Athena's General Reincarnated in Another World

Nathan Evenhart:

"You lied."

The voice caught me off guard. It was the demi-human queen.

"Your heart skipped a beat when you heard the term 'Celestial Aspect'. My methods aren't always accurate, but this time your own heart betrayed you—you know more than you're letting on."

What? Her hearing is that sharp? No wonder she's the queen of the demi-humans.

The other monarchs turned to her, then looked back at me.

"Nathan, I never thought I'd agree with that woman," said Bartholomew, his voice tinged with impatience, "but today's been full of surprises. My daughter was almost killed this week. So answer clearly. Do you know what this 'Celestial Aspect' is or not? And why lie about it?"

"Lying to the crowns is a severe offense," added King Charles, his tone grim.

I took a deep breath, keeping my expression steady.

"I didn't lie," I said calmly. "I said the red-eyed creature never mentioned something called a Celestial Aspect, and I'm being honest about that."

I paused, choosing my next words carefully.

"As for whether my heart's racing or not… well, I expected a conversation with the crowned heads of the continent, not a trial. Sitting in front of the four most powerful figures alive, in a room this tense... isn't exactly comforting."

I tried to sound like someone anxious rather than defiant.

The monarchs glanced at the demi-human queen again.

"He seems to be telling the truth," she said, reclining slightly in her chair. "But I can't say for sure. I only wanted to see how he would react."

The tension eased just slightly as the monarchs turned back toward me.

"Don't worry, Nathan. You've done nothing wrong," said King Haiten with a reassuring tone. "We're simply trying to gather as many perspectives as possible."

"We appreciate your testimony," King Charles added. "You're free to move to the reserved seating area if you wish to remain for the rest of the meeting."

A soldier stepped forward to guide us. We rose, offered a respectful bow, and made our way to the designated seats. Each spot had a nameplate—mine was in a section reserved exclusively for high nobility. I noticed Sebastian was directed elsewhere.

King Charles rose to his feet, his posture solemn.

"As the representative of this kingdom, I offer my deepest apologies for any violent acts committed by the traitors tied to my realm."

His eyes scanned the room.

"I know nothing can bring back those who were lost, but I promise that those responsible will be punished severely."

The silence that followed was heavy.

"William Halldam is in custody and undergoing the strictest interrogation. We want the names of every conspirator involved. His entire inner circle is being monitored day and night."

He paused.

"Sebastian, who is engaged to my niece, has been temporarily removed from his position in the military."

He took another breath before continuing.

"William comes from a family of guards who have served the ducal family Saul. That's why you won't see Duke Saul present here tonight. We're dealing with him directly to understand the full extent of this betrayal. William's father has also been detained. But I ask for understanding."

There was weight in his words.

"This wasn't just a simple case of treason. There's a force at play manipulating all of this—trying to pit us against each other."

He paused again, letting the gravity of his statement settle in the room.

"I believe the greatest threat we face now is something called the 'Great Lord'… and a place known as Svartalfheim."

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A chill ran down my spine the moment I heard that name.

"And now," King Charles continued, "we're going to share with you a secret that has been kept hidden for a very long time."

King Charles sat back down, casting a cautious glance across the room.

"What we are about to share is highly classified information. We held a meeting with the dukes early this morning to inform them first, along with a few other trusted individuals."

His gaze locked on each of us in turn.

"Now, we are entrusting this knowledge to you. I ask that you do not share it with anyone else."

The tension in the hall grew noticeably heavier.

"The punishment for leaking any part of this information will be severe," he added. "Regardless of who it is."

My eyes drifted to my aunt, seated among other key figures from the four realms.

"Step forward," King Charles commanded.

Footsteps echoed through the chamber, and a woman approached the monarchs. I recognized her instantly.

Professor Sinclair?

"As you all know," Director Victoria began, "Professor Sinclair comes from the other continent. Her identity has always been kept secret from the public. It's time you learn the real reason why people from her homeland call us 'demons'... and why they've been trying to kill us for years."

Professor Sinclair gave a respectful bow to the monarchs before turning to face the rest of us. In her hands, she held the same distinctive book I'd seen her use during class once.

