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Chapter 355: Rally for War. [Release Version]
🕑 Added 2022-09-22 00:30:25 +0000 UTCSince it's played so often, just gonna have to remind you guys. Les Miserable "Do you hear the people sing" https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2crRmKlbfxM&t=88s
Edit: Addition to the ending. Wrapping up some loose ends.
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“S-Sealight?” Anasthasia mumbled Renee’s surname in surprise as the returned knight came out of the room and erected an [Air Shield] at its entrance to protect Markval.
Renee picked up her wing flag and held it up high while wielding her cumbersome flamberge. A weapon she normally two-handed was being twirled around as if it weighed nothing at all, and through my [Mana Eyes], I noticed mana streaming around her armor like a river. It wasn’t like manaweave clothing, which was just a giant mass of mana, but it was as if the mana was keeping the armor from falling apart.
“… I did not expect for the little prince to have a bodyguard in you.” Ghorush gazed at Renee’s face with great interest, to the point he didn’t seem hostile anymore. “Royce. I never had the honor to duel such a remarkable warrior. His deeds were known to many. Hmm. The irony, though. He had a daughter, and she was the one to pick up his legacy in service of the misogynistic Yeos.”
The helmet she took off suddenly broke into tiny pieces in the wind, before it flew over to her head. The breeze quickly swirled around her head and reassembled back into her helmet. This just answered my question. Looking a bit closer, I also noticed the mana was linked to her necklace. So the inheritance we helped Renee retrieve was her father’s armor.
<Tsk, that damn elf.>
Elf? I heard a rare curse from Yeostar, prompting me to ask him to elaborate on it.
<Istari. As I was not too proficient with the technical side of the dungeon when I first made it, I asked him for help. We had a bond after the Karhalantheel incident, after all. He helped me solve most of the algorithms and commands for the dungeon, which also included the creation of the arena bracelet. Just, the sly fox added a teleportation device inside the core room, which doubles as the blood creation room. Through Rhea’s eyes, I saw her access the teleportation room in Aleistunum’s possession.>
‘Rhea?’ So you knew Renee was Royce’s daughter all this time?
<Of course. Revealing this would have been more than a breach of privacy, no? The girl wanted to keep it a secret from everybody, even her closest friends. Royce’s “wife,” Rhea’s stepmother as such, even bought the same expensive ID model as yours to help the girl’s masquerade as a normal commoner. If you wish to learn who the father is, ask her yourself.>
No, no, I wasn’t condemning you for it. I just remembered Alistar asking for a woman called Rhea… Which now makes sense why the both of them knew each other so well. Makes me wonder if this mentor she talked about was also Royce—
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Rhea Renee Sealight wishes to add you to her party
Accept Decline
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? Accept.
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Party Leader
Name: Rhea Renee Sealight Level: 88 Unique Job: Plumwind Squire
_________________________________________________________________
Name: Hestia Atsuko Kargryxmor Level: 103
Main Job: Champion of Aurena Secondary Job: Ravager Unique Job: Locked
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Unique Job?! She unlocked her unique job? When?! Also, where are her other Jobs?
“From the looks of it, I do not think I must ask whose side you are on. Ghorush, correct?” Renee responded and raised her sword to threaten him. “Surrender, and accept your punishment without dishonoring yourself even further.”
“Surrender?” Ghorush tilted his head. “Hmmm, but why, though? You might have tricked me with that glass break and killed three skull masks, but why should I give up now? There is only a single person in this room who I consider a threat, and it isn’t you. You aren’t Sir Royce, girl.”
“That may be so, but I don’t need to be my father to put up a fight when it is a two versus one. Lady Priestess!” Renee called out to me, and I nodded. Why she was here and how she got her Unique Job could be answered later!
<Hestia, stall him for a moment. Prevent him from killing Markval at all cost!>
Hey, what are you trying to—
“I apologize for sounding conceited, but I can take on a dragon in her dragonewt form. Even if she is a threat to me, that’s only because of her draconic abilities and spells. I outlevel you youngsters.”
Mana Eyes.
__________________________________________
Name: Ghorush Streiga Level: 171 Race: Mountain Leonid Age: 84 Year
Ability List: Axe:
[]
Unarmed:
[Blood Rush]
Information Blocked
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Tsk, dammit. This is sooooo annoying! Let me use my appraisal skills already! This sorta information is useless!
