CH 122

Walkins's intentions

Translated by SoundDestiny

Edited by Klepon

Since the return of the dragon chariot that sent out the saints, the royal court had become even more noisy.

The disturbance was based exclusively on the summoning of the saints, the existence of which had not been made known to the queen, the existence of the 21st saint.

For the Queen, whose first priority was the life of the King, the cover-up had greatly accelerated her distrust of her subjects.

In the first place, Queen Rebecca was aware that her subjects were secretly plotting behind her back in this matter.

The queen, who was also responsible for the king’s duties, was a busy woman and could not afford to pay any attention to the intrigues surrounding the royal court.

―The summoning of the saints was not being carefully handled and all the funds and magical power were being used for other kinds of schemes.

ーThe summoning of the saints was ostensibly a plan to lift the king’s curse, but in reality it was exercised for other purposes, and the plan to [overthrow the demon king] was merely a cover.

ーWhen the saints were summoned, a vicious demon was mixed in and was secretly dealt with and imprisoned underground.

(TL: Ran, I assumed)

ーAll of this was done at the secret orders of Queen Rebecca, who planned to place her son Alec on the throne as soon as possible.

At first, the queen tried to trust her subjects.

Summoning multiple heroes from other worlds, numbering as many as 20, was unprecedented in the long history of this country.

The queen really wanted the project to proceed smoothly, but she had decided to let a few delays be part of the unfamiliar plan.

But even so, the disturbing shadow did not clear.

Repeated delays in the departure of the Saints. Requests for supplies that far exceeded the required number that had been notified in advance.

Every time she tried to trust them, the Queen’s wishes were always betrayed.

Both the delay in departure and the request for far more supplies than planned were due to the fact that the saints who were originally to be given the 『Alchemy: Absolute Creation』 skill had acquired the 『Underling Training: Sexual Lunatic』 skill, which required extra preparations and the usage of the 『Underling Training: Sexual Lunatic』 skill  was not necessary at the time.

The reason for this was that the supplies and time required far exceeded the original plan, and because the saint misused the 『Underling Training』 to break the cohesion of the other saints, it was judged that it was not yet appropriate to issue= that the demon king was defeated, so extra time was consumed.

Because he had not told the queen that he had summoned the 21st saint in the first place, he could not truthfully tell her the cause of the problem, and continued to muddy the waters with makeshift measures such as procuring supplies and delaying his departure, resulting only in a growing sense of distrust.

“The summoning of the saints has been completely carried out by those on the Queen’s side, from planning to execution. For the queen, it is a form of betrayal by those she trusts the most. This problem will surely not be so easily forgotten.”

It was Walkins, the brother of the first concubine, Pearl, who said this in his distinctive, sticky way of speaking.

Propped up on his elbows on the desk in his office, he turned a sly triplicate eye on Harris, the butler who he had summoned.

“By the way, what is the king’s condition? The people on the Queen’s side seem to be doing their best to keep it under wraps, but they’ve checked, haven’t they?”

“It’s been a few days since the departure of the Saints, and I’m afraid he’s still in the same condition.”

“That’s the best thing. We thought there was no way he could recover, but it would be bad for us if he deteriorated rapidly…… I’m relieved to see that he hasn’t gone down yet.”

Walkins, who was a minister, even if only a minister, said the most outrageous things.

“We can’t let him die so easily. He must fulfil his duties as king, at least until the return of the Saints.”

Walkins squinted meaningfully at Harris, the butler, and asked him in a sombre voice that befitted his appearance.

“But, are you sure? You have entrusted the plans you have been building up to now to those saints who don’t even know where they come from…”

“I have told you many times. That thing is just an insurance policy. Whether he loses his life along the way, whether he is bonded to his friends and turns on the Queen’s side, the plan remains the same. But if he acts as a pawn, the plan will be more solid. If he’s not there, it doesn’t matter. And if he becomes an enemy, he won’t be much of a problem.”

“But….”

“Don’t worry. If he was an indispensable piece, I wouldn’t have sent him on such a ridiculous journey to overthrow the Demon King in the first place. I’ve never taken my eyes off him, and I’m still treating him as my steward here.”

The place where Walkins gave his eyes was when Harris was called into the office and where the Saint Kirishima Ran was standing.

“No, the workmanship is masterful. I don’t know to what extent that 『Underling Training』will be loyal to me. If I’m relying on him alone, I’m probably a little overconfident in my luck. I don’t think God will be on my side in what I’m going to do.”

“It is as you say.”

