Chapter 19
Chapter 19
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Translator: Ebonarch
Chapter: 19
Chapter Title: Lurking Shadows
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In a dark and foreboding room somewhere in the Andras Empire.
The pitch-black darkness was pierced only by a handful of flickering candles. In that sinister space gathered several figures, their hoods pulled low over their faces and clad in long black robes that trailed along the ground.
Among them were Brayden and Celine, along with the mage who had guided the imperial soldiers to the mid-level caves of the Fresia Mountains.
After the mage's report on the events at Fresia Mountain, someone shot back.
"We trusted your distortion sorcery and made all those preparations, only for it to fall apart in such a ridiculous way. That title of Distortion Sorcerer must ring pretty hollow now, eh, Bastol?"
"Don't spout nonsense. My distortion sorcery was flawless. No one in the world could have found that cave entrance. Unless..."
The man called Bastol ground his teeth audibly.
"Goddess Lunia."
A heavy silence fell over the group at those words.
"The Goddess... or her apostle could have seen through my distortion sorcery. There are no other possibilities."
"The Goddess has fallen, bound to the earth. Her light is lost, nothing more than a plaything to be swung about. A Goddess stripped of her power and authority can no longer interfere in this world. And besides, the Holy Warrior meant to receive her power is still an empty seat."
"Exactly."
"What do you mean?"
"The Goddess's light, destined for the Holy Warrior, has vanished. Our plan was to prop up a suitable puppet, convince him he was following the Goddess's will, and bend him to our purposes. But the Goddess, who resisted endlessly until now, suddenly ceased all opposition. She's gone quiet, bound in silence—and at the same moment, her light disappeared. If she expelled all her power outward, it would explain everything that's happened."
"You're talking about the holy sword?"
Bastol nodded.
"The Goddess bore her light but lacked even the strength to protect it, leaving it ripe for us to wield as we pleased. But if she abandoned her last shreds of power to resist and cast them out into the world, it explains why the holy sword remains unblessed. And..."
Bastol turned toward a hulking brute whose head was easily four times the size of his own.
"I hear your plan hit an unexpected snag and came crashing down too, Dantalion."
The man with beast-like fangs let out a guttural growl.
"Some damned bastard annihilated my experimental summoned creature, which was nearly complete. Sure, it used trash like goblins as vessels, but thousands were sacrificed for it—and it was a ritual I designed myself. It shouldn't have been undone so easily."
"No matter how much time passed, no blood or flesh was offered at the site, so I went to check. It was completely smashed to pieces. Whoever it was, if I catch them, I'll rip their limbs off their torso and chew their bones starting from the marrow."
Bastol addressed the group again after Dantalion's words.
"Dantalion's ritual and the creature it birthed were destroyed. My distortion sorcery was pierced in advance. Simple coincidence doesn't happen twice. Here's my hypothesis: Instead of resisting her bonds to break free, the Goddess expelled her power into the outside world. Someone has slipped past our eyes, become her apostle, and is working to thwart us."
As Bastol laid out his theory, groans of displeasure rippled through the assembled figures.
The man who had first accused Bastol of failure spoke in a deeply sunken voice.
"Damn it... The holy sword going unblessed was suspicious enough, but this wretched Goddess bitch is pulling every dirty trick in the book. Any leads on her true apostle?"
"Nothing yet. We'll have to start tracking from the site where Dantalion's ritual chamber was destroyed."
"Publicly, we must maintain the narrative that the Empire's Holy Warrior is Goddess Lunia's apostle. We were supposed to unleash the gargoyles and let the Holy Warrior wipe them out... Why the hell did you preserve them as statues anyway?!"
"You're the one who said timing their awakening to the Holy Warrior's arrival would highlight his prowess more, since freshly awakened ones wouldn't move properly!"
Release a number of gargoyles sufficient to spread rumors across the continent on the mid-slopes of Fresia Mountain.
Preserve far more in statue form inside the dungeon, then disguise the entrance with Distortion Sorcerer Bastol's magic.
Once the gargoyle overbreeding anomaly is reported, either have the Holy Warrior step up or pull strings from above to send him there.
