Ding, ding, I woke up to the the sound of the church bell the next morning. I counted twelve chimes as I laid there, meaning it was exactly noon, so I overslept quite a bit due to yesterday night’s raids. I didn’t feel rested at all, still feeling a numbing aching in the back of my head. I was stretching my neck, trying to get rid of this irritating pain, but it just wouldn’t.
Reflecting on myself, I felt satisfied that I managed to get the Yanderu representative to listen to me. Strangely, while I did try to intimidate him, the amount of cold sweat on his face after I gave my “put all your coins on us” speech felt too surreal. I only exuded my draconic aura slightly, but he still was intimidated into submission.
Maybe that’s the cause of this headache. It’s kinda annoying.
Then again, in the depths of my soul, I could only fathom the revelation of the diary we received yesterday to be even more infuriating. I took it out of my storage—the only thing I hadn’t put into the temporary [Room].
The leather book cover was well-mainted, with no ripples or damaged area. The owner clearly placed an effort to preserve it as best as they could, which included the pages. The mana-written letters were carefully placed, with no hints of being rushed on the first few pages. The thoughts were concise, keeping the information distilled and relevant to any who read them.
It was meant to recall everything the owner had done. A diary was a piece of book where a person mixed their emotions with retellings of events, meaning they could be truthful to their point-of-view. Then again, it could also all be a lie. This could be a trap.
I placed the book back into my storage and stood up from my bed to walk over to the bathroom. Ding, ding—the sound of a bell came from outside my door, prompting me to address them. As they came in, the blue-haired elven woman bowed.
“Good afternoon, my lady.”
I smiled. “Sorry about this, Tasianna. I made you wait outside for too long. Sheesh, it has been a while since I overslept during a job. Not very responsible.”
“You stayed up until the break of dawn, so it is simply a given. Allowing your body to rest is paramount to our future plans, so do not chastise yourself. In fact, you wouldn’t have needed to do much, in any case.” I nodded to her statement, prompting her to continue. “The Knight-Commander, Yorshka, and Midirn have been most dutiful. We have identified multiple conspirators, but none were demonkin in disguise. Multiple knights and priests have admitted to their failings, and Dame Kirstine has been ordered to arrest any traitors currently inside the city. Aside from the cardinals, we managed to remove 26 people.”
“I presume the reason none were demonkin was because they left the city after our fight with the sin heir?” I asked and Tasianna confirmed it. “Tsk, that’s unfortunate. Nothing works out for us, huh? Well, whatever, we’ll fight them eventually, especially if they dare sneak back into the place.”
After my morning routine, I decided against visiting the basilica when Tasianna informed me news about Tanzania town had reached the city. Mana birds were extremely swift messengers, after all. A humongous uproar erupted, naturally, where multiple priests were trying to understand how an entire town hall’s years of collected documents vanished within a single night, not to mention the poor mayor and his wife!
Well, speaking of the former, Saori had just finished interrogating the man this morning. As I entered the subspace, Tasianna immediately led me to him, allowing me to learn how impertinent he was. Quite a rude fellow, honestly, even demanding proper food instead of some bread and soup despite being a prisoner.
Saori, looking annoyed, sighed at me. “He knows nothing.”
“… You can’t be serious.”
She shook her head. “He too was in contact with a ‘Reinhart’ just like Wendell, but the man was not aware of anything aside from following the orders he was given. Think of him like a clueless middle-management desk worker with a decent wage and a well-maintained family. For example, he knew he was controlled by a puppet master, but he didn’t care who it was. He only wanted the profits.”
“So, is he a dead end?”
“Did Tasianna not tell you I finished the interrogation?” Saori smirked for a moment before she began to frown. “He has no loyalties, aside to his family. He might not know his true employer, but he understood well how much money he embezzled for them. He is willing to inform us about everything, even concerning the other villages and towns inside Aureolis as long as we can assure him and his family are safely returned to his home country in the Empire.”
I grimaced, sharing my clear dislike for such a deal. Saori nodded but told me a deal was a deal, and as the vice-leader of Aurora, she had a responsibility to follow my creed to never break a promise. She hadn’t accepted the deal just yet, but she did manage to gain information on hostile agents in the other areas of Aureolis as a “teaser.”
