With This Treasure, I Summon Primordial Weapons
Chapter 15: Valerion Empire

Chapter 15: Valerion Empire

It took Raven a couple of moments to realise what Godric was getting at, but after noticing his expression, she finally got it.

Every kid in Starfall Kingdom learned about the history of the past, which included the history and certain facts about the Valerion Empire, one of which was its ridiculous law that prohibited summoners from summoning their beasts without probable cause, which played a big role in the Empire’s downfall.

But before Godric could reminisce about those particular history lessons, he took a long moment to ponder the complications of what the girl said.

Six years.

Normally, an unattended gate ruptured after around a month, throwing every living thing out.

There had been situations where a gate remained stable for a couple of months.

But years?

That was unprecedented.

Noticing the sudden change in both Godric’s and Raven’s expressions, Astrea quickly spoke up. "I know it must sound crazy, but really... it’s not that bad."

She smiled almost apologetically.

The moment of worry written across her face quickly disappeared as the girl changed the subject. "Oh! A lot must’ve happened during that time! Tell me!" she exclaimed almost excitedly. "How are things? There must’ve been a lot of rebuilding after the Black Alert."

Godric exchanged a short look with Raven.

There was no rebuilding.

Red Alert referred to an event where a dozen dungeon gates appeared around the area.

But the Black Alert?

That was the name the government only used once, and the estimated number of gates during that time was over a thousand.

Astrea blinked, her smile twitching as though it was threatening to fall apart. "What? What is it?"

Raven’s mouth opened, but no words left her lips.

How could she carry the news of the girl’s home being reduced to nothing?

Godric, on the other hand, had no issues carrying the news.

"There was nothing left to rebuild. Valerion Empire fell five years ago."

Astrea’s expression changed.

It wasn’t a sudden change.

Her lips dropped a bit lower at first, her gaze shifting between Raven and Godric as though they were about to tell her it was only a joke.

Then, she took a step backwards, shaking her head from side to side.

"No..." Her voice trembled as she murmured under her breath. "My family..."

"I’m sorry," Raven said.

Astrea turned her back toward them as she hid her face away in the palms of her hands.

"I’ve heard the Empire fought well." Raven continued. "They managed to evacuate thousands to Starfall Kingdom before the fall. Your family might still be—"

Before she could finish her futile attempt at cheering the girl up, Godric shot Raven a sideways glance that said she should know better.

From the Empire whose population reached nearly 500 million, only thousands escaped. The chances of the girl’s family still being alive might’ve been even lower than the chance of them getting swallowed by a random gate.

The two of them gave Astrea a few moments of silence until the girl turned around on her own, her eyes red and cheeks slightly flushed. "So you guys are from Starfall Kingdom?"

Godric and Raven nodded almost in unison.

"We are."

"How... How are things there?"

"They’re... stable," Godric replied, though his answer seemed to surprise Raven a little.

"Stable..." Astrea echoed the words, then nodded in satisfaction. "Then anyone who managed to evacuate must be safe?"

Godric actually thought about the answer for a moment before replying. "Yeah."

A faint trace of a smile returned to the girl’s face.

Then, she turned around and picked up her pace as though nothing had happened.

"She’s taking it rather well," Godric said in a low voice, making sure only Raven could hear him.

"You could’ve been a little more... gentle," Raven commented, to which Godric only shrugged.

"She needed to know the truth," he replied, then his mind trailed somewhere else as the two of them followed after Astrea, who walked a dozen steps ahead of them.

She had already mentioned that it had been years since they had any newcomers, and judging by the fact that she hadn’t heard of the Valerion Empire’s fall, the last newcomers either came at least five years ago, or something happened to them before they could even explain what was happening back on Earth.

Godric’s earlier caution slowly returned as his target shifted away from the girl, who, despite her brave front, was still visibly shaken by the news, and toward whoever was behind filtering and accepting the so-called newcomers.

"So, how do you guys normally deal with newcomers? I mean, some of them might be dangerous, you know." Godric asked, which caught both Raven and Astrea slightly off guard.

"Hmm, it’s been a while, but Torr is usually the one dealing with newcomers. He is the boss’s right hand, so he is trusted with filtering good from the bad."

"And what happens to the bad?"

"We just send them away and tell them to never come back."

"And it works?"

Astrea lingered for a moment, as though really thinking about the answer. "Well, so far none of them came back, so I guess it does? Why?"

Godric shook his head. "Nothing."

Astrea raised a brow but didn’t press, while Raven quickly caught on to what was going through Godric’s head.

There was no way those who were turned away would never try to come back.

Desperate people took desperate measures to ensure their own survival. Those sent away would return at the first inconvenience they faced, be it danger, lack of food or water. If they knew there was safety here, their return would only be a matter of time.

Which meant the only thing that mattered now was making sure Torr never decided they had to be ’sent’ away.