Chapter 18 Isabella: Urgent, Urgent, Urgent
The issue with the Evil God's followers was temporarily resolved... but this didn't mean the situation was completely handled. There were simply too many of them, and new leaders would emerge even after the previous ones died.
Their appetite for Mana made them extremely troublesome monsters...
Yet, this didn't mean Yila could journey to the Spirit Realm yet... Before that, he needed to figure out what was meant by, "No worries, Heidlin will find us food. The feast is near!"
To be honest, Yila had already guessed... about those tentacles contracted by Heidlin.
As his own student, Heidlin's Death Trigger was similarly as pitch-black as that vast sea, with tentacles reaching out to prey everywhere. But Yila never associated the Evil God's followers with Heidlin's Death Trigger.
On one hand, he always believed Heidlin's Death Trigger summoned a giant octopus, and those tentacles didn't have many exposed eyes... On the other hand, he never thought Heidlin would be connected to the calamity.
From a pure destructive standpoint, Heidlin's Death Trigger wasn't significantly stronger than Marilla's, Rebela's, or that of other governors with "seats."
"Heidlin... turns out to be the breeder of the Evil God's followers."
Yila muttered helplessly to himself as he quietly hovered above the Imperial Capital... He slowly descended from the sky, retracting his extended "wings." Along the way, many people had already noticed him.
Even if this wasn't the empire, Yila was famous worldwide. Besides, before he became globally renowned, he was already the most famous personality within the empire, and not in a negative way.
"Requesting to enter the city."
Yila spoke to the capital's guard. Just as he had done before, he submitted his entry report, marking it as "diplomatic exchange"... which was prepared in advance in the Demon King Territory.
The guard, looking very excited, took Yila's report without bothering to scrutinize it, and said excitedly, "Lord Yila, long time no see."
Though it felt like a familiar conversation, Yila actually didn't remember him... Probably this guard wasn't someone Yila was familiar with. He must have been newly promoted and belonged to Yila's faction (Yila Faction).
Those guards with neutral attitudes didn't seem to have been replaced.
"Yes, I haven't been back for a while... but it's only been a few months."
Saying this, Yila stepped into the noticeably quieter capital city, heading directly towards Heidlin's residence... He also planned to visit Isabella, but only after talking with Heidlin first.
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The beautiful morning light illuminated Isabella as she yawned, dealing with government affairs... primarily the living issues of the people who struggled through the extreme cold calamity.
Though local officials could solve some issues independently, many times, Isabella had to determine the overall direction and make decisions on ambiguous matters.
This was quite taxing... because this wasn't a strategy game; if mistakes were made, they were simply irreversible. Even if the kingdom were destroyed as a result, there wouldn't be a chance to reload and start over.
"Your Highness?"
Without even knocking, Marilla entered and greeted... As if confirming whether Isabella was aware of something, but it was clear Isabella knew nothing about what had happened.
"Lord Marilla, you're finally back... here to assist me with government affairs."
Isabella spoke while dividing the large stack of parchment in half, placing some on the opposite side of the desk... Marilla sat down as well, saying, "Your Highness, Yila has come to the empire."
"..."
"!!!"
At this moment, one person was sitting and another standing... but it was Isabella who stood up excitedly. She was about to say something but sat back down, calmly saying, "Did he visit someone else first? Gurela?"
The logic was simple; if Yila had arrived in the empire but didn't come to the palace to see her first, he must have had other tasks to handle... That was just his nature.
If Yila intended to see her, he would come; otherwise... if he was busy with work, Isabella knew there was no point in fretting.
*She understood this very well; it was the confidence that came from knowing Yila.*
*Jitter, jitter, jitter…*
Marilla glanced at Isabella's trembling leg but chose not to say anything. She remarked, "He went to see Heidlin, Heidlin Miriam Wals, who is your person, Your Highness."
Hearing this, Isabella realized who Heidlin was... The only governor among all who was neither a part of the Yila Faction nor neutral like Marilla. Rumor had it she was a fool.
(Heidlin: ???)
"I see, no problem."
Isabella replied naturally, logically deducing Yila's purpose, saying, "Busy with work again, right? I'm already used to it."
*How pitiful... But for some reason, there was an elusive sense of resentment in her words.*
"Yes, it seems to be related to the calamity. I only know a bit."
Marilla continued, browsing the parchment in her hand, noting down opinions and the funding amounts, then added, "It seems Heidlin's Death Trigger is connected to a certain calamity."
That was undoubtedly a significant matter, but since Yila was handling it already, they could rest assured and wait for news. *This was the confidence Yila instilled... Perhaps?*
...
The parchment in hand concerned the relocation from the coast... It outlined several significant challenges, including the difficult transportation of Magic Artifacts, requiring value assessments and experts for the task.
*How troublesome... The more complicated the situation, the more Isabella missed the days when she could turn to Yila for guidance. Now...*
Marilla's administrative abilities were possibly even weaker than Isabella's.
*Swish, swish, swish...*
The ink-dipped quill scratched responses onto the parchment. Then, in the next instant... Isabella's quill paused, and she stopped shaking her leg.
Marilla Elkaras seemed to sense something too, raising her head to look towards Isabella.
"Lord Marilla..."
Isabella began, and at this point, even with just a slight movement, Marilla could guess what she was about to say, but she could only nod helplessly, knowing this was her emperor.
"Shall we go and find Yila?"
"Certainly."
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