Chapter 121
－POV: A High-Ranking Mage of the Emperas Kingdom－
The Fifth Knight Order seems to have invaded the forest.
According to the report, they seem to be making it into the forest without any problems, which is a relief.
Many mages are following them this time.
I hope they return safely.
I look through the documents in front of me.
They are important documents concerning everything that has happened with the magic stone so far.
The goal is to find a way to replenish its lost power without using slaves; it was determined that replenishing the power would repair the cracks.
Yet the more I read, the more depressed I become.
It feels as though I am being forced to confront how many sins I have committed.
...There is nothing here but information about my accumulated sins.
The moment I feel the castle shake, a mass of documents crashes down onto my head.
My head hurts, and I feel the terrifying pressure of my body being crushed from above.
What is happening...? All I can hear is the creaking of my body as though it is being crushed.
Not yet...
I don't want to die!
When I crack open my eyes, words come into view.
A report on strengthening the magic stone using slaves.
It says there aren't enough slaves for magic stone enhancement.
After I handed the report to the king, he began making the slaves have children with one another.
I have heard that there were slaves who shed tears even though their emotions had been sealed away.
I was the one who submitted that report.
"Forgive me."
No sound escapes me, but I simply continue to pray.
Suddenly, I can breathe again.
I repeatedly draw deep breaths, using my whole body, and somehow manage to check my surroundings.
The mages under my command are sprawled on the ground.
I can tell that several of them are injured.
I want to rescue them, but I cannot move.
Even though the attack has stopped, fear prevents my body from moving.
I somehow steady my staggering body and make my way to my fallen subordinates.
They are unconscious, but it seems they are not dead, and I feel relieved.
I slowly sit on the floor and let the strength drain from my body.
As I slowly exhale, my body begins to tremble.
A terrifying degree of fear and despair.
Tears spill over.
I suddenly remember.
Ah... So that girl had trembled with feelings like these as she glared at me to the very end.
And I struck her...
The sins I committed are proven by the documents beside me.
Just as that girl said, my sins are "unforgivable."
...
Voices gradually begin to be heard throughout the castle, which had fallen silent.
Shouts and screams, running footsteps, and angry voices.
As I listen to the sounds in a daze, I hear someone entering the room.
When I turn toward the sound, I see the Head Mage.
The Head Mage's face is deathly pale, and they appear to be trembling as well.
Something has happened to the king.
Those words weigh heavily on me, but I take a deep breath and force myself to move.
My sluggish body feels like someone else's.
Even so, I hurry to the king's side.
I am slightly surprised when the Head Mage enters the bedroom; the king never lets anyone else in.
Except for his trusted daughter and granddaughter.
No... Perhaps he does not trust them.
They have slave marks engraved on them, after all.
As I enter the bedroom, I hear the king's angry shouting and screams.
I am aghast at the sight.
His left arm is missing from the elbow down.
His enhanced body... Ah, no—the king's blood is already flowing.
When the sword-enhancement magic failed.
Then this result is possible as well.
But the king will never accept what has happened to him.
I feel a despair different from what I felt earlier.
...
The king's left arm did not return.
Even when the strongest mages pour magic power into him, it is like trying to fill a bucket with a hole in it.
An abnormality has occurred in the king's body itself.
No matter how much magic power they pour in, it is useless.
The king rages, but there is nothing he can do.
All four mages, including the Head Mage, have realized the cause.
Why the king's arm will not heal.
And that it most likely would never be restored.
But they cannot say it aloud.
Not only would I die; everyone around me would be sentenced to death as well.
How many people would that be?
A sigh escapes me as I leave the king's bedroom.
The king's body had been strengthened by the magic stone.
If it were still the original magic stone, the king's body probably would not have been injured.
But the current magic stone does not have enough power to strengthen the king's body.
Let alone regenerate a severed arm.
No—if we restored the magic stone to its condition before the cracks appeared, even that would probably be possible.
But since there is no way to restore it, it is impossible either way.
...
If only I had realized it when the cracks in the magic stone were being repaired...
That time. Yes, that time.
The slaves who had been gathered at the magic stone to repair its still-small cracks.
Why did I feel nothing when I saw those slaves?
...They were afraid—even though their hearts were supposed to have been sealed!
The magic stone had already...
I realized everything far too late.
It was far too late.