Chapter 13: Prophecy
Eight days later, Shu headed to Ildana and met Iris at their usual cafe terrace. She brought up the topic of Yumir Ballard once again.
"Shu-san, do you know that Yumir has died?"
"Is that so?"
"Yes, it's true."
Of course, Shu was already aware, but he pretended not to know. Even though it had happened eight days ago, the promising Holy Knight had become a lifeless body near Ildana. It was bound to cause a huge uproar. Besides, Iris had been forcefully pursued by Yumir. His death was a memorable event.
"Did he fall victim to a monster?"
"No, it was probably a murder. There were marks that seemed to be made by a very sharp blade, so it's believed to be the work of a Magic Knight."
"Oh, I see. So there are Magic Knights among criminals."
"Since that falls under the jurisdiction of the military, we have no involvement. However, there seems to be a terrorist organization advocating for the freedom of Magic Knights."
The Holy Knights primarily focused on subduing monsters in accordance with the teachings of the Church. As Iris's duty was related to that, it was up to the military to investigate even if a fellow Holy Knight was killed. The military's responsibilities extended beyond national defense to include apprehending criminals. Moreover, there were criminal organizations that opposed confining Magic Knights to the country. Therefore, they often dealt with such entities. The nation's power relied on Magic Knights to some extent, so they couldn't simply let them roam freely.
"By the way, is it mandatory for Magic Knights to serve the country?"
"Yes, it is. However, the Kingdom of Ramza is a vassal state of the Sacred Grinia, so there is also an option to become a Holy Knight of the Church. But in most cases, they end up joining the military. Magic is a gift bestowed by the god El Magia. Therefore, Magic Knights serve the gods and hold a position to guide people... that's the main principle of the Magic Cult. Based on this, it's reasonable for the nation to manage Magic Knights!"
"It seems troublesome when individuals in guiding positions act on their own."
"Yes, exactly. That's why vassal states of the Sacred Grinia do not permit independent organizations formed by Magic Knights."
The Sacred Kingdom of Grinia is a great nation that also serves as the headquarters of the Demon God Religion. All mage knights serve the church. It remains unchanged that top-tier mage knights can call themselves Holy Knights, but those who are not mage knights serve under the Holy Knights as subordinate knights. Being a religious state, the church possesses all the military forces.
In the vassal states of the Sacred Grinia, they can have their own military forces, but the churches in various regions incorporate a few mage knights and maintain them as Holy Knights. In churches outside of the Sacred Grinia, there is no system of subordinate knights, so if they lack strength, they have no choice but to join the military.
The Kingdom of Ramsa was no exception.
Even in vassal states, the Demon God Religion becomes the state religion, and those who become mage knights are obligated to guide humanity. It would be inconvenient for them to establish their own independent organization.
"In the past, there were also mage knights who flowed into the Empire. However, recently, the Empire itself has been unstable. I heard that it might even escalate into a civil war due to continued oppression."
"When it comes to the Empire... It was the country with the largest landmass surpassing the Sacred Grinia, right?"
"That country rapidly expanded its power by exploiting its vassal states. Perhaps due to its meritocratic culture, even mage knights with S-rank or A-rank talent from vassal states end up aiming for the imperial capital. If they rise up and acquire citizenship, they can lead a comfortable life."
"In that case, the Empire's efficiency in gathering powerful mage knights would be many times greater than that of the Sacred Grinia."
"The Sacred Grinia doesn't force anything on its vassal states. If anything, it simply enforces the Demon God Religion as the state religion. Moreover, the Demon God Religion values compassion, respect, and wisdom, so there are also data showing an increase in civility."
The Kingdom of Ramsa, being a small country not adjacent to the Empire, is untouched by war. However, Iris is a Holy Knight of the church, and if the Sacred Grinia or its vassal states were invaded by the Empire, there is a possibility that she would have to go into battle as a reinforcement from the church.
That's why she had some knowledge about the current situation in the world.
Despite being a clumsy person, she had become an elite Holy Knight upon further consideration. She shouldn't be foolish.
