Chapter 32: What Is a Duel Meant to Protect? (4)
Translator: RaidenTL
Chapter 32: What Is a Duel Meant to Protect? (4)
A little over two weeks had passed since then.
The journey had been slower than expected due to the wounded, but they finally arrived in Kirdam, the capital of Calliban, to the enthusiastic cheers of the citizens.
Everywhere Alon looked, he saw people cheering with pride, their faces bright with joy.
The expedition officially concluded after the knights and soldiers, led by Deus, received the people's acclaim and entered the royal castle to report the subjugation of the Outer God.
As for Alon...
"It’s about time I headed out."
He prepared to depart again without a moment's hesitation.
From Alon’s perspective, there was no reason to remain in Calliban once the Outer God had been annihilated.
And I got plenty of gifts, too.
With a satisfied expression, he glanced toward the carriage.
It was loaded with numerous gifts from the King of Calliban, who had been quick to offer them in hopes of building a favorable relationship after hearing the report.
Alon gazed at the somewhat excessive tribute with a pleased heart hidden beneath his expressionless face, then spoke to Deus.
"Well then, I’ll see you around."
Alon was about to turn away after offering the standard, polite Korean-style parting—the equivalent of "Let's grab a meal sometime"—when Deus spoke up.
"May I... ask you something?"
It was the first time Deus had ever asked a sudden question, causing Alon to pause mid-turn.
"What is it?"
It had been about a month since he met Deus. From the start of the expedition to the North until their return to the capital, the man had expressed nothing but intense respect rather than asking questions. Alon waited patiently for him to continue.
After a brief silence, Deus spoke.
"Can I... also become strong?"
It was an unexpected question, and Alon looked at him with a hint of bewilderment.
Deus was already plenty strong.
Wondering what intention lay behind those words, Alon reached his own conclusion.
...The magic I used against the Outer God must have left quite an impression. I guess that’s why he’s acting even more respectful.
Having finished his deduction, Alon replied.
"Of course you can."
"...Is that so?"
"Yes. As long as you put in the effort, you'll be strong enough to achieve whatever you desire."
"! Is that true?"
"...? I just said it was, didn't I?"
Deus’s eyes widened as he asked for confirmation, leaving Alon even more puzzled as he answered.
Alon wasn't lying.
In reality, Deus—no, all of the Five Great Sins—possessed innate abilities that were nothing short of broken, even before the 'Gods' descended.
...In Deus's case, he has enough talent to become a Sword Master even without using his unique ability. It’s only a matter of time before he gets stronger, considering how far he’s come in just a year.
Listing it out like that made Alon realize just how blessed and talented the man before him was, leaving him feeling a bit bitter.
Ah, I wish I’d reincarnated into a more talented body, he thought briefly before speaking again.
"So, do not worry."
"I understand."
"Then, I'll be going."
"...Wait, may I ask just one more thing?"
"...What now?"
Alon paused again, caught in an awkward half-turn.
"May I ask... why you always make requests of me instead of giving orders?"
"...?"
Alon blinked behind his mask of indifference, wondering what on earth Deus was talking about. He quickly pieced together the context.
Does he think I have some ulterior motive for sponsoring him?
Of course, he did have the intention of preventing the descent of the Five Great Sins, but other than that, the blood-money and gifts he had showered upon them were out of pure goodwill.
...Well, the issue of the Five Great Sins was involved, but it was still goodwill, in a sense.
Feeling a bit wronged that his sincerity was being questioned, Alon replied.
"Who gives orders to family?"
With that final remark—hoping Deus would recognize his 'sincerity'—Alon boarded his carriage and departed for Asteria.
* * *
That night.
Sitting in his office at the manor, Deus sat in silence, staring blankly at the moon hanging in the sky.
"Sigh—"
A low sigh escaped him.
It wasn't because of the paperwork on his desk or the tasks he had to handle. It was because he had realized the extent of his own ignorance during this expedition.
"..."
Until now, Deus had believed he was strong enough.
The unique ability he had inherited was powerful enough to earn high praise even from Yutia.
Furthermore, his talent for the sword, which he had taken up according to the will of the Great Moon, surpassed even that of Reinhardt, the First Sword of Calliban. Deus knew this himself.
In fact, it was impossible not to know.
The countless looks of awe and the praise he had received while rising to the rank of Master Knight faster than anyone else made it impossible for him to be unaware of his own talent.
Because of that, he had vaguely believed his current strength was sufficient to take revenge on the 'Black Things.'
Even if his strength fell slightly short, he believed his talent would eventually carry him to that peak.
That was, until he met the Outer God.
"..."
To Deus, the existence of the Outer God—or rather, the sheer strength it possessed—was a shock.
The creature, which could choke the life out of a person and instill primal terror just by standing there, made Deus realize all too clearly that he was merely a frog in a well.
And that realization became even more profound when he looked at the Great Moon.
"...Haa."
He unconsciously recalled that moment.
The image of the Great Moon using magic against the Outer God with the setting sun at his back.
And the two eyes that had appeared behind him.
"..."
Naturally, Deus had no way of knowing what they were.
All he could discern was that those two eyes belonged to entirely different entities and that the Great Moon was wielding their power.
However, separate from that, Deus could instinctively sense one thing the moment he saw those eyes.
That 'thing' was something one should never perceive, something that was forbidden even to try and understand.