“Preparedness is not an affliction. It’s better to avoid big moves on these things until the ground has been solidified.”

Just as he said this, Walkins suddenly stood up and came to Harris.

“Now. We must prepare the last of the [Piece] while the 『Underling Training』user is away from the royal palace.”

“The final piece, is it?”

To a wondering Harris, using his fingertips,  Walkins poked his temple with a thump.

“Unlike those who are only able to cling to their status and family background, those who have risen to the top through their own talent and hard work are different in the way they think. It’s about time they realised the secret behind the summoning of these saints.”

His ferocious smile was exactly like that of a strong man who was overflowing with delusions of assaulting the weak and delighted.

However, there was a hint of nostalgia in his eyes, as if he had seen someone from long ago.

“I like the king, because he is like my great father  who came from a lowly family, but then he rose to become the king and makemy beloved sister Pearl his first wife.”

He then popped his hand on Harris’ shoulder, urged him to follow and reached for the door to the office.

“His cunning and ambition are not far behind his late father’s, but I think he deserves proper recognition for his gallantry in crossing over from his commoner origins to the Queen’s side, where the family’s supremacy is paramount.”

“Where are you heading?”

Walkins squinted and grinned at Harris’s question.

“I’m going…… for the last [piece]. I thought I’d pay him a visit in person.”

◇◇◇

The supernatural phenomena known as witchcraft in this world fell into four main categories.

One was『Spirit Magic』. Healing magic and attribute magic were worthy of this, and were basic magic that could be expressed by any human in this world by circulating magic power within the body through an alliance with spirits.

The second was『Dark Magic』. This was a magic said to have been mastered by higher-level demons who disobeyed their pact with spirits and could not borrow the power of spirits’ attributes in order to protect themselves.

Although it was a dark and evil name, it was not only for the purpose of attacking and destroying, but it was just a general term for magic used by prestigious monsters that could elaborate the energy in their body as a magic phenomenon and also it could be used by humans.

The third was『unattributed magic』. It was a common name for magic that was exercised by creatures similar to demons who have broken their pact with spirits, but which was not included in the aforementioned dark magic.

And the fourth was『Unique Magic』. This was the unique magic skill given to the saints.

It could be acquired using a special magic circle, as in this case, but rarely it could dwell as an inborn blessing and be possessed at birth.

People in this world called it a talent.

“……I knew it. There is no doubt. This was a set-up, orchestrated by someone.”

Underground of the royal palace. A magical cave which should never be revealed, with everything from torture chambers to SM playgrounds and secret escape routes exclusively provided for royalty in it.

A secret small stone-built room existed in one of these areas. While examining the coordinates of the summoning magic circle, he stumbled upon a secret passageway, and by candlelight, he was carefully looking at an old book he had taken from the royal archives.

“No matter how many times I look at it, it’s impossible. The circuits that pass magic power are unnaturally bent. This absolutely could not have happened without someone artificially rewriting it or something.”

Looking back, there were too many irregularities in that summons from the very beginning.

The saints who were to be summoned to the hall where the king was waiting were somehow summoned to a corner of the cloister far away.

One wrong move and half of them could have been buried alive in the wall and ended up dead.

The situation was self-resolved as a fault of his own – He had made a mistake in specifying the coordinates of the magic circle he used to summon them.

“The more you look at it, the more unnatural it is. I didn’t notice it at first because the alterations were so subtle. It is easy to find traces like this if you are suspicious from the outset.”

Despite saying so, it took a great deal of time and effort to discover these alterations.

He snuck into the royal library and secretly took out books on 『summoning magic circle』 and 『transfer magic circle』 written by past talents and hid them in a secret little room in the basement, and after going to this place many times, he finally found them today.

“If you know a thing or two about summoning and transference, you’ll know that this is more than just a mistake.”

There had been several geniuses in the past who were born with 『Unique Magic』 similar to summoning and transference, and inspired by their achievements, many intellectuals had been attracted to supernatural phenomena such as summoning and transference and had been conducting research into them, even if they did not have the talent.

If a copy of this magic circle was presented as physical evidence to a judicial officer who knew , he or she would be able to conduct a reasonable investigation through a knowledgeable person.

They should be able to seek a neutral decision so that those without power were not unreasonably accused and held responsible for everything.

The evidence was in the place. Now he needed to find out what distortions were caused by this slight alteration, even if it took a long time.