“Urgh, rebound didn’t work. That is one hard-to-crack profile you have there, Princess,” Ghroush grumbled. “However, it did save me some time trying to intimidate you. You saw my level, right? How much did you see? Stats, skills, or nothing at all? Hopefully nothing, otherwise I will have to refund this appraisal blocking armlet.”
Still, level 171? What is with this powercreep? Thought that demonkin girl was the highest leveled enemy I would meet during this siege, but this guy is even stronger? How much stronger are the demon princes and the boss of the Yanderu?!
“Considering I personally do not want to make an enemy of Kargryx, I shall grant you one last chance, Princess Hestia. Step down, and I shall spare you and everybody else not related to Yeostar. A fair deal, no?”
[“Ha! Yeah, I guess it does sound fair…”] The nobles and knights from behind me expressed their shock at my answer, but I ignored them. Instead, I turned up the music.
[“So, to commemorate this deal. Let me sing for you… In my purgatory, I make the devil cry ♫
In Hellfire ♫
All you hear are his screams, begging to be released ♫
It’s Music ♫”]
Since it was remixed, the activation requirement for [Dragon Fire] changed to me having to sing it while standing still. It was annoying being a stationary turret, but I was a mage, after all. Being a spell slinging turret was my speciality!
Once the orchestral version of this hard-rock song began to play, flame shields surrounded every single of my allies. Ghorush, seeing this, let out a sigh and readied himself for a battle.
“Hmm… I can never not love your voice, even if it's only through [Telepathy]. Like sweet honeydew in the morning, a rival to even the most talented divas. If there were ever a God of Songs, you would do better as their blessed than Aurena’s.” The leonid scratched his long mane. “Such a shame. Eithalr would be quite sa—”
[“Look out behind you!”] I warned the merc, only for him to laugh at me.
“Huhaha! I see you can still joke in the face of you— What?!” Ghorush’s head snapped right around as he noticed the small flame meteor right where he stood, only to dodge again as another appeared.
[Dragon Fire] created meteors, whether humongous ones or those around the size of a pebble! Although Ghorush was the main threat, the remaining skull masks and undead were still a problem for the nobles and Amelia. Just like my old [Dragon Fire], these meteors will target my enemies, just this time, with enough severity you couldn’t just ignore them!
[“Everybody outside of Renee, move back! Defensive position or into the core room! Move back, now!”]
Even if they couldn’t take fire damage, I still didn’t want to hit them. I’d rather not think of them as deadweight in a fight that could end with me dead. Whether they realized this or were scared of my sudden form shift, the knights and nobles did as I said.
Meanwhile, Ghorush wasn’t having any trouble evading the attacks, but his companions were slowly dying out the longer I sang. The leonid laughed widely. He was so confident, but how couldn’t he be? The moment he saw a path forward, he moved so fast I thought he was teleporting.
Flashfire! Flashfire!
As such, I had to do the same. Unfortunately for me, he had already seen this technique of mine and had already figured out a countermeasure. Sure, I could choose any flames in this burning cavern, so it should have been random, but this guy dashed at me the moment I reappeared from my second [Flashfire]! Was this his intuition, or was his [Detection Sensor] working better than mine? I didn’t know, as I couldn’t see his damn profile!
Dreadfla—
“Wind Shiver!”
Before Ghorush could drill his rapier into my scale barrier, he took a step back and thrusted at the wind ray coming from the Renee. The mana around his weapon shot out, forming into a blue translucent umbrella. The second the threat was over, his eyes glistened as he turned back to me, only to jump back again as I released [Dreadflare Aura].
With the distance widened again, I shot out two [Lightning Bolt]s and [Tornado Bullet]s each, trying to lead him into a trap where I could roast him alive with [Dragon Fire]. He deftly dodged each spell by the skin of his teeth, only losing a few loose hairs before he turned his eyes to the ground. He somersaulted and slashed at the ground where I was readying an [Bedrock Blades], destroying the brown magic circle before shooting out a mana blade with his rapier.
Unless I wanted [Dragon Fire] to stop, all I could do to dodge was to simply lean my body backwards. I had to stay in one spot, but that didn’t mean I couldn’t move around. Otherwise, how would I be able to dance while singing, right? Idol stuff. It was a test just now, but it should have been evident from how the description of the song was worded.
Arck! That was close! Panzer and Unheiliger Engel, let’s go.
[“Holy, you can do the same thing as Larent?! Are you a sword saint candidate, too?!”] I forced myself to say after a chill ran down my spine. My body still remembered the fear I had for Larent’s mana blades.
