Ceru arrived at the "Resident OwlBear Inn". From the sky, she could spot white robed figures standing outside that inn, keeping an eye on the surroundings.
As she was flying, she spotted Angelica through an open window. A second woman was brushing her hair.
Ceru flew to the window and entered the room. Her eyes were immediately drawn to Angelica's beautiful long hair. Unlike Angelica, Ceru's hair was quite unkempt since Siana isn't here to help her brush it anymore.
"—What need is there for you to entertain the emperor's request to meet?" the woman brushing Angelica's hair asked.
"While we don't share the same beliefs or support the same Hero, we must still maintain our relationship as fellow humans. The war ahead will break us if we aren't allied under a common cause."
"You want to convince him to side with Arnold?"
"Not exactly. Lord Arnold has his own issues to worry about so I doubt he will join the war against the demons unless given a good reason. Other than that, we don't need anyone getting in the way or getting injured in the fight against Oriel. All I want to do is protect Lord Arnold's reputation and if it means a battle of words between the emperor and me then so be it." Her eyes remained fixed on her own reflection, "I've trained myself for that moment, imagining countless scenarios, conversations and suitable responses to win that fight. Even the most trained noble won't outwit me or speak over me."
"Only a woman in love would go this far, Angie. Isn't the only reason you forged an alliance with that man because you want to banish Oriel?"
"Ceera, I haven't been entirely truthful with you. I was visited in my dreams, yes, but there is more to it than that."
"…"
"Through shared memory visions, I lived as my future self for a short while. I saw the tyrannical Lord Arnold waging war against every nation… fighting Hero Luke again and again… and losing, again and again."
"When did you realize this 'Hero' was this Luke boy?"
"Only a few days ago—when my dreams grew clearer. They're like the depths of the ocean: the closer I drift toward the surface, the more light I can see."
"Hmm…"
"But I digress. In those visions, Lord Arnold treated his subjects as pawns, never mourning their deaths, no matter how loyal they were. By some cruel fortune, he alone survived Hero Luke's blade each time—saved by others who wanted his dream to live on. He lost his first love, Victoria, and even his soulmate, Elizabeth—both gave their lives for him. Yet until the very end, he never shed a single tear."
"Did Luke kill him?"
"Not in the timeline I experienced, but he was cursed by the Holy Sword, turned into a cripple for the rest of his days. Hero Luke loved him too much to kill him. Fortunately for us humans, the hero isn't so merciful towards demons so in the end, humanity triumphed against them. Resentment remained in Lord Arnold even after all wars ended." Angelica looked down, "He despised peace because he never learned to enjoy it with others."
"Your goal is to avoid this outcome? Do you realize the kind of person he is? He will never become allies with the Hero."
"I know. I only want to prevent the outcome so that he will never experience this resentment and become a husk of hatred kept alive only by the very power that allowed him to wage wars." Angelica looked at Ceera in the mirror, "I want to teach him how to love."
"With the number of women around him, I don't see him having any issue with loving someone."
Angelica chuckled, shaking her head. "That's not the kind of love I mean, Ceera. Desire is easy. Companionship is easy. Learning to value someone's life over their usefulness and to hold them without weighing what they can give you, is different. And from what I saw… Lord Arnold never had that. No one ever taught him. He weighs lives based on merit, as if he's an employer deciding who to keep and who to lay off."
Her expression hardened as she glanced outside, "If I can be that person, even for a little while… maybe the man I saw in that vision will never come to be."
"What if it's impossible? You've always been the optimistic type. That man didn't hesitate to take down his own father and threatened to kill one of the Heroes, whereas two heroes would normally be seen as a good thing."
"I know what you're saying—he might find me meddlesome and get rid of me. But that is a chance I am willing to take."
Ceera shook her head, "I hope you find some time for your personal life outside of treating that man like a toddler who needs to hold your hand when crossing the street."
"…I'm not that old to need that advice, Ceera."
"25 may as well be old."
"That's not nice!" Angelica pouted in the mirror.
A knock came from the door.
"Come in." the Oracle said in a business-like tone.
"—Angelica, another demon cult has been reported." Lancelot entered.
