Book Eater

Chapter 302: Hall of Fame (2)

Heathcliff’s eyes narrowed at the cryptic words. “... Read the mysteries of the heavens?”

“Yes.”

It might sound strange, but the two of them knew what it meant in this situation. The phrase ‘reading the mysteries of the heavens,’ meant literally reading heavenly secrets in the Eastern tongue. It was a phrase that metaphorically pointed to ‘future work’, an area that those with predictive abilities knew about but didn’t want to commit to.

According to the long memories of Abe no Seimei, one of the greatest shamans in the east, reading the mysteries of the heavens was a taboo that shouldn’t be violated.

“So you have penetrated the essence of my magic.” However, Heathcliff didn’t respond to the request directly. He sighed heavily and scratched his head several times.

Theo nodded without saying anything. The White Tower Master Heathcliff’s unique ability wasn’t to control terrible storms, nor was it spells like Supercell. Instead, it was actually the ability to read the mysteries of the heavens! It was different from short-term predictions like Alfred’s super sensitivity. The future was ever fluid and was an area where mortals couldn’t intervene. Heathcliff made predictions by observing the curves.

Theo had inferred Heathcliff’s ability by looking back at his old memories after reaching the 8th Circle.

- Well, I ended up dying in the middle of nowhere.

- Don’t tell me... Didn’t you see into the future?

- Maybe, maybe not. I don’t know what happened after I died. Now, it is your turn.

Even though seeing the future was rare, it didn’t mean that death could be avoided just by seeing the future. If there was a prognosis that called for death, it was a foreknowledge that a mortal body couldn’t bear. Heathcliff’s foresight wasn’t something that could be acquired, even if Transmission was finished. The power to read the mysteries of the heavens was Heathcliff’s only Sorcery, a unique magic that he had barely completed during his lifetime.

“Well, okay,” Heathcliff accepted Theo’s demands and advised, “I want to tell you one thing before that. Reading the heavens reduces the life of a mortal. But I'm dead. Do you understand what that means?”

“... I have to pay for the reading.”

“Correct. I don’t know how much, but a huge amount of your achievement points will be consumed. If you don’t mind that, I will take a look.”

The heavens weren't accessible to mortals. It contained confidential information that could only be found by transcendents of the material world and couldn’t be used without a penalty.

“Yes, it doesn’t matter.” Yet Theo accepted it without hesitation.

Surely it won’t cost 100,000 points?

Theo had points to spare after stealing from Jerem’s Tartarus. A notification window appeared before him.

[You have chosen to use Heathcliff’s Reading the Mysteries of Heaven. The rating is B+. Depending on how far and how closely you look, the consumption of achievement points will vary greatly.]

[The minimum range for Reading the Mysteries of Heaven is one month, and the achievement points consumed is 3,000 points.]

[It is set according to the user’s discretion.]

3,000 points.

It wasn’t bad. This was a bigger expenditure than he’d expected, but he could afford it easily with 150,000 points. However, he thought a month was too short. How many achievement points would be consumed if he changed the time limit to three months?

The notification window appeared again, as if to answer the question.

[The duration is three months, the accuracy is high, and 48,000 points will be consumed. The capacity will increase as the time zone expands, so the consumption of achievement points will increase.]

[Error! You can’t set the accuracy as high. By adjusting the accuracy to normal, 24,000 points will be consumed.]

Theo took a deep breath and swallowed hard. 48,000 points... and now 24,000 points for ordinary accuracy! Reading the heavens cost the same amount of achievement points as opening the soul of a great magician. Theo felt conflicted for a brief moment.

He was worried about Jerem’s presence, but did he need to spend 24,000 points for an inaccurate prophecy?

No, it’s worth it if there is danger in the future.

Furthermore, even though Heathcliff couldn’t read the future accurately... If Theo wasn’t careful about threats, he might suffer more damage than when Invidia attacked.

In the end, Theo decided on the painful expense. “Then please do so, Senior.”

Heathcliff closed his eyes. “... Okay, let’s take a long look.”

It was called looking at the future, but one’s eyes were useless when it came to predictions. No, they were more of a hindrance. This was why the ancient prophets sometimes dug out their eyes. Heathcliff soon opened his eyes.

“Ah.”

