Translator: Nox
(29) Star Festival and Ash Wolf (1)
Death had settled upon the once lush, green forest.
Though much time had passed since the flames that engulfed the entire forest had subsided, the acrid smell of burning still lingered. The air was stagnant, as if the fire had devoured even the wind that passed through the forest.
Each time the knights moved, ashes swirled.
Adrian covered his mouth and nose with a handkerchief and kicked the monster that lay collapsed before him.
"Hah, all this trouble for a thing like you."
The monster that had contaminated a wide area near the capital was no bigger than an ordinary wolf. With nowhere to hide, it was torn apart by the knights' swords without putting up much of a fight.
Floyd surveyed the forest, which had been teeming with life just hours before.
Too much damage had been done because of one small monster. He blamed his own weakness. If he had honed his senses more sharply and been able to control this mad flame at will, he wouldn't have had to devastate this vast forest.
At Adrian's signal, a knight began to dismantle the monster with his sword, in order to collect byproducts that could be sold for a high price.
Monster hearts, claws, eyeballs, and blood were hard to obtain, despite their various uses, so they fetched a high price. It was no exaggeration to say that Torkhan's wealthy coffers were thanks to these monster byproducts.
"It doesn't seem to have been a strong one. There's only one magic stone, and it's opaque," Kirshan said, glancing at the dismantling process.
Whether small or large, monsters had a stone-like object inside them, and the number and transparency of the magic stones varied depending on the monster's size and strength. Some strong monsters possessed magic stones that were so transparent and brilliantly shining that they looked like jewels.
"I'd rather deal with a strong one. Smart ones are hard to handle. All this because of one of them."
The forest burned by Floyd's fire would not see life for some time.
It was always the same where the madly burning flames had passed.
It didn't spread contamination like monsters, but it didn't leave any life force behind in its wake. It was as if it cursed everything it passed, burning everything without leaving even a glimmer of hope.
"It will take about three or four years for the forest to recover. We'll have to haul soil from fertile land and water it regularly for a while," Kirshan said, and Floyd nodded perfunctorily.
"Yeah, well. We can think about the future later. We caught what we might have missed even if we burned the whole forest, so this calls for a celebration. Everyone's worked hard, so let's go back, eat until we burst, drink until we pass out!"
At Floyd's shout, the knights roared with cheers. For a moment, life filled the desolate, dead forest.
Floyd was always like that. Instead of regretting what had already happened or worrying about what was yet to come, he was a man who focused on the happiness before his eyes.
People were drawn to his boldness and gathered around him. The leaders of each royal guard were the same.
Exhausted by the heat of the fierce flames, the fatigue of tracking monsters, and the difficulty of breathing due to the ash-filled air, the knights regained their energy thinking about the banquet and the Star Festival that would take place after returning to the capital.
Floyd, mounted on his Crimson Steed, chuckled as he watched the knights talking excitedly about the festival, and took the lead, urging his horse forward. Adrian and Kirshan, riding their horses, ran alongside him like his wings.
After a while, fresh air began to mix with the air that had been filled with ash, the smell of burning, and death.
Kirshan glanced at Floyd's expression. Having solved a difficult problem, Floyd seemed not to be thinking about the problems that would come later, and was happily sweeping back his hair.
Kirshan thought that now was the perfect time to ask about the Lily Palace princess. Floyd became strangely sensitive whenever Roxana was mentioned, so it had been difficult to bring up even if he had something he wanted to ask.
"Lord, do you know by what method the princess of Lily Palace treated the patients?"
"Divine power, probably," Adrian replied. He swept his dull silver hair back from his eyes, as if annoyed by it, and continued, "Rumor has it that the princess was in the Great Temple for a while before Kanta was destroyed."
"That was probably for pre-marriage prayers. She was originally supposed to marry the Pelure Crown Prince. Besides, if the princess knew how to use divine power, the priests wouldn't have just sent her back."
"Still, they can't imprison a princess of a country just because she uses divine power. If it wasn't divine power, how else could she have treated all those patients in that situation? When I went into the treatment room later, I didn't feel any Magical Energy at all."
"Well, it's not that I haven't considered divine power... But I don't think the Great Temple, which is riding high with the Emperor's backing, would have been considerate of Kanta and sent the princess back as is."
It had become known that divine power could inflict far greater damage than magic when dealing with monsters that came out of the Rifts.
