Chapter 64
Chapter 64
Episode 64
Tia, tracing the blood flowing down her cheek with a finger, moved her feet.
"Of all places, why here again?"
She recalled the time, not long ago, when she had been attacked by the masked figures. Just like then, Tia felt a sense of unease about the small cut etched on her cheek.
Moreover, the type of magic used was the same lightning-attribute magic as before.
Coincidence repeatedly becomes inevitability.
Yes, Oz was suspicious.
"Still, well...."
This time, however, she intended to overlook it, even if only to acknowledge his effort. She had promised to do so.
◇◇◇◆◇◇◇
Tia headed towards the location of her laboratory. Embers still lingered among the burned and scorched buildings, and the area was deserted, most of the students presumably having already evacuated.
Arriving at the scene, Tia found one living person, one dead person, and one who was neither dead nor alive.
"Lady Tiamat?"
"It's fine, just rest, Aira. More importantly, what's wrong with her again?"
"Hello."
"Well, at least you have better manners than Oz."
You even know how to greet someone.
"Yes...?"
"No, it's nothing."
Glancing at Marie, leaning against the wall as if drained of power, and Aira, who was looking after her, Tia finally moved her feet.
She spoke to Prudence, the only one losing warmth in the still-smoldering place.
"Are you satisfied?"
Naturally, there was no reply. There was no way he could answer, being already dead.
"If you did everything you wanted to do, you should have at least died with a smile."
Tia muttered as she looked at Prudence's face, lying on the ground.
"Why do you have that worried expression again?"
If you were going to worry, you shouldn't have done it in the first place. If you were so concerned about the future, you should have stayed and prepared for it yourself. Why leave such a task to others, and even then...
Why?
"You've always been a worrier."
Why haven't you extinguished that flame yet?
Tia sighed deeply, as if frustrated, and raised her hand.
"I like people who burn with life, but..."
Snap!
Tia snapped her fingers and said,
"It's time for you to extinguish that flame."
Simultaneously with her words, rain began to pour from the sky. It was magic, invoked by her dragon speech.
"Good work, Prudence Loa. Unfortunately, I won't be able to give you severance pay."
As the rain began to extinguish the remaining embers between the buildings, the sound of numerous footsteps could be heard amidst the quiet patter of rain.
Tia spoke to the center of the crowd that had stopped behind her.
"Can you offer a prayer for this guy? Arietta."
Arietta, accompanied by the [Shield of Light], had appeared to ascertain the truth of the incident.
"This guy, you see, put the students in danger, stole public experimental subjects from numerous countries, and burned down the academy. Even so, can you offer a prayer for him, even just a word?"
"Headmaster, I'm here for that very reason, so you don't need to worry."
Despite Tia's long-winded accusations, Arietta shook her head as if in understanding. The weight of the sin didn't matter. Prayer didn't discriminate.
"...You're certainly too good for someone like Oz. I can understand how Lucia feels."
Despite Tia's somewhat mischievous joke, Arietta paid no mind. That wasn't what she needed to focus on right now.
Arietta knelt without hesitation on the ground mixed with rain and ash, and began to pray.
『Lord, your daughter offers a prayer for this soul.』
The [Shield of Light], who had come as Arietta's escort, also knelt, as if unafraid of dirtying their pure white armor.
Tia glanced at the clergymen, then looked up at the sky.
"Not bad."
A bright light was pouring down, piercing the dark clouds she had created.
Tia recalled the moment she first discovered Prudence. It was a rather impressive moment, even within the flow of countless years.
-"Are you that famed mage from the slums?"
Prudence had been striking from the very first moment they met. Despite becoming a mage of elder status at a young age, he was wasting his talent in the slums. He taught magic, barely at the beginner level, to children who knew nothing about it.
-"Since you're teaching children anyway, have you considered coming to my side and doing it there?"
-"..."
Tia's purpose was recruitment. Truly talented individuals capable of teaching advanced-level magic and above were few and far between. If she wanted, there would have been a plethora of mages lining up, but Tia didn't desire such pretense. She needed someone who genuinely cared for the students. And it could be said that it was inevitable for Prudence's reputation to reach Tia's ears.
