Chapter 292: Levantine Empire
Chapter 292: Levantine Empire
“Let’s head out now.”
Iona nodded silently.
Before long, a dark red magical light burst forth, and a familiar wave of motion sickness washed over us.
Wuuuung—
When I closed and opened my eyes, we were standing in the middle of a vast field.
I had acted as if we were going to storm the Imperial Palace right away, but… in truth, that was impossible.
Even setting aside the fact that we might have to fight a Sword Master who would view us as rebels, teleporting directly into the capital where the palace was located was simply not an option.
“It’s a Spatial Interference Field installed throughout the capital by my family’s progenitor. No matter how long ago the magic was cast, it is a masterpiece of High Magic. To this day, no one has been able to dismantle it.”
“You make it sound like things are different now.”
“Hehe. If it’s you, Master, wouldn’t you be able to do something about it eventually?”
“…Even if I could, I’d prefer not to have a reason to storm the capital of the Levantine Empire.”
Carla giggled at my reluctant expression, but only for a moment. Soon, a slight shadow fell over her face.
“It’s a bit strange, isn’t it? The Lindelheit family has fallen like this, yet the traces of Lindelheit’s most glorious days remain so clearly within the Empire.”
“Well, didn’t you say it yourself, Carla? The name Lindelheit might change, but the bloodline will rise again. …And what we’re about to do now, whether we succeed or fail, will leave a significant mark on the Empire’s history.”
The first Apostle had a profound influence on the values of Righteous Light. A nation founded by one of her disciples flourished to become the current Levantine Empire.
The trace of that influence was their staunch rejection of cultists.
More accurately, it was a spirit of refusing to compromise with any form of evil that disturbed the world.
Before cultists and Evil Gods became rampant, they were famous for dismantling pseudo-religious sects, wiping out criminal organizations, eradicating black mages, and hunting vampires.
The methods and targets had merely shifted over time.
As a bonus, this allowed them to maintain a good relationship with the Church of Righteous Light.
In any case, a cultist had infiltrated the Imperial Family of such an empire? And into the position of the Imperial Consort, known as the Empire's Moon?
The entire country would be turned upside down.
While I nodded to myself, the motion sickness from the spatial transition finally subsided, so I began to properly survey our surroundings.
According to Iona, we had warped to the hill closest to the capital among the available teleportation coordinates.
“Ah, there it is.”
Even from this distance, the massive fortress walls exerted a palpable pressure.
The undisputed hegemonic power that occupied half of the Eurelia Continent. This was the capital of the Levantine Empire—a place called the Inviolable Fortress because it never fell despite numerous invasions during the War of the Gods.
Baldr was right before our eyes.
*
“What do you plan to do now, Yandel? If what you say is true and the Imperial Consort is our enemy… are you planning to sneak in?”
“Of course not. We’re going straight through the front gate.”
“Even though that will give them time to prepare?”
“I think you’re misunderstanding something, so let me clarify. The biggest hurdle in this mission isn't Fiona de Levantine, the Imperial Consort. It’s the Sword Master, Havel Calios.”
Sneaking past the city gates might be possible, even if the palace itself is difficult. But that’s only at the level of deceiving the guards' eyes.
Could we deceive the senses of a Sword Master? I deemed it impossible.
“…Surely even a Sword Master wouldn't keep the entire capital within his range of perception?”
“My disciple, you say that because you do not know. A Sword Master is in a realm equivalent to an Archmage. Once one reaches the level of an Archmage, they can synchronize with the surrounding mana and see the entire area as clearly as the palm of their hand, even without using detection magic. For an aura user, whose senses are even sharper than a mage’s, it might truly be possible.”
It was true. Why else would Fiona, who was slated to be the next Apostle of Boiling Silence, give up combat power and focus entirely on receiving the divine blessing of stealth?
It was because that was the minimum required to deceive a Sword Master’s senses.
Conversely, if we could get the Sword Master on our side… no, Havel is always on the side of the Emperor and the Empire, so that’s likely impossible.
Regardless, if we could properly convey that we are on the side of the Empire and Fiona is its enemy, he would become our most reliable shield.
