Chapter 551

Not only the nobles are buried in the royal tombs. Those who have achieved great feats and can be buried with the nobles also rest there. This means that those who are buried in the royal tombs but are not nobles enjoy great honor as the empire recognizes their achievements. Therefore, they are inevitably great heroes or figures in history. In conclusion, Olivia's opinion to dig up the royal tombs to supplement the Death Knights is the best option in terms of practicality. It is a much better place than the battlefields, including Serendia, assuming it works properly. In the allied forces' base, it is practically impossible to supplement the Death Knights, and the royal tombs can be avoided if one is careful. However, Charlotte is scared and hesitant about the idea. Olivia assures her that there are many heroes buried there, including those who have recently passed away. The times call for many heroes, so it is inevitable that there will be many materials for the Death Knights in the royal tombs. Many sacrifices will be made, and this war will continue until it ends. The lives of the mountain people are also being sacrificed. However, there is no certainty that this immoral act will not lead to another immoral act. Nonetheless, the fact remains that it is a necessary task. No one can deny Olivia's words that there is no room for hesitation in a situation where the lives of the mountain people are at stake. They plan to raise the remains of the royal tombs as Death Knights to enhance their power. They will have to leave Edina and go to the royal capital for this. There are only three members: Olivia, who will directly raise the Death Knights, Heriot de Saint-Van, who will help with transportation and similar tasks, and me, who will prepare for physical similarities. Translation:

Summary of previous part of chapter only for context: In this chapter, it is revealed that not only nobles are buried in the royal tombs, but also those who have achieved great feats and can be buried with the nobles. This means that those who are buried in the royal tombs but are not nobles enjoy great honor as the empire recognizes their achievements. Olivia suggests digging up the royal tombs to supplement the Death Knights, which Charlotte is hesitant about. However, Olivia assures her that there are many heroes buried there, including those who have recently passed away, and that it is a necessary task in a situation where the lives of the mountain people are at stake. They plan to raise the remains of the royal tombs as Death Knights to enhance their power, and will have to leave Edina and go to the royal capital for this. There are only three members: Olivia, who will directly raise the Death Knights, Heriot de Saint-Van, who will help with transportation and similar tasks, and the narrator, who will prepare for physical similarities.

"Iri will be helpful, and Charlotte will be even more helpful, but I didn't think of bringing them along. Charlotte will be in a bad situation in many ways, and Iri has limitations in her actions because she is a demon."

"Chet, I went on a date with Reinhardt for the first time in a while and he's following me again."

Olivia glared at Heriot, who was preparing for casting.

"How can we go to the royal capital without me?"

"We can send someone and come back to pick you up in a few months."

"...Is it really going to take that long?"

"You never know what can happen with people. Besides, the coalition army is resting too, right? I was planning to rest a lot with Reinhardt too."

We'll do this and that until spring, Olivia said with a smile.

What a nobleman.

"If you see the state of the royal capital, you won't say that."

"Hmm... Is it that bad?"

"It's not a situation where you can say that easily... Well, you'll see."

If they really rest, Edina would be better, as the royal capital is not a place where you can have the impression that they are resting.

The Hwangdo Gradium in our memories is safe, but the depressing atmosphere that permeates the entire city has turned Hwangdo into a gray city.

They are going there in the first place to secure powerful undead.

"Don't say unnecessary things when you have to be careful not to receive divine punishment, sister."

"If you think about it, it's the power of God that wakes them up, so why would you receive divine punishment? If it's a blessing, it's a blessing."

"...When you think about it, that's right."

Heriot continues to cast as if he doesn't want to argue.

That's right.

It's not that they receive divine punishment for raising powerful undead with Kier's power. Isn't it grace in itself?

I'm starting to feel dizzy.

"I'll go."

A blue magic line began to boil from Heriot's body, and soon we left Edina with a flash.

* * *

An alley in Hwangdo Gradium.

Olivia, who arrived at the place with Mass Teleport, held her nose as soon as she arrived.

"...What is this smell?"

Even Heriot, who has a weak stomach, was also vomiting as soon as he arrived.

A foul smell that is difficult to express in words, a smell of something rotten, and an unknown smell mixed together and made a nauseating smell that was difficult to endure.

Even though it was winter and the temperature was low, it was more than usual for an alley.

