novelraw Chapter 74 : Necessary Evil (5)
Chapter 74 : Necessary Evil (5)
Necessary Evil (5)
The artifact, though destroyed, wasn't completely annihilated.
The fragments, left perfectly intact, were being thoroughly kept by the royal family.
Even as fragments, these were objects that had once been used to subdue an ancient monster.
It was only natural that immense strength would still reside within them.
No matter how unusable they might be as weapons, they were far too valuable to simply be left unattended.
After all, there were uses for them beyond just weaponry.
"You're going to change the stigma?"
"The special task force...?"
It was all new information—the squad members couldn't make heads or tails of it at first.
Ferus went on to explain to those who didn't immediately understand.
"The torture you're subjected to comes from spells released from the prototype artifact—the ones you're seeing now are not prototypes, but originals."
"But they're all broken."
"Still, it's plenty possible to change your stigmata with these."
If they could only do that, there'd be no more torture from the officers.
For the squad members, this was the best opportunity they could ask for.
"But as long as the stigma doesn't disappear, someone will always exist to control the spell in the end. All it does is switch out the person who tortures us from the legion officers to someone else."
Silia voiced her doubts.
It was only the owner of the collar who changed—everything else would remain the same.
Was this truly meant to liberate the squad members? As she thought this, the Emperor replied,
"You must be this squad's squad leader."
"I am, for now."
"You have a point. Even if only fragments remain, spells derived from this artifact are able to control all stigmata—even the counterfeits."
In short, it meant that all stigmata could be controlled.
It was a function almost akin to a master key for spells.
"Originally, the ability to torture was thought to belong only to the prototype artifact, but in fact, there's nothing the original can't do either. In fact, I currently possess the spell of this original."
The Emperor revealed the spell engraved on the back of his hand as he spoke.
Its design matched those of the 7th Legion officers, but the color was gold.
Knowing that even the original artifact could perform the torture spell, Silia frowned deeply.
"Then, Your Majesty, are you saying that you'll be the one controlling us?"
That didn't align with his earlier promise not to interfere.
As Silia protested, some knights drew their swords.
"It's not impossible. What's engraved on my hand is a spell that can deal with all stigmata. Right now, I could torture your squad members if I wished."
"So in the end—"
"That's why I'm giving this to you."
At those words, Silia's scornful expression vanished instantly.
Her face went blank as she asked,
"What do you mean by that?"
"This spell from the original artifact can be used by only a single person. I think it'll be more useful if you, the squad's squad leader, wield it."
The realization that he was giving such a unique thing to her left Silia reeling.
Of course, this was what she had wished for, but for the Emperor himself to so easily hand it over, it was completely unexpected.
"Are you serious?"
"Didn't I just say? I'd grant you as much freedom as possible. I may not know how you'll treat the squad members, but it's better for them to be under your command than mine—at least, they'll have more freedom."
Even if they were freed, it would still be within the limits of the 7th Legion.
And since the squad was made up of people who could go off in unpredictable directions, some manner of control was needed.
Besides, the Emperor didn't see Silia as someone with a cruel disposition.
Her protest, just now, against controlling her own squad members, was evidence of that.
"Let me ask you something out of curiosity. How did you end up in the 7th Legion?"
"... I left several noble heirs half-dead."
At that, Silia showed a pained expression.
With such a bad memory brought up, she couldn't possibly put on a pleasant face.
"Why did you do it?"
"They drove my younger brother to his death."
"Wait, that sounds like a familiar case..."
The Emperor mulled over Silia's words, sifting through his memories.
It took him a bit, but then he recalled.
"Ah... It was that incident. The one where the young heirs of the empire's cornerstone families, attending the academy, had their faces smashed in."
"You remember?"
"Of course. How could I not? It was one of only three sword masters in the empire who bowed his head before me over it."
At that, Silia caught her breath.