“There are plenty of other ways to just interrupt the summoning of the saints. It is, after all, a ceremony to save the life of the king. If it is discovered that they have interfered with such an important summoning, they will be punished for a serious crime. There is no need to go to the trouble of choosing a method that leaves evidence like this.”

In other words, it was unlikely that the purpose of this magical alteration was to move the place where the saints were summoned to the cloister.

The person thought this was a kind of reaction, due to some other modification. In order to play with something else, an inevitable distortion had occurred because of an impossible load on the completed magic circle.

“Something or somewhere fatal has been tampered with, causing a discrepancy in such a rudimentary designation of coordinates.”

He – Meidi, the summoner who played a leading role in the summoning of the saints, and who was now about to bear full responsibility for the various blunders that occurred in the summoning by the queen’s schemers raised his hands and looked up at the low ceiling with a radiant look, as if he had just lost all his possessions.

“Once I get to this point, I can then look for the main changes. It is an alteration that produces a discernible discrepancy so far. The core, too – they must have made changes to some pretty important parts.”

Wasit because of relief that the long sought solution was at once closer?

Meidi, the summoner, was aware that he had been involved in something dark and treacherous , and was hypervigilant to the point of being overawed by the approaching presence.

Only at that moment did he let his  guard down.

“ —?!”

By the time he realised, it was too late.

The sound of shoes echoing was close by, and it was a clear indication that someone was behind him.

A chill ran down the spine at the dense presence that was arriving.

There was only one way in and out of the small, cramped, secretive room. It was underground and therefore windowless.

The way out was completely cut off.

Why was this place exposed? Was it because the entrance was not sealed for fear of suffocation, due to the unique underground feeling of entrapment?

The candlelight flickered from time to time, so Meidi had sensed that somewhere there were a hole drilled to allow air to pass through, and that air was circulating, albeit slightly.

When a stone desk and chairs were carefully prepared, he knew that at the very least, the environment would be adequate for human use as a workshop.

“Still, it is frightening to block the only visible ventilation holes in such a cramped place. I know exactly what you mean.”

Meidi couldn’t move.

The dense presence slowly overshadowed and pressed down on Meidi’s head.

No. It was not just a sign.

A still, sticky, heavy, insidious shadow slowly filled Meidi’s back, and his pale, candle-lit face appeared dimly in the darkness.

“I’m sorry to startle you. I don’t like to get in closer than I have to, but this place is smaller than I thought it would be.”

It was Walkins who came looking over his shoulder at the magician on the desk.

“You’re very enthusiastic, aren’t you? It’s been a long time since you summoned the Saints, and yet you’re still paying attention to the summoning magic circle. It’s very, very good.”

Walkins’s long arm slid down to the desk, shimmering like a ghost. Tracing the magic circle with his fingertips, Walkins, with his back draped over Meidi’s, said in a sing-songy tone.

“I thought I had added an action to “here”, but no matter how I did it, a distortion appeared in the coordinate designation circuit here. I thought I knew as much as anyone about magic circles, but when it came to actually trying it out, it was difficult. It’s literally nothing more than a snake’s foot to modify a completed magic circle, you know.”

“If, by any chance,Walkins-sama is……”

“Hmm. Very clever indeed. Clever – but a bit late to realise it. Well, I can’t blame you if you look at the environment. Just taking the books out of the house is a dangerous bridge to cross, isn’t it?　It’s going to take a long time if you’re searching in a dark place like this, even while you’re sleeping.”

Walkins’s arm glowed faintly white, and soon a small pale fire lit up at his fingertips.

Destroying Evidence. Unwilling to be deprived of the physical evidence he had finally found, Summoner Meidi covered over the desk, protecting his copy of the magic circle.

“Don’t worry. I don’t like such vulgar defiance, such as burning the evidence in front of me.”

After some time, Meidi looked up and saw three small fireballs floating vaguely in front of him.

Walkins scooped up the pale, flickering soles and placed them in his palm, then leaned his back against the wall opposite the one Meidi was facing and pointed at the three fireballs in order of appearance.

“Summoner-kun. You have three options.”

“………………..”

“One, you will tell everything you have found out so far to those who were involved in the summoning – those on the Queen’s side – everything without concealment. That there was an artificial alteration in the summoning team, and that I, Pearl’s brother, Walkins, had a direct hand in it.”

One of the floating fireballs vanished in a puff.

“The second is to continue to pretend that you didn’t see anything, and forget everything you’ve found out – that is, that there was a rewriting of the magic circle by a third party, and that I was involved in it all.”

The second fireball also disappeared like an illusion.

“And the third is–”

Walkins looked at Meidi with eyes as fierce as snakes.

