CH 555

AL_Squad24-31 minutes

Chapter 555

Kono Lint was capable of teleporting all three of us, including himself, at once.

"Good, we can all move together in one go."

Though it was a short distance, we were all able to teleport instantly as Kono Lint activated his ability while holding hands with each of us.

"How many people can you transport at once?"

Since it was her first time experiencing teleportation through supernatural powers rather than magic, Harriet asked.

"It's not about the number of people, but the weight. I'm not exactly sure, but excluding my own weight, maybe a little more than 200 kilograms? Also, the object's size cannot be too large. No matter how light, I can't teleport something incredibly huge."

He added that it was an issue determined by mass and volume, rather than a simple number.

It appeared that if the combined weight of the three of us exceeded 200 kilograms, he would not be able to transport us.

"It seems fortunate, in a way..."

Harriet revealed a subtle smile. When you think about it, she was more of a thinker than someone with a high level of physical activity.

Watching Harriet breathe a sigh of relief, Olivia puffed out her chest and spoke confidently.

"You're still young, so it's not a problem now, but if you don't exercise enough as you age, your body will become flabby. Brace yourself for that."

Of course, Olivia was very active, a close combat specialist, and had even become something akin to a necromancer. She was far from being physically inactive.

So, as expected...

In many ways, she was quite formidable...

"What are you talking about, old muscle pig?"

"What?! I'm not old nor a pig! Where is this firm body even remotely pig-like, you tiny thing!"

"Aren't you going to age eventually? Regardless, you'll always be five years older than me. In fact, you already seem a bit saggy, don't you?"

"I'm not saggy! I'm not! My physical age is younger than yours! You've been hunched over books in a corner all the time, so you have a bent back and a turtle neck!"

"What? That's not true! My neck isn't bent!"

As Olivia and Harriet bickered, Kono Lint looked at me.

"Are those two... always like that?"

"Even in a place like this, it seems."

"Ah."

It wasn't that we had infiltrated the palace yet, and we were in an empty alley, so it didn't matter if they argued.

The two of them would always fight when they met, and that was no different here.

It was embarrassing.

My household management skills were clearly lacking.

No, it wasn't exactly about household management. It was more like... managing a nation, or something like that... Uh...

"It's still a long way to nightfall. Let them fight it out."

"Should we...?"

“Bent! You little turtle! Your spine must be bent too, surely!”

“What's with this old muscle pig!”

“I'm not old! I'm not old! I'm still in my prime! And I'm not a pig!”

“You said that three years ago, so now you're old, right?!”

“Aaargh! I'm going to kill you!”

If you don't give in, you lose.

------

Since Kono Lint had agreed to cooperate fully, we had a fast pass to infiltrate the palace and even enter the inner sanctum.

He was a possessor of an ability more like a cheat code for infiltration than even Sarkegaar.

If only Kono Lint's combat prowess had reached the level of Erich, history would have been different.

The fact that Kono Lint had no talent or skill in battle was like a balance patch.

Of course, I was the one who made it so. If Kono Lint had the same combat prowess as me, there would be no one who could stop him, even if he went on a rampage to become an emperor.

In a way, I forced a plethora of drawbacks onto him because of his incredibly powerful abilities.

With Kono Lint's help, we crossed the walls of the Imperial Palace.

We were just inside the outer wall, hidden in the shadows where no one's gaze could reach.

There might have been guards on the wall, but there were no people on the ground.

"It's so easy, it's almost disappointing."

It was impossible to know how long it would take to find a way over the wall while interpreting and analyzing the Imperial Palace's barrier, or if it was even possible.

However, with his Supernatural abilities, it seemed he felt disappointed that it happened so easily.

"Alright. The next location is over there."

"Got it."

We moved cautiously, making use of blind spots and spaces where intruders could go unnoticed.

Although it was not impossible to be detected, the four of us used magic for camouflage and concealment, sticking close to Kono Lint as we moved together.

