Chapter 108
Chapter 108
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Translator: Ryuma
Chapter: 108
Chapter Title: Tendal's Princess, Valera Tendal
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Valera Tendal, princess of Tendal.
Havel had heard that name once through Baria.
However, Havel had only heard the name.
He had never seen her face.
The face that every citizen of Tendal knew.
Havel finally understood why the people behind her had dropped into prostration.
It was the basic courtesy due to a princess.
Naturally, for Havel—who didn't even know the princess's face—it was a courtesy he couldn't offer.
They hadn't expected her to barge in so suddenly, after all.
'She must have figured out I'm human.'
What did "Shard of Fate" even mean?
Was there some ancient text left behind about the Night Lion?
'Well, since it's come to this...'
Havel decided to just go for broke.
"So, Princess Valera, did you come here to see me?"
Havel, who had treated even his ancestor Baldoran without a shred of respect.
There was no reason to pull out all the stops just because she was a princess.
At Havel's words, the people behind her panicked greatly.
In Tendal, the significance of a descendant of Tendal was immense.
Of course, it meant nothing to Havel.
"That's right! So, can we talk for a bit? There's a nice long break after the preliminaries anyway!"
"Sure."
Havel agreed without hesitation.
It was a golden chance to scoop up a ton of information all at once.
No reason for Havel to pass it up.
"Then follow me!"
Valera practically bounced with joy as she headed out of the room.
Havel trailed after her into the corridor beyond.
Armed guards packed the hallway tight.
Every one of them eyed Havel with open wariness.
It was the inevitable reaction from anyone who'd witnessed his preliminaries.
Then, a sharply dressed man stepped out between the princess and Havel.
Valera's butler.
"Weapons are not permitted during an audience with the princess. Please surrender your sword. I'll hold it until your conversation concludes."
Havel handed it over without protest.
His entire body was a weapon anyway—the sword's presence or absence hardly mattered.
The butler retreated after taking the blade Havel offered, and Valera pressed on.
They soon arrived at a room inside the arena.
A neatly appointed guest reception chamber awaited.
It looked like the kind of place reserved for dignitaries.
"Come on, make yourself comfortable!"
The princess treated Havel without a hint of formality, guiding him to a seat.
As Havel sat, attendants waiting inside poured tea right away.
Even at a glance, it was top-shelf stuff.
'Not bad.'
One sip confirmed it—the aroma and flavor were exquisite.
Havel enjoyed tea now and then himself.
Perhaps because of that, he felt himself loosen up a touch as he spoke.
"Do you have business with the Night Lion?"
His relaxed expression aside, the words cut straight to the heart.
Valera flinched for an instant, then slowly smiled.
"Yes, as expected of the Night Lion's sharp instincts!"
She wore a knowing smile.
The airheaded princess act from moments ago began to melt away.
Sensing the shift, Havel realized she'd been playing it up deliberately.
"You've been waiting for me."
Valera had been waiting for Havel this whole time.
More precisely, for the Night Lion to show.
"Spot on."
She confirmed it without missing a beat.
"Another crisis is closing in on Tendal."
When crisis strikes Tendal, the Night Lion appears.
It was a pretty famous legend.
And sure enough, a crisis had hit Tendal recently.
Havel's eyes narrowed.
A silent demand for details.
"The Night God is drawing near Tendal."
The next words sparked doubt in Havel.
"The Night God is an energy aggregate. Calling it a 'god' is a bit of a stretch."
Havel knew the gist of that story already.
He'd felt the Night God's presence firsthand, after all.
"Is it wise to trash-talk your own god like that?"
"Ahaha, it's just a label for a spiritual entity. It's not public knowledge, but it's common talk among magic scholars."
Indeed, their civilization hadn't advanced for nothing.
The more a society progresses, the weaker spiritual beings like gods become.
Deniers spring up everywhere.
Tendal's tech outpaced even the outside world's modern era.
Naturally, they'd devised countless ways to debunk divinity.
Their research had pegged the Night God as nothing more than an energy cluster.
