VIP Early Access
Eksklusif untuk member VIP
Password Protected
Chapter ini dikunci dengan kode khusus
Interlude: Always Thinking of You
IT was around the time when Takuto had entered the first stage of his preparations and was swamped with negotiations and conflict that pushed him past his comfort zone as an introvert to take more action. Around the same time Mynoghra had officially formed an alliance with Sutharland. Around the time Mynoghra was embroiled in the hectic chaos of getting their strategy together while the clock ticked down. Around this time, there was one surprisingly peaceful place within their empire: Mynoghra’s third city, Seldoch.
Seldoch was a city on the Lawful Continent that Mynoghra had acquired through its war with the Divine Nation of Lenea, and it was located on the front lines of the coming Great War.
In one of Seldoch’s government offices, with a modest stack of documents that Takuto would have envied set off to one side of her desk, the former Qualia inquisitor, Krähe Imlerith, was carefully reading a report.
“I see. I would expect no less of His Majesty. To think he has achieved so much already…” Krähe muttered.
“What does it say?” a young voice inquired. Maria Elfuur stood beside Krähe with a new stack of documents hugged to her chest.
Ŵ ebnо̇ṽ е l Е̌ňǔ m_ӑ
Maria was one of the twins put in charge of overseeing Seldoch. The city was currently run by a three-person system. Krähe oversaw and assisted with the overall administration, while the twin sisters managed the city’s affairs under her guidance. Even with Krähe acting as a sort of instructor for the girls, the three of them ran the city together. A considerable number of Ira cultists worked as civil servants to support them as well.
Thanks to the gradual transition from the previous governing system under the Divine Nation of Lenea, the atmosphere in Seldoch was lighter than in the imperial capital. The downside was the sheer distance between Seldoch and Mynoghra’s capital in the Dark Continent. The cruel reality was that Takuto tended to neglect them because things were running so smoothly without his interference. But the fact that he kept them regularly apprised of the situation with notices like this meant he hadn’t entirely forgotten about his third city.
Dilarang mengopy novel dari Enuma.id.
Krähe delicately folded the report and stored it in her desk. Then she accepted the additional paperwork from Maria as she answered her query. “It was a status report on our negotiations with Sutharland. It said we have successfully allied with them, and that our attempts to form an alliance with all the nations of the Dark Continent are progressing without issue so far.”
“Yay! That’s great!”
Even Krähe’s usually stoic expression softened at Maria’s uninhibited smile. They hadn’t known each other for very long, but their shared experience of losing loved ones had helped bridge the gap between them. And the frequent opportunities for conversation due to their work together had allowed their friendship to deepen much faster than usual. The frank exchange of opinions and the casual mutual support that came from their close relationship proved beneficial in the administration of Seldoch, and in terms of city management, they were achieving excellent results that exceeded expectations. However, that was only regarding city management.
They had an objective, and city management was merely a task assigned to them by the king as part of that process. Now, something even more important was at stake. They all understood this, yet they felt a growing anxiety about their slow progress.
Éň ûm а̂ . іd̂
“His Majesty is making good progress? It’s a littlest hard to report back when Cary’s side hasn’t produced any results yet…” Caria said as she entered the office. Cups and sweets peeked out from the top of the tray she was carrying. She’d brought a snack for them to take a break.
Although Krähe felt the same sense of panic and shame about their progress, she offered words of encouragement to the younger girl. “Getting a strong foundation in place is crucial. You are both improving. Plus, we are making good progress retraining the Paladins of Ira—we should be able to meet the deadline at this pace.”
The three of them had been ordered by the king to strengthen their military capabilities, including themselves, in addition to managing the city. The particulars, including the content and direction of the training, were left to the girls, but this high degree of discretion was, conversely, a heavy burden for them.
Krähe, in particular, was focused on recovering Scribe Saint Lytrain, and since it was inevitable that they would clash at the start of the Great War if things continued as they were, she was extremely anxious. Considering Lytrain’s unique abilities, they needed to act quickly where she was concerned. Although the king had declared that he would take responsibility for recovering her, the option to do nothing and leave everything to him was unthinkable for Krähe.
Baca cerita ini hanya di situs resmi Enuma.id!
“Have you learned anything about your Saint friend?” Maria asked.
