Chapter 67

#067 There Is No Evil Artifact in the World (1)

I had a similar experience when I was working at a company.

I had quit, vowing never to work at such a company again, but I didn't expect to have a similar experience after being possessed by a spirit.

I burst into laughter, feeling absurd from the morning.

"Then the border inspection will proceed as scheduled."

"Yeah, there's no reason to postpone it."

I watched the two people walking ahead, trying to steady my quickening breath.

Emperor Frederic and Cardinal Boutier were having a quiet conversation about state affairs as they walked.

The emperor held a bouquet of flowers with his hands behind his back, while the cardinal was dressed lightly with both hands free.

I was following behind with two lesser pandas on my shoulders, one hanging from my left arm, and a large picnic basket in my right hand.

Access to the bell tower, where the duke's tomb was located, was not allowed for attendants.

I couldn't bear to make the adults suffer, so I volunteered to carry the load, but it turned out to be heavier than I thought.

Moreover, the lesser pandas wouldn't leave me for some reason.

They should be excited with the artifact nearby, but something seemed off.

"I thought it was just a light trek. But when we got on the bus, it turned out everyone was quite the mountaineer."

*creak*

I muttered to Demi, recalling the story from my previous job.

It was a fairly large and old company, and I wanted to stay and build my career if possible, but it was quite harsh for a new graduate who had just joined.

"There were twenty-seven people in the department, and they told me to take care of all the snacks and drinks for the hike. They said to bill the company at the end of the month. In the end, I had to spend money and time on this every two weeks."

The slope of the forest became steeper as we approached the bell tower. My breath and voice were half mixed.

Demi seemed to understand my words and groaned sympathetically.

The company hikes were held every other Saturday, and I had to pick up and carry everyone's food from dawn because I was the youngest.

"It's all in the past. The company I transferred to was fine. I just suddenly thought about it."

I smiled and lightly touched Demi's head.

Actually, compared to back then, this load was nothing.

The wine bottles were heavy, but there was also quite a bit of food and drink for me.

"Is it very heavy, Your Highness?"

I smiled and replied, "It's fine."

The prince's physique was similar to my original one.

Though my athletic ability was poor and I was sensitive to heat, my stamina and strength didn't seem too bad.

However, the cardinal eventually came down to me and picked up one of the lesser pandas.

*creak*

"Thank you."

"What can I do? You need to build up your strength."

The emperor said gruffly.

No, we've been climbing for an hour from the palace. Isn't this enough?

"You're not Cedric, you know. You can't overwork him just because he's here to rest."

The cardinal smiled softly at me and continued walking.

Thinking of the prince made me uneasy again. We slowly began to leave the forest.

"By the way, how did that go? There was an incident where the children stole gifts from the inn where they stayed."

"I handed it over to Simon. He said the investigation might take a while."

"Why?"

"The innkeeper had buried the money on the mountain, but when we checked, it had already been stolen."

"That's troublesome. Were they thieves?"

The cardinal said.

Simon was likely Simon de Sarnez, the Duke, and probably Crystal's father.

It seemed he had been assigned the case that happened in 'Luka' village.

After all, the emperor didn't have the leisure to personally direct a long-term investigation.

"There we are."

At the emperor's words, the sky above suddenly opened up. The forest ended, and the surroundings brightened.

I lifted my head and looked ahead.

"Wow..."

An exclamation of admiration escaped me. It was a white coastal cliff with a bright green meadow.

I stared in a daze at the scene before me.

The cool, salty sea breeze made the grasses repeatedly lie down and rise.

The North Sea and the sky beyond the cliff divided the world into two shades of blue.

In the center of this landscape, a small shrine and a large bell tower were visible.

It was an extremely exotic and beautiful scene.

"That's it."

"Right. You can release the spirits now."

I nodded at the cardinal's gentle response.

I looked at the white building and the navy blue roof, then carefully placed the lesser pandas at my feet.

But they showed no signs of leaving me.