"Let's get out of here first."

"Ugh, I feel like I'm going to vomit... Ugh..."

"No! Don't really vomit."

"If I vomit, you have to catch it with your hands..."

"If you're talking nonsense, you must be able to endure it. Let's go quickly."

If he's talking nonsense, it means he has the ability to endure it.

I also wanted to leave this place quickly because I was also nauseated by the unknown smell emanating from this place.

-Ugh!

But.

I heard the sound of 'real' from behind.

"...Is it a beggar?"

"...I think I've seen him before."

Olivia was staring at Heriot, who was trembling against the wall.

- Ugh, ugh... Ugh!

"No, are you trying to forcibly stop him from vomiting?"

"Hey! Just let it out!"

Come to think of it, Olivia is from the streets.

But our princess, who is really a princess, couldn't handle this kind of thing.

* * *

"......"

"Vomiter."

"H-Hey! Don't really!"

At Olivia's words, Heriot burst into tears and cried.

It's true that I've seen our princess in a lot of tough situations, but now she's vomiting and vomiting in an alley.

Heriot's tears were thick and he was sobbing.

Still, Olivia seemed worried, and after patting Heriot's back a few times, Heriot opened his eyes wide and said he was surprisingly okay.

"Don't underestimate the power of the Archbishop."

"...That's not your power, it's the power of God. Why are you pretending to be a great person?"

"If that power is manifested through my body, it's my power, not God's power."

"Reinhardt, the gods are all crazy. They give power to such a small person. Isn't that right?"

Heriot looked at me as if seeking agreement.

"S-Sorry...."

"Why are you sorry?"

"Oh, no...just..."

I apologized without even realizing it.

Oh! The gods are weird because I'm weird!

Both Olivia and Heriot feel like they have a passive blasphemy.

Olivia is saying that the gods are not great, but I am great. Heriot says the gods are crazy.

Anyway, we left the alley and came out onto the street.

Since we were wearing robes upside down and Heriot had cast a spell of invisibility on us, there was no chance of passersby recognizing us.

The place we arrived at was the Wenseter district in the southern part of Hwangdo.

It's closer to the temple than the palace.

"Wouldn't it be better to drink something?"

"...Yeah."

Still, our princess, if it had been in the past, would have cried and made a fuss all day long if she had shown herself in front of others.

He said he was suffering from a tough guy, and now he's in that state.

The depression that permeated the entire street could be felt through the skin, but I tried to buy a drink for Heriot, even if it was just to rinse his mouth.

"...Three silver coins for a bottle of water for the plague?!"

Of course, there were few places to sell, and prices were murderous.

It's just water.

The price of water in Hwangdo is so high that you have to receive three silver coins for a bottle of water.

Heriot rinsed his mouth with water, his face mixed with guilt.

"You don't have to check anything else."

Olivia briefly licked her tongue at the price of a bottle of water, feeling the reality of Hwangdo.

Walking down the street, I saw people's expressions and the appearance of people who were clearly starving.

It's true that death is looming on the battlefield, but here, death by starvation is looming.

It's winter.

Fortunately, we didn't see it with our own eyes, but people without homes and places to go will freeze to death in the alleys. "That's relatively better here. The refugee residential area on the outskirts is even worse." Due to the dense population, Hwangdo has lost its ability to support its people. However, the empire needs to operate a large army. In the meantime, those who are ignored are dying. "Why are people crowded like that? Is there any distribution?" "Line up! Line up!" Olivia pointed to a square where people were clamoring. It wasn't food distribution. "It's a conscription officer." Heriot knew what that was. The guards controlled the people from a high position, and above them were people dressed in imperial army officer uniforms, shouting hard. The sound was drowned out by people's screams. "At least in the army, you won't starve." Olivia said with a wry smile. If you're going to die of starvation, you might as well enlist in the army. It's the same whether you die from a monster or from starvation. It's not for a grand cause, a mission for humanity, or dedication. If you become a soldier, you won't starve at least. The depleted commoners were being replenished like this, and it was not unexpected. They were disposable items who were put into battle with only a spear in their flimsy armor without proper weapon training. They will be replenished and die to avoid starvation. "If we do our job properly, the war will end early, so it will be good for those people in the end. Let's not turn our eyes to useless things and go where we need to go." Heriot and I followed Olivia's lead. It was quite optimistic and yet coldly realistic. That was the reality now. "Unnie... it's a little scary." "If crying could solve everything, I could cry for everyone in the world. But that's not the case, is it?" "... "I won't cry because tears can't solve anything. Like I changed, like Rianna changed, Olivia has changed too." * * * In the royal tombs, there are also tombs of great figures and heroes who have achieved great feats with the ancient nobles. Before we left, we heard enough information about that from Charlotte. Even if we are not interested in the remains of the nobles, Charlotte helped to invade the tombs of the ancestors and use evil powers there. Charlotte made a very difficult decision in her own way. We were crossing the bridge that connects the south and north of Hwangdo. To the north, the Huangcheng Emporium on the hill was visible, and to the south, the temple looked like Asrai. The vast refugee village in the outskirts of Hwangdo was not visible from the place that corresponds to the center of the city. It might be better not to see it because it would only make us feel depressed. "It seems serious in many ways if the magic train operation is suspended." "That's right." Translation:

