Emperor Of Steel [EN]: Chapter 135

3. The Road to Her

Having concluded the first Northern Expedition by capturing Vanden, Luke left the rest to his generals and returned to Brenden.

Hudson greeted Luke upon his return.

No sooner had the news of the king’s return reached him than he arrived with a message, which caused Luke’s expression to turn grave.

“Such a thing is happening in the Holy Empire?”

“Yes. According to the information from our Argos agents, the situation is worsening as time goes on.”

‘Good heavens. After the last civil war, such an absurd thing is happening in the Holy Empire, which had been peaceful for a while!’

With a grim look, Luke hurriedly took out the magic communication orb and entered the coordinates to contact Reina.

If the information from the agents was true, this was no ordinary matter.

The zombie disease was a bizarre illness that even he, who was well-versed in dark magic, did not know about.

‘No, I’ve heard of something similar.’

It was a story of the future, or rather, a story of a deleted spacetime that Hwangbo-sung had told him about in relation to Karen.

An undead legion that appeared on the continent after he and Reina died.

Where they swept through, the undead were rampant, and eventually, the world became a place where the dead outnumbered the living.

Although no specific disease was mentioned, the symptoms were similar.

Perhaps in the future, the disease was not as prominent due to the undead and the war.

‘I can’t jump to conclusions, but it’s highly likely that Arsen is involved in this situation. If so, Reina and the Holy Empire are in danger!’

Whoo-oong!

The communication orb, infused with magic power, emitted a bright light and soon projected the image of a person.

However, the person was not Reina, but a middle-aged wizard he had never seen before.

– Excuse me, but who is trying to contact us?

“I am Luke de Rakan, the King of Symphonia. Who are you? And where is Her Holiness now?”

– H-Heok!

Startled by Luke’s words, the wizard let out a strange groan and hurriedly began to introduce himself.

– I, I am the communication wizard of the Holy Palace. H-Her Holiness is now… that is…

As the communication wizard hesitated and stammered, Luke frowned and said,

“I heard that there is a great crisis in the Holy Empire. I wish to discuss this matter, so bring Her Holiness here at once.”

At Luke’s urging, the wizard, with his eyes tightly shut, finally confessed the truth.

– Her Holiness is not here right now.

“Not in the Holy Palace?”

– Yes, three days ago, she left me with the magic communication device and went to Saxony with the Undying Order.

“W-What!”

Luke’s heart sank at the unexpected news.

Saxony, which had become a den of zombies, was too dangerous.

Even with an ironclad escort, one could still contract the zombie disease if they were unlucky.

Yet, she went to Saxony without fear!

“What in the world was Grand Duke Gregory doing! Didn’t he stop Her Holiness!”

Startled by Luke’s thunderous roar, the communication wizard fell backward in his chair, then quickly got up and bowed.

– T-That is… he tried to stop her, but Her Holiness was so stubborn that he went with her.

“Ha! This… !”

Luke was dumbfounded, but he could still understand her actions.

Reina remained as the Pope of the Holy Empire to help him.

However, as time passed, she grew to cherish and love the pure and kind people of the Empire too much.

‘That’s why she must have gone to stop the spread of the zombie disease herself. And she left behind the magic communication orb she always carried, probably because she knew I would oppose it if I knew about this.’

Taking a breath and calming his agitation, Luke spoke to the flustered communication wizard.

“Understood. If you receive any contact from Her Holiness, please contact this communication coordinate immediately.”

– Y-Yes, I understand.

After ending the magic communication, Luke was lost in thought for a moment.

How could he bring her back safely, and how could he overcome the crisis in the Holy Empire?

“I guess I have no choice but to go and handle it myself.”

Having made up his mind, Luke summoned his vassals to the main hall and informed them of the situation in the Holy Empire. He also announced that he would go and resolve the issue himself.

At this, his vassals, including Prime Minister Hans, tried to dissuade him.

“Your Majesty, you have just returned from the Northern Expedition, where are you going again?”

