A fortune-telling princess Chapter 152

 

The previous battle had made it abundantly clear how difficult these enemies were to deal with.

Enemies who neither tired nor felt pain—they had demonstrated just how terrifyingly powerful such attributes could be.

“Hah… hah…”
“Damn it!”

As expected, the knights and soldiers were growing weary. Even with Arsion using magic to support them, morale plummeted as the relentless, pain-immune enemies pressed on.

Shing!

“…!”

Then, it happened. Someone lightly slashed one of the enemies’ arms with a sword.

To everyone’s shock, that single, seemingly minor attack caused the enemy to collapse on the spot. Just moments ago, these foes wouldn’t have flinched at such a wound.

“Camilla?”

The one who had swiftly cut down five enemies in an instant was none other than Camilla.

As she swung her sword with precision and grace, those around her momentarily forgot to wield their own weapons, staring in a daze.

But the truly astonishing part was yet to come.

BOOM! FWOOSH!

The moment Camilla drove the sword into the ground, a loud explosion echoed, and a light as brilliant as the sun burst forth from the sword.

Thump!

Instinctively shutting their eyes against the intense light, everyone blinked repeatedly as they slowly reopened them, trying to process the scene before them.

“…What is this?”

Were their eyes playing tricks on them? Had the blinding light damaged their vision?

“Why are they…?”

The enemies, who had been charging at them moments earlier, were now all lying on the ground.

They looked like lifeless dolls with their strings cut. Seeing this, everyone stood with mouths agape. The enemies bore no visible wounds—why had they fallen?

“What in the world is going on…?”

As if on cue, everyone’s gazes shifted toward a single point: the sword in Camilla’s hand.

“That sword is…!”

Finally, they recognized the weapon she held.

“The Guardian Sword.”

Wooong—

The Guardian Sword, still emitting a faint glow, hummed softly, as though expressing gratitude for being acknowledged.

Everyone who witnessed the scene was struck speechless once more.

Chapter: The Emperor’s Birthday

“What happened to the captives?”
“They’ve been dealt with.”
“Everything is unraveling.”

In the darkness, the sound of someone clicking their tongue echoed repeatedly.

“The Guardian Sword has regained its power?”
“…Yes.”

Daniel, the priest, bowed his head even lower, his body trembling.

This incident had cost them dearly. They had been forced to eliminate their carefully planted operatives within the Jabilon household, and they had lost a significant number of their forces.

“The soldiers couldn’t do anything against the sword’s power?”
“It was as though the events of the past had been recreated.”

Their soldiers—those they had created through sacrifices—were failures. Their souls had been extracted, and the bodies, unable to properly receive new souls, were left as empty vessels. They were mere puppets, enhanced with the church’s spells.

Unable to feel pain and pushed to the limits of physical strength, these puppets had been the church’s main fighting force, both in the past and now.

The problem was that these puppets were powerless before the Guardian Sword. Its light had rendered them utterly useless.

Hadn’t this happened long ago, when Mars wielded the Guardian Sword? The puppets had fallen lifelessly, just as they did now.

“To think that sword has awakened again.”
“We don’t know why.”
“It’s that girl, isn’t it?”
“Yes.”

The one who had awakened the long-dormant Guardian Sword was none other than Camilla Sorpell, the Duke’s daughter. The entire capital was already abuzz with the news.

“That girl keeps getting in our way.”

Camilla Sorpell’s name had come up repeatedly in all their failed schemes. Was it all just coincidence?

“She is undoubtedly a hindrance.”
“Hm.”
“What shall we do?”

Daniel’s question lingered in the darkness without an immediate answer.

“She must be dealt with, don’t you think?”
“We failed last time.”
“That was…”

He was referring to the incident in Rania, where their attempt to eliminate Camilla had not only failed but also caused their long-laid plans to crumble.

‘We lost such a precious resource.’

He was referring to the body of the Duke of Sorpell’s daughter. They had invested so much time into securing her, only to lose everything.

“For now, I’ll meet her myself.”
“What?”
“I want to know what she knows. Were her actions deliberate or mere coincidence?”

Daniel’s eyes widened at the suggestion but quickly bowed his head in deference to the decision.

“What about the Guardian Sword?”
“It’s still with the Jabilon family.”
“Things must be chaotic there.”
“A new master has appeared, after all.”

