Eliya didn’t see Balak and his party off.
She was too busy trying to calm her irritated heart by pouring it onto Judas.
Instead, Ria saw them off.
Balak checked that no one was watching and approached Ria stealthily to speak to her.
“How is Eliya doing?”
Ria looked up, then averted her gaze and replied.
“She’s healthier than before, thanks to the child beside her.”
“Hmmm… How long will you live like that?”
“……”
“You should at least—”
“How can I? How could I ever do that… It would be too selfish.”
“……”
“It’s already too late. I would only hurt Eliya. It’s better for me to remain in ignorance.”
Ria glanced fleetingly in the direction of the mansion.
She pictured Eliya, happy in Judas’s arms.
“In any case, I will be unnecessary from now on.”
“But…”
“Are you worried? Do you want to play the father role now? Or are you just pretending to act like this to ease your conscience?”
“……”
“Haah… You know it’s too late. Neither of us are worthy of it. Besides, even without the Duchess, the children will absorb the foundation and keep an eye on me and Eliya.”
“……”
“I’ll handle my own matters. Just like always, focus on bigger things and live your life.”
Balak was left speechless.
The coachman and the party finished their preparations to leave.
As if nothing had happened, Ria politely bowed.
Unlike before, her voice and demeanor returned to normal.
With heavy makeup, her face looked different from Balak’s memories. She stood rigidly as a maid.
“I wish you peace on your journey.”
Bending at the waist, her crown of red hair revealed its black roots.
Balak pretended not to see and climbed into the carriage.
*
In the dark underground.
The spacious area resembled a cave.
One by one, candles began to flicker to life.
The light shone in a regular sequence.
The space was dimly illuminated.
Unique symbols were drawn around the candles.
In the center of a blood-drawn design lay a massive mound of flesh.
All of it human corpses.
Before that, Angra was seated.
The one in the black robe performing the ritual asked.
“Are you certain you want to erase all memories from the day you found the Child of Revelation until now?”
“Yes. There will be no changes.”
“I can’t guarantee success. If anything goes wrong, you may lose your self and become a shell of a person.”
“I don’t care. After all, my role has been entrusted entirely to the Pope.”
“Understood. It will hurt a bit.”
The robed figure closed his eyes and joined his hands in concentration.
The blood-drawn symbol turned black.
It ignited into black flames, consuming the mound of corpses.
The mound of charred bodies burned without smell, transforming into clouds of black smoke.
Angra shut his eyes tightly as he felt it surge toward him.
“All for the moon. To prevent the resurrection of the Evil God…!”
The black smoke was drawn into Angra’s body.
“Ugh…!”
Angra gritted his teeth and endured.
Blood began to flow from his mouth.
Finally, when the ritual ended, he fainted.
“The memory erasure was successful.”
The robed figures who assisted in the ritual gathered around.
“You won’t become a shell, but I can’t predict how you’ll live on. Being a fanatic, he’ll manage somehow.”
The Child of Revelation, a common figure in many scriptures.
The wizards mocked Angra’s faith.
After all, the ruler of this world has already been determined.
The prophesied savior of the future.
“Throw him near the front lines.”
“I will.”
“We will report the facts to His Majesty and continue our plans.”
He smirked bitterly, watching the pitiful fanatic, unaware he was the scapegoat.
“All for the glory of His Majesty.”
*
Pope of the Molsin Church.
Nadap.
He smiled kindly as he faced the man before him.
The highest figure in this continent.
And in a few years, he would become a glorious avatar that engulfs the world.
The Pope of Sun Church, and the Emperor of the Helios Empire.
Johan.
Johan spoke first.
“I’ve heard you’ve received a role delegation.”
“Yes, Your Majesty. That is correct. From now on, I will represent Bishop Angra.”
“Memory erasure, very thorough.”
“It is an event that must be carried out for the sake of the Levant continent, the demon world, and all humanity. There must be no blemishes.”
Johan merely smiled.
He wouldn’t point out the failure regarding Eliya, the first step.
The support of the Molsin Church is essential to achieve the goal.
They’ve known each other for a long time.
There was no reason to disrupt things ahead of time.
After all, in the end, they would just dispose of him.
“For the dawn of a new era.”
Johan extended his hand.
Nadap knelt before him and kissed the back of his hand.
“I willingly dedicate myself for the resurgence of glory, Your Majesty.”