“I handed everything to Kirstine, but we probably cannot move against them in the open, nor do we have the time to apprehend them ourselves. Even if I sent my shadow pack this morning to all large towns, our enemies would escape our net the moment news of Tanzania town was spread. As such, I did not act on the information.” Saori scratched her chin. “This is a dead end, sadly.”
I let out a deep sigh, feeling defeated. “Well, at least I thought it through and got us all the documents and his wife. Probably helped the deal, I guess. This is the foundation for the future after the Prince of Envy’s death. This is a win, even if it is not beneficial to us now.”
Saori smiled. “Correct.”
In the end, after consulting with Theodore, Fleindia, and the Knight-Commander, we accepted the mayor’s deal. It would become useful once we had to expunge bureaucratic corruption. Still, even with this small win, we still had an even bigger fish to catch. The “mystery” person’s diary.
Saori, Tasianna, Ellainne, Yorshka, Midirn, Neill joined Fleindia, Theodore, Renee, Kuornig, and me in reading the diary. Inside the Commander’s office with the [Silence] rune activated, I handed the diary to Kuornig, as he deserved to know everything before us.
“‘These are my notes and acceptance of my sins. With these words, I commit and admit to the crimes I will perform in the future. If you are reading this diary, then I must ask you to aid me in defeating the demonkin who have infiltrated our beloved religion. I, Marius von Zahbak, swear with these words that all I will write down will be unbiased and come from a point of logical, analytical assessments. If I defer from them and turn these notes unusable in a court of law, then I apologize.’”
The Commander turned silent while his expression remained neutral. Yet, it was clear to everybody how much he needed to process this information. The evidence for all of the cardinal vicar’s crimes were documented here, in this little book of his. Here, for everybody to witness.
“Saori, where did you find this book?” I asked.
“In Yelas’s safe, given to him by a courier a day after we arrived in Aureolis. The notice told him to never open the book until the owner arrived to retrieve it,” she answered. “Yelas obeyed it, sealing it behind his safe for nobody to know its existence. Like Margeret, he too was paranoid of their true employers and was too afraid to let his curiosity influence him.”
“He thought the missive was from the demonkin,” Ellaine said. “Shrewd. Very shrewd. Hide such an implicating book under everybody’s noses by giving it to somebody who cannot possibly betray the Prince of Envy.”
“No, he was playing with us since the very moment we entered the holy city,” Theodore massaged his temples. “Everything that had occurred was according to his plan. I understand now. He never restricted our movements, he set Cardinal Wendell up to be his scapegoat while also providing him an exit from all the troubles, which led us to Tanazania town again for his. The note he left behind was him telling us we foiled his plan for us.”
“He wanted Hestia to take over the Prince of Envy’s last aberration,” Yorshka stated. “If he had worked with Prince of Envy for a while, then it means he knew the aberration in Estralia was either destroyed or taken over. He knew Aurora was there and was responsible for it, or at least, he guessed it. He was setting us up to destroy the demonkin’s last line of defense in the guise of killing the kids.”
“… How despicable.” I bite my lips. “I thought I hated him enough already, but somehow it got worse. I … So that was why he let me punch him after I broke through his barrier. I knew it was too weird how he didn’t even resist, despite being high enough to survive a punch to the face. He used me. He used me to cover up his tracks, by making the demonkin believe he was still on their side despite intending to betray them from the very beginning.”
“They might have already known,” Midirn argued. “Yet, they didn’t know when he would strike. This was all to delay their judgement for us to reach the truth, acquiring all we needed to ensure the transfer of power to the blessed would be smooth. Kuornig, this man is pious, no? He must have known about the former leadership through the blessed.”
The Commander shook his head. “… No, Gwyn had always been the pious one. Marius was always the logical one. A pure mage, through and through. He simply learned what he had to for his plans.”
“Then, what about me?” Fleindia stated. “During the speech after the first attack, he felt so cooperative before he kept pushing me into the limelight. He supported me, denouncing both Hestia and Rhea, meaning if something were to happen to me, it might be impossible for those two to manage Aureolis.”
