Chapter 256 – Dream (1)
"Yes, y- you, how?!"
Valrgna stammered, bursting into a cry of shock.
He was so startled that he had no time to maintain dignity or decorum. Behind his faltering back, people whispered.
"Huh...? Didn't they say Her Highness the Princess couldn't move her body?"
"That's what I heard, too."
It wasn't just the citizens who questioned it.
Knights and soldiers, especially the Royal Guard Order, could not take their eyes off Silis.
For years they had seen her being moved about in a wheelchair in the royal castle, and now she was moving perfectly fine. Her eyes gleamed with vivid life.
There was one more person who could not grasp the situation.
'What in the world is going on.'
Leonil felt his mind grow distant. It was a feeling he hadn't experienced in so long.
A sky warped by anomalies, the Marquis's strange behavior, Princess Silis regaining her senses, even the silence enveloping the square.
This series of events unfolding right before his eyes made no sense.
At that moment, Silis stood up.
Even with countless eyes converging on her, she was undisturbed.
'?!'
Leonil's nerves sharpened to a razor's edge.
He didn't know what the Princess was about to do, but leaving her unchecked was dangerous. It was instinct, born of experience.
Thought turned into action.
He didn't even spare the time to draw his staff and thrust out his hand.
"...!"
Sensing a murderous aura from behind, he instantly cast a defensive spell.
A hand wreathed in violent flames seized the blade that had been aimed at his neck.
Leonil's eyes widened when he saw the face of the assailant.
"M– Melzard...?!"
The right hand of Marquis Esperanza.
Another ambush followed.
Kwaaaang! A storm orb shot from the side and struck his body.
Leonil was hurled into the air, but he braked with flight.
That magic, that mana, was familiar. He quickly identified the caster—an old man appeared in his sight.
'Even Edmon? Weren't they supposed to be serving as guards outside the capital?'
And they weren't the only ones.
Hidden among the crowd, the Red Conviction Knights of House Esperanza emerged and instantly seized the center of the square.
Adel's special trait, [Concealment].
Through Gluttony, he had obtained mana that erased the presence of objects.
Unless Leonil deliberately paid attention, he wouldn't notice them at all.
"Why would the Marquis's knights suddenly...!"
"Damn it, whatever's going on, we need to subdue them first!"
"No! The dignitaries could be in danger!"
The Royal Guard could not act rashly.
On the platform were Valrgna, the Chancellor, the Dukes—people of the highest importance. If the enemy so wished, at least half of them would die.
For the same reason, the court magicians hesitated to cast spells.
"Ugh...!"
A tense standoff.
Leonil, watching, furrowed his brows.
"Marquis. No, Princess Silis. Could you please explain what is happening right now?"
"..."
"Leaving aside the fact that Your Highness has regained her senses... I do not know what your purpose is, but stop this. Release the hostages. If you end it here, I will overlook your attack on me."
Silis halted her movements.
'He says he doesn't know the reason....'
Of course.
For her, it was as vivid as yesterday, but for them, more than twenty years had already passed. Naturally, they could not recall it immediately.
Not just Leonil—everyone would be the same.
"Leonil Bertanas."
Silis sneered.
Her chilling voice pierced his ears.
"Is your mental strength as great as your magic?"
"What do you mean...."
Saaaaahhh.
Silis's eyes turned to twilight.
Thump, thump, thump.
A fierce pulse resounded.
[Crown of the Witch's Thorn].
An artifact that only women could wear, granting each mage a unique, temporary magical trait.
But prolonged use gradually drove the wearer insane, twisted the mana circuits, and eventually led to a rampaging death. A fatal side effect.
'But that only happens because they are not the rightful bearer.'
This was a treasure meant solely for witches.
Ancient witches, nearly extinct now, created this exclusive artifact for their king.
The thorns sprouting from the crown grazed her temples.
A bead of blood welled at the tip, and unprecedented power rooted itself in her mana circuits. Instantly, witch's mana erupted from Silis's heart and wrapped around her body.
She shuddered at the inexpressible might.
'To know it only as witch's knowledge is nothing compared to feeling it directly.'
