Chapter 75

Chapter 75

Chapter 75

That individual was resting peacefully amidst a group of scantily clad ladies-in-waiting.

Even though the ravages of the military conflict continued outside, he remained inside a lavish and richly ornamented chamber in the heart of the fortress.

“Your Highness, Charles.”

The voice of the holy maiden Aurelia echoed in the place, but the noble did not acknowledge it. He continued with his face buried between the women’s attributes, emitting loud snores identical to those of someone oblivious to the world’s collapse.

The atmosphere of the chamber was permeated with the stench of liquor. That scene represented a direct mockery of the bitter rebellion that sought emancipation from the empire’s oppression.

“Your Highness, Charles.”

After a prolonged moment of silence, Aurelia spoke his name once more. It took her about five insistences before obtaining a reaction from the supposed sovereign.

“Ugh, what…? What is it?”

Finally, Charles VII, the legitimate successor to the throne of the British dynasty, managed to sit up shakily. As soon as he stood, he took a gold cup decorated with precious rubies and gulped down in one swallow the wine that one of the courtesans had served him.

The sun was at the highest point in the firmament; it was broad daylight.

“The imperial hosts have just supplied us with a large amount of war resources, just as had been demanded.”

“Oh, really…? Excellent work, excellent work.”

It was a crucial benefit that could well alter the fate of the confrontation. Despite that, Charles VII barely paid any attention to it.

“In any case, that means the moment I take possession as monarch of this territory is just around the corner, isn’t it?”

“… Yes, Your Highness.”

Aurelia nodded slightly, recalling the words that the “Black Prince” had manifested in the recent talks for Philip’s liberation.

“Additionally, the leader of the enemy forces has presented a rather dubious alternative.”

The proposal consisted of ceding control of the capital, Reims, to the forces of the Kingdom of Britannia peacefully.

“It is likely that fear has invaded them and they only intend to escape.”

Even before such a revelation, Charles VII’s posture did not undergo any alteration. Without showing the slightest hint of distrust, he dismissed the matter with a gesture that denoted absolute boredom.

“Ah, by the way.”

At that moment, the noble took the floor again.

“I need to ask you something.”

For a brief second, a spark of lucidity seemed to appear in Charles VII’s gaze. Would he finally be assuming his obligations as a ruler?

“Please express it, Your Highness.”

Aurelia inquired, clinging to a last trace of optimism.

“From the provisions the imperial army brought, could you get me some of that liquor from the southern lands of the empire?”

“…!”

The response was nothing more than the whim of a drunkard, crumbling any expectation of the warrior.

“Heh heh, it’s just that the taste of southern wine is simply irresistible!”

Charles VII let out a loud laugh.

“Isn’t it the ideal thing to open a good bottle to celebrate that we recovered the kingdom’s capital?”

Upon hearing his words, the courtesans around him joined in his scandalous laughter.

“Celebrate? Wasn’t a huge banquet held just the previous night?”

Aurelia contained the complaint that threatened to escape her lips and chose to bow her head submissively.

The royal lineage ran through that man’s veins and, solely for that factor, he possessed the legitimate right to stand as monarch of Britannia. That was considered a sacred design.

The only thing remaining was to retake the capital and consummate the investiture of Charles VII…

Involuntarily, uncertainty about the future crossed her mind.

—Will you obey the mandates of monarch Charles VII of the restored Kingdom of Britannia as if they were divine designs?

That phrase was like a sword that the “Black Prince” had driven directly into her being.

“Are you trying to tell me you are going to gift Reims to the insurgents?”

Count Brandenburg, the holy knight, raised his voice full of suspicion at Dale’s declaration.

Reims was not just any city; it was the ancient royal seat of Britannia and the historical site for the coronations of royalty.

“Are you aware of the weight that action carries, young pup of the Saxon family…?”

“Oh, I understand it perfectly.”

Dale replied, making it clear with his attitude that he would not give details for free. For her part, Lady Scarlet remained on the sidelines in silence, completely stripped of the seductive attitude she had exhibited moments before.

“And Count.”

Dale added, unfazed in the slightest.

