LGHTNOVELBOOK Chapter 67
Translator: Marctempest
Editor/Proofreader: TempWane
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Chapter 67: Invading the Lord’s House (2)
Artan continued meeting with various officials after his encounter with Daywell.
These were individuals who had been cautiously observing the empire’s power dynamics to decide which side to align with, or those who had chosen poorly and were now struggling.
He brought these subordinates in ambiguous positions to his side and embraced them.
These meetings steadily built a foundation that would become a great strength in the future.
“Your Highness, the Crown Prince.”
“Ah, Sir Harold.”
After concluding a meeting with a noble named ‘Saeion,’ Artan encountered Harold outside.
Harold, having recently heard about the Crown Prince’s activities, was quite surprised and had come to speak with him.
“You’re working diligently.”
“…Oh my. Even my actions have reached your ears, Sir?”
“Yes. It’s rather surprising. I was under the impression that politics weren’t your concern.”
As Harold said, despite his overwhelming position, the Crown Prince had rarely shown interest in the political sphere.
Not only that, but he hadn’t accepted bribes, making him an exceptionally difficult figure for the nobles to handle.
“There’s a term in politics that describes duplicity. I still don’t like politics.”
“Then why?”
“There are responsibilities that one must not avoid as a person in a high position, regardless of personal preferences.”
Avoiding or being selective with methods would never allow one to overcome disasters.
Harold’s expression shifted slightly at Artan’s straightforward response.
“Indeed, you’re correct.”
Ultimately, the Crown Prince’s previously passive stance proved advantageous.
His sudden, radical actions had left the nobles unprepared, and they perceived it as an opportunity.
As Artan walked down the corridor, Harold followed closely behind, asking about his next plans.
“Are you going to create another loyal follower?”
“No. I plan to visit Grypheon Manor.”
“…The Duke’s manor?”
A somewhat unexpected destination.
Harold blinked in confusion.
“Why there?”
“I need to have a conversation with Bulizé. You could call it a form of reconciliation.”
“Reconciliation…”
The relationship between the two was currently ambiguous in many ways.
It couldn’t quite be called hostile, but they were no longer as close as they once were.
The instability of their engagement had undoubtedly played a role.
However, it wasn’t just about that one issue. Factors like personality, positions, and various conditions all contributed to the situation.
After pondering for a moment, Harold spoke.
“There’s no need for that.”
“Pardon?”
“Your Highness, focus on your current priorities first. Leave Bulizé to me—I’ll handle it.”
Bulizé disliked chaos and troublesome affairs. What she desired was routine and peace.
That was why she had chosen not to give up on a political marriage, to protect her family and build a sturdy wall.
Even though Artan understood her intentions and had made his decision accordingly, Harold shook his head.
“It would be more effective for me to speak with her first. She’s a wise child and will understand quickly.”
“…”
“The current is fierce. Even our Grypheon household isn’t exempt, and there’s much to consider.”
Artan stared blankly at him.
Eventually, he nodded slightly.
“Ah… Yes. Alright, then.”
It was a sign of a cool-headed agreement.
*
…Two days passed.
Yet the image of Dewade kneeling in the snow after being rejected by me remained unchanged.
It had gone beyond persistence to the point of being terrifying, and as a result, my mood was quite unpleasant.
At this point, I had no choice but to admit it.
I had underestimated him far too much.
“…They really sent someone so relentlessly persistent.”
The man possessed an incredible aptitude for fanaticism.
As expected of the Theocracy. Their selection process wasn’t haphazard.
Squinting, I gazed at him through the window.
Bang! Bang—
-Wow! It’s solid, so solid!
The white Holy Knight had already become a local spectacle.
Floating snowflakes surrounded him, encircling him entirely.
-What’s this outfit?! It’s shiny and sparkly!
-So white! It’s pure white! But the snow is even whiter!
-No way! We’re whiter!
-More importantly, it’s solid! So solid!
The Frikes were playing excitedly, sticking snow onto his armor or piling it on top of his head.
Whether out of respect or conviction, Dewade kept his helmet off, so his head was layered with white snow.
“That must be cold and heavy…”
I couldn’t help but feel a bit concerned, but the Holy Knight remained unmoving even amidst all of this.
The spirits seemed to find him amusing despite his lack of reaction.
-Kyahaha! This is fun!
-Let’s pile it as high as our home!
-Let’s do it, let’s do it!
Dewade became increasingly buried in snow.
“…”
Should I call this innocent malice? My Frikes lacked the concept of good and bad.
Yet Dewade stayed silent and sat still like a mouse.
Kneeling in the snow.
