I Obtained the Final Boss' Power

Chapter 138 : Holy Nation (4)

Holy Nation (4)

"I'm Louis, the one who's been leading this village for a while now. It's nice to meet you for the first time."

A boy they didn't recognize appeared and greeted them with a bright expression.

"Why are your faces like that? You all look like people who've lost their goods in the middle of an important deal and are terrified."

When Louis candidly commented on their expressions, tyrone was the first to speak.

"You... who are you? What do you mean, you've 'taken over' the elf village!"

"It's exactly as I said. This place now belongs to us. Isn't that right, elders?"

At his question, the elders each nodded their heads.

Tyrone scowled deeply and protested.

"What nonsense are you talking about! Do you think it makes sense to hand over such an important position to a suspicious boy no one's ever met before?"

Weissman's wife, who was traveling with Tyrone, also chimed in.

"Isn't this a place where humans are kept as slaves? Why are you handing over your positions to a human?"

"Is that boy supposed to be someone special?"

Going beyond their objections, Bellain the Hero even drew his sword to threaten Louis.

As the blade was pointed at Louis' neck, the elders hurriedly restrained Bellain.

"Please calm down! We didn't entrust everything to this boy for nothing."

"Can you explain that properly?"

Bellain shot a sharp question at the elders.

If they couldn't explain, he looked ready to cut them down as well.

"Don't threaten them that much. They're not at fault for me taking this seat."

"What do you mean?"

"It just means these folks were too incompetent, so I took their place."

Bellain remained suspicious, holding the sword up.

It was a reaction Louis fully understood, so he didn't mind.

"What the boy says is true."

"Indeed, he took this position legitimately."

"There's no need to be so wary. Ultimately, his goal is no different from ours."

"Is that true?"

If their objectives were truly the same, there was no need to be so defensive.

All they had to do was pay the tribute of sacred stones and return to the capital as usual.

But for a human to reign as the leader of the elf village was strange by any measure.

They couldn't simply leave until they properly confirmed the elders' words and whether this boy was truly on their side.

"Then can you prove right now, here, that you're on our side?"

Naturally, such a situation arose because there was no trust.

As if expecting this, Louis raised the corners of his mouth and spoke.

"I'll prove it to you from now on, so please follow me."

With that, Louis led them somewhere.

"Oh, right, bring the sleeping Saint as well."

Though she was asleep, leaving Saint Pram unattended wasn't an option.

In the end, Brute Weissman had to carry the slumbering Pram on his back to follow Louis.

And Bellain continued to follow Louis' lead, still holding his sword at the ready.

"How long are you planning to keep that blade pointed at me?"

"Until I can confirm whether or not you can be trusted."

"You can't use magic power here anyway—does it even have a point?"

"Isn't it the same for you?"

It was an unquestionable fact that no one could use magic power here.

Except for the elders, that is.

Louis guided them underground as he spoke.

"I heard from the elders behind you that you'd be coming. And above all, I'm happy to see the prophesied Saint in person."

As Louis walked, he glanced back.

Looking at Pram, asleep on Brute's back, he spoke.

"Has the Saint been well during this time?"

"What do you mean by well?"

"Has she been hurt, or troubled, or perhaps..."

If she'd been mistreated.

As Louis added that, tyrone, walking behind, let out a wry chuckle.

"Mistreated? Nonsense. Surely you know how things work with the Saints if you're one of us."

"......"

When Louis fell silent, tyrone continued.

"Of course, she should be treated well. Not only comfortable daily life but treatment on par with me, a royal, within the Holy Nation."

He did, in fact, provide Pram with such conveniences.

He intended to continue doing everything possible to let her live the life she wanted.

"If you're really on our side, you should know why the prophesied Saint is such an important being."

"It's because of the sacred stones, isn't it?"

He'd already heard it all from the elders.

"Correct. She can produce the finest spirit stones to be used as nourishment for the World Tree. That's the primary reason our Holy Nation manages every single Saint."

"What if she can no longer produce sacred stones?"

"Hahaha..."

Tyrone laughed heartily.

"Our role is simply to manage the tools. Unlike cheap tools with poor durability, the prophesied Saint is a tool of supreme performance that would be worthy of display in the finest maintenance facilities."

"So when you say treatment like royalty..."

"Exactly. Every Saint is a tool for saving the World Tree. God's Apostle? There's no such thing."

To all people of the continent who venerated Saints as God's Apostles, tyrone's words would have been utterly shocking.

In short, what they did was bury countless young girls alive in coffins under the title of Saint to save the World Tree, the supposed center of the world.

All for a tree they couldn't even revive.

"Does the Imperial Court know about this?"

If he had—if the Emperor had—he wouldn't have handed over Pram as a Saint.

Naturally, Louis and the Special Task Force members would have opposed even more fiercely.

But...

"You think they'd find out? That's an amusing thought."

No one knew.

"The fact that we create sacred stones for the World Tree must never be known to the Imperial Court. The elf village is completely closed off, and no one can use magic power here."

"And without the elders' permission, not even another elf can leave the village easily."

