novelraw Chapter 107
Chapter 107
Ch.107 Why? What Did I Do Wrong?
Days later, in the capital.
The King of the Dead had resurrected, and the Emperor, Pope, and Hero Party gathered in the council chamber.
“We’ve detected and eliminated ghouls and zombies prowling near the capital. I trust you all understand what this implies.”
The Emperor’s worried expression cast a heavy silence over the room.
“Do not trouble yourself too deeply, Your Majesty,” the Pope said soothingly. “Though Roy has risen as the King of the Dead, we still have the Hero Party, a genius mage, a saintess, and the Adversary appointed by the gods.”
But the Emperor shook his head.
“Enough. Right now, we must focus on repelling the enemy. Hero, report what you’ve learned from interrogating the Church of Death’s followers.”
The Hero Party had captured and rigorously interrogated Death Cultists.
Though they lacked Mia’s professional-level expertise, her teachings had enabled them to extract information easily.
“It’s not complete, but it seems they were planning terrorist attacks across the entire Empire.”
The Emperor pressed his fingers to his temples and sighed in relief.
“Ah… thank goodness. If they’d stirred chaos in this state, it would’ve been a nightmare. Once this crisis is resolved, Baron Hans deserves a grand reward.”
Everyone exhaled in relief—avoiding the terrifying scenario where undead armies invaded the Empire while internal enemies sabotaged supply depots and key facilities.
Then, a knight in gleaming metal armor cautiously spoke beside the Emperor.
“However, Your Majesty, the current undead assaults aren’t strong. They lack reason, and ghouls or zombies are weak—no need for concern.”
The Minister of War nodded in agreement.
“Precisely. They’re just rotting corpses. They can’t scale walls, and boiling oil alone can kill them. And don’t we now have holy water, Holy Knights, and priests? There’s nothing to fear. In fact…”
He paused, casting a suspicious glance at the Pope and Cecilia.
“I fail to understand why the Papal See is stoking fear over such weak undead. If there truly was a dangerous prophecy, they should’ve reported it to Your Majesty immediately. Isn’t this manipulation?”
The ministers remembered how the Papal See had thrown its weight around during the Demon King’s rise.
Given the current situation wasn’t severe, they suspected the Church was manufacturing panic to regain influence.
“Heh heh…”
The Pope chuckled warmly under their scrutiny.
Cardinal Walter stood abruptly in his place.
“This is slander! We concealed the prophecy because it foretold the extinction of all life—revealing it would’ve caused social chaos. Though received a thousand years ago, we suppressed it to prevent unnecessary panic.”
“Then explain this,” a minister challenged. “Why are these corpses so resilient?”
Unable to directly accuse the Pope, they pressured Walter—until Cecilia spoke calmly.
“According to the prophecy, the King of the Dead can summon Lord Roy, the God of Death, to this realm. His return heralds the world’s end—and must be prevented. Moreover, his undead legions will possess resistance.”
The ministers gaped at her shocking declaration.
“Undead resistant to Divine Light? How… what?”
“How can beings defying nature’s order resist the holy power of the gods?”
Undead revived by corrupt forces were normally vulnerable to Divine Light—
because the gods despised those who violated their ordained laws.
“The King of the Dead was resurrected by the God of Death himself. Do you truly believe Divine Light will affect a being revived by divine power? Though speculative, he and his army likely possess resistance.”
The Minister of Justice spoke in a trembling voice.
“Wait… does that mean all undead…”
“Not all. Only those directly revived by the King of the Dead.”
Relieved by this sliver of good news, the ministers sighed.
“But the greater threat isn’t his entire army. According to Father Hans, liches and death knights may join the offensive.”
Liches were high-tier mages who preserved their undead forms to evade death; death knights were elite knights resurrected in their prime.
Both were typically dungeon bosses—so the thought of them swarming in hordes terrified everyone.
“How can we trust the words of that womanizer?”
Scarlet and Leah’s eyes turned icy at the ministers’ remark.
“How dare you! Master has worked tirelessly to save this world—how can you spew such nonsense?!”
“Leah’s right! Have you forgotten he spent his own fortune hiring mercenaries and supplying provisions?!”
Shamed, the ministers averted their eyes.
None had fully supported the Hero Party—they’d acted only in their families’ and domains’ interests.
Called out so bluntly, they stared blankly at the distance.
“And don’t forget—the gods themselves appointed Father Hans as the Adversary. To doubt him is to doubt the great gods themselves.”
In this world, gods proved their existence far more tangibly than in Earth’s Middle Ages.
Questioning such beings was dangerously heretical.
“The chamber grows too noisy.”
The Emperor intervened to defuse tensions, and the Pope quickly concurred.
“Indeed, Your Majesty. We offer our faithful hearts to the gods and unwavering loyalty to the Empire. Please trust us.”
