chapter 27

“That’s correct.”

Schweiser smiled faintly and then the smoke disappeared.

Krrr.

The huge door then began opening slowly. Frey, who was one step away from it, stood there and watched this happen.

Finally, the inside of the dungeon was revealed. However, Frey didn’t seem the least bit happy about it.

“…”

The huge room behind the door was empty.

No, it wasn’t empty.

There were two metal figures standing there that seemed to be made from an unknown metal.

They were Iron Golems.

But these weren’t something that could be taken away because they were, in essence, the guardians of the dungeon.

They were so powerful that even Frey might not be able to defeat them.

Originally, this room should have been some powerful spells, magic research notes or amazing equipment.

Frey had thought that no one had visited this place before, but he had forgotten to factor in the fact that it had been there for 4,000 years.

“I don’t even know when they were taken.”

Frey paused as he looked around quietly.

‘This space…was it so small?’

When he had checked from the island, the dungeon had appeared to be much larger than what he was seeing.

As he looked around in confusion, his gaze was drawn to another door on the other side of the large room.

On the right side of the huge door, which looked just like the one he’d just opened, was another marble.

Frey approached this marble and infused it with his mana.

Pshhh.

Then just like before, the smoke once again poured out before taking the shape of a grey haired figure.

Schweiser had reappeared.

The only difference was that this time he appeared to have aged a bit.

The first illusion had been that of a boy, this time, he appeared as a young man.

“Then for the second question.”

“The second question?”

“Ah, I might not have explained it properly. The further you go inside, the greater the legacy you will obtain. And keep in mind that you can only remove one item.”

Schweiser didn’t actually respond to him.

It was just that the timing of his question had been so perfect that it seemed as though they were actually having a conversation.

Schweiser pointed toward the Iron Golems.

“I won’t be responsible if you decide to break this rule. I might be able to forgive you, but they definitely wouldn’t allow it.”

Then he gave a bright smile.

“If you’re wrong then you’ll be sent out immediately, so there’s no need to be nervous.”

* * *

“Then let’s move on to the question.”

At that moment Frey began to feel a bit nervous.

He felt that he knew a lot of things about Schweiser but he didn’t know if he could be said to know everything.

Everyone had something that they might not want to reveal.

This was the same for Lucas who was called the Great Mage and Schweiser who was hailed as the Sage.

“The Black Witch. Iris Phisfounder1. I really disliked that woman.”

“…”

It was a very random statement.

Frey tilted his head slightly in confusion.

He knew that Iris and Schweise didn’t particularly like each other but…

‘Was there a problem with Iris?’

Frey narrowed his eyes slightly.

That woman seemed to personify the word riddle. She liked to hide away and she was even good at it.

While Frey was contemplating seriously, Schweiser continued.

“She pretended not to care while we were running around and saving the world. At the start, I really disliked that witch because I couldn’t understand her way of thinking. Did she really have to fall in love right before the continent would become a sea of fire?”

“Hoo…”

This was interesting.

Frey began to recall Iris.

She was a woman who always wore a mysterious smile which went perfectly with her dark hair. He’d never known if she tried to seduce because she was truly sex starved, or if it was just her character as a witch.

But what did he mean there was a man that Iris liked?

There was never any gossip about her having a relationship in their group of friends.

“Lucas, that stone headed bastard. He was the only one who could never see that she was blatantly flirting with him.”

“…huh?”

Frey’s face became a little pale at those words.

“What are you talking about…”

“Like I said, I really disliked Iris, but when I saw Lucas’ face, who didn’t even raise an eyebrow at her obvious affection, even I got mad at him. I’m sure a Stone Golem would have noticed it faster than him.”

“…”

While Frey was still in shock from the revelation after 4,000 years, Schweiser continued speaking in a leisure tone.

“Ah. My mouth is sore. If I kept talking like this I’d feel bad, so that’s all for that little chat. Anyway, about this woman named Iris. There were three powerful demons that she was contracted to. Among them, there was one who held a different weapon in each hand, and represented the existence of good and evil…”

“…Asura.”

