Chapter 103. Forgotten Truth (1)
One of the Six Monarchs who served the emperor—the Monarch of Darkness.
The Coalition Forces called the Monarch of Darkness [The One Never Seen].
True to that name, no one had ever observed it.
That was because the Monarch of Darkness caused its appearance to be forgotten beyond all perception and records, making it impossible for anyone to recognize its existence.
That was why it was called the Monarch of “Darkness”.
It did not mean that it was a Monarch with the authority to control darkness. It carried the same meaning as the “Dark” in the Dark Merchant Company.
In other words, the term “Hidden From Knowledge” had been replaced with “Dark” to create the name.
In truth, the Coalition Forces did not use the name Dark Merchant Company.
That was because I had uncovered the Dark Merchant Company’s True Name: the Devotees of the Fallen Souls.
Among the Coalition Forces, the term “Darkness” referred exclusively to the Monarch of Darkness.
The Coalition Forces could not discover who the Monarch of Darkness was, where it operated, what it had done, or what abilities it possessed.
There was only one thing we knew.
The Monarch of Darkness possessed the “Authority of Oblivion”, which instantly erased any cognition directed toward it.
Amazingly, that authority had even—
“Made Ian forget.”
Ian had been capable of contending with the Monarch of the Abyss.
Yet even Ian could not resist the Authority of Oblivion.
Fortunately, Ian was at least aware that the Monarch of Darkness existed.
Otherwise, both the Coalition Forces and I would have believed that there were only five Monarchs rather than six.
In any case, we possessed no information regarding the identity of the Monarch of Darkness.
Who was the Monarch of Darkness?
The moment someone contemplated that question, every related event, circumstance, person, and piece of information would immediately disappear from their memory.
It was the worst kind of variable, one that could act at any time, in any place, and in any manner.
In my previous life, I had a duty to uncover its identity at all costs.
I investigated it thoroughly, only to fail time and again.
Every attempt merely led me to another conclusion that I would inevitably forget.
The One Never Seen.
The darkness surrounding the Monarch of Darkness could never be dispelled.
However, Iliana, the Archmage of the Coalition Forces, had once said,
—Nothing can exist in this world without being observed.
For something to exist, someone “must” observe it.
—It isn’t that the Monarch of Darkness cannot be observed.
Its true nature simply cannot be observed with complete accuracy.
Therefore, Iliana called the Monarch of Darkness: The Being of Observational Uncertainty.
In other words, it could be observed, but not beyond a certain degree of accuracy.
Iliana’s advice allowed me to conceive of a clever solution.
I would reverse my perspective.
Instead of asking who the Monarch of Darkness was, I would determine who it was not.
Whenever I investigated the question, “Who is the Monarch of Darkness?” the resulting information was forgotten.
However, information concerning the question, “Who is not the Monarch of Darkness?” remained intact.
Therefore, if I identified everyone who was not the Monarch of Darkness and eliminated them one by one, would I eventually be able to determine its identity?
Even if I could not identify it precisely, would I not be able to narrow down the possibilities to some extent?
Based on that hypothesis, I gathered information about the Monarch of Darkness.
My hypothesis proved correct, and this was the information I uncovered:
1. The Monarch of Darkness is not invisible.
In other words, it possessed a physical form.
From that, I determined that the Monarch of Darkness was a “tangible being” that could be seen and touched.
2. The Monarch of Darkness is not a machine.
From that, I determined that the Monarch of Darkness was a “sentient entity” capable of thinking and acting independently.
3. The Monarch of Darkness is not a weak being.
That information was obvious.
The Six Monarchs were individuals whom the emperor had acknowledged rather than merely bred or slaughtered.
Since it was the Monarch of “Darkness”, there was no possibility that it was weak.
Nevertheless, the fact that this particular information had been engraved so deeply into my mind suggested that it was exceptionally powerful, even when accounting for its status as a Monarch.
The Strongest Monarch.
I determined that the Monarch of Darkness was the most powerful of the Six Monarchs.
That naturally raised a question.
If the Monarch of Darkness was truly that powerful, could it actually be a false identity used by the emperor to operate in secret?
Even members of the Special Task Force had debated that possibility.
