Chapter 68

#068 There Is No Evil Divine Artifact in the World (2)

Xiaoming, Cardinal Butti, and Emperor Frederick momentarily stared at each other in a daze.

A loud flapping sound continued, as if something enormous was beating its wings.

-Flap, flap!

-Kee!

Demi reacted the fastest.

He poked his head out from my arms, trying to wriggle free.

“Demi, no. It’s dangerous, even if it’s a divine artifact.”

I held onto Demi. Just a moment ago, the cardinal had said the divine artifact seemed to have ‘awakened.’

The divine artifact was a tangible manifestation of the will and power of the deity, a gift she had directly bestowed upon the continent.

Surely, she wouldn’t suddenly change her mind and use the divine artifact to cleanse humanity, but...

If it was moving now, things were different. We had to be careful, as we didn’t know what might happen.

-Rumble!

“Gah!”

The ground shook violently again.

The tremors were so strong that they swayed in all directions, almost knocking us off our feet.

Taking advantage of the moment, the two lesser pandas, except for Demi, quickly scampered away from me.

“Come back here!”

-Kee, keee!

They were incredibly smart.

Even without being told, they started climbing the spiral staircase, which was evident from their actions.

Seeing the usually quiet divine beasts react like this, it seemed the presence of the divine artifact had grown stronger.

Small pebbles fell from the ceiling.

The ground tremor suddenly stopped. Was there a set cycle for the vibrations? Or...

“Aurelia, let’s go outside.”

“No, I’ll go with you.”

The emperor and the cardinal quickly exchanged words.

I took the opportunity to carry Demi and run up the stone stairs.

Even if the divine artifact wasn’t my responsibility, the two lesser pandas had to be safe.

If they weren’t so cute, I would have scolded them!

“Your Majesty, please do as the emperor says. It’s not advisable for both of you to go to a dangerous place.”

I shouted from the top of the stairs. The cardinal looked at me with a surprised expression.

“It’ll be fine. I’ll be back soon.”

The emperor was a Swordmaster, and I wasn’t a weak priest either.

We wouldn’t die, but one of the two elders of the empire needed to be in a safe place, just in case.

The cardinal, who understood this, nodded calmly and stood up.

The emperor confirmed that the cardinal had left the bell tower and then wedged a stone to keep the door open.

It seemed he was considering the possibility that it might not open again.

“Demi, try to call your friends.”

I whispered as I climbed the stairs two or three steps at a time.

Demi pressed against my shoulder, making a troubled “keee” sound.

Indeed, I could also feel the strong air ether now.

It would be difficult for the divine beasts, who were meant to protect the divine artifact, to resist its pull.

-Flap!

With a light thud, the emperor, who had been on the first floor, landed in front of me.

It was an unbelievable jump!

“Wow.”

“Shall I carry you?”

“No, no. I’ll run.”

The emperor chuckled and ran down the stairs first.

The flapping sound came again from the top of the bell tower.

The light that had initially burst out was no longer visible.

“These guys, why are they so quick?”

“They seem excited! It might be faster to coax them.”

The emperor, who had quickly caught up with the two troublemakers, grumbled. It seemed he had failed to capture them.

Without ether, it wouldn’t be easy for her to capture a determined divine beast.

A Swordmaster couldn’t even catch a lesser panda...

“Huff, huff.”

Fortunately, the bell tower wasn’t as tall as it looked from below.

I stopped just before the top floor.

The emperor was waiting for me, her hand on the hilt of her sword.

-Flap, flap! Flap!

The flapping sound was louder and clearer.

I and the emperor slightly tilted our heads to assess the situation.

-Kee, keee!

-Keeeee

Despite causing so much trouble for two people, the two lesser pandas were lying on their backs around the divine artifact, seemingly enjoying themselves.

And...

-Flap!

Wings.

They were enormous wings, as large as an adult male. I swallowed hard.

“That’s...”

“It was always like this.”

The emperor spoke in a low voice. I opened my mouth in disbelief at the surreal sight.

The divine artifact, the ‘Ark of Biream,’ was in the shape of a wing.

It looked metallic and sharp but was certainly not ordinary metal.

It wasn’t the clanging of metal but the flapping of a bird’s wings.

