NOVEL WEB 6. Getting information
Eliz decided between getting information and mana control training that she needed the information more right now. That's why she told Alobela that she would learn mana tomorrow. Alobela suggested that she ask her father for a teacher that would be more suitable.
Eliz refused. First of all, word would soon spread that she had awakened the mana if she got a teacher; secondly, she didn't have the patience to deal with the theory, which she would do with a teacher first.
With Alobela, she'd go straight to practice. Also, Eliz forbade her to mention it anywhere.
While Alobela went off to fetch her some refreshments, Eliz sat down with her books on the lounge.
Eliz raised her eyebrows at the first paragraph.
The first surviving records were from 20,000 years ago when the Great Cataclysm ended.
The Great Cataclysm lasted an estimated 500 years and completely changed the face of the world. Not many records have survived from the period before the Cataclysm, but archeological finds indicate that it was a time of prosperity.
According to the findings, people at that time used technology instead of mana, which could even take them to the stars, and living conditions were much safer.
Eliz shook her head at this description. The author had simply taken the easiest option and had the modern world destroyed by a catastrophe as an explanation. She should perhaps stop having expectations.
It went on to say that it was not known precisely how long the cataclysm had lasted, and it was speculated that it had lasted much shorter, but the people of that time had only begun to re-record history 20,000 thousand years ago when they began to repopulate the continents and form societies. The history of the world began to divide into several major periods, divided into the Old Era and the New Era.
The Old Era
The White Age
The Cataclysmic Age (0-500) years
The Chaos Age (500-2,500) years
The Age of Mana (2,500-5,000) years
The Age of Restoration (5,000-10,000) years
The Age of Discoveries (10,000-15,000) years
The Age of Wars (15,000 - 15,300) years
The Age of Kingdoms (15,300 - 17,000) years
The New Era
The Age of Alliances (17.000 - 19.000) years
The Age of Demons (19.000 - 19.100) years
The Age of Victory (19.100 - 20.000) years
Present times (20.001)
Eliz rubbed her temple. Too many numbers. Suddenly she felt like she was back at work. There was a section in the book about all the eras, but she felt she did not need to know that much about the Old Era.
She probably underestimated the author a bit. But then it occurred to her that, considering how this world really worked, was it possible that history could shape itself, even if the author set some criteria? That was an interesting thought to Eliz.
Would not that mean the author had no real power or influence here? Only in terms of the story? Most of the story was created in this kingdom... what would happen if she went to a completely different continent? Eliz considered it. But it was too risky to test the limits of the system's power, at least for now.
Eliz tied an imaginary knot in her handkerchief and continued reading. She really did not feel like reading it all. She flipped through the pages about the cataclysm, but it was all conjecture and unproven theories, such as why it had occurred, how long it had lasted, and what had happened during that time.
The only really useful information she could get from it was that the Earth's surface used to be 71% covered with water, which changed after the cataclysm. Now the world is only about 60% covered with water. The theory was that because of the increased temperature in the atmosphere and the many volcanic eruptions, ten percent of the water had evaporated, leading to the explanation of the great flood.
Eliz read no further. She did not want to come across something like the Great Ark suddenly. Instead, she pondered the information about the water.
She found it fascinating. It meant that the sea had receded, and there was more area on Earth to inhabit or explore. Eliz was adventurous by nature and found the idea of discovering new distances exciting.
The Age of Discovery must have been prosperous for adventurers.
The Age of Chaos was truly chaotic. Clans formed, small kingdoms sprang up, and people tried to re-establish some functioning social system during that time, and then it all faded away, reshaped, and reshaped again and again.
Eliz was somewhat amused by the short sentence about a village called Dorta that disappeared the very day it was founded. That alone was worth the author of that history book noting. How he knew that was another question.
Eliz did not pursue this section any further and continued with the Age of Mana.
This was even more interesting.
Before the age of mana, people used mana. But for a long time, they thought it was actually expected. At that time, nobody cared about the time before the cataclysm; they were busy with their survival.
Eventually, the first official historian Jamiel Prian discovered that people did not use mana before the Cataclysm, that there was not even mana in this world.
Jamiel Prian, therefore, began to research mana, its origin, and how it works in depth. Although he never discovered mana's origin, he discovered many ways to deal with mana and even strengthen it.
His work led to the creation of the first Enhanced Warriors.
Eliz began to skip around a bit because what followed was a list of names of researchers who built on Jamiel Prian's work. It took them nearly fifty years to discover that mana can be channeled not only through the body but also into inanimate objects as well. This, in turn, is thanks to researcher Tori Lengriol, who was studying minerals and expanded her research when she discovered that some minerals contained traces of mana. This clever woman ushered in the Age of Restoration. With the ability to imbue items with mana, a wealth of new conveniences began to emerge.
The Makers class was born. It only took a few centuries for people to be able to bring light back into their homes that did not give off fumes, communicate remotely, and make machines run cheaper with no human resources.
