110. The Stainer (4)
110. The Stainer (4)
- 1 -
Life in the inner castle of Solemio was utterly peaceful.
In fact, there were fewer troublesome matters than when I was in the dungeon.
Baron Baleon made a point of not interfering with me at all.
And while Baroness Grellda frequently sought me out...
"I want to form a closer relationship with the mage. We will be together for a long time, so surely that would be fine?"
"Those are welcome words. Grellda."
Most of those were nothing more than casual conversation.
Perhaps it was at her husband the lord's request.
She was very proactive about interacting with me.
She had begun by asking to call me by name when we had only known each other for three days.
"But you don't seem like someone to be treated lightly, so I shall call you Sir Mist."
"Feel free to call me whatever is comfortable."
However, from what I could tell, Baroness Grellda's frequent invitations were also driven by a great deal of personal emotion.
For instance, wanting to recapture the sensibilities of her youth when she had lived in a count's family.
Or perhaps she was seeking vicarious satisfaction from the noble aura she felt from me.
"...Come to think of it, I heard you pay a great deal of attention to Amelia, Sir Mist."
"The young lady possesses a rare quality. How could I not pay attention to her?"
Today, however, she seemed to have something else on her mind.
She couldn't seem to relax her brow at all.
"You seem to have something troubling you."
"Does it show? I really am..."
Upon hearing my remark, she pressed at her brow here and there, then let out a small sigh.
After that, she cautiously asked one thing.
"Will Amy truly be able to grow up splendidly as a mage?"
"..."
From that single sentence, her worry was easy to guess.
Because the path one must walk as a mage is usually hard to reconcile with other paths.
If Amelia walked the path of a mage, it was only natural for a parent to worry she might not be able to choose another course.
Considering the subtle dissatisfaction Grellda had shown since our first meeting, what she wanted was clear.
"Come to think of it, you mentioned Miss Amelia has never debuted in society."
"That's right. She has never once gone up to the royal capital."
"Goodness."
Amelia was currently sixteen.
That she had never been to the kingdom's capital was curious.
Considering that the first social party for noble children in the capital is typically held around age fourteen, it was certainly strange.
Here lay Grellda's dissatisfaction.
"He wants Amelia to focus on inheriting the territory without wasting attention on 'trivial things,' you see."
"I see."
"Haa..."
No noble wishes for their status and power to diminish.
But Grellda was the daughter of a count's family who had married a baron, not a count or higher, and settled in the countryside.
Parents with a sense of lack often seek vicarious satisfaction through their children.
Grellda's lack was 'having to marry into lower status without enjoying society.'
And Baleon's lack was 'not receiving the benefits of education as the second son of a lord.'
Thus, conflict between the two over their child's education was inevitable.
And caught in the middle was the usually smart and kind child...
"This period is so important for a girl...! When she should be experiencing a wider world and growing."
"It must weigh heavily on your heart."
In my personal view, the royal capital was hardly a wide world, but to someone raised as a noble of the kingdom, it was likely everything.
If there was a silver lining for Grellda here, it was the fact that she would soon realize it wasn't everything after all.
For she would soon see a wider world.
"I can't help it. Amelia is a child who could marry a count or higher noble and inherit an even better house...!"
"Madam!"
From now on.
This was the reason I had been staying by her side, enduring the bothersome tasks.
If a cleric came into the castle, having an attendant inform me would be faster than an information guild agent arriving.
- 2 -
Though Amelia was the heir to this fortress and felt unprecedented unease about her first teacher, that suspicion alone did not grant her enough independence to summon a cleric on her own and request verification.
The one who recruited me was, ultimately, the head of the family and the lord of the castle, Baleon.
'What she could do as the heir ended here.'
Therefore, even summoning a cleric to observe the teacher without formally proposing it to him first was an overstep of authority.
At the same time, she did not want to formally ask the head of the family and blow the matter up.
What she had was only suspicion, and she feared the repercussions if that suspicion turned out to be false.
"You called for me... to verify your talent?"
Thus, the justification Amelia put forward was to verify the judgment of the person the lord had recruited.
"Yes. My new teacher spoke about my talent, but I thought a priest would know better about this field... I apologize for inviting you without prior notice."
"No, no. That's understandable."
She was asking for confirmation from a specialist in the field on whether she truly had a talent for 'purification' ability.
Given the information she had, it was the most sensible excuse.
"As I've heard, she has a talent for purification ability. Though it is, after all, a talent as a mage, not as a cleric..."
The priest's subsequent explanation also confirmed that her judgment was correct.
The rank of the cleric she could summon was not very high, but she judged that it wouldn't be a problem.
The scale of matters that could be handled in such a backwater was limited, and if it was beyond this cleric's ability, then the situation required a special stratagem, not an ordinary response.
"Is that true, Priestess?"
