What Happens When The Second Male Lead Powers Up [EN]: Chapter 360

#360

The Eastern Eye of the Chief God (2)

“Whoa, whoa.”

We landed at the Imperial Army’s camp on the Statia Plains. It was still morning.

“Driver! Have the Imperial carriage wait over here for a moment!”

“Tell the Margrave and the Commander! Hurry!”

“We behold the Empire’s Moon, who performs miracles. Welcome, Your Highness.”

“Duke, Marquis. Grand Preceptor, welcome as well.”

Young knights greeted us with polite bows.

Hundreds of eyes turned to us at once, and my face flushed involuntarily.

François had persuaded me to wear formal attire, but I wasn’t sure if it was the right choice.

I smiled and said, ‘Hello,’ then looked around.

The lesser pandas, excited by the unfamiliar people and environment, were jumping around.

There was a faint smell of burning and grass in the air.

“Wagons coming through! Weapon wagons coming through!”

– Rattle, clatter!

Under the bright autumn sun, soldiers with ash smudged on their armor hurried about.

Those carrying stretchers and shovels moved back and forth between the canyon headquarters and the plains.

Occasionally, healing priests and mages could be seen.

My teacher had told me never to go to a combat zone, but since there was no fighting here at the moment, it should be fine.

However, the traces of intense conflict were vivid.

Not far away in the field, Venetian soldiers were searching for the missing.

Lancers waved white flags and national flags together, providing cover for them.

The view was hazy with what might have been heat haze or smoke.

Seeing the meteorites and craters of various sizes scattered across the field made my mouth go dry.

It was a wonder that there were any survivors in such a place.

…But you guys will be okay. Right?

“This way, please.”

“Yes, thank you.”

A knight politely guided us.

The divine beasts and I led the way, with François and Fabrice following behind.

As always, Sir Johan guarded our rear.

Before long, the Marquis subtly leaned on me, using his cane.

I figured he must be quite tired, so I supported him as best I could. Then he lowered his voice.

“Marquis Serenite.”

“Yes, Marquis Dhiem.”

“This is a slightly different topic from today’s agenda, but…”

“Go ahead.”

“…I would like to become the young master’s godfather. What do you think?”

The secretive and sudden whisper eased my tension and made me laugh.

I bit my lip and turned to look at him.

The man with his bangs falling down looked several years younger than usual.

“That’s a wonderful idea. Herrit likes Uncle François a lot, too. If you officially become his guardian, everyone will be happy.”

“Do you think the young master’s father will agree? For the record, my siblings unanimously approved. The Dhiem family’s decisions are generally made by majority vote.”

He whispered seriously.

I was afraid I would really burst out laughing, so I desperately tried to think of sad things.

The day I stepped on a Lego in the living room and sank. The pain when I hit my elbow on the back of the chair.

“…I believe Sir Johan will always make the best choice for Herrit. And François has always been kind to the child. He even let Herrit and his friends stay at the Marquis’s residence this time. The child is also close to the mansion’s staff, so I don’t see why ‘Father’ would refuse.”

“Oh. Thank you.”

‘Perhaps I needed that encouragement,’ the Marquis murmured.

I glanced back at Herrit’s father.

He smiled at me as soon as our eyes met. Could he have amplified our conversation to hear it…?

No way, Sir Johan wouldn’t do that.

“Margrave. Prince Yeseo and his party, including Juliette, have arrived.”

Around that time, we arrived before a welcome face!

“Oh, my goodness. You’ve really come to such a humble and rough place.”

“Marquis.”

“Marquis, Uncle!”

Margrave Mute and her daughter, who had been examining the battle map in the white tent, greeted us with surprised faces.

Modeste Bakari, the commander of the Fleur de Lis [a renowned military order], was also there.

Seeing Elizabeth’s face, who had lost weight, pained my heart.

After exchanging joyful hugs and greetings, we quickly gathered around the table.

There were many things we wanted to share and take care of, but the most urgent matter was finding the three people who had vanished without a trace.

The Vice Captain of the Imperial Guard explained the current situation in a swift and calm manner.

Her nimble hand pointed to various places on the map.

She said that she couldn’t stop Christel from helping the Crown Prince, so she had risked deserting her post.

Elizabeth is secretly soft on Ms. Gain.

“The first search of most of the plains has been completed. We plan to carefully examine the areas with heavy fog during the second search this afternoon. Since the Unite River crosses the northern part of this area, we are not ruling out the possibility that the three of them were swept away in the direction of the Empire. The rear guard, including the desert headquarters, is conducting a riverside search.”

