Chapter 408 - 345: I Have to Get More Helpers

Chapter 408: Chapter 345: I Have to Get More Helpers

Lloyd recalled Dean Hazled saying that the powerhouses of the Radiant Gold rank from the Era of Brilliance had all fallen shortly after the Calamity, disappearing without a trace.

The reason why remains a mystery to this day...

Even the legacies they left behind had become extremely dangerous, absolute taboos that people today didn’t dare to covet.

The history department’s previous archaeological expedition, for instance, had tried to retrieve the Miracle Magic set up by the former dean. In a way, that could be considered recovering the legacy of a Radiant Gold, and the team was nearly wiped out for their efforts.

’If this damn place also involves a Radiant Gold, even if it’s just a "legacy," it must be extremely dangerous.’

’And if that Radiant Gold is still alive... who knows what kind of earth-shattering event that would cause.’

’It’s not impossible. After all, the story of all those Radiant Golds falling seems suspicious no matter how you look at it. They were beings like Deities during the Era of Brilliance; how could they have all just died off so quietly?’

’It’s highly likely some of them went into hiding somewhere, perhaps in an Alternate Space or a region of the world completely inaccessible to modern humans.’

’Even if they really did all fall, they must have had various means of resurrection and are just quietly waiting for the right moment.’

’Considering that even the traitor from my own school, Advisor Eske Mir, managed to retain a sliver of life for revival after being all but dead, what more could those Deity-like Radiant Golds be capable of?’

’This place is probably a contingency plan one of them prepared. And that mysterious power of Reduction... could that be a security measure they left behind?’

’It’s just that something must have gone wrong. This base, which should have remained hidden in an Alternate Space, accidentally broke into the real world. Then a restless skeleton started writing letters for help, drawing more and more attention here?’

After some thought, Lloyd quickly shared his theory with Little Olga to see what he thought.

After all, there was a good chance his ancestor had actually been here before...

Little Olga listened intently, then lowered his head in thought for a long moment before speaking.

"Hmm... your theory has some merit, especially the part about the skeleton writing for help. At first, I wondered if it was a ploy to lure more people here, to use them as fuel for a Radiant Gold’s resurrection..."

"But after hearing your analysis, I’ve ruled that out. If the goal was to lure people in, the letter should have contained a much greater, irresistible temptation. And it wouldn’t make sense to just casually erase them after they arrived."

"However, there’s one detail in your analysis that doesn’t sit right with me: the letter. For an ordinary mailroom clerk, no matter how resentful he was, to write a letter for help right under the nose of a Radiant Gold... it just doesn’t add up."

"I don’t know if you truly grasp how powerful the Radiant Golds were, but I’m certain that even in death, one wouldn’t allow a weak little skeleton to get away with such shenanigans."

Despite Little Olga’s objection, Lloyd nodded emphatically, admitting his oversight.

"You’re right. I didn’t think that part through. Forget a powerless skeleton, even a living person would have a hard time deceiving a powerhouse of that caliber, even a dead one."

At this, Lloyd suddenly recalled a story the ’Black Soldier,’ Jenkins, had once told.

It was about a dig he’d been on in his youth, where they’d excavated the tomb of an ancient powerhouse. The entire archaeological team ended up being wiped out for one reason or another—a tragedy that only he survived.

In that story, the handiwork of a mysterious figure was everywhere, and it felt very much like the meddling of the not-quite-dead powerhouse from the tomb...

Whether that tomb’s owner was a Radiant Gold or not, the story was proof enough: never underestimate the power of the dead, and never assume they’re *truly* dead.

So, a resentful little skeleton would have no chance of interfering with a powerhouse’s plan for resurrection.

The very fact that it could write a letter was strange enough.

A bolder hypothesis suddenly surfaced in Lloyd’s mind, and he voiced it:

"What if... the one who actually wrote the letter was the Radiant Gold? What if it wasn’t some mailroom clerk crying for help, but the Radiant Gold using his remains to make contact with the outside world?"

"It’s just that, since He is temporarily ’dead,’ His power is extremely limited and He’s lost most of His sanity. That’s why the letter is so full of holes—after all, the dead aren’t exactly great storytellers."

"He’s probably very weak right now, or there was a hitch in His resurrection process, so He had to find a way to contact the outside world?"

"If this theory holds, then He really would qualify as our ’uncle.’ He would indeed be critically ill and on the verge of death, and He would most likely have a very generous inheritance."

Little Olga didn’t voice agreement or dissent. He just chuckled, a bit self-deprecatingly.

"I never thought we’d go in a huge circle just to end up back where we started... Except this ’uncle’s’ identity and inheritance are a little more than we bargained for, wouldn’t you say?"