Overall, it was a transparent silver, reflecting a faint lavender when it moved in the sunlight.

At the tip of the wing, a large amethyst gem was embedded.

“What do you mean it was always like this?”

I asked, glancing at the lesser pandas. They didn’t show any unusual signs yet.

“It was like this until my husband passed away. The ‘rusty almond’ shape you mentioned was the form it took after Alexandre died.”

I widened my eyes. My thoughts raced.

The divine artifact, which was so vivid when Alexandre was alive, had curled up and turned black after he passed away, as if it had disconnected from the world.

Even the divine beasts couldn’t detect it.

“Did your husband often interact with the ‘Ark’ while he was alive?”

“Yes. One of his research subjects was this thing.”

Research subject?

“Was he a Holy Knight or a priest?”

“No. He had no ether at all. He was just a mage.”

“But why...”

-Boom!

I flinched and leaned forward.

-Keeeee!

“What are you doing!”

Emotion overrode reason.

Seeing the lesser panda being thrown to the ground by the Ark’s wing, my vision turned red in an instant.

How could that little guy hit it!

“Calm down. You said you would coax the divine beasts, didn’t you?”

Thud. The emperor firmly grabbed my shoulder, preventing me from rushing out.

Her calm, cherry-colored eyes seemed to calm my mind.

I took a deep breath and nodded.

Getting excited here wouldn’t help at all.

If the Ark and the divine beasts could coexist peacefully, we could leave, but since the Ark showed aggression, we had to get the two lesser pandas out.

“Let’s go up.”

I said. The emperor moved quietly and stepped on the last stair.

The top of the bell tower, where we ascended, was an open space supported by four pillars, with no walls.

A misstep could lead to a fall.

The top of the bell tower, with no railing or safety measures, was a precarious place.

There, a temperamental divine artifact, three divine beasts, and two humans were in a tense standoff.

-Whir!

-Tinkle, tinkle...

The wind was strong at this height. The bell high above rang softly.

I knelt on one knee for stability.

-Whoosh!

I immediately activated the sanctuary. A golden circle illuminated the top of the tower.

The Ark flinched.

Seeing the divine beasts pressed against the pillars, trembling from the divine artifact’s attack, my voice naturally softened.

I slowly recited the names I had thought of.

[Lea, Feri. Come to your brother.]

-Keeeee

-Kee!

The largest of the three was Lea, and the second largest with black ears was Feri.

Lea was named after the Great Mother Earth Goddess, and Persephone, who lived in the underworld, had a darker concept.

Soon, the two divine beasts trotted over to me.

While the emperor watched the divine artifact, I quickly scooped them up.

A sigh of relief escaped me.

[Are you okay? Are you hurt?]

-Kee

-Koo

[You need to listen to Demi from now on. Demi is the leader.]

-Keeeee!

Demi called out confidently, understanding the responsibility that came with great power.

“Now, can we go down...”

-Boom!

I quickly crouched. The Ark was trembling, its wings shaking.

The pillar, slightly damaged by the divine artifact’s flapping, was visible. The emperor drew her sword without hesitation.

-Swoosh!

“Wait, Your Majesty!”

“Let go.”

“It’s a divine artifact. It can’t be destroyed. You know that.”

“It might destroy the bell tower if left unchecked.”

I gritted my teeth. She was right.

Thinking of Grand Duke Evelyn Alexandre, who was buried below the tower, I couldn’t leave the divine artifact as it was.

But the emperor was a Swordmaster, and from what I understood, a Swordmaster in the ‘Retired Hero’ world could match a brigade.

“Your Majesty’s sword energy is too dangerous.”

“...”

“It would be good if the creature retreated or moved away after being attacked by Your Majesty, but that’s just a hope. If it opens its power to resist...”

“...Tsk.”

The emperor sheathed her sword, and the air’s vibration immediately subsided.

I realized then that she, like me earlier, had been unable to control her emotions.

She almost destroyed the bell tower with her own hands.

-Flap, flap!

“There must be a way to calm it down. It’s not a monster; it won’t harm life.”

I said, quickly organizing my thoughts.

First, the clue the emperor had given.

The Grand Duke was a mage who had studied the divine artifact during his lifetime, and the subject of