“Good, it’s time to start.”
Johan nodded in satisfaction and spoke leisurely.
“The time has come to prepare for the resurrection of the Evil God.”
Before that, things need to be cleared away.
“There can’t be two suns in the sky.”
A long-prepared ritual.
The first step of a plan dubbed “Eclipse.”
“Shall we start with killing Bevel?”
*
On the way back after meeting Eliya, Balak fell into deep thought.
He would leave the matter regarding Narcissi to the trial.
Intervening privately was not an option.
He hadn’t planned to come at this time, close to Maria’s memorial day, but succumbing to the pressuring children, he came anyway.
Powerlessness. Weakness.
He felt miserable for not being able to take care of a single household.
That’s why he turned his thoughts to grander matters and became obsessed with them.
The great achievement he aimed to accomplish.
In pursuit of that, he reached out to the Molsin Church.
Angra had been caught.
The two were certainly in a cooperative relationship.
However, things had gone wrong at some point. After Angra’s pilgrimage, communication had nearly ceased.
Tap, tap, tap.
He drummed his arms while crossing them, mulling over a possibility.
‘… Betrayal?’
Nothing else made sense.
It was hard to believe.
Yet, why would the Molsin Church do it?
Reasons to do so.
Conditions in which it is acceptable.
There’s only one case where both would be satisfied.
Having finished his calculations, he smiled wryly.
“Your Majesty… you made the first move…”
It was now unclear if he had acted first.
Or if the emperor had acted first.
It was a mystery beyond his grasp now.
‘Angra’s pilgrimage has prolonged, and I was notified that the Pope took over his role. But, well.’
Balak decided not to trust them completely anymore.
This great achievement, long in preparation.
The downfall of the Empire.
He could not accomplish that alone.
For that, he joined hands with the Molsin Church, yet they had allied with the Empire behind his back.
The reason for this was clear.
To eliminate Bevel.
“If that’s the case, then I can just show them what happens.”
What happens when one touches Bevel.
In this turmoil, internal strife seemed inevitable, and Balak felt a headache coming on.
A dull ache blossomed in a corner of his heart.
A painful finger.
Eliya.
‘If I achieve this endeavor, I was so certain all the neglect would be compensated…’
If the Empire disappears and Bevel stands tall, he believed the disputes within the family would lessen.
Checks and disdain towards Eliya would also naturally fade away.
Then, he thought maybe Eliya’s past would also get some compensation.
For such a future.
For the peace of the family and the public good that most people desired, he had knowingly allowed such an environment to fester a little.
He turned a blind eye to his weakness and self-loathing, thinking it was unavoidable.
But now it’s too late.
Eliya would not stop, and the Empire would trample Bevel.
In this situation, there was only one thing he had to do.
‘I must face this alone…’
Ria’s words suddenly crossed his mind.
Did he want to play the father role now?
A bitter smile escaped him.
It was a piercing observation that permeated his life.
*
“Mm, uhm~”
Yurideke sat at her desk, deep in thought.
Eliya’s request.
To investigate the taboo concerning memories.
And Judas’s request.
To trace back his family history.
The paths of both were curiously overlapping.
Magic that interferes with memory falls under the category of taboo.
It is sealed and managed along with the fallen stars in the underground tomb, Catacombs, owned jointly by the Magic Tower and the Royal Palace.
Even the involving parties cannot easily approach it.
So, what direction should she investigate?
Dark magic.
A method that mimics existing magic by sacrificing lives.
Dark wizards might have followed the memory-related magic and passed it down among themselves.
And, regarding Judas’s family.
Judas had mentioned that he wandered between towns near the front lines in the past.
Dark wizards reside close to the demon world, near the front lines.
Humans are the most useful sacrifices for dark wizards.
Thus, it is impossible for them to live among humans.
They cannot hide.
In their quest for power, they inevitably catch and use humans as sacrifices.
‘Dark magic and tracing Judas’s birthplace. These two trails coincide remarkably, pointing towards the fringes of human territory, perhaps around the demon world. We can investigate together.’
It would be nice to have other clues.
For now, she turned her gaze beyond the continent.
‘I don’t know why the young lady is searching for magic concerning memory, but I hope it works out somehow.’
It would surely take a long time.
Even so, Yurideke decided to place her future in Eliya.
And help Judas as well.
*
Cage.
Moonlight shining through.