“That’s correct!”

Krrr.

The huge door slowly opened and dust rose.

Schweiser’s figure once again disappeared after giving a bright smile.

Instead of stepping forward, Frey hesitated while wearing a complex expression.

‘…don’t tell me he is going to keep going like this?’

It felt like sneaking a peek at his friend’s diary.

Whether to go in or not.

Frey was seriously feeling troubled.

* * *

The next room was also very large, but unlike the first room, it was not empty.

However, there was only one thing that seemed to be a magic item.

[Bracelet of Perpetual Snow]

It was a magic tool that let the user cast the 7 star spell ‘Blizzard’ once a week.

It could be called an amazing item.

Yet Frey passed it immediately without a second glance.

It was not what he wanted.

Frey approached yet another door.

After infusing his mana, Schweiser appeared again.

A cheerful smile was on his face and he appeared to be a few years old.

“Then the next question…”

“…”

The dungeon was very long. Fortunately, there was no question that Frey was unable to answer.

However, most of the questions were not things that many people would know.

He knew Schweiser was weird, but Frey hadn’t expected him to make the questions in his dungeon like this.

They had nothing to do with magical knowledge.

When he arrived in the fifth room, Schweiser spoke again.

“You’re the first to have come this far.”

That was right.

In this room there were Schweisers many magic items, spells and research books that would be extremely valuable if taken outside.

There were even martial arts books and scrolls that could be used by knights or magical martial artists.

‘Lava Shoes, Flying Cloak, Iron Golem’s Summoning Stone, Moonlight Sword…’

Even if it was a wizard, mercenary or knight, the items that they could find here were things that they would even sell their souls for.

However, Frey only continued walking as he took a glance at them.

Passing through the room.

Passing through.

Passing through again.

At one point, Frey had lost count of just how many rooms he had gone through.

‘This is the tenth room.’

“This is the last room.”

Schweiser was wearing his usual smile but Frey couldn’t help but stare at him.

This was a Schweiser that he had never seen.

The long white beard, the numerous wrinkles and now his white robe seemed to match his overall appearance.

When Frey had seen Schweiser last, he was only middle aged.

He had never seen his old friend this ‘old’.

Frey couldn’t help but mutter even though he knew that Schweiser couldn’t hear him.

“But this means that you lived longer than I did.”

Frey’s body died at the age of fifty and his soul was trapped in the abyss.

Now, Schweiser appeared to be in his 70s. His previous mischievous attitude was nowhere to be seen.

He was still smiling happily, but now it appeared more like the kind smile of the elderly.

Frey listened to what Schweiser had to say.

“Lucas Traumen.”

At those words, Frey’s body shook.

Because his name was called in a voice that seemed to contain an indescribable sense of sadness.

“Standing at the top of the world by the age of forty, the Great Mage! The master who received the respect of everyone in the world! Being able to be his friend is one of the things I’m most proud of in my life.”

“…me too.”

Frey’s lips twitched and he felt an itch in his eye.

“I do too.”

“I will give you the last question. What is my real name?”

“…!”

Frey shuddered.

He felt like Schweiser was smiling and looking at him.

‘This question…’

Maybe in the entire world, only ‘Lucas’ would know the answer to that question.

At that time, Frey truly began to feel like Schweiser was looking at him.

Like he was looking at him with an expectant gaze.

“Schweiser Wilsemann.”

Schweiser let out a laugh.

It was bright and refreshing.

“That’s correct. And…everything inside is for you.”

“Did you know? Wait.”

Frey, with a voice filled with longing, hurriedly asked. Knowing that his voice could never reach.

Schweiser still smiled and moved his lips.

“…”

“What was that?”

Frey could not hear the words.

Schweiser’s figure slowly disappeared like a ghost.

(Note:

1.Originally I preferred my own ‘Fispaunder’ to ‘Phisfounder’ but since I am behind the manhwa translations, I’ve decided that I might as well use theirs so as to not confuse the readers)