Welcome to Hell!

(TN: from now on, I will change spiritual arts caster to spiritualist—this term basically means people who can use spiritual power and invocate spiritual arts, our mc should also be a spiritualist if I’m not mistaken)

The morning following the coup d’état, the information that reached Prince Ludwig and Duke of Dalbaren was nothing short of unbelievable.

“Knights of the Holy Order…the Marius Holy Knights, were wiped out? The “lightning” Gaius was slain? This is not a funny joke.”

“Unfortunately, it’s true, your highness. If only it were a joke…”

The annihilation of the Marius Order was a significant blow to them. Despite having taken control of the capital through the coup, they still needed the Order’s military strength.

The capital had several churches, each with its own guardian force, much like the Marius Holy Knights Order for the Justice Church. Although they were inferior to the Holy Knights in terms of numbers, it was likely that they had individuals on the same level or even higher in terms of quality.

However, many of them did not involve themselves in politics. They would not engage in hostility unless their churches were destroyed or their followers were unjustly oppressed. Therefore, they were meticulous when taking over the city. Even in their request to Orvo, they made sure not to damage any church-related facilities.

Everything was a trick to avoid unnecessarily increasing the number of enemies. However, the Duke of Dalbaren knew it was impossible to remain completely neutral. It was anticipated that the victims who would die in the coup would be mixed with devout followers of various churches.

It was not difficult to imagine that churches, driven by a sense of righteousness, would rebel and cause chaos. That’s why the Marius Holy Knights were essential as a force to suppress any uprising and direct the anger of the coup regime towards other church forces.

“Guh, Gaius…. what should we do now? Prime Minister!” exclaimed Ludwig in panic.

“Please calm down, Your Highness. As a king, you must not show any signs of being shaken to your subjects,” admonished the Duke of Dalbaren, who remained calm. They were in a conference room usually reserved for senior officials, filled with members who had participated in the coup and were already given positions such as ministers.

The king did not abdicate his throne himself, but the coronation ceremony was carried out at dawn under the guidance of the Duke of Dalbaren, who had become the prime minister. By this time, Prince Ludwig was no longer a prince, but had ascended to the throne as King Ludwig II.

With a crown on his head, the new king’s face was filled with fear. Being close to the Justice Church, he knew many tales of Gaius’ bravery. He was the top swordsman in the Order of the Marius Holy Knights and a skilled spiritualist worthy of the name “Lightning”, having vanquished countless villains and dangerous creatures. That was everyone’s evaluation of Gaius.

But now, he had apparently been defeated by someone and found dead. The strength of trust in Gaius’ bravery had been transformed completely into fear, and the other believers were the same. To appease them, Bishop Daniel of the Justice Church was working tirelessly.

Although he had been advised by the Duke and had calmed down a bit, he could not completely dispel his fear. He was trembling his knees frequently.

“The destruction of the Holy Knights’ order is indeed a major setback. However, please rest assured that we have our precious armored soldiers, known as the Tiger Cubs, at our disposal. Their original duties include patrols and maintaining public order. In the unlikely event of a rebellion by the Church’s forces, they will be able to suppress it with ease.”

The Duke of Dalbaren’s trump card and the coup d’état’s key asset were the soldiers known as the Armored Tigers. These soldiers use the same weapons and armor as the invading army from the north, and they were gathered by skilled craftsmen who secretly repaired and restored them.

This was precisely the reason why, two years ago, the Duke of Dalbaren strongly advocated for sending reinforcements to the north. Prince Carl and his fellow military officials convinced themselves that the duke was merely after military honors, but deep down, they sensed that something was amiss. Unbeknownst to them, the preparations for the coup were already underway.

“They are just as devout as the Holy Knights. Let them perform their duties splendidly,” 

“I see… I understand, we’re counting on you then, prime minister” replied Ludwig.

“Thank you for your kind words, Your Highness,” said the Prime Minister.

After successfully calming down King Ludwig II, the meeting concluded with a confirmation of the current situation and the exchange of detailed information. Later, in the Duke’s office at the royale palace, the latter sank into a large, plush chair and began to contemplate. Naturally, his thoughts were consumed with what was to come next.

(Although the coup was successful, the loss of military power was too great. Even though I warned his Majesty, maintaining the security of the capital city would be difficult. Should we have extended the contract period with that spiritualist? It’s a good thing I accepted the offer to become prime minister. Even if I fail, I can just pass the responsibility onto the new Minister of War.)

The Duke continued to ponder with his hand on his chin. The success of the coup was just the beginning, and now he faced the most critical task. He needed to consider rewarding the nobles and soldiers who had cooperated with the coup, rebuilding the noble and civilian districts that were destroyed during the battle, and persuading the nobles in the regions to accept the new king’s ascension and religious reform. He had a lot to consider.

The Duke decided to start by dealing with the tasks in front of him. He sat at his desk and quickly sorted through the documents with his skilled hands. Just then, there was a knock at the door.

“Come in.”

“Excuse me.”

One of the duke’s trusted knights walked in and presented a report on the damage to the noble district and the destruction of the Marius Holy Knight Order. The Duke thanked the knight for his report and continued to work.

The Duke quickly skimmed through the situation of the noble district and couldn’t help but furrow his brow. He knew that the holy knights showed no mercy to those they deemed as evil, but it was disturbing to learn that even children of said corrupt novle houses were not spared.

In the noble society, lineage was highly valued, and the sins of the ancestors were often passed down to their descendants. However, that didn’t mean it was acceptable to kill children. The Duke couldn’t help but feel disgusted with the holy knights, who showed no mercy to their powerless opponents.

