Chapter 1029: Six Months Later
The biting autumn wind scraped against faces like knives, casting a desolate mood over all. The twilight sky seemed to indifferently veil the sun, blocking all warmth.
On the boundless great plains.
"Boom!"
With an ear-splitting explosive roar, several figures burst forth from deep underground.
Several pitch-black Magical Creatures resembling lizards, twisting their nearly human-height massive bodies, pursued them from below like pythons, emitting furious hisses.
"Crash!"
Before the Magical Creatures could emerge onto the plains, a heavy hammer came down like a stunning blow on the lead lizard's head.
The narrow cavern couldn't accommodate two Magical Creatures advancing simultaneously, so the remaining creatures could only wail mournfully as they were smashed back into the depths by the corpse of the leading Magical Creature.
"I never expected monsters to still be living in these ruins!"
Eckt retracted his heavy hammer, unable to hide his grimace.
"In the end, it seems we've come all this way for nothing again?"
He turned to look behind him, his expression seeking confirmation.
"These ruins have long been occupied by Magical Creatures. All clues from before the Summer War have been destroyed, making them essentially worthless."
Habetrot looked regretfully at the cavern beneath their feet. They had gone through great trouble to find this place, only to end up with nothing to show for it.
"Step aside, I'm going to destroy these ruins."
Cernunnos stepped forward, signaling to the group.
No one objected.
Since the ruins were already occupied by Magical Creatures, it was better to let them disappear completely from history.
Cernunnos immediately began destroying the cavern.
The Magical Creatures below seemed to sense what was happening, roaring as they surged upward, only to be completely blocked by the mesh of threads Habetrot had created, sealing off all upward paths.
Soon, flames surged into the depths of the cavern, incinerating everything - both the lizard Magical Creatures and the ruins themselves.
In the end, the only thing we can count as a harvest is this stone slab."
After the exploration concluded, the group began their journey back.
Looking at the only valuable item on the carriage - the stone slab - Mash expressed her frustration.
"To think the stone slab we found in the ruins of Orkney would turn out to be the same one Mr. Eiji acquired 2,400 years later... how ironic."
Indeed.
The slab depicted a giant beast and six fairies, inscribed with the name Cernunnos - exactly the same mural Eiji would discover in Londinium 2,400 years later!
Eiji spread his hands helplessly.
As if to say, what can I do?
He had already shown Cernunnos photos of the mural half a year ago, but they only served to verify the accuracy of the ballads, providing no key to the truth of the Genesis.
"Anyway, let's transport the mural back to Londinium first."
Cernunnos showed no particular reaction, calmly making the suggestion.
"Oh?"
Eiji's expression tightened.
"Finally planning to return to Londinium?"
The expressions of Eckt, Mash, and the others immediately grew tense as well.
Returning to Londinium meant the final battle was about to begin.
What weighed most heavily on their hearts was that this was a fight where victory seemed almost impossible, with the likelihood of failure approaching near certainty!
"There are only a few days left until the coronation ceremony in Londinium."
Cernunnos nodded.
"We absolutely must return to Londinium now, no matter what!"
Ever since half a year ago, when they had completely removed the curse from Eiji's body with the help of the Wind Clan in Salisbury, the group had begun wandering throughout Britain.
They searched for murals left by the Rain Clan, oral legends passed down by the Mirror Clan, or written records left by humans—all to uncover the truth of Genesis!
Having traveled almost all across Britain, they had barely rested during these past six months, each pushing themselves to the limit.
No.
To be precise, it was Cernunnos who was single-mindedly driven, while Eiji and the other three were merely accompanying her.
Thanks to this relentless effort, they had achieved roughly two findings.
One was the mural they discovered a month ago among the ruins of Orkney at the northern edge, but it depicted a story they already knew, so it held little value.
The other discovery was the prophecy of destruction left by the first human in this Lostbelt—the shrine maiden who served the god.
Yes, it was the prophecy about the four wars of spring, summer, autumn, and winter, and the Abyssal Worm that would destroy the Fairy Kingdom.
To Eiji's surprise, this prophecy was actually found by Cernunnos during her explorations with her companions. The reason few in later generations knew of this prophecy was likely because Cernunnos did not pass it down.
Throughout the entire six months of exploration, the group had not returned to Londinium even once.
But now, they had no choice but to go back.
There were only three days left until the coronation ceremony.
If they didn't return now, they might even miss the coronation.
Then they would lose the last chance to change the future!
Evening.
As usual, the group camped in the wilderness. After setting up a barrier, they lit a bonfire and settled in. Even Eiji and Mash were well-versed in this routine.
"Hey, couldn't we write to Uther and ask him to postpone the coronation ceremony?"
Sitting by the bonfire, Habenyan finished reading her diary and cautiously glanced at the others.
"If we delay the ceremony or simply cancel the coronation altogether, wouldn't that avoid that kind of ending?"
In the legends of later generations, Uther died during the coronation ceremony.
If that was the case, then as long as the coronation was canceled, Uther wouldn't die during it. Wouldn't that successfully prevent the worst outcome?
"For someone with your brains, it's quite surprising that you could come up with such a potentially effective method!"
Ector exclaimed in amazement at Habenyan.
Habenyan immediately gave him a dead-fish stare.
Was that a compliment or an insult?
"Cernunnos, what do you think?"
Ector turned to Cernunnos, pondering as he spoke.
"I think Totrot's proposal might be worth a try, don't you?"
"There's no need for that."
But Cernunnos rejected the proposal without hesitation.
"Because it would be useless in itself. History requires the outcome of 'Uther's death.' Where he dies is irrelevant. Even if we don't hold the coronation ceremony, as long as Uther dies accidentally somewhere, history will still adjust the result to 'Uther died during the coronation ceremony.'"
Word of mouth among people or written records.
These would be manipulated by history to correct the outcome to "Uther died during the coronation ceremony."
Therefore, the coronation ceremony is not the key.
It merely informed them of Uther's time of death.
Whether they postpone the ceremony or cancel it, the outcome will remain unchanged.
Uther, who was destined to die at that time, will still die at that time.
Thinking that changing the coronation ceremony will solve everything is absolutely impossible—such an idea must not be entertained!
"In that case, what does Miss Caster plan to do?"
Mash looked at Caster with an inquisitive expression.
"If there's anything we can help with, please don't hesitate to tell us!"
Caster's existence is the pillar of the Fairy Kingdom.
Through half a year of interaction, Mash had come to deeply understand this.
She even began to doubt herself—
wondering whether, if she returned to 2400 years later, she could stand against Caster.
"There's nothing you need to do."
But Caster coldly rejected her heartfelt offer of support.
"I already have a plan, but this plan must remain known only to me. I cannot share it with any of you. The world is pervasive—once I speak it aloud, the plan may already be compromised."