· Day of Mareon
· Imperial Palace
· Holy Year 1 of the Arthurian Calendar
· 7am
--
The monarchs gathered once again in the war room, but this time they didn't have the leisure to discuss their plans with Arnold because of the monster that was sighted not far from the imperial capital. It was apparently a town that laid west of Duke Berkley's territory in a region known as the Eswick Valley.
None of them got any sleep when they heard that ferocious roar that sent shivers down all their spines. It had been a few hours since that roar shook the entire world. The demihuman knights had left in a hurry, abandoning their duties in fear of when that monstrosity may come. For demihumans who have heightened senses compared to humans, it felt like an entity with incomprehensible power was right behind them.
Bags under their eyes, the monarchs have been sitting here for hours planning out escape routes and made preparations for an evacuation all over the empire and every soldier was put on duty, even those who didn't have shifts. But what good is all this preparation when that thing can obliterate them in seconds if it ever makes it here?
They managed to perfectly draft an escape plan but what is there left? Abandon everything they've worked for and built? You would think they would stay and fight but would any mortal have the courage to face a God?
...
The door opened in that solemn silence and Pope Augustus came inside.
"—I cannot reach Justice with a transmitter. Darn mana, interfering with the radio waves." He said with a tremble in his voice, "The Testaments sent word that they're hurrying over but what are the Testaments without Justice? Not to mention Angelica and Ceera—why did those two have to betray us so? We've lost a tremendous amount of power because of that wench betraying us!"
He sat down with a heavy thud and wiped the sweat off his forehead with his handkerchief.
"Isn't it strange how the beast has gone silent?" Queen Setaria spoke up, "Perhaps we can send in a surveillance team to determine what's going on? We can surely do that while evacuating."
"Indeed," Jurnick agreed, looking like he had aged ten years compared to yesterday, "Sitting around with no answers will only make us go mad not knowing where the Sword of Damocles looms."
No one said anything in response so they basically silently agreed.
"The top priority is also knowing where the beast will even go."
A knock coming from the door made their shoulders jump in unison.
"Your Majesty, Commander Vealle von Penston requests an urgent audience." A servant's voice came from the door, "She says she has news about what has been happening in Eswick Valley."
Many people have come forth to say they had news but Jurnick got tired of all the nonsense he was hearing so he stopped allowing just anyone into the palace.
He couldn't quite do that with Vealle, one of his best commanders and a high noble of his aristocracy. She, of all people, wouldn't speak nonsense.
"Send her in."
**
Vealle knelt in front of the door, her armor sparkling as if she never fought in a single battle on the way here. That said, she probably had her squires clean her armor and polish it to look more presentable.
But such minor things are the least of their current worries. Good news coming from the mouth of a commoner covered in dung is still good news.
"—Thank you for granting me an audience, despite my unreasonable departure from the fortress, Your Majesty. I do hope my supervisor understands the urgency of the situation."
"Think nothing of it. If you left to assist in the town's defenses then I will pardon you myself." Jurnick had forgotten about that town in the Eswick Valley as it was just a small town of a countryside noble who has no connection to the imperial court. He's never even met the noble who ruled the town before.
"Thank you, Your Majesty. And greetings to all the Monarchs."
The others nodded in greeting as she looked at them.
"You say you have news? We have been getting countless opportunists using the chaos to make a quick buck after we promised a reward to those who can share information with us." Augustus complained.
"Ah, there were quite a lot of people in the great hall of the palace… So that was why…" she pondered out loud.
Jurnick held back a sigh. They still think they can get that reward money.
The next moment, the doors swung open and a man in a wheelchair was pushed inside, accompanied by his wives—Judith and Adrianna. He was expected so there was no need to knock.
"I apologize to you all for not assisting in the evacuation procedures and counterattacks." Marcus von Berkley bowed his head.
'Marcus…'
Seeing his lifelong friend like that caused an uncomfortable pain to arise in Jurnick's heart. But, although Roseria abandonedJurnick, his friends are still here. In times like these, you must always rely on your friends' council.
"A counterattack won't be necessary, Marcus." Vealle stood up and turned towards the new arrivals. All three widened their eyes seeing that familiar face.
"Vealle? What are you doing here?" Marcus couldn't even be surprised for a second longer as Jurnick interjected. His wives shared the same expression as they believed she would be on the frontlines, fulfilling her duties as a commander.
"That's what we're all waiting to find out from her." Jurnick gestured for a servant to pull out a chair, allowing Marcus to sit next to him.