Daniel sighed deeply. Just days ago, they had been celebrating the retrieval of the relic. How had things come to this?

“We’ll proceed cautiously with her.”
“Understood.”

***

“Try holding it.”
“Do I really have to?”

Nod.

“Wasn’t it just a fluke? The sword probably just helped in a desperate moment. It’s the Guardian Sword, after all—it must have wanted to protect the Jabilon family. It’s not like I’m special or anything…”

“Just hold it.”

“…”

…Unbelievable.

Camilla sighed inwardly at the Duke of Jabilon’s unyielding gaze.

Her eyes flicked to the side, where Zeno stood, watching as though this had nothing to do with him.

The difference now was that the Guardian Sword was no longer embedded in his chest.

It was my idea, so I can’t exactly complain.

Who could have predicted that the Guardian Sword would react to Zeno’s soul? All she’d wanted was to move the sword to a safer location!

It won’t react again, right?

Last time, Zeno had been inhabiting her body, so the reaction made sense. He had been the sword’s master, after all.

But I’m not him.

Maintaining a calm facade, Camilla slowly reached out to the Guardian Sword in front of her.

See? I’m not your master.

Wooong—

Flinch.

No way…

Did the sword just hum? Surely no one else heard that? Feeling uneasy, Camilla picked up the sword.

Fwoosh!

Oh, come on!

A brilliant light burst from the sword once more.

Why are you reacting to me? I’m not Zeno!

Quickly, Camilla set the sword down and backed away. The sword immediately returned to its dormant state.

Her awkward smile and the astonished stares from those around her made sweat drip down her back.

Is this cursed thing broken? Why can’t it tell who its master is?

“Incredible.”

The most shocked person was the Duke of Jabilon.

He stared at Camilla in disbelief, then walked toward the Guardian Sword. With a reverent expression, he picked it up.

“…”

But nothing happened. It remained a finely crafted, albeit ordinary, blade.

“Why… why!”

The Duke was devastated. Why her? Why not at least someone from his bloodline?

“This sword has been cherished as our family’s greatest treasure for so long!”

The Duke felt a pang of betrayal.

“It seems your divine beast and this sword both prefer my daughter over you.”

“You bastard…!”

The Duke of Sorpell grinned as he scratched his neck nonchalantly. Jabilon clenched his fists, suppressing his anger.

“Does this mean the sword now belongs to the Sorpell family?”

“Shut up, you bastard!”

But when the teasing continued, the Duke couldn’t help but explode. It was a miracle he didn’t grab the man by the collar.

“This sword is the symbol of our family!”

“And what do you plan to do?”
“Isn’t it obvious?”
“Put it back on display like a dead artifact?”

“Ugh.”

The word “dead” hit a nerve. As a swordsman, he couldn’t bear the thought of a great weapon going unused.

But as the head of the Jabilon family, he couldn’t allow the sword to leave their possession.

“Sigh.”

He let out a long breath and glanced at Petro, who was watching everything with a stupid grin.

“That brat…”

Unlike his own turmoil, his son seemed completely oblivious to the gravity of the situation.

And the fact that Petro kept looking at Camilla made him pause.

The Duke of Jabilon’s lips twisted into a sly smile.

“There’s a way.”

“Hm?”

“We could let her take the sword and still keep its power tied to our family name.”

“How?”

The Duke dropped a bombshell.

“Make her one of us.”

“…What?”
“Your daughter and my son…”
“Shut up, you bastard!”

This time, it was the Duke of Sorpell’s turn to explode, lunging at Jabilon’s throat, only to be held back by others.

“Please calm down, my lord!”
“Oh, for heaven’s sake!”
“How dare you suggest such a thing!”

Shing.

At that moment, someone quietly placed a sword in the Sorpell Duke’s hand.

Looking up, he saw the expressionless Duke of Sephra standing beside him.

“If he keeps spouting nonsense, kill him.”

“Hey, hey!”

What’s with this sudden alliance?

Feeling betrayed by Sephra’s unexpected support for Sorpell, Jabilon protested loudly.

“If you gang up on me, I’ll summon my divine beast!”
“Go ahead! You think you’re the only one with a divine beast? We have one too!”

…What are they, children?

Sigh.

Camilla covered her face with both hands, unable to bear the sight of the squabbling Dukes.