Novel Full Chapter 321: Painting Prison (2)
Chapter 321: Painting Prison (2)
The following noon, the depths of the Imperial Palace basement were declared the site of a magical incident, and all entry was forbidden. Every mage and knight of the Imperial Palace was dispatched, and Ria was no exception.
“… Yawwwwn. What’s going on?” Ria muttered, yawning with a tired face and rubbing her eyes.
Ria’s stamina was depleted, having spent the previous evening in consecutive sparring matches with Delic, Leo, and Carlos, all while grappling with her thoughts about Deculein.
“Do not approach. It is dangerous,” said one of the knights.
In the Imperial Palace basement corridor, near the library, a crowd of curious ministers and maids were in hushed whispers. Though the knights attempted to maintain order, heads craned and murmurs spread among them.
“What is it? What’s going on?” Ria asked the knight, approaching him with an innocent voice.
“Do not even be curious… Oh, it’s Ria. Hmm… Yes, look there,” said the knight, seeming to recognize Ria’s face and gesturing towards the Imperial Palace library. “It’s a magical attack.”
“Magical attack?”
“That is correct.”
Is it the Altar’s doing? Ria thought.
Ria glanced over the knight’s shoulder, and just as he’d said, the library was an absolute disaster, with bookshelves toppled like dominoes and volumes scattered like refuse across the floor.
“All who visited the library in the past three days have gone missing.”
“Missing?”
“Yes.”
“Does that mean no one knew for three days?”
“… The Imperial Palace library, as you know, is not a crowded place. This was only revealed because the selected mage and his escort knight went missing last night. But there’s a bit more of a problem than that…”
Appearing to glance around his surroundings and clearing his throat, the knight then whispered, “The number of missing persons in this Imperial Palace is gradually increasing.”
“… Really?”
The Imperial Palace was immense, to a degree that its true scale was often lost on those who merely spoke of its grandeur. With tens of thousands residing within its grounds—from ministers and maids to imperial knights, mages, their attendants, and hundreds of foreign guests—the disappearance of merely one or two individuals rarely sparked news.
“Is it my turn to step forward?” Ria asked.
“Would you like to go within? Even for you, I believe, danger might attend,” the knight replied, a subtle smile gracing his lips.
“It’s okay.”
“Alright.”
With entry granted, Ria stepped into the library, her eyes slowly sweeping over the investigators at its heart. Numerous people were present, from imperial mages scattering mana in every direction to men and women in suits who appeared to be from the Intelligence Agency. Deputy Knight Isaac, Knight Gawain of the Imperial Knights’ Order, and Knight Delic were also there.
“… What’s the matter, Knight Delic?” Ria asked Delic.
“Hmm?” Delic murmured, noticing Ria while conversing with agents. “Oh, it is you Ria.”
“Yes.”
Delic is kind. He’s smiling at me like this, I suppose, must be because of Deculein. No, maybe I should say thanks to Deculein? Ria thought.
“Well, the selected mage, the knight, and the librarian were pulled inward.”
“Where were they pulled inward to?”
“This canvas,” Delic replied, pointing to the canvas in the middle of the library. “This seems to be the cause… We are currently investigating who placed this canvas here. Why, will you join us?”
“Is that alright?”
“Of course.”
Buzz—
At that moment, a sudden vibration startled Delic, who drew a crystal orb from his inner pocket and looked at it for a long moment before clearing his throat.
“Everyone, make ready. Count Yukline will arrive momentarily.”
“Yes, sir!”
At Delic’s words, everyone, including the Intelligence Agency agents, stiffened. Ria felt a growing unease at their loyalty, wondering if this was indicative of the Empire’s foremost authority. For now, however, she awaited Deculein’s imminent arrival.
Thud—
At that moment, the distinctive sound of approaching footsteps echoed through the library, drawing the collective eyes of everyone present as Ria found herself instinctively swallowing.
“Gulp—”
For a moment, Ria’s heart fluttered, but she calmed herself with a deep breath and meticulously composed her expression, determined not to betray any sign of her inner state.
“Have you arrived!” Delic said, offering a salute.
The other agents mirrored his salute while Gawain and Isaac wore distinctly bitter expressions, and these two knights showed no signs of excessive loyalty, leading Ria to consider that she might well need their assistance.
“A magical attack, was it?” Deculein said, his low voice vibrating like a rumble.
“Yes, that is so,” Delic replied.
“What is that which is presumed to be the medium?”
“It was this canvas itself!”
For a short while, Deculein merely stared at the canvas, but then he covered the distance between them.
