Chapter 239
It was clear that those two had driven away Pan-El’s crisis.
Since heroes had entered, it was courteous to greet them with utmost respect.
There were four people approaching rapidly across the courtyard: Pope Benedict, Cardinal Bezialius, Cardinal Dekal, and Saintess Muriel.
“Your Grace! Your Excellency! As expected, you’ve come to aid the Theocracy. Thank you, ‘Strict Order and Goodness’. May its blessing reside here.”
Cardinal Dekal, usually reserved, could not hide his delight and raised his voice.
In response, Duke Hispenril and Marquise Lekandro nodded gravely and spoke a word each.
“It seems Marquise Lekandro and I are not too late.”
“The situation outside was dire, so I was relieved to find you safe.”
Cardinal Bezialius stepped forward.
“Saintess Muriel here activated the Holy Ground Construction artifact. Thanks to that, we were able to endure while protecting the majority of the citizens. But…”
His prolonged trailing sentence felt suspicious.
What followed was a probing question.
“Are you two alone?”
“What do you mean, Cardinal?”
Duke Hispenril’s re-question was simple, born purely of confusion.
However, Cardinal Bezialius fell silent as if he had been subjected to a torturous interrogation, and Cardinal Dekal, as if resigned, began to speak in his stead.
“Ahem, it seems His Eminence the Holy Saint and the Master of the Holy Sword are not visible…”
Only on issues like this were the Minister of Inquisition and the Minister of Gospel united in heart and mind.
From their perspective, the Holy Saint and the Master of the Holy Sword were loyal servants of the Church.
Yet, the workers who should have immediately rushed to the Theocracy’s crisis and bravely fought without reservation were nowhere to be seen. They implicitly felt resentment.
Such inner feelings, even if hidden, could not be concealed.
Duke Hispenril and Marquise Lekandro each expressed displeasure at the treatment of their precious granddaughter and their nation’s prince.
The voices of the two Aura Masters grew colder.
“Currently, not only Pan-El but the capitals of all nations are in this state. My granddaughter went directly to Gehennid after subduing the boss that appeared in Peronsa. She asked me to take care of Pan-El, saying she was the only one who could save the people there… It seems the Theocracy felt my military support was insufficient.”
“Our Prince also said similar words immediately after saving the royal capital and headed for Gehennid. Honestly, if it weren’t for His Highness’s request, I can’t guarantee I would have come to Pan-El this quickly.”
Both Aura Masters implied they moved at the behest of the Holy Saint and the Master of the Holy Sword.
Only then did Cardinal Dekal and Cardinal Bezialius realize their mistake and corrected their attitudes.
Pope Benedict changed the subject as if to calm the atmosphere.
He had just received information that could not be overlooked.
“If what His Grace says is true, then Dungeon Bursts occurred simultaneously in four cities. This is an unprecedented catastrophe. I wonder what will become of this continent…”
Muriel closed her eyes and offered a brief prayer.
“May you protect the creations of Serentra, ‘Strict Order and Goodness’.”
True to her reputation as the Church’s emblematic saintess, she was holy and reverent.
Duke Hispenril, famously devout, almost closed his eyes in imitation but stopped. It was because his mind had inexplicably settled the moment the divine name was invoked.
More important matters needed to be discussed. Duke Hispenril’s expression became serious.
He and Marquise Lekandro exchanged glances briefly, and soon the Marquise opened his mouth.
“Your Holiness, and all three Eminences. There is something I must tell you about the Dungeon Burst in Pan-El.”
“Is it about the distribution of spoils and resources? If so, then naturally to you two heroes…”
“It’s not about that, Cardinal Dekal. We didn’t even fight a boss battle, so there’s nothing to distribute, after all.”
“What?”
They didn’t fight a boss battle? Then how did they stop the Dungeon Burst?
The four people from the Church looked confused.
Duke Hispenril spoke.
“As the Marquise said. Neither the Marquise nor I saw the shadow of a boss. The gate suddenly vanished on its own while we were dealing with the demons.”
It was as if someone had subdued the boss inside the dungeon, just as Tesillid had done in the royal capital, Wilhellon.
But no one emerged from the gate.
Moreover, the gate disappeared abnormally fast.
That was why Duke Hispenril used the word ‘vanished’ instead of ‘closed’.
Another unprecedented phenomenon.
The Pope, Saintess, and two Cardinals, sensing something amiss, stiffened their expressions.
However, the reactions of the faithful nearby, who had been listening intently, were carefree.
“As expected, ‘Strict Order and Goodness’ has protected us!”
“The demons clearly retreated, daring not to trespass on this holy ground!”
It was fanatical optimism.
It was then that the world shook, as if mocking them.
Thump.
Thump.
Thum-thump.