As Eliz read, she realized that the Makers had basically almost eradicated slavery. But then again, their industry was undoubtedly partly responsible for The Age of Wars.
Alobela returned with refreshments, which consisted of cider and a small cake with chocolate and lots of fruit. Eliz took a break because she was hungry. She had not even managed to finish her breakfast, not that she got enough to eat from the lettuce. She had missed lunch because of the trip, and Eliz was not someone who would task a cook.
She could not eat leftovers either; it would not look good, and if she tried to cook something, she would probably cause heart arrhythmias in everyone. Alobela stood silently and watched her while Eliz slowly felt guilty for eating something sweet.
Alobela's look seemed to say, 'Careful, don't get fat!" Eliz continued to think about the cliff.
After her snack, she returned to reading and dismissed Alobela to do something other than stare at her.
Eliz skipped the Age of Discoveries and only glanced to see that there was information about the outside world, but there were many pages to flip through. Expeditions, the discovery of new places, the founding of settlements there, and many names and dates that were irrelevant to her now. She was interested in the outside world but would probably start with this kingdom instead.
The Age of Wars was a bloody business, Eliz thought so. Makers were developing weapons and useful things; how could they not? After reading for a while, Eliz was frankly horrified. Had these people gone mad? How could they make weapons of mass destruction fueled by mana? It was no wonder the war era lasted so long when they almost destroyed each other again.
That's when a hero named Charlon DePadite appeared—an aristocrat in a small kingdom that mainly was farming. The young hero was an Enhanced Mage with an enormous mana pool, and in his travels, he found talented companions who wanted to bring peace to the world.
Eliz made it seem like another cliché story about a wandering hero who saves everything and becomes a revered king. Ah... she was not wrong. It was exactly like that. Charlon DePadite, with his small army of powerful individuals, conquered most of the warring territories and became a sovereign ruler at the age of 49, stabilizing society. He had many wives and children... Yeah, of course.
She stopped reading.
The Age of Kingdoms was precisely what it sounded like. Kingdoms were established whose rulers were usually descendants of Charlon DePadite or descendants of his loyal companions. It turned out that most of today's royal houses carried something of the bloodline of these ancient heroes. And they were mighty proud of it. Bloodlines were a big deal in royal families. So when they introduced themselves to other rulers, they mentioned the ancient heroes' bloodline. Of course, the DePadite bloodline is the most famous.
But Eliz was pleasantly surprised that it was not just about prestige. But that there was actually a reason for it. All the ancient heroes had some monstrous ability. And there was a possibility that something similar would awaken later in the bloodline. There had already been several cases where royal families had produced many outstanding Enhanced Mages, Warriors, or even Artists.
The Age of Alliances was a time of reforms, laws, and emerging alliances. Society finally found its footing, and things began to work. It was about time. Eliz flipped through more pages, but it was all about who was scratching whose back, who was stabbing them in the back, minor disputes that grew into minor wars or settled everything with a political marriage.
Politics. Eliz did not really need such outdated information. She doubted that all those alliances lasted to this day. It was better to get information elsewhere.
The Age of Demons sounded interesting because it lasted only a hundred years but was still described as a significant period.
Eliz had read that the appearance of the demons was sudden. They were human-like creatures with horns, wings, tails, and the ability to change their shape into the appearance of horrible humanoid beasts. The demons came through a rift they had opened to escape their dying world. They were a warlike and conquering race that felt superior to the humans they sought to enslave. Well, nothing new. So far, it sounded normal. However, as Eliz read on, she felt strange about the whole thing. Demons attacked and killed, but most of all, enslaved and made people work in manufacturing and farming.
They had entire kingdoms under their control, which they actually turned into what Eliz thought were primitive factories.
She thought that was strange but did not elaborate.
After a decade or so, the rift closed; either they ran out of energy, or no one came from the demon world, and they began to take over territory.
Eliz smiled when she read that the demon king was the last to appear. Eliz wondered if this was some kind of hidden clue. A demon king who cared about his people? Or was he the one who kept the rift open and the captain the last to leave the sinking ship?
The Demon King was described as a powerful being who transformed his form into a giant, black dragon with golden horns.
It took many lives to defeat the Demon King, but he was finally slain by brave heroes... oh no—another story about brave heroes who killed the demon king. Eliz was almost falling asleep at this point.
She skipped to the end. Most of the territory was finally taken, and the demons were driven out. They now occupied the area where they had established a kingdom in the Southern Province and occupied the shores of the Emerald Sea.
And finally, the Age of Victory.
Ahem. In short. Heroes became kings, hunting demons hiding among humans, and minor wars were fought... Eliz paused as her eyes skimmed the text and frowned.
"The hero who dealt a death blow to the demon king, Edward McGree, became our first and greatest king and founded our present Silk Kingdom." She read aloud.
Oh boy... Really, the Silk Kingdom? Is that what this kingdom is called?
