“Shit.”
Podric Kendal, the inquisitor of the Ellington Holy Alliance, known by the moniker ‘Beheading Priest’ for his specialization in judging and executing all manner of unclean things—a mad hunting dog.
Upon hearing the news that he had been trapped in a black mage’s barrier and rendered immobile, Cain, in his disbelief, blurted out a curse he had often used during his social life in Korea.
“This… seems like quite a serious situation.”
The commander of the Imperial Guard Knights, Viscount Heinrich Denver, standing right behind Cain to his side, seemed to have intuited that the developments were unusual.
“It’s serious. Very serious. This has become a real headache.”
Cain calmly suppressed his inner emotions, which surged beyond disbelief into irritation, and responded to Viscount Denver’s murmur, almost like talking to himself.
Then, his gaze turned to Executor Bellikian, who was kneeling on one knee right in front of him, laboriously regulating his ragged breathing.
Bellikian, the hound from a mercenary background and Podric’s direct executor, seemed to have barely escaped just before the black mage deployed the fatal barrier, thanks to years of real combat experience honed in conflict zones.
Fortunately—or perhaps not—the barrier deployed by the half-elf black mage Harvest, who had lived for long years, with the aid of a one-time artifact, not only had a powerful effect capable of trapping even a typical Meister-level expert but also deployed very quickly. However, it had the drawback of a narrow range.
Thanks to that, the quick-witted Bellikian managed to pull his body out of the barrier’s activation range.
Of course, Podric, who had been focused on executing heretics and was deeply wounded, couldn’t escape in time… Cecilia noticed the barrier’s activation and tried to stop it, only to get caught in the mana storm and swept into the barrier herself, and Torres, who was beside Cecilia, was sealed along with her.
Bellikian, having evaded it for the moment, waited in hiding until Harvest left and then rushed to the imperial palace.
“We must inform the Sanctuary first.”
While Cain, flustered by this entirely unexpected variable, pondered various countermeasures, Bellikian advised that they needed to report to the Ellington Holy Alliance that the Beheading Priest had been sealed.
However, instead of responding immediately, Cain wore a grave expression and merely rolled his eyes back and forth.
Perhaps finding that appearance frustrating, Bellikian ground his teeth.
That guy’s personality doesn’t seem great either.
Cain quietly clicked his tongue inwardly while looking at the scarred hound.
He must have tried not to show it, but it was obvious.
“The Holy Alliance will be contacted separately by my people. There’s something more important than that.”
Despite the urgent situation, Cain, without losing his composure, slowly opened his mouth with a calm expression to explain.
“Securing the area where the Beheading Priest is sealed takes priority.”
According to Bellikian’s report, in the chaos, he hadn’t notified any other imperial central army bases or units and had rushed straight to the imperial palace.
Cain, upon grasping the situation late, had sent Imperial Guard Knight Rodolfo to mobilize the nearest knight order and infantry unit, but that was merely a ‘temporary measure.’
In the current situation, where it was almost certain that the opponent was a black mage from the Necronomicon School, which researched necromancy and commanded undead, ordinary knights would only serve as sacrifices to increase the enemy’s undead forces.
With the trusted Beheading Priest isolated in the barrier, the cards for effectively countering a high-level black mage were limited to the paladins of the Imperial Church.
Of course, the high mages of the magic tower could handle it to some extent.
The problem was that those paladins of the Imperial Church or high mages of the magic tower were a significantly small number of elite personnel.
“Summon Marquis Pavel and Viscount Valerian.”
After a moment of deliberation, Cain unhesitatingly called Marquis Pavel and Viscount Valerian to the audience chamber.
“We need the power of the paladins, Viscount Valerian.”
“For Your Majesty! Our paladin order will fight to the death! The Imperial Church will stand at the forefront for Your Majesty’s protection and the empire’s glory until the last man!”
To Viscount Valerian, it was a meaningless question.
No sooner had Cain finished suggesting that they might need to mobilize the Imperial Church paladins than he responded with a shout that seemed to shake the audience chamber.
With the paladin forces secured, Cain’s gaze now turned to Marquis Damien Pavel.
“Marquis Pavel. Can you provide support with high mages?”
Marquis Pavel and the high mages were working day and night to revive the imperial magic tower of the Felberg Empire, which lacked magical resources.
Especially recently, they were focused on the exploration process to discover the burial area, the tomb of ancient magical tomes said to be sleeping in the lowest underground level of the imperial magic tower, so Cain knew they didn’t have much spare time.
As such, Cain couldn’t help but be cautious in requesting support from the high mages.
Moreover, the work Marquis Pavel was currently responsible for—the search and excavation of the burial area—had also started under Cain’s orders, judging that they needed to secure necessary ancient magical tomes early for future preparations.
“Heard that a bishop-level inquisitor is trapped in an unidentified barrier?”
Instead of immediately answering Cain’s question about whether support from high mages was possible, Marquis Pavel posed another question, an action that could be interpreted as discourtesy toward royalty.