Even though it was his first time seeing it, the realization etched itself into his mind as if it were an absolute truth.
Like the sun rising in the east and setting in the west.
Like how all life that is born must eventually die.
The cognition that he must not seek to know it formed naturally, as if it were the most obvious thing in the world.
"..."
Thinking that far, Deus felt a sudden wave of shame.
Unlike Penia, who seemed to already know the extent of Alon's strength, he had been completely oblivious to the Great Moon's power.
In fact, Deus had even thought the Great Moon was weak.
To his eyes, the Great Moon possessed only a meager amount of mana.
But that was merely Deus's ignorance.
Unlike Deus, who had been frozen and unable to resist the Outer God, the Great Moon had stood before it as if it were the most natural thing in the world, engaged it in combat, and ultimately annihilated it.
Deus had followed the Great Moon to repay his debt, but instead of repaying anything, he had only ended up indebted once more.
Just like before.
I can't stay like this.
The thought that had been circling his mind since their return to Calliban surfaced again.
But despite thinking it dozens of times, the thought had never progressed further.
It was because of doubt.
Self-doubt.
Having seen the Outer God, and having seen the Great Moon—who was now not just a benefactor to whom he owed his life, but someone he truly respected—Deus began to doubt if he could ever reach such heights.
Even though he knew his own talent was extraordinary, the strength shown by the Outer God and the Great Moon was enough to make that talent seem utterly trivial.
Thus, until today, Deus had been stuck in a loop, unable to find confidence and repeating the same question to himself.
But today...
Deus was finally able to end the doubt that had plagued him for weeks.
“Of course you can.”
“Yes. As long as you put in the effort, you'll be strong enough to achieve whatever you desire.”
“I just said it was, didn't I?”
He recalled the words Alon had spoken today.
The voice of the Great Moon, which held no particular emotion but had answered immediately without a shred of hesitation.
Telling him that he had the talent to become strong enough to kill the Black Things.
That if he put in the effort, he could reach that place.
Those words, uttered by Alon without the slightest doubt, were enough to give Deus a conviction like never before.
I must become stronger.
Deus clenched his fists.
More.
The thoughts that had been stagnant finally moved forward.
To take revenge on the Black Things—
The vague thoughts became concrete through conviction.
The concrete thoughts quickly branched out into dozens of paths, one after another.
And so.
The frog in the well, having finally gained the conviction to step out into the world, began his preparations.
—And to become His Excellency's sword.
With a new reason serving as his motivation.
Family...
Using the acknowledgment the Great Moon had left him—a word that warmed his heart just by thinking about it—as a talisman.
He truly began his preparations to move forward.
"..."
The blue moonlight illuminated Deus as he sat in his dark office.
After a moment.
"..."
Deus, who had been sitting in silence, suddenly recalled that moment and raised his left hand.
At that time, he definitely did this.
Just as Alon had done when facing the Outer God, Deus extended his hand with his middle and ring fingers pressed together. He spread his mana to ensure no one was nearby, then...
"...Line of Silence."
He whispered quietly in the empty room.
His left hand twitched.
...Naturally, nothing happened.
However, having mimicked Alon's gesture alone in the empty room, Deus sat back down with an expression that was a mix of slight embarrassment and satisfaction.
I wish I had a talent for magic like His Excellency, he thought briefly.
.
.
.
And at that same moment.
"Count."
"Yes?"
"I've noticed you really like sweet potatoes."
"Because they're delicious."
Alon replied to Evan as he sat by a campfire, roasting and eating sweet potatoes.
"...Mmm."
The sweet potatoes were truly delicious.
* * *
It was late at night, about a month later, when Alon finally arrived back at the Palatio estate.
That was exhausting.
Alon let out a low sigh, calculating that it had been about three months since he had last been home.
Nothing much had happened on the way back from Calliban.
The only thing that could be considered annoying was Evan, who couldn't contain his curiosity about Alon's power and asked questions every other day.
Other than that, the only notable thing was that rumors were starting to spread among the kingdoms that the Count of Palatio had played a major role in taking down an Outer God in Calliban.
Anyway, having finished his long journey, Alon intended to rest.
He hadn't been able to give it much thought while focusing on the return trip, but he still had to visit the Colony, and several things had come up that required investigation.
Off the top of his head, he needed to look into the 'Black' and 'Blue' entities, find out why the Outer God had appeared, and discover why Uultultus had a True Name.
In short, he had a lot of work to do.
But despite that, he chose to rest.
After all, Alon's primary goal was to live a relaxed life as a nobleman.
While he found exploring magic interesting, his goal wasn't to achieve anything grand; it was self-preservation.
In other words, all of this effort was ultimately for the sake of a comfortable life. Alon concluded that it was only right to reward himself with a short break after all his hard work.
Having arrived at the manor, Alon sat down in his office, planning to do absolutely nothing for about a week after quickly clearing the backlog of work in a single day.
He opened the stack of letters from Yutia that had accumulated while he was away.
"...Huh?"
A hollow sound escaped his lips.
Inside the letter...
"Evan."
"Yes, sir."
"In Rosario, what is the rank of a Cardinal?"
"...A Cardinal? Well, they're essentially right below the Pope or the Saint. Why do you ask all of a sudden?"
"...Yutia says she became a Cardinal."
"...What???"
The letter stated that Yutia had become a Cardinal of the Holy Kingdom of Rosario.