Chapter 123: The Seal
Translator: RaidenTL
Chapter 123: The Seal
In 1520, the Spanish Conquistadors invaded the Aztec Empire. With only a few dozen men, they slaughtered hundreds of thousands of Aztec warriors.
In 1524, the Habsburg Empire fought against France and achieved astonishing military success.
During the Sengoku period, Oda Nobunaga used guns to unify Japan.
Firearms had changed the paradigm of warfare. This was true even for the earliest guns, which were little more than matchlock rifles. The gap between the Empire, which had developed breech-loading automatic rifles, and the Kingdom was as vast as the one between the Stone Age and the Middle Ages.
“Hold them back! Hold the line—!”
A large hole appeared in the head of the commander directing the soldiers. A sniper shot from hundreds of meters away had found its mark.
Neither the Imperial army nor the Kingdom’s forces were particularly surprised by this incredible feat. Too many had died for them to be surprised now.
“Archers! Ready!”
At that moment, the only advantage the Kingdom, with its medieval civilization, had over the Imperial army was its ability to use arcing shots with bows.
Unlike bullets, arrows could be fired from behind walls, allowing for one-sided attacks. This strategy might have been quite effective, were it not for one fatal flaw: the moment a soldier peeked out to confirm their shot, a bullet would instantly blow their head apart.
“Catapults! Prepare the catapults!”
When the commander finally called for the catapults from within the castle, the soldiers saw pointed ears twitching into view over the wall.
As they stared blankly at the ears, a whole head popped up over the rampart.
“H-Hiiik—!”
The Empire’s dolls aimed their rifles at the soldiers. No one was foolish enough to charge at the divine weapons that had been slaughtering them from hundreds of meters away.
Thus, the Imperial army passed through a dozen castles and advanced swiftly toward the royal capital—the place where the Malyong was sealed.
While the Imperial army made its bloodless entry into the Kingdom (by the Empire’s standards), Yohan was holding a science class with the witches.
In truth, Yohan’s shallow knowledge wasn’t of much help, but the witches had no complaints.
Even if it was only scratching the surface, it was the latest information from a distant future, something unimaginable in their current civilization. It was impossible for them not to be intrigued.
“So, you’re saying this planet is just a speck of dust within a speck of dust in this universe?”
“Exactly. In terms of proportion, it’s not even a speck. The sun alone accounts for over 99% of the mass in the solar system, and even that sun is just one of hundreds of billions of stars from the galaxy’s perspective.”
“...And even that galaxy is an infinitesimally small space compared to the entire universe?”
As Hekaterina felt a sense of cosmic horror listening to Yohan’s explanation, Margaret let out a hollow laugh, as if she couldn’t believe it.
“Even I, the Witch of Space, can’t intuit such a thing. How on earth would you know that, Yohan?”
“When you delve deep into any subject, you eventually hit a wall that simple intuition can’t see past. I know this thanks to the long-standing insight and research of scientists.”
Even as he said this, Yohan himself didn’t know how people had figured out the age and size of the universe, or if any of it was even correct.
After all, even in the 21st century, where all information was public, there were still people who refused to believe these facts, claiming the moon landing was fake or that the Earth was flat.
He didn’t expect people living in a civilization two centuries behind his own to instantly understand and accept what he was saying. If they had, Yohan would have been rather disheartened.
“But, but still... The universe is tens of billions of years old, the Earth is billions of years old... How could you possibly confirm something you’ve never experienced!”
“...There are records. The first records left by intelligent beings are only tens of thousands of years old. That’s a difference of hundreds of thousands of times from the billions of years you’re talking about, Yohan.”
As Regina added to Margaret’s words, Yohan shrugged. She was right. This planet might not have been created that long ago.
It was possible that humanity hadn’t been around for very long either. Yohan only knew enough to scratch the surface; he had no way to actually prove that what he was saying was true.
His only evidence was his memory and his conviction. He couldn’t blame them for not believing him.
However—.
