novelraw Chapter 86 : Bad Blood and Fate (5)
Chapter 86 : Bad Blood and Fate (5)
Chapter 86: Bad Blood and Fate (5)
There were too many people who had interfered for me to recall them all one by one—damn it.
‘That sly old man….’
Dominico Nimbus. Archbishop of the Ribenian Orthodox Faith.
In order to reform the Empire and prepare for the Apocalypse, I had initially placed the Imperial Household and the Bernhardt Family in my sights.
But in truth, the far greater rot lay with these people—the Ribenian Orthodox Faith itself.
They had isolated themselves by clinging to outdated traditions and rejecting any change, labeling anyone they disliked as a heretic and passing arbitrary judgment as they pleased.
There wasn’t a single power that had ever managed to escape the clutches of their so-called judgment.
And what made that possible was the Inquisition under the church’s control—its members’ average combat power was unmatched even across the entire Empire.
Of course, since they only numbered around five hundred elite members, the regular army would naturally win in a full-scale battle.
Yet even the Special Task Force, the elite of the elite, couldn’t confidently guarantee victory in a head-on fight against them—they possessed that much power.
Backed by such enormous military force and armed with the justification of “faith,” their corruption showed no sign of fading.
They rejected those who opposed them and coaxed the weak into becoming their allies.
As time went on, no one dared to stand against them.
And when the remaining rivals disappeared, they only grew more arrogant.
And the result of that… was now.
Even as the rest of the world acknowledged and studied the existence of guardian deities, the Empire alone continued to defy this global trend.
‘…Up until now, that is.’
I kept gauging the timing to step in, watching the reactions around me.
Michelle, accustomed to such provocations, naturally maintained a perfect poker face without the slightest twitch.
“……”
Rubia’s reaction, however, was different.
She tried hard to compose herself, but she couldn’t hide the fiery determination blazing in her eyes.
Unaware of her restrained anger, Dominico simply continued his speech.
“Duel? The Magic Tower? What do they claim? To affirm the existence of magic and to use it, no?”
He spread his arms wide like a preacher, claiming that the old man with the staff was only an act.
“Magic holds no divine authority! It is born solely from corrupt desire! To seek to understand or harness it is, in itself, an act of blasphemy against God!”
Then, spittle flew from his mouth as he jabbed a finger toward Michelle.
“As the chosen people of God, we cannot allow the Imperial Household—nor the educational institution belonging to it—to join hands with such beings! Do you understand what I mean?”
“……”
I had no choice but to step in now.
Partly because I wanted to shut that ignorant fool’s mouth before he said anything more ridiculous—
“……”
—but mostly because, if I didn’t, Rubia might lose control first.
I lightly tapped her shoulder and stood up.
“…Eugene.”
“Not here.”
“But…!”
“Hold on just a little. I’ll take care of it quickly.”
I swiftly stepped in beside Michelle and spoke.
“Magic is evil, a thing to be destroyed… I agree.”
“Hm?”
“After all, the beasts—one of the greatest byproducts of magic—continue to bring suffering across the world.”
“…Yes. Finally, someone who understands. That’s exactly what I’m saying.”
The moment he thought I agreed, I struck at his blind spot.
“But then… who created magic?”
“…What?”
“Wasn’t it the almighty God who created even that?”
Dominico slammed the podium and shouted furiously.
“Magic is a warning! A sign that we are straying from the righteous path! That’s why we must reject and overcome it…!”
“Then what about an infant—slaughtered mercilessly by a beast? Are you saying that child was also at fault?”
When I pressed deeper into the root of the matter, he softened his tone as if to soothe me.
“There are indeed tragic things in this world that should never happen—like what you just mentioned.”
But that, he claimed, was only from a human perspective.
“From the perspective of the One who transcends us, all creation, such things are also part of His grand providence, are they not?”
“So you mean the all-powerful God enacts providence in ways His creations can’t comprehend? Isn’t that a massive contradiction in itself?”
“I’ve already said it! It is precisely because of that contradiction that God warns us through magic! The sin lies with us for ignoring it—there is no contradiction in God!”
“Then why did God create humans in a way that they would ignore it? If He’s truly omnipotent, couldn’t He have designed us to make the right choices?”
“……”
Dominico’s face darkened rapidly under my relentless rebuttals.
“…Even if, for argument’s sake, what you say is true—it is still our duty and mission to overcome it! There is no reason to join hands with those from the Magic Tower who draw upon that corrupt power!”
“And that assumption—that it’s corrupt power—is exactly the problem….”
Just as our voices began to rise, it happened.
A surge of magic burst forth from behind us—intense, yet warm.
I turned my head reflexively.
And over there—
“…Do you really think this is a corrupted power born from magic? Truly?”
Rubia Magnus stood tall, divine magic radiating around her.
“Rubia….”
“I’m sorry, Eugene. But I couldn’t help it. I’m far too wise a woman to just sit there and listen to that nonsense.”
With that, Rubia stepped forward, pulling the orb toward herself.
