The One Who Unsealed the Great Demon
The most intriguing part of Nicesas’s tale wasn’t that he had failed to ascend, nor that he had driven the demons away with his Land Boars.
What truly caught Elbridge’s attention was the fact that Nicesas had been given three separate chances to ascend.
People often overlooked it because there were already so many gods in the heavens, but the Lord’s selection was not an opportunity that came often.
“Nicesas. Just how wildly did you live?”
“It wasn’t so much that I lived wildly. I simply lived a very long time. Even among the elves, there aren’t many older than I am.”
“Really?”
“I’ve met several gods before they ascended. Come to think of it… I also met the Goddess of the Rusty Shield before she ascended.”
A tempting story had slipped out.
It was early morning. The perfect time when the Goddess of the Rusty Shield would still be asleep.
Elbridge lowered his voice.
“…What kind of person was she?”
Even as he asked, Elbridge assumed Nicesas would not answer. Most people dodged questions about the heavens or divinity with vague excuses.
But Nicesas proved to be the first exception Elbridge had ever met.
“Skaldrina the Unyielding. She was quite famous.”
“…!”
It was customary for beings to discard their names upon ascension, so very few gods were known by the names they had used while alive on the ground. Naturally, this was the first time Elbridge had ever heard his goddess’s true name.
That wasn’t the end of it. Nicesas continued speaking as casually as if he were sharing neighborhood gossip.
“Back then, the holy knight the people loved most was undoubtedly Skaldrina.”
“Is that so? She must have been the strongest holy knight.”
“Her skills were certainly excellent. Whether she was the strongest, I’m not sure… But what made Skaldrina beloved wasn’t her strength. It was her personality. Despite her sharp appearance, she had a soft heart and was rather indecisive. Oh, right—this isn’t something your goddess is listening to, is it?”
Even though he knew no one else was around, Elbridge lowered his voice further.
“Don’t worry. It’s the time when the Goddess is asleep. Anyway, why would that make her beloved?”
“Because even in situations where an ordinary knight would have to retreat, she would often stand her ground and refuse to fall back.”
The leadership of each order did not think highly of knights who were slow to make tactical judgments or lacked cold reason.
But from the perspective of the people standing behind those holy knights, the story changed completely.
Refusing to retreat even when retreat was necessary meant she had saved people who should have died, and that the probability of those under her protection surviving was the highest.
“Anyway, you can tell at a glance who’s going to become a god. The first time I saw Skaldrina, I was certain. ‘Ah, that one will ascend…’ And sure enough, it happened just as I predicted. Not long after, she ascended together with her friend.”
Nicesas’s story was so extraordinary that Elbridge only belatedly grew worried.
“Nicesas. Is it really all right for you to tell me these things? Sharing stories of the heavens with those on the ground is taboo, isn’t it?”
“This isn’t a story of the heavens. It’s a story of the ground, told by a being who still belongs to the ground, about someone who once belonged to the ground. How could someone like me, who never properly set foot in the heavens, leak information about them?”
This was an incredible opportunity. Nicesas was someone who remembered events from a distant past that hadn’t even been passed down as legends, and he was willing to share those stories.
There were mountains of questions Elbridge wanted to ask.
But the person who rose to the forefront of his mind right now was the Master of the Central Magic Tower.
Had the Master of the Central Magic Tower told him to head south to the Eternal Lake with Nicesas in mind? Had he believed Nicesas would tell him about Leonhardt?
Even if he was barking up the wrong tree, it didn’t matter.
Elbridge thought it was unlikely that Nicesas didn’t know Leonhardt.
“Do you also know Sir Leonhardt?”
“Leonhardt of the Rusty Shield Order? We only spoke a few times. Now that I think about it…”
Nicesas stared straight at Elbridge.
“So you’re the one Leonhardt mentioned. The one who could have ascended but chose not to. Now I understand why he said that. You are someone who deserves to rise to the heavens.”
“Me?”
“I told you earlier. You can tell at a glance who’s going to ascend. You will seize that opportunity someday. If not in this life, then in the next.”
Nicesas’s words sounded less like speculation and more like a firm declaration.
Elbridge’s heart began to pound violently.
I… am going to become a god in the heavens?
“Of course, not right now. The gate to the heavens is growing narrower, so you’ll need even greater skill and more monumental achievements. You’re not satisfied with your current level, are you?”
“…Of course not.”
Only recently had he realized how far behind the other holy knights had fallen, but no one understood better than Elbridge himself just how long the road ahead still was.
Even setting age aside, Elbridge had been an outstanding warrior, but he had never been the absolute best. At least, not by the standards of that era.
Nicesas rummaged through his pocket and said,
“Great trials follow heroes. Elbridge. When the hardest moment comes—when you desperately need help—call on me. We can help each other. You will overcome the crisis, and I will gain my fourth chance to ascend.”
What Nicesas pulled from his pocket was a silver coin engraved with his own profile.
It was undoubtedly an object imbued with magic.
Just where does he get things like this…
Elbridge accepted the coin and asked,
“Was becoming a god your goal as well?”
“Yes. I will become the god of half-bloods and mongrels. The god of those who were abandoned and left to squeeze into the gaps.”
