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Translated By Arcane Translations
Translator: Simzy
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The central church of the Holy City Hedenia. It was a sanctuary filled with an absurd amount of divine power.
The divine power I felt in the student guidance office was impressive, but the place where numerous high-ranking priests gathered was on a different level. It was difficult to see even with [Contemplation] activated.
“So you said you came for volunteer work?”
“Yes.”
Lucia Domine looked down at the two of us with a disapproving expression.
Did she dislike me? Or perhaps she was thinking about Eleanor’s identity. Eleanor seemed to know Lucia Domine.
“…I haven’t heard anything about this.”
But Lucia Domine’s words were different from what I expected.
Did Tia send us to the Holy City without saying anything?
Was she really crazy?
“…Could you please tell me the exact circumstances?”
“….”
Lucia Domine sighed and rubbed her eyes as if she had a rough idea of the situation.
Explain this myself?
That was a bit… wasn’t it?
How could I say with my own mouth that I was punished with community service for rigging a popularity poll? And to the Pope, the nation’s representative, no less.
Even if I looked like this, I was the [Successor of the Mage King]. Should I really say this myself? No, no.
I shouldn’t.
So I nudged Eleanor, who was quietly avoiding eye contact, with my elbow.
“…Why?”
“Well, I thought it would be better if you explained since it’s your issue.”
Eleanor hesitated, then blushed and lowered her head.
“I’m glad you seem to realize you did something shameful.”
“I-it’s still a bit… to explain it myself… Master, help me.”
With that, Eleanor started to tear up.
Uh…? Playing dirty, are we? Pulling the waterworks card here?
“You know that’s really sneaky, right?”
“Sniff…”
“This damn…”
It was so bewildering because it was a reaction she had never shown before.
“Damn it…”
In the end, I had no choice but to explain the circumstances of the incident on behalf of Eleanor, who couldn’t lift her face in shame.
Even as I explained the situation concisely and plainly, trying to appear as objective as possible, Lucia Domine remained silent for a while.
“Well, this is…”
After the explanation was finished.
“Amazing.”
Lucia Domine sighed, looking down at Eleanor, the person involved, with an emotionless gaze.
Eleanor could only blush further and lower her head.
“Three times the votes of our Arietta in the ‘Kindest Girl’ category…”
Pointing that out so directly, was the Pope merciless?
“…I’m not saying this because she’s ‘our’ Arietta, but why such an easily exposed lie?”
“Ugh!”
Eleanor covered her face as if in pain.
It seemed she couldn’t bear it anymore.
“C-can I have a moment…?”
“No, let’s end it here today. The sisters will guide you to your room.”
“…Thank you.”
Eleanor lowered her head, tears welling up.
After she left, Lucia Domine began to look down at me with a displeased expression.
“But it seems the Mage King’s Successor still has something to say?”
“Yes, you could say this is the main topic.”
My hands trembled; the subject matter was quite sensitive. Too much was intertwined in this matter.
Where should I start explaining? Or rather, this wasn’t something to be brought up lightly in a place with so many people.
Fortunately, Lucia Domine seemed to see through my intentions, nodded, and said,
“Sisters. Could you excuse us for a moment?”
“….”
At her words, the priestesses lined up around Lucia Domine quietly nodded and left the room.
Whether it was faith or religion, it was impressive.
Even though the highest-ranking person in the church was having a private conversation with an outsider, they left without a single guard remaining.
“I’ve dismissed everyone who needs to be dismissed, Successor of the Mage King.”
“So it seems.”
Even through my [Contemplation], I couldn’t sense any presence nearby.
Only an overwhelming amount of divine power and the discomfort of Lucia Domine.
“First…”
I organized my thoughts. With so many things intertwined, it was hard to decide where to begin.
But yes, if I had to choose the most important thing…
“The Death King seems to be after your Key.”
The gist of Chapter 5 of the main story.
At my statement, which could have sounded like utter nonsense, Lucia Domine quietly lit her pipe.
After taking a puff, she exhaled a long, thin stream of smoke and said,
“Bullshit.”
A short and powerful expression of opinion.
It was a crooked posture, difficult to imagine from her usually composed demeanor.
“Since someone of your stature wouldn’t lie, I suppose it’s true. Does Tiamat know about this?”
“No, I haven’t told her.”
“Why not?”
“It’s not like we can do anything about the Death King right away, and the Headmaster can’t stay at the Holy City forever, can she?”