"Eh!? Why are there so many lately!?" Angelica jumped up and ran to bed to fetch her cloak, "We ran into two along our journey and yet there are more!?"
'Demon cult? I think I can remember some of them popping up in the divine realm as well during my previous life.'
They are fanatics who worship evil gods. These evil gods promise them great power and fortune. The gods don't grant them this, only free will to achieve those sorts of things themselves. In exchange for giving them what they desire, they must open demon portals to allow demons to come through.
Normally there isn't a cause for concern since—outside of the World Tree's influence on the world—the conditions to opening a demon postal will inevitably get them caught in the act but every cult must still be stopped to avoid genocides by plagues or other methods. Plagues may be seen as natural since they are often caused by pathogens or animals but their goal would be to fool humanity so that they can create comfortable conditions for demon portals to form.
"We can't have another dead zone pop up." Angelica hurriedly put on her heels and cloak then her hairpin, "I barely managed to exorcise the last one in time."
"You don't need to go." Lancelot said, "Just prepare yourself for the meeting with the emperor. I'll take two members of the inquisition and handle it."
"But it should be quick."
"Your primary goal is Arnold von Berkley so focus on him." Lancelot sounded disgusted mentioning the name but he didn't show it on his face.
"Thank you, Lancelot. Oh, but let me imbue your new magic sword with divine energy."
At Angelica's request, he unsheathed one of the two swords on his back and held out the sword.
"It may not have Praise's magic properties but it should still be useful in the fight if actual demons appear." She chanted and then a moment later a glow surrounded the sword.
When the glow faded, she didn't hand it back right away. She kept staring at it, her fingers brushing along the fuller like she was holding onto something invisible.
"What's wrong?" Lancelot asked, brow faintly furrowing. "Did the incantation fail?"
"That's not it…" She smiled faintly, almost to herself. "It's just… this reminds me of when we were young. I'd visit the barracks, hunting you down so that I could bless your weapons, just like this."
"…A lot of my seniors bullied me because of you," he said flatly, though his eyes softened in spite of himself. "I stuck out like a sore thumb back then and was always the target of scrutiny."
"Hehehe." Angelica giggled, utterly without guilt.
"They said I was only strong because you were with me. No knight wants to hear that—it insults my pride."
"Maybe stop coming back half-dead, then I wouldn't worry about you so much." She stepped closer, hiding the sword behind her back, and tried to flick his forehead but couldn't reach even when on her tip-toes. "Ah, I almost forgot… I'm not taller than you anymore."
He caught her wrist before she could pull back, just for a heartbeat. "No," he said quietly, "but you're still as much trouble as you were then."
Her grin didn't fade, but her eyes lingered on him a moment longer than necessary before she finally returned the sword.
"Even though I know you're strong now, I still worry that something out there will take you from me. So, please be careful."
"You've said that to me several times over the years." Lancelot sheathed the sword.
"I won't stop until you become the strongest person in the world!"
Lancelot sighed then turned, "If there is trouble that arises from announcing Angelica siding with Arnold von Berkley, teleport me to your side, Ceera."
"Got it."
"I'll be off."
Angelica and Ceera nodded. He soon left.
Ceru wondered if she should follow Lancelot instead. The Oracle has already admitted that she will stick with Arnold even if the entire world is against him.
'Papa will be happy to hear this, right?' she flew over to the window, seeing Lancelot and his squad hop on their horses, 'Plus, this cultist thingy might be something he wants to know as well.'
Thinking so, Ceru flew out the window and followed behind Lancelot.
**
In the outskirts of the Berkley fiefs, was a large town.
It was once a prominent trading hub for merchants and was quite popular with the mercenaries who come and go.
But lately the town has been quiet—no wagons leaving its walls and its gates never opening for travelers. The only news that had been circulating was a black cloud rising into the air, which could be seen from afar.
It was a bad omen so villages around the area sent a request to the Marquis and Duke's households. These requests, however, still haven't been answered in three days.
With that black cloud looming above, no one could get any decent sleep or get their work done without worrying if some demon god will come through those ashy clouds as if it's been summoned.