As knights and priests who could use divine power died fighting monsters, the Empire and the Great Temple began to manage those who could use divine power, under the pretext of reducing further sacrifices.
Thus, those with the talent to wield divine power became affiliated with the temple, regardless of their own will, and could not leave the temple without the temple's permission.
Everyone who knew anything knew that the pretext of reducing futile sacrifices was merely a means to strengthen the power of the Empire and the Great Temple. By managing the power to deal with monsters, the Empire and the Great Temple made all the countries on the continent cling to them.
Floyd, who had been silently listening to his subordinates, slowed his horse down to let the knights following behind pass him. After making sure that the knights who had gone ahead were far away, Floyd lowered his voice and said, "The princess is said to be a Spirit."
Adrian and Kirshan were so unfamiliar with the words that had come out of their lord's mouth that they thought they had misheard.
"Pardon? What?"
"Sp... Sp, what did you say?"
"Spirit."
Floyd repeated once more.
"Spirit."
Adrian and Kirshan blinked their eyes and exchanged glances.
They knew of the existence of Spirits, but it was a world where no one spoke of them. Kirshan then asked cautiously, "Are you talking about the Spirit that we know of? The wicked beings that dwell in earth, fire, wind, and water?"
Floyd found it difficult to answer firmly because he himself found it hard to completely believe her words.
"Well... the princess says they're not wicked beings."
Adrian snorted in disbelief.
"Isn't that princess a little crazy?"
Floyd drew his sword from its scabbard and whacked Adrian on the back of the head. Adrian, who hadn't been able to block it in time because it was too fast, rubbed the back of his head but continued undeterred.
"No, Lord. It's not that the princess is bad. If you think about it calmly, that's how it is. Her family all died, her country was destroyed, and she went from being a princess to a slave overnight, so it's not strange that she's gone mad. It's amazing that she's been able to hold onto her sanity until now."
Adrian skillfully dodged the scabbard that was flying at him again and said, "It's really kind of the princess to have treated people. I'm happy and grateful that she saved Dennis. If Dennis had died, Hexter would have gone crazy. I would have gone crazy too. The kid wasn't even dead yet, but Hexter looked almost out of his mind. But the princess's parents are dead, and all her siblings are dead. It's only natural that she's gone mad. Wow, now that I think about it, I'd go crazy too."
Adrian nodded as if impressed by his own theory and said, "Lord, that princess needs proper treatment. I heard there's a doctor who's good at talking to crazy people. It would be good to bring someone like that and attach them to the princess..."
"There are people who say that Spirits create Rifts," Kirshan interrupted, as if he couldn't bear to listen to Adrian's nonsense.
"There are also people who say that Spirits are monsters."
"Yes."
"But there are quite a few documents that are favorable to Spirits among the remaining literature. Those documents are designated as forbidden books by the Empire and cannot be read by just anyone, but there are a few volumes in the Grand Duke's library as well. According to those books, Spirits had a good relationship with humans long ago and made the land fertile for humans or brought rain when there was a drought. Especially strong Spirit Users..."
Adrian interrupted, as if to avenge himself for being cut off.
"Hey, why are you taking it so seriously? That princess is just out of her mind... Ugh! Lord!"
Floyd kicked the side of Adrian's horse, and the horse darted forward. Kirshan watched Adrian's receding figure without sympathy and said, "Strong Spirit Users were able to accept Spirits into their bodies and use their power more directly and intensely."
"What do you think? Do you think it's really possible that the princess used the power of a Spirit?"
"No."
It was Adrian who answered, having returned again before anyone knew it.
"You can't get involved, Lord. I'm sure that princess is very mentally ill. It's better to get her treated quickly before she gets worse..."
Floyd tried to kick the side of the horse again, but Adrian stretched out his leg and blocked Floyd's kick. While the two men were repeating their desperate attacks and defenses, Kirshan, who had been pondering alone, opened his mouth.
"The Great Temple is doing everything it can to make the god Weeden the only god. Let's assume that they spread false rumors and exterminated Spirit Users in order to keep the Spirits, who were once worshiped as gods, in check. And if that princess is really a Spirit User and treated people affected by Magical Energy with the power of a Spirit..."
"That means Spirits are not monsters, but beings that can oppose monsters."
Kirshan gazed at Floyd.
"Yes, like your flames, Lord."
