I asked Kemmi about the situation on the way to Liengard Palace.
“What happened at the palace, Chairwoman Kemmi? You said it was an emergency.”
“Urgh… Chairwoman Reia told me…that the demons… Urp… Attacked the imperial guards…and…,” Kemmi said, trailing off.
She was pale-faced and shaking.
“Urk…”
“Umm, what was that?”
“Blehhhhh!”
An incredible amount of vomit was expelled from Kemmi’s mouth, creating a rainbow in the air.
“A-are you okay?!” I asked.
“Urgh… Asks the person who made me sick…,” Kemmi said.
“Oh… Sorry.”
Her awkward position under my arm and the shaking of the glider as it flew at full speed had combined to give her motion sickness. I was in such a hurry that I hadn’t even realized she was uncomfortable.
“Ugh… Do you enjoy harassing innocent maidens until they vomit? You’re a barbarian…,” Kemmi said, starting to cry.
If this had been my first time meeting her, I probably would’ve felt guilty. However, I had spent enough time with her by now to know her greedy, immoral nature. Her fake tears wouldn’t work on me.
I knew full well that she could not have been less of an “innocent maiden.”
“Sorry. I’ll give you a thousand guld later if you stick it out,” I said.
“Are you really trying to entice a woman with money? How skeevy!” Kemmi yelled.
“So you don’t want the money?” I asked.
“No, I’ll take it.”
As expected, she stopped crying immediately.
“Tch, is a thousand guld really the best he can do? That’s only enough for a beer and a snack,” she muttered under her breath.
That clearly wasn’t meant for my ears, but I’d heard her because of how close we were.
You’d think she’d clean up her act after an enemy invasion, but nope. She’s still the same old Kemmi…
Some people in this world were truly hopeless. I had learned that cruel truth from her.
Liengard Palace came into view soon after. Its majesty was a thing of the past; the roof window had been smashed to pieces, the white walls were dotted with holes, and there were fresh bloodstains everywhere. The palace had been devastated by the battle.
…What a terrible sight.
I parked the glider in a safe location and walked to the front gate of Liengard Palace. That was where I found a mountain of demons piled atop one another.
“What the…?!” I said, lost for words.
A voice called out from above.
“Hey, up here!”
I looked up and saw Chairwoman Reia casually sitting atop the pile of demons.
“Allen, you’re all right,” she said.
“Yeah. I’m glad to see you’re okay as well. What’s the emergency?” I asked.
“Oh yeah… These demon bastards cursed people indiscriminately as they attacked the palace, and the Empress’s imperial guard suffered the worst of it. I don’t think anyone died, but they won’t last much longer. Sorry to ask this of you when you’re already tired, but could you heal them?” she asked.
“Absolutely. Do you need healing, Chairwoman?”
“I took a few curses, but I’m suppressing them with my willpower. Please prioritize the others.”
“O-okay.”
Chairwoman Reia never ceased to amaze me… I couldn’t imagine how single-minded a person had to be to suppress a curse with pure willpower.
“Whew…”
I gathered my breath to calm myself and sharpened my senses.
Twenty… Seventy… One hundred and fifty… Two hundred and seventy… Three hundred and eighty-one?
I detected 381 curses within a one-kilometer radius of Liengard Palace. That must have been the number of guardsmen who’d been cursed.
…That was easy. Curses were far simpler to detect than spirit power. I could tell where each curse was as well as their specific effects and strength.
Why can I understand all that so easily? Did the white darkness sharpen my senses?
I pondered that as I spread out my newly obtained holy darkness and healed all the curses in a one-kilometer radius.
“Okay, I’m done,” I said.
Chairwoman Reia didn’t respond.
…That must be the Rodol Clan’s darkness that Daria told me about. It really does feel totally different from Zeon’s darkness, Reia thought, furrowing her brow.
“Uhh, Chairwoman Reia?” I called out.
“Oh, sorry. I was just thinking,” she replied.
“So you do know how to use your brain,” I said.
“…You’ve gotten cheeky, Allen.”
“Ah-ha-ha, sorry.”
I refrained from saying, You’ve only got yourself to blame for that.
“Kids these days… Anyway, how’d you all fare in the city? I assume your presence here means you won,” the chairwoman continued.
“Yes, we did. But we’ve got a few problems,” I told her.
“Really? Fill me in.”
“Well, first off…”
I told her all about the fighting that had gone on in the city.
“I see. So Dodriel got away…,” she said.
“Sorry about that,” I apologized.
“It’s not your fault he escaped. His ability is special. It’s a miracle the city suffered as little damage as it did, considering the scale of the invasion… You really have gotten stronger,” she said, patting me on the head.
“Thank you,” I said, joy warming my heart. I had no idea it felt this good to be praised by your teacher.
Calm down… I can’t let myself cry. She may have been my teacher, but this was Chairwoman Reia we were talking about. If I let my guard down and let out tears, she’d never stop teasing me about it.
Whew…
I suppressed my emotions and changed the topic.
“By the way…how did things go for you?” I asked.
“Me? It was pretty easy. I’d been informed beforehand that the demons use a strange power called ex…exe…excretion? Anyway, whatever it’s called, I just gave each of them the ol’ one-two as soon as I encountered them,” the chairwoman said.
“W-wow…”
It sounded like the demons’ Execration ability hadn’t been a major threat to her. Chairwoman Reia hadn’t even had a strategy as she fought them, other than punching them in the face. Her approach couldn’t have been more muscle-headed, but she was so strong that it worked anyway. That was Chairwoman Reia for you.
“Oh yeah, where is Her Majesty? Did she get away?” I asked.
“Yeah. Rodis sent me a message. The Empress escaped the vicinity of the palace and is hiding in a safe location. He didn’t tell me where that was because of the risk of someone listening in.”
“Thank goodness.”
The Empress had a problematic personality, but her people deeply trusted her. She would be needed to rebuild Liengard.
“Okay… Now we’ll need to focus on rebuilding. Let’s return to the National Crusade Coliseum,” Chairwoman Reia said.
“Yes, ma’am,” I responded, and we walked through the streets of Aurest toward the coliseum.