Shrinking autumn leaves.
A widened space.
A girl.
Fireflies.
A dance.
A flower blooming in the center.
A red flower.
In the vast emptiness.
The only light.
My color.
Anemone.
*
What does the flower language of Anemone signify?
*
Sparks fly where swords meet.
The unsharpened iron sword was blunt.
It was heavy as the thick blade.
Even that weight was part of the training.
Clang! Ching!
Flashes burst along with the sparks.
For a brief moment, the space brightened.
The place where the light disappeared fell into darkness.
A deep darkness where even an ordinary person’s eyes would struggle to distinguish objects.
However, the two men clashing swords could see each other clearly.
The movements of hands and shoulders, feet and hips.
The trajectory of the sword birthed from that.
When they crossed and diverged, they shone.
Clang!
The moment when the blades collided, one of them seized the opportunity and dashed forward.
Boldly stepping forward.
The tip of the sword thrusting inward at a half-beat faster pace.
The other side reacted.
The expanded golden pupils tracked the sharp line.
Holding the sword vertically, they let it flow downwards.
Grind-!
A scratching noise.
Maintaining a body that felt like it would be sucked into the force, he pushed forward.
He aimed for the approaching opponent.
But the sword missed its target.
It just grazed past.
In return, the opponent’s sword struck his leg.
For a moment, his body lost strength.
His vision flipped upside down.
Thud-!
He fell.
The blade touched his neck.
The heated body met the cold sword.
The one who did not fall, the victor.
Gawain spoke with a breathless voice.
“… You’ve improved a lot. Now I can’t afford to let you go easy.”
He extended his hand.
The fallen youth grasped it and stood up.
Gawain brightened the lighting and continued speaking.
“You’ve now fully mastered your magical power. Its size has grown immensely too.”
The youth weakly smiled and admitted.
“I still have a long way to go…. But compared to before, I’ve certainly grown noticeably.”
Gawain looked at the youth.
The first time he saw him, he was small enough to barely reach his solar plexus.
Now they’ve reached eye level.
With a body as sturdy as a rock and a large physique, he was well-suited to be a knight.
His growth was faster than others.
Perhaps he ate a lot.
The boyish appearance that used to smell of baby milk had also become more defined, boldening his presence.
When going out into town, they would say passing young women would surely turn their heads. But, who knows.
Gawain was not interested in the aesthetics of a man’s appearance.
However, as a potential spouse for his niece, he was not bad at all.
That was just a hope, though; realistically, it seemed impossible.
There was a high chance of that.
The young man in front of him…
His thoughts were interrupted by the young man’s voice.
A voice that rumbled low, now that he had grown.
“I want to start practicing swordsmanship soon…. But you seem quite unresponsive.”
“You don’t need to rush. You’re already fast enough. Especially since managing magic externally is a double-edged sword. Mistakes can injure the user.”
“I’ll keep that in mind.”
Gawain laid down the iron sword.
It thudded heavily against the ground.
Suddenly, Anna, the maid who had been lurking, approached the young man and handed him a towel.
She had retreated from the duties of attending to him.
Her master had once ordered her to maintain distance.
She, however, couldn’t help but stop by to watch, pretending as though she didn’t know.
The young man smiled at her amiably.
“It’s been a while. Thank you.”
Anna lightly bowed her head and stepped back.
Having followed him since he was a child, her feelings were rather complex now that she looked up at him.
The sight of him having grown properly was enough to keep the maids of the mansion up at night.
The evaluations regarding him were highly dualistic.
Desiring to collar him while feeling that being collared by him is equally alluring.
However, that desire was as unrealistic as dreaming of being a hero or prince from a fairy tale.
Daring to approach the young man within the territory of his owner’s touch was impossible.
The young man himself remained oblivious to the fact that his master was scheming.
Gawain spoke to the young man, wiping the sweat away.
“The final trial is near.”
“Yes…. I know.”
“And Eliya’s coming-of-age ceremony too.”
“……”
“As I always say, don’t hesitate at any moment.”
“I’ll keep that in mind.”
“Today’s training is over. Good work, Judas.”
The young man, Judas, now eighteen years old, smiled lightly.
It was a smile laden with complex thoughts.
“Yes. Thank you.”
Five years have passed.
Support me by donating at least $10, and you'll have the right to request any novel from Novelpia (excluding 19+ content) using a newly developed tool.