“…!”
A heavy, drum-like sensation swept through people’s bodies three times.
The source of the concentric shockwave was high above their heads.
“Th-the sky…!”
The Demon Realm Moons, which they thought had vanished, reappeared in the night sky.
And like the hands of a grandfather clock announcing midnight, they overlapped.
A bizarre triple moon, a combination of a red full moon, a blue half-moon, and a purple crescent moon.
The composite, chimera-like celestial body brought a chilling sensation to everyone who beheld it.
Gasps echoed from various parts of the courtyard. It was then, as people shivered with instinctive fear.
Thum-thum-thump!
This tremor was more intense.
Duke Hispenril and Marquise Lekandro’s eyes widened, and Muriel hastily re-deployed Holy Ground Construction.
At that moment.
“A-aah!”
“S-save me… Aaargh!”
Chaos once again engulfed the area outside the Pontifical Palace.
Each time a scream tore through the air with a long tail, a human presence vanished.
In Pan-El, the capital of the Elfenheim Holy Theocracy.
There was no blessing of ‘Strict Order and Goodness’ here. Instead, the resentment of the Chaos Evil God overflowed.
Pan-El’s calamity had just begun.✠I knew. The more I intervened, paradoxically, Reed’s plan accelerated.
I was witnessing that stark reality. Now, destruction, far ahead of schedule, unfolded before my eyes.
[
[
A Dungeon Sink occurred throughout the city. Manhole-like holes randomly appeared from the ground, swallowing people.
Where the screams ceased, a grotesque voice remained.
This was the situation my party, including Tesillid and me, encountered immediately upon Spatial Teleportation to Pan-El.
Dungeon Sinks dragging the living underground as if burying them alive.
My party could not possibly be safe from this horrifying calamity.
“Ugh, aaargh!”
“Hey, grab my hand… H-huh!”
The bodies of a black-haired and a blonde young man rapidly sank.
“Hestio! Iphail!”
It wasn’t just those two.
Ash, tightly holding Hilde far off, spoke as he quickly sank into a swamp-like hole.
“Noona, you’ll come save me, right?”
“…!”
This time, there wasn’t even time to call their names.
Ash and Hilde’s figures also vanished from sight.
Now, only Tesillid and I remained. There was no human presence left around us.
<What is this… What the hell is going on?! Is this how it’s supposed to be?!>
Agnes, in shock, asked. To explain, I needed to calm down first.
Unbelievable reality was articulated through my lips.
“Absolutely not. Originally, it wasn’t supposed to be a Dungeon Sink like this, but a Dungeon Burst like in other countries. A boss of Nazril or Cavalensha’s caliber should have appeared.”
Tesillid added.
“Originally, we were going to face a demon known as ‘The Gambler’s Owner’, but…”
A chilling murmur, like the voice of a specter, pervaded the surroundings.
Random Dungeon Sinks continued.
The ground, where small gates continuously formed and vanished, resembled a sea of black whirlpools.
I gritted my teeth, mindful of the ground beneath my feet that could collapse at any moment.
Normally, Walpurgis Night was S-rank. However, this Iteration, due to Reed’s appearance, was elevated by one rank to SS-rank.
Up to here, it was as per the original story. But my intervention acted as a variable, so it was natural for things to change.
I had fully expected Reed to plan something beyond the 100th Iteration of the original story to keep me in check.
So, I had anticipated its elevation to SSS-rank.
However…
‘I was foolish.’
I underestimated Reed.
[
The enemy we were about to face was not merely ‘The Gambler’s Owner’.
The specter’s voice, which had seemed distant, now echoed nearby.
I instinctively knew. It was finally Tesillid’s and my turn.
The ground beneath my feet gave way, and a powerful gravitational pull, stronger than gravity, dragged my body down.
Swoosh.
With the sensation of passing through a fluid membrane, my feet landed on solid ground.
A welcoming message appeared in the darkness.
[
The oppressive presence filling the space crushed my lungs. I held my breath, waiting for my eyes to adjust to the darkness.
Flash!
Eerie blue candlelight illuminated the space all at once. What I saw as soon as my vision returned was a single path stretching out before me.
It was a well-paved, antique road, but on either side, cliffs stretched out.
My gaze, not my steps, preceded me along the precarious path.
At its end were colossal bronze reliefs depicting writhing humans and a platform as tall as a spire.
I tilted my head back and looked up at the platform.
“…”
An arrogant being looked down, as if surveying all creation.
It was a female demon, dressed in vestments, with golden hair that became bluer as it cascaded downwards, leaving a strong impression.
She oppressed the air, clearly demonstrating that she was the master of this place.
The system introduced her identity.
[
The opponent we had to face this time was a Demon King.
Privilege for the Possessor