episode_0076

The Imperial Palace.

Even within it, in the main palace, which was exclusively for the emperor, there was a room with the purpose of being a reception room.

Of course, this room is never used.

Who would the emperor dare to entertain? It was simply a room created for formality.

But right here, right now, a secret meeting between two people was taking place.

“Would you like some tea?”

“Okay.”

The person who even the Emperor of the Empire wanted to treat her to tea. Athena Caladbolg.

She looked at Varus with an uncomfortable expression on her face.

“So. Why did you bring me here to do this play? Are you really trying to restrain me?”

It was too rude to be spoken to the emperor.

But Barus answered calmly, not caring at all.

“No way. I’m busy dealing with the monsters that are swarming around these days, so there’s no reason for me to fight you.”

He said that and sat down with his car in his hand, letting out a sigh.

“Whether you created illegal slaves or killed someone, I want you to know that I have no intention of punishing you. ”

“Huh… That’s not something an emperor would say.”

“Everything is for the safety of the empire.”

As Athena let out a snicker, Varus also let out a faint laugh and brought the tea to his lips.

“So what’s the real reason?”

“No matter what sin you committed, just cover it up. It’s not a big deal.”

Barus continued, placing the tea on the table.

“But someone spread rumors throughout the empire about what you did.”

“Rumors?”

“The people and the nobles have already heard about it. Now, it is no longer something that can be solved by simply covering it up. If we handle it wrong, the fairness of the law could collapse. ”

“Are you making this fuss over a mere rumor?”

“To dismiss it as just a rumor. The informant and the evidence are too clear a fact.”

“Evidence?”

As Athena grimaced, Varus looked at her with a questioning expression.

“The informant’s name is Bordin. He’s been working under you for five years.”

“….what?”

“I don’t know for sure, but it seems like he’s betraying me. Do you have any idea why?”

“……”

“Anyway, just stay in the palace for 5 days. I’ll somehow prove your innocence during that time. ”

But no answer came back.

When Varus looked up, he saw Athena with a serious expression on her face, seemingly contemplating something.

Silence fell in the room and it didn’t take long for it to pass.

“I have to go back.”

“Huh?”

Athena notifying her return home.

Barus’s eyebrows furrowed slightly at the unexpected answer.

“Athena. Wouldn’t it be better for you to stay here until the rumors are put to rest?”

“No. I’m going now. Right now.”

“If you leave here, people will think you ran away to avoid investigation.”

“Think of it that way.”

“For the sake of my reputation -”

But before Varus could finish speaking, Athena stood up from her seat, and golden mana slowly began to surround her.

Varus tried to persuade Athena further, but when he saw her face, he was unable to say anything.

Because her expression looked so anxious.

“Are you…okay?”

Barus was surprised by her emotions, which he had never seen before.

Why is she, who always lived with boredom, so anxious?

Realizing that the situation was serious, Barus let out a deep sigh.

“….When you’re done with all the work, then come back to the palace. Until then, I’ll make up excuses somehow.”

“..Okay.”

Soon, Athena snapped her fingers and golden mana began to shine brightly around her.

A precursor to space travel.

But, even though the magic was activated.

There was only a single flicker of light in the room. Athena was still standing there.

“……This fucking shit.”

Athena’s face distorted with evil intent.

Soon she broke through the wall without hesitation and ran out.

.

.

.

Boom-kwang-

With every step he took, a strong gust of wind passed through his body, accompanied by a loud roar.

I exploded all the mana in my feet and flew forward. Before my feet touched the ground, I exploded my mana again and ran.

It was a method that put a lot of strain on my feet, but I didn’t care about that at all.

“Hera…!”

Teleportation to the mansion does not occur.

This means only one thing.

The coordinate teleportation stone installed in the mansion has stopped working due to someone.

And that someone is probably Bordin.

He didn’t wonder why he suddenly betrayed himself.

I didn’t care at all what he was up to.

There’s only one thought that keeps lingering in my head right now.

It was only Hera’s comfort.

Kkadak-

I’m nervous.

My heart kept pounding hard, afraid that something might go wrong with Hera.

‘are you okay.’

I tried to calm my mind.

Even though she is far away, the dragon is now by Hera’s side.

A child who was brought into the mansion solely to protect Hera. If it weren’t for that, he wouldn’t have been allowed to come near Hera.

So nothing will happen.

It has to be that way.

* * *

“Huh…?”

Although the bleeding stopped, I couldn’t get up.

No matter how hard I tried to move, all I could do was flinch a little.

“Mom..Why is my body..”

I was quite confused by the sudden paralysis of my body.

It wasn’t long before I started trying to figure out the situation.