“Priestess?!” Renee’s voice shook as I suddenly mentioned that during this rather nerve-wracking battle.
“Ha! I am not, as if, huhahaha!” However, it seemed like my praise just got to him.
Got you! Speak more, waste more time for Yeostar!
“This is just something most warriors have to learn if they wish to continue into S rank, you see. Mages have magic far beyond most common comprehension. They can level entire cities with a single spell, after all.” He gleaned at his rapier, cleaning some of the blood and dirt on it. “Melee combatants train in turning mana not into spells, but sharp blades. [Mana Strike], but taken even further. [Aura Edge], the ‘simple’ evolution of the skill. Very, very difficult to achieve for monsters, since your [Mana Strike] and [Stamina Strike] skills usually turn into your respective ‘- claws’ or ‘- fangs’ skill, and— Huhahahaha!”
Oh, oh…
“You sly little lizard! You had me monologuing there! Huhahaha, if you wanted to live, you could have said so! Huhahaha, I can’t believe this— Hrrrk!” The leonid facepalmed himself, literally slapping away his laughter before he quickly accelerated forward where he stood, prompting me to activate [Foresight] before he ended up on top of me.
Disruption. [Unheilige Engel] and [Halo of Consecration] shot out their load at the incoming threat with corrosive slime and white flames, allowing me to dodge back and use [Terra Wall] and [Bedrock Blades] to alter his attack path. Just like most blademasters around Rank A I’d met in this world, Ghorush had no problems cutting through them, even managed to shoot some mana blades at me.
I reapplied my buffs on my self and turned on [The Will to Fight and Survive] for more combat buffs and mobility. Once done with her own buffs as well, Renee charged forward the moment I gave her an opening with my spells.
<[Various Spell Buffs] [Flag of Valiant Hearts] inflicted on [Young Sunfang Dragon, Hestia Atsuko Kargryxmor]>
<Flag of Valiant Hearts: A wind blessing invoked by [Gem of Valiant Winds]. Increases Agility by 5% of the base stat>
“Wind’s Calling!” Renee held her blade horizontally and pulled it back, invoking a suction effect where Ghorush was pulled into her. No matter what power buffs she got from her new Job and armor, she was still almost 100 levels below him, so I had to chip in to distract him.
With Ghorush focused on dodging my attacks, Renee found the leeway to attack, only for the two warriors’ weapons to clash. Bang; with metal clashing, the two fended each attack off, but Renee was, expectantly, pushed back. Ghorush didn’t just have a higher Strength, he was probably two heads taller than her.
The leonid smirked before he focused more mana on his rapier, to the point it even dug right into Renee’s flamberge. Using [Wind Blast], Renee created some space, to which I used [Warp Point] entry and exit to teleport Ghorush far away from us. Surprised by this, Ghorush tried to dash back, but I used the same trick to get him away from us again by using [Foresight] to time the spell perfectly.
Annoyed by this tactic, Ghorush tried to shoot me down with his mana blade, but I just multi-cast [Cyclone Madness] where he stood to disrupt him. I knew this wouldn’t stop him, considering he was stronger than Larent, probably, but still. I had to delay him!
“Priestess!” Renee warned me, causing me to snap behind me to see the earth turning into a giant golem. Winding up its punch, it struck at me.
Do— Nah, Purple Flash. Gloria Ascendence!
Deciding this was a trap, I instead chose to tank the attack with [Gloria Ascendence], only for my decision-making to be justified. Ghorush attacked me the moment the golem struck.
“Oho?” Ghorush smirked before landing multiple hits on the barrier, sounding like he landed seven strikes in a single second, only to wind up his next attack with a smirk. “I just need to wait for it to disappear, right?”
One second, two seconds, three seconds. Boom. Renee tried to stop him, but he summoned a couple of golems to distract her. I couldn’t move with the giant golem holding this barrier still. Fourth second. I cast [Bedrock Blades] to destroy the golem and prepared myself to dodge.
Fifth second. [Gloria Ascendence] down.
Flashfi—
“Ruptured Skies.”
—fe— Shit!
<Now!>
His rapier gleamed a brilliant azure as it turned golden white, cladding his blade in enough mana to cause my eyes to shiver. My body’s reflexes had me activate [Flashfire] just in time, but the problem was his blade was faster. He locked onto me like a hawk. The attack was without a doubt gonna hit—
Poof.
Exactly that, poof.
“…?”
“…?”
