From Trash to Villain Master of Card: With Harem of Evil women-Chapter 52: Secrets Beneath the Stone
Western Ruins — Dawn of the Third Day
The landscape changed gradually over the two-day journey.
Dense forests gave way to rocky hills. Then to strange formations that didn’t seem entirely natural. Angles that were too straight. Surfaces too smooth.
When they finally arrived, Aria understood why the reconnaissance team had used the word "strange."
Half-buried stone structures emerged from the ground like the bones of a giant creature. They weren’t buildings in the traditional sense—they were monuments to something that had been and was no longer.
The architecture didn’t match anything Aria had seen in this world. Nor what Lilith recognized from her own time.
The columns had wrong proportions. The doors were too tall or too wide. The symbols carved into the walls glowed faintly with blue light that had no visible source.
Aria dismounted from her horse carefully.
"What is this place?"
Lilith was already walking among the ruins with an expression of almost childlike fascination.
"Pre-dating the current kingdoms. Before the Collapse."
She touched one of the walls.
The symbol under her hand pulsed brighter for a second.
"I’ve seen references in ancient texts. A civilization that reached the peak of knowledge."
She looked at Aria.
"And then disappeared within a single generation."
Aria felt chills.
"How does an entire civilization disappear?"
Lilith smiled without humor.
"That’s the question, isn’t it?"
The twenty guards established a perimeter while Lilith and Aria explored.
The main entrance to the ruins proper was partially blocked by debris. But there was enough space to pass through.
Aria lit a torch.
Lilith didn’t need one—her eyes adapted to darkness better than normal humans’.
"Ready?" Lilith asked.
Aria nodded.
And they descended.
---
Interior of the Ruins — Tunnels
The tunnels spiraled downward.
The walls were covered in engravings that glowed with the same blue light. Some formed geometric patterns. Others seemed like text in a language even Lilith didn’t fully recognize.
But some... some she did.
Lilith stopped before one.
Her fingers traced the symbols.
"What does it say?" Aria asked.
Lilith frowned.
"Warnings. ’Do not awaken.’ ’Sealed for a reason.’"
Aria looked around nervously.
"Maybe we should go back."
Lilith looked at her with an expression that clearly said seriously?
"Where’s your sense of adventure?"
"In my brain. Which tells me that ancient warnings generally have valid reasons."
Lilith laughed softly.
"Dear Aria. If humanity listened to all warnings, we would never have discovered fire."
She continued descending.
Aria sighed and followed.
The tunnels eventually opened into larger chambers. Some contained... things that had been furniture, now disintegrated by time. Others had skeletons—not exactly human, but close.
Aria stopped before one.
"They died here."
"Yes."
"What happened to them?"
Lilith examined the skeleton with a clinical eye.
"No marks of violence. They weren’t killed."
She touched the skull.
"They simply... stopped living."
Aria looked at her.
"That’s more terrifying."
"Yes."
They continued in silence for several minutes.
Finally, Aria spoke again.
"Lilith."
"Hmm?"
"Can I ask you something personal?"
Lilith glanced at her.
"Depends on how personal."
Aria hesitated.
"Your past. Before being sealed. What were you really?"
Lilith was silent for so long Aria thought she wouldn’t answer.
Then she spoke with a voice softer than her usual tone.
"I was a queen. In my world. In my time. Long before Kaito’s time."
She stopped before another wall of engravings.
"There were tyrants who used religion as chains. They called faith what was oppression. They called gods what was their ambition."
Her fingers traced the symbols without really seeing them.
"I used poison. Not the kind that kills the body. The kind that kills blind faith."
"I made them forget."
Aria processed that.
"Don’t you regret it?"
Lilith smiled.
"Only that they caught me."
She paused.
"Though now I’m here. With my king."
The way she said "my king" carried weight that Aria immediately noticed.
"Lilith... what does Kaito mean to you?"
Lilith looked at her fully now.
"What kind of question is that?"
Aria held her gaze.
"An honest one. After all, he only summoned you a few months ago. I don’t think you can feel something genuine for someone in such a short time."
Lilith raised an eyebrow.
"And you can?"
"I at least shared a summoning experience with him. I lived in Avernor alongside him."
Aria stepped closer.
"Besides, I don’t think any of you know him well enough. Or he knows you."
Lilith studied her for a long moment.
Then she laughed—not her controlled, seductive laugh, but something more genuine.
