand holding the teacup, feeling awkward.
"Lord, can I ask you a question?"
"Don't be afraid to ask me anything."
"How will this journey end?"
She asked cautiously, whispering, and looked around. The other members of the group were fast asleep. They were so tired that even the cold couldn't wake them.
Ulrich put another piece of firewood into the bonfire.
"My thoughts haven't changed."
She looked down at the teacup.
"But there are times when you have to go even if you know the result."
As the words were cut off, a long silence continued.
"······."
And after a long time, Ulrich turned his head.
It wasn't towards her. He was looking outside the tower. Then a sound was heard. It was a scream that pierced the lungs, and it wasn't a sound that could come from a human's mouth.
Roberta reflexively stood up. All the members stood up. This is the Ice Peninsula. It was an uninhabited area that even Emperor Tywin had not conquered. What reason could there be for such a loud noise in such a place?
Following Ulrich, she armed herself and went outside. It was dazzling. The cold wind was blowing, so the cold was still there, but the sunlight was reflected in the snow covering the plains, stabbing her vision.
"Giants?"
A group of people was seen approaching in the distance. There were only four people in the group, but each one was so big that they walked with very wide strides.
They were giants. A race created by the evil god Takna when he stayed in the heavens.
They wore leather sewn from monster hides, but they were so hairy that it seemed unnecessary to wear it. If they were only hunched over, she would have mistaken them for monkeys walking on two feet.
The Duke Bailen's party, who came out late, stood next to Ulrich. As Ulrich shook his head and pulled them back, they drew their swords and stood guard.
"Stand back. There's no need to fight."
He said as he walked forward alone.
"Giants, as you can see, feel like monkeys walking on two feet. They have that much low intelligence, but they are a race that belongs to the intelligent beings. So they don't recklessly eat people like monsters, usually."
No sooner had he finished speaking than one of the giants swung his arm wide. Ulrich tilted his body slightly to the side. Immediately after, a spear was plunged into the ground where he had been standing. It was a spear that seemed to be made of monster bones.
Roberta looked back and forth between the spear and Ulrich. He was far ahead, and she couldn't see his expression because he had his back turned. However, he was holding a whip at some point.
He stretched out the whip and said,
"Of course, there are some ignorant guys like this."
One of the giants who threw the spear ran towards him with a roar.
Even though there was a lot of snow on the ground, when the giant took a step, it didn't sound like sabak, sabak, but koong, koong. Indeed, as a creation of the evil god Takna, he was a giant who retained his appearance from mythology.
When she saw him from afar, she only vaguely thought he was big, but when he stood in front of Ulrich, the giant's height was twice his. Roberta felt pressured by the sight.
When the opponent came within the radius of the whip, Ulrich stretched his right arm out to the side and swung it wide. When the whip wrapped around the giant's right ankle and pulled, he fell helplessly.
The giant lying on the snow did not get up. The fighting spirit that had been boiling so much disappeared like a mirage, and confusion appeared on his bearded face. Then he opened his mouth as if he had remembered something.
Ulrich whipped the ground with a crack.
"Do you remember now?"
The giant cowered on the floor and uttered words clumsily.
"Human, king, hit me."
"Bring Uar. Tell him I'm waiting here."
When he whipped again, the giant ran away in fear. Watching the appearance that didn't match his size, Roberta made an absurd expression.
"Aren't you going to catch him?"
"They may be foolish, but they are not evil."
Ulrich added as he wound the whip.
"We're almost there. They will guide us the rest of the way."