A cold light illuminated the entire room.
My and Lu’s breath drifted into the air as white mist. In the center of the room was a giant orb surrounded by a fence. It must have been at least two meters in diameter. The orb was floating in a dug-out depression, somehow held by a mysterious force.
A cold air is emanating from the sacred object. It remained in the basement, making it much colder than the spring outside. I’m glad I brought my coat.
A thick layer of frost had fallen around the depression where the orb was floating. Lu and I were unable to speak for a long time. The orb hidden in the basement of the Raven Warriors’ base is truly mysterious.
“They call it the Frost Orb.”
Pauline-san said. Even the princess was wrapped in a thick cloak, her skin bathed in the pallid, bluish light.
“…Skill, Seal”
Pauline-san raised her hand.
The orb flared brighter. Ice crystals burst outward with a rush of frigid wind, forcing Lu and me to shield our faces. The name she spoke was the skill said to be only given to the royal line.
“Rion-san, Luisia-san, and, our esteemed Gods—this is the secret of the warrior order, the device that governs the dungeon.”
With her breath turning white in the cold, Lu asked,
“This is…?”
“Only one who bears the skill Seal can command this orb. Its power can strengthen the dungeon’s bindings—or weaken them.”
Pauline-san explained.
I could only stare, speechless, at the orb’s cold, gleaming light.
The source of power that bound monsters within the dungeon. In every unexplored region, ice had always been present. Perhaps this orb was the very source, radiating the “frost” that maintained it…
“The orb’s iciness is tied directly to the strength of the surrounding dungeons’ seals. Increasing the coldness strengthens the seal and weakens the monsters. However, it also weakens the power that can be drawn from the dungeon, such as magic stones and items.”
My throat bobbed as I swallowed.
This was the kingdom’s method of sealing the dungeon. And Pauline-san is now entrusting us with knowledge of the crucial device at its core.
Pauline-san went on.
“By adjusting its strength, we’ve been able to manage the dungeon. To allow more adventurers to challenge it. Though the orb can alter the seal’s intensity, it cannot break the seal entirely. It was made only for governance in times of peace.”
Pauline-san turned back to face us, brother and sister.
My throat burned, and still no words came. It was Lu who finally spoke up.
“Uhm…..does this mean this orb controls the seal of every dungeon? Then… isn’t that an unbelievably important artifact?”
The princess narrowed her eyes.
“No, you may rest easy. This is not the only one. Smaller orbs like this exist in temples throughout the land. You would surely find them in Alvis and Flocia as well, each guarding their own dungeon seal.”
Almost as an afterthought, she added,
“But the one here in the royal capital is the largest, and by far the most powerful. From here, its sealing force can be channeled to the other orbs across the realm.”
Then….. that means the capital serves as the very heart of the seal….
“Since the sounding of the horn, this orb’s power has steadily grown stronger. I suspect some new effect may soon reveal itself.”
“…New effect?”
“I have my predictions. But let us wait until I can speak with certainty.”
The conversation ended there and it became quiet. Like phantom footsteps pacing across the frozen floor, the sharp, cracking sounds of ice echoed through the chamber.
The pale blue orb was larger than any magic stone, and I could sense its power. It had surely stood here for a thousand years, guarding the dungeon’s seal all that time. A divine relic, testifying both to the kingdom’s history and to that of the Raven Warrior’s Order.
Pauline-san then spoke, her voice touched with solemnity, bathed in the orb’s cold light.
“From now on, more of these secrets will be revealed to the people. The age when such truths could be hidden is gone. I believe it is the will of the High God itself—that the existence of such monstrous powers should no longer be concealed…”
Then after a pause, she eventually asked,
“Shall we leave?”
Her face looked a little pale—or maybe it was just the lighting?
◆◆◆
Stepping out of the great tower, the spring night air felt warm against my skin.
Above us stretched a sky full of stars. The moon cast its gentle light, outlining the temple in a faint silver glow. Torches, lit by the warrior order, burned steadily along the walls, their flames swaying in the breeze.
My body felt strangely light—perhaps because the weight pressing down on my shoulders had finally lifted.
“…Oniichan”
Lu spoke, but nothing more followed.
Even so, I understood.
We had brushed against a secret far too immense, and for a moment it left her feeling small, fragile—these words had simply came to my mind.
Before I realized it, we had stopped walking.
“We really are caught up in something vast, something important, aren’t we?”