However, it seemed that some of the noble children had managed to escape during the chaos. Although the Duke felt slightly relieved, he knew that those children would never forgive them. 

He let out a sigh as he realized that he had more things to consider.

“Your Excellency, please be careful not to make such a face in front of the bishop.”

“Yes, I know. I’ll be more careful… Wait, is this true?”

While accepting the wise advice, the Duke finished reading the report on the noble district and raised an eyebrow when he saw the next report. It stated that the perpetrator who had destroyed the holy knight order had been identified.

“Ah, I see. There were multiple eyewitness testimonies, and it seems like they didn’t coordinate their stories.”

“That’s right… But to think that it was the work of the escaped battle beast. It seems that the Marquis’s son was keeping quite a monstrous creature.”

Since the “lightning” Gaius and the Hades Scorpion had been fighting in a dazzling manner, many people had witnessed their battle. However, no one knew how the battle had ended, as they had fled from the sandstorm created by the Hades scorpion.

What was known is that the holy knights had died, and the body of the Hades scorpion had not been found. It seemed to have been seriously injured during its fight with Gaius, so there was a high possibility that it had died somewhere or fled from the capital.

However, it was also a fact that the creature that had single-handedly destroyed the holy knight order might still be lurking in the capital. The Duke knew that they needed to strengthen their patrols under the guise of maintaining public safety. He let out a heavy sigh, realizing that his workload had just increased.

◆◇◆◇◆◇

While the Duke was reading the report, dozens of women gathered in a shabby apartment complex in the slums of the capital city. Half of them were respectable-looking ladies in dirty nightgowns, while the other half were armed warriors in various outfits. They were noblewomen and their guards who lived in the aristocratic district.

Despite its outward appearance, the interior of the apartment complex was well-built, and a majestic statue of a goddess was enshrined on the first floor at the entrance. In fact, this building was a church disguised as an apartment complex.

The deity worshipped in the church was the “Goddess of Protection,” a woman who rose to godhood about a millennium ago. She was known as a warrior who served as a bodyguard for other women who also ascended to become gods throughout her life. Therefore, her followers also served as bodyguards for the women they revered as their masters, even risking their lives for them.

This apartment complex served as a refuge in case of emergencies, and a secret passage leading to it was connected to the city’s underground sewer system. Only the guards knew the full extent of the passage. This way, they could bring their masters to safety from the aristocratic district to this place.

“There’s so much dust… My lady, please allow me.”

“Cough Cough Thank you, Leila. We can breathe easy now that we’ve made it here.”

And even now, the floor in front of the statue of the goddess opened to the left and right, and a warrior and her mistress emerged from below. The golden-haired warrior in her bright red armor and the lady with fiery red hair and determined hazel eyes breathe a sigh of relief at having secured their safety. They offered their thanks and prayers to the “Goddess of Protection,” who showed them the way to survive.

There were other women in this building who had had similar experiences, but their faces were far from bright. They were attacked in their homes late at night and fled through the smelly and dirty sewers in their ragged clothing. Some of them even saw their parents, brothers, or husbands killed before their eyes. It was impossible for them to put on a cheerful front.

“Young laady Adelheid! You were safe!”

However, it was a different story when they reunited with someone they knew. As one of the young ladies who had been sitting in a chair stood up, she took the hand of another young lady who had just finished praying, tears streaming down her face. The red haired Adelheid, the eldest daughter of Duke Ernest Lutz of Danmarren, smiled warmly at the sight of the girl whose hand she was holding.

“Liese! And Hilda too! I am so relieved that both of you are safe.”

“We were very worried about you, young lady Adelheid.”

The two young ladies embraced each other with joy at each other’s safety and nodded to their two guards, confirming their survival.

Liese, as she was called, took Adelheid’s hand and led her towards the communal bathhouse within the residence. This space was designed to accommodate noble women, and various considerations had been made accordingly. The bathhouse was one of them.

After washing away the sweat, dirt, and odor in the bathhouse, the two of them visited the room that Liese used. Surprisingly, there was another girl of uncommon status sleeping there besides Liese and her guard, Hilda.

“Is she a slave? Is she the property of Lord Lieselotte?” Adelheid asked.

“She has terrible injuries… How pitiful,” 

The sleeping girl was a slave dressed in dirty and shabby clothing. Blood was seeping through the bandages wrapped around her entire body. The worst of her injuries was her right arm, which she had lost from her shoulder down.

After the bleeding, her complexion looked pale, and there was a large amount of sweat on her forehead. Adelheid looked sad as she tried to take out a handkerchief, only to realize that she didn’t have one. So, she tore the hem of her own nightgown and used it as a substitute to wipe the sweat from her forehead.

“Liese, who is this child?”

“I happened to find her while I was running away… I couldn’t abandon her, so I brought her here. I had to ask Hilda for help.”

“Liese, you are so kind. Since you brought her here, let’s take care of her and make sure she doesn’t die. I will help too.”

“Thank you very much!”

Thus, the two young ladies found themselves in a situation where they had no room to spare, yet they began to take care of a stranger, a slave. Despite the girls’ whims, the warrior guards accompanying them reluctantly went along with their requests.

Whether this encounter was by chance or fate, the slave’s life was preserved thanks to the efforts of the two young ladies. No one knew what impact this would have on future history.

****

(TN: Oh wow! The slave didn’t die! And the girl our MC saved is Adlheid, sister of Wilibald and friend of the second prince…very wise move of Adlheid to save the slave who is a friend of our mc lol)