“That’s right. Emperor Rudolf is likely to attack our kingdom to reclaim the lost territories. You must not leave your post now.”

“And didn’t Your Majesty say earlier that the zombie disease is something that even the priests cannot handle? Going to the Holy Empire now is too dangerous.”

The court quickly became noisy.

Although he had expected some opposition, Luke’s expression hardened at the vehement and fierce objections.

Thump!

He slammed his hand on the armrest of his chair, silencing the crowd, and opened his mouth with a fierce glint in his eyes.

“There is a woman I love in Saxony right now. Are you telling me to leave her in danger like this!”

“We understand Your Majesty’s feelings, but prioritizing personal emotions over national affairs is…”

“It’s not just personal emotions! The Holy Artenia Empire is our most important ally in the current situation of checking the Baroque Empire. Do you not realize that we are not safe if they are in danger!”

Although he did not mention it, it was necessary to stabilize the Holy Empire in order to protect the continent from Arsen’s undead legion in the future.

At his outburst, the vassals who had been opposing him fell silent.

Luke glanced around to see if anyone else was still objecting and continued.

“I have convened this meeting not to seek your permission, but to inform you of my course of action and to prepare for future measures. Therefore, immediately organize the personnel for departure to the Holy Empire, and establish a system of personnel to manage the state affairs in my absence.”

“Hah, understood, Your Majesty.”

Prime Minister Hans sighed deeply and bowed his head.

More than anyone, he wanted to stop Luke, but he knew his stubbornness well and could understand his current feelings.

“…”

Luke, seeing the reactions of Hans and the other vassals who reluctantly accepted his orders, wore a displeased expression.

He was dissatisfied with their tendency to rely on him too much.

‘Well, it’s not unreasonable. I led almost every step of the way until the founding of the kingdom.’

It was because of Luke that the Rakan family was able to overcome the checks of the Baroque Imperial family and rise to prominence.

Therefore, his retainers came to trust him completely, but conversely, they became so dependent on him that they could not do without him.

‘I can’t do that in the future. I have to establish a solid system so that the state affairs can proceed smoothly even in my absence…’

Of course, it was not something that could be done immediately, so he decided to deal with this issue once the matter in the Holy Empire was resolved.

As Luke was hastily preparing to leave for the Holy Empire, he secretly sent a magic communication to Dark Moon late at night.

He thought that this matter was related to the undead, so he needed the help and support of the dark mages.

– It’s been a while, Master.

“It’s good to see you, Meister Johas. Actually, it’s not for any other reason…”

Luke told Johas about what had happened in the Holy Empire.

Johas’s expression turned serious as he listened to the story.

– I have also heard related news from my disciples and subordinates in the Holy Empire. I was certain that it was the work of someone.

“I believe it’s Arsen. What do you think, Meister?”

– I was also suspecting Arsen. Among the dark mages, he is the only one with the skill and guts to commit such a large-scale act.

“Yes, from the lich’s point of view, the Holy Empire would be the most bothersome. Anyway, I’m thinking of going to Saxony. I’m going to find out how the zombie disease is transmitted, how it turns people into the undead, and if there is a way to cure it.”

Johas was not unaware of the reason why Luke was trying to take action himself.

Although he had never heard it directly from him, he had heard rumors that the current Pope of the Holy Empire was Luke’s fiancée, Princess Reina.

If the rumors were not true, the Pope would not have personally officiated his coronation, nor would Luke, who had learned dark magic, have been so deeply involved in the affairs of the Holy Empire.

– I know your skills well, Master, but I am worried. Even though you have learned dark magic, haven’t you always kept your distance from things related to the undead?

“I haven’t kept my distance, I just haven’t used it. All the related knowledge and magic are in my head. Of course, this situation is so widespread that I don’t think I can handle it alone.”

At Luke’s honest admission of his difficulties, Johas nodded and asked,

– What can we do to help you?

“I would like you to send dark mages to Saxony to assist me. It would be good if they were people with a lot of knowledge about the undead, even if their skills are lacking.”

