Episode 787 Blood Alliance (3)
Whoosh!
The remains of the undead gathered by the soldiers formed a horrific mountain, and wizards from various nations used fire magic and magic items to burn the mountains of corpses piled up here and there, one by one.
There wasn’t really any important material to be obtained from the undead, but leaving it alone would not only cause the land to rot but also turn it into a place where the undead would naturally spawn, so it couldn’t be left neglected either.
“Ugh, what’s that smell…!”“Do you have any spare Purification Masks?!”“The Bohemirn Magic Tower provided additional support, but that is strictly a precaution against the Bloodcrying Plague. Shut your mouth and just bear it!”“Ugh!”
The stench, a mixture of rottenness and burnt smell, was so bad it was enough to twist your nose and tear it off completely.
Although the priests of the Luas religion are purifying the energy of death with divine power and wind-element mages are creating fresh air,it took some time given the sheer number of undead defeated this time.
Bishop Ronanderk wiped his sweat and entered the tent.He was one of the bishops of the Diocese of the Kingdom of Estiria, which had previously been half-destroyed by the Elder of the Glory of the Dead and Viola of the Skeleton.
“It is a gruesome sight, but fortunately, I can no longer sense any ominous energy nearby. Barring any major unforeseen circumstances, it looks like it will remain quiet for at least a few days.”
A count of the Duchy of Liviant asked.
“Is there a possibility that undead forces won’t appear in the future?”“It is beyond my power, so I cannot say for certain. We will only know for sure once we get there.”“Still, it will be better than it is now.”
Kalia, leaning against the corner of the tent with her arms crossed, assured her.
The Archbishop will be here soon.
It was known that the Ruas Theocracy was on the move on a large scale, but who was being dispatched, where, and how had not been disclosed.In other words, the very fact that one knew this meant that one’s intelligence capabilities were different from others.
As expected of that Callia…
Is she simply not a woman of divinity?
Cain of Eon, who is currently guarding Kalia’s side and has annihilated the undead forces coming from another direction, and a mysterious female swordsman added credibility to the claim.
A member of the Republic of Beldirn said.
“Anyway, I apologize for the late introduction, Tower Master Bohemirn. I sincerely thank you for the fire support and for procuring supplies to stop the Bloodcry Plague.”“I merely fulfilled the contract. And I am not the Tower Master, but the Acting Tower Master.”“Ah, yes. Th-excuse me. Lobelin, Acting Tower Master Bohemirn.”
The human experiments revealed at the General Assembly of the Magic World and the reputation of the Bohemian Magic Tower plummeted, and the tower’s military strength suffered almost irrecoverable damage due to the war with Black Hour.
It wouldn’t have been surprising if it had fallen to the very bottom of the Magic Tower hierarchy right now, but since it was still one of the Top 10 Magic Towers, it was difficult to deal with.Besides, even if temporary, wasn’t it undeniably the owner of the Magic Tower?
There are also rumors that they will form a cooperative alliance with Eon, who absorbed Black Hour… … .
What on earth is the relationship between Eon and the Bohemirn Magic Tower right now? They share a common ground called the Black Hour, so why aren’t they at odds?If the rumors are true, what advantage does it offer that made Eon choose to cooperate with the Bohemirn Magic Tower, which is nothing more than a falling leaf?
These were topics that anyone in the high ranks involved in world politics was paying close attention to. This was because the attitude toward the Bohemian Magic Tower could be clearly determined depending on the answer.
Of course, Kalia already knew the extremely personal reason why Eon was not hostile toward the ‘current’ Bohemian Magic Tower.
The Republic member cleared his throat.
“Ahem, anyway… our Supreme Council Member Brillan Keirance has sent a message. I just checked it, and given the nature of the content, he instructed that it be shared with our partner nations.”
Supreme Councilor Brillan was one of the real power brokers of the Beldirn Republic who aided the Luas Church, the Darkwarton Magic Tower, and the Holy City during the Bone Dragon incident.
“Is this another undead crisis?”“No, it is not. It is not very urgent, but… it is a very important matter. It concerns Kylians, who is not here.”
Currently, the large-scale undead crisis has broken out in the border region at the center of the Principality of Liviant, the Autonomous Region of Midlos, the Republic of Beldirn, the Kingdom of Estiria, and the City Alliance of Kylians.
That is why various countries sent troops to exterminate the undead.Since it is not only a border for other nations but also for their own, ignoring it would be a blow from an international perspective.It is also a matter of national pride.
Although a significant number of undead were appearing domestically as well, they were not at the level where high-level undead were appearing constantly like here, so there was ample capacity to allocate our forces to this location.
However… strangely enough, only Kylians boldly refused to cooperate. To put it bluntly, their attitude was to say, “Screw politics or whatever.”Even the neighboring friendly nation, the Republic, which held the upper hand, did so.