Ghorush and his attack just disappeared. No, in fact, even the undead and the corpses of the skull masks were gone, too. They disappeared, just like that. Vanished into thin air.
“… Eh?”
“… Huh?”
Renee and I were flabbergasted, especially me, as I thought I was about to feel what a level 171 was about to do. The tension…
God Yeostar?
But before I could get an answer from him, light appeared around my body and the sight of the destroyed cavern changed into that of plain sand. Noise; countless voices erupted around me, sounding not only surprised and shocked at this sudden change, but I could hear numerous people screaming anxiously like banshees.
I looked around, noticing I was currently inside the arena portion of the dungeon. Around me, the people I saw hanging onto their dear lives were seated in the audience seats. They were all alive, but all of them looked bloodied, dirtied, and mentally unstable. The undead wave was a horde of fodder to me, but for these people who were bitten and would have been torn to shreds if it weren’t for the undying part of the dungeon, the zombies were a source of unending torment.
How? Teleportation? Wait, but— Wait, you told me— Hold on?!
<Let me handle the repercussions. Just win, Hestia. I place Yeos’s fate in yours and your allies’ hands. May the Goddess bless you with the light to banish this shadow!>
What?!
“People of Yeos!” My eyes snapped around to that voice, where I saw Markval standing on a pillar before everybody else. “Once again, my name is Prince Markval Caimlace the Fifth! Prince of Yeos!”
What is happening?!
“Priestess!” Renee called out for me. We were the only people inside the arena with him. “I’m not sure what happened, but we need your music now. Your music, we need to calm the people down.”
Renee’s head directed my attention to the people around. Hysteria was a nice way to describe it. The understatement of the year, really, as it looked more like anarchy. Pure chaos. People were crying, others were screaming around in terror of their neighbors, and others just wanted to run away. And it was overcrowded to the point nobody even had room to properly move around.
How many people are here?! This is the same arena but… are there more than a thousand people? Or more? Counting all of this, wait, what is that?
[Terror (Critical)] and [Fear (Critical)].
Wherever I looked, that was all I could see in this anarchy. The atmosphere was ripe to spread to others. Looking at the audience seats, everything was divided into three sections — those barely affected by the terror, those looking exhausted as hell, and those completely traumatized as if they went through hell. Most were in the latter category.
Honestly, I had no idea what exactly was happening here. Renee seemed to agree, but from the look of it, Markval was in the know. After all, he was the only other person around who could listen somewhat to what Yeostar could say. In other words, he had a plan, and Renee had caught onto it.
Right. Right. Who cares where Ghorush is? Play The Heir of Light. We can deal with everything later.
<[Humanized (Moderate)] inflicted on [Young Sunfang Dragon, Hestia Atsuko Kargryxmor]>
Amid the chaos, I deactivated [Battle Frenzy] and transformed back into my moderate form to appear less intimidating. I didn’t need to fight right now. As such, I started my song with the sound of strings being played.
“In the midst of the desert ♫
A bright ray of light shines ♫
Pure and brave, that she was, as she walked ♫”
Calm, collected. As always. The song was always meant to calm my heart, but as the name said, it was there to keep others hopeful. With the effects of the song, any [Fear] or [Terror] would turn back to the minor stage. I could never forget the fact this world ran on game logic sometimes.
She was the ideal for me ♫
The bringer of children’s smiles ♫
Alas, the world seemed bleaker without her ♫
But all wounds must heal, we must force back the tears ♫
Her legacy remains for everybody to hear ♫
All these wounds will heal, mourning must end ♫
Our path is made clear through the loss of a friend ♫”
<[Shield of [The Light]] inflicted on [Young Sunfang Dragon, Hestia Atsuko Kargryxmor]>
The light barrier signified the effects were starting to take effect on everybody. I couldn’t get rid of the mental demons in their heads, but at the very least, the frantic cries died down. People weren’t trying to kill each other out of fear. Sure, they were all still scared, but at least we could talk to them now.
“Something unholy has happened to all of us today,” Markval continued once I began singing and noticed Renee nodding. “The undead of the oceans, the drowned, had suddenly invaded this holy sanctum of our god. I understand the pre—”
“Fuck off, manablood!”
“Burn with Ilsaphone, you damn liar!”
“Can’t harm us?! In this fucked up prison! Look what happened to us!”
“… Uh?” Markval froze in the place as the crowd erupted, not in hysteria, but in anger. The fear they felt just a second ago was all transferred over to the next possible emotion — rage.