The Monarch of Frost was the witch who had taken Ian’s left arm.
It was difficult to imagine a Monarch who surpassed even Seraphia.
There was only one conceivable candidate....
The emperor.
Perhaps the emperor had been moving covertly while erasing people’s memories for the sake of convenience.
It was a perfectly reasonable assumption.
And the result was—
4. The Monarch of Darkness is not the emperor.
I did not know why I had reached that conclusion.
Unfortunately, the relevant memories had been erased and no longer existed.
Perhaps….the Monarch of Darkness had revealed itself during the final battle against the emperor.
That was merely my cautious speculation.
In other words, it was valuable information I had obtained through Regression.
Therefore, there was no doubt that the Emperor and the Monarch of Darkness were separate entities.
That was everything I had uncovered.
All other information remained shrouded in darkness—hidden from knowledge.
Therefore, if the Monarch of Darkness was involved with the Kingdom of Vatenberg, I could not know what would happen in the capital this time.
“....No wonder.”
I had thought something was strange.
From the king’s summons to the royal social season, there was no possibility that I would possess absolutely no information about such matters.
This must also have been why I had temporarily forgotten about Father’s will.
“So the Monarch of Darkness was interfering.”
The Authority of Oblivion possessed by the Monarch of Darkness had been powerful enough that even Ian could not resist it.
I only realized it now, but Player’s Will [EX] did not grant perfect immunity to mental interference.
It merely reset my mind whenever my mental capacity reached its limit.
Now that I thought about it....
“....So that was the reason.”
Even though I knew that there were “Six Monarchs” serving the emperor, I had never thought about the Monarch of Darkness.
The Monarch of Frost and the Monarch of Beasts.
The Monarch of Immortality and the Monarch of the Abyss.
And the Monarch of Death.
I could recall all five of those Monarchs.
Yet I had never even tried to think about the identity of the sixth Monarch. I had merely remained aware that a sixth Monarch existed.
Looking back on it now, there were those messages that appeared before my eyes whenever I reviewed information about the Monarchs.
When I remained vigilant against the Monarch of Frost in the County.
When I pursued traces of the Monarch of Beasts through the Snowy Mountains.
When I recalled the Monarch of the Abyss in Freche.
When I obtained information regarding the Monarch of Death in Violess.
◆Player’s Will [EX] resists Erased Traces!
◆Player’s Will [EX] resists Devouring Darkness!
◆Player’s Will [EX] resists the Void of Memory!
◆Player’s Will [EX] resists Stolen Cognition!
At the time, I had not been consciously aware of anything....
But perhaps….I had remembered it.
While reviewing information about the other Monarchs, I must have naturally thought of the Monarch of Darkness as well.
However, even my awareness that I had recalled it had been instantly “forgotten” and erased.
After all, Player’s Will [EX] did not grant complete immunity.
Nevertheless, Player’s Will [EX] had allowed me to remain aware that the Monarch of Darkness existed.
“Ian must have been the same.”
That was why Ian had also failed to uncover the Monarch of Darkness.
“But things are different now.”
Not long ago, I obtained Successor’s Will [EX] through Iliana’s teachings.
Only now could I finally “perceive” the Monarch of Darkness.
My mental limit was Aleph-Null. In other words, it was infinite.
Because my limit was infinite, my memories could no longer be erased. At this very moment, I was clearly thinking about the Monarch of Darkness.
Yet none of my memories or perceptions were being erased.
That was the proof.
When I possessed Player’s Will [EX], I had forgotten.
But ever since it became Successor’s Will [EX], I had ceased to forget.
If the Monarch of Darkness was interfering in the Kingdom of Vatenberg, it would inevitably reveal itself this time.
“If I can simply observe the Monarch of Darkness in the capital....”
If I could use Predatory Instinct [S] on it, the Darkness concealing the Monarch of Darkness would be torn apart, and the forgotten past and truth would be completely revealed.
The emperor’s greatest and most dangerous variable would ultimately be placed in the palm of my hand—
From that moment onward—
Aucta from Afar.
The being who existed far beyond understanding and cognition.
I would finally be able to place the emperor of the empire upon the board I had prepared.
* * *
Seraphia sat before a small worktable, carefully moving a needle.
