Leonard came to learn of his father-in-law's true identity because of the Church of Saint Agnes' opening ceremony. He was shocked to find out that he was related by marriage to the great Grand Duke Heathfenrir. Although the revelation could have made him feel uncomfortable with his new father-in-law, the relationship between the two was strong. The grand duke always had endless love for his son-in-law and he was also a fervent fan of Rodel Alchemy products, so the learning of his identity didn't affect his attitude in any way.
"Are you all right, my son? The shrinking of your lats tells me that you didn't sleep well. Perhaps you should help yourself to a potion first."
"I will have one later. For now, I'd greatly appreciate it if you drank this, Your Grace. It will help."
"Aw, my dear son..."
"Your Grace..."
The atmosphere in the living room became sullen as the two exchanged sincere looks, both men worried about Ailette.
With a serious look on her face, Elthea remarked shortly, "I'm sure she's fine. Have you forgotten whose daughter she is? She has to be fine." It sounded like she was speaking to herself, for she was deeply concerned about her daughter as well.
With an air of depression looming over everyone, Hilde closed her eyes and prayed.
Please take care of my sister and her husband, dear lord. That was when her god replied to her from a dimension she could not see.
â¬The Voice that Shapes the World gives a thumbs up and declares that your prayer has been noted.â
Meanwhile, in the Church of Saint Agnes, the members of the Silver Citadel knight division were pondering over the same concerns. Ash, Hestio, and Ephael visited Bianca's study to ask her if she had any information.
"Big Sister! Have you heard from Sister Ailette or Brother Tesilid yet?"
"You don't think they were in an accident, do you?" Hestio asked. "Or maybe they caused the accident... What do you think, Lady Bianca?"
"Will we be paid as per usual this month?"
"Your salary will not be affected, Sir Ephael." Bianca didn't lose her characteristic composure, even when the three men barged into her study without notice. Neatly placing the document she had been composing to the side, she remarked, "I've actually been looking into the information regarding Allie and Sir Tesilid."
"Really?"
"How?"
While Hestio and Ephael remained confused, Ash seemed to have come to his own conclusion, snapping his fingers in realization. "I know! Wevrille Island is in the Wallenstein duchy, so we can ask Brother Ray!"
And that is how the news reached the knight's quarters of the Vinchester Kingdom. Prinz was shocked when he heard what was going on from Bianca, so he headed straight to Raewyn the moment his shift was over. It was a blessing that the two were staying in the same dorm, as they were both royal knights.
"Raewyn, Raewyn!"
"Prinz?" Raewyn asked, taken aback by the frantic greeting. "What's the matter? Why are you in such a hurry?"
"I have a favor to ask! Please find out if anyone went missing in your fief!"
"Missing? Who's missing?"
"My sister!"
"What?!" Raewyn exclaimed, now matching the other knight's panic. "Tell me everything you know!"
"Allie went to Wevrille Island for a holiday, then disappeared with that master of the holy sword guy."
Raewyn nodded and promised, "I will look into this right away."
Although it was the middle of the night, Raewyn didn't hesitate to use a teleportation stone, acting so quickly that Prinz didn't even get the chance to suggest he tag along. A number of hours passed when Raewyn returned from his fief in the early morning.
"P-Prinz," uttered Raewyn, looking even more frantic than he was when he crushed the teleportation stone. Before Prinz could ask what was going on, Raewyn seemed to be swimming in helplessness as he murmured, "Wevrille Island is gone."
"What...?"
It was only then that those closest to Ailette and Tesilid found out that a dungeon burst had consumed their holiday destination.
â
Days turned into weeks until finally...
"Whew."
Tesilid sighed with relief. He had finally reached the far end of the Demon Realm landfill, and he could now make out the exotic dark purple aura wavering in the sky in the distance. It had taken him two months to reach the demarcation line. He couldn't even begin to process the hardships he had gone throughâfrom the mountains of trash that continued to sink and drift in all directions, to the garbage monsters that relentlessly attacked him, even a brief break was impossible to enjoy. He was forced to be constantly alert while his senses worked overtime.
The best he could manage was short naps to somewhat recover his strength, and there were a couple of times he almost died... Though, he never told Ailette how much he was struggling. This was a difficult place to survive from the start, so the Demon Realm landfill remained in its usual state despite the deadly genre breach penalty.