“Right. You’re correct. We can’t rely on Tiamat indefinitely.”
Tia would be busy from now on, hatching Spina’s egg. No, even if it wasn’t for Spina’s issue, there was no way to respond.
The [Death King] Thanatos’s invasion would happen entirely at his desired time. Unless Tia stayed at the Holy City forever, there was no way to prevent the attack.
“Tell me the details.”
“Recently, irregular behavior has been detected in the Death King’s movements…”
I adapted what I knew appropriately. It wasn’t a lie, so there was no need for it to be caught by her [Contemplation].
“…And finally, Marie Sistus, the daughter of the Death King Thanatos, confirmed it for me.”
Lucia Domine, who had been listening to me, then spoke as if in question.
“And yet, the circumstances that led you here were coincidental?”
“One way or another, it seems I was meant to come here.”
“Is that so…? It might sound ridiculous to you, but I think this might be divine guidance. You’d be a valuable asset in terms of firepower.”
“….”
Divine guidance.
Normally, I wouldn’t have cared, but considering recent events, I wondered if it could be true.
The circumstances that led Eleanor to the Holy City were too contrived.
The penalty points exceeding the limit at the right time could be a coincidence.
Considering her usual behavior, it was plausible.
But what about the rest?
The penalty happened to be community service, the location happened to be the Holy City, and the [Death King] suddenly moved up his plans. Too many coincidences overlapped.
The main flow couldn’t be distorted. But who created that flow?
gods existed in this world. Divine power and divine arts were proof of that.
“Then, unfortunately, the other person was dragged into this because of you?”
“….”
Unfortunately, I thought I was the one who was dragged in. Being thrown into this world in the first place was proof of that.
More than that, it was a little surprising that Lucia Domine didn’t know about Eleanor.
Even if she didn’t know she was a Key holder, I thought she would know that Eleanor’s abilities were special.
In Chapter 2 of the main story, when confronting the [Death King], Arietta also confirmed Eleanor’s abilities.
The fact that Lucia Domine didn’t know was probably Arietta’s consideration. Since Eleanor’s abilities were special, she probably decided to bury it rather than make it public.
I really wished Eleanor was even half as much like her.
“There’s no need to worry about her. Since she’s a combat student, she has the power to protect herself. Moreover, I’ve assigned a separate escort.”
“You’re thorough.”
Lucia Domine replied with displeasure. She wouldn’t be happy that I had deployed unidentified personnel within the Holy City.
Just as the explanation was coming to a close…
“Alright. Defending won’t be that difficult. And if it’s information from the Empire, it must be credible… But there’s one thing that bothers me.”
“….?”
“How does the Death King plan to attack Hedenia? If he moves from the outside, he’ll definitely be detected beforehand, and sending a spy inside to open the gate is impossible.”
Of course, I knew where [Death King] Thanatos would invade from.
The outline of Chapter 5 of the main story was an unimaginable attack. Yes, they didn’t come from outside.
“The Death King’s army will appear in the heart of the Holy City.”
“…Do you believe the dead are hiding within this sanctuary?”
As far as I knew, there were two ways to connect the Underworld and the present world.
One was a place with dense death energy.
This mainly referred to places with many corpses, like cemeteries or battlefields.
In such cases, a gate could be connected naturally even without the power of a Key.
Of course, using the power of a Key would be much easier.
“The dead can’t enter this sanctuary while hiding. But the Death King’s traces might already be inside Hedenia.”
And the second way was a place where traces of [Death King] Thanatos remained.
This was the method Marie used to open the gate inside Scientia.
“The Sistus family, you mean?”
Those with the surname Sistus. They were living beings who inherited the blood of the [Death King].
“I don’t know for sure, but circumstantially, isn’t that the case?”
I didn’t know if the [Death King] had any biological children. However, I heard from Marie that she herself was an adopted daughter who physically received blood from the [Death King].
Their flesh and blood could be used as traces of the [Death King].
Tools to open the gate. That’s why they were given the surname Sistus, which was also known as the “rock rose,” a flower that wilts quickly, as they could be used and discarded at any time.
Moreover, now everyone knew that even talented individuals like Marie were used as sacrifices.
“We’ll investigate that separately. It’s best if we can prevent it in advance.”
“Yes, then we’ll investigate as well.”
“Please be careful not to cause any friction with the priests.”
Lucia Domine made the sign of the cross and rose from her seat.
