Volume 7 Chapter 443: Truth About The Bridges Kingdom’s Demise 1,300 Years Ago
Translator: The Light
Edits by Grandia
More than a thousand and three hundred years ago around the Alan Island region, in the floating garden in the sky above the Bridges Kingdom’s capital, inside a Hanging Gardens of Babylon-like building, Bella met some people from first group of transmigrators from the beginning, which is the batch of Saviors summoned by the original Creator, the Mechanic and the Dark Conjurer. These two Saviors were currently arguing about the development of the Bridges Kingdom.
The Dark Conjurer advocated for enslaving all foreign continents in the world. After hiding from some existence that has been chasing after them, this guy finally can’t hold back their dark side anymore and created a slavery system. The reason the Bridges Kingdom conquered and exterminated so many island nations is all because of this guy. The Mechanic advocated for the spread of civilization in order to resist against the terrifying existence that is trying to kill them. But in fact, it was also a disguised conquest of the entire foreign world, only the means was not as barbaric as the former and looks a bit more civilized.
Bella sat on the sixth seat, watching the two of them argue in front of her. They were considered former comrades and for a moment, she had no idea what to say. She could only lament at how G.o.d makes a fool of people. Meeting them now, everything was the same, yet she was different. n.o.body could have expected that the sixth Savior who was nearly ten thousand years late would have somehow switched into one of the World Destructors, Sacred Demon G.o.d Samantha. She ended up changing camps so inexplicably.
Bella did not dare to lift the “Perception Barrier” magic. It was too awkward to be meeting the other Saviors with her current ident.i.ty, and she also knew now the reason why she knew the Grudges back then. They had mutated from the five former Saviors. The Grudges are horrible existences that are transformed from Saviors out of begrudging hatred after they were slain by each other.
Since the Saviors summoned by the Dimensional Creators are interdimensional travelers, their souls do not belong to this Dimensional Other World. The Creators took advantage of a loophole so that souls not of this dimension would not enter the pa.s.sage of reincarnation here even if they die in battle. Since the World Destructor’s Demon G.o.ds or the Demon Kings of this dimension were not from Earth, the transmigrators will just return to their original dimension (Earth) if they were slain by existences of this dimension, and continue to reincarnate along with their memories.
There were also accidents. If they are killed by other Saviors, then the nature of their deaths would be different. Since both sides are transmigrators from another dimension, if they are killed by someone from Earth, there’s a possibility of the victim turning into something like an avenging spirit. Saviors who are killed by other Saviors will never be able to return to the pa.s.sage of reincarnation of their original dimension after they die, and since the pa.s.sage of reincarnation of this dimension would not accept them, it would result in their mutation into Grudges to wander the original dimension.
So, Grudges are essentially “Other World editions” of victims on Earth who have turned into avenging spirits, which are much more powerful than the wronged and avenging spirits. Grudges generally only appear amongst the Saviors summoned by the Creators. System-type Saviors do not encounter internal deaths as often due to the direct monitoring of the Savior Camp. However, Grudges also have a probability of appearing amongst system-type Saviors.
Grudges only appear amongst transmigrated Saviors. The original members of the Savior Camp, the non-transmigrated Saviors, will not turn into Grudges. Basically, Grudges are just a product of the deal between the Creator Camp and the Savior Camp. If they appear, it means the Saviors have possibly forgotten their original intentions.
Bella had on a very complicated expression. Based on her memory, the remaining five original Saviors have all mutated into Grudges except for her. Seeing her other two Savior Companions now, they are the last two. The three Saviors from before this have already mutated into Grudges for reasons that could not be said.
Through the argument between the Mechanic and the Dark Conjurer, Bella could just about pick up part of the events that happened more than ten thousand years ago from their scattered words. When the Twelve Demon Kings invaded more than ten thousand years ago, the original Creator of this dimension summoned these Saviors to save the world. After recruiting five of them, the Creator suddenly left without saying anything while the sixth one was still transmigrating over. After that departure, he disappeared completely.
