The Divine Twilight's Return

Chapter 386: Star, Purple Star Astrology (7)

Arcadia was an entire stellar system. Worldline #802 was a world where gods had died, but Arcadia was one of the most advanced civilizations within it, and was more than just a planet. Living up to the term ‘stellar system’, their civilization extended over twenty planets, with a huge star that released a limitless amount of energy in the system’s center. Their influence reached not only their own stellar system, but also the nearby galaxies.

That was why the people of Arcadia who stayed on the capital planet called themselves demigods. In truth, most of those within Arcadia were spiritually capable of earning such a title; but of course, not all people were treated equally. The people who lived in the wild or on the outskirts of the world were, as always, exceptions to the privileges of civilized society.

The planet named Eos was one of those exceptions. Most regions were covered in ice and chilly air, so superstitions were prevalent across the planet.

“Dad, dad.” A ten-year-old boy pulled on the sleeve of his father, who had dug a hole in the ice and was fishing.

The father turned to look at his son, replying, “Yes, what is it?”

“What is that thing on the boulder?” the son asked, pointing with his small, mitten-covered hand.

The father burst into laughter after realizing that his son was pointing at this region’s landmark. He answered, “Ah, you’re talking about the Sky Sword.”

When the father had been as young as his son, he had also grabbed his father’s hand and asked what it was. A generation later, his son was asking the very same question.

The only thing that stood tall within the flat snowfield was large boulder. Their ancestors believed that the boulder contained a trace of power that belonged to a guardian who had protected their land for a very long time. A sword was pierced into the edge of the boulder—no, it was unclear whether it could still be called a sword, because it was taller than most adult men. Two meters? No, it was three meters tall at least.

On top of that, snow had piled up and frozen in place on the sword and boulder, so the sword’s original shape was unrecognizable. However, the sword exuded faint light that brought serenity to those who watched it. The people of Eos were not accustomed to magic and silence, but they could also tell that the sword was extraordinary.

“Sky Sword?” the son asked back, his eyes twinkling upon hearing such a cool name. He was at an age where he idolized anything cool.

“Yes, no one actually knows the exact name, so people just call it the Sky Sword because it dropped down from the sky out of the blue,” the father replied.

“Whoa!” the son exclaimed.

“My great-grandfather... So it happened when your grandfather’s grandfather was around, Hiyan,” the father said as he began to explain the legend of the Sky Sword.

Of course, it was a story that the people around the region had just randomly come up with, but many still believed it to be the truth.

“At the time, a very bad Demon King ruled our homeland, and a hero from another world appeared...”

The hero from another world had no homeland to return to, so he had wandered across the world. One day, he had received a prophecy from the heavens and was awakened, defeating the evil Demon King in the end.

Although it was called a legend, it was just a crude folktale. If someone on the capital planet were to publish the story as a book, it would receive a lot of criticism.

“He sounds really awesome,” the son said, liking the story regardless.

“He was. The villagers at the time said they would like to give a reward to the hero, but he just turned their offer down and left again,” the father said.

“Then what does the sword have to do with the hero?” the son asked.

“The hero’s journey continued onward, and he ended up fighting a very evil god in the heavens. That was when he accidentally dropped that sword,” the father said as he pointed at the sword.

“Ah, I see! Wow! Then it’s something really great!” the son exclaimed.

The father nodded with a smile. After growing up, he had realized that the story was just a tall tale that his homeland’s people had come up with about the sword that randomly fell from the sky. Still, it did not seem to matter; not only were his son’s eyes sparkling, the boy also flapped his arms so hard in excitement that it looked as if he would be able to fly.

“Mmmm...” The son suddenly became very serious.

“What’s wrong?” the father asked.

“The story means that the hero lost his treasured weapon! Then he must be looking for it very badly... I want to give it back to him!” the son cried, raising his arm in determination.

The father chuckled at his son’s adorable agony, so he stroked his son’s head as he replied, “Well, wouldn’t a hero like him find that sword in no time?”

“Then the Sky Sword wouldn’t be here. He must not know where he dropped it! Mommy also does that all the time,” the son said, badmouthing his mother innocently and happily.

“You’re right. Maybe the hero has a reason why he can’t get the Sky Sword back,” the father said.

