Greatest Legacy of the Magus Universe

Chapter 2115: Tales of Grandeur

”...The Wall is huge. Huge. Half a kilometer from the ground. And it’s cold. Cold as hell. Reminded me of home. Speaking of, you should visit Invicta sometime.”

Luca and Adam were on the balcony, with a wonderful view of the Sea of Storms to the west. The cool breeze from the sea and the gentle warmth of the fading sun made for a wonderful atmosphere.

”Your cooking is not bad.” Luca praised, tearing a large chunk of lamb from the bone. ”No. Actually, it’s great!”

He washed the food down with wine. Wine that he had brought as a gift, thinking he would share it with his friend. One can imagine his surprise when Adam claimed he hadn’t tasted a drop of liquor in eight years.

Never one to waste fine liquor, Luca enjoyed the aged liquor by himself.

”Tell me about the Wall,” Adam said, eyes sparkling. ”What took you so long, though? You only just returned? Did you visit any of the other Wonders?”

Luca shook his head.

”I went north of the Wall with the Rangers,” he said. ”Got lost in a blizzard. Think I spent four years in the ice. Fought all sorts of bizarre animals. Found several human tribes who stayed in the ice. Hell, I even saw a corpse of a giant. First time seeing something like that.”

”A giant!” Adam was amazed. ”North of the Wall?”

”You’ll find corpses of dragons and giants all the way from the Second Epoch,” Luca said.

”The titans made this world their battleground. Imagine being a human at the time. Step out of your cave and suddenly you’re squashed by a giant foot. Look up at the sky and suddenly you’re burned to death by a flying lizard. Scary times.”

”What else?” Adam was like a child once again, listening to tales of grandeur. ”What else did you see?”

”You should have come, Adam.” Luca grinned.

”It’s like a whole other world out there in the ice. One of the Rangers who managed to survive with me claimed that if you go further north, you’ll arrive at the edge of the world. It was probably a figure of speech, but you can never tell with these Rangers.

”The things that they’ve seen and fought are fucking bizarre. And that is an understatement. Some say you will fall into oblivion if you go to the northernmost point. Others say you will enter a different world altogether. Wild stuff.”

”What do you think?” Adam asked.

He knew Luca descended from House Claudius, one of the twelve Noble Great Houses. Naturally, that meant that he was privy to a lot more information and knowledge.

”Hmm.” Luca stroked his chin. ”From what I’ve read back at home, the lands north of the Wall are remnants of the Great Winter.”

The Great Winter, Adam mused.

The time when this world was buried beneath ice. Otherwise known as the Zero Epoch.

They say that almost no records from that era have survived, so most people dismiss it as legends.

But from the bits and pieces I’ve heard from Genevieve and Luca... it would appear that humanity predates the Great Winter.

Or at least, that’s the theory.

”You interested in history?” Luca asked with a quirked brow.

”A little.” Adam shrugged.

Luca hummed, returning to the wine once again. ”On this planet, your best bet to get your hands on comprehensive historical knowledge would be the Citadel of Knowledge.”

”Oh, I just went there with Genevieve a year ago.”

”Is that so?” Luca nodded. ”Did you spend much time there?”

”Not really. Genevieve wanted me to meet some of her grandfather’s friends. You know, people who raised her,” Adam said.

He looked toward the twilight sky, subconsciously stroking the auburn band on his ring finger.

”And then she departed for her homeworld.”

”Oh?” Luca was intrigued. ”So she’s gone to Providentia! I’ve been there with my siblings when I was a child. It’s a very beautiful place. Like paradise, I tell you.”

His expression turned a little awkward. ”Well, compared to my homeworld, pretty much everything else is a paradise. All we have is ice and snow.”

The young Paladin sighed mournfully.

Adam watched his expression and chuckled.

”What of your siblings?” he asked. ”Do you miss them?”

”Sometimes,” Luca said with a gentle smile. ”My youngest, Seraphina, is still on Invicta. She loves playing with wolf pups. And my eldest brother, Felix, only recently graduated from the Institute. He will soon join the Ninth Legion of the Imperium.”

Adam nodded with understanding.

House Fortuna commanded the Imperium’s Seventh Legion. Genevieve had once said to him that the ancestor of their House, the Angel of Miracle, was the seventh son of the God Emperor. So Adam guessed that the ancestor of House Claudius was likely the ninth son.

”Are Legions always led by the Great Noble Houses?” he asked curiously.

”Almost always,” Luca said after some deliberation.

”Not to brag, but there are hardly any people more powerful, loyal, and competent than those from the twelve Houses. So the leaders are always from the Houses. There have, however, been exceptions. But even they are indirectly related to the Houses.”

”I see.” Adam nodded thoughtfully.

”Might seem like nepotism, but the Magi and Paladins of the Houses truly are very capable. The men and women of the Imperium respect them for it,” Luca added.

”When you said indirectly related to the Houses...” Adam murmured. ”What did you mean?”

”Oh, I meant marriage, of course.” Luca laughed.

”You’ll find this surprising, but the Houses are very open-minded about that sort of thing. They have never cared much about status or noble birth when it comes to marriage. What matters to us is strength.

”If someone possesses power and talent, they are welcomed into the family, regardless of where they came from. Even an outsider can become a part of one of the twelve Houses. My mother was one. Outsider, I mean.

”That is how the Houses have grown over the millennia. We care about strength above all else.”

”Huh.” Adam was truly surprised. ”I did not expect that.”

Luca raised an eyebrow, feeling a little speechless. ”What did you think? That we were all products of incest?”

Adam shrugged. ”Well, I mean...”

Luca did not let him finish.

A lamb bone had already shot from his hand and toward Adam.