Chapter 552

The royal tombs are located inside the palace. Infiltrating the palace is almost as difficult as infiltrating a temple. Unauthorized entry is impossible and teleportation or magic is not allowed. The warp gate in the Spring Palace is not functional and even if it were, it cannot be used to enter the palace. Charlotte suggested several ways to infiltrate the palace, but they all come with significant risks. The Empire's elites, including Shanapel, are mostly absent. If they manage to infiltrate the palace, they can escape if caught, but if news of their intrusion spreads, it could cause panic. The narrator and their group decide to go to the National Cemetery in the north of the kingdom instead, where anyone can enter without special status. Therefore, we were able to enter the National Cemetery without any restrictions. It is more like a huge park than a cemetery. The royal tombs are naturally a place where nobles can enter, but this place is open to civilians. It may not mean much to those who live in poverty. Fortunately, the foundation of the royal family has not collapsed to the point where grave robbing occurs openly in this place. People passing by were calm regardless of their appearance. As soon as we entered, there were not many tombs scattered around, and there was a map showing various spaces for commemoration. Olivia looked at the map with her arms crossed. "There are different sections. It looks like the cemetery has expanded to the east. It seems to be a section for the deceased." Different areas can be entered according to merit. There are also outdoor graves, temples for those who have achieved great merit, and underground tombs. "First, let's go to the graves of the deceased, and then to the central catacombs." If we don't get punished, we might seem like strange people... We are thinking of stealing while people are visiting to mourn. No, it's worse than stealing. "There are quite a few people. It's still bright outside. Let's wait until night and then take action." Although a lot of time has passed since we arrived in the royal capital, it is still daytime. "We have time, let's go there." Olivia pointed to a place, and Harriet did the same. The place I pointed to on the map was not a different location. It was an anonymous grave. Just hearing about it made my heart heavy, but I heard from Charlotte. "...they will be there." Epinhausser. And Royar. I heard that their graves are here. * * * The day the Gate incident occurred. Epinhausser, Royar, Lucinil, and Sarkagar came to save me. Epinhausser and Royar died, and Lucinil and Sarkagar were captured. Their bodies would not have been buried in this national cemetery from the beginning. I don't know how they were managed, but they would have been buried in the anonymous graves of the national cemetery through some circumstances. Both of them were traitors to humanity who sided with the Demon King. Therefore, they could not have a tombstone with their names on it. However, even though they were buried in anonymous graves, it was not out of regret or apology from the Gradias royal family. It's not like their lives can be brought back, but Olivia and Harriet know that Epinhausser and Royar fought and died to save me, and they know about Royar's existence. Epinhausser and Royar became the owners of the anonymous graves because they could not have tombstones with their names on them. "...." Countless anonymous graves were spread out around the Tower of Spirits. I do not know which one is Royar's and which one is Epinhausser's. Summary of previous part of chapter only for context: In this chapter, the protagonist and her companions enter the National Cemetery, which is open to civilians and contains various sections for commemoration. They plan to visit the graves of deceased individuals, including Epinhausser and Royar, who died while saving the protagonist during the Gate incident. Their bodies were buried in anonymous graves due to their association with the Demon King, and the protagonist's companions know about their sacrifice. The chapter ends with the protagonist feeling overwhelmed by the countless anonymous graves and not knowing which one belongs to Epinhausser and Royar.

Translation: Both Harriet and Olivia had a stern expression on their faces. Perhaps they were afraid of what I might say. It was a fearful imagination. We had come here for a reason, and it was inevitable that we would think about it in relation to them. I might even try to revive Epinhausser and Royar as Death Knights. "Reinhardt... Even if he comes back, he won't have any consciousness or ego..." "..." "Becoming a Death Knight while alive and raising a dead being are different things." Epinhausser, who was a Sword Master, and Royar, who was estimated to be even more skilled than him. Of course, it would be helpful to make them into Death Knights. But that wouldn't be enough. "Why would I do that?" If it's selfish to say so, there's nothing I can do about it. "I don't want to make someone I know like that." I came here to make consumables for the war. And I don't want to do terrible things like taking these people who were precious to me around with me. It's not like making such a thing with someone I don't know is less terrible. No, the idea that it's okay to make someone else but not someone precious is even more selfishly terrible. It's a terrible thought, but these beings must be made into something that can be treated as consumables. And these are the ones who were sacrificed for me. Let's let them rest. Even if we bring them back, their spirits won't be there. No, if they do, it will be a terrible thing. I can't properly say how big the difference is between using the death of those who were irrelevant to me and those who were relevant to me. But this kind of favoritism is inevitable. What did Royar want? He seemed to want the reconstruction of the Demon World, but he also seemed not to. He didn't seem very loyal to me, but he was a faithful subordinate, no different from Sarkagar. All the people in the Rotary Club are dead too. After losing everything, Royar died trying to protect me, the last one left. I don't know much about Royar. Even more so for Epinhausser. "I still don't know." "What...?" "Why did Epinhausser try to save me?" His plan to save me was unrelated to the Black Order. In fact, the Order had tried to kill me, and most of the remaining core members had been destroyed. The fugitives who escaped are not worth paying attention to, so it can be said that the Black Order has been annihilated. Epinhausser believed in me. I don't know what he believed in, but he tried to save me because he believed in me. "Do you remember when I fought with the Orbis Class guys before?" "Yeah..." The fight with Lilka Eren and Oscar de Gradia had spread to the Orbis Class School Incident. "At the disciplinary committee, Epinhausser said something like I was the most talented person in Temple history." I thought it was a lie to protect me. "Ellen asked how I could be called that way, and after the disciplinary committee, Epinhausser said with a serious expression that he really thought so. 'My ability is not the best, but no matter how much I think about it, I didn't think I was that bad. So, it was a bit surprising.' What did Epinhausser see in me? 'But now that I think about it, I can't say that Epinhausser's words were wrong.' Neither Hae-ri nor Olivia had any response. I don't know if there's anyone who can compare to Ellen. At this point, there are probably very few people who can match Ellen. If I can beat Ellen, Epinhausser's words will be true. I don't know why he died to protect me or what he saw in me. I have no intention of reviving him as a Death Knight, and even if I did, it would be impossible to communicate with him, so I will never know. I liked Epinhausser from the beginning, who was blunt and uninterested in his students, unlike the kind and gentle Mustering teacher of B-class. But I was wrong. Epinhausser was not a teacher who was uninterested in his students. I still don't know Epinhausser. 'Let's go.' But it seemed like he knew me."