Shepherding Humanity

Translator's Note: The newly released game "Pathfinder – Wrath of the Righteous" has completely ate up most of my free time, so until I finish it in a month or two (or if I suddenly change my mind about opening a Patreon) I'm probably gonna update only once every three days. Really sorry about this, guys. On another note, anyone playing this right now? Care to share your stories? They REALLY weren't kidding when they labeled that game's "Unfair" difficulty Unfair, lol.

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The Kingdom of Babylon, year 700.

A hundred years have passed since the grand wedding celebration. They were now celebrating the nation’s Founding Day, and at the same time, the annual tournament between the Three Great Kingdom’s magic academies was taking place, and countless talented mages were competing in the ring.

The Emperor of Alchemy has reigned for over 300 years, and lived for more than 400 years.

"He’s lived for over 400 years, no one has ever managed this before."

"Back then, Gilgamesh and the Three Witches only lived for over 200 years. Such a long life span is truly unprecedented."

…..

Countless people were shocked at this and had no choice but to hold their silence.

During these long years, there were no longer any dissident voices. Peace and prosperity reigned as the eternal and immortal Emperor of Alchemy ruled over the Three Great Kingdoms with absolute authority.

After a lifetime of hard work, Grantham could finally settle down and tinker around in peace.

During these past 100 years, he happily lived together with the Seven Little Witches while building things and developing the tech tree. It was a truly idyllic existence.

In this peaceful era, several more Level Six mages have been born, and Ermin had also advanced to the Sixth Level. But because the nation was too peaceful, and people were no longer living under the constant pressure of impending death, there were no truly amazing geniuses like Medusa who was capable of opening up a new era.

During the Founding Day’s celebration, the mountain-top Kingdom of Roses and the desert Kingdom of Beastmen came before the Great Monarch and presented him with a dazzling assortment of exotic treasures as congratulatory gifts.

Mages from all over the Three Great Kingdoms gathered and discussed magic and alchemy while leisurely nibbling on various delicacies. Occasionally, they would raise their heads to look up at the King of Babylon sitting on his golden throne, Grantham.

"His aura is as powerful as ever. What amazing coercive pressure."

"I believe that the Emperor of Alchemy will live forever, and rule every magic era."

As they talked, flowers suddenly started blooming.

Rows of beautiful court ladies with flower baskets in hand started walking out from the sides while scattering flower petals into the air.

"The champions of this year’s Magic Tournament, the Edward Brothers, Edward Elric and Alphonse Elric, step forward before our Great Emperor of Alchemy! The King of Babylon! His Majesty Grantham!!!"

Colorful and exciting eras followed one after another, giving birth to countless stories in the Magic Academies and Great Schools. Through it all, the Emperor of Alchemy looked on from his high throne, eternal and unchanging.

…..

The Kingdom of Babylon, year 704.

Only four years have gone by since that celebration, but the entire nation was suddenly rocked by a shocking news. The Emperor of Alchemy’s seven royal consorts had died of old age, and the Emperor was holding a funeral for them.

"What? The emperor's consorts have died of old age?"

Grantham stood silently in front of their tomb for three days.

"Teacher…."

Ermin, who was standing silently in the distance, wanted to comfort him but did not know what to say.

The 7 witches of Elizabeth’s Coven were extremely weak. The Emperor of Alchemy had to spend countless precious treasures and use up much of the nation’s resources to extend their lives so that they could wake up after sleeping for almost a hundred years.

But even after all that, they could only live for another 100 years.

Grantham suddenly remembered something, and sighed: "I still remember my meeting with the champions of that inter-academy tournament, the Edward brothers. They had breached the alchemical taboo of human transmutation, treading into the same forbidden grounds as the Empress of Death in order to revive their deceased mother. The resultant alchemical backlash had left them disabled."

Grantham sighed. "I shouldn’t be talking about this. And I do not want to ask the Empress of Death, Medusa, for help. I just want to lay them to rest."

"I’ve had a happy life with them for 100 years. That’s enough. They’ve lived for over 200 years, comparable to Gilgamesh and the Three Witches back then. For weak Level Three Witches like them, that’s more than enough."

Grantham was already quite satisfied with these past 100 years.

It's just that, in the following days, he’d be alone.

He felt empty after the death of the Seven Little Witches. There was no longer anything he wanted out of life, which seemed to have lost all meaning.

"I feel as if it’s those girls who are my true family. I’ve almost forgotten the fact that I’m a transmigrator from the modern world; it’s as if I truly am the Emperor of Alchemy, Grantham, and this life is my true life."