– Understood. Oh, right. Speaking of the undead, a special envoy from the fairy representatives came to me the other day and told me this story.

Johas told Luke the story he had heard from the fairies.

After hearing the story, Luke could not help but be interested. It was related to what he had experienced.

“It is true that a special type of undead has appeared in the Southern Continent. I witnessed it myself, and I also confirmed that Arsen is behind it.”

– I see. Then, is he building his power in the Southern Continent?

“It’s highly likely. Anyway, tell those fairy representatives to come and see me soon. They must have brought it up because they want to be more actively involved in the world.”

– Understood, Master.

After ending the magic communication with Johas, Luke was lost in thought for a moment.

‘The Southern Continent… I haven’t paid much attention to it since I formed a connection with the Zhuge family.’

The appearance of the undead in the Zhuge family’s main house at that time was related to the Third Prince, Jo Won-rak.

He was the one who was targeted by the undead in the first place.

Considering this, it was highly likely that Arsen was involved in the court intrigues of the Song Empire.

‘We can’t let the Song Empire fall into his hands. I need to support Jo Won-rak for now.’

The national power of the Symphonia Kingdom also had its limits.

However, he could not leave the Song Empire, the largest country in the Southern Continent, unattended.

So, Luke decided to entrust the affairs of the Southern Continent to the fairies.

Three days passed in the blink of an eye.

Luke wanted to rush to the Holy Empire right away, but he could not go without any preparation.

So, while suppressing his anxious heart and making preparations, he also closely monitored the movements of the Baroque Empire.

“The Baroque Empire was ambushed by the Kingdom of Libya and the Volga Republic?”

“Yes, Your Majesty. With civil unrest breaking out in various places, it seems we won’t be able to focus on the Symphonia Kingdom.”

At Belfar’s report, who was leading the messenger knights, Luke smiled inwardly. The situation he had anticipated when he first decided on the Northern Expedition was unfolding.

“Still, keep a close watch, just in case. If necessary, use the messenger knights to create chaos and internal strife within the Empire. Make sure Rudolf can’t pay any attention to us.”

“Understood. Please trust me with this.”

Not long after Belfar left, the court wizard Erewin came to see him.

“Your Majesty, the fairy representatives have arrived.”

“Oh? They’ve come at just the right time.”

He was planning to have an audience with the fairy representatives soon anyway. But since they had come before he left for the Holy Empire, he didn’t have to delay any further.

Luke went to the reception room of the royal palace and met Brat, the leader of the elves, Amur Khan, the chief of the Lycans, and the Fairy Queen Ariete.

“It’s a pleasure to meet you. I heard from our court wizard that you helped me during the unfortunate incident in the Dark Forest in the past. Though it’s late, I would like to express my gratitude for what you did then.”

As Luke bowed his head, Brat hurriedly waved his hand, trying to stop him.

“What happened then was because we failed to stop the actions of the hardline fairies. Gratitude is not necessary.”

‘Hmm, he knows his place.’ Luke, who had deliberately tested the fairy representatives, wore a satisfied expression inwardly. If Brat had shamelessly pretended not to know or subtly demanded compensation, he would have kept his distance from the fairies. However, the fairy representatives had passed his test without any problems.

Luke offered them seats and immediately got to the point.

“I hope you understand that I cannot talk for long due to unfortunate circumstances.”

“We know. I heard that something big happened in the Holy Empire, which is our ally, right?”

Brat had heard the news before coming here through the teleport gate from the Volga Republic. The damage was great not only to the people of the Holy Empire but also to the fairies there, so the fairy representatives were very worried. The reason why only three of them came to see Luke today was also because of that. All the others had left for the Holy Empire to help their kin.

“That is something I will go and resolve… I would like you to focus on the affairs of the Southern Continent.”

“By the Southern Continent, do you mean the matter related to the special undead?”

“That’s right. The one who created that undead is a very dangerous person.”

“Who is it?”

“Arsen. He was the Meister [Master] of the Veritas Magic Tower a full 500 years ago.”

