Chapter 99

The Holy Crown Kingdom (2)

“We seem to run into each other a lot in places like this. I think the first time we met was somewhere like this too.”

“Well, I am Urgan’s priestess. Of course I’d frequent places like this, so we’d run into each other a lot.”

“…Is that so?”

As he absentmindedly repeated her words, Rania chuckled and set down the cup she was holding.

‘Perfect. I was getting tired anyway.’

Receiving divine status—the qualification to communicate with a god—meant being one of the nation’s representative figureheads. And that also meant having to deal with all kinds of unwanted encounters.

‘Snakes, all of them.’

In a world where every word carried layered meanings, the people who lived in it were all snakes hiding behind masks.

Fortunately, Rania had the ability to see through their façades with ease.

Rania A‘Shan, Urgan’s priestess, had a slightly different way of perceiving the world from others.

She had the ability to see a person’s true essence.

To her, the world was a shifting tapestry of colorful lines and movement.

Depending on a person’s… ‘value,’ the colors and shapes of those lines would appear differently.

Bright, blazing, and huge—or dark, small, and dim.

She had never perceived people as people. Maybe she did back when she lived a normal human life during her faintly remembered childhood.

Which meant that Aiden Kellermain, the man she saw now, was an exceptionally rare case.

‘…Is that a human face?’

He wasn’t a bundle of dots and lines—he appeared ‘just as he was.’

Everyone else looked like walking masses of flame, but this man alone looked human to her, just like herself.

She had an impulse to reach out and touch him. She was pretty sure she did that the first time they met.

From that very first meeting, she had sensed that there was something special about him.

Still, what surprised her now after seeing him again was—

‘He’s grown a lot.’

That thought came to her as she watched the golden flame pulsating inside Aiden’s body.

Back when they first met, it was so small it looked like a mere speck. It had only been a few months, but now it had clearly grown into a flame the size of a clenched fist.

‘That growth rate is insane.’

Of course, if she were judging by sheer size, there were plenty of people who held much larger flames within them than this man did.

Take Lionhearted and Deathwish, who stayed close to him; the Emperor of the Empire; and the elite warriors of the Great Plains—they all had greater flames.

Looking at them was so blinding that it hurt her eyes, and it was hard to keep them open.

But originally, it was nearly impossible for a flame like that to grow from a mere speck to this size.

Sure, there were those who stumbled upon miraculous fortunes and reached that level. But even then, those were people who had at least dipped a toe into the world of the superhuman from the start.

Aiden Kellermain, on the other hand, had lived a life entirely unrelated to this one.

For beginners, building proficiency is always hard. It’s like the difference between someone who’s trained their body all their life returning to exercise after a break, and a complete novice starting from scratch—the difficulty isn’t even comparable.

And yet.

This man.

Had achieved all this—in just a few months.

“……”

Rania silently watched Aiden.

‘He must have been through a lot.’

If she were to think about what allowed this man to grow so much in such a short time, that sentiment felt most appropriate.

Sure, one might think he was just talented, or that he had some lucky break, or that he trained efficiently and quickly.

But in her eyes—

It wasn’t that he grew quickly because he could do it effortlessly.

He pushed himself because he had taken on a burden that demanded that kind of rapid growth.

He must have been thinking: If I don’t do this…

‘That lunatic who swore to Urgan he’d save the world with his own body.’

With Rania’s eyes that could see a person’s essence, all of that was plain as day.

An odd man who forged a burden too heavy for even a peerless hero to bear, and then offered it up to a god himself.

And yet, the ‘color’ she saw in him wasn’t something grand enough to explain why he’d voluntarily step into something like that.

At his core, this man was fundamentally ordinary and pastoral.

He had no interest in fighting. He was probably the type who’d feel genuine happiness just lazing around at home all day.

And yet.

For some reason—though she didn’t know why—he made that vow. And because of it, he was still doing things that didn’t match his true nature.

He must be exhausted. He had to be struggling.

And things were only going to get worse from here.

“So, what can I help you with?”

“…Sorry?”

“I told you when we first met. If you were still alive, I’d help you.”

Rania smiled faintly as she continued.

“You don’t look dead to me.”

“…You were serious about that?”

Of course she had been.

Rania genuinely felt sorry for this man. She did now, and she probably always would.

Without a doubt.

The moment she saw him, she had spoken those words from that very feeling.

She was well aware that it was a form of affection.

‘…Which is dangerous.’

They said feelings like this were the most dangerous. They tended to evolve into something akin to maternal instinct.

As Rania silently chuckled to herself and mulled over the thought—

“Well then, I won’t hold back.”

Aiden replied with a faint reluctance, then immediately brought up a request.

“Among the participants in this succession ceremony, are there any particularly noteworthy individuals?”

That was an easy one.

All she had to do was scan the room for the people whose colors were burning the brightest.

‘What a distinct bunch.’

Soon after, Aiden let out a wry chuckle.

