The Abyss
A name that would one day become a new future, surpassing even the Achaemenes Empire—the greatest power on the continent.
His subordinates trembled as they turned that vast resonance over in their minds.
"Ah... Lord Behirith! From the moment I swore my loyalty to you, I have counted the days until this very instant...!"
"To your liking, Raphaela?"
"Of course it is!"
Raphaela, Countess of Gremory and Vice Tower Master of the Magic Tower, cupped her face in her hands, her expression rapturous. She was steeped in emotion, her eyes glistening, her voice trembling.
Then a massive man, adorned head to toe in gold and jewels, threw his head back and laughed.
"Gahaha! What a stirring moment this is! I, too, have been waiting for this day!"
"Is that so? Hearing you go that far, Goldman—I'm quite pleased."
"Heh heh. A merchant's eye sees these things. I knew Lord Behirith would rise higher than anyone. Incidentally, did the golden path I prepared for you today meet with your approval?"
Goldman split a grin from ear to ear, flashing teeth set with gold and gemstones. I returned the smile, the corner of my mouth lifting.
"Of course. Not even the Emperor has ever walked a path this lavish."
"Gahahaha! The highest praise imaginable!"
A touch of exaggeration in the praise, and laughter blossomed across Goldman's face.
The man who ran the largest merchant guild in the Empire. The Myriad Gold Merchant, Goldman Rockefeller.
This was our first time meeting face to face, but I found him a refreshingly honest sort. He expected to make money through me in the end, and he made no effort to hide it. At a glance, it might have come off as excessive greed. But having read the original work, I knew his loyalty was genuine—so I couldn't bring myself to dislike him.
"Come to think of it, I noticed some adamantite."
"A gift I prepared for you, my God."
I spoke as I gazed at the orange-glowing gemstone resting at the end of the golden path, and a white-haired woman answered. Milynarije Whitewell, the highest-ranking priestess of the Church of God Pallas. A woman whose sensual figure was wholly unsuited to the clergy clasped her hands tightly, as though she stood before a living god.
"I wished to bring something far more precious, but this was all I could prepare. Please fault me for it."
"Not at all. Thanks to you, I've seen something splendid. With Goldman's gifts and now adamantite as well, we lack nothing to declare the name of the Magic Principality."
"Ah! You honor me far too much...!"
At my praise, Milynarije tightened her prayer-clasped hands even further. Her arms naturally pressed her breasts together, and the golden rosary slipped into the valley between them.
Rosary paizuri...?
Was this the grace of God Pallas?
It was a view I would have liked to keep looking at, but getting hard in front of my subordinates was out of the question. I lifted my gaze from that body—far too vulgar for a priestess—and settled it on her snow-white hair and ruby-red eyes.
Mysterious.
Milynarije was a woman with albinism. Meeting her in person, with her holy power layered on top of that, gave her an almost otherworldly quality.
"Ah, and the priestess you sent this time was quite capable. Thanks to her, I was able to treat Lucy without leaving any aftereffects."
"That I could be of help to my God... I could not be happier. However, there is one thing I would like to ask..."
"Hm?"
"I am not certain whether I ought to ask this..."
Milynarije hemmed and hawed, unable to get the words out.
What is this. One of the surest ways to piss someone off is to start talking and then stop.
I pressed her.
"Out with it."
"I heard that you requested a priestess be dispatched because Miss Lucy had been affected by an aphrodisiac. I also heard that you... took measures to address it. In that case, did you perhaps... consummate a relationship with her?"
"...!"
At Milynarije's words, Raphaela's eyes flew wide. The soaring atmosphere collapsed in an instant. I swallowed dryly.
...Ah, shit. I shouldn't have brought that up.
The awkwardness of the question was one thing. Raphaela's expression right now was something else entirely. Even Lüdenburger and Goldman beside her were reading the room.
One of them, however, seemed entirely unbothered.
"Ooh! Lord Behirith has taken a mate! Does that mean we might even see an heir?"
"Laplace... you need to shut up for a bit."
"Hmm? Miss Raphaela, why are you so angry? Lord Behirith stands at the apex of all creation! Naturally he would keep any number of females and mate with them, wouldn't he?"
