◈ Chapter 416. Pandora’s Box (1)
Jessica and Enoch.
The two knights lowered their heads.
Harkon opened his mouth.
“I see.”
The world of adventurers.
Rumors spread there at a speed incomparable to the Arcana Continent. One might expect false rumors to circulate, and yet—at least in the news adventurers brought, there were no lies. Had it not been said that an adventurer’s sight did not lie?
Harkon continued calmly.
“His Majesty has laid down his heavy burden first.”
Every human being carried a burden of their own.
Harkon had always thought so.
Perhaps death was a liberation that allowed one to cast off that task.
He had always been close to death.
It might have been an instinctive way of thinking meant to shake off the fear of death. Harkon spoke to Jessica and Enoch, who were suppressing their emotions.
“Prepare for deployment.”
Entering the Arcana Continent.
The time he had promised Hoyeol was drawing near. After the two knights withdrew, Harkon mulled it over. The next emperor, was it…? Indeed, at this point, there was no one but Sir Hoyeol who could fill His Majesty’s empty seat.
Hoyeol had saved the Empire from crisis countless times. Since the emperor himself had intended to hand the throne to Hoyeol, there would not be many who could take issue with its legitimacy.
Harkon was no different.
“Of course, I will have to treat Sir Hoyeol more formally than I do now.”
Perhaps he would have to grow accustomed to calling him Your Majesty instead of Sir.
Should he practice in advance?
Harkon thought.
And yet, the words would not readily leave his mouth.
“……”
Harkon’s lips trembled faintly.
Yes, I have not accepted it.
It was not that he could not acknowledge Hoyeol as the next emperor.
I…
“……
Why did you depart first, Your Majesty?”
He simply could not believe the emperor’s death.
Even after losing both legs, he had held on to his sanity while hoping for a reunion with the emperor. Even when he was told he would never stand on the battlefield again, he had overcome it. All so that he could remain the emperor’s sword.
And yet, why did you not wait for me? Or did you close your eyes amid such terrible pain that you could not possibly endure it?
The corners of Harkon’s eyes grew slightly damp.
“Why did it have to be now, of all times?”
When only a few hours remained before their reunion.
Was such tragic news being delivered to him now?
There had been so much he wished to say.
“……”
With hollow eyes, Harkon gazed out over the scenery of Yusra. He could see excited adventurers. It must have been because of the news that Sir Hoyeol was about to be crowned the new emperor.
“You are still narrow-minded, Harkon.”
Of course they would be happy.
To them, the emperor was someone they had never even met.
Nothing more than the ruler of a completely different world.
So Harkon had never expected the world of adventurers.
To offer mourning for the emperor.
That was why, with weary eyes, Harkon made a vow.
“I will remember you.”
Even if no one else recalled your death.
I and the Lionheart Knights.
Will not forget you, Your Majesty.
It was the moment Harkon clenched his fist tightly.
A murmur came from beyond the window.
“Huh? Isn’t that the imperial flag?”
The ancient kingdom, Yusra.
Here, in a place that was not imperial territory.
The imperial flag could be seen fluttering.
“!”
For an instant, the strength left Harkon’s eyes.
There were only two people who could raise a flag over the Golden Palace.
Hakuna, the king of Yusra, and Sir Hoyeol.
But Hakuna would not know about the imperial flag.
Harkon opened his mouth.
“……
So that was it.”
Even if no one in this world remembered the emperor.
You did not forget, Sir.
Harkon bowed his head toward the fluttering imperial flag.
“Please forgive me, Your Majesty.”
Though it is early, it seems the time has come for me to serve a new lord.*The system does not lie.
If it says Emperor Seric Rose has died, then it really means he died.
It didn’t feel like someone else’s story, now that I thought about it……?‘Because I died a little earlier.’The only difference was that I had the effect of [The Last Adventurer].
I looked at the silent reporters.
They were quietly holding their cameras.
Not a single one of them could even think of setting off a flash.
Well, that was understandable.‘There’s also what I said.’Not only had I threatened them, but the expressions of the Lionheart Knights were solemn beyond measure. In any case, was merely raising the imperial flag enough mourning for the emperor?‘Who knows.’But I hoped they would understand.
