"What… did you just say?" (3)
In truth, Isaac hadn't just snatched the "Corpse of the Skull King"—he'd also made off with treasures from the Third Vault.
And no wonder. The Third Vault?
That place held nothing less than myth-grade treasures.
"Basically, stuff on the level that could challenge gods."
Sure, even the continent's famed swordmasters and archmages couldn't handle those items lightly…
[Master, are you saying you can use them?]
"Use them" was an understatement.
The Demon King—no, the Skull King—was already a myth-grade existence in himself.
No matter how powerful a demon might be, they were usually dismissed in a single line in the scriptures. But when it came to the Skull King, there were hundreds of volumes written.
A being already standing shoulder to shoulder with gods—would it make sense for him to be unable to wield myth-level weapons?
Ah, well… now he couldn't use them.
His limbs were way too short for that at the moment.
But the secret manuals? That was a different story.
For spell manuals, as long as you had eyes and a brain, you could use them immediately!
That's why Isaac's first move in the Third Vault had been to grab up as many manuals as he could.
And now, instead of just mimicking the techniques, he'd properly learned a spell for the first time!
"Oh, Isaac! You actually kicked out the Papal envoy? Well done! Well done!"
"You should've seen the look on that little lapdog's face when Lady Gamo booted him out!"
The elders of Eshua were practically doing a tap dance as they hugged Isaac.
Having kicked out the Pope's messenger like a bunch of bouncers, they were in full-on festival mode.
"We've been fuming about those bastards trying to drive a wedge into Eshua these days anyway!"
"Damn right! We shouldn't even lose at rock-paper-scissors to the Pope's lackeys!"
"Didn't they reject our support request for some absurd reason last time? And it was only Eshua that got snubbed!"
"That was nothing! They invited us all the way out there, then canceled the event without even telling us—made us waste the whole trip! Do they think Eshua's people are a joke? Creepy little bastards!"
"We held back because the patriarch told us not to stoop to their level."
But now, as if finally avenging all that pent-up frustration, the elders hoisted Isaac high.
"From the treasure vault to this—you're no ordinary kid, are you!"
But of course, the Eshua elders knew the truth.
Whether it was the treasure vault or booting out the envoy, the real hidden contributor wasn't Isaac alone.
Sure, Isaac had done great—but he wasn't the real mastermind.
That's why they all started jabbing at Lila's side.
"Hey, hey, you little genius Lila! How did you even think to pull off that slick maneuver against the Papal bastards?"
"…Huh?"
"'Huh'? Don't play dumb! We're talking about that divine spell you cast on Isaac. Man, that was brilliant. And the way Isaac torched that badge at just the right moment—perfection!"
Lila blinked in confusion.
"…Wait, what? Wasn't that you elders? I had no idea you were even casting anything—I was honestly impressed…"
"…Huh?"
"…Huh?"
"…What?"
…Wait, what?
Their expressions twisted in bewilderment.
Ehhh?!
Only then did they realize the absurd truth.
"Hold on. Are you saying this kid used the divine flame spell?!"
"W-wait, Lila, you didn't secretly cast a spell back at the treasure vault too, did you?!"
"So that's how he brought out the Skull King's corpse—"
"…No, I've been trying to explain that part—what I cast was just a basic invisibility spell. Nothing more. I mean, the organizers couldn't pull a scam, right?"
At that, Elder Bain, who'd been wiping his glasses after coming in as an inspector, fumbled and dropped them.
"…Then that high-speed movement technique?"
"…Isaac… knows how to use movement arts?"
"...?"
"...????"
?????????????
The elders, Bain, and Lila all turned to stare at Isaac with trembling eyes.
"You mean Isaac's the one who burned the Papal badge?!"
Yeah. That was me, you fools.
Isaac's eyes curved into crescent moons.
Sure, it had been a bit of a grind to learn it. Not because it was particularly hard, though.
Having been a top-tier master in his past life, picking up the skill itself wasn't difficult. But reading those god-praising scriptures? That was enough to make his blood boil.
His power and firepower were still a long way from what he'd had as the Demon King, but for now?
This was more than enough.
"The divine flame spell is a soul technique—you need to make a contract with a god to use it! How can a kid with no contract—?!"
It's because I don't have a contract, you morons!
Why else would I ever touch this filthy divine magic?!
"There's a chance Isaac's mother cast it for him—"
Nope. Not that either.
"His mother can't use divine flame spells! She's a martial artist through and through!"
"!"