Laplace cocked his head as he made his case. Nothing could be seen behind that unsettling white mask, but the puzzled look on his face was vividly easy to picture.
"Tch... creepy corpse-fucker."
Raphaela muttered a vicious insult, just loud enough to almost be heard. Fortunately, it seemed to have reached only my ears—Laplace didn't appear to notice.
More importantly, this bastard actually does it with corpses? When I read the original, it was only described as him loving the dead. ...He's not actually doing that, right?
I considered asking Laplace directly, just in case, then thought better of it.
"My God, so... did you consummate the relationship?"
Milynarije, meanwhile, kept pressing the question. I gave a small nod, resigned.
To my surprise, Milynarije looked delighted.
"Ah! How wonderfully it has turned out!"
"Why?"
"Because someday, that opportunity may come to me as well! I do not even ask to be a wife, nor a concubine. If I can but receive my God's seed, that alone would make me happy."
Having said something utterly outrageous, Milynarije smiled sweetly at me.
Is she actually fine with just that? Well, I'm certainly not complaining.
Raphaela, however, was clearly not fine with the fact that I'd been with Lucy.
"Tch. That fox of a woman. I should have seen through that meek act of hers..."
Raphaela gnawed at her nails in frustration. Had she just erased from her mind the part where Lucy had been hit with an aphrodisiac?
Then Lüdenburger, who had been quietly studying me, spoke up.
"You have grown even stronger, Lord Behirith."
"You can tell?"
"Of course. I noticed it yesterday when you visited Orbit, but seeing you like this, I feel it with certainty. How to put it... it is as though you have become an absolute being."
So he can see through the change in me. I glanced around at the others; they all seemed to agree.
"I feel it as well. Your mana has increased dramatically."
"And that's not all! I sense an unknown power—I've never felt anything like it in my life!"
"Fufu. One can only worship you."
That much, huh. The others I could understand, but Milynarije was laying it on thick. Still, it wasn't a bad feeling.
Subordinates who trusted me absolutely. With them at my side, I felt as though I could do anything.
I spoke to them as they looked up at me with shining eyes.
"Listen well, all of you. I summoned you today to inform you of the plan going forward. This will surely be the first step toward establishing the Divelion Magic Principality."
"Please tell us. If it is Lord Behirith's command, we are prepared to leap into hell itself."
"I feel the same. What would you have us do?"
"...!"
Had they been waiting for those very words? Color rose in the faces of Lüdenburger and the rest. Laplace, in particular, was so excited he was practically bouncing.
"You look pleased."
"Ah! Does it show?"
"It does. Getting excited at the thought of taking revenge on the Second Prince?"
According to the original setting, Laplace's house—the County of Dieppoff—had a deep, bitter feud with the Second Prince. When I asked, Laplace spread his arms wide, beaming.
"Of course! I can hardly wait to show him the dolls I have prepared!"
"I'm looking forward to that moment myself. I'm sure Albireo will be delighted."
I smiled at Laplace as he struck one of his signature exaggerated poses, then turned to Lüdenburger.
"Have the materials gathered in Orbit been compiled?"
"Yes. Starting from the Sword and Magic Festival, we intend to expose the crimes of the Second Prince and his faction across the entire Empire. That should be enough to shake them."
"Good."
Albireo was a villain who deserved to die, but his position as prince and the factions surrounding him protected him. Dealing with him would not be easy. First we needed to shake his support base and drag him down from the imperial succession.
That said, only a month left until the Sword and Magic Festival.
The Festival of Sword and Magic, held every year in the capital of the Achaemenes Empire—commonly called the Sword and Magic Festival. It was a massive event that drew not only the strong from across the Empire, but Academy students as well.
In the original work, major incidents unfolded around the festival, and the thought of all those characters gathering in one place made my chest tighten with anticipation. But I cautioned myself not to get too carried away. Albireo would try to put the protagonist and the heroines in danger. I would do everything in my power to make sure things did not go according to his design.
"Time is short, so make your preparations quickly. I will not tolerate mistakes."
"Yes! All of it, for the Supreme One."
Their voices—each distinct—echoed through the mansion. Together with abysses deep enough to swallow even the dark, I set myself in motion.