Episode 358
“The Emperor has been asked to either announce the subjugation of the Holy Kingdom or to declare that he will transfer the position of Pope to the Imperial Emperor.”
A heavy voice came from the mouth of a person wearing even darker colored robes in a dark dark room.
[…That’s an unreasonable request.]
However, the voice of the old man in the communication channel answering the question was simply calm.
“Yes. But what Elder Gareth and his group did was too extreme. If we do not comply with their demands, the imperial hunt will begin again.”
[That… there are too many suspicious things. It feels like something was twisted from the beginning.]
Black Robe bit his lip at those words. This was because, unlike himself, who was anxious about an unexpected situation, Topju seemed to be obsessed with past events that had already come to fruition.
“I’m sorry, tower lord, but now is the time to think about future measures, not the past. A lot of power has already been lost, and too much has been revealed to the world. It would be a big problem if hunting started again now.”
In order to move the Holy Kingdom, many elders and elites have already abandoned their fake identities and come forward in person.
Black Robe’s words were not an exaggeration.
[Big deal? Yeah, it’s a big deal. Then try to take as much time as possible. In the meantime, I will look for him in the forest.]
It’s not like I don’t know who ‘the guy’ means or why I’m looking for him.
‘But now is not the time!’
Black Robe was upset because the tower owner, the tower’s greatest power, seemed not to be aware of the seriousness of the situation.
“Lord Tower. It is true that the Holy Sword’s founder’s relics are important, but the current situation…”
[Even if I go to the Holy Kingdom myself, nothing will change.]
“…Yes?”
[Anyway, we can’t clash head-on with the empire right now. What if our wishes come true? Even if we can win a local war, it is clear that we will eventually be defeated by a large army. So, we have no choice but to take our time.]
“But the Emperor has specified a deadline. In just one month, the hunt may really begin! If we do that, we may have to live in the dark for hundreds of years again!”
[know. But if we give in to that ridiculous demand, we won’t have any cards to use later.]
“…Yes?”
[Move the Pope to announce subjugation? In reality, it will be canceled due to the immediate backlash. But the empire will use that as an excuse to suppress the Holy Kingdom. It would be a perfect excuse if the common people opposed something that the Pope acknowledged. And when we get there, the Empire and the Emperor will no longer need us.]
“What do you mean…?”
[The period of being in the same boat… has no choice but to come to an end. So there is no choice. Take your time. At least we must decide the end.]
“Lord Tower…”
[I don’t know what the emperor will do. But hold on as long as you can and escape with the Supreme Bracelet. You can discard the rest.]
“Are you saying that we should abandon the elites who have already established themselves in the Holy Kingdom?”
[If you can take it, it would be better.]
It may not be possible.
Black Robe could understand the omitted words.
[Meanwhile, I find the holy sword, collect a total of three relics, including the ‘thing’ I have, and wait for the war.]
“Is there really a war going on?”
[Yes. The empire has already been preparing behind the scenes for decades. Now even the emperor won’t be able to stop it. We just need to use the fire of the telephone to spread across the entire continent.]
“Then is it really a prophecy…?”
[Accelerate the era in which the gods left and descend our gods in their place. That is the only answer that will make all of our dreams come true.]
The face of the old man who said those words was full of confidence.
* * *
“What is this dog?”
Eilen, who was welcoming her husband who had secretly returned to the palace, showed curiosity when she saw the silver-haired dog(?) following behind Logan.
Extraordinarily shiny fur and sparkling eyes.
It was a cute sight that caught everyone’s attention.
However, my husband’s answer to that was somewhat absurd.
“…I guess it’s some kind of secret weapon.”
“A dog?”
“Kung!”
Tyr barked irritably when Eilen continued to treat him like a dog.
However, the barking appearance of the animal, which was not the size of a bull but only as tall as a person’s knee, only looked cute rather than intimidating.
“Oh, you’re so cute.”
“Sniff.”
However, for some reason, Tyr seemed to be in a good mood as he turned his head with a sniffle at Eilen’s hand stroking his head.
‘I definitely don’t think it’s just because of the contract.’