“In addition, all mages except for some combat mages have been mobilized to find the portal. This is because His Majesty had the insight that ancient magic formations might be hidden beneath the fields. This is a time-consuming task, so the search is being conducted sequentially, starting from the south here. Duke Cecil Blanquer is in charge. And… I haven’t had any significant revelations since His Highness the Crown Prince used the Divine Art of the Hyegeom [a powerful, possibly forbidden, divine technique].”

Commander Bakari finished speaking calmly. Many eyes gathered on him and then scattered.

I smiled at the teenager whose eyes met mine.

I moved my lips to say, ‘Thank you, you’ve worked hard.’ The prophet turned away with a glare.

Still, it was a much better reaction than when he was using himself as a tool and blaming himself.

“Although it is a temporary truce, the atmosphere between the two countries is not peaceful. We suggested a joint search, but the Holy Nation adamantly refused. It’s not just our Crown Prince who’s missing, but also the heir to the throne and a Grand Duke have disappeared. What are they thinking?”

‘They’re like slippery eels,’ Margrave Karoline Mute grumbled.

After exchanging glances with Duke Fabrice, I began to explain our theory in detail.

Since it was only a hypothesis, there were more than a few far-fetched parts.

It sounded a bit flimsy even to me. But it was better than not trying.

Right now, every single thought, no matter how small, was precious.

“…So, we used Ingrid Berang’s diary as a clue.”

The reaction was immediate.

“Yuliter Statia?”

“Are you suggesting that the ‘infamous villainess’ has become a ghost and is playing tricks? And that the Holy Nation knows about this?”

“In that case, are you recommending a large-scale exorcism or memorial service rather than a search?”

Commander Bakari, Karoline, and Elizabeth looked at me in unison.

I shrank back and shook my head. The mother and daughter’s eyes were similar and intense!

“Not right away. First, we need to pinpoint the exact location where the remains were scattered. However, the diary doesn’t mention any place names or locations, so I wanted to ask you three for advice first.”

“Since you’ve already completed the first search of most areas, we can focus on the areas that couldn’t be accessed due to fog.”

Sir Johan said gently.

Fabrice immediately opened the part he had bookmarked and showed it to us.

It was a line Ingrid had written on ‘that day,’ the day she sent Yuliter away.

We huddled together over the diary, groaning.

‘…There was no will, no apology, nothing.

No companion, no mourner, no one.

I alone recovered the body, and I alone collected the belongings. It didn’t rain, but my cheeks were soaked.

I didn’t shout, but my throat was hoarse like an animal.

In the land that His Dear Majesty will never look upon, I secretly laid her down.

In the sky that he will curse for the rest of his life, I dared to scatter her.

Avoiding the supreme sun, I chose the darkness of midnight, and crowned her beautiful hair with a wreath woven from moonlight.

Thus, the woman who was my nemesis and sister left the continent.

A heart that did not know the reason was shattered.’

“…Hmm. This kind of interpretation is my husband’s specialty.”

Karoline, who had been staring intently at the letters, said.

When I blinked, François whispered loudly.

“The story of the two of you is quite famous. There’s no one in the capital who doesn’t know about it. The Margrave, who only knew about herbs and poetry collections in her youth, met Sir Michel exactly twice, and on the third meeting, she asked, ‘Won’t you be the father of my child?'”

“Do you want to die?”

“Ahem.”

Elizabeth looked back at her mother and smiled.

The Marquis quickly coughed and tried to control his expression.

He looked like he wanted to live more than anyone else and was still sweating, so I stepped in to help him.

“‘The land that His Dear Majesty will never look upon.’ I think this part is the clue. For example, something that Emperor Romero never visited… Oh, no. I think this sentence refers to the Statia County.”

“Actually, I thought this was the clue, Your Highness. ‘Avoiding the supreme sun, I chose the darkness of midnight.'”

Fabrice carefully added.

Then everyone’s eyes widened and exclamations flowed out. ‘Ooh!’

“That’s amazing. Then, if we find place names on the map that include the words ‘darkness’ or ‘night,’ there might be a possibility?”

“Yes. If we limit it to the old Statia County, the range will be considerably narrowed.”

“That makes sense.”

Elizabeth agreed, and Commander Bakari responded.

A soldier, ordered by Karoline, brought several Holy Nation dictionaries.

Everyone rolled up their sleeves, saying they would look up some books for the first time in a while—

-Knock knock

“Excuse me.”

The group’s only paladin politely knocked on the table.

Our eyes instantly focused on one spot. I belatedly opened my mouth wide. Ugh!

“Sir Johan, why were you staying still when you’re from the Holy Nation!”

“Hahaha. No one was looking for me. I was wondering how far you would go, but you even brought out the dictionary.”

“Ugh, damn it.”