In the end, the Saviors did not get to meet their sixth companion before they encountered an attack by an unknown being. Before they could even embark on their mission to defeat the Ancient Twelve Demon Kings and save the world, they were forced to flee for their lives. That guy was too scary. In the process of their escape, the Saviors finally parted ways due to mutual suspicion.
The trigger for the split was that one of the Saviors, the Dragon G.o.d of War, had become the first Grudge. The G.o.d of Creation had previously mentioned the reason for a Grudge’s appearance, and the Saviors all knew that fact by heart. Since then, they suspected that someone amongst them had betrayed them. Plus, being in that guy’s pursuit, as they were facing enemies both internally and externally, the Sage of Light and the Demon Slayer separated from the team, leaving behind the Mechanic and the Dark Conjurer, who would only occasionally contact each other.
More than two thousand years ago, the Mechanic and the Dark Conjurer met each other again. At that time, they were no longer able to contact the Sage of Light and the Demon Slayer. They have probably turned into Grudges at that point, yet their sixth companion had yet to show up. In order to be able to keep surviving, the Mechanic and the Dark Conjurer took control of the group at Alan Island with a hint of distrust left between each other and established the Bridges Kingdom, a puppet regime they used to cover their backs.
Through the pa.s.sage of time, that hint of suspicion gradually expanded. Even though Bella felt a little moved that these Saviors persistently continued to wait for her, she can’t return to the past anymore. The current timeline was more than a thousand and three hundred years ago. If she wasn’t wrong, then the final resting place for these two Saviors are going to be in the skies above the Bridges Kingdom’s Alan Island.
When she thought of this, Bella got up with some difficulty and looked back on the sixth seat again, after which she scanned the other seats. This time, that strange illusion emerged again. This is probably a reflection of a parallel world. Bella saw the normal appearances of all six Saviors filling the seats.
In addition to the Mechanic and the Dark Conjurer, there was the Sage of Light with his white cropped hair and white priestly robes, the Dragon G.o.d of War with a stout body, long golden hair, and dragon-shaped armor, as well as the Demon Slayer who was dressed in black a.s.sa.s.sin leather armor which revealed only a pair of deep dark eyes. Bella could clearly see the original appearances of the Saviors. Even though it was only a fleeting phantom, it could also be considered a sort of encounter. Bella had been late for so many years but was still able to realize the scene of this encounter in the end. The Grudge who talked to Bella at the outer region of the Cursed Land is probably the Sage of Light who had already disappeared.
Through the brief parallel image that flashed past Bella’s eyes, Bella saw for the first time her own appearance as a Savior before she changed bodies. It was a male mage dressed in mage robes and looked almost no different than he did in his previous life. Due to the change in the world line, Bella could not read the Saviors’ information, and when she wanted to look at them longer, the image had already disappeared.
Bella could feel a splitting headache, but after that, she couldn’t remember what she looked like as a male mage Savior anymore. Before Bella could leave, the image she least wanted to see appeared. Right here in the control room, the Mechanic and the Dark Conjurer finally could not be unified in their opinions in the end and arrived at the end of the road.
“Mechanic, let’s not talk about this anymore. I think I felt a movement at the teleportation array we left behind on the ground palace. See? Do you think our sixth companion appeared?”
“Dark Conjurer, why didn’t you say so earlier? Such important information. I’ll go immediately..Cough cough, you...So you have the tricks of an a.s.sa.s.sin too, huh?”
“Sorry. When our final companion comes, I’ll tell him you’ve been sacrificed. Just...leave this place to me!”
The moment the Mechanic turned around, the Dark Conjurer had pulled out a black dagger from who knows where and stabbed the Mechanic from behind. Since the Dark Conjurer was an a.s.sa.s.sin before transmigrating over, he was quite skilled with a dagger. The dagger stabbed through the Mechanic’s heart accurately, and a large amount of blood gushed out, staining the Dark Conjurer’s body as well, dyeing him from head to toe in red.
