episode_0247

* * *

Go back in time, when the plague had just begun to calm down.

Some of the soldiers of the Aishous Army were burning the bodies of their comrades who had died for reasons other than war.

Frowning at the smell of rotting corpses now felt like a daily routine.

“Everyone! Ultimately, it is God. God will save us. The reason this tragedy has come now is because the faith within us has become lax. That’s right! Ultimately, all of this means that God exists! Let’s build a cathedral again. Let’s worship God one day a week. You can only be saved if you do not abandon your faith even during war! everyone! Let’s tell God we still have faith!”

The smell of a dead body stings your nose.

The acrid smoke and odor that comes from burning flesh.

The land was destroyed due to endless small-scale local wars until the disease broke out.

The fanatics, like flies, who smelled this and flocked in, trying to climb on the flimsy authority of a church that was already dead.

Is there anything special about a place called hell?

This place I’m breathing in right now was hell.

A hell where everyone is being punished for the crime of ‘not dying’ at a time when everyone is dying.

“It looks like Dave died in the end.”

One of the soldiers spoke to the man who was disposing of the body.

“Really? That bastard was chasing women all day long, and in the end he died without even being able to get his bachelor label.”

“What can I do if I have to live as a libertine even if I go to the afterlife?”

“Cipal. Just buy a prostitute. Why is this guy with so much sex drive putting up with it?”

“They say it’s in their hometown. The girl I liked since I was young.”

“… … That sucks. No, Dave, who didn’t use his dick properly even once and ended up being left behind, would be even more miserable.”

“What kind of bullshit is this, this bastard.”

He tells a not-so-funny joke and forces the corners of his mouth to move.

If you don’t do this, if you maintain your senses and realize what you have been doing for several days… … It will inevitably become much more difficult to endure.

“What should I do? Even healthy people are falling over.”

“Ha… … .”

“If it hadn’t been a war, we could have coped with it.”

“What does that mean now? You know very well that it is unreasonable to hope that there will be no war in times like these.”

“Well, right… … Fuck.”

Silence followed again.

The man doesn’t really want to continue the conversation, but rather feels like he’s going out of his mind if he doesn’t say anything, so he blurts out random words.

“What about Dave’s body?”

“I’m going to burn it. I don’t know what happened after I went to the closed ward.”

“Really?”

How many more lives are being taken?

we are… … Will I be able to get my old life back?

Of course, even a soldier could have predicted that he would be able to return to his old life. Because diseases with much higher fatality and infection rates than those mentioned in history books eventually disappeared.

However, the reality before our eyes. The fact that he was in this situation right now just made him feel uncomfortable.

“So, did you hear the news?”

“Which one?”

“General Emma. He passed away.”

“Ah… … huh. I heard it.”

Emma Adlen.

She had never fought in a unit where she was the leader. Because he was mainly a soldier who fought under General Epinel.

Of course, since she was working within the Aishus Army, she knew who she was and at least her face – but she probably didn’t know herself as just a soldier.

I had no particular regrets about that fact. Given the circumstances, it seems as if the aristocratic system has collapsed, but he also lived in a solid class-based society until the division.

“They said it hasn’t been processed yet.”

“Huh?”

“The corpse.”

“Really? why? Diseased bodies should be burned as soon as possible.”

“It’s the master’s order.”

“… … .”

It’s an order, but when General Heinrich died a while ago, didn’t they just burn his body?

Even as a soldier himself, Heinrich was not a very trustworthy general, but he was still a person who suffered as a general under her.

The soldier’s expression wrinkled for a moment, but he soon relaxed and took a long sigh.

Because there is dignity in life.

In the first place, I didn’t have any affection for Heinrich.

What can he do when he is just a soldier who has neither the energy nor the qualifications to think particularly reactionary thoughts?

As I continued burning the corpse, something suddenly occurred to me.

“Now that I think about it, I heard that this disease didn’t fall to Serpina’s side?”

“They issued a blockade order there.”

“Lockdown?”

“Okay. I understand that the disease did not enter the northern part of the country due to the lockdown imposed before it even spread.”

“Why was the lockdown ordered?”

“Well, I don’t know either. Serpina is not the type of person who thinks and moves.”

The soldier who heard those words spoke quietly, lost in thought.

“No… … Isn’t it a bit strange?”

“What?”

” A lockdown was imposed even before the disease spread… … So you’re safe now? Does that make sense? Serpina may be a tyrant, but she is still a member of the imperial family, and seeing as she killed all of her brothers, she is not that stupid.”

“So what? What do you want to say?”

“He… … Didn’t you know there would be a plague?”

“… … ??”

The soldier who was talking said with an expression that he did not understand.

“Hey, does that make sense? Serpina is not a god, so how do you know?”

“No, think about it carefully. It’s there. Wizard!”

At the words of the soldier who was burning the body, the eyes of the soldier who had been appropriately correcting him changed to four hundred eyes.

“… … Huh?”

* * *

A plague spread across the central continent.

There is no damage to the northern continent because the lockdown was imposed early on.

Not long ago, an unknown being called a wizard appeared in Serpina County on the northern continent.

It was not only the soldiers of the Aishous Army who found strangeness in the three truths.