"And besides, rather than the sacred kingdom of Grinia, the Demon God Religion gathers clairvoyant and retrocognitive Enchanters. With their power, they eliminate potential threats, so it's generally peaceful."
"So there are such Enchanters."
"Their power is so strong that they are called 'Divine Vessels' as a symbol of being loved by the God of Magic, El Magia. They are considered even more special than holy knights within the Demon God Religion!"
"In a way, immortality is quite something too."
"If I achieve notable accomplishments, I might be called that as well. The ability of immortality is self-proclaimed by me, so the church doesn't really believe in it!"
Shuu had the knowledge that religions, in general, were troublesome. However, the Demon God Religion seemed more reasonable than he thought. At least for humans.
Being a demon, Shuu was a target for subjugation, so he needed to be cautious.
In that sense, the empire might be safer for Shuu.
He realized once again that he was ignorant of the world.
"Well, we've gone off-topic, but it's good that Yumir is gone."
"It's insensitive, but it truly is a good thing. Yumir possessed the invisibility Enchant, so I was constantly on edge, wondering when I would be attacked."
"I see. That's frightening."
"She is truly an enemy of women."
Of course, Shuu knew. He had fought with her and felt the threat firsthand.
Furthermore, the magical power obtained from killing Yumir was substantial. She was undeniably strong. Considering she was a rookie holy knight, if they were to fight in a few years, Shuu might have been outmatched. It was merely fortunate that his combat experience was still limited.
"Well, make a fresh start and do your best."
"Yes. Although the church is in great panic due to the expectations placed on the slain holy knight, personally, I feel motivated to do my job well."
If Iris gained something from it, then the attack she experienced had some meaning.
Suddenly, Shuu found himself pondering such thoughts.
Unbeknownst to him, he had gradually acquired a more human-like mentality...
***
Thanks to Shu blowing Yumir's corpse near the town, the Eldera Forest had peacefully passed the time without human intervention. Many people visited the shallow layers to gather an abundance of medicinal herbs, but they completely disappeared in the middle and lower layers.
In other words, it meant peace for the monsters.
It had been five years since Shu started protecting demon-type and pig demon-type monsters. In other words, it had been over five years since he met Iris.
During that time, the settlement had grown significantly.
Even the goblin imps had evolved into higher-ranked greater-class Goblin Kings, and there was a considerable increase in mid-tier Middle-class Pig Demons and higher-ranked greater-class High Orcs. Since they primarily accumulated magical power through meals, their evolution was slow.
Nevertheless, there were many monsters that could rival Shu in terms of simple rank.
However, Shu, who could use magic, was still the strongest and ruled as the boss of the settlement.
However, when it reached such a scale, it became a crisis for humans.
Speaking of higher-ranked greater-class monsters, they were strong enough for B-rank Magic Knights to finally subjugate them. If it became a monster settlement with many of them, it would be quite a formidable situation.
And in the capital city of the Holy Grinia, Magia, the Shrine Maiden had foreseen that crisis.
"A sinister star shines to the south..."
The Shrine Maiden was a girl directly affiliated with the church who possessed the ability of future sight through an enhanced-type future sight magic gear.
It was an expanded future sight magic gear.
It expanded the human ability to predict the future and elevated it to the dimension of foresight. Humans, as living beings, constantly predict the future based on information acquired through their five senses. This was a very natural process, and most people probably didn't realize they were predicting the future.
For example, the ability to walk through a crowd without bumping into others was simply because they predicted the movements of the people around them slightly faster based on the information from their five senses.
The Shrine Maiden's future sight worked in the same way. However, she unconsciously obtained information beyond normal perception through the power of the magic gear and made predictions.
"There, it's a place where healing herbs spread..."
The Shrine Maiden's future sight was limited to the scope of prediction.
Therefore, the accuracy of the predictions varied greatly depending on the information obtained.
Both in terms of time and distance, the predictions became more abstract the further away they were and more concrete the closer they were.
"I see two gates... one of them is made of wood."
What the future vision is showing, even the Mikoko-hime herself doesn't know. She simply relays what comes to her mind through the power of the Demon Garb.