Oh no, this is not gonna be good.
“Get eaten and ripped apart!”
“Damn nobles! All you do is take from us! Where is my son! My husband?! You sent them out to die!”
“Arrrrgh, where was Yeostar when we were being eaten! Fuck! Fuck! They took my fingers! They ate my FINGERS! They ATE us!”
“You left us to die! Swine! Fat pig sprinkled with our hard work!”
The dungeon kept them alive, but it couldn’t do anything about the scars they were carrying. Sure, I healed them, but it wasn’t with [Miraculous Grace]. I healed the people on the second and third layer with my white flames and [Sacred Field].
Those alone couldn’t regenerate limbs or body parts, and now that I was looking at them carefully, some actually look worse than I thought. Almost… ghoulish. Like a beast ripping pieces off their bodies to consume. One at a time, like a picky eater.
…
I couldn’t help but stop singing for a moment to gulp down some hard-to-swallow saliva. It felt like a stone went down my throat. It was even worse when I turned around. Those in the middle, those mildly hurt by the undead scourge were on the fence with things, with some following the riot while others kept to themselves. Only those not hurt by all of this were calm, although that latter group consisted mostly of nobles, knights, and the rich.
And they weren’t calm anymore.
“You filthy street beggars! You’re addressing the ruler of Yeos! This is a rebellion!”
“Knights of Yeostar! Protect the honor of the royal family! Seize and silence these dissenters!”
“Markval! Markval! Protect my son, you imbeciles! Punish those accursed plebeians!”
“W-Wait, Princess Regent, we cannot! Duke Alberstien, we need to stop this now!”
“The princess has spoken! Knights, stand down! Stand down!”
“Alberstien! Why are you listening to that girl?! Anasthasia, you wench! Just like your mother, why are you doing this to my son? PROTECT YOUR PRINCE!”
We just got out of one problem, but more was incoming. This dissent while the siege was still ongoing. I could probably leave them be for now, but wouldn’t something like this cause trouble in the future? However, I needed to get out and rejoin the battlefield. The siege was still ongoing, and I still had no idea where Ghorush was.
“Priestess,” Renee called me. “Your aerokinesis, please. As loud as possible.”
I nodded and slowed down my singing, setting the atmosphere and stage. Did Renee have a plan? Then again, this woman was pretty crafty if you thought about it. There was that speech she gave me after we got her “father’s” inheritance, and how she sneaked past Master to get to Aleistunum. I mean, Yeostar did mention something about an Aleistian teleportation or something, and that was where she probably got her Unique Job.
Compared to me, she seemed like she had a plan for everything. I should just let her do her thing.
Once I handed her an air microphone, I lowered my volume and turned her up, allowing her to take the stage. I also made one for Markval, as a way to calm him down.
“My dear countrymen! Commoners and nobility!” Renee’s voice echoed like thunder in this arena, scaring those in silence. “My name is Rhea, also known as Renee to those who have been watching the tournament for these past two weeks. I am the daughter of Sir Royce!”
“““Daughter?! Wait, Sir Royce’s?!”””
“Wait, did Sir Royce have a kid? No, wait, he got married to some noble in Aleistunum, right? No, just some high-ranking mage commoner.”
Nobles.
“Damn, I remember! I saw Sir Royce on the day of their wedding, but I have never seen such a dull face before. Which man looks so disappointed on the day of his wedding when his wife was that beautiful? The royal family married him off for something, I assure you!”
“That armor is his, yes! Definitely! I saw that, no, wait, wasn’t he a man before? Was it a girl all this time?”
“That does make sense. The damn nobles just kick out all women who want to join the knight’s order. They don’t even accept commoners! Imagine denying such a right to Sir Royce’s child! Unforgivable!”
And commoners. Those who weren’t there to hear Renee’s full reveal in the cavern were equally surprised by this. Although, I had no idea why Renee wasn’t telling them her last name. “Sealight,” was it?
… Is this gonna work?
“Wrong.” Once again to silence all of them, Renee’s voice boomed even without the need to fake it anymore. “Up until now, I did not fight and train to become like my father. A knight is more than just their bloodline and legacy, a knight is somebody who embodies the values handed down through an order, fulfilling them to the best of their abilities. A knight embodies safety and protection in time of peace, and an unstoppable force during war.”
“Then where was our protection?!” The dissenters, those who weren’t affected by Renee’s news, shouted out. “Where were they?! Where were our knights?! The only person who came to our rescue was the Champion! At least the Goddess still watches over us! What has Yeostar done?!”