Well, Fiona hadn't received any blessings related to martial prowess…
But she was still the one chosen to be an Apostle of Boiling Silence.
Judging by the patterns so far, the Evil God would surely intervene, unwilling to lose a piece they had invested so much in.
And in the H&A scenario, Fiona, after being appointed as an Apostle, was a monster among monsters who defeated the Sword Master alone and brought down the entire Imperial Palace.
The reason I stopped by Fafnir’s lair instead of heading straight to the palace was in hopes of obtaining something that could help us in terms of raw power.
Since we ended up with a harvest beyond my imagination and discovered the truth I thought we wouldn't know until much later, I suppose it was a jackpot in the end.
While flying toward Baldr at a moderate speed to avoid being mistaken for an attack while carrying Helena, a question occurred to me, and I asked Carla.
“Carla. You absorbed the Dragon Heart; have you had any reaction?”
“Hmm. Nothing happened when I absorbed it. However, just as you said, Master, when I brought the core close to my heart, I felt a strange sort of attraction.”
“You didn't feel that before?”
“No. It’s a sensation that appeared after absorbing the Dragon Heart. But I haven't tried to unify them yet, as I thought it might take a few days to adjust.”
“Good call. We might need your strength immediately, so there’s no need to risk instability. I’ll take a look at it for you later.”
“You’re going to help me with the core integration, Master?”
“Yeah. There are many mages among us more great than I am, but I’m the only one who has actually performed a core integration.”
At those words, Carla nodded with a warm smile.
“It feels somewhat like when we first met. Though this time, I’ll be the one receiving a transmission from you, Master.”
“…Ah.”
That’s right. Back then, I was able to obtain a mana breathing technique far superior to the Lintblum Breathing Technique.
But for my mana-insensitive constitution, I had to learn the Lintblum Breathing Technique, which is why I had bought Carla.
It was similar now. Even though there were more brilliant mages like Iris or Iona around… I was the only one who could help Carla right now.
To integrate the cores, I would have to perform something akin to a transmission.
While I scratched the back of my neck, feeling a bit embarrassed, I heard Helena’s voice, which sounded strangely like a grumble.
“You two. It’s lovely that you’re creating such a heartwarming atmosphere with your memories, but the city gates are drawing near. It seems they’ve noticed us and are on guard, so you should think about what to say in advance.”
“Hey now. What is there to think about? As I said, we just didn't announce ourselves; we’re going to enter through the front gate with dignity. There’s no need to hide or plot anything; we just follow custom.”
And according to custom, when passing through the gates, the rule of thumb was to give the name of the highest-ranking person in the party.
Naturally, 'highest' here referred to social status, not physical height.
The one with the highest status among us was…
I curled the corners of my mouth into a smirk and whispered to Helena, whom I was holding.
“Helena. Can you do that? You know, the thing where you emit holy power and shine all bright and sparkly.”
“It is possible… but why so suddenly?”
“Because it’s necessary. Make it as flashy as possible, please.”
“If you insist. …O Righteous Light. Brother Yandel asks this of me; could you lend us a little help?”
As Helena whispered softly, lion ears and a tail made of light wordlessly sprouted as if in answer.
The moment I saw them, I hoisted Helena up high.
“…Eh?”
Helena looked flustered, positioned like a figurehead on the prow of a ship.
However, Solari, dwelling within her, realized what I was trying to do and began to unleash holy power with all her might.
Flash—!
Pure white light erupted from Helena.
Holy power, already deeply connected to light, was being used solely to illuminate, and its scale and output were staggering.
It was as if the sun had fallen to the earth. Even though we were still a fair distance away, the light was bright enough to cast long shadows from the fortress spires.
The brightness was enough that it should have pained the eyes of my companions and me standing right next to her, but Solari must have been considerate, as it wasn't blinding at all.
Thanks to that, I could clearly see the guards, who were witnessing a miracle right before their eyes, dropping their weapons one by one.
People stood there dazed, looking up at us with their weapons discarded, or began to offer silent prayers.
I shouted toward them at the top of my lungs.
“Open the gates! Righteous Light has sent us!”
Regardless, it was the will of God.