Chapter 128
Chapter 128
Fever (2)
“……Lately, I’ve been thinking something.”
Julius flicked the cigarette hanging from his lips and let the words slip out like a complaint.
“Isn’t it possible that the eye of a storm actually exists in human form?”
Alester, who had been quietly listening beside him, let out a hollow laugh.
The sentence had come out without any prelude or subject, yet it was so painfully relatable that he couldn’t help it.
Alester, who had been tending the crackling campfire with him, brushed back his hair and said,
“I heard a dragon appeared.”
“Yes. And apparently there was a human who took it down in one strike.”
“…And I heard there was also a human who was on the verge of being killed by that dragon.”
“…And apparently there was another human who brought him back to life.”
I had heard that the student who had been revived like that was now going around claiming he had met a god, chattering with an almost fanatical fervor.
The problem was that none of it could simply be dismissed as nonsense.
“…We all saw it, didn’t we?”
“……”
At the words Julius brought up, Alester closed his mouth again with a bitter smile.
In truth, I had been there on the scene as well.
The sight of the God of Purification bursting out the moment He saw that man on the altar was still vividly carved into my mind.
‘……Shouldn’t it have already ended there?’
If I considered the purpose of the ritual—to determine the most legitimate Pontiff—then it would not have been strange at all if an official notice had been sent out telling everyone it was over and they could all go home.
The fact that the ritual was still continuing only proved that this entire affair was the product of a political power struggle entangled with conflicting interests.
But.
That didn’t mean it was all symbolism and no substance.
From the Preliminaries onward, he had stood out to an absurd degree. He had scattered the ominous, unidentified aura that had descended from the sky. And now, there were even bizarre rumors circulating that he had slain a dragon…….
What was truly frightening was that, judging by his track record, I couldn’t simply dismiss it as a baseless rumor.
‘……What is this?’
I let out a drained, almost powerless chuckle at the thought.
At this point, it almost made me wonder why they hadn’t brought this man in long ago and seated him among the royal family.
It wasn’t an exaggeration—ever since entering the succession ceremony, the performance he had shown was utterly unparalleled.
To the extent that I wondered whether this succession race even held any meaning at all—wasn’t it practically the same as him shouting at the top of his lungs that he was the next Pontiff?
But it was also clear that when Julius referred to him as the eye of the storm, he meant more than just those ‘remarkable qualities.’
“……And ever since that man appeared, it feels like incidents and accidents have constantly followed in his wake.”
“Hm?”
“Think about it, hyung. If someone merely intended to sabotage the succession ceremony, there would have been far better methods than this.”
Julius spoke while flicking the cigarette that had burned all the way down to the filter.
His eyes swept over the surroundings.
From our perspective, there was no way to tell whether this was still part of the organizers’ ‘staged production,’ or yet another newly emerged variable like before.
To be honest, all I felt was an ominous foreboding.
At the very least, considering how events had unfolded so far, the likelihood that these abnormal phenomena were not intended by the Holy Crown Kingdom soared sky-high.
……And yet, the Holy Crown Kingdom had issued no notice, nor taken any measures. The ceremony continued as it was.
That only deepened the suspicion.
“The timing and the manner of these incidents…… all of it aligns with that man at the center. It’s as if the situations are being arranged so that, if he ‘really tries his hardest,’ he can resolve them.”
“……What are you saying?”
“I’m saying there’s a possibility that the situation is being orchestrated. From beginning to end.”
“……”
“Hasn’t there already been a series of incidents? Thanks to His Holiness being here, it hasn’t been canceled outright, but even so, crushing down abnormalities of this scale and pushing forward is strange.”
“……”
That was true.
It was difficult to cancel since it was, after all, a ritual to decide a nation’s leader. Still, continuing the event to this extent as if ‘nothing had happened’ was undeniably peculiar.
Alester instinctively glanced around.
It was a reaction engraved into him at the level of instinct—something a royal had to do whenever sensitive matters were discussed.
Fortunately, there didn’t seem to be anyone about to seize the two of us and behead us on the spot for such words.
Even so, I couldn’t help the damp sensation creeping down the back of my neck as I listened to what came next.
“It might not be about finding a new Pontiff at all. There could be something else being plotted.”
“……You.”
“Aiden Kellermain is the very core of the storm that His Holiness wishes to stir up.”
“……”
……Come to think of it.
This guy had insisted from the beginning that various ill omens had been clinging to this succession ceremony.
Still, there was one thing I had to point out.
“……I think that’s far too flimsy a basis to accuse someone of Desecration.”
Simply on that alone, it was hard to doubt the Pontiff’s authenticity, considering the patterns of behavior I had observed from him until now.
“I agree that it feels like he’s plotting something. To begin with, he himself isn’t exactly an ordinary sly old fox.”
“……Is that so.”
“But even so.”
Alester grinned as he spoke.
“I don’t think it would necessarily be a bad thing.”
“……”
Julius stared blankly at Alester.
“……Pardon?”
“Well. I spent more time by his side than any other royal. Katya…… perhaps she was about the only one who had as much contact with him as I did.”