“The royal family is at fault! And your nobles, too! The last prince sent Sir Royce to his death! What have they done since then?! Send even more our young men and women to their deaths out there!” The majority of the people here were the elderly and those unable to fight due to injuries or those unable to be trained. Whether you were a man or woman, both genders were treated equally under conscription laws.
I guess they aren’t blaming me, but…
“Yeah! We were all idiots! It wasn't the beastmen who were at fault for my daughter’s death, it was the royal family! The nobility! Just like now, they abandoned us and left us to die!”
“Shut up! All of us weren't part of Carmaniate but you discriminated against us anyways! Forced us to only live in the port of the slums! We fought alongside you humans, too, but where was the support?! Fuckin’ furless, you left us to rot and now you’re trying to turn it around?!”
The animosity between the beastmen and humans was just a boiling pot ready to overflow and burn anything around it. The commoners wanted to turn the angry, but quiet, beastmen group onto their side, but it failed spectacularly. Elyonda, or maybe Yeos as a whole, was a city with so many problems, it was a wonder it hadn’t broken apart yet. What kept it together? Definitely not the love for the royal family, and it seemed like Yeostar wasn’t as liked anymore.
Probably has to be Aure—
“ENOUGH!” Renee shouted for the first time in her speech. “Is this what you want, everybody? Quarrel? Now, when the world before our eyes is falling apart? When green rats invade our farmlands and homes, pillaging and burning things down? When the undead roam our streets, piercing through this holy sanctum to feast on everybody like beasts? When your family and friends are fighting outside as soldiers, all so you can come back to a peaceful home? This goes for both commoners and nobility! Are all of you only here to quarrel?!”
“…”
“…”
Those in the commoners, which included the slightly and severely traumatized, section went silent. Renee’s forceful tone seemed to have affected them. On the other hand…
“What nonsense are you speaking, woman?! You dare critiz—” One of the knights tried to speak back, but a hand suddenly was placed in front of his mouth, shutting him up. It was just, the person who did it was the surprising part. “P-Princess Regent?”
“Rhea.” The crazed, almost lunatic mother of Markval came forward, but instead of her usual deranged self, she looked down from the audience seats with an almost longing expression. “… Have you heard everything from your ‘mother’ and father?”
“I have, Your Grace.” Renee only bowed.
“… Are you sure? This isn’t your responsibility, but ours — the current royal bloodline.”
Renee nodded.
“Then… so be it. Markval, my dear, what is your decision?”
Markval looked up to his mother in surprise and flinched, only to suddenly look at the ground in contemplation. Most likely, Yeostar was speaking with him right now. Once he was done, he turned his eyes back up.
“I have. The Caimlace bloodline shall return the crown back to Sealight. As such—” The young Prince turned his eyes back to the crowd. “People of Elyonda and Yeos, please, forgive us!”
And he bowed, deeply, to all the people in front of him.
“M-My Prince?!”
“W-What?!”
“I, Markval Caimlace the Fifth, humbly apologize to everybody in attendance for incompetence as your Prince! As a descendant of God Yeostar, I am a meek representation for our country’s values of Knighthood, Bravery, and Loyalty! The beauty in it… I couldn’t fulfill it. Neither could my father! We brought only despair to everybody…”
“My countrymen!” Renee took the stage again after Markval began tearing up. All I could do was keep singing, knowing this wasn’t the place for me to speak. “I ask you this once more, are you here to fight amongst yourself? Under the watch of the Goddess? In this sanctum of God Yeostar? Knowing, this is all caused by the damn enemies outside! Grimgarians! They have done something to unleash all these undead on us! Those invaders deserve our rage! Not our countrymen!”
Noise. People were talking amongst themselves. Since the arena was packed full, the dissonance between everything was beyond jarring.
Renee conjured up her wind flag and held it up high for everybody to see. “Commoners and noble— No, as I said before, my countrymen! My fellow Yeosian! Tell me, if you are true Yeosians, what was the blessing God Yeostar gave to my father?!”
“““…””” People went quiet for a moment, until… “““[Knight of the People]!”””
“[Knight of the People]! That his title as a Champion of Yeostar!” Renee shouted it out with even more vigor. “He fought for not only the royal family, but for his country! He died alone, fighting off hordes and hordes of demonkins to protect his Prince and the soldiers he left behind! Those who returned home owe him his life! The Knight of the People!”
