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Published at 29th of September 2019 03:11:44 PM
Chapter 40

Chapter 40: Golden Crossroads

Garoua Maria . The training ground at the school .

These particular facilities were unpopular at the school . After all, magical research was conducted by using dolls made of wood and auxiliary tools for experiments .

Of course, this school was no ordinary school . The attendees were those with wealth or with prestigious backgrounds . These young people weren’t exactly interested in magic nor swordsmanship per se . Some of them simply wanted to earn the high-status of attending this prominent school . While others wanted to use the connections of this school to build relationships with the upper class . Therefore, most of the attendees didn’t put much effort in learning magic or swordsmanship .

Only one girl desired to gain magical talent . Besides her, another person also attended this school with a different mindset .

On a certain hallway of the school, a double-edged sword emitted a white light because of the reflection from the sunshine . Helot Stanley carefully wiped off the dirt of his blade . After he finished, he placed his sword on top of his scabbard .

*howling wind sound*

A breathtaking wind . The leaves carried by the wind cut through the rays of sunshine . The whole space vibrated with the power of nature . The strong breeze passed through his body and the scabbard . Eventually, the short gust of wind disappeared completely and the normal air reverted back .

Helot’s eyebrows wrinkled for a brief moment . He gritted his back teeth lightly, and then, sighed deeply . It seemed that today wasn’t a good day .

From the side, everyone knew that Helot was a very talented person . He didn’t have apparent flaws . However, his mind was troubled . No matter how much gifted and skillful he was . Those traits would be useless if his feelings were in turmoil . Moreover, Helot was a person who couldn’t leave behind the indecisiveness of his heart .

His physical body looked healthy . But, his muscles and skin showed some sort of a shivering reaction . Yes, the reason was his spirit .

Apparently, Helot’s troubled mind didn’t settle yet . The unsettling heart of his . There were many questions and deep thoughts running through his brain . It didn’t stop . These unhealthy thoughts continued endlessly . He tried to calm down . His golden hair shook as he placed the sword in his scabbard .


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「What a spooky face you’re making, dear Helot . 」

Helot’s body suddenly jumped in surprised when he heard a voice coming from behind his back . Somehow, his troubling thoughts started to run wild on his mind once again . But, this distraction was good for his tangled heart .

「…Uncle, it’s been a long time since I’ve seen you . It’s quite rare to see you at this school . 」

This man twisted his neck with an indignant expression after he heard his nephew Helot’s unfriendly greeting .

「I’ve come to see you . Whom else do you think I came to see on this school besides you! 」

Helot smiled awkwardly after he heard his uncle’s bitter words .

Buckingham Stanley . This man was Helot’s uncle, a person who lived freely on his own . He was notoriously famous for his pranks . In fact, this man dropped out of the succession dispute from the Stanley family a long time ago . Afterwards, he spent most of his days living a free but lascivious lifestyle . Nonetheless, he was now involved in the diplomatic activities of the Stanley family due to external factors .

Yet, many people from the Stanley family disliked the easygoing attitude of Helot’s uncle . People whispered that he was a cunning man with a dishonest life that put a mask to deceive others . It was just rumors though, since many people unrelated to this family really liked this man .

Actually, Helot didn’t hate Buckingham . Yes, he was utterly ridiculous sometimes, but he was carefree and compassionate . No wonder that other people followed him dearly except from the members of his particular family .

「Uncle, I have one unreasonable question for you . Is a human being able of performing a true good deed with a genuine malice lurking in its heart?」

Usually, Helot sought his uncle’s advice rather than his strict and unapproachable father .


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After escaping from the underground temple, Helot’s mind became full with troubled thoughts . Helot’s mind only thought of one particular person, whose identity was obvious . Lugis, the adventurer with green clothes who wasn’t good nor righteous .

Did Buckingham know the answer to that question? He sat on a chair on the training ground, and slowly touched his cheek . He responded after thinking briefly about it .

「Of course, it can . It’s a human after all . Contradiction is a feeling that is born with us . Sometimes, a human’s heart gets quite conflicted about which action to take . Isn’t that what we call human’s nature, Helot?」

Helot bit his lips after hearing those words .

He wondered if that was factual . No . Actually, that person was probably an opportunistic man . Helot narrowed his eyes while he bit his lips harder .

He imposed outrageous conditions on Filaret to his own advantage . What he wanted was self-preservation . However, after that, he was able to risk his life by exposing his body to burning flames in order to protect Filaret . It was a combination of bad and good actions . Helot inclined his head in confusion because he couldn’t decipher the contradictory behavior of that man .

If self-preservation was his top priority, he wouldn’t have sacrificed himself to protect Filaret . If self-preservation was not his top priority, why would he impose an outrageous condition on Filaret? There would be no real reason for this act if he wasn’t really seeking a self-protection of sorts .

“I don’t understand . ” Helot couldn’t understand the real motivations of the man called Lugis .

