Chapter 84
Nahun had two reasons for going to the Holy Kingdom.
One was that the place where Dein and Eri had been sent was the Bismarck Empire, the most powerful entity on the continent alongside the Holy Kingdom; thus, the Holy Kingdom was left for him to oversee. The other reason was that the Holy Kingdom was the most comfortable place for Nahun to operate.
Nahun slowly traced back his previous memories and reached out his hand into the air. And he drew forth his magic power.
“Gate.”
‘Līmen’
Then, Nahun’s formidable magic twisted the space. Forcing an interference in the world’s structure, Nahun created a path leading somewhere and stepped through it.
“!?”
“It’s been a while.”
And the place connected by that passage was none other than the Pope’s chamber, the leader of the Holy Kingdom. Sernius III, who was reading a holy scripture before bed, looked at him with a startled expression.
“I’m glad to see you seem to have been well.”
“Y-you are…!”
Sernius III remembered him. How could he forget? It was Nahun who had rescued him while he was being toyed with by the demons. And it was also he who had detained adventurers from the human realm, including those from the Holy Kingdom, without sending them back.
“Your expression isn’t looking too good.”
“T-that is…”
“Don’t worry, I didn’t come here to harm you. If I had intended to hurt you, wouldn’t I have done it back then?”
The Pope, still feeling confused, closed the scripture and got up, pulling out a chair beside the side table.
“…Please, have a seat.”
“Sure. I was just thinking that our conversation might be lengthy.”
Nahun willingly took the chair offered by the Pope. Sernius III sat across from him and cast a quick glance at Nahun.
He was troubled about how to treat Nahun. Nahun was both his savior and a being that captured and hunted humans.
Nahun tapped his fingers rhythmically on the table before speaking.
“I heard you dispatched a punitive force this time.”
“…That was something Emperor Claude of the Bismarck Empire orchestrated on his own.”
“You knew about it, didn’t you?”
“I-I couldn’t help it. The Empire’s influence grew too strong after winning the war against the Northern Alliance. We were in a position where we had to meet some of their demands…”
“Even knowing I was in the Demon World?”
The Pope slightly lowered his head and replied.
“It was to protect the citizens of the Holy Kingdom.”
“Really?”
Nahun laughed derisively. However, he didn’t push the Pope further and changed the topic.
“Still, I have to say, you are doing a good job with what I said when I sent you back.”
“T-that’s only natural.”
“True, that’s a commendable mindset. Then I suppose I can offer you a bit of help.”
“Excuse me?”
“I’ve brought you some valuable information, considering you care for the citizens of the Holy Kingdom.”
Nahun took out a document and placed it on the table. It was something manipulated by Dein, containing information that something strange was circulating within the Bismarck Empire’s upper echelons.
“W-what is this?”
“They’ve kept it quiet in the Empire, but it seems that something unusual has been circulating in the Bismarck Empire recently. They say it’s a round object of a reasonable size…”
Nahun trailed off, and when he saw Sernius III growing anxious, he continued.
“I’ve heard it’s an artifact containing vast magic power.”
“…A magic artifact?”
“However, it seems that it was taken from our Demon World.”
“…Pardon?”
The Pope appeared flustered. He wasn’t a fool, so he still didn’t fully believe Nahun’s story. But it didn’t matter. Nahun was grateful just for his attention.
“There have been testimonies from guards claiming they saw a few humans recently crossing over and gathering magic power scattered in the Demon World atmosphere. So, I would like you to investigate this.”
Nahun shrugged his shoulders slightly.
“Honestly, I don’t fully believe the story either. There’s no certainty; I just want to find out. You feel the same, don’t you?”
“So you’re asking me to investigate…?”
“Isn’t it worth looking into? There could be much for you and the Holy Kingdom to gain.”
“If it’s true that the Bismarck Empire is circulating artifacts containing magic from the Demon World…”
The Bismarck Empire would suffer a significant blow to its image, and the Holy Kingdom could issue a heresy proclamation against such an empire.
Because over half of the believers in the Empire belonged to the Celestial Religion, and the imperial family was very closely tied to it. If items from the Demon World were being circulated in such a country, it could definitely raise issues.
If that happened, the Holy Kingdom could seize the continental hegemony that the Empire had obtained in one fell swoop. Having calculated that, Sernius III’s expression changed.