Logan smiled slightly as he remembered the contract he made with that guy before leaving the Demon Forest.
A contract made with the power of the wishes of ‘two’.
The reason why the guy who was released from the seal by taking his master’s essence was unable to leave the Demon Forest and why there are no more divine beasts left in this world were the same.
Geomsin, the author who left behind the vision of Shingeom, said that Shinsoo is a creature that feeds on the power of desire, or the worship of the soul. However, after the age of mythology, the power of desire gradually weakened, and as civilization developed, intelligent beings no longer worshiped divine beasts.
As those two changes gradually accelerated, Shinsu was already on the path to extinction even in the era of the Sword God.
‘Did you say it was the Creator’s will to arrange for it to fulfill its role and disappear at the end of the mythical era at the end of creation?’
In addition, Geomshin is a pitiful creature whose extinction is inevitable, so it is written that we should cherish it regardless of whether it is helpful or not. If he inherits the power of desire in the essence he left behind and makes a contract, Tyr will be able to live as long as he should.
However, things went astray in various ways.
Perhaps Taron, who also had the power of prophecy, would not have expected that Tyr would eat his essence.
In other words, it meant that the current Tyr is a being who does not need to make a contract with anyone.
Nevertheless, Tyr wanted to follow Logan, and in the end, he entered the world by unilaterally signing an unfair contract to help him.
And maybe the reason is…
“Are you even hearing me? Wow, that’s clever.”
“Kkiing.”
The sight of the boy gently moving his head closer to Eileen’s hand, which is affectionately stroking his head.
Because I had the same power of desire, I could vaguely sense his feelings from the beginning, and after we officially signed a contract, I was able to fully read his mind.
– Good mood. It’s warm.
– My chest feels itchy.
and.
– …miss you.
“Kung!”
Even the longing for someone from the distant past who is not here.
The boy’s emotions were conveyed so deeply that his own heart was touched as he watched.
“…I was lonely.”
Maybe I should have petted him on the way back.
Logan stretched out his hand, feeling the sad yet warm emotions coming from him. I was thinking of petting him with Eilen right now.
chin.
“…huh?”
But it got stuck.
The guy who was dodging his body raised his front paw and rejected Logan’s touch.
…Wasn’t it lonely?
“Sniff.”
It’s as if they’re saying, ‘But that’s not you.’
The guy coldly turned away from Logan and rubbed his head against Eilen’s leg again.
Am I still upset?
Logan stretched out his hand into the air, but for some reason he froze in a feeling of futility and embarrassment.
Eilen, who was watching that scene, burst into laughter.
“Ahaha. I guess I like it better than you, kid.”
“…Tir.”
“yes?”
Logan sighed lightly and continued speaking with a wry smile.
“His name is Tyr. And he’s not just a dog.”
Logan slowly told his wife about Shinsu’s situation, who was still upset even though he was not late because he wanted to be late.
“Uh… this kid is that strong?”
Eilen had a disbelieving expression even after hearing Logan’s explanation.
As expected, Tyr, who had always been so friendly, was now purring and trying to sleep on Eilen’s lap, who was sitting in a chair. Except for the mysteriously shining soft silver fur, it just looked like a cute puppy.
“I’m sure. Even me right now, if I fight this guy, I can’t easily guarantee the outcome.”
“That much… Hey Tyr. You were a great guy.”
Eilen, who realized that Logan was not joking, patted the boy with admiration, and the boy, lying face down on his lap with his eyes closed, seemed to smile happily.
Shinsoo loves his companion more than himself, the contractor.
Logan felt defeated once again, but quickly changed the topic.
“Did anything special happen while I was gone? I did tell you well.”
“You know what? You did all the dangerous work.”
Logan, left speechless by the sight of his wife glaring at him as she said those words, flinched and turned his head.
The trip took longer and had more incidents than what I had originally said when I left. I didn’t think now was the time to make the excuse that it was something I had to do.
Fortunately, Eilen, who sighed softly, told him exactly what he wanted to hear.
“Two forts have been completed, and the magic circle installation will soon be completed in those two locations and three castles on the western front, including Kyle.”
