novelraw Chapter 32 : Chapter 32
Chapter 32 : Chapter 32
Chapter 32. Daniel (3)
Saintess Isabel looked at Iris with a sharp expression.
“Who is that person to have entered this place?”
This was a gathering where only those of the highest rank within the Goddess Cult, the cardinals, could assemble.
It was not a place an outsider could enter recklessly.
Daniel’s explanation followed.
“That person is the leader of the Unseen Ones.”
“What did you say?”
Saintess Isabel’s voice rose sharply.
Who were the Unseen Ones?
The real power that controlled the Durani Empire from behind the scenes.
They did not shy away from any means or methods to achieve their goals, so it was not an exaggeration to say that they were on the opposite side of the Goddess Cult, which emphasized mercy.
The other cardinals also spoke up with flustered faces.
“Cardinal Daniel. How can such a person be here?”
“That person is as good as an enemy of the Goddess Cult! They must be bound immediately!”
“For someone who looks so young to be the leader. She must be hiding her age with magic.”
A commotion ensued.
Daniel asked with a relaxed face.
“Are you all finished speaking?”
“Cardinal!”
“It would have been better if I had said this first. I made a mistake.”
He glanced around once before slowly continuing his words.
“The Unseen Ones were in fact organized to stop Primus.”
“What is that supposed to mean?”
“The first Unseen Ones were a group far from assassins. Having noticed Primus' plan, they recruited only those with outstanding abilities from all over the world. They did their
best to stop him. However, as eons passed, the organization gradually changed. This was because Primus fell asleep, and the enemy they had to deal with disappeared.”
This was the first time Saintess Isabel had heard such a story.
She swallowed dryly and asked.
“How do you know such a story, Cardinal?”
“Because it is thanks to them that I gained the eyes to see the future.”
“……?!”
Not just Saintess Isabel.
Everyone in this place looked at Daniel with faces of utter astonishment.
That he, the oldest of the cardinals who had remained a cardinal for a long time, actually had deep ties with the Unseen Ones.
While no one could open their mouths, Daniel pointed to Iris and said.
“This person is the true master of the Unseen Ones. Only if the Goddess Cult joins forces with this person can we overcome this crisis. I ask you, please do not let this old man’s words go in one ear and out the other.”
It was a natural result that everyone’s gaze shifted from Daniel to Iris.
***
While Daniel was giving his speech about the origins of the Unseen Ones.
Iris was observing Saintess Isabel in detail.
‘It’s been a while.’
The moment she manifested into this world.
The first person she saw when she opened her eyes was Saintess Isabel.
She immediately recognized Saintess Isabel as her mother.
It was similar to ‘imprinting’, where an animal regards the first moving object it sees after birth as a parent.
Naturally, Iris showed a lot of interest in Saintess Isabel, and even after moving to Frank’s house, she investigated her.
As a result, she came to realize that Saintess Isabel was originally Frank’s lover.
To think that Frank, who treated her so harshly, was legally her dad.
And that Isabel, his lover, was who she thought of as her mom.
‘What a cruel twist of fate.’
It was inevitable for her that her favorable feelings for Saintess Isabel cooled in an instant.
After that, she stopped sending the letters of greeting she used to send so often and no longer kept in touch with Saintess Isabel.
She never imagined that she would see her again like this, here.
‘Your beauty is still the same. If only you weren’t Frank’s ex-lover, I would still think of you as my mother.’
As she was thinking that, everyone’s gazes fell upon her.
Iris deliberately struck a provocative pose.
“I won’t mince words. Will you cooperate with us?”
Right now, her side was the dominant party, and theirs was the subordinate one.
It was the Unseen Ones who knew more about Primus.
Moreover, Number 1 had been unenthusiastic about cooperating with the Goddess Cult,
saying that they could stop Primus with their own strength.
‘Cardinal Daniel, who is Number 7, said that cooperation with the Goddess Cult is essential, but I think differently. The reason Number 1 is so confident is that he must have something else to rely on.’
Besides, if she were to cooperate with the Goddess Cult, there was a possibility that her identity could be revealed.
Even now, wasn't Saintess Isabel narrowing her eyes and glaring at her?
As expected, the cardinals immediately protested.
“How dare you threaten us! You filthy scum from the south!”