She would act immediately.
“Then you two can talk now.”
“…Two?”
Lucia Domine, descending from the massive marble chair, suddenly said those words.
She had dismissed everyone earlier.
Even with [Contemplation], I couldn’t detect any human presence around.
Only divine power filled the space.
“Arietta. Don’t linger at the door and just come in.”
“Ah, ahahaha? Hello, Oz. It’s, it’s been a while, hasn’t it?”
At Lucia Domine’s loud call, the door cautiously opened, and Arietta entered.
She wasn’t wearing her usual uniform, but a pure white priest’s robe.
Unlike other priests, it seemed to have additional patterns and decorations, but it wasn’t excessive and suited her.
“This is surprising…”
“If Arietta is determined to hide, it’s difficult to find her even with those eyes of yours.”
Even though Arietta was right outside the door, she felt faint.
Stealth on the level of Discreet?
No, no. It wasn’t stealth, but rather a feeling of being assimilated into the space itself.
Arietta, who was practically a lump of pure divine power, was no different from a part of this space, which was called a sanctuary.
“It was rather amusing to see you fidgeting right outside the door. Trembling every time my voice got louder, what were you doing, acting like a frightened puppy?”
“S-still, eavesdropping on your conversation wouldn’t be good…”
“Yes, it’s a relief that you know that’s a problem…”
Lucia Domine sighed, looking down at Arietta with a pitiful gaze.
Unlike me, she seemed to have noticed Arietta’s presence.
Not through [Contemplation], but through her own abilities honed over a long time.
“Then you two adolescents can have your date.”
With those words, Lucia Domine left the audience chamber first, and I was left alone with Arietta.
“Ah… ahaha…”
“….”
This unbearable awkwardness.
It was driving me crazy.
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[Death King] Thanatos looked down at his army in the world stained with turbidity.
“Hmm…”
Their numbers had significantly decreased since the Scientia raid.
It was a number that would naturally recover over time, but he couldn’t be pleased.
If he failed this time, he’d have only two chances left.
“No.”
He had to approach this with the intention of ending it. He couldn’t seize the opportunity without giving it his all.
He had to pour everything into this one attempt.
Failure wasn’t an option.
No, even if he failed, he needed significant results.
“Thanatos.”
While [Death King] Thanatos was organizing his thoughts, his lieutenant, a Lich, cautiously approached.
“What do you plan to do with him? It seems you’ve made him into a ‘Sistus’…”
He pointed to ‘Scar,’ the leader of the Red Lion Mercenary Group, who had lost his mind, consumed by the [Death King]’s power.
Thanatos had forcefully turned him into a Sistus.
“We must seize the opportunity.”
“Indeed.”
“How?!”
Thanatos’s lieutenant was shocked when Scar, who should have lost his mind, answered calmly.
“Don’t worry about him. Do you have anything else to report?”
“Ah… Yes, Thanatos.”
Scar still had a connection to the ‘Outer Being.’
It was intentionally left there.
“I heard you’re bringing the ‘Hand’ on this expedition. How do you plan to organize the troops?”
Thanatos looked down at his army once again.
Their target this time was the Holy City.
He needed a means to protect his throne from the overwhelming force of [Dragon Emperor] Tiamat, who would soon appear in the Underworld.
He had already confirmed that the Pope possessed the [Key of the Evangelist].
While it seemed disadvantageous matchup-wise, it would be easier than retrieving the Keys near Tia or the other Keys whose whereabouts were unknown.
“I’ll bring the other three, excluding the two guarding my residence.”
He couldn’t fail.
“…Three of them?!”
The lieutenant was shocked.
Even for an attack on the Holy City, it was excessive force.
“It’s better to be certain… and there’s a possibility of unforeseen circumstances.”
The being with an unidentified Key and the being who seemed to have stepped into the realm of gods flashed through Thanatos’s mind.
Although he had provoked them, it was hard to believe they would accept.
But Thanatos believed that the mage, at least, would respond.
Because he sensed something similar to himself in the mage’s arrogant eyes, a refusal to accept defeat.
Thanatos turned to his lieutenant and said,
“Then the army…”
“Likewise, we’ll deploy all but the minimum necessary force.”
He wouldn’t overlook those variables.
Even if numerous plans were made, even if unexpected variables arose, it didn’t matter.
He would simply overwhelm them with superior numbers.
Thanatos’s plan was to create a one-sided game, giving the opponent no room to react.
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