In the center was Tetra.

To the north was the Spring Palace where Charlotte lived.

To the west was the Winter Palace where Bertus lived.

There was no business in the now-empty Winter and Spring Palaces.

To the south were the government institutions, including the Autumn Palace.

To the west were the royal residences, including the Summer Palace.

Our target was the royal residence area in the west and the Cathedral housing the royal mausoleum further inside.

We could move quickly using consecutive teleportation, and there were many people in the spacious palace grounds.

We could pretend to be palace officials and move around, but there was no need to be unnecessarily bold.

-Pop!

With Kono Lint's power, we moved slowly and carefully, sometimes utilizing rooftops and blind spots to move bit by bit.

Experiencing it firsthand, Kono Lint's abilities were so incredible they could hardly be described as a cheat.

If I hadn't done the balance patch, the Gate incident might have been resolved by Kono Lint's power alone.

Soon, we arrived at a garden crevice where the royal mausoleum was faintly visible.

It was a massive Cathedral, and as Harriet had said, two guards stood at the main entrance, guarding the door.

To enter through the main entrance, we needed to secure a dispelling magic, hypnotize or subdue the guards.

If not, we had to deactivate the building's alarm magic, block noise with noise-canceling, and break into the building through a blind spot.

However, with Kono Lint, all those plans were unnecessary.

"We're going straight inside."

"Right."

-Pop!

We instantly moved into the Cathedral housing the royal mausoleum.

------

Naturally, there was no one inside the Cathedral where the royal mausoleum was located.

However, the interior was brightly lit.

Just in case, all four of us lowered our stance and looked around. The long vertical windows allowed anyone to see inside the Cathedral where the mausoleum was located.

In front of the Cathedral's massive worship hall, there were five giant statues of the gods, and in the middle of the statues was a wide, colossal staircase that led down to the underground.

Although I hadn't expected an overly extravagant atmosphere, the Cathedral overall exuded a solemn feeling with its gray-toned texture.

One might think that the royal mausoleum's Cathedral was almost crude at this level.

However, the monotony evoked a sense of solemnity more than a glamorous tomb would.

Considering this, the solemn atmosphere of the Central Palace Tetra and the empire itself didn't seem to pursue extravagance too much.

In terms of extravagance, the Cathedral was even more so. Of course, in the end, the Cathedral was an imperial institution as well.

"Let's go down."

Crouching low so that no one could see us through the window, we entered the staircase.

Now, we didn't have to worry about anyone seeing us from the outside.

The mausoleum remained empty, as no one was allowed inside unless there was a special occasion.

But as we descended into the eerily quiet royal mausoleum, we couldn't help but hold our breath.

It wasn't so much that we were worried about the possibility of someone being there; it was also clearly because of what we were about to do.

The underground was just as well-lit.

As we descended the long, circular staircase, we entered a high-ceilinged underground space.

Just like the ground level, the underground tomb was dominated by gray tones.

It was a place where solemnity and grandeur were felt more than glamor.

The underground tomb.

It wasn't the creepy and gloomy space commonly known as a catacomb.

No tombs were visible as soon as we descended.

Upon arriving in a large, vault-like space, we were met with four corridors branching out in all directions.

At the entrance of each corridor were stone sculptures with different patterns.

"…By the way, those things. They're not gargoyles, are they?"

I pointed to the stone statues resembling guards in the catacomb.

"I don't feel any magical energy from them. And if there were gargoyles, I would have told you first."

"Really? Wouldn't they have made something like tomb guardians?"

At Olivia's question, Harriet let out a short sigh.

"Considering that the presence of intruders in the royal mausoleum means the palace itself has been breached, there might not have been any need to make them? Of course, we still managed to get in."

"Hmm, when you put it like that, it makes sense."

"I can't even imagine that someone with ill intentions who managed to infiltrate the palace would come to the mausoleum. They would go elsewhere."

