The King's Proof

High Priest Arisha of the Holy Kingdom entered the chapel.

Someone wearing a robe was sitting ahead.

She didn’t sense other people’s presence.

“I’ve sent everyone away.”

When Arisha sat opposite, the man removed his robe.

Pernok was smiling.

“It’s been a while, High Priest.”

Two days ago, Pernok had contacted her urgently saying he was Illumina’s illegitimate child and there was something to urgently discuss now that the energy of war was approaching.

Arisha already knew the fact that Pernok was Illumina’s prince.

That an S-rank guild master appeared as Illumina’s illegitimate child and boldly put his name on the throne succession candidates was already resounding throughout the entire world.

She guesses why he suddenly visited.

‘He probably wants to request help to win the competition.’

Two debts remained that the Holy Kingdom owed to Pernok.

Acting as an escort in the competition was something sufficiently bearable.

‘Cooperation isn’t bad.’

Arisha hopes the Holy Kingdom won’t stagnate in one place.

She’d already obtained the pope’s permission to accept Pernok’s conversation as positively as possible.

[I trust the High Priest’s judgment too.]

Arisha received with a smile the Pernok who would become the key to the first stage of opening.

“Welcome, Guild Master. Or shall I call you Your Highness?”

“Your Highness would be good. Today I’m thinking of having a serious talk with the Holy Kingdom.”

“Since 2 debts still remain that we must repay you, please speak comfortably.”

“How far are those debts permitted?”

“I’ll listen and judge.”

Pernok nodded.

“Soon Rakis and Tyr will collide. The mage association also won’t escape this relationship, and Rezhen’s throne structure will reach its peak.”

“World chaos… Illumina has always been at its center. Because there’s no place like it as an outpost for all nations. Above all…”

“Self-luminescent crystal.”

“…Right. That special metal is utilized for various weapons.”

“Or Rakis’s Sky Piercer.”

“Like our nation’s radiant heat cannon.”

If Rakis has the Sky Piercer, the Holy Kingdom has the radiant heat cannon.

The Sky Piercer is a weapon that fires by itself, but the radiant heat cannon is a special tactical weapon that gathers mana and converts it to ‘high heat.’

The theory of high heat conversion is technology other nations haven’t imitated yet.

But self-luminescent crystal’s role in that core is not small.

“However, we’ve somewhat overcome our dependency on self-luminescent crystal. Unlike Rakis, we’ve succeeded in developing alternatives.”

“I know. But I think Illumina’s value is special even to the Holy Kingdom. Being in the middle of all nations also means, in other words, being connected to all nations.”

“Is there a reason we need to know that?”

“It could become the center of trade. What if temples were built there?”

Arisha smiled.

“Do you know the meaning of those words, Your Highness?”

“By accepting religion, the nobles’ backlash would intensify. But that can also be sufficiently controlled if restraints are placed.”

“Restraints?”

“Just as with Dawn Temple’s incident, if an impious incident occurs in a temple established in our nation, that nation must directly punish it and the Holy Kingdom must also provide appropriate compensation.”

“Doesn’t that grant coercive power that allows the nation to influence temples as they wish? May you speak before me about infringing on the Holy Kingdom’s rights?”

“Reform requires change. The Holy Kingdom is no longer a holy land. Soon a turbulent age will arrive and the Holy Kingdom will also face a time of choice. Whose hand do you intend to grasp?”

Arisha’s smile deepened.

“A place that needs us.”

“How about me?”

At the direct words, Arisha laughed.

“Certainly, we are in debt, but that applies to you personally, Your Highness. I came thinking I’d help to the extent of assisting in the competition, but I don’t want direct confrontation with other nations. Especially with Rakis.”

“Are you afraid of Rakis?”

“The disaster that would result from that, the mountains of countless corpses and rivers of blood make me dizzy. The Holy Kingdom can’t lose hundreds of thousands of believers just to build one temple.”

“I thought you’d do anything, but was finding holy relics for you insufficient?”

“It means we must adjust so debts owed to an individual don’t expand to disputes between nations. For instance, when you request personal protection, we’d endure some conflict. But if you desire war, the weight changes.”

