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However, because this was a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity to learn illusion from Viram, the best teacher in the field, Henry endured the boredom in silence.

They were eventually done looking at the Shahatra dynasty through the illusion, and as a result, the darkness cleared, and the Khan’s library became visible again.

“This is the end of the lecture on the Shahatra dynasty,” said Viram.

Although it had been boring, Viram’s lectures were unique, and it was hard to receive them anywhere else. Moreover, the vivid visuals he provided were particularly noteworthy.

However, Henry had the feeling that something was off right after he finished listening to the lectures.

‘It wasn\'t too boring because of the illusion itself, but rather because it was full of useless information.’

Even though his lectures were boring, Henry still listened to everything Viram was saying because he was hoping to find something useful.

However, Viram was old and much more patriotic than Henry had thought. In both lectures on the desert and the dynasty, Viram hadn’t mentioned the real history that Henry actually wanted to know about.

Henry didn’t display his displeasure and asked, “High priest.”

“Yes, Lord Henry.”

“Can I ask you a question?”

“Of course you can. Asking questions is one of the most important things when it comes to studying.”

‘Yeah yeah, of course,’ Henry thought to himself.

“Then I’ll ask a straightforward question. High Priest, how do you think the historical background of the desert and the dynasty that you have explained to me so far will help me learn illusion?”

“As I’ve mentioned earlier, no matter what it is that you’re trying to learn, it’s easier for you to understand if you learn where certain powers originated from.”

“No. I think you only told me about how that power was used and how it was developed, but you didn’t mention one thing about its fundamentals or how it originated.”

“And?”

“If it’s as you’ve said, wouldn\'t it be much easier if you explained why, where, and how the illusion was created?”

“That’s…”

Henry had hit the nail on the head.

Henry was right, and it was also true that Viram was deliberately avoiding getting straight to the main point.

‘He’s hiding something.’

Henry had a suspicion that Viram was hiding something, a secret that both Herarion and Viram wanted to keep hidden. He believed they were keeping a secret that revolved around the power of gods and its connection to how illusion was created. That had to have been the reason why that seventy-year-old was giving him these kinds of lectures.

Viram smiled and said, “Of course, you may think so right now, but I guarantee that your questions will be answered naturally as you learn illusion.”

‘I knew it.’

Viram’s response was vague.

This was a good way to avoid good questions, but it only made Henry more certain that his suspicion was right.

Virm held out a thick book to Henry and said, “Here, have it.”

“What is this?”

“It’s a book about illusion.”

‘A book about illusion?’

Henry thought the book was similar to a textbook, but when he skimmed through it, he realized that was not the case. The book was more like a historical record in the sense that it summarized the beginning and the end of Shahatra’s illusion.

Seeing Henry look through the book, Viram said, “As I mentioned earlier, the art of illusion itself is simpler than expected. However, in order to use illusion, it is necessary to memorize all the contents of that book in order, and most prospective priests give up because of that.”

“Just because of that?”

“Because prospective priests also have to memorize other books besides illusion.”

“I see. What happens if one gives up memorizing this book?”

“Prospective priests that give up memorizing the contents of the book just remain stuck at that stage until they die. They can never be promoted to a priest, and they must live by continuing to believe in the sun god.”

In other words, if they weren’t smart enough, they couldn’t get promoted and had to live as religious people for the rest of their lives.

“But what do you mean by ‘memorizing it in order’? You make it sound like memorizing this entire book will make you the best illusionist,” said Henry.

“You’re half right, half wrong. If you do as the book says, you will definitely be able to create illusions, but…”

Thud!

With his answer, Viram hit the ground with his cane, and a mysterious, dark-colored Milky Way appeared throughout the library.

“You won’t be able to create realistic illusions like me.”

“Is there a difference?”

“This too, you will know once you experience it yourself.”

‘What kind of teaching is this?’

Henry had thought that Viram’s teachings would be special because he was the high priest, but so far, his teachings had made no sense.

However, as Viram had said, everything about illusion was summarized here, so Henry decided to trust the book about illusions that he now had in his possession.

“Is this everything you’re going to teach me?” asked Henry.

“For now, yes.”

“Then I’ll see you in ten days.”

“Why ten days?”

“You said that it was important for me to memorize the book, and I believe ten days is enough time for me to memorize all of it,” replied Henry with confidence.

Viram looked surprised, but he soon smiled slightly and said, “Haha, Lord Henry, you’re joking, right? Although there’s only one book on illusion, it contains the entire history of illusion that has been recorded over a long period of time. How do you plan on memorizing all of that in just ten days?”

“It’s possible if I’m just memorizing it.”

“...?”

Viram looked fascinated when he noticed that Henry wasn’t joking.

Despite there being only one book, the text was densely packed with very small letters. More importantly, not even High Priest Viram had perfectly memorized the entire book yet.

Soon, Henry left the library after bowing and went to Hector.

“I’ll get going now.”

“What about illusion? Did you learn it already?”

“Learn my ass. That old man tried selling me on this crap.”

“What? What are you talking about?”

