Episode 34
* * *
“Kill them all!”
At that point, when he had dared to strip the eldest son of the Saxon family twice, there was no chance of him surviving in the first place.
Kill or be killed.
Fortunately, there is a considerable distance between the two sides. In addition, this side controls the steep hills, has a geographical advantage, and has a numerical advantage. Above all, aren’t their subordinates encircling them from all sides?
Baron Parker raised his voice, trying to find some way to think positively.
‘How many, just how many?’
Even if you are using the Aura Blade, the only thing your opponent is armed with is a single sword in his hand. He has no armor or shield, and he is not riding a war horse capable of cavalry charges.
In comparison, aren’t these fully-armed knights and archers in battle formation?
It’s a fight you can fight. It’s a fight you can win.
“We can win! This is a fight we can win!”
Baron Parker raised his voice, demonstrating a power of positivity that could not be seen without tears.
“Archers, take aim!”
On the hill, the Baron’s men simultaneously drew their arrow strings.
“Foolish things.”
Seeing that sight, one of the knights guarding Dale muttered coldly.
Sir Veil of Baskerville.
A high-ranking knight who assisted the Black Prince in the battle that day and broke Baron Pucker’s left wing at the forefront. A black hound who swore loyalty to the young eldest son of Saxony.
“Give me the order, Prince Dale.”
At Veil’s request, Dale opened his mouth.
“We have already shown them leniency once.”
Not paying attention to the arrows pointed at us from all sides.
“Any further mercy would be meaningless.”
In a voice devoid of any emotion.
“Kill them all.”
“I will follow your orders.”
As Dale spoke, a hail of arrows were fired from all directions, and the five Auror Knights there bowed their heads in obedience to their lord’s orders.
Phew!
After he sat down, the sword wind swept in.
It was a shield of blades that blocked the barrage of arrows pouring down from all directions. In front of the sword wind swirling like a whirlwind, the pouring arrows had no meaning.
And as soon as the first shot was over, the Night Raven Knights were kicking the ground.
They disperse and rush in all directions toward the group of bandits surrounding them.
The tales of sword masters fighting a thousand men against one are close to the absurd ‘literature of knights’ even in this world. However, it was not so unusual for a single skilled knight to slaughter dozens of soldiers.
The pitch-black sword was swung, and screams rang out.
“Ahhh, my arm! My arm!”
“Please, please save me… … Aaaah!”
Before he could finish speaking, a fountain of blood spurted out from the severed neck. With each swing of the blade, arms and legs were cut off, and internal organs poured out through the gap in the torn abdomen.
“Oh, Your Majesty! Please forgive me!”
Baron Parker, who had lost his will to fight early and collapsed on the ground, shouted.
“I, I beg you like this! I will give you everything I have! I swear my lifelong loyalty! Please, please spare me!”
As if begging.
“Please show me the mercy of the sister gods!”
Sister God’s Mercy. Dale didn’t answer. She just looked at him with emotionless eyes, and screams were still echoing all around.
Some people burst into tears, unable to bear the pain, while others burst into laughter, unable to bear the fear.
Turning his back on them, the ‘Black Prince’ tilted his head.
“Why me?”
* * *
A few days later.
Leaving the Baronial Territory of Pucker, we quickly arrived at the ‘next territory’ in the central part of the empire.
“Stop, you guys!”
Another group of bandits appeared before Dale and his knights, disguised as travelers.
“Who dares to pass through Baron Grandel’s territory without permission!”
He is a Robber Baron who plunders those coming and going from his territory. After all, stealing is something that can only be done if you have power.
‘Oh, this is f*cking sick.’
Dale swore inwardly as he watched the bandits threatening him with such pride.
As long as he hides his identity, he will inevitably become prey, but as long as he reveals his identity, he cannot be left alive. That is why Dale asked with a feeling close to resignation.
“Wouldn’t you mind just quietly stepping aside?”
“Haha, you really know how to tell funny jokes!”
“That’s right, Captain!”
“Are you sure you peed your pants?!”
The heavily armored robber baron, Baron Grandel, bursts into laughter with his men. Dale joins in the laughter. The Saxon swords remain silent, waiting for their lord’s orders.
After a brief laugh, Dale opened his mouth.
“Funny?”
* * *
A few weeks of following the tributaries of the rivers that cross the central continent and converge again on the North Sea.
In the meantime, we passed through the lands of several robber barons and thieving knights, and each time an irreversible storm of blood blew.
After that, we went through the Imperial Free City of Amber, and from there we took a sea route called the ‘Pumpkin Road’ to cross the continent.
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Towards the land of the goddess, the Sistine Chapel.
The children of nobles with power and status, concealing their identities and walking humbly on their own two feet. This is the courtesy that the ‘Black Prince’ wanted to show the church through his pilgrimage, and it was an atonement for the day when the Saxon swords slaughtered the knights of the goddess.
And since Dale shows sincerity, the church will also have no choice but to respond to Dale’s sincerity.