Before I realized it, three people from the Karbenna delegation were now standing together on this side of the podium.
She pointed to the end of her staff, glowing with light, and spoke loudly.
“You know what this is, don’t you?”
“…What do you mean?”
“The power you people call a miracle—or divine power.”
“……”
“According to your claims, Archbishop, someone like me—a member of Duel Mallet—shouldn’t be able to wield such a holy force, isn’t that right?”
“……”
“You accuse me of affirming the existence of magic and using it to fulfill base desires. Then why would God grant me this power?”
Dominico, utterly refuted in front of everyone, showed a surprisingly softer demeanor.
Yet the old man still didn’t even glance at Rubia—his eyes fixed only on me and Michelle.
“You said your name was Eugene Carter?”
“Yes.”
“You’ll soon have to answer for the words you’ve spoken.”
“Are you threatening me even now?”
“Haha, of course not. This old man merely worries for you, that’s all.”
While his face remained shamelessly calm, a quiet murderous aura leaked beneath it. Then he bowed deeply toward the princess.
“My apologies for speaking out of turn, Princess Alix. It was simply something I could not overlook….”
“…No, I understand, Archbishop.”
“Then, I shall take my leave.”
He picked up his staff from the floor and strode back to his seat.
Seeing that, I too returned to mine with Rubia.
All the while, I could feel the hostile gazes following us from every direction.
Even after Karbenna’s report concluded, the discussions dragged on for quite some time.
By the time the third agenda topic finally ended, it was well past two in the morning.
“I’d like to once again thank the Academy representatives for faithfully completing their report over this long session. Excellent work.”
After Alix’s closing remarks and the moderator’s wrap-up, we all, almost in unison, headed for the restrooms.
The crowd was so thick that we had to wait quite a while—no surprise there.
The fourth agenda concerned the current beast invasions and countermeasures, chaired by Abel Ribenia.
From then on, I listened to the debates half-heartedly, organizing my own thoughts.
At the same time, I began sorting through potential talents needed for the upcoming reform.
“If I may speak frankly, I believe it’s time we re-evaluated the structure of the Imperial Army.”
The Special Task Force Commander opened with a bold provocation.
He pointed out that from organization to doctrine, the Imperial forces were still geared toward war against other nations rather than the extermination of beasts.
“Operations without a proper system always end up relying on a few strong individuals. Every beast-hunting campaign so far has been the same. Just look at how over seventy percent of Medal of Honor recipients earned their distinction through beast eradication.”
Throwing such a sensitive topic into the air, the commander instantly sparked a flurry of opinions from all sides.
The fierce debate continued for nearly two more hours.
“Granted, beasts are rampant worldwide right now, and yes, we need a structure to deal with that—but surely this phenomenon won’t last forever, will it?”
“If we’d had the resources, we would’ve restructured long ago. It always comes down to manpower and funding.”
“You might think it’s pouring water into a bottomless jar, but if it’s something we must do anyway, shouldn’t we act as soon as possible?”
The argument grew so heated that Abel, as chair, had to intervene several times to calm the room.
I’d already reached my own conclusions long before, so I focused only on observing the participants.
‘…Roughly twenty of them look usable.’
By the time the long-winded debate finally wrapped up, it was already seven in the morning.
Abel, utterly drained, mumbled a few closing words and left the stage.
The final agenda—discussion on the Council’s seven core policy issues—was reserved for the Imperial Household and the senators, so the rest of us had to return to our seats.
Until the closing ceremony, no one was permitted to leave the hall. The only options were to listen or to nap in a corner.
Aside from a few who’d been forced to attend, most participants were genuinely interested in the issues, and even after more than twenty hours, their eyes still shone with focus.
And so—
At 2 p.m. on the seventeenth, the twenty-eighth hour since the opening declaration, the discussion on all five major agendas finally came to an end.
After a brief closing ceremony, most attendees, except for a few too exhausted to move, headed to the banquet hall.
“……”
As the plates stacked up one after another on either side of me, Francia and Rubia simply stared in silence.
After clearing my sixteenth plate, a burp nearly escaped me. I barely suppressed it and let out a sigh of relief.
“Phew, thought I was gonna die.”
“…You must’ve been really hungry.”
“I haven’t eaten properly in two days.”
“Would you like my meat, then?”
“No need to go that far. I can just ask for more.”
I lifted my empty plate as I said it.
While the servants hurried to bring new dishes, I scanned each of my battle-worn companions.
Eric, Francia, Rubia, Michelle, and even Frederick.
“…Come to think of it, one person’s missing.”
Muttering to myself as I looked around, I saw Lea approaching with light steps from across the room.
“Speak of the devil, and she appears.”
“Were you looking for me?”
“Not really.”
“Well, I was looking for you, Instructor.”
She slipped a small folded note into my palm.
“…What’s this?”
“You’ll know once you read it.”
After confirming no one was watching too closely, I quickly unfolded the note.
Inside was a short message—
At nine p.m., I’ll be waiting in front of the weapon shop whose spire has no end. Your greatest puzzle.