In the end, as the men of Eshua's eyes shook with disbelief, the nanny couldn't hold her tongue any longer.
She especially hadn't expected Lila, who had brought Isaac in, to be this clueless.
"You all said Young Master Isaac made a shadow lich his totem, right? Then of course he can use spell arts."
But they just shook their heads, pale as sheets.
"Having talent and actually casting spells are two totally different things!"
"Exactly! Sure, he might say he can do it! But we didn't even teach him the letters, and now he's writing full sentences!"
Even the genius Melissa, who was called a prodigy, at least began by learning the alphabet.
No, that's not the issue.
What this means is that the child erased the Pope's blessing…!
Soon, realizing the gravity of the situation, they urgently called Goel.
This is no ordinary matter.
"Goel! Bring back the medal that was burned earlier! We need to verify it with our own eyes!"
Goel pretended not to hear.
"You told me to throw it away, so I did."
"You fool! Why did you throw it away? That's proof that Isaac used his power!"
"Didn't the elders tell me to throw it away because it was upsetting? And besides, leaving evidence behind is not good."
"No, we thought Lillai was the one who tricked us!"
However, Goel, who had thrown the medal away, remained silent.
'Could it be that what Shuri said was true?'
She had claimed she received help from Isaac.
There was no way that a mother, not a saint, could have infused the power of the saint. That means all of Isaac's actions were done by his own strength.
But that wasn't the bigger issue.
'The medal.'
While handling the medal, Goel had to report it.
Some of the 'metal' had melted in the flames of the saint.
'Damn it. Fine, I could have accepted the box or the cloth, but metal…'
Though the box and cloth also had blessings, so it wasn't an easy task to melt them, it was possible for a high-ranking priest.
It wasn't a myth-level relic, just an ordinary item.
But metal?
'No metal in the world should withstand the Pope's family's metal.'
Even the head of the family, let alone the 'Demon Lord,' couldn't melt the Pope's family's metal.
That's because the Pope's metal symbolizes 'the faith of gold,' representing the Pope himself.
But the fire was blue?
And what would happen if this reached the head of the family's ears?
'There's no doubt this would affect the heir's position.'
So Goel destroyed the only evidence. He couldn't let it reach the head of the family or the matriarch.
"Lady! Is anyone there? Go to the trash and find it again!"
"Yes, yes!"
The servants hurriedly moved at the elder's command, but Goel sneered.
'They'll never find it.'
He had thrown it to the deepest part of the lake, attaching stones to it to make sure no one could retrieve it.
Would a little brat like that get to take the highest seat of faith from the saint and the saintly faith?
***
The Beritt Family.
Kina Beritt had to be confined to her room for about two weeks due to the disgrace at the treasure vault.
As soon as her confinement ended, she immediately went to see her father.
She was determined to defend herself, but the moment she met her father's eyes, she was at a loss for words.
"So what were you thinking, bringing this kind of thing?"
"..."
The gleaming golden eyes showed no interest in hearing excuses or childish whining.
Kina looked at the jewelry brooch that Cardinal Beritt was tapping.
She only had one thing to say.
"…That was the best I could find."
Cardinal Beritt's gaze became grim.
"Stop talking nonsense. The third vault is a treasure trove of mythical relics. There are countless valuable items, even without the Skeleton King's body. You were sent into the Saint's treasure vault, and this is what you bring back?"
"But, there was nothing else!"
Kina felt wronged.
In the third vault, she had definitely sensed the presence of many strong treasures, not just the Skeleton King's body.
So she had planned to take the best treasures, but…!
Swish!
-…?
Whenever she rushed toward where she sensed the treasure's energy, the treasures would mysteriously disappear.
Swish, swish!
No, she wasn't lying; they really disappeared!
And the ones Kina had thought were the best were all gone!
Some even vanished before she could grab them.
Swish, swish, swish!
-…???
Of course, it was all Isaac's doing, but unaware of that, Kina couldn't help but be bewildered.
Upon hearing her story, the Cardinal let out a cold smile, as though he had some idea of what was going on.
"Did the dragon do this in the treasure vault?"
"But why would a dragon…?"
"Because it's mischievous. The holy dragon doesn't like the Beritt family."
"!"
But at this point, the dragon was an arrogant one who didn't show its face to anyone, even those connected to the royal family through ancient contracts.
"Why would a dragon like any human?"
"..."
But then, for a moment, Kina broke into a cold sweat.
Why?
Why was the voice she had heard in the treasure vault suddenly coming to her mind now?
-You're the only one who passed among them! It's a great day, a great day. This answer hasn't been seen since the invitation!
