Chapter 32: The Reality of the Empire (1)

Zion, Yuria, Prince Klavis, Soares, and a small group were walking along a road overgrown with weeds in disorder.

Two merchant wagons trailed behind them.  

Living on a barren rocky island where not a single blade of grass grew, it was impossible to meet all their needs through pillaging alone.

They had to periodically step inland to replenish supplies.

Clothing, food, weapons for the rebellion—these were procured little by little in this way.  

[The Empire’s pride, huh? Feels like it hasn’t been maintained for at least ten years.]

The central avenue of the Empire, built over decades, was also known as the Endless Road of Glory—a prominent symbol of the Empire.

But after Nadja took control of the royal family and seized power, it had been neglected for a long time, just as Frey had said.

Apart from Zion’s group, no one else was using the avenue.  

[It looks like all trade has completely stopped. It’s almost amazing the country is still holding together in a state like this.]  

[Whether it’s really holding together or just a hollow shell left after everything has already collapsed remains to be seen… But more importantly, Zion, are you alright?]  

It had been two days since they entered inland.

Zion had grown quieter and hardly showed his usual bright expression.

The scent of monsters was the cause.  

Everywhere his senses reached was filled with the stench of monsters, yet not a single one was visible—not even a trace.

It was like wandering inside the belly of a giant monster.

On edge, Zion was hypersensitive even to the slightest thing.

Except for Yuria, no one had told the others, but some had already noticed Zion was not his usual self.  

“I’m sorry, uncle. I just can’t calm down…”  

[There’s nothing to be sorry about. That’s a normal reaction for someone awakened.] 

That was their initial comfort, but it was definitely a bad sign.

Being on edge 24 hours a day like this, the limit would come sooner or later.  

[Hey, Arcs. Make something, will you? He’s going to collapse if this keeps up.]  

[I’m an engineer, not a lamp genie.]  

[So can you make something or not?]

[Well, it’s not impossible.] 

There were a few problems.

Even if they started designing from scratch and somehow prepared the materials, making an artifact would take considerable time.

More importantly, even if such an artifact were made, the biggest problem was that it couldn’t be freely taken over to the other world.  

[Ah, damn. Don’t you have to go through some procedure to register it again if you want to take an artifact over there?] 

[Exactly. If you bring over an unverified artifact and something goes wrong with the Pendant’s function, it’d be a disaster.]  

Strictly speaking, summoning through the Pendant wasn’t summoning in the traditional sense.

First, the consciousness and belongings of the summon target were digitized and backed up to the cloud.

When the communicator sent that data to the Pendant, the Pendant would create a temporary body and implant the backed-up consciousness into it.

Meanwhile, the original on Earth would be in a dreamlike state.  

This complicated mechanism existed for safety reasons.

Summoning someone entirely at random risked catastrophic loss if anything happened and they couldn’t return—Earth would suffer a huge blow.  

[Can’t be helped. You’ll have to go over there sometime soon.]  Frey folded his arms, frowning grimly as he pondered, then reluctantly spoke.  

[Huh? Really? Frey, weren’t you trying to monopolize Zion?]  

Frey stared at Arcs in disbelief.  

[What, you think I treat him like some toy? I’m the one who wants to monopolize him?]  

[At least mentally, he’s a kid… ugh. J-just kidding. Hitting a woman so mercilessly—ugh.] 

[Shut up and figure out the estimate first. Would it be a problem if we just got the materials over there and made it there?]  

[Probably?]

The plan was set.

Frey let out a short sigh, then clicked his tongue at Zion, who remained on edge, constantly scanning his surroundings.  

[I’ll have to get in touch with the two of them.]

[Atlas and Saint?]  

[Yeah. Both of them are pretty busy, so I was hoping to leave them alone as much as possible… but at least they need to know the situation.]  

Fortunately, the journey itself went smoothly.

They didn’t encounter a single monster, nor the bandits commonly found in a ruined country.

