I Was Confessed to by the Golden Sun

72 – 72. Beginning

The message on the terminal that suddenly rang out revealed the location of Olivia, the hidden Princess.

Unfortunately, the Crown Prince and Dylan, who were waiting for the person I had called as part of the follow-up investigation, couldn’t make it in time, so Lucia and I swiftly moved to join them, leaving the laboratory behind.

“Ugh, how long has it been since we got off the carriage that we have to ride again?”

Francis disliked it, and Lucia, who had been complaining about riding in a carriage all day, was stiffened.

After about two hours of riding in the carriage, she leaned her head on my shoulder, dozing off, seeming tired.

“After that… well, nothing special happened.”

Just as usual, I woke Lucia up and exchanged some small talk.

We met the woman Francis had sent us to find at the address she provided and the three of us, Lucia, me, and Francis, were having tea.

It was a rather fancy citrus tea.

“…”

However, to be honest, despite the delicious tea, the current situation between us was quite uncomfortable and even tense.

Lucia, with her arm firmly clamped around mine, stared at Francis with fiery eyes, as if she were determined not to let her go.

“Well, honestly, I can understand why Lucia feels that way.”

From her perspective, Francis might be stuck with the idea that she’s just a woman dressed like a man who meets me unnecessarily.

Besides that, there were various insults and disagreements between them, so I thought it wouldn’t go smoothly, but I didn’t expect the atmosphere to become so tense.

It felt like I was sweating profusely as I watched the accident-prone cat that had overturned the dining table about four times.

“It’s uncomfortable to have all these eyes on us. How about showing a bit more expression on your face?”

The one who initiated the conversation was none other than Francis.

However, Lucia wasn’t very receptive to what she said.

As I contemplated whether to stop Lucia, who was about to retort to her, Francis, sensing her reaction, cleverly cut her off and continued without giving Lucia a chance to speak.

She took out a projector from the cabinet in the corner of the room and started it.

As I looked at the familiar visuals, an image of a ruin that stood out on the wall illuminated the room.

“This is…”

“I showed you this last time, right? Here.”

It was the place we had requested to explore together last time.

It was the background of the eighth episode that was now familiar to me but an almost unknown place.

I turned my head slightly towards Lucia, wondering if she remembered this place too. She was still staring at Francis, her expression defiant as ever.

“Huh, isn’t this the place you mentioned when you asked Jack for a date?”

“What?”

However, Lucia remembered that ruin somewhat differently from my memory. She recalled the ruins, but her memory seemed somewhat off in a peculiar direction.

“Date request? What nonsense is that? Is she really making a fuss about something I mentioned lightly the other day?”

“Ahahahaha… Well, there’s one secret hidden here, for starters.”

Upon hearing those words, Francis, who had been about to say something, gave up and continued speaking with just a faint smile.

It was a rational decision to avoid a pointless argument in this situation; arguing here wouldn’t lead to a proper conclusion.

Although Lucía seemed to get angrier at his decision, she gave in when I lightly placed my hand on her thigh to stop her.

I thought my approach had been rather bold and affectionate in its own way, but I was relieved it was well-received.

With that satisfied smile on his face, Francis started explaining further.

“I’ve recently gathered information using almost all the members under my command, so if you’re not a trustworthy person, please don’t disclose it to the outside.”

“Alright, let’s hear a bit then. What kind of secret is hidden in that ruin?”

I kept emphasizing the point, but I didn’t have much information about this place.

I had just taken over at the beginning of this eighth episode, so I had no idea.

What I did know was that the advanced technology of Homunculus was likely related to the ruins.

The episode based on these ruins is grandly named ‘The Last Relic of the Civilized Civilization.’

“Trying to deduce the overall picture of the case with such fragmentary information is too difficult.”

Regardless of whether I intended to or not, I, as a half-hearted possessor, made a mess of the episode.

However, I did make use of the information I already had when I was possessed.

Now I found myself in a situation where I had no real leads to follow.

“Is it lucky that Francis is here? If Francis had tried to break through the episode without the information he provided…”

He might have been lost, unable to find a direction by himself.