"Perceptive. And probably correct."
She turned to continue walking.
"But time isn’t the only thing that creates connection. Sometimes it’s intensity."
"And you have intensity?"
"We’ve fought wars together. He gave me purpose again. That creates... something."
"Something like what?"
Lilith stopped.
"Something I still can’t fully name."
She looked at Aria with an unreadable expression.
"And maybe you’re right. Maybe none of us really know him yet."
She smiled faintly.
"But there’s time for that. Plenty of time."
---
Central Chamber
The tunnels finally ended in a room that stole the breath from both of them.
It was enormous—ceiling thirty meters high, supported by columns that glowed from within. But what truly captured attention were the machines.
Dozens of them. Perhaps hundreds.
They weren’t magical in the traditional sense. No visible energy flowing. But they were clearly functional—or had been.
Metals that didn’t rust. Perfectly preserved gears. Panels with symbols that seemed like... controls.
Aria approached one slowly.
Her fingers brushed the surface.
"This is... similar to technology from my world."
She looked at Lilith.
"From my time. The twenty-first century."
Lilith examined another machine.
"So this civilization reached that level too."
They looked at each other.
The implication was clear: magic and technology weren’t opposites. They could coexist. They had coexisted.
And something had destroyed those who achieved it.
Aria opened her mouth to comment.
A mechanical sound interrupted her.
CLICK. WHIRR. CLICK.
Both froze.
From the center of the chamber, something moved.
A figure rose—it had been so still it seemed part of the furniture.
Three meters tall. Body of gray stone with silver metal inlays. Eyes that glowed with the same blue light as the engravings. No face, only a smooth surface where features should be.
It turned toward them.
The voice that emerged was mechanical but not without intelligence.
"STATUS. PURPOSE. "
Lilith stepped forward.
"We are explorers. Seeking knowledge."
The construct processed that.
Then it extended a hand.
Blue light scanned Lilith.
Then Aria.
"SUMMONED ENERGY DETECTED. LEVEL: MAJOR. "
It paused.
"ACCESS PROHIBITED. "
It began moving toward them.
Not exactly threatening, but blocking the exit.
Aria raised her hands.
"Wait! We don’t want to fight."
The guardian stopped.
"CONFLICT IS NOT PRIMARY OBJECTIVE. PREVENTION OF UNAUTHORIZED ACCESS IS. "
Lilith thought quickly.
"The civilization that built you... no longer exists."
The guardian processed.
"TEMPORAL DATA INSUFFICIENT. LAST UPDATE: CYCLE 7,492. "
"A thousand years have passed since then," Aria said softly. "They’re all gone."
Mechanical silence.
Then.
"VERIFYING. "
The guardian didn’t move for thirty full seconds.
Then its eyes flickered.
"PROTOCOLS OBSOLETE. REEVALUATING. "
It turned slightly.
"IF CREATOR CIVILIZATION DOES NOT EXIST... PRIMARY PURPOSE ALSO OBSOLETE. "
Lilith seized the opportunity.
"But you can still fulfill a purpose. Preserve knowledge for a new civilization."
The guardian looked at her.
"DEFINE: NEW CIVILIZATION. "
"Neudämmerung. A young kingdom that needs to learn."
The guardian processed again.
"LIMITED ACCESS AUTHORIZED. NON-WEAPONIZED KNOWLEDGE ONLY. "
Lilith blinked.
"What is non-weaponized knowledge?"
"AGRICULTURE. MEDICINE. CIVIL ENGINEERING. KNOWLEDGE THAT BUILDS, NOT DESTROYS. "
Aria intervened.
"And weaponized knowledge?"
"REMAINS SEALED. UNTIL CIVILIZATION DEMONSTRATES SUFFICIENT MATURITY. "
It paused.
"LAST CIVILIZATION FAILED THAT TEST. "
The weight of those words fell upon both of them.
This advanced civilization had destroyed itself with its own knowledge.
And the guardian would not allow it to happen again.
"Understood," Lilith said. "We accept limited access."
---
Data Library
The guardian guided them to a specific section of the chamber.
Crystals the size of fists were arranged on shelves that extended toward the ceiling.
"TOUCH CRYSTAL. INFORMATION WILL PROJECT. "
Aria took one carefully.
The crystal warmed slightly in her hand.
Then it projected a holographic image in the air.
Blueprints. Diagrams. Step-by-step instructions.