Luke explained in detail what Arsen, who had dabbled in forbidden magic, had been doing all this time. The fairy representatives were shocked by his explanation.

“H-How can such a person exist in this world!”

“To think that many of the disturbances on the continent so far were orchestrated by him from behind!”

Luke asked the murmuring representatives to go to the Southern Continent and help the Third Prince, Jo Won-rak.

“If the Third Prince is harmed, there is a high possibility that the entire Song Empire will fall into Arsen’s hands. So, you must protect him.”

“Understood. Is there anything else we need to do?”

Luke thought for a moment at Ariete’s question and then spoke again.

“Find out where Arsen’s base is. However, you must only find out and not take any action.”

“Tch, do you think we can’t handle him with our power?”

Amur Khan grumbled with a somewhat displeased face.

“I don’t know your power. However, I don’t think you will be able to catch Arsen even if you defeat the undead army. That guy is very cunning.”

If they failed to catch him once his tail was exposed, they would have to wait a considerable amount of time. Moreover, Arsen was a lich, an existence close to immortal. If he decided to hide, it would be difficult for Luke, a human, as well as the long-lived fairies to find him again.

Brat and the other two fairy representatives, understanding what Luke was worried about, nodded their heads.

“Understood. We will find out his whereabouts, but we will not act recklessly.”

“I’m counting on you.”

Having finished the meeting with the fairy representatives, Luke immediately left for the Holy Empire.

Luke and his party used a long-distance teleport gate to move to Bles, the capital of the Holy Empire, in one go. Since he had contacted them in advance before departing, Luter, the priest who was guarding the Holy Palace in place of Reina, came out to greet him.

“Welcome, Your Majesty.”

After greeting him warmly, Luter looked back and forth between Luke and Hwangbo-sung, who was escorting him, and continued.

“I was curious about what kind of person the King was… I never thought we would be acquaintances.”

“Hah, it seems my identity has been revealed to you.”

Luke had participated in the Holy Empire’s civil war before, disguised as a mercenary. He had met Priest Luter at the time in the Barony of Pellier. That was when Hwangbo-sung was his bodyguard.

“Anyway, where is His Holiness the Pope now? Is she not in danger?”

Luter smiled faintly at Luke’s concern for the Pope’s safety. He had learned about the relationship between Luke and the Pope not long ago. There had been rumors before, and the Pope had deliberately visited the Symphonia Kingdom to hold the coronation ceremony, and Luke had suddenly come when the Pope collapsed recently, so there were quite a few reasons to be suspicious. However, he didn’t bother to pry. He thought that there was no good in bringing up such things, and even if he asked, they wouldn’t tell him.

However, a few days ago, he received a report that Luke had been severely angered by the Pope’s safety issue, and he could no longer hold back. So, he made a magic communication to Grand Duke Gregory and asked him the whole story. Gregory was silent at first, but he opened his mouth at his repeated questioning, and eventually, he learned that the rumors were true. Pope Veronica III was indeed Reina Petrovna Kirillov, the last princess of the Volga Kingdom, and the lover… no, now the wife of Luke, the King of Symphonia.

He was very embarrassed when he learned the truth. But soon, he agreed with Grand Duke Gregory’s words that ‘everything is God’s will.’ There had been no bad things in the Holy Empire since Reina became Pope. No, even when Constantine, who became regent, used her as a puppet, he and many others were worried, but after that, she reformed the Holy Empire and breathed new life into it by expelling corrupt priests and nobles.

‘What does it matter if the Pope was not a priest from the beginning or if she is a married woman? The important thing is whether she is a person who can take care of the people by following God’s will.’ There was no need to be bound by old customs that she must be a priest or that she must maintain her purity. Luter, who had organized his thoughts in this way, did not find Luke’s urgent reaction strange or unpleasant.

“Currently, His Holiness the Pope is in Wolfs, a small town in Saxony. She has set up a temporary relief center there and is trying to prevent the spread of the zombie disease while also looking for a cure.”

“Did she take enough guards?”

