Episode 127. A witch who dreams of reunion
Demons and undead, beastmen and vampires….
In an age where there are countless other things that cause chaos in the world, mankind has no choice but to long for salvation at every moment of their lives.
The Orion Empire is the only hope that those who have searched for such salvation can reach.
Everyone firmly believed that if they gathered their strength in a place where civilization was still alive, they would certainly be free from all dangers aimed at them.
-Knock, knock.
The deepest room on the first floor of the imperial castle where the empire’s leaders reside.
The maid who brought a tray filled with food knocked quietly on the door and spoke in a nervous voice to the person on the other side.
“Hey, hey Vivian. Excuse me. “Are you inside?”
Vivian Platonis.
He is a distinguished guest invited directly from the Magic Tower by the royal family, the owners of the empire, and a person whom they themselves define as ‘the hope of humanity.’
However, even though he was clearly a being who could be called a savior, what the servant felt as he opened the door and entered was an emotion that could be called fear.
“Hey, over there…. Rain, Vivian?”
-Rattling.
“Hi!!”
The sound of something collapsing as soon as you step inside.
The maid screamed, wondering if it was an attempt to attack her, but she quickly covered her mouth and started looking around her room.
A room so dark that you cannot see even in broad daylight.
Not only are the curtains closed, but all the places where light can pass through are blocked by piles of books and documents.
The previous noise was probably caused by books piled up at the entrance being pushed out.
– Creak.
But the problem is not the cause of the noise, but the result may be annoying to others.
– Creak, creak.
The interior of a room cluttered with piles of documents.
The way he lifted the chair halfway in front of the desk and shook his body, it seemed as if he was bored with the current situation.
No, it was as if I was ecstatic beyond him.
Along with poorly maintained hair, cloudy eyes and pale skin gave the impression of looking at a living corpse.
“Well, well, there…” ….”
“Leave it there.”
The servant stiffens in surprise at the answer that suddenly follows in that state.
After that, Vivian stopped shaking her chair for a moment and soon began to move towards the maid who was frozen as she looked at herself.
“I told you to leave what you brought there.”
A dry and weak voice that does not even show any unpleasant feelings.
At least the servant, who realized that he had not offended her, silently followed her instructions and placed her meal on the table.
Until I saw a number of trays that I presumed had been brought by someone before that.
‘Did you eat it at all?’
It is full of fancy decorations, as expected from food served by the imperial family, but there is not even a trace of it being touched, and it seems as if a long time has passed since it was left unattended, with the moisture drying out and giving off a foul smell.
Apparently, I haven’t heard any news from her that she came out. Could it be that he has been concentrating on work while skipping meals for several days?
“Aren’t you going?”
“Yes, yes! “S-sorry!”
Yes, the other person is someone that you should not dare to pay attention to.
She was worried that she would be harmed, so she closed the door and left. The place where her maid arrived was in the arms of her colleagues who were waiting for her, bowing their chests in the middle of the hallway.
“Oh, how did it go? Are you okay?”
“There are no limbs cut off anywhere!?”
“Uh, huh. Everything, fortunately… ….”
Every single one of them is a terrible worry.
But the maid who took her meal knew best that it was not for nothing.
In fact, some of those who visited her room returned as corpses, and the majority of them did so because they ‘went against her will.’
Not only the nobles, but also the knights who came to settle the rampage they were causing, and even the warrior who felt that he received more attention than himself…….
“I heard that not long ago, a warrior entered a room on her own and the lower part of her body disappeared in the blink of an eye?”
“Uh, uhh. I saw it then. I screamed as my lower body disappeared, but then my head also disappeared… !”
“Hey, hey. Why did the royal family bring such a dangerous person to the imperial family? “Shouldn’t they be put in jail quickly?”
“It’s not at that level. Seeing as no one is held accountable for killing nobles or warriors, it seems like they have been granted impunity…….”
A collective murmur formed starting from the maid who finally returned alive.
This may mean that the current survival was considered miraculous, but even such passionate feelings and fears were bound to end soon.
-Rat, rattle.
The friction sound of armor begins to be heard.
The sound came from across the hallway, where soldiers were seen rushing somewhere.
Soldiers running around inside the castle, not a battlefield.
Isn’t it enough to guess that a serious situation has occurred?
****
“This is not it.”
But for Vivian, the noise coming from outside the door was probably a good thing.
