Kays Translations
Just another Isekai Lover~
56. Prayers and the Past (Part 2)
In the silence, the old knight Clark picked up a few leather scrolls and booklets stacked on the table beside Duke Ziemeld’s bed and placed them in front of Gilbert and the others.
“Under normal circumstances, this is something that should not be disclosed to the public, but I have the records here. I have been given permission to disclose them to you by my lordship’s direction. Please feel free to examine them later.”
Duke Ziemeld nodded and glanced at the scrolls and booklets, letting out a sigh.
“…Even though they are national records, I cannot guarantee that all of it is true. Ziemeld has been a country that has valued its pride for centuries; therefore, it is certainly possible that inconvenient facts have been distorted in the records… As a matter of fact, all that is written in Ziemeld’s official records is that the holy sword was lost, and that the cause was the death of the fated mage.”
“Then is it unknown what actually happened?”
When Priest Sidney asked with a stern expression, Old Knight Clark produced a few more booklets and piled them up.
“These are journals of the knight commander and the head chamberlain who served Ziemeld at that time. The facts seen differ depending on their position, but… it is possible to infer certain shared events from them.”
Duke Ziemeld looked into the distance again.
“Such immense power in human hands can cast a dark shadow, and the brighter the light of their glorious achievements and the praise they receive, the more that shadow can distort the hearts of those who have earnestly honed their skills and have taken pride in their work. On the other hand, those with great power attract others, calling forth various desires. The human heart can sometimes be consumed by difficult emotions, leading to tragedy…”
After Duke Ziemeld’s monologue-like muttering, the Old Knight Clark continued.
“Accurate information has been concealed, and piecemeal stories have been passed down for over a hundred years; so this is nothing more than speculation… The princess at that time became infatuated with the hero who wielded the Holy Sword. Some members of the nobility were intoxicated by his power. On the other hand, the admiration directed toward only one person made some of the knights, who did not get to shine, resent the hero. The result was a tangled web of events that eventually claimed the life of a young girl who had been standing by the hero’s side.”
Lionel, who had been listening quietly, asked after a pause.
“Could that past have something to do with this current incident?”
Duke Ziemeld’s face twisted in pain as he met Lionel’s gaze.
“I thought I had raised Dylan well and taught him the ancient pride of Ziemeld. But as my son learned about Ziemeld’s past, he became distorted in an unexpected direction.”
The mention of Dylan Agreas Ziemeld’s name made Lionel tense up.
“Excessive pride can sometimes breed arrogance, and a skewed sense of justice can turn to violence… eventually leading to blind faith. Dylan harbors hatred for the power of the goddess. He believes that it is this power that has led to the downfall of our Ziemeld…”
Priest Sydney exclaimed, frowning.
“Why would that lead him to plot something like unleashing immortal beasts, the undead, upon the country…!?”
Duke Ziemeld, who had sat up in bed, clutched the sheets that were resting on his lap in his wrinkled hands.
“The discovery of mildly toxic mutated undead beasts further twisted Dylan’s blind faith… ‘An army of immortals, equal in all respects, is what will truly bring peace…’”
Lionel furrowed his brow further.
“Surely, he doesn’t actually think he can turn people into undead using that undead slime…?”
“If they cover the royal capital and wait for three months, all the people and knights will become undead without dying. The changes from within the body won’t be detected by the clergy,” Duke Ziemeld replied.
A gasp escaped from Lionel and Sidney.
“…This is bad; we need to check the knights we rescued the other day again. We certainly cannot discern the signs of undead transformation that are not visible on the surface.”
Saying this, Sydney hurried to send the clergy to the knights, while he approached Duke Ziemeld himself. With his permission, he opened his mouth and peered into the back of his throat. However, his expression remained grave.
“…What should we do? If their undead conversion hasn’t yet reached the surface, they should still be able to be purified…”
Looking at the scene, Lionel exhaled to organize his thoughts.
“…There should be a holy sword and a holy knight in the royal capital. From what you’ve said, it’s possible that they’ve already devised a plan as well…”
Gilbert noticed that Flora, standing next to him, was trembling slightly. Whether due to the terror of what she had heard, or the mention of the Holy Knight, or perhaps because of Lionel’s final fear, about the Holy Knight being in the Royal Capital?
Without saying a word, after much deliberation, Gilbert touched Flora’s shoulder and took her hand in his. When she took his hand back, it was indeed trembling.
──I don’t like that jerk who abandoned Flora… but I really don’t want her to carry any more sadness or grief in her heart.
With such thoughts poured into their joined hands, he tightened his grip around the handle of the battle axe in his other hand.