“It’s already like that…”
“The preparations you mentioned are almost finished. Maybe that’s why everyone seems even more nervous.”
‘everyone.’ He was probably referring to those close to him who knew that the empire’s invasion was just around the corner.
And Eilen’s face was slightly flushed as she said those words, showing a faint sense of tension in addition to her joy at meeting her husband after a long time.
Hueup.
Logan felt like his heart was pounding because of the tension, so he took a deep breath and hugged his companion whom he hadn’t seen in a long time.
“Don’t worry. Everything will be fine.”
“Of course. It should work out.”
As I was comforted by my wife’s gentle pat on the back, unexpected words came out of her mouth.
“I only worked at Doksu Workshop for a few months.”
Puheap.
I burst out laughing at Eilen’s unexpected joke.
“Ahahaha.”
“Kung!”
Even after Tyr, who suddenly woke up from his sleep due to a noise that exploded overhead, frowned and barked, laughter echoed deep inside the palace for a long time.
* * * A few days after Logan secretly returned to the palace, Viktor, the guard knight who had disappeared around the same time, appeared at the castle in a sweaty state.
Purr.
dump.
“Open the door!”
“Huh.”
“Sir Viktor!”
“Loyalty!”
While the security guard opened the door, verifying his identity, Viktor caught a glimpse of the horse that had collapsed and was foaming blood, and immediately sighed. At first, I felt pity when I saw the horse falling, but even that became dull after it was repeated several times in an urgent situation.
As a result of the involuntary sacrifice of nearly ten horses and an infinite gallop based on their endless vitality, they created the miracle of crossing the continent in just 15 days.
The only side effect was that his weight had decreased by nearly 10 kg, so even if he told anyone, no one would believe him.
‘Holy shit.’
However, the person who created the miracle was only worried about the safety of the saint and the aftermath of what would happen in the Holy Kingdom. Additionally, I felt a deep sense of helplessness as there was nothing I could do in the process.
In his mind, the amazing power that Shingeom showed me a month ago kept coming back to me.
He should be heading to Seongdo by now.
‘If I were stronger than him, or even to some extent similar, I wouldn’t have sent the saint away like that…’
The more I thought about it, the more self-destructive I felt.
“Your Majesty?”
“yes?”
“Is Your Majesty inside?”
“It’s work time, so of course you’re here, right?”
The article’s words seemed to be asking something like that.
Only then did Victor realize that he was impatient, calming his mind and controlling his breathing.
“Lord Victor, please enter.”
However, as soon as another knight’s voice rang out, he had no choice but to forget about trying to control his mind and hurriedly run towards the inner palace.
And in the process, I encountered both unwelcome and welcome faces.
“Victor?”
“Oh, Lord Victor? Where are you in such a hurry?”
Ronian, a close friend, and Luisa von Aserian, an enemy.
A very strange sight of two people walking side by side, smiling, caught his eye.
They look like lovers.
I was curious as to how that picture could exist, but I didn’t have the spirit to think about it in depth right now.
“You don’t have to know.”
I couldn’t talk about the mission in Luisa’s presence, as long as it was Ronian.
As Victor tried to pass them by, Luisa opened her mouth with a strange expression.
“For a superhuman to sweat so much, he must have been very busy. It must have been quite difficult.”
At that moment, Victor had no choice but to glare at Luisa with murderous eyes.
It is a secret that he is a superhuman. But one of the people who should least know knows that fact.
Victor’s murderous gaze shifted to Luisa’s friend Ronian next to him.
However, Ronian, who received attention, just smiled bitterly and shook his head.
‘The eyes are fine too.’
So that means this woman found it out on her own.
What should I do?
Even as my already sharp mind was filled with harsh thoughts, the voice that got on my nerves continued again.
“Your Majesty knows, so there’s no need to be so harsh about it. By the way, can you tell me where you really went? Then it’s really confidential.”
Victor just turned around without giving any answer.
‘Right now, reporting on the mission comes first.’
As he turned around, he had no choice but to ignore Luisa’s meaningful look on the back of his head.