“It’s okay if you don’t believe me.”
Yohan hadn’t arranged this meeting to persuade them. Against the intellectuals of this world, his meager knowledge was, in fact, closer to that of a charlatan.
What Yohan wanted wasn’t to buy the witches’ trust with his pseudo-scientific knowledge. What need was there to regain the trust of those who already trusted him completely?
Engaging in such a pointless act was more likely to damage their trust. Even now, Margaret was looking at him with a hint of disbelief.
“I just hope that this broadens the world for you, Teacher, Margaret, Beatrice, and Hekaterina.”
But it was also true that his paltry knowledge had brought about a tremendous change in the witches.
Evangeline, the Witch of Love, who had only ever dealt with conspicuous powers, had succeeded in perceiving the existence of atoms and achieving nuclear fusion.
It was proof that his knowledge, however superficial, was not wrong.
“It’s strange.”
Margaret tilted her head as she listened to Yohan. The words and knowledge he was sharing were certainly valuable.
Regardless of their truth, in terms of value alone, they were worth more than all the gold in the world.
But what benefit was there for Yohan, who was sharing it all so freely?
“There’s no benefit in this for you, Disciple.”
“No benefit?”
Yohan let out a small laugh and countered her claim. Not everything of value was visible to the eye.
It was the things you couldn’t see that held true value. Things like trust, faith, and—.
“If my teacher, Margaret, and my friends become stronger, that’s what’s best for me.”
The witches’ strength.
Yohan knew it instinctively.
The more scientific knowledge the witches gained, the stronger they would become, and their value would continue to rise. And if the witches’ value increased, his own value, as the one they loved, would rise in tandem.
The more they grew, the more he stood to gain. There was no downside for him.
“I’m satisfied with that.”
Raising his value without lifting a finger.
For Yohan, that was more than enough.
The dolls Beatrice created possessed a strength that transcended humanity.
They felt no pain, had far superior eyesight and reflexes than humans, and possessed marksmanship that could hit a 1cm target without a single tremor in their fingertips, even in the freezing cold.
They never complained about any order and felt no fear, allowing them to charge into enemy lines and throw their lives away without hesitation.
Even if they were pierced by arrows or had their limbs severed, it wasn’t a significant loss. They were just dolls, after all.
“...You will have to explain just what this is all about.”
“Pardon me. I am Lieutenant General Belskroll, commander of the Empire’s 1st Corps. I also hold the Countship of the Nenova Region.”
Upon entering the capital, the Imperial army nonchalantly stated their purpose.
“We have received information that a monster is sealed within your kingdom, our ally and neighbor.”
“Yes, that is correct. There is a monster that we and the Church managed to seal with our combined strength.”
“We have come to subjugate that monster.”
“...What did you say?”
To march an army in and suddenly declare they were going to subjugate a monster sealed in the capital? Any sane person would have no choice but to suspect they had other intentions.
Indeed, there had been some friction with the Empire recently, over issues like tariffs on exports and imports, as well as religious discrimination.
To retaliate so blatantly? The Chancellor let out a hollow laugh, as if he never imagined the Empire would be so reckless.
“Did you think we would permit this?”
“We did not come to ask for permission. We came to inform you.”
“...This is internal interference.”
“Internal interference? The Empire has determined that if this monster were to be revived, it could cause great harm to Imperial territory.”
The commander’s gaze clearly said, Internal interference? So what? If you don’t like it, try and stop us.
“You should have eliminated it back then instead of just sealing it.”
The Chancellor could only bite his lip.
Having been defeated by the logic of power, no other logic would prevail.
The Imperial army began to form ranks before the monster known as the Black Dragon, or Malyong. Having prepared all manner of mortars and rifles, they immediately readied a barrage of firepower against the sealed Malyong.
“All units—fire!”
With a triumphant shout, shells and bullets slammed into the sealed Malyong’s scales.
—...
The Malyong, its eyes closed, slowly opened them.
The seal was broken.