"My homeland is split between two great powers: the Eastern Song Dynasty, and the Western Theocracy. I was born in the Theocracy," she began.

She launched into a familiar lesson—one I remembered from her very first lecture. But then she reached the part about the 'Illuminated Ones.' While most of that was general knowledge among nobles and military personnel, it was what came next that left the room in stunned silence.

"We've told you that many disasters hit our land when your continent became connected to ours. Earthquakes, floods, tsunamis… but those weren't the worst of it. There's something far more terrifying. A plague that infects our reality. We call it an 'Anomaly.'"

On the board behind her, a projected image appeared—like a tear in space itself, resembling a cracked glass window. The tear glowed with swirling, iridescent colors, like a rainbow bleeding through reality. The image was crystal-clear, likely captured through some kind of magical mirror.

Whispers spread through the audience as everyone stared at the unnatural rift.

"This," Sinclair said, pointing to the image, "is an Anomaly. It behaves like a disease. It spreads across our lands and appears without warning. Sometimes they vanish after a few days... other times, they last for months."

More images cycled through, each showing different types of anomalies.

"What exactly is it?" someone in the audience asked.

"A portal," she replied.

A hush fell over the room as more heads turned toward her, then back to the images, now visibly shaken.

"These portals appear suddenly, without warning. But it's what comes out of them that's truly horrifying."

The images changed again—this time showing what emerged from the rifts.

Orcs?

Each slide showed different kinds of monsters. Some humanoid, others quadrupedal, some with spider-like forms. Grotesque.

"Portals vary in both intensity and threat level. Some open briefly and release just a few weaker monsters. Others tear open reality and unleash entire waves of powerful, nightmarish creatures. Entire cities have fallen to high-level anomalies. That's why our continent is so advanced in magical weaponry—every soldier must be equipped to fight these things."

She paused to let the weight of her words settle.

"And because we've studied the remains of these creatures... we've advanced even faster. Some of the monsters carried magical weapons of their own, which we dismantled and reverse-engineered to understand."

As she continued her explanation, I tried to make sense of everything.
It really did seem like a disease—one that infected the very fabric of reality itself.

Do the monsters come out of these portals in an organized way? How is that even possible? It seems too structured to be random. Do they come from Svartalfheim? What exactly is that place?

"As I mentioned before," Professor Sinclair continued, "anomalies are temporary. But the damage caused by what comes out of them is immense. The Illuminated Ones taught us how to fight these creatures, how to close the portals. There are two known methods to end an anomaly. One is by killing everything that comes through—especially the portal's 'boss'. Each anomaly has a commander of sorts that leads the monsters that emerge from it. But it's not something you ever get used to. Imagine living every day knowing a rift in reality could open at any moment and release monsters onto your town."

Illustrations of burned villages, lifeless bodies, and crying children appeared on the projection board behind her.

"My people suffered for a long time. But the Illuminated Ones helped us. They gave us knowledge. They told us that all of this—everything—is your fault. That your continent is the cause."

"What nonsense! Who would believe that?" someone in the audience blurted out.

"Don't underestimate what desperation and fear do to an oppressed people," Sinclair replied calmly. "And let's start with this fact: the anomalies only began to appear after your continent appeared and connected with ours."

The Illuminated Ones... they're the same beings I saw in my vision. The demons—the Nidhogg.
But why would they teach the other continent how to fight the very threat they're causing? It doesn't add up. Why help your enemy manage the chaos you're creating?

"But that's not the most important part," she went on. "The second method of closing an anomaly is much simpler. It doesn't matter how long the portal has been open—be it a second or a month—if you do this one thing, the portal shuts down immediately."

"What is it?" someone asked.

She paused. "Offer a human from your continent as a sacrifice."

The room fell into a stunned silence. Then, whispers and murmurs rose all around, voices filled with disbelief and shock.

"If we throw a person from this magical continent—dead or alive—into the portal, it closes instantly," she said. "Do you understand what I'm saying? What the Illuminated Ones taught us… what they revealed to my people?"

She let the silence stretch, letting the weight of her next words sink in.

"This was their message to us: 'If you kill every last human from that continent, the portals will stop appearing. They are the reason anomalies exist.' That's why everyone in the Theocracy wants you dead."