That swordmaster was the Lord who had taken her and her younger brother in when they were living in the wild.
"He said it himself. That he would take responsibility for whatever his adopted granddaughter had done."
"..."
"In the end, he lost all his ranks and vanished. The family, I heard, was left for the descendants to pick up the pieces."
The more she remembered, the more her anger flared.
But after that day, when she tore into those noble heirs, Silia's own revenge was done.
They'd already become half-cripples—living a normal life would be impossible for them.
So there was no longer any need to obsess over the grudges of the past.
"In the end, the granddaughter was abandoned into the 7th Legion."
"That's right. I refused his plea to spare her life."
He could offer excuses. At the time, the Emperor's mind was subverted, so he hadn't been in his right mind.
Even so, he wanted to set things right now.
And as luck would have it, the Lord's adopted granddaughter stood before his very eyes.
"Sending you to a suicide unit was essentially a death sentence. Others, too, were swept up in my irrational decisions back then."
The Emperor stole a glance at Klein.
Klein had also ended up in the 7th Legion because his family was unjustly ruined by the Crown Prince.
"So I will grant you freedom, too. My decisions back then were not made rationally, so they are essentially void."
"But, Your Majesty, how could you know who those people all are?"
"That's right. If you release one, then you'll have to release two, and if you release two, then it'll be four, five...!"
His courtiers and knight, who were following from the side, rebuked his view.
And it wasn't as if they were wrong—there was no way to distinguish who was truly wrongly accused.
The moment you let one go, other prisoners would clamor for release as well, all pretending to be victims.
"Of course, I plan to do as you all say. However... these individuals are clear-cut, aren't they?"
Everyone from the 7th Legion here now fit this description.
Louis and his squad members, who lost their domain due to the Crown Prince's cruel scheme.
Klein, whose family was destroyed while tracking the dark underbelly of the Crown Prince.
Silia, a victim created by corrupt nobles.
All of them were either innocent or their offenses were minor, yet had been dragged into the 7th Legion.
"Which is why, to these people at least, I want to take responsibility and offer compensation."
It was thanks to them, after all, that the Emperor had been freed from his brainwashing.
Not repaying such a grace would be disgraceful for an emperor.
"However, if the Holy Nation finds out, it will be a disaster."
"They'll never leave us alone if that happens."
The Holy Nation would never forgive those who wielded evil powers akin to dark magic.
If they discovered it, they would draw swords regardless of borders.
If he just let Louis and the squad members go, the Imperial Court would be recorded as sheltering evil.
That would be a clear violation of treaty, and give the Holy Nation a legitimate cause to attack the Empire.
"That's why you must remain as the 7th Legion. I hope you can understand that."
The squad members exchanged glances.
While hesitating, Silia spoke up.
"Yes. We will."
There were no other choices left.
And to that, the others could only agree.
"Thank you for accepting."
The Emperor thanked them and instructed his courtiers to prepare the ritual to change the stigmata.
Under Ferus's guidance, the ceremony was performed.
...
...
...
In the end, Louis left the 7th Legion's Paruzan Fortress.
Louis, his squad members, Silia, Klein, and even Commander Kelian, all left as well.
Most of them had ended up in the 7th Legion for reasons similar to Louis's.
But they still had to remain as part of the 7th Legion.
This was to emphasize that, because they handled evil powers, they belonged to the sacrifice unit.
Not only would this avoid suspicion from the Holy Nation, but it would also put the Empire's citizens at ease.
So they left Paruzan Fortress and moved to a new location:
The headquarters of the 7th Legion, where Legion Commander Paulo was based.
Even though it was near the demon realm and monsters still appeared, it was relatively safer than Paruzan Fortress.
With the commander's seat vacated at Paruzan Fortress, a replacement would have to be found.
"So you're the newbies from Paruzan, right?"
An officer of the headquarters blocked Louis and the squad members in the hallway.
