Chapter 311: 164. The Ariana Family -2 (Part One)

Translated by A Passing Wanderer

Edited by RED

**

Emperor Kelt’s heart was not at peace.

The most worrisome existence he had met in his entire life… That was the King of all Vampires, Vlandmir. Yet he couldn’t catch the one existence that could truly threaten the Theocratic Empire.

And that wasn’t even the end of the story; a delegation from the Kingdom of Frants was standing right before his eyes, as well.

Their justification was to provide military support against the vampire invasion, but truth be told, that was more like an excuse.

“Mm…”

White’s wife, Runan Ariana. A woman who never left the territory of Frants actually came to see Kelt like this.

She was wearing a gorgeous red dress, while a rapier was hanging from her waist. She bowed elegantly and greeted the Holy Emperor according to established custom. “I am grateful that you deigned to meet this one despite your busy schedule, Your Imperial Majesty.”

His busy schedule, she said. She was right about that.

Kelt was stuck in a seemingly-endless loop of taking care of all the neglected documents that had piled up during the daytime, while at night, he used the vampires to let off some steam.

Since some stability had returned to the Theocratic Empire, his tightly-wound mind was slowly relaxing, but now that he was seeing Runan like this, a lengthy drawn-out sigh automatically escaped from his lips.

“Raphael,” Kelt muttered softly.

Cardinal Raphael quietly bowed, and as befitting a man with quick wits, he had all the retainers currently present in the Imperial Audience Chamber leave.

Paladins, members of the nobility and even the clergymen left the chamber, and once the last person was gone, the doorway was firmly closed shut behind them.

Only Emperor Kelt sitting on the throne, as well as Raphael and Oscal standing on either side of him, remained behind.

Emperor Kelt, waiting in silence until everyone was gone, finally opened his lips. “There must’ve been a reason for the one charged with the protection of Frants to come this far. Now I ask of you, what could be that reason?”

“We were informed that the vampires had invaded, Your Imperial Majesty.”

“Yes, that did happen. And unfortunately for us, we failed to completely root them out.”

They did manage to hurt the vampires quite badly. Not just Duke Duran, but even Duke Kirum and another Duke with a lion’s head were killed off, while almost three hundred of the original group of five hundred Progenitors were slaughtered without mercy. Around fifty of them had been captured alive and were being used as lab rats in magic research and experiments.

However, Second Imperial Prince Ruppel went missing during the commotion, which unfortunately meant that Kelt wouldn’t get to see the end of his little experiment. Still, that creature’s mind had basically become an invalid by now, while his physical body had been rendered mostly useless, so even if Ruppel managed to survive somehow, he’d be weaker than a blood-creation.

That matter shouldn’t pose too much of an issue.

But now that Runan had personally travelled from the Kingdom of Frants to meet him like this, there had to be yet another grave threat on the horizon.

Runan Ariana spoke up, “The Vampire King has been defeated, true. But it was he who acted as the restraining hand on the vampires. There can be no other, more threatening existences to innocent citizens than soldiers abandoning their defeated army, Your Majesty.”

Indeed, the Vampire King had been reining in the Progenitors up until now. But now that central pillar of control had broken down, all the other vampires dispersed throughout the continent would no doubt start behaving in unhinged manners.

Kelt’s expression remained indifferent even after hearing her, however.

What she said just now wasn’t what he wanted to hear from her. There was no way Runan chose to come this far to say something that Kelt already knew.

He kept his gaze locked on her and asked, “What did King Zayner see this time?”

The Kingdom of Frants was on paper, an allied nation, but in actual reality, it was more like a vassal state that had been serving the Theocratic Empire for a long time. That was especially true with a certain arrangement where the Royal Family of Frants would sometimes inform the Imperial Family of some important matters.

And that would be…

“Yes, Your Imperial Majesty. He has indeed seen something.” Runan bowed her head lightly, before raising it back up to hold Kelt’s gaze on her. “He has witnessed this world being led to its ultimate destruction.”

…The king’s ability to look into the future through the Divine Aura he possessed, called [Foresight].

Kelt’s eyes widened in an instant. “Ultimate destruction, you say…? Despite the defeat and retreat of the Vampire King?!”

“A rat pushed to a corner is bound to bite back even more ferociously, Your Majesty.”

Kelt’s face crumpled and his complexion grew flushed from his rage. Sparks erupted from his body, and the throne began breaking down.