Krähe shook her head. She was frustrated that there was no sign of progress on the issue she most wanted to resolve. “No… I’ve only come to realize that I didn’t understand anything about that sweet child despite always thinking about her. That is all I have learned, I’m afraid.”
W̄ е̇b ń о v.еl. _Ёn̊ûm̀а
The Trade City of Seldoch originally belonged to the Divine Nation of Lenea and, by extension, was formerly part of the Holy Kingdom of Qualia. Valuable tomes might be buried somewhere within the old buildings that were still standing. Perhaps there might even be information about the Scribe Saint carefully recorded somewhere. With that faint hope, Krähe scoured the entire territory for as long as time allowed. Her search took her from the church archives in each village to the personal studies of influential people in the city…
Although she found other information useful to Mynoghra and Seldoch, she didn’t find a single document related to her main objective. She didn’t have high hopes from the start, but she was reasonably disappointed that it netted no results.
Krähe laid bare the anxiety tormenting her. “The continuous use of Miracles that cost her memories will eventually destroy her. That’s what I fear most. We have to do something, fast, but I don’t even know where to start.”
“The time will come,” Maria said.
“Come it will. Someday soon. You must be patient until then,” Caria added.
Now was the time for patience. Something the sisters understood well. Krähe was also coming to understand that. The crucial moment would surely come. They needed to hone their skills and endure until then, so that they wouldn’t let that crucial moment slip through their fingers.
Dilarang mengopy novel dari Enuma.id.
“Nerim… Where are you?”
Krähe’s quiet utterance vanished into the void.
◇◇◇
<The Holy Kingdom of Qualia, Holy Capital of Qualiane: 4th Parish Dungeon>
THE 4th Parish Dungeon was a secret facility where serious criminals and politically dangerous individuals were permanently imprisoned in Qualia. In the dimly lit, damp, stone room, only the flickering light of torches illuminated the surroundings. Beyond the iron bars, thicker and sturdier than anything necessary to hold a mere mortal, sat a girl. The girl.
W ëbṅóv_е́ l̈_ E ń u̇ m̄ а̂
Scribe Saint Lytrain Nerim Quartz.
The young girl, blindfolded and sitting demurely on the centrally placed chair, presented a striking and unsettling sight. None of the dirt and grime typical of a prisoner marred her pristine figure. Even more bizarre, she showed no injuries or signs of fatigue. It was as if she had just arrived, her space remaining perfectly clean and serene.
Dilarang mengopy novel dari Enuma.id.
Watching this scene from outside the jail cell, the Cardinal, accompanied by his pawn—a priest whose weakness he held as leverage to prevent betrayal—gazed past the bars with a look of disgust, yet also a hint of fear in his eyes.
“So this is the fate of a former Saint…”
The priest frowned at the words that unwittingly escaped the Cardinal’s lips. The comment was bad enough to merely think, but speaking it aloud was blasphemy. However, due to their respective positions, he didn’t directly reprimand him. The Cardinal’s voice was quiet enough for the priest to tolerate.
“What in the world is the Mystic Saint even doing?”
Ѐn̂ ům̌а.
But he couldn’t possibly overlook his next comment. His voice was much louder this time too. The flustered priest grabbed the Cardinal’s sleeve, his superior’s sleeve, and desperately gestured for him to be quiet by placing a finger to his lips.
But it was too late.
“Eugh!”
Which man did that stifled scream come from?
Baca cerita ini hanya di situs resmi Enuma.id!
The Saint, whose memory should have been completely lost and all cognitive functions gone, snapped her head toward them like a broken doll.
Scribe Saint Lytrain Nerim Quartz had offered her memories to God and gained immense power. As a consequence, her memories continued to fade, and without her journal, which contained her recorded memories, she couldn’t even determine who she was. Now that the journal was strictly separated from her, she should have been in a state of complete daze, completely unresponsive to any external stimuli.
Е_numа̊ .īd̆
“Hello? Are you there?” she asked in a sweet voice. “I hear your voices. Answer me. I’m so lonely.” The girl spoke to the empty space in front of her, unsure whether she even recognized the person she was addressing. “Why am I here? It’s dark. So terribly dark. Nobody will tell me anything…”
Her current state was so pitiful that the Cardinal, moved by the modicum of conscience left within him, nearly answered her.
“Be quiet… You mustn’t answer her. It will notice you.”
