The seal became more powerful when Vicius herself was standing over it. That limited her to its physical location, but in turn made it incredibly easy to imbue with power. While above it, Vicius could enhance her own abilities to a terrifying degree…and enhance her eucharists in turn. She focused her power on her army in the north, the eucharists marching to destroy the Holy Eye of Yonato. She poured her strength into increasing their speed, advancing them at a much faster pace toward the city of Azziz than would usually be possible.
“That ingrate scum queen may have betrayed me, but Yonato barely has any strength left to oppose me now. I want my army sent there at once to destroy that Holy Eye—don’t you agree?!”
Her last three words were shouted, as she flipped back around in her chair to face the table once more.
“Well, it is just a matter of time.”
She took one of the fruits from the heaped platter on the table, and nibbled at it.
“It would be perfect if I could see through those eucharists’ eyes…but in the end, I was never able to establish a visual connection. Woe is me. It does irritate me that we must rely on magical war pigeons when they take so long and there is so much that they cannot ascertain. Perhaps I should have sent one of you, my disciples, with them after all… Hah… If only I could use familiars, but such techniques were lost in ancient times. Oh, it makes me terribly anxious. I hate to be unable to do as I please. It is ever so dull.”
Puffing out her cheeks, Vicius threw the piece of fruit she had taken a single bite from across the room and propped her head up with a hand on her cheek and her elbow on the table.
“Yet…according to the reports that are coming in, those foul flies and their cretinous lot are unflinching. How vexing… Hah… What are that ragtag group of rabble rousers even trying to achieve? Ahh, they disgust me. The way they play nice is so off-putting. Worm…do you see the way these humans are—”
Wormgandr froze, just as he was pinching a thick slice of meat between his fingers and carrying to his mouth.
“Nh? Somethin’s ’ere.”
“Hey, we got a guest!”
It was one of Vicius’s disciples, Ars, who announced them. He was only capable of speaking in quotes, recalling lines from his past when he was still human. He had no mouth but spoke in an echo from the dark black cross in his helm. When he did speak, his words reverberated out like they came directly from the underworld itself.
“Oh my my my! You’re here! Welcome, welcome! Now then, right this way~! ♪”
A serving girl entered the throne room with a silver tray in her hands. Ars and the other disciples stood some distance from the dining table where Wormgandr sat, observing quietly. The serving girl was trembling, pale white like she might faint at any moment.
“G-Goddess V-Vicius… A-ahm… H-here…” The girl’s hands were shaking as she held the tray. Atop it was the severed head of the Wise King of Alion.
“Just what I ordered! ♪ Thank you ever so much. ♪ Go on, then…” Vicius put her elbows on the table, and placed her hands under her chin, looking at the serving girl expectantly. “Tell me exactly how he died.”
“Ah… Ah…”
She was one of the girls who had served the Wise King of Alion.
“Quickly.”
“Ah…”
“Now.”
“Y-yes! J-just as you ordered… W-we all went to his b-bedside and…h-held his m-majesty down…”
“Hm-hmm, and then?”
“While he was still alive… W-with meat knives from the kitchen… His head… We…”
“My my! ♪ How did his majesty respond, might I ask?”
“H-his voice was so weak… He sounded in pain… ‘It hurts… It hurts…’ he said…”
“Ohoh! ♪ How awful for him. ♪ Do you mind giving me a little more realism? Come on, give me some emotion… Some poetry.”
“Eh…?”
“…”
“Hyah?! O-of course! Ahem… His majesty didn’t seem to know what was happening, and… He was just struggling like a little child… His movements were weak, and he just kept saying how much it hurt…” said the serving girl.
Vicius closed her eyes and smiled.
“Ahh… I can picture it now… How pitiful. No dignity. Nothing.”
“E-eventually h-he… He stopped speaking, and… There was just this muffled moaning noise for a while, and… Th-there was so much blood, then… He stopped making sounds…”
“Was it hard to cut off his head?”
“Ah… Y-yes…”
“Are you going to remember it when you lay down to sleep for the rest of your life?”
“Eh? I-I d-don’t know…”
“Hoh hoh. ♪ Don’t worry now, I’m positive you will! ♪ Don’t fret about that. ♪”
Wormgandr shook his head from side to side in exasperation.
“Well, then, you are to dispose of his majesty’s head and other remains by feeding them to the castle livestock.”
“Eh?”
“What do you mean by ‘eh?’ You don’t mean to complain, do you? You do understand we cannot waste food? Quite so. How about I take you and the rest of your family to the stables instead? ♪”
“Hyaah?! N-no…! I understand! I-I will do as you ask and…”
“Ah, I wish to add his bones to my chair, so do leave those for me. You see the gaps? I also intend on filling them with that blasted fly, the Wildly Beautiful Emperor, those other hero scum, and representatives from every nation on the continent. ♪ Let’s all do our best, shall we? ♪”
“O-of cou—w-wah?!”
Nervous and shaking, the serving girl let the king’s severed head slide from her tray and sent it rolling across the throne room carpet.
“Oh dear! This will never do!”
Vicius stood and went over to stand by the serving girl’s side, as she frantically tried to place the head back on its tray.
“Well go on then, pick it up! Quickly now! Oh, how terrible! That’s the king’s head, you are aware?!”
“Ahh, ahhhh…”
The serving girl fell into a complete panic at being rushed to pick up the severed head and tried everything she could to get it back on the tray—but with her hands shaking and weak, she dropped it several more times in the attempt.