World Online

Chapter 289 The Round Table

The ceiling of the large hall extended to a few dozen meters high, maybe even more.

The large crystal that lit up the room was floating in mid air right in the middle of the conical ceiling like a giant chandelier.

And Jake could see why he was looking for something called the Emporium. Till now, he was puzzled to why he was searching for something called the emporium.

Now, as he looked at the giant space that stood in front of him, with broken stalls, shops, and a giant fountain in the very center with a statue, he could understand why.

He looked closer at the giant statue that stole the show. It was a statue of a man. A handsome one, no doubt, with an armor and a sword that looked eerily similar to his, but also completely different.

As he looked at the statute, the armor the he was wearing started buzzing, as if it was responding to the statue on its own.

"This used to be the heart of Melody. The capital of all that was beautiful in the world." The old man sighed as he walked in front of Jake.

"A city that celebrated humanity's uniqueness. What set us apart from the perfect gods and the orderless beasts of Gaia." He said with a hint of melancholy in his voice.

"A monologue about a country that was destroyed thousands of years ago? And you feel emotion toward it? Just how old are you?" Jake wanted to ask, but he knew better than to interrupt an NPC as it started its designed task.

"You came here looking for the knights of sin. Well, this is where it all started." The old man said as he walked forward.

The giant indoor hall had pathways that diverged away. There were dozens of small streets or paths in the perimeter of the giant hall and the old man clearly knew exactly where to go.

The duo started to walk into the path, slowly moving away from the giant hall. There was a light that showed them the way though, even though they had long left the giant light crystal.

It was just a few feet wide, and the ceiling was a few feet above them. It was very closed off and Jake couldn't understand where he was in the city.

The path finally split into what appeared to be a room. Another giant room that was ridiculously huge.

"How did all of this survive? Wasn't the whole kingdom destroyed in the war?" Jake muttered.

The old man smiled and shook his head.

"All in due time, young boy. What you see right now, all of it is protected by a barrier. The kingdom and what it truly meant, all of it was shielded from the war." he said as he kept walking.

Jake looked at the round table that was made of steel in front of him. It encompassed a majority of the giant room that they were in.

Seven seats, all of different colors, circled the table.

"Kinda like Arthur's table." Jake thought to himself as he walked toward the table unconsciously.

His first thought was to go to the blue seat.

But as he started walking toward it, his armor buzzed irrationally.

Jake paused and looked to the left.

Next to the blue seat was a red one. It was dark red, almost like blood, and yet not. He stepped near it, his arm grazing the seat.

Ding!

Instantly, his armor lit up with a red glow that blinded his eyes.

Sparks of red lightning started to circle his armor and his sword started to float in front of him.

The Sword of Misery was also covered in the same red lighting, and it started to float away from Jake.

It started to hover toward the center of the table.

"Sit!"

A deep voice echoed in Jake's ears. It was like a large drum was being hit.

Jake stepped forward and a force compelled him to sit in the chair. The forcefulness could be felt by his back.

The chairs and the table were grand, with a heavy metal bearing and carvings that Jake couldn't interpret. But comfortable they were not.

"Ouch!" Jake yelped as he kept looking at the sword that was hovering in the air.

"Red. Wrath indeed. I was right." The old man chuckled as he walked around the table, standing opposite to Jake.

"You have wondered who the knights of sin are. Unfortunately, I am not the one to tell you who you are. That, that task belongs to someone else." The old man shook his head as he turned around.

Slowly, he started walking to the second door on the other end of the room.

Seeing that the old man was leaving, Jake was confused.

"Wait! Where are you going?" He shouted as he tried to get up.

But the moment he rose even an inch off the seat, some force pushed him right back down into the chair.

It was like the chains that he was bound by just a few minutes ago.

"Damn it!" Jake cursed as he looked forward.

The old man had disappeared, and he was in this giant room all on his own.

His red sword was hovering on the round table still, and with the sparks that flew around, it looked like a sacrificial offering rather than a simple quest for information.

"What the hell is happening here?" Jake shook his head.

"You…"

A loud, echoey voice appeared out of nowhere.

Jake tried to look around, but once again, there was this force that didn't let him move.

"You are finally here…" the voice said again.

"Who are you?!" Jake shouted.

But there was no response.

"Wonderful. My armor and my sword have turned on me." Jake shook his head.

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