“It gives the impression that you still haven’t assimilated what your place here is.”

“What… what did you say…?”

“Is it that you have already erased from your memory the pact we sealed?”

Facing the holy knight, who was incapable of concealing his anger, Dale continued coldly.

“I am your superior.”

“…”

The restrictive oath that chained them remained in force. Dale’s mocking attitude immediately fueled the holy warrior’s anger.

“Your arrogance will last very little…!”

“That’s enough, keep quiet and keep your gaze down.”

Dale replied with total indifference.

“If your superior orders you to move, you do it. What is all this sermon for?”

Complying with the word pledged by Dale, there was no obstacle that hindered the march of the emancipating hosts of Britannia.

Even the main contingents of the empire that guarded Reims had abandoned the site in advance upon noticing the proximity of the rebels.

And just when the liberation army of Britannia arrived at the historical capital, their main goal…

In the middle of a Reims ready to be taken without spilling a single drop of blood, the leader of the empire’s forces awaited them, the very “Black Prince” belonging to the Saxon family.

Dale remained motionless in the place.

Located right at the end of the drawbridge of Reims, the historical capital of the Kingdom of Britannia, he was completely defenseless, as if he intended to stop the advance of the opposing troops all by himself.

He evoked the image of a lone combatant defending the bridge of Changban.

However, performing such a feat was an impossible task even for someone like Dale.

The divisions of the empire, which had the backing of a holy knight, a dark sorcerer settled in the seventh circle, and his respective Purifier squadron, did not possess certainty of emerging victorious against the imposing army commanded by the holy maiden.

In other words, not even by getting involved in an open war did they have the triumph assured.

──Although it is not that they lacked opportunities from the beginning. In fact, the imperial battalions possessed a colossal numerical and strategic advantage.

If the knights represented the pride of the military forces, they counted on the core of power known as the “god of war” in the field of combat disciplines.

The high-ranking sorcerers.

That advantage remained firm until a certain strategist of defeats squandered almost completely the potential of those high-ranking mages.

Under the premise of providing support from the rear lines, these individuals possessed the faculty to unbalance contests where warriors of extraordinary capabilities participated. Their value was so high that they were assigned the custody of the impregnable bastion known as “Belle Fort,” which, by twists of fate, ended up transforming into a deadly mousetrap.

“Prince of the Saxon family.”

In the middle of such a desolate panorama, the young man challenged the opponents alone. Dale de Saxon, known to all as the “Black Prince.”

“Are you going to grant us control of Reims to our liberation faction just as the agreement stipulated?”

In this way, it was up to the holy maiden Aurelia to speak to Dale.

On the wooden structure that crossed the water channel around the urban walls, the divine envoy measured gazes with the “Black Prince.”

“I will cede the domain of Reims just as I promised.”

Dale assured.

“However, before proceeding, I require you to grant a request.”

“Please, speak.”

“Would you grant me the privilege of receiving a direct instruction from your sword?”

A formative exchange with weapons. Something similar to what countless adversaries had attempted in the past against the “Black Prince.” However, now that he was in an equivalent position, Dale expressed himself firmly.

“Does that imply a fight to the death?”

“Absolutely not, what I intend is only to obtain a ‘lesson’ from you, holy maiden.”

The envoy of the heavens tilted her head showing strangeness, to which Dale added:

“Facing the mastery of your steel, my mystical arts do not pass for more than childish entertainment.”

The reality was evident. Even for Dale’s capabilities, the holy maiden Aurelia represented an insurmountable challenge at that moment. He did not harbor hopes of emerging victorious; it resembled more an infant moved by the desire to contemplate the majesty of the “sword of the holy maiden.”

Despite that, in the background of his intentions, a dark purpose was hidden.

“Agreed.”

The holy maiden placed her fingers on the hilt of her weapon, which exhibited fine ornaments of gold threads.

Even if Dale resorted to the totality of his capabilities, victory would be elusive for him at these moments. The divine warrior was fully aware of that, being that the reason why she considered it appropriate to accept the deal.

Srrrng.

