Ch.810Funeral

After the discussion about the funeral procedures ended, the conversation continued.

It seemed like he hadn’t had anyone to talk openly with for a while, as he kept rambling on about all sorts of topics.

The distribution ratio of dragon remains and its significance.

Information about suspicious movements among some nobles recently.

News that Lord Wien, who had been appointed as chancellor, was working more diligently than expected.

Even stories about how the King of Dane, who had decided to submit to the Empire’s order, was now suppressing lords who had raised armies in opposition.

Though important information was mixed in with the small talk, it was ultimately just chitchat since it held little significance for me.

The nobles’ suspicious movements were Leopold’s problem to handle… and unless Knut had been defeated by the rebels, which wasn’t the case since he was victorious, I had no reason to concern myself with it.

The distribution ratio of dragon bones was so appropriate that there was no reason to object.

No, it was actually so generous that I decided to gift 20% of my share of remains to the Magic Tower.

Even Floheita, who was reportedly furious and demanding a duel with me, would likely calm down after receiving a heap of dragon remains as a gift.

I could give away bone fragments as much as needed, though scales would be a different matter.

You might ask if bones aren’t much harder than scales? True, their strength-to-weight ratio is excellent… but unfortunately, dragon bones also boast a massive volume proportional to their hardness.

In other words, when dragon bones are cut down to a size usable by humans, they become extremely light but not particularly impressive in terms of strength. At best, they might be slightly better than black iron.

While still an excellent material, it wasn’t enough to replace true silver weapons or holy artifacts.

They would make decent armor… but with the remains I received, I could make about fifty sets of armor and still have leftovers. What would I do with so many suits of armor?

Unless for masters or stronger fighters, giving dragon bone armor to lower-ranked forces wouldn’t be very meaningful.

Putting such armor on ordinary knights would be like putting pearl necklaces on pigs. They would only be captured by enemies targeting the armor.

Therefore, I could easily give away about 20% to the Magic Tower without any problem.

—-

“If you have nothing more to say, I’ll be going now. I’ll see you again at the funeral.”

“Very well. Go and help ease Eleonora’s burden.”

“I’ll try.”

After finishing my audience with Leopold, I headed straight to the Heavenly Sword Division’s mansion. The funeral preparations would take about two days.

Time would pass quickly while answering various questions from Eleonora and Leonore.

‘The restoration will take quite a while.’

Not wanting to draw attention, I walked leisurely through the night streets of the capital with my hood pulled up to hide my face, glancing sideways at the scars left by Nidhogg’s rampage.

“Hmm…”

It wasn’t a pleasant sight. The former glory of Extrashafel, once called the city where night never falls, was nowhere to be seen.

The galaxy of mana lamps that once shone like stars in the night sky was now broken and shattered with only debris remaining. The burned parks were now just dark mounds of soil without a single tree or blade of grass.

Streets once bustling with crowds were now eerily empty, and the ruins of collapsed buildings were everywhere.

During the great fire that had once burned throughout the capital, only buildings had caught fire, so recovery was quick once the flames were extinguished and burned structures rebuilt… but Nidhogg’s rampage was destruction on a completely different scale.

Many areas had collapsed as the dragon had burrowed up from underground, causing the very foundation to crumble. Some areas had even been melted by the dragon’s breath, completely altering the terrain.

Unlike the great fire that had only burned wooden buildings, structures caught in the dragon’s rampage—both wooden and stone—were completely destroyed.

Though restoration work was underway, priorities were focused on underground waterways, the Imperial Palace, the Grand Cathedral, and city walls, so ordinary civilian homes hadn’t even begun to be cleared, let alone restored.

‘This is serious.’

It wasn’t as bad as the game version of Extrashafel when Isabella and the Thunder Dragon went on a rampage simultaneously, but this sight alone would make any imperial citizen feel depressed.

‘At this point, it might be better to relocate the capital.’

Unless it had been completely conquered by enemies, they couldn’t abandon Extrashafel’s symbolic significance, but…

What’s the point of clinging to symbolism when the city is completely destroyed?

[Well… it may be in ruins now, but won’t it eventually regain its former appearance? That bald man seems to be putting his heart and soul into it. If restoration is possible, this city is perfectly suited to be the capital of a great nation. They can’t easily give up on it.]