-"I am dangerous."
-"Dangerous? What, are you more dangerous than me? Have you ever burned down a country?"
Prudence was like someone turned to ash. A dull, listless human who had lost his purpose.
-"I am a selfish person."
-"So? I'm a dragon. I was born a dragon, and the strongest one at that. Do you think there's anyone in the world more selfish than me?"
Prudence knew he was deeply flawed. He forcibly controlled his anger by berating himself. He wouldn't be able to last long in this state of incomplete combustion.
-"What if I can't control my selfishness and end up hurting your students?"
-"That won't happen."
-"I'm afraid that I might become like those I tried to resist."
-"I'll help you so that doesn't happen."
And he was a worrier. Prudence, a man so weak he couldn't even control his own heart, was afraid that his selfishness would hurt others.
-"No matter how brightly you burn that flame, I'll watch over you to make sure you don't cross the line."
Tia made a promise to Prudence, who had lived a blazing life but hadn't yet turned to ash.
-"What do you want? Money? Knowledge? If there's something you want, I'll do my best to accommodate you, so tell me."
-"I want to be a guide."
Tia, facing a man who was both weak and strong, promised to do what she could.
-"I want to be a guide so that no more people like me lose their meaning due to foolishness."
-"Is that so? If that's what you want, then do it. I'll pave the way for you."
-"Yes..."
Prudence became a guide. And he chose none other than Oz, passing on the path to him. Oz engraved Prudence's flame onto his back. As a result, he fought against his own endlessly unreasonable existence. The reason Tia overlooked Oz's absurd obstinacy with just a single proof was none other than this.
It was because of that promise.
"I kept my promise to you, Prudence Loa. Now the rest is up to him."
With those words, Tia turned away. It seemed like it would be a slightly longer route than her usual path.
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A ruined city. A weathered, crumbling royal palace. A place where even the sky was veiled in ash-grey, becoming a realm no one could invade.
The ruined kingdom, Chrysos.
No one lived in the fallen Chrysos anymore.
Yes, no people lived there.
Instead, there were 'Outer Beings.'
"Hmm."
At the center of the weathered palace, a man sat arrogantly on the throne, wearing a crown. The being once called 'Delayed von Chrysos' stroked his beard as if in contemplation.
"Strange."
Delayed already knew that the monster he had sent had been defeated. It was something he had anticipated. He knew, even when he had brainwashed and sent Gerard beforehand, that within him was the absurd monster bearing the title of [Dragon Emperor].
"Just what was it defeated by?"
But he couldn't understand what had defeated that monster. It wasn't defeated by the [Dragon Emperor].
It was a completely different being.
And that being used a different power than what he had ascertained beforehand. The memories of the humans he had devoured possessed no such power.
"This is dangerous... That's dangerous. If I don't take countermeasures..."
The brilliant golden power severed the connection to the souls they had devoured. The reason they devoured humans, souls and all, was to use them as an energy source.
But if that connection itself was severed, even the smallest wounds couldn't be healed. It was a fatally dangerous power.
"I'll need to investigate this."
The King of Chrysos pondered. There was a problem with sending troops in the same manner as before. It was unlikely they would reach the same location using the same method. This time had been mere coincidence.
Even if he rashly dispatched troops, there was a high probability they would be captured at the border and sent to an unknown location.
"Then I'll have to use the other card I planted a suggestion on beforehand..."
Instead of devouring those who approached, he implanted suggestions. This was because his physical body couldn't endure for long if he devoured low-level beings. Therefore, he only devoured their minds, releasing their bodies back into the world.
One of them was Gerard, and the other was the leader of the mercenary group that had captured the monster he had sent. He had sent the monster out in the first place partly to exploit the opportunity to increase his pawns.
It was a pawn gained through sacrifice, so he intended to cherish it, but he had no choice.
"Then..."
Delayed traced his suggestion, beginning his search for the mercenary. Just as he was about to pinpoint the location of the mercenary he had implanted the suggestion on...
『So you're watching through this.』
He realized that the mercenary, too, was captured by someone. It wasn't a place he recognized. The world they had invaded was diverse, but it didn't have such a jet-black sky.