The people of the territory who lost their families, the generals of the Chell County, and those in the territory of the Kalinz County are also starting to realize this little by little.

And, finally, one conclusion is drawn.

――Serpina intentionally used the magician to relieve the plague.

If you think about it even a little seriously, it was just absurd sophistry, but Serpina was a very suitable prey for people who lost a precious person to a natural disaster and wanted to turn their anger on someone.

A rare evil woman who killed her own flesh and blood with her own hands.

A tyrant without blood or tears.

The reason why this continent faced difficult times in the first place!

Since there was no one other than her who wanted to throw stones, this cruel rumor began to spread at an unprecedented speed.

* * *

And the rumor eventually reached the ears of Yuuri, who lost even Emma and had stopped eating and drinking.

“That’s impossible… … Nonsense. How could you do something so cruel… … .”

“It’s still just a rumor, but the possibility is very high.”

“Serpina… … I can never forgive… … Enemies at the Academy… … And, even Emma’s life… … !!!”

Epinel looked at Yuuri, who was crying with a resolute expression, and spoke in a voice full of anger.

“Okay. In the end, it was that bitch who did it. lets think. The lockdown, which seemed meaningless, was like an act of God for them. When he first decided to withdraw his troops, he tried to kill everyone in a cruel way… … ?”

Epinel, who was explaining to Yuuri in sympathy, was momentarily speechless and lowered his head.

The anger began to cool down.

‘wait for a sec. Serpina definitely relocated Yeongjimin… … ?’

Why on earth did you do that?

If you think about it that way, doesn’t it make sense that she did something like that to kill everyone?

Something… … It was strange.

That there is something you don’t know.

I don’t know exactly what it is… … His ‘intuition’ was sounding a warning to Epinel more than ever.

“… … Epinel.”

“Uh, huh?”

“I will announce it.”

Yuuri wiped his tears with his sleeve and spoke in a voice full of determination.

“They will say that the wizard of Serpina County is the culprit of the plague.”

“Wait a minute. What I want to announce is… … .”

“I’m going to inform the continent. Since it is an enemy country anyway, there is no need to declare war.”

The announcement had great significance.

Just like in the past, when Rin and Serpina announced on a grand scale that they were holding hands… … The news spreads quickly to neighboring countries.

In this case, if Serpina really spread the plague, our military would probably be able to win the favor of neighboring countries. There was also a possibility that public sentiment among the territory’s residents would rise. In the worst situation, where we had gone through a long war and even suffered a plague, it might have been a godsend for our military if we could turn that blade on Serpina’s army.

But, on the contrary, what if Serpina did not do such a thing or there is no evidence to suggest that she did so?

There was a possibility that the Aethus Army’s position among the territory’s residents and other countries on the continent would be drastically reduced.

“Calm down, Yuuri. It’s not certain yet.”

at that time.

“… … What?”

Yuuri looked at Epinel with an expression of disbelief.

“… … Epinel. Are you serious? Hernandorf’s… … And Emma’s. In a situation where we all know clearly what our enemy has done… … Let’s just sit back and suffer?!”

“No, that’s not it. Anima will soon return. Because the condition has improved and the critical point has been overcome… … So, after at least asking Anima’s opinion-”

“Epinel.”

Yuuri cut off Epinel’s words in a colder tone than ever.

“The monarch of this country is me.”

“… … !”

“Are you dissatisfied, Epinel? you said it I am the ruler of Aethius County. What to do, what to take responsibility for… … It’s me.”

“Well, that is.”

Yuuri turned away from her.

“… … For Emma’s sake, please don’t hold on to my ankles… … Got it?”

After saying that, he left the castle with a colder expression than ever before.

Epinel quietly watches Yuuri’s back.

With two out of five people dead, there is no way she can stop Yuuri… … There wasn’t.

‘… … Anima, please come back quickly… … !’

* * *

“Ah, hello… … !”

To Reika, who was bowing her head towards me and not knowing what to do, I said with a smile on my face.

“We ate together this morning too. There is no need to say hello again.”

“Oh, no… … ! Well, still… … Counseling, so… … Wouldn’t it be nice to say hello… … It’s so sweet.”

Even though she hesitated, she became so withdrawn that it made people who watched her feel frustrated.

Still, perhaps because we spent a long time together, I found her to be quite cute that way.

“It’s okay.”

I lightly stroked Reika’s head.

She lowered her head without saying a word and quietly accepted my touch.

And then, without realizing it, he speaks in a very quiet voice.

“… … good night. Hehe.”

“Yes?”

“Ah? iced coffee… … Oh, no!”

Although I had already heard everything, I thought about pretending not to notice and sat down with her on the sofa.

“So, what do you need to discuss?”

“That… … Do you remember what happened a while ago?”

“How long ago was this?”

“I had a conversation with Serpina.”

“Ah.”

Was this not long after the news of Hernandov’s death was heard?

“I remember.”

“About that… … I’d like to talk about it.”

“A story?”

Reika took a deep breath.

“… … Master!”

It’s been a while since he called me by that name.

“Perhaps there is magic that can cure diseases… … Is there something similar… … ?!”

was asked.