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The news of the successor to Infractus shook the entire empire. This meant that the emperor’s earlier announcement of the successful suppression of the rebel forces had been fulfilled.

To inform the people of the fate of the rebels, the empire announced the death of Horizon to all its citizens.

The end of Horizon, who had led thousands of New Resistance troops and vowed to become the next Lion King, was rather unimpressive.

He was defeated twice in battles at Obitus and fled, ultimately meeting his death without even leaving a complete corpse.

A figure once revered as the Great Sage and recorded in history books, Horizon’s name was now tarnished as a rebel, quietly fading into the annals of history.

However, the fall of Horizon, once praised as the Great Sage, did not garner much attention from the empire’s citizens or the elite. There was more pressing news that captured their interest.

The empire’s successor, a position that had been vacant for a long time since the current emperor took power.

The curiosity about who would take that position was immense.

With the news of the heir candidates returning from Obitus, the grand sound of trumpets and military bands began to play from the distant city gates.

People flooded the streets to witness the long-awaited triumphal procession in the imperial capital.

Leading the procession would be the person who had contributed the most to quelling the rebellion, and that person would likely be the one to inherit the empire’s next reign.

Spectators debated who it might be as they waited for the procession.

Soon, the sight of hundreds of colossal mechs led by the one at the forefront appeared beyond the large city gates. People’s eyes naturally turned to the unit flag fluttering in the wind.

The unit flag bearing crossed swords and a lion emblem.

It was the flag of Seraphina, the First Princess and the Knight Princess.

The crowd erupted in gasps.

Gamblers wept and laughed over the results of their bets on the heir competition, while ordinary citizens who hadn’t gambled smiled with hope for the empire’s bright future.

Some lamented that their preferred candidates hadn’t become the heir, as their ideals of a ruler varied.

But no one dared to say she was unworthy. The Knight Princess Seraphina had already been imprinted in the minds of the citizens long before the competition began.

She was undoubtedly the closest to the heir’s position.

Just before Seraphina’s colossal mech passed, the citizens knelt.

This was both a tribute to the hero who had returned victorious from the war against the rebels and a gesture of respect to the empire’s future heir.

Seraphina’s face, looking down at the citizens with her cockpit open, was calm yet resolute, the face of a true ruler.

The citizens, unable to meet the eyes of the Crown Princess who would usher in a new era, remained bowed even after she had passed.

“Glory to Infractus!”

“Eternal prosperity to the empire!”

The citizens’ chants echoed like a resounding wave, spreading throughout the capital during the triumphal procession.

***

After the procession, Gilbert returned to his temporary lodging, holding Fressia, who had transformed into a moonflower, deep in thought.

His mind was a tangled mess of various issues.

The sudden death of Horizon, the problem of Fressia’s transformation, and the gradually rising Twisted Index.

There were no clear solutions, but there were too many things to worry about.

Gilbert sighed and decided to organize his thoughts step by step. He realized that continuing to think aimlessly would only lead him in circles.

He first recalled the current situation.

The recent large-scale war against the New Resistance army at Obitus had ended in victory. Despite being outnumbered, they managed to completely suppress the New Resistance.

The empire gained significant benefits from this suppression. It served as a prime example of the consequences of rebellion and showcased the imperial family’s strength.

Moreover, the position of the next emperor, which had been vacant for so long.

The Heir Designation Ceremony had been successfully completed.

This effectively removed all unstable elements from the Infractus imperial family.

However, Gilbert still had many unresolved doubts. No matter how long Horizon had lived, it was hard to believe he had secretly amassed thousands of colossal mechs.

This had been a lingering question since the previous Resistance suppression operations, but the sheer number of mechs was beyond anything Gilbert could have imagined.

There were also questions about Horizon’s death.

After losing to Gilbert in battle, Horizon chose to flee.

Perhaps he intended to regroup with reserve mechs and turn the tide of the war.

Gilbert, knowing this, pursued Horizon with Fressia in tow. Although a minor incident delayed them, the time lost was minimal.

Yet, in that short time, Horizon had been brutally killed by someone. It was hard to accept that Horizon, a powerful mage, had met such a pitiful end.

Moreover, the appearance of someone capable of killing Horizon was troubling. The emergence of an unknown threat was a bad omen.