Adrianna and Judith quietly sat on the chairs next to the wall.
All of them waited for Vealle to speak. Clearing her throat, she began to speak clearly so that all of them could hear.
"The Kaiju-type demon that appeared in the Eswick Valley has been slain by several brave heroes."
Gasps escaped their mouths before they could even think to suppress it. Something that extraordinarily powerful was slain this quickly? You could say that would explain the silence after it roared so ferociously, that it could be heard from hundreds of kilometers away. But everyone naturally assumed the Kaiju didn't need to use big moves to show it was still a threat. It could probably crush a human in its hands quite easily.
To the uninformed monarchs, this wasn't a sword hanging over their heads but an Ultra Greatsword. It need not show its destructive power, as its weight is enough to prove how deadly it is.
"That is absurd! Kaijus are classified as divine beasts level monsters, almost on the level of a demon lord!" Lion King bared his fangs, as if he'd heard the most insulting thing in this world, "To speak of its defeat so easily shows exactly how inferior you humans' senses are to ours! How is our continent not burned to ash while dark clouds fill our skies!?"
"Ahem, Lord Lion is correct—if a fight like that actually took place, this empire would have vanished overnight."
"Lady Setariah…" Jurnick looked at her with a troubled gaze despite knowing what she says is true.
"Then allow me to finish." A passion to sing their praises rose in Vealle's heart but she knows such a thing would be uncouth of her so she kept her voice flat, "All of you are aware of the barrier that separates our world from the demon realm—a protection that has been in place since even before the great war. One of the heroes who confronted the Kaiju said she used a weaker variant of that barrier, called the 'Thousand-Year Barrier'."
Only widened eyes stared at her as she continued, "She could summon angels called Einherjar from Valhalla, a once mythical legend fed to young knights to persuade them to lay down their lives for their country so that their souls may fight forever in that realm."
"A… A mere human could do all that?" Setariah's voice trembled but there was a sparkle in her eyes—she wanted to hear more. The suspicion that this information could be false didn't appear in their minds at all as the fact that a mythical beast demon could appear in this era of peace was ridiculous enough.
"No, she calls herself a Valkyrie, related to the brave and strong women who came down to our world thousands of years ago to bless us with their protection. Her name is… Guinevere…"
"C-Could it possibly be the woman from A Song of Moonlight and Hope?" Augustus stood up with a blank face, "The red-haired Goddess…?"
"She did not tell me much so forgive me for not having an answer to that."
"The stars have aligned on this dark day… It must be her…"
"...Who were the other heroes?"
Vealle started to list them out after Jurnick's inquiry:
1. A young woman by the name of Ceru, who could use Mass Blessings and Healing spells, someone on the level of the Oracle.
2. The Ancient Dragon Tyrgavion, who could hold down the Kaiju-Demon and unleash a devastating energy from his mouth.
3. An Elf by the name Sylphiala, who could destroy the gate that allowed those monstrosities to be let out
4. Freya York, who made sure no monsters could fly out of the cracks in the barrier, and who could hold up the barrier for under a minute
Augustus sat on the edge of his seat and had a big smile on his face hearing Freya was on the scene, mistaking that if she was there, Justice probably delivered the final blow to the Kaiju. The two had been travelling together for a while now, looking for Hero candidates so it'd be possible they'd be together.
But all their faces went blank when they heard the final two, with Augustus having a dark cloud over his face when he heard one of those names.
"And finally, Inquisitor Lancelot Ulterian and Marcus von Berkley's son, Arnold."
Marcus' breath caught in his throat and Adrianna and Judith blinked blankly.
"…Is this a jest? Duke Marcus' boy fought on the side of humanity?" Rockwell's eyes were the widest any of them had ever seen, as if he heard the most absurd thing.
And it certainly was.
"We speak of how to eliminate the very hero who fought for us… Meanwhile Hero Arthur refused to come out of his room even when being summoned by his emperor." The Lion King remarked with a shake of his head.
Jurnick could say nothing in response, and even Marcus had become stiff. Judith and Adrianna shared their husband's reaction.
"I promise you all, it's not a jest."
"Perhaps we have already found humanity's Hero Party." Lion King said, as the others were still trying to process what they just heard.
"Ahem…" Jurnick cleared his throat, "…How did the monster appear in our world?" that was the most important thing to find out right now. The shock can wait till later.