We were walking because resources, including magic stones, were so scarce that the magic train, the core transportation system of Hwangdo, was not operational except for military and administrative purposes. We realized this as we looked at the stopped magic train, knowing that the empire had spent most of its national power creating and operating the Titans. We wondered how they were dealing with the monsters that occasionally attacked the refugee area. Olivia murmured while looking at a distant castle, "Even heroes have different ranks... Well, it's obvious." Not all those who have achieved great deeds can enter the royal tombs. Only a small number of war heroes can enjoy the honor of being buried there. Usually, such glory is given to the dead, and those who are still alive and have already been confirmed to receive such glory are few. Anyway, not all heroes are buried in the royal tombs. "Even if it's not the royal tombs, there should be tombs in the north of Hwangdo that can be raided..." According to Charlotte, there are many buried heroes in the tombs built in the north of Hwangdo. If all the heroes were buried in the royal tombs, it would have been a disaster. The glory of being buried in a tomb like the Huang family is not a privilege that everyone can enjoy. Therefore, the national cemetery is naturally larger in scale than the royal tombs, and there may be more people buried there. Those who died in the Great War and the Gate Incident, and those who achieved great deeds, are more likely to be buried in the national cemetery than in the royal tombs. If we assume that there are still remains that have not decayed or that may return, they are likely to be there. "It's easier to invade the national cemetery on the outskirts than to infiltrate the castle. It's better to go there first." Olivia shrugged at Heryat's words. "What are you talking about? We're going to both." "We have to use everything we can. Do you know? Maybe one of the famous warrior groups will rise again?" The five warrior groups. Lagan Artorius. Ragdnar Olfi. Seizaria. Mullerun. Shadeen. The five tombs will surely be in the royal tombs. "Assuming that the remains are there and that they can be resurrected." "We can't not go. We don't know how much help the undead warrior groups will be, but still." Of course, it is possible only if there is someone who has left the remains properly. Charlotte clearly stated this. Lagan Artorius' tomb is in the royal tombs, but there is no remains inside. Lagan Artorius, who fought against the demon king and was annihilated, and the remains of the demon king Bali are also not there. Lagan Artorius' remains are not there. So we can't even save him. But in the case of the other four, their remains were recovered. Although some may call them incomplete remains, they have been recovered. So, except for Lagan Artorius' tomb, the bodies of the other four warriors are definitely in the royal tombs. "Lagan Artorius is impossible, but we should go just in case something happens with the others," Olivia says, looking at me as if she knows. "Can we call this revenge? Rheinhart," it's like resurrecting those who helped kill my father and making them fight as undead. "It's helpful if it works, and if not, we die. Do we need to use such grand words?" "You know, sometimes you seem completely emotionless. Especially in situations like this," she says. Well, I'm not really her parent, so it can't be helped. If I were really Vallie, I would have hated Ellen and it wouldn't have turned out like this. But I didn't say that. There can be no affection or attachment to the previous Vallie since we've never even had a conversation. However, there is something like a sense of guilt. Vallie hoped that the Gate Incident wouldn't happen. But I ended up being the cause of the Gate Incident. Vallie's wish was forever ruined because of me. There is a sense of guilt and responsibility that stems from that. That's how I feel about the previous Vallie. But that feeling is by no means small.