READ NOVEL ONLINE Chapter 174
“Uhm, looks like the Empress has joined in. Being outside the Domain, it seems the number of injured is rising more than I expected.”
Gaia spoke while looking off into the distance.
Just a few hours ago, it was nothing but a desolate snowstorm, but suddenly it became hectic.
It was unclear when they had manifested, but Paura was hastily feeding food to dying humans with a flustered expression as she dashed around.
Though not visible to Gaia at the moment, Nutricha was healing those deeply affected by Mental Contamination in the Unconscious realm.
And while they couldn’t deal with the bandits, the Divine Races, eager to tackle humans, were chewing, tearing, and enjoying the hunt alongside dogs like Zumiya and Fiore.
Watching this scene, Gaia felt a heavy sense of the weight of her past actions, making her heart feel leaden.
“So, are you going to keep this up?”
Gaia spoke as she turned back.
…
“Well, to be honest, I’m not sure. This feels more like a family reunion than anything else. I think it’s about time we should be satisfied, but what kind of psychology is at play here?”
Gaia said with an exasperated tone.
Of course, Gaia had played a part in bringing about the downfall of the relationship between Divine Races and humans, but it was purely because it was the intention of the woman she was observing to freeze the Empire.
Listening to the woman’s words, Gaia retracted her faint smile and returned to a neutral expression.
“Oh, right. Well, there’s no way I can involve myself much further, so I’ve nothing more to say. I have no choices either. All I can do is quietly watch how this thing unfolds.”
Gaia continued to gaze into the distance.
“…By the way, that human seems like an idiot, just like your sister. Their way of moving is completely different from normal humans.”
#
Clang!
Swords collided repeatedly.
The Knight Commander was having a rough time swinging her sword against the Candles.
Considering her prowess, she should have been able to deal with them easily.
“Haha! All that talk about being the Commander, and you’re nothing special!”
“What’s with this sluggish Knight Commander? Die!”
With a Candles’ leading assault, others rushed at the Knight Commander all at once.
Brutally, countless swords struck at the Knight Commander.
Thud.
With a disturbingly sickening sound, blood sprayed in all directions.
Feeling the sticky yet mushy, uncomfortable sensation at their fingertips, the Candles sensed their victory.
But.
“…If I had more time, I would have fought you with the honor of a knight.”
The moment that voice rang through, the Candles grew pale.
“M-Madwoman!”
“Even with a knife in my heart, you’re still fine?!”
“N-No, there’s one stuck in your head too!”
The Candles were baffled by her presence and attempted to pull out their swords, but it seemed as though they were healing while still armed, preventing them from reclaiming their weapons.
The Candles stepped back.
With five swords lodged in her own body, the expressionless Knight Commander approaching struck more fear than any Outsider could instill.
“But conveniently, I need to check on how our most important forces are doing right now.”
The Knight Commander stated as she leaped toward where the Candles were gathered.
As her fists slammed down to the floor the moment she landed,
There was a flash in front of the Candles.
Before they realized it, their lives were already flickering out.
“Whoa…”
Confirming that the situation had concluded, the Knight Commander sighed as she pulled out the swords embedded in her body.
As blood streamed down from her head, covering one eye, the Knight Commander mumbled in a somewhat ridiculous manner.
“At this point, I’d rather wish I had no blood in me at all.”
The Knight Commander quickly dashed into the Domain.
Inside, the Elite Outsiders summoned by Tanton were using their powers, and the Deputy Director along with the White Mask were rapidly taking care of the Outsiders while firing Meditatio.
The sight was quite a delightful one, which made the Knight Commander smile naturally.
But when she casually scanned her surroundings, that smile didn’t last long.
Thanks to the Giant of the Snow Mountain, the knights who had frozen in place.
With pain etched all over their faces, it was evident how tormenting their time had been.
Even when her heart was pierced by the Candles, the pain hadn’t been as overwhelming as this; now it felt like her heart was about to burst.
The Knight Commander approached a knight frozen in place.
She stroked the knight’s chest, offering a bittersweet smile.
“I’m sorry. I’m late. I’ll save you now.”
With that bittersweet smile, she resolved to lead this war to a victory.
But a voice interrupted her.
“Hey, Commander!”
It was the God of War.
