SWNOVELXO Chapter 406
The story started to spiral into a headache-inducing narrative once again.
The master of swordsmanship from Milanet—a knight who had ever so coolly betrayed the kingdom and vanished, now entering a cult—was a rather complex tale, to say the least.
Naturally, both Shione and I couldn’t help but wear expressions that could only be described as rotten.
Hence, it was Shione, who had been quietly listening, who first reacted to Princess Rephelia’s words.
“A knight from the Royal Knights Order has fallen into a cult, you say?”
“Yes, if the Duke’s inquiries were indeed correct, then we can solidly affirm that. Moreover… the Duke’s inquiries are not to be taken lightly. We possess magic that is more intricate than any other house.”
“…”
“There’s no cleaner or simpler way to extract information than shaking one’s mind and pulling out the contents stored in the brain.”
Just what kind of magic does the Duke usually practice?
Like how she did before in the gathering, the princess, with her calm demeanor, addressed us. To call the act of extracting someone’s memories a somewhat useful skill felt strangely unsettling.
While both the Count’s House and I might cut down enemies with sword and arrows, hearing about the coldness of a family that had elevated their magic to such heights was a brand-new experience that left me feeling rather chilled.
“And this method has never failed us. Even our Adelhaite would seek me out if needed.”
Well, seeing how she even mentioned the princess like this gives us a reason to trust the information she’s fetched.
“Since they’ve been exiled, there’s no need to refer to them as the Epenche; moreover, it seems Bloody has become a devotee of the northern cult that Adelhaite has been keeping an eye on.”
Consequently, I found myself with a headache.
‘To think they had hidden themselves in the north…’
It wasn’t as if they had slipped away quietly from the empire. A person who had worked within the royal institution would have undergone sufficient ideological scrutiny. Why, of all places, did they cozy up with the last demon lurking in the kingdom?
In the end, the fact that such a powerful individual might be in the base we had to flush out was utterly frustrating.
While common knights were thought to substitute for dozens of ordinary soldiers, this one—having been among the best of the Royal Knights Order—could likely defeat a formidable opponent without breaking a sweat.
“You had a reason for your vigilance, Your Highness. If such an enemy lurks, even if we say we’ve succeeded in clearing them out, our forces will undoubtedly suffer considerable losses.”
“Indeed. How Bloody managed to reconnect with Milanet’s network is a matter worth investigating further, but… this is under the command of Adelhaite in the north and the Marquis Family’s domain. We should trust them and wait.”
“Then, can we also hear about the marks?”
“I’ve already organized the information regarding the marks to send to Adelhaite, so I’ll let you know right away.”
Apart from the mana that even Shione couldn’t detect, there had been reactions from the magic, which had left her feeling uneasy. More than anyone, it was Shione who perked up, eagerly waiting for the princess’s mouth to open.
“The cult is called such because they believe in demons or evil gods and create confusion. It seems they’ve slyly smeared the aura of their most easily distinguishable object of worship on themselves. This has been confirmed from the evidence they left behind when they made contact with us.”
“However, I didn’t particularly feel any magic from that.”
“That was the blind spot I had overlooked. The entity they worship doesn’t seem to be particularly familiar with magic.”
“So, does that mean what the cult believes in isn’t really a demon?”
“Well… It’s hard to make a judgment on that right now.”
It seemed ambiguous to call it a demon, yet equally difficult to dismiss it entirely.
With a mysterious expression, Princess Rephelia played with her lips for a moment, turning her gaze downwards.
Organizing her thoughts briefly, she began to speak slowly.
“Even if it’s not familiar, it doesn’t mean there’s no magic at all… It seems there are some inexplicable foul auras mingled in with the magic as well. This type is something I haven’t seen before. It appears the magic that influenced the Young Lady erased the inherent magic contained within.”
Leona Rephelia spoke.
The fact that the very aura clinging to their conspirators was in such tiny amounts meant that to grasp it accurately, further research was needed. However, it felt as if all forces exist not in a harmonious coexistence but rather share realms and growl at each other.
The most prevalent and pure aura placed its weight upon the others, briefly making its dominance visible.
Ultimately, I gained conviction from Princess Rephelia’s words, aligning perfectly with everything I had cared about up until now.
‘So they called it an artificial demon.’
I had found it strange that it could operate with both magic and divine power from the very beginning. It seemed the Gluttony Demon wasn’t merely born with a stockpile of magic but rather was a mutant with possibilities wide open.
The fact it could grant its power to its followers suggested it was an entity of considerable standing, yet whether it would ultimately become a demon or not was still ambiguous.
‘I have a feeling it might lean towards becoming more gluttonous.’
The Shaman’s zeal to capture Evan Feiosha last time seemed to stem from a desire to consume priests for decent use of divine power.
Come to think of it, when we had suppressed the Gluttony Demon in the dungeon before, it had been so emaciated that it lacked allies around and had been severely shunned by demons.
If it chose to start accumulating magic, it would have surely devoured all demons and monsters around without exception. Given that higher-ranking demons possess superior intelligence…
‘If I just send minions to take it down, it’ll just serve to feed it.’