As the sun set without incident, the group veered slightly off the road to set up camp.  

At the edge of the campsite, for some reason unknown, Zion quietly took a solitary seat on a forlorn, abandoned log.

They wanted to help with the preparations, but the prince’s group firmly forbade it.

Yuria did the same.

It was a courtesy to the guests, but if looked at another way, it was a strict boundary.  

In the end, Yuria trained while preparing camp, and Zion supervised, preparing to defend against any monster attacks.  

“I’m starting to see her limits.”  

Worry crept into Zion’s eyes as he watched Yuria devote herself to training.

Her skills had improved remarkably, but so had the speed with which she encountered her limits.

This was not because Yuria lacked talent; rather, Zion’s training alone couldn’t fully bring out her potential.  

“A better Instructor. More real battle experience… Either way, the conditions aren’t there yet.”  

He had explained this to Yuria, who accepted it, enduring the training that made her growth hard to feel.  

On the other hand, Zion wondered if she really needed to grow stronger.

Yuria’s goal was to become strong enough to travel alone.

At this point, she could easily take down an orc.

Not as skilled as Zion, but thanks to her Ma’an, her tracking abilities were high.

She would do fine starting on her own after parting ways with Zion.  

“Uncle, what does Arcs think?”  

[…That’s something you must never say to Yuria, Zion.] Arcs’s answer was a stern warning.  

Puzzled by the cryptic reply, Zion straightened up as someone approached from the direction of the camp.  

“How are you feeling, Alkoth-sama?”  

“Soares-sama.”  

“Please, call me casually. May I sit beside you?”  

Soares asked permission and naturally sat beside him.

The distance was neither too far nor too close—close enough to swing a longsword, yet a comfortable range for a dagger stab.  

“This is tea brewed from a herb called Clavon that grows naturally in the Empire. It has a calming effect.”  

“Thank you. I’ll drink it well.”  

Momentarily taken aback by the unexpected kindness, Zion soon smiled slightly and accepted the teacup.

He savored the scent, then took a sip.

The warm sensation seeped through his body, loosening his tense muscles just a bit.  

“I’ve never heard of Clavon herb before. Is it only distributed in the Empire?”  

“Originally, it grew only in some special environments within the Empire. Five years ago, His Majesty succeeded after research in establishing a stable cultivation method. The plan was to announce it publicly and make it a new specialty of the Empire.”  

But Nadja rejected this.

Simply because the herb wasn’t to her taste.

Later, Prince Klavis, who had come to his senses and escaped the royal family, decided to use this herb as one of the rebel army’s financial sources.  

“His Majesty didn’t decide on rebellion simply because a woman named Nadja ruled the royal family. He took the risk and the sin because the governance was corrupt and the people were suffering under her.”  

“That makes sense. Though unlikely, if that demon had led the Empire in a better direction, His Majesty would have accepted her rule.”  

Zion naturally picked up Soares’s words.

She fell silent for a moment, quietly watching him.

Zion didn’t miss the caution and confusion in her eyes.  

“My time with His Majesty was short, but I understand what kind of person he is. Although he took wrong methods and will eventually pay the price for his sins, we must not belittle his pure conviction to serve the country and its people.”  

“How can we earn your trust?”  After a moment’s thought, Zion chose a straightforward approach.

It must have been a shock to Soares, who may have expected him to probe cautiously first.

The usually composed, knot-like expression on her face wavered, confirming Zion’s guess.  

“Supporting the one we serve and blocking all possible threats to them is the Royal Guard Division’s duty.”  

Soares let out a faint sigh and slowly spoke.  

“It’s like an occupational disease.”  

“Will time heal it?”  

“Not even in ten million years. I will spend my life at His Majesty’s side, wary of everything coming toward him, doubting and verifying. That is my duty.”  

Zion closed his mouth again, unable to say anything.

Whether words of comfort or worry, any would be an insult to her.  

“So please, Alkoth-sama, don’t worry about me too much.”  