Eliz did not have such a bad memory, but the author had just called this country a Kingdom for some reason.
Well, the Silk Kingdom sounded better than if it was just a kingdom called Kingdom.
Eliz remembered looking up the kingdom's name in the forum, and she was not alone. Many readers had asked for the name but never received an answer. This was a bit annoying because it caused confusion. Eliz never found out in the end because she stopped reading the novel later.
So, Silk Kingdom?
She went on to read that it was called that because the demons had left many farms where they grew a variety of plant from their world that was used to make silk, as opposed to the usual production from the glands of silkworm larvae. And that was not the only difference.
Silk was more durable and conducted mana better. It became a popular fabric for making clothes for Enhanced Mages.
Thank this, the Silk Kingdom quickly prospered and expanded. Eliz slammed the book shut and rubbed her eyes. That's enough. At least now she had the name for the Kingdom, so she could find a book about it and not bother with unnecessary information. In the end, she was satisfied, even if some parts were boring; at least now, she has a rough knowledge of the world.
Thanks to that, she would be able to delve more into further research.
She reached for a book on intelligent races. She was looking forward to this book. Eliz wanted to learn more about the culture of the races and especially what kind of people she could find here.
She opened the book to the contents page.
Human
Demon
Elves
Dwarves
Canines
Feline
Cold-blooded
Hybrids
Elemental
Mythical
Eliz wanted to look at the canines first; after all, she was about to grab a wolf hybrid. But then Alobela walked in. Eliz looked up.
"My lady, a visitor has arrived." She announced.
"Oh?" Eliz made a sound of surprise and reluctantly put the book aside.
"Someone for me?" she asked as she rose from her chair.
"No, for the young lord Eren. Replied Alobela, and Eliz glanced at her.
"Well, well, that's surprising. I did not expect them to come so soon." She pursed her lips.
"Shall I show them out, my lady?"
Elizabeth thought about it and shook her head. "No. I'll take them in. Eren is forbidden to see them. So I'll take care of it."
Alobela bowed slightly. "They have been ushered into a small welcome room; I will prepare refreshments for the guests," she said.
Eliz waved her hand. "There's no need for that. They will not be staying long."
Eliz let Alobela lead her to the place. A small reception room was located near the main entrance and served exactly as it sounded. To drop off guests before someone had time to take care of them. Of course, no one would call it that way, but that's basically what it was.
Eliz heard voices from inside and was amused that the whole gang had gathered there. Without Eren. Which, according to the original story, was not correct. At this time, Eren was supposed to be at the Gray mansion with his group, arguing over who should take Selene to the festival that would be held in the capital in a week.
This eventually led to a competition about who would take Selene there. Eliz had almost forgotten about it since she had gotten Eren for herself and had no plans to do anything with the other annoying characters. In the end, no one won, so they all took Selene to the festival, each spending an hour alone with her.
Eliz had the impression that something had happened during the festival, but she could not think about it because a pair of green eyes were staring at her from the side. She had been standing outside the door for a while and had not come in, so Alobela was staring at her.
Eliz hesitated no longer, opened the door, and entered.
Four more pairs of eyes stared at her, and all but one looked hostile. Eliz was not deterred by this.
"I see that shame is useless to you if you dare to come here." She said arrogantly, crossing her arms before her chest as she scanned Donovan, Chad, Gray, and Selene.
Seriously, Gray is probably suicidal. What normal person would go to an ex-fiancée's house with her angry father still around?
Gray growled like a dog. "We are not here for you. Where's Eren?"
Chad stood behind Selene, the only one sitting on the couch with her head down anxiously as if Eliz's presence was hurting her.
"What did you do to him?" Chad snarled aggressively.
Eliz felt herself getting angry. She coldly stared at Chad.
"Chad Legorned. Watch your tone of voice. You are not somewhere in the barracks to yell at me like that. If you keep this up, I'll have the guards take you to the pens, to the dogs that are also barking like you."
Chad pressed his lips together angrily and returned his gaze to Eliz, who did not even stir.
'Boy, I used to work in the services. Compared to some people, your angry look is like a caress.' Eliz mocked him in her mind.
"Eren is not going to come. So you can go again. And do not come back." She waved her hand toward the door.
Donovan pushed his glasses over his eyes "Is there something wrong with Eren?" he asked quietly.
Eliz wondered if she should answer him, but Donovan was polite enough that she did not see a problem with it. "He is under house arrest and is not allowed to have any contact with you until Father says otherwise. I am sure you understand why. I am sorry you wasted your way here."
Suddenly, Selene's voice rang out. "I could at least..."
"No." Said Eliz calmly before Selene could finish her question. It was clear to her what she wanted. Talk to Eren or somehow give him a letter. She looked at Selene, who quickly looked to the ground.
But Eliz saw it. Selene was not scared at all; she was angry.
'Well, girl... get used to it.'