Barely restraining her excitement, Silis raised her head.
The first opponent upon whom she would unleash this overwhelming power had already been chosen.
The greatest obstacle to her revenge, Leonil Bertanas, who had fashioned her mother's heart into a tool.
Silis's eyes flashed.
"?!"
Beneath the twilight sky, the space surrounding Leonil distorted.
And with him, the high-ranking court magicians nearby were also trapped.
She knew every detail of their deployment.
This was why she had waited for the coronation—to cast the worst nightmare and wipe out the most dangerous threats in one stroke.
Leonil's eye twitched.
'So that's why she blasted me here. All for this.'
"Dispel the magic at once."
The Court Mage Commander gave the order.
At his side were mages of tier 5 and higher, the royal family's armed force. Trap or not, they could smash through it head-on.
'At most, the Princess's magic.'
But it was impossible.
"M- My lord! Our spells do not work!"
"Physical breakthroughs fail as well!"
The court magicians panicked.
Unable to bear it, Leonil unleashed a powerful explosion of fire, but the result was the same. It felt as though the impact had been cast elsewhere.
'What in the world has she prepared?'
The opaque space crept closer.
They could not stop the progression of the spell. They didn't even know what magic this was─── no, wait.
'If this is the Princess's doing....'
Leonil's eyes suddenly went wide.
A memory struck him. He finally recalled what bloodline she carried, long forgotten.
No way.
"Witch...!!! How can that power be in you!"
He had seen through her true identity.
But even so, nothing changed.
Leonil frantically cast spell after spell to break free, but it was meaningless.
"Silis! You damn───!"
The space closed at the moment he stretched out his arm.
As if they had evaporated, Leonil and the high-ranking court magicians vanished from the capital.
***
"L– Lord Leonil...."
A cold silence spread.
The strongest in the kingdom had fallen, with just a single move. At that fact, the Royal Guard, and the remaining Court Mage Division, were dumbfounded.
"Haa, haa...."
Silis panted heavily.
Because she had given up nearly half of her mana, her whole body was overcome with weakness.
'It worked.'
It had gone according to plan.
Leonil and his subordinates would have their minds broken within the nightmare, driven to kill each other through madness.
Until their reason was completely destroyed and they turned to ash.
And if any survived until then, they could simply be killed afterward.
Now that the obstacle was removed, the next step awaited.
"Marquis."
"Yes, Your Highness."
Marquis Esperanza approached Valrgna.
Moving one step faster than the First Prince, who was retreating backward, he struck his abdomen.
"Keugh?!"
Valrgna's legs gave out.
Though educated as the First Prince, he was no match for the Marquis. The unconscious Valrgna was dragged and thrown at the terrified Chancellor.
At that moment, a knight with a bastard sword shouted.
"Marquis Esperanza! Stop at once!"
"Kazen."
Commander of the Royal Guard, Kazen Druit.
Gripping his sword firmly, he shouted harshly.
"Marquis, do you even realize what you are doing?! To attack His Highness Valrgna, personally chosen by His Majesty as the next king, this, this is treason!"
"Treason...."
Srrrng.
The Marquis drew his sword.
His red eyes gleamed like drops of blood.
"If serving the kingdom is treason, then I shall gladly commit it."
"Marquis! You truly mean—!"
He gave no further reply.
For Kazen too was a target of the Princess's revenge.
Knowing the cruel deeds he had committed, Silis only cast him a look of contempt.
The Marquis raised his sword high and slashed down through the air. That was the signal.
The concealed fleet of House Esperanza appeared all at once, beginning their advance into the capital.
"Y– You madman... don't tell me, even airships...!"
This was no mere rebellion.
It was practically the Princess and the Marquis declaring war on the royal family. Cold sweat dripped down inside Kazen's helm.
The fleet safely crossed the city walls.
The stage they had planned was finally complete.
Now it was the witch's turn to move.
'At last.'
Silis stretched her right hand forward.
Countless eyes met hers. If she unleashed the witch's magic now, the revenge would begin.
They would face not a peace stained with blood, but the destruction and suffering they truly deserved.
