Episode 146

There was no need to search far for the demonic beast gates.

Across the vast sea visible beyond the terrace, distortions and cracks could be seen in the air.

They were far larger than the one I saw at the Imperial Castle.

Even though they were still forming, the chilling cries of demonic beasts seemed to echo nearby.

“…….”

It was as if my mouth had gone hollow — no words came out.

And it wasn’t just one gate.

Even the ones visible alone — one, two… they easily exceeded five, ten.

“Are, are all those demonic beast gates?”

“This is insane…!”

Upon seeing the holes torn in the air and sensing the impending disaster, people screamed and fled from the banquet hall in a frantic rush.

As the crowd vanished like ebbing tides, only I, Ludwig, Bergeus, and Catherine and Harry remained.

For now, the beasts had yet to spill out from the gates.

The size and number were so significant that it seemed the formation itself was taking time.

Bergeus, his hair fluttering in the eerie wind blowing from the fissures, spoke.

“At this rate, by tomorrow morning, the gates will open. The demonic beasts will pour out and chaos will begin.”

“Tomorrow…”

Then Harry turned to me and said,

“There must have been a reason why Kirios chose a new master. The reason why it chose you instead of me, who could no longer draw forth its resonance.”

Still reeling from the shock, I immediately understood the meaning behind his words.

Historically, the one who had always sealed massive demonic beast gates was the sacred sword Kirios.

Ultimately, now, the key to sealing these gates was in my hands.

Catherine spoke, as if finding it unbelievable.

“Harry…! Sierra is a child who has never even held a sword. She’s physically frail too. We can’t possibly send such a child to face those dangerous fissures!”

Harry’s face too was filled with anguish.

He, too, must have found it difficult to send his hard-won granddaughter into such danger.

This was a disaster no one could have anticipated. Only Kirios had foreseen and prepared for it.

I picked up Kirios, which I had dropped on the floor, and said.

“If I can do it, then I will.”

“Sierra!”

“We have no choice, Catherine. From the moment Kirios chose me, this became my duty to bear.”

I said it, forcing a smile.

Of course, I had no desire to go anywhere near those grotesque fissures.

But could I really turn my back on it? The very safety of this world was at stake.

Not out of a sweeping sense of justice for world peace.

It was because I wanted to protect my people, our small everyday lives, and the natural belief that tomorrow would exist.

“Is there any way to seal the gates with Kirios before they fully form?”

At my question, Harry shook his head.

“Sealing a gate is only possible after it has opened. Right now, while it’s still forming, there’s nothing that can be done.”

He pointed to Kirios in my hand and continued.

“A demonic beast gate can only be sealed with Kirios once the ‘Core of the Fissure’ manifests. The gate must reach maturity before the core emerges.”

“Maturity stage… how long will that take?”

“It’s uncertain. It could take two days, or even a week.”

“Then we really can’t prevent the beasts from pouring out in the meantime?”

“Exactly. Until the ‘Core of the Fissure’ appears, we must hold out — even if it means mobilizing armies.”

If we couldn’t stop the war itself, then we had to prepare as much as possible before the disaster struck.

“First, our Holy Knight Order of Chetwind will be the initial line of defense…”

Harry gazed at the numerous fissures with worry-filled eyes.

I shook my head and replied.

“Given the scale, Chetwind’s forces alone will be hopelessly insufficient. We must gather every available force.”

If we failed to contain it here in the south, the demonic beasts would spread across the entire Empire.

We had to contact the capital as quickly as possible and form a united army to stand against them.

Harry seemed to agree but appeared to know how difficult that would be.

“The capital’s nobles won’t understand the seriousness of the situation unless they see it with their own eyes…”

He was right. Even seeing it now, it was hard to believe — how could we convince and urge them into action?

Peace had lasted too long. To the people of today’s generation, a demonic beast war was little more than a distant old legend.

At that moment, Ludwig stepped forward and said,

“I will try to contact them.”

“You, Ludwig?”

Certainly, as the Grand Duke of Karsian, his words carried weight.

At least, the noble families aligned with Karsian could be secured.

We had to do whatever we could.

“Then, please. I’ll separately send word to Drenihan and its vassal houses.”

Ludwig and I nodded at each other and set off to do what needed to be done.

* * *

In the south, within half a day, most of the residents had evacuated.

The south, where countless people had hurriedly fled, now resembled a desolate land of death.

It was almost laughable how, just yesterday, it had been considered one of the most beautiful regions bordering the sea.

As the evening sunset faded and night fell, the knights of Chetwind stood guard before the fissures that could open at any moment.

And it wasn’t just the knights who couldn’t sleep.

I sat on a bench in the garden, gazing up at the unusually bright white moon, when I soon turned my head at the presence I felt beside me.

“Ludwig.”

He, having been busy all day with matters regarding the allied forces, seemed to have finally caught a breath as he plopped down beside me.

“How’s the situation?”

“When I contacted through the communication sphere, they said all available forces from Karsian would gather by tomorrow. I also contacted the Imperial family, so we should receive a response soon.”

“I also received word that Drenihan and surrounding forces would converge on the south by tomorrow.”