"It is. The new court mage you invited possesses excellent discernment. This is a talent not easily recognized."
The cleric's name was Grace Eivano.
Her initial plan was to honestly fulfill Amelia's request once, thereby increasing the lord's trust in 'Mist' and herself.
First, she sought to secure her own safety and benefit.
If, as Amelia feared, the teacher's identity was truly sinister and needed to be dealt with, the lord's help would be required.
If not, there was no harm in befriending a mage favored by the lord.
"Hahaha! I knew it. From the moment I saw Sir Mist's appearance!"
"You flatter me, Lord."
"..."
Her only miscalculation was that the crisis that awaited her was far greater than she had imagined.
'Oh my god...!'
The moment she entered, the priestess could not bring herself to look toward the head seat.
Because of the enormous power and atmosphere emanating from there.
'This was absolutely not something I should have come to alone...!'
The power and atmosphere that Amelia, who had not formally entered the path of power, and Grace, a high-ranking priestess, could sense were on entirely different scales.
Only when she was physically close could she know, because Libertas herself had hidden it so meticulously.
'C-c-calm down, Grace! They say even in a troll's den, you can survive if you just keep your wits about you...!'
She thought she was keeping her back straight and showing a composed front, but in reality, she had subtly shifted her weight back, ready to flee at any moment.
Her instinct was subtly revealing her desire to run from this place.
Even without using a proper detection skill, it was the normal reaction of a human who had already sensed that great trouble had befallen her.
'As a cleric, your ability is excellent.'
'Could it be... really?'
The only ones who noticed that were Libertas herself and Amelia, who was closely watching the priest's reaction.
Even so, the atmosphere in the room did not change.
Libertas had no reason to change the mood, while Amelia tried to hide the fact that she had noticed with superhuman patience.
The others were oblivious.
'Demonic presences from all sides... I've been caught noticing.'
The priest, Grace, knew.
If her opponent were a simple monster, it would not have so discreetly surrounded the area to achieve its goal.
According to the emergency protocols she knew, she was supposed to either survive and escape this place alive, or at least set off an emergency signal to summon clerics in the vicinity.
'But even if I set off the signal, I'll most likely die a dog's death, and worse, I might drag countless others to their deaths... What should I do?'
But this place was a backwater even for the kingdom.
Thus, she could only continue to waver, unable to use her last resort.
Even if reinforcements gathered, she had no confidence they could accomplish anything against the great evil standing before her right now.
Because she was a mere ordinary priest, unprepared to shoulder her own death, let alone the many others that would follow.
"..."
Even without meeting her eyes, Libertas could fully sense Amelia's expression.
Amelia was struggling to maintain a quiet posture while her eyes trembled faintly, and a slight stiffness crept into the corners of her mouth despite her smile.
'Clearly, my guess was right.'
She had sensed something from the priest's appearance, and worry and fear had flooded in.
Even so, she could not act rashly.
'What should I do after moving away from Father...'
If Libertas's identity were revealed, the first to be attacked would be her parents beside her.
For they were Lord Baleon and Baroness Grellda.
Though he had been a fairly accomplished knight in his youth, his body, long settled into a chair, had gained flesh and his muscles had lost their elasticity.
Far from protecting the two from a monster's assault, he couldn't even guarantee his own safety.
"But, are you feeling unwell somewhere?"
"Ah, yes. I've walked a long way and am tired. I would like to rest a bit first and then look around inside the castle."
"Dear me. Then I shall not detain you. You there, escort the priestess to the guest room."
""Yes!""
At the lord's words, the priest turned away with great relief, believing she had at least bought some time.
Then her shoulders hunched again, and she bowed her head slightly, looking around at her surroundings.
Because a demonic presence had instantly approached right before her eyes—from one helmeted soldier and the servant standing beside him.
Even for someone not particularly observant, it was such an obvious reaction that one couldn't possibly miss it.
"N-no, no, nothing. A momentary dizziness. It seems I am very, very tired."
"Dear me, tsk tsk. Quickly, escort her."
Thus, the people who wore their helmets and hats pulled low to hide their faces guided the priest to the guest room, exiting the reception room.
Immediately afterward, the black Dungeon Lord rose from her seat.
"Leaving already?"
"I've yet to prepare for Miss Amelia's afternoon lesson."
"Oh dear. Then I can't possibly keep you. Amy, won't you go and assist your teacher? If you help, you might learn something."
"Ah, th-that, no...!"
At her father's words—he knew nothing of the circumstances—Amelia unconsciously tried to refuse.
"Would you, Miss Amelia?"
But then she froze under her suspicious teacher's gaze.
"...Yes!"
Afterward, released from her stiffness, she gave the opposite answer.
In the battle between instinct and reason, reason had won.
'Unconditionally...!'
No matter how frightening, if she couldn't avoid it, she ultimately had to face it and find a countermeasure.