From the beginning, she thought that not only her imperial family, but also her magic tower to which she belonged and the future of humanity were all good.
The sole purpose is to expand the passage to the outer dimension by completing my research.
As cooperation with humanity was solely for the sake of research, there was no sense of obligation to interfere with problems that arose within the imperial family.
Yes, she moved her laboratory here to get support from her imperial family beyond her magic tower…….
“… This is not it. This is not it.”
Actually, the research stopped making any progress at some point and just kept repeating the same steps as if it were blocked.
No matter how many books I looked through and came up with a calculation formula, it was considered impossible to come up with something better than the current summoning formula…….
“Everything is wrong. With something like this…….”
Results cannot be achieved.
It is impossible to open a path to another world, which is her own goal.
As these days continued for several months, my disorganized mind was filled with only grayish colors.
The fog-like phenomenon was so thick that even the purpose she had initially assumed could not come to mind.
‘… ‘What did I do the research for?’
It must have been an important purpose.
The reason she was so crazy about her research after she woke up was probably because the purpose was that important.
But when I tried to think of the important purpose, I couldn’t think of it.
Is it because I haven’t been able to sleep for several days now due to no progress in research, or is it because I’m hungry?
-Growl.
And you also need calories to use your brain.
Vivian, who felt that hunger was fueled by her frustrated feelings, immediately remembered the plate the servant had brought her earlier and stretched out her hand toward it.
Sandwiches carefully made by the imperial chef with high-quality, fresh ingredients.
Vivian was about to take a bite of it, but then she dropped it on the floor and took a deep breath.
“… “I don’t want to eat.”
Isn’t it strange?
Despite the fact that the food was made and served by the best chefs with the best ingredients.
I can’t even feel the minimum appetite needed to replenish nutrients.
‘When was the last time you had a proper meal?’
Nevertheless, Vivian is rummaging through her clouded mind with a growing sense of hunger.
The window opened and a flash of light appeared in the room, as the afterimage gradually became clearer.
-Rackle!
Yes, someone broke in here through the window.
Vivien, who was on high alert, looked towards him, and the figure of someone with his back to the sunlight coming through the open curtains began to shine through.
A masked man wearing a black cape and tailcoat who looked like a gentleman.
“Oh my, I heard you were hiding for a moment, but were there any passengers?”
“… Who?”
“He was just an uninvited guest passing by. “I’m not a big enough person to introduce myself, so I’d like you to just know that for now…”
A man who looks suspicious to anyone.
The person came down from the window frame and began to glance around the inside of the messy room.
As if I was habitually taking a look at the newly entered place.
“… “Are you here to interfere with my research?”
The hand is lifted reflexively right after the gaze is drawn to the results of one’s research.
The moment he flicks his hand, the space where he is will be isolated, and part of his body will be caught in a dimensional gap and disappear.
If you aim for the limbs, they will be cut off, and if you aim for the head, your life will disappear…….
“It’s not like that. As I said before, I just stopped by to hide myself.”
The unidentified man, who did not feel that sense of crisis, immediately bowed his head in front of Vivian and apologized.
“But since that is my situation, it is probably not a problem you need to consider. If I interrupted you during business, I will apologize. “
A polite attitude that is different from the saboteurs who came before.
Of course, he could have used force and said he was uncomfortable, but I didn’t feel like doing that right now.
Now that you have lost your concentration due to the lack of progress in your research, even if someone comes to you, there will be nothing to disturb you.
“Oh, no… It’s okay. I’m taking a break right now…. “It’s not really a hindrance.”
“hehehe, thank you for letting me go. “Thank you for your consideration.”
An intruder who feels relieved that he has succeeded in seeking forgiveness.
Afterwards, he looked around with a masked face and began to look at the research results in the room one by one.
Complex yet very precise formulas. Even without her related knowledge, there is a wealth of information that allows anyone to guess that she is a great scholar.
If you take a few of these and sell them on the black market, the scholars of the Magic Tower may be willing to purchase them for a large amount of money.
“Now that I think about it, I heard that there was one scholar who was directly invited by the imperial family… …. Hmm?”
It was for a while that I gradually became interested in such identity. The intruder’s gaze, which had been scanning the documents, soon turned to the newspaper buried in the middle.
Isn’t it natural for interest to arise as it is the only printed material among documents with enormous academic value that is used to convey world news?
