The Shepherds Are Dense

Chapter 117: The God-Slaying Dragon

"…Hm?"Aiwass was taken aback. "Taught you to read?"

"Yes," Haina said, wistfully but enthusiastic. "In our village, educated individuals were scarce.".

The entire Shepherd's Bay County contains barely 300,000 inhabitants, all of them mainly herders, with only a single proper city and the others towns. Less than a thousand people live in Eagle Cape Village, with more cows than sheep. The farmers cultivate potatoes and turnips, occasionally ginger for money.

Our town has no factories, no skyscrapers—the highest one is three stories. There's no high school there either. I attended one in another Shepherd's Bay town. The most cultured individual there was Grandpa Jacob.

He was a reporter in Bagpipe Town, then a freelance writer. Bagpipe Town, which has only slightly more than 5,000 residents, is near our village and is a favorite among tourists for its trout, salmon, and views. Glass Islanders refer to 'holidays in the countryside' when they say places like Bagpipe Town.

I went to high school there, occasionally running back to the village weekends until my mom told me it wore out my shoes and I quit.

It was like stepping into a different world, magic watching people at the train station, getting on and off. Those coming seemed unreal, like a soap bubble, or a dream—disappeared when the dream finished, never coming back.

She smiled sheepishly. “Funny, right? I’d never ridden a train then. Bagpipe Town has just one railway. Now it seems ordinary, since I’m one of those who step off the train.”

“No,” Aiwass said earnestly, “I find it fascinating, truly.”

It was his first time hearing Haina share her past.

As she spoke of her birthplace, she came alive, her blue eyes flashing like perfect sapphires.

She truly cherished her heritage.

Haina went on quietly, "Bagpipe Town and Eagle Cape are divided by Sapphire Lake, Avalon's greatest and, in my opinion, most lovely lake.".

It's inhabited by loads of swans. According to Avalon law, the royal family belongs to all wild swans, so we have a Swan Minister come by annually to count them and inspect for poaching. That's the only 'minister' we ever see in Bagpipe Town."

Swan Minister…

Aiwass suppressed a chuckle.

Well, I guess it classifies as a minister.

Under Avalon law, swans were a royal luxury, rather a symbol of the Path of Authority than something to be eaten.

Every now and then, the royal household presented swans to knights as a reward for merit or hard work so that they could hold banquets boasting their honor.

In the last hundred years, since knight families devalued swans and merchant status increased, the royals started selling swans to affluent merchants at very high prices.

The Swan Minister oversaw swan colonies, cared for sick or injured ones, and provided to the royal family. Answering to the Minister of Palace Affairs—previously occupied by Arthur and Mycroft Hermes—it was very much a ceremonial position, kept busy only a month a year, with no possibility of advancement. At Glass Island, its rank was lower than that of a university professor, who may occupy a higher-grade technical position.

“As a kid, I’d pester Grandpa Jacob for stories,” Haina said eagerly. “He later published them as books.

One stuck with me—an animal kingdom tale. Carnivores, led by a red bear and golden lion, ruled the world. Herbivores, like white horses and green deer, outwitted them, defeating the bear to become the new king. The lion, after swallowing a black mole, was dug out from inside…”

"…Hm?"

Aiwass sat back, smiling in interest. "I see… No wonder you have Transcendence Path affinity, senior. It's not that you deviated—it's within you. That's why you automatically recalled this tale, even without understanding its significance.

Since that's so, we can converse. Do you recall when we visited the Pelican Bar, and I said to you, 'Have you ever wondered why Avalon follows the Authority Path?

“I remember,” Haina nodded honestly. “You said you’d explain when you had time at school. I’ve been waiting but didn’t want to push, since you’ve been swamped with enrollment and finals.”

“Well, I’ll tell you now.”

Aiwass had Lily sit beside them.

Drinking tea and taking a bite out of a pastry, his face went solemn. "This is something I'd never tell outsiders. Now that you've heard it, you can never tell anyone. Just saying this information can have you killed."

Surprised by his serious threat, Haina and Lily had never seen Aiwass so grave.

After they took an oath of secrecy, Aiwass slowly nodded and told the tale. "It has three interpretations. The first is a straightforward fairy tale. The second is about the fall of Arktos Giant Kingdom and Hrasir Empire. The white horse symbolizes Avalon's Round Table Knights; the green deer, the elves and the Theocracy, bound to the tree and vines of the Candlekeeper, symbolized by the deer.".

The golden lion is the Hrasir Empire, and the mole is the Deathspawn, or 'Children of the Moon,' who emerge from the ground like burrowing moles when waking up.

"I see…" understood Haina. "So the destruction of Arktos Giant Kingdom entailed the Theocracy. No wonder founding families guard elves."

She furrowed her brow, perplexed. "But that does not sound so bad, like you said?"

"Right," said Aiwass, "because the tale contains a third dimension.

Did you know that five centuries ago, there was no 'Authority' Path? It's a very young Path."

He mentioned a mid-game secret of the game, one revealed in the Shadow of Avalon expansion. It was a secret in Avalon but simpler to discover elsewhere.

The Moriarty family, as a founding family, held this knowledge, though old Moriarty vanished before passing it to Aiwass.

No matter. If anyone asks, I’ll say the old man told me.

“Five hundred years ago, it was the ‘Strength’ Path—knights, warriors, berserkers, challengers, fighters. Its master, the ‘Highest Heaven,’ was seen as a colossal bear burning with blood and fire, now the Great Bear constellation.

Giants, said to have red bear blood, were naturally massive, strong, and swift. The Arktos Giant Kingdom worshipped the Highest Heaven, following the Strength Path.”

Haina’s eyes widened.

A legendary human warrior, whose name must remain unspoken, favored by the red bear, wielded both Strength and Transcendence Paths. He killed a powerful white dragon, bathing in its blood in a Transcendence ritual, becoming the Crowned White Dragon and rising to the Strength Path's Celestial Sovereign.".

He strengthened, overcoming the red bear, and revolted. Returning to human warrior form, he came down, established the Round Table Knights, and, with the aid of the elves, assaulted the invincible Giant Kingdom, which enslaved and consumed other races—humans, elves, dwarves, goblins, even dragons. Even the Empire feared them.

While that was happening, the Celestial Sovereign and the Highest Heaven battled in the Dream Realm, destroying part of it. The 'Abyssal Fall' area in the Dream Realm is the emptiness that resulted when the dragon threw the bear down.

The human war was defeated; the giants were too powerful. The twenty-one strongest Round Table Knights, by the Holy Grail ritual of Guinevere, drank dragon blood and sacrificed themselves to become great phantoms, conquering the Giant Kingdom and executing its king.

The war lasted long. The Highest Heaven toppled, and the Strength Path turned into the Authority Path. The Celestial Sovereign turned into the Silver-Crowned Dragon. Lancelot I, the sole surviving Round Table Knight, and the twenty that perished turned into the ancestors of the original families of Avalon.

Aiwass spoke significantly, "That is why Avalon honors the Authority Path… and prohibits the Transcendence Path."

(End of Chapter)