ALL NOVEL 169 – The Midgard Serpent
Chapter 169 - The Midgard Serpent
“This topic is a bit old and complex. All we have are records from an ancient, extinct culture, from the people who created the enchanted relics. These are fragments found in excavations, written in another language,” the Headmistress explained.
The headache was becoming unbearable, and my vision alternated between blurry and clear.
“Does anyone want me to explain? I should warn you that this is considered a theory, based on what has been discovered,” she added.
The students exchanged glances, hesitant. Then I saw Syvis raise her hand.
“I want to learn,” she said.
I had forgotten how much she loves excavations and ancient culture.
Headmistress Victoria scratched her chin, reflecting for a moment before continuing.
“Scholars say that the Founding Emperor, when dividing the three kingdoms, actually imitated something that already existed or, rather, something that once existed,” the Headmistress began.
I interrupted before she could continue: “What is the white line in the cave wall painting?”
I needed to understand before we changed topics.
The Headmistress looked at the image on the board.
“That white line was said to separate the continents. When it disappeared, the magical continent was able to join the Human Empire’s continent. This is what we’ve discovered and theorized; or it could simply be the stories of a forgotten people. Even scholars like Professor Sinclair haven’t reached a consensus. There are many materials on the origin of our continent found on her continent’s side,” the Headmistress explained.
She walked over to the book, turned a page, and the image on the board changed to a representation of the three kingdoms.
“What do you see in this image?”
It was an engraving on stone, showing an elven king, a human king, and a demi-human king.
“These are the three types of races on our continent. There are exactly three kings in this image. This image you’re looking at is not recent; it was discovered in an excavation and dates back to a period before the Founding Empire. Now, how could an image depicting three kingdoms exist before the Founding Emperor created the three kingdoms?” she questioned.
“The theory is that the Founding Emperor was a great researcher of ancient culture. He was known for seeking ancient artifacts and relics. Even Asalon, the creature he tamed, was found while he was searching for monstrous creatures, like dragons.”
I looked down, where the cat was sleeping on my lap.
People began whispering, intrigued by the Headmistress’s explanation.
“When the emperor died and divided his kingdom, he was inspired by what he found in ancient excavations,” she continued. The Headmistress moved to the next image, which showed a large tree.
‘Sssss’ A soft hissing echoed in the darkness of my mind.
Are you involved in this story? I thought, as the hissing ceased along with the headache.
“Around 500 years ago, we discovered a word in an unknown language. This word can be translated as ‘Realm’ or ‘World,’” the Headmistress explained, changing the image again.
“The realm called ‘Alfheim’ was home to beings with pointed ears who possessed powers of nature and light. This place may have been the origin of the high elves, who gave rise to the common elves on this continent. All we have are stone engravings showing several high elves and the word Alfheim, indicating their ‘world’ or ‘realm,’” she said, turning to the next page.
The new image on the board showed a stone with inscriptions in an unknown language.
“The next realm is called ‘Jotunheim,’ the home of the ‘jotun,’ known as giants. They were strong people, capable of transforming into creatures much larger than a human, hence the term ‘giants.’ Jotunheim is where we theorize the demi-humans came from,” the Headmistress concluded.
‘Ssssssssss’ I heard the sound of a serpent emerging from the shadows. I saw its monstrous white head appear from the darkness, its eyes staring at me before disappearing back into the shadows.
What the hell is going on with you?
Was it because I overdid it with the Celestial Eyes?
The headache returned with full force but quickly dissipated.
“The last realm was called Midgard,” the Headmistress continued, as the image on the board changed.
On the board was an image of a map surrounded by a scaly white line.
“Midgard was where humans came from… or rather, magical humans. Although similar, they are different from the humans of the Human Empire because they possess mana. Midgard was the original realm of magical humans. What the Founding Emperor did, scholars believe, was inspired by these three ancient realms.”
I looked at it, trying to absorb the information.
“It’s interesting, stories of ancient civilizations…” I murmured.
“I told you!” Syvis said, excited.
The book they showed wasn’t given as study material. I wanted both that book and Professor Sinclair’s. Her book mentioned why the Theocracy hated people from my continent and talked about Illuminated Beings who had given them knowledge. I needed to find out what these Illuminated Ones were.