"..."
Silis faltered for a moment.
One more step forward and it would all be over, but unresolved hesitation gnawed at her.
Everything grated on her.
The little girl clinging to her mother's arms with melted ice cream in hand. The little boy hiding behind his father's leg in fear.
Even Marquis Esperanza, turning his head away to avoid watching the horror to come.
Silis could see it.
The blood of the victims, her mother's among them, smeared all over the citizens' bodies. They had lived enjoying a cruel peace.
Ignorance could not be an absolution.
Yet she did not intend to punish them simply out of hatred.
She only meant to strip away the peace they had enjoyed...
Her thoughts deepened.
She must not hesitate for long.
In the end, Silis had to choose.
She shut her eyes tightly, and clenched her outstretched hand with force.
The twilight sky flashed.
Reflected within it, the capital fell asleep in a dream.
***
Verden had visited the capital, Retia, once before.
He had accompanied Marquis Esperanza to meet Ryndel Nexleon, Tower Master of DarkWarton, and Archbishop Joseph, and naturally, that intense memory could never be forgotten.
Within it, the scenery of the capital had also been imprinted.
"That is...."
But the scenery he remembered had completely disappeared.
The capital at the horizon's edge was shrouded in thick mist. From within, an ominous lavender glow radiated.
As if the city had been draped in a curtain of twilight.
'Silis's magic, is it.'
After Roafra, now the capital.
Even if she had prepared in advance, these were all abnormally large-scale spells.
In terms of efficiency, function, and power, he could not yet be certain, but at least in scale, they surpassed even Verden.
Still, he had found it, so there was no reason to delay.
Though it seemed different in nature from the barrier that had sealed Roafra... he could not know its properties without checking it up close.
Perhaps it even separated space itself.
Either way, he would have to use Ainber to cross it.
Three halos were consumed.
Verden's body, wrapped in light, leapt across space into the capital. Emerging from a pillar of radiance, he immediately assessed his surroundings.
He had to see what had become of the capital, and what magic the Princess had unleashed.
Holding Orient, activating his mana circuits, Verden was fully prepared.
"...!"
Even so, he could not help but be astonished. No, this was closer to shock.
The twilight world before his eyes.
The capital, Retia, had fractured into multiple parts, transformed into a cluster of islands. Floating in the sky.
***
Verden halted in the empty streets of the capital.
Before acting recklessly, he needed to analyze this magical phenomenon. Because this had far surpassed reason.
'The entire space is warped.'
The place where Verden stood was the lowest island, near the capital's gate.
Looking up, other sky-islands hung fixed in the air.
Beyond the islands stretched vast twilight space, endlessly expanding in all directions without end.
Whatever it was, it had exceeded all his expectations.
To overturn the entire capital.
'In sheer power alone, one might believe it to be super-tier magic.'
And yet, precisely because of that, the dissonance weighed heavily.
Though he had only met her in the mental realm, Silis had shown no trace of transcendence. Even with an artifact, it was the same.
The stature of transcendence was not something granted by relics, but something one could only reach through one's own accumulated power.
'Then what in the world is this magic.'
He pondered, but no conclusion emerged.
Verden cut off his thoughts and began walking. By examining the surroundings, he might uncover what this world truly was.
After a while, Verden arrived at the capital's square.
Unlike the streets so far, this place was not empty.
It was filled with a multitude of people.
Citizens, soldiers, knights, all who had gathered to watch the coronation. Men and women, young and old alike, were sprawled across the ground with their eyes closed.
'...Are they dead?'
Verden checked the condition of one person.
He confirmed their breathing. It was quite shallow, but nearly normal.
The heart, too, though faint, still beat steadily.
Yet their presence felt extremely faint.
As if they had fallen asleep as deeply as the dead.
He continued his observations.
Checking several more people, he found them all in the same comatose state.
From that, Verden grasped the truth of this world.
'This is not reality.'
It was a mental realm, one nearly indistinguishable from reality.
A spiritual world manifested into existence through magic.
The witch was a magical being who dealt with dreams.
In other words, this place was the dream Silis had created.
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