Chapter 472 – High-ranking Spirits and Royalty

“Indeed, Tephra appears to be a powerful spirit. And this gathering of cleansing energy here… You must be beloved by the people.”

As she stepped down from the carriage, Marl showed a slightly surprised expression.

“Yeah. Tephra is kind, and I like her.”

I said this while letting Seraphina, who had flown over, perch on my shoulder as we exchanged happy smiles.

During the waiting time at the Adventurer Guild and the travel time to get here, I had explained to Marl about Tephra and the ritual site to some extent.

While the ritual site would be good for inviting spirits, I wondered if high-ranking spirits might repel each other, so I thought it would be safer to get mutual consent beforehand.

According to Marl, it shouldn’t be a problem as long as neither shows disrespectful behavior. I also asked Tephra through the communication device and received the response, “No problem. I welcome her.”

Since ordinary spirits rarely strongly repel each other to begin with, my worries might have been unnecessary. Tephra, being a volcano spirit, possesses both fire and earth attributes. Her affinity with water shouldn’t be bad either.

Well, even the spirits gathered around the Moonlight Temple seemed to be quite comfortable.

…Just then, Tephra peeked out from the altar at the back of the ritual site, her face breaking into a smile.

“Oh, you’ve come.”

She said this as she approached us. Marl smiled upon seeing Tephra.

“Nice to meet you, Tephra.”

“Ah, Marl. I’ve heard about you from Theodore.”

When Marl extended her hand for a handshake, Tephra blinked her eyes before breaking into a cheerful smile and taking her hand.

“Deepening friendship in the same way as humans is quite enjoyable indeed.”

“Certainly. I’ve been spending a lot of time with Theodore and the others recently, and doing the same things is fun.”

The two high spirits exchanged friendly smiles.

“My, my. Just being here makes me feel my power increasing.”

Pietro seemed to be in high spirits.

When I looked at Seraphina and Pietro through my monocle, their magical power seemed somehow enriched. Probably due to being near Tephra and Marl. The movements of the surrounding spirits and fairies had also become more active.

On the other hand, even though she’s the Spirit King, there doesn’t seem to be much distinction based on status. Seraphina also appears to interact casually with Tephra and Marl, and they don’t seem to mind either. Well… the classification of Spirit King is probably a boundary created by humans.

Pietro, originally being a cat, seems somewhat different from ordinary spirits too, though he appears to be aiming to become the king of cats.

Just as Tephra and Marl finished their greetings, a carriage arrived at the ritual site.

“Oh, Theodore.”

“I’m glad you’re unharmed.”

“Yes. I’ve just returned from the labyrinth.”

I greeted Old Sigmund and Valentina as they stepped down from the carriage.

“Welcome back, Professor,”

said Charlotte.

“Ah. I’m back.”

Since returning from Baharzard, Old Sigmund and the others have been mainly researching demons, moving between my house and workshop. They’ve been advancing various studies based on the magical technology of Halvaronis and information about the leader from Forset and the others.

Since Charlotte is the current Sealing Shrine Maiden, she needed to properly hear about the spirit tree.

And then… ah, they’re here. The royal castle’s dragon palanquin escorted by the knight order.

The dragon palanquin landed on the ground, and King Melvin and Prince Josiah emerged from within.

“Well done, Theodore. I’m glad to see you’ve returned safely.”

“Thank you.”

The royal family is closely involved with the resealing of the Moonlight Temple. Apparently, with the Spirit King making an appearance, King Melvin himself had to come.

And it wasn’t just the knight order escorting King Melvin. Corulis had apparently come along as part of the escort too. Naturally, Princess Stephania and Princess Adriana, and then… Princess Elham were also together. They’re serving as representatives of the kings of Silvatoria and Baharzard respectively.

“Hello, Theodore.”

“Yes, Your Highness Stephania.”

I welcomed the arriving members of royalty.

Princess Elham went over to Marl and knelt to greet her.

“It’s a pleasure to meet you, Marl-sama. I am Elham Baharzad. As one of the people living in the southern plains and deserts, I offer my daily gratitude for your blessings.”

“Hehe, thank you, Elham.”

Marl showed Princess Elham an unclouded smile. The Spirit King’s friendliness seemed to surprise Princess Elham somewhat. While many spirits have bright personalities, Marl is no exception.