"Another one was made of bones, blood, decaying flesh, and resentment and despair."
Even if nauseating scenes come to her mind, she doesn't get disturbed.
During the prophecy, she is in a kind of trance state, where her consciousness and emotions are somewhat detached. That's why she doesn't connect with the disturbing scenes emotionally.
"People can pass through either gate. The day of choice is near."
At that moment, Mikoko-hime collapsed.
The female priestess who was accompanying her rushed over and lifted her up.
"What happened to Mikoko-hime?"
"It seems she just lost consciousness due to the recoil of the Demon Garb, as usual."
"Then let's carry her to her bedroom."
"Understood."
While witnessing the two female priestesses carrying Mikoko-hime, the bishops in the same room began to discuss. The subject, of course, was the prophecy from earlier.
"Do we have a record of it?"
"Yes. This time, the prophecy was quite abstract. It mentioned 'the day of choice is near,' so it might have predicted a major future event. There is some distance involved."
"'An ominous star in the south.' It must be the demons, right?"
"The prophecy indicates 'ominous star' to that extent. We should prepare for a disaster-class catastrophe. There is even a possibility of a ruin-class catastrophe if things go wrong."
The prophecy likely indicates the emergence of a powerful demon.
That was the unanimous opinion of everyone.
As long as it could be handled by B-rank Demon Gear users, up to the high-level Greater-class, it wouldn't warrant a prophecy as a warning. However, a disaster-class catastrophe would require multiple A-rank Demon Gear users or a single S-rank user to somehow subdue it. Furthermore, if it were a ruin-class catastrophe, several S-rank Demon Gear users would have to mobilize.
"The question is, which place is it... but..."
"It's unlikely to be within the Holy Greinia itself. If it were, the prophecy would be more specific."
"In that case, it must be one of the vassal states."
"Could it be 'the place where the healing grass spreads'? It might simply refer to medicinal herbs."
"I see. If it's a location in a southern country known for medicinal herb production, then the candidates are narrowed down."
It can be said that the location has been mostly identified.
In that case, it would be appropriate to touch upon the most important part of this prophecy.
With that in mind, one bishop began to speak slowly.
"...A choice, huh?"
It was something that every bishop was concerned about.
Judging from the discernible meaning, it was clear that some kind of choice was necessary.
"What does 'Gate of the Wood' mean?"
"The image that comes to mind is something ordinary. In other words, if you make the right choice, everything will end smoothly, right?"
"On the contrary, if you make the wrong choice, bones and flesh will scatter, and resentment and despair will be born. It wouldn't be on the level of Despair Dispyre, would it?"
"Idiot... that's a high-ranking monster on the level of a 'King'! The country will be destroyed!"
"We cannot afford to make the wrong choice."
While the bishops were exchanging words, there was an elderly man who had not uttered a single word.
He wore more extravagant attire than the bishops, but it wasn't excessively dazzling. However, it could be presumed that he held the highest position among them.
Higher than the bishops.
In other words, the old man was the Pope of the Church of the Demon God.
"Everyone, be silent for a moment."
At the words of the Pope, the bishops closed their mouths simultaneously.
And the Pope continued his speech.
"This prophecy probably refers to a 'King' among monsters. Currently, the only 'King' monster in the Slada Continent is the Immortal King Xenon Life. However, it is known that the dwelling of the Immortal King is in the far west, in the Imperial Territory. This means that a new 'King' monster is about to be born.
Therefore, we cannot leave it be. We must investigate immediately and eliminate the monster that will become the 'King' as early as possible! Contact all the churches and advise the bishops in various regions to exercise extreme caution."
The bishops nodded simultaneously.
Among the monsters that the Church of the Demon God considered enemies, the 'King' possessed exceptional strength. It was absolutely not something that could be left alone, nor could its birth be allowed.
Within that day, contact would be made with various regions, and Holy Knights for investigation would be dispatched to the locations where the birth of the Demon King could be anticipated.
Naturally, the famous herb-producing region, the Eldera Forest, was included in this as well.