"That's true as well. But now we've come to a place where no one expected anyone to enter, right?"

"It seems that way."

A relatively unguarded location.

It would be impossible to anticipate the crazy things we were doing.

If money was the motive, one would rob the royal treasury or the treasure vault; if assassination was the motive, there would be no need to come here; and if information was the motive, there would be no need to come to a place where only the silence of the deceased existed.

In a sense, this place had no value to anyone in the palace, except for the royal family.

So, we were the strange thieves who came to the easiest place to rob, but where not even a speck of dust could be found.

Of course, we had come to steal the remains of people who, though without any particular value, could not be left out in human history.

A place with no value but tremendous symbolism.

In the four branching paths of the royal mausoleum, Harriet examined the directions and symbols.

The north was the burial ground of the royal family, the west for those with great scholarly achievements, the east for artists, and the south for those who had built their reputations in martial arts.

What we needed were not those with clever minds, outstanding inspiration, or noble origin.

We needed the remains of warriors who had achieved martial arts feats on par with war heroes.

Kono Lint, tense or not, held onto my arm.

What's with this guy?

"What's wrong?"

"...I, I'm scared."

Olivia was scary, and Harriet had changed a bit but still seemed irritable, given her harsh exchange with Olivia earlier. So he was holding onto me.

But shouldn't he be most afraid of me?

Ah, right.

He still has motion sickness...

People seem to change but then again, they don't.

But, if you think about it, shouldn't you be most afraid of me in this situation?

Whatever.

Damn.

"What's so scary about this? We came here to do something even scarier."

"W-well, that's true...!"

Kono Lint whispered, as if someone was listening.

But lowering our voices was a matter for all of us.

Our footsteps and conversation became quieter, almost involuntarily.

Was it because of the graves or the thought that we shouldn't be discovered?

There was something ironic about those who had come to disturb someone's eternal rest trying not to disturb the quiet of the grave.

"Let's go."

Harriet led the way, and we followed.

As this was a royal mausoleum, the structure was not haphazardly expanded, becoming labyrinthine.

After walking down a corridor for a while, the space opened up, and we were able to enter the mausoleum of heroes.

An open space appeared, with a long, straight area and stairs leading down once more.

"The mausoleum starts here on the first floor, and I heard there are five more underground levels. But I heard that only up to the fourth underground level is actually filled."

The cemetery for the great heroes of human history.

It was quite intuitive.

Stone coffins with only the lid visible, buried in the ground, and tombstones symbolizing the heroes' achievements. And on those tombstones were stone tablets with a phrase summarizing their accomplishments and a brief biography.

And behind those tombstones.

"Even... statues..."

Behind each grave was a statue of the hero, seemingly carved in their likeness.

They looked solemn, dignified, and sometimes dynamic, wielding their weapons.

The statues differed due to the different periods they were made in.

[Emperor Langkruten of the Swift Feet, resting here.]

I wasn't interested in the history of the empire, but of course, there was history in the integrated Temple courses.

Thus, among these tombs, I recognized the names of heroes from the history of the empire. Of course, I didn't know every detail.

"All the big shots are gathered here."

Looking at the tombstones, inscriptions, and names of the buried heroes, Olivia grinned, seemingly recognizing almost all of them.

There were about forty tombs on one floor.

With five underground levels, though only four were actually filled, there would be over a hundred tombs in total.

Was this number large or small?

It was hard to tell.

"Probably... the heroes from the Hero’s companions or the Gate incident and subsequent war heroes would be on the fourth underground level. That's what I heard."

"It's not likely that all of them will rise. The older skeletons might not be able to."

"So, we need to go underground?"

"Yes."

Whether or not these burial arrangements affected the decay of the skeletons, the older ones were less likely to hold any significance.

The recently deceased bodies.

How many Death Knights could we potentially revive from these tombs?