It was... a water mill. But incredibly more efficient than any modern design.
"This is incredible," she whispered.
Lilith had already taken another crystal.
An irrigation system that could cover a hundred hectares with minimal water waste.
Another crystal: furnaces that reached perfect temperatures for smelting specific metals.
Medicine: treatments for common diseases using local plants.
Architecture: buildings that resisted earthquakes.
Agriculture: crop rotation that maximized production without depleting soil.
Aria stared with enormous eyes.
"This could revolutionize Neudämmerung!"
Lilith was already copying information frantically onto the scrolls she’d brought.
Drawing diagrams. Noting instructions.
The guardian watched without interfering.
"WARNING: WEAPONIZED KNOWLEDGE REMAINS SEALED. "
Lilith looked at it.
"What does the weaponized knowledge contain?"
The guardian didn’t respond immediately.
Then.
"THAT WHICH DESTROYED MY CREATORS. "
And it said no more.
---
Hours Later
They had copied everything they could carry.
Dozens of scrolls filled with invaluable information.
Aria was exhausted. Lilith too, though she hid it better.
The guardian escorted them back to the exit.
Before they left, it spoke one last time.
"RETURN WHEN CIVILIZATION IS READY FOR MORE. "
Lilith turned.
"How will we know when we’re ready?"
"WHEN YOU CAN RESIST THE TEMPTATION TO USE KNOWLEDGE FOR DESTRUCTION. "
It paused.
"MY CREATORS COULD NOT. "
And it stood motionless again, indistinguishable from the machines around it.
---
Return Path — Night
They camped halfway back to Aschenfall.
The guards established a perimeter.
Lilith and Aria sat by the fire.
In silence for a long time.
Finally, Lilith spoke.
"I envy your freedom."
Aria looked at her.
"What?"
Lilith stared at the flames.
"You chose to come here. To leave Avernor. To join Kaito."
She paused.
"I was summoned. Bound by the ritual itself."
Aria frowned.
"But Kaito doesn’t force you to do anything."
"No," Lilith agreed. "But the bond remains. I can feel it. Like an invisible chain."
She touched her own chest.
"I am free to move. To speak. To choose within limits."
Her golden eyes met Aria’s.
"But I am not truly free. Not like you."
Aria processed that.
"Do you regret it?"
Lilith genuinely considered the question.
"No. Surprisingly."
She smiled faintly.
"Because although I didn’t choose to come... I choose to stay. That is my freedom."
Aria nodded slowly.
"I understand."
They were silent again.
Then Lilith added with a softer voice.
"And because being here... with him... feels more like purpose than anything I had before."
Aria looked at her.
Lilith didn’t elaborate.
She didn’t need to.
---
Aschenfall — Three Days Later
They arrived at noon with exhausted but triumphant escorts.
Kaito waited for them in the courtyard with Gorman and several engineers.
Lilith dismounted with perfect grace despite her fatigue.
"I bring gifts, my king."
She pointed at the saddlebags loaded with scrolls.
Kaito opened them with Gorman’s help.
His eyes widened with each diagram.
"This is... Lilith, this is incredible."
He unrolled more scrolls.
"We can rebuild faster. More efficiently. This changes everything."
He looked at Lilith with an expression of genuine gratitude.
And then he did something that surprised everyone.
He hugged her.
Not ceremonially. Not calculated.
Genuinely.
Lilith froze completely.
Her eyes widened. Her cheeks—which never showed color—turned slightly pink.
For three full seconds, the great manipulator didn’t know what to do with her hands.
Kaito pulled back, completely unaware of the effect he’d caused.
"So was I useful as a Queen?" Lilith asked, trying to regain her composure.
Kaito smiled and gently touched her cheek.
"Yes. Of course. That’s why you’re one of my queens."
The tone was... flirtatious.
Definitely flirtatious.
Lilith, who was always the one using that tone, found herself completely disarmed.
"I... yes... thank you..."
Aria covered her mouth to hide a smile.
Kaito was already showing the plans to the engineers, leaving Lilith processing.
When he walked away, Lilith looked toward where Adelheid was watching from the balcony.
Their eyes met.
Adelheid had seen the hug.
Lilith smiled slowly.
And gave her a small, mocking bow.
Adelheid gripped the armrest of her chair.
The rivalry had just intensified.
And Lilith...
Lilith still felt the warmth of the hug.
And hated admitting how much she’d liked it.