It seemed he hadn’t moved from that spot for over 50 hours now.
“Tsk.”
I clicked my tongue and drew the curtains.
No matter what, I had no intention of returning to the Theocracy. Let’s see who wins this.
“Ahem. Ahem.”
At that moment, I heard someone clearing their throat behind me.
When I turned around, I saw Nell fiddling with her bangs… and behind her, a silver-haired figure flinched.
“Um… Quellière.”
“What?”
The two of them had apparently come together.
They weren’t particularly close, so this was unusual.
“It’s about Dewade.”
“Yes?”
“Wouldn’t it be better to let him in soon?”
“…What?”
Nell’s words, as she fiddled with her fingers, caught me off guard.
At the unexpected remark, my eyebrows twitched for a moment.
“!”
Startled by my reaction, Nell quickly waved her hands.
“No, no, that’s not what I meant! I’m not saying to listen to what he says, just maybe… let him stay inside the castle?”
“Inside the castle.”
“Yeah. Like… as a guest? Something like that.”
“A guest…”
That wouldn’t be much of an issue, but I tilted my head slightly and asked again.
“Why?”
“Uh? Uh… well, how do I put this? He seems like a good person. He even called me a trusted confidant—uh, no, that’s not what I mean.”
Nell shook her head furiously before continuing.
“Anyway, he’s really polite. Think about it—how strong-willed must he be to have come all this way through the Ice Mountains alone?”
“Hmm.”
“I mean, he doesn’t look like someone who’d do anything bad. Look, even now, he’s just sitting there, not reacting at all, even though those snowflakes are messing with him.”
“…Hmm.”
I silently rubbed my temple.
Sometimes, they would talk to Dewade. Had he left an impression on them somehow?
Or is he really a decent person?
“Wouldn’t he be useful?”
“Maybe.”
“Yeah, yeah. And… hey, lizard! You say something too.”
At Nell’s nagging, the silver-scaled figure flinched.
“Uh… uh, huh?!”
Pushed forward by Nell, Mishra reluctantly stepped out and awkwardly forced a smile.
“Well… Quellière. Isn’t Dewade a human?”
“Yeah, he is.”
“For a human to endure this cold is remarkable, but it has been two days already.”
Her face trembled slightly, as if she was trying to maintain a serious expression.
Mishra continued.
“Unlike us dragons, humans need to eat something every day, don’t they? If this continues, he might starve.”
“…What?”
My eyes widened slightly.
I immediately voiced the question that popped into my head.
“You didn’t give him anything?”
“Of course not. Everything in this castle belongs to you, Quellière, so we didn’t touch anything.”
“Yeah, yeah.”
Nell nodded earnestly alongside Mishra.
I felt a considerable amount of dismay. I imagined Dewade, still enveloped in the cold winds.
Seriously?
Not even a sip of water for two whole days?
“…You guys.”
Were they always this cruel?
*
The frigid wind tousled his hair, and snow piles fell around him. From his snow-covered head to his kneeling legs, an intense cold seeped in.
The climate of the Icefield gnawed away even at his reinforced body.
“…Kuh.”
A temperature that would have already killed an ordinary Holy Knight.
As a Paladin, he barely managed to endure, but the new threat he faced wasn’t an easy one.
“My stomach aches… and my throat feels parched.”
It was hunger and thirst.
No matter how much he had trained, he couldn’t transcend the physical limits of his species.
He had already spent dozens of hours fasting.
As his mind started to blur, his divine energy began to weaken.
This directly led to the deterioration of his body.
“This is painful.”
Despite this, he hadn’t moved a single step from his position.
The vow he made to his faith would not crumble under mere trials like these.
“I will absolutely earn Quellière’s acknowledgment…”
If he failed, he would no longer have any reason to live.
Whooooosh—
At that moment, an even harsher wind howled through.
Dewade instinctively shrank into himself.
Even the Frikes and Yetis, who occasionally came to watch, had left by now, leaving a desolate silence all around him.
The quiet was suddenly shattered by a gentle yet clear voice.
“Dewade.”
“!”
Just one word.
His fatigued mind sharpened instantly, and his vision became crystal clear.
It was a voice he could never forget.
And there she was—Quellière.
However, as Dewade looked closely at her, his eyes widened in shock.
“Your feet…!”
Her feet were floating in mid-air.
He hastily glanced around, but there wasn’t a single footprint in the snowfield.
That explained why he hadn’t heard a sound until she was right before him.
It was Snow Walking, one of the Snow Maiden’s signature spells.
Quellière gazed down at him with a cold, piercing look.
“How much longer are you going to do this?”
