Chapter 12
Chapter 12
-----------------------------------------------------------------
Translator: uly
Chapter: 12
Chapter Title: Fate (1)
-----------------------------------------------------------------
"Greetings, Saintess."
Iven closed the door as the princess instructed and knelt, bowing his head. At that moment, the princess emerged from among all sorts of lavish yet holy ornaments.
Iven couldn't help but glance at her, but he quickly lowered his head again, knowing a knight shouldn't gaze carelessly at the princess. But something felt off.
The princess spoke in a voice like that of a witch.
"Raise your head, Iven of Brnaun."
When Iven properly lifted his head, the princess approached him seductively, her clothes disheveled like a madam from a back-alley den of vice. Unable to comprehend this completely different princess, Iven bowed his head again and said,
"Iven of the 3rd Knight Order, to the great Empire's saintess and princess, Mariel Sonain..."
"I said raise your head."
"Ah, yes."
The princess approached with a wine glass in hand. She placed her foot on his chin and asked,
"Iven of Brnaun, why doesn't my curse work on you?"
Iven couldn't make sense of this ecstatic yet deadly princess before him, the Empire's saintess.
"Uh... What do you mean? I don't understand."
"Then I suppose I should rip out those useless, lowly ears of yours."
She was clearly the same person, but her actions and words were entirely different. As Iven blinked and stammered, the princess dipped her foot into the bathtub in the center of the saintess's room, wet her hands, and sat on the edge.
"You must not understand the situation. But you don't need to, nor are you of any use. The knights are merely my faithful slaves."
She pulled out the ceremonial dagger from the day Iven had received his knighthood from the bathtub.
"Servants can always be replaced."
"W-what do you mean..."
The princess slowly rose again and stood before Iven.
"Remove your gauntlet and extend your hand."
Trembling in fear, Iven raised his hand, and the princess thrust the dagger down as if dropping it onto his palm.
"Ugh!"
He barely dodged, but with a clanging sound as the blade hit the floor, blood splattered from Iven's hand. Looking down at Iven, who had curled up with the dagger, the princess said,
"Iven, cowering like a worm. Poor Iven. Right now, for my sake... take your own life."
Clutching his arm, Iven looked up at her with wronged eyes and asked,
"What is this? What's going on?"
"As expected, my curse doesn't work on you."
The princess turned away, chattering idly.
"That was my sword, Zikronkotev. It means 'poison of memory.' The sword I drew from the Holy Brazier has the power of a curse that can control anyone it's cut even once. Cutting and pasting memories, ordering suicide-it's as easy for me as killing a bug."
Iven grew terrified by her words. Something pure within him felt threatened, and it seemed the outside world was about to go gravely wrong.
"With this sword, I cursed my father and all the knights. So this Empire is mine. But you, Iven like a worm-even as I burned the letters you sent and recast the curse, you kept sending more?"
As Iven tried to stand and speak, the princess tore up Lije's letter from the table by the bathtub, along with some old parchment beside it.
"No..."
In that instant, a black curse mark appeared on Iven's neck and vanished just as quickly.
"A silence curse bought from a witch from the western continent. Is this the last one? It's ridiculous wasting it on the likes of you."
Iven groped his neck with his bleeding hand.
"Why are you doing this? Aren't you the Empire's princess, a saintess like the sun?"
"That's right. Everything that breathes in this Empire is mine. You knights included-you're all just bugs dancing for my momentary amusement. You should have died when I ordered it, you wretched knight."
"How could..."
"I'm already looking forward to the spectacle. With your death, the Hero will ultimately be mine."
In that moment, seeing the princess laugh maniacally, Iven realized it like a bolt of lightning.
Why ordinary citizens couldn't approach the Holy Brazier managed by the grand cathedral, and why the Empire offered no aid amid demon invasions across the continent, including the coasts.
The root cause Iven had pondered.
"You're kept alive specially, to suffer worse than death for the sin of bothering me. By all means, don't die-flail around with everything you've got. You lowly worm, Iven of Brnaun."
It was all because of one person. This Empire's princess, Mariel Sonain.