"I spoke to them about it briefly and heard that it was summoned here by rituals conducted by a demonic cult in that very town."
"Wha!?" Augustus shot up, "R-Ridiculous!"
"Right under our noses!?"
"Your Holiness, I thought all of us agreed that you would handle, no, prevent these sorts of situations." Queen Setariah glared coldly at him, "That is the entire purpose of our funding the churches, even to the Elven people who don't recognize Melis as our God."
Sweating bullets and eyes darting back and forth, he tried to explain to Jurnick who was glaring at him, "I-I could not focus on anything happening in the empire, Your Majesty! I am but one man!"
it was a pathetic excuse coming from someone who preached law and order under the "Word of God".
"Humph, you give more attention to some petty conflict than the security and safety of your fellow countrymen." The Lion King scoffed, "Now we see where your priorities lie. Explain to me again why the Holy King's brother could not become your bishop and take over your duties while you focus on your petty battles with my kin? Now he lays ill right after the Holy King passed away—strange timing, isn't it?"
The Holy King's only successor was sitting right between the two so the boy could only tremble under their intense pressure.
"What are you insinuating, Beast Lord?"
As it stands now, Augustus has the most political power in the Juliar Theocracy and Holy Kingdom combined. With the heir still a young boy and no other successor in the royal family, Zeminnik II will unfortunately have to become King under the supervision of the Pope. This agreement by both sides of the kingdom collapsed the wall their many past conflicts had erected. Although for a short period of time, the Holy Kingdom is now just the Juliar Kingdom so that both nations may help each other while the rightful king matures and is guided by trusted advisors of both the churches and nobility.
Jurnick wanted to avoid getting involved with them but he fears he may have to in the future. But that will have to wait for now. The most important thing right now—no, the two most important things are the Republic and the demihuman conflict with the Theocracy. If possible he'd like to resolve both of them within the next year.
While there is some conflicts with the Theorinia Kingdom, what the Theocracy is focusing on right now are the five unified tribes who aren't part of the beast kingdom. This is why there weren't too many issues with having the Pope and the Lion King convene in the capital with the rest.
"Enough!" Jurnick slammed down his hand, recognizing the demon sighting as the greatest threat, "We will focus on the distribution of power given to His Holiness at a later date as even I agree that he has failed to uphold his promise to humanity."
"Indeed…" Setariah chimed in, "How many people are confirmed dead, Lady Vealle?"
"…Most of the townspeople from what the neighboring villages told us."
A grave silence overtook the discussion. Augustus lowered his head without a word as his shoulders trembled.
This was without a doubt the result of his incompetence. The consequences will have to wait.
"…I hope you will do your job properly next time, Your Holiness. We placed great trust in your ability to discover where evil may lurk. Let us have a separate meeting with all the officials of the Juliar Kingdom within the next few weeks to discuss this matter."
Hearing Jurnick, Augustus nodded silently.
"Commander Vealle, were you able to find out if there were more of these cults?"
Vealle nodded gravely, "I had my officers stay behind to investigate and they found letters that suggest that there are more of them out there."
"Gods, how will we handle them all… Ah, please do continue. What were the casualties like? Did you investigate that as well?"
"Not thoroughly but one of the villagers joined us on our way here so they could tell us what they witnessed. First they amassed an army of humans they turned into demons to create chaos so that all the attention is away from them. Then they used the corpses of humans to create a portal to a different dimension. What crawled out of this portal were unkillable monsters which were quite literally impossible to kill."
Jurnick gulped, "…How were they unkillable? Nothing in this world is unkillable no matter how strong they are…"
Everyone looked at Augustus, thinking he might know what it was since it was linked to the Kaiju demon.
"It fills me with shame to admit I do not know what it is. The Elf may be able to share more as she was the one who broke it, as Lady Vealle explained."
"…We will have to accept that they had competent schemers amongst them to keep this hidden for so long." Said Setariah. It wasn't praise made in good faith at all, "What about the brave souls who fought the demon? Did all of them come out of the confrontation alive?"
"Fortunately, yes. All of them were incredibly resilient and strong."
Marcus felt relief in his heart. As did Adrianna and even Judith.
Arnold was still alive. Though he has gained an incredible amount of power in such a short time, he's not invincible. And if it took so many people to fight the demon, it wasn't something he could defeat alone.
"Where are they currently? A feast is an order!" Rockwell bellowed with a 'Gyahaha!'
