Chapter 104
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Translator: MadScientist
Chapter: 104
Chapter Title: Saintess
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The emperor of the Holy Empire Yukram felt a headache coming on.
"Your Majesty! Word has come that the heroes dispatched to the south have been completely wiped out...!"
"News that the 'Empress' residing in the eastern Demon Realm has made her move...!"
"Your Majesty! The Hero of Glory has defied Your Majesty's solemn command and deserted the northern front without permission...!"
Even one of these pieces of major news was enough to give him a headache, and now several had come crashing down at once. As he read through his ministers' reports one by one, the emperor let out a deep sigh. Thanks to the halo unique to the imperial bloodline, his ministers probably couldn't see this weak side of him.
'Father. Where are you?'
As he handled the backlog of work, reflecting on how immature he still was compared to his father, the emperor thought of the previous emperor, who had now vanished.
His father had been the wisest and most benevolent emperor of all. After the long war with the demons had exhausted the people's morale, he had soothed their hearts, stabilized the northern front where monsters kept pouring in, repelled the endless assaults from the demon hordes, and ultimately achieved the long-cherished human dream of conquering the Demon Realm during his reign.
But one day, the previous emperor changed. The emperor who had been more focused than anyone on subjugating the demons and stabilizing the livelihood of the people suddenly shut himself in his chambers, poring over ancient tomes or suspicious books. He even began holding secret meetings with unidentified figures brought into the palace, showing all sorts of suspicious behavior.
And then came the sudden 'Dungeon Maintenance' policy he announced. It was that absurd policy that had halted the empire's advance, when morale was soaring after finally conquering the Demon Realm at great sacrifice.
But the emperor's stance was firm, and with his authority at an all-time high from his many achievements, no one dared oppose his command.
In the end, he pushed the Dungeon Maintenance policy through despite opposition from numerous ministers, and not long after... he disappeared.
No one could figure out how the emperor, residing in the imperial palace, could vanish without a trace. Some said it was the work of demons who had infiltrated the capital, others claimed it was divine punishment for avoiding war with the demons.
Still others speculated it was the doing of certain ministers or high priests dissatisfied with his policies... but the truth was never uncovered. In the end, the current emperor inherited the throne, but the imperial authority had plummeted far below what it once was.
"Your Majesty! The Hero of Glory, who defied the solemn imperial command and returned without permission, must be punished!"
While the emperor was lost in thought for a moment, voices demanding punishment for Lumen, who had arbitrarily returned to the capital from the northern front, grew louder. The emperor rubbed his temple once and asked the minister who had brought the news.
"What is the Hero of Glory doing now?"
"Sir Lumen. Are you in your right mind? Defying the emperor's orders, no matter the reason...!"
Lumen, who had returned to the capital, silently listened to Lucas scolding him with wide-eyed shock. But he felt no regret for his actions.
"Lucas."
"Sir Lumen. Beg the emperor's forgiveness now and return to the northern front. It was His Majesty's will that placed you there..."
"I have a bad feeling about this."
"......Pardon? A feeling...?"
Would he have defied the emperor's orders simply out of emotional turmoil over losing his old friend and former subordinate, Pollen? More than mere anger over a friend's death, Lumen couldn't endure the rising sense of foreboding and had disobeyed orders to return to the capital on his own.
"You've heard the news about that newborn dungeon too, right, Lucas? What do you think?"
"...I think it's dangerous. That dungeon took down the formidable Sir Pollen and bewitched the heroes' minds... We must be on high alert."
"It's more than that."
Lumen cut off Lucas, who was relaying the temple's meeting decision to raise the alert level for that dungeon to the maximum after confirming it was still intact from investigating the suicided heroes' bodies, and stated his own view.
"We need to subjugate it right away. As soon as possible."
"Sir Lumen...?"
"Sir Pollen's death, the stirring demons, the sudden discovery of a new holy relic... That newborn dungeon was at the center of it all. I don't think any of this is coincidence. And leaving that dungeon, the heart of all these events, unchecked for long... I have a premonition that something irreversible will happen."
"If even you say so, Sir Lumen..."
High Priest Lucas hardened his expression upon hearing Lumen's words.
Lumen's instincts, honed from years of battling demons, sometimes produced results bordering on prophecy. Lucas had survived multiple times during the Demon Realm conquest thanks to that 'instinct' of his, so such words from Lumen didn't sound like empty talk to him.
"I'll go to His Majesty myself and make the proposal. I'll gladly accept any punishment, but for the south's newborn dungeon—no, it's no longer 'newborn.' I'll propose that we subjugate that vile dungeon as soon as possible."
