Azadin felt a pang of pity as he watched their predicament.
'The population density is high… and there aren't many places to make a fire. Even if food and supplies are stockpiled in the castle, they won't last long. Especially with Arael and the Aragasa people involved.'
Within the royal castle of Coral Sahar, the holy knights of the King's Church, the holy knights of the Order of Salvation, and soldiers had formed ranks and were on standby. As Azadin moved together with the castle's herald, cold stares pierced toward him.
Upon entering the audience chamber, the atmosphere clearly shifted.
The throne of the Yaegas Divine Clan—it was a throne made from a massive quartz embedded deep into the earth. Sitting atop that quartz throne was Ansethus IV, the current king of the Kingdom of Korasar.
Knights stood on either side, and the king welcomed him from the throne.
'A very textbook audience. Wouldn't it be better to speak informally in private?'
Some of the information and stories Azadin could offer weren't suitable for public disclosure before everyone. Considering that, this sort of formal audience was only uncomfortable for both sides.
Of course, Azadin had requested the audience himself, but that was merely a courtesy in dealing with a king.
'Should I have asked to meet in secret? Are they worried I might be an assassin? But the king's expression… it's a bit dark? He seems exhausted. Well, I suppose it's only natural, given the current situation—he's hardly in a position to rest comfortably.'
King Ansethus IV of Korasar was the first to speak.
"Ahh. How bold of you, herald. To come here alone—such recklessness deserves praise, at the very least."
"Remove your mask. You are in the presence of the king."
Handmaids stepped forward and asked Azadin to remove his mask.
"Yes."
When Azadin removed his mask, everyone gasped in shock. A large scar ran horizontally across where his eyes should have been.
"Blind?"
"There wasn't even a hint of it?"
"..."
Everyone had seen Azadin casually look around and walk in. No one imagined he might not have eyes.
"You may wear your mask."
"Yes. Thank you."
Azadin gratefully put his mask back on at the king's gesture.
"So. Who are you?"
"I am Azadin, the 108th Herald of the Emperor."
"108th? That's the lowest rank, isn't it? I suppose Korasar has been underestimated. To send the lowest herald to meet one of the kings of the Eight Divine Kingdoms."
Ansethus IV spoke with open discontent.
That they had sent Azadin, the lowest-ranked among 108 heralds, seemed to imply they were looking down on him—or so he thought.
"Due to our lack of manpower, I, who occupy the lowest seat among the heralds, dared to appear before Your Majesty and disturb your royal heart—my apologies. I humbly beg forgiveness. Our clan is currently split in two and waging a civil war, so we failed to consider the proper form. I ask that you not judge our rash actions too harshly."
"Civil war?"
"Yes. Those led by the traitor Arael have incited the Nagas and used nether magic to summon this storm, all in a bid to seize the throne of Korasar."
At Azadin's words, the room stirred with agitation.
"The traitor… summoned the storm and riled up the Nagas?"
"…Terrifying."
That meant not all of the Herald Clan acted as one. Only some had brought the Kingdom of Korasar to such peril.
It was no wonder the ministers were stricken with fear.
Then, a man who appeared to be a holy knight of the King's Church stepped forward. A stern-looking, middle-aged man wearing a monocle.
"Your Majesty! May I speak?"
"Sir Aldof… speak."
"We must arrest and interrogate this heretic immediately."
"You would insult one who came to see me?"
"The Herald Clan speaks lies as easily as breathing. They are lowly and blasphemous beings. Their words cannot be trusted. Surely this is all disinformation to confuse our hearts."
The knight called Aldof was calling for Azadin's execution.
"And look at his eyeless face! Yet he shows no signs of blindness. No doubt he's using wicked sorcery to see. Even now, he spreads corruption through vile magic. He must be captured and executed immediately!"
Azadin gave a wry chuckle at Sir Aldof's outburst.
'Attacking me now would only smear the king's name. Has he lost his mind?'
From a rational standpoint, no matter how angry one might be, killing an envoy who came in peace only results in loss.
But, shaking a rationalist is a good tactic. As a negotiation technique, threatening a consistently logical person could extract more than what is normally possible.
'Ah, I see now. He's not trying to shake me—he's trying to shake the king.'
Azadin sensed that mana was not properly flowing from the throne.
Though the king was seated, the light of the king's virtue was not radiating from the throne. In other words, from the King's Church's perspective, King Ansethus IV was not a legitimate king.
And Aldof seemed to be paying attention to someone behind him.
'The Cardinal of Korasar.'
Azadin spotted a clergyman behind Aldof, smiling with satisfaction, and gave a bitter smile himself.
"There's no time to be squabbling over internal strife. Your words are pointless."
"What?!"
"Arael's goal is the throne of Korasar. Once the Nagas break into the castle, she'll appear and lay claim to it."
"B-blasphemy!"