What are these bastards thinking acting like this?
Thinking so, the Republic of Beldirn collected the relevant information through its intelligence network. That very content was included in the letter sent by Supreme Council Member Brillan.
“Confirmed that Mayor Einholt of Kylians has contacted ‘Delharun’.”“Delharun?”“Delharun….”
Delharun
A powerful nation that once occupied almost the entire northern part of the Eastern Continent… but is now a divided nation practically driven out of the international community.
Northern Delharun is the only region in the Eastern Continent, excluding the Demon Realm, that is connected to the Central Continent by land; however, it shares a border with the Upper Beastmen Tribe, leading to periodic skirmishes.Southern Delharun is adjacent to the Demon Realm, andthe Darkwarton Magic Tower exists between Northern and Southern Delharun.
The reason the nation was split in half and, furthermore, deprived of the right to stand on the world stage lies in an event from about 300 years ago.
Interspecies War.
The continent-wide war that erupted as the long-standing conflict between humans, elves, dwarves, and beastmen finally exploded was truly akin to a catastrophe.The number of casualties across all races was so severe that counting them was abandoned.
To exaggerate slightly, it is said that the strong stench of blood traveled on the wind to other continents, but of course, it was not a case of killing and being killed indiscriminately.
Peace negotiations were attempted on a race-by-race basis, and after being thwarted several times, they eventually succeeded, bringing the interspecies war to an end.
One of the greatest frustrations here was that it was entirely human responsibility. To summarize the series of shocking events that unfolded at the time, it was as follows.
Delharun’s ‘Empress’.
The Transcendent Being of Delharun interrupted negotiations between the Great Beast Tribe and humans and killed the Beast King. As a result, the entire Beast Tribe was enraged and launched a massive invasion.Consequently, the Central Continent and half of the Eastern Continent were drenched in blood.
Eventually, the Empress was surrounded by the new Beast King and his beasts, and her wounds could only be healed belatedly as humanity abandoned her existence.According to legend, the Empress fought a bloody battle against the beastmen until her death…
anyway.
Holding the Empress responsible for her incomprehensible eccentricities, Delharun, formerly her domain, was almost completely stripped of its voice in the world.
If Delharun had made an effort, they might have been able to recover at least a minimal standing over the past 300 years… buttheir nation was split by factional infighting and could not pay any attention to world politics.
Delharun’s influence remains weak.Because he has not been able to atone.
Callia narrowed her eyebrows as she recalled Delharun’s history.
“Although Kylians and Delharun are connected by a border, why would you go out of your way to… leaving the Republic of Beldirn behind? What is the reason? And is the target of contact southern Delharun or northern Delharun?”“I, I do not know the reason. You also say that it is impossible to determine immediately which part of Delharun it is. However, judging by the circumstances, it seems clear that Kylians and Delharun have some kind of relationship.”
Something feels off.
The fact that Kylians is acting this boldly surely implies there is a reason… but I have no information, so I can’t even guess.
After discussing the future with Kylians and others, they dispersed. Since they had just fought a war against the undead forces, most of them returned to their camps looking exhausted.
After confirming that all the members of the foreign country had left the tent, Kalia asked.
Would you like to talk to me?
Lobeline blinked and slowly nodded.
“Yes, I will.”
Cain and Enette, rolling their eyes beside him, were inwardly intrigued.
* * *
Calia and Lobeline, having used a magic item to prevent sound from leaking out, stood side by side outside the Estiria Kingdom camp tent.The magic stone lantern between them softly illuminated the darkness of the night.
Kalia was the first to speak.
“I heard it from Verden. He said she is a childhood friend who is like family, having been with him the longest, from the orphanage to the Bohemian Magic Tower.”“Family…….”
Lobelin stroked my hand.
“Well, I’m not sure if I can claim to be that kind of friend.”“Is it because of the human experiments Verden underwent?”
Robelin twitched her eyes. It was her fault for not noticing that Verden had been sacrificed in human experiments for as long as seven years.
“You seem to know a lot.”“I am to be honest.”“So, what is your purpose?”“I have no particular business. I was simply curious about what kind of person Lobelin, the temporary Master of the Bohemian Tower, is. To borrow someone’s words, this is the reason.”
The corners of Kalia’s mouth curved up slightly.It was a sense of ease.
“I think we’ll be seeing each other often in the future, so I didn’t want to start off on the wrong foot and end up with an awkward relationship that’s neither here nor there.”
A whisper burrowed into my ear.
“And.”“…And?”“They say narrow-minded women lack charm. I agree with that opinion.”
Kalia shrugged her shoulders. Her distinctive dark red hair and dark red eyes reflected in Lobelyn’s blood-red pupils.
“I’m just saying.”“Ha.”
Robelin ran her hand across her face and tried to maintain her composure, as if trying to hide her embarrassment.
