At night, in a brightly lit city full of bustling prosperity—
Zeroy and Patchouli stood side by side atop a clocktower, the air thick with a certain stench.
It was the stench of human malice. Not only could Zeroy smell it, even Patchouli could sense it.
The vast and heavy malice was no longer just something vague—it had taken on substance in the spiritual view.
In other words—those who stayed here would easily be influenced by this malice, their luck soured, their moods prone to depression or violence, and over time even their personalities could change.
At some point Patchouli had put on her glasses, giving her a scholarly air. She pushed the frame with one finger, violet eyes glinting with inquiry. "Try it. Can you call upon that power of faith you've been sensing?"
But Zeroy shook her head, emerald eyes carrying a trace of confusion. "No use. I already tried."
She opened her palm, faint golden motes circling her fingertips, yet unable to coalesce.
"This faith power is strange. It gathers around me of its own accord; that said, I can't control it at all. It's like..."
Even using the little idol, she couldn't absorb it. And yet the faith power unmistakably sought her out.
"As if it recognizes me... but hasn't fully accepted me."
Patchouli glared at her through the lenses, finally sighing in frustration, her voice edged with reproach. "So even being here in person, you still don't understand anything about the current situation?"
If that was the case, then before Zeroy responded to the call, she'd known even less.
She raised her voice a little. "Can't you be more cautious next time?"
"Sorry, sorry..." Zeroy pressed her hands together, wearing a rare look of embarrassment, like a scolded schoolgirl. "I was a bit reckless."
She lowered her head in reflection, recalling the sudden call—those despairing cries carried across untold distances, like souls being torn apart. They still echoed in her mind.
"I really shouldn't have been so hasty..." A flicker of guilt passed in her emerald eyes. "Especially dragging you into it."
Patchouli narrowed her eyes, tone tinged with discontent. "Oh? From how you say it, if it happened again, you'd still answer the call?"
Zeroy froze, then gave a helpless smile. "...Probably."
She looked down at the city, her voice low yet sincere. "Those cries... they hurt too much to ignore. I couldn't pretend I didn't hear."
If it happened again, she would still grasp that outstretched hand reaching from the unknown.
"But..." She turned toward Patchouli, her eyes grave. "Next time I won't drag you in so easily."
Patchouli gave a soft snort, while the corners of her lips lifted despite herself, a gentle light in her violet gaze. "At least you've got some conscience."
She waved her hand, summoning a floating grimoire. The pages flipped on their own, glowing faintly with runes.
"Still, since we're here, don't waste time. Help me study this faith power—we need to figure out what it's trying to do."
"No, there's no need."
Zeroy didn't want to spend time on that.
The countless vermin before her were waving flamboyantly—Come, big sister come kill us
How could she endure that?
"Besides, I do know something of the purpose of this faith power, and of those calls."
"It was the voice of many as one, the prayers of the suffering. They begged, pleaded, accused, hated, grieved, despaired, raged. They longed for the good, yearned for the good."
In simple terms, those calls were asking her to come slaughter the pests.
"I see..."
Patchouli grew thoughtful.
If that was the case, she might have some guesses.
However, before moving, Zeroy still needed to know where exactly they were.
That was simple—just stop someone on the street and ask.
Only...
Even that simple task required her to cut down several people first.
With her and Patchouli's beauty and presence, anyone they approached immediately showed ill intent—opening with sweet lies, then, when exposed, lashing out in violence. The next instant, only screams that no one else could hear.
Which showed just how rotten this place was.
Despite that, not everyone was bad.
One person, when they approached, desperately urged them to leave this man-eating place as quickly as possible.
It was from that person that Zeroy learned the basics.
First—the Empire.
An ancient nation of a thousand years, the strongest in the world. Its only rival was a kingdom in the west, while the southern islands and northern tundra were backward, and the eastern islands uncivilized.
At its peak stood the Emperor. Below him, the bureaucracy split between civil officials governing politics and military generals commanding the army. The chief of the former was the Grand Minister; the latter, the Great General.
Next—the Imperial Capital.
The Empire's capital of millennia, seat of the Emperor and the ministers.
Though the Empire's center, it was rife with rot, its people's lives harsh and difficult.
Rumor held that the true culprit was the Grand Minister manipulating the Emperor from the shadows.
It was here, in the Imperial Capital, that Zeroy now stood.
Worth mentioning were the Imperial Arms and the Danger Beasts.
A thousand years ago, the founding Emperor, seeking eternal rule, gathered the world's greatest artisans with the Empire's wealth and power. Using legendary Danger Beasts as material, rare metals like Orehalkion, and lost arcane techniques, they forged forty-eight unique, unreplicable weapons, called [Imperial Arms].
The Imperial Arms brought the Empire great victories. Although five hundred years ago, massive unrest caused many to be lost, scattered into the populace and even abroad.
Later, four hundred years after the Empire's founding, an Emperor attempted to create more Imperial Arms, but could never surpass the originals. He only produced powerful, yet lesser weapons, called [Ministerial Arms].
Without the Imperial Arms and Ministerial Arms—and their source, the Danger Beasts—this world would be nothing more than a typical medieval setting, nothing remarkable.
All extraordinary, mystical power came from the Danger Beasts, and many Imperial Arms and beasts bore fascinating abilities.
Such as control over water, lightning, ice, and so on.
...
If you want to support, please consider Patreon, and read advanced chapters! Your support keeps this series going!
[Patreon.com/RedZTL]