But despite that look, the voice he spun had a gentle, sweet tone to it.

“Will you give up those on the queen’s side and continue on the same path as me?”

Being killed. Meidi, who had prepared himself for this, is taken aback by the choice that was offered from an unexpected direction.

He didn’t know what it meant. No, he knew what the words meant but he couldn’t grasp the true meaning.

“Summoner-kun. You are clever. You know what kind of people are on the Queen’s side, don’t you?”

As Meidi remained silent, Walkins continued, with a third fireball floating on his fingertips.

“The reason you were so keen to find out all you could about this matter was because you didn’t trust those on the Queen’s side. I don’t have to tell everyone. Otherwise, you should have given a good reason and brought the whole story to light, without all this skulking around. This is a ceremony to save the life of a king. There is no way we can allow those who tried to interfere with such a sacred ceremony to be allowed to get away with it.”

Logically, this was certainly true.

It would be irrational to leave the investigation of an important ritual, in which the king’s life was at stake, to a single person, even though he had knowledge of summoning and was an important person involved in the recent summoning of the saints.

And to sneak around in public like this, one could be forgiven for suspecting that there was something shady going on.

If they were sure of their innocence, they should not conceal it, but should obtain permission from their superiors to analyse the magic circle with good reason.

“You should know. You know that Queen Rebecca is very angry about this matter. And those on the queen’s side who were involved in the summoning are trying to put all the blame on you, the summoner.”

If a person spent time in the royal palace, they could hear rumours all the time.

Most of them were just rumours that were untrue and out of touch with the people who lived in the palace. Not long ago, Meidi the Summoner was told an unsavoury story by a judicial officer whom he knew well.

“[Is it true that you were the only one who knew about the recently discovered 21st saint?]”

The ministers and knights involved in the summoning all apparently testified that they had no knowledge of the existence of the 21st saint and that his appearance had caught them by surprise.

They had made a big deal of the fact that there was a mistake in specifying the coordinates of the summons, and had repeatedly testified about how untrustworthy Meidi the summoner, who was from a commoner background, was, and had tried to forcefully change the subject.

Judicial officers who knew Meidi well, questioned the rumours, though. The idea was that if those who did not know Meidi’s personality continued to listen to them (ministers and knights), they would look  with coloured glasses when it was later Meidi’s turn to testify.

“I……I sincerely intended to fulfil the mission given to me in the hope that I could be a clue to breaking the King’s curse. Even now, that feeling has not changed.”

“But those on the Queen’s side were different. I thought I was speaking with the king’s life as my first priority, but apparently there was a clear discrepancy in perception between you and the ministers on the queen’s side, wasn’t there?”

“……The road to overthrow the Demon King should be a rocky one: a massive plan to summon as many as 21 otherworldly people. A huge amount of time, effort, magical power and funds were put into it all.”

“That’s why you thought that those on the Queen’s side thought something like – I was sincerely hoping that the King would rise again.”

Walkins’ face, illuminated by the fireball, shook eerily.

It was a mysterious look, but deep down in his gut, it was impossible to gauge what emotions were swirling around him.

“But what about reality? They only work for their own self-preservation and only think about who they can cut off first. The chosen human pillars are not the ministers in charge, nor the knights of the Kingsguard or servants who were present. There are plenty of replaceable pawns, but for some reason they chose you, the supposedly gifted one.”

“………”

“You know why. You are a clever man. Even if you don’t agree, you understand why you’ve been singled out.”

Meidi knew it.

He couldn’t convince himself.

Walkins was right, because it was too frustrating to admit it.

He couldn’t do anything about it by his own efforts. Because Meidi was not strong enough to confront head-on his true intention, which would have been to curse his ancestors, let alone his parents.

“Because your family is a commoner.”

Walkins was relentless in confronting a reality Meidi did not want to acknowledge.

“Because they are commoners by birth. From an early age, commoners who have not received a proper education are assumed to be inferior to themselves. –They assume that commoners are inferior to them even if they are gifted people who have been born with unique magic skills.”

“……….”

“No exceptions. For them, family honour is something to be respected above all else, a solid pillar that will not be overturned no matter what. It is the pillar that supports them. Even a mediocre, incompetent person can be given any number of opportunities to start over, as long as he does not do anything to damage the family name. Talented people of lowly status with no backing are used and discarded as fodder for such fools to start over. I believe that there is no conceit or arrogance in this and that it is an extremely natural order of things. As a lowly aristocrat, I think it’s a ridiculous belief.”