As he glanced through the individuals Rania pointed out, that thought naturally came to mind.

They truly were unforgettable, the kind of people who’d be hard to get out of your head once you’d seen them.

‘Seems like it’s not that different from the original story.’

For the most part, the lineup didn’t deviate significantly from what Aiden already knew.

But if he had to single out the ones who stood out the most—

‘First Prince, Alester Fansheus Craven.’

A man sitting quietly in a crisp white uniform. A slightly weary smile, dark circles under his eyes, and glasses. He looked like a tired researcher to anyone who saw him, but this man was currently the most promising candidate for the next Pontiff.

‘Third Princess, Milene Lazuli Craven.’

Wearing a full suit of heavy plate armor. On top of that suffocating outfit, her body was wrapped tightly in chains. To this level of anachronism, it almost came across as avant-garde and stylish.

…And, as her title ‘Princess’ suggested, yes—she was a woman, despite that outfit.

‘Twelfth Prince, Julius Epsilon Craven.’

Then there was the white-haired man with drooping eyes, yawning. His uniform was decorated with medals hanging in abundance. Judging by that alone, he had achieved the most impressive ‘results’ in terms of divine power among the candidates.

If you were to name the three most likely to ultimately complete the succession ceremony, it would be these three.

“Isn’t it four?”

“…Sorry?”

“I think you’re the most likely to win.”

“……”

“It’ll be interesting. If you become Pontiff.”

“…I don’t want the job. Doesn’t seem like there’s anything good that comes with it.”

“Then just make up a decent excuse. You’re going to end up participating anyway.”

…Well, that was true.

Aiden let out a dry smile and shifted the topic.

“Priestess, would it be alright if I asked a favor?”

While it was a good sign that the lineup of participants seemed mostly familiar, he figured he might as well try to get some extra help from this person while he was here.

Originally, he would’ve had to sit down face-to-face with each of the candidates and dig deep into their inner selves.

But with this person by his side, that kind of effort could be drastically reduced.

“You hold divine status, so you can see people’s true nature, right?”

“That’s right.”

“Please try to remember the ‘state’ of the people here right now.”

Rania tilted her head.

“Remember it?”

“Yes.”

Aiden smiled as he answered.

“Because later—someone’s going to ‘change.’ For the worse.”

Considering the trait of the ‘traitor’ in Act II that Aiden was aware of, that was something he absolutely needed to verify.

There was probably something hidden inside that person.

And if Rania helped, he’d likely be able to find it without much trouble.

“Well. If you’re talking about someone in a bad state color-wise, I can already see one.”

“…What?”

“Over there.”

When Aiden looked where Rania pointed—

…It certainly wasn’t a scene that could be described any other way.

It was Katya.

Sitting there blankly, unmoving, as someone poured a drink over her head.

At some point, all the chatting guests had fallen silent, now quietly watching the scene unfold. Their faces were filled with confusion. It was a sight that didn’t belong in such a formal and decorous event.

“……”

Aiden took a deep breath.

No, well—he knew what he had to do. But before that—

“…Priestess.”

Aiden spoke in a flat voice.

“Hmm?”

“I don’t really know the internal affairs of the Holy Crown Kingdom, so could you tell me—why would someone do something like that here?”

“My guess? To boost their recognition.”

“Recognition?”

“The succession ceremony is ultimately about proving your excellence to the people. However you do it, standing out gives you an edge.”

“And what does bullying my friend have to do with that?”

“Princess Katya’s a complete punching bag within the Holy Crown Kingdom.”

In reality—

Though nominally the Second Princess, the way she was treated was even worse than the far-off royals with no claim to succession.

The general perception of her was that of a conveniently usable hunting hound.

A monster. A freak. Something repulsive.

“She’s easy to target, so they deliberately stir things up using her. As long as they perform well later, they can spin it however they want.”

“……”

Aiden silently listened and took another deep breath.

“So, before the succession ceremony even begins, they’re pulling stunts like this to build their own image. Got it.”

Rania looked at Aiden with a faint smile.

Once again—

Her vision allowed her to see all kinds of information about people in a visual form. And right now—

“You know, my personality’s been acting a little strange lately.”

The chemical reaction happening inside Aiden’s body was more than enough to pique her interest.

It was fascinating.

If she had to compare it to music, the atmosphere Aiden gave off was like pastoral folk music.

Peace, family, relaxation—he seemed to embody those values.

And yet—

The moment someone near him was harmed, that atmosphere rising from his body changed to something else entirely.

‘…Death metal, maybe? I’ve heard of a genre like that.’

Could a person’s vibe really shift this drastically?

Rania chuckled quietly and asked.

“What are you going to do?”

“Well, if they want to promote themselves, I should help them.”

Aiden replied plainly as he rose from his seat.

“I’ll make sure every single person in the Craven Holy Crown Kingdom hears about it.”

And without a doubt, that was exactly what he intended to do.