“““Sir Royce!”””
“Who is our Goddess, my fellow Yeosian? Goddess Aurena! Goddess of Healing and Miracles! Who do we have here?”
“Time will move on, but your stories remain ♫
A legacy made upon the warmth of your heart ♫
The light shines so brightly, all in your honor ♫
May the light guide you to the plains of souls! ♫
And from my despair, awakens a pyre ♫
I will heed her wish and soar all so higher ♫
This stage that she left, the light shines anew ♫
With heavenly fire, this dragon is here for you! ♫”
“Idol of Aurena, Dragon Princess of Kargryx, acknowledged by God Yeostar! The purifier of undead, the Savior of Hope. Must I say more?”
“““No!”””
[“Renee? How did you know I had a spell able to heal even limbs and organs?”] I asked her telepathically, finding her confidence very weird.
Letting the crowd cheer, she sneaked up to me and whispered, “I-I… Please, forgive me once this is over. Y-You see, uhm, well… I didn’t have much to bargain with, and the Archerudite, you know, the leader of Aleistunum… Well, uhm, he has a connection to God Istari, and—”
[“No need to continue…”]
Renee nodded her head quickly and returned to rally the people around us.
Istari… Kramps mentioned him being the other person Aurena trusts the most. Did Istari sell my information away? I haven’t even met him yet, and he’s already trying to do a social media move?! What’s next, is he gonna make his own search engine???
In any case, Renee was undoubtedly a smooth talker. She could probably coerce a dragon to do something for her… well, she did, but that wasn’t the point. In a way, Renee wasn’t the best mage or knight, but she definitely had the best talking skills if I compared her to Aurora and the students.
The [Terror] and [Fear] of most people were completely gone for good after that speech. Of course, this couldn’t squash out all the anger and fear, but it was a start. Markval and Renee, joining together as they reassured people, would have looked amazing in a photo, not to mention how impressive Renee looked while raising her flag.
At this point, I had done all I could.
“Hear me, my countrymen! I am Rhea, but I will not fight today as Sir Royce’s daughter, but as myself. If you cannot trust the knights anymore after what happened, then place your trust in me. No, place your trust in this young woman here, an outsider who came here to help. Although, I can see she didn’t manage to reach everybody—” Renee and I noticed a few soldiers eyeing us with contempt. Those were likely the people I left hanging in the third layer to reach the fourth quicker…
In a way, I abandoned them. What if one of them was a fan of mine? Considering Renee came at just the right time like a real hero, was I really needed back then?
“— Still! Even a knight cannot be everywhere, every time. We are not omnipotent nor gods, after all!” I stopped my singing for a moment when I heard that. “No, those are just ideals. A knight must be stalwart and true, but we aren’t problem solvers. Please, put your trust in us, however, all of you are Yeosians! You are children born on these lands once conquered and ruled by the brave and powerful God Yeostar! The one to defeat the SS rank leviathan! Do not just put your trust in us, you must also believe in yourself! In our beloved world, the gods have blessed us humans with the power of the Divine System. A method to become stronger than anything! Here I stand, a woman born on soil ruled my male knights only, but I still dream to be one. A brave, loyal, and steadfast protector for all of you!”
Her words resonated to everybody, even to those still affected by [Terror] and [Fear]. Noticing my mistake, I continued singing, accompanying her speech as best as I could.
“I wish to become a knight for the PEOPLE! I wish to be your shield as you improve yourselves even further! PEOPLE OF YEOS, MY COUNTRYMEN! DO NOT PRAY TO HEROES, PRAY TO YOURSELVES TO IMPROVE AND BECOME BETTER! ALWAYS! EVEN IF YOU FEAR THE WORLD, LET ME BE YOUR BASTION!”
“““DAME RHEA!!!”””
‘Do not pray to heroes?’ ‘Even if you fear the world, let me be your bastion…’ To not carry everything on your own shoulder, to not become a hero everybody seeks with expectations. Instead of falling into that pitfall, become someone who can inspire others to become strong. Can my songs provide that in this moment?
“… Haaaa… Feel the echoes of our voice ♫
Quivering the core of your very soul ♫
Rally up your strength, you soldiers ♫
Be brave, find hope in it ♫
Let strife not frightened you away ♫
From the peace of the brilliant light ♫
And let the Star shine bright ♫
Inside your hearts! ♫”
<[Stage Fever (Moderate)] inflicted on [Young Sunfang Dragon, Hestia Atsuko Kargryxmor]>
People’s eyes. They are all on me… They aren’t on Renee or Markval anymore.
