The day after they arrived at the relay station.
The party of Arundel, Lucas, and the Pope moved to a nearby village.
The reason for moving to the village was to summon the nobles of the East.
Ultimately, the outward reason for Zion to come this far was to thank the Pope for supporting the demon subjugation, but the essential purpose was politics.
After many incidents, the country was still in chaos.
There were several reasons, but the first was obviously the appearance of the demon. The second was because of Zion, the owner of the Croyden Empire.
Zion’s tyranny due to Arundel’s escape caused people’s resentment and fear, and on the contrary, his achievement of confronting the dragon was an event that made them feel his dignity once again.
Fortunately, it seemed that the latter had more influence, but they couldn’t be completely relieved.
The nobles of the metropolitan area were in Zion’s sight, but the situation was different in the provinces. There was no way to monitor those who were far away.
Of course, they had won the favor of the Eastern nobles through the Eastern territory support project, but they needed to make sure.
The Pope also roughly knew Zion’s intentions, so he invited the Eastern nobles to a small gathering at the nearby village hall.
Clip-clop-
A carriage arrived with the sound of horse hooves. It was Hills, who seemed to have gone a long time.
Arundel looked up at Hills and asked.
“When did you come?”
Hills answered calmly.
“I came in the morning.”
“Where did you sleep?”
“Secret.”
Sounds like a secret.
Arundel squinted her eyes and looked away from Hills.
He disappeared at some point, and appeared like a ghost when she was about to leave the temple.
“Were you worried because I was gone?”
Hills asked with sparkling eyes. Arundel was momentarily speechless.
She wanted to say no, but her conscience pricked her, and it was embarrassing to tell the truth.
But, it was true that she was grateful to him…
Staring at the innocent sky, she slowly uttered her words.
“Yeah. I was wondering if you were having a hard time following the relay station because of me.”
Why would this demon guy chase after the relay station and go through this trouble?
Arundel ignored the heat rising in her ears and coughed with her hand over her mouth.
A big, hard hand was placed on her head. And it stroked gently. It wasn’t a tender touch, but it was a gesture of joy.
She looked up at Hills. The face that was smiling playfully looked happy.
Arundel looked at the twinkling purple eyes and thought.
What’s so good about it?
But that was only for a moment, who would dare to touch the empress’s head?
Arundel tried to shake off Hills’ hand, but Hills’ hand was first caught by a hand of similar size.
“Ouch!”
Hills pulled out his caught hand and put it in his bosom. Then he glared at Zion in front of him.
“What’s wrong? It hurts!”
“If you touch again, I’ll cut it off.”
At Zion’s creepy words, Hills pouted his mouth.
“Tsk, who’s going through this trouble. Was there anything wrong yesterday?”
“I didn’t ask you to follow.”
“I thought you were thinking about me…I was just worried about what might happen…”
Hills stopped talking. Then he looked at Arundel’s face.
Arundel frowned at Hills’ attitude of hiding something in front of the party.
But as if they had an agreement, she knew that Zion and Hills wouldn’t say anything.
Arundel turned her gaze as if she hadn’t heard. Lucas, dressed in a pure white robe, came into view.
Since the conversation in front of the Mannheim statue, she had felt a bit affectionate towards Lucas.
When their eyes met, Arundel first greeted him with her eyes.
Lucas stared at Arundel with a dry expression for a moment, then quickly smiled again. When a smile was added to the fine face, the surroundings seemed refreshing for a moment.
As people started to enter, Arundel also tried to move her steps to the hall.
But she couldn’t help but stop because of the warm heat in her hand.
When she raised her head, Zion came into view.
Her heart was beating incessantly, but her mind was not as turbulent as before.
Because she had sorted out her mind to some extent while walking alone in the forest last night. Thanks to that, her thoughts were also sorted out.
Arundel looked at Zion with a slightly dazed face, but on the contrary, Zion’s eyes were full of worry.
“You don’t have to be with me if you’re uncomfortable.”
At Zion’s incomprehensible words, Arundel blinked her eyes with a questioning expression.
“I brought you here because I was worried about leaving you alone, not for political use. So you don’t have to be with me in an uncomfortable place.”
Arundel smiled faintly at Zion’s explanation.
Like yesterday, he worries about things she didn’t even think about. She never thought that Zion was using her politically. It’s the same now.
“I’m fine.”
“Just…I feel uneasy.”
Zion raised his hand and brushed his hair back.
As his hair fell back, his radiant expression was clearly revealed. He was anxious.
She thought about comforting him more tenderly, but she knew that if she took one step, she would be drawn deep in before she knew it.
Resigned, Arundel said nothing and entered the hall again.
The sound of Zion’s footsteps following her was heard.
The hall was occupied by the major nobles of the Eastern region.
When Zion appeared, various emotions rose in their expressions. Respect and awe, fear and tension were intricately intertwined.
Hills, Lucas and the group of priests, and the Pope were already seated. There were two empty seats conspicuously placed in the middle, so Arundel was able to find her seat without difficulty.
