Chapter 39: The Ruler’s Eye (3)

The very thing they feared had come to pass, the antidote wasn’t genuine.

Well, to be precise, it was only half genuine. After Beryl drank it, her breathing noticeably stabilized.

The problem was that her condition would only remain stable for about an hour, at most.

After that hour, Beryl would once again be teetering on the brink of life and death.

In other words, it wasn’t a cure but merely a temporary painkiller.

“Are you kidding me?! Give us the real antidote, now!!!”

Isabella shouted, her face flushed with anger, grabbing one of the minions by the collar.

Already terrified by the massacre of his comrades, the minion shrank back with a whimper.

“T-the real antidote isn’t here!! You have to go down to the underground base below! The instructions were to delay the effects of the poison with this temporary remedy and then return for proper treatment later…”

The minion’s explanation was as follows.

‘Tears of the Nether’ was an extremely potent poison, and consequently, the antidote was equally difficult to produce.

To be completely cured, one had to visit a specialized priest who was always on standby at their base.

Therefore, if any of the personnel on external missions accidentally got poisoned, they were instructed to use a temporary remedy to delay the effects of the poison and return later for the proper treatment.

After hearing the explanation, Lancia tilted her head in confusion.

“I suspected there might be a base nearby, but… a priest? A priest cooperating with the Demon King’s Army? How is that even possible?”

It was a situation that defied common sense.

If magic is based on intelligence, then holy power is based on faith.

The moment a priest loses faith in the Goddess, they lose their power. No matter how corrupt a cleric might be, this rule has no exceptions.

They can only continue to wield their twisted beliefs because they genuinely believe that their actions are for the benefit of the church.

But these people had called themselves the Demon King’s Army (during the interrogation before they were knocked out).

That should be impossible. The demons—or more accurately, the Demon King’s Army—are the sworn enemies of the Goddess Church.

As invaders who aim to destroy the world itself, they can never coexist with its guardians.

Even though the Goddess Church isn’t what it used to be, its foundation shouldn’t have crumbled to this extent.

In response to Lancia’s doubt, the minion stammered as he answered.

“Th-that’s simple… It’s because… we twisted the priest’s common sense and brainwashed them using [Eye of the Overlord].

Now, he truly believes that working for the Demon King’s Army is serving the Goddess’s cause. That’s why he can still use divine power.”

“The Eye of the Overlord? What’s that?”

“It’s that… that thing Lord Karma was holding earlier.”

He pointed to the crystal orb at the end of the staff lying far away on the ground.

“That orb is an artifact that can manipulate a person’s mind or common sense as desired.

Using it, we can always create new allies. Of course, it’s such a valuable item that no one but Lord Karma is allowed to touch it…”

“……”

The moment Lancia heard this, a chill ran down her spine.

Wasn’t that the very tool that had been used to attempt to brainwash Sion just moments ago?

If the Roc hadn’t intervened at the right time and created an opening for them to act, they might have…

Noticing her unease, Sion smiled reassuringly.

“Don’t worry, my lady. There was no real danger. I had already sensed that the enemy was lying and had mentally fortified myself.”

“Really?”

“Yes.”

Lancia sighed with relief.

If Sion were ever to side with the Demon King’s Army, it would spell disaster for all humanity. The very thought of what might happen was terrifying.

Isabella seemed to have similar thoughts, as she gave a slight shudder.

“I was considering whether to intervene or not, but I’m really glad nothing happened… So, what do we do now? It’s too late to return to the academy.”

“Is teleportation back to the academy an option?”

“No, unfortunately not. I can’t perform long-distance spatial transfers. The only thing I can manage is a dimensional gate, but the range for that is too short…”

Isabella scratched her head, clearly troubled.

The range of the dimensional gate was only about 200-300 meters.

Even if she exhausted all her magic to repeatedly cast it, it would be impossible to cover the several dozen kilometers distance back to Anatolia from here.

Moreover, even if they somehow managed to get there, it wouldn’t be the end of their problems. It would still take time to find a priest to administer treatment.

No matter how she thought about it, getting back within an hour was impossible.

That left only one option.

“In that case, it looks like we’ll have to infiltrate this underground base of theirs and get Beryl treated there.”

“…Are you serious?”

Lancia turned to Isabella with a look that suggested she was out of her mind.

It was a natural reaction. They had narrowly escaped death twice already.

The fact they were still alive was more due to luck than anything else.