“The entire Immortal Legion, including Grand Duke Gregory, the Holy Grail Guardians, and some of the 300 Gigantes [giant warriors] and 80,000 troops who had departed in advance to prevent the spread of the zombie disease, are guarding the area without any gaps.”

‘Then, she’s not in immediate danger.’ The number of troops deployed by the Holy Artenia Empire to stop this zombie disease was more than Luke had expected. The entire Immortal Legion, which was the same as the Royal Knights, was mobilized, and nearly half of the standing army was deployed. In addition, the priests, paladins, and territorial forces near Saxony were all mobilized to prevent the spread of the disease. It was proof that they were seeing this incident as a huge crisis.

‘Goodness, they should have asked me for help first!’ Although he grumbled, Luke was not so dull that he did not know Reina’s inner thoughts. Perhaps she did not ask for help because the Symphonia Kingdom was at war with the Baroque Empire.

“But Your Majesty, is this all of your party?” Priest Luter tilted his head, as Luke’s party was smaller than he had expected. There were no priests, and there were not many royal knights accompanying him as guards. In the case of Hwangbo-sung, the commander of the Royal Knights, Luter knew his skills well, but he felt uneasy beyond doubt because there were so few of them.

“There are more in my party, but we have agreed to meet near Saxony.”

“Is that so?”

“More importantly, is the guide I requested ready?”

Before moving through the long-distance teleport gate, Luke had asked the Holy Palace to provide a guide to take him to Saxony. He had never been to Saxony before, so he did not know the way. Therefore, he could not move by teleport magic, and instead, he was planning to travel from the capital Bles to Saxony as quickly as possible using fly magic. To do so, he needed someone who knew the way.

“I will guide you.”

“You? What about the Holy Palace?” Luke looked at him with a slightly surprised face at Priest Luter’s words.

“I have already asked a trustworthy priest to take care of it. I know the Saxony region quite well because I practiced asceticism there when I was young.”

Luter had a bitter expression as he recalled the faces of the people who had kindly shared food and found him a place to sleep at that time.

“That’s a relief then. Can we leave right away?” At Luke’s hurried appearance, Luter smiled and nodded his head.

“Yes, I have already packed my belongings, knowing that you would do so.” Priest Luter pointed to a small backpack placed behind him. It seemed to contain clothes to change into and extra food.

Luke nodded his head at his fully prepared appearance and said to his attendants.

“Let’s go outside of Bles first. From there, we will fly to Saxony at full speed, so be aware of that.”

“Yes, Your Majesty!” The royal knights, led by Hwangbo-sung, answered in unison. And a little later, Luke, who had used his magic at full power, took Luter and his attendants and flew into the sky.

Wolfs was a city located relatively south in the Saxony region. As a city in Saxony, which is called a transportation hub, roads connecting to other southern regions also passed through Wolfs. The resident population here was about 100,000 people. In this city, which should have been bustling with carriages and merchants carrying goods, soldiers and Gigantes were crowded. This was because Wolfs had become a base for preventing the zombie disease after the Pope arrived.

“The 1st Brigade of the Immortal Legion, patrol the city and eliminate the remaining zombies!”

“The 2nd Division will advance north to prevent the zombies from moving south!”

“Mages of the Imperial Magic Tower, construct a fire magic circle in front of the city walls to block the undead’s approach!”

Grand Duke Gregory, who had arrived in Wolfs with the Pope, was issuing orders to the Immortal Legion and the mages of the Imperial Magic Tower from the city hall, which he had designated as his headquarters.

Furthermore, he was simultaneously directing an operation to divide the currently mobilized forces into four groups to encircle the Saxony region.

“Have the mages who went to scout towards Bremen returned?”

Gregory’s adjutant replied to his question.

“They have just returned, and they report that the villages and cities along the road are swarming with undead. Moreover…”

“Did they see anything else?”

“They recovered the belongings of the Immortal Legion soldiers who were sent ahead. And they’ve also confirmed that the soldiers sent as reinforcements earlier have become zombies.”

“Haa, so they were truly annihilated.”