This was the best mourning I could offer the emperor of the Arcana Continent in reality. At the same time, it was the utmost respect I could show to an emperor who had tried to protect the Empire until the very end, against both the demons’ schemes and the rebellion.
Of course.‘That is the story in reality.’Once I entered the Arcana Continent.
I would have to send the emperor off properly, in a manner befitting his name.
But before that, there was something I had to confirm.‘Pride.’Pride of the Seven Deadly Sins.
Even if the direct cause of the emperor’s death was the [War Situation Archive],
Pride must certainly have influenced the emperor into borrowing the power of the War Situation Archive.
It seemed Harkon had not forgotten that fact either.
Had he composed his shaken emotions?
Before I knew it, the sorrow had receded from Harkon’s eyes.
Harkon nodded toward me.
I opened my mouth.
“In that case, let us depart.”
I stepped toward the portal and continued.
“For our reunion.”...
Basically, the Magic Tower’s portal target coordinates were set to the Claudi Territory, but in this urgent situation, there was neither need nor time to stop by the Claudi Territory.‘It’s all thanks to the authority of the Chief.’Of course, it was only possible because my understanding of the Anomaly supported it as well.
I changed the Magic Tower portal’s target coordinates directly to Antonium.
And then I faced it.
My vision slowly brightened.
The walls of Antonium, still magnificent.
“We have returned, Your Majesty.”
Harkon bowed his head toward Antonium.
Because he knew this was not yet the end.
That moment of silence did not last long.
An Anomaly portal, and the flow of mana within it, was at a level worthy of vigilance. The senior mages capable of sensing mana appeared all at once through teleportation.
Upon seeing me, each of them offered a word.
“It has been exactly four days since I last saw you.”
“Chief Lee……!”
“Chief Lee, might you have witnessed my exploits?”
In order, Matisse, Vellier, and Bensch.
Everyone had quite a lot to say, didn’t they?
Especially Senior Mage Bensch William.
There were more than a few things I wanted to ask you.
As I said, we had to track Pride, the root cause of this situation.
I asked bluntly.
“What is your condition?”
“As you can see, perfectly fi— Cough!”
Bensch covered his mouth.
No blood came out.
But his expression looked no less pained.
If that was his condition, then it could not be helped.
“Bensch William, you are excluded from this operation.”
“Pardon? Excluded?! I am still perfectly fine, Chief!! Gah.”
Cough, hack, cough—!
How about you do something about that coughing before you speak, Senior Bensch?
Leaving Bensch behind with a pitiful expression.
Matisse asked me.
“An operation, you say. Have you perhaps surmised something, Chief?”
Gooooooo—I answered by drawing up my mana. Excluding the injured Bensch, my mana enveloped the Lionheart Knights and the two senior mages, Matisse and Vellier.『Mass Teleport』It was a manifestation made possible because I had obtained mana of a different class. Even with the same numerical amount of mana, its efficiency was incomparably superior to others. Naturally, the target coordinates were the imperial palace.
My vision changed.
“What on earth happened?”
“What are these thorny vines?”
“More importantly, His Majesty……”
It seemed they had not yet grasped the situation.
I could see the confused retainers.
The one who awakened them was Harkon.
“Everyone, come to your senses!”
The thunderous voice of a lion.
The guards flinched and jerked their shoulders.
The retainers who had been sitting on the floor also sprang to their feet.
“S-Sir Harkon, Knight Commander……?”
“You really are alive!”
“Now is not the time to be overcome by the joy of reunion.”
Harkon suppressed his emotions and immediately gave an order.
“Guards, do you remember? The man who set foot in the imperial palace. Do you remember where the man who called himself Claudi is now?”
“……!”
At those words, the retainers came to their senses.
“He disappeared alone, saying he had something to discuss with His Majesty.”
“Where did His Majesty go?”
“I am ashamed to say we do not know that much.”
Shing.
Harkon drew his sword.
“Knights, search every inch of the imperial palace!”
Likewise raising their swords, the Lionheart Knights began to scatter throughout the imperial palace. Of course, I did not run. I simply stood in place and focused on my sense of smell.‘Hmm.’The senses of the demon hunter, sharpened to the extreme.