Other officers circled from behind as though by design—it was clear what their intentions were, and Louis let out a laugh.
"Newbies should greet officers first. What are you laughing for, huh!"
"Do we look like pushovers to you?"
Who knew why they had transferred from Paruzan to headquarters, but it worked out just fine.
They were tired of bullying the other soldiers. New faces from elsewhere would make for more entertaining targets.
"Please move aside. Our squad leader is calling us."
When Louis spoke up, the officer scowled thuggishly and said,
"What? So your squad leader's important and we're not?"
"Of course, big bro's words are important, too!"
"Yeah! My words are—wait, what did you just call me?"
With an even sweeter expression, Louis looked at the officer.
"Big Bro~"
"You little...!!"
With that, the officer, highly agitated, unleashed a spell.
The others who had circled around triggered their own torture spells at once.
How could some mere meat shields get away with calling them "big bro"? It was only fitting to teach them a lesson here and now.
"Did you just call me big bro? Now the others will suffer because of you! Hahahaha!!"
Laughing wildly, the officer tortured away.
But then...
"Huh?"
Nothing happened.
The one who'd called him big bro, and the others with him, were all just fine.
What's going on? The spell was activated—so why is there no effect?
"Aren't you guys in pain?"
The squad members exchanged glances at that.
Then, suddenly, they all began shouting.
"Ow ow ow!"
"Aaaagh! It hurts like hell!"
"Waaaah~"
"Waaaahhh..."
They tumbled to the floor, making a great show of being in pain.
But to the officers, it all looked suspiciously clumsy.
"Hey, what are you doing there!"
Just then, Silia appeared from the other side, calling out to the squad members.
"Squad leader!"
At that, the squad members jumped up and ran over to Silia.
For soldiers who'd supposedly been tortured, they seemed suspiciously lively.
"Well then, big bros! We'll see you next time."
Leaving that farewell behind, Louis and the others went off, leaving the officers stunned and dumbfounded.
As they reached Silia, she asked,
"Was it really okay?"
"What was?"
"Didn't you need to change your stigma, too? It's fine for me to just reset it regularly for you."
Louis had been the only one not to change his stigma.
He replied,
"This way, it's easier to get sponsorship. I can't just rely on fixed sponsors, after all."
"That word, 'sponsor,' still doesn't sit right with me. Can't you use something else?"
"How about 'herbal doctor'?"
"..."
Amid the 7th Legion, filled with the screams of soldiers, just one squad walked the corridor, laughing.
****
Estelle, the Princess, was able to open her eyes again not long after recuperating at the palace.
As soon as she regained consciousness, the image of the girl who had saved her came to mind.
Even as the maids looked after her, that face would not leave her thoughts.
Black hair like the feathers of a crow, red eyes as if a drop of blood had been spilled into them.
Wielding a sword wreathed in red aura, she cut down demonkin, her whole body soaked in blood.
She even seemed to be about Estelle's own age.
For anyone else, it would have been an ominous, demonic sight—not surprising they'd call her a fiend born from the shadows.
In fact, the Mind's Eye perceived her as the Demon King.
But to Estelle, she didn't appear that way at all.
No matter how much she considered it, keeping in mind what her Mind's Eye showed her, she couldn't think badly of her.
On the contrary, the urge to see her again surged ever stronger.
"Princess, it's time for your meal."
Just then, a maid approached, and Estelle suddenly lit up with a bright smile.
"Hehehehe...."
"Princess?"
Ignoring the maid's words, Estelle just laughed.
All she saw were the maid's black hair and red eyes.
"Your hair is lovely."
"... Pardon?"
"And so are your eyes."
The Princess, Estelle, now looked at the maid's appearance as if she'd developed a strange taste, superimposing another's features onto her—and laughed.
And so, four years passed.
-------------= Clacky's Corner -------------=
Huh, I didn't expect that sudden timeskip...
【ദ്ദി(⩌ᴗ⩌)】