「Helot, you should understand it just by looking at my situation . You know, humans are complex beings, and we usually follow complicated paths . People have passions, desires, hopes and goals in life . But, sometimes, these people experience conflicted choices and emotions . Some lose their way foolishly, while others change their destiny . It means that sometimes people make decisions that are completely the opposite of what they wanted originally . You see, not everybody is like you Helot . You were always a virtuous person . Someone who took the righteous path in life . Always with good intentions . Yes, always with an answer to what your mind desires . In fact, I’m jealous of you . 」

The conversation sounded serious at the beginning . However, Buckingham finished speaking on a lighter tone and showed me his mischievous smile .

But, it worried Helot . That man’s actions were incomprehensible to him . Or the contrary . Perhaps, Helot was the one who couldn’t understand other people’s hearts . After all, he didn’t have the same problems as Buckingham described . It seemed rather common that humans had contradictory feelings . But, not Helot . It was rather simple for him . Most things were either with bad or good intentions . That’s how he lived his life until now . He never doubted his judgement .


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Nevertheless, this talk . Yes, this particular talk . Everything sounded confusing because Helot viewed things differently .

「Yes, humans can only go forward with their lives if they are on distressful situations . God created us as annoying human beings . Okay! Let’s bless our God! I appreciate that you created me to be born on this malicious crucible! Yes! A malice that will haunt me forever! Ah, thank you!」

「…Uncle . Don’t say it like that . You mustn’t speak such heresy out loud . 」

“His speech was quite heretic . It sounded like his usual jokes . However, his eyes told me otherwise . It was as if he truly believed on what he said . ” Helot thought .

Buckingham was a puzzling man . Was his words a joke or were they the truth? What were his real intentions? Helot thought that maybe his wife didn’t even understand him completely .

However, his unreadable personality was suitable for diplomatic affairs .

「I’m kidding . It’s just a joke, don’t worry . Well, then Helot . I have to go to Gharast Kingdom . That’s the reason why I came here in the first place . I thought of taking you with me . 」

Helot narrowed his eyes unintentionally upon hearing his uncle’s words . It was too sudden to be honest . Before Helot could answer, Buckingham continued to speak .

「Recently, some strange incidents occurred around this area . My brother, who is the head of the Stanley family, can’t help but think that the next generation should get away from such a threatening place . Apparently, rumors say that the apostate people of the Heraldic Order, who should’ve fled to the east, are strangely showing up now . 」

Buckingham looked into Helot’s eyes after he slightly moved his eyes in a weird way .

Actually, he didn’t suspect Helot at all . Rather, he didn’t even know what happened to Helot and his fellow companions . Helot immediately knew what these strange incidents meant on his brain . They were a group of armed men from the Heraldic Order, and a woman called Saint . It was clear that their unusual gathering and offensive stance seemed rather ominous .

Helot thought that he should inform his uncle of these people . Then, his uncle would be able to take this matter to the Gharast Kingdom to solve this problem . These dangerous people would be taken care of immediately . It wouldn’t be wrong to take proper measures now .

“But, if I tell him that, I won’t be able to remain here anymore . If that happens, I will be obliged to follow the path of my family immediately . ” Helot Stanley became stunned when such words floated inside of his mind . It was the first time that he felt such confusion on what to decide .

Good intentions and justice . Helot has been walking on that path in his entire life . No crossroads, no doubts, and no confusion . Everything was done based on his righteous morality .

Nevertheless, this was the first time he faced with his own crossroads . He thought the following . “Will I speak everything here and now? Or, will I remain silent?” .

One part of his mind told him that he had to talk . That would be the most precise action to take . The one that defined the personality of the human named Helot Stanley . At the same time, he didn’t want to take part in the internal affairs between nations . He didn’t want to leave like this . Indeed . He doubted both of his options .

Two different wills clashed with one another inside of Helot’s brain . The will that was born from his good-natured personality of justice was competing with the will that his heart desired .

“Ah, what is going on? Is there a problem with me? Why am I wavering with my decisions? Is this what it means to be human?” There was a moment of hesitation . However, before long, Helot’s mouth opened slowly and he declared the winning decision .

「…No, I didn’t know about any of that, Uncle . Yes, if I recall correctly, there’s nothing noteworthy around here . 」

The will of his heart won . Helot thought that if this talk happened before he met those companions, he would’ve acted as he normally did . As himself . He wouldn’t make the decision to hide his knowledge about dangerous people . He would’ve chosen the path of justice .

But, his heart wavered . Something deep told him otherwise . He knew perfectly well that this was a shameful act called deception to cover the impulse of his desire . An impulse covered by the cloth of justice . Yes, a very shameful act .

Even so, Helot Stanley made a profound decision . Instead of goodwill and justice, he chose a different path . His desire to stay in Garoua Maria was stronger than his own righteous personality . He was finally willing to cast that aside .

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