[BL] Guardians of Fate
Chapter 61 - 18: Curses and Sacrifices [1]

Chapter 61: Chapter 18: Curses and Sacrifices [1]

Like what he did back in the Church, Luke concentrated on the magical locks, directing the holy energy to each enchantment. When the symbols responded and shimmered, a soft clicking sound drifted into his ears, indicating that he had succeeded.

His fingers gripped the doorknob and turned, only to be greeted by darkness the next moment. He felt for the crystal on the side of the wall and activated it, causing the light to flood the room. Then he closed the door behind him, breathing a sigh of relief.

Well, it’s now or never.

As he descended the narrow stairs, the air changed, carrying with it a cooler, earthier smell. He could see stone walls as he reached the chamber below, and then it dawned on him.

This is...

The small space seemed to be some sort of secret archive room. Wooden shelves lined the stone walls, filled with books and ancient scrolls. As Luke approached curiously, he brushed the spines of each tome with his fingertips. To his surprise, there wasn’t much dust on them, which meant that this room was well-kept. The owner probably came here often.

Hold on...

Luke’s eyebrows raised in surprise as he took out one book from the shelf. The title on the spine read: ’Otherworlders: Are They Really Gone?’.

What the?

The leather cover was slightly faded and cracked with age. When he opened it and examined the contents, the passages were both startling and familiar. He had heard such lines before.

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[After Summoner Xanthe’s sacrifice, some are still in a state of unrest. It has been ten years since she sealed the border between the two worlds. There is still no guarantee that an Otherworlder will never return.

‏‏‎ ‎

He flipped to another page.

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[One of the reasons for the unrest is the fact that traces of the Otherworlder still remain in this world. For example, Summoners and Guardians bearing the Otherworlder Mark still exist.]

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Luke’s breath caught in his throat. He stifled a shudder and closed the book, gently placing it back on the shelf.

A priest researching about the Otherworlders?

How odd.

At that moment, he remembered what had happened in the church just before that bad fall. He recalled the man dressed in holy robes, looking at him as if he were the scum of the earth.

The same man who had pushed him and locked him in the room before activating the trapdoor below.

This can’t be his home, can it? That would be too much of a coincidence.

Still... if it is...

He turned around and saw a wide desk with some notebooks and pens on the surface. He sat down in the chair and examined everything. He was now driven by curiosity.

There was no doubt in his mind that an Otherworlder had definitely arrived. If that wasn’t the case, there would be no other explanation for how the Calamity had escaped its seal in only three years.

So it was confirmed. The young man that he saw last night was an Otherworlder, and the Prince had somehow been acquainted with him.

If so... how come the Prince didn’t announce the man’s identity to the world? Luke wondered, brow furrowed in concentration. Or did he just moments after I passed out?

He took one of the notebooks from the pile and began to examine it. He felt a little sorry, but not so much anymore, especially if the owner of this house really was that priest. After all, it was hard to feel sorry for the man who had almost killed him.

Hmm... it seems to be a journal.

He flipped towards the last entry and started to read.

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[It is time for us to evacuate. I trapped that Summoner from hell in the Church. Good riddance to him. The world is better off without scum that causes other people’s deaths! He does not deserve the title of Summoner. He does not deserve the Summoner Mark, either! It’s ridiculous.

If you ask me, these people should be eradicated every time a new one is born into this world. It’s the only way that we can truly erase the existence of those demons.]

‏‏‎ ‎

Luke’s face showed no emotion as he read. Honestly, it wasn’t that surprising to see such words. After all, he was used to it. He would be more surprised if someone actually had empathy for his kind.

I don’t think he knows anything about an Otherworlder returning, however...

He read all the way to the bottom, but there was no mention of an Otherworlder’s return. He even read the previous entry, but there was none.

There was, however, one passage in the last entry that caught his eye. Apparently, the priests and priestesses had sensed an ’anomaly’ earlier in the day that caused a lot of disturbance. The owner of the house apparently assumed that the ’anomaly’ was his — Luke’s

I should probably stay here while the Calamity is still out there, he decided. I don’t think I should time my escape anymore. Maybe it would be better for me to leave tomorrow instead.

The monster might be sealed by then, so I’ll think about my problems after that.

Like what I should do with that man... and how I should meet him.

Luke absently flipped through the pages of the journal. He couldn’t find anything interesting, just a bunch of passages about priestly duties and sacred rituals. He put the notebook back on the pile and grabbed the one at the bottom.

While I’m here, I should find out more about this guy. I do not wish to meet him again.

Who knows if there are other priests or priestesses out there that are just like him?

At that moment, he thought of his friend Zach, and his chest tightened with worry. Of all the fears he had in life, it was seeing his loved ones get hurt or die.

It was funny though, because Zach would often get on his case for being too distant, for keeping his emotions bottled up most of the time, and for being too self-sacrificing for his own good. Luke felt guilty about that sometimes.

That guy is probably worried sick right now.

I should contact him later with the commcrystal.

He opened the pages of the notebook and began to scan the contents until he came across something that completely caught his attention and made him stiffen.

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[Now that I have decided to keep a journal of my everyday life and for recording my findings, it goes on without saying that I should write down what really happened that day.

The day when that cursed Otherworlder Guardian’s family moved to our village... and killed everyone that I ever loved.]