“Will you roar out to the world ♫
And stand tall next to our flag ♫
To see the very tale ♫
Of what the gods have in plan ♫
So don’t cower away ♫
In your fears of the departed and be free! ♫”
“Ehe… Everybody!” I heard Renee speak.
“Feel the echoes of our voice ♫
Quivering the core of your very soul ♫
Rally up your strength, you soldiers ♫
Be brave, find hope in it ♫
Let strife not frightened you away ♫
From the peace of the brilliant light ♫
And let the Star shine bright ♫
Inside your hearts! ♫
Will you join in our chorus ♫
And make your life clear to hear ♫
The same with the epics of the Knight ♫
That we feel safe under his watch ♫
So live up to your own songs ♫
And raise up your sword to the stars! ♫
Feel the echoes of our voice ♫
Quivering the core of your very soul ♫
Rally up your strength, you soldiers ♫
Be brave, find hope in it ♫
Let strife not frightened you away ♫
From the peace of the brilliant light ♫
And let the Star shine bright ♫
Inside your hearts! ♫”
<[Stage Fever (Critical)] inflicted on [Young Sunfang Dragon, Hestia Atsuko Kargryxmor]>
… To my surprise everybody sang it. Almost sounded like a national anthem… No, why would… It was good I tried to forget this memory.
“Hestia.”
After my song and another speech, Renee and I were now preparing to join the rest of the siege. We left the rest to the nobles, after I reconfirmed to everybody I would grant “heavenly white grace” to everybody’s wounds afterwards, and that the royal family would be the one to help me manage them after the battle. This way, it would help the commoners regain some trust in the nobility.
I also got in touch with Amelia afterwards. It was just for now, but it made my heart calm down. I honestly thought I would have arrived late again, just like with Eshe. Good thing it didn’t happen. After I gave her a hug, I sent her back to Greenveil through the nexus, but left them to go back to Elyonda. I was needed here, after all, and that was when Renee started this conversation.
“Ren— Sorry, Rhea.”
“No, no, it’s alright. To you, Neill, and everybody else I consider my friends, I think Renee is perfectly fine. I came before you with lies and deception, so it’s fine if you continue using it. I, personally, find the name more fitting.” Rhea took off her helmet and smiled at me. “Do you remember the promise you made to me?”
“About protecting Elyonda and also changing the whole view on women?”
She nodded. “I managed to give people some time to think with the latter part, but it’s just unfortunate it had to happen like this. Unbelievable… the town is besieged. Karhalantheel was released as well. All those undead were his fault, and the demonkins and their mercs had done so much harm…”
I had already brought her up to speed on the recent news.
“Hmm, there still is so much we have to do. So much I still need to accomplish, it’s just… I’m glad you’re okay, Hestia. I apologize for disappearing for my own goals when you needed help.”
“Heheh,” I giggled, still finding it funny she was finally using my name. It was quite fun teasing her about it before, due to how I could hear her blush behind that steel bucket of hers! “Yeah, the demonkins really had some surprising things under their belt. However, don’t blame yourself. No one could have helped us there outside of the gods or a void-touched. Instead of the past, think of the future and the fact I overheard those demonkins having another one of those tools.”
“… I see. Thank you.” She placed a hand on her chest and bowed. “I’m sure you’re curious about my Unique Job. I’ll give you a full explanation once everything settles down, but the gist is that it’s currently not enough to help me fight at the same degree as you or your sister. However, a Unique Job is there to evolve. Three sub-jobs can be attached to one, and from them, you can level your Job and then evolve it. Just like a dragon.”
“Hmph! Let’s see about that once I get mine after this siege is done. Neill, Tasianna, you, and me. Good think our promise together means we can smack some grimgarians, that will help you level up, too. Let’s do it!”
“Of course, oh, and speaking about Tasianna. Keep an eye out for the sky, alright?” I tilted my head at that comment, finding it weird she would ask a dragon to do that, but I simply shrugged my shoulders.
“You really are a woman of many secrets.”
“Too many, and I’m not even done with my personal ones yet. Look at the skies, Lady Priestess. I wasn’t lazy when I went over to Aleistunum!”
It was time to turn over this siege! … And I should probably look at the list of System messages I got recently. My parallel minds have been nagging me to take a look before they forget.
Comments
:O
brunoid
Thanks for the chapter!