"Tendal might have its share of petty incidents, but wars and famines? Those are ancient history. It's the most peaceful age ever."
She cherished that Tendal.
She took pride in steering it through such tranquil times.
"The catch? With those catastrophes gone, our population growth skyrocketed."
But that very peace had invited crisis.
"Everyone in Tendal carries their own unique energy."
Havel knew full well that energy was Calamity.
"It seems scattered across individuals, but in truth, it's all one big aggregate."
Like a forest.
Trees standing alone look like a single woods from afar.
"As our numbers swell, so does Tendal's total energy. It's grown enough to dwarf the Night God now."
The era had outgrown its god.
"Ironically, that's the problem."
And it had summoned the worst possible outcome.
"Energy draws energy. Lesser forces get pulled toward the greater."
Her gaze drifted to the window.
Up in that vast blue sky.
A colossal presence crept ever closer.
"The Night God is no exception. It's being lured straight to Tendal right now."
"What happens when the Night God reaches Tendal?"
Havel had no clue what came from two massive Calamities colliding.
"It..."
Valera bit her lip faintly.
"...would trigger a fusion from the energy clash."
Her face hardened like never before.
"In the process, we'd all merge—the individuals scattered apart becoming one. Every personal will erased, forming a far vaster energy mass."
Havel got it.
"Extinction."
All races with individual agency vanishing into unity.
In short, Tendal teetered on the brink of oblivion.
Havel's tapping hand stilled on his arm.
"So."
Havel's emotionless gaze locked onto Valera.
"If I slaughter a bunch to thin out your energy, does that fix it?"
The simplest fix for this mess.
Cull Tendal's population.
"No. Absolutely not. That's off the table."
Her golden eyes gleamed with resolve.
Firmer conviction than anyone's.
"Sacrificing my people isn't an option."
Valera had clearly tabled—and scrapped—that idea already.
Blood ran true, it seemed.
Like her ancestor Baldoran, she put her citizens first.
"Then what's plan B?"
She wouldn't have hunted down the Night Lion on blind hope.
Havel's question drew a steady reply.
"We've run experiments with our magic scholars, chasing every lead we could. We've even scored some promising breakthroughs."
Yet Valera's expression stayed grim.
"But there's no guarantee it'll hold. We're desperate enough to grab at straws."
Her candor won him over.
No blind faith in their own research—just keep stacking options, next one, then the next.
That alone screamed her sincerity for Tendal.
She wanted to save every last citizen she could.
"Then what do you really want from me?"
"You can absorb Calamities, Havel."
Evidently, the texts spelled it out that way.
"I want you to absorb the Night God."
Havel nearly barked a dry laugh.
"Can one person really swallow an energy blob the size of Tendal's whole population?"
"Yes. I believe so."
Conviction laced her tone.
Havel eyed that certainty with deep suspicion.
"What makes you so sure?"
"After we learned of your existence, word came from the scholars."
The room's air grew thick with tension.
"The Night God's approach has sped up."
Havel grasped the implication instantly.
"Because of me."
"The timing lines up. Your power is definitely strong enough to accelerate it."
Starlight danced in her pupils.
Like a galaxy swirling—Havel recognized the glow.
The same light from the Star Sword.
He started to speak, then held back.
He could verify this after claiming the Star Sword.
"How long until the Night God arrives?"
"A month at most. That's the scholars' estimate."
A month.
Plenty of time.
"Got it. I'll sort it my way."
Havel rose from his seat.
He could see the path to clearing the floor now.
Stop Tendal's annihilation.
That was the climbers' objective.
Deep relief washed over Valera's eyes.
Yet they flashed with iron will.
She'd never let Tendal fall.
Watching her, a thought struck Havel.
"Just one question."
"Yes?"
Valera tilted her head, and Havel glanced out the window.
Tendal's gleaming civilization stretched below.
"Recently, aside from me, has the Night God surged closer any other time?"
The Five Great Families' core forces had breached the 7th hierarchy.
If something like this had happened before his arrival...
"...Yes."
This time, he might finally gauge their true strength.