‘It worked.’
I pulled my hand away from the Empress’s hand, who was breathing steadily, and adjusted my clothes again.
Maybe it was the relief from having safely passed through the emergency situation.
The sensation I had touched with my fingertips came back to me, and I was overcome with a sense of betrayal.
…What if the Empress later holds me responsible for daring to touch her royal body?
I decided to think about that later.
“Did you… break the curse?”
“I definitely broke it. I released all the mana that was swirling inside Her Majesty’s body.”
“How did you…?”
Sylvia stammered in surprise, then examined the Empress’s body and opened her mouth wide.
Though all the mana temporarily disappeared, causing mana exhaustion and making the Empress fall asleep,
Her Majesty’s mana production ability is so remarkable that she would soon recover her strength.
In other words, until Empress Sister wakes up and recovers, the most powerful force here will be out of commission.
“Julia. Stay here and keep an eye on Her Majesty’s condition to make sure it doesn’t worsen.”
“Wh-what!? Where are you going?”
“There are still people left.”
“The skeleton grandpas are still fighting too!”
[The Evil God ‘Kali’ also says that Dirt-Dirt is still here.]
Charlotte raised her Super Super Strong Sword and added a comment.
The Imperial Guard and Reinhardt were still in the banquet hall fighting against the Legion soldiers.
There was also concern for the safety of the nobles who had fallen asleep due to the curse.
If I lock the panic room door and wait for the army to come after hearing about the rebellion, the situation will end.
But.
By the time that happens, I can’t even guess how many casualties there will be.
We must finish this crisis with as few casualties as possible.
“I’ll find the sorcerer who controlled the people. This panic room is safe, so anyone who wants to stay can stay. Yuri, what will you do?”
“I’m on Count’s close guard duty today. I can’t abandon my post.”
“Good. Charlotte?”
“I’ll follow too! I don’t want to just watch like I did last time when we were at the anthill and worry…!”
“Then let’s go.”
Yuri and Charlotte nodded and followed behind me.
Sylvia ripped the hem of her skirt to run more easily and stuck close to me.
But despite her quick movements, her mouth kept pouting, looking clearly dissatisfied.
“…Why didn’t you ask me?”
“Is there any need to ask you? You’re in a position where you have no choice but to follow my orders, like a slave.”
“What kind of inhumane…!?”
“If you wanted humane treatment, you should have removed the brand when you had the chance. Who was it that threw away their freedom?”
“Hah? Hah! Huh…”
Sylvia, stunned, let out a hollow laugh and didn’t respond.
There was a chance to remove the brand, but she gave it up herself.
That means she wants to follow my orders for life, right?
Though it’s a bit burdensome.
As the one who holds the power over the mark, I decided to accept it generously.
Who else would take in someone as pitiful as Sylvia, who has dependency issues, if not me?
I don’t know who it was that branded Sylvia and left her to me.
But I decided to take responsibility, thinking of it as community service.
[Kyaaah! You won’t get through here!]
Hurrying toward the banquet hall, I checked the other hallway.
Dirt-Dirt hadn’t budged, standing firmly in place.
However, seeing that it was slowly being pushed back, it seemed the number of Legion soldiers gathering on the other side was substantial.
At this rate, it would eventually be breached.
I had to end this before Dirt-Dirt was pushed through and the rear became vulnerable.
“Mud mud! If you feel your life is in danger, immediately transform into a spirit and run away!”
“Dirt-Dirt! If you feel your life is at risk, turn into a spirit and escape immediately!”
[Are you trying to convince me to give up my chocolate cake!? No way! Chocolate cake!!!]
“Dirt-Dirt is so cool…”
[Kyaaahaha!!!]
“….”
Charlotte, her eyes sparkling with admiration.
For a moment, I thought she might have lied to encourage Dirt-Dirt, but seeing her eyes, I realized she was sincere.
What exactly does she find so cool about Dirt-Dirt…?
Charlotte’s psychology is sometimes completely incomprehensible.
“Oh! Count! You’ve returned? I was just about to chase after you!”
“….”
As soon as I set foot in the banquet hall, a loud voice greeted me.
Until I had reached the banquet hall, I had felt uneasy since I hadn’t heard the sound of weapons clashing at all.
Standing in the banquet hall was only Reinhardt.
The guard members had already collapsed on the floor.
I had hoped, just in case.