He had already guessed that Nicesas was a half-elf. Pure-blooded elves rarely left the forests of the north.
Then Nicesas asked Elbridge a question.
“By the way, why is the one who was sealed together with the Great Demon walking around freely now?”
“The seal was released around this time last year.”
“Who released the seal?”
“I don’t know. I don’t know who did it, or whether it came undone naturally.”
Nicesas frowned.
“No. If a living person was used as the core of the seal, there are only two ways it can be undone. First, if you gave up on everything and accepted death. Second, if someone deliberately released the seal. There are no exceptions.”
New information Elbridge had never known emerged. When his eyes widened, Nicesas’s expression grew even more troubled.
“Is this the first time you’re hearing this?”
“Yes.”
“Elbridge. This is information any half-decent mage would know. The fact that you didn’t know means… you never tried to find out who released your seal.”
That was undeniably true. Elbridge had been briefly curious about why the seal had broken, but he had never once tried to investigate the reason he had been freed. Not even once.
In a slightly smaller voice, Elbridge explained the circumstances.
“I was busy with one thing after another. The order’s situation was precarious. And I couldn’t comfortably reveal my identity…”
“No. That’s not it.”
Nicesas cut him off.
“You’re not a fool. The moment you were released from the seal, you would have wondered first and foremost why it had been undone. There is only one reason you haven’t looked into it until now.”
“…What is it?”
“You simply became satisfied with the current situation after being freed. You didn’t want to think about why you were released from the seal. Isn’t that right?”
Elbridge felt his heart sink.
It was the same feeling he had as a child when an adult caught him doing something bad.
When Elbridge fell silent, Nicesas gestured to the Land Boar.
The Land Boar that had been carrying Elbridge crouched down and gently lowered him to the ground.
Nicesas spoke one last time.
“If you need help, contact me. Elbridge.”
When Elbridge returned to the village, the herd of Land Boars had already vanished without a trace.
Rombel and Marcus had woken up, and the village chief, Martha, had finished preparing to guide Elbridge’s party. She was even holding generous packed lunches for the three of them in both hands.
“Follow me!”
Even though they had only stayed in the village for a day or two, Marcus had grown strangely close to Martha.
While the two of them chattered away affectionately, Rombel approached Elbridge.
“Where did you go this morning?”
“Nowhere special. Just went out for some fresh air.”
That was how he answered, but inside Elbridge’s head, countless thoughts were swirling.
Have I truly become satisfied with the current situation?
It was hard to deny.
The endless waiting—without knowing when it would end, or whether it would end at all—had been unbearably painful.
He couldn’t even count how many times he had regretted volunteering to become the seal’s core. He had only endured because he lacked the courage to give up.
Because of that, the confusion he felt on the day the seal broke had been brief.
The Goddess’s oracle saying he had done enough and that it was time for him to rest had secretly brought him joy.
Though he had spoken of rebuilding the order without turning away from his duty, in reality that had been the most certain form of avoidance.
Wasn’t it a declaration that he would turn his eyes away from the great problems facing the world and only tend to the order?
He had refused to face the problems that had come upon the world.
He had avoided touching on troublesome issues.
He hadn’t seriously considered solutions.
He had simply enjoyed the life he had regained, using the excuse that he was busy and that there were countless things he had to do for the Goddess and the order.
His chest felt tight. But at the same time, Elbridge’s mind grew clear.
He offered a prayer.
“Goddess.”
“It seems I will become even busier from now on.”
“While traveling through the Great Forest and seeing and experiencing many things, many thoughts came to me. So many tasks that must be done.”
“I will take your words to heart, Goddess.”
But contrary to the Goddess’s words, Elbridge felt that the past year had been nothing but rest.
Now was the time to nock the arrow on the bowstring.
The order’s situation had stabilized. It was time to move beyond immediate problems and confront more fundamental ones.
“We’re here!”
After half a day of following Martha, the Great Forest came to an end and a vast plain unfolded before the party’s eyes.
Martha hugged Marcus tightly, then waved at Elbridge’s group.
“If you ever have business in the south, come visit! Especially you, Mister Marcus—you absolutely must come!”
Martha cupped her hands around her mouth and blew a kiss toward the departing Marcus.
In return, Marcus grinned widely and waved back at her.
“I’ll make a fortune and come get you, so wait just a little longer!”
In such a short time, there had clearly been enormous progress between the two.
“…”
Aside from how strangely well they suited each other, both Elbridge and Rombel found the sight a little unpleasant.
“Let’s see…”
Marcus used the position of the sun to determine their direction.
Their destination was naturally the eastern Holy City of Soleneon.
“It’s that way. Let’s go.”
But Elbridge did not follow Marcus.
“No. There is a place we must visit first.”
“A place we must visit? Are we stopping by a mountain city? Or Middlemarch?”
Elbridge shook his head.
“The place where I was sealed for two hundred years.”
The rest was over.
The fortunate thing was that he hadn’t simply played around during the past year.
A small force.
Trustworthy companions.
And the strength to endure battle.
That was the minimum preparation completed.
It was time to dig up every problem from its very origin.
In the end, all the answers would be in one place.
“First, I will find out who released the seal of the Great Demon.”