* * *
Sistine Chapel, Holy See.
One room of the Palazzo Apostolico, in front of Piazza Sant’Angelo.
“Your Eminence, Cardinal Nicholas.”
One of the twelve priests standing at the top of the Goddess Church, a white magician who has reached the level of the 6th circle.
A worthy opponent for the ‘Black Prince’ who had come to the land of the goddess on foot. That was none other than the elder of the White Tower and Cardinal Bishop, Nikolai Machia.
“I heard that much blood was shed in the battle that day, young prince.”
Dale of Saxony. The lord of the White Tower and the Black Tower, with an unforgettable grudge, and the son and successor of the Black Duke.
Nikolai also knew about the fame of the ‘Black Prince’, who was renowned as the greatest genius in the empire. He also knew about the cruelty and notoriety that came with that name.
“The brothers of St. Magdalene were models of faith, and their sacrifice was truly regrettable.”
“Because of my excessive competence, I ended up making unnecessary sacrifices.”
‘It was a shame that he killed so well.’
“… … .”
From one to ten, it is the opponent with the worst compatibility with the church.
“I also find the results of the black-and-white rotation very regrettable.”
And yet, that very opponent is bowing his head respectfully in front of him.
He is from the North, known as the wasteland of the goddess cult, and is the child of a grand lord with one of the highest positions in the empire.
‘Is it really true that he endured such suffering just for the sake of atonement?’
Nikolai asked back.
No matter how brilliantly talented he may be, he is still an 11-year-old child. It is possible that the brutality of the battlefield, where people were killed and killed, may have played a role in his sense of guilt.
Just as young children of noble families, unable to cope with the trauma of battle, seek refuge in the embrace of a goddess.
‘Then it’s all for the best.’
The sense of guilt, or in other words, the sense of debt toward God, is a powerful force in religion.
“It is true that I too am very concerned about the young prince’s cruelty.”
That is why Cardinal Nikolai continued with a good-natured smile.
“But the mercy of the Goddess is open to everyone equally, young prince.”
“… … .”
“There is no sin in this world that cannot be washed away.”
You can wash. You can be forgiven. That was when Cardinal Nikolai tried to whisper sweet nothings.
“Didn’t you say that there is no sin in this world that cannot be washed away?”
“Yes, that’s true.”
Nikolai nodded, and Dale opened his mouth.
“──So you sold the goddess’ country to the empire?”
He sold the country. For a moment, Cardinal Nikolai’s face turns pale.
“When the previous Pope, who had rejected the treaty of annexation of the Empire, was assassinated… … .”
Dale continued, unconcerned, telling the truth that only a few people in the entire empire knew.
“His Eminence the Cardinal was also there.”
Just before the forced annexation treaty between the Empire and the Church was signed, the White Tower Lord, the King of the Church, and the former Pope expressed his will to resist until the very end. As a result, he was eliminated by the Empire’s hunting dog, the warrior from another world.
Based on the betrayal of twelve cardinal bishops, including Nicholas.
“Has the goddess forgiven the sins of the Cardinal who sold out his own country?”
“Oh, how did that day go… … .”
The 6th Circle White Magician, who had figured out the situation, could not hide his agitation and unleashed pure white magic. However, Dale’s expression was very indifferent in front of the swirling magic of light.
Not caring that the knights of the House of Saxony were not immediately present.
“Do you think killing a mere agent of His Majesty the Duke will be a meaningful silence?”
It was a lie.
The Duke of Saxony has no idea what is happening here now. But there is no way for Cardinal Nicholas to know the truth.
As evidence, the magical power of the swirling light disappears after a few rotations.
‘Is that really what an eleven-year-old child looks like?’
I couldn’t believe it even after seeing it.
The fame of the Black Prince that people were talking about was far beyond my imagination.
Even titles like “the greatest genius in the empire” or “the prodigy of the duke’s family” felt ridiculous.
“… … What do you wish for?”
“Your Majesty the Duke has not come specifically to question the corruption of the church.”
Cardinal Nikolai opened his mouth hesitantly, and Dale answered, as if he were acting on behalf of the Duke of Saxony.
“Rather, I came to this place to swear silence on the truth of that day.”
Wrapping up one’s actions as the will of the black hole behind them.
“All we, the House of Saxony, ask is a very small price to pay for silence.”
The price of silence. Nothing in this world is free.
“They say that in the basement of the Apostolic Palace, there is a secret library that holds the church’s forbidden books.”
“… … !”
At Dale’s subsequent words, Cardinal Nicholas’ expression became filled with shock once again.
A taboo place that only a very select few are permitted to enter, even within the church.
“S, no way… … !”
“Please allow me to access the ‘Library of Hell’.”
The Library of Hell. That was the nickname for the library located on the lowest level of the Apostolic Palace, where the ‘forbidden books’ confiscated by the church were stored.
『The Book of Black Goat』.
The world’s most terrifying book of magic, written by an ancestor of the House of Saxony, is buried here.