Upon being extracted from its scabbard, the metallic blade reflected a flash of an icy blue.

“Does that steel possess any name?”

“It is the ordinary weapon of a veteran combatant whose name was lost in time, who battled with dignity and perished pursuing the emancipation of this territory.”

The holy maiden explained.

“It is for that reason that I wield it, seeking to fulfill his last will.”

The weapon of an anonymous combatant.

“I recognize this steel as the ‘Nameless Sword’.”

Simultaneously, an emanation of a bluish and dark tone began to manifest under Dale’s feet.

Even the soldiers who remained at a considerable distance were able to perceive the gigantic concentration of mystical energy. The insurgent troops in the rear immediately adopted offensive positions, but the holy maiden Aurelia did not imitate their action.

She simply raised her limb to indicate that they stop.

“Everyone, take a step back.”

With that order to retreat, a radiance came to life along Aurelia’s Nameless Sword.

It was not the albino purity that the holy warriors or the members of the Knights of Saint Magdalene usually manifested.

It was an extremely intense golden glow. Its brightness was such that it caused annoyance to look at it fixedly; that golden energy began to cover both the steel and Aurelia’s metallic protection.

The process of capturing one’s own convictions on the armament, the protection, and the being. A level proper to the “Master of the Aura” that even warriors with outstanding capabilities doubted reaching after an entire existence given to the handling of weapons.

A colossal gift, comparable with the mystical arts, manifested by the descendant of a humble worker.

The maximum expression of combat that the path of the knight can reach.

The armor of thought, Avatar.

──A mystical warrior provided with golden attire stood on the bridge.

The lady of conflict. A living representation of the divine message, an irrefutable proof of the presence of the deity.

“That is the image of a saint…”

Dale adjusted his ideas, focusing completely on the sparring against the holy envoy. Although that formed part of a plan designed to achieve triumph, he possessed an extremely intimate motivation to seek this duel.

Measuring himself against a rival of insurmountable magnitudes brought certain benefits. Dale was on the threshold of accessing a higher stratum.

The fourth circle.

“To be honest, my odds are zero.”

He had not launched the challenge believing he would win. Even if it were a practice, any tiny distraction could carry fatal consequences when dealing with a duel between individuals of such magnitude. A blinking in error could cost his life.

However, a remote possibility existed. If he managed to access the fourth circle in this precise environment, the options of success would cease to be nonexistent. Being optimistic, they represented one percent.

“If I manage to achieve that, the panorama will become considerably simpler.”

If he obtained the triumph, the military campaign would conclude at this site. And even if he did not succeed, Dale had already structured the actions for the subsequent scenario. It was a play where he risked nothing real from the beginning.

For her part, Saint Aurelia interpreted Dale’s invitation as the ideal way to take control of Rance without experiencing casualties in her ranks.

“Let us begin the combat.”

She did not show the slightest hint of contempt, treating the situation with the same seriousness as if she were facing a mature warrior and not an infant.

At that moment, a wave of dark blue mystical power emanated from the surface that Dale walked on.

Aurelia deciphered the nature of the action. Just as elite warriors were clothed with the “Armor of Thought,” high-caliber sorcerers manifested the “World of Thought” on the physical plane.

The domain of the mystic.

The foundations of magic that would result unattainable even for the aspirations of a sorcerer of the sixth circle were being executed by a boy of barely twelve years belonging to the third circle.

It resulted in something outside all logic. Despite that, Saint Aurelia did not lose her composure. Dale was not the only exceptional being who carried qualities foreign to the ordinary.

──An environment dominated by a white and dark winter night confined them.

A limit where only void and nothingness reigned.

“……!”

It was about the pure representation of a 《World of Death》, characterized by an extreme cold and a dense gloom.

However, neither the most intense cold nor the deep darkness managed to diminish the golden radiance of the divine envoy.

“That is the Avatar…”

The saint’s nameless sword gave off gusts of golden light. A luminous cloak danced around her golden armor.

“Remain alert, young Dale.”

Saint Aurelia warned.

However, this territory corresponded to Dale’s domain, and he, being the originator of that chilly and shadowy environment, did not represent a rival easy to subdue.

