Walls Have Ears (1)
01.
"Summon."
Having left the royal palace, I unfolded a magic circle of pure black light. A hexagram seething with bleak, oppressive energy spread outward from my feet, expanding without pause until it swallowed the entire plaza beyond the palace walls. What followed was a black aura, thick and choking. The clear sky above darkened as if stained by ink. From within the circle, the deep, resonant blare of a battlefield war horn rolled out across the square.
And then, from that abyss-like depth, the army of the dead began to rise.
Shields clashed against spearheads. Crimson eyes burned with a rage that seemed almost alive. Things that should never have existed in this world slowly took form—the undead host that would shoulder every battle to come.
I gazed over them with quiet satisfaction. There had to be well over a hundred thousand of them, spirits of every kind and shape.
"…Good."
Because they were undead, they neither died nor tired the way human soldiers did. With no concept of stamina, they could fight day and night like machines. They needed no food, so supply lines meant nothing to them. They felt no fear, so morale never broke. And they possessed none of that wasteful pity or compassion that so often ruined carefully laid plans.
But the most important point of all was this: their loyalty to me was absolute.
They would never betray me. They would never surrender to the enemy. They would never stab me in the back the way Lilianel had.
This army of the dead would burn everything they had for me alone, until the last of their bones turned to ash.
I swept my gaze across the summoned host once more, then chose the sturdiest, largest phantom steed among them and swung myself onto its back. The ghostly horse—far faster than any living mount—snorted and flared its blue eyes.
I guided it slowly toward the very front of the army.
Vampires, skeletons, zombies, dark worms, banshees—every manner of undead parted to either side, clearing a path for me. As one, they dropped to a single knee and bowed their heads: a gesture of loyalty and respect toward the Necromancer Lord who had called them forth.
"…Not bad."
A satisfied smile touched my lips.
This force was more than enough to ravage the Abilia Kingdom two or three times over—and the entire continent after that. Even if Lilianel scraped together every soldier the kingdom possessed, she would never be able to stand against it.
Before long I reached the head of the column. Tina stood ready at my side.
"Labahart…"
The first destination was the mining city of Labahart—one of the places where Lilianel was most likely to be hiding. An undead army that never slept would reach it in two days, three at the latest.
I would turn Labahart upside down searching for her. If she was not there, we would move on to the fortress city of Nebirtol. And if she was not there either, I would simply keep going—visiting every city in the kingdom one by one, destroying them slowly, methodically, until she finally crawled out of whatever hole she had chosen.
"…Advance."
I raised my hand and pointed forward.
At last the immortal army began to move.
The thunder of hooves that would trample the human continent rolled up into the high sky.
02.
…This man is no Hero.
Judith Evergrit repeated the thought to herself for what felt like the hundredth time in the past few days, seated as always at the morning meal with the Hero’s party. The doubt never left her—not while she ate, not while she walked the streets, not while she checked her weapons, not even while she tried to sleep.
The image of Belia Grandius, the Hero who had massacred every last resident of Nesril Village simply so he could answer the Prime Minister’s summons without delay, kept replaying behind her eyes.
There had been another option. They could have split the party and held the village until reinforcements arrived. Instead he had chosen to erase the very thing that needed protecting, just so he could reach the fortress city of Nebirtol—where the Prime Minister was waiting—without ever dividing his forces.
Just what is the Prime Minister to him…?
Yes, Judith knew the legendary progenitor vampire had broken free of her seal, attacked the capital, and forced the Prime Minister into a desperate flight. But burning an entire village to the ground still made no sense to her.
Belia Grandius was normally the gentlest of men—until the Prime Minister’s name was mentioned. Then his entire demeanor changed in an instant.
There’s something more going on…
A Hero who clung to the Prime Minister with unnatural intensity. Companions who treated that obsession as perfectly natural. There was something between them that Judith, the newest member, simply did not know—something that had been decided when the Twenty-First Hero Party was first formed, long before she had been brought in to fill Maiden Alice’s empty seat.
And there was no way for her to learn it now.
