Chapter 3

To take revenge on my homeland.

Now that I have made this decision, I should immediately take action.

I will give Mirei a few instructions to prepare for leaving the country.

“Please take care of the necessary arrangements.”

“Understood. And what about the guild’s affairs?”

“Well….”

Prince Fried… that kind of person is just Fried.

Fried is replacing my guild’s executives with his own people and is trying to eventually take control of the guild.

If that’s the case…..

“It’s fine. Instruct them to accept the replacement of the executives. The executives who support me will likely be fired or demoted, so please arrange for them to leave the country in batches and gather them after some time. Prioritize the key management members and capable technicians. Once I have a solid foundation outside, I will have them work again.”

“Understood, I will give the instructions accordingly.”

“And please place some of our people among those who will remain in the guild.”

“Yes, I will select a few who are skilled in such matters.”

“The operation will take place in five days. I’m counting on you, Mirei.”

“Please leave it to me. May the goddess bless your new beginning.”

Mirei, who had just been agitated, calmly acknowledged the instructions and bowed deeply.

“………………”

“What’s wrong, Mirei?”

“Yes, if I may… it might be better to do something about that wall.”

“…………Ah.”

That’s right.

It seems I am more excited about my decision than I thought.

I need to spend the next few days until everything is ready without any incidents.

It would be bad if the wall I shattered with a magic-infused fist were not concealed.

“It can’t be helped. I’ll fix it.”

I activated the magic power within my body to the fullest and gathered it in my left hand.

All living beings in this world possess magic power within their bodies, and the method of controlling this magic power with reason and theory is called magic.

And the ultimate goal that those who manipulate magic power eventually reach is the creation of a ‘Divine Artifact.’

It is the materialization of the magic power within oneself, manifesting as tools with various abilities.

The shape of the Divine Artifact varies from person to person. The abilities and forms that manifest depend on the creator’s preferences, personality, and experiences, but in most cases, they take the form of weapons or armor.

This is because the people who train their magic power to the point of creating a Divine Artifact are mostly knights or adventurers who make a living from battle.

Apart from these, there are only a few deranged researchers and talented nobles who have trained from a young age.

In other words, Divine Artifacts are generally classified as combat abilities.

However, there are exceptions, of course.

While Divine Artifacts are fundamentally combat abilities, there are rare cases where abilities unrelated to combat manifest.

My Divine Artifact, the ‘Grimoire of Wisdom,’ is one of these exceptions.

The ability of this grimoire, which is in the shape of a book, is thought to be the ability to record information from books, documents, and things I have seen or heard.

I have never told anyone the true ability of my Divine Artifact since I learned it.

Recording information is just a small part of the true ability of my Divine Artifact. The seven grimoires, each with powerful effects, are my true Divine Artifact.

Hiding one’s trump card is a basic survival skill in noble society.

Even my father… no, from now on, I will call him the Duke. That kind of person is now just a stranger.

I have hidden my true Divine Artifact even from the Duke, and I have only revealed four of the seven abilities to Mirei, whom I trust the most.

Hmm, upon reflection, perhaps I unconsciously did not trust the people of this country.

“Divine Artifact [Grimoire of Gluttony]”

The magic power gathered in my left hand transformed into a red grimoire, one of the [Seven Grimoires], the Grimoire of Gluttony.

The ability of this grimoire is ‘Recording of Magic.’ By recording others’ magic, it allows the user to handle magic for which they have no aptitude, making it a powerful Divine Artifact.

“[Stone Wall]”

Using the ability of the grimoire, I activated an earth attribute magic to repair the stone wall of the underground prison that had been destroyed.

“Phew, that should do it.”

After concealing the traces of destruction, I confirmed that Mirei had left the underground prison and released the guard from the [Hypnosis].

“?”

The guard, with vague memories, tilted his head in confusion. Meanwhile, I began to think about my plan to crush this country.

◆◇★◇◆

“Phew, finally back.”

“Yes, well, with Elizabeta handling the political affairs, there shouldn’t have been any particular issues….”

“Hahaha, I bet the civil servants are happier that things went more smoothly under my rule than under mine.”

King Brat, a man of martial temperament, laughed heartily, speaking self-deprecatingly.

“So, what about Fried?

Surely he’s sulking somewhere after being lectured by Elizabeta again?”

In response to King Brat’s question, one of the civil servants who had been in charge of his absence wiped away the sweat that was pouring out and reported.

“W-well… Prince Fried is… with the daughter of Baron Rockeet… on… an inspection of the direct territory.”

The ‘inspection of the direct territory’ was a euphemistic expression for what the civil servant was trying to convey. In reality, it was just a trip.

“What?! We were supposed to return to the castle today! What is Elizabeta doing!

Managing Fried’s schedule is her job, isn’t it!”

“W-well, Elizabeta was ordered by Fried to… the underground prison…”

“What?! She hasn’t come out of the underground prison yet!”

Even Chancellor Sieg was surprised by this news. His shock was not due to the fact that his daughter had been imprisoned in the underground prison for over a month, but rather that she had not managed to escape in over a month.

“Take me to Elizabeta!”

King Brat, followed by Sieg, hurriedly headed to the underground prison.

A single guard, looking bewildered, greeted King Brat, who understood that the guard was not to blame, and did not blame him, though he looked displeased.

“So, where is Elizabeta?”

“Y-yes, she is in that cell… but…”

“What’s wrong?”

Sieg, the Chancellor and Elizabeta’s father, asked the guard, who looked extremely apologetic as he reported the current situation.

“W-well… Elizabeta has been sitting in a chair for the past three days without moving.

She hasn’t even looked at the documents she was supposed to review, and she hasn’t touched her food.”

“What?!”

When King Brat and Sieg reached Elizabeta’s cell, they saw her sitting in a chair with her back to them. When they called out to her, she did not respond at all. Although they had been told she hadn’t eaten for three days, from where they stood, she looked perfectly healthy.

“Elizabeta, answer me!

Hey, open the cell!”

“I-I’m sorry, but Prince Fried took the key to Elizabeta’s cell….”

“Damn!”

King Brat, frustrated, raised his right hand. A powerful magic power swirled in the air, condensed in his hand, and transformed into a thick, electrified greatsword.

“Divine Artifact [Sword of the Thunder God]”

With a snort, King Brat swung the greatsword, and a thunderous sound echoed as the iron bars, as thick as a woman’s arm, were easily sliced like butter.

King Brat and Sieg, having returned the Divine Artifact to magic power, approached Elizabeta, who did not even flinch at the commotion.

“Elizabeta”

Sieg placed his hand on his daughter’s shoulder.

“Hmm, cold?”

At that moment, a crack ran through Elizabeta’s body from where Sieg’s hand was placed. Then, with a light sound, Elizabeta shattered into pieces.

“What?! What is this?!”

“Is this an [Ice Statue]?!”

Sieg picked up a piece of the ice that had been Elizabeta and examined it.

“Elizabeta’s magic power remains.

She stopped eating three days ago, and since then, she has been replaced by an [Ice Statue]….”

“Then, where is the real Elizabeta?”

“…………”

“…………”

Sieg and the guard had no answer to this question.

King Brat’s stern face turned pale.

Naturally, if someone as deeply involved in the country’s administration and military as Elizabeta were to disappear, it would cause chaos in the government.

Moreover, Elizabeta’s Divine Artifact, the ‘Grimoire of Wisdom,’ contained records of military secrets, such as maps and military equipment, as well as ancient texts and documents from the ancient civilization stored in the castle’s forbidden library.

“Search for her! Find Elizabeta immediately!!!”

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