Lord of the Truth

Chapter 2372 The new

One Week After the Dual Invasion Began—

”...”

Robin maintained a calm, unwavering gaze toward the sky, silently and comfortably watching the drifting clouds, the soaring birds, and the endless heavens above without the slightest trace of impatience, as though he wished to imprint the entire scene into his memory.

”Here.” Glatheon appeared beside him carrying a chilled drink along with several clusters of fresh grapes. ”Ever since the breakthrough storm ended, the planetʼs sky has gradually begun repairing itself and restoring its natural balance, and that alone makes it breathtakingly beautiful. As for the birds and beasts that hid away in their shelters for decades, theyʼve finally begun venturing back out to explore their homeland once more. Somehow, the sights that follow a breakthrough never fail to amaze me.”

”You see it too?” Robin smiled as he casually tossed a crimson grape into his mouth. ”Watching everything thatʼs happening now... somehow makes me feel the selfishness of humanity.”

”...?” Glatheon looked at him in confusion. ”You see the same beauty that I do, yet your thoughts immediately drift toward human selfishness, Master? Then when exactly do you allow yourself to simply be happy?”

”Haha, I truly am happy with what Iʼm seeing.” Robin chuckled softly before swallowing the grape. ”But I canʼt help thinking that all of this was suppressed for fifty whole years. The planetʼs spirit and every living creature upon it spent all that time trembling in fear, simply waiting for whatever was happening to finally come to an end. Even the tiniest insects were born beneath the soil, lived their entire lives there, and died without ever daring to crawl into the light... all because a single creature decided it wanted to become just a little stronger.”

”.....”

”Donʼt look at me like that. Iʼm not saying Hedrickʼs breakthrough was wrong or unjust. I would do exactly the same one day without the slightest hesitation.” Robin waved his hand dismissively. ”Nor am I trying to sound gloomy. Iʼm simply using moments like these as opportunities to better understand human nature. Whoever understands those they rule... will rule them well. And I want to become a good ruler.”

”You will become the finest ruler this universe has ever known, Master. Iʼll help you with everything Iʼm capable of so that day truly comes.” Glatheon spoke with complete sincerity.

”Thank you, Glathy.” Robin tossed another grape into his mouth before returning his gaze to the sky, slowly chewing as his eyes quietly followed the drifting clouds. ”How is the offensive progressing? Has the Syndicate intervened yet?”

”No.” Glatheon shook his head. ”So far, neither Marlik nor any of the Syndicateʼs well-known commanders have appeared. And if those people donʼt show themselves, then sending ordinary Guardians and Monarchs wonʼt accomplish anything. Theyʼd merely become training dummies for Lord Hedrick and Lady Renara.”

Glatheonʼs smile suddenly froze when he remembered that he himself was, technically speaking, an ordinary Guardian. He wouldnʼt even qualify as a training dummy for neither of them.

After a brief shake of his head, he continued,

”I can practically picture the expressions on Darvionʼs and Zarghulʼs faces right now as they desperately beg the Syndicate to intervene, hahaha, But I bet that they will keep waiting for nothing.”

”Hmm. Itʼs safe to assume that the Syndicateʼs commanders strong as Helmorʼs kids, and they may even possess an elite unit composed entirely of them,” Robin replied thoughtfully. ”Renara and Hedrick would certainly be capable of confronting them and killing a number of them if they appeared, but if their numbers proved overwhelming, they would eventually force the two of them to retreat. As for Marlik... if he appeared right now, Hedrick and Renara would have no choice but to withdraw after only a brief exchange of blows. Heʼs simply far too powerful. Theyʼll need years of adapting to their newfound strength and serious training before they can truly defeat someone like him.”

He casually waved his hand again.

”In any case, Iʼm relieved that Marlik, Sevar, and the other major figures still havenʼt appeared. If something happened right now... I wouldnʼt be able to go and help.”

”Are you still feeling that exhaustion?” Glatheon asked, his concern becoming slightly more obvious.