He shot to his feet, and while rubbing his temples, he tried very hard to maintain his rationale. “I should not have allowed that bastard to escape!”

“This destiny isn’t one we can avoid simply by killing the Vampire King, Your Majesty. No, that would’ve only made it worse,” Runan replied, causing Kelt’s brows to furrow deeply.

Even as he listened to her, strength seeped out of his legs and he nearly faltered to the floor. Raphael quickly supported him.

Kelt worked quite hard to calm his mind, then looked back at Runan. “Let me ask you again, oh Duchess of Frants, and Crown Imperial Princess Consort of the Theocratic Empire.” He managed to get a grip on his emotions and continued to speak, “The ultimate destruction will still occur even with my presence?”

“In the future we have witnessed… Your Majesty the Holy Emperor was nowhere to be seen.”

“…”

“And it’s not a distant future, but something quite close.” Runan quietly closed her eyes, then bowed deeply. “Informing you of this news was the true purpose of this trip, Your Majesty.”

Kelt was stupefied by what he had heard. But that state lasted only for a little while, and the corners of his lips gradually curled up.

His shoulders began quivering all of a sudden, and eventually, he guffawed out loudly. “So, that’s how it is. I won’t be around when that happens, is that it!”

He laughed as if he felt truly refreshed by the revelation.

“Even if it’s supposedly the destruction of our world, there is still a way to stop it. And that’s why you have come here, is it not?” While asking that, Kelt settled back down on the damaged throne. A pleased smile remained on his lips as he continued on. “I see. You came here to tell me that I should just entrust the task to the next generation.”

Runan wordlessly bowed.

“I’ve heard the message of the King of Frants loud and clear. Tell him that I’m much obliged.”

“Understood, Your Majesty.”

Kelt slowly rubbed his chin.

He was just told of his own impending death. The message said that his life would be over in the near future, and he’d disappear from this world.

But rather than be worried or scared, he felt quite refreshed, instead. As a matter of fact, it felt like he had been liberated.

‘I guess the only remaining thing now is to die peacefully and head to the Heavenly World.’

The world of the gods where only ones free of sin could enter. He didn’t have many days left until leaving this world for the Heavenly World.

However, he still had something left to do before that. His life didn’t have much time left, so shouldn’t he try to enjoy it to its fullest?

“Raphael.”

“Yes, Your Majesty?” Raphael smiled bitterly as he looked back at Kelt.

But the Holy Emperor was making a benevolent face, instead. “Prepare for a trip for me.”

“…May I ask, to where, sire?”

Kelt had spent the majority of his life inside the Imperial Palace. Now, time had come for him to leave all of this behind.

“I’m thinking of going on a journey, Raphael. I’d like to tour the peaceful Aslan, the one not mired in conflict. And I’d like to see the Kingdom of Lome no longer gripped by a civil war. Finally…” Kelt pondered for a little while, then continued on. “I wish to head to the Queendom of Aihrance, where an old acquaintance of mine is waiting for me.”

His grandson had achieved all those feats. He wanted to take them all in with his own eyes.

“A short vacation, in other words. Isn’t it fine for me to go on one? Raphael?”

When Kelt casually asked that, Raphael silently bowed his head in agreement.

**

(TL: In 1st person POV.)

“It’s just as I remembered. The Theocratic Empire is truly a wonderful place, isn’t it? Our home back in Frants is also nice, but you can tell that this place is so much better, with how vibrant the citizens are.”

With a bright smile on her face, Seran Ariana was roaming around the streets of Laurensis. I was following closely behind her, while hiding my face under a hood.

My twin older brothers glared at me for a second before chasing after Seran.

“Most importantly, just take a look at the expressions of the subjects! Look how bright and lively they are. It has to be because His Majesty the Holy Emperor and you, Allen.” Seran looked back at me and smiled brightly.

Charlotte was walking along with us, making a deeply troubled and uncertain face. Her face was also well-known, so she had to hide herself under a thick hood as well. She urgently walked up to Seran and whispered to her, “Your Highness… You must act more cautiously around here, ma’am. As Lady Seran is His Majesty the Holy King’s older sister, there is your station to consider…”

“Ah, that’s right. Allen’s now the Holy King, isn’t he?” Seran shifted her gaze over to me, then lowered her head. “Should I be more respectful towards you, Your Royal Majesty?”

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