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We prepared for our next destination and left that city we ravaged so many times. The townsfolk would probably continue fearing they might be caught in the fire any day for a while longer, but at least we were leaving them alone now. We all made sure we knew our exact roles, and then gathered around Ciel. I would save up my mana for the large spell, so Ciel was the only one transporting us there. Slowly we began floating into the air, then gained speed as we flew to the west. Some time later I noticed a group of ten in the road below us, sensing unnaturally strong power from them, but they had no means to bring us down from the air, so we reached the capital safely.

This was my second time coming here. The first I came as a state guest, and I entered through the main gates. Now I was sneaking in through the air. It was late at night, so the streets seemed devoid of life, except for many guards patrolling around. I looked at the palace, it was still a very plain and boring looking building, focused solely on usability rather than decoration. Even though there was no on-going war, the outer walls were all lined with ballistas and other defensive armaments, giving it a rather ominous appearance. That was the palace we were going to attack.

“Lapis, how close should we get?”
“As close as possible would be nice, though I guess they might notice us if we go a bit too close, or we might get caught in my spell. I think this distance is fine.”
“Alright.”

We were currently far enough from the palace that it was a bit of a gamble whether the ballistas could reach us or not. But if pegasus or wyverns were dispatched, they would reach us almost instantly, so that made it a bit dangerous.

“Lapis, what kind of magic will you use?”
“Lightning magic. And the strongest spell I know.”

Ciel was always curious about magic, and that did not change even during a situation like this.

“Lightning magic? Isn’t that the type they say only the hero could use?”
“That’s just a misunderstanding. Lightning magic is really rare and not many people have aptitude for it, and I just happened to be the one who mastered it the most.”
“Is that so? That’s good to know then.”

Was Ciel actually trying to ease some of the pressure from our mission? I was glad if that was the case, but now it was time to focus on the palace again, and gather all the mana I could. Even three hundred years ago there were only a handful of magicians able to use this type of magic, and I was mustering an immense amount of mana for my spell. That power began to manifest physically, pulses of energy being emitted from my body.

“Lapis…”
“There’s so much mana!”
“So this is her most powerful…”
“I hate to admit it, but I’m still so far from reaching her level.”

Karin, Diaria, Luvias and Ciel were all shocked watching me prepare to cast the spell. But I could gather even more power now. In the past, I would have just launched the spell like this, but now I had another source of power. This was my only chance, so I had to use everything I had.

(God of Knowledge Widom, grant me your power!)

I prayed in my mind, and I felt like my eyes went dark and my mana almost scattered away. I hastily controlled the mana I gathered, and increased its power even more. My lightning magic had successfully pierced Tiamat’s magic resistant wings before, so I could hardly imagine just how much more powerful it could get with the blessing of a god.

Keeping all this mana under control was starting to get tricky, but somehow it was still working out. Now I just had to launch the spell onto the palace. For a moment all the people in the palace who were not part of the conflict flashed in my mind, but it was too late to stop now. Keeping my mind calm, I point my palm at the palace and begin concentrating my mana.

The sky and everything below us turned white in an instant. My spell traveled in a straight line, too straight for lightning. It was more like a streak of light, a beam. It was also considerably thick, enough to swallow a large mansion. Smaller bolts of lightning scattered from it into the surrounding areas, but the main beam shot straight towards the palace, hitting it in an instant. But then…

“What’s happening?!”
“I knew they had a barrier!”

A large wall of light blocked my magic the moment it got close. But its resistance was only momentary, the barrier shattering with a dry sound after a few seconds. The beam of light continued traveling freely, colliding with the building and creating a loud explosive sound.

“Kyahh!”
“Ghuh?!”
“It’s the shockwave! Brace everyone!”

The impact of my spell with the palace created a powerful shockwave that sent us flying like leaves in the wind. We all had to use everything in our power to not get separated from Ciel. If one of us who could not use Flight Magic got separated, they would likely helplessly fall to their death.

While we struggled to keep our Flight Magic under control, a large boulder flew past us at an incredible speed. There were more boulders shot towards us, all of various sizes. The impact had sent all of them flying. I used whatever mana I had left to build a barrier around us, deflecting any incoming rocks.

I felt my body being jostled in every direction, while the thundering noises around me drove me insane. Meanwhile the bright light beam had blinded my eyes, my vision currently blurry and blown out. But I recovered quickly, and the sight below us was something far from anything I ever imagined.

§　§　§

–––Leble the Fifth’s viewpoint

A really weird sensation woke me up from my slumber. I was in my bedroom, the safest place in the entire empire. Any ordinary assassin would be spotted before they got anywhere, and those who managed to get inside the palace would get cold feet way before they got close to my bedroom. In other words, it was impossible for an enemy to get here. Still, the uneasiness would not go away. Maybe it was some sort of premonition, but I could not allow myself to be influenced by such a vague thing.

“It’s only at times like these that I wish my room had windows.”

Still, I could not think of anything more careless than to sleep next to a window. My bedroom was secure, surrounded by thick walls deep inside the palace. My office was on the top floor, but my bedroom was in the safest and best defended spot of the palace. The only path to get here involved going all the way to the top floor, and then going back down again through a different corridor. The convoluted nature of such a layout made things annoying sometimes, but this meant only one path had to be protected, and I had no need to worry about placing guards everywhere.

“Your Majesty, is something wrong?”
“I want to see what’s happening outside, prepare everything.”
“As you wish.”

I left my bedroom and spoke to a guard stationed in front of the door, who went to gather a small unit of knights. As emperor, I could not simply walk around alone and unprotected, I had to always have a number of knights nearby. But it was late at night, so it took some time to gather enough knights. Still, I could count myself lucky there were that many available.

Then there was a low rumbling sound and the room shook all of a sudden. At first I thought it was an earthquake, but I was quickly proven wrong. I felt an onrush of mana getting closer, followed by more shaking as the ceiling and floor crumbled.

“Sire!”
“Hm?!

The guards run towards me trying to protect me, but the falling rubble keeps them away. I try creating a magic barrier to protect myself, but that takes too long as well. My body gets shaken violently like a toy in a toddler’s hand, rocks hitting me everywhere. I felt my mind fading, but I had to remain awake if I wanted to live. I push through the falling rubble, somehow making my way out while suffering countless injuries. My body