Chapter 142
Karon signaled to the hidden, waiting former High Priest of Skya.
However.
No matter how long he waited, there was no response.
He had felt that the priest’s attitude was lukewarm when they met a few days ago, and it seemed the man had finally fled, fearing that things would go wrong.
Karon, realizing this too late, ground his teeth.
“That damn priest…!”
But no matter how much he cursed, a priest who had run away was not coming back.
Changing his plan, Karon rushed to the spot where the priest had been, staying out of the people’s sight.
At least the man had a conscience; he had left everything prepared before leaving.
“He said if I use this, the sky will split as if a god is descending…”
Karon gripped the magic tool left behind by the former High Priest, his jaw set firm.
It was an item specially custom-ordered for today, infused with a blend of holy power and mana.
It felt as though the plan was becoming more twisted by the step, but having come this far, he could not back down.
An opportunity like this would never come again.
However, since the Emperor’s speech had already ended, the people’s attention would have drifted completely from the platform. Just as he was worrying about how to fix this.
Saintess Selena’s voice resonated from afar.
“I cannot find the words to express my joy at presiding over the first Thanksgiving Festival since becoming the Saintess…”
He had forgotten that the Saintess’s turn remained, having only thought of the Emperor’s sequence.
‘Heaven is helping me.’
Relieved, he retrieved the magic tool and headed to his original position.
Meanwhile, the Saintess was looking down at everyone from the platform, continuing her congratulatory speech.
“Regrettably, there are only three Divine Beasts by our side at present… However, last night, I had a dream. A very auspicious dream where the Divine Beast that had left our side returned.”
Unbelievable. Even the Saintess was helping him.
He didn’t know if the escaped former High Priest had spoken to her before leaving, but this was an excellent sign.
If he used the magic tool at the right moment, it would create a picture-perfect scene.
“Today might be the day that everyone has so desperately hoped for—the day when all four pillars of the Empire gather…”
Indeed. Soon, I will become the master of a new Divine Beast.
Karon waited anxiously for the Saintess’s speech to finish.
“For this to happen, we may perhaps need to correct facts that have been misunderstood until now. Such as a person known to be dead actually being alive… or a Divine Beast known to have left the Empire actually having never left at all.”
The crowd murmured at the difficult-to-understand words.
Even the Pope and the Emperor wore expressions of confusion, wondering what this meant.
And Karon, because his head was entirely filled with thoughts of the new Divine Beast, failed to properly hear the Saintess’s words.
It was a grave mistake.
“…With that, I conclude my speech. Thank you for listening for so long.”
The Saintess, offering an elegant greeting, gathered her robes. She was about to step down from the platform.
Simultaneously, Karon, who had been watching for his chance, pressed the magic tool firmly.
Flash!
As if it had been waiting, the sky opened up.
Light poured down onto a single point as if a god were descending, creating an effect like a massive waterfall of light.
“Wh-what is that?!”
“It’s God!”
“God has bestowed a blessing upon the Monlepe ducal house!”
While everyone was astonished by the sudden situation, the swindlers planted in advance shouted from among the crowd.
“Look over there!”
“There’s a new Divine Beast inside the light!”
“It’s Skya’s new Divine Beast!”
A massive shadow flickering within the light revealed its identity.
It was a dangerous-looking snake with the head of a chicken and four legs on its torso.
Someone who recognized the snake cried out.
“It-it’s a Basian!”
“God has sent a Basian as the new Divine Beast!”
— I bestow a new Divine Beast upon the pitiful one who lost theirs; do not doubt my miracle.
The power of the expensive magic tool, which had ground up dozens of priests and mages to create, was magnificent.
Even the fake voice of God created by amplification magic echoed through the plaza; no one thought the current situation was a lie.
On the contrary, some people were even sobbing, saying they had seen a miracle with their own eyes.