Wiping away the expression she had just been wearing, she turned toward the God of War.
“What is it? Are you already coming back with a bruised ego?”
“Haha! If you, the Commander, can break through so easily, why would I stay behind?”
The God of War cheerfully said as he broke into a broad grin.
After a pause, the God of War turned to look at the Knight Commander’s face with a questioning expression.
“What’s up, Commander? Have you been crying?”
“Cried? Not really.”
She tried to hide it.
But the Knight Commander couldn’t help but wear a disappointed look as she lowered her head.
“I haven’t cried. It’s just…”
“Hey, why are you getting all down about it here? Commander!”
Hearing the slightly melancholic tone of the Knight Commander, the God of War gave her shoulder a firm pat with a rough demeanor.
“You’re going to save them from now on, right? Besides, I’m alive too! That’s good enough! If it’s irreversible, then sure, but soon everything will return to normal.”
“But the pain they’ve endured…”
“Come on! Tanton said he would use the Outsiders to help resolve that! If you keep frowning like that, it’ll be only a matter of time until I throw you out like last time!”
Though he spoke boldly of rebellion, there was something not disagreeable about the God of War’s words to the Knight Commander.
She figured he was intentionally trying to lighten her spirits with his playful remarks.
“…Haha, thanks for always cutting through my thoughts so clearly, God of War.”
The Knight Commander lifted her gaze with a slight smile.
Only after confirming her unique confident smile returned did the God of War flash a grin too.
“Let’s go! Let’s squash that Giant of the Snow Mountain and bring peace back to the Empire!”
“Yeah, it’s not much longer now.”
Just as the God of War raised his axe and pointed it at the Giant of the Snow Mountain—
“Huuaah!”
Something entered the God of War’s line of sight.
It was Muyun, charging in with an axe in hand towards a multitude of Outsiders.
“N-No! Daughter, don’t! It’s dangerous!!!”
The face of the God of War, who had just been wearing a carefree smile, turned pale, and he dashed toward where Muyun was in an instant.
“Haha, what a sight.”
The Knight Commander chuckled lightly, moving forward.
It seemed she was not supposed to worry about others, yet she swallowed those thoughts internally.
#
With the Hunter left alone, the attention of the Divine Races shifted away from us.
Seemingly enraged that they were provoked and mocked, they all surged towards the Hunter.
Now, only the Princess, I, and Apta were left in the fray.
Fortunately, we had gotten closer to the 2nd Princess, whose figure was now visible.
“…We have to succeed, no matter what.”
The Princess murmured.
It seemed burdened by the fact that many were sacrificing for this cause, and that we had to do well to repay those sacrifices.
“Princess.”
“…Yes?”
“You don’t have to be that burdened.”
At my words, the Princess looked at me with a puzzled expression.
“To prevent you from failing, I’m here to follow you, and the Record Keeper is with us too.”
“…Tanton.”
“We’ll stand firmly behind you, so why not leave the heavy lifting to us for now and think comfortably about what you need to do, Princess?”
I tried to speak with utmost care for her feelings.
When I first fell into this world, with my memories of my past life lost, it was genuinely burdensome to think I had to solve everything by my own power.
But once I realized that I had companions and that someone believed in me, I gradually began to feel at ease.
It was because they had supported me all the way to this point.
“…Thank you, Tanton. I feel a bit better now.”
“I’m glad to hear that, Your Highness.”
Sure enough, the Princess’s expression seemed much brighter than before.
It seemed my words had helped her.
And well, it might actually turn out that I’ll likely handle everything myself anyway.
So, in truth, the Princess didn’t have to worry that much.
“…It’s annoyingly clever of you.”
“Excuse me?”
“That was a thought I just said out loud.”
The Princess muttered something I didn’t quite catch.
Well, it probably wasn’t meant to be taken negatively.
Thinking so, we finally arrived at a spot where we could see the 2nd Princess.
Distance to the 2nd Princess: 0…
“Uh-oh.”
“Huh?”
My internal monologue was abruptly snatched away as it vanished into the distance.
Because the scene laid out before me was unbelievable.
“This… could it be…?”
Faced with an unimaginable reality, I made eye contact with the Princess, who wore a similar expression to mine.
At that moment, Apta slowly approached us and quietly said.
“Yes, this is an Ice Statue.”