Chapter : 135
Everyone stared, eyes wide, at the rectangular afterimage floating in midair.
The light emitted from the magic device gradually grew clearer, slowly coming into focus.
Before long, the eyes of everyone in the grand conference hall widened.
On the screen appeared an unbelievable number of Deermants.
Count Secile, who had been unable to take his eyes off the scene, whispered to another meritorious noble beside him.
“Weren’t Deermants originally… monsters that looked like that?”
The other man answered blankly.
“I’m not sure myself. Since they’re supposed to be monsters, I imagined something far more ferocious-looking…”
“Gentlemen, don’t be deceived by their mild appearance. Those creatures are extraordinarily vicious monsters.”
Baron Wheeler, who had been watching their exchange, stepped in. Count Secile’s eyes widened.
“Vicious? Have they appeared in the Empire before?”
“Indeed they have. It was a long time ago, but I understand they lived around the Haren territory for several thousand years before suddenly disappearing about three hundred years ago.”
Count Secile alternated his gaze between the floating transmission screen and Baron Wheeler, his expression shocked.
“Is that so…? But where did you even learn something like that? This is the first I’ve heard of it.”
Baron Wheeler lowered his voice.
“Once, long ago, I entered the Grand Temple. I heard it there.”
“The Grand Temple?”
“Yes. There’s a statue of those creatures in the courtyard, so I asked about it. Cardinal Paul himself explained that they were extremely cruel and terrifying monsters.”
Count Secile swallowed unconsciously.
Baron Wheeler, looking oddly pleased, continued talking.
“Well, this is the sort of thing you’d learn easily if you searched a few books. It’s not classified information. Strangely enough, though, not many people seem to know it.”
Nodding, Count Secile fixed his gaze back on the floating screen.
Beyond the magic mirror, the number of Deermants seemed endless.
“Isn’t it chilling? That such innocent-looking creatures went around slaughtering civilians indiscriminately.”
“…Slaughtered them?”
“Yes. I’ve heard they can kill humans with ease if they wish. They become especially violent in groups—touch them carelessly, and you wouldn’t even find bones left behind. That’s what the Cardinal said.”
“Then… if such monsters were allowed to multiply to that extent in Haren territory, what in the world was the Temple doing?”
Baron Wheeler whispered back.
“Recently, Deermants began appearing again in Haren territory, so the Cardinal personally had the Creda Tree brought down to Lysion.”
“What? The Creda Tree?”
“Yes. Monsters avoid it. It’s only natural—those cunning creatures are highly sensitive to sacred trees.”
Count Secile nodded.
Now that he’d heard the explanation, the white, deer-shaped creatures seen through the magic mirror no longer looked pure at all.
Just then, someone in a corner of the hall muttered as if they’d been waiting for this moment.
“This is the perfect chance to eradicate those monsters from the Empire, Your Majesty!”
“Indeed! Today shall be the final day for those savage beasts!”
At the same time, tension crept into the scene within the magic mirror.
The screen, which had been showing dozens of Deermants, suddenly shifted.
“Ah—what is that…?”
One of the nobles who noticed something in the new image raised a finger into the air.
Everyone’s attention turned there.
Within the mirror, countless soldiers were shown facing off against the Deermants.
Among them were soldiers wearing imperial uniforms—and that wasn’t all.
Standing among the troops were Duke Haren, who hadn’t shown himself in over a decade, and Sadina, a criminal who had been sentenced to death decades ago but released after a stay of execution.
And finally—
Even Duke Tigeris himself was there.
All of them were remarkable figures, yet none of the nobles’ gazes lingered on them.
They were looking somewhere else entirely.
Within the Deermant herd—
Standing alone, apart from everyone else, was a single figure among the monsters.
It was Selenea Tigeris, the Duke’s daughter.
* * *
“…What are you saying?”
Duke Haren’s face turned deathly pale. Professor Sadina stood frozen, mouth half open.
Deliberately glancing at the magic mirror illuminating us from above, I spoke clearly.
“I said that the Deermants may not be monsters—but sacred beasts.”
Murmurs erupted among the soldiers lined up in formation.
“Sacred beasts? Deermants?”
“W-What on earth is the young lady saying…?”
I slowly turned to face the shocked crowd.