‘Hero slayer, warrior hunter… …. And the war that took place in the Dragon’s Tomb a month ago.’
The moment when I realized that all the news written in the newspaper led to one person.
His gaze began to turn strange in the eyes behind the mask, and he began to turn to Vivian again.
“Do you know a man named ‘Woo Hyo-seong’?”
-Rackle!
The moment when the chair I had been sitting on the whole time fell backwards.
His body fell headlong to the floor and pain overtook him, but Vivian did not take care of herself and just quickly focused her attention on him.
“Woah, Woohyo…… ?”
“I asked if you knew a man named Woo Hyo-seong.”
“Da, da da da da, you. “Do you know him by any chance?”
Vivian crawls towards him with trembling hands.
At the end, the composition looking up at oneself was not only ugly, but even felt miserable, but the colors in the eyes looking up at oneself were actually outstanding.
“Well, he’s a friend I’ve known for a while. “Because that friend once helped me.”
“Water, water, water…… ?”
“Yes, I used to carry my luggage when I went into the dungeon. “Did you get that kind of help too?”
“Uh, huh. Woohyo helped me really well. Cooking, cooking, cleaning……. Eh, hehehe.”
A face that blushes shyly, and a hand placed on a pounding heart.
Facing the timid laughter that followed, the intruder quietly put on his top hat and honestly expressed what he felt.
“Your expression has brightened.”
“Huh huh?”
“When I first saw him, he had a face that felt like the world was falling apart. “Did you gather news about him because you wanted to meet him?”
Vivian silences his question for a moment and makes a blank expression.
Does that mean he didn’t realize what he said?
Is it because he was buried in a pile of documents and did not realize what was causing the act of carefully cutting out and storing only the news about him?
-Thump, thud!
While we were talking about questions and answers, a strong crashing sound was heard from the exit.
It didn’t take long to realize that it was caused by those who had been tracking him.
“Vivian! Are you inside!?”
“Currently, the leader of a rebel army has invaded the imperial palace! “We will enter for investigation, so please understand!!”
Yes, the one currently infiltrating here is one of the most notorious wanted criminals in the empire.
There was a risk that she might go against her wishes by pushing this place, but the soldiers were willing to risk their lives to enter this place.
She can be said to be an important figure who determines the survival and fate of humanity, and protecting her was something that had to be done even at the cost of enormous sacrifices.
“Hey…. Town!”
“Make sure you eat properly.”
Just as Vivian, who does not understand the situation, is about to open her mouth, an intruder passes a sandwich into the gap.
His actions were as full of dignity and politeness as the clothes he was wearing.
“If you don’t hold a grudge against that friend, you might feel sad when you see her now.”
“What?”
“Wouldn’t you guess that if you saw the news? “If you have made a contribution, the Imperial Palace will definitely be interested.”
Looking at the news gathered so far, it is clear that the imperial family is also watching him.
Although he was very different from the person I knew, I was even a little excited thinking that if we were destined to meet him someday, I would meet him.
Meeting someone with whom I could share such a bond, even if only briefly, was probably one of the small achievements I gained while invading this place.
“It’s not my status to reveal publicly, but if you ever meet that friend, please let him know how I am. “Your old friend is heartily congratulating you on your success.”
As soon as he jumped out the window, showing such friendliness, it started to rattle! An entrance that opens with a sound.
But by then, the intruder had already disappeared, and only Vivian was sitting blankly in the room with a sandwich in her mouth.
Of course, from the imperial family’s point of view, she is a distinguished guest who is considered more important than high-ranking nobles.
She may have made her uncomfortable in this position and lost her head, but in her position to protect the imperial family, she had no choice but to look at her well-being first.
“Vivian, are you okay? The intruder….”
From Noble mtl dot com
“… hehehe, hehehe.”
The moment I approached her nervously, a slight laugh escaped her mouth.
“Ehehehe, hehehehe~”
“Rain, Vivian?”
“Hey, eat all of this…” ….”
Afterwards, Vivian quickly puts down the sandwich she took a bite of and looks back at herself.
The moment they saw that face, their breath stopped because at this moment, something they thought could not happen happened.
“Ah, if we eat well in the future… We’ll be able to meet again, right?”
The monster that used to cut into pieces everything that bothered him with a blunt face is smiling so joyfully.
Isn’t it natural to feel goosebumps?
I am sooo looking forward to her reunion with mc