Looking into the stubborn eyes of Lumen, Lucas was at a loss for words. This was precisely the opposite of the temple's meeting conclusion.
At the meeting's end, the priests who rated the threat level of that unidentified dungeon just below the Demon Realm dungeons had mostly agreed not to touch it rashly.
Since it had already taken down a 4-star hero, subjugating it would require at least a 5-star hero, but mobilizing that level of force needed the emperor's approval—and the 5-star heroes each had their assigned roles.
But those eyes of Sir Lumen... Even if the emperor opposed it, he looked ready to charge in alone.
"...Sir Lumen. If you're set on this... then I shall follow you as well."
Accepting Lumen's words, Lucas bowed his head and voiced his stance. Ever since Lumen had saved his life during the Demon Realm conquest, his life had belonged to Lumen.
"Can I join you too?"
Suddenly, a third party interjected into their conversation.
Lumen and Lucas, who had been holding a secret discussion in a place no one would visit, looked at the unexpected visitor and widened their eyes in surprise.
"Saintess...?"
"W-We greet the Saintess."
The Saintess. The sole being who could hear the voice of the one true god Eukrasia, who had fallen silent after bestowing holy relics upon humanity. Her authority rivaled that of the pope. When she appeared before them with a gentle smile, Lumen and Lucas, who hadn't anticipated her at all, panicked.
"Saintess. What do you mean by joining us...?"
"Sir Lumen. You're planning to enter the palace, right? To meet His Majesty and obtain permission to assault that dungeon."
"...Yes. Even if His Majesty—or even you, Saintess—opposes it, I..."
"I'll go with you. I'll help persuade His Majesty."
"Saintess...?"
The Saintess, whose authority was unparalleled as the symbol of hearing God's voice but who never took the lead, was now stepping forward so proactively that Lumen and Lucas's expressions turned strange. Then, intuiting one fact, Lucas asked in a trembling voice.
"S-Saintess. Is the reason you're moving like this... perhaps...!"
"Yes."
"...!!!"
Smiling brightly, the Saintess calmly said exactly what Lucas had hoped for.
"God has given an oracle."
"Oh...!"
At the news that their god, silent for so long, had spoken again, the lingering hesitation in Lucas—who had been somewhat worried about Lumen's actions—completely vanished. He knelt right there and began praying to the divine.
And Lumen, who had heard it all beside him, asked the Saintess with uncharacteristic excitement.
"Does that mean God also desires the conquest of that dungeon?"
"Not quite."
But the Saintess shook her head at Lumen's words.
"I simply wish to accompany you on your path, Sir Lumen. I don't know what awaits at the end of that path."
The voice of God he heard was a prophecy and oracle that she would accompany the path of the Radiant One. For the god who hadn't spoken once since appointing her as Saintess, breaking the long silence with such a vague oracle felt odd, but as the one who heard God's voice, she would simply follow the revelation.
What awaited at the end of that path, only God knew.
"Sir Lumen! There you are. His Majesty has urgently summoned you to the palace... Gasp! Saintess!"
A holy knight, who had been frantically searching for Lumen, finally found him and straightened his posture upon seeing the Saintess beside him. Why was the Saintess, who rarely left the prayer room, with the Hero of Glory...?
"Let's go, Sir Lumen."
"I leave it to you, Saintess."
"S-Saintess! Wh-Where are you going...?"
It was shocking enough that the Saintess, who rarely showed herself, had come outside, but when she followed Lumen toward the palace, the holy knight panicked and tried to block her.
"My. Surely I have the qualification to seek an audience with His Majesty too?"
"R-Right now, Sir Lumen is being summoned not just for an audience, but for disciplinary action...!"
"I'll speak to him directly myself."
The holy knight didn't know what to do, but the Saintess's will was so firm that he couldn't bring himself to stop her and let her pass. Stepping forward confidently, the Saintess thought to herself.
'...That was super cool just now, right? Kyaa!'
Asserting her 'qualification' as the Saintess to meet the emperor and coolly turning her back after saying she'd speak directly. Even she thought that scene looked incredibly cool.
'I've been cooped up in the temple every day, so bored...! This is my chance!'
God had given an oracle directly. And while wandering the temple by chance, she spotted the Hero of Glory and timed her entrance perfectly to interrupt their conversation in a dramatic, cool way.
Having never left the capital since being chosen as Saintess—only performing 'miracles' through holy power in the temple—she followed behind Lumen, hoping this chance might let her see the world.
And hoping she could unravel the questions she'd long harbored.