Well then. Now that everyone has gathered… I should first introduce those meeting for the first time, then talk about what I’ve learned and my speculations regarding the spirit tree inside the Moonlight Temple.

“…I see. So that’s what a spirit tree is.”

After moving to the lodging facility next to the ritual site and explaining what I had discussed earlier with Marl while drinking tea, King Melvin nodded quietly.

“So, Professor, you believe similar plants are cultivated in Beriondora as well?”

Charlotte said.

“Yeah. Though I don’t know what’s happened to them since they fell into the demons’ hands… even if they’ve been destroyed, we might have found a way to restore them.”

When I answered this, Charlotte brought her hands to her chest, closed her eyes, and nodded.

Yes. This is assuming my speculation that spirit trees were also planted in Beriondora is correct… but protecting that place with contract magic would be the role of the Sealing Shrine Maiden.

Although successive shrine maidens had lost the original meaning of the ritual, the aspect of using the ritual for protection remained unchanged. What Charlotte, who inherited the position of Sealing Shrine Maiden, ultimately aims for lies there.

“However, that would have to wait until after we’ve repelled Valros and the others, wouldn’t it?”

“That’s right. They’ll likely make their move when the spirits’ seals temporarily release… and if they’re preserving their forces in Beriondora, it would be best to whittle them down as much as possible before striking directly.”

While it’s often said that defense is easier than offense… when the enemy’s strength is unknown, focusing on interception is more advantageous. I had a similar discussion with Rosemary before, and both King Melvin and King Eberhart seem to agree with that.

Valros and the others will likely attack us, but at the same time, it’s also an opportunity for us to estimate the enemy’s strength and reduce it.

“Hmm. How is the demon countermeasure progressing?”

When King Melvin asked, Old Sigmund made a pained expression.

“We can prepare magic tools utilizing the Moon Goddess’s Blessing, but magic tools alone won’t be able to suppress the power of high-ranking demons. Also, while we’re developing magic tools anticipating the scenario where the seal is released, now that the leader’s characteristics have been identified… whether they’ll be effective against the leader would only be known in actual combat. Even if we use them, we’d need sufficient combat strength to defeat the leader in battle first.”

Magic tools designed anticipating combat with the leader. In other words… they’re magic stones with the same magical properties as Dullahan, incorporating contract magic and sealing techniques. If we defeat the leader in a duel, we might be able to seal their soul’s characteristics and destroy them…

However, if we lose the duel, there’s a side effect where the same effect would apply to the user, making it a somewhat risky magic tool. By bearing risk as contract magic, the spell formula is strengthened.

Well… if we duel a high-ranking demon and lose, we’d probably be dead anyway, so you could say the risk is the same.

Including all factors, this is merely a secondary measure, and we should basically operate with the premise of not allowing the seal to be released.

Still, having insurance for emergencies is reassuring.

King Melvin, Prince Josiah, Old Sigmund, and others had rather troubled expressions… but I understood what they were thinking. They must feel bad about putting me on the front lines.

“Then, regarding the high-ranking demons, I’d appreciate it if you could continue to entrust their handling to me.”

“…My apologies. We too will provide you with our full support until the decisive battle arrives.”

“Me too. Though I feel inadequate as the Crown Prince for not being able to contribute much… if there’s anything I can help with, please let me know.”

“Thank you.”

At my response, King Melvin and Prince Josiah nodded quietly. Whether it’s Old Sigmund or Valentina… they’re clearly concerned, so I decided to change the subject.

“Speaking of which, I hear Duke Driscoll will be returning to his territory soon.”

“Yes. We were discussing sending the Duke back to his territory. The western sea is a scenic place.”

“That’s right. I’m actually looking forward to it. I might even do some preliminary scouting of the islands.”

When I said this with a smile, King Melvin looked somewhat lonely but nodded with a small smile to match mine.

“Hmm. May I accompany you as well? I need to understand the current situation in more detail and discuss it with the other three… and Theodore seems to be the key.”

The one who said this was Marl.

“I don’t mind.”

After briefly exchanging glances with King Melvin… I turned back to Marl and nodded, upon which she showed an unclouded smile.