Episode 1187 The Sixth Apostle (11)
Although the Second War of the Transcendents had ended, the recovery process did not begin in an orderly fashion immediately. Ultimately, the former king met his final demise, and all four sects were closed.Time was once again on the continent’s side. There was no longer any need to rush.
“This is ownerless land! The Alliance Leader…! The World Alliance Leader has slayed the Old King!”“The Old King has been executed. Repeat, repeat! The Old King has been executed, and the Citadel has collapsed!”“Capital of the Xerion Empire, sunk confirmed.”“We… have won.”
Informants who did not directly participate in the battle busily spread news of the World Alliance’s victory to the continent through communication devices.
Although the World Alliance headquarters was thoroughly destroyed by the Citadel’s air raid, high-ranking intelligence agents from various nations were able to survive thanks to the Director of the Magic Bureau’s Investigation Department activating the artifact in time.Thus, the Alliance’s intelligence network, which remained intact, functioned properly until the very end.
Extinction
The former king’s body was cremated with a fire.
One might expect him to display the slaughterer’s downfall for all to celebrate his feat, but Verden, of course, had no such plans.The First Commandment of Eon was not to violate the dignity of the intellect. Akand was judged by death. And so, that was the end of it.
Whoosh… … .
The people watched the old king slowly fade away in the middle of the battlefield, strewn with the countless wreckage of the Citadel and the corpses of the undead.
The area around it was quiet.
A whirlwind of emotions raged within, yet no one expressed them. Some lay blankly before slowly drifting off to sleep. It felt as though the pain and sacrifice endured in this war were being swallowed by black flames. Asthe very source of sin burned, the resentment and thirst for revenge of the victims would turn to ashes and scatter away.
“…….”
Castian and Andes, too, silently came to an end their 800-year relationship.A destiny that was both blood and ill-fated…
Isabella sighed as she ran her hand through her dark green hair. Having escaped from the Demon Realm with the decisive battle right around the corner, she honestly didn’t feel the war itself for very long.
Have I solved a major problem now?
Now that the Second War of the Transcendents is in the past, we must ultimately turn our attention back to the new present.Problems still pile up.
‘… … Demonic Realm.’
There was much to report to Verden regarding the Demon Realm—that is, the Demon Sea.It was a breeding ground for living, moving, distorted changes and evolutions, including the toys of the Red Dragon Sarkandra. In a sense different from the Xerion Empire, which had shattered the boundary between life and death, it was an uncharted territory that should not exist in the human world.
If they are released… … .
I find myself thinking like the head of the family without even realizing it.
As she traveled with Verden, Isabella also habitually imagined the worst. They say that people who love each other begin to resemble one another. She really liked that saying.
Isabella turned her head.
“So, how long are you going to keep doing that?”“……Hmm?”“…….”
Adrian gazed at the end of the old king’s lair and met the eyes of Vendie, whom he was holding.
Bendie faced an endless horde of undead in the underground chambers of the Citadel, doing so throughout the entire time Verden was fighting the final battle.Since the battlefield stretched all the way from the southern part of the Eastern Continent, she sustained injuries, but her fatigue was particularly severe, leaving her senses in a terrible state when the Citadel collapsed.Adrian rescued her personally because he had recognized her condition.
“What were you doing instead of coming down?”“I missed the timing because I was worried I might get in the way of watching the end of the war.”
Bendie stepped onto the ground.
“Thank you.”“Yes.”“Adrian!”
Enette ran over. She naturally grabbed Adrian’s arm. Of course, she didn’t forget to greet her former mentor, Vendie.
“A-are you alright? Your body…”“I’m so-so. And you.”“Yes, as you can see, I don’t have any major injuries.”
His distinctive amber eyes soon turned from worry to relief. Softness enveloped the hand touching Adrian.
Bendie was inwardly impressed.
To think that Enette would make such a face.
Enette had long known of her affection for Adrian, but the feminine reaction of her former disciple—known as the “Fierce Brave” in the world for wielding a great sword and crushing opponents with brute force—was quite novel.Furthermore, the fact that Adrian did not push Enette away added to the sense of unfamiliarity.