And now, they were suggesting taking on even more risk?

Sion, seemingly sharing the sentiment, frowned and spoke up.

“Are you still not thinking clearly, Princess? Perhaps a harsher punishment is in order—”

“No, no, no! Of course not! I wasn’t suggesting we go in ourselves!”

Isabella quickly waved her hands in a panic.

She knew better than anyone how terrifying Sion could be when angry, thanks to their seven years of living together.

But the solution she was proposing didn’t involve taking the risk themselves.

“In short, we stay here, and instead, we have someone who can naturally enter and leave the base take Beryl inside and get her treated.

Someone high-ranking enough that even a demand to treat an unknown outsider would be reasonably accepted.”

“Who could possibly fit that description?”

“There’s one person right there.”

Isabella replied, pointing at Karma, who was lying unconscious on the ground.

According to his subordinates, Karma was a capable mage, even at his young age, serving as a strategist for the Gluttony Legion of the Demon King’s Army.

“If it’s his orders, wouldn’t everyone jump to obey? From what I’ve heard, the Demon King’s Army has a pretty strict hierarchy; they follow orders to the letter.”

Her idea was simple: instead of the three of them entering the so-called ‘underground base,’ they would wake Karma up, hand Beryl over to him, and have him take her inside for treatment.

After that, he would bring her back out.

In other words, it was a plan to accomplish their goal without getting their hands dirty.

However, upon hearing the idea, Lancia shook her head vehemently.

“That’s ridiculous. How can we be sure this guy won’t betray us? As soon as he gets back, he could run off and report everything. How could we entrust a precious comrade’s life to him?”

If they were nearby to hold a blade to his throat, they might have some leverage. But with all three of them remaining above ground, they had no means to control Karma once he left.

If he decided to betray them, they would be doomed. And realistically, that was the most likely outcome.

But Isabella just chuckled in response to Lancia’s objection.

“Why worry about betrayal? We have a way to ensure he absolutely won’t betray us.”

“What? How?”

“Right there.”

Isabella said, pointing again to the staff Karma had been holding.

The artifact that could seize control over someone’s mind—[Eye of the Overlord].

“There’s no need to overthink it. We’ll simply turn their own trick back on them. But this time, for love and justice<3”

she grinned mischievously, her smile reminiscent of a certain Demon King.

A little while later…

“Yes, of course, anything is possible!!”

Karma, who had just regained consciousness, replied enthusiastically.

Unlike before, his eyes sparkled with an almost unsettling brightness.

“Thank you so much for giving me this chance to atone for the many misdeeds

I’ve committed as an agent of the Demon King’s Army! Even if it costs me my life, I will repay your trust!”

“Excellent, excellent! That’s the spirit! Make sure not to make any mistakes. Deceive them as if your life depends on it!”

Isabella said, tapping the ground with her staff in satisfaction.

“Yes!” Karma replied.

Lancia, watching the scene unfold, leaned closer to Sion and whispered in a worried tone.

“…Is it really okay to leave things like this, Master?”

“Hmm? Why wouldn’t it be?”

“Well, I just feel like… it’s not right to interfere with someone’s soul like that, no matter what.”

Lancia murmured, feeling uneasy.

Sion shrugged nonchalantly.

“If we had planned to do this from the start, that might be different. But we’re just using a tool that was already here.

It’s not necessarily a bad thing, right? Besides, given his original personality, he’d likely face execution. Offering him a chance to redeem himself in this way seems merciful enough.”

“Is that so…?”

 Lancia still seemed unconvinced, a lingering discomfort evident in her expression.

Sion tilted her head, puzzled. What was it that she found so disagreeable?

While the method might have been forceful, they had managed to reform someone who had committed countless wrongdoings. From a human perspective, that was a good deed.

And even from a cost-benefit standpoint, it was a reasonable decision.

“Lastly, I trust you haven’t forgotten who granted you all this mercy?”

“Yes, of course! It is all thanks to the grace of the most beautiful and noble Hero, Lord Sion, across all dimensions and through past, present, and future!!”

“Haha, right! Never forget your sister’s mercy, and always live with a grateful heart!”

Isabella encouraged.

“Yes!!!”

 Karma responded energetically, his voice brimming with enthusiasm.

Lancia glanced back at Sion once more.

“Even after that?”

“……”

It was clear that this might have been a bit too much.

Deciding it was probably for the best, Sion chose to confiscate the problematic staff from Isabella, at least for the time being.