Moreover, to kill it single-handedly would be incredibly difficult, as that Gluttony, grown on years of prey, would be quite tricky to deal with, even if it seemed weakened.
After all, Gluttony is a beast that would also bite back if it felt threatened. Perhaps that’s why it had been unequivocally shunned by other demons.
And of course, the concept of an artificial demon was information that Shione had also heard alongside me.
“It seems like there are quite a few overlaps in what the Baron and I learned at the Academy. Are you privy to what Feiosha said?”
“…That aspect is something Adelhaite hasn’t informed us much about. Could you enlighten me?”
After exchanging thoughts I had been considering, their discussion came to a close.
Indeed, they said the more time you spend together, the more your thoughts align. As Shione and I shared the same thoughts, I chimed in with her comments.
After what felt like both a short yet lengthy time, we finally drew to a close on the somber conversation.
“The conspirators with Milanet will likely be exposed by lunchtime tomorrow. With many nobles still present at the Duke’s house, it’s crucial for this incident to be known; it will surely make everyone aware of the cult.”
“And, we will further grasp the royal family’s and noble houses’ might as they unveil and punish all this. The princess has commanded a public execution, so… if timed well, it would serve as a great example.”
Shione and Leona found an unexpected rhythm.
“Exactly, Young Lady. Had I known our words would flow this well, I would regret not reaching out sooner.”
“Earlier, you mean…”
“At Adelhaite’s coming-of-age ceremony. Due to the circumstances surrounding the attendees at that time, I found it hard to approach you first. Weren’t you enjoying wine alone while looking at me?”
Well, on that night, Shione did indeed drink in excess and caused quite the event.
Princess Rephelia must have caught on to that aspect of Shione.
Thanks to that, Shione turned a bit red from embarrassment and nervously smiled awkwardly.
‘She’s going to kick up a storm with her blanket when we get back to the room.’
Well, that was just her responsibility.
“However, I found the atmosphere at this cult meeting quite colder than last time. It was rather hard to approach.”
“…Did my demeanor come off as that cold?”
“I felt the master’s aura, and while it had a certain charm, it was not an atmosphere that invited closeness, was it? Isn’t that right, Baron?”
“I cannot deny that.”
Now that I teased her with a remark about being reminiscent of a cold knight, Shione began to shoot me reproachful glares.
After all, I was merely relaying my thoughts, which I believed to be beneficial.
Even so, given how satisfying the reaction was, it was hard to resist.
As we began winding down the small talk and approached the time to rise, Princess Rephelia spoke up.
“Adelhaite has requested a task. The kingdom will soon mobilize its forces to the north, so she wants you to select trustworthy families.”
Adelhaite’s command.
“The final selection and deployment to the north is to be completed before this year’s first snowfall. Furthermore, post that, the Duke’s battle wizards will need to be prepared, so she ordered that too.”
The princess was diligently preparing for war alongside Princess Rephelia.
Of course, it seemed like with each rising demand from the princess, Rephelia’s sighs grew slightly deeper.
But it was inevitable. She had been bound as a friend long before us.
“Considering her reaction, it seems she is quite certain about the spark of conflict in the North. If we’re to wage war within the kingdom, it appears she wants to wrap things up before spring rolls around. Consequently, I suspect a letter from Adelhaite will soon arrive for both you, Young Lady, and the Baron.”
If Adelhaite had registered the likelihood of chaos in the north, she intended to seek our support.
With the recently uncovered information regarding the cult, it was becoming evident that they were actively prying into the royal family’s inner workings.
‘Moreover, I heard that the Alenarr Marquis Family has also begun stockpiling war supplies.’
It was indeed time to start unmasking the bandits that have accumulated in the north, definitively branding them as cultists and clearing them out.
However, there was one issue.
“It’s almost winter; is there even enough time to prepare?”
Autumn is brief, and winter arrives quicker than you expect.
“Adelhaite’s the one causing this problem. She keeps saying she’ll share the information she gathers on her friends, but just when it’s needed, she expects us to prepare swiftly based on everything she’s collected so far…”
Princess Rephelia sighed softly at that.
“From what I see, it seems you and the Baron haven’t heard much about the north lately. Am I right?”
Rather than saying we hadn’t heard much, the only update since our last intel had been the tinfoil hat incident that tangled us with this cult.
Even so, it felt a bit spiteful to remain quiet about receiving such a mission, as I silently kept my mouth shut while Rephelia’s eyes started to blaze with intensity.
“It would be wise to ask for her attention next time, no matter how busy she may be. When I was on my own, nothing I did mattered… but now that we’re three, we have more than enough potential—”
Despite the concern for the ever-busy Adelhaite, I lent my ears to the princess’s complaints, and we returned to our lodgings.
“…It seems like you’re really quite close with the princess, huh? While talking like that, you seem to worry a lot.”
“At this point, it looks less like affection than pure love. I often wonder how she managed to bear such things while we weren’t around.”
After discussing Princess Rephelia, Shione noted that the sun was setting, and she remarked on the refreshing night breeze outside.
“Then let’s start preparing. We need to return to the Count’s House to prepare for winter.”
The last war to unfold within the kingdom.
We had to brace ourselves for this winter and get ready to welcome spring.