And for some reason, Seraphina’s Twisted Index was gradually rising after the victory at Obitus and the Heir Designation Ceremony.

Though the increase was minimal, the Twisted Index had already surpassed dangerous levels. It was too risky to assume it would stop on its own.

Gilbert needed to meet Seraphina as soon as possible to assess the situation.

After finishing his thoughts, Gilbert let out a deep sigh.

He had roughly organized his thoughts. While nothing had been resolved, stopping the aimless wandering of his mind was a relief. His head had been aching from overthinking since his return.

But there was still one issue he needed to address.

This wasn’t a matter of thought or contemplation but something that absolutely needed to be resolved.

“Why? Do you have something to say?”

“No.”

Gilbert stared at Fressia, who was sitting on the bed, tearing into a piece of bread.

The problem he needed to solve.

It was Fressia, now in human form.

Not long ago, after placing Fressia’s spirit core into the cross guard of Moonflower, she had transformed into a human body.

Gwendolyn, who had crafted Moonflower, had mentioned that the weapon could grant unique abilities to artificial spirits, but Gilbert never imagined it could turn them into humans.

The idea of an inanimate object like Fressia becoming a living human was beyond his comprehension.

Wasn’t this similar to the polymorphing abilities of dragons from legends?

Of course, having such a mysterious ability wasn’t necessarily a problem. It showed the potential of Moonflower, which was satisfying.

But the world wasn’t that simple.

After transforming Fressia back into Moonflower, Gilbert tried to remove her spirit core from the cross guard to return it to Ian.

However, for some reason, her core refused to come out. Realizing the severity of the situation, he went to Gwendolyn’s weapon shop, only to find that she had left to search for rare minerals.

Realizing that separating Moonflower and Fressia was currently impossible, Gilbert had no choice but to return to his lodging with Fressia.

As a result, he had been living uncomfortably with Fressia for several days.

Fortunately, after fighting side by side in the Obitus siege, their relationship had improved. While they still bickered like during their Tactical Combat days, their bond was much stronger than before.

“So, when are you going to send me back?”

“Once I retrieve Moonflower.”

“Ian will be really worried. Send me back soon.”

Fressia grumbled as she tore into the bread.

Gilbert fully understood her position.

Although she had temporarily cooperated with Gilbert, Fressia was an artificial spirit with a contractor. It was only natural for her to return to Ian.

However, Gilbert couldn’t just hand Fressia back to Ian. Moonflower was a masterpiece crafted by Gwendolyn, who would one day be known as the greatest Sword Master.

She had poured her heart and soul into creating this sword, claiming that such a weapon could never be made again. Gilbert couldn’t possibly give such a sword to Ian.

“How many days has it been now? You’re the one who attached my core to this sword, causing all this trouble. How long do I have to wait?”

Fressia glared at Gilbert, clearly at her limit.

Her words were undeniably true.

It was Gilbert who, out of curiosity, had attached Fressia’s spirit core to Moonflower.

Forcing her to stay in this situation was problematic. Considering the need for future cooperation, there was no reason to strain their relationship.

Ultimately, the important thing was for Gilbert to make a decision.

And he wasn’t the type to make foolish choices.

“Alright. I’ll send you back as soon as dawn breaks tomorrow. But try not to transform into that form.”

“I don’t plan to. It’s too much trouble to explain. Unless it’s in front of you, I won’t transform.”

Her voice trailed off at the end, but Gilbert, with his superhuman hearing, caught every word.

However, seeing her ears turn red, Gilbert chose not to tease her.

“Still, it’s a bit of a shame. You finally got a body.”

“Finally?”

What was she talking about?

Gilbert sensed that there was more to this story.

“I used to have a body. Something happened, and I ended up like this.”

“Something happened?”

“Well, this is something I haven’t even told Ian… But I guess it’s okay to tell you as a comrade, right?”

The bond formed during the Obitus siege seemed stronger than Gilbert had anticipated.

Fressia winked at Gilbert with her left eye and began to share a story she had never told anyone.

“Before I start, I should introduce myself properly. My name is Fressia Luna Eldorado. I was the princess of Eldorado, an ancient empire that once ruled the continent… but is now long gone.”

Her words were completely unexpected.

 

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