Finally, when Zion sat in the central seat, the noble representing the Eastern region stood up and bowed deeply.
“Thank you for your long journey, Your Majesty.”
He felt tense. The other nobles also got up from their seats and bowed in turn.
Zion opened his mouth with a ceremonial smile.
“Everyone, please sit down.”
As everyone sat down with the sound of chairs moving, all eyes were on Zion.
“How is the East these days, is the damage from the tsunami okay?”
“Thanks to Your Majesty’s broad magnanimity, we have recovered a lot.”
“That’s fortunate, but I heard that the damage from the recent epidemic is severe.”
At Zion’s words, silence enveloped the hall. A sense of gloom was felt in each of their expressions.
The first person to speak was the representative of the nobles.
“That’s correct. Another hardship has begun with the recent onset of the epidemic.”
“Where did the epidemic start?”
At Zion’s question, the representative of the nobles hesitated to speak. The Pope, who couldn’t stand it, opened his mouth first.
“The origin of the epidemic has not yet been identified.”
“You mean you haven’t even found the origin yet?”
Despite Zion’s calm tone, the sound of dry swallowing was heard sporadically.
Especially, the noble representative who couldn’t sit still seemed to be blushing.
As expected, the person who spoke on behalf was the Pope.
“Regrettably, that is the current situation. We have not found a cure for the epidemic, let alone the infection route and solution. The number of patients is increasing day by day, and the number of healers is woefully inadequate, so we are very worried.”
Arundel glanced at Lucas.
Lucas and the priests also came here to help treat the patients. There seemed to be a story between the Pope and them, but the situation was also urgent.
Realizing the seriousness of the situation, Zion’s expression hardened a bit.
“How many patients are there?”
“I will tell you that.”
A skinny hand shot up from the left corner and drew attention. There was a man with a face as gaunt as his dry hand.
“I am Duke Lillit. I have the largest territory in the East, so I know the situation of the epidemic the best.”
Duke Lillit spoke while blinking his left eye continuously. It was a very annoying habit, but Duke Lillit himself seemed to be unaffected.
“The number of patients receiving treatment alone is up to 500. The number of unofficial patients is estimated to be around 1,000.”
“Is that based on the population of your territory, Duke?”
“Yes. When looking at the entire East, it is expected to be over 5,000.”
5,000 is a tremendous number. Because the number of healers is woefully inadequate and the route of infection has not even been identified, there is a high possibility that the epidemic will expand to the scale of the empire.
Arundel frowned without realizing it. The situation is more serious than she thought. A stiff voice came out of her stifling heart.
“So what can we do now?”
“The only way is to treat the patients who are constantly occurring.”
“Do they get better with treatment?”
“It varies from person to person. The survival rate for adults is 50%, and for infants and the elderly, it is less than 20%.”
Duke Lillit answered, blinking his left eye unnaturally.
“What are the symptoms?”
“The initial symptoms are similar to the flu. You get a high fever and cough.”
Duke Lillit spoke as he slowly scanned the surroundings.
“Then gradually the skin turns black and vomiting occurs. In the later stages, diarrhea symptoms worsen, leading to death from dehydration.”
It was a typical symptom of an infectious disease. But one peculiar thing was that the skin turned black. She had never heard or seen such a symptom.
“Do you have any other questions?”
Duke Lillit asked as he scanned the surroundings. The surroundings were quiet. It seemed that there was nothing more to ask in a situation where there was no answer.
The Duke slowly pulled his chair and sat down.
Arundel, who was biting her lip and thinking about the epidemic, looked at Duke Lillit again.
For some reason, she was bothered by him.
Except for his much thinner physique and the habit of blinking his left eye, he was an ordinary person.
But throughout his speech, she felt an inexplicable sense of discomfort.
He felt dark and gloomy, like a black and white object placed in a colorful landscape.
She wondered if Hills felt anything, but he was just bored with his chin propped up.
‘…Well, that’s it.’
Arundel observed Duke Lillit again. His expression was consistent throughout the gathering.
There was a moment when his expression distorted.
“I will visit.”
It was when Zion expressed his intention to visit the territory of Duke Lillit, the center of the epidemic.
The Duke’s expression hardened in an instant.
“You… you don’t need to do that. How could someone as noble as Your Majesty… if you were to catch the epidemic…”
At his stuttering words, Zion smiled gently.
“It’s okay. I will go to your territory tomorrow.”
“No… no. Your Majesty in a humble place…”
“I will depart tomorrow morning.”
“…It’s really dangerous. I’m worried about Your Majesty… It’s an honor to have you visit, but it would be better to come after the epidemic has calmed down a bit…”
Duke Lillit’s stuttering voice kept flowing, but Zion was silent with his eyes downcast. A cold light swirled under his eyelashes.
“Duke.”
Zion, who raised his head, stared directly into the Duke’s left eye. And a chilly voice flowed out.
“I will go tomorrow.”
