Chapter 98
－Emperas Kingdom: First Order of Knights Commander's Perspective－
The raised demonic sword.
The slaves lined up.
I want to sigh, but hold it back and quietly lower my gaze.
A sight that is commonplace in this country, but one I haven't grown accustomed to.
It seems I...
Light floods the plaza.
I raise a hand to shield my eyes from the intense glare, but it does no good.
The light makes me stagger, but I endure it and look toward where the king was.
What happened?
Blood drips from the king's arm, and the healers are panicking.
I shift my gaze to the thing still glowing white.
A demonic sword floating in the air, wreathed in white light.
What a beautiful light.
As the light fades, the demonic sword falls to the ground as well.
I can't see it from here.
I turn my gaze toward the slaves.
They have looks of surprise.
...They're surprised.
The slaves should have had their minds sealed so they could not rebel.
Those very slaves...
I lean forward to take another look, but—
The knights quickly lead the slaves away.
...
The demonic sword retrieved by the magicians.
I happened to spot it on my way back to my room, so I asked them to show it to me.
The last time I saw it, I was stunned by the strength of the magic power I sensed from it and its sinister nature.
The cloth is removed, revealing the demonic sword.
...Is this really the same demonic sword?
I check, and it appears to be the same one.
But the demonic sword before me gives off no sense of power.
A single sword with a murky-black blade, badly chipped.
And some white substance tangled around the blade.
...This looks like the same substance covering the magic stone.
The magicians have examined it, but still don't know what effect it has.
I examine the demonic sword closely, holding it in my hand, but I can't determine what happened.
I touch the substance wrapped around the demonic sword, but feel nothing unusual.
I thank them and return the demonic sword.
The repairs to the demonic sword and the crack failed this time. Most likely, the same thing happened.
The magic stone and the demonic sword.
Both were found in an ancient ruin.
Could this be the problem?
I catch sight of the panicking magicians out of the corner of my eye.
As I approach, I see one of the magicians lying collapsed.
When I ask what happened, I'm told the magician collapsed while activating a spell.
Activating the spell?
Apparently, to offer a sacrifice to the demonic sword, they must activate a spell at the same time as using a sword to cut the sacrifice.
So this was the magician who had been activating that spell.
The magician lies there, limp and unmoving.
A healer seems to have arrived, so I move to another spot and watch.
The healer holds a hand over the magician, but tilts their head in puzzlement.
The magician is still lying there.
The healer seems to administer treatment again, but nothing changes.
Does the magician not need treatment?
Does that mean nothing is wrong?
And yet the magician is lying there.
After a little while, the magician seems to wake up.
The healer looks relieved.
The other magicians had been blaming the magician who collapsed, after all.
The magician should be all right now.
I turn on my heel and start walking back to my room.
"Who are you people? Where is this place? I..."
The awakened magician raises their voice and cries out.
Those words leave the area silent.
I stop and turn my attention to them.
One of the magicians grabs the shouting magician by the arm and speaks to them.
The magician shakes off the hand on their arm, looks around, and openly shows distrust.
I know this scene.
It's the same as what happened to the magicians who worked on repairing the crack in the magic stone.
...A magician with no memories.
They must be the magician's companions; their faces are filled with despair.
Of course they do. A few hours ago, every other magician who had no memories disappeared from this world.
On the king's orders.
"I see."
It suddenly occurs to me what the magic stone and the demonic sword have in common.
Indeed.
Both were about to have life poured into them.
Just before a slave was killed as a sacrifice.
Have we incurred their wrath again?