323th Chapter
The advance has begun.
The expeditionary force that had gathered in the Imperial Capital moved toward the Warp Gate. Ray’s expeditionary force was set to join with the southern contingent and enter the Demonic Realm.
The crowd seeing off the expeditionary force heading towards the Warp Gate was not very large. This was because the Empire intentionally controlled the number of people present, fearing that Devil Worshippers might cause trouble.
Though small in number, everyone in the crowd cheered or shed tears, praying for the expeditionary force’s victorious return. Johanna, too, was among the well-wishers, weeping profusely.
“Hooohh…”
Johanna cried bitterly.
Delun, who was accompanying her, had anticipated this reaction from Johanna and calmly let her be, without being flustered. On the other hand, Speira was deeply troubled upon seeing Johanna sobbing so sorrowfully.
Speira rarely witnessed Johanna expressing her emotions so openly and intensely. As Speira hesitated, she lightly patted Johanna on the back, which only made Johanna’s crying louder.
“You rotten bastard…!”
Thinking of Ray, Johanna repeatedly cursed him. Though usually suave and collected, Ray now filled her mind as someone causing nothing but worry. Clutching her aching heart, Johanna cried long and hard.
Speira also watched the departing expeditionary force with a somewhat heavy heart. While her faith in Ray was strong, the mere mention of the Demonic Realm instilled an equal measure of fear.
As Speira consoled Johanna, she prayed for Ray’s safe return.
Among the farewell crowd, there were those who positively evaluated the expedition, and others who viewed it negatively. Some angrily criticized the expedition as a foolish waste of effort.
However, deep down, all of them undoubtedly wished for the expeditionary force’s success, hoping they would bring salvation to the continent upon their triumphant return.
There was only one exception.
“…”
A blonde woman appeared like a ghost, watching the departing expeditionary force. Her eyes focused solely on two figures amidst the thousands.
The girl had promised the boy that she wouldn’t ask anything of him. The boy had confessed to the girl through her sobs, telling her that he wanted to protect her.
Recalling their conversation countless times, the woman slowly shook her head.
“That’s not the ending I want.”
She could never accept such an ending.
You two must fulfill Harshia’s Nonagram.
No matter what happens, you are the only ones who can do it.
This is our last chance.
“…”
Having made her decision, the woman turned around. Shortly after, her figure dissolved into particles of light and dispersed into the air.
*
Under tight security, the Warp Gate was activated.
The expeditionary force departed from the Imperial Capital began passing through the Warp Gate. Until the entire force had passed through, the Warp Gate functioned without any issues.
The expeditionary force from the capital successfully joined forces with the southern contingent. Now, all that remained was final preparation before advancing into the Demonic Realm.
Meanwhile, Ray met with the commander-in-chief of the expeditionary force, Alexander.
After shaking hands, Alexander spoke first.
“That was quite an impressive speech.”
“…Has the talk about the speech already reached here?”
Ray did not show respect to Alexander. Given his current position as the Emperor’s proxy, it was impossible for him to do so.
Alexander, as the commander-in-chief who needed to lead the expeditionary force with strong authority, did not overly honor Ray either but still maintained basic courtesy.
“The communication equipment intended for use in the Demonic Realm has been distributed throughout the army. Thanks to that, the southern expeditionary force was also able to hear your speech.”
“Oh dear…”
Feeling slightly embarrassed, Ray let out a short groan.
Alexander smiled and continued speaking.
“It was a very unconventional and provocative speech, but it was excellent. It greatly boosted the morale of the troops. It seemed like something you prepared yourself; it doesn’t feel like something the royal advisors would have written…”
Ray didn’t want to talk about the speech for too long, so he nodded briefly and changed the subject.
“Still, it was somewhat unexpected.”
“What is?”
“That Lord Commander… I mean, Commander-in-Chief, would collaborate with the expedition so actively… I hadn’t expected that.”
“Hahaha!”
Laughing heartily, Alexander openly expressed his admiration.
“You’re truly extraordinary. In my lifetime, I’ve rarely found myself playing into someone else’s hands. Yes… I even felt humiliated.”
“…”
“However… part of me also thought it was for the best.”
“…”
“This place is my base and my beloved homeland. If I were to abandon and flee without trying anything, would there be a greater disgrace in this world? Moreover…”
Alexander placed the A-Space technology-based communication device in front of Ray and continued.
“As per your speech, the opportunity to be recorded at the forefront of a myth that will endure alongside the Empire doesn’t seem to come around often.”
“If the expedition fails, I’ll be remembered as a traitor to the world alongside you.”
“A fair gamble.”
Upon hearing Alexander’s response, Ray straightened his posture and asked very seriously.
“Do you think this expedition will succeed, Commander-in-Chief?”
“It will fail.”
Surprisingly, Alexander revealed his negative prediction without hesitation.
“While the troops were preparing, I searched through all the ‘forbidden books’ remaining in the Vatican.”
“Forbidden books?”
“In those forbidden books, there were records of devout individuals invading the Demonic Realm.”
“…”
“I understood why the other cardinals tried so hard to withdraw. For humans, over thousands of years, the accumulated power of demons—evil gods—has become almost eternal. That accursed blessing coalesced and took form, becoming the crawling land known as the Demonic Realm.”
