Free Web NovelChapter 19: Valoria’s Women Leaders’ Meetings 4
Then Adam asked,
"Why tell me all this now?"
Isadora looked him straight in the eyes.
"Because you’ve already seen too much to stay out of this."
He remained silent.
"Because your power reacted to the name of Nocthar."
Vespera added,
"Because your way of thinking could allow us to understand things we’ve ignored for decades."
Elaria nodded.
"The runes. The systems. The labyrinths. The artifacts. You see them differently than we do."
Selene folded her arms.
"And because you’ve already proven you’re not the type to abandon someone in danger."
Adam’s gaze shifted to Elena.
She smiled gently at him.
Then Isadora continued,
"But we don’t want to force you."
Adam was surprised.
"You don’t want to?"
"No."
The duchess shook her head.
"You’ve only just arrived in this world. You’ve already been drawn into our problems, our secrets, and our conflicts."
She paused.
"If you simply want to live peacefully in Valoria, we won’t stop you."
Adam remained silent.
Live peacefully.
That idea should have tempted him.
After all, he had died once because he had spent his life working without truly living.
Now, he had a second chance.
Magic.
A safe city.
People who cared about him.
A system that could make him stronger.
He could choose comfort.
He could choose to turn a blind eye.
He could choose not to carry the weight of the world.
But another thought crossed his mind.
Elena, wounded in the river.
The goblins in the night.
The non-human slaves of the Empire.
The vanished villages.
The ancient ruins.
Nocthar.
The red light that had awakened somewhere in the world without his knowing it yet.
Adam sighed.
He decided to be completely frank with them; he saw that they doubted or already knew the truth.
"In my old life..."
All the women froze slightly.
He didn’t immediately notice their reactions.
"I did almost nothing but work."
His voice was calm.
"I always thought I’d have time later. Time to live. Time to choose. Time to do something other than meet other people’s expectations."
He looked at his hands.
"And then I died."
A profound silence fell.
Elena paled slightly.
Isadora said nothing.
Lyriana stared at him intently.
Adam looked up.
"So no. I’m not going to spend my second life ignoring what’s happening around me."
He looked at Isadora.
Then at Vespera.
Then at all the others.
"If the Holy Empire threatens this world, then I want to understand."
His gaze hardened.
"If Nocthar is at the heart of all this, then I want to know what he is."
Then he placed his hand on the Urban Barrier Plan.
"And if I can help you protect Valoria, then I will."
For several seconds, no one spoke.
Then Elena smiled.
A proud smile.
Isadora closed her eyes briefly, as if a weight had just been lifted from her shoulders.
Lyriana looked away, but Adam clearly saw the faint smile that appeared on her lips.
Selene let out a low laugh.
"I like this man."
Shiora raised her cup.
"Welcome to grown-up problems."
Elaria smiled gently.
"He’ll need access to a lot more books."
Vespera stared at Adam with a new intensity.
"And a lot more danger."
Adam gave a tight smile.
"I thought so."
At that moment, a window of the system appeared before him.
━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━
Major Quest Activated
━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━
Name: The Vanished Shadow
Main Objective:
Discover the true nature of Nocthar.
Secondary Objectives:
*Strengthen Valoria’s defenses.
*Obtain a historical fragment related to Nocthar.
*Explore a high-ranking labyrinth.
*Identify the current plans of the Sacred Empire.
Rewards:
Unknown.
Warning:
This quest is tied to the fate of the world.
━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━
Adam remained motionless.
"What is it?" Elena asked.
He stared at the window for a few more seconds.
Then he replied:
"My power has just confirmed that this is serious."
Vespera smiled slightly.
"So your power has at least a modicum of common sense."
Adam sighed.
"I wish he’d given me a vacation."
Shiora burst out laughing.
"Vacation will come after saving the world."
"Strangely enough, I doubt it will be that simple."
Isadora then regained her composure.
"Very well. We have three priorities."
She raised a finger.
"First, secure this plan. No one outside this room is to know of its existence."
They all nodded.
She raised a second finger.
"Second, begin preparations to adapt this barrier to Valoria. Vespera, Elaria, Adam... you will work together on the runic part."
Adam blinked.
"Wait, me too?"
Vespera gave him a dangerous smile.
"You wanted to fix our circuits. Now you deal with the consequences." "
Adam had a bad feeling.
"I’m starting to regret speaking."
Elaria smiled gently.
"Too late."
Isadora raised a third finger.