Her fingertips were covered in marks from where the needle had repeatedly pricked them.
Nevertheless, those fingers were gradually covering the silk in beautiful embroidery.
The room was silent.
Seraphia’s lively, pale-pink lips were firmly pressed together, while intense concentration could be seen in her expression and the movements of her fingers.
Only the soft rustling of thread being woven stitch by stitch could be heard.
Then, at that moment—
Knock, knock.
—May I come in?
Adrian’s voice accompanied the knocking.
“Eek...!”
Darkness hung heavily over the Count’s Castle.
Seraphia’s concentration abruptly shattered, and her body trembled violently.
She placed a hand over her startled heart.
“....Ah, yes! Come in!”
Seraphia hurriedly rose and began clearing away the objects scattered across the worktable.
That was precisely when Adrian entered the room.
“What were you doing?”
“What? I-I was just....”
Seraphia hurriedly covered the worktable with a piece of cloth.
Adrian’s gaze shifted toward the covered table before returning to Seraphia.
His expression seemed to ask what she had been doing.
....She felt that she needed to say something.
However, her mind had gone completely blank, and she could not think of anything.
Even so….she could never admit that she had been making a handkerchief for Adrian.
“B-But what brings you here?”
Seraphia pressed firmly against the cloth with one hand and attempted to evade the subject.
Fortunately—or perhaps unfortunately—Adrian did not question her further.
“A royal messenger visited earlier.”
Adrian immediately stated his business.
Tension appeared on Seraphia’s face, which had been flushed from the intensity of her concentration.
She knew what the arrival of a royal messenger meant.
“His Majesty summoned both you and me regarding Father’s will.”
“His Majesty did...?”
“In addition, Her Majesty the Queen has invited you to the royal social season.”
“....What?”
Seraphia abruptly tilted her head to one side.
Adrian had said that she had been invited to the royal social season.
Moreover, Her Majesty the Queen had personally invited her.
“Whaaat....?”
She had considerable difficulty comprehending the situation.
After all, Adrian had not merely omitted parts of the explanation—he had practically removed the entire thing.
“Therefore, prepare to travel to the kingdom’s capital.”
Adrian merely spoke decisively.
“We will travel to the capital by carriage. We will only take the minimum number of soldiers required for our protection and a few maids to assist you.”
“Does that mean only you and I will be going, Big Brother?”
“Yes.”
“......”
“We cannot spare many people from the County at present.”
The County had only just taken its first step toward revival.
What would happen if they reassigned too many people under such circumstances?
Their duties and work would suffer setbacks. That would deal a considerable blow to the County’s revival.
“Y-You’re right. It would be difficult considering the County’s current circumstances.”
“Bear with the inconvenience.”
“No! That isn’t what I meant. I was just....”
Seraphia lowered her head without finishing her sentence. However, she could not prevent the corners of her lips from trembling—
“....Just what?”
“It’s nothing! It’s really nothing!”
Seraphia frantically waved her hands.
She also cleared her throat unnecessarily while attempting to dismiss the matter.
Fortunately, Adrian once again showed little interest.
“We will depart in one week, so make certain you are fully prepared.”
With those words, Adrian turned around.
Once Adrian had left—
Seraphia hurriedly closed the door, covered her face with both hands, and leaned back against it.
‘What am I going to do?’
Her heart pounded so violently that it felt ready to burst from her chest.
After all—
‘I’ll be alone with Big Brother......!’
How could something so dreamlike possibly happen?!
Even when traveling as quickly as possible, the journey from the White Wolf County to the kingdom’s capital would take at least two weeks.
The round trip alone would take an entire month. That meant she would be traveling with Adrian for at least one month.
Moreover, one month was merely the “minimum”.
Depending on what happened during the journey, it could take even longer.
And if she included the time they would spend in the capital....?
‘...!’
‘What am I really going to dooo...!!’
Her face grew hot with excitement merely from thinking about it.
Just imagining it filled her entire body with so much energy that it threatened to overflow.
‘C-Calm down. I need to calm down...!’
Seraphia consciously attempted to suppress her excitement, but—
‘Eeeeeek......!!!’
There was simply nothing she could do to stop her heart from pounding wildly.
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