The Holy Kingdom Doesn't Believe in God
I don't believe in religion. At least not from the Holy Kingdom.
To be precise, it's the Luminaris Holy Kingdom. As the name suggests, it's a theocratic nation that worships the god of light, Luminaris. However, gods don't actually exist in this world.
'There's no such thing as holy power, either.'
Of course, on the surface, holy power appears to exist just like in any other fantasy world. Priests who wield it go around healing people and performing various acts of benevolence. But in reality, it's not holy power at all—it's simply white mana.
The Holy Kingdom scours orphanages across various nations, testing children for mana and judging its color. Whenever a child with white mana appears, they declare, "This child is beloved by the gods!" and whisk them away to the Holy Kingdom. If I hadn't hidden the fact that I possessed white mana as a child, I might have been dragged there myself.
'Regular mana can achieve the exact same healing effects anyway.'
Aside from the Great Witch's mana, the color of one's mana is no more significant than a fingerprint—each is simply unique with no real difference in capability. Still, because mages are so rare, people blindly believe in the Holy Kingdom's so-called holy power and devote themselves to the faith.
In the end, holy power is nothing more than a marketing ploy invented by the Holy Kingdom to rake in donations. That said, since they founded their entire nation in the name of a god, they are deadly serious about hunting down black mages and witches. To do otherwise would directly contradict the doctrines they themselves preach. Moreover, failing to oppose those who wield black mana—the complete opposite of their sacred white—would shake the very foundations of their country.
However, the current Holy Kingdom has a bit of a problem. Their so-called Sword of the Holy Kingdom, the Grand Inquisitor, is practically an atheist.
Of course, she doesn't show her true feelings outwardly. On the surface, she acts like the most devout believer imaginable, carrying out the Holy Kingdom's doctrines without the slightest hesitation. But the truth was different.
In reality, she found the Great Witch and black mages rather cool.
'In the original story, it was the Grand Inquisitor who awakened Elisha as the Great Witch.'
…Should I try to lure the Grand Inquisitor to the kingdom using Elisha as bait?
I shook off the thought and spoke.
"Verdin, huh. The darkest place is right under the lamp."
Elisha nodded.
"Yes. It seems they slipped through the cracks. They also appear to have purchased and are currently using one of the commercial buildings in Verdin territory."
"A commercial building?"
"It looks like they're operating a café and a flower shop to generate funds."
"Ah…."
A café and a flower shop instead of a gambling den. They were running businesses that felt completely at odds with the image of a black mage. Or rather, perhaps that very mismatch was exactly why they had avoided suspicion until now.
"Then we should head out immediately. The problem is that if a battle breaks out in Verdin, the Holy Kingdom will inevitably find out…."
The Holy Kingdom would want to subjugate this long-awaited black mage and broadcast their achievement across the continent to boost donations. Since the transcendent Saint couldn't move, they would have no choice but to dispatch the next strongest—the Grand Inquisitor.
'What if I manage to hook the Grand Inquisitor right there?'
Given her personality, the chances of her listening to reason were extremely low, but it was still worth attempting. Naturally, as a core asset of the Holy Kingdom, her heart would be bound by a mana oath with the Pope.
'Still, there is a way to deal with that.'
In the original story, a loophole that only she could use had appeared.
'Can you even call that a loophole, though?'
Finishing my thoughts, I grabbed my clothes.
"Let's depart right away. She might run."
"Understood. I will prepare immediately."
"Yessir, my lord!"
"Huh? You're leaving again…?! You only just arrived…?"
Watching us put on our outer garments and prepare to depart, Roxanna puffed out her cheeks in clear displeasure.
"Haa… I wish I could go with you. But of all times, I can't leave the capital…!"
She knew better than anyone that, as a transcendent, she had to remain in the capital. So she couldn't throw a tantrum and demand to join us. Instead, she grumbled while twisting her hair in frustration.
"Why do you always go to dangerous places yourself? You're a prince…!"
"Because this is the fastest way. Everyone just does what they can from their own positions."
I approached the sulking Roxanna and gently stroked her hair.
"Stay here and guard the capital like a good girl. I'll finish this quickly and come right back."
"D-don't pet me! You always say that and then…."
Roxanna's face flushed red as she slapped my hand away. Then, pouting her lips in clear disappointment, she added,
"Anyway… come back as fast as you can. And don't get hurt. If you do, I'll kill you myself."
"Got it."
After soothing Roxanna, we stepped outside the royal palace to begin our journey.
"Shall I prepare a carriage?"
"No. Let's ride horses."
A carriage would be too conspicuous and take too long, so we decided to travel on horseback.
'Besides, Verdin is only half a day's ride from the capital anyway.'
"It's not that far. We'll travel light and leave right away."