“I await it with interest.”

Dale performed a bow charged with courtesy. At the same time, the frozen gusts and the gloom began to dance under his plants, while his cloak of darkness shook with force at his back.

“──Shub.”

Dale pronounced the young girl’s name.

The golden warrior launched into the attack at a speed comparable to that of a luminous lightning.

Chapter 76

A flash of golden tone advanced abruptly, moving at a speed that evoked the very nature of light. It represented the first occasion since his previous existence that he measured himself against the maximum expression of a warrior’s capabilities, a pure manifestation of power.

However, they were inside “Dale’s world.” A space dominated by the passing that evoked that winter evening tinged with black and white, characterized by a hostile cold and dense shadows. The sandy terrain that confined both combatants.

For a practitioner of the mystical arts, projecting the plane of ideas onto the physical environment kept similarity to the building of a “magical fortress.”

For conventional sorcerers settled in the sixth circle, who perhaps did not assimilate fully said notion, that was limited to perfecting the spells, enhancing the mental representations, strengthening the schemes, and debugging their mystical quality. However, Dale’s case resulted in something totally opposite.

He deciphered the true value of the plane of ideas —the “mage’s fortress”— and mastered the methods to channel its strength.

Scholars of the mystical arts do not receive training oriented to military conflict. Despite that their capabilities result in being formidable, regardless of the hierarchy of their circle, they do not orient their ideas toward combat.

Unlike the veterans of the sixth circle who perished before Dale in his previous existence, those did not pass for being “academics” gifted with a portion of power superior to that of the common person.

Regardless of how terrifying or ruthless the foundations of their disciplines were, or how colossal the gift they manifested was, an academic would never manage to impose himself before a real combatant.

Despite that, Dale guarded in his memory the “environment” that was revealed to him by the most outstanding battle sorcerers who at the moment fell before the abilities of a paladin. Individuals who did not hesitate when assuming the role of warriors, reaching the peaks of the sixth circle and higher strata.

He recalled the configuration of a space designed exclusively for confrontation, the authentic power of a sorcerer’s fortification.

An environment of hostilities, a supreme fortification by its own right.

And there existed a contender who advanced with promptness with the firm intention of demolishing said structure.

The Holy Maiden Aurelia, the golden valkyrie.

The confrontation between a warrior and a mystic of similar magnitudes constituted an authentic military site in itself.

The frozen gusts and the gloom concentrated in spirals, hindering the advance of the holy maiden Aurelia, who charged in his direction.

In that precise instant…

Zap!

─ Hahaha!

A dark branching like midnight projected toward him violently.

To Dale’s ears, that kept similarity to the genuine laughter of an infant.

“■■■■──!”

Instead, for the perception of Saint Aurelia, that represented only the hair-raising scream coming from an aberrant creature of the cosmos.

“……!”

The golden warrior executed a movement with her steel. A golden flash emerged immediately, dissipating the aberration, breaking the gloom, and simulating the arrival of the day.

Her steel segmented the limbs of “Shub,” causing a dark fluid with a consistency of pitch to spread in the space in front of her.

Despite the inertia, Saint Aurelia altered the principles of the movement, interrupting her march of blow and performing a jump toward the rear with the end of increasing the space between both.

Managing in this way to elude the concentration of evil and degradation that not even her own golden protection would have been capable of resisting.

“This space constitutes my property.”

Right after that, the “cloak of shadows” that replicated Dale’s dark attire began to shake violently.

From the deepest corners of that dark evening sprinkled with white, a stretch of liquid gloom began to sprout. Simultaneously, the 《Shadow Stalkers》 that remained hidden among the shadows projected their limbs provided with thorns.

At Dale’s side, a young girl who exhibited dark goat horns proceeded to lift the edge of her attire. The limbs charged in a coordinated manner.

A true chaos of dark branchings.

An environment filled with hostility, which manifested its malevolence without any type of containment. Despite everything, Saint Aurelia did not show any sign of disturbance.

Putting aside the disconcerting impression of perceiving the origin of the perversity in the young boy located in front of her, she moved her golden steel reflecting a quiet firmness.