"Well, they split up right after the battle but I'm told the Elf who joined them in the fight is allied with Arnold and the two are in his city at the moment."
'The rest has their own business to take care of, huh.' Thought Jurnick inwardly. He would've liked to meet this Guinevere woman.
If she's truly who he thinks she is… could she become their third Hero?
The monarchs shared glances.
Once this news spreads, it will be cataclysmic. The man who threatened to kill the Hero turned out to be the Hero in the end. Maybe he had some other intention but there's no doubt he's one of humanity's saviors.
"…A celebration is in order." Setariah spoke amidst that silence, "This may also be an opportunity to bring Hero Arthur and… Sir Arnold together so that we can resolve this without a bloodbath. Your Majesty… hearing that he stood up for all of us makes me hesitant to give my thoughts on this matter concerning the two. Rather, I think it's best that both of them, along with the young sir Luke, work together as Heroes."
That will never happen...
"Aye, I agree." Rockwell chimed in.
"…I think we should at least hold a conference with him present—it's only fair." King Jenfy, who has been quietly observing them, spoke up.
"…I agree." Queen Amarene, who has every reason to side with Arnold due to arrangements made prior to this meeting, joined in.
"How could all of you change your minds this easily!? What if he fought the demon with the intention of swaying you to his side!?" Augustus bellowed.
"I would rather trust in the man who put his life at risk to save people than the man who prioritized his selfish goals." Lion King said with narrowed eyes, making the Pope grit his teeth.
"Kgh...!"
At least none of them said they support Arnold killing Arthur. They just want a peaceful solution and possibly coexistence despite Arthur's actions in the dungeon.
Jurnick can't fault them for that.
Once news gets out, every single person in this empire—no, the entire country will voice their support for him.
And another thought will linger in their minds—
Where was Arthur when all that chaos in the Eswick Valley was happening?
Jurnick stood up and approached Vealle, placing a hand on her shoulder, "Thank you for bringing this news to us, Commander Vealle."
"It was nothing, Your Majesty." She bowed her head.
"Huhu, I wonder if the academy will be able to open this week. The celebrations will last a week at least." Remarked Setariah, in high spirits, "I'm looking forward to seeing how humans celebrate the birth of a hero."
"Let's not get ahead of ourselves. There is still a battle to be won in the Republic so I can't give my full attention to our nation's heroes. Rewards may be given but celebrations will have to wait."
All of them nodded in agreement. Besides Augustus, that is.
"Let us end today's meeting here. I apologize to all of you for keeping you here without having reached a final decision…"
He didn't say this just with the intention of apologizing. He wanted to see their reaction to mentioning the decision.
As expected—
"Let us wait and see the reaction from the people once news spreads." Setariah spoke, "Prematurely making a decision will cost you your crown, Emperor Jurnick. This may not be a democratic country but the people have other ways of taking the crown besides voting."
It wasn't a direct threat but advice that he must adhere to regardless of his current feelings toward Arnold.
"...Thank you for your advice. I will keep it in mind." The two smiled at each other but neither looked like friendly smiles.
'I will have to speak to Hero Arthur alone about this.'
**
The meeting was adjourned and the monarch's went to their assigned villas to await further information.
Setariah left the palace grounds in disguise with an excuse that she wants to see the empire directly to experience a culture different from her own country's culture.
Vealle couldn't stay long, as she was in a hurry to return to the fortress so she couldn't catch up with Marcus and Adrianna. She briefly asked about her husband but gave no special reaction to hearing he was out of the capital for a bit.
Jurnick wanted to meet with Arthur as soon as possible but he heard that the Hero went into isolation training from Shirley. This surprised him but since he was going to tell the Hero to train anyway, it all worked out in the end.
But there's another reason for him wanting to meet Arthur and it concerns Arnold. The empire will side with him without a doubt even if he did threaten to kill the Hero.
He's the only one who fought on the side of humanity, after all.
if possible, the emperor wanted to suppress this information to the best of his ability but it's already gotten out of hand. Come tomorrow, citizens will be singing the Berkley's disowned son's praises. He wanted to avoid this but he'll have to speak about this situation directly to the people. Perhaps in a public hearing? He hasn't done that in a while.
But this will be the first hearing he does without Roseria by his side.
Standing on the balcony of his room, overlooking his empire in casual robes and disheveled hair, Jurnick pondered deeply to himself as if time will give him an answer to every struggle he faces today.
Maybe it was a coincidence but Arnold seems to be at the heart of most of his problems these days...