But even Reinhardt couldn’t overcome the curse.
‘What is this? He’s acting like a completely different person…’
But something was off with Reinhardt.
He had a completely different aura from the Reinhardt I had known.
He wasn’t like the others, a puppet being controlled, but moving naturally.
Yeah. That’s definitely…
“Sephiroth. Is that you?”
“You figured it out right away? Strange. We’ve never met, have we…?”
Reinhardt, or rather, Sephiroth, tilted his head with a seductive smile.
Seeing a man’s face with that expression almost made me gag, but I barely held it in.
I was going crazy.
Sephiroth, who was Reinhardt’s adjutant, must have had many opportunities to drink with him.
That meant Reinhardt likely drank more, and more often.
It wasn’t just simple brainwashing, it seemed like he had been completely possessed by Sephiroth.
“That hideous cursed sword is the legendary sword that split mountains, right? To break through this panic room, I’ll need it. Hand it over now and step aside, and I’ll spare your life.”
“It’s not a cursed sword, it’s the Super Super Strong Sword! And if you plan to use this sword for evil, I’ll never give it to you!”
“Did you hear that? If you want to save your life, stop this nonsense and surrender to your real self right now.”
“Hahaha…! What a scary threat!”
“…”
Swish.
With a swish, Reinhardt drew his sword and laughed in a high-pitched tone.
…That was the moment the negotiation broke down.
‘If we clash like this, we’ll definitely lose.’
Reinhardt, recognized as a Sword Master by the Empress and the Imperial Guard Captain, was an opponent no one here could defeat.
But was a fight really necessary? I wondered.
“Whoo…”
It was time to test the power of the newly evolved skill, ‘Black Magic.’
.
.
.
‘One is a semi-Sword Master. One is a little brat pretending to be a Sword Master with the power of a cursed sword. And the other is… Hmm. Just a girl who’s a little stronger than average.’
Sephiroth sneered as he looked over the group surrounding Count Vermont.
The strength of their forces didn’t seem impressive.
I had already defeated the Guard Captain, who was a full-fledged Sword Master.
There was no way I’d lose to these weaklings.
It was a meaningless resistance.
I’d clean them up quickly, take the cursed sword, and head toward the panic room.
Once I dealt with the Empress, this damned war would be over…
Sephiroth raised his arm, and Reinhardt raised his sword in response.
It was clear they were ready to charge at any moment.
“Whoo…”
At that moment, Count Vermont sighed as if it were a bother.
There was no fear or even a hint of worry in his expression.
What kind of confidence is that?
How does he plan to resist a Sword Master with those weaklings?
Just as I was preparing myself for the possibility of him pulling out a trump card.
“Ah?”
Krrrrk!
A shockwave erupted from Count Vermont’s body, and black, tentacle-like shadows surged out, rippling and undulating.
‘What the hell is that…?’
Is it magic?
I couldn’t sense any mana movements, so it wasn’t magic.
No… Wait.
I couldn’t even feel any mana in the air right now.
What’s going on?
Is it some sort of technique that completely annihilates all surrounding mana?
I’d never heard of such a thing.
I’d heard Count Vermont was studying Black Magic, but could that be it?
‘Did he really complete Black Magic…?’
At that moment, Sephiroth felt a sudden disruption in his connection with Reinhardt.
It was then that he realized not only the mana in the air, but even the mana within his own body, was melting away.
His eyes widened in shock.
“Ah… We have to escape…”
As Sephiroth turned away, the second shockwave hit, completely severing the connection.
Gasping for breath, Sephiroth stood up, trembling.
“Ah…?”
In the distance, the imperial palace.
There, a massive black tentacle-like thing was rising up into the sky,
Writhing as if it were wreaking havoc on the mortal world.
What is that?
Is that the body of an Evil God?
What the hell did Count Vermont bring from Hell?
“This world was nothing but a plaything for some huge being…?”
In the face of this supernatural phenomenon, all resistance left Sephiroth’s body.
Only helplessness and primal fear remained, taking control.
“I found it! I’ll bind it immediately!”
“Clink, Clink!”
“Ah… This world is going to be destroyed… By the Evil God Vermont summoned…”
“What is this woman talking about?”
Yuri and the skeleton soldiers chased after Sephiroth, putting magical restraints on her wrists.
But Sephiroth was completely out of her mind, lost in a daze.