“That is the point,” Yorshka stated. “It means the demonkin will do all they can to eliminate you to ruin our plan. He made sure the targets aren’t Hestia and Rhea, but you, reducing our potential targets by quite a bit. The moment you die, we lose—No, the Church of Aurena would most likely crumble.”
“No, even worse. The Prince of Envy will have his eyes on you,” Renee said, reminding everybody about Demiurge.
If Fleindia died and was consumed by the Prince of Envy, it would allow him to discard his persona as the pope and jump into that of a blessed. It did prompt me what happened with the bodies of the blessed who died during the demonkin coup, prompting Fleindia to explain they were all buried in a cemetery reserved for them.
“Goddess Andira created it to honor the brave warriors and mages who died during the demon war, where she erected a mana barrier similar to the one around Aureolis. It deters demons, but it also is only accessible to another blessed. I was the one who buried them personally, so I know their remains weren’t mishandled.”
A relief to hear, for sure.
In any case, we left this slightly depressing revelation aside and continued with the diary. The Commander read everything out loud, stopping here and there to contemplate things. Honestly, he wasn’t the best book narrator, especially with all his thinking, but with all the information inside, it was expected.
“‘I was approached by a ‘Reinhart,’ explaining to me while I visited my family in the Empire that he could cure my niece. Raffarson’s Debilitation; we were fortunate my sister received twins from her birth, allowing her family to hide their daughter from the outside world. Even now, nobody should have known it, but this man knew. He knew and he had a way to heal.’”
You gotta be kidding.
As I was taking a deep breath, the Commander closed his eyes and sighed. “The reason why Marius is working with the Prince and Envy and became his human confidant is due to his sister’s daughter. I thought he only had a nephew, but his niece was born with ‘Raffarson’s Debilitation.’”
The same genetic ailment Amadeus suffered from since his birth. For a noble, it was either a death’s sentence or a life trapped inside a room. Amadeus’s father sponsored an alchemist’s fae hunting plans all for a cure, and the Vicar was that desperate for his niece, as well?
The Commander continued, “The ‘Prince of Sloth’—he mentions—had managed to create a temporary cure for his niece, however, this remedy is imperfect and it requires her to continuously drink it every three months, otherwise her symptoms would reappear. With the demonkin’s continued influence, they even opened up a alchemy store for their ‘clients.’”
“You mean hostages,” Saori corrected him.
He nodded. “An understandable reason. Loyalty to our house is of the utmost importance, even more than our pride. ‘Cities and lands may fall, but as long as the name remains, everything can be rebuilt and reconquered.’ My father kept repeating that to me when he was still alive …”
“T-that is …” Fleindia stuttered. “The number of people with ‘Raffarson’s’ isn’t overwhelming, but it still is a quite uncommon ailment for the nobility. Without a cure, most are trapped in their beds. So, does this mean the demonkin are—”
“They are definitely taking advantage of this.” Neill finished her sentence.
“And I presume even other issues within the Empire,” Renee brought up. “The demonkin can prey on everything. Remember how Lady Fleindia described her stay in the church? They control an underworld supply chain for curatives and also how people serve the church. They must have infiltrated every chain in the link holding up the Empire … So that is why so many people are on their side. This is why they are helping them?”
“Cardinal Wendell isn’t the only victim,” Ellaine stated. “It was wise to keep the Yanderu representative around. If we can send information over to your cousin, he might be able to help these people.”
‘If.’ That is the issue. How much has Franz been able to advance his position? Can he even move so much with the demonkin breathing down his neck?
The following twelve pages were all dedicated to documenting the healing process and also the distribution of the potions, where the Vicar mentioned being unable to see the recipe. He was sure it was the Prince of Sloth who invented it as none of the demonkin of sloths guarding him really hid the fact. They were too “uncaring” whether the Vicar knew it or not. It wouldn’t stop them.
However, what followed this section was the gold mine. The Vicar actually went a bit emotional here as the way he wrote his notes began to have flaws. Ellaine quickly identified mistakes using the mana pen, including him pressing it down too long. It gave us insight into his thinking process as he was about to go absolute ballistic.
