After the welcoming party.
The three heroes remained in the conference room after everyone else had left.
“You should have been better prepared, Princess Aina!”
“It couldn’t be helped. Did you not also fail to predict that Serena would come?”
“But that response—what was that? We almost got caught. If that had happened, everything would have been over!”
Aina and Claire began to argue.
In the middle of it, Aria could only shiver and wait for the conflict to end.
“This is why I didn’t want to follow your plan, Aina!”
“Plan? I never made a plan. If there was a plan, it must have been yours, Claire!”
Since Lee Han’s death, the relationship among the three had deteriorated daily. The impact of Lee Han’s last words was significant.
— ‘My death will be beneficial to you. That’s good. I’m glad to die for your sake.’
The tone suggested that Lee Han had sacrificed himself for someone. At the same time, it implied that someone was definitely gaining from Lee Han’s sacrifice.
Who that someone was had been enough to drive a wedge between the three.
By the time of the welcoming party, their relationships were already completely strained.
They had only exchanged opinions on how to handle any potential doubts that might arise from the party.
In a way, it was natural that they started fighting as soon as they met.
“Um… um, excuse me.”
Aria hesitantly raised her hand.
The other two glared at her sharply.
Eek.
Aria, her shoulders trembling, cautiously turned her body.
“I… I think I should go now. W-well then.”
She hurriedly made her way to the exit, but was soon caught.
“Where do you think you’re going? Aria, you might be pretending to be so innocent, but you could have conspired with Lee Han behind the scenes. The Saintess of the Deus Church is not just anyone. Don’t pretend to be so naive.”
“Th-that’s not true.”
Aria looked like she was about to cry.
She hated this situation so much.
It was true that Lee Han’s death had contributed to her becoming the Saintess. But…
“I… I really didn’t do anything. Just let me go.”
“Do you think there’s anyone here who would believe that?”
“R-really.”
“Usually, the person who acts most innocent is often the one with the dirtiest hands. Just wait.”
Aria was held with a look of almost crying. Her insides were churning. Aria was always extremely weak to such psychological pressure.
Seeing this, Aina suddenly frowned.
“That’s right. I’ve seen you, Aria, relying on Lee Han a lot. Confess. Was there something between you and Lee Han? Otherwise, why would Lee Han have left such a will?”
“Thinking about it, it’s clear that you, Aria, are suspicious as well. You were the one who was with Lee Han the most. Could it be that you planned all of this?”
Claire clung to Aria as if she was hugging her.
Aria’s lips quivered.
She spoke with a voice full of injustice.
“Th-that’s impossible! Why are you suddenly blaming me? It’s one of you! I’m just… just…!”
Just as Aria was about to shout something else.
— Bam!
The conference room door opened.
The three heroes turned their heads sharply.
“… What are you talking about now?”
Richard and Archbishop Julius stood in the doorway.
They held the second highest authority in the Empire and the Holy Kingdom of Constantine.
“H-How long have you been listening?”
Aina, flustered, admitted her anxiety.
‘Damn it.’
‘This is a mess.’
Aina clenched her fists tightly.
Claire bit her lip.
Aria, meanwhile, stood frozen in place.
She seemed as if she was frozen to the spot.
Her gaze was fixed on Archbishop Julius.
Aria had always been afraid of archbishops.
They were strict, disciplined, and reminded her of her abusive father from her childhood.
Julius walked straight towards Aria.
“What is this all about, Saintess?”
“Th-that is…”
“If I were to hazard a guess, it sounds like the three of you have been scheming something against the demon from another world… or rather, hero.”
Aria took a step back.
“T-there’s no way that’s true… I-I cared about Lee Han…”
Lee Han was always kind.
Lee Han would just check on Aria if she seemed down. He would speak to her if she looked gloomy, and ask if there was anything she couldn’t say.
‘… He was kind.’
— Srrrr!
The image of Lee Han’s execution suddenly rose in her mind. Aria desperately tried to erase the image from her mind but couldn’t.
Thud.
Lee Han’s head rolling on the floor. The brief moment their eyes met. The emptiness, betrayal, and anger that were visible beyond his fading life. His mouth seemed to try to say something.
‘Ah…’
Suddenly, Aria’s body swayed.
Aina and Claire frowned, thinking that she was acting.
Tap, tap.
Aria staggered a few steps, and ended up in the highest platform of the conference room with an eerie naturalness.
Bang!
Aria lifted her head.
As if she was about to look straight ahead, she instead tilted her head further back, staring at the ceiling. Her neck was bent so much that her back of the head nearly touched her back.
“… Aria?”
Claire, bewildered by the unnatural movement, asked. But Aria didn’t move at all. Just as Claire was about to approach her to grab her, the archbishop rushed towards them.
“Don’t!”
The archbishop shouted as he ran towards Aria and Claire.
“Don’t touch the Saintess now!”
The archbishop pushed Claire aside.
The sudden and violent action caused Claire to stumble, blinking in shock.
At that moment.
– Clank!
A huge door in the center of the conference room opened.
There shouldn’t have been anyone there.
