Great Hero (3)

The academy incident could generally be considered to have ended peacefully.

There were casualties caused by the demon realm transformation, but had it been left unchecked, even more would have suffered.

Because the source of the demon realm transformation was eradicated before greater damage could occur, the loss was minimized.

Thanks to this, the academy narrowly escaped irreparable devastation.

Now that the incident was over, everything was returning to normal.

The students were able to attend the academy as usual again.

However, for the students themselves, the most peaceful aspect was not that the demon realm transformation had disappeared.

It was that all the things disturbing their studies were gone.

The principal and vice-principal’s corruption and the misdeeds of some nobles and their children were exposed.

In fact, as it was uncovered that an attempt was made to kill someone in the chaos of the transformation, the Imperial Court dealt the heaviest punishment to all those involved.

Thanks to this, the noble children who had been tormenting their classmates were not only expelled but also completely taken away.

Thus, the students could peacefully focus on their studies and pursue their dreams.

… Or so said the newspaper held in the hand of a certain man.

“Damn it!!”

Riiip―

The man reading this grew furious and tore up the paper.

Oddly, the man’s face was wrapped in bandages like a mummy.

“Why are all the articles like this?!”

Indeed, as the newspaper reported, the academy had become peaceful.

But there were also those who suffered most from this incident.

They were the families and associates of the children who were taken away.

The mummy-like man tearing up the newspaper was a prime example.

“Damn it!! Every last one of them is an article insulting my siblings and mother! Damn bastards. Just how much has our Refilica done for them?!”

Through the gaps between the bandages, bloodshot eyes glared—this man was Shalio Refilica, the eldest son and family head of the Refilica family.

Once, he had been a top student at the academy, but his face was ruined by an incident with a certain woman.

“We feel the same. We, too, lost precious people in that incident.”

Opposite Shalio sat three others.

One of them, clad in armor and exuding considerable strength, spoke up.

“We of Saber don’t know what to do now either. We’re worried if we might end up losing the Crown Prince like this as well.”

They were Saber, a unit once directly under the Crown Prince of the Imperial Court.

They possessed overwhelming strength, existing solely for the Crown Prince, obeying no orders but his.

Any group that even slightly opposed their master, the Crown Prince, would immediately face their blades.

“Both your Refilica family and we of Saber have lost what’s most precious.”

“What should we do now?”

Draco and Neimy, members of Saber, spoke with despair written on their faces.

“We came thinking we might get some information from someone in the same situation as us… but it seems hopeless after all.”

Clive, Saber’s de facto leader, reacted similarly with a sigh.

Not long ago, they had wielded the power of the Imperial Court with the Crown Prince—how had it come to this?

“Our Refilica family isn’t in a good state, either. You must’ve seen the condition of this mansion when you entered.”

Just four years ago, the Refilica were the Crown Prince’s closest allies.

But since the Crown Prince’s deposition, they had fallen into ruin.

Desperate, they had joined hands with him again to carry out a new plan at the academy, but it ended in spectacular failure.

Even worse, the siblings who led the plan were captured, and their mother was also taken away to the 7th Legion for siding with them.

Now, the mansion stood empty.

“Look. Even if we call, not a single servant or knight comes—they’re all gone.”

The now desolate Refilica manor was like a haunted house.

The reason for the family’s downfall was none other than His Majesty himself ordering the dissolution of the family.

Ruined as they were, no one welcomed the Refilica name anywhere anymore.

With not just the siblings’ and mother’s crimes but also the family’s long list of misdeeds exposed, they had nowhere left in the Imperial Court to go.

“Hahaha… How did it come to this…?”

Shalio had lost everything—his unique family, their power, and even his own face was left disfigured.

Having nothing left, Shalio let out a hollow laugh.

“Mother… Alio… and… Selion!!”

News of his younger brother Selion’s death had reached him as well.

There was even evidence that it was retribution for his own deeds—there was no one he could blame.

He truly had nothing left in the world.

“Family head Shalio, you too have lost precious family. I, as well, lost my one and only younger sister.”

For Clive, leader of Saber, the Crown Prince wasn’t the only one who mattered.

His fellow Saber member and sister, Elaine.

She was as precious to Clive as the Crown Prince himself.

“They’ve likely been dragged off to the 7th Legion by now, just like the Crown Prince. The two of them are probably… over there…”

They would be experiencing hell.

Word had gotten around that all the Crown Prince’s associates were captured during the academy incident.

Thinking about innocent Elaine and their eternal lord suffering in such a way made Clive dizzy.

“So what are we supposed to do? Just sit around?”

Neimy, the only woman among Saber, asked.

She had been very close to Elaine.

Wouldn’t it make sense to help her friend, now in trouble?

“Yeah, you’re right—I want to go rescue them right now. But think about where the Crown Prince and Elaine have been taken.”

“…”

Draco’s remark silenced Neimy.

That place was none other than the demon realm.

Even they had no guarantee of survival there; it was a hell from which escape was uncertain.

“Could anyone even survive that place? Right about now, the Crown Prince and Elaine must be…”

“Shut your mouth!!”

Just as Draco was about to utter an ominous prediction, Clive seized him by the collar.

“Elaine dying? Don’t you dare say something so filthy!”

“But… that doesn’t mean we can rescue them, either!”

Tearing up, Draco protested.

At that, Clive loosened his grip with a sigh.