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“Numerous traitors from the priesthood, even if they don’t know it yet. Bribes to them, to their families, or simply threats from other high ranking clergy members who are sympathetic or supportive of the demonkin’s cause. We have names, davi amount, times where it happened, or as simple as a coincidental meeting between a known traitor and potential candidates.”
The Vicar was heavily paranoid, suspecting anybody after he learned the full extent of the demonkin’s reach and desire to control the Empire. He even announced how he suspected the demonkin might know what he was planning, meaning he had to hold back, leading into a long time gap until he next wrote anything in the diary.
In this new “chapter” he stated how he had reflected on his actions, telling us he regretted his behavior and the fact he went back on his words so soon into his investigation. He was livid, mortified even how much the demonkin had done. It got even worse when he learned how Pope Gwyn was replaced. His best friend, slain and eaten. His body was now performing heretical actions in the Prince of Envy’s name,
As such, Marius decided to pivot his strategy and pour his energy into another path—understanding the enemy. He realized whatever he wrote down here to expose people wouldn’t lead to anything until the very future, and who knew when that would be? Rare was the chance for a human to understand the mindset of a demonkin. Or a Prince of Envy without being truly deceived.
There was still a chance to be lied to, but the Vicar risked it. His mindset as an Istari follower cajoled him into learning, ridding himself of his ignorance of his race’s mortal enemy. To know one’s enemy was the first step to victory.
The Commander continued reading, “‘We talked. The Prince of Envy … I must say, while I do not know the extent of his deception—for a man who constantly wears a mask should never be fully believed—the way he spoke proved he was an intellectual. He did not assume the guise of Gwyn, but that of the form he would show his fellow demonkin. Although, he had admitted that his real face was most hideous, a crime to anything he believed was beautiful. A sin he had to hide.’”
“The first sin heir of envy I spoke had something similar to say,” I said. “Once I nullified his Demiurge, his figure revealed his true self. Almost reminded me of those undead, eldritch-like mutations caused by the black elixir. It is something with that Original Sin ability.”
The Commander continued, “‘He expressed his eternal worry about the state of this war and how the youth of Bole’Taria had grown tired of the constant battles, but none could speak up against the government due to the undeniable fact—demonkin were born from the blood of invaders. This meant there would always be conflict due to their heritage, not to mention the psychological differences between humans, elves, dwarves, and beastmen to a demonkin. Their blood compelling them to act upon their desires would always be a face to alienate and antagonize them.’”
The reason why the Prince of Envy discussed these details with Vicar Marius was due to the former simply wishing to speak with a human. He expressed his frustration that this was the first time he felt satisfied discussing with someone of another race about their country’s deficiencies and issues, meaning the Vicar was pretty open-mouth about the Empire.
Then again, to the demonkin, any of these problems should be obvious. The Vicar was using topics as fuel to keep the demonkin speaking and maintaining an air of friendliness. This, inevitably, led to some major revelation that reminded me of what Vifi told me.
“The reason why the demonkin are conducting themselves by controlling people through faith, medicine, and favors was because they are unable to rule over the Empire, or whatever is left after it splinters. The demonkin population has been at an all time low for two centuries now,” the Commander said.
“They are?” Fleindia raised her eyebrows. “But doesn’t that go against what is normally known? The reason why the demonkin’s population has been keeping up with the Empire’s just enough for a war to be feasible was due to the lust and gluttony demonkin, correct? They even developed a powerful aphrodisiac for the other five demonkin factions.”
“Ahaha … They keep the population in such a manner?” Ellaine smiled sheepishly, probably thinking of how Klea usually acted.
The Commander nodded. “That has been the case for a long time, yes. Carmaniate and the Empire have been able to keep our populations mostly stable since our battles happen around our borders and sometimes in the neutral zone, far away from the dwarven’s eyes to avoid consequences … We both aren’t willing to expand too fast into enemy territory.”
“And that is different for the demonkin. Bole’Taria is desperate to expand to obtain fertile land,” Renee answered. “During the first years, the Folschreck-Bole’Taria war involved expunging the demonkin from Altrust with the newly-founded Empire’s armies and bannermen, all for the sake of retaking the first Holy Emperor’s home continent of Numerus. However, ceasefires kept happening with more Emperors rising and falling, until we have the Empire of today. The goal never was fulfilled with both sides fighting back and forth, until the demonkin regained the momentum by retaking their lost lands over 600 years ago.