"Guards, come in and remove this filthy trash from my sight immediately."
Iven considered drawing his sword for a moment, but his trembling hands told him the outer knights would charge in first. So, as she said, he needed to do what he could now.
Lije was heading to the Empire.
"Knight, I hope you consider it an honor to die as the protagonist of my plan."
He tried to spit curse-like words at the mocking princess, but it was as if all sound within him had vanished-no words came out.
Even as he was dragged away by the two blank-eyed knights, Iven struggled to shout, but it was futile. He fled the room as if chased, hurrying down the stairs.
"Knight, what happened to your hand?"
Even as the old priestess below asked, his throat felt blocked-no answer came. Unable to speak, he ran straight to the dormitory.
One desperate will rose within the speechless man.
His conviction, like a vow to his life, and his brightest sword: Bulki. Beyond jealousy, Iven ran. He had to tell Bulki.
He had to hurry.
To remove the shadow of true danger lurking in this Empire, even a moment sooner.
***
A torn-up wasteland everywhere, fallen knights, and the last remaining enemy.
Riu steadied her ragged breath as she observed the enemy's movements. She looked ready to collapse any second, but Bezhak Gurimson allowed not even a single fatal blow.
"You are strong."
"Razashi Haul."
Bezhak Gurimson spat blood and said.
He too acknowledged his opponent. He had no way of knowing Riu was the Empire's greatest sword, but instinctively, he felt she would grant him an honorable death.
And the two faced off with swords drawn once more.
Acknowledging each other as worthy foes, preparing what might be their final strike.
"Grraa!"
With a beastly roar, Bezhak Gurimson charged. He raised high his blunt, poorly sharpened axe-not meant to slice but to crush bone and flesh-and swung down with force enough to split the earth.
Riu too sheathed her sword, steadying her breath to draw a blade fit to fell the warrior before her.
"[Sword Draw]."
Her eyes flashed red as she drew upward with a sword so sharp it rent the air. The clash of metal sent sparks flying and gouged the earth with dust.
Riu smiled, wondering how long it had been since she'd fought like this.
And to the foe who had given her a battle longer than an instant, she drew her final sword with respect. The red blade blazed as she whispered,
"[Sword Draw], [Triple Draw]."
Faster, even faster, with utmost speed.
In a mere instant, but like drawing a sword faster through friction, Riu's blade tore through the air three times in explosive draws.
Boom! Boom! Boom!
Each explosion doubled the speed and power-a sword of pure swiftness that cleaved the enemy. His tough hide didn't slice, but the friction and blasts tore, burned, and severed his tendons and muscles.
The first draw rent the burly hand gripping the axe in midair; the second shattered the beast bones on his shoulder; the last burst open the chest guarding his heart.
In the end, Bezhak Gurimson knelt, spraying blood everywhere. Even with his upper body in tatters, he seemed conscious.
Riu, dyed redder than the Red Blood Savages, stepped before him and said,
"You won't understand my words, but I, Riu, 1st Knight Order Captain, acknowledge you as my foe. Remember that you were strong, and I faced you with my fastest sword."
"Kifuk, Chanherk, Gromma Gurimson, Yerutsa Ha Horn."
"Yerutsa?"
"Yerutsa Ha, Yerutsa Ha Horn."
Whether it was just similar pronunciation or not, Bezhak Gurimson repeated the words.
"Demon, do you inherit something too?"
As the demon fell, Riu exhaled deeply amid the suspicions, scanning the wasteland. She sheathed her sword and shouted to the knights, now only seven strong,
"Knights, ready your swords and armor again. Retrieve our fallen comrades' bodies and send one back for reinforcements. The rest, head straight to the Sun Forest. Yerutsa Rahav!"
She had to hurry.
To remove the shadow of true danger looming over this Empire, even a moment sooner.
***
When he arrived at the dormitory, Iven nearly tore his mouth in rage at his own ignorance. But even if he did, he had to relay the message to Bulki, so Iven roughly swept everything off the desk and haphazardly bandaged his cut hand.
Red blood seeped through.
"Time... Huh?"
Iven touched his neck and realized speech wasn't entirely impossible.