“……So, Verden has made friends with someone interesting in the Kingdom of Estiria?”“We aren’t officially in that kind of relationship yet.”“I didn’t mean that we’re dating in that sense…… It’s a bit awkward, so shall we drop the formalities, Callia de Esperensa?”“Sure, Lobeline.”“Alright.”
Lobeline let out a sigh with her hands on her hips and regained her composure. As her emotions well up, she quietly burns.
“Isabella, known as Verden’s left hand—you’ve met her, haven’t you? What kind of person is she?”“You could say she is the person closest to Verden at this point. Haven’t you seen her?”“Once from a distance.”
It was last year that Lobeline first saw Isabella.
At the time, Isabella was the lucky melody singer who opened the auction of Ignacia in Gargant, where the material of the Bone Dragon was offered as a prize.
Since Isabella usually worked without revealing her name, it was a fact that was only realized later after hearing it from Verden.
I never imagined there was such a deep feud between the Lucky Melodyper and Croden.
For that reason, Isabella was absolutely incompatible with the Bohemian Magic Tower under the Balok regime. Indeed. It was the same with Verden.In that their goal of revenge was identical and they ultimately achieved it together, the two were practically indistinguishable from one another.
It was then.
Whoosh!
A sacred light shone down from the sky. Raising my gaze, I saw a seaplane from the Kingdom of Luas positioned above the barracks.
Lustrous.
It was a seaplane carrying Archbishop Joseph, one of the seven archbishops.
“The reinforcements arrived earlier than expected.”“…….”
Kalia looked up at the airship while blocking the warm, cozy light from obscuring her vision, while Lobelin glanced at Kalia rather than Lustrus.
But no matter what kind of person Isabella is, it seems like Callia doesn’t really care.
Lobeline quietly fell into thought.
Ignorance is not an indulgence.
Therefore, Lobeline has committed a sin. It is a grave sin that cannot be undone. Even now, whenever she stands before Verden, she feels so apologetic that she finds it difficult to even lift her head. It willcertainly be the same in the future. So, she has already given up. She tried to give up.
but…….
Whenever I thought of Isabella and Callia, I impulsively wanted to say this. It was a phrase I could not bring myself to utter out loud, so I only repeated it to myself.
I liked you first.
Lobeline hung her head low.It was so ugly.She thought so herself.
* * *
Somewhere in the Eastern Continent.
A purple sword energy sliced through the horizontal. As the entire nearby forest was split in half, Manyeon’s Landerk’s body was split in half at the same time.
After killing and killing dozens of times, I’m slowly getting the hang of it.
Adrian held his light sword in reverse grip and looked down at Landerk’s pathogen.
“Only a few hundred are left now? Your lifeline is softer than I expected.”“You are not the only Transcendent being seeking to kill me, and with the Luas Theocracy now fully on the move, it is inevitable. If it were that easy, I would have acted long ago.”“I will kill your true form.”
Landerck grinned.
“I am truly looking forward to seeing who kills me first. But you are being overconfident, too. Did you know what I would do last, that you vacated Eon’s territory? Huh?”“Did you send a Blood Alliance member?”“I did exert quite a bit of force. So now it is time to make a choice.”
Landerck held up two fingers.
“Even now, instead of going to defend the ownerless land, give up the Eastern Continent, or instead of defending the Eastern Continent, go to the ownerless land…….”
Fit.
My hand was cut off in the blink of an eye.
The choice is mine, not yours.
Landerk’s pathogen split in half and disappeared into the forest. The Luas Church sent a message through a communication device.
Location information regarding Landerk’s pathogens in the area currently under Adrian’s charge was transmitted one by one.If things continue like this, Landerk can be eliminated within a few days at the latest.
He moved immediately.
We are currently hunting down Landerk based on Aisha’s strange prophecy, but naturally, we have never abandoned ownerless land relying solely on the prophecy.
I have already prepared.
* * *
Ownerless land, Arrein.
A quiet tension of dawn hangs over the fortress wall that had recently been expanded. The soldiers swallowed hard at the atmosphere, which was distinctly different from usual.
It was then.
A chilling wave echoed from afar, followed by a surge of ominous energy. The screams of the dead echoed, and the view ahead turned pitch black.
thud.
Gharun, the hammer with the blade standing in the middle of the city wall, snorted with his massive hammer resting on his shoulder.
“Attack right here, not somewhere else? Those guys must be in a bit of a rush.”
Merquien, the eye of the Great Forest, scoffed.
“Acting like you’re insightful.”“Shut up, you ear-ear.”
Gharun shouted.
“It’s coming!!!!! Get ready!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!”“Aaaah!”“Aaaah!”
At the tremendous roar, the elves with keen hearing screamed.
anyway.
Legendary Dwarf, deployed.