He had already received a report before departing that one division of the Immortal Legion and 30,000 soldiers sent as reinforcements had been annihilated.

He had hoped that there would be some survivors, but he only received unfortunate news.

“What do you think? Do you believe that the entire Saxony region has already fallen into the hands of the undead?”

“Saxony is a vast region. There are more than ten cities, large and small, and dozens of territories. As you can see on this map, even though transportation is developed, there are also places surrounded by mountains or forests where traffic is infrequent.”

So, there might still be territories or villages that are holding out against the zombies.

Of course, this was just a hopeful expectation.

According to the reports of the mages who had scouted towards Bremen using Fly magic, it was completely overrun with undead.

Moreover, even when contacting the cities and territories within Saxony, no one was responding to magical communications.

Some believed that this was because the mages in charge of communications had either fled or been killed, but most were pessimistic.

“We need to hear some good news to ease His Holiness’s mind… Have you found out anything about Constantine’s whereabouts?”

“The Holy Grail Guardians are currently pursuing him, but they have not yet found him.”

He thought that he would be able to find Constantine quickly once he came to Saxony, but surprisingly, the bastard’s trail was not being revealed.

Or perhaps, he was somewhere out of their sight.

“Since he is acting as an apostle of God, he will show himself soon enough. More importantly, what is His Holiness doing?”

Gregory had not seen Reina’s face since entering Wolfs.

He was very busy directing the forces, but it was also because Reina had been staying outside the city hall.

“His Holiness is at a nearby magic tower, researching with Marquis Leas whether there is a way to turn the captured zombies back into humans.”

“Ah, she said she would do that, didn’t she? Well, does it seem like there has been any progress? No, I should go see for myself.”

Having finished all the urgent matters, Grand Duke Gregory, who had some free time, moved towards the laboratory where the Pope and Marquis Leas were.

There was a medium-sized magic tower named Ford near the Wolfs city hall.

This magic tower, which consisted of several workshops, mages’ residences, and laboratories, had become empty as most of the mages had fled when the zombie disease spread.

Reina, who had come to Wolfs, had taken over this place and was working with the mages of the Artenia Imperial Magic Tower to research and treat the zombie disease.

“Then, let’s begin.”

Reina, who had been looking tense, nodded at the words of Imperial Magic Tower Meister [Master] Leas.

She gathered her hands and concentrated, raising her power.

Whooong—!

From her hands, a gentle light of divine power spread out and reached the zombie bound by iron chains.

Kkyaaaaak!

The zombie, touched by Reina’s divine power, screamed and then shattered into gray ash.

Pshshsh!

“Ah!”

Tears streamed down Reina’s eyes as she watched the zombie disappear.

Then, Leas approached and comforted her.

“Your Holiness, it is an unavoidable sacrifice for the development of a cure. I hope you will not be too heartbroken.”

“I know. But the thought that I killed a life that could have been turned back into a human with my own hands tears my heart apart.”

“Of course, it is… but if left alone, it is more likely that they would harm another life than return to being human. It might be better to let them rest in peace by Your Holiness’s hand.”

Despite Leas’s consolation, Reina’s expression did not easily brighten.

While looking for Constantine’s whereabouts, she could not just sit idly by, so she had been researching day and night with the mages of the Imperial Magic Tower on how to cure the zombie disease.

In addition to various magical attempts, she had also tried to treat the zombies by gradually changing the nature of her ether [a magical energy].

However, she had only been failing repeatedly.

“How on earth was Archbishop Constantine able to turn zombies back into humans?”

“Well, I am not sure either. However, one thing is certain: it is definitely not a normal method.”

Turning zombies back into humans was a method that deviated from the laws of causality set by the gods.

Therefore, it was impossible with magic and divine power.

“What about treating people who have been infected but have not yet become zombies?”

“There is a possibility, but unfortunately, we have not yet found any infected people near Wolfs.”

Wolfs had already been completely occupied by zombies a week ago.

Naturally, all the residents in the city had either fled or been bitten by zombies and become undead.