The Mechanic and the Dark Conjurer are both magic professions, so both of them were only wearing cloth armor. If one of them launches a sneak attack, the other will be done for if they didn’t pay attention. The Mechanic was distrustful of the Dark Conjurer to begin with. If not for him having heard of information about the sixth Savior, he would never have turned around so easily and defenselessly.
The Dark Conjurer took advantage of that single moment when the Mechanic let his guard down to strike. From the time Bella stepped into the floating garden, the world line had already changed. However, some things still remain unchanged in the end. Only the form changed slightly. In some sense, Bella’s appearance in the floating garden is also the cause of this tragedy.
Bella opened her mouth, hoping to say something, but she couldn’t in the end. Her hand which was originally going to reach out to stop the two also stopped there. A very powerful force was coming from the sealed box in Bella’s pocket. It was the Forbidden Book. Some terrifying existence was trying to come out from the box. That guy’s power was too strong. It had already surpa.s.sed all the World Destructor Camp’s Demon and Evil G.o.ds, even above the strongest Creator she knew of, Creator of Light Vianne.
The only one that can compare to her is the Chaos Bringer loli that Bella had met not long before. This aura was different from that of the World Destructor Camp. It was chilling like a specter and the variety of negative energy pouring out almost weighed Bella down to the floor. Based on that feeling, Bella ruled out the possibility that the person who appeared was either the Chaos Bringer’s Commander or the World Destructor’s Chief.
Bella could not move right now. She could only watch as that terrifying appearance gradually appeared. Bella wasn’t very scared, but for some reason, the visitor was not her true body, the older sister of the Chaos Bringers’ Chief, Demon G.o.d Samantha. However, Bella felt a strong affection with it, as if the visitor had strong feelings with Demon G.o.d Samantha.
Bella searched through her memories, but she could not remember whether the original Demon G.o.d Samantha had relatives outside of the World Destructors and Chaos Bringers. Since she couldn’t move, Bella could only watch helplessly at the final moments of her two former male Savior companions while she waited for that person to appear.
There was not too much pain on the Mechanic’s face. His expression seemed as if he had long known this day would come. Instead, he showed an expression of relief. Even if he had been stabbed, he did not blame the other. He only scanned the sixth seat with a slight look of regret on his face, probably regretting that he had to leave before he could wait for the arrival of their sixth companion.
“Mechanic, you...You’re not really reacting that much to this situation. Don’t you hate me?”
“Dark Conjurer, I...What am I going to hate a dead person for? Cough...You were just the one who made the first move. There’s nothing to it.”
“Mechanic, you...You set up a trap? Could it be...”
“That’s right. From the very beginning, this floating garden was a trap. Did you really think I didn’t...didn’t make a nuclear weapon?”
A red alarm sounded throughout the floating garden and the control room was quickly sealed. Before the Dark Conjurer could figure out what was going on, both his legs were locked in place by metal. It turns out that the Mechanic had long been researching nuclear weaponry behind the Dark Conjurer’s back, and had succeeded just before Bella entered the floating garden. Nuclear weapon detonators have been secretly set up through the entirety of the floating garden.
It wasn’t just the floating garden, in fact. The modern military bases over all of Alan Island had nuclear weapons. From the beginning, the Mechanic had already made plans for the final step. As a last resort, he would directly blow up all of Alan Island. Just now, if the Dark Conjurer did not secretly attack him, the Mechanic planned to trap him in the control room and kill him in the nuclear explosion.
“Are you crazy? Mechanic, that nuclear weapon stockpile of yours isn’t going to kill only me. You could destroy several continents! You’re going to destroy the world!”