If we could revive them, and the more powerful the deceased warrior was, the stronger the Death Knight would become. Just how powerful could the Death Knights be?

We descended the stairs, heading deeper underground.

We passed statues and tombstones of heroes, eventually reaching the fourth floor below ground.

Upon arrival, we noticed that the structure of the tombs was different from before.

"Those five really are treated differently, aren't they?" Olivia remarked.

"It seems so." Harriet nodded in agreement.

So far, the tombstones and statues had been on both sides of the walls as we descended the stairs.

However, as we reached the bottom of the stairs, we saw five statues and tombs right in front of us.

And in the center of them all.

There was a statue of Alsbringer, held high in the sky.

Similar, yet different faces.

[The Savior of Humanity, the Architect of Justice, Champion of Als]

[The One and Only, the Eternal Warrior]

[Ragan Artorius]

[May he find peace]

In the center stood Ragan Artorius' statue, with two statues on each side of his fellow warriors who accompanied him.

A mage, Mullerun.

A priest, Seijaria.

A ranger, Ragdina Olfi.

A swordmage, Sheidin.

These five, who achieved the greatest feat in human history by slaying the Demon King, were given the most special place in the royal mausoleum, the Hall of Heroes.

In front of us were the tombs of the warriors, but there were still tombs on both sides as well.

"Looking at the years... there are two tombs added since the Gate Incident." Harriet confirmed as she surveyed the corridor. I saw the names too, but they were unfamiliar.

From the Empire's perspective, those who were buried here must have achieved great feats before their deaths.

"Are you suggesting that we... resurrect Ragan Artorius and his fellow warriors as Death Knights...?"

As if to question whether this was allowed, Kono Lint looked at me with a pale face. Ragan Artorius was Ellen's brother, so wasn't it wrong to do that?

It's as if he was asking whether I would do such a thing.

But when you think about it, shouldn't I be the one to do it? After all, I'm the son of the Demon King.

"I understand what you're thinking, but Ragan Artorius' remains aren't here."

"Why?"

"There weren’t any remains of his body in the first place."

It's understandable that he would ask such a question since he didn't know that both the Demon King and Ragan Artorius' body had vanished without a trace.

What if it had been there?

Would I have agreed to turn Ragan Artorius' remains into a Death Knight, or would I have opposed it?

I think Olivia would have agreed, while Harriet would have disagreed.

As for me.

Honestly, I'm not sure.

Just as we decided not to resurrect Loyar and Epinhauser, I don't think I would have done the same to Ragan Artorius.

But if his remains had been here, wouldn't commanding the Death Knight of Ragan Artorius, who killed my father, be an incredibly malicious and satisfying revenge?

I have no such intentions, though.

"There's no time for idle chatter. We're going to perform the ritual. I can't say for sure how many will rise, though."

Swish -

In Olivia's right hand, the demonic sword Tiamata was summoned.

There was no time to indulge in admiration, nor was there any need to worry about the non-existent remains of Ragan Artorius.

They were to resurrect the greatest heroes in human history.

Although they would only be shells, it was certain that even those shells would possess great power.

Kono Lint's eyes widened as he looked at the corrupt black energy swirling in Tiamata.

"Well... Let's get started."

Olivia showed a wicked smile.

In the clutches of the villains of the century, the insult to the heroes of the century begins.

------

The time was night.

However, no one entered the mausoleum, and it was deep underground, so there was no way our ritual could be detected from the outside.

Though someone outside might be able to detect this energy, that part was being taken care of by Harriet. Seeing that she told us not to worry, it seemed Harriet had her own countermeasures.

Olivia was murmuring something in the center of the fourth floor tomb, with the demonic sword Tiamata stabbed into the ground.

Dark, sinister energy flowed from Tiamata, seeping into each tomb.

It was clear that malicious energy was being infused.

Harriet, Kono Lint, and I were watching the ritual silently from the edge of the stairs leading to the third floor.