“Oh, Count Yukline. It is dangerous. I encourage not to—”
Clack—
Despite Delic’s dissuasion, Deculein, without a moment’s hesitation, pulled the canvas from its place on the wall, and with one hand, rotated and inspected the blank surface, examining every inch.
“… Do you happen to know what it is?” Isaac asked.
Deculein offered a nod without a word.
“What is it?” Ria asked.
“They will descend from the Floating Island,” Deculein said, looking down at Ria and speaking words that were rather unexpected.
“… Sorry?”
A collective bewilderment settled upon every face.
“It is Epherene,” Deculein said, hanging the canvas on the wall.
The name Epherene Luna was familiar to both Ria and Delic.
“It seems that she is engaged in strange conduct.”
At this very moment, Epherene was being pursued by the Purgers of the Floating Island, accused of being the seed of a disaster that would destroy the continent. However, the greatest threat resided with the Altar and within the Imperial Palace itself, while the Floating Island misguidedly targeted Epherene.
I understand. Oh, that doesn’t mean I actually understand them. However, since the Floating Island is a separate world unrelated to the continent, the greatest harm to the organization will be a being with the potential to collapse the foundation of the current magic system—that is, Epherene, Ria thought.
“Epherene, really?”
“Yes. How many missing person reports have there been recently?” Delic asked, looking at the Intelligence Agency agent beside him.
“Within the Imperial Palace, one hundred three cases, and outside, a total of eight hundred thirty cases,” the agent replied without hesitation.
The number of disappearances was enough to make even Ria pause in disbelief.
Then, seeming to fall into thought for a moment, with a twist on his lips, Deculein muttered, “How foolish.”
“Count Yukline, where are you heading to?” Delic asked Deculein, who spun on his heel, unaware of what Deculein found foolish.
“I am going to be searching for Epherene. It is likely the Floating Island has already commenced its own search for her,” Deculein replied.
“What will you do after finding her?” Ria asked, a question born of instinct.
Deculein regarded Ria with deep-set eyes, and his words, delivered in a voice like sharpened steel, sent a shiver down Ria’s neck.
“… It is likely that I will kill her.”
Without a moment’s hesitation, Deculein turned and left the scene, declaring his intent to kill Epherene, his former protégé, as he stormed out of the library. Meanwhile, Ria, watching him go, felt a strange, undeniable certainty solidify within her.
The current Deculein is dangerous, Ria thought.
***
I was running, my own two legs outpacing both horse and vehicle, and with the Mirror Passages scattered across the continent, distance could not bind me.
What Epherene sought to achieve with that canvas was clear, as if I somehow already knew—perhaps because, in a distant future, Epherene had, or rather would, engage in a similar undertaking.
… Epherene was, in her own way, preparing for the continent’s destruction, but her true aim was to preserve its life, which was indeed the work of an archmage, a spell of monumental scale.
However, it wasn’t that Epherene I had come for today, as she’s incredibly adept at hiding—or rather, now unbound by time, she’d be completely impossible for me to locate, at least for the moment.
“Ethereal Deculein.”
Instead, it was with the Purger sent from the Floating Island for Epherene—a dignified man cloaked in a hooded robe.
“Have you heard the news?” Mayev, the Purger, asked me.
I took in the scene without a word—the foothills of the Empire—where they’d constructed a cabin right in the heart of nature. I couldn’t comprehend their purpose, as these were men with nothing but magic and mana rattling in their heads, missing more than a few screws.
“… If it is news, do you speak of the disappearance case?” I inquired.
“Indeed. Epherene is engaging in strange conduct.”
Strange conduct? I thought.
“We clearly stated that Epherene is an extremely dangerous mage. The price for that is continuing under these circumstances,” Mayev continued, narrowing the wrinkles on his face.
“Provide a more comprehensive explanation, then.”
“Epherene has gone mad,” Mayev said.
I found myself at a complete loss for words.
Well, is it perhaps understandable to make such a misconception? I thought.
“Epherene’s magic is pulling people inward—not one, not two either. This is a grand incident spreading across the entirety of the continent.”
His words might well be true, and perhaps Epherene was indeed abducting people into the canvas, driven to madness by the infinite repetition of time.
“She has gone mad within endlessly repeating time,” the Purger continued.
I stifled a laugh.
“Can she be apprehended?”
“It is achievable. Will you, then, cooperate with us?”
“Have I ever not cooperated with you?” I replied with an air of unconcern.
Well, I have never withheld my cooperation with them, I thought.
“However, by what means do you aim to apprehend the one cast away from time?”
“With grand magic.”
The Purger spoke of grand magic, yet my brow merely furrowed.
“Grand magic?”