“Mmmm! If that’s true, it’s worse! He must need the Sky Sword even more! What should I do? What should I do?!” The son started to jump up and down in concern.

“Hahahaha! Or he might not need it right now. Who knows? If the time comes and he says ‘Come here!’, the Sky Sword may really go flying back to the hero,” the father said.

“Hehehe, that would be so cool. I hope it really happens,” the son said.

“Yes, so let’s pray that the hero will get his sword back, starting today,” the father said.

“Okay!” The son held his hands together and closed his eyes, beginning his prayer.

He looked so adorable that his father stroked his head a while longer before turning to look at the Sky Sword. Although he was the one who had said that the sword could go back to the owner upon his command, the father found the thought funny, thinking that such a sight would be majestic in its own way.

‘It could only happen in dreams,’ the father thought, knowing that there was no way that could happen.

Unlike the legend, the Sky Sword had to just be an impressive sculpture that would continue to remain in his homeland even after his son grew to his age...

Rumble!

Around the time the father began to think about his son’s future, his eyes widened because of a sudden earthquake—no, it was the boulder in which the Sky Sword was embedded that was shaking, to be more precise.

“Whoa! Dad! Dad, look over there! The hero must have heard my prayer!” The son hopped around in excitement, noticing that the earthquake was from the Sky Sword.

‘The prayer... really worked?’ the father thought in disbelief.

The Sky Sword shook even harder.

Crack, crack, crack!

Cracks spread on the ice around the sword, the pieces soon falling to the ground.

Rumble...!

Shortly after, a pool of brilliant light spread out from the sword. As it gradually floated up into the air, the sword revealed its true form. The Sky Sword, which was actually called [Trollsverd], was shrouded with holy light and sparkled brilliantly. Rather than the terrible moniker of ‘monster-slayer sword’, it seemed to be more apt to call it a holy sword.

[Trollsverd]

The monster-slaying stone sword of a Giant, which the Celestial ‘Divine Twilight’ used in the past. A Giant from primordial times killed a ‘beast’, and its blood seeped into the sword, transforming its stone blade. It is very effective in correcting abnormalities that stray from the laws and principles of nature.

“When an old Giant left this stone sword, the world split in half.”

· Type: Sword. Demonic Sword.

· Effect: Law of Nature Establishment. Anomaly Massacre. Giant Greatsword.

“The Sky Sword is going back to the hero!” the son yelled.

Paaah!

At the same time, [Trollsverd] turned into a ray of light and flew across the sky, leaving a long afterimage like a meteor in the night sky. In contrast to his son, who was letting out a cheer, the father gaped blankly as he watched the sword fly away.

“Is... Is it possible?” the father murmured, thinking an uproar would start in his homeland after others witnessed the extraordinary sight.

Just like that, however, he saw other trails of light appearing one after another next to the light trail that was presumed to be the Sky Sword. They were all converging toward one place.

The father’s jaw practically dropped to the ground as he murmured, “It... replicates?”

* * *

[The scattered weapons are coming together in one place due to the ‘Wordwielding’ of the Celestial ‘Divine Twilight’!]

Numerous spatial gaps appeared around Chang-Sun, and various weapons emerged from them. The first weapons that appeared merely seemed to be metal scraps, but Chang-Sun could smell the distinctive scent of [Cold Iron] and knew that they were metal pieces of the chest that stored his weapons.

Click!

Click!

The metal chest’s fragments, which had shattered right after ‘Divine Twilight’ had plummeted from the sky, pieced themselves together one by one, turning into a metal chest that was taller than Chang-Sun.

Whoosh, whoosh, whoosh!

Meanwhile, other weapons continued to appear and settled inside the chest. Large axes and spears settled at the bottom, while small weapons like daggers hung on the underside of the lid. The weapons Chang-Sun had already retrieved, such as [Balmung], [Gram], and [Nothung], entered the chest too; there was also [Trollsverd], the one he needed the most right now.

Clink!

The lid settled on top of the metal chest, completing it.

[The ‘Omni-Weapon Chest’ has been completed!]

[All the components of your <Myth> have converged, fully restoring all your <Myths>.]