“With the last four generations of the Princes of Sins, yes. Like a crashing wave, the Bole’Tarian administration during their time sent in countless armies to the point the Empire’s numbers seemed tiny in comparison. Numbers backed by power, too. Their plan: An all-out decisive strike to win the war with the ever-increasing population. Nearly 400 years of preparation; it was time to end this war once and for all.”
“… Even the slightly longer-living demonkin must have become impatient,” Fleindia stated. “Nearly 700 years of war will tire anybody, but unlike them, the Empire’s inner cities are barely affected. After all, this is for our service to the Goddess.”
“More like the Lycerepth have been making sure to stomp down on any growing flames of revolt on the frontier towns and the dissent within the armies,” Yorshka stated, bringing up a realistic view. “Well, I don’t know much about your military, so I admit that was just an assumption, but I do know how lycerepthors can be.”
“Dame Yorshka, please, there is no need to speak like that to our justicars. A land as huge as the Folschreck Empire requires people like them.”
“Enough.” The Commander raised his hand to silence everybody. “To continue, as you would expect, their directive failed. They did manage to retake some land, but it wasn’t enough to win the war. While the demonkin did prepare, so did their enemy with the Hand of Heavens growing in strength with each generation of knights teaching the next, until it led to my generation with High Lady Oschilla. Supreme Commander of the knight orders and the high tactician of the ‘Bulwark of Humankind.’”
… Was that a boast?
“Sadly, I cannot attribute the survival of the Empire to her alone, as the issue started—as I said—200 years ago. Morale dropped for Bole’Taria and the orphan population continued growing. Social, economical, and cultural issues led to Bole’Taria collapsing under its own ambitions. Many began drifting away from the Edjurl gods their ancestors worshipped, turning to Marsven and the ‘safety of his shadows.’ In other words, peace wanters.”
“… They are fully willing to compromise. The Origin Gods are formerly Edjurians, so it makes sense for them to follow Marsven. He is the ‘rival’ of Aurena in many people’s eyes,” Saori said. “So, that is why she kept mentioning Marsven …”
By she, Saori probably meant Vifi. Even when I confronted and fought her, she had never once mentioned the Edjurl gods even in a curse, instead it was more “Marsven’s shadow” or something alike. In fact, that envy heir I recently captured mentioned primarily Marsven.
“Correct.” The Commander nodded. “Accepting that their original plans had succumbed to administrative failures, they pivoted to a new strategy now that they understood the scale of the Empire’s reach. With their reduced armies, it would be impossible to control the Empire’s lost lands and end the war, only leading to the same situation the demonkin were in the first place. The ‘rats’ will survive and retaliate.”
The Commander then took out what looked like a board with small figurines on them. He placed the pieces onto squared tiles, before it was all ready. It looked a bit like chess, but the figurines were in the form of animals and monsters with the “King” piece having the appearance of a crystal.
Commander Kuornig began moving the pieces on his side until they clashed with the frontline of his enemies. Pieces were knocked out here and there before the backrow pieces began to move, except for the crystal, which stayed in place.
“In a normal game of ‘Territorial,’ the movement patterns of each piece are different, imitating how different companies and platoons would move with their soldiers. Wolf team, hornet team, griffon knight team, and so on. However, the crystal, our city protected by a mana barrier, must always stay behind. Whether in this game or in reality, a city cannot be moved.”
Unless you’re a floating vampire city. I thought, understanding what the pieces now meant.
“As such, we need to defend the crystal, but in real life, we do not need to engage the armies. Break this down.” He then picked up a griffon knight figurine from the opposite side and used it to smack the crystal down.
“Break the enemy from behind,” Ellaine answered.
“Break the enemy from within,” the Commander corrected her. “The church, the administration in the Empire, the lycerepth; everything. Bribe the officials, work with them and make promises. Shatter the Folschreck Empire, reduce their ambitions to ashes only reserved for the history books, and install a puppet rule from the shadows with the humans. Control the masses by assuming their form, like the Prince of Envy did with Gwyn.”
Fleindia then looked at me, grimacing. This was exactly what we all talked about during the Summit. This was the demonkin’s goal they had been working on for so long.
