🔊 TTS Settings
Chapter 117
After hearing Frillien’s words, Elegia quickly left the room and headed toward the first floor of the Magic Tower.
Along the way, she ran into Howell. His eyes widened as if he hadn’t expected to see her there.
“Eli… you don’t mean you already heard about it…”
“Yes. The Saint told me directly. I have to go now, so I’ll explain the details later.”
It seemed Howell had come to find Elegia as soon as he heard the news. After hearing the situation, he muttered in confusion.
“A beast invasion at the palace… What does that even mean?”
He shouted in disbelief. This wasn’t just any place—it was the palace. The palace was highly symbolic, said to be under the love and protection of Princess Frinis, and had never once been breached by monsters.
And now monsters had suddenly appeared there. No matter how you thought about it, this was no ordinary event.
“And of all times, when Father is at the palace…”
Howell’s face gradually paled.
Howell’s vigilance increased!
Vigilance 375% → 405%!
With a determined expression, Howell caught up to Elegia and shouted,
“Eli, you’re not seriously going to the palace with the Saint, are you? Why would you go to such a dangerous place… with the temple?”
He seemed to remember something, furrowing his brows as he glanced toward Frillien.
“…Saint, thank you for informing us, but I’m curious why you specifically came to find ‘Elegia’ first before doing anything else.”
The Saint had likely learned of this because the palace requested immediate aid to treat the wounded or provide support. But coming to Elegia first instead of heading straight there…
‘Is it really just to give me information?’
Or, could it be that it’s intentional…?
“You came to ask Eli for help, didn’t you?”
The Saint had always trusted Elegia’s strength. She even considered Elegia the strongest person she knew. Yet there was a subtle implication in her words that asking so directly might cross a line.
Startled by the pointed question, Frillien lifted her head.
“But… this is… an important matter.”
Surprisingly resolute, she continued, her trembling hands clasped together.
“Anyone’s help is needed. I’ll go too.”
This was a crisis for the empire. Moreover, Elegia and Howell’s family were there. Informing them of the situation and asking for help was, in a sense, natural.
Understanding the intent, Howell nodded. It didn’t seem to be for a negative reason.
“…Thank you for letting me know.”
Seeing the anxious priests around, it seemed the temple hadn’t originally intended to tell Elegia. Frillien had made this decision independently.
Realizing that, Elegia also gave a belated word of thanks.
“Thanks for telling me early, Saint. Because of that, we can leave sooner.”
“Eli!”
Howell hurriedly approached and continued.
“You’re really going to follow them? What exactly do you plan to do there?”
“Why? I’m strong.”
At Elegia’s nonchalant reply, Howell let out a deep sigh.
“I know you beat the Crown Prince! You’ve taken down monsters before. But this is truly dangerous. And you’re supposed to have only ordinary magic power!”
‘Right. I registered it as ordinary.’
Hiding her strength had caused this problem. Elegia swallowed a sigh. Perhaps it was time to show her abilities in a slightly different way. And she couldn’t just watch people at the palace be in danger… Especially since the Duke was there too.
Elegia immediately asked,
“How long can we hold out?”
A priest nearby trembled as he answered,
“Considering the palace forces, it shouldn’t be a major problem under normal circumstances… but still…”
‘Why are they shaking like that?’
She thought they were overreacting just as Inyoung approached.
“Lady Semperion.”
It was Finn. He hurried toward Elegia, but upon seeing her expression, Frillien, and Howell, he fell silent.
“…So you’ve already heard the news.”
It must have been about the palace. Looking around, she saw many high-ranking mages moving in a coordinated manner, apparently departing to support the palace.
Elegia glanced at Howell. He had been opposing the trip to the palace from the beginning.
‘He doesn’t want me to go, nor to be involved with the temple.’
True, considering her poor relations with the temple and past incidents, immediately agreeing to their request would be odd. Elegia then turned to Finn with a sudden thought.
“I want to go. I want to attend as a research mage of the Magic Tower. Is that possible?”
Finn looked a little surprised. He fell silent for a moment, thinking.
“…Yes, that’s possible.”
‘Oh.’
It was just a tentative question, but it was fortunate that it was allowed. After all, as part of the tower’s support forces, there was no reason for a mage like her to be refused.
“A research mage? You’re a research mage?”
Howell, standing nearby, exclaimed in surprise. Elegia shrugged and replied.
“Yes, a research mage. Don’t worry, I’m not as weak as you think. Ah, but can I use weapons or magic in the palace?”
Weapons had been forbidden in the banquet. Entering the palace with them might not be allowed. Howell answered on her behalf.
“In this case, since you were requested directly and it’s an emergency, it’s allowed. You’ve also practiced with a real sword at the palace before.”