『I retrieved it because it looked interesting, and it doesn't disappoint.』
"...Who are you?"
Delayed couldn't help but be flustered. The fact that he had been noticed was surprising in itself. Even the monster called the [Dragon Emperor] hadn't been able to detect him.
So, who was his opponent?
『I am the oldest being.』
The one and only being who already knew everything about the 'Outer Beings.' The King of the Dead, completely free from the concept of time.
『I am called the Death King.』
Death King Thanatos had made contact with the 'Outer Beings.'
『It's been a while. Failures abandoned by God.』
◇◇◇◆◇◇◇
Baekyang anxiously waited for Eleanor in front of the dormitory. The charm she had cast had been broken. It wasn't a particularly powerful charm, but the fact that it had been broken was significant. It meant Eleanor had entered combat.
"Sigh..."
There was no real reason for her to worry about Eleanor to this extent. She was a goblin, a being that caused harm rather than worrying about people, wasn't she?
Even as she thought this, Baekyang began to pace anxiously.
'Should I go look for her?'
The thought crossed her mind for a moment, but...
'No, that's not right.'
Her goblin identity wouldn't allow it. It would be a blow to her pride.
"Ah, Baekyang. Were you waiting for me?"
Just as she was wavering between anxiety and pride, Baekyang spotted Eleanor approaching and speaking to her. Eleanor returned covered in blood.
"...Just what are you doing wandering around to get so injured?"
"Ehehe."
Baekyang sighed and began to brush the dirt and dust off Eleanor's body.
"What is this..."
Baekyang lamented, looking at the ribbon on Eleanor's head. It was a mess.
"Ah, it's okay."
"It's not okay. If you leave it like this, your hair will get damaged."
Baekyang, with narrowed eyes, reached out towards Eleanor's hair where the ribbon was tied.
"N-no!"
"Just what are you doing?!"
Baekyang subdued Eleanor, who was resisting and grabbing her hand, and removed the ribbon from her hair.
"Hmph..."
"..."
Baekyang, looking at Eleanor with an exasperated expression as she continued to fuss even in her injured state, said,
"Can't you just wash it and tie it back on later?"
"It has meaning because someone else tied it for me."
"Hmm?"
Baekyang nodded. She thought she knew who had tied the ribbon on so messily. It was undoubtedly Oz, whom Eleanor was subtly concerned about. People attach meaning to even trivial things. She knew it was human nature.
"Hmph."
"Ah!"
But it wasn't a particularly important matter to Baekyang. She tossed the bloodstained ribbon aside and grabbed Eleanor.
"Let's go to the infirmary first."
"R-ribbon..."
"...I'll wash it and bring it to you later, so let's go to the infirmary, okay?"
Goblin Mischief[Frozen in Place]
Baekyang used a charm to restrain Eleanor, who was about to struggle.
Though she seemed energetic, Eleanor's injuries were quite severe.
"Hey, Baekyang," Eleanor said, draped over Baekyang's back as if clinging to her.
"How much would it cost to hire a mercenary?"
"It depends on the job."
Mercenary.
Normally, it would be an unfamiliar word, but in Scientia, it was relatively common. There were many nobles' children who had taken refuge there for their own safety. But they couldn't stay in Scientia forever.
Therefore, the most common method was to hire mercenaries.
'I thought she wasn't ordinary, but...'
Wasn't she being too unguarded? Baekyang sighed, looking at Eleanor, who didn't seem to realize that even mentioning the topic could arouse suspicion.
"It'll be expensive."
"H-how much?"
"This much."
Baekyang indicated the amount with her fingers. The price Baekyang quoted was considerably higher than the typical rate. She had said it with the intention that if Eleanor was going to hire a mercenary, she should hire a proper one, but Eleanor felt despair.
"That's so expensive!"
"It depends on the requested task, but it usually costs about that much."
It was a staggering amount for Eleanor, who hadn't been able to bring much with her when she escaped the kingdom. But she had to confirm it. She had to go to Chrysos and see with her own eyes what had happened that day. That was her duty as royalty, as she saw it.
"Should I, should I get a part-time job?"
Eleanor resolved to get a part-time job to fulfill her royal duties.