"But I know she's a priestess of Tu’an... What the hell happened? And what's that black sword?"

Come to think of it, Kono Lint followed us without knowing the details. He had no idea how Olivia Lanze could wield such wicked power.

"It's Tiamata."

"Tiamata? Tiamata is a holy relic, isn't it? That's... not ominous at all."

"Let me explain briefly, gods and demons are essentially the same being."

"...What are you talking about?"

"That's Tiamata."

"No, no! Explain properly! What are you talking about?"

"...I'll explain."

Perhaps sensing that my explanation was too brief, Harriet grabbed Kono Lint and explained everything in detail.

The misunderstandings between the gods and the demons. And the phenomenon of the holy relics changing their properties.

The ritual went on for a long time, so there was enough time for Harriet to explain everything to Kono Lint.

Of course, it was still difficult for him to understand or accept the explanation calmly.

"It doesn't make sense..."

"People's beliefs have been wrong all along."

"But it's strange. If there are no demons, then it doesn't make sense for that... demonic power to exist... Is that... That power... Holy power? It's not some kind of dark magic...?"

"Think of it this way, Lint: gods are entirely different beings from what we think. In the first place, the gods might not even be the beings called the Five Great Gods. Those names were given by mortals, after all."

"It... doesn't... make sense..."

Kono Lint didn't have a strong belief in the gods.

However, no one denies the attributes of the gods as beings.

There were the Five Great Gods, and the Demon God Cult emerged.

In fact, even that was wrong, and the name of the Five Great Gods might be incorrect as well, since it was merely a title given in relation to some absolute power. In reality, I learned that the origin of vampires was the gods themselves in Rezaira.

Gods are unknowable beings, and that applies to me as well.

I am unsure if there is such a thing as willpower, and if so, how and when it manifests itself.

Thus, discussing the gods may be a futile endeavor.

All that exists is power, and it simply manifests itself.

Ugh

Kono Lint blankly stared at Tiamata, which emitted ominous darkness.

There was no need for words like "impossible" or "nonsense."

Since such a phenomenon was occurring, it was possible.

What one sees is everything.

"This can't be..."

The power of the Goddes of Purity.

That power manifested as the opposite ability.

Olivia was concentrating her mind, only mumbling something without moving.

For a very long time.

About two hours had passed since Olivia started the ritual.

"Uh... umm..."

Kono Lint tried to yawn but closed his mouth, thinking it wasn't the right time.

Well, we could at least yawn. I feel like yawning, too.

"...Does it always take this long?"

The guy tilted his head.

"Well, rituals tend to be like that."

I've never created a Death Knight myself, and I've never seen Olivia create one.

But when Olivia purified the corrupted Tiamata, it took a whole day.

"Hmm... If it takes this long, it might be a bit difficult in the national cemetery..."

It was Harriet's remark.

"...Indeed."

I didn't expect it to be easy, but if it took too long, we might have to drastically revise our plans.

Here, no one's eyes could see us. But in the national cemetery, who knows when and where someone could see what we were doing.

Even at night, it would be very troublesome if we were caught.

No.

However, from afar, Olivia shook her head, as if she had heard our conversation.

It doesn't usually take this long.

Snap!

Olivia plucked Tiamata, which was stuck in the tombstone floor with a furrowed brow.

"Is it over now?"

Has the Death Knight transformation ended, and it's now embedded in the Demon Sword, or has it been counter-summoned?

As we went down the stairs and asked, Olivia shook her head.

"It hasn't even started."

"...What?"

"There's no reaction at all. No matter how much divine power I pour in, it stays the same."

Olivia stared at the silent graves.

"Did they do something? Whether I purified it with pure divine power or blessed it..."

Olivia hummed and crossed her arms.

"I'm not sure..."

"Is it because too much time has passed since death?"

At Harriet's question, Olivia shook her head.