His concern wasnʼt directed toward the exhaustion itself. After Robin removed Renaraʼs limits, he had required two full weeks of recovery before he could begin traveling again. This time, he had removed Hedrickʼs limits only three weeks earlier, and the two procedures had happened only a short time apart. Naturally, he was expected to be tired. That much wasnʼt unusual.

The real source of concern was the current situation itself...

If something unexpected occurred and one of the truly terrifying powerhouses decided to enter the battlefield, Lord Robin and those following him would inevitably find themselves under tremendous pressure.

”Exhaustion?” Robin slowly shook his head. ”No... that disappeared on its own. I can travel between sectors again now, and I no longer feel tired.” He paused briefly before furrowing his brows as he continued staring toward the sky. ”...I only feel...” His expression tightened ever so slightly. ”...weak.”

”Weak?!” Glatheon practically lurched forward, unable to conceal the shock that instantly spread across his face after hearing those words.

”Mhm.” Robin gave a slow, matter-of-fact nod. ”I feel as though Iʼve become permanently weaker.”

”Wha—?!” Glatheon shot to his feet almost instinctively. ”Have you fallen ill? Or have you been afflicted by some kind of long-range curse without realizing it?!”

”.....”

Robin calmly picked up another grape before casually gesturing for Glatheon to sit back down.

”Iʼve spent the past several days thinking about it and physically examining myself, trying to determine what changed inside me after the day the seerʼs restraint was broken and I escaped becoming his candidate. If I can identify exactly what changed, then Iʼll understand the extent of my current strength, why I was able to break free from the seerʼs restraint in the first place... and, most importantly, why I feel weaker now despite everything that has happened.”

”....”

Glatheon immediately sat back down and nodded vigorously, his expression becoming unusually serious as he listened without interrupting.

”...To be honest, I did find something. I donʼt know whether itʼs actually what Iʼve been searching for, but Iʼve built several theories around it... and thereʼs a chance one of them is correct.” Robin absentmindedly scratched his eyebrow with the tip of his fingernail while keeping his gaze fixed ahead. ”At the same time, though, itʼs such an absurd discovery that the more I think about it, the more likely it seems that Iʼm completely mistaken.”

Robin then slowly raised his index finger into the air.

Hummm...

Golden light gradually gathered above his fingertip before slowly changing shape, layer after layer, until it eventually formed something that looked strangely familiar, its outline stabilizing little by little as the surrounding light faded away.

Six familiar symbols were connected together by intricate patterns whose purpose remained impossible to decipher, while at the very center rested the image of a half-asleep eye that quietly floated without being connected to the surrounding structure in any obvious manner.

”Oh! Thatʼs the array that shattered your restraints... the very same one you used to make Lady Althera a candidate!” Glatheon exclaimed as he struck his fist into his open palm in sudden realization. ”But... something about it is different?”

”Mhm.” Robin nodded. ”The previous version was pentagonal, with the Master Law of Truth positioned at the center to connect everything together. This one isnʼt the same. Here, the Truth symbol has become part of the array itself, while the eye at the center doesnʼt belong to the surrounding patterns at all. Itʼs merely a shape whose purpose I still havenʼt been able to understand, but I have a feeling it represents the fact that Iʼm a Truth Chosen.”

”I donʼt understand that part.” Glatheon admitted honestly, his brows gradually knitting together as he continued studying the miniature array from every angle he could.

”I mean this seal youʼre looking at now, Glatheon.” Robin pointed toward the miniature array hovering above his finger. ”It tells me that I possess these six laws arranged around the outer edge. But it also tells me that my primary law is Truth, represented by the eye at the center. In other words, itʼs some sort of identifying mark. It doesnʼt actually contribute anything to the seal itself or alter its function in any way. The seal remains exactly the same whether that eye is there or not.”

”...?”

Glatheon looked even more bewildered than before.

”Why are you talking about this seal as though you werenʼt the one who designed and created it yourself? Itʼs almost as if youʼre examining some strange artifact that you happened to stumble upon by pure coincidence, rather than something born entirely from your own understanding and work.”

”....” Robin quietly shifted his gaze back toward the tiny array floating above his fingertip, silently studying every one of its details for another brief moment before finally speaking. ”Because... Itʼs exactly that.”