"Thirdly, we need to get more information about Nocthar."
The room immediately fell silent.
Lyriana spoke.
"There’s a labyrinth near the border."
Adam looked at her.
"The one in Mirkwood?"
She nodded.
"The Labyrinth of the Black Dawn."
The name made several women react.
Selene frowned.
"It’s not a place for a beginner."
"I know," Lyriana replied.
"But it contains ancient rewards starting on the twentieth floor." "
Vespera added:
"And some records mention that a fragment of memory linked to the Ancients might appear in the chests on the lower floors."
Adam understood immediately.
"So it could contain information about Nocthar."
"Perhaps," Elaria replied.
"Nothing is guaranteed."
Shiora shrugged.
"In the labyrinths, nothing ever is."
Isadora looked at Adam.
"I won’t send you there now."
He was surprised.
"Why?"
"Because you’re still too weak."
The answer was direct.
Adam couldn’t really argue with her.
Even with his system, his skills, and his abnormal stats, he was only just getting started.
Faced with dangers capable of killing experienced adventurers, he probably wouldn’t last long.
Isadora continued:
"You’ll train first."
Selene smiled.
"I can take care of your physical training and combat."
Adam felt his back stiffen.
"Why does your smile worry me?"
"Because you have good instincts."
Vespera continued:
"I’ll take care of your mana control and your magic."
This time, Adam was truly afraid.
A black dragon as a magic teacher.
He didn’t know if it was an incredible opportunity or a curse.
Elaria added:
"I’ll teach you the basics of runes, enchantments, and magical logic."
Shiora raised her hand.
"And I’ll teach you about economics, contracts, negotiations, and how to avoid being robbed by the first smiling merchant who comes along." »
Lyriana crossed her arms.
"I’ll handle stealth, detection, and advanced survival skills."
Elena smiled.
"And I’ll handle the sword."
Adam looked at all the women around the table.
Then it dawned on him.
"Wait..."
His expression changed.
"You’re creating a complete training program for me."
"Exactly," Isadora replied.
"For how long?"
The women exchanged a glance.
Then Vespera calmly answered:
"Until you’re able to survive."
Adam remained silent.
"That answer doesn’t contain any numbers."
"Because it’s more honest that way," the dragoness replied.
He sighed.
"I really feel like my quiet life just died."
Elena gently placed her hand on his.
"You won’t be alone." "
Adam looked at her.
Then his expression softened.
"I know."
Isadora stood up.
"In that case, the decision is made."
She looked at each of the women present.
"We are reinforcing Valoria."
"We are preparing Adam."
"We are searching for a fragment linked to Nocthar."
"And we are preventing the Holy Empire from advancing further in the shadows."
No one protested.
Adam then felt something strange.
It wasn’t fear.
Not exactly.
It was like standing on the edge of a vast precipice.
Behind him lay the life he could have chosen.
Simple.
Comfortable.
Without responsibilities."
Before him lay a path filled with monsters, ancient secrets, fanatical empires, and powers capable of erasing a name from history.
He should have turned back.
But instead...
He smiled slightly.
"Very well."
They all turned their heads toward him.
Adam looked at the Urban Barrier Plan.
Then at the maps.
Then at Nocthar’s symbol, still visible in the magical projection.
"Let’s start by optimizing this barrier."
Vespera smiled.
A rare smile.
Almost ferocious.
"That’s an interesting answer."
At the same moment, far from Valoria...
Deep within the imperial capital...
A priest dressed in white was crossing a forbidden corridor.
Red torches burned along the walls.
He descended an ancient staircase, passed through three sealed doors, and stopped before an underground chamber.
In its center lay a black relic.
It resembled a heart of stone.
Cracked.
But still alive.
Around it, dozens of priests knelt.
All murmured the same name.
Again and again.
"Nocthar..."
The relic pulsed.
Once.
Then twice.
An ancient voice echoed in the high priest’s mind.
Faint.
Distant.
But real.
"The bearer of destiny... has awakened."
The high priest jerked his head up.
His eyes trembled with excitement.
"So the prophecy was true..."
The relic pulsed again.
And this time, a red crack ripped across its surface.
"Find it."
The voice was no longer a whisper.
It was an order.
"Before it remembers."
The priest immediately bowed.
"At your service, Lord Nocthar."
In the darkness, the relic continued to beat slowly.
Like a forgotten heart.
Like an ancient threat.
Like the beginning of a war the world thought it had buried millennia ago.