The First Prince, the foremost candidate in the succession ceremony.
True to that title, this man had formed an unusually ‘personal’ relationship with the Pontiff.
Certainly, someone like him could offer perspectives others might not know…… but.
“He’s kinder and softer than you’d expect. Everyone sees him like a monster, but I’m sure he’s not harboring such malicious intent.”
“……”
Wasn’t that going a bit too far?
At this point, it was hard to even respond.
Kind?
Soft?
That self-righteous, tyrannical, one-man-army of heaven and earth……?
Yet Alester, who had said such things, showed not the slightest sign of retracting his words.
Rather, he kept letting out quiet chuckles, nodding to himself as if he truly believed it…….
‘……I don’t know anymore.’
Julius shook his head and averted his gaze.
“……And above all.”
But as if he hadn’t finished yet, Alester continued in a slightly lowered voice.
“Whatever he may be plotting, there’s someone on this island who would never let it turn into something harmful.”
“And what exactly do you mean by that?”
“……Well.”
There was someone who came to mind.
At least, judging from the Pontiff’s disposition as Alester had observed it until now, surely…….
“You know. His own child.”
“……”
The corner of Julius’s mouth stiffened strangely.
“……You mean Deathwish?”
The relationship between those two was, in truth, rather infamous gossip.
A failed mother-daughter relationship.
If I thought about how the existence known as Katya Heinkel Craven had been ‘created,’ then that…… was a rather fitting description.
“Isn’t it absurd to speak of maternal love toward an artificial life-form created by copying one’s own genetic traits?”
“……It’s a bit more complicated than describing it that simply.”
Alester answered calmly.
If I considered the ‘manufacturing process’ of Katya that he knew of, that was certainly true.
“I told you. He’s softer than you think.”
In other words.
He was someone quite weak when it came to lingering attachments.
“He’s probably paying more attention to her than you’d expect.”
▣
“Whatever else happens, don’t let Katya in.”
Inside the tent, his entire face flushed red, the Pontiff growled those words through gritted teeth.
“Rather than show her a sight like this, I’d sooner bite my tongue and die……!”
“……”
Even while suffering from a blazing fever so intense that an ordinary person would struggle to remain conscious, seeing her glaring with sharp, lucid eyes and spitting out such harsh words almost made me wonder if she was merely pretending to be sick.
“…Isn’t she still your daughter? What exactly is the problem—”
“If she sees me like this, she’ll never let me hear the end of it……!”
“……”
Hm.
If all she would do was tease her, didn’t that mean they were actually on good terms?
I often found myself wondering whether the two of them were close or not…….
“……Anyway, this much will pass after a night’s rest.”
Sniffling, the Pontiff spoke while lying back, a damp cloth that Aiden had carefully rolled and prepared resting on her forehead.
“A dragon even showed up, yet no one from the Grand Sanctuary has come—that alone is strange. As soon as day breaks, we must conduct a proper inspection over there—”
“No.”
Cutting off her sentence, Aiden grabbed the Pontiff’s shoulder just as she tried to rise.
Then he firmly forced her back down onto the bed.
“I don’t think a single day will be enough.”
“……”
Facing the Pontiff, whose eyes had widened into circles, Aiden spoke in a resolute voice.
Anyone could fall ill.
That was simply common sense.
But.
“…You’re overreacting. At worst, it’s just a common cold—”
“A common cold? For one of the most powerful divine ability users in history?”
As obvious as it sounded, there truly were individuals who defied even such basic expectations.
After all, they weren’t called superhumans—beings beyond ordinary humans—for nothing.
For someone like her, being ‘physically ill’ was itself an extraordinarily severe abnormality.
“Be honest with me.”
Aiden lowered his voice as he addressed the Pontiff, whose body flinched slightly.
“Your condition… it’s quite serious, isn’t it?”
“……”
The subtle trembling of her body gradually grew more pronounced.
“I told you, I’m fine—”
“I must say, Your Holiness, you truly are mother and daughter with Katya.”
“…What?”
“She makes that exact same expression whenever she’s lying.”
“……”
At those words, the Pontiff shot Aiden an incredulous look.
For a brief moment, even I felt the temperature in her gaze drop enough to unsettle me.
“……What is it?”
“No, it just felt revolting somehow.”
“……”
“That sensation of you flirting with both Katya and me at the same time—”
“How many times must I tell you that is not the case…….”
I truly wished these bizarre accusations would stop…….
While Aiden silently endured his headache, the Pontiff let out a long sigh and leaned back again.
“……Well, it can’t be helped. As you said, I was never meant to suffer from something like this in my entire life.”
With that, the Pontiff abruptly pulled her clothes up.
Her bare abdomen was revealed without obstruction.
Under normal circumstances, some sort of reaction might have escaped from Aiden, but this time there was no room for that.
Because.
The sight before us was simply too shocking.
“This is why.”
And then.
Aiden’s eyes widened as he saw what was ‘embedded’ in the Pontiff’s stomach.