“I’m tired, Dark Conjurer. We’ve been in hiding for so many years. If we can’t save the world, then why don’t we just destroy it all? I was going to leave the final decision to our sixth companion, but it seems we don’t have time for that anymore.”
“Get away from me, you lunatic! I still have many continents to conquer, I can’t die here!”
“Forget about it. This control room is created from forbidden magical material. It will take you at least an hour to get out. The best end is for you to turn into ashes with me right here.”
“No...My kingdom...”
Bella was almost locked inside as well. Fortunately, the being who came out of the Forbidden Book pulled Bella out at the last moment. The moment Bella was dragged out, the doors of the control room closed shut. It felt like something had gotten into Bella’s eyes. Perhaps it was the last bit of nostalgia between former companions.
“I say, are you crying? Really, I came here to screw things up, how did I end up saving someone?”
“Uh, you’re...Why’s your face bleeding?”
“It’s nothing. This world line thing is seriously annoying. I was punished for pulling you out. That’s why I hate this world line.”
A few drops of colorless liquid fell from Bella’s cheek. It seemed like blood and she could see the red when it was dripping down, but the color disappeared once it landed on something. The one who rescued Bella was the dark shadow of a woman. She was probably using “Perception Barrier” magic as well so Bella wasn’t able to see her full appearance. However, she could feel a trace of intimacy and familiarity from her.
The being that saved Bella’s life was so strong that it could interfere with the world line without fear, and tears of blood flowed from the corner of the eye the moment she gave Bella a pull. That was the backlash from the world line. The world line had originally judged Bella’s soul to be one of the six Saviors and wanted Bella to follow them along and be buried in the timeline more than a thousand and three hundred years ago, but her ending was directly rewritten by this being.
The side effect was already very small. If any other Dimensional Creator had done this, then rewriting the world line had life-threatening punishments, but she only paid a small and insignificant price. Bella could sense that this is the existence summoned by the Forbidden Book. Only, as both sides were using “Perception Barrier” magic, neither of them could see each other’s true appearance.
“Thanks for rescuing me. Um...you’re...”
“No need. You actually thanked me, huh? It’s the first time anyone has ever done that. Now go, unless you want to disappear along with them? If that’s what you want, then so be it. Seriously, I originally wanted to come and deal with these two escapees, but they ended themselves in the end.”
“You...You came to kill them? They’re...”
“It doesn’t matter who they are. Other than her, I, as a Forsaker, do not care about anyone from any of the camps. Be it the Saviors, the Creators, World Destructors, Chaos Bringers, none of them are good people. Especially that d.a.m.n devil from the World Destructors and that brat from the Chaos Bringers. They’re simply...They’re even more annoying than that stupid light creator.”
The reason the Forsaker saved Bella was very simple. She simply thought it was curious to see Bella, who was being concealed by “Perception Barrier” magic. Finding the situation interesting, she casually gave her a pull. It was the first time Bella had heard of a Forsaker. This guy had never been recorded in any other camps. Moreover, she was unscrupulously talking bad about the Chaos Bringers’ Commander, the World Destructors’ Chief, and Creator of Light Vianne. No ordinary existence can have this much arrogance.
And this Forsaker did have the right to challenge the ones she named. Cold sweat ran down Bella’s face. The strength of this Forsaker is far above that of Creator of Light Vianne. She should be at the same level as the Chaos Bringer’s Chief and the World Destructor’s Commander. Bella couldn’t figure out why she was never found by any of the camps after so many years. Moreover, she didn’t hide her hatred for them in the slightest.
This Forsaker is the one going after Bella’s former companions, the five Saviors. Based on the original run of history, after the Bridges Kingdom opens the Cursed Book, she would come out and destroy the Bridges Kingdom while exterminating the two Saviors, the Mechanic and the Dark Conjurer, as well. Due to Bella and Last Princess Brehanna’s intervention, the world line changed, resulting in the late arrival of the Forsaker, so the Saviors ended up dying in an internal fight before she could appear.