The Commander then sighed and kept reading the diary. “This new administration prioritizes the future of Bole’Taria, with some wishing the Edjurl gods to settle in this world. Their promise is clear: the Edjurl gods do not care how we live, as long as we live for their favors and machinations. In a post war world, humanity will survive as long as they bow to the demonkin. Reduce those opposed to this idea, and the demonkin will have fulfilled all their goals, including ruling over the large lands of the former Folschreck Empire.”
Renee massaged her temples. “So this is how the demonkin are able to gain Edjurian sympathizers. The Prince of Envy was also discussing with the Vicar to assure he converted. Trying to pull him into the demonkin’s blight.”
“Empathy,” Saori said, to which all nodded.
This section was the longest as it mostly documented the Vicar’s talk with the Prince of Envy, making it almost read like a biography. Treating the Prince of Envy like a lab subject, every single detail of his personality, habits, and even dislikes were written down, allowing us to get to know the man without having met him.
He described the demonkin as conceited, but careful in his conduct, believing proper planning was the only path for his race to succeed in the future. With a grand desire for elegance and wealth, it was obvious he was quite jealous of the nobles and wealthy merchants able to lavish themselves with anything they wanted. The papal mansion, for example, had gotten a major redecoration nearly every other month purely due to the Prince of Envy’s desire for a perfect home. He treated the papal mansion as if it was his achievement; his right, and was fully willing to display that to the world.
This also included traps for the inevitable battles he envisioned. He might be prideful, but the Vicar still called him a coward here and there. No matter how safe he felt, he always distrusted the people he worked with, especially his cousin, the sin heir, Rein’Yond. To a demonkin of envy, to feel jealous of ones better was a natural feeling, as it allowed them to strive for better. As long as somebody had something they didn’t, their ambitions would never cease to exist, and that meant all were required to be careful.
Sadly, the Vicar noted how most of this information had become redundant due to the demonkin’s mental collapse. The crazed insanity the Vampire Princess informed me was real and even the Vicar felt perplexed when it happened. There were talks here and there, but the Prince of Envy’s original personality was no more.
“‘It was as if I was talking with a different person,’” the Commander read. He then turned the page, widening his eyes. “This … ‘Nearly a year has gone by, but the young former noble, Amadeus Chezaic, hadn’t relapsed. His Raffarson weakened his body over two decades, but the illness wasn’t holding back his growth any longer. How? Who? He cannot be helped by a demonkin, that is impossible. I must know.’”
My hands tightened into fists. The moment I heard about his niece, I already knew where this was going. A guy as detail focused as him wouldn’t have overlooked an albino young man, especially if Bishop Rasheid knew about his birth illness.
Marius continued, “‘True dragon blood. That was all the boy told me. He didn’t understand the concept behind it, but if I wanted to know about it, I must ask a Bishop named Theodore Sirius. It would be too risky, though.’”
“Hold on, you did what?” Yorshka and Neill said simultaneously, staring at me with confusion. They mentioned how they hadn’t smelled my scent on Amadeus, unlike with Saori; obviously, since Saori evolved with my blood, unlike Amadeus.
Well, considering our past, anybody would have figured out what Amadeus meant by “true dragon blood.”
“‘I understand now. Champion Hestia Atsuko Kargryxmor. That was the person Amadeus had spoken through. She solved the situation in Firwood, that was why the Prince was so abrasive when he recalled those events. I must ask—’” However, I interrupted the Commander.
“THE AUDACITY!” I shouted, forcing me to take deep breaths as I realized I let my emotions out without a lid. “He can’t be serious. He knew about me before we arrived here, but he never once came to contact me. He committed all these problems, even leading to Wendell being tortured and getting his soul inspected, all for this moment. He knows we will read this! This man’s mind is even worse than a demonkin at this point!”
“He—”
Neill interrupted the Commander. “‘He was following orders,’ was that what you wanted to say? ‘With age comes wisdom?’ What a lousy saying for humans.”
The Commander sighed, turning his eyes to everybody in the room to learn their feelings. “Put yourself in his shoes. He couldn’t because he was being monitored the entire time. The false knights hiding around, the sin heir breathing down his neck and giving him orders; everything was against his favor until you people arrived. When you pushed the demonkin to finally act, he found an opening.”
