Chapter 147 - Division of Labor

Count Staviana looked up at the mirror room's ceiling and murmured,

"... I could swear something just flashed past."

Ilea nodded.

"That was Maphel’tan. He must have gone to the eastern borderlands to summon the Apostle Beris."

The count spoke without expression.

"He must have been in a hurry, leaving without so much as a glance our way."

He wasn't saying it out of hurt feelings. Maphel’tan usually gave him at least one instruction whenever they met, but today he had left without a word. Whatever was happening, it seemed urgent indeed.

Ilea spoke.

"It's probably because of Shaperia instead. He would have needed to leave the mirror room quickly, before she noticed us."

Shaperia still knew nothing about the forces at Maphel’tan's command. If she discovered that the count or Ilea served him, it would put "Yohan" in a very awkward position. Both belonged to "Maphel’tan's" camp while also being "Yohan's" political partners.

Anyone who followed that line of reasoning would inevitably question the relationship between Maphel’tan and Yohan. Shaperia, too, would naturally begin to doubt Yohan's piety. Rigid as she was, the shock would certainly be considerable.

Maphel’tan wanted no such development. He intended to keep the whole truth hidden for the time being.

The count folded his arms and hummed softly in thought.

"So Shaperia still doesn't know the Watcher's identity. As long as she's working with us, the truth will soon come out. Are you prepared for that?"

Shaperia was a promising holy knight and a favored child of the moon. There wasn't a cleric on the continent who didn't know her name, and her devotion was already renowned. If someone like her discovered Yohan's identity, disaster was certain to follow. That was the count's view.

Ilea smiled gently.

"I'm sure Yohan has thought it all through. He always has."

The count murmured, his expression somber,

"... I trust the Watcher's abilities, but something makes me uneasy. It's just a feeling."

Ilea's expression grew calm.

"Don't worry. Even in the unlikely event that something goes wrong, I can handle it."

The count nodded.

"I'll make preparations of my own, just in case."

Ilea's eyes curved in a smile.

"Good. Now that we've settled that, shall we get moving too?"

They needed to gather the kingdom's forces to defeat the Apostle Beris. There was a great deal to do.

The count started walking.

"We'll be busy again. Let's go."

The two left the mirror room at once. Serin cautiously emerged from her hiding place around a corner.

The mirror room had seen many more visitors lately. For Serin, who had spent her whole life alone, it was an unfamiliar experience. She still felt awkward about the situation, but the change wasn't entirely unwelcome. At least she wasn't lonely.

A faint smile touched her lips.

* * *

At the kingdom's eastern edge, a vast desert covered the borderlands adjoining the Empire. Whichever way one turned, there was nothing to see but dry grains of sand. Not a trace of life remained.

The hot, arid winds allowed no breath of life, and the cold winds that swept in at night stole even the smallest budding warmth. Most of the kingdom's east was a dead wasteland.

Only one place was different.

Hazara. Built upon an oasis, the city was the east's sole source of life. Amid the vast dead wasteland, Hazara alone held life and vitality.

Green land spread around the circular oasis. Enormous palms had taken root there, and cacti of every size grew here and there, adding to its beauty. Ochre buildings rising throughout the city lent it a warm air.

Even on cold desert nights, Hazara overflowed with life and warmth. There wasn't even a shadow beneath its sunshine. Demons did not exist in the east.

That was normally the case.

Today was an exception.

A pitch-black demonic hand reached out of a clear mirror. A hideous being emerged, its red eyes sweeping the surroundings.

"A church?"

A prayer hall of familiar design met his eyes. A pentagram hung above the dais. Maphel’tan had arrived in a church in Hazara.

Shaperia, who had come with him, chewed her lip.

"... Why did it have to be another church?"

She was committing the sacrilege of entering a church with a Demon. They had departed from a church, only to arrive at another. Too ashamed to lift her head, Shaperia couldn't bring herself to look at the Great Saint's pentagram.

"It can't be helped. We can travel only through mirrors, and mirrors are luxuries. You generally won't find one in a building that isn't a mansion or a church."

In short, it was difficult to transfer to ordinary places such as stables or breweries. Buildings used by commoners had no mirrors hanging in them.

Shaperia sneered.

"So even an Apostle isn't much after all. Bound by restrictions at every turn... You're nothing more than beings who falsely claim godhood."

Maphel’tan chuckled.

"You seem full of complaints. Would you have preferred some noble young lady's bedroom? Come to think of it, that would have suited me better too. I could have enjoyed a few shrill screams while I was there. I don't know if you're aware, but a woman's cries are a particular delicacy to us."

Disgust filled Shaperia's face. She glared at him.

"Every time I hear your voice, I feel as though my ears are bleeding. Stop spouting nonsense and let's get on with what we came to do."

Maphel’tan shrugged.

"Well, that's what I wanted too. First, change into these."

He tossed some clothes onto the floor.

"What are those?"

"Your attire doesn't fit in here. It's bound to attract needless suspicion."

