Lord of the Truth

Chapter 2326 The difference

”...I think youʼre casting your line far too wide, Lord Robin.” Kiryan turned toward Zavaros before looking back at Robin with a doubtful expression. ”Youʼve connected things that seem completely unrelated in Helmorʼs appearance, treating him as though heʼs merely one piece in some enormous conspiracy stretching far beyond what any of us can currently see. But a conspiracy serving whom, and for what purpose? Even if Helmor has always been mysterious, perhaps heʼs simply someone obsessed with power, control, lending, and expanding his influence over others, nothing more.”

Glatheon and Zavaros listened with intense focus, neither interrupting for even a moment, as they wanted to hear the answer just as badly, knowing that Robin rarely spoke this confidently unless he had already connected countless scattered clues into a single conclusion.

”...” Robin looked off into the distance for a long moment before slowly beginning to tap the armrest of his chair with measured rhythm. ”Perhaps this much is already somewhat obvious... I am one of the Seerʼs candidates, and I assume you know of him—the entity who orchestrates wars, manipulates countless events from the shadows, and sends people bearing golden limbs into carefully prepared missions.”

”...” The three of them nodded almost simultaneously. By now, every major power throughout the universe had gradually reached that conclusion after observing enough seemingly unrelated incidents eventually leading back toward the same mysterious existence.

Robin continued, ”But what you donʼt know is that my very first mission was directly related to Zavaros and Helmor, long before I understood the true scale of what I had been dragged into.”

”What?!” Zavaros shot to his feet so abruptly that even Kiryan instinctively turned toward him.

”Sit, sit.” Robin gestured toward him before gathering his thoughts for a brief moment. ”According to his plan, he intended to arrange a battle between Renara of the Nine Paths Empire and Helen, Helmorʼs fifth First Row Scion daughter. All of you know Helen at the very least.” He continued calmly without changing his expression. ”His plan required Helen to kill Renara, after which Zavaros would inevitably intervene against Helen herself or against the Destroyerʼs Galaxyʼs interests, prompting Helmor to retaliate... with something, anything, so long as the first exchange of hostility had already begun.”

”And why would I interfere in such a chaotic cosmic situation over the death of a woman whose name I can barely remember?” Zavaros frowned deeply, genuinely unable to see the connection.

”Forget the current chaos.” Robin smiled faintly at Zavaros. ”If this exact scenario had happened a thousand years ago, before everything presently unfolding across the universe, and Renara had died at Helenʼs hands... wouldnʼt you have intervened then?”

”A thousand years ago?” Zavaros lowered his gaze and seriously replayed the circumstances in his mind before slowly nodding. ”...I wouldnʼt have intervened myself, but my son Zarion would certainly have used it as an excuse to do something. His personality simply wouldnʼt have allowed him to ignore an opportunity like that.”

Zarion knew Hedrick wanted a Displacement Weapon, so he had gathered five billion pearls and attended the event solely to provoke him rather than accomplish anything meaningful. If Helen had killed one of their followers, even an indirect one with only a loose connection to them, Zarion would undoubtedly have tried to exploit the situation, whether for negotiation, pressure, or outright confrontation.

”This...” Sweat gradually began forming across Zavarosʼs forehead as countless old memories surfaced in his mind all at once.

That ancient being had deliberately been playing exactly that string all along? He had intended to use his own son as the spark to drag him into a cosmic war whose true purpose had nothing to do with Renara herself?!

Even Kiryan and Glatheon looked visibly shaken after following Robinʼs chain of reasoning step by step, as what initially sounded like unrelated speculation had suddenly become disturbingly plausible.

”Then the mission would have been complete. Zarion does something, someone retaliates, forces begin moving toward one planet, then the Destroyerʼs Galaxy responds by destroying interests on another, after which every side begins escalating while believing the other side started it...” Robin shrugged casually. ”The real question is this: why did the Seer choose you and Helmor specifically? ...And why did he say that Nihariʼs mission concerned his rival?”

Until recently, Robin had genuinely believed the Seer was lying about this supposed rival, because Helen simply wasnʼt important enough to justify such wording, nor did her existence seem worthy of connecting to someone capable of opposing a being like the Seer.

But the more he matured, accumulated experience, and reconsidered every conversation he had previously dismissed, the clearer the overall picture gradually became inside his mind.

The Seer had told Robin that succeeding in the mission would give him leverage against his rival, yet he had also calmly stated that even if the mission failed, it wouldnʼt truly matter, and another suitable mission would eventually be found for him.

In other words, the mission would certainly help, but it was never a matter of life and death from the Seerʼs perspective, meaning its value lay only in advancing some larger objective rather than determining the final outcome.

So what exactly would starting a cosmic war between Zavaros and Helmor accomplish against the Seerʼs rival? The answer clearly wasnʼt as simple as revenge or political gain.

”...?” Zavaros slowly sat back down, almost absentmindedly. Had he truly been standing at the very center of such an enormous scheme without ever realizing it, while believing all those years that his own decisions had been entirely his own?