I think Allie has been in her dungeon for thirty-five days. Time in the dumpster didn't flow at a regular pace, so he'd been calculating time in the real world based on the timeline that Ailette had been updating him with. Around two weeks had passed in the real world, which was more than enough time to make her friends and family worry. Moreover...
Walpurgis Night is approaching. The Grand Festival of the Demons was going to start disrupting conditions in the Human Realm any day now, kind of like a precautionary omen.
But Tesilid didn't have time to worry about that because solving their problems at hand was far more critical. After walking endlessly, when Tesilid finally reached the aurora of the demarcation line, he halted before crossing it. He knew that he was about to enter the world of demons, but he had no idea which demon's fief he was going to find himself in. It was time to take the leap.
As if the aurora was a door rather than an apparition of shimmering light, the young man placed his palm firmly upon it. He paused and murmured to himself, "I really hope I land in a dungeon where I can earn some money."
Despite all he had been through, this was his primary concern. He was about to take the final step, when he stopped himself again.
"Oops."
Something he'd missed crossed his mind. He quickly dug his hand into the inventory, for he needed to be prepared when entering the Demon Realm as a regular, uncorrupted human. After awkwardly putting on the leather harness under his outfit, he stepped through to the Demon Realm with an uncomfortable look on his face.
â
It'd been thirty-five days since I started my quest on the Pilgrim's Path. Every day I was forced to walk for over ten hours while dragging a massive cross behind me through endless snowstorms, battling gatekeepers that appeared periodically and only pausing to camp at night and recover my strength.
It was the same routine day after day, during which time I exchanged brief messages with Tesilid, mainly updating each other on our current situations.
â¦I just left the dumpster of the Demon Realm. I'm still exploring to find out what dungeon I'm in.â§
â¦Well done. Make sure you take care of yourself and don't forget to wear The Dream Demon's Harness as you look around.â§
â¦Yes... I'm wearing it right now. How are you doing?â§
â¦I think I will arrive at the eleventh gate today.â§
There would be hours between each of these messages, for it was getting increasingly difficult to reply to each other right away. The main reason was due to the sporadic flow of time in the dumpster of the Demon Realm, which made it impossible for us to schedule precise times to talk. Moreover, I was sure he was getting attacked nonstop by the trash monsters, despite the fact that he never wrote about them.
We couldn't afford to become careless about our surroundings, so our messages naturally became more sparse. I was drying the ink on my notebook when I suddenly received messages from the gods.
â¬The Scale that Judges Souls isn't satisfied with how matter-of-fact your messages are.â
â¬The Critic for Balance warns you that he's going to rip out your message again if you're too clingy.â
"Sure, sure."
Come to think of it, Tesilid and I had been exchanging very dry notes, as if we agreed on an unspoken rule. Frankly, I wasn't sure what kind of headspace Tesilid was in. I had no idea if he thought my last message crossed the line or not, but I didn't want to ask through the notebook.
This was something I wanted to speak to him about in person. I wanted to look into his eyes and capture each and every emotion on his face so that I could cherish the moment forever. That was why our messages were short.
Snap.
Shutting the notebook as soon as the ink dried, I placed it back in the inventory and stood up. I walked toward the triumphal arch I could just make out in the distance. It took crossing three hills before I finally arrived at the eleventh gate.
"Whew..."
I'd defeated ten saints including Balkus Odrek and Saintess Lucrecia, so I knew who was to come since there were a total of eleven saints within the religion of Order and Goodness. Hence, I shouted the name of the last saint, "Show yourself, Myu Elinas!"
Waiting to meet a materialization of Muriel, the Divine Watchmaker, I clenched my fist with anticipation.
"Huh...?"
But something unexpected happened.
Ding!
â¬Â«System» You automatically win this battle as the gatekeeper is not present.â
â¬Â«System» Congratulations. You have acquired the right to pass the eleventh gate of [The Pilgrim's Path]. Would you like to collect your reward?â
"Oh... Umm, okay."
The victory was forfeited to me. I awkwardly held out my hand, and a map fluttered onto my palm.
â¬Â«MISC» [Map of the Order and Goodness Divine Emissary's Grave].
A map that shows where the Order and Goodness Divine Emissary was buried 500 years ago. Many pagans were buried alive along with the Divine Emissary. Go there and console their souls.â
The reward this time was different from the others I'd received so far. Placing the map in my inventory, I thought about how fortunate it was that Myu Elinas hadn't shown up.
That means she still doesn't know that I'm a pagan. This thought naturally prompted a more concerning realization.
If the saintess is not at the temple, then where is her soul right now?