It was not about a steel of divine origin, but the ordinary weapon belonging to an anonymous combatant. However, before the golden glow that covered said steel, even the brightness of a celestial weapon seemed to be left in second place.

Similar to the glow of the dawn opening its path in the middle of the gloom of the dusk.

The golden valkyrie, the maiden of conflicts, stood up to the offensive of the branchings making use of a luminous whirlwind.

“…!”

The void was absolute.

A total eradication.

Not even the space of liquid gloom managed to remain on the sidelines of that effect. It evoked the image of a flow that had evaporated, showing the aridity of its base.

“This labor will not result in being simple.”

A contender before whom the triumph resulted in an unknown, even employing the total of her capabilities. Consequently, the “mystic settled in the third circle” proceeded to increase the revolutions of the circular structure of his vital organ one more time. Three circles along with the dark connections that linked them… 『The book of the black goat』.

The strength that sprouted from that pair of dark focuses spread throughout the width and length of Dale’s domain.

With the purpose of transforming the image of the white and dark winter evening into his own military fortification.

Warriors refine their steels and care for their protections with the only objective of taking part in the terrain of conflict. Therefore, that which they capture in their weapons and elements of protection is the “philosophy of combat” that they have structured throughout their lives. Although the strength that they manifest comes from the inspiration of a deity, the principle remains identical.

A combatant.

A simple academic will never manage to impose himself before a real combatant. However, Dale was far from being a simple academic.

“…!”

For a brief instant, a gesture of distrust was drawn on the features of Saint Aurelia. She performed a quick turn and the golden valkyrie used her steel.

Clang!

The nameless steel of the holy maiden impacted. Against what element?

A Dark Steel.

The weapon provided with an aura of tone as black as jet that identified the House of Saxony. The steel belonging to a warrior of death, provided with the dark armor of the raven knight, which manifested the skills required to contain the offensive of the divine envoy.

That same combatant of the dark steel advanced with promptness, directing an attack toward the Holy Maiden.

It was not about a human remnant returned to life through the components of the Raven Knight. In this particular environment, that type of restriction lacked any validity.

This constituted a domain where mystics captured their ideas, and Dale exercised the role of deity in this space.

He counted on the faculty required to transform that into a reality.

A stratum that was situated beyond the fantasies of simple veterans belonging to the sixth circle.

──A winter evening tinged with black and white.

The particles of snow descended and, in the middle of the chilly environment and the gloom, the contingent of beings of the ultratomb began to manifest in a progressive manner.

Warriors of Death carrying the dark steels of Sachsen, providing protection to their leader and to the “owner of the environment.”

Warriors of Death structured through the power of ideas. Each one of them reflected the skills of a paladin who at the moment carried said distinction.

After the invocation of the Warriors of Death, Dale had collected a considerable volume of information performing as leader of the Black Armor Faction. The foundations of the handling of steel, polished through countless days of experimentation together with the virtuoso of weapons Charlotte.

The “configuration” that transmitted said foundations was coupled over the Warriors of Death.

“Automated configuration.”

Despite finding itself still in a period of development, it demonstrated to constitute a rival at the height for its real baptism of fire.

“How much terrain can they cover?”

Upon measuring his strengths for the first time against a rival of exceptional magnitudes making use of the total of his capacity, Dale was manifesting more of the totality of his potential without holding anything back.

Under the conditions of extreme acceleration in the circles of his vital organ, each one of them increased its revolutions overcoming the thousands of turns per minute. The branchings of the gloom, taking possession of another “dark focus,” injected power directly into his vital organ and his magical circles.

In these moments, Dale exercised as the owner and the deity of this plane.

Despite that, he did not enjoy the qualities of knowing everything nor being able to do everything. With the end of manifesting that strength, he saw himself in the obligation of consuming the mystical energy proportional.

Invoking Warriors of Death in such quantity and capturing the skills of the paladin in each unit through an automated configuration demanded a high cost.

He perceived an intense annoyance that threatened to damage his vital organ. However, without giving signs of weakness, Dale raised his gaze.

