Let's start over, Your Majesty.

Chapter 222 Elias's Diary

The manuscripts, neatly written in Hermogonic alphabet, were gathered together, and Caesar let out a long sigh of relief.

After more than a week of hard work, I finally deciphered Elias's dozen or so pages of manuscript today. Now I can read it normally by referring to the Irolian phonetic table.

"Finally finished."

The workload this time is unimaginable; at least a hundred sheets of manuscript paper have already been used.

Fortunately, it's all done; the work of deciphering all of Clorin's manuscripts is now complete.

He rubbed his temples, showing no intention of resting, and pulled up the phonetic chart, beginning to read the manuscript in Hermog language, sentence by sentence.

Soon, after seeing the above content, his brows gradually furrowed.

The manuscript resembles a diary; although the contents are disorganized, it is clear that it records an order that the archmage Elias received from King Rean II.
Caesar arranged the entries that began with a date in chronological order:
"July 26, 32 AD. Today, the collection of Crimson Crystals has been completed. This was the easiest of the planned objectives, but it still took two months and five days. Two days ago, three of my students died under the erupting volcano, but we didn't even have time to mourn. Next, we need to immediately go to the Manrothos Islands to collect the fruits of the Sunflower before the first autumn rains of September. This will be another unknown journey. Wish me luck, wish His Majesty luck, wish the Empire luck."

"February 24th, 33 AD. Today, after a year's absence, I've returned to the capital. It's hard to believe how much has changed here, with so many new facilities built."

The third phase of the Fata project is complete, and the 'Covenant Spell Formula' should also be able to complete the construction of its spell logic this year. This progress has far exceeded my expectations. It's truly remarkable that His Majesty was able to coordinate the Fata, the Royal Court, and the Secret Meeting—the three forces—to abandon their conflicts and work together to complete the research.
The entire capital is now a scene of prosperity. People live in peace and happiness, there are no starving people to be seen, all wars have ended, and all races live in harmony. You can even see beastmen and demon couples on the streets, something unheard of in the past. Perhaps my previous thoughts were wrong; a good era is truly coming.

"On September 14th, 33 AD, the third test subject died today. Perhaps our previous assumptions were wrong. The upper limit of a sorcerer's skill level is ultimately fixed within a certain limit. I am pessimistic, as is Professor Komdal. But His Majesty does not think so. After the report was submitted, he immediately ordered us to continue the experiment. Now there are no fresh test subjects left. To be honest, using a hero-level sorcerer for this kind of experiment with a 9% mortality rate is beyond my acceptable level. I am really curious. His Majesty is not a monarch who blindly goes his own way and does not listen to advice. So where does his confidence in insisting on this doomed plan come from?"

"On December 11, 34 AD, at today's secret meeting, His Majesty presented me with a very bold idea. Well, it was so bold that it couldn't be described as 'out of the blue,' and it even far surpassed the Great Emperor's previous plan to ascend to godhood. What he hypothesized had overturned the underlying logic of the entire civilization. In the end, he told me that this was not a hypothesis, but a plan that would be implemented in reality in the future. He called it the 'Eternal Kingdom.' This is too grand and too fantastical. I hope that His Majesty's idea is just a whim."

"January 24, 36 AD. This year is the first harvest festival we've spent within the Arctic Circle. Although conditions are poor, we still prepared a fairly lavish dinner together. Balau hunted a deer three kilometers outside the camp. Ah, the taste of meat! For a whole year, I've relied on the Appetite Spell to make myself eat frozen, hard grains. The meat feels like something I've eaten in a past life. Even with just a little salt, it tastes a thousand times more delicious than anything the royal chefs have prepared. I'm already starting to miss that glass of ale before I left. I hope the work here will end soon so I can take everyone back to the capital."

"On June 21st, 39 AD, I realized I would never return to the capital. The vast snowfields would be my final resting place. Nearly four years had passed, and the research on the Mythical Stone Tablet had made no progress whatsoever; only losses continued to mount. Today, I received news that the supply ship had capsized upstream in the Forest Valley. The captain threw all the supplies he had brought into the river to ensure the survival of the more valuable alchemical materials. This means we'll have to continue wearing these tattered cotton coats for another whole year."
Last night, Jock got caught in a blizzard while going to replace the thermal stone and got lost in the snowy night. He wasn't found until early morning, ten kilometers outside the camp. He was frozen to death, still clutching the protective shell of the thermal stone in his arms.
We've encountered far too many misfortunes. I even question the meaning of what we're doing now, wasting so much manpower and resources on such an impossible task. I'm still pondering that question: where does His Majesty's confidence come from?

"On March 27, 44 AD, the seal on the Mythical Stone Tablet finally loosened. Thank you, Mother Goddess, thank you, Your Majesty! This is the first piece of good news worth celebrating in nearly nine years. No, this can be called a milestone for the entire magical world, and even the entire civilization! I will be recorded in history! For the first time, humanity has shaken the constraints of the gods with its own power. This means that in the future, all sorcerers will be able to break through existing limitations and reach a higher level! This is a level that even Emperor Rean has not reached. I only realized now that perhaps Your Majesty's idea was correct. The Eternal Kingdom does indeed have a chance to be realized."

"On April 6th, 44 AD, perhaps I could force His Majesty to agree with my opinion through some more extreme methods. This is no longer just a matter of the empire's survival, but a matter of the existence of the entire civilization. But who is willing to be the sacrifice? No one."

But no matter what, I must return to the capital this year. Everything should be over. Perhaps after it's over, I'll come back here and bury all the secrets I know, including myself, here. Heh, I must be crazy to even think of that.

The manuscript with a timeline ends here; the rest is scattered, disjointed content, mostly about Elias's nine years in the Arctic Circle. Caesar quickly skimmed through it, his gaze soon lingering on a few entries:
“Those things could not possibly be creatures from Eli Star, I’m almost certain of that. Someone in the team said their arrival represented a calamity, and perhaps so. These strange and beautiful creatures do indeed seem like the embodiment of the legendary calamity. I can imagine the powerful force contained within them. Fortunately, they were pinned down here, otherwise we would have been the ones to suffer.”

"It's more accurate to describe these things as 'awakening' rather than 'birth.' They seem to know more about the world than we do, but they are unwilling to reveal more. I am interested in what they say, but I am also wary. I have put up defenses on my mental world to prevent these from being their means of bewitching the human mind."

"This has shocked me just as much as when His Majesty's Eternal Kingdom became a reality. I can guarantee that if Emperor Rean were standing here, he would regret not waiting until today to begin the ascension ceremony. It's a pity that the Holy Mother did not favor him after all. He is still entangled in that filthy divinity. It's ironic that he paid such a high price for it, yet after his fall, the gates of the divine kingdom shine a ray of light upon us."

"No, there's absolutely no way there's no solution! I can definitely salvage the situation, reverse all the losses, and prevent this disaster. I must do it! Eldaria will definitely not be the last dynasty of humankind!"
Damn it, why am I the only one who knows about this?

"I will become a sinner in history, and Your Majesty will bear the infamy forever!"

"This is absolutely not an exaggeration. When they awaken, the entire civilization will become nourishment!"

"Holy Mother, what have I done?!"

(End of this chapter)