Chapter 355 – The Imprisoned
The most developed basic science in the empire is none other than astronomy.
The national symbol is the sun, and the imperial family claims to be of heavenly descent.
Moreover, Estella, the deity worshiped by Celestialism, the most powerful religion, is even the god of stars and the sky.
It was inevitable that astronomy would not develop in order to secure the legitimacy and justification of the ruling power, including the imperial family and the church.
The resulting cultural influence can be easily seen throughout the empire.
Typically, the Empire’s most famous arena, the Arena of Prominence, was named after the prominence emitted by the blazing sun.
The names of the buildings, including the Palace of Dawn, the Palace of Light, and the Palace of Dusk, which are palaces where the direct descendants of the imperial family reside, were also inspired by light and sky.
Therefore, the purpose of most scenic spots in the empire can be inferred to some extent just by hearing their names.
Black spot.
Even in the sun that always burns hot, there are dark parts.
Likewise, the majority of the people of the empire are absolutely loyal to the imperial family, but traitors who defy the order of the empire inevitably appear.
Reactionaries who are dissatisfied with the current system have always existed.
Even if it is an empire, it cannot be completely free from such problems.
Of course, traitors who disturb the peace of the empire usually meet a miserable end through a public execution ceremony held in the central square.
The nature of the crime and the risk are too great to be executed gracefully.
Without hesitation, Alicia took her steps towards the underground prison to permanently isolate high-class criminals from society, where death itself could become a sanctuary.
“Black spot… “I’ve only heard about it, but this is my first time seeing it in person.”
“I’m sorry, Your Majesty. Because I said something unnecessary. “It is okay to ignore the sinner’s request.”
Leona lowers her head as if she is sorry.
“Ugh, no. Because I might have something important to say. You should listen to it once. “I had to dig up information at some point anyway.”
Alicia responded to her by shaking her head.
Ramiel is an apostle of Eclipse who has a deep relationship with Wolfgang, and is a demon with significant ties to Alicia herself.
There is too much information to be revealed to just keep him locked up in prison.
As soon as Ramiel came to her senses, Alicia was so intrigued by the fact that the person she was looking for was none other than herself that her fatigue from the hard work was momentarily forgotten.
The Palace of the Sun, the imperial palace of the Empire.
It is a space where no one can easily enter, and a place that is almost like a fortress due to the ancient magic that has been accumulated over a thousand years.
The sunspot was located deep underground in the imperial palace.
There is a bit of irony in the fact that the place where the most serious criminals are imprisoned is adjacent to the space where the emperor, the sun of the empire, resides.
Is it an expression of confidence? Or is it the greatest punishment for those guilty of high treason?
Even though the longed-for emperor’s neck is so close that they can reach it with just a stretch of their hand, sinners can never achieve their goal.
Forever.
“This is it.”
“Yes.”
“Hmm, it looks like a place straight out of a fairy tale.”
Alicia lightly brushed her hair down with her graceful gesture.
Even the dukes, the highest-ranking nobles in the empire, could never enter this area without permission, but an exception was made for the immediate descendants of the imperial family.
The direct descendants of the imperial family are noble beings who are not bound by laws or anything like that.
No one can block their steps.
“Oh oh… “
The manager, wearing a large, black hood reminiscent of a grim reaper, bowed deeply towards Alicia, contrary to his ominous appearance.
It was even questionable whether the person was actually human as their age and gender could not be guessed from their voice. Even such a mysterious being was extremely polite to the royal family.
Her manager, who soon realized that Alicia’s business was inside her black spot, tried to dissuade her with a pleading tone.
“This is no place for the Exalted One to set foot… “
“It’s cruel. “Do you dare to go against Her Highness’s will?”
In the end, I quietly stepped aside in response to Leona’s words.
—Sleuth… !
Then the darkness blocking the entrance split in two and a path opened.
It was only then that some kind of seal that was distorting the space itself, which was not simply isolated by an iron door or something, was lifted.
