"It happened nineteen years ago," Bartolomeo said with a solemn expression on his face. "In this world, there will always be two blessed people. However, while one is blessed with Good Luck, the other is blessed with Bad Luck. The two of them are always girls because only girls are able to carry this blessing or curse inside their bodies.
"One of them possesses Extreme Good Luck, and the other possesses Extreme Bad Luck. Every time one of these two ladies dies, their successor will be born exactly a year after."
Bartolomeo paused in order to see if Lux was paying close attention to what he was saying.
When he saw that the Half-Elf was listening to him attentively, he nodded his head before continuing his story.
"When the world was still young, both of those ladies were born in Agartha. But ever since the world above the surface prospered, the Lady of Good Luck had always been born in the Surface World.
"All those who we call Misfortune's Beloved are born here in Agartha. Every time they are discovered, they are immediately sent to the Sanctuary of Atos, where they are left to live their lives as comfortably as possible.
"In the Sanctuary, people are able to visit and even talk to them up close if they want to. This was to ensure that the Lady of Bad Luck will retain her sanity and live a life surrounded by people who care for her.
"This has been the tradition that has been passed from generation to generation. However, this time, the lady that carried all the Bad Luck in the world was a bit special. Her curse not only affected herself but also spread to others like a plague.
"This was why she was asked to leave the Sanctuary of Atos and was transferred by our King to the Pantheon of Exile. Of course, there were people who believed that they could overcome the curse and went to see her in the Pantheon of Exile. However, the people who went to that place were never seen again."
Bartolomeo sighed after finishing his tale.
Since the Saint had confirmed that Lux was telling the truth, he decided to spare the Half-Elf and the Halfling from being tortured and locked up in prison.
Lux, who had deemed that Bartolomeo was done talking, cleared his throat before asking a question.
"Where is this Pantheon of Exile located?" Lux asked.
Bartolomeo and the two Saints looked at the red-headed teenager in a weird manner, wondering if Lux failed to understand a word that Bartolomeo had said.
"Didn't you hear me earlier?" Bartolomeo asked back. "Those who see her will be affected by her curse and will receive bad luck for the rest of their lives unless they cleanse themselves in the Azmarin Monastery for a decade.
"Also, those that have gone to the Pantheon of Exile were never seen again. Are you sure you still want to see Aurora?"
Lux nodded firmly. "Yes. That is why I came here."
"You are courting death, Junior," the Catkin commented. "Then again, there are fates that are far worse than death."
"A hopeless romantic." The woman smiled. "And a very stupid one at that."
Bartolomeo also looked at the Half-Elf with a disapproving look on his face. However, since he could tell that the boy was serious, he decided to make things difficult for him.
"Let's set aside your reasons for coming to Agartha for the time being," Bartolomeo stated. "Now, we will talk about how we will handle the two of you."
The tension in the room suddenly changed as the two Saints that were behind Bartolomeo smiled.
"Any and all Highlanders that are discovered in Agartha are to be immediately taken to the Capital City and await His Majesty's ruling," Bartolomeo declared. "This is the law that has been set in stone since the founding of Agartha, and since you're here, the same laws will apply to the two of you.
"According to our history books, there have been no more than twenty Highlanders that have managed to sneak inside Agartha for the past hundreds of years. Fifteen of them suffered the same fate and had their memories erased before being deported back to the Surface World.
"The remaining five were spared from having their memories erased and were simply put under a powerful contract, preventing them from spreading any information about Agartha in any form.
"The two of you should pray that our King is in a good mood on the day you see him. Perhaps, he will be benevolent and choose the second option to let you keep your memories of this place intact."
Lux and Gaap glanced at each other before nodding their heads at the same time.
Since they had no idea where the Pantheon of Exile was, visiting the Capital City of Agartha was also an option.
They had already met the Dragon King of Karshvar Draconis and the Steward of the Crystal Palace. The two were very curious about what kind of Supreme the King of Agartha was and wanted to see him at least once in their lifetime.
"Okay. Please take us to the Capital City of Agartha," Lux said. "Since we are already here, I would like to see it once before the King makes his judgment."
"Heh~ you are handling this pretty well, Junior," the Catkin commented. "Do you have any idea who our current King is?"
"No?" Lux replied.
"His name is Septimius Vi Agartha III," the Catkin stated. "He is also the father of this generation's Misfortune's Beloved. Truth be told, I'm very curious about how he will react after knowing that you suddenly appeared in our kingdom because you saw his daughter in a dream or a vision.
"If you can pull it off, maybe—just maybe, he will allow you to go to the Pantheon of Exile and meet with the lady who has brought despair to countless people… people who once loved and cared for her. Now, all of them hate her with every fiber of their being."
Bartolomeo, who was listening quietly to the side, spoke up as he looked at the Half-Elf, whose stance remained the same.
"Boy, I will tell you now. You will regret it if you continue with this nonsense," Bartolomeo stated. "It's not too late to turn back. If you promise to not see Aurora, I will put in a good word to our King so that he will return both of you to the Surface World with your memories intact."
"Sir Bartolomeo, I don't want to regret the choices that I didn't make," Lux replied. "I thank you for your concern, and although I might look like someone who actively looks for trouble, know that this is not the case. It is just that I won't be able to sleep peacefully at night, knowing that I didn't at least come to see her once."
"Ah, youth and all of its foolishness," the Saintess chuckled. "Well, it is not up to us to decide what should be done with the two of you. His Majesty will be the one to give the verdict."
The Saintess then took a step forward with a mischievous smile on her face.
"Bartolomeo, I'll be the one to take the two of them to the capital," the Saintess declared. "It has been a while since I last saw His Majesty. This might be a good opportunity to go for a visit."
Bartolomeo nodded. "I have no objections. Make sure that the two of them will not be able to escape from you or else…"
The Saintess chuckled after hearing the Mayor's threat.
"Don't worry. If a Grade A Apostle and a Low Ranker were able to escape my grasp, I'd run around the city naked." the Saintess smiled.
She didn't know that within Lux's Guild Chat, Lux and Gaap were planning how to escape their captors if the King decided to erase their memories and send them back to the Surface World.
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