222. Hilash (2)
222. Hilash (2)
- 1 -
「No matter what happens, remain in Hysen.」
This was the reply that came back to Esther's hopeful request to return to the Holy Kingdom.
"Why..."
The cold words in the letter plunged her into deep despondency.
Charak.
"Haah..."
The Saintess could not hide her complicated feelings as she set down the Pope's personal letter.
Her lips pressed into a thin, straight line.
Her hair, usually tied up neatly, had come undone and covered her face.
Normally, she would have considered the Pope's command to be the will of God, but now, it was far too difficult to do so.
"Strange."
Esther retraced her own history, rubbing her pale forehead with her hand.
Thirteen years since her selection.
In that time, she had lived a life befitting a Saintess. No, she had shown devotion beyond that.
Even when her senior Saintesses enjoyed banquets and socializing, she chose confession and prayer.
Even when called to the priests' drinking parties, she merely sipped a glass of water and listened to their troubles.
She never missed a single day of devoting time to the faithful.
A girl born in an ordinary countryside village, she had become a cleric in the blink of an eye at thirteen and began her religious work.
Even up to this very moment.
Whenever there were those who doubted her qualifications as a Saintess, she strove to become even more perfect.
"All I ever wanted was to comfort people's hearts, even just a little."
But now, the Holy Kingdom had given her an incomprehensible order.
To remain in Hysen for a suspiciously long time to handle the post-war aftermath of a conflict already over.
What made her more anxious was the attitude of those around her, including the clerics.
[You absolutely must attend this banquet, Saintess! Please, grant us too the honor of serving you...!]
[Saintess, this liquor is a specialty of our territory. Just a sip, please.]
[How about a trip outside the capital? I shall personally escort you...]
An endless stream of banquets and social engagements, like a well-crafted script.
Whenever she refused, she could see the faces of the clerics around her and Duke Astermark subtly twisting.
Today, she had even heard news that the Duke's son had broken off his engagement with a count's family on the western border.
She was uneasy.
'Something is definitely...'
A gut feeling that something was going terribly wrong.
But this ominous feeling was something she had never experienced before, so she could not comprehend it.
The Saintess, who had grown up preserving her purity her whole life, could not fathom that the world's dark underside could ever befall her, even if she knew of it.
The malice of people was merely a subject for purification; it was never directed at her.
[I've procured a special drink for this evening. I'm certain it will be to the Saintess's liking as well.]
Even this evening, a banquet with Duke Astermark was scheduled.
She bowed her head, agonizing over how she could refuse both the drink and the occasion.
"Please. O Lord. Grant me the wisdom and grace to navigate this situation..."
Esther traced the corners of her eyes, where her token—the sacred pupils—were embedded.
Her fingertips kept trembling.
It was then.
Kung.
Her heart gave a heavy thump.
She raised her head and looked toward the sky.
The southern sky.
'This is...!'
The sensation of a 'revelation'—one she had felt once before.
Something that felt similar to God's grace, yet somehow more distant, deeper, and far more profound, burrowed into her heart.
"What is this feeling?"
Both the first time she felt it and the second, she had checked with the clerics around her to see if anyone else had sensed something similar.
And the answer she got was that even her senior and fellow Saintesses had not felt this.
A sensation that only she perceived.
A divine energy as if an angel were bestowing it solely upon her.
'Revelation.'
Her starlight-infused eyes shone clearly.
A revelation that arrived in this moment of crisis.
Cheolkeok.
The Saintess, who had prayed briefly on her knees by the window, rose from her spot and put on her armor.
With the hope that this might just be her salvation.
- 2 -
"You can still refuse, Saya."
The Prince's voice resonated heavily.
He stood with his hands behind his back, staring only at the bookshelf.
Because he could not bring himself to look at his own shadow warrior.
He was not a scoundrel who felt no shame in sacrificing another's body for his own position.
If that other person was a warrior who had served him for a long time, he ought to be even more ashamed.
- If I refuse... this deal will fall through, won't it?
The shadow warrior's voice was calm.
She had already made up her mind over the past few days.
The other requests might not have involved her body, but they were even harder for the nation to accept.
Even if her current master was of Prince lineage, those were difficult demands that could invite political attack if accepted.
So, she decided to offer herself.
It was a fate extremely different from the glorious end she had once imagined, but it was bearable if she considered it the price of loyalty to her master.
"... Are you truly fine with this? What they are demanding is not a simple drinking party."
The Prince's fist clenched tightly.
"How could they demand such a thing... This is... wrong."
Watching her master's face as he clenched his eyes shut, chewing over the words as if resentful and indignant...
'He didn't have to go so far as to put on an act.'
The shadow warrior held a sneer in her heart.
It was an act to reaffirm his long-time subordinate's loyalty, born from the fear that the plan might fall through.
And a scheme to ensure the 'hospitality' did not fail.
But she merely bowed her head, to keep her cynical heart from being revealed.
- Then... will you refuse?
Silence descended.
The silence that passed between master and servant, who had been together for so long, carried an unusual weight.
The master considered her 'my sword,' and the shadow warrior considered him 'my liege lord.' It was that kind of relationship.
