A heavy silence settled over the Council Chamber.
That’s how shocking the King’s statement was.
The Prot Kingdom.
A nation called the shield of the Northern Continent, along with Baren.
But now, that was all in the past.
Today, the Prot Kingdom had turned its gaze away from Baren’s troubled political situation, even going so far as to reject requests for help.
They even closed their borders and cut off all relations at times.
How great must Baren’s sense of betrayal have been.
The faces of the nobles gradually began to harden.
“Please, Your Majesty, reconsider!”
A relatively young noble broke the silence and cried out.
The King’s gaze turned to him.
“The Prot Kingdom has already broken the Alliance Treaty. You know well how much despair their pettiness has brought not just us, but the people of Baren. We cannot share the Light with them now!”
The young noble launched into a heated speech, reciting the now defunct Alliance Treaty between the two kingdoms.
To summarize simply, as the southernmost country in the Northern Continent, Baren was to guard against invasions from the Southern Continent, and the Prot Kingdom, as an ally, was to actively assist Baren in times of emergency.
Like lips and teeth, bound together by mutual understanding, the relationship between the two nations was completely severed after the outbreak of Demonic Energy.
“That’s right! The treaty that endured through generations is already finished. The Prot Kingdom only coveted the privileges of being Baren’s ally, but never fulfilled their responsibilities or obligations!”
Others nodded in agreement with the young noble’s words.
Even the usually moderate nobles denounced Prot’s conduct.
The King closed his eyes in silence.
It wasn’t that he couldn’t understand the nobles’ resentment.
In fact, it was none other than the King himself who had felt the deepest despair at watching their ally turn their back.
“How could I, as King, be unaffected?”
Soon the King spoke, his voice trailing off.
There was a deep sorrow in that tone.
“But we need their help. That fact remains unchanged.”
Currently, most of Baren’s available military forces were fighting repeated battles at Riot Castle.
The nation’s situation was not good enough to shoulder all the burdens and supplies.
“The reason Prot lost its former vigor and drew back is the Demonic Energy that swept the continent. If we can help them overcome the darkness on their own, our temporarily broken friendship might be restored.”
The King had pondered this many times.
How could they possibly endure this harsh winter?
After much deliberation, he came to only one conclusion.
***
“Form an envoy. I appoint the Trantis Marquess as leader of that envoy.”
“As you command.”
The Marquess, who had been quietly dozing off, bowed his head and accepted the order.
The nobles were left speechless.
Even as the King made this unilateral decision, the loyal vassals’ inner thoughts seemed almost audible.
Even knowing there was no other choice, the selfishness or regret of having to give something away weighed on them.
It was a natural reaction, as no one gathered here was a saint or sage.
“At the very least… at the very least, we must not readily extend credit to them.”
Then, the young noble who had first voiced his concern spoke up again.
“What they lack and we possess—that is Hor. For the Prot Kingdom, it’s a desperately needed Light. So until they agree to actively support us and pay reparations for breaking the Alliance Treaty…”
!
The King slammed down the armrest.
“How can you say Hor is ours? How could you dare to use Hor as a bargaining chip in some negotiation?”
The voice of the King of Barentis was calm.
But within, there was a sharpness that rebuked the young noble heavily.
“Richard von Bartenberg bore our distrust and still delivered the Light to us. How could we, who have received such mercy, claim Hor’s Light as our own and demand a price for it?”
“The Prot Kingdom only wishes, like us, for the Demonic Energy to be lifted as soon as possible, for the long night to end—”
Hoo—
Taking a deep breath, the King spoke again.
“That is the true, earnest wish of our ally, and of Hor. The well-being of Baren is the well-being of our Hor. Surely, each side fulfilling the other’s wish will be enough.”
***
Riot Castle was alive with loud singing as always.
“This is nice.”
Richard von Bartenberg smiled contentedly.
Was it because they’d experienced another battle, or because he’d witnessed the miracle called Heaven’s Wrath with his own eyes?
There was a sacred resonance in the voices of the reinforcements. It was unmistakably the hymn of those who truly believed in their God.
Suddenly, Richard thought of Huger.
Without the orc who was always making a racket calling for Mary, the castle felt strangely empty.
I wonder if he’s doing well.
He muttered and looked up at the sky.
He wanted to look in on Huger’s journey through the eyes of faith, but the side effects of Heaven’s Wrath hadn’t yet faded.
His body was filled with faith, yet he couldn’t move at all—it almost reminded him of the time he suffered from Mana Insensitivity.
Richard recalled the power of Heaven’s Wrath.
It was still a power too great for him.
His faith was overflowing, but the vessel of that power was still no more than a low-grade divine being, so the side effects were inevitable.
“These days, I feel like I’m stagnating.”