But given the urgent situation, Cain spoke first before anyone else could unnecessarily intervene.
“Yes, that’s right. The barrier’s identity hasn’t been confirmed, but based on the fact that Podric Kendal, a bishop-level inquisitor at the Meister level, was helplessly caught, and Bellikian’s testimony, it seems we can infer it’s a barrier with considerable power.”
He used informal speech with others as befitting an emperor, but Cain showed at least minimal courtesy to Marquis Damien Pavel.
He had lived for such a long time, and especially, despite being framed and exiled a hundred years ago while serving the previous emperor, he had returned to the empire as a loyal subject.
Even if he had his own desires, in Cain’s mind, that deserved bowing down in respect.
“I’ll go myself.”
“Is that possible, Marquis Pavel?”
“It would be better for me to go personally and check the barrier rather than sending several high mages.”
That was obvious.
“The magic tower’s high mages have many spells to interpret right now, and above all, I’m interested in a black magic barrier that even an Ellington bishop-level inquisitor couldn’t do anything against.”
Marquis Pavel spoke honestly.
He was a grand mage who had discovered the path to magical truth during his long seclusion after being exiled from the Felberg Empire and was walking that path, so now he often moved based on his own curiosity rather than money or power.
“Good.”
Marquis Damien Pavel and Viscount Valerian.
With two of the Felberg Empire’s most powerful forces heading to the site along with the paladins, there shouldn’t be major concerns.
Just as Cain thought he should obediently wait in the safe imperial palace for further news.
A system message proposing a quest appeared before his eyes.
[Sub Story: The Master of Prophecy and the March of the Impure Ones’ progress is updated.]
[Master of Prophecy and the March of the Impure Ones (Sub Story): While the clergy of the Holy Alliance have neglected their ancient duties, the forces of the impure have quietly built their power in the continent’s shadows.
They have colluded with the powerful of great nations to secure their own safety, and taking advantage of the weakened flames of heresy hunts, they are actively increasing their followers across the continent.
But with the ‘Wanderer’s intervention beginning, and the will of annihilation, forgotten by ancient oblivion, awakening, it is clear that the time has come to confront the dark forces crawling up from the abyss once more.
In the impending war between good and evil, you must clearly decide which side you will stand on, and now is that moment.
Release the seal on the Ellington Holy Alliance’s inquisitor, Podric Kendal’s barrier, or slay and display the black mage to show the will of annihilation.
Upon success, in all future ‘heresy’-related story events, the ‘Ellington Holy Alliance’ will support you.
Upon failure, the ‘Ellington Holy Alliance’ may suspect not only you but also the ‘Felberg Empire’ of heresy.]
It was a system message notifying the progress of the sub story.
Upon success, the Holy Alliance’s attitude would become quite favorable in the future, but upon failure, they might suspect heresy…
The failure penalty seemed excessively large.
If we start being suspected of heresy, it’ll be incredibly troublesome…
Even if not officially designated as heresy, just starting to be suspected makes life exhausting.
Especially, the Felberg Empire would suffer disadvantages in various ways, so this absolutely could not fail.
[The Holy Warrior of Annihilation, Onisia offers a growth quest.]
[Would you like to confirm?]
Just before officially issuing the imperial decree to secure the Beheading Priest, another system message appeared before his eyes.
If it’s a ‘growth quest’…
As it turned out, the protagonist character with the setting of constellation lineage, Veil SunChaser—that is, one of the RPG-like growth mechanisms prepared for the game’s player, an event that occurs upon successfully imprinting one or more stigmata or awakening a constellation’s power.
Simply put, it’s a quest directly given by the constellation, and upon achieving it, the synchronization rate with that constellation increases, granting a reward that strengthens the stigmata.
The quest content varies depending on the constellation’s disposition.
Onisia is the constellation called the Holy Warrior of Annihilation, so maybe she’ll give a quest to outright subjugate the black mage?
Without needing to answer verbally, he nodded slightly in a way that wouldn’t be noticed by others, and immediately, a system window containing the growth quest’s details appeared before his eyes.
[Growth Quest (Holy Warrior of Annihilation, Onisia): The dark forces praying for the world’s destruction are rising again.
Onisia, one of the constellations representing the divine lineage, will request the subjugation and purification of heresy on the condition of granting you greater power.
Execute an entity officially in the category of heresy and purify the corpse using Onisia’s authority!
Reward: Strengthening of Onisia’s stigmata. Random stigmata awakening.]
There were two rewards.
Strengthening Onisia’s stigmata or authority as a success reward was naturally expected, but to think random stigmata awakening was attached as well.
Honestly, with so many variables occurring to the point where the Beheading Priest was sealed, Cain had intended to stay safely in the imperial palace… but with this, he had no choice but to go himself.
The problem is… Count Randerk.
Of course, to go personally, he had to overcome the massive mountain that was Count Steiner Randerk, who was overly obsessed with the emperor’s safety.
Cain, who had been talking as if he would obediently stay in the imperial palace just moments ago, began racking his brains on how to naturally switch positions to persuade Count Randerk.