"Yessir, my lord."
"Yes, Master."
At their replies, three horses kicked off the ground at once and began to gallop. Since all three could manipulate mana, we didn't need any separate light sources.
After riding hard for the entire half-day, we arrived at the commercial city of Verdin.
Located on the western border of the Espada Kingdom and adjacent to not only the Holy Kingdom but several other nations, it was a city where commerce had flourished tremendously. And befitting its proximity to the Holy Kingdom, white-robed priests could be seen scattered throughout the streets without fail.
Using the forged identity plaques we had prepared in advance, we disguised ourselves as ordinary travelers and safely passed through inspection.
'If we'd sent an official letter, we could have passed straight through under a covert operation, but…'
Since a black mage had taken root in Verdin, we couldn't completely rule out the possibility that the local lord was connected to them.
'Though the odds are low.'
In my memory, the lord of Verdin was a warm, friendly man who reminded me of the nice uncle next door. Still, there was no harm in being cautious.
We chose a small, somewhat shabby inn among those lining the street and rented a room. When the innkeeper realized it was two women and one man sharing a single room, he gave us an envious look.
'It's not like that…'
"We still have some time until nightfall, so let's all get some rest."
During the day we would stand out too much, and there was also the risk of civilian casualties. So we decided to strike at night.
'Elisha is constantly monitoring, so even if the target tries to flee, we'll know.'
At my words, Seria shook her head.
"No, my lord. This may be the heart of enemy territory. I will stand guard."
"No, you rest too, Seria. I can set up a detection spell for watch duty. We might have to fight tonight, so we need to conserve our strength."
Seria nodded reluctantly.
"But the bed…"
"There's only one."
"Indeed, only one."
It seemed the innkeeper had assumed we were lovers and prepared a room with only a single bed. Looking at the bed placed squarely in the middle of the room, Seria waved her hands frantically.
"M-my lord! How could I possibly share a bed with you! I will sleep on the floor!"
"Sleeping on the floor will hurt your back. Let's just all sleep together."
"But…!"
"I don't mind."
With a perfectly calm expression, Elisha had already folded her outer garment and claimed one side of the bed, lying down. I grabbed the hesitating Seria by the arm and pulled her onto the other side.
"We need to rest quickly so we can work."
"Ugh… As you command…."
In the end, I lay in the center of the wide bed with Elisha and Seria on either side. Elisha fell asleep almost immediately, and Seria, exhausted as well, gradually relaxed her stiff body and began breathing softly in slumber.
Thanks to the pleasant scents and body warmth coming from both sides, I too closed my eyes and fell asleep in an instant.
@@@
How long had I been asleep?
"Master, it's time to wake up."
At Elisha's voice, I opened my eyes.
Outside the window, the sun had completely set, leaving the world dark and gloomy. The streets that had been bustling during the day were now completely empty, giving off an eerie atmosphere.
'It really feels like ghosts might pop out.'
I got up and checked the carbine I had brought along.
'The carbine is nice, but… when I get back, I really need to make a portable beam cannon.'
Having tasted the thrill of taking down a transcendent with a beam cannon, I couldn't settle for less.
Seria also finished inspecting the gunlance she had brought for the first time in a while, completing her final preparations.
"Did everyone sleep well? How's your condition?"
"Optimal, my lord."
"I am also in perfect condition."
"Good. Then let's get moving."
We pulled our black cloaks low over our heads and left the inn.
The place Elisha guided us to by following the traces of mana was a two-story commercial building on the outskirts of the shopping district.
When we arrived at a street about a block away from the building, the black mage's mana that had been radiating outward suddenly…
"Huh?"
"Master."
"My lord."
As if on cue, we all stopped at the same time.
The black mage's mana that had been pouring out from the building had been cut off abruptly, as if blocked by a wall.
"The mana was cut off."
"Yes, that's correct. It seems someone has deployed a barrier."
When I focused my eyes on mana, a dome-shaped barrier surrounding the commercial building came into view.
'White mana.'
"It's a barrier from the Holy Kingdom. Have the inquisitors already arrived?"
This wasn't in the original story.
'Did the Saint move?'
That fanatic shouldn't be moving at this point in time.
"Let's hurry."
We approached the commercial building while suppressing our footsteps as much as possible. With a single gesture from Elisha, part of the barrier was nullified.
Inside the building we entered, the headquarters was already half-destroyed and in complete chaos. Flower pots and various decorations were shattered into pieces, and those who appeared to be black mages were crushed beyond recognition, as if smashed by a massive blunt weapon.
"Ugh, fuck… That's disgusting."
And standing right in the middle of it all was a woman in white armor, holding a blood-stained mace. She stood atop the corpses with a thoroughly displeased expression on her face.