"You know the basics well. The Imperial Court doesn't know how we manage the World Tree. They don't even know that the World Tree once withered."

The World Tree was said to have been planted by the gods themselves.

No one would believe it had withered or died.

"Of course, to avoid the truth about the withered World Tree being discovered, we can't just sit idly by."

"That's why you need the sacred stones."

"Exactly. Not only can we disguise it as if the World Tree hasn't died, but we can even use some authority and spells thanks to them."

That was why no one doubted the Holy Nation.

The World Tree looked as if it was still shining brightly.

"If there were no World Tree, the Holy Nation wouldn't have been formed in the first place, right?"

"And before that, there'd be no such group as the Holy Church at all. That's why the World Tree is essential to us."

"Hence the need for the sacred stones from the Saints."

"Yes. If the World Tree's death is revealed, the Holy Nation won't last much longer."

The World Tree was the very foundation of the Holy Nation as a state.

If it disappeared, everything supported by it would vanish as well.

"A mayfly nation, then."

"But those worries will all be over soon."

"It wasn't just to make the World Tree appear healthy that you collected sacred stones, was it?"

Again, this was something the elders had told him beforehand.

Tyrone now confirmed it directly.

"The World Tree will soon become a colossal weapon to eliminate the demon realm. The power of the sacred stones it's been absorbing will be released straight into the demon realm to destroy all the evil beings there in one stroke."

With that, as the demon realm was wiped out, the continent would be freed from its threat.

"With that, our Holy Nation will become the true rulers of this continent."

Once the demon realm was annihilated, the Holy Nation's standing would inevitably rise.

That was why they were obsessed with weaponizing the World Tree.

"Therefore, the sacrifice of the tools known as Saints is by no means in vain. The sacred stones they risk their lives to produce will become the salvation of the continent! The prophesied Saint is no different. We will make her more than a mere apostle—we will make her a hero."

"So if her name is left as a hero, giving up her life isn't an unreasonable sacrifice, is that it?"

"Indeed! If she still resents us, nothing could be more ungrateful."

Louis glanced at Pram once more.

Seeing her sleeping peacefully, he sighed inwardly.

If he'd known all this from the start, he would never have sent Pram as a Saint.

If only he'd known, he wouldn't have skipped the story.

"Then, is the World Tree, after absorbing all those sacred stones, capable of anything other than becoming a weapon?"

"What kind of function do you mean?"

Louis asked the question he most wanted an answer to.

"The relics used by past heroes like Great Mage Mirianne. Could the World Tree gain the wisdom to recreate such artifacts?"

"Would we need more relics like that?"

"In case a great disaster, like the Chaos Dragon, returns. Recently, with the appearance of the prophesied Saint and Hero... I just wondered if the opposite could appear as well."

To create weapons to stand against catastrophes.

As he highlighted this and inquired about the wisdom of the World Tree, tyrone replied.

"It sounds like a good idea, but sadly, it's impossible. Not now, after the World Tree has withered."

"......"

On learning this, Louis looked genuinely pained.

Any hope of using the corpse of the dead World Tree to harness the power of the Chaos Dragon was now gone.

"That's truly unfortunate."

"But where exactly are you leading us, anyway?"

"We're almost there."

"This is..."

Tyrone had been here before.

It was the only place within the elf village where sacred stones were made.

It was the underground labor camp where the production took place.

"Do you know where this is?"

"Of course. Isn't this where the Holy Nation brought in foolish Imperial citizens who set foot in their land?"

"But did you see a single one of them when you arrived in the village a moment ago?"

Come to think of it, the entire village was filled only with elves.

Being the elf village, that seemed natural—but, in truth, humans also lived there.

Except they all lived in a state stripped of their rights by the elves.

"Ty... Tyrone, High Priest! Over there!"

"What is it?"

"Look down!"

As they descended further, the labor camp came into view.

When Weissman's wife saw its visible interior, she was appalled.

She even dropped Pram, who had been on her husband's back.

"Huh?"

"What's going on?"

The atmosphere of the labor camp was the same as before.

Laborers were being worked to the bone, and overseers whipped them while exploiting their labor.

But there was one difference...

"Why are the elves the ones toiling in labor? And... why are the humans...!"

The roles had simply reversed.

Tyrone and Bellain reeled as they saw elves being whipped by humans, working desperately.

"You'd better explain this right now. What's going on here!"

The moment the furious Bellain pressed his sword against Louis's throat—

"Oww... my head..."

Pram, who had banged her head on the floor, woke up.

"Hmm?"

She looked around at the change in surroundings.

Then, as she spotted someone, her body froze.

"Ah?"

Her eyes sparkled, as if she was finally seeing someone she'd yearned to meet her whole life.

"... Young Master."

"Eh?"

"... Young Master."

Everyone was startled by Pram's sudden awakening.

"Youuuung Masteeeeeeeerrrrr!!! I missed you sooooooooooo much!!!!!"

Without a moment's hesitation, Pram jumped into Louis's arms and hugged him, leaving the entire group dumbfounded.