The Important Thing Is an Unbreakable Heart
I poured my heart into every word as I spoke.
“I don’t need the wings, and I’ll seriously consider having Lady Espia, the Phoenix of Dawn, join the guild. I’ll give it some real thought.”
I was trying to buy a little time and dodge the immediate situation. Unfortunately, she wasn’t the type to let me off that easily.
“You dislike wings? Even so, please accept them for now. There was once an adventurer who took an egg and some feathers from me. He was terribly afraid of birds as well.”
“I see. However, my condition goes far beyond simple fear. Even seeing the crows that are everywhere in the empire makes my breath catch and my body tremble with instinctive terror.”
“That friend of mine was so scared of parrots that he refused to repeat anything they mimicked. His ornithophobia was that severe. Yet he boiled the egg I gave him and ate it quite deliciously.”
“Ah.”
Okay, she got me. Damn it, what kind of person is so scared of parrots that they won’t even say words the birds mimicked? Is he insane?
I swallowed my tears and forced the words out with great difficulty.
“Understood… Then, to overcome my ornithophobia, I suppose I must accept Lady Espia’s kindness.”
And that was how the merchant guild carriage I had arrived in ended up loaded with a hundred phoenix feathers—something even the most powerful nobles might see only once in a lifetime. They radiated a brilliant, sun-like glow. I had even received five of the legendary eggs.
‘Well… at least these eggs aren’t laid like normal bird eggs. They’re created from pure magical power, so I won’t feel too gross eating them later. That’s a silver lining, I guess.’
I soothed my aching stomach and turned my gaze to the front of the carriage. There, looking thoroughly refreshed from their hot spring bath, sat Iriniel, Elenoa, and Lillian. Their faces were slightly flushed, and they wore nothing but towels wrapped loosely around their bodies as they huddled together.
They had cracked open the extra eggs Espia had shaped with her magic and were now devouring the resulting sunny-side-up eggs with their forks, completely lost in ecstasy.
“Th-this is incredibly delicious. For a commoner like me to eat something even a duke— no, even His Imperial Majesty would struggle to obtain… I really made the right choice following Lord Ideon.”
“I feel the same. I was already prepared to serve him for life if he would simply keep me fed, but now… I don’t think I could ever leave His Lordship’s side again.”
“Mmm-hmm! It really does have a deeper flavor the longer it’s been producing eggs. Not like a chicken coop, of course, Aunt.”
I stared blankly at the completely enraptured expressions on my closest aides—expressions I had never seen before. Then I turned my head slightly to look toward the entrance of the nest.
There stood Espia, having withdrawn her massive half-human, half-bird form. With only her sharp talons, flaming wings, and crimson eyes remaining, she had taken on an almost perfectly human appearance. She was finishing her preparations to leave the nest for good.
“Soon, all evil across the continent will disappear.”
Espia gently scattered warm sparks of blessing toward the countless people of Erg Village who knelt before her as if she were a god.
“Stay here only until the day all the Original Prisoners are gone. Then, without regret, leave this village and live your own lives.”
“Thank you! Thank you so much!!”
“Even after we leave, we will never forget the Phoenix of Dawn!!”
She accepted their tearful farewells with a gentle smile, then walked toward me with noticeably lighter steps.
“Well then, our Lord Ideon… or rather, Guild Leader? Could you tell me what I should do from now on?”
Her expression was overflowing with motivation. I watched her for a moment before slowly opening my mouth.
“First… let’s eat.”
After we finished the meal and began preparing to depart, I had Elenoa and Lillian board the carriage first. Then I called Iriniel and Espia alone to a secluded clearing.
There, I explained the current state of the empire and the emperor in as much detail as possible.
“…And so the emperor formed a contract with the King of All Lives to escape death’s door. In exchange, countless imperial citizens have had half their lifespans stolen without even realizing it. That likely includes myself, Lillian, and Elenoa as well.”
At the horrifying truth that left my lips, Iriniel’s face twisted into a scowl. Espia also dropped her smile, her sharp talons twitching restlessly.
“Anyway, I want to kill the emperor and cleanly dispose of the King of All Lives before things escalate into a catastrophe. I was wondering if the two of you might have a surefire method using your powers.”
“Hmm… I wonder.”
Espia appeared to ponder my question for a moment before offering an intriguing suggestion.
“The King of All Lives, you say… In that case, shall I twist my authority in reverse and create an egg resembling a poisonous apple? One that, the moment it is consumed, drains every last drop of life force and lifespan?”
“Is that possible?”
I asked with wide eyes. Espia flashed a bright smile, her crimson eyes sparkling.
“Those who can grant miracles to others can, paradoxically, bestow upon them misfortune and despair far beyond any miracle—if they so choose. Well? Shall I prepare it right away?”
“I… see.”
Watching Espia, who looked ready to fly straight to the imperial palace and shove the egg down the emperor’s throat, I couldn’t answer immediately. I fell into thought once more.
‘Come to think of it, while it wouldn’t matter if we killed the King of All Lives right now… the emperor is a different story.’
Looks like I’ll have to adjust the plan.
“No. On second thought, while the King of All Lives can be killed, we need to keep the emperor alive a little longer. If the emperor collapses and the throne becomes vacant right now, there’s a high chance the entire empire would crumble from within.”
I quietly swallowed the rest of my thoughts while recalling the game’s main storyline.