Time the awakening to his arrival: the gargoyles, numerous but stiff from stasis, get massacred by the Holy Warrior. This showcases his might and plants the impression that all is well in the world.
Repeat the cycle a few times, and they could exploit the Goddess's authority from the shadows behind a facade of peace—playing at being gods for real.
That was their plan. But the Goddess's schemes had foiled even infusing that power into the Holy Warrior's sword to maintain surface peace, and now their underground bid to devour the world was being disrupted.
The hooded and robed figures let out irritated sighs. The one who seemed to be their leader finally spoke.
"Even if Lunia pulls her petty tricks, the one who received her light is nothing more than a fragment of a fallen Goddess's feeble power. They can't stand against us. Whoever got her power must be performing feats on par with the Holy Warrior somewhere, their fame spreading among the people."
"Maximize our information network. Tune your ears to every whisper in the world. The moment you identify a suspected apostle of the Goddess, kill them on sight. It doesn't matter if it's a false positive—eliminate anyone the least bit suspicious without hesitation."
All nodded in agreement. The leader stroked his chin, lost in thought for a moment, then turned to Bastol.
"That's one thing, but with rumors already spreading across the continent that the holy sword went unblessed—and now this so-called Holy Warrior leading no small force on campaign only to return empty-handed—word of his inadequacy will only grow."
"How do we handle it? Bastol, you're in a position to observe him closely. You must have some ideas. What should we do with that 'Holy Warrior'?"
"The old way would be to just eliminate him, but I see an even better use for him."
"What's your basis?"
"I've watched him since he graduated the academy and entered the capital for training. This batch's 'Holy Warrior' has arrogance at his core. He doesn't even realize it himself, but he sees himself as extraordinarily special, superior to the masses."
"Hoh, with a personality like that, there should've been backlash when he was selected as Holy Warrior from the start. Remarkably smooth, though."
"His arrogance just channeled in a different direction. He thinks, 'I'm special and superior, so it's my duty to lead these lesser, ignorant fools.'"
"Nothing's dumber or easier to manipulate than someone who sees themselves as grand and great."
The group chuckled darkly at the exchange.
"Leave our esteemed 'Holy Warrior' to me. With a little nudge, he'll fight for us harder than anyone. Distortion doesn't just work on objects, after all. Heh heh heh..."
"Achoo!"
Having nearly reached the lawless city of Libertà in the Pratea Kingdom, I let out a refreshing sneeze as I descended toward the city visible at the mountain's base.
"You startled me. Can't you sneeze more quietly?"
"What am I supposed to do when it comes out of nowhere? Someone must be talking behind my back."
"Then you'll be sneezing all day long."
This girl.
Even after I'd deliberately exaggerated the wounds her group had inflicted last time to make a point, Elfin hadn't fully shed her habit of sniping at me.
Of course, it was worlds better than the venom she'd spat at a hated piece of trash.
Ravi, leading the way, perked her rabbit ears as she scanned the descent for threats before flashing us an all-clear signal.
We descended further, and soon the musty, rancid stench wafting from the city began assaulting our noses.
"Urk... W-what's that smell..."
Ravi, with her keen sense of smell, reacted worst, retching dryly.
Elfin, no slouch in hearing herself despite not being Bunnyfolk, picked up the city's sounds early and flushed red.
"How can they... Drunken lunatics are bad enough, but open-air orgies in broad daylight on the streets..."
Ravi's face burned crimson as she averted her gaze downward. Clearly, both of them were getting an earful of the city's depravities that my human hearing couldn't catch.
"Ignore what the humans here get up to. You both have hoods to cover your heads, right? Put them on before we go in. No need to advertise you're Bunnyfolk or elves— the mad bastards here would tear you apart for it."
"Ugh, this city is seriously gross... Will our business here take long? I don't want to stay..."
"I... I really want to leave as fast as possible... How does a place like this even exist..."
Ravi grimaced in disgust, while Elfin wore that same expression she'd always had around me before.
The two, of different races, donned hoods to conceal their distinctive ears. Moments later, we set foot in the lawless city of Libertà.