Besides Drenihan, there were others who had responded with intentions to participate after being contacted.

Although things were proceeding smoothly, my heart couldn’t settle at all.

As time passed, the fissures increasingly took shape, and ominous winds began to blow like a typhoon.

Then Ludwig took off his jacket and draped it over my shivering shoulders.

The jacket, imbued with his warmth, brought comfort to my trembling unease.

“No matter what happens, I will protect your world.”

Ludwig said so, looking at me straight.

“Ludwig.”

Even as fear crept up on me, thanks to Ludwig staying by my side, I was able to hold onto my senses.

Why was it that if this person was by my side, it felt like everything would be okay?

It was thanks to the trust Ludwig had always shown me.

He had always effortlessly torn down the towering walls I faced.

“You haven’t slept a wink, have you? Even just for a moment, it’s better to close your eyes. For tomorrow’s sake.”

Ludwig made it so I could lean against his shoulder.

Resting against his broad shoulder, sharing each other’s warmth, it felt like, at least in this moment, everything would truly be alright.

* * *

It would have been nice if it were a dream, but cruelly, it was reality.

“They say the allied forces are gathering rapidly in the south. The scale is larger than expected, so we surely won’t be overwhelmed.”

Even with Ludwig’s reassurance, I knew the most important problem still remained.

“Even if the allied forces hold until the fissures’ cores appear and even if I seal the fissures with Kirios, this war won’t end as long as Hertz is alive.”

“Hertz…”

“Ah, I mean, that Hertz…”

As I was hesitating about how to explain, Ludwig turned to me and said.

“I’ve already roughly heard from Bergeus. That after hundreds of years, the king of the monsters, Hertz, has reincarnated and is trying to start the Great Demon War again.”

Ludwig mentioned that shocking fact more lightly than I had expected.

“The fact that those fissures suddenly appeared overnight must be his doing too.”

“You… already knew.”

At my words, he nodded and said.

“At first, I couldn’t quite believe it and thought he was mocking me, but yesterday, I became certain.”

“Then Ludwig, how much do you know?”

“I heard even that Crown Prince Lucion von Terium is Hertz’s reincarnation.”

“That’s right, the Crown Prince was Hertz. That’s why, in truth, I’m worried about the situation in the capital.”

Now that preparations for war were complete, Hertz no longer had to hide his identity.

At that moment, from a distance, a familiar voice called out.

“Your Grace!”

It was none other than Raven and Eve.

Seeing that they had arrived early in the morning, it seemed they had departed immediately upon receiving the message and had arrived at Chetwind overnight.

After greeting Ludwig briefly, Raven and Eve reported the situation.

“As you instructed, we contacted the noble families who can mobilize their knight orders immediately, and the forces are continuing to gather in the south.”

“What about the Imperial Knights?”

The Imperial Knights were the sword and shield of the Empire. Their maximum support was crucial.

“That is…”

Raven said with a hardened expression.

“Yesterday, it’s said that the Crown Prince’s faction rebelled at the Imperial Palace. As a result, the Emperor was critically wounded and is now hovering between life and death, and effective power has fallen into the Crown Prince’s hands.”

“What?”

“Thus, most of the nobles who supported the Emperor and Prince Theodore mobilized their knight orders to confront the Crown Prince’s faction, and an internal war broke out within the Imperial Palace.”

“…He created chaos on purpose to incapacitate the most important Imperial Knights.”

Crown Prince Lucion, or rather, Hertz, had rebelled.

It was perhaps inevitable and not even a surprising fact.

Raven nodded heavily and said.

“I will guide you to where the allied forces have gathered.”

Ludwig and I followed Raven’s lead and headed toward the open plains behind Chetwind Manor.

And soon, I opened my eyes wide as I saw the massive crowd.

There were countless knights there.

Among them, I also recognized the familiar uniforms of the Drenihan Knights.

And at the forefront stood my father, whom I missed so dearly.

The allied forces, gathered by the efforts of Ludwig and me, had assembled almost entirely in just one day.

Centered around the elite knight orders of the Karsian Grand Duchy, the Drenihan Duchy, and the Chetwind County, and joined by several vassal houses.

Even the Mage Tower and the Kingdom of Debar had contacted to say they would send forces.

In the case of the Mage Tower, Desar’s influence was significant, and the Kingdom of Debar, having a border not far from the south, volunteered to assist in the initial defense of the south.

Honestly, it was ironic that while the Imperial Knights hadn’t come, the royal knights from a foreign country would provide aid, but Princess Jamie herself had stepped forward to support.

Because of the distance, many reinforcements would join en route.

Thus, a truly large-scale army had assembled.

And yet, fissures continued to form.

Where there had been only about ten yesterday, now dozens could be seen across the sky.

I didn’t know how long we could hold out even with such a large army.

Nor could we estimate how many monsters would pour out of those fissures.

My heart raced wildly.

As heavy tension weighed down the surroundings and a deep silence fell—

Finally, a cracking sound echoed from the fissures.

“…!”

Kyaaaah-!

At the same time, countless monsters began to reveal themselves beyond the gates.