The Cardinal stopped himself just in time, thanks to the priest’s timely warning. He mustn’t be deceived by the girl’s sweet, young voice. The Cardinal quickly recalled the many sacrifices made to capture this girl, who constantly cycled between memory loss and lucidity.
“Hello? Is somebody there? Please…won’t you tell me?” Her memory vanished once again, resetting her back to square one. “Do you know where my book is? It’s my precious book. With it, I should be able to remember everything.”
They could only silently watch as she cycled the same loop. At this point, it was more like she was under observation than any kind of watchful protection. Saint Lytrain was considered a highly dangerous entity to the entirety of Qualia now.
Dilarang mengopy novel dari Enuma.id.
Another part of the cycle, one that forever haunted any who witnessed it, came over her.
“AAAAAAAAAAAAhhhhhhhhhhhhhh!” Lytrain screamed at the top of her lungs. “My book! I don’t have my book! Without it, I! I can’t!” She sought her book like a madwoman seeking drugs. “I’ll disappear! I’m telling you. I’ll disappear! I’m going to disappear! Please! Hurry! My book! Where is it?! Hurry! If you don’t hurry! AAAAAAAGGGGGGHHHHHHHH!!!”
She let out a scream so loud it sounded like her throat would rupture from the effort. The two clergymen, who were observers, bystanders, and also terrified, frantically covered their ears and kept their lips pressed firmly shut. They had to remain that way until her madness faded.
“Huh? What am I doing here?”
At the drop of a hat, she looped back to the start of the cycle. Back to normal.
The Cardinal’s pained expression revealed he didn’t want to be in this godforsaken place for a second longer.
W е̊ b́n õve ľ Еñ um̊ а
Eating, drinking, defecating, sleeping. Saint Lytrain continued to survive without needing any of the actions typically associated with being mortal. She did nothing, simply continued to experience madness, forgetfulness, and muttering into the void.
Because she possessed God’s Miracle. Because God loved her…
Dilarang mengopy novel dari Enuma.id.
Is this what they call a Miracle given by God? Is this truly a Saint blessed by God? No one could answer the priest’s inner turmoil.
“…Let us go. We don’t know what will happen if we stay too long,” the priest urged, but there was no response from the Cardinal. He wordlessly turned his back on the prison cell in reply.
They headed toward the door leading up and out of the dungeon. A sweet, young voice continued talking the whole time behind them. Saint Lytrain never stopped speaking into the void, to someone who may or may not even be there. That was the most terrifying thing of all. She likely did that all day long—no, she likely never stopped. The Cardinal and the priest, as if escaping from a labyrinth where a wild beast had been unleashed, cautiously suppressed their presence and departed with haste.
Every day they checked just once to see if Saint Lytrain was still alive. The Cardinal, who’d been keeping tabs on the priest, had forced his way into joining him on this daily duty, but he deeply regretted it. Even this high-ranking clergyman, who’d witnessed countless horrors over the years, found the situation utterly appalling.
E n ûm̌ а . і d
“We should be safe now. She can’t hear us down there anymore…most likely.”
At the priest’s words, the Cardinal let out the breath he had been holding. He considered lodging a complaint, or rather, asking a question or two, but the priest’s face was so pale that he hesitated. He probably looked no better. Both were completely exhausted. They felt as if they had aged several years in an instant.
“How in Arlos’s name are we even supposed to deal with something like that…?” the Cardinal muttered. The priest shook his head, his expression somber.
The situation in Qualia was tense. El-Nah had fallen into the hands of Succubi, and the Mystic Saint and the Three Popes had decided to join forces with the evil Witch Vagia. And here they were…keeping the young Scribe Saint locked up and miserable to use her as a super weapon in the upcoming conflict.
Baca cerita ini hanya di situs resmi Enuma.id!
Qualia no longer possessed even a fragment of its former glory. Everyone was afraid and suspicious. It felt as if the footsteps of ruin were slowly approaching.
“God, what should we do…?”
Е́n̈ um̈ а̇
Even though he was about to engage in questionable activities, even though he had numerous skeletons in his closet, the Cardinal was still a holy clergyman. And a devout follower of God. Your prayers will surely reach heaven—that was what the scriptures taught, but it was never clear how the Holy God Arlos would handle those prayers.
The footsteps of their ruin seemed to be nearly upon them…
Konten Bab Belum Tersedia
Bab ini belum memiliki konten teks atau sedang dalam proses penyuntingan.