“If we cooperate with the Unseen Ones, the authority of the Goddess Cult will fall. It’s not even worth discussing.”
“Saintess! We must not be played by that person’s tricks any longer! We must arrest her immediately and hold Cardinal Daniel accountable for his crime!”
Iris sneered inwardly.
This was exactly what she had wanted.
But Saintess Isabel was not to be trifled with.
“Everyone, be quiet. It is too sudden right now, so I don’t think there’s much point in continuing the meeting. I will open the meeting again tomorrow, so I think it would be good for everyone to have time to think.”
Then, one of the cardinals threw a question.
“What do you plan to do with that person and Cardinal Daniel?”
“Cardinal Daniel is someone who has made great contributions to the Goddess Cult. There must have been a deep meaning in him creating this meeting today. Is that not so?”
When Saintess Isabel looked at Daniel and asked, he smiled gently.
“And that person, although we did not invite her, is like a guest. Please treat her politely.”
“S-Saintess?”
“Then, we are dismissed. I will see you in three days.”
With those words, Saintess Isabel kicked back her chair and left.
Iris watched her and thought to herself.
‘Tch. Things have gotten complicated.’
It was a bold decision, befitting the woman she once thought of as her mother.
Although she had become the master of the Unseen Ones, for Iris, for whom such a setting was a first, her retreating figure looked incredibly large.
***
Three days after that.
Once a day.
Five meetings were held, but they were repeatedly called off without any conclusion.
This was because Iris, one of the main axes of the meeting, maintained an uncooperative attitude from beginning to end.
“I used the word cooperation, but in reality, it is assistance. It is we, the Unseen Ones, who will stop Primus. The Goddess Cult only needs to provide support from behind.”
“Isn’t that better for you? Your damage can be minimized, and we are the only ones on the front lines.”
“If you refuse this, the talks are off.”
As soon as the meeting ended, the cardinals poured out the anger they had been holding back.
“How can we cooperate with such a person!”
“My point exactly! Don’t they treat us as if they’re looking down on us? It’s a statement that denies the very existence of the Goddess Cult!”
“She doesn’t even know that the Saintess is showing her respect and is incomparably arrogant. Tsk.”
The only silver lining was that Daniel continuously emphasized the danger of Primus and explained the reason why the Unseen Ones had changed as they did, which increased their understanding of them.
But that was all.
After the fifth meeting ended without results.
Daniel sought out Iris.
“What on earth are you thinking?”
But Iris asked back with a face that said she didn’t know.
“What did I do?”
“What I mean is, how can you expect to gain the cooperation of the Goddess Cult with that kind of attitude?”
As Daniel fumed, Iris chuckled.
It was the first time he had been this agitated.
‘He’s definitely different from the other Unseen Ones. Now I can clearly see a change in his emotions.’
The Unseen Ones basically did not show their emotions.
As if that was the basic attitude the Unseen Ones should have.
Because of that, they sometimes felt like machines rather than humans.
Daniel barely suppressed his anger and said, as if pleading.
“I ask for a more cooperative attitude, our master.”
“Oh my. You’re even calling me master. You must be in quite a hurry.”
“……”
When Daniel stared at her silently, Iris shrugged her shoulders and said.
“Number 1 said we can handle it sufficiently on our own.”
“That is just Number 1’s thought.”
“Are you rebelling against Number 1?”
“It is different from that. I knew him before he was Number 1. No matter how much you are the master, you cannot drive a wedge between us.”
Iris said she had no intention of doing so and mentioned Saintess Isabel.
“Since you have revealed your inner thoughts, I will reveal mine as well. I actually hate the Saintess.”
“Is it because she was Frank’s ex-lover?”
“……What are you talking about?”
“I am well aware that you do not like Frank. And the fact that you left home and fled to the south because of it.”
As he spoke the truth, Iris' expression turned sharply cold.
“To cooperate with the Goddess Cult to help Frank……. I can’t do that. I’ve already made a difficult enough decision, and you want me to throw away my pride as well? That’s an unreasonable request.”
She said firmly in a calm voice.
“Cooperation with the Goddess Cult is impossible.”
She left only that one sentence and was about to leave the room.
However, in her eyes, there were wavering emotions and bitterness.
Daniel did not miss that fleeting moment.
