In the history of Ocaleveth, many groups have impacted the world in many ways. The Jade Eye is a team of four young knights from the Kingdom of Arabella who were renowned for saving the Dynasty Gallows from the Undead Wyverns. They were rewarded titles of Holy Knights and became well-respected heroes in Eleiweth.

Another important group was the Vranyth, a guild of dwarves and giants who came together to find the ancient jewel, the Eternal Ruby. After discovering it in the Lost Catacombs of Armo, they used the mana hidden inside the gem to create the very first healing potions which positively impacted health care all over the world.

The Prarid Alliance was the last defense of Holy Knights who stood against an army of vile orcs that tried to invade the Lands of Mewlria. But thanks to their great magic they vanquished every single monster and saved the lives of millions.

And of course, there was the Council of Chronos who created the Heart of Aurora, the Holy Sword, and trained the Hero of Light. If it wasn’t for them, Ocaleveth would have been destroyed and ruled by the demons.

What all these groups had in common was that they were all made up of mages. Never has history ever properly recorded a famous person or group that was Nulls because it was preached that they were useless and didn’t benefit society at all.

So imagine how my face looked when Ianbis told me about a group of twelve Nulls who were responsible for the greatest rebellion in Eleiweth’s history.

“They…were Nulls?”

Ianbis nodded with a small grin on his face, revealing his chipped yellow teeth.

“Those twelve were once knights who served the Kingdom of Eleiweth but were exiled due to disobeying orders.”

The gnome walked over to the column and took out a small gray book.

“They became monks who wandered Ocaleveth in its entirety, even going so far as journeying into the Dark Lands. Not only did they grow spiritually during their journey but they also kept up their training and crafted their own form of fighting which was significantly different than the way of knighthood…you said you are a swordsman right?”

“Y-yes sir…”

“Follow me.”

Ianbis ushered me to get out of my seat. While I was still filled with confusion and uncertainty, my curiosity was far stronger. With a sweaty face and shaky legs, I followed the old gnome down an aisle in the Library of Nicholas that I had personally never been to. The category in the aisle was history/archaeology and the two of us went to the very end of the row where there was nothing but a wall of books that stretched for miles.

“What are we doing here?”

Ianbis shushed me.

“Quiet! No one but the boss knows of this room…”

“W-what room?” I asked in a low voice.

Without answering me, Ianbis took a blue book out of its place on the wall and replaced it with the gray book he picked up earlier. The moment the book went into the spot, the column split into four spaces and parted.

Right in front of me and Ianbis was a bunch of wooden stairs covered in fancy red carpet which led to an unseeable bottom.

“Where does that lead?”

“Another section of the library,” Ianbis answered. “Ones where only special customers can go.”

“Am I…a special customer?”

Ianbis chuckled.

“Technically not but I’m making an exception!”

“Are you sure about this? Won’t you get in trouble?”

“I piss off my boss every day! At this point, I am immune to his rants. Let’s go, Ale.”

The old gnome went down the stairs first disappearing into the darkness of the lower floor. I hesitated to even take one step as my body was starting to heat up.

“Come on, kid!”

The booming voice of Ianbis snapped some sense into me and I basically ran down the stairs. After my left foot landed on the tenth or eleventh step the doorway behind me closed and the light from the surface was covered.

“W-what the—AH?!”

Due to no longer having light, I was unable to see causing me to take a step and start tumbling down the rest of the stairs.

As my body crashed to the very bottom I let out painful groans as Ianbis was looking down at me.

“Careful kid, you could’ve snapped your neck.”

“Why are there no lanterns!?” I shouted. “Or any source of light on the stairs!? I couldn’t see!”

Ianbis replied, “My boss did not want this room to be discovered, so no lights on the stairs! But there are some down here…”

Getting up from the floor I saw a doorway that had two lanterns lit up with golden flames on each side. As I went through I saw a long hallway that took a few minutes to walk down. At the very end was a small bookcase and a circular wooden table by the corner of the room.

“Woah…”

Ianbis went past me and took out a black book that had a white emblem of a turtle shell.

“This is the records of the Tortoise. Have a read.”

He then handed me a book which I was hesitant to grab, but in the end, I mustered up the courage to take it.

I sat down by the table and began to read while Ianbis went to the corner of the room and sat on the floor.

What the black book revealed to me was the details of the adventures of the Tortoise.

The names of the twelve monks were Kestrel, Byzas, Tora, Arley, Draco, Ahi, Rosalind, Uha, Maimun, Galo, Bardolph, and  Ebedhard. Those people were formerly low-ranking knights who served the Kingdom of Eleiweth and fought in the war against the demons. After the Demon King was sealed away, the twelve knights were punished for constantly disobeying orders and were exiled from the capital. The twelve left Eleiweth without a fight and became devoted monks who worshipped the Lord.