“This is the poison that melted the heart of a basilisk. It is a deadly poison that suppresses the mana in the body and melts the inside. ”

Suddenly, a man’s voice was heard from behind him.

I turned my head with all my might.

“Ji…butler..?”

The head butler of this mansion, wearing a neat suit and one-eyed glasses.

Bordin was looking at him with a surprised face.

“That’s strange. My heart should have melted and died by now.”

He blurts out cruel words so casually.

“What..what are you talking about..”

“Is it the power of unique ability? Interesting.”

He came up to me and took out a dagger from his bosom with a pitiful expression.

“I’m sorry, Miss. I wanted to ease your pain as much as possible, but your body is too strong for that.”

“Why…doing something like this…”

It was confusing.

Because it happened so suddenly, my mind wasn’t working properly.

But still, I wasn’t stupid enough to not realize what was happening.

Himself, who collapsed after eating food. And then Bordin appears right away.

For some unknown reason, Bordin is trying to kill himself.

There’s a good chance they did something to the food.

“Are you curious?”

His calm, yet intensely burning eyes look down at her.

“Well, there’s nothing more frustrating than dying without even knowing the reason.”

Boridin put his hand into his pocket, took out a trinket that resembled an amulet, and opened it.

Then a picture comes out.

He held out a photo in front of me, and I could see a woman who looked great against the evening sunset.

“She’s my wife. She died in a demon attack 8 years ago.”

Bordin, who said so, had a sad face.

“….So.”

“The village we lived in was in a remote area, somewhat far from the Empire. It was a pretty good village to live in before the Demons attacked.”

He continued speaking as he put the photo back into the amulet.

“When the demons attacked, while the village soldiers were struggling to hold out, I asked the empire for help.”

He says with a hollow laugh.

“They didn’t help me. Just because I wasn’t a citizen of the empire.”

“….”

“But God has not abandoned us yet, and I was able to meet a person by chance. A person with outstanding skills who could even stop the attack of the demons.”

“……..Athena”

“That’s right. My current lord. The one who is praised as the hero of the empire. It was Athena.”

As if recalling that time, Bordin’s eyes became even more filled with anger.

“I ran and knelt down and begged, please save our village. Do you know what the lord said?”

“…..What did you say?”

“He told me to stop bothering him and get out. Heh heh..”

“……”

“Well, it’s a predictable story since then. My wife and all the villagers died. I’ve lived my life with only one goal in mind: revenge.”

Bordin, who had finished speaking, was smiling in vain.

It was certainly a sad story.

Is this what he did out of revenge against Athena?

So is she trying to use me, who is close to her?

But whatever it was.

There was something more important than that right now.

‘….The poisonous energy is disappearing.’

While he was telling his long story, I kept moving my fingers secretly.

Unlike before, his fingers wiggle quite naturally.

I don’t know why, but the paralysis in my body was gradually disappearing.

“….But why are you trying to kill me?”

To buy a little more time, I asked Bordin in return.

He looked at me quietly for a moment, then answered my question.

“For the first three years, I tried to kill my lord. I had the ability to run a guild in this village.”

As I put strength into my feet, I feel the sensation of my toes wiggling slightly.

“In the end, I ended up not trying at all, because the moment I saw the golden mana, I realized. It was a monster that I could never kill, no matter what I did.”

As time passed, I gradually regained control of my body.

“So I changed my plan. If I can’t kill her, I’ll take what’s precious to her. That’s Miss Hera.”

Just a little more.

“I spent years trying to give that ruthless monster something precious-”

But Bordin stops talking.

He looked at me with one eyebrow furrowed, as if he had sensed something odd.

“…. Now that I think about it, it’s strange. No matter how strong his body is, he should have vomited a lot of blood by now.”

He thought deeply for a moment, then took up the dagger again.

“I don’t want to disrupt the plan. I’m sorry, but I’ll stop here.”

Soon he raised his dagger without hesitation.

“Anyway, even if I live, I will end up being a monster’s love doll, right?”

Without hesitation, he thrust the dagger towards my neck.

“Ugh..!”

Although the paralysis had not yet completely gone away, I was able to move my body to some extent.

I immediately strengthened my body and put my hand out into the path where the sword would fall.

Even if my hand gets pricked, it’s better than having my throat cut.

like that.

Scream-

Blood was flying.

But compared to the blood flying around, I didn’t feel any pain.

I opened my eyes properly and looked at the situation.

The blood was flowing from Bordin’s arm, not my arm.

His arm was cleanly severed and spurting blood.

“Ugh!!”

“Huh..?”

Blood began to spurt from his arms like a fountain.

As I blankly stared at the sight, I was able to spot a figure among the gushing blood.

A former friend of mine who looks so good in a maid’s uniform.

“Al….Lina..?”

It was Alina, holding a small blade in her hand.