“…”
“Even such beings aren’t invincible, but there will likely be enough entities capable of momentarily restraining a Lord-class entity.”
From the perspective of the expeditionary force, which must break through the enemy within a limited time, if the leading Lord-level entity gets restrained, the expedition is bound to fail.
“Therefore, I believe this expedition will fail.”
“Then why are you here?”
“Well… it wasn’t a typical decision for me. Thinking that the land and people that were supposed to be mine would crumble in an instant, my impulse got the better of me.”
With a playful tone, Alexander answered thusly.
Sitting quietly and facing Alexander for a while, Ray sighed deeply.
“Cardinal Alexander, I’m grateful to you. Even though I can’t see everything in your heart, you’ve collaborated despite feeling quite unpleasant because of me.”
Not understanding what Ray wanted to say, Alexander waited silently.
Rubbing his brow as if pondering something, Ray opened his mouth again.
“And since you’re in the position of leading the expeditionary force, I’ll share a truth that only I know.”
“Truth? Hmm… Let me hear it.”
“But it might be an unpleasant content for you.”
“Understood. I’ll prepare my mind beforehand.”
“Well then, Harshia died in the Demonic Realm.”
“…Are you referring to the hero Harshia from 600 years ago?”
“Yes. 600 years ago, Harshia invaded the Demonic Realm alone and wiped out all the evils you saw in the forbidden books.”
“…”
“And Harshia died in the Demonic Realm. Resina, following Harshia’s request, recovered the Empire’s Divine Sword, and thanks to Resina’s arrangements, the Divine Sword returned to its rightful owner, His Majesty the Emperor.”
“…”
It was such an incredible story that Alexander couldn’t figure out how to react.
Muttering aimlessly after opening his mouth slightly to question, Alexander eventually said,
“Truly… an astonishing tale.”
He decided he should listen to more of Ray’s story.
Nodding his head, Ray continued,
“The terrifying evils you warned about have already been wiped out by Harshia, and there’s no way such things could have been restored in just 600 years.”
“…”
“So the difficulty of the expedition will be much easier than you imagined. It’s entirely possible to succeed. I pushed for this expedition because I knew these facts.”
“Goodness… I don’t know what to say…”
“There are many things you won’t understand. It’s an unrealistic story from start to finish.”
“Is there any surviving evidence to support your claim?”
Directly asking, Alexander received a shake of the head from Ray.
“No, there isn’t. That’s why I’m sharing this story with you freely.”
“…It’s certainly hard to believe.”
“Yeah. Why did Harshia go to the Demonic Realm? More importantly, why did he go alone? Why are there no records left related to him? Even if all of this were true…”
“…”
“Can a single human shatter the concentrated evil of the Demonic Realm accumulated over thousands of years and achieve victory? No matter how great Harshia was considered during the peak of the Empire’s history?”
One by one, Ray addressed the doubts Alexander held.
Then, with a mysterious smile, Ray leaned closer to Alexander, narrowing the distance between them.
“Yet, Cardinal Alexander, isn’t our current situation even stranger?”
“…What do you mean?”
“Dragons are just dragons.”
“…?”
“Because they went extinct, they’re somewhat overrated. Dragons are dragons. They received power from El-Lam but ultimately remain mortal. You’re likely stronger than most dragons.”
“What exactly are you trying to say?”
“Think about it. How great and inscrutable are the powers created by transcendent beings like El-Lam or the evil gods. As a Swordmaster, do you understand what I’m saying?”
“…”
“Even a Swordmaster who has entered the commonly called ‘transcendent realm’ finds it difficult to directly interfere with the powers of transcendent beings. Let me ask you this: Is it possible for you to distort the powers created by a transcendent being?”
“Attempt… is possible.”
“Exactly. Attempt is possible. But what do you think would happen if you did?”
“…”
“Can mortals fully understand how the powers of transcendent beings operate? No! And yet, if someone tries to recklessly distort such immense power without understanding its mechanism… Boom!”
Ray waved his hands to mimic an explosion.
“It would end like this. Distortion is possible! But creating the desired result is impossible. Do you agree?”
“…I agree.”
“Then you should understand how strange the current situation is. How could a mere dragon possibly… distort El-Lam’s power and fuse it with the power of evil gods?”
“…”
“The answer is simple. The fallen dragon Preches didn’t create new power by distorting the power without knowledge… He copied something that already existed.”
Suddenly, Alexander felt a chill.
A vague yet ominous possibility hovered in his mind, unsettling his thoughts.
Ray, still wearing a cryptic smile, continued,
“Now, let’s go back to the beginning. Harshia. The pinnacle of Imperial history. The greatest hero of the Empire. And the only existence in human history capable of harming entities beyond the stars.”
“…”
“Why did Harshia go to the Demonic Realm? What was there?”
“Hold on…”
“There was…”
“Just wait a moment…”
“The first hybrid was there.”
“…!”
Alexander glared at Ray, wide-eyed, and Ray smirked.
“To eliminate Harshia, who could harm them, and to lure Harshia by taking humanity’s survival hostage.”
BANG!!
“What exactly are you saying!!!”
Alexander slammed his fist on the table and stood up.
But Ray ignored him and spoke the truth.
“The first hybrid, created by El-Lam and the evil gods working together, was there.”