“Never mind. Anyway, I don’t have to tell you what to do, right?”

“I know. Don’t worry about Herarion.”

Hector displayed his reliability, and Henry patted his shoulder twice, moving on to his next destination.

Next up, Henry went to see none other than Kale.

“W-what brings you here all of a sudden?”

Kale instinctively felt afraid.

Seemingly uninterested, Henry gave him a few green bottles of his concentrated mana.

“I came to feed you.”

“Huh?”

“I’m going to be busy for a while, so take it as required.”

Kale silently stared at the bottles for a bit before accepting them.

“...Alright.”

He felt strange.

Every time something like this happened, Kale questioned his identity, wondering if he was actually a mage. However, this was still much better than being directly injected with mana, so he took the green bottles without complaining.

“Good luck.”

Henry used Teleportation to get to Ten’s mansion.

* * *

“Lord Henry!”

Henry arrived at Ten’s mansion without much thought.

He still had some vacation time left that he had gotten from Eisen, so he was going to stay at the mansion for a while and memorize the book about illusion. However, as soon as he got to the mansion, Ten rushed toward Henry, making a fuss.

“What’s wrong?”

“Marquis Eisen is urgently looking for you!”

‘Eisen?’

It hadn’t even been a few days since he had last written to Eisen regarding the Pink Swamp, so why was he looking for him again?

He felt that Eisen’s request to see him was about something serious.

Henry took out a Subspace pouch and said, “Ten, you’re responsible for giving this to the emperor.”

“T-to the emperor?”

“Don’t make a fuss. This is something I have to send him regularly from now on. Also, I’m saying this just in case, but you better not try out what’s inside here even if it’s just out of curiosity.”

Henry took out a bunch of the newly supplied Shahatra cigarettes from the Subspace Pouch. Ten gulped at the sight of the Pink Swamp, but Henry gave him another firm warning and left the mansion.

‘I hope it’s nothing serious.’

He now had to postpone memorizing the book.

* * *

The Shonan mansion was busy when Henry got there.

A sudden call from Eisen and a busy atmosphere didn’t bode well...

‘I guess I’ll know once I see him.’

Henry passed through the garden and headed to the office in which Eisen was working.

When Henry opened the door to the office, Eisen opened his arms wide and welcomed him.

“Henry!”

“Good to see you, Marquis.”

Henry greeted him calmly, whereas Eisen was still in the heat of the moment.

“Haha! Yes, yes. No need to greet me so formally, just come and sit down quickly.

Henry felt that Eisen was weirdly nervous and in a rush. It was almost like watching an adult tell a sloppy lie.

Henry didn’t continue his greeting and immediately went straight to the point.

“I heard you were looking for me all of a sudden. What’s the matter?”

“Hmm, I’m sorry for calling you during your vacation, but that bastard Alfred has caused some problems.”

“Marquis Alfred?”

“Yes, Alfred did this… So this is what happened… Which is why I’m battling him.”

‘A battle?’

Henry couldn’t help being shocked by the sudden news.

However, after hearing the news of the battle, Henry could now understand what Alfred was feeling.

‘If I were in his shoes, I would also lose my mind if I didn’t let my anger out on Eisen.’

His two sons were ruined just because of some cigarettes that were about the size of a finger. Alfred had even told the emperor about it as a last resort, but he, too, had fallen in love with the Pink Swamp, so of course, Alfred was angry. It was understandable that he requested a battle.

However, it was strange because a battle between nobles could only take place if both parties agreed to it. In addition, it made no sense for Eisen to accept the battle in the current circumstances because he wouldn’t get anything out of it.

Henry frowned and asked, “Marquis, can it be that you accepted the battle out of anger?”

“...Haha, of course not. I tried to refuse, but he offered me a pretty good deal.”

“A good deal…?”

“Yes, I’m sure you’ve heard of it before. It’s the Three Golden Sites, one of the many lands Alfred owns.”

‘The Three Golden Sites!’

It was known to be the best of the best lands that Alfred had.

In fact, Alfred made most of his profits through the Three Golden Sites, so these lands were something that he wouldn’t have dared to bet.

How could he have bet the precious Three Golden Sites just out of anger? It didn’t make any sense.

‘That’s strange. Alfred wouldn\'t have bet the Three Golden Sites in a fit of rage… He must have asked for something in return that\'s worth just as much as those lands.’

Nobles were known to be just as greedy as business people, especially if they were the Three Great Families.

Therefore, if Alfred bet Three Golden Sites, Eisen had to have put something valuable on the line as well. However, Eisen didn’t own any expensive property that was worth as much as the Three Golden Sites.

Also, Alfred wouldn’t have requested a battle solely out of anger because he wanted Eisen’s property.

“What did you bet, Marquis?” asked Henry.

“I…”

Eisen hesitated, and the longer he hesitated, the more anxious Henry got.

He awkwardly smiled and replied, “That’s… Don’t take this the wrong way. Alfred wanted your life, Henry.”

“My life…?”

“Yes.”

Henry was so bewildered that it made him speechless.