“Honestly, just admit it. You’re not an apprentice priest, are you?”
Walking through the dark corridor, Leje asked Eleor.
“What do you mean?”
“That seal is the Pope’s deputy seal, you know? Did you think I wouldn’t notice?”
At her question, Eleor gave a faint smile while Leje narrowed her eyes and shot back.
The seal she held.
It was none other than the official emblem of the Gaia Church’s Pope.
A symbol of the Pope’s authority itself, it could only be bestowed upon someone who could act on the Pope’s behalf.
“Indeed, Duchess Lagrind. You have a keen eye.”
“So, what exactly are you? A saint or something?”
“I’d rather not discuss that. I’ll definitely tell you when the opportunity arises.”
With a faint smile, Eleor said that and turned her head, while Leje continued to follow Rudell with suspicion lingering in her gaze.
Just then, as they proceeded for a while…
“By the way, are we okay? If they find out we’re here…”
“Not okay. But there’s no other way.”
With the Church’s authority, it wouldn’t have been too hard to get formal permission from them.
However, if the company was indeed conspiring with the Church, they were in a serious rush.
They weren’t idiots, after all; they would try to buy time somehow.
Given the situation, this was the best they could do.
“Kurt, do you sense anything?”
“The smell of blood. It feels old.”
Sniffing the air, Kurt said and moved ahead down the dark corridor.
Rudell and the others followed him, and soon enough, they discovered a long streak of blood on the floor.
“What the heck were they…?”
No matter how you looked at it, they didn’t seem human.
They resembled drug addicts, but Rudell felt there was something more going on.
Having traveled for a while down the corridor…
An obstructing wall appeared, halting their steps.
“It’s blocked, right? Are we in the right place?”
“The smell is definitely coming from this way.”
“You two. Can you step aside for a moment?”
Nodding at Kurt, Rudell stepped toward the blocked wall.
As Rudell approached, he drew up his magic, and from below his feet, blades of shadow surged up, slashing at the wall.
BOOOOM!!
With a deafening noise, the collapsed wall revealed a hidden passage.
It was nothing startling anymore.
“Whoa… How did you know?”
“I’ve seen it often.”
“Right, that makes sense.”
“Let’s move quickly.”
Rudell smiled at Leje, nodding her head as he stepped inside.
And at that moment…
“Wait.”
“Huh? Why?”
Suddenly, Kurt grabbed Rudell, leaving Rudell voicing his confusion.
At the same time, Kurt drew his weapon.
Leje too seemed to catch on and unsheathed her sword.
And then… it happened.
“UUUUAAAAAAAH!!”
“AAAAAAAH!!!”
“Hehehehe-!!!”
From beyond the hallway came sounds resembling beasts, and the unidentified monsters they had seen earlier began to swarm down the corridor.
“They just ignored us before, but now they’re rushing in to kill us.”
“Everyone, prepare yourselves.”
Leje exclaimed in panic, and Rudell screamed as he gathered his magic.
In the next moment, a bolt of lightning extended from Rudell’s hand, enveloping them.
*
“KYAAAAAAH!!”
“Get lost!”
Leje threw a punch at a man wielding a broken wooden club, producing a THUD! sound as he fell flat.
However, more, numerous figures charged toward Leje.
“Rudell! Do we really need to spare these people!?”
“We might have problems later, so please subdue them for now.”
Even in this situation, they were citizens of the Empire.
They had to avoid killing them to prevent any future issues.
“They’re not worth it.”
“GUH!?”
“KYAAAH!?”
Meanwhile, Kurt was taking them down with flashy moves.
Being of Nord Clan lineage didn’t just look cool; every time his fist connected, their withered bodies flew into the air.
After a short battle, there were no moving enemies left, and…
“Wasn’t much. Just a big number.”
“That was too easy.”
As if this was just a warm-up, Leje dusted her hands off.
Kurt nodded in agreement, stretching himself.
“Great job, everyone.”
In reality, it was Leje and Kurt who dealt with the attackers.
If they hadn’t been there, things would have probably turned out much worse.
Thinking that, Rudell looked deeper into the passage.
The long corridor remained dark enough that nothing could be seen.
Of course, that wasn’t a reason to turn back now.
“Let’s keep moving.”
Just before Rudell was about to head angrily down the dark corridor…
RUMBLE…!!
“What’s that…?”
A deafening noise resonated from not too far away, and soon, vibrations began to shake the corridor.
“What’s with the rumbling?”
“I have a bad feeling about this.”
“Let’s hurry.”
Something wasn’t right, and it was certain that something bad was happening.
Rudell and his party quickened their pace, and shortly after, they arrived in a wide space.
What lay before them was…
“Oh my God…”
“Is that… magic stone?”
“…”
“What in the world…?”
“It’s horrific…”
In a large circular space, countless people were bound.
All of them were unconscious, tied up in a magic circle for some sort of ritual.
At the center of those circles was a huge gem-like stone, emanating ominous vibrations.
That was none other than a magic stone.
And it was an incredibly high-grade magic stone.
“Could it be…”
Rudell let out a low groan as he witnessed the scene.
High-grade magic stones could serve as a fantastic source of power, but they could also be used for other purposes.
For example, providing the magic required for massive spells affecting wide areas.
One such type of magic was what people commonly referred to as “great magic.”
“Swallowing a city…”
And right now, the only answer Rudell could deduce was one.
To offer an entire city as a sacrifice, converting the souls of its inhabitants into magic—something forbidden.
It was precisely ‘city swallowing’.
“City… what?”
“Leje, can you destroy that magic stone?”
To Leje’s confused expression, Rudell asked.
Once great magic was activated, canceling it was almost impossible.
The only method was to strike with the same amount of magic used to activate it.
Of course, that was easier said than done, as great magic was beyond what a single human could handle.
In other words, there was no way to nullify great magic triggered by an individual.
If so, there was only one remaining option.
Cut off the magic supply before the great magic was activated.
“It’s not too tough…”
“We need to smash that thing now!”
“Okay, got it!”
Seeing Rudell’s anxious expression, Leje nodded and took up her sword.
Blue magic energies began to swirl around her as she leaped toward the massive magic stone.
She thought she could prevent the great magic activation.
…Or so she thought at that moment.
“That won’t do, that won’t do.”
“What…!?”
All of a sudden, a black shadow loomed before Leje, and a shining blade swept towards her.
Caught off guard, she raised her sword to block, and at that moment, a powerful shockwave erupted.
Sent flying from the shockwave, Leje’s body collided with the ground, and smoke enveloped the area as if a bomb had gone off.
“Leje!?”
“I’m fine.”
From the smoke, Leje stood up and casually dusted off her clothes, lifting her head.
Before her stood a boy.
Pale skin, gray hair that seemed dusted with ash.
Beneath it, blood-like red eyes gleamed.
“…Huh?”
At the sight, Rudell stared at him in disbelief.
It was no wonder; that figure was someone Rudell knew all too well.
“Iandel…?”
Iandel Rednum.
He had played a significant role in the original story.
The very central figure of the plot, the focal point of the characters… the one who drove the story forward…
He was the protagonist.
“I told you I’d expect you to come, but I didn’t think you actually would.”
“You’re…”
“No need to know my name… I can’t let you do as you please. Despite appearances, I’ve prepared for this for quite a while.”
With that, Iandel drew a cutlass strapped over his shoulder, aimed it at Leje.
At the same time, an overwhelming amount of magic began to pour out of him.
In terms of sheer quantity, it nearly matched Leje’s.
“So, I’m going to kill you all right here.”