As Draco had said, if they stumbled into the demon realm to attempt a rescue, they might only die themselves.

“And did you forget who’s in the 7th Legion? There’s even the special task force that defeated the Great Devil!”

“…”

At the mention of the special task force, Clive’s eyes sharpened.

Those guys.

They had foiled the Crown Prince’s plan and were responsible for capturing him and Elaine.

“Those bastards!!”

Clive’s grudge against them was deep, but he could not take them on directly.

From all they’d heard, the gap between them and the task force was insurmountable.

“If only it weren’t for the special task force… those monsters…”

Shalio felt the same.

They were utterly powerless against the notorious special task force.

But who could they turn to for help?

That was impossible too.

They were now considered enemies of the Imperial Court—only a prison cell would accept them now.

They were all in despair at the realization that there was nowhere left to turn.

What good was believing in invisible hope?

They were on the verge of giving up—

“Who’s there!”

At that moment, sensing something suspicious, Clive drew his sword toward the window.

On the open windowsill sat a single bird.

There was no one else, but the presence in the room was undeniable and powerful.

It was coming from the bird itself.

[Don’t misunderstand. I am not your enemy.]

“And how am I supposed to believe that?”

Clive immediately realized the bird was a spirit.

Someone was using the spirit as a medium to speak to them.

[The 7th Legion. Don’t you wish to take revenge on them?]

This voice was sweet enough that they couldn’t resist.

“What’s your aim?”

With the bird’s question, Clive and the others wavered.

[First, hear me out.]

****

“Saint… Saint…”

Pram, who a moment ago had caused a stir over a pendant, was now mumbling a single word.

“Saint, huh…”

Even though she had been summoned to the special task force captain’s office where Kelian was working, she remained in a daze repeating the same phrase.

“She’s completely out of it.”

“It’s understandable, considering how pure she used to be and now hearing something like that.”

Kelian let slip a dry laugh at Pram’s odd behavior.

Silia, who had also followed to the captain’s office, had been wondering about the whole situation.

“But why Pram, of all people? Surely others could have been considered candidates for the Saint?”

Even Silia, who just earlier had suggested to Pram that she become the Saint, couldn’t understand the news.

The reason was Pram’s affiliation with the 7th Legion.

“No matter how much authority the special task force has, its base is still the 7th Legion. I can’t understand why the Holy Nation—which despises anything evil to the core—would choose someone from the 7th Legion.”

If it involved dark magic, the Holy Nation would unsheath their swords without hesitation.

As Silia said, it was hard to imagine them involving themselves with the “muddy waters” of the 7th Legion.

“But I still get it. The Holy Nation has always been desperate to find the prophesied Saint. They’ve invested enormous time and effort into this, so of course, they wouldn’t just give up because the candidate is in the 7th Legion now.”

“That makes sense.”

Silia accepted Kelian’s logic.

If the all-important Saint was in the inferno itself, the Holy Church would still jump in to win her over.

If, after searching their whole lives, they decided to turn hostile to the Saint just because she belonged to a “tainted” group, that would be stranger still.

“Was it because of that priest?”

“Do you have any guesses?”

“Back during the academy incident, we rescued a priest from the Holy Nation, and that priest witnessed Pram using her power.”

The power Pram used then wasn’t her usual demonic power, but a reversed attribute—holy power.

Seeing that brilliant light, it was natural to suspect she was the prophesied Saint.

Moreover, that priest realized Pram was part of the special task force.

Given the recent prestige of the special task force, it was difficult to mistake Pram for just an ordinary priest.

“In the end, the Holy Nation directly requested His Majesty. They demanded that the Saint from the special task force be handed over to them.”

“You mean they just forced it?”

“Of course not. They said they’d let the Saint herself choose.”

So, at the core of this situation was Pram herself.

Everything would depend on her choice.

“I should hear her opinion first. Pram, do you really want to go to the Holy Nation—”

“I’ll go!”

And her answer came out without a second’s hesitation.

“I want to go. I absolutely will! The Holy Nation? At least compared to this filthy place, it’s got to be so much better!”

Completely hyped, as if her brain’s circuits had shorted, Pram was ecstatic.

“And they said I could live as the Saint, right? So that means I can enjoy a comfortable life! I’d have a cozy bed and delicious meals—no more absolute filth, no more criminal trash, no more rotting monster corpses! How on earth could I pass up such a great chance?! I want to go now!!”

Throughout her speech, Silia and Kelian were dumbfounded.

Even after four years together, this was the first time they’d seen Pram so out of her mind.

But having always prized cleanliness, Louis could only try to understand her.

“So I absolutely want to go! Even if the young master tries to stop me, it’s no use. The Holy Nation chose me—who could get in the way?”

Pram gave Louis a triumphant look.

Louis would surely threaten, “If you leave, our special task force loses power!”

But what could he do? This was a request from the Holy Nation that she had accepted.

Come on, just try stopping her…

“Okay, fine.”

“What?”

“I’ll let you go.”

Contrary to expectations, Louis let her go without hesitation.

“You suffered enough, rotting in a dirty place like this for four years. Go recover what you lost in life over there.”

As Louis spoke serenely, Pram felt utterly deflated.

“Uh… thank you for letting me, young master.”

She had secretly hoped he’d try to stop her.

————-= Clacky’s Corner ————-=

Time to dismantle the Holy Church..

【ദ്ദി(⩌ᴗ⩌)】

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