Side Story Chapter 295
“The Flame Emperor is watching us from up above. Now, let’s go, warriors of Thran!”
“Ohaaaa!”
Over one thousand of Thran’s knights had come together. There were so many of them that anyone would wonder how they had been hiding in Swallow’s capital without being detected.
‘…Duke Killian must have helped them.’
Arash, watching them from the sky with Anna, let out a short sigh. There were more knights than she had expected; if the worst came to worst, she would have to kill them all. She wasn’t enthusiastic about the prospect.
The steady thump of Thran’s boots grew closer to Arash.
Using an artifact that made her voice louder, Arash yelled, “Stop!”
Anna immediately waved her hand, projecting a raging gale that flipped the ground upside down.
“What…?!” The knight leading the army from Thran quickly raised his hand, bringing the army to a halt. “Who are you two?!”
The knight was quite young and had flaming red hair.
Anna’s eyes widened. “...Doesn’t that boy remind you of someone?”
“…His name is Arkeith the Flame Knight. He’s the Flame Emperor’s son.”
“I knew it…” Anna frowned slightly.
Out of all the people they could run into, it had to be Ulabis’s son. It turned out the situation could get worse.
“Wait a minute. That fox mask is…” Arkeith had already heard all about Swallow from Aaron, so he instantly recognized Arash’s identity. “G-Get your bows.”
“What do you mean, Your Highness…?”
“The woman with a fox mask is the fake princess that Duke Voltaire is using as a puppet!”
Arkeith’s aide gave him a stunned look while the other knights hastily raised their bows.
Even before Anna could say something, the knights loosed their arrows. Given that all of the knights could use mana, the arrows flew at a remarkable speed, ready to kill—but all of them were blocked quite easily when the two Vaikals showed up to protected Anna and Arash.
“Hear me out!” Arash yelled.
“Shut up. You killed my father!”
Seeing the fury in Arkeith’s eyes, Anna’s expression tightened. “I told you, we’re lucky if they don’t rip us in half!”
“…No.”
It was true that the situation was the absolute worst it could get, but Arash was still composed because she still had an ace in the hole. She took a round object out of her inner pocket.
“What? Why are you pulling out a communication crystal ball all of a sudden?”
“No. It looks similar, but this is a recording ball,” Arash said as she quickly activated the crystal ball.
Since it was a high-end crystal ball, it was able to project a huge image in the air. Thran’s knights stopped, even though their bows were nocked.
“Everyone! Please watch this!” Anna shouted
“Fuck! Don’t let the empire fool you any longer! Those of you with levitation artifacts, step forward!”
Over a dozen knights came forward, so Anna let out a sigh before she revealed herself from behind the Vaikals.
“I am Anna bel Grace, the empress of Swallow!”
Anna’s wind elemental spirit let out a loud roar, lending her claim a weight that made Arkeith and his men pause.
“E-Empress…?”
“Are all of you chickens?! As you can see, no one is around and I, the empress of Swallow, came all the way over here to talk to you. Why are all of you acting like such cowards? All she is asking you to do is watch the footage! You can stab or rip us apart afterward!”
The knights turned to look at Arkeith; as their leader, he had the final say.
“…What are the chances of this being a trap?” Arkeith asked his aide.
“She’s telling the truth. I can’t detect any presences around us.”
Arkeith looked contemplatively up at the sky where the footage was almost ready to be played.
“Yo-Your Majesty?”
Arkeith and the knights from Thran gasped out loud. The footage showed a dungeon—one that imprisoned their king. Yes, the crystal ball contained the record of Ulabis’s death.
“Decide what you want to do after you see what happened yourself,” Arash insisted.
This footage was solely prepared for Thran, and it seemed very effective based on how immersed the knights were. It showed Arash visiting Ulabis with her fox mask and Ulabis asking her to kill him even though he was about to be executed.
In the ensuing silence, Anna relaxed.
“This is what you’ve been counting on?” she whispered.
“…Get ready, Your Majesty. This is just the beginning.”
“Hmm?” Anna tilted her head in confusion. She thought that the fight was already as good as over.
It didn’t take long for Anna to realize what Arash meant. The footage got to the part where Ulabis explained the reasoning behind his request. Since Ulabis and Arash pursued the same goal, he believed that Arash would help him and, as a matter of fact, Arash offered the Flame Emperor the poison.
“W-Wait. I understand that Ulabis asked you to kill him to motivate Thran, but what do you mean you pursue the same goal?”
“…He meant that literally.” Arash avoided Anna’s eyes and didn’t elaborate any further.
“All of you get it now, don’t you?” she shouted to Thran’s army. “I may be a fake princess and a mere puppet, but I share the same goal as you.”
“What…?” Anna gaped blankly.
“…Just as the people of Thran desire, I, too, want this country to fall.”
Arash’s voice wasn’t loud, but her mana carried it to everyone nearby.
* * *
‘The Martial God had vanished and then he showed up to defeat the Four Paladins with ease. But he’s inside a dragon now…?’
While Isaac’s head was muddled with thoughts, Joshua Sanders continued to explain himself.
-There is a god I’m looking for.
“...A god?”
-With my current abilities, I only know that a knight from Hubalt has this god’s authority.
“So?” Isaac asked with a furrowed brow.
-You’re from Hubalt, so you’ll be able to find the knight much easier than I can.
Isaac sneered. “Can’t you do it yourself? You’re the famous Martial God and the first human to become one with a dragon.”
-Do you seriously think I’m going to do such a tedious task, human?
Isaac instantly went silent. It was immediately obvious that the voice she heard was the dragon’s, not the Martial God’s.
“…I guess the Martial God still has problems of his own. Which god are you looking for?”
-Purion. He was called the God of Harmony. “The God of Harmony…” Isaac trailed off, her lips forming into a cold smile. “But why should I do you any favors, Martial God? You’re technically my enemy, so the least you can do is explain your reasons.”
It took a long time for Joshua to break his silence.
-Will a father’s love for his son suffice as an answer?
Isaac's eyes widened. She wanted to demand a real answer, but she felt her heart ache for some reason.
-You must have already noticed that my son’s condition is precarious.
“…That’s your answer? I don’t buy that for a second. Be honest here: you’re looking for this Purion because you want to use his authority to win the war, aren’t you? In that case, I’ll have to let Hubalt know about this.”
-You must have not received a lot of love from your father.
Isaac scowled.
-Perhaps your father regrets it like I do…
“Shut up!” Isaac shouted. Her eyes burned with anger, but she looked to the side regardless.
As Joshua had said, Kireua Sanders looked far from good. In fact, the bloody-red aura around him felt increasingly ominous.
“Your son somehow reminds me of Grand Duke Lucifer when I ran into him some time ago.” Isaac’s eyes were glued to Kireua. “Although I don’t know the full story or a father’s love, I do get that your son is in danger. And it’s a different story if we’re making a deal.”
-…A deal?
“You know that it’s better for Hubalt for Kireua Sanders to lose control of his power. Hubalt wants this country, but he’ll be quite the thorn in their side.”
-Get to the point.
Isaac inhaled and exhaled sharply and her eyes gleamed. “I’ll do you a favor if you do one for me, Martial God.”
After a short silence, Joshua within Creshua shrugged.
-Unless you’re asking me to harm my people, I’ll do it for the sake of my son.
“Don’t worry. I’m not planning on asking for something that crass.”
-So what do you want me to do?
Isaac’s request was something that even Joshua hadn’t expected.
“Kill Bel.”
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