After finishing, Soares glanced briefly at Yuria, who was relentlessly swinging a dagger not far away, then left.

Watching her retreating back, Zion let out a small sigh.  

“It’s unfortunate. Expecting everyone to sincerely connect and get along well is an excessive dream.”  

Zion nodded quietly in agreement with that rational statement.

Frey, watching Zion’s barely concealed displeasure, chuckled and added, [But still, it’s not bad to live dreaming. You just have to act according to what you think is right.]

Zion nodded once more.

His displeasure faded, replaced by a strong resolve.  

***

After traveling for three more days, the group arrived at a small city.

During that time, Zion showed a few noticeable changes.  

One was that his sharp tension had greatly eased.

There was no special reason for this.

If anything, it was thanks to the Clavon herbal tea Soares brought every evening and the passage of time helping him adapt.

The stench of monsters still filled the air, and a wary sense that monsters could appear anytime lingered in his mind, but he had simply grown accustomed to it.  

[My… my time? My effort?]  

Arcs had been frantically preparing artifact production for three days, feeling like a dog chasing a chicken.

But what could be done?

Zion hadn’t done anything wrong to make her feel sorry.  

[Now you can’t even cancel the materials order. Just wasting money. Hmph.] 

[You’re rich.]  

[That’s not my money, it’s the lab’s budget. I don’t get to use even a tiny bit.]  

[The lab owner pretending to be sick.]  

The second change was that Zion had begun openly closing the distance with the prince and Soares.

Unlike before, when he was careful not to cross any boundaries even by accident when they kept their distance.  

“To be honest, I don’t like the current situation.”  

[Zion, are you angry?]  

“Maybe I am. Angry at that demon named Nadja who caused all this.”  

The prince at least outwardly welcomed Zion’s change.

Soares’s attitude seemed unchanged at first glance.

Although it was clear neither of them felt that way inside, Zion refrained from bringing up the matter rashly.  

Getting close doesn’t guarantee sharing genuine feelings or friendship—especially if the other party carries complicated circumstances.

Zion had learned that maintaining a fragile connection in a mansion full of malice was already a blessing.  

“There’s time, so I’ll take it step by step.”  

Contrary to Zion’s expectations, the small city called Bold had a decent population, and the faces of passersby were not dark.

It looked like an ordinary small city.

At least until around noon.  

“The people…”  

Walking through the city disguised as merchants alongside the prince, Zion suddenly sensed a crowd gathering in one place.

The prince frowned slightly, realizing this a moment later through Soares.  

“Tch. Is today the day?”  

“Do you know what’s going on, Your Highness?”  

“It’s better to see for myself than hear an explanation.”  

Thousands gathered in the city’s largest square.

The crowd was so dense there was hardly room to move.

Here and there, elderly, women, and children were crushed and trampled to the ground, but no one cared.  

“Nadja-sama has issued a new edict!”  

“Long live the Frien Empire! Long live Nadja-sama!”  

As the official standing at the center of the square announced solemnly, the crowd roared in unison.  

“One: The tax applied in Bold will increase uniformly from 70% to 80%! Nadja-sama was displeased that fewer people than expected are starving!”

“One: 500 able-bodied men between 20 and 40 will be conscripted! Nadja-sama said she will make a new statue to spread your beauty!”

“One: 100 women between 10 and 25 will be offered! Nadja-sama said the women in the system eat too much and she’s grown tired of it!”  

“Waaaaah!”  

“Nadja-sama raised the taxes again!”  

“She really cares about Bold!”  

“Oh! Nadja-sama, for you I would give my heart!”  

As the edicts were fully broadcast, the crowd cheered with joy.

Some embraced each other or sat down in tears.

Despite being kicked and trampled to death, they maintained smiles filled with joy until the very end.  

“This is the current state of the Empire.”  

The prince beside him spoke calmly, as if erasing all emotion.  

Zion was seized by a feeling as if trapped in a dreadful nightmare.