"...I've heard stories of Death Knights being created from bones by Demon God Cult. Even in cases where everything has decomposed, my divine power should be enough to scrape together the remnants and forcibly resurrect them."

Olivia's power was immense.

It was strong enough to make the impossible possible. But it didn't work.

Harriet's expression turned puzzled as well.

"Did they prepare for such a situation? I haven't heard anything about it from Charlotte."

"Exactly. Even if Charlotte dislikes us, she wouldn't make Reinhardt take a futile journey."

As a member of the royal family, Charlotte would know something about the royal funeral rites.

If they were prepared for this, she would have definitely mentioned it.

"Could it be that it was too basic to mention? That's possible. Or maybe she had too much faith in my abilities. Hmm... But honestly, I'm confident I could even resurrect the ashes of the cremated... Is this because of the Empire? I wonder if there's some special method I don't know about..."

In the end, it was a failure.

We couldn't revive the corpses in the Hall of Heroes.

"Since these are special people, it might be possible. Anyway, this isn't the end; we can go somewhere else, right?"

Harriet comforted the unusually sullen Olivia.

Harriet was right. This place wasn't our only option. There were countless tombs in the national cemetery.

It was a shame we couldn't revive the heroes of the mausoleum, but there was no point in lingering here.

"W-we're going... to try somewhere else?"

Kono Lint seemed appalled that we had another round of mischief prepared.

"Yeah, you don't have to come along this time. We'd appreciate your help, but it's not necessary."

"N-no... Well... What should I do..."

Kono Lint wouldn't be necessary this time. Though no one could match his help when it came to escaping in case of emergency, it wasn't a palace or temple, so Harriet could handle it too.

Kono Lint seemed to be pondering whether or not to participate in these misdeeds again.

It wasn't grave robbing the royal mausoleum since we tried but failed. There's no need to join in if you don't have to do anything bad, right?

Just as I was about to say that it wouldn't be bad for him to bow out here.

"No matter how I think about it, this is strange."

Olivia said.

"What's strange?"

At my question, Olivia bit her lip.

"It's strange."

Is it hard for her to accept that we failed? There's no one with divine power comparable to Olivia's.

But if the Empire had taken some special measures and prepared countermeasures, what could we do?

"It's strange. This."

Suddenly, Olivia walked somewhere.

Towards the tomb.

"What... What are you doing?"

Harriet's face turned pale as she looked at Olivia standing in front of the tomb.

Olivia crouched down in front of the stone coffin, grabbing the lid with both hands.

The veins on Olivia's forehead bulged.

"Heave!"

-Grrr...

The massive stone coffin lid, which a normal person wouldn't be able to move, began to open with the sound of stone scraping.

Wait, what is she doing?

"Yah! Cha!"

-Grrrr... Thud!

With the sound of stone scraping, Olivia forcibly opened the closed stone coffin.

"I knew it... I had a feeling."

A chilling smile appeared on Olivia's lips as she looked down at the stone coffin.

Then, Olivia turned to face us.

"It's empty."

"...What?"

"?"

"Huh?"

"There's nothing in there."

Curious about what she meant, I approached Olivia and couldn't help but be stunned.

The inside of the stone chamber was completely empty.

There was nothing there.

Kono Lint and Harriet both approached with blank expressions, their faces draining of color when they saw the empty chamber.

Could this be a case like Ragan Artorius?

[Ludena Yen]

[The great hero who stood alone against the darkness of Darkland, protecting tens of thousands, rests here.]

I don't know who this is.

But if it says that they rest here, there should be some remains.

Despite our trio being flabbergasted, Olivia began opening other chamber lids.

-Grrrr!

-Thud!

"Empty too."

-Thud!

"And this one."

-Thud!

"Hmm."

-Thud!

In no time, Olivia had opened five other stone chambers, her expression growing grim.

"They're all empty."

It wasn't that Olivia had failed.

From the beginning, there wasn't a single set of remains to be found.