Skeleton Soldier Couldn’T Protect The Dungeon - Chapter 172

So, everyone’s been throwing around the theory “Smelly is Ashton” based on how Ashton has been helping skelly, so below ill offer two theories of my own, one supporting and one opposing, as food for thought.

First, Smelly is Ashton. For the majority if this read, I too have agreed with this line of thought, with the major evidence lending help to this theory being Ashton’s obvious help and favoritism. My thoughts were that Ashton managed to get beyond the web, as Isaac put it, and used the knowledge and power he had found to lay the ground work for his eventual, and continuous, revival before the goddesses could curse him and remove his power and privilege. The main evidence to this theory for me is, of course, how he happens to find a relevant book every time he needs a clue, as if Ashton is guiding him to a particular outcome, albeit in a roundabout way, though mostly from skelly’s actions. In addition, a few times now he’s been on the brink of a breakthrough, grasping some deeper understanding, and the visual of chains, literally and metaphorically, locking him out of this knowledge seem to add credibility to the idea that he was cursed. The goddesses took away Ashton’s memory to try and stop him, not knowing all the seeds he’d sewn in advance before they could.

Second theory, based on the new Ashton book we saw this chapter, is that Skelly’s is Saeron. The book heavily indicates that Saeron did in fact not kill the monster, but likely died trying. Thus, the monster who consumed him, took his appearance and founded the kingdom, using puppets and it’s progeny to rule the humans. Why, I’m not sure, but if we consider this less I supported theory, particularly the part of the monster taking Saeron’s appearance, that helps explain the farmed grub monsters, who can turn into what they eat, being fragments or cultivated offspring of the monster, why the imperial family is ruled by puppets, publicly at least, and why skelly’s tombstone had the name removed, and links to the infinity symbol of the book and his rebirth over and over. Saeron was the first hero, and skelly’s is literally the hero of the story, so its also a symbolic choice.

To me, while the first seems more probable and supported, for now at least, I personally think the second would make for a bigger revelation at the climax, and would be more satisfying and interesting in the end. Anyways, thanks for coming to my Ted talk, hopefully some of you enjoy this more detailed and thought out, long form explanation than most of the hard to read, short, and borderline brain dead regurgitated theories people keep parroting here. :p