Chapter 318
Chapter: 318
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>Translator: penny
>Chapter: 318
>Chapter Title: Change (3)
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Suddenly, half of the Monster Subjugation Unit's manpower had been sent on an extended mission.
Even so, Seongjin's mind wasn't at ease. He knew well that Logan went out every year to subjugate sea monsters, but this subjugation felt unusually ominous.
[If you're that worried, why don't you just go with them?]
Perhaps seeing it as an excuse to escape the stifling Holy Capital, the Demon King slyly suggested.
‘Well, if I had my way, I would...’
But Seongjin still had plenty of matters to settle.
It would be ideal if he could capture Giacomo Millo before his trial. He also needed to investigate Marquis Sigismundt's schemes separately.
And that wasn't all. The investigations into the traitorous organizations he'd entrusted to Dasha were starting to yield visible results.
‘And then there's Rohan's Leonard...’
The one who troubled him most was that creep hovering around his older sister. He'd seemed overly chummy at the birthday celebration, and sure enough, no sooner had Seongjin returned to the capital than letters requesting meetings started arriving daily.
It was obvious he harbored impure intentions toward Amelia and hoped Seongjin would act as a bridge.
‘I really need to stay in the Holy Capital right now. Owen should be back soon anyway.’
[Owen? You mean the 1st Crown Prince? How do you know he's coming back?]
‘Eh, just a hunch.’
Seongjin brushed it off vaguely and furrowed his brow.
Ah, it really felt off. He was anxious. He needed to come up with some countermeasures.
* * *
But apparently, Seongjin wasn't the only one with such premonitions.
Having some rare free time, he headed to the Saint Marthias Knights' training grounds to check on Sisley's training.
Kaang!
Before he even reached the entrance, a tremendous clang echoed, and a suit of armor soared vigorously into the air. Sisley must have been deep in intense practice.
“Wow! That's amazing, Sisley!”
On one side of the training grounds, Sui-seo was cheering enthusiastically.
What was she doing here? As a saintess, didn't she have any official duties?
“…Ah? Brother Mores!”
At that moment, Sisley, sensing his presence from afar, swung her flail menacingly in greeting. Her aura detection had clearly improved since she'd been a little kid.
“Aren't you busy with subjugation unit work these days? What brings you here?”
“Hm, just passing by and thought I'd drop in.”
In the time since he'd last seen her, Sisley's training seemed to have undergone significant changes.
For starters, the kid had shed her cumbersome saintess robes and was now properly dressed in knightly attire.
And in her tiny hands, a ferocious flail bristling with spikes.
Even wielding what looked like a much heavier weapon than before, her stance was stable enough to show just how intensely she'd been training.
“The armor's flight distance is 1.5 times farther than usual. Incredible power.”
“Your strikes are getting more precise. You're improving every day—what's new?”
“But today, it feels especially forceful. Is something troubling you, Saintess?”
“Now that you mention it, there's an uncharacteristic impatience in her aura operation.”
The biggest change was probably the inquisitors training with her. They'd grown so accustomed to the scene that they could now afford casual chit-chat.
And Seongjin soon learned the reason for Sisley's impatience in her training from her directly.
“I'm going with Brother Logan this time.”
“You? Joining the subjugation force?”
“Yeah. I'm still far from ready, but I think I've reached a level where I won't hinder the subjugation. Even if I can't match a full knight, as a healer, I can contribute in my own way.”
“Hm.”
“Don't try to stop me, Brother. The reason I never slack on training is all for moments like this.”
Seongjin closely examined Sisley's resolute expression.
Of course, the kid had done volunteer work as a saintess before. But this decision to join the subjugation felt too sudden to shake off.
“Why? Did you have a prophetic dream or something?”
Sisley flinched in surprise and looked at Seongjin.
“Ah? Well, not exactly...”
“Then?”
Pressed further, Sisley hesitated for a moment before letting out a small sigh.
“Well, you're the only one who can fully understand my situation right now.”
“It's about the Delcross Chronicle, isn't it?”
“Yeah, that's right.”
Lately, Sisley hadn't been having those nightmares disguised as prophetic dreams. Seongjin had strongly advised her not to believe them, and the rabbit eye mask from Owen was working effectively.
But the contents of the Delcross Chronicle, which she'd mulled over repeatedly for years, still lingered vividly in a corner of her mind.
“You know, Brother started working with the Monster Subjugation Unit, and so many things in the chronicle have changed because of it.”
According to Sisley, there'd been no incident of Lycanslopes stirring in the north in what she'd read. Instead, during the same period, swarms of sea monsters had ravaged the Cyprus coast.
So in the chronicle, Logan had gone to Cyprus with a subjugation force as usual, instead of heading to the Sigismundt territory.
“Are those the same sea monsters causing trouble this time?”
“I can't say for sure. The chronicle focuses mostly on the Holy Capital, so it only briefly mentions the subjugation results. But since the timing matches, it's likely.”
“What was the result of the subjugation?”
“It's Brother Logan—you know he'd handle it cleanly and return.”
Sisley replied like that, then continued with a slightly grave expression.
“But during that subjugation, two Lilium knights who fervently followed Brother lost their lives. That's why Logan was depressed for a while afterward.”
“Really?”
Fervently following knights.
The first ones that came to mind were the overly enthusiastic Otto, Ellie, and Duixang trio.
“Anyway, casualties in the subjugation force—that's unusual.”
The biggest reason for Lilium's detachment's stellar reputation was undoubtedly their near-zero casualties. They led large-scale sea monster subjugations every year with miraculously minimal losses.
People openly said it was proof of the Lord's blessing on Lilium. Seongjin, knowing Logan's true power well, saw it as a natural outcome.
‘But even with Sword Master Logan wide awake and watching, Lilium knights died?’