“At the cost of my party’s grief and the many people in the city! This does not excuse any of his actions nor your inaction!” I slammed the table, growling out my frustrations on this situation before covering my face with my hands. “This isn’t fair. I hate this man so much I want to punch him again.”
“Should we get in contact with them?” Saori asked.
Before I could speak, Theodore stepped in. “I was the one who made Amadeus’s curative, but the issue is that even I do not fully understand what I did. I used the standard holy water given to us by Aureolis before pouring some of Lady Hestia’s blood in it, believing a rumor how true dragon blood is helpful for healing.”
“If that’s the case, then I don’t want any arguments. It’s a no,” Neill interjected. “I’m not the biggest rule follower, but I’m not allowing my little sister’s blood to spread around the country like some product. Loatryx would never accept it either.”
Yorshka grunted in agreement. “Not to mention how much you can actually do with true dragon blood. An alchemist’s most valuable ingredient. You’re mostly correct, High Bishop, but if we want more information on it, we have to ask a true dragon alchemist like Cernust who can explain everything as easily as possible. Or, Tasianna, do you have any idea?”
“I never talked about it to him or my alchemy meister,” she said. “I have no need for such knowledge since I fully understand and support Loatryx’s stance on it. If somebody were to misuse Lady Hestia’s blood, I would be quite furious.”
“Regardless, there is no debate on this matter,” Midirn stated. “Whether Lady Hestia is an adult mentally or not, she is a whelp to us dragonkin. Her sister is her guardian until Empress Melloxtressa awakens, so her decision is final. We will not accept this deal.”
Sheesh, making me feel like a kid here … I complained, but I honestly didn’t feel dissatisfied. In fact, it felt good to have somebody else decide on such an impactful decision. I didn’t have to feel guilty about anything.
“I see … I understand.” The Commander sighed. “I will not force you, however, as his friend, I do hope Empress Melloxtressa would change her mind in the future about this.”
“Even after all of this evidence, you’re still supporting him?” Fleindia asked, words laced with venom as she glared at the Commander as if he had gone insane. “You promised to help us if we reveal the truth! This is enough proof.”
“I will not. I will honor my word, yet, I cannot abandon him. Marius, Gwyn, and I have been friends since we were children.” He laid a hand on his left chest. “The three of us all were born into marquess houses, all fortunate enough that our fathers were good friends as they served in the war together. Gwyn, the talented speaker but with the weakest body; Marius, the talented mage but with the worst temper; and I, the dreaming knight who wanted to become a Hand of Heaven.”
He then unsheathed his sword, looked at it before placing it on the table. “Each of us had different goals in our life, with Gwyn wishing to become a priest, Marius wanting to join Aleistunum, and me wishing to join the knights. We all managed it in the end, but the issues came later with Marius’ losing his family during a demonkin attack while I lost my position amongst the Hand of Heaven due to defying an order to come to Marius’s family’s aid. I failed. I nearly died.”
He opened up his gambeson and shirt, revealing a large puncture scar left to his chest. “Marius managed to prevent my death by pouring potions on me, just long enough for a group of Hands of Heaven to reach me. To our surprise, it was Gwyn who led them there. My life was saved … That was the context of why I had made an oath.”
I blinked, feeling a bit baffled. “You … Were you even trying to make me feel sympathetic to you?”
He shook his head before standing up, throwing the open diary on the table. “I am simply giving you the last piece of context why I decided to trust my friend until the bitter end. I owe them everything. An old man like me only has his memories, and in between the situation with my family and the state of my order, reminiscing about the better times has been the only thing that has eased my mind … I will slay Marius, none else. This is my last duty as his friend.”
He then left the room, prompting the rest of us to read the last page on the diary, “‘I was branded with a slave mark before the Prince of Envy secluded himself in the papal mansion’s basement. Protected by powerful magic made by Goddess Andira and God Istari, it can only be opened with a key that I must hold. With this slave mark, I am destined to fight the ones reading this diary. If the truth has been revealed, then the next time we meet, you must strike me down and recover the key!’”