Seeing the change in his expression, Nahun smiled with satisfaction inwardly. Externally, he maintained his expression and spoke.
“Let me know when your investigation is complete.”
“…Since you provided information, it would only be polite to do so. I’ll send a letter to the Demon World.”
“I appreciate you thinking that way. Consider it a favor from your benefactor.”
“Yes, I will look into it.”
Nahun stood up. Just as he was about to turn his body, he paused and spoke.
“Oh, and.”
“…Yes?”
“There are quite a few survivors among the punitive force that followed the hero from your Holy Kingdom. If you want them back, now’s the time to say so. I’ll trade them back.”
The Pope pondered for a moment at Nahun’s words. Publicly, it was declared that all of the punitive force that had gone with the hero had perished. Communication had completely ceased, and no one had returned from the Demon World, leading everyone to that conclusion.
However, Nahun’s current statement meant that he had captured all the survivors. And it was obvious that he would demand a ransom in exchange for returning the hostages. It was unclear how much he would ask this time.
Having reached a conclusion, Sernius III replied briefly.
“It’s fine.”
“…Is that so?”
Muttering that he was a tough one, Nahun stepped into the passage he had created. Once Nahun completely vanished, the opened passage also closed.
Sernius III shook a small calling bell. A priest approached the Pope’s chamber.
“Yes, Your Holiness.”
“Dispatch someone to the Bismarck Empire immediately. Send someone specialized in infiltration and information gathering.”
“…What kind of information should I have them gather?”
“Identify what the major trading companies of the Bismarck Empire have started circulating recently.”
Upon hearing the Pope’s command, the priest answered concisely before moving off.
—
“It’s been a while since we did something together like this!”
Eri, who had gone to the Bismarck Empire, seemed excited to be with Dein again after a long time. Dein, who was her only remaining friend, had matured since their previous time together, making him a reliable partner.
“Right, do you remember our roles?”
“…Uh-huh.”
“If you forgot, I can remind you again.”
“P-please say it once more.”
As Eri said apologetically, Dein casually reassured her that it was alright.
“When I gather information on the trading companies, you’ll be the one to negotiate with them. You tend to be more endearing to people.”
“Ah, I remember that. Yes, I’ve got it.”
“You don’t need to act too naively. If you come off as too innocent, they might distrust you and refuse to negotiate.”
“Hmm….”
Eri seemed to be contemplating something. Dein looked at her with concern. Sensing his gaze, Eri spoke.
“I’m not sure if that will work.”
“What do you mean?”
“Dein.”
Eri smiled faintly and shared a somewhat painful thought she had about her experience in the human world after being in the Demon World.
“Humans often become blinded by immediate profit more than you’d think.”
“…….”
Dein clenched his jaw tightly. Eri’s smile wasn’t bright; it was closer to a self-deprecating grin. She added one more line.
“We were the same.”
“…Let’s stop this.”
“I’m sorry. I got carried away. Regardless, it’ll work out. Nahun must have known that and gave it to me.”
Eri looked at the orb in her hand.
“However, what makes me anxious is….”
“Why’s that?”
Dein, as a thief, did not understand. He couldn’t feel anything beyond the magic contained within this orb. But Eri felt differently.
“There’s something within the orb.”
“…Isn’t it just magic?”
“Not just magic… I feel like there’s something else.”
Eri seemed slightly uneasy. Observing her reaction, Dein furrowed his brows slightly.
“Eri.”
“Yes?”
“Don’t doubt.”
This was the first time Dein had spoken like this to Eri. He looked at her seriously as he said.
“We’ve agreed to do anything now, right? At the command of Nahun.”
“…Yes.”
“You haven’t forgotten who killed Luke, right?”
“I know.”
“So there’s no need to feel guilty. No matter what Nahun does in the human realm, it’s not our concern.”
Eri nodded. She resonated with Dein’s thoughts. However, she felt that spending too much time among humans lately had made her a bit more sympathetic.
“…Right, we shouldn’t doubt what Nahun is doing.”
“Good thinking.”
Dein lightly patted Eri’s shoulder to comfort her and withdrew his hand, while Eri gave a slight smile in return.
“Thank you.”
“Don’t mention it.”
Now that she was more focused, it was time to fulfill their duties.