“You can’t! To stop Primus, we need three axes!”
“Three axes?”
As Iris stopped in her tracks and turned around, Daniel nodded.
“We need the power of the Unseen Ones, the Goddess Cult. And the former Hero, Frank.”
“What kind of nonsense is that again?”
“It is not nonsense. In the future I saw, those three axes stood against and balanced Primus' mighty power. If even one of them is missing, we will never be able to stop him.”
Iris replied with a dumbfounded look.
“Frank’s power has been sealed, hasn’t it?”
“I cannot know that far, but his power is absolutely necessary. Because he is one of the puzzle pieces to stop Primus.”
“Can you take responsibility for those words?”
“What should I do for you to believe my words? Shall I do this?”
Suddenly, Daniel took out a dagger from his bosom and was about to slit his own throat.
“Stop! As the master of the Unseen Ones, I will absolutely not tolerate any further action!”
Daniel flinched at Iris' shout.
He put the dagger back in his bosom and said this.
“My attempt to die was not a lie but my true heart. Please keep in mind that Primus is by no means an easy opponent.”
Bright red blood flowed from around his neck where the dagger had nicked him.
Iris grimaced and waved her hand dismissively.
“Hurry up and get treated.”
“I beg you.”
Daniel left, covering the bleeding area with one hand.
Left alone in the room, Iris felt a complicated mix of emotions.
‘I didn’t mean to push him this far, I went too far.’
She lay down on the bed as if collapsing and thought.
‘What decision should I make? I joined hands with the Unseen Ones to get revenge on Frank, not to cooperate with him.’
To have to cooperate with Frank on top of hating the idea of cooperating with the Goddess Cult where Saintess Isabel was.
That was something she would rather die than do.
But seeing Daniel act like that, he also seemed sincere about this matter.
Also, although it was not intentional, she was now one of the world's axes.
She could no longer maintain a bystander’s attitude.
‘Noemi, what decision would you make? If only I had eyes that could see the future like you, I would have been able to make a decision quickly.’
Iris made a pained expression as she thought of Noemi, whom she had driven out with her own hands.
***
“Phew. We’ve finally arrived.”
“Is this Oviedo, the capital of the Kingdom of Asturias? There really is a castle in the middle of the desert.”
Rude affirmed her words and introduced the kingdom.
“It’s surprising that they built a castle like this in the desert, but Asturias has only one city, this one. This is the capital and the only city.”
“Does that mean the entire population is gathered inside here?”
“That’s right. But it would be troublesome to underestimate Asturias.”
“Why is that?”
“Why do you think the military powerhouse, the Durani Empire, hasn't crossed over to the north? It's all because Asturias is blocking them with all their might. They have a small population and few soldiers, but it’s no exaggeration to say that each one is a match for a hundred. Besides that, the waterway system they developed is exceedingly rare.”
Noemi nodded with a fascinated look.
“It’s an interesting country. That must be why the security is so tight.”
Soldiers were stationed throughout the streets.
As if they weren't hot, they were heavily armed and patrolling the streets.
Rude asked back with a strange look on his face.
“This is strange.”
“What is?”
“It’s true that they are strong, but Oviedo wasn't originally this heavily guarded.”
Rude tilted his head and asked a merchant he saw before him.
“May I ask you something?”
The merchant waved his hand as if annoyed.
“If you’re not buying, then go.”
“Don’t be so heartless.”
Rude slyly slipped a few silver coins into the merchant’s hand.
The merchant’s attitude changed in an instant.
“Hehe. Please ask me anything.”
“Why is the security so tight?”
“Ah. I hear that all the key figures of the Goddess Cult are here right now. Even the Saintess has come.”
“The Saintess?”
“That’s what I’m saying. I saw her with my own two eyes. Haa, she was a truly beautiful person.”
Rude’s face brightened at the word Saintess.
He whispered softly into Noemi’s ear.
“This is fortunate. Isabel and I are close, so if I ask her, it will be much easier to borrow a hot air balloon.”
Rude and Saintess Isabel were members of the Hero party that had defeated the Demon King alongside Frank.
Rude, looking excited, headed towards the royal palace.
Noemi also followed behind Rude.
Unaware of the fact that not only Saintess Isabel but also Iris was there.