Chapter 17 Priestess of the Oracle

 

“I’m going to ask you straight. Albert, Do you have any intention to harm His Highness Adam?”

The middle aged man asks.

Without warning, he suddenly enters the room.

He must have sensed the fluctuation of mana and intended not to let me prepare for it. Al was thinking so in a daze.

“No, sir. I have no intention to harm His Highness. (Eventually, His Highness will be the main character of the main event party. I’d rather have him do his best.)”

Al began to look back on. that way, saying that he must have been excited at the Great Hall the other day.

Three boys and a girl of the same age, the shadows of the royal family.

And thw middle aged man who came in later, seemed to be a superior officer.

All of them are quite skilled, and I am probably no match for them.

However, I don’t feel the same intensity as with my father from any of them. There is no sense of danger, no sense of general hair-raising just by confronting them. I evaluated them in this way.

“I see. you’re not the one who draws the bow to the royal family? To Highness ……? Is that what you say?”

“Yes, I am. As a member of the kingdom, as a person associated with the nobility,…… I have never thought of such a thing!”

The man glances at the girl in charge of sensing. She nods quietly.

But the girl …… Vera has a concern. Certainly there is no wavering in Al’s mana. But it was the same before and after the question. If anything, it’s the same even on the way here. It’s hard to discern.

“…… Then why were you observing His Highness and his shadowy escort, those men, in the Great Hall the other day?”

“It is not …… As a matter of fact, His Highness is not the objective. What I wanted to confirm was the power of those who are associated with the noble families on the frontier. I am ashamed to say this, but I am only associated with the noble families in the south. I was curious to know how much use those from other frontier areas are. (Well, that’s not a lie.)”

The questioner, an elderly man, does not identify himself. On the contrary, he even intimidates me with his mana. He feels uncomfortable with Al, who responds in a matter-of-fact manner.

(This guy …… makes no move against my intimidation. …… He is skillful at controlling his mana. Is it difficult to detect even a Vera when it goes this far? …… Hmm. This is why those associated with ‘Falconer’ are so hard to handle.)”

( Such Lukewarm intimidation…… but, well, this is the level of restraint against capital’s aristocracy, right? That’s a real live teaching tool.)

For some reason, the person being interrogated looks unconcerned and relaxed, while the three shadows watching on are more nervous.

“Vera. That’s enough. It’s pointless. He’s a total abomination. You’re the best, Falconer’s people.”

“Thank you for the compliment.”

He was agitated as usual. But the next moment, Al’s composure was shattered.

“I thought it might have something to do with …… Daryl or Cecily. ……”

Why that name! Al’s mana, which had been peaceful, shook violently. Unintentionally, he turned to the first man.

“……!”

“! !”

“……??”

The three reacted instantly, teaming up on him and pinning him to the floor, blocking his movement.

Al did not resist, as it suited his inexperienced self.

(Ahhhh…. I just reacted. Nice moves by all three of you. Do they and the humans of …… This world recognizes Daryl and Cecily …… protagonists, by the way?)

“…… Surprised me there. Do you know anything about those two?”

****

From suspicious to a target for observation. Finally, they become interrogators who make them give up information.

“Let me ask you something. How do you know those two?”

“I was looking at those who are associated with the frontier aristocratic families, and I saw the commotion of the attempted duel by His Highness. That was the first time I saw those two and the only thing I …… knew about them was their names.”

“But on the other hand, I would like to ask my own question. Why doesn’t anyone notice those two? Obviously there must be something special, right?”

Not being allowed to free himself, Al responds by being held down and crawling on the floor.

“You …… can you see it ……? …… No, I can’t judge. …… Yoel, hurry up and intercede with the bishop. And bring him to me. Rauno and Vera, lock him up until then.”

“Ha!”

“Yes!”

Clearly, Al has gone from being an interrogator to a prisoner of war.”

“(Well, it can’t be helped …… but a bishop means …… I wonder if the Church already has a grasp of the two of them? (Goddess Will?)”

“….. This way. Don’t resist. We won’t do anything if you don’t make a fuss.”

Vera urges. Al obediently follows and is led to what appears to be a guest room. He only thinks, “Oh, it’s not a dungeon or something,” and shows no particular intention of resisting. Rather, he is already in a state of inability to resist.

(The quality of “strength” or the direction of the magic is different. …… She seems to be good at sensing and capturing, but …… It’s like an invisible chain. Is there a thing wrapped around it? If I resist, will it tighten all at once? I’m sure they’d be pissed if I tried it.

Hmmm……… Not like Falconer, who specializes in beating people up with physical enhancements. How can I escape this magic? I don’t think I can break it at all.)

Al’s body is wrapped around an invisible chain composed of Vera’s magic, which is designed to instantly materialize and constrict the target if there is even the slightest activation of mana.

The closer the distance, the more powerful this magic becomes, and at the current distance from Al, it can not only constrict but also “crush” him.

“Thank you for your cooperation …….”

“No, no, no. You’re welcome. I’m not a man who would avenge the Kingdom.”

Certainly, Al does not intend to avenge the Kingdom. Rather, he has the cause of preventing the kingdom from being exhausted by war as much as possible. It is a true intention from the heart.

But for some reason, Vera sees a sinister shadow behind him. Mountains of corpses, rivers of blood. A river of corpses.

(…… This person is dangerous. I don’t know why. But my mana is buzzing. I must not let him go unchecked. ……!

(Hmm …… Is that right? This Vera girl …… seems to having a hard time.)

Although he is a prisoner of war, for some reason, he does not lose his composure or composure.

This boy is Albert Falconer. He is the third child of Baron Falconer.

Vera herself does not know him, but she has heard of him. Physical strengthening, the foundation of a mage. When that magic is taught, the name of the family is always mentioned. And repeatedly.