Claire, who had been looking at the door, had to turn her head sharply.
Beams of light were pouring through the open door.
And it illuminated Aria.
Along with the stained glass of the Saintess positioned behind her.
“Ah.”
An involuntary exclamation at the profoundly sacred sight.
And then.
— “Infinitely stupid and ignorant humans.”
Aria’s mouth opened.
The voice was clear, distinct, and even divine. At the same time, it was eerily emotionless.
It was a stark contrast to her usual mumbling voice.
– Bang!
A heavy sound resonated.
It was the sound of Archbishop Julius hitting his head on the floor.
He shouted while everyone watching was shocked.
“Behold the Almighty Deus! Please lead the Lamb!”
It was creepy.
A shiver ran down everyone’s spine. Their body hairs stood on end, and their lips trembled.
Aina, Claire, and everyone else took several steps back, almost collapsing.
— “You have cast aside the hope that was given to you.”
It was God.
God was speaking through the Saintess’s mouth.
Thus, it was a prophecy.
— “There will be one more trial within ten cycles. But do not be relieved. At the end, there will be another trial and darkness. It will be a deep, dense, and unending darkness.”
Bang!
The archbishop hit his head on the floor again.
Despite his face being covered in blood, he didn’t care and continued to shout.
“Please guide us!”
Each time the Archbishop opened his mouth, blood and foam came out.
The scene was both desperate and sacred.
— “The path will be found only in reflection and regret. The opportunity will not come again.”
The prophecy continued until the archbishop’s blood had dried.
◆
When the prophecy ended, Aria collapsed like a puppet with its strings cut.
The archbishop seemed to have been overwhelmed by the prophecy’s impact, frozen in a bowing position.
Aina collapsed to the floor as if her legs had given out.
Claire was trembling in a corner.
The chancellor of the Empire, Reinhardt, observed this scene with his own eyes.
“Hah.”
A hollow laugh escaped his lips.
A hollow laugh escaped his lips. After more than 30 years as a pillar supporting the Empire, he had never witnessed such a fresh and unbearably heavy experience.
— Creak
He first closed the door.
Fortunately, the attendants were not present.
This meant he had avoided the trouble of getting blood on his hands.
No matter what, this prophecy must not spread.
The continent, having entered a period of revival after the Demon King’s death, must not fall into darkness again. Such a thing must not happen.
— Thud
He turned his body around.
Standing in front of the archbishop, he spoke.
“Does this mean the Demon King will be revived? My old mind can’t quite grasp it.”
“… It seems so. And then something more will follow.”
“What exactly is that something?”
“… I don’t know.”
The archbishop raised his head.
Despite his blood-stained face and his appearance of utter exhaustion, his eyes were intensely alert.
“I must report to the Holy King. We need to gather all possible information. We should also review the archives of the Holy Sea.”
“The Britannia Empire will also do whatever it can to cooperate.”
“… To think that the Holy Kingdom and the Empire would join hands like this.”
“We must avoid the continent’s destruction.”
Swish.
The archbishop’s lips, which had been weakly moving, suddenly fell still.
“I don’t know if it can be avoided.”
“We must try. Immediate preparations are necessary. Is there truly nothing else you suspect?”
The archbishop coughed.
Fresh red blood poured from his mouth.
After a few labored breaths, he spoke.
“The Blood Cult.”
“… The Blood Cult? The heretics?”
“Recently, many boys and girls have been disappearing across the continent. What could this be for?”
“I don’t know.”
“In black magic, there is such a practice. Creating altars and offering sacrifices to manifest higher beings.”
“Ah.”
“But as you know, Chancellor.”
“The Blood Cult is difficult to track.”
“We must prioritize it. The highest priority.”
Reinhardt’s wrinkles deepened.
After a brief but deep contemplation, he reached a conclusion.
“I will send the White Knights to infiltrate. With ten years…, we should be able to reach the depths of the Blood Cult.”
“The Holy Kingdom of Constantine will also do its best. And the Hero from another world. He may be the key. We must find him…”
“Even if this old man is aged, his mind still works. Yes. Rest. We’ve given too much work to our guest from the Empire.”
“Work? This is merely cooperation on equal terms.”
“You never give up. Like an old fox.”
Rustle.
Seeing the archbishop lie on the floor, Reinhardt stood up.
He then approached the collapsed Aina and Claire.
“Princess Aina. And Claire.”
As he spoke, Reinhardt felt a strong impulse for the first time.
The noble bloodline of the Empire, Estrid.
He had an impulse to stop using honorifics and formalities with the princess.
But he was wise and experienced enough to resist such impulses.
“This matter must not leak out. Therefore, you will still be treated as heroes.”
Reinhardt declared to the dazed Aina and Claire, who were blinking vacantly.
“However, you must bear responsibility. For your actions and for what will occur in the future.”
It was neither a threat nor a command, but it carried a pressure that could make one’s heart burst.
Reinhardt, who had been looking at them with his cold and indifferent gaze, stood up.
‘I suppose retirement will have to wait a bit longer.’
— Thud
In the place he left behind, only silence remained.