Is Cylla’s race involved in any of this information I’ve discovered? The white line in the cave painting looks a lot like the creature in my eyes. It must be that.
What I know about this creature is that it’s a gigantic white serpent with a dragon’s face that lived in the ocean. That scaly white line has to be it. Are the beings who helped Cylla’s race involved with this ancient civilization?
I needed answers, and I was treading dangerous ground.
Cylla wasn’t the only phoenix; there are more of them. She told me about an enemy that was coming, and I saw those dark figures at the dinner table when I left the place where Sisika took me. I had the vision of that dark figure with red eyes, and later, I saw Sisika helping me on that stormy night. Those dark beings weren’t normal people; they were things that exuded evil.
I pondered my options. Over the years, I’d tried to uncover what Cylla’s race really was, but I found no material that gave me answers. Even as a high noble, I couldn’t find a single document. There was no information on a race resembling humans but who were phoenixes. The situation worsened when Cylla awakened her bestial form as a massive dragon. I had hit a dead end, with many questions and no answers.
Perhaps the information simply hasn’t been discovered. Are the answers in ancient civilizations?
I looked at Professor Sinclair. She approached the board and touched it, making the images disappear, leaving the board blank again. With her finger, she wrote the word ‘Theocracy.’
“We don’t know how or when, but my people learned from the Illuminated Ones that demons would come from the sea. That was when your people were discovered. Another continent that wasn’t supposed to be there previously. At least, that was the theory, as there are no records of you. In those human lands, in documents, maps, letters… there was never any mention of another continent connected by a border,” Professor Sinclair explained, underlining the word ‘Theocracy.’
“The Illuminated Ones left us their words of wisdom, and everything we’ve followed from them worked for my people. All the knowledge we acquired through them helped our society to evolve, to organize. We learned to combat diseases by creating vaccines, methods of construction, advanced mathematics. The people of the Theocracy, who lived in a desolate land, learned to cultivate that difficult soil. We learned to create different weapons and much more through our faith in the Illuminated Ones.”
As she spoke, my mind went into a panic, but not because of the guardian—it was because of me.
A God!? This can’t be happening. What are these Illuminated Ones!?
I had to control my breathing to avoid hyperventilating.
“One day, the voice of the Illuminated Ones stopped giving us knowledge. They did this through our High Priests. Then things started to happen: diseases emerged, natural disasters occurred mysteriously—tornadoes, tsunamis, drought, famine. Even our administration was affected. My people were guided by the Illuminated Ones in every decision, and their silence had consequences, leaving us lost,” she continued.
Professor Sinclair touched the board again, and a gigantic image appeared, showing the two continents. I could see the Human Empire Continent and my continent, connected by a small border.
“The high priests spent decades praying to the Illuminated Ones, trying to understand why they were abandoned. One day, they finally responded, saying, ‘You have lost your faith.’ This surprised the priests of that time. They fell to their knees, begging for forgiveness, claiming they had never stopped believing. All they received in response was: ‘Then why are our Norse enemies still alive?’” Professor Sinclair marked an X over our continent.
She looked at the somewhat shocked faces of the students, who now understood the truth behind the war.
“That is why my people hate you. To them, you are the demons who have infected the land and are preventing the Illuminated Ones from bringing peace. Every baby, every child, every teenager, every adult, and every elder in the Theocracy thinks this way, and killing you is considered an act of faith.”
She erased the board.
“Unfortunately, class is over. Perhaps another day, I’ll explain more.”
Author's Note:
Hello, dear readers!
The word 'Nordic' has been replaced with 'Norse,' as they have different meanings. Therefore, in the previous chapter, where the word 'Nordic' was used, it has been corrected.
After this chapter, where we’ve had these revelations about Alfheim, Jotunheim, and Midgard, many of you have already solved a part of the puzzle regarding this world. Now, you understand that, from the very beginning, the three races we’ve seen represent the races from Norse mythology. With this information, you can start forming your own theories. At the start, many of you pointed out that it was a bit cliché for Nathan to be descended from the elven royal family... I just stayed silent, but now, with the context of Norse mythology established, things gain a new perspective and meaning. I’ll stay quiet about this for now…
I recommend not missing the next chapter; it will conclude this introductory arc at the Apsalon Academy. Book 3 is divided into three parts. The next chapter will wrap up the first part and begin the arc of the second part, which is VERY important.