There was still one more Original Prisoner hiding within the empire that we needed to deal with. Until we captured that one, we needed the empire as a shield. Moreover, while the King of All Lives had certainly contributed to the empire’s eventual destruction, the vast majority of that downfall had been caused directly by that bastard.
Having organized my thoughts to some degree, I rose from the tree stump and turned around.
“Let’s finish the rest of this conversation after we return and complete this delivery request first.”
Leaving the two behind, I headed back to my personal carriage and carefully opened the door.
The interior was so blindingly bright from the hundred phoenix feathers occupying the seats that it was hard to keep my eyes open. Tiny red embers floated everywhere, and the air inside the carriage was scorching hot. I endured it all, collapsed into my seat, and pressed a hand to my forehead.
‘Haa… Just looking at this scene makes me feel like I’m about to catch avian flu.’
After a long journey of roughly nine days, I finally returned to the capital of the Servenrote Empire. Without delay, I headed straight for the imperial palace.
Inside the audience chamber, where everything gleamed with golden light, I knelt on one knee below the dais and bowed my head with utmost respect.
“That person said to offer these to the esteemed individuals who labor day and night for His Imperial Majesty and the empire. She has gifted ten phoenix feathers as a present. Of course, as Your Majesty commanded, we have also firmly established a treaty to deliver one legendary egg and five feathers on a regular monthly basis.”
Hidden inside my coat were the ninety feathers Espia had practically forced on me, but I didn’t bat an eye. I simply wore the shameless smile of a brazen merchant.
The moment I finished my report, gasps of admiration erupted from the numerous high-ranking officials lined up above and below the dais.
“Ooh, by the gods! The legendary elixir every single month!”
“Truly befitting the Guild Leader with his magnificent foresight!”
Above their noisy praise, the emperor—who had been sitting silently on his throne—let out a deeply arrogant laugh.
“Hahaha! So the true identity of that red cocco was the Phoenix of Dawn… Well, it doesn’t matter. An elixir is an elixir, after all.”
The emperor stared fixedly at the ornate box I had presented before the throne, his eyes filled with greed.
‘He’s quite the actor.’
The King of All Lives must have already known. Or perhaps it hadn’t told the emperor that much? Either way, it was an utterly disgusting sight.
“Very well, Guild Leader of Caldia. I have now confirmed your overwhelming capability through this matter. I shall forgive all your previous impertinence and bestow upon you the title of count!”
“Your benevolence is immeasurable, Your Majesty.”
With those words, the emperor personally picked up the box containing the legendary egg I had offered, as if embracing a rare treasure, and left the audience chamber first with his attendants in tow.
I remained prostrated on the floor, watching his retreating figure until it disappeared into the distance.
Damn it, he really gave me the count title… No, that’s not it.
‘May your life force be slowly drained away, you filthy prisoner.’
The egg he would greedily devour was packed full of every curse and reversed life-absorbing authority that the Phoenix of Dawn, Espia, had meticulously infused into it. The more he ate, the less his life would be extended. Instead, it was the deadliest of poisons, secretly gnawing away at both the King of All Lives and the emperor’s lifespans.
‘By the time you notice something is wrong, it will already be far too late to turn back.’
The moment the emperor completely vanished from sight, I stood up, dusting myself off. Then I turned to the elderly nobles and officials who still remained in the audience chamber, clearly waiting to speak with me. I erased every trace of the killing intent I had shown earlier and flashed them my friendliest smile.
“Now that His Imperial Majesty’s share has been delivered… I shall distribute the remaining feathers to all of you who devote yourselves to the empire, as a token of the eternal friendship between you and the Caldia Merchant Guild. I humbly ask for your continued guidance in our guild’s future endeavors.”
Every time a feather was placed in their hands following my smooth words, the empire’s most powerful figures forgot all dignity. Their mouths stretched ear to ear as they nodded vigorously.
The usually strict old Minister of Finance cleared his throat and clutched the feather more preciously than his cane. Even the Inspection Bureau Director, with his normally sinister gaze, twitched the corners of his mouth and gave me the warm smile of a grandfather looking at his successful grandson.
Some time later, after finishing all the tedious greetings and exiting through the main gates of the imperial palace, the sky had already begun to darken with the glow of sunset.
I was about to climb into the waiting guild carriage when I paused with my hand on the door handle. I quietly looked up at the crimson-dyed imperial sky.
“…I still haven’t given up.”
It was good that I had given one of the Beasts of Beginning—the emperor—a massive middle finger. But somehow I had ended up accepting a count title and was now in a ridiculous situation where every major power in the empire acknowledged me.
My goal of bankrupting the guild seemed to be drifting further and further away. Even so, I had one clear reason that I could never stop.
My eyes were fixed not on the capital, but on a single existence hiding somewhere within the empire.
‘Unlike the Marionette of Tears or the Witch of Indifference… that bastard has already reached completion as a calamity.’
The last remaining Original Prisoner, coiled alongside the King of All Lives within the empire. It was the most cruel and cunning of them all—the one closest to truly deserving the title of “prisoner.” It was a calamity I had faced countless times in the game, one I had never been able to overcome.
‘Even if the overall damage to the continent ends up less than before…’
Once that thing began to move in earnest, a storm of blood would inevitably sweep across the entire empire. The time I could spend leisurely running a business like this wouldn’t last much longer.
According to the original storyline, the day that perfect calamity would bare its fangs to cut off the empire’s breath was not far off.
I clenched my fist tightly.
“So before it’s too late… I will definitely go bankrupt. No matter what it takes!”