"Absurd!"
The throne of Yaegas chooses its master on its own. It is a powerful magic relic.
The idea that a member of the Herald Clan—despised as soulless and irreverent—could sit upon the throne was an unthinkable blasphemy to the King's Church.
"He is a madman! Execute him at once!"
The King's Church demanded Azadin's death, but he merely cleared his throat and looked to King Ansethus IV.
"There seem to be too many interrupters. I'd like to speak privately or dismiss the court."
"What?! Are you mocking our Church?!"
The clergy of the King's Church clamored, but raising one's voice in the king's presence—in his very audience chamber—was a greater insult to the king's dignity.
'It seems King Ansethus has been cornered completely.'
A Divine King of Yaegas must prove their worth.
The light of the king's virtue had not manifested, the capital Coral Sahar had been flooded, Nagas had invaded, and the kingdom was isolated with no reinforcements in sight.
This meant the king lacked the qualifications to sit upon the throne. That's why even in the king's own audience hall, the clergymen of the King's Church were acting so outrageously.
"I understand."
Ansethus IV accepted Azadin's proposal.
To arrange a private meeting with one of the Emperor's heralds, infamous for being assassins, was an immense risk even for a king.
But rather than speak in front of the clergy of the King's Church, who were just waiting for an opportunity to tear him apart, he chose instead to meet alone with the supposed assassin.
At that, the vassals began to object.
"Your Majesty!"
"The Herald Clan members are all base and devious assassins!"
"Please reconsider!"
They all burst into protest at the idea of a private audience. And that was exactly why Azadin had requested one.
'Being king seems like a miserable job, too. How can you talk properly when they interrupt at every turn?'
Azadin felt sympathy for the king, who had agreed to the private meeting.
***
They changed locations from the audience chamber to the king's private quarters.
Though there were still armed knights present, these were the king's royal guards.
"So, here we are in private. You're not actually here to assassinate me, are you?"
"No, Your Majesty. I simply thought this might be a sensitive conversation."
"A sensitive conversation, you say?"
"The light of the king's virtue isn't functioning properly, is it?"
"…Indeed. That's not something to be said in front of the vassals or knights."
"The clergy already know. Isn't that why they're acting so arrogantly and confronting Your Majesty so brazenly? Sir Aldof, was it? What is his position?"
"He's my nephew."
"Your nephew? Normally…"
"If they're of royal Korasari blood, they're sent elsewhere."
The King's Church is where royalty or nobility without succession rights are sent to take religious vows. For that reason, clergy of royal blood are usually never assigned to their home kingdom.
If royal offspring aren't sent away on purpose, they'll eventually gather supporters within the country and make a mess, insisting on returning.
"But that brat is a bastard. And even if he weren't, I have too many weaknesses as it is."
"The reason the light of the king's virtue isn't working is because a nether ritual was performed within these walls. It's not Your Majesty's fault."
"..."
It was, perhaps, the thing Ansethus IV most needed to hear at that moment.
"So then, what are you proposing, herald?"
"…This is only a prediction, but I believe Arael is already inside the royal castle."
"What? And what makes you think that?"
"Because otherwise, the situation doesn't make sense. She possesses the Emperor's traits very strongly. You've heard of the Emperor's illegitimate child among the Herald Clan, yes?"
"The bloodline of Emperor Yaeslat, you mean."
The King's Church tries to deny the Emperor in every way, but Emperor Yaeslat was undeniably the most powerful of the Yaegas Divine Clan since the foundation of the Eight Divine Kingdoms.
The living sage-goddess who had claimed all the thrones of the Eight Divine Kingdoms and ruled the world with the most powerful light of the king's virtue.
It was an open secret that the Emperor's blood flowed through the Herald Clan.
"You're saying this woman Arael is a descendant of the Emperor?"
Strictly speaking, no one knew who had inherited the Emperor's blood, or how. It was known that the five great houses of the Herald Clan definitely possessed that lineage, but beyond that, who had shared the Emperor's blood through marriage—or outside it—was unknown.
Only when it manifested as a trait would people say, "Ah, so this one carried the Emperor's blood."
"Yes. Which is why she intends to claim the throne herself. By surpassing even the Nagas. That means she must already be waiting near the throne."
"That same suspicion applies to you as well, doesn't it? What proof do I have that you aren't the infiltrator Arael planted to claim the throne?"
"That's a reasonable doubt. Which means I have no choice but to prove my sincerity by working hard to resolve this situation. First, please allow me to investigate the throne and its surroundings. I'd like to understand how the light of the king's virtue was disabled."
"…Could it not simply be that I am unworthy, and that's why the light has gone out?"
"There have been no small number of tyrants and foolish kings throughout history, but the light of the king's virtue has never gone out completely."
You're not such a tyrant or fool as that.
That was what Azadin was really saying.