…
The sun was blocked by the black energy twisting above the town, not allowing any light to escape. As such, the residents, marching in an orderly line down the street, carried torches, their figures dancing ominously. They were draped in dark robes and there were bloody runic letters on their foreheads, letters they did not comprehend but were told to draw.
They were quite a large crowd moving in a queue while spraying something wet and red on the magic circles drawn down the street. Cutting to a bird's eye-view, you would be able to see three other strange happenings similar to this.
To even the ignorant, this looked like a ritual of some kind. But what kind of ritual needed dead bodies to line the streets?
Yes, there were corpses filling the streets and alleyways. Mothers, fathers, children, pets, livestock—all were devoid of life.
There were a few roaming dogs here and there that got in before the town's isolation, feasting on the corpses as there was no alternative. Not all were strays, some were pets who were left behind… after their owners were murdered.
There was no knight order or town guards to protect everyone because these people were part of the cultists marching the street.
--The chapel outside this town's walls was empty now.
Empty but for "him", a man draped in an old priest garb, the Holy Scripture sitting open before his solemn eyes.
Through the arched window to his left, he could see the town walls — shut tight, guards nowhere in sight, the gates barred as if to keep the world out… or keep the horror in.
Even though this little church was right next to the town wall, it had not suffered the same fate as the buildings within the walls—that faith being housing the souls of the ones who got murdered in their homes.
He gripped the pulpit, knuckles white, nails digging into the wood until splinters bit his skin.
"They never listened!" His voice tore through the hollow air, almost feral. "I told them—I told them! And You let them call me a liar, a heretic, a traitor to Your name!"
His shout bounced off the chapel walls, echoing like the cries of a wounded animal. The air still smelled faintly of incense from earlier prayers.
"You questioned my faith?!" he roared upward, eyes glistening, as though Melis Herself might be standing above the altar in the flicker of the sanctuary lamp. "Was it not Your strength that I defended?! Was it not Your people I bled my name for?! Why must Your worshippers be blinded by faith!? No God is all-powerful and omniscient to deserve such devotion to see past the errors!"
The priest's head was bowed so low, his grey hairs touched the pulpit.
"They called me a snake… a blasphemer! Said I was poisoning the flock when the wolves were already among them!" His breath came in gasps, his voice hoarse. "And now the wolves feed… and their screams are the hymn that greets You tonight!"
For a long moment, the chapel gave him only silence in return.
He hit his head on the pulpit until it bled, his molars clenched as the tears streamed down his face.
This same priest had tried to warn the Cathedral in the Empire about the investigations he had carried out, which led him to uncover massacres made in the name of demons. Those who claimed they devote their lives to Melis were involved, not just common folk. His investigations were met with scrutiny and it was judged as heresy against the religion as a whole.
He had avoided jail time but was stripped of all his titles. But his old hometown welcomed him back as a priest. Unfortunately, his first sermon could never take place since the cloud of evil was already looming above the town when he awoke from his slumber in the church.
"…I never doubted You," he whispered, voice cracking. "Not once. Even when they tore everything from me. I serve only Thee, yet that devotion has sullied my name… Hic… Hic…"
"—Faith may be the strongest bond humanity shares with Gods but it can also blind us, possibly leading to our damnation." A woman's gentle voice made him look back up.
Standing in the doorway was a tall knight with long red hair, wearing a blue mantle around her neck and a broken helmet covering her porcelain face, leaving only her soft red lips visible. She wore no leg guards. In fact, she only wore a torn purple dress that was a bit below her knees and her feet were bare.
Even though she looked like any ordinary knight, from his perspective, she looked like some angel sent from the divine realm to exterminate evil.
There was a powerful divine radiance around her.
She walked forward slowly but to him her steps sounded thunderous, like a gentle giant here to reassure that everything will be okay.
The man's fingers trembled as he let go of the pulpit. He fell over a few times as he approached her.
Envoy of Melis, he whispered repeatedly.
"I will take you to a safe place." the knight caught him by his shoulders just as he was about to fall again, "Then I will vanquish the evil that took over that town and destroyed lives."