Chapter 151.1

It had been two days since they occupied the Temple of the Sun.

The Parsha-Lavitas Allied Forces rapidly expanded their control over the entire Land of Lakes, using the capital Helio as their base.

Naturally, the busiest among them was Solif.

Not only did he have to ascend as the new lord of Varaha and control the old vassals, but he also had to carve out a considerable portion of the family's vast wealth and offer it to the Allied Forces. It was inevitable.

"They say the subordinates are not listening?"

"I heard they are trying to sow discord between the two houses to revive themselves. They are saying that the great House Varaha cannot become a vassal domain of another house just like this."

"Who said that, shall I kill them?"

"When you say it, it doesn't sound like a joke, so please don't."

At Turan's words, Solif shook his head with a fed-up expression and put down the document he was holding.

Of course, most nobles would leave such matters to their subordinates, but without sufficient trust in them, he had no choice but to supervise everything personally.

"By the way, where is Meisa?"

"She went back to Kalamaf with Armania for now. If anyone attacks, at least one of us must stay to defend."

"Ah. Now that you mention it, I remember hearing about it, but I forgot for a moment because I was so busy. So, how is your work going?"

"Mm. Things are almost sorted out here too."

Over the past two days, while Solif had been consolidating power as the new family head of House Varaha and Meisa was managing the main house, Turan had been holed up deep inside the Temple of the Sun.

Some considered this laziness typical of great nobles, but in reality, he had been busy with critical tasks as well.

Specifically, pulling out all of Varaha's half-human, half-elves from the stone tablets, confining them individually in jewel boxes, and interrogating them.

"There were six in total... no, five now. One guy was being too stubborn. I showed the others what happens by tearing him apart right before their eyes."

"Ugh."

"But thanks to that, the others got scared and started giving out more reliable information. Since there were several of them, cross-verification became possible and it made things easier."

At the stage when information was only coming from Reshion, it was hard to verify its truth without testing it firsthand, but as more half-elves of Varaha were added, this weakness was resolved.

By subtly cross-checking one’s information with others, lies were easily exposed.

In fact, it turned out that such worries were unnecessary, as Reshion had been consistently cooperative since defecting.

It seemed that, having already betrayed his group, he had half given up, realizing there was no turning back.

Since Reshion had served as the leader of the group and the head of House Varaha, he knew the most, and the other half-elves were used mainly for cross-verification while dealing primarily with him.

As a result, Turan was able to uncover an incredible amount of information.

"First, I found out what the needles stuck in your and Meisa's heads are."

"What are they?"

"A leash."

"A leash......."

"Long ago, the first generation of wizards born from the union between the Preah God Tribe and humans were hard to control. Although they obeyed their god parents, they looked down on ordinary people so much that they often massacred them as naturally as breathing. So, they implanted devices to suppress such aggression. It was made to be hereditary through bloodlines."

When Turan heard this story, he immediately thought of Onil from House Carmine.

A delinquent feared by all because he mercilessly harmed those weaker than himself.

Such individuals, occasionally born in noble houses, might have had issues with this leash.

If the average personality of the first-generation wizards was that bad, then such a control measure was understandable.

Of course, it was unknown how the individuals themselves felt about it.

"According to Reshion, the very structure of the current world society is being maintained because of this measure. If it were according to human nature, wizards with great power would abuse and trample on ordinary people like insects rather than carefully nurturing and helping them thrive as they do now."

"Huh."

Humans would worship wizards, and wizards would protect humans.

The fundamental teachings mentioned in the first chapter of Preah Faith had not been passed down naturally but had been almost brainwashed into the descendants, the wizards, by the gods?

At this unexpected revelation, Solif clicked his tongue and suddenly asked what came to his mind.

"Then, what about the headache I experienced back then?"

"Well, that was the original purpose, but later, a few more things were added along the way. Things like instilling obedience to the gods or defensive measures in case they tried to attack... Though now that their bodies are no longer their own, it usually does not react, but it seems to apply when they are in their spirit forms."

And in an astonishing and horrifying revelation, the pain that Solif and Meisa had experienced last time was said to have been weakened because the gods of Varaha had become partially elf-like.

If they had maintained their full god spirit forms, their spirit heads would have burst the moment they confronted them.

"So we need to remove them as soon as possible. Do not worry. I also learned a few techniques to remove the needles, so it should be over quickly."

"But still, just pulling them out feels a bit... According to what you are saying, isn't that needle what keeps me from becoming a crazy murderer?"

If removing all the needles turned him into a monster who slaughtered ordinary people for fun like the first generation wizards, how would that be any different from dying?

At Solif's anxiety, Turan pointed at himself with a small chuckle.

"Look at me. Do I look like such a monster?"

"Uh, honestly, a little......."

Facing Turan's expressionless face, Solif mumbled, "Just kidding, man."

"Anyway, the problem only arises when an immature personality gains excessive power from a young age. Once you are an adult, even if the needle is removed, there is a high possibility there will not be any issue with self-control."

"Now that you mention it, I just remembered. Why don't you have a needle in your head? You did not remove it yourself, right?"

"That, I do not know either. I investigated it pretty thoroughly... but it seems that really, no one knows."

The leash was designed and installed by the Biologist, who was skilled in dealing with living beings and souls.

Although Otas, the Night Hunter who founded Zahar and ruled the Enril Desert, was not on good terms with the Biologist, even he agreed this measure was necessary and entrusted his descendants to the Biologist.

However, at Otas’s request, the leash's design was made somewhat looser compared to other bloodlines, which could explain the characteristic cruelty of the Zahar bloodline.

"Mm, in the end, does this mean that bloodlines govern not just our power but also our thoughts......."

"Not completely, but yes."

Turan recalled a conversation he had with his grandfather, Talis, not long ago.

Judging from the hints given at the time, it was clear that he was fully aware of this matter as well.

There were many more stories that followed.

For example, the reason Reshion risked danger to launch a surprise attack on Osel, the head of House Lavitas, or the price they had paid to involve the great noble house Ruvan.

As the gloomy stories continued, the atmosphere grew heavier, so Turan deliberately raised his voice.

"And as a bonus, this time I also learned something good."

"Really?"

"That's right. The skills of the Silver Sun."

"Alright!"

Turan handed Solif, who looked like he had received a gift, a skill chart he had prepared in advance.

It contained detailed information, including methods of drawing symbols combinations that Turan had directly copied through mental imagery, the names and effects of various skills, and instructions for their use.

"Probably before long, you will be the best among the three of us at handling the skills. Meisa and I are just learning randomly as we go."

"Heh, since growth is basically over for me from now on, I have to master at least this. Do not worry, I will make sure to learn it thoroughly."

Pleased with Turan's gift, Solif read and reread the skill chart with an excited face.

Turan watched him with a smile for a while, but soon a shadow fell over his face.

'Skills...'

Turan intentionally did not tell Solif one crucial piece of information he had gained while interacting with the half-elves.

No, to be exact, he planned not to tell anyone else either.

It was because he could not possibly predict how others would react once this truth was revealed.

Compared to the secret he had heard this time, things like the Preah God Tribe ruling the world from the shadows were nothing.

Turan turned his head and gazed at the moon that hung unusually clear without a single cloud.

'This world was created as a fictional fabrication, and a true world exists elsewhere.......'

***