Only Father and Walter remained composed.
A voice echoed in my mind.
[I didn’t expect much, but it still feels bitter. Humans really do find it difficult to believe that we are sacred beasts.]
Kerus’s turquoise eyes gazed indifferently toward the human camp. One by one, the voices of the other Deermants followed.
[At any rate, they’ve clearly mistaken us for monsters.]
[So we’ve lost dozens of our kin over such a ridiculous misunderstanding…]
[Perhaps it’s true that we can reclaim the Spirit Stone after all…]
Their voices were heavy with sorrow.
Clenching my fist beneath my clothes, I raised my lowered gaze.
“I know it’s hard to believe. But it’s all true. Haven’t you found it strange until now?”
Professor Sadina stared at me blankly, while Duke Haren couldn’t take his eyes off me.
“You know that adult Deermants were preemptively hunted so they could be used as an entrance exam task.”
Sadina’s pupils dilated. The soldiers watched the Deermants beside me with grave expressions.
“But every time a hunt took place, the Deermants never retaliated. That’s why you deemed them suitable as tasks for prospective students.”
“……”
“Today was the first time Deermants ever attacked humans. Was it not?”
Sadina slowly closed his mouth. Murmurs rose again among the soldiers.
“Now that I think about it, it was strange. Even the weakest monsters fight back when cornered.”
“They possessed that much mana, yet never once counterattacked…”
“That’s right. Even during the hunts, I kept wondering whether they really were ancient monsters.”
They were right.
Even now, the mana radiating from the Deermants was immense.
Though the sky was overcast and moonlight nearly blocked, the forest appeared bright from the light they emitted.
The murmuring continued.
“The more I think about it, the stranger it gets.”
“They could’ve retaliated anytime… so why didn’t they all this time?”
Gradually, the noise subsided into silence.
At last, Duke Haren—who had remained silent—spoke.
“Selenea.”
I immediately turned toward him.
He stared at me with a grave expression.
“This is no trivial matter. Deermants as sacred beasts… How could creatures long declared monsters possibly be sacred beasts?”
I quickly grasped the meaning behind his words.
The Temple publicly declared Deermants to be monsters long ago. Reversing that claim now wouldn’t be easy.
It would amount to disregarding the Temple’s authority entirely.
But I wouldn’t have started this if I couldn’t prove it.
After a short breath, I replied.
“You’re right, Duke. Deermants have been classified as ancient monsters for decades. They can’t simply be recognized as sacred beasts overnight.”
“……”
“And they shouldn’t be.”
Duke Haren frowned, clearly asking Then what do you want?
Meeting his gaze directly, I continued.
“That’s why I propose conducting a new certification—an open one.”
Duke Haren’s eyes widened. So did everyone else watching.
“Before His Majesty and the citizens of the Empire, let us verify whether the Deermants’ power is closer to divine energy or mana.”
Duke Haren stared at me in shock.
Verifying a creature’s mana was not difficult.
With specialists and a few materials, it could be done quickly.
But this verification put the Temple’s pride on the line.
Re-examining Deermants after declaring them monsters was equivalent to declaring the Temple’s past judgments untrustworthy.
Though diminished from its former glory, Prater remained the most powerful religion in the Empire.
To challenge its certification, one needed to present a price worthy of that challenge.
Glancing sideways at the magic mirror still broadcasting everything, I spoke.
“If, after re-verification, the Deermants are proven not to be sacred beasts, I will take full responsibility for the outcome.”
I looked once at Father and Walter, then faced the mirror directly and continued with the words I had prepared.
“If the Deermants are not sacred beasts, then I will be a person who insulted the Temple’s authority with baseless suspicion.”
A low groan escaped Duke Haren. The murmuring around us grew louder.
“In that case, I, Selenea Tigeris, will renounce all inheritance of my family’s estate.”
Chaos erupted.
“Y-Young lady, what are you saying…?”
“Renounce… the family inheritance?!”
Duke Haren stared at me, his face completely drained of color. Sadina’s eyes looked as though they might pop out at any moment.
But I wasn’t finished.
“And that’s not all. Including the main street of the capital, all businesses I am currently running—and every other asset registered in my name.”
“……”
“I will return them all to the Prater Order as an act of apology.”