They had searched the city thoroughly, thinking that some survivors might be hiding, but they could not find any.

“Haa, I didn’t think it would be easy, but it’s really frustrating.”

“I agree. I even think that we might have approached or attempted it in the wrong way from the beginning.”

“What do you mean by wrong?”

At Reina’s question, Marquis Leas spoke about what he had been thinking.

“As Your Holiness has seen, divine power and magic do not work. One way or another, the zombie disease is deeply related to black magic that deals with the undead. Perhaps if we approach it with the theory of black magic… Huh!”

Marquis Leas, who was continuing his words, was startled and bowed his head deeply when he saw the Pope staring at him.

“I, I apologize, Your Holiness. I was just thinking about the possibility, and I absolutely do not have any malicious intention to research black magic. Please believe me!”

“I know, Marquis. So, there is no need to be afraid.”

Leas, who had let out a sigh of relief at Reina’s words, carefully raised his head.

It was not unreasonable for him to be flustered.

The Holy Empire was a country founded to spread the will of the main god, Elkasel.

Therefore, even mages had the mindset of ‘serving God and seeking truth.’

Leas, a mage of such a Holy Empire, and even the Meister of the Imperial Magic Tower, had carelessly mentioned black magic.

He could not have defended himself even if he had been accused of heresy or harboring a depraved intention.

However, Reina did not take this as a big problem.

It was because her partner, Luke, was also learning black magic, but also because she thought that Leas’s idea was reasonable in its own way.

‘Should I ask for his help? No, he must be very busy dealing with the aftermath of the war right now…’

Moreover, although the first northern expedition of Symphonia had ended with the capture of Sherwood Castle, there was no way that Emperor Rudolf would remain still.

He would surely try to retaliate or punish them in some way.

‘But maybe it would be okay to ask for his advice…’

While Reina was lost in thought, Grand Duke Gregory came to the laboratory.

At his appearance, the other mages except for Marquis Leas quietly left the laboratory.

“Your Holiness, how is the research going?”

At Gregory’s question, Reina sighed deeply and replied.

“Unfortunately, I have not yet found an answer.”

“Is that so?”

Gregory, who did not think that they would find a solution easily, nodded with a calm face.

Rather, he said a word to comfort Reina, who seemed very disappointed.

“I understand Your Holiness’s feelings, but please do not overdo it. If Your Holiness were to collapse, all of us would not be able to raise our heads when your husband comes here.”

“Huh? What did you just say? My husband is coming, could it be…?”

At first, Reina thought that Gregory was joking to cheer her up.

However, she knew it was the truth when she saw his expression.

“I received a report from the Imperial Palace just before coming to the magic tower. He is putting everything aside and coming here.”

“That… I deliberately didn’t contact him to tell him not to come…”

“Isn’t he not the kind of person who wouldn’t come just because you told him not to?”

“Yes, that’s true.”

Reina smiled faintly.

She was inwardly worried that Luke was leaving the national affairs of Symphonia behind, but her anticipation and joy were greater than that.

Although she was in the position of the Pope, the highest of all people, she was ultimately a woman who loved a man.

“I might get scolded.”

“Hah, didn’t he come prepared for a scolding?”

While Reina and Grand Duke Gregory were talking happily, thinking of Luke, Marquis Leas, who had been standing aside, carefully joined their conversation.

“Your Holiness’s husband? Who are you talking about?”

Marquis Leas did not yet know about the relationship between Reina and Luke.

While Grand Duke Gregory, who had momentarily forgotten his existence, was making a troubled expression, Reina told him the whole truth.

“…That’s how it is.”

“Th, that can’t be!”

Leas’s eyes and mouth widened like balls at Reina’s explanation.

The story he had just heard was so surprising that it shook the composure of an 8th-circle archmage.

Leas, who had his mouth wide open, looked at Grand Duke Gregory, as if asking how such a thing could be possible.

However, Grand Duke Gregory could only say this.

“It is all God’s will.”

‘God’s… will?’

Leas could not figure out what to say.