Though the Hor Church itself was growing at a frightening pace, his own divine rank was still stuck at the lowest level.
His achievements as Sword Saint were also still just two marks.
If only he could reach four marks soon, he’d finally see the horizon.
He couldn’t help but feel impatient.
He was lost in these thoughts when it happened.
Sig approached, looking very refreshed, as if he’d just soaked himself in the ground.
“Richard! Want to do some training? You’ll stagnate if you just play all day, you know?”
“…You go straight for the sore spot as soon as you see me.”
Richard frowned.
“If you’re bored, want to spar?”
Amidst this, Sig made a tempting suggestion.
But Richard shook his head firmly.
“Sparring’s not for me.”
The Sword Saint Richard inherited only grew when he overcame a limit.
Lackluster duels would not bring him any achievement.
“Well, I’ll have to look after Moritz later then. By the way…”
Sig suddenly put on a serious expression.
“What are you plotting?”
“Oh, that? You just figured it out?”
He’d finally realized where Huger, who’d left some time ago, was headed.
“I suspected, but Titan?”
With Bartenberg reigning over the Northern Continent, they’d only just barely blocked the land of barbarian warriors.
If something happened in that explosive country, Bartenberg had to step in.
Sig asked in a grave voice.
“Why did you send your companion there?”
Richard just smiled brightly.
That smile was so sacred it was almost chilling, leaving Sig at a loss for words.
“Don’t worry. The warriors of Titan won’t go mad and run wild. It’s just orcs heading to the Orc Nation. What’s so strange about that?”
“But he’s not an ordinary orc.”
A Saint Knight orc who served the god Hor—
If, by any chance, the Hor Church spread to Titan…
Sig’s eyes wavered as his thoughts raced that far.
“The King of Titan is the orcs’ most coveted opponent and the object of their deepest respect.”
Richard said this and broke into an expectant laugh.
At last, the Hor Church was beginning to stir in many places.
He seemed very much to be looking forward to that future.
***
The Magic Alliance’s fortress was also struck by the Third Plague.
No,
Members of the Alliance simply huddled behind a thick barrier, gasping for breath.
Their faces were a mixture of exhaustion and awe.
“Marks… truly a great family.”
“They were even fiercer monsters than before…”
They looked around the perimeter of the fortress.
Right up to the edge of the barrier, the monsters had been torn apart and rolled across the ground, and everywhere there were craters left by powerful magic.
“N-no casualties or injuries to report.”
The Magic Alliance had anticipated that this battle would be the toughest yet.
When they saw the Red Plague Giants with their own eyes, they thought of defeat.
But that wasn’t the case.
“This is foul. Such a foul, disgusting energy.”
At the head of the group that had killed all the giants and monsters and led the Alliance to victory, a young man muttered.
“Allan Marks, Demonic Energy is leaking in. Please fall back…”
“Hmph. Enough.”
Waving off the adjutant’s words, Allan scanned the corpses of monsters beyond the barrier with his eyes.
A foul stench mixed into every breath.
***
Suddenly, Allan clutched his chest in pain.
Demonic Energy that had sunk deep under the light of Hor began to surge within his body.
Gritting his teeth, he gripped his Spirit Staff, blessed by Hor, before the pain finally subsided.
“…I really hate this place.”
Maybe it was the memory of being attacked by Richard.
A chill descended on Allan’s face.
On the contrary, a vast magical power welled up from that small frame.
“This irritating Demonic Energy, these mad, stinking monsters, even the northern riffraff… I hate all of it.”
“Sir?”
The adjutant and the other mages cast him questioning glances. Still, Allan’s muttering did not stop.
“Hor. Oh Hor, please watch over me.”
As Allan bowed his head, the air around him trembled violently.
Naturally, everyone’s gaze was drawn to this sudden strange behavior.
“I am your only Saint. Only I can be with you. Oh Hor…”
With a voice like a whisper in a cathedral, Marks behind him clutched his head.
“He’s going crazy. Has the Demonic Energy coiled up inside him made him this agitated…”
He was the very picture of an unstable Saint, on the verge of going berserk.
Just as Marks moved to calm him,
Allan raised his staff high into the sky.
Paaaah—!
From that spot, a beam of faith shone forth.
“What is that…?”
The mages, staring into the light, reflexively shielded their eyes.
But that was only for a moment.
“Ah… ahhh…”
The energy of faith, felt for the first time in their lives, was enough to soothe their deeply weary minds and bodies.
But not everyone welcomed the light.
“Hot!”
Among the mages struck by the light, some cried out in pain.
Smoke rose from their emaciated bodies.
A reaction completely different from the others.
Allan’s gaze slowly turned to them.
“Found you. Traitors.”
Juuuuk—
A savage sneer twisted his lips.
Premium Chapter
Login to buy access to this Chapter.