“Then what if I match equal weight?”

“Do we have justification to not hesitate even at war with Rakis?”

As if he’d waited for the question, Pernok took out the imperial seal.

Instantly, Arisha’s expression hardened.

Because the sacred energy felt from the imperial seal was the same as the pope’s.

“The first pope and first king made the imperial seal using sacred spirit stone while praying for each other’s development. What Queen Phillena has now is fake, and what I have is real.”

“…!”

“From the 3rd generation this record was erased and the fake was fabricated as real and has ruled the current Illumina. I intend to uproot this absurdity and establish order correctly once more.”

Pernok gazed at Arisha.

“Is this sufficient justification for the Holy Kingdom to directly participate in war?”

“…”

“If you don’t believe it, search the archives and confirm. Illumina erased it, but it should remain in the Holy Kingdom.”

Pernok put the imperial seal back in his breast.

“And I assert, if you join with me, the current Holy Kingdom will achieve numerous great achievements it couldn’t accomplish before. Centered on Illumina.”

“I need time to confirm.”

“When all procedures are finished, please convey to the Pope.”

Pernok rose from his seat.

“That I’m the only orthodox successor who remembers the first generation’s connection.”

She’d thought Pernok would do something with the two opportunities.

But she hadn’t expected he’d use the imperial seal to involve the entire Holy Kingdom in war.

Resolving an individual’s grudge and staking a nation’s entire fate were acts difficult to view as equal value.

“As you said, I’ll use the two opportunities you gave me slowly for myself alone. And let me say once more that this proposal is a grave matter discussing alliance between nations.”

Pernok put on his robe.

A smile formed beneath the shadowed face.

“Tyr and Rakis will collide first. Please organize the Holy Kingdom’s position by then. I’ll wait.”

Until Pernok left the chapel, Arisha remained sitting in that place.

The face hidden beneath the veil showed no hint of what she was thinking.

But after a moment, Arisha who suddenly rose rushed toward the pope’s temple.

* * *

At the same time, Phillena was hearing absurd words.

“Say that again, duke. What?”

Flemyr spoke with a cold expression.

“A tip came in. They said you gave the third prince additional self-luminescent crystal.”

“I did?”

“Self-luminescent crystal’s additional leak not officially recorded passed through the third prince to the first prince. As written in that ledger, the first prince secured additional self-luminescent crystal secretly and handed it over to Rakis.”

“I absolutely don’t know what you’re talking about.”

“Self-luminescent crystal is a mineral managed by the state. We decided not to supply more than a certain amount to each merchant group. However, there’s an additional quantity not recorded. The problem is Sky Piercers were made with that.”

“Sky Piercer? The Rakis Empire’s tactical weapon?”

“Sky Piercers with self-luminescent crystal at their core were secretly made and attacked Tyr Kingdom’s fleet.”

“Wh-what!?”

“Since it’s a tip I can’t just ignore, I’ve dispatched investigation teams to the princes now.”

“Suddenly appearing and spouting what nonsense!”

Then Flemyr placed one sheet of paper before Phillena.

“…?”

It was a payment statement stamped with the imperial seal.

“You promoted it secretly. The princes seem to have joined forces to manipulate quantities through merchant group after merchant group, but wasn’t it you, Your Majesty, who permitted this?”

“I don’t remember stamping something like this…”

She can assert it because she’s stamping official seals on documents beside her even now.

The imperial seal stamped on this contract was definitely real.

“If not Your Majesty, then it means His Late Majesty did it, which will come out if investigated.”

“Who’s the informant!”

“I can’t tell you. Because the tail might be cut with counts’ deaths like last time.”

“Duke!”

“Your Majesty.”

Flemyr spoke distinctly with emotion-suppressed voice.

“Remain an observer. So I don’t kick away from this position.”

At the warning that he’d throw his weight to one side, Phillena closed her lips.

As much as suspicion fell on Vans and Porla, if Flemyr throws his weight into the competition, that subject is clearly.

‘Pernok.’