This was significant.
Assuming the Delcross Chronicle was based to some extent on reality, it suggested this sea monster uprising might not be the usual disturbance.
Perhaps the scale far exceeded reports.
“Or maybe something happened to Brother Logan himself, even if it's not detailed in the chronicle.”
Sisley said that and lifted her clear gray eyes to gaze at the northeastern sky.
“Is that why, Brother? Ever since I heard the subjugation force was forming, I've felt this growing unease. Like something sinister on Cyprus's black shores is lurking, waiting to swallow Brother Logan.”
“......”
“Of course, it might be nothing. But rather than sit idle, I feel like I have to do whatever I can.”
Seongjin could fully understand Sisley. Hadn't he himself been restless with unease just moments ago?
‘But...’
The moment he heard her decision, realization dawned. He'd glimpsed a solution.
“No matter what's waiting there, you want to see it with your own eyes and stop it.”
“Yeah. That's why I've trained so hard. All to protect myself and my family.”
Sisley nodded and gripped her flail tightly.
Thanks to her immense holy power, wounds rarely formed, yet her small hands were already red and inflamed from grueling training.
“You know? At first, I thought Brother was the key to all these changes. So I figured I had to help you somehow. But after joining the Saint Marthias Knights and dedicating myself to daily training, I gradually realized.”
Sisley turned her head and looked straight into Seongjin's eyes.
“That waiting for someone else to bring change isn't the way. Think about it—who's the easiest person for me to move to alter the Delcross Chronicle? It's me.”
“......”
“So if I don't change myself first, how can I expect positive changes in the chronicle?”
Seongjin silently looked down at his surprisingly mature little sister.
What could he say? He'd always seen her as a kid to protect, but now she seemed like a reliable ally.
“...Sisley.”
He didn't want to remind her of the Delcross Chronicle's contents if possible, but after a moment's thought, Seongjin made up his mind and spoke.
“Actually, there's something I've wanted to ask you for a while.”
“Yeah? What?”
“By any chance, does Marquis Sigismundt appear in the Delcross Chronicle?”
“Marquis Sigismundt?”
“Yeah, the current marquis, Hendrick Sigismundt. He's the protagonist Orden's father, so he probably shows up a lot.”
Sisley pondered, recalling her memories, then shook her head.
“Hmm? Maybe some minor friction with the grand prince now and then? I don't remember much about him, so he probably wasn't a major character yet.”
Hm. So that's how it is? He'd hoped it might hold clues to the marquis's schemes.
-I am merely standing by as that man commits an irredeemable sin.
His father had clearly emanated such thoughts then.
-If you knew, you'd surely try to stop me.
So, to prevent his father's plans, he needed to uncover the marquis's intentions first.
Noticing Seongjin's disappointment, Sisley cautiously spoke up.
“Is it important? Then should we look into it starting now?”
“Hm? How?”
“By having prophetic dreams again. Entering the dream and reading the Delcross Chronicle from start to finish.”
...What?
As Seongjin widened his eyes, Sisley smiled softly.
“To change the future, you first need to know the predetermined one completely.”
“But Sisley, like I said before, that's not the real future. It's just some bastard's scheme aiming for your ruin.”
“Even if it's not truly prophetic. If it's just someone's trick, as you say, then memorizing every detail would reveal that person's aims.”
Seongjin had considered that too.
What held him back from suggesting it was knowing better than anyone what the Delcross Chronicle meant to Sisley.
It must have been a merciless death sentence. The little girl before him had endured years of death's terror alone, unable to confide in anyone.
To relive that from the beginning?
“It's okay, Brother.”
Perhaps reading his conflicted expression, Sisley replied calmly.
“In the chronicle, I'm already dead anyway, right? The story I feared most is over, so now I can read about the world's end with a somewhat calmer mind.”
“......”
“Of course, facing the final fates of the imperial family one by one is still scary.”
But reminding herself it wasn't real, that it was for averting the future, would make it bearable.
Sisley said that, trying to comfort Seongjin instead.
‘Eh...’
Seongjin realized anew. His little sister had a truly strong spirit, unyielding to external pressures.
In the end, deciding to let her do as she wished, Seongjin could only reply,
“Then don't push yourself too hard.”
“Of course. I need good sleep for training. I'll only take off the eye mask and sleep on leisurely days.”
Sisley let out a soft chuckle and continued.
“Speaking of which, I heard a story once? Before His Majesty launched a massive subjugation—back when the Dark Church still had influence in the Holy Capital. The church's apostates supposedly volunteered en masse as human sacrifices for eternal [Rest].”
Human sacrifice was undoubtedly heresy.
Still, Sisley added, one could imagine how harsh life must have been for them to seek salvation in death.
“I'm only saying this because it's you, Brother, but sometimes death feels synonymous with ‘rest’ in a way. For me too. After dying once in the chronicle, my mind's a bit more at ease...”
It was right then.
[What nonsense!]
A sharp voice interrupted their conversation.
[Do not fall for the temptations of evil, my descendant! How dare you call something ominous like death ‘rest’?!]
Sui-seo, who had approached unnoticed, glared at Seongjin with fierce eyes. Her originally brown irises had turned brilliant gold, flashing brightly.
Cadmos had appeared.
[What are your intentions! Just how far do you intend to manipulate my descendants!?]
But the old man's tirade fell on deaf ears for Seongjin. A crucial realization had just struck him.
‘...Oh ho!’
As Seongjin smirked, lifting one corner of his mouth, Cadmos flinched and bellowed again.
[Why are you looking at me like that! What's your scheme now, you wicked thing!]
‘Right, Cadmos.’
Now the pieces fit perfectly.
If Sisley went, that guy would tag along with the subjugation force too? This was turning into quite the solid lineup.