Demi, I can understand, as I had tamed him, but the other two also seemed unable to detect the artifact.

Why is this happening?

"I need to get closer to the bell tower."

The emperor nodded, looking at the tightly rolled spirits in my hands.

His expression wasn't very good.

*

"Is that the artifact?"

"Yeah. It's the air attribute artifact, 'Noah's Ark'."

I frowned slightly as the cardinal explained.

At the top of the bell tower, seen from the ground, a large and dull object was floating.

The 'Blessing of the Sea' in the book was a beautifully cut sapphire, and the 'Sword of Mars' appeared as a magnificent sword on the plain.

But this...

"It looks like a rusty almond."

I summarized. The 'Ark' looked like crumpled aluminum foil.

Apart from being a long, streamlined shape, it had no distinctive features.

It seemed completely different from the illustrations in the artifact guidebook given by Ganael or in *Bang! Eve's Great Adventure*.

The spirits were busy playing with each other's tails, and I couldn't even feel a bit of ether.

It was strange.

"Let's go in and check."

The cardinal smiled wryly. The emperor silently took a key from his robes and opened the bell tower door.

*click*

*creak*...

The large door opened smoothly.

Perhaps it had been specially treated, as there were no signs of rot or shrinkage despite the prolonged exposure to sea air.

I followed the two adults into the bell tower.

"Wow, Demi. Look up."

*creak*

The ceiling was open to the top.

The internal spiral staircase along the wall seemed to lead to where the bell and the artifact were.

The room was subtly bright.

Thanks to the sunlight seeping through the tiny cracks in the stone bell tower from all sides.

In the center of the large, round floor, a wide rectangular stone slab was visible.

A bouquet of flowers was placed on it. They were withered but not completely dried.

It must have been about a day.

"..."

The emperor approached the spot and placed his bouquet next to it.

It was the tomb of Duke Evelyn.

"It's fine, Your Highness. You can come closer."

The cardinal, who had briefly held the emperor's hand, called me in a gentle tone.

I hesitantly approached the two of them, not wanting to be a bother.

I left the picnic basket by the door and whispered to the lesser pandas to wait nicely.

Soon, the inscription on the flat tombstone came into view.

"Beloved husband, caring father, great magician

Alexandre Nicol Lieste

1564-1600"

"Huh?"

My eyes nearly popped out.

Too many thoughts flooded my mind, and my mouth opened involuntarily.

The emperor smiled at my face.

"Yeah, Duke Evelyn is my husband."

"Th... That..."

I blurted out the first thing that came to mind. Fortunately, I didn't bite my tongue.

"I'm sorry. I should have prepared a bouquet too."

"It's fine. Only I and my son place flowers here anyway."

She really didn't seem to mind. Only my ears felt hot.

"It's quite amusing. I could have secretly entered the duke's study."

"I couldn't do that, being a servant."

"And you didn't intimidate the attendants."

"You shouldn't intimidate others casually."

I answered quickly, but I was still flustered and looked at the cardinal.

I felt sweat trickling down my head.

You should have given me a hint last night. Then I wouldn't have only brought food!

"Can you give a short blessing?"

"Huh?"

But the words that came out of the cardinal's mouth were completely unexpected.

"Alexandre never met a royal priest."

She smiled faintly. I blinked.

So, it seemed that a simple greeting would suffice.

The emperor also nodded with a light gesture.

I slowly knelt and sat in front of the tomb.

Alexandre Nicol Lieste. The epitaph even included his middle name.

Could 'Niki' from the *Eve's Great Adventure* series have been the duke himself?

The thought made my heart ache.

He had written the only fairy tale in the world, filled with infinite affection, to teach the very person it was meant for—Prince Cedric.

I placed my hand on his name.

*whoosh*!

Golden ether spread from my fingertips, emitting light like a bulb.

A simple circle enveloped the tomb and me generously.

Then it happened.

*rumble*!

*boom*!

A loud noise came from the ceiling. At the same time, an enormous shock covered the first floor.

*