Shaperia was wearing light armor. No one dressed like that in the eastern desert.

She gave a disbelieving laugh.

"Thorough to the last detail. Just what I'd expect from a Demon."

She began taking off her clothes, removing her armor and undoing her underclothes. Pale skin came into view.

Maphel’tan cleared his throat and looked away.

"You certainly strip without hesitation. Have you forgotten you're a woman?"

Shaperia snorted.

"Would you feel ashamed to be naked in front of an animal or an object?"

To her, Maphel’tan was nothing more than a beast. There was nothing to be embarrassed about.

Maphel’tan cackled.

"Amusing. You got me there."

Shaperia scowled.

"Stop laughing. I don't want to hear it. Just take me to this earth dragon or whatever it is."

She had already finished changing. Thin cloth garments now draped her body.

'A soldier through and through, I suppose.'

Soldiers were quick at changing clothes, but Shaperia was far quicker than most. Privately impressed, Maphel’tan spoke.

"To be precise, we're going to take an earth dragon's egg. Meet me in front of the oasis in the city center."

The two left the church at once. As soon as they stepped outside, Maphel’tan vanished, concealing himself with Night Immersion. He couldn't stroll through the city in a Demon's body.

* * *

Beneath the moonlight, the enormous oasis dominated the surroundings. Its clear lake reflected the moonlight, scattering a brilliant radiance.

Shaperia stared ahead, looking a little dazed. The sight before her was breathtaking. As she stood briefly entranced, a chilling voice spoiled the moment.

"So even a tomboy like you has a sensitive side."

Maphel’tan had appeared without her noticing. Shaperia spoke with an irritated look.

"Enough of your nonsense. Explain why you wanted to meet here."

"Because that lake was created by the earth dragon's egg."

"What do you mean?"

Maphel’tan explained matter-of-factly.

"The east was originally a dead wasteland unfit for human habitation. That changed some six hundred years ago, when a dying earth dragon laid an egg here. Its egg breathed life into this parched land. It gave birth to the oasis, whose waters in turn spread greenery. People naturally gathered and built a city. It is no exaggeration to say that everything you see is the earth dragon's grace."

Earth dragons were divine beasts that nurtured the soil. The egg it had laid possessed similar power.

Shaperia quietly turned his words over.

"... The earth dragon's grace."

Maphel’tan chuckled.

"Why? Don't tell me you're beginning to respect the earth dragon."

The Church of the Great Saint denied all divine beings other than the moon. To its followers, divine beasts were no different from demonic beasts wielding aberrant powers. They could never be objects of reverence.

Shaperia's expression hardened.

"Grace is a miracle that only the moon can bestow. It is no word to apply to a demonic beast."

Maphel’tan chuckled.

"Well, I expected as much from a fanatic like you."

Shaperia spoke coldly.

"So what is your point? Are you saying the demonic beast's egg is lodged at the bottom of that lake?"

Maphel’tan made a small sound of admiration.

"Very close. Until recently, the earth dragon's egg did indeed lie dormant in that lake."

Shaperia looked puzzled.

"Until recently?"

Maphel’tan nodded.

"By now, a fisherman will have hauled it up."

In the original novel, an ordinary fisherman discovered the earth dragon's egg. It was immediately put up for auction, and a noble bought it for a hefty sum. As a result, Hazara slowly fell to ruin. The oasis dried up, and the green land became a parched, dead wasteland. That was how events unfolded in the original novel.

Shaperia spoke.

"We'll have to find that fisherman."

Maphel’tan hummed thoughtfully.

"This is where the problem begins. The egg's whereabouts are unclear."

"Didn't you just say a fisherman hauled it up?"

"He may have sold it already. As for the value of an earth dragon's egg... Well, I'd only tire my mouth explaining it a hundred times, so let's move on."

Even Maphel’tan, who had read the original novel, didn't know exactly where the egg was now. The fisherman might still have it, or he might already have sold it. There was also a chance it had crossed into the Empire and was being auctioned off. Even a reader of the original novel couldn't know its timeline in such detail.

After a moment's thought, Shaperia said,

"We'll need some information. I'll have to ask around about the egg once the sun rises."

Maphel’tan's mouth stretched into a satisfied grin.

"You have a decent head for the job. That is precisely what I was going to tell you to do. Starting tomorrow, look into the earth dragon's egg."

Shaperia's brow furrowed slightly.

"Alone?"

Maphel’tan nodded.

"I have other things to do."

He couldn't work alongside Shaperia. At sunrise, Maphel’tan would turn into Yohan. He could hardly let her see that.

His figure slowly began to fade. He was about to vanish again.

"W-wait!"

He meant to dump her in the unfamiliar east and disappear on his own. Shaperia was at a loss.

Maphel’tan looked up at the sky.

"The sun will be rising soon. Do your part. I'll find you again when night falls."

His sinister voice dispersed into the predawn gloom. Shaperia stared incredulously at the spot where he had stood.