Karoline laughed and threw the dictionary away. Everyone must really be out of their minds.

We quickly crowded around Sir Johan.

We pointed to each place on the map, wrote down his interpretations, and boldly crossed out towns that didn’t include ‘night’ or ‘darkness’ in their names.

Since it wasn’t a word frequently used in place names, progress was faster than expected.

Especially among the areas that couldn’t be searched due to fog—

-Squeak, squeak, squeak!

“What is this.”

“Uh…”

Karoline and I were embarrassed at the same time. The last X was covering the name of the last village.

There was nothing left on the list.

“I must have pointed to the wrong place. Duke, can I see the diary again?”

“Yes.”

Fabrice quickly opened the notebook.

We busily rolled our eyes, savoring each word.

What is it? Could it be ‘the sky that he will curse for the rest of his life’? Was the keyword ‘sky’?

-Squeak

“Yeah, Demi. Just a moment.”

-Squeak squeak

“Sorry. Hyung [older brother, used affectionately] is busy right now, if you just wait a little bit…”

-Squeak squeak squeak

Flinch. I shuddered at the scene that flashed through my mind.

While my friends were recalling Ingrid’s words, I slowly made eye contact with Demi.

The lesser panda was tilting its head and looking at me.

‘You haven’t forgotten what I said, have you?’ As if asking that.

“…Moon.”

That’s right. The reason you looked for the moon at the Imperial Palace luncheon wasn’t just for one reason—

“It’s the moon. Everyone, it’s a village that includes ‘moon’!”

“Marquis?”

Elizabeth blinked. I urgently reached out and pointed to a sentence.

‘Crowned her beautiful hair with a wreath woven from moonlight.’

“A flower decoration woven from moonlight is a decoration that cannot exist in reality. I think this is the clue. Demi is a divine beast, so he must know something and is teaching me. Moon, moonlight, wreath. If there is a town made up of these words, it’s probably…”

-Tap tap

Once again, a long finger tapped on the map. It was Sir Johan.

We reflexively collapsed on the desk and stared at the scarred fingertip.

‘Maankrans Village.’

Christel Rambouillet was desperate.

“Huh? You know, right? Can’t you just whisper it to your auntie?”

“Ummm…”

She was serious. She had grabbed and asked every kid in the neighborhood so far.

This kid is the real_final_real_last.kid!

“I’ll keep it a secret from the adults. I won’t tell anyone, only auntie will know. Who is the owner of Maankrans Village?”

Fortunately, there was no one in the small temple’s backyard.

Gain knelt down and pleaded in front of the unknown girl.

The residents were only smiling, and no one was easy to deal with, so she had to target the relatively gentle children.

Every day, she drew a line on the wall of the empty house.

Anyone who saw it would think she was left alone on a desert island, but that was pretty much it.

Here, neither sunrise nor moonset could be seen.

24 hours a day, all week long, the world was gray and hazy.

In that it was necessary to entrust all senses to the biorhythm, this place was the same as a desert island.

She roughly assumed that morning came when she woke up after sleeping for a long time.

She guessed that it was night when she worked for a long time and everyone went to rest.

Grand Duchess Marguerite Diop did not easily regain her sanity even after being given holy water.

Karme was barely holding on.

In the meantime, there were already more than thirty lines. It was terrible.

“…I’m begging you like this. Auntie wants to go home.”

Gain pleaded desperately.

“I have friends here too, but there are more friends there. I also have a mom. My family, who I have to protect, is looking for auntie. They might be crying and waiting.”

“Gasp…”

The child’s eyes widened.

The girl, who loved her mom the most in the world, held her old mom rabbit doll tightly.

Christel glimpsed a faint possibility this time.

“And there’s a handsome prince that auntie likes, but I didn’t get to talk to him much when I broke up with him. Because I didn’t know if it would be the last time. Auntie… I sometimes have scary dreams because of that.”

“Then what should I do…?”

“I think you can help me. Really. Just one word would be a huge help to auntie. Anything is fine. Any information about this place is very welcome, and I’ll be grateful for everything.”

“Ugh…”

Then the child looked at Christel, fidgeting for a long time.

She didn’t know what to do and stamped her feet, or frowned her small forehead as if she was about to burst into tears.

Gain bit her lip and squeezed her eyes shut. Please, please, please—

-Squeeze

“Huh?”

Her eyes flashed open. A small, cool sensation touched her hand and moved away. ‘Tada-da-dat—!’

“Baby! Just a moment!”

The girl ran away without looking back. That was the end.

Again, she didn’t get anything.

A thick sense of futility filled her lungs and pulled Gain’s body down.

‘Thud!’ She lay sprawled on the floor, covering her eyes with the back of her hand.