“…Ah! Lady Quellière.”
Her voice snapped him out of his daze.
Dewade immediately bowed his head.
“I have caused you to come out personally… I am deeply sorry.”
“…”
“This is merely a trivial act of desperation to win your favor. If it displeases you, please disregard it.”
“…You.”
He lowered himself completely.
But Quellière frowned, clearly displeased.
“Do you want to die?”
“…!”
A vague remark about how he might starve if this continued.
The Holy Knight lowered his head further.
Quellière let out a shallow sigh, as if she found him pathetic.
“Take it.”
She held out a bundle.
Dewade tilted his head but accepted it.
“What is this?”
“Food. I packed it lightly.”
“…! Such generosity!”
“Generosity? If you’re starving, you should’ve said something.”
It was indeed just a modest bundle containing a few food items.
She cast a cold glance at Dewade before turning her back to him.
“Don’t die.”
She left those parting words.
Dewade stared blankly at her retreating figure as she walked away.
“…”
When her figure completely disappeared, he looked down and untied the bundle.
Inside, there was bread, sandwiches, milk, and other food.
“Oh, merciful Lady Quellière…!”
Moved, Dewade swallowed his tears.
He immediately picked up a piece of bread.
*
The entrance to the Ice Mountains.
The eerie noise, akin to a ghost’s wail, and the pervasive murky energy felt even darker today.
The flood of black-robed figures filling the entrance was the cause.
“This is the Ice Mountains…”
“A cursed land of the Far East, huh?”
The four Apostles of the Seven looked up at the mountain range with tense expressions.
It was a terrifying place where the climate alone could slaughter humans.
“But the real danger lies further inside, deep within the Snowfield.”
“To think the day would come when we face a god.”
Behelak twisted his lips into a bitter smile.
Glancing at him, Adein asked.
“Are you afraid, Behelak?”
“Honestly, a little. A god is a higher-dimensional being, incomparably above even a Lesser god. And this isn’t just any god—it’s the Primordial God.”
“Tch.”
Matren clicked her tongue from the side.
“You coward. What’s there to be afraid of when you’re already a corpse? How pathetic for a dead man to fear death.”
“Kuh… That’s true, but I wonder if I’ll rest peacefully even if I die at the hands of a god.”
“Alright, enough of this chatter.”
At that moment, Jehak clapped his hands, breaking the tension.
He pointed beyond the mountain range.
“We’ve got a long way to go. Let’s hurry and avenge our Lord! For the Dark Holy Society!”
“For the Dark Holy Society!”
After chanting the cliched slogan, the death squad of the Dark Holy Society crossed the boundary.
The extreme cold immediately pierced their skin.
“Kuh…”
Groans escaped instinctively.
However, for the Apostles of the Seven, it wasn’t lethal.
Following behind the calm and calculating Adein, eerie noises echoed.
Groooowl—
Graaaargh—!
The wails of living corpses, no longer human.
An endless army of undead soldiers followed behind the Apostles.
It was the culmination of all the resources left behind by Clavia.
At this moment, nearly the entire force of the Dark Holy Society was concentrated here.
“There’s a chance.”
Adein nodded firmly, his determination blazing.
“There are hundreds of monsters here, prepared for death. No matter how divine, even a god can be defeated.”
As if responding to his words, the cries of the undead grew louder.
The mountain range was engulfed in the sticky resentment of the undead.
*
──Shortly after they had left.
A rough sound of hoofbeats echoed across the ground.
It was dark, darker than the blackest night, as if it exuded unease.
A black knight, resembling a demon, silently dismounted from his pitch-black horse.
Thud—!
A single leaf, carried by the wind, was sliced in half mid-air as it landed, causing the earth to groan.
A low, heavy voice shattered the frosty silence.
“So, this is the place.”
Chandrafail quietly gazed up at the mountain range.
The girl who usually accompanied him was absent.
She had been left in a nearby city, as it was no place to bring her into a cursed land.
“It’s taller than I thought.”
His assessment of the Ice Mountains was succinct.
Without hesitation, the Black Knight crossed the boundary between the cursed land and the continent.
For a moment, his eyes widened slightly.
“…!”
It wasn’t due to the harsh climate of the divine domain.
Even the extreme cold posed no significant obstacle to him.
Chandrafail’s gaze was fixed on the ground.
“There are many footprints. Quite a lot.”
They seemed mostly human, but there was an inexplicable strangeness to them.
Judging by the marks, it hadn’t been long since they were left.
After pondering for a moment, he shrugged and moved forward toward the summit.
“No need to worry about it.”
Whatever they were, any obstacles could simply be dealt with.