In that precise instant…

─ Ah, brother…

The young girl provided with dark goat horns clung to the area of Dale’s shoulder, evidencing an incapacity to contain her feelings of affection.

Her fingers, of light tone and slender structure, grazed the area of Dale’s cheek.

“…!”

In contrast, before the eyes of Saint Aurelia, the scene evoked an aberrant gathering of dark branchings imprisoning Dale.

A disagreeable creature of cosmic origin, from which emanated a fluid and dark substance similar to pitch, confining him through its branchings.

Putting aside the disagreeable image, she strengthened with firmness the hilt of her steel.

“──It seems.”

Facing the combatants of dark steels that gained terrain from all areas, Aurelia expressed herself, while her weapon emitted an intense golden glow.

“It will result in being complex to continue treating you in a ‘superficial’ manner, my lord.”

“That matter does not generate worry in me.”

“It is not my intention to leave aside the deference you had by providing me with the spear.”

The golden valkyrie manifested.

“To employ the total of my capabilities, I lack the means to ensure your physical integrity.”

“I found myself ready to face that scenario from the first moment.”

Dale answered.

“However, previous to continuing, I require to formulate an inquiry.”

“I listen to you, go ahead.”

“Do you consider genuinely that the individual who assumes dynastic control of the Kingdom of New Britannia will perform a role of a good ruler?”

“…!”

“Taking into account the effort so marked that you put into ensuring the transition of power in favor of Charles VII.”

Dale inquired demonstrating serenity.

“It must be, under your perspective, a virtuous sovereign and exempt from faults.”

“……”

“Someone concerned for the situation of the inhabitants who suffer under the severe control of the empire, with notion of equity and concerned in a genuine manner for the future of the territory.”

Dale added.

“Does he truly possess that value?”

Aurelia, the Holy Maiden, assimilated the real background of the inquiry. In the background, it was not about a genuine doubt. The young successor of the Saxon dynasty possessed beforehand the real data about the matter.

The authentic nature of the subject named Charles VII.

“Solely under the argument that he possesses royal lineage in his being…”

As if no other factor had relevance.

“Is it your purpose to deliver to him the totality of this territory, Holy Maiden?”

“The labor of reflecting does not enter into my functions.”

“It is an error, Lady Aurelia, you find yourself in the obligation of meditating on it.”

The approach returned.

“Regarding the real meaning that the words of Sistina’s relative enclose upon expressing her yearning to ‘preserve the Kingdom of Britannia’.”

“Just as I exposed with antecedence.”

Despite the arguments, Aurelia, the Holy Maiden, remained unalterable in her posture.

“My only purpose in this site is to execute the designs of the deity.”

With the end of liberating the territory from the severe control of the empire and conferring the command to the individual with greater legal merits. And Charles VII counted on that prerogative. The sacred principle of the lineage of royalty.

“Are you opting to perform as an instrument of the celestial forces?”

An instrument of the celestial forces.

Although her features remained sheltered under a golden protection, the surrounding atmosphere seemed to turn rigid, even in this plane that was already affected by a hostile cold.

“The future is not found under our management,” Aurelia manifested.

“Without a doubt, your words enclose a reality,” Dale agreed. It was about an idea that at the moment he had shared in a dialogue with Sir Yones.

There does not exist a future that we possess the capacity to alter exclusively with our actions.

“However, in the same way in which the future does not constitute a property of ours,” Dale continued, “neither is it found under the domain of the celestial forces.”

Making clear in this way his firm intention of never transforming himself into an instrument of the celestial forces.

“Is that your perspective?”

Aurelia nodded in a slow manner before his declaration, modifying the grip on her nameless steel.

“Under those terms, our exchange of words concludes at this point.”

A whirlwind of golden tone came to life around her lower limbs and three pairs of luminous limbs extended in an imposing manner.

Her figure no longer corresponded solely to that of a golden valkyrie. She presented herself now in her role of executor of the deity’s designs.

A seraph.

“■■■■■■■■──!”

In that same instant, the young girl provided with dark goat horns emitted the most perturbing scream that could be conceived.