[Natural Enemy], which could detect even distant demons.
And yet, the activation message had not appeared……. Perhaps that meant Pride had already left the imperial palace—left Antonium.‘This is troublesome in many ways.’Most of all, the fact that he might know more about Claudi than I did. Even if he had fallen and become a demon now, he had once been Claudi, with the same blood flowing through him. Pride had.‘Do I have no choice but to summon Tempest and track the scent?’But Tempest Over the Horizon.
To recite that bizarre full name.
There were far too many eyes watching, weren’t there?
For a brief moment, I was seriously agonizing over it.
“Commander Harkon!”
An urgent voice rang through the imperial palace.
Had they found something? I headed toward the place where the commotion had broken out. A place familiar even to me came into view. It was the entrance to the secret corridor leading beneath the imperial palace.
Enoch reported.
“We found a suspicious person here.”
“A suspicious person?”
“Come now. Calling me suspicious is rather hurtful……. Huh?”
I recognized him before he even lifted his bowed head.
The king of the Scavengers, Emilio.
He had been bound by the Lionheart Knights beneath the imperial palace.
“Lord Claudi. It seems four days have already passed?”
“……
Four days? Commander-in-Chief, do you know that man?”
At Harkon’s question, I nodded.
The bindings were immediately loosened.
There was no need for me to ask.
Emilio soon reported everything that had happened to me, leaving nothing out.
Harkon opened his mouth.
“……
I will confirm it with my own two eyes, Commander-in-Chief.”
Harkon took the lead and opened the way.
To summarize Emilio’s words, it was simple. The emperor, and the previous emperors, had transformed into complete roses. Not blossoms, but fully blooming roses, and they could not return to being human like the people of Antonium.
The path to the War Situation Archive was not difficult.
The thorny vines covering the floor had dried up so completely that they crumbled at the slightest touch. Thanks to that, we soon faced them without difficulty. The roses that had bloomed in the War Situation Archive.
It must have meant their life force had run out.
Their color had faded as well.
As if their dark red petals would fall at the slightest touch.
Thud.
“Ah……”
Harkon fell to his knees before the rose.
Perhaps because it seemed it would turn to dust if touched.
With trembling hands, he stroked the empty air and opened his mouth.
“I never even imagined that the War Situation Archive would be something that would swallow Your Majesty. Without knowing that terrible truth……. I dared to misspeak and suggest that Your Majesty borrow the archive’s power.”
There was a great difference between vaguely accepting something and facing it.
Even I, who had only met the emperor a few times.
Could not escape this sorrow now.
No one would be surprised if Harkon shed tears.
“I am sorry, Your Majesty. I was your right arm, yet I failed to protect you. I failed to notice your suffering. I could not share the pain you must have felt in your final moment……!”
It was then.
Matisse, who had remained silent, opened his mouth.
Matisse was fiddling with a ring.
A magic tool that responded to suitable mana.
“Sir Harkon, I do not sense any suitable mana here.”
“……?”
“It means the emperor did not have even the slightest regret.”
Suitable mana born from one’s past and background.
The fact that such suitable mana could not be felt meant that even if the emperor had met an unexpected death in the War Situation Archive, he had felt no lingering attachment or sadness.
Would that fact truly be a comfort to Harkon?
“Is that so, Matisse……?”
Harkon smiled bitterly.‘Well, I have no way of knowing.’But a question arose.
Just what had the emperor seen.
That even before the War Situation Archive.
Even before Pride.
He had left behind no regret, lingering attachment, or fear?‘Even if it isn’t that, I need to examine it.’I slowly drew up my mana.
High-level illusion magic, [True Illusion].
It had the effect of reading fragments of memories left in a space.‘I need to know what kind of conversation took place between the emperor and Pride.’But somehow……. A chill ran down my spine.
Soon, the emperor’s face faintly emerged.
The emperor, being covered in roses, was smiling.
In his final moment, he was speaking to none other than me.
-“……
Indeed, it was only natural that you hid it so thoroughly.”……
H-Hid it?
I did?
What did you see?!