“What’s hidden under the ruins is… nothing other than a city.”

“Really?”

But what I heard in my ears right now, while I was somehow grateful to her, was a bit bewildering.

For a moment, I seriously contemplated leaving the place with Lucía, wondering if I should just disregard the meaning of that statement.

“Don’t believe me? Wait, I’ll show you the evidence.”

Seeming to read my puzzled expression, Francis smiled and placed a few photos in front of me.

Since I wasn’t particularly interested, I only glanced at them briefly.

“Ah.”

What came out of my mouth was a shallow gasp tinged with astonishment.

In the photo, there seemed to be a city boasting of a level of technology that could even put modern cities to shame, as if embarrassed to be compared.

However, all the building lights were off, and there was no sign of life to be found.

It gave off a post-apocalyptic, cyberpunk-like feeling.

“Could this be manipulated… No, it couldn’t be.”

For a moment, I considered whether this photo might have been manipulated for the sole purpose of tricking us. But so far, there couldn’t be a method to manipulate a photo so meticulously.

Thinking this way, there was no other conclusion than that the scenery captured in this photo was real.

“It’s a city iNT*Ricately concealed by some kind of magical effect, and the so-called ‘Homonculus’ you’re talking about might also be a derived technology here, it seems likely.”

Does it make sense? That a cyberpunk world suddenly emerges in a magical realm…

No, maybe it does. Considering Francis’s mention of Homonculus as an extreme over-technology.

“For now, this city has collapsed, and I’ve considered several hypotheses for why it collapsed, but there’s one likely theory.”

As I continued to rationalize my bewildered thoughts, another idea that could shake my mind came to me.

Yes, I had doubts about what could cause such a high level of civilization to collapse.

In the photo given to me, it seemed like people had been removed from the city, without any apparent reasons like environmental pollution or external invasion.

It was merely presenting the brilliance of civilization in front of my eyes.

I opened my eyes wide and awaited a response. Francis, seeming proud, cleared his throat and operated the terminal.

-Beep!

With such a cheerful signal, one book entered my view, which I had been conceNT*Rating on the projected image.

It had layers of ornate golden magical runes etched on it, a masterpiece.

“Do you have any idea what this is?”

And I knew what it was.

One of the Five Wonders, the Akashic Records, said to contain all the knowledge in the world.

It wasn’t mentioned in the novel, so I had simply passed it off as a Macguffin.

“But what does that have to do with the collapse?”

For now, I set aside that issue and listened closely, wondering why the mention of the Akashic Records was connected to the collapse.

“Knowledge, like dark magic known as ‘forbidden knowledge’ in the magical world, can spread like a mental epidemic. Do you understand?”

“Yes.”

Stories about forbidden knowledge in the magical world that we all heard but paid little attention to suddenly came to light.

Dark magic that could implement magic without complex runes or calculations but devoured the user’s lifespan.

Is there anything else I can assist you with?

Let’s refocus on the sudden appearance of the story that wasn’t considered very important. Her words pierced my ears.

“It seems like back then, people must have messed with the Akashic Records, or else there’s no way an entire civilization would just disappear so perfectly.”

The people who built that city were individuals with considerably advanced technological capabilities.

I don’t know if their true identity was the Wakandans, a tribe that lived hidden in the forests of Africa in the movies, or some ancient human civilization.

What’s certain is that an incomprehensible force was at play, and the Akashic Records were a perfect fit for it.

“Anyway, this city committed suicide. Whether you look at it from a civilizational or electronic perspective.”

I gazed at Lucía with a bitter smile as I listened to her words, unable to find a moment of rest.

“Oh well… Do I have to work again? Why is my husband always so busy?”

She sighed deeply and then, as if determined to follow me, she grabbed my shoulder and held me tightly.

In that state, as we turned our gaze towards Francis with a resolute expression, a word that seemed to convey waiting was heard.

“Considering the recent exchanges and actions of the Princess’s faction and the Homunculus she displayed… The Princess must have gone there.”

It was the true beginning of the eighth episode.