Bendie lowered his gaze.
I examined Adrian’s injuries. The most significant was a scar on his leg that looked as if it had been severed once. I realized that tree roots had burrowed into his body, and that a force likely associated with elves was forcibly supporting it. Itappeared he had been severed by the Old King’s Dragon Sword before the final battle.
The aftereffects are going to be severe.
Adrian’s current homeostasis is walking a precarious tightrope. He would break if pushed. It was already serious, but this is the price he paid for the strenuous task of rescuing the Allied Forces, including himself, and clearing the debris just moments ago.Yet, he is not showing much outward sign, making the past derogatory label of “rascal” seem meaningless.
I am interested, but that’s about it.
As he asserted to Yurion, Bendie had no intention of marrying anyone who was not stronger than himself. Of course, that is, if he were to get married.
Yurion… … .
I thought of those trapped in the closing gate, but I did not feel much negativity. Sincethe contract the Knights of the Word Spirit had made with Yurion had not vanished, he must be alive somewhere with Kalia and her companions. I canassure you that we will find him before long.
So, for now, it would be good to just think good thoughts. Like giving Enette a very special drink that can intoxicate an imperfect transcendent being.
Bendie, lost in deep thought.Enette, with a bright face.Adrian, pretending to be composed but sweating profusely from the pain and hardship.
That’s a strange combination.
Is that so?
“I have a feeling.”
Isabella placed her hands on her hips and looked around at the noisy surroundings.Beta accompanied her.
Where did the head of the household go in the meantime?
Then, seeing Lobelin, the head of the household’s childhood friend, I readily moved forward.
Tap tap.
Just then, someone tapped Isabella on the shoulder. Perhaps because she had let her guard down so much, she didn’t notice at all and inwardly flinched.
“Who…….”“Isabella.”
Isabella didn’t exactly have a friendly image, so not many people called her “older sister.” Perhaps Junia was the only one among those around.Thinking the voice sounded strangely familiar, I lightly turned around.
Zenia took off her hood and smiled shyly.
“Long time no see, sis.”“…….”
My younger sister, whom I had believed to be dead until recently, was standing before me. It was a reunion after more than a decade since my family was massacred by Croden of the Bohemirn Magic Tower. Although shehad grown into a full-fledged adult before I knew it, I could not have failed to recognize her.
“Xenia?”
Isabella’s brain stopped working.
* * *
The giant Nerga looked down upon the World Alliance forces while still maintaining his true form. He intended to remember those he was convinced were followers of fate and later kill them very secretly and naturally.
“A one-eyed giant…?”“It uses dark magic.”“Is it connected to the Darkwarton Magic Tower?”
[… … .]
Those who did not know Nerga’s true feelings watched him with curiosity.
Eloris asked from a distance.An opaque magical veil blocked the sound.
“How is your new power, Cain?”“It still feels unfamiliar to my mind, but… it also feels comfortable, as if I’ve always had it.”
Cain was conscious of the
Perhaps that is why the Luas religion did not question the power of Cain and Nerga itself. Although those in the southern part of the Eastern Continent looked at the return of the dead Cain with eyes that seemed to say they could not believe it.
“Ultimately, it must be possible because the foundation is magical power. It is a unique case. Usually, clergy must be devoid of other powers to accept divine power.”“……Is it possible because you are my senior?”“Since the ancient king said he possessed his own energy excluding divine power, it is likely correct to assume that there are specific gods capable of doing so. Possessing immense divine power that not only repels qi and magical power but completely swallows them up…… it is a miracle impossible for the gods active in my era.”“I see.”
Cain slowly nodded his head, contemplating the concept of sacrifice.
“By the way, Lady Eloris…”“Please call me Eloris.”“Ah, yes. You used divine power, yet there doesn’t seem to be any sign of anyone around you noticing. How did you do that?”“When I was in the temple, I tried wielding two divine energies simultaneously, and I found that the effect became so indistinct that even the unique senses of a believer could not make a definitive judgment. It is a form of disruption. Clerics grounded in faith have an upright nature, so even if they feel confusion, they cannot pinpoint exactly what kind of confusion it is. Of course, using it for a long time will result in detection, so it is a tactic useful only for short battles.”