[The Effects of the Trait ‘King of All Weapons’ are active at maximum capacity!]

『Your [Omni-Weapon Chest]...? What are you trying to start?!』

Taeul shouted, noticing that the air around Chang-Sun had changed subtly.

“Something fun,” Chang-Sun replied as he smiled crookedly, shoving Taeul away.

Then, he activated a Teleportation Rune and reappeared a vast distance away from Taeul.

Paaah!

He could feel the emerging power inside him, restoring all the senses he had as ‘Divine Twilight’. Right at that moment, Chang-Sun instinctively knew what he had to do.

―Now you’ve finally recovered your whole self.

Not paying attention to Odin’s murmuring, Chang-Sun picked up the [Twilight Spear] from the ground and held it up high. Then, the six strands of the [Liuhunfan Flag], which had been tied at the end of the spear, wrapped themselves around the spear handle. Meanwhile, the [Omni-Weapon Chest] was disassembled into dozens of pieces and combined with the spear.

The [Twilight Spear] was the center of all of Chang-Sun’s <Myths>, so it was entirely possible to combine it with the other elements of his <Myths>.

Click, click, click―!

The [Twilight Spear] grew far longer and several times thicker. The central spearhead was now surrounded by four additional blades; the four slayer swords now served as its counterbalance.

[All your Myths are merging into one, with your ‘Twilight Spear’ as the center!]

[‘Balmung’ has become the upper spearhead of your ‘Twilight Spear’.]

[Your Myths have been joined by a new Myth of bloodthirst.]

[‘Gram’ has become the lower spearhead of your ‘Twilight Spear’.]

[Your Myths have been joined by a new Myth of slaying Evil Dragons.]

[‘Nothung’ has become the right spearhead of your ‘Twilight Spear’.]

[Your Myth of eliminating demonic Celestials has been reinforced.]

[‘Trollsverd’ has become the left spearhead of your ‘Twilight Spear’.]

[Your Myth of stopping an Anomaly has been merged with a new Myth.]

...

[The four slayer swords have merged completely, transforming into their original form!]

‘This... is their original form, huh.’ Chang-Sun had not given much thought to the four slayer swords in spite of the fact that he had been favoring them.

However, he now knew that the four slayer swords were a spear, not swords; to be exact, they were spearheads. However, the original weapon had shattered for an unknown reason, the pieces scattering everywhere. Each piece had eventually acquired a different name and a different <Myth>. After their long journeys, they had ended up in Chang-Sun’s hands.

It was not a coincidence, but rather destiny. As Chang-Sun had acquired his divine ranks and formed <Myths>, the four weapons had been attracted to each other in accordance with the law of causality and returned to where they belonged.

From the beginning, the four slayer swords and Chang-Sun’s soul had been connected, but it was not just the four slayer swords. It was the same for all the weapons in the [Omni-Weapon Chest], and they were all trying to return to their original forms once again. This was not so much a merge but a restoration.

[Carving runes, the primordial letters!]

Paah, paah, paah―!

Pools of white light danced along the [Twilight Spear] and carved various letters into it, and...

Oooooooong―!

The huge spear let out a clear howl, trembling powerfully.

Zing, zing, zinnnnng!

[Congratulations! You have successfully restored ‘Gungnir’, the forgotten great relic from ancient times.]

[Gungnir], the great relic that Odin the Celestial King had used before his death, finally returned to its original owner after a long time, following its destiny.

Paaah...!

Chang-Sun exuded sacred light that was more radiant than ever.

Wooosh!

[Your ‘Gnostic Eye’ has been enhanced!]

[You are now able to read more secrets of the world and learn more knowledge.]

[You have absorbed a Myth of the ‘Cane-Holding Father of Warriors’.]

[Your ego has been reinforced!]

[Your soul’s level has elevated!]

...

[You have analyzed ‘Inferno Sight’, merging it into your ‘Gnostic Eye’.]

...

[Your ‘Gnostic Eye’ shines radiantly!]

After integrating the Inferno Sight, Chang-Sun’s [Gnostic Eye] now emitted splendid light. Right at that moment, he revealed the dignity that Odin had possessed as the Celestial King in the past.

[Everyone, hail! A new Celestial King candidate has been born in this place.]