As Meidi bit his lip, Walkins held up the fireball and spread his arms wide.

“But like our great father, some have achieved great things even in this rotten family faith. By using their own dexterity, they married off their daughters to the King, who is above the clouds and would not normally be allowed even an audience – my brothers and sisters have achieved an unshakeable position. In other words, if one’s ability catches up with one’s ambition, it is not impossible for even poor people like us to kick down and rise above the rest of the dimwits who have nothing to boast of but their family status.”

“…..but for me it is.”

“Right. You don’t even have such a bright family, let alone trusted associates. You’ve been looking for all sorts of things to prove your innocence, but evidence like this has to be covered up.”

Meidi tried not to think about it.

The existence of third-party alterations to the summoning magic circle, which Meidi had been investigating independently until now.

The possibility that it would be suppressed by the upper echelons when it was discovered.

No matter how much he handed it over directly to a judicial officer who knew him, he could not guarantee where it would go from there.

It was also possible that the evidence might be treated as an inconvenience and be forgotten.

“–that’s why I’m here.”

Squinting his sharp three-white eyes even further, Walkins clutched the floating fireball in his hand.

As if swallowed into his hand, the small fireball vanished without a sound.

“The third option is brought here by me in person. In other words, well, let’s make a deal, shall we?”

Walkins, who had developed a sticky and peculiarly stilted speaking tone, kept his back against the wall and continued talking.

“All the facts you have obtained about the Summoning of the Saints and your findings about the magic circle that remains stacked there. If you promise to show them to no one else and to provide me with all of them – I will responsibly protect you from the Queen’s side in this matter.”

“That’s….”

This meant that he should give up on the Queen’s side and take the side of Walkins, the first chamberlain.

“Those on the queen’s side underestimate your talents. They don’t even know the value of your wonderful gift of summoning from the other world.”

“…………..”

“The only people who discovered your talent and brought you into the palace happened to be from the queen’s side, and you have no special loyalty to Queen Rebecca in the first place.”

“………..”

“Otherwise, you, who come from a commoner background, would not bother to sneak into the lair of a senior aristocrat. If you did, you would either be a very stupid person or a scarecrow who has given up thinking. But you are neither of these.”

Walkins’ hand was placed on Meidi’s shoulder.

The warmth of the hand was strangely raw and made Meidi feel a little uncomfortable.

But despite the contact, the content of the words was something that shone a faint light on Meidi.

“You will find out. Which is the best option for you? I’m telling you …… that no amount of fiddling around with that magic circle is going to produce any evidence of my involvement. Even if you tell the Queen’s side of the story, it won’t change the outcome. It’s far easier to throw out a commoner than to determine my involvement.”

Meidi had a dim sense of this, too.

If he could rely on his confession here to find physical evidence, there was no point in Walkins crossing such a dangerous bridge to confess his guilt.

Even if this evidence came through unscathed, the only thing that could be proved was Meidi’s innocence.

“With all due respect…..”

“Yes?”

“With all due respect, I’d like to ask you a couple of things……”

As a sign that he didn’t mind, Walkins signalled for him to go ahead.

“If Walkins-sama is involved in this matter…Why did you tell me that?”

“I told you. All the talent in the world is worthless if the person who handles it is incompetent. I really didn’t want your unique magic to be buried like this. I will protect you no matter what it takes. I just wanted to convey that determination in a sincere manner.”

Whether Walkins’s words were sincere, Meidi could not measure.

But at worst, he must have a good reason for uttering a confession that could have cost him his own life.

It was highly doubtful whether his presence would be of that much value to Walkins, but it was.

“Now I would like to ask you one more question…..”

Having said that much, Meidi winced.

What he was about to say was in a way intended to clear his suspicions.

Depending on how he looked at it, it was like insulting Walkins and exposing him as distrustful.

“It’s a critical juncture on which your future depends. You can dispense with courtesy and care, and dispel all your worries. If you go to all the trouble of coming to me and are suspicious of me from start to finish, there’s no point in me bringing you in.”

From the slight silence, Walkins could see Meidi’s hesitation.

Walkins told him to clear all doubts.

“……With all due respect to you, I would like to say. You have promised to protect me, but what specific measures do you intend to use to get through this matter?”

When he sold himself to Walkins with everything on the line, if he could not defend himself in the end, Meidi’s future was as good as over.

In order to prove his innocence, Meidi had spent a considerable amount of time and effort to this point.

If it all came to nothing, it would be hard to take.