Judith continued her breakfast, casting discreet glances at the companions seated around the round table. They all pretended to focus on their food, yet every one of them was watching her from the corners of their eyes—wary, ready to intervene the moment she tried anything foolish. They were clearly afraid she would expose what had happened in Nesril Village.
She had been the only one to oppose the Hero’s decision. She had even drawn her sword. Of course they did not look kindly on a rebel like her.
…This is unbearable.
The meal felt like sitting on a bed of nails.
"Hey, Daniel—what’s a vampire’s weakness?"
"Its weakness? Holy magic, without question. The Goddess’s power is something no undead can defy."
On the surface it looked like an ordinary, peaceful conversation. In truth the air around the table was thick and heavy.
Judith kept sighing inwardly as the reality of her life in the Hero’s party grew emptier and more meaningless by the day.
That was when an unfamiliar soldier burst into the dining hall.
"Hero! Urgent news!"
Sweat poured down the man’s forehead; he must have run the entire way.
"…Come here."
The Hero beckoned him over before even asking what the news was.
"…Drink this."
He poured a glass of ice water and held it out.
"Th-thank you, Hero!"
The soldier gulped it down without hesitation. To anyone watching, Belia looked the very picture of a merciful Hero, a friend to the common folk. Judith, who had seen his true face, could not bring herself to lower her guard.
"Phew! Th-thank you again, Hero."
Only after the soldier had emptied the glass did Belia cross his legs and inquire about the urgent message.
"…So. What is the news?"
"Ah—well, that is…"
The soldier wiped his mouth, snapped to attention, and began his report.
"The progenitor vampire who seized the capital has begun to move."
"Move…?"
"Yes. She sent her subordinates to destroy a territory near the capital called Rieli and abducted its lord, Chris Evergrit."
"…!!"
The entire Hero’s party flinched at the news that yet another territory had fallen to the vampire. Most of them merely looked startled. Judith’s heart, however, plummeted like a stone.
"W-what did you just say…?"
A familiar territory. A familiar name. She rose from her seat in a daze, unable to trust her own ears.
"S-say that again. Which territory? Who was abducted?"
"R-Rieli territory. The lord is Chris Evergrit…"
The soldier answered awkwardly, unsettled by her frozen reaction.
"Th-that can’t be…"
Her hometown destroyed. Her father taken. Judith Evergrit stood frozen. She stepped closer, seized the soldier by both shoulders, and demanded again:
"W-where did you hear this? Is it reliable?"
"Yes. Survivor testimony. Nearby territories sent scouts—Rieli is burning from end to end."
"B-burning…!!"
"…The report arrived about an hour ago. We believe the territory fell two days past."
"Ah…"
Judith’s legs gave out. The progenitor vampire’s attack, which had felt like a distant disaster, suddenly scraped against her very bones and flesh. She felt the blood drain from her face.
"I-I have to go…"
Instinct took over. She stood and headed straight for the dining-hall exit. There was no time to waste. She had to reach Rieli, check on the people, and rescue her father—Chris Evergrit, lord of the territory.
Hero’s party or not, nothing in the world mattered more than family. Especially not to a girl who had grown up cherished and helped by every soul in that land.
Her feet moved of their own accord.
"…Stop right there, rookie."
"…!!"
The others, it seemed, had different ideas.
Just as Judith was about to step through the doorway, the young-looking archmage Milang sealed the exit with magic. A blue magic circle flared across the door—not merely closed, but locked tight.
"A m-magic circle…?"
"Lady Milang…"
Judith turned her stiff neck toward the girl who had blocked her path. The childlike mage continued chewing a sausage with perfect calm.
"Rookie, you’re not going anywhere. Now that you’re a companion of the Hero, your duty is to stay here and support him and the Prime Minister."
"What…?"
Every second counted. She needed to return to the territory, assess the situation, and protect any wounded civilians from a possible follow-up attack. Yet Milang’s casual obstruction made Judith’s expression harden.
Daniel and Yuna added their voices.