As they journeyed through the world, they recorded all the ground grand places they found. Some of the lands were islands in the sky which were accompanied by titans that would manipulate the formation of the clouds or harpies that would sing amazing songs that drive away anxiety. Snowy tundras were the ruins of abandoned cities which became the home for restless spirits that blended in with the shadows of the earth. And mountains that would pierce the heavens were faceless people would pray endlessly, hoping for God to return and fix the world.

But the book did not only tell tales of the Tortoise adventures but also gave me details of their strange fighting style.

Since ancient times, every knight from every race depended on the Terra Form because it was the true face of chivalry and helped showcase the true power of magic in martial arts. But the Tortoise developed the creation of the katana and the way of breaking through the defenses of a magical knight.

The steps to master the technique were written in incredible detail and well-drawn demonstrations of the movements and weapons.

I absorbed everything like a sponge. My curiosity and desire to learn continued to be unsatisfied as I read more.

“This is unreal…and with these techniques, they were able to defeat three Holy Knights?”

Ianbis, who was sitting alone at the far end of the room, stood up and walked over to me.”

“Yep! But I don’t want you to think they were invincible. Despite them being able to defeat certain mages, there were certain powers that they could not best. For example, the Council of Chronos.”

“What are you saying? The Council of Chronos themselves fought against the Tortoise?”

Ianbis nodded.

“It was a chaotic battle in the square of the city. I was actually there in person to witness it! I hid inside of the barrel while those twelve monks fought for their lives against the most powerful elves in the world!”

“So that is how the rebellion ended? But history stated that it was the Holy Knights led by Zack of the Wild Hue who stopped the Riot of the Scarlet Sin! Was that not true?”

“Zack and the other knights tried their best to kill the Tortoise but they were evenly matched at best! Seeing that even the strongest of Holy Knights were not enough, the Council of Chronos got themselves involved and used powerful reality-bending spells to render the monks useless.”

Ianbis looked away while cringing.

“I can still remember the bloody mess and the awful smell from the aftermath…those elves were ruthless…”

“That’s terrible…b-but how was the Tortoise able to defeat the mages in the first place? While the book does give some great details of the techniques, at first view they don’t seem that very impactful. There has to be more to it.”

Ianbis said, “There is! Those twelve monks mastered a form of state of mind that helped them defeat the mages of the world.”

“What was that?”

“Read the last chapter of the book.”

I turned to where Ianbis told me to go and read the passage. 

“It says something about…zen. A sort of state of mind that the Tortoise constantly talks about. In that state, they remain calm and are able to see the so-called “Lines of Life”. But how can I reach zen? Drink herbal tea? Mediation?”

“Keep reading until you see the last page. But perhaps their religious drivel might drive you crazy if you don’t believe in that stuff.”

I shrugged as I shut the book.

“Lately my faith in God has been weak, to say the least. But I am willing to study anything—even the dark arts if it means I can get stronger.”

The old gnome walked up to me with his toothless smile.

“Would Yoh like to register those books?”

“Yes, please. Just these.”

As I tried to take out my ID card, Ianbis held out his hand to stop me.

“No need, just take them,” the old gnome said with a chuckle. “As a matter of fact, don’t bring them back here.”

“W-what!?” I shouted. “B-but these books are important! I could get in serious trouble if I don’t return—“

“It’s fine! Those high-class bastards were going to toss those books away anyway.”

“Huh? Why?”

“This world is built on the foundation that magic keeps society strong. If the story spreads that the Capital of Humanity was almost overthrown by those who were Forsaken—well you can only imagine the outrage!”

Ianbis cackled.

“Why do you think they never talk to you about the Tortoise in history lessons? They want the very idea of them to be forgotten! Or at the very least be perceived as fiction.”

“Seriously? I just can’t believe it…”

I held the books that hoarded the knowledge of the twelve magicless beings close to my chest. My heart started to beat faster with excitement as I imagined myself fighting like the ones I read about.

“Possibly with this, my path to becoming a Holy Knight may getting closer…thank you, Sir Ianbis.”

Ianbis gave me a thumbs-up.

“No problem lad! Just make sure not to lose those books and study them well!”

Just as I was about to leave, a single question stopped me I turned back around and asked it.

“Why are you helping me? A Null?”

Ianbis furrowed his brow.

“Why not? I never cared much about whether a person has magic or not! No matter who you are or what you are you deserve to be treated with respect! We were all born on this planet, the least we can do is be kind to one another.”

My breath was taken away by the wholesome words of the old gnome. Once I got my act together, I bowed and spoke the words I believed needed to be said.

“Thank you, Sir Ianbis. Your kindness is one that could heal most hurt around the world. I wish you good health and happiness for the remainder of your days.”

“Same to you lad!” Ianbis responded with a smile. “May you find rev strength to beat the system, like those twelve!”

I then left the secret room with a smile on my face and walked out of the library with the journals of the Tortoise in a tied plastic bag. As I returned to the dorm, I stayed up all night reading the stories of the twelve monks and memorizing their fighting style.

The more I read the more the sensation of getting stronger persisted. For once, I felt like I had a chance to accomplish my dream despite what the world kept telling me.

For once, I felt like the impossible was finally possible.