“Ah.”
Howell shook his head in exasperation.
“Sigh… Who’s going to stop you? Still, don’t act recklessly. You left your protective gear at the lodgings, right? If you’re going, take at least that with you.”
With a resigned tone, Elegia shook her head and looked at Finn and Frillien.
“No, I’m already wearing protective gear. We can leave immediately. Where and how do we go?”
Since it was an emergency, they needed to depart without delay. Elegia checked the weapons in her inventory once more and lifted her head.
“…Is that really the palace?”
Watching the palace draw nearer, Howell muttered in a trembling voice. From a distance, it seemed surrounded by monsters. No glimmer of the shining walls was visible.
“Will this be okay…”
Howell’s face darkened as he assessed the palace. Likely, he was worried about the Duke. Elegia’s heart also grew heavy. Considering the last monster invasion, the Duke had been summoned then, suggesting he was quite strong… Still, would they be able to hold out?
While Elegia pondered, Frillien raised her sword.
“Lady Semperion, I’ve trained hard as you taught me! I will definitely do my best!”
The surrounding priests were shocked at her stance.
“No, Saint… You’re supposed to go treat the injured, this is not—”
“I will, of course, treat them properly.”
“….”
Elegia looked at Frillien, somewhat worried.
‘I haven’t taught her much yet.’
Would she get injured if she overexerted herself? Reading her expression, Howell interjected sharply.
“Focus! Who’s worrying about whom? Eli, you don’t know how strong the monsters are. You’ve only fought easily so far. Have you ever seen a monster stronger than you?”
“…Hmm.”
Elegia shook her head. In Lady Marigold, no monster had yet surpassed her. In the original setting, that wouldn’t change.
Kieee!
“…?”
Watching the palace grow closer, Elegia’s eyes widened. Something felt off, especially the massive creature among the monsters.
‘…Did the difficulty spike?’
Such a sight was rare even in the Seiros saga.
Her hands tightened on her swords.
Kieee!
At that moment, Crown Prince Leonard was cutting through the monsters frantically.
“What on earth…”
“Your Highness, be careful!”
Kieee!
Screech.
A monster’s arm was cut by a sword strike, blood spraying into the air, the metallic scent filling the area.
Leonard kept slashing the relentless monsters. There was no time to turn his head. He knew his father, the Emperor, and the Duke summoned here were nearby, but he had no chance to check on them. He could barely hear the occasional warning from the captain of the guards.
Leonard gripped his sword grimly. Mana swirled along the blade, giving it a faint sheen, but he didn’t know how long he could hold out. Who would have thought the palace could be surrounded by monsters in an instant?
‘Above all…’
Leonard looked up at the enormous monster in the center of the palace.
He had never seen a monster this strong. Unlike other monsters, it had a massive body, dozens of grotesque eyes, black arms like a lizard, and piercing, abyss-like pupils. Acid dripped from decaying teeth. Truly a ‘monster,’ staring down at them with haughty dominance.
“How dare you set foot here!”
In the corner of his vision, a high-ranking official poured sacred power, shouting a single word. Beside him, the Duke cut down monsters tirelessly, with the Emperor protected nearby. They could still hold on. Soon, support from the Magic Tower and temple would arrive. Then the tide might turn…
Kieee!
At that moment,
“…What…?”
Another black arm appeared from the air. A monster of the same kind—or even larger—than the first one.
“How are we supposed to stop that…?”
Leonard wasn’t the only one thinking this. The palace knights gasped, feeling an overwhelming sense of helplessness. Could they survive until reinforcements arrived? If not, everyone in the palace…!
Thwack!
Something flew through them. So fast it could only be described as flying. Amid the blurred motion, the Crown Prince recognized the familiar red hair and face.
‘…Elegia?’
In an instant, light flashed. Two swords in her hands scattered brilliant light as they sliced through the air. The radiant strikes swept through the monsters, cutting down countless foes like falling leaves.
Moving at a speed too fast to follow with the eyes, Elegia looked up at the massive monsters at the palace center and smiled, pointing her blades at them.
Fwaa!
Light surged from both of her swords simultaneously, swirling around. The afterimages of her swift strikes formed intricate patterns of light.
Kieee!
The monsters wailed, seemingly surprised for the first time. Elegia’s radiant strikes enveloped them. From a distance, it looked as if a gigantic light dragon was swallowing the monsters—a breathtaking sight.
Leonard muttered, unable to hide his astonishment.
“Sword… Sword Master? When did—”
“No.”
The captain of the guards interrupted, voice trembling.
“That… isn’t even close.”
This was beyond merely enveloping swords with mana. A swordsman wielding such power had never been recorded in the empire’s history. The captain looked at the scene, as if he might faint.
