Chapter 436. Strange (7)
Among the Divine Bloods, including the Darkness-Eating Sword.
Just when they were in a heated debate about who had left the greatest “impression” on Alon,
(impact?)...
“…Is this… a gem?”
“Yes.”
Alon received a gem from Yutia.
A very peculiar stone, tinged blue on one side and red on the other.
While he observed it calmly, Alon asked Yutia:
“Where did you get this?”
“When Blackie finished absorbing all the corpses, that appeared.”
“Then, that means—”
“I think it came out of the body of that Divine Blood.”
Alon's gaze returned to the gem.
It was curious… but it also aroused doubts in him.
‘……Is this what the Seeker of the Path mentioned?’
Alon turned the gem in various directions. Except for the fact that each face had a different color, he felt no special force.
Then he raised his head.
“…Thank you for finding it.”
“You’re welcome. Are you leaving?”
“It seems so.”
It seemed there was nothing left here.
In the end, after checking the ruins once more, he returned to where Yutia and Blackie were.
Blackie, satisfied after overeating, was yawning lying on his side with his paws stretched out.
[Gyuuu—]
After casting a glance at Yutia, the creature slid directly into Alon's chest.
Alon asked the others:
“Did you find anything?”
“No, we checked the destroyed places just in case, but we found nothing.”
Evan scratched his head.
But, despite his words, his bag was suspiciously bulging.
Alon tilted his head.
“…And that?”
“Hm? What do you mean?”
“Your bag.”
“Ah, ah— This? It’s… how to say it… a kind of reward for exerting myself exploring this place.”
Evan began to unnecessarily prolong his words.
But Penia, with an exasperated expression, tapped the bag from behind.
Chaaarrr—
A pile of gold coins fell to the ground instantly.
“Ahem—”
Evan cleared his throat immediately and started picking up the gold.
Alon and Penia looked at him with a cold expression, and Evan hurried to justify himself:
“You don’t believe I’ve only been looking for this, do you? I thought maybe there was some treasure from the territory that could be useful— that was all!”
“Pathetic…”
Penia clicked her tongue.
Evan didn't stay silent; he laughed “ha” and stared at her.
“I don’t think you have the right to say that to me.”
“Me? Why?”
“Do you think I didn’t see you sneaking off to the ancient library?”
“E-yadia…”
Penia made the face of someone caught exactly on the spot.
“No, that was just… in case I found something—”
“That is exactly the same thing I did!”
“No! I did it for Alon-nim's magical development.”
“It would be wise to hide that book you have in your hand before saying that.”
“Oh!”
Penia quickly hid the book behind her back and started justifying herself with the face of a surprised cat.
Alon watched the two argue and sighed.
“We better leave.”
He judged it would be practically impossible to find anything else in this destroyed territory.
‘Besides, as the Seeker of the Path said, this came from him.’
Alon observed the gem.
Aside from being peculiar, it didn't convey any clear idea to him.
But he was convinced that perhaps this was the “necessary object” the Seeker of the Path had spoken of.
Although he had given him most of the information vaguely, he doubted he would have been careless with the essentials.
There was no reason to keep wasting time.
Thus, they resumed the journey toward the west.
More than a week passed since they moved toward the west.
While they were preparing the camp in the middle of the same desolate prairie as always, Alon realized:
“…How strange.”
“What is?”
“We haven’t encountered any Divine Blood.”
“Ah, that…”
Evan nodded.
“At first I didn’t notice it, but now it does feel strange.”
“Right?”
“Yes.”
They had heard many times that in the western region Divine Bloods abounded.
It was logical to assume constant encounters with them… but they hadn’t seen a single one.
Even Evan, who at first said it was a good thing not to find them, already saw it as suspicious.
“……Honestly, if the territories were intact, I would think the rumors were wrong… but what we have seen in the west coincides precisely with the stories: razed territories, ruins everywhere.”
“Hmm.”
Alon nodded.
It was evident that the situation was abnormal.
To reach the Empire, Alon crossed the eastern zone, and although he didn’t visit territories, he had heard repeatedly that the west had fallen to the Divine Bloods.
According to Nataman, prince of the Western Empire, not everything had been completely destroyed, but most of the territory had.
And what Alon had personally seen in the west were shattered domains and grotesque creatures, clearly the work of Divine Bloods.
Although they were all dead.
Even so, there were too many signs… and yet not a single Divine Blood in sight.
“…Is something happening?”
