“Sylvia.”
A voice came from behind.
When I turned around, my companions were entering the Papal State one by one, following me.
The first person to step inside was Alice, who had been right behind me. She stepped out from the light and examined her hands and legs for a bit, then quickly bounced a few times in place before hurrying over to stand close to me.
She looked tense, gripping her sword with both hands, but once she saw the situation in the Papal State, her expression turned somewhat blank.
“…”
She probably realized that the Papal State was strange, just like I did.
This was our first time truly visiting the Papal State, so neither Alice nor I knew how quiet it usually was. However, no matter how quiet a city could be, it shouldn’t be a dead one.
It was a city run by clergy, but those clergymen were still people. They eat, poop, and throw things away. Not every affair could be managed by other clergymen. Unless it was a small self-sufficient monastery, a country powerful enough to send ambassadors called Cardinals to other nations would need a social infrastructure.
But the current appearance of the Papal State seemed to lack all those functions. It was a silence not of sacred majesty but of mere corpses.
It looked even creepier since there were no signs of battle either.
While we were surveying the surroundings, one by one, our party joined us. The sounds of footsteps from behind grew louder.
None of them had sustained any burns. They all came over the wall unscathed.
At least it was clear that ‘royal blood’ wasn’t necessary to get over that wall.
“…It’s quiet.”
Jennifer muttered. Everyone didn’t respond, but they probably agreed with her words.
In fact, as if the very silence were more dangerous, they were all gripping their weapons tightly.
In a typical country, just crossing the border wouldn’t immediately reveal a massive city. Sure, if trade were developed, both cities could thrive greatly, but the situation with the Papal State was a bit different.
The Papal State itself was a small nation. It was originally established by receiving part of Velbur’s territory. It didn’t have as many people as the Imperial Capital or the Royal Capital, but being a nation made up of just ‘one capital’ meant that development was also concentrated. Though the buildings seemed old and industrialization hadn’t taken place, they were still well-maintained, showcasing that it was a significant city. If the situation hadn’t been like this, I would have enjoyed visiting.
It was also not strange that the very first city we saw after crossing the border—the Wall of Light—was the Papal State.
The fact that the border itself wasn’t closed indicated that the Papal State and Velbur were quite close to each other.
But that was what made it dangerous.
We could never know if there were enemies hidden in every densely packed building.
“Sophia.”
Thus, the first person I called was Sophia.
Without further ado, I asked her as she promptly approached me.
“Do you know the way to the center of the Papal State?”
“…Yes, I do.”
“Can you guide us?”
My question included the implication of “avoiding places where Papal troops might be hiding.”
Sophia wasn’t the kind of person to miss such a subtext.
Nodding silently, Sophia moved ahead.
“…Let’s go.”
Seeing Sophia’s back, I turned to my companions and said.
No one felt the need to ask further questions. Everyone knew that there wouldn’t be enough time for more questions and answers here.
*
I’ve never explored an abandoned place. The closest experience I had was during our school field trip’s courage training.
Even knowing that there were no ghosts and that only people in disguise could jump out at any moment, the eerie atmosphere still felt a bit daunting.
But that wasn’t comparable to what I felt here. Even if I had actually visited an abandoned place, I’d still feel this way.
An abandoned place is just an empty house; it wouldn’t imply an empty city.
The neatly organized streets seemed to prove that this place had been maintained until just recently. The white walls of buildings proudly reflected the bright sunshine.
But there were no people inside those buildings. If there were, they showed no signs of life.
I hadn’t checked every single building. I didn’t want to carelessly open a door only to unleash a swarm of soldiers like hitting a beehive.
But if there was indeed a large group of soldiers hiding inside, there should have been some signs.
Even though the sun was up, the empty city felt chilling.
“It’s strange.”
With a tense posture, Sophia murmured anxiously.
“It wasn’t a place with an extremely large population, but it shouldn’t be this quiet…”
Sophia’s words sparked a thought in my mind.
In this world, all ‘living beings’ possess their own magic. Just as we can extract Marmaros from magical beasts rich in mana, people from this world could also be used as equals.
Fundamentally, such actions are deemed ‘inefficient’ and ‘morally questionable,’ so it isn’t common. After all, this world isn’t so low on mana stones that it requires capturing dozens or hundreds of resisting individuals just to extract their Marmaros.
…However, in works across manga, movies, or games, if there’s a setting where ‘humans can be materials to create something,’ it’s inevitable that some entity would engage in ‘such deeds.’
They either present their own reasoning or somehow find a ‘justifiable reason to utilize only humans.’
“…”
Yet, I wasn’t oblivious enough to voice such ominous thoughts.
Sophia was from this area. I wasn’t sure if her real parents were truly around, or whether she had a teacher or friends. But regardless of how few close acquaintances she had, people tend to hold affection for the places they were born and spent their childhood.
…There was no way I could say to that person, ‘The city you knew might have died for some reason.’
I could only hope that my imagination wouldn’t turn out to be reality.
*
Having ventured quite a distance, we finally reached the Cathedral located in the heart of the Papal State.
…To put it bluntly, the Papal State wasn’t devoid of ‘everything.’
I didn’t know what had happened to all the citizens, but at least the Knights of the Cathedral were present.
Most of them were dead.
“…Ah!”
Having noticed the red glow from a distance, Sophia rushed ahead before I even had a chance to stop her. Fortunately, she didn’t get hit by anyone’s attack. I couldn’t tell if they were ignoring her presence or if it had been set up this way intentionally.
The bodies of the Cathedral Knights were sprawled on the ground, unattended immediately after the battle.
Having taken place on a plaza made of white marble, the dried crimson stains stood out vividly.
“…There’s no smell.”
The first person to respond, aside from Sophia, was Jennifer.
“Smell?”
Carolyn, who had gone pale while gazing at the distant bodies, asked cautiously.
“Well, given how many days must have passed since this happened. Watching the dried blood on the ground indicates that these bodies have been dead for several days now. Even though the weather is starting to get colder, and they wouldn’t rot away fully, if they’ve been left out like this, they should be giving off the ‘smell of death’ after just a short while.”
After saying that, Jennifer followed Sophia. Each had a gun in their hands.
As they moved cautiously forward, Jennifer knelt beside a body, looking at it while Sophia had already crumpled to her knees, peering down at the corpse.
“…What on earth happened here?”
“Hmm.”
At Alice’s mumble, the Sword Saint stroked his beard thoughtfully before speaking.
“It’s a clean cut. They were attacked with a very sharp sword. Not just that, the skills shown are impressive. The blood that has flowed is all from these corpses. Plus, this sort of blade work is something I’ve seen before.”
“…”
Hearing those words, I could instantly recall someone.
It seemed the Sword Saint was thinking of the same person as I was.
Having moved ahead to examine the bodies, the Sword Saint turned back towards me with a serious expression.
“It appears that that bastard Grukas is involved here. This time, he is working with the Emperor.”
Alice inhaled sharply.
“Be on guard. The fact that they weren’t waiting for you here indicates that they are likely preparing a welcome indoors.”
As the Sword Saint spoke, he fiddled with the hilt of his sword at his waist.
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