Yet, making a mockery of the oath they had once sworn, a crack was now forming between the two of them here and now.
At that moment.
Sa-ak!
The warrior felt a sensation that shook her spine.
A feeling she had felt before, but this time it was far greater than before.
A premonition, on a completely different scale from anything she'd known, seized and shook all her sensory organs.
"What is it?"
The Prince asked, puzzled by the warrior's sudden loss of balance, but instead of answering, she turned her gaze out the window.
A premonition she had lived with her whole life.
What had previously only stimulated her senses before was now shaking her entire body with the impact of a tremor.
'I must go.'
The ancient power that read the flow of the world.
The power that once meant her glory was crying out to her.
- Rise.
Something was calling her.
Like a grand fate.
The sound of a destiny that could no longer be defied or avoided.
"...!"
In the silence that was hers alone, the Prince's lips moved.
But her ears could not hear it.
Because all her senses were directed toward the approaching fate.
On the Night of the Fifteenth Moon, Saya bit her lip.
- 3 -
The afternoon sun poured through the spires of Hylash.
A secretive space in a corner of the garden.
Under the shade of the trees, a black dress adorned with splendid western-style patterns swayed in the breeze.
Beside her, a blonde knight wearing a long sword at her hip was speaking about something.
But at some point, they stopped their conversation and looked this way.
"Have you been well and safe, my lord husband?"
"Please come in, Master. I apologize for not coming to greet you."
The master and servant bowed their heads. In truth, they were my women, and they welcomed me.
"Eve. Ran."
My hero, Evangeline, whose green eyes sparkled with loyalty and love.
My guide, Yuran, who caressed her black hair and gave a captivating smile.
My guardian, Shue, who always stayed by my side and never ceased her crimson watch.
And myself, Libertas.
At last, the four of us were gathered in one place again.
We had only been apart for about three weeks, but it felt like three months... no, three years.
Because being this close to them made me incredibly happy.
"It has indeed been a long time since we were all gathered like this."
Yuran's eyes curved gracefully.
Deep affection rippled within her golden eyes.
"All preparations are complete, Master."
Evangeline was simply more composed, but the same emotion was present in her as well.
Loyalty aimed at her master, and love as if gazing upon a partner bound by fate.
Perhaps because it had been so long, their feelings moved my heart even more deeply.
"It's a shame Sonia couldn't be here with us."
"Indeed... But someone had to guard the dungeon."
When I casually voiced a thought that occurred to me, Shue answered as if she had been waiting, quite naturally.
It was a reply that added a degree of certainty to a thought I had only been speculating about.
I hadn't said it out loud yet, but there was probably no need to discuss it further.
Because the moment when I could confirm everything with my own eyes was approaching.
"How's the atmosphere?"
We walked slowly.
The four of us, myself included, strolling under the lush shade of the trees, were the picture of leisure.
To anyone watching, it would look like a casual outing.
"The atmosphere... It's good. Too good, which is the problem."
But if anyone were to learn its true nature, they would either laugh and tell you not to joke, or be petrified with terror.
Because everyone in this group, and every entity hidden in their respective shadows, was a monster.
"It's debauched and obscene. Everyone is lost in decadence, and everyone has their guard down."
Evangeline muttered with contempt.
Her eyes sparkled when she looked at me, but when she turned her head to observe our surroundings, they sank deep and flashed dangerously.
It was as if she would indiscriminately slaughter the nearby nobles if given the order right then.
'In reality, it probably wouldn't be much different.'
Normally, she gets along well with everyone, human or monster alike, but she is actually the one among us who dislikes humans the most.
The reason others in the dungeon fear her is because she is the strictest when the time calls for strictness, not because she acts scary in normal times.
"In truth, many of the nobles are planning parties that seem suited for monsters to enjoy. Had it not been for your planned arrival, Master, I might have enjoyed them myself."
Yuran spoke with her eyes curved.
Her seductive voice was steeped in the scent of blood.
There was a high probability those parties she mentioned involved something abnormal.
'Like the nobles' "human hunts", for instance.'
Monsters hunting humans was instinct, so there was nothing to criticize about that.
The issue was how they treated the prey afterward.
In that respect, human hunts were far crueler than those of monsters.
"Don't lie... You know perfectly well the Master would hate it if you came back smelling of blood."
Shue lightly scolded Ran.
She appeared composed at a glance, but her aura was the sharpest of anyone present.
It felt as if she would slice off anyone's head if they tried to approach rapidly.
"Shue. You can relax. No one is coming."
"... Okay."
Even as she answered me, the tension did not leave her shoulders.
She acted as if everything in this world was capable of hurting me.
This was not just her; it was the same for all of Seth.
A vigilant aura, hard for anyone but me to detect, enveloped our surroundings.
'I understand, since they're children who lost me once...'
Still, I didn't like that they couldn't be comfortable like this.
'I shouldn't stay long.'
Making that mental promise, I turned my head toward the direction of the 'presence' that had felt like it was pricking the back of my skull.
The sky of the royal capital.
There, two stars only we could see had risen.
Dark green and crimson.
Two stars that announced the brilliant pull of destiny.