Alon murmured that.
“Well… we cannot rule out that possibility, Master.”
Yutia answered suddenly.
“So you think so too.”
“It’s just one among several, but… when rumors and reality differ so much, something we don’t know about might be happening.”
While Yutia reasoned, Penia raised her hand timidly.
“I also… have an idea.”
“Which one?”
“We have traveled through several destroyed territories, right?”
“Yes.”
“And we have seen how the Divine Bloods convert humans into different forms.”
It was true.
They had seen multiple types of human transformations served as ‘tools’ for the Divine Bloods.
“But the last territories we saw had almost the same type.”
“……The same type?”
“Yes. Before there were many variants, but lately… almost all of them were…”
Penia left the sentence hanging, and Evan, lost in his thoughts, let out an “ah”.
“It’s true. Most of the humans we saw lately were like red eggs. Although almost all of them were burst.”
“Ah.”
Alon also remembered.
The recent territories were full of those red eggs.
Penia shuddered remembering it.
“Well— could it be that someone is helping them disappear?”
“…Who?”
“Well, someone who, without us knowing, is cleaning up Divine Bloods…”
Hearing Evan’s hypothesis, Penia gave him a look full of disdain.
“Can you say something that makes sense?”
“Ahem… maybe that was too much.”
The boy scratched his head with embarrassment, while Alon sighed.
“…If someone like that really existed, I would like to thank them.”
While they conversed…
Very far away…
In a place where Alon and his group looked like tiny dots…
“…Thank me…”
A woman was watching them.
With eyes marked by a characteristic hexagram.
Standing on piles of Divine Blood corpses.
Silent. Motionless.
Northern Empire — Capital
Prince Contanias, heir to the Northern Empire.
He felt in an excellent mood upon arriving at the capital.
It was normal.
Although he had gone forced by the late Emperor’s phrase —“you can obtain power”—, he never imagined it would really be possible.
Although strictly speaking, he hadn’t obtained that power yet.
The Seeker of the Path only gave him the possibility and the method; the power he had to get himself.
But Contanias didn’t worry.
He was the prince who ruled the North, and he had capable people at his disposal to bring him any legendary remedy that existed on the continent.
However, his true confidence came from elsewhere.
From the existence of something unique, something no one else in the Empire possessed.
A being granted solely to him.
Hundreds of years ago, a dragon that became the guardian protecting the empire in exchange for the empire offering numerous Dragon Hearts scattered across the continent.
The Crying Dragon, Arculainisis.
Therefore, upon returning to the capital, he went directly to see her.
“I greet the great Dragon of the Pact.”
“Good.”
The Crying Dragon, surrounded by countless treasures, was on a resplendent throne, looking down at him.
“You hadn’t called me for a long time. It took you quite a while to arrive.”
The dragon's voice was charged with displeasure.
Contanias bowed his head even further.
A prince shouldn't bow so easily…
But in front of the Guardian Dragon, it was different.
The Empire only continued to exist thanks to her.
“My apologies, Guardian Dragon. I beg you to excuse my tardiness.”
“Good. I was told you had an urgent matter with me after returning. What is it about?”
Arculainisis, with a disinterested gesture, asked him to get to the point.
The corner of Contanias’s lips lifted.
It was exactly the question he expected.
“I come to beg you for something.”
“What is it?”
“That you punish an insolent one.”
“…An insolent one?”
“Yes. The king of a small country of the Allied United Kingdoms: Alon Palatio.”
Contanias spoke with enthusiasm.
“That man insulted the prince of the Empire and, by extension, the Empire itself. It is the same as insulting the Guardian Dragon who protects it! The outrage has kept me awake.”
He spoke about how Alon had “humiliated” him.
“…Alon Palatio.”
Hearing the dragon's reaction, Contanias fired up even more.
“Yes!”
“Did you say Alon Palatio?”
“Yes. He insulted me, the Empire and, even more, you! I beg you to execute him to demonstrate the greatness of the Empire.”
Contanias waited, sure of the acceptance.
“I see.”
Hearing that answer, Contanias smiled vilely.
He took it as an affirmation.
But…
Suddenly he felt something strange.
It wasn’t just strangeness.
It was…
Pressure.
A pressure so terrifying it left him breathless.
And in the midst of that sudden situation, he heard—
“…So now you are asking me…”
He couldn’t help but hear it.
“…to kill my father?”
The Crying Dragon's voice…
Full of fury.