"Just this once, let me be a capricious tyrant."

He smiled sadly, then turned around and walked away, making this proclamation as he looked at his magnificent palace in the distance: "Let it be buried together with you. This was originally the home that I built for your sake."

On the second day, there was another announcement which shocked the entire world:

The Hanging Gardens of Babylon will be buried together with the seven consorts!

Countless people were shocked beyond belief, and everyone discussed this in the nation’s streets and back-alleys.

"The Hanging Gardens of Babylon is an alchemical Wonder of the World! It’s going to be buried because of 7 lowly Level Three Witches?"

"It was originally a home built by the Emperor of Alchemy for the Seven Witches. Using it to search for the heavenly gods was only an extra function. It’s only natural to bury it with them."

"Isn’t the Hanging Gardens of Babylon too grand of a tomb? This is fake news, right?"

"It’s not fake news. There’ve been witnesses who saw the Hanging Gardens of Babylon fly up into the sky, and head towards the endless pit of Tartarus that had been dug to explore the limits of the underground. It’s sunk into the depths of the earth, and the giant Adolphus is busily filling up the pit with his great shovel."

….

When they’ve confirmed the validity of this news, everyone marveled at its scope.

Thus was the great tomb of Tartarus established.

The Hanging Gardens of Babylon was buried deep underground, serving as a place of eternal repose.

This was the most sensational piece of news in the past hundreds of years. Perhaps, this was not just a tomb for the Seven Little Witches; the Emperor of Alchemy was also planning to turn it into his future tomb, allowing him to join them beneath the earth after he died.

However, the fact that the Emperor had buried the Hanging Gardens of Babylon—which he used to search for the heavenly gods and explore heaven's eye of the storm ‘Gigantes’—meant that the he had completely abandoned that dream.

After the death of his seven consorts, their monarch was tired and had lost his ambition.

……

The Kingdom of Babylon, year 800.

Another hundred years have passed, and the Emperor of Alchemy was now 500 years old. The Great Emperor has ruled for an interminably long period of time, spanning over half of the Kingdom of Babylon's age.

The Centennial Founding Day’s celebration was being held once again.

Another inter-academy tournament was taking place, revealing countless new talents. It seemed as if nothing had changed.

Compared to 100 years ago, the great emperor was as mighty as ever. People dared not look directly at him as he sat on his throne due to the immense spiritual pressure he radiated.

Just like a hundred years ago, people talked about this.

"The Emperor of Alchemy looks as impressive as ever. He’s not just faking it, and is in fact about to die of old age, right?"

"Do not be presumptuous. During Babylon’s centenary celebration 200 years ago, when the Emperor got married, people said the Emperor wouldn’t live much longer. A hundred years ago, when the seven royal consorts died of old age, again there were people saying the same thing. And yet, the emperor is now sitting on his high throne, presiding over this celebration, still as full of vitality as ever."

"The Emperor of Alchemy has lived for over 500 years. It's unbelievable! An average Sixth Level Legendary Wizard only has a lifespan of 250 years…"

"But for the current Emperor, his long life may actually be a source of torment."

Everyone sighed. If this kept up, the Emperor of Alchemy did not seem like he would be growing old any time soon. Perhaps he’d be able to live for another few hundred years, or even a thousand years!

The Emperor of Alchemy’s true ability was not something that a mere Sixth-Level Wizard would be able to measure.

….

In the dark land on the other side of Oceanus, the Island of Alchemy, Gorgon.

Medusa was also somewhat surprised. She frowned. "Sixth-Level Legends have a lifespan of 250 years, Seventh-Level Epic Mages have a lifespan of 600 years. I am now over 650 years old, and should be long dead by now if I had a normal lifespan.

I would be if I hadn’t made a breakthrough, allowing me to partially uncover the mysteries of death and understand what the Emperor of Alchemy was talking about—the cells which are the basic building blocks of all living things. I discovered that they were constantly going through a cycle of death and rebirth, and managed to ease their aging, which is why I now have a lifespan of over 700 years… But why is the Emperor of Alchemy not dead yet? On the contrary, is he going to outlast me at this rate?"

A Sixth-Level Legendary Wizard was going to outlast a Seventh-Level Epic Witch. This was simply unbelievable.

It was as if the Emperor of Alchemy was the one who was truly Epic.

Medusa had a laid-back personality, but at this moment, even she couldn’t remain calm. She was now over 650 years old, and had little more than 100 years left.

Her anxious face was full of disbelief. "How long is he going to live? The Emperor of Alchemy is only a Legend, and yet, he’s going to outlast me, an Epic Witch?"