“Let’s go in.”
“Yes.”
One might feel fear as it looks like the entrance to an abyss.
Two women casually enter inside without any change in their expressions.
The manager whispered a warning to them.
“Please keep this in mind… “The descendants of the great man, please do not listen to the whispers of the unclean beings imprisoned here.”
The inside of the prison was dark and cool.
There is no foul odor that would normally be present in a prison, and there are no visible pests such as rats or bugs. Except for the temperature, the environment can be said to be comfortable.
It seemed like the environment was too much for traitors.
The two women soon understood what the manager’s warning meant.
“Hehe… Hehe… “
“Oh, Your Majesty, the great emperor. Please kill me!”
“Person… Is it a person? Anyone is fine. Please say something… !”
The more you step, the more you hear noises that begin to echo.
What was blocking the cell was not an iron bar, but a dark mass with a similar texture to the one that had sealed the entrance.
Criminals would go berserk when they see two women visiting a dark prison.
All they notice is that someone has come. Judging by the lack of further reaction, it appears that the structure was designed so that the outside cannot be seen from inside the cell.
Although there seemed to be no particular torture or physical abuse, the majority of the criminals appeared to be quite normal.
—Mutter, mutter, mutter…
“Wilson. Are you there? Ah… Without you, I… “
“Ahhhhh! “Someone!”
“I’d rather be tortured!”
“It’s as if even flirting is not okay. What are the standards? Unknown soldiers looking for the whereabouts of the medicine bag. Notice to give… “
Most people seemed to have already lost their minds.
Even those who seemed fine had one thing in common: they were all complaining of tremendous mental pain.
“Your Highness, would you like me to cover your ears?”
“I’m fine. “I don’t mind this much.”
—Ttogakttogak
Alicia looked at the criminals trapped inside the cell with calm eyes.
She soon saw the face of an old, grayish man and frowned.
“That person… Jack of Blades?”
A murderer so famous that he appears in history books.
He was a crazy knight who was active hundreds of years ago, and he carried out indiscriminate massacres near the islands. At some point, his whereabouts became unknown, and even after his activities ceased, he was a being who terrified countless people of the empire for a long time.
Its notoriety is such that it still remains as a ghost story.
It is common for people to age more slowly if their mana level is high, but unless they are long-lived species, there is a clear limit to their lifespan.
Unless one becomes a transcendent, an ordinary human cannot live for hundreds of years.
But what on earth is the man in front of me?
“How many years has this been going on? How much time has passed? Every time the heart beats 100,000 times, there are already 100,000 lines drawn on the wall… “It must have been at least three hundred years.”
Although I am looking at the wall with a blank expression and muttering to myself.
That face was definitely the same as the portrait in the history book. This is because he was once an officially ordained knight, and the picture depicting him remains intact.
A historical figure that transcends hundreds of years.
Leona, who stopped with Alicia, also noticed his presence and muttered with a shocked expression.
“Your Highness, the author is definitely… “
Alicia instinctively noticed that.
Alicia was also a wizard who could manipulate forbidden time magic, so she knew that this phenomenon could actually occur.
—Taaaaak!
Alicia nodded heavily, snapping her fingers to block out the surrounding noise.
“This seems to be a place where the flow of time has stopped.”
“That… “
Leona opens her eyes wide as if she finds it hard to believe.
Yes.
The dark spot is the abyss of confinement that permanently imprisons traitors to the empire.
Even the flow of time is twisted.
Sinners are not even allowed the rest of death.
A voice is heard from Alicia, who realizes that fact and stands there in shock for a while.
“Come this way, princess.”
Unlike the others, he seems to clearly know who Alicia is.
Alicia slowly approached the cold voice she had become quite familiar with as she had watched her closely for a while.
“I have something to say about your master.”
Inside a cell that was bigger and more empty than other cells.
Ramiel, his body exposed in chains, spoke up.