Kiryan was deeply astonished. ”That entity has a rival? Even we tremble at the mere mention of his titles, and most people wouldnʼt dare discuss him this openly...”

Indeed... his titles.

The Seer, the Knower, the Able, the Nascent, along with many other unmistakable titles known throughout the universe. No one knew his true name, nor where he truly came from, and even those grand titles had become objects of fear rather than simple names.

People were afraid to utter even those titles during their private gatherings, worried that merely speaking them too casually might somehow invite unwanted attention, and now Zavaros, Kiryan, and Glatheon were all sitting there tense simply because they were openly discussing him while Robin spoke as though recalling an old acquaintance.

It had even reached the point where some powers deliberately referred to the Seer by titles other than the ones he had personally given himself, inventing random names on the spot as long as everyone present understood from the surrounding context whom they actually meant without daring to pronounce his real titles... Glatheon, for example, simply called him Andrew!

”Hmm...” Robin remained silent for several moments after hearing that question, thoughtfully considering how much of the truth he was willing to reveal. ”As far as I can tell, I donʼt even know what the Seerʼs rival is actually called, nor have I ever heard anyone mention such a name, but thereʼs no doubt in my mind that the Seer has enemies. No being who has existed for so long and interfered in so many events could possibly stand alone without eventually creating powerful opponents.”

”Are you saying Helmor is working for the Seerʼs enemy?!” Kiryan asked loudly, unable to hide the astonishment in his voice after following Robinʼs line of reasoning.

Robin turned toward Zavaros instead of answering immediately. ”Are YOU the one whoʼs working for the Seerʼs enemy?”

”No!!” Zavaros shouted in terror, his answer coming almost instinctively before he had time to think.

Robin then calmly turned back toward Kiryan. ”Thereʼs your answer.”

”...” Kiryan lowered his gaze, frustration and helplessness overwhelming his expression as countless thoughts raced through his mind at once.

At that very moment, Helmor and his children were destroying his galaxy, while he himself still couldnʼt even determine who truly stood behind them or why they had chosen his people as their target!!

”Lord Robin...” Zavaros asked quietly, though the questioning look on his face carried a strangely specific meaning, as though he had already begun suspecting where Robin intended to lead this discussion. ”Are you saying that a being like the Seer—or one of his enemies—is deliberately strengthening and supporting Helmor so that he can eventually accomplish some greater objective?”

”Hehehehe...” Robin slowly turned toward Zavaros before giving him a knowing wink. ”Itʼs true that Iʼm the youngest person here, but I wasnʼt born yesterday. So why donʼt you stop circling around the subject and ask your real question directly?”

”.....” Zavaros silently gathered his courage before finally speaking. ”...Then whatʼs the difference between the Seer and his enemy? And whatʼs the difference between you and Helmor? If both sides manipulate people, interfere with events, and prepare for wars, where exactly does that difference begin?”

”Hmm... I do enjoy portraying myself as the good young man standing on the side of justice, but I suppose you deserve a proper explanation after everything weʼve discussed...” Robin scratched his head before turning toward Glatheon with an unusually serious expression. ”You explain it this time.”

Glatheon swallowed nervously. Robinʼs gaze clearly conveyed a silent warning: Make absolutely certain you donʼt ruin this explanation as well... otherwise I may completely reconsider my opinion of you.

He spent an entire second staring at the floor while glancing cautiously from side to side, organizing his thoughts before his face suddenly brightened as the proper explanation finally came together inside his mind. ”Of course there are extremely important differences between Lord Robin and Helmor. Honestly, who would even dare place the two of them together in the same sentence as though they belonged in the same category?!”

He then raised one finger. ”First, Helmor has been receiving the Syndicateʼs support quite openly lately. Marlikʼs appearance today, along with his direct threats against Your Excellenciesʼ sovereignty without even attempting to hide the Syndicateʼs position, proves that beyond any reasonable doubt. Add to that all the conveniences, resources, intelligence, and assistance continuously provided to Helmor, and of course I donʼt need to explain to either of you what the Syndicate truly is or what it has spent millions of years doing to this universe... Tell me honestly, what kind of person would such an organization deliberately choose to support? The good side?”

”....” Kiryan and Zavaros both nodded almost instinctively. That point alone already answered more than enough questions without requiring any further explanation.

”Second!” Glatheon continued immediately before anyone could interrupt him. ”Letʼs temporarily set Helmor and all of his allies aside. Who is Lord Robinʼs greatest ally? The Elder Cosmic himself—the very individual who saved the universe, established the fair order upon which our civilization still stands today, and protected all life after Athena fled, back when Archon hadnʼt even been born yet. Without the Elder Cosmicʼs intervention during that era, would any of us even exist to sit here discussing these matters today? And more importantly, would the Elder Cosmic ever willingly stand beside someone whose ultimate goal was to plunge the universe into suffering and destruction?”

”....” Once again, both of them slowly nodded, finding no flaw whatsoever in that reasoning.

”And third...” Glatheon narrowed his eyes while carefully choosing his next words. ”In my opinion, the decisive proof that completely separates Lord Robin from Helmor... is Lord Robinʼs mission itself.”