Hersella let out a bitter smile and offered an uncharacteristic defense.

‘Who knows when the restoration will be complete?’

[Well… it may be moving at a snail’s pace now, but once the world becomes more peaceful, won’t it speed up? There will be an abundance of able-bodied men to mobilize for the work.]

…She wasn’t wrong.

With insufficient time, resources, and manpower, progress had inevitably been slow until now.

Most of the imperial army was busy preparing for the concerning international situation and increasing monster appearances, leaving no capacity for reconstruction work.

However, if Alvheim and the Dragonic Kingdom quieted down as Leopold predicted, and the imperial forces were replenished, they would have more capacity. Then the stagnant restoration work would become much smoother.

—-

“Welcome back, Lord Haschal. I heard you found a family heirloom. Congratulations.”

“Sister!”

As I arrived at the mansion after walking through the night streets like a casual stroll, familiar faces welcomed me.

Nigel and Jahan, standing side by side, bowed their heads slightly in greeting, while Lena ran over as always and threw herself into my arms.

“W-welcome back, master!”

Hush greeted me with a polite bow, trembling with an attitude dozens of times more cautious than usual.

“…Master?”

I wondered why he was suddenly so formal, but Ophelia, leisurely smoking a mana herb, whispered the reason. Apparently, after hearing that I had confronted and annihilated six guardians, his respect and fear toward me had exceeded all limits.

“Youuu… met her weeell…! Eirne… Eirnesia, whyyy did you leeeave her behiiind…!”

Perneisia, drunk as usual, staggered over as soon as she saw me and whined like a child. After somehow interpreting her slurred and incoherent speech, it seemed she was upset that I had left Eirnesia at Faelrun Castle.

She was lamenting that I should have brought her to the capital as a gift for her. Did she want to torture her?

Then again, Perneisia was also originally a fairy guardian, so it was natural she’d be curious about a senior colleague who had become an enemy and was now a prisoner.

If Leopold decided not to send Eirnesia back to Alvheim, it wouldn’t be a bad idea to send a letter to Faelrun Castle to bring her here.

Though Perneisia had become nothing but a drunkard now, she had fought at the forefront during Nidhogg’s rampage, even at the cost of losing her power.

What better reward for that dedication than Eirnesia?

“You finally arrived. Do you know how much I suffered while you were gone?”

“Um… you do look like you did.”

Leonore sighed with relief like a group project leader looking at a late team member, while Frider grinned with a face that clearly said “you’re in big trouble now.”

And as for Millia and Demian…

Well. The explanation that certain sounds I’d rather not describe were coming from somewhere on the second floor should suffice.

…They must have been quite pent up.

—-

After being so busy with various tasks that I lost track of time for two days and nights…

Finally, Ludwig’s funeral was held.

“For the past several decades, the shield of the Empire who firmly protected the peace and security of the east. His Excellency Margrave Ludwig Wilhelm von Landenburg—”

“May the heavenly gods embrace his soul—”

“O merciful Elpinel who watches over all people. The shield of protection you bestowed is returning to your embrace after completing its glorious duty, so please grant your grace to light his path—”

The funeral was solemn to the point of tedium.

A memorial mass conducted by Lacy, attended by Leopold, Adelheid, Lord Wien, and other nobles of the capital, along with the archbishops of the diocese.

Thanks to Leopold’s consideration, my only role was to escort the carriage carrying Ludwig’s coffin to the Grand Cathedral of Extrashafel.

After that, I simply waited for Lacy’s eulogy to end while looking at the coffin placed in the prayer room.

Nigel’s expression was grief-stricken as if he might shed tears at any moment, but honestly, I was just bored.

Ludwig’s death was certainly unfortunate, but… unlike at the time of his death, now that dozens of days had passed, even the emotional turmoil I felt then had died down like embers.

Honestly, I suspect the nobles too were merely maintaining solemn expressions, wondering why they were holding a funeral only now.

The only ones taking this ceremony seriously were probably Nigel, who had been loyal to Ludwig, a few nobles who had been indebted to him, and the ever-serious priests.