"She’s right, Judith. We know Rieli is your home and that the man who was taken is your father. But it can’t be helped. You have to stay here, at the Hero’s side."
"Indeed. I understand how you feel, but remaining beside the Hero is ultimately the path to vengeance and the greater cause. Set aside your private anger for now."
"P-private anger…?!"
Judith’s fists trembled.
My hometown has been destroyed and my father abducted, and they call it private anger? Tell me to set it aside?
She was on the verge of losing everything, and they dismissed it as something trivial. Rage boiled up inside her until she thought she might choke on it.
Stay and help the Hero? Liars. Hypocrites.
They claimed she needed to remain and assist, but the real reason was obvious: they wanted to keep her under watch so she could never spread the truth about Nesril Village. The party would hardly notice the loss of someone as weak as her.
They were simply afraid their own crimes would come to light. Afraid she would do something reckless. That single fear was enough for them to stop her in her tracks.
"…My home has fallen. J-just let me check the situation and come right back. Give me one day. That’s all I ask."
Still, their words were not entirely wrong. As a member of the Hero’s party she was obligated to obey him, support him, and act for the greater good.
"I-if I take an aerial carriage I can be there and back in no time."
So she offered a compromise—just one day. The Teleportation Hub was sealed, but the newly developed aerial carriages could get her to Rieli and back within a single day.
"No. The vampire might follow you and discover this place—discover the Prime Minister’s location."
"…Calm down and endure it, Judith."
They refused even that. Judith’s insides burned. Her legs shook with anxiety. Worry for her family and her territory was driving her mad. Even if she could not save them, she at least wanted to see the truth with her own eyes. Why were they blocking even that?
"P-please. I’ll be careful. I’ll take every precaution."
"…Stop being stubborn, rookie. You’re starting to piss me off."
Milang stabbed another sausage with her fork and glared, brows drawn tight. Something inside Judith snapped.
Without hesitation she tore the badge from her chest—the badge that marked her as a companion of the Hero—and flung it to the floor. Her voice was ice-cold as she addressed everyone in the room.
"…Then as of this moment, I quit the party. So get out of my way."
If she left the Hero’s party, they would have no excuse and no reason left to stop her. The position had been hard-won, but nothing was more important than her family’s safety or her territory. If the Hero’s party stood in the way of that, she would abandon it a hundred times over.
"Still no."
"Judith Evergrit. Sit down."
"…What?"
Even after she declared her resignation, they continued to block her.
"…There’s a chance you’ll be captured by the vampire and reveal this location."
"Now that you know where the Prime Minister is, you may not leave Nebirtol without permission."
"…"
Ah.
That damned Prime Minister again. Was that woman truly so important that the safety of the people came second—so important that every freedom had to be restricted, that an entire village could be wiped off the map?
All of it was a pathetic excuse. They were afraid. Afraid the world would learn that the Hero’s party was nothing like the image the people held. Afraid that whatever secret bound the Hero’s party and the Prime Minister together would come to light.
Judith said nothing. She simply drew the sword at her hip.
A sharp metallic ring filled the dining hall.
The Hero’s party regarded her with interest.
"Oh-ho…"
"W-what do you think you’re doing? Put that sword away right now!"
"You intend to force the issue…?"
They were the Hero’s party—counted among the strongest on the continent. Judith stood no chance against them. But if they refused to open the path, there was only one thing left she could do.
"…Judith Evergrit."
At the head of the table, the Hero rose. A faint smile played on his lips as he drew his own blade. A mocking edge colored his voice.
"Feeling confident?"
"…No."
She was not. Back in Nesril Village she had defied him and been subdued in an instant. Sword strokes too fast for the eye to follow. Technique tempered by countless battles. Natural talent that made it all look effortless. A mere top graduate of the capital’s knight academy had almost no chance of winning.
"…I’m simply doing the only thing I can right now."
But for the safety of her territory—for the belief that family came before everything else—
"So open that door right noooooow!!"
—she had no choice but to swing her sword.
Even if the one standing in her way was the Hero himself.