Eloris was an expert in faith. She was a being who had received power from the God of the Morning Star and become an Apostle of the Morning Star before the outbreak of the War of Destiny.Even with just a few words, she exuded the distinct impression of being a divine being.
“It’s time to meet up now. Is it a bit awkward?”“……A little.”
Silver hair with a purplish tint flew in from the sky, swaying greatly.
“Cain!!!!”“Ugh.”
Yunia flew in like a
“It’s dangerous.”“I thought he would come back to life.”
Yunia cried her eyes out.
“I thought you’d come back to life!! And who told you to die in my place!!”“Sorry.”“You’re younger than me!! And you’re lower in the hierarchy!!”“We’re twins, so what….”“Still, a sibling is a sibling, damn it.”
Junia quickly wiped away her tears and calmed down. She had no doubt that Cain would come back to life. In the face of something foreseen, fickle emotions tend to subside as quickly as waves washing ashore.
“You received power from your senior, didn’t you?”“…….”“I can pretty much see through it. The answer was already clear just by considering the remnants of the Evil God and Eloris, the Apostle of the Ancients. It’s just that the confirmation was a little lacking.”
She opened her eyes sharply, wearing a smile like a wizard who had revealed the unknown.
“You evolved into a god, right?”“J-evolved?”
It wasn’t some kind of alien race or a different species… The Transcendental Being—Cain was at a loss regarding neo-evolution. Even though he understood it intuitively, his religious knowledge was not solid, so it was not easy to explain to others what God was.
“…….”“Ahaha, ahahahaha!”
Cain gave a peek for help, but Eloris was too busy laughing to even notice, calling it a perfectly wizard-like way of thinking.She was the type to be easily swayed by such completely unexpected and absurd remarks.
“……Ask your senior later.”“Huh? I’ll do that.”
Yunia frowned as she looked around.
“So, where are you right now, senior?”
Cain pointed to the land without an owner.
Down there.
* * *
The debris from the Citadel did not stop at merely creating craters. The Allied forces intercepted the debris, but ignored as much as possible the fragments that did not reach them. Sincethe debris was spreading out as widely as the Citadel’s massive scale, it was necessary to concentrate firepower efficiently.
As a result, several islands carrying the city center crashed relatively far from the battlefield. The center of gravity shifted, causing them to crash upside down.The existing ground collapsed, and the surface of the islands deeply dug into the cracks.
Alpha’s single eye gleamed.
[Scan complete. Specific building. Strength and hardness. Abnormal.]
The building, which should have naturally been crushed between the massive debris and the ground, remained completely undamaged, so the full impact it would have had to endure was directed at the ground.Aside from the fact that the ceiling and floor were reversed, part of the Citadel remained on the ownerless land.
An upside-down underground city.
That was the scenery that unfolded before Verden’s eyes.
Besides, there isn’t just one or two places like this.
Large and small underground cities sprang up irregularly around the battlefield.No matter how sturdy they were, they should not have been able to withstand divine magic, but they likely survived because the Underworld was concentrated to its maximum extent within the Citadel’s foundation.
Thump, thump.
Verden explored the underground city with Alpha. There was only one reason he headed straight here. The Administrator had come this way.
Not long after, I found the manager sitting on his knees in the darkness.
“Master.”“……Verden.”
The administrator was holding a person. It was Feldianne, the Master of the Artisan Magic Tower. Upon checking immediately, it turned out she had merely fainted, and fortunately, her life was not in danger.
‘Why is Feldianne here? No, Indren was holding the Citadel. Then was she traveling with Indren?’
Then where is Indren?
And the manager’s reaction was strange. He glared seriously into the darkness, then instantly extended his white staff to diffuse the light.
Ss
Something passed by.Even Verden’s eyesight couldn’t catch it.
“This is a place realized by ‘your’ power. It has been destroyed, but it seems not everything has vanished yet.”
The manager laughed.
So shouldn’t we uncover the truth?
It is time to explore.