“Indeed, with a grand magic that stagnates the time of a specific space.”
Something about his statement was undeniably strange to me, as magic that could stagnate space meant its very nature was tied to the logic of time.
“… Have you accepted Epherene’s theory?” I replied with a smile, shaking my head and glaring at the Purger.
They offered no reply, and when it came to time, every mage in this world was, at best, merely catching up with Epherene.
“Well, there is also the saying that if you know the enemy and know yourself, you need not fear the result of a hundred battles.”
In response to my words, a few of the Purgers managed to offer a hesitant nod.
“Indeed. Epherene’s theory remains dangerous, yet we mastered it precisely because we hold the capacity to manage and contain its power commensurate with our abilities.”
It was, indeed, a sickening justification—too detestable to arouse anything but contempt, yet too pathetic to be genuinely clever.
“Hmph, enough with the justifications. When do you mean to proceed with that grand magic?”
“In three days’ time,” replied one of the Purgers.
The span of three days weighed on my mind as I considered my capabilities, knowing that there were six Purgers, each with individual strengths that would be difficult for even me to handle, given that they were assassins experts in hunting mages.
However, it wasn’t impossible because preparation and planning were the villain’s greatest weapons, and if I spared no means, I could indeed defeat them.
“Is completion achievable by that time?” I inquired.
Therefore, those three days would serve as both the time for them to prepare their grand magic and for me to devise a dark stratagem for their end.
“Of course, it is achievable.”
I watched them in silence, and a plan, clearly straightforward, presented itself without much difficulty.
“Hmm, is that so?”
The number one plan immediately came to mind.
“It appears, even to me, that it is achievable,” I added.
… To beat them all to death.
***
Meanwhile, the Imperial Palace had fallen into an oppressive darkness.
“… Deculein seems to be cooperating with the Altar,” Ria said in the room wrapped in Silence. “I’m not sure why, though…”
It was Ganesha and Scarletborn Elesol, with whom Ria had maintained close contact and to whom she had finally delivered the difficult message.
“Is that so?” Ganesha replied.
However, Ganesha showed no reaction of alarm, which confused Ria and caused her to tilt her head to the side.
“I see,” Ganesha continued, a smile gracing her lips.
“How come you’re not reacting at all?”
“What do you mean?”
“You don’t even look surprised.”
“Now that’s a good question. Why aren’t I surprised?” Ganesha replied, a chuckle escaping her lips before she let out a sigh. “Could it be because I already have a mission?”
At Ganesha’s words, Ria’s brow furrowed.
Smiling as if Ria were the most adorable being, Ganesha continued, “If you knew, then everyone else must have, don’t you think?”
“Other people? If you mean other people…”
Ria’s words broke off, and her expression hardened as Leo and Carlos beside her mirrored her expression.
“Yes, that’s right,” Ganesha replied, her expression growing somber as she nodded with a settled face.
Then, from within her inner pocket, Ganesha pulled out a sealed official letter issued by the Imperial Palace and held it out forward.
“It’s a mission request sent directly to us from the Imperial Palace.”
Ria opened the official letter, her eyes widening in sheer disbelief.
“… What.”
If Ria was aware of such information, then it was conceivable that the Imperial Palace had similar suspicions, for that corner—the deepest shadow—was the Imperial Intelligence Agency, which served Her Majesty alone.
“Even the Imperial Intelligence Agency has its suspicions about Deculein.”
[Official Mission Request : The Red Garnet Adventure Team]
◆ The subject is to be placed under surveillance and investigated. Should any indication of treason or conspiracy arise, immediate notification is required.
◆ Subject : Deculein von Grahan-Yukline
Ria set down the official letter and stared at Ganesha in a daze.
“The real question is, will Her Majesty, the Empress, believe us? And of course, we’ll need evidence for that,” Ganesha continued, resting her chin on her hand, her eyes sparkling with interest. “What do you say, Ria? Should we take on this challenge? Should we pursue Deculein?”
The official mission request outlined a clear objective—to place Deculein under surveillance, confirm that he is a spy cooperating with the Altar, acquire evidence of his treason, and present it to the Imperial Intelligence Agency and Her Majesty, the Empress.
“… I don’t think there’s any other choice.”
Even if this mission meant betraying Deculein, there was no other choice.
“Because he’s trying to finish the lighthouse right now.”
Even if Deculein’s current condition stemmed from Ria herself, or from the added setting involving a character—Yuara, his former fiancée, whom Ria had included without much thought—no, if anything, because of that…
“We have to make things right,” Ria concluded, clenching her teeth. “If we can’t convince him, then even if we have to… take his life. No matter what.”