Episode 51

“But a great thing has happened in that land. The wife was wearing a silver bracelet. The silver bracelet suddenly rose into the air and was crushed. There was also a small wound on her wrist as a result.”

“A bracelet?”

Nora gave a brief explanation.

“A bracelet made by Lapis and Lazuli?”

“Yes. They said that the bell rings in a place full of polluted magic.”

Nora calmly described the scene. It was a small bell, but it rang in the air with a loud noise that I couldn't imagine coming from there.

Lucerne seemed to know what the bracelet was. Witch Beasts emit contaminated magic.

So, there were objects that made a sound or vibrated like a kind of alarm when they discovered distorted magic. It was an object that sometimes responded to the lifelike magic of wizards, priests, and swordsmen who had risen to the stage. It was a top-notch magic tool.

“A bracelet like that reacted? Aren't there crazy witches or murderous assassins around?”

Ian said in surprise.

“So I looked around in a panic, too.”

“…….”

“But there really was nothing.”

Nora looked depressed.

“I didn't know that my wife was hurt because of that……. I can't even wrap my hand in a handkerchief.”

“No, wait. I'm starting to get confused.”

Ian opened his mouth and said. Lucerne's expression was pensive.

“And?”

“Other than that, nothing much happened. Her wife had to say something.”

'It's such a strange thing. Do things Lapis make sometimes go wrong like this?'

“So I said. Things made by Lapis and Lazuli will never break.”

'Then it worked. But, is this strange thing really just a coincidence? For this to happen in the land that Arien covets. If I had been an expert in this field a little longer, I would have gone all the way.'

Lucerne put down his pen. Ian and Nora were taken aback by Lucerne's expression.

“Please explain the location of the land properly.”

*​ *​ *​

Elisha was slowly drinking her tea.

'If I give you that much hint, Lucerne will recognize it right away.'

He was smart and quick-witted. He will quickly discover the secrets of the land. Elisha calmly drank all of her tea and after a while she went up to her hotel room.

A year before Elisha's death, she also peeked into Jacob's office through her secret passage. Through the dim cracks, she could see Jacob and Carola.

'Uhuhu, I didn't know we'd get it.'

'Very well done. Thanks to the stupid Marco couple, we're the only ones playing. I've been holding it for so long, but I never thought there might be a secret hidden here. Good luck. It was good that I didn't give up and kept investigating.'

'That's right. Who knew that the land that Arien wanted to get could hold such a secret? I did a good job of stealing it regardless of the means.'

That the land held a secret that would destroy Marco, nobody knew now. Even Carola, who would soon take the land in a cowardly way, would know nothing now.

Lucerne was not in the hotel room. And he didn't come back until late. Elisha tossed and turned, half anxious and half excited, and went to bed alone.

*​ *​ *​

Elisha fell asleep and opened her eyes. Lucerne was sitting next to her. Elisha was startled.

“What are you doing not sleeping?”

“Aren't you asking where you've been?”

Elisha shut her mouth. When her husband disappears without a word and returns, it will normally be normal for her to ask where she has been. Lucerne asked her unexpected question in a low voice.

“He said he was hurt.”

“It was scratched. What are you doing even if you are hurt?”

Lucerne held out her hand. Elisha showed her hand.

'Is this important?'

Lucerne let her go only after confirming that her wounds were not serious. Anxiety spread through Elisha's heart.

'Could this person come in vain?'

So, when Lucerne said this, she and Elisha finally felt a little relieved.

“I can't allow you to go out at dawn in the future, but.”

“…….”

“I will make an exception for today. Wake up, Elisha.”

Lucerne said. She wrapped a cloak around her face.

“I'll show you what you found.”

“…….”

“It seems like you have some merit.”

Lucerne took Elisha and went into the woods.

*​ *​ *​

The weather is now quite chilly. It was dark without a single light in the silent forest.

Ian and Nora guided the way with a lantern containing a magic crystal in front of them. On the barbed wire

A long warning was attached to the point.

“How did you jump over this barbed wire? He said he brought only Nora here.”

“There was a hole between the barbed wire, so I crawled in.”

Elisha said without changing her expression. Ian, who listened quietly for a moment, couldn't manage his expression.