-So only that smart and brilliant baby is being sent to the third vault.
That voice that had directly allowed Isaac through.
Why? Why was she so bothered by that?
Kina's eyes wavered.
But soon, the Cardinal looked at his seed as if none of that mattered.
"By the way, is it true that the child used the Saint's power to burn the medal?"
It was about the incident where Eshua sent a provocation along with a medal.
At that moment, the cardinal's attendant, who had been keeping watch over the messenger, lowered his head.
"I think it's likely that the baby used it," he said.
"What about Lillai Eshua or the elder?"
"If it were them, I would have recognized the aura right away."
Cardinal Verit frowned, looking very displeased.
"It must not get into anyone's ears. Deal with the messenger."
"Then shouldn't we steal that baby's medal first? If someone from Eshua uses it as proof and tries to make a move…"
Especially if the head of the Eshua family finds out, it could cause a headache.
"What if the head of the Eshua family changes his mind after seeing that? If the next head of Eshua turns out to be someone from the Saint's bloodline instead of the Pope's… that would be a huge problem."
"It's fine. Ghael has already dealt with the medal."
"Even though they're cousins to the head, can we trust someone from Eshua?"
Cardinal Verit laughed, a cold, mocking laugh.
"That baby probably doesn't want to lose the position of head of the family, so he would have dealt with it thoroughly. They say he threw it to the bottom of Lake Elizeba, so go retrieve it."
The attendant and Kina were both startled.
"What? Lake Elizeba?"
Of all places, there?
"It's too deep and dangerous there. Instead of sending people there, it would be better to just bury it…"
"Should I go then?"
At the cold voice, the attendant quickly lowered his head.
"No. We'll select only the tight-lipped ones."
"Make sure to get it back without anyone finding out. Do you think I'll let rumors spread that the baby's blue flame melted the golden gold? No one can find out, especially not the high-ranking clergy."
Cardinal Verit looked very displeased and yet concerned about Isaac.
Normally, he wouldn't have cared about anyone except for the Pope's family.
But after surviving the poison, surviving in the treasure vault…
To top it all off, he even devoured the body of the Skull King and lived?
That baby…
What kind of creature is he?
***
The western part of the Eshua Duchy.
A man was returning home after crossing a rugged mountain range.
He had been riding a massive whale-like divine beast when he suddenly raised his hand.
"Wait."
"Huh?"
With just that gesture, dozens of high-ranking knights following him immediately stopped in unison.
The knights began to murmur.
"Master?"
They were by a lake where monsters appeared.
It wasn't the designated stop, so why here?
But for some reason, the head of the Eshua family, Ilai Eshua, was staring deeply into the center of the lake.
As if he had discovered something in the peaceful depths.
"There's something at the bottom of the lake. I need to check it."
"What? The… bottom? The bottom of the lake? Are you joking? That lake is over a few hundred meters deep, and there are man-eating fish, so it's impossible to… Ugh! Master!"
Instead of answering, Ilai Eshua leaped off the flying divine beast.
"Master?!"
From this height, without any protection?!
The knights hurriedly urged their divine beasts to follow their master.
But when they landed without even a speck of dust, their master gazed at the lake.
"Master, what are you trying to do…?"
Instead of answering, Ilai raised a hand. And with a single downward motion, he struck the lake!
Boom!
The knights screamed.
With a sound like a mountain exploding, a massive shockwave slammed down on the surroundings.
"Ugh!"
They couldn't stand still.
At that moment, the knights witnessed an unbelievable sight.
The force of the strike shot straight down to the bottom of the lake.
"Ugh…!"
It was as if a giant hole had been made at the bottom of the lake, and water surged up.
Swarming man-eating fish followed like a whirlpool.
And at the bottom of the lake, the head of the Eshua family flicked his finger.
At the same time, something from the lake bottom swiftly flew toward his hand.
Thud!
How much time had passed in that instant?
When Ilai looked at the object he had obtained, the water and fish that had soared into the sky fell, as if time had stopped.
Plop!
"Ah, ahh! Fish! Man-eating fish!"
It was like a downpour in the middle of a storm.
Such a reckless and violent method was beyond belief.
The knights quickly took off their clothes to cover their master.
However, Ilai Eshua only tilted his head at the object he had pulled from the lake bottom.
"This is…?"
It was Isaac's medal, discarded by Ghael.
[T/L: Read extra chapters on my ko-fi page "Pokemon1920" : https://ko-fi.com/pokemon1920 ]