If the rumours heard by the judicial officer were true, Meidi would be arraigned at any moment and would not only be held responsible for the failed summons, but also for the cover-up of the saints.

Queen Rebecca seemed to be very upset that the existence of the 21st saint was kept under wraps.

Queen Rebecca was more concerned about the king’s life than anyone else. It was not surprising that she might be interpreted as harbouring a treacherous intention for obstructing the plan to overthrow the Demon King.

Unless there was a concrete plan to appease Queen Rebecca’s anger or to prove that Meidis innocence was certain, Meidi could not so easily forgive Walkins.

“No disrespect, It’s as good as putting my life in your hands. Forcing me to trust you unilaterally, without any concrete solution, is exactly the Queen’s side specialty, isn’t it?”

The last one would be a poor quality joke.

Walkins huffed, put his hand to his chin and spoke fluently.

“The people on the Queen’s side are probably underestimating the fact that they are dealing with a single commoner. According to the information I have obtained, they have selected some of the wicked officials and Kingsguard knights who were present at the summoning, and they are all repeating the same testimony.”

It was the same rumour heard by the judiciary.

The charge of concealing the saints was the heart of the matter that was to be revealed, yet the Kingsguard knights continued to testify about how untrustworthy the summoner Meidi was, and apparently remained ignorant of the 21st saint.

“If that is true. When more than one person tries to share a [made-up story], there is bound to be a breakdown. It is now inevitable that there will be discrepancies in testimony.”

Therefore, during this investigation, a meticulous plan was knitted together by the Queen’s wily advisers.

To ensure that there were no discrepancies in each other’s testimonies, only trusted Kingsguard knights were hammered with made-up scenarios, made to remember them correctly and reminded not to speak about anything else.

They repeated it as if the scenario was true, that Meidi the Summoner was single-handedly harbouring the 21st saint.

“At some point you will be called upon to do the same. So before that–”

Walkins stroked his chin and looked slightly wide-eyed.

“To Queen Rebecca [I recommend that all those who were present at the summoning of the saints should give detailed accounts of the circumstances at the time].”

What was this stinky tone of voice?

A simple and clear solution came out of Walkins’s mouth.

“Queen Rebecca is determined to get to the bottom of this matter. The queen is also neutral on the matter of the saints’ cover-up, as she has been betrayed by a minister on the queen’s side. She has no intention of being lenient just because of the mismanagement of her own people.”

Walkins further continued.

“We are told that not only knights from the Queen’s side were present at the summoning of the saints, but also knights from the current King’s faction and servants directly under the King. Because they were summoned to a different place than originally intended, most of the knights being investigated this time were present at the scene, but if you include the servants who were waiting for the summons and the menial workers who were preparing for the festivities, the number is considerable. If they all testify in unison that [knights other than the summoner must have been sent to the site of the summoning], the position of the queen’s knights, who until now have repeatedly maintained that they did not know, will be more in jeopardy.”

Naturally, Walkins noticed that his cheeks were relaxed.

It was not a smile. It was a relief, and therefore Meidi’s face, which had been so stern, relaxed.

“It is no longer possible to get the queen’s servants and menial workers, even those who are not from the queen’s side, to all agree on the same testimony, even if you try to get around to it afterwards. The natural course of events is to reveal who is lying and who is telling the truth.”

“Walkins-sama…!”

Light spread to an end that was shrouded in darkness.

If Walkins was right, Meidi’s innocence would soon be proven

He might not be allowed to reveal the factors that led to the misalignment of the coordinates of the summons, though, as long as he followed Walkins.

At the very least, he would undoubtedly be cleared of suspicion for the Saints cover-up.

“You can rest assured, all you have to do is testify to the truth. That you were strictly forbidden to reveal it by your wicked adviser. You will be punished somewhat, but you will not be ordered to face life-threatening punishment.”

Walkins removed his hand from his chin and spread his arms out across his chest.

“The point of contention this time is not that the coordinates have shifted, but that the existence of the saint, Kirishima Ran, has been covered up. As long as that is clear, the queen will not seek further clarification of the facts.”

“Walkins-sama…”

“Don’t worry. If you swear allegiance to me and my sister Pearl, I will do everything in my power to protect you from the Queen’s side. You are worth it. I assure you of this.”

Walkins tapped on his shoulder.

He did not feel the damp warmth that he had felt earlier.

Whether because the dark clouds of his mind had cleared or not. The summoner Meidi, who had been wandering on the border of hell, was looking at Walkins with a heavenly feeling.