The temple’s great tower stood against the backdrop of the moon.
I still didn’t fully grasp things like a thousand years of history, or the stories of the gods. But what I did know was this: the truth that the kingdom had hidden, the things once taken for granted, were beginning to change.
—I believe in you.
That was what Pauline-san said before she revealed the orb.
To show someone what had been hidden all this time. To reveal a secret.
When I thought about it… for a princess to do such a thing must have taken extraordinary courage. It meant she had decided to unveil something the kingdom had kept buried for a thousand years.
The truth of a myth where the gods had lost. The reality that powerful monsters lay sealed within the dungeons. By revealing such things, she was surely prepared to face criticism—and to shoulder the responsibility.
After all, the worldwide message had already foretold the rise of a colossal monster.
No one could go on believing forever in the old tale—that the gods had triumphed, and that the dungeons were simply benevolent gifts of magic stones and rare materials.
“…Oniichan, are you alright?”
Lu looked up at me.
Startled, I forced a smile onto my face.
“I’m fine—”
“Liar. You were lost in thought.”
She stood on tiptoe, as if trying to bring her eye level with mine.
“I know. I’m worried too and… a little scared.”
I had no answer to give.
So, without another word, the two of us simply started walking again.
“I kind of understand that my power is something amazing. That’s why I want to get used to it quickly, and I want to be useful to you, Oniichan. But…”
Lu’s gaze drifted past the city walls—toward the royal capital.
“What scares me… is the thought of you going somewhere far away and never coming back. And… I’m also scared that I can’t leave this place.”
It must have been her true feelings.
The world seemed on the verge of changing, and her own skill was tangled up in it. All those fears were probably wound together like threads of lint, lodged in my little sister’s heart.
“Lu…”
“Ah! I’m sorry, for always whining.”
I shook my head and smiled at her.
“It’s alright. Just believe in me too, Lu.”
Odin had called me a hero in that worldwide message. Others might call me that as well. But more than the thousand-year histories or myths, what I wanted right now was simply to ease my sister’s worries.
“Everyone… can you hear me?”
With my right hand, I pulled the coin case from my pocket.
I whispered my wish to the gods.
The gold coin grew hot, scattering dazzling light.
“Wah!”
Lu let out a cry of surprise.
Bursting forth around us were the five gods.
Thor, with his red hair streaming like fire. Loki, cloaked in black robes. Sigris, clad in azure armor, her hair the same shade of blue flowing like the night sky. The god of hunting, Uru, hovering silently in the air, and finally, Solana, wrapped in golden radiance, who clasped both my hand and Lu’s.
“Let’s go.”
“Eh—?”
Lu blinked, startled, just as Loki snapped his fingers.
A shimmer of divine brilliance engulfed us, and in an instant our bodies lifted high into the air. The ground fell away beneath us. The goddess’s gentle light cradled us, and she set us down atop the great tower.
The height of five stories above the ground. The night sky stretched close overhead, while the royal capital spread out below, its lights gleaming. Bathed in moonlight, the river winding through the land glimmered like polished silver.
“Wow…!”
Lu’s voice was filled with awe.
“I still can’t take you inside the capital.” Solana said softly. “But from here, you can see it all.”
The capital’s nightscape twinkled with countless lights, lively as though new stars had fallen from the heavens. Perhaps it was the influx of adventurers that made the city glow with such energy.
“…It’s beautiful.”
Lu whispered.
“Yeah. Our house is still there, too. It hasn’t disappeared. We’ll go back someday.”
Her eyes shimmered with tears. But she shook her head, wiped them away, and broke into a bright smile.
“…Mm!”
Even being called a “hero” out of nowhere, I didn’t yet know what that truly meant.
But step by step, we’d keep moving forward.
Beneath this star-filled sky, I remembered the vow I had once made to the goddess.
“You will be.” Solana said, turning to us as she floated in the air. “A hero—yet not just any hero. Only you can become this hero. The world grows more turbulent by the day… but this is where your path begins.”
Holding Lu close, I gazed southward. There lay our next destination—the bountiful city of Flocia.
“Let’s go, gods.”
The gods nodded one after another.
We would depart at dawn.
“Come back safe, Oniichan.”
Lu said softly.
I squeezed her hand, warm and firm in mine.
This is translated by Yume Neiji. Kindly read at yumeineijiworks.wordpress.com.
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