Apparently, Nora said earlier. 'Her wife moved so fast,' she said, 'I couldn't stop her.' She was dizzy just imagining her wife crawling through her barbed wire at breakneck speed.

She said Lucerne seemed dumbfounded.

“There is no kid. Do you have to check your knees and hands every time you go out and come back?”

“Why?”

“How do you know what to do outside and crawl while playing?”

“…….”

Elisha's cheeks turned red. Fortunately, it was night, so it didn't show much in the dark.

“Not always.”

Elisha took the lead and said. Luckily for her, this time she didn't have to crawl through the barbed wire.

Lucerne had already opened her barbed wire. She did this without hesitation in a place managed by the state. Both Elisha and Lucerne thought she was insane.

And nothing has changed. There was nothing in the clearing.

“Why are you here?”

Elisha suppressed her own nervousness and asked nonchalantly.

“Is there anything here?”

In fact, Elisha hoped more than anyone else that Lucerne would find that 'something'.

“Look Carefully.”

Lucerne said. A shadow soon appeared in the air.

“The shadow has discovered that there is something beneath the earth. So I sprayed her magic.”

“Why do you cast magic?”

“There are cases where there are monsters where magic waves occur, but there are cases where magic stones are buried in the stratum. The general uses a shadow demon, and the shadow demon has the ability to detect monsters and find magic stones.”

Ian kindly explained. Soon, a shadow cut through the air. And it turned out.

Little gurgling sound. There was the sound of something opening. A secret device hidden under the dirt floor was revealed. Lucerne beckoned, and the shadow opened a secret iron door with a handle.

“What's inside me?”

Elisha opened her eyes wide. This was something she really didn't know.

Ian made a strange expression. He winked at Lucerne.

“Show me. Because I think this woman would want to see it.”

“What do you mean…….”

Before Elisha could finish her words, Ian gestured. He held the lantern down. Elisha suppressed her fluttering breasts and slumped her to the floor.

The next moment, Elisha covered her mouth.

Inside lay the corpse of her man with her eyes open.

“…… !”

The body was in a very good state of preservation. If it weren't for the eyes wide open and the blood flowing from the corners of the mouth……. She would have thought she was alive.

And she realized that Elisha had seen a man's face before.

“This man…….”

“Isn't your face familiar?”

Lucerne said. His eyes seemed to be searching for her Elisha.

If you interpret the eyes exactly, it was like this. 'You really don't know?' It was such an expression.

“I think I saw it somewhere.”

Muttered Nora. At the same time, Elisha thought.

'There's no way that any citizen of the Empire hasn't seen this man's portrait before.'

The identity of this man…….

He was Ralpo the Prophet, said to have died eight years ago.

*​ *​ *​

“It's Listralfo. When this man died, pictures and portraits of him were plastered everywhere, including temples across the country. His face still hangs in my temple.”

Nora recognized Ristralfo's face and bit her lip.

“That is really…….”

“It is a real corpse. I went down and checked.”

Lucerne whispered.

“And I also checked the tattoos on the body.”

“If it's a tattoo…… ?”

Lucerne gave a concise answer to Elisha's question.

“When beings such as saints and prophets manifest their abilities, bluish tattoos appear on their bodies. That's the first sign. Listralpo's tattoo is wavy, and I saw him once when he was alive.”

“The tattoo was on that body.”

Elisha muttered. Nora added.

“Then I'm sure it's Listralpo.”

“Maybe. So, if this is the real corpse of Listralpo, then the temple even auctioned off the wrong person's bone fragments and sold them. That said, this is information that will destroy everyone involved in the temple.”

Lucerne's captivating voice captivated people. Ian raised his head.

“Who is that person?”

“Merha and Marco.”

“So the people of the Cartier family……. Wait. Why Marco?”

“Marco is a boy priest. Besides, exhibitions and auctions held every time an adult dies. All of this is done by proxy at the store run by Marco. Before Marco was 15, a store was founded in his name.”

Lucerne explained. In the midst of Nora's confusion, she thought it was unexpected.

Lucerne wasn't the type to explain things affectionately, and even though she was a dull Nora, I could tell that this was what Elisha was asking.