It is one of the five families on the southern frontier, and although it is said that there is no secret magic passed down from generation to generation, it is widely rumored that the astonishing physical strengthening magic is in fact the secret of the Falconer family.

They say that not only the immediate family, but also their vassals, private soldiers, and even militia slaughter the vicious demons of the Great Forest in melee combat through …… physical reinforcement.

These are not weak demons from around the royal capital. It is unthinkable for other noble families to be so close to the demons of the Great Forest. ……

There is another rumor about them.

“They’ re calm and crazy”

That is the Falconer family.

(Rumors are rumors. But …… this Albert. His feverishly Calm mana is really weird ……. He is not at all fazed by my “binding chains”. And although it is supposed to react when it senses the activity of mana, the “shackles” are still yet to react. It is impossible. Even he must be aware of the life-destroying magic wrapped around him, so …… Why hasn’t he moved? )

Vera does not understand. His life is in the hands of others. Despite this situation, he does not care about it at all. At least, Doesn’t show any pretense of it.

Vera is the one who cannot remain calm, even though she is the one who holds that life in her hands.

****

“…… This is troubling. I wish you would have a little more time to make such a sudden call……. No matter how much it is about “Child of god”!”

“I am sorry, Bishop Bernard. But isn’t it the Church of Elinorra that says that the “Divine Child” should be brought to you as soon as possible ……? If Bishop Bernard wants more leeway, then I’ll take it up with someone else next time. How about it?”

Bishop Bernard is summoned by Yoel. He may be a member of the clergy, but his nature is no different from that of a power-hungry pariah. A philistine in the skin of a clergy.

But even such a philistine certainly has a talent for the “sacred arts. In terms of mages, he is in the elite class of aristocratic families. In other words, that is why he can stay in the position of bishop.

“….. So? You think a mere mage could have seen through the “Oracle of the Divine Child”?

“Yes. A mere mage. Well, it’s not particularly unusual, since even a small thing that just barely reaches the bishop class can detect it, but I thought I’d check …… Just to be sure.”

From the perspective of Yoel, who had to stand by here, his superiors, the middle aged man and the bishop of the church of Ellinora, are both in a much higher position than he is. The sight of these two men smiling and guessing at each other made him sick to his stomach.

(Ah. I’d like you to get on with the main issue for now. ……)”

[The Oracle of Divine Child.]

Two protagonists.

Daryl and Cecily.

They were certainly recognized in this world. As messengers of the goddess Elinora.

One day, a priestess on the frontier received the oracle of the goddess.

This is a world where magic and mana exist and demons abound. The goddess Elinora is widely believed in such a world.

There have been actual cases of oracles from the goddess, but more often than not, they are the result of the beliefs of believers, hallucinations, and auditory hallucinations in a trance-like state. The church does not readily recognize them as true oracles.

However, the oracle at that time was clearer than previous instances and pointed directly to Daryl and Cecily. On top of that, it was specifically mentioned. The future of the McBrine Kingdom.

The details were not disclosed in detail, but here is the general outline that was made available to some.

Two brave men of light from the frontier.

They have contacts with those associated with the royal family and may eventually bring a thousand years of prosperity to the kingdom.

They may have contact with those associated with the demon tribe, and may eventually bring a hundred years of darkness and hardship to the kingdom.

In both of these possibilities, the demon tribe and the human tribe conflict with each other.

Two become one. Possibility is harmony. Harmony is the future of the millennium.

Do not inform them.

Do not manipulate the possibilities.

They say that the details …… of it were disclosed to the royal family and cardinals: the names of the brave men, the role of the royal family members, their association with the demon tribe, the names of the places, the chronology, the specifics of the war, the glory and hardship, the thousand years ahead. …… and so on. …… This story is not certain either. Many laugh it off as just an idle tale.

However, practitioners of the “sacred arts” of the rank of bishop and above generally believe in the oracle.

Because they could directly see the light surrounding Daryl and Cecily……. the blessings of the goddess,…… Of course, not all of them could recognize the blessings, and even those who recognized them once sometimes did not feel them the next time.

First, the Kingdom of McBrine and the Church of Elinora shared a common desire to preserve Daryl and Cecily’s lives and make sure their healthy development. And, as a matter of course, the oracle was kept secret.

However, for the sake of humans, an intervention was made.

With the encouragement of the Marquess of Dunstable, Daryl, a bastard son of a noble family, was adopted by Baron Arthur, and Cecily, originally an orphan, was adopted as the official firstborn child of the Viscounts of Alcott.

Al has no way of knowing, and it is something that is not discussed in the game setting.

In the game, the main characters are “ordinary boys and girls from frontier aristocratic families,” although they grow stronger without limits, get involved in events, deepen their ties with royalty and aristocracy, and suddenly gain the trust of those they meet.

However, in this world, the two are clearly recognized as “special” by some people.

That’s right. The Marquise of Dunstable, Miss Ariel, who interacted with Daryl and Cecily in their childhood, is a special existence.

She was engaged to a member of the royal family to eventually bring Daryl and others associated with the royal family …… into contact with His Royal Highness Adam. The first thing to do is to make sure that the engagement with Adam is terminated. This was a measure to ward off an offer of engagement to Miss Ariel from another noble family, and to buy time.

And after the engagement was called off, Miss Ariel was to be married to Daryl, a baronet with whom she had a childhood friendship…

In other words, Miss Ariel, the official heroine of the male protagonist in the game world, was expected by those around her to be united with the Divine Child(Daryl) in this world as well, and she was set up that way. Naturally, she herself knew this.

The miscalculation was that His Highness Adam was seriously concerned about Miss Ariel. …… Pitiful.

The protagonists in the game.

The Divine Child of the oracle in this world.