By Zephyria 
Dinner was at the Second Prince’s Palace.
I had expected a little, but unfortunately, it wasn’t a dinner for just the two of us. It seemed they had called us because there was something Rubel and I needed to hear together. Today, the two gods and Marianne occupied the guest seats. I wondered where Boulder was, but he was too busy teaching the Hip-Circle Light Cultivation Method to the knights to come.
The table was laden with various dishes, but the gods merely savored the delicacies, not filling their bellies. Their mouths were used more for speaking than for eating. Because of that, it was quite bothersome that Rubel and Marianne couldn’t properly eat either, but they remained quiet.
Currently, the two gods and the children were discussing the laws of the world.
“I understand now that there are not only this single continent but also several other worlds beyond the dimensions. I also recognize that you two gods, when you were first born as mortals, grew up in other worlds.”
“Well, yes. But don’t go spreading it around. It’s a secret of the world, you know.”
“Yes. However, what we are curious about is… how many worlds in total have been connected or have made contact with this continent?”
“Two. As far as I can tell, only those two. Where she came from, and where it was torn open and touched this time.”
“…”
“But it’s not entirely the fault of humans, either. It opened strangely easily. There wasn’t a mass slaughter that would tear worlds apart; it was just about a dozen wizards of the 7th or 8th Circle, gathering some Mana. And that, in the Sierran Empire, where Mana concentration is constantly regulated.”
“…Yes.”
“The distance between worlds is originally very far. Considering that, it seems like it might have made contact several times while I was sleeping. I wonder if this is also something the youngest one did or something.”
“The place that touched us this time, is that where those sharp black Mana fragments invaded?”
Marianne, without hesitation, interjected into Rubel and Spiritus’s conversation and asked what she was curious about. Rubel, who also needed a wizard’s perspective, had previously hinted that he hoped Marianne would ask many questions. Fortunately, the gods did not care about the high or low status of humans and did not consider Marianne’s actions presumptuous.
“Yes, that’s right. That strange, fierce energy that seemed to come from a place without magic. At first, I thought it was fragments of a torn soul, but now that I think about it, it might just be Primordial Mana itself, never having been refined…”
“Were the Monster Variants also all affected by that new Mana?”
“It’s possible. I can’t be sure because most of the Monster Variant samples in the Sierran capital have undergone various experiments. Only monsters and spirits on this continent are made to absorb all kinds of Mana.”
“Wow. Spirits can be corrupted too?”
“They just absorb it and then expel it, so they don’t mutate or become ferocious like monsters. They’ll probably just sleep when they’re full.”
“Ah…”
Gano Paquin, who had been pondering, let out a long sigh as if whistling. The plate in front of him was filled only with greens. The way he restlessly rolled the red, round fruit from left to right and right to left clearly showed his troubled heart.
“The fragments found embedded in the bodies of the knights discovered in the Grimsvein mine are, at least, from our continent. They transformed Primordial Mana with a strange technique and embedded it in their bodies. It seems it was used to absorb surrounding Mana and maintain the host’s life force.”
“Everything is black, so it’s confusing…”
“It’s bound to be confusing. Things that didn’t originally exist in our world came in burned black.”
The strange word grated on my ears.
“…Host? Can those fragments… control people?”
“If it could do that, they wouldn’t have embedded and bound it in crystals. However, after a very long time in that state, the body might have… swollen.”
“Yes?”
“All the bound individuals were Sword Masters. They all had high basal metabolic rates and couldn’t maintain their bodies by eating normally. Yet, from the moment they were bound, they lost their reason and endured for years without eating or even drinking water.”
“…”
“By continuously absorbing Mana from the vicinity of the Yuil Mountains into their bodies.”
“Then, until now…”
“Until now, the Sierran Empire has continuously maintained an appropriate Mana concentration, so they were able to survive. If the Divine object had fallen into the enemy’s hands when Beneto died this time, they wouldn’t have been able to face them in a healthy state. If they were lucky, they would have become like Heterogeneous Races, and if they were unlucky…”
Gano Paquin trailed off. I knew without hearing that it was a terrible fate, and my appetite vanished. I put down the spoon I was holding.
“It was said that immense Mana was needed to tear worlds apart, right? The Ninth seemed to have intended to use those knights as vessels to store large amounts of Mana. Though, it seems they didn’t realize that so much Mana would be used just for life support…”
“If it’s a Mana vessel, can’t you do something similar with monsters?”
“They do that, and they do this.”
“…”
“I don’t know how many you killed in your world, but the world doesn’t tear apart just because a few hundred people die. If that were the case, the world would open every time a plague swept through.”