“I do trust you. Though I am Emperor, I am but a humble, pitiful mortal before the gods.”
He glanced at the Hero Party.
“Very well. What should we do?”
Scarlet, as the party’s representative, met the Emperor’s gaze with calm certainty.
“Baron Hans stated the undead army will focus their assault on the capital. We must prepare to stop them.”
Just then—
“Your Majesty! An urgent messenger from the Border Guard requests an immediate audience!”
Emperor Friedrich Aldenreich’s face hardened at the panicked voice outside.
‘What’s happened?’
He knew urgent border messengers rarely brought good news.
“Enter.”
Creak…
The massive doors opened. A soldier in leather armor rushed in and knelt.
“Your Majesty! Disaster! We’ve confirmed the Army of the Dead beyond the northern border!”
Silence fell over the chamber.
The Emperor, Hero Party, Pope, and ministers all froze.
‘Patron…’
‘Father Hans… you truly…’
‘Master… is the end really coming?’
They could only pray Hans would swiftly slay the King of the Dead.
***
“Sage? Night markets are fun!”
“Yeah! Brother! Buy me that!”
Aria’s eyes sparkled at a plush toy on a stall sign.
“You like that? I’ll buy it—but keep it secret from Mommy, okay?”
The girl nodded eagerly, beaming.
“Okay! I will!”
The plush now clung to Aria’s chest.
She nuzzled it happily—her white hair and sweet expression making the sight unbearably cute.
As I thought this, Mia hesitated, her hand hovering over Aria’s head.
“Why? Do you want to pet Aria?”
“A… no.”
She answered curtly.
So stubbornly dishonest…
Mia was terrible at expressing her feelings.
“Aria, I think Mia wants to pet your head. Is that okay?”
Aria eyed Mia up and down.
“Hmm… as long as she’s not like Leah, it’s fine!”
‘Leah again?’
Even here, Leah’s name came up—no surprise, given how she smothered Aria daily with hugs and head pats.
Even that stoic servant had melted under Aria’s charm.
With Aria’s permission granted, I signaled Mia.
“Go ahead and pet her.”
“Ugh…!”
Mia flushed slightly—had I read her mind?
“Miss Aria… may I pet your head?”
Aria nodded.
“Yeah! You can touch it.”
Pat… pat…
Mia’s eyes welled up as she stroked Aria’s hair.
“So… soft…”
“Hehe.”
Aria giggled happily.
“I like Mia!”
She threw her arms around Mia.
(Though technically, Aria was older—dragons aged differently.)
“S-sister?”
“Yeah! Sister!”
Watching Mia’s touched expression, I thought:
‘That old hag…’
Beautiful as she was, game lore put her at over 200 years old.
Mia bent down, eyes glistening—
Whoosh!
—and hugged Aria tightly.
“You’re so cute!”
“Ugh! Let go!”
Aria squirmed, pushing her away with a pained voice.
“Huh? Was I suffocating you?”
Aria darted behind my legs.
“Yeah! You were just like Leah!”
“I’m nothing like Leah!”
Mia shot me a glare.
‘What do you want from me?’
I didn’t tell her to hug like that!
“Aria, Mia’s not like Leah. She’s not reckless like her.”
They truly were different:
Leah cursed loudly when upset, while Mia stayed silent—just grabbing your collar with icy eyes.
“Sorry, Aria.”
It was funny—just moments ago, she’d used honorifics (‘Miss Aria’) as a Hatchling, but now switched to casual speech.
(Though visually, Mia did look like the older sister.)
“Hmm… it’s okay.”
Peeking out from behind my legs, Aria listened as I coaxed gently:
“Is holding hands okay, then?”
Nod!
“Yeah!”
Aria reached out shyly—and Mia clasped her hand, moved.
“Shall we explore more?”
We wandered the night market.
“What’s that?”
Aria’s delight at everything was heartwarming.
She spotted candied fruit and lit up.
“Can I eat that?”
It looked overly sweet—but she was a dragon. Probably fine.
I bought some and handed it to her.
“Mmm! Sweet!”
She bounced, waving the treat.
“Brother’s the best! I love Brother most!”
Mia gave me a reproachful look.
“Sage, she’s still young. Too much sugar might give her cavities.”
“So what? She’s a dragon. Cavities won’t kill her.”
“You can’t raise Aria properly with such foolish thinking.”
Mia walked to a fruit stall and returned with something.
“Aria, try a ripe apple instead. It’s much healthier.”
The apple gleamed with deep red luster—clearly perfectly ripe.
But Aria pouted.
“Hiiing… I hate apples! This is tastier!”
She stuffed the candied fruit into her mouth.
Mia shot me a withering glance.
“Hmph!”
Why? What did I do wrong?
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