"Well then, Eugene Santafield-san. Once again, welcome to the Holy Capital of Arshaam. Your arrival was a little noisy, but I'm glad there were no serious injuries."
The Destiny Oracle, Orianne-sama, spoke with a smile.
I, along with Sumire, Miguel, and Claude, were guided to a room inside the Saint Anna Grand Cathedral.
It was a fairly large conference room, with Orianne-sama present, as well as Sara and Captain Robert.
Of course, there were Holy Knights acting as guards too, but not in great numbers.
"Thank you for making time for me, Orianne-sama." (Eugene)
I began by expressing my gratitude.
"It's no problem. After all, the Throne Angel, Gargarinlaila-sama, spoke of you. And besides, the Holy Nation of Caldia is indebted to you for fighting the Great Demonic Beast, the Dark Bird Raum." (Orianne)
From her expression, it didn't seem like the Destiny Oracle was implying anything in particular.
However, aside from Captain Robert and Sara, the gazes of the younger Holy Knights toward me remained as harsh as ever.
(Come to think of it… I don't see Lily or Captain Jacqueline anywhere.) (Eugene)
They were comrades who had once fought the Great Demonic Beast together with me.
I wonder how they are doing.
"Eugene. So…what's the reason you came here?" (Sara)
Sara asked me. Her tone felt more distant than it had in the past.
"I want to borrow your strength, Sara. I want you to come with me." (Eugene)
"...Are you serious? There's no way I, one of the Eight Holy Maidens, could side with the Empire." (Sara)
"That's not it. I want to stop the war. I need your help for that." (Eugene)
"Stop the war…? How exactly…? Don't tell me you're planning to negotiate directly with Empress Airi?" (Sara)
"Yeah, that's right." (Eugene)
"Listen…even for you, Eugene, that's going to be difficult. You might not even be granted an audience in the first place…" (Sara)
Sara was about to continue when…
"Don't be absurd! Such nonsense!"
"You think you alone can stop this war!?"
"We will never allow you to take a Holy Maiden away with such foolish talk!!"
The younger Holy Knights around Sara all glared sharply at me at once.
(This feels kind of like…back when the student council members used to direct hostility toward me…) (Eugene)
An oddly irrelevant thought crossed my mind.
"Everyone, calm down. Eugene is, after all, Empress Airi's childhood friend…and until three years ago, her lover. Aside from Prime Minister Catherine, he might be the only one who could speak to her as an equal." (Sara)
"...…"
The younger Holy Knights fell silent at those words.
Something about what Sara said caught my attention.
"I can't be the only one. You were close to Airi too, Sara. And Sumire…" (Eugene)
Airi, as part of the student council enforcement division, should have gotten along well with Sara.
However…
"I can't. I…don't have the confidence to talk to her anymore." (Sara)
The dark tone in Sara's voice gave me a sense of foreboding.
An awkward silence followed.
Even so, the Destiny Oracle had been strangely quiet all this time.
I expected her to ask me more questions.
"Well, fine. Then how exactly are you planning to meet with Empress Airi? With your current status, it won't be easy, will it?" (Sara)
I looked to Claude at Sara's words.
"Claude will fly me on his wyvern to just outside the Imperial Capital. From there, I'll infiltrate the Einherjar Palace on my own." (Eugene)
"Whoa, Eugene. You serious?" (Claude)
Claude's eyes widened at my words. Didn't I tell him?
"Too difficult?" (Eugene)
"Of course it's difficult. The surroundings of the capital are so heavily guarded by the Imperial Guard Fleet that not even an ant could slip in illegally, plus magical soldiers patrol around the clock. Security has been airtight ever since the previous Emperor was assassinated. Slipping through will be a huge challenge. If you're spotted, they'll chase you all the way out of Imperial territory for sure. If you're caught, it's torture and then execution." (Claude)
I hesitated, wondering what to say, when Claude continued…
"…Still, it's a whole lot easier compared to infiltrating the palace where the Empress is. I'll do it." (Claude)
"I appreciate it." (Eugene)
Claude gave a wry smile and agreed.
"Infiltrating the Einherjar Palace alone… Can you really do that?"
I heard one of the younger Holy Knights mutter in suspicion.
"I can. I know every back alley of the capital, and I have the palace's layout memorized. This is far easier compared to facing Divine Beasts in the Zenith Tower." (Eugene)
I declared this straight to the Holy Knight.
"At the very least…he doesn't seem to be lying."
They apparently used magic to detect lies.
"So…what do you want me to do? Do you want me to go to the capital with you?" (Sara)
"Holy Maiden-sama, you mustn't! It's far too dangerous!"
A nearby Holy Knight reacted in alarm to Sara's words.
I shook my head.
"No, Sara. You, Sumire, and Miguel should go on ahead and wait in the Dungeon City. I'll explain everything there." (Eugene)
"Huh? Really? So Sara-chan and I won't be together with you?" (Sumire)
Sumire, who had been listening quietly until now, spoke up.
"I am not going to the capital with you?" (Sara)
Sara also looked surprised.
"There's no way I'm taking you into the capital right now, Sara." (Eugene)
I had no intention of putting her in that much danger.
"Then what exactly am I supposed to help with?" (Sara)
Sara's question was reasonable.
"I'll tell you once we're in the Dungeon City." (Eugene)
"I don't know what you're plotting…but fine. You better explain later." (Sara)
Sara still agreed even when looking slightly baffled.
But there were others who weren't satisfied.
"What are you planning to have Sara-sama do!?"
"Explain yourself! You're not planning to make her the Empire's hostage, are you!?"
"We can't trust the son of the Imperial Sword! Tell us the truth!!"
The young Holy Knights pressed me relentlessly.
Of course, they weren't wrong to be suspicious.
(This is bad…) (Eugene)
Naturally, I intended to explain everything to Sara later, but I couldn't say it here and now.
And the Holy Knights didn't seem like they would be convinced.
As I was at a loss…
The Destiny Oracle, who had remained silent until now, finally spoke.
——My beloved children.
"!?"
It was like being struck by lightning all over my body.
Before I realized it, I had sprung to my feet and taken a step back.
(Damn it.) (Eugene)
I quickly looked around.
That wasn't the kind of behavior you should show in a meeting with two of the Eight Holy Maidens.
I was about to say something in my defense…when I froze.
Every single Holy Knight present was kneeling before Orianne-sama.
Even Holy Maiden Sara.
And that's when I realized…who the voice belonged to.
Before saying a word, I followed Sara and the others' example and knelt.
——You may relax.
It was a strange voice.
I was sure it was the first time I ever heard it, yet it felt nostalgic somehow.
And just by listening, it forcibly made me absolutely certain that this voice's owner was someone I could never oppose.
A voice from the heavens…belonging to one on a completely different plane.
I noticed Claude was kneeling like the others.
Sumire and Miguel, on the other hand, looked around in confusion.
(Should I say something to those two…?) (Eugene)
As I hesitated to speak…
——You may speak, Eugene Santafield.
Orianne-sama's mouth spoke words that felt as if they had been read straight from my mind.
No…she did read them.
After all, the one before me was…
——Come to think of it, I haven't introduced myself. I am the Destiny Goddess, Ilia Olympus.
The Goddess worshipped by the Goddess Church on the South Continent…had descended.