Theo covered his mouth from the shock. It was natural that he did so, since Heathcliff’s eyes had turned completely blue and were swirling like a wave.

“... Ohh... Oh... Ohhh...” He groaned like an ill or dying person. “... Seen...”

Reading the Mysteries of Heaven was used.

「The worshiper of death hides. 」

「The shadow of the false god is lifted. 」

「 The person who devoured the remains of the light and was exiled will return. 」

「Big birds and snakes are surrounding a tree. 」

「The squirrels will help you to repay the favor. 」

It was exactly five sentences. Heathcliff’s murmuring stopped, and his blue eyes returned to their original state. A magician who understood the true meaning of those eyes didn’t exist in this era.

Theo summarized it simply, “It’s vague.”

They might be key clues, but it was impossible to understand before the situations occurred. The worshiper of death was certainly Jerem, but Theo didn’t know who the false god, the remains of light, the big birds and snakes were. The same was true for the squirrels who would repay his grace.

“Prophecies are originally like this. There are no prophets in the myths or legends who explain clearly.”

“Is that so?”

“That’s right.” Heathcliff shrugged and stepped back. “Well, then my role ends here?”

Was he returning to his portrait? As his form became increasingly blurred, Theo threw out a forgotten question, “Ah, Senior! Is there a lingering regret that Senior left behind?”

“Huh? A lingering regret... Let’s see?” Heathcliff made a noncommittal reply while returning to his portrait. “I’ll tell you when I think about it!”

Then he was gone. The frowning Theo was left behind, and the Hall of Fame sank into silence. Even though he was dead, Heathcliff’s free-spirited personality hadn’t changed much. Theo regained his composure and looked at the other two portraits.

There are many things I want to discuss with both of them, but... right now, it is better to focus on the prophecy. I will call Seimei after I become a transcendent.

Theo spoke into the empty space, “Gluttony, I will leave now.”

The notification messages were Gluttony’s reply.

[At User’s request, the Hall of Fame has closed.]

[User currently has 133,329 achievement points.]

[Closing the Hall of Fame.]

***

The next day, Theo was analyzing Heathcliff’s prophecy when he made a surprised expression. “His Majesty called me?”

“Yes, Captain Theo.” The servant bowed politely as he delivered Kurt’s message. “It isn’t just you. The White Tower Master and everyone who participated in the last battle have been called.”

Theo frowned. “What is the reason?”

“Well, it is...”

The servant was unsure, so Theo felt like he had to listen to Kurt speak personally. Kurt had been concealing the fact that Theo had awakened from everyone. The fact that he was calling Theo, the White Tower Master, and other people meant it was something big.

“Let’s go.” Theo put on a red robe and left his room.

“Follow me please.” The servant stayed three steps ahead of Theo as they led the way to avoid the attention of others. Thanks to the servant, Theo could reach the royal palace without any disturbances and entered the room where Kurt was waiting.

Then several voices rang out as Theo entered.

“Theo!”

“... You’ve woken up. I am glad to see that you are well.”

“Not even giving me a hint, isn’t that too much?”

Sylvia, Orta, and Randolph greeted him in turn, while more and more people were attracted by the fuss. Surprisingly, there was no reaction from Veronica. However, when Theo looked at her, she blew him a kiss. In some ways, it was the behavior of a victor.

After a few minutes of turmoil, Kurt entered and settled on the throne, causing the room to calm down. “I’m sorry about the sudden call. However, this issue isn’t something to be treated lightly, so I gathered all the parties involved.”

There was one thing that everyone present had in common. They had been mobilized against Andras and involved in the battle against Invidia. Aside from the two guardians of Elvenheim, the seriously wounded, and the dead, everyone else was gathered.

“Last night, an envoy arrived from the Andras Empire.” Kurt wouldn’t have called them here if it was just that. “I received a letter with the official stamp of the emperor of Andras.”

A stir rippled across the room. It was natural as the emperor of Andras, the monster called Invidia, had vanished without a trace in the Nadun Mountains. Now, a self-proclaimed emperor had appeared in Andras. Hadn’t Invidia died? Or had the fight for the throne ended in just a few days, with the crowning of a new emperor?

“The name of that emperor was also written in the letter,” Kurt continued. In front of all the people with questions, he read out the words at the bottom of the stamped letter, “Andras’ 19th emperor, Crowd von Andras.”