NOVEL NEXT Chapter 977: 974: They're Back
"I can't accept such a request."
Hearing Queen Nerith's rejection of his request did not surprise him since he somewhat expected it, but that did not mean that he was going to give up in his request.
He needed their knowledge as finishing touches for his plan.
"You don't have to give me all the knowledge of the Silver Elves. I just need your books or scrolls on blacksmithing, metallurgy, and creation... And I also need your history books. Especially the ones before the Universal System appeared. You can restrict the knowledge I'm going to get."
There was no reaction from Queen Nerith and her children, and Corey's lips twitched. He couldn't believe that his second request was actually proving difficult for the Queen to accept.
He scratched the back of his head with a thoughtful expression.
"I already said you could limit the amount of information I get from your library or whatever it is you store your knowledge in. What I actually need is your blacksmithing books and knowledge. You can hide the rest from me."
Queen Nerith stared at Corey for some seconds, causing the atmosphere to seem tense, and then she shook her head.
"You might not understand now. But you'll understand later on if I eventually give you the opportunity to go through our records."
Corey raised a brow in intrigue, and before he could say what was on his mind, Queen Nerith spoke.
"For me to allow you to go through our records, you have to offer something of equivalent value. You cannot expect me to allow you to go through our records just because you'll heal me to the best of your capabilities, right?"
"Besides, we've already settled that I'm to help you get your black book in exchange for healing me."
"So what are you offering in exchange for my people's knowledge?"
Corey furrowed his brows slightly, and a second later, he sighed.
"I doubt I have anything I can give you that would be worth your people's knowledge. I'll have to be in possession of objects or treasures that are in the Immortal Grade for it to even be considered an equal exchange."
"Not just any Immortal Grade. It would have to be Grade 8 at the very least since you cannot fathom the depths of our foundations."
"If not for the unfortunate incident that occurred with your book, we wouldn't even fear the siege of hundreds of Tier 8s. And even a Tier 9 would suffer if they faced us."
"I'm only considering a Grade 8 treasure because of our current state. But our knowledge vastly exceeds the value of a Grade 8 object or treasure."
Corey's lips twitched when he heard the words of the Queen. Although he could have argued that she was lying and just exaggerating things, he knew that she was not.
Based on the records he had from Virendell's Archive, he knew that the Silver Elves had been extremely powerful in the past, and they had once faced countless powers of the universe on their own.
For a race to be able to do such a thing, the depths of their knowledge, powers, and foundations cannot be underestimated.
'And this is why I need their knowledge. If not because of my fear at the abilities of the Book of Death, I would consider their knowledge to be more important than the Book of Death.'
Barely three seconds had gone by after the Queen spoke, and then he released a soft sigh before smiling softly.
"Since I don't have a treasure of that grade. I'll make you a promise instead."
"A promise?" Queen Nerith raised her brows, and Corey nodded.
"I promise that I'll give you and your people a place to stay on New Earth. Not just any place, a place where your people would not be treated like slaves or be taken advantage of. A place where your people would thrive. And after that, I promise to assist you and your people if your ever have to go to war against the powers that reduced you to this state in the past."
Queen Nerith furrowed her brows in deep contemplation, and Syrelle raised her hand.
"Mother, may I speak?"
Queen Nerith looked at her daughter and nodded. "You may."
Syrelle shifted her gaze to Corey. "You make all these promises but it seems you're forgetting that you're just one man. You don't seem to be a king, and you're definitely not the Progenitor of your world so you don't have the right to give our people a place to stay."
"As for your promise in siding with us in the eventual war against major powers of the universe, it has no value."
"Sure you might be special. A Tier 3 being able to fight Tier 6s is definitely unheard of, and I'm sure you're going to be an extremely powerful figure in the future. But that's that... In the future."
"For all we know, you might die today, tomorrow, or whenever. The point is that you might die before you're able to become an extremely powerful figure that can actually help us to win against our enemies."
"And if you die, and our knowledge is passed on to the powers supporting you. We'll be at a severe loss."
"So, you telling us that you'll support us in the war is us taking a massive risk."
Corey tilted his head slightly, and then he shifted his gaze to Queen Nerith. But when he saw that she was not saying anything, he knew that she was in support of her daughter's words, and he couldn't blame her since it was completely reasonable.
Choosing to give him their knowledge in exchange for a promise that was based on him being alive, him being able to advance to the level where he could help them in the war, and most importantly, him choosing not to renege on his promise.
His lips parted open, and just as he was about to speak, Syrelle spoke.
"Also, you're not the first... New Earthling to make us a similar offer."
"Hmm?" Corey tilted his head slightly with a baffled expression.
"Jeremy Draker and his companions. They offered us a similar offer."
Corey frowned deeply, and then his Ears of Omniscience picked up on a sound at the doors of the throne room.
He turned and looked at the doors, and Syrelle's eyes lit up for a brief moment.
"Seems they're back."