Phillena rubbed her temples with her fingers as a headache surged.

What are this contract and imperial seal, and why do Vans and Porla get entangled together and an incident suddenly erupt?

If that’s even related to Tyr Kingdom’s fleet sinking…

‘War.’

Though Rakis is called the strongest nation, Tyr also has many hidden powers.

If all-out war breaks out, Rakis will win but the sacrifices won’t be trivial either.

Other nations’ backlash aiming for that gap might turn toward Illumina.

Because they’ll think Vans and Porla are the cause that brought about war.

“Since you seem to recognize the situation’s gravity, I won’t report further.”

Flemyr smiled coldly.

“I’ll confiscate and search Vans and Porla’s merchant groups, and summon both princes to the castle.”

* * *

Yuliana received word that Flemyr was confiscating and searching Vans and Porla’s merchant groups and summoning both princes to the capital.

She accepted Pernok’s fake contract as truth and burned with hostility toward Rakis and the mage association.

King Suira’s fury was also indescribable.

“Drive out all the empire’s merchant groups and erase the association’s branches from this place. They dare touch Tyr and brazenly intend to stay on this land!”

He suspended all transactions with Rakis and the mage association.

Along with one-sided notification, he proceeded with position construction putting forward Yuliana.

Though the clouds of war gathered, no one moved rashly.

Rakis suddenly rose as the main culprit in the fleet incident and was busy finding the cause.

The mage association was the same.

“Could it have been Rakis?”

The deceased disciple at the mining site and mages whose mana was lost.

At first they suspected Tyr, but when suspicion arose that the Sky Piercer was used in the fleet attack, they couldn’t help but think differently.

“Master, if it’s Rakis, they’re more than capable! Aren’t there many sinister guys among the 13 Lords! They touched the fleet and mining site simultaneously to make Tyr and us oppose each other! They might have even contrived those characteristics to make each other suspicious!”

“Porla?”

“Right now Duke Flemyr dispatched a truth investigation team, so he’s halted searching for clues and returning to the capital.”

“Mm…”

“There’s no way Porla handed self-luminescent crystal to Vans! I can’t tell at all where it twisted from, but shouldn’t we clear the stigma that we’re in league with Vans?”

These were situations Wanstein’s head also couldn’t understand.

When he couldn’t speak rashly, Pedson strongly insisted.

“We must resume dialogue with Tyr. And clear up each other’s misunderstandings to join forces against Rakis’s sinister actions!”

“It’s not a problem to view lightly.”

“Master!”

Wanstein frowned.

If it were up to him, he’d want to restore the broken relationship with Tyr like Pedson said.

Because tempting stories kept coming and going to the point he wondered if Rakis really did such things, and Tyr kept using hard-line measures.

‘I don’t like it.’

But the mage association’s head was seized by unknowable unease.

It’s difficult to say precisely, but it felt like something would go wrong if he swallowed up the tempting justifications scattered around.

“We’ll have to decide the direction again after Porla finishes the investigation. You go summon the elders. We need to urgently talk.”

“Understood!”

Pedson rushed out and Wanstein’s worries deepened.

But they weren’t given much time to think.

When Tyr increased hostility toward Rakis.

When Flemyr summoned Vans and Porla to the kingdom.

When the mage association crouched down.

Pernok began moving boldly.

* * *

How should one drag the mage association head directly to the battlefield one desires?

Ruin answered the dilemma very refreshingly.

[Wanstein is deeply suspicious. But once he starts obtaining answers, he acts faster than anyone. We must plant conviction in him.]

Who’s behind all this.

Where that culprit is hiding now.

That place is precisely the battlefield Pernok desires.

[What are we doing here?]

At Bamont’s question, Pernok looked at the mage association’s 13th branch.

“Cleaning.”

Sweep away all the confidants supporting Wanstein in the mage association.

If he releases just a few traces in that process, Wanstein will definitely come.

To the battlefield Pernok prepared.

[Is it conquest!?]

To Bamont whose eyes sparkled, Pernok grinned, pressed down his robe, and opened the 13th branch’s door.