“The words that he would receive a divine blessing were true…”
“They say the mansion collapsing wasn’t because of divine punishment, but for another reason…”
“To think I would see the descent of a Divine Beast with my own eyes.”
Amidst the ongoing admiration and exclamations, Karon smirked inwardly.
Even the Pope and the Emperor were half-risen from their seats, looking at him with eyes of disbelief. it was a complete success.
If he simply approached the Basian now and was recognized as the master of the Divine Beast, everything would be over.
But it was then.
— Who dares to impersonate God!
Boom!
Suddenly, a sound like a giant drum tearing erupted, and the sky where the beams of light had been falling turned dark.
No, more accurately, it didn’t turn dark; it only appeared that way because a massive black dragon had appeared above everyone’s heads.
“It-it’s the messenger of God!”
The Duke of Sunrise, Leon, who had been watching the whole situation with a face turned deathly pale, shouted.
At the same time, Selena, who had been tipped off in advance by Asil and was waiting, raised her voice as if on cue and knelt.
“I greet the messenger of God!”
“…I-I greet the messenger of God!”
“I greet the messenger of God!”
The dazed crowd knelt in unison, followed by the priests, and then the members of the Imperial Family lowered themselves.
The Pope and the Emperor also showed their respect with aghast expressions.
At that, the black dragon flinched.
Even though he was acting as the messenger of God, the collective action of these humans was burdensome.
He opened his mouth after a brief pause.
— …Skya’s Divine Beast clearly exists. So why do you insult what exists by saying it is gone, and why do you try to seek wealth and glory by putting forward a fake Divine Beast!
“Shik!”
At those words, the Basian, who had been still until now, flicked its tongue threateningly.
Then, it suddenly lunged at the human closest to it. It was as if it were trying to show just how strong its power was.
Unfortunately, however, the human closest to the Basian was the Emperor.
It was the failure of Karon, who had intentionally set the point where the light fell as the spot closest to the Emperor.
“Shiiiiiik!!”
“Your Majesty!”
The Imperial Knights, who had been dazed by the descent of a Divine Beast they were seeing for the first time in their lives, cried out, but it was useless.
The Basian pouncing on the Emperor was faster than them rushing over.
But in that instant, another snake’s scent reached the Basian, who sensed smells with its tongue.
The Basian reflexively turned its head toward that direction.
It was the direction where the Crown Prince, Reinhardt de Aliope, was standing.
“…!”
Reinhardt, mistakenly thinking the Basian was attacking him, instinctively pulled the Emperor toward him and stood him in front of himself like a shield. It was a literal Emperor Shield.
Everyone’s eyes widened at the sight of that scene.
The shock to the party involved, the Emperor, was particularly enormous.
It was then.
Boom!
Just before the Basian’s venomless fangs could graze the Emperor, something blue and large intervened between the two.
It was Skya’s original Divine Beast, the blue turtle Eter.
While Eter blocked the Basian’s attack with its shell, Bjorn and Lilibet, who appeared from somewhere, panted heavily as if they had rushed there in a hurry.
“Are you all right, Your Majesty!”
“We must protect His Majesty and His Holiness! Everyone, get a hold of yourselves!”
At the shouts of the two, the Imperial Knights, who had been soul-less after the Crown Prince’s impiety, finally regained their senses.
They hurriedly tried to draw their swords.
However, the black dragon floating in the sky intervened.
— It only came this far having been sacrificed to the greed of a foolish human; this child is innocent.
The black dragon flicked a finger.
Then, a transparent air bubble formed around the Basian, and carrying the Basian, it flew up to right beside the black dragon.
The black dragon looked around at everyone with an overbearing tone and spoke.
— I shall return this child to where it originally lived, so you all must execute the sinner who impersonated God.
Then, with an elegance that defied its size, it flew toward the outskirts of the capital.
Only after that massive body became a small dot did the pressure that heavily weighed down the air vanish.
The frozen people exhaled the breath they had been holding.
The Emperor, in particular, slumped down as the strength left his legs.
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