That was true.
If they cherished humans so much, why did they let humans die off from plagues? The thought suddenly occurred to me, but seeing Gano Paquin’s sorrowful face, I figured he was lacking in ability and couldn’t help much, so I didn’t press him.
Still, Gano Paquin was talking about how the knights who returned alive had no other suspicious traces, how some of them found their places, and how they were busy receiving thanks. Spiritus suddenly interjected, cutting him off.
“Still, it’s fortunate.”
“Yes? Fortunate about what?”
“You, Mikael. Because your Mana operation method is gentle and soft, you are purifying both this continent’s Mana and that strange Mana from over there, using it as personal Divine Power. If that weren’t the case, your soul would already be flailing about, wanting to return to its original world.”
“Ah…”
“I don’t know why those guys who came from the same world are acting like that.”
I was curious about that too. Whether they intended to summon the Heavenly Demon from that world, or create a new Heavenly Demon in this land. Before taking down Wesley, I would have to deal with the Thousand-Faced Devil and Soho Cheon-nyeo as well, so I was worried about many things.
After the long dinner ended, Rubel vehemently opposed it, so we didn’t perform Acupressure and Blood Manipulation. Instead, though insufficient, I walked alongside Rubel along the promenade. I hoped for another chance to loosen the child’s muscles after returning from Floyd. My mind was preoccupied with various thoughts.
❖ ❖ ❖
November 8th.
Fourth day of training.
The morning passed without incident, but as the afternoon training time approached, the Martial arts training ground was somehow in an uproar. As soon as the restless ones noticed my presence nearby, they all stopped what they were doing and fell silent, but their demeanor was suspicious. I calmly observed the ones lined up in groups as before. There were two who clearly had disheveled collars and were covered in dirt. Mac Weaber let out a chuckle and pointed to the two, placing them at the front.
“Elga Wilds, Steve Gore. Forward.”
“…”
“What happened?”
“…”
“You won’t speak?”
Steve Gore was a man I had seen once before when lining up in front of the Imperial Palace. He seemed to wield a swift swordsmanship. I remembered a green-haired knight calling him familiarly… so I had mentally categorized him as a knight of the Second Prince Faction. He was in the 3rd squad, wasn’t he? I thought so. Elga Wilds, on the other hand, was from the 8th squad and had short, mercenary-like hair. Her cold expression showed a clear effort not to outwardly display her displeasure, but that made her seem even more like someone filled with resentment. She looked at me once, then at Mac Weaber once, and lowered her head. Although both appeared to be about four or five years older than Mac Weaber, I was quite surprised by his casual way of speaking to them. However, Rubel had previously informed me that Mac Weaber had a good knack for handling people, so I maintained a poker face and waited for their answers. When neither spoke, the green-haired man from before raised his hand slightly. Mac Weaber didn’t look at him for about five seconds, but when neither of the two individuals opened their mouths, he immediately turned his gaze to the green-haired man.
“Vincent Lancaster. Speak.”
“A somewhat subjective personal opinion…”
“Leave it out.”
“Elga Wilds assessed that Steve Gore’s training method was not suitable for him, and Steve Gore retorted that everything about Elga Wilds was unsuitable.”
At that, Elga Wilds gritted her teeth and raised her head. Mac Weaber, receiving her gaze, immediately looked at her.
“Elga Wilds, speak.”
“If you know so well, why don’t you chase criminals instead of just showing off now? It’s useless. The knights who went on the Floyd Expedition, regardless of which lord they originally served, were here with a strong sense of responsibility…!”
“I understand. That’s enough. Stop there.”
“…”
Those who supported Rubel generally held me in high regard. I was the Second Prince’s sharpest sword. Similarly, the nobles of the First Prince Faction had originally revered and followed Wesley Kiadris as they did me. Richard and Wesley had committed heinous acts, and the evidence was found by Rubel and me. If it weren’t for the strong support of the two gods and the passionate pleas of the knights who had been kidnapped and returned, half of those who didn’t believe us would have surely remained unconvinced. In the Sierran Empire today, Rubel was already as good as the Emperor. Therefore, those who had followed the First Prince wanted to erase their past from their lives. They either participated in the Floyd Expedition, declared their support for the Second Prince, or feigned humility towards those close to the Second Prince. However, they apparently could not tolerate being looked down upon by knights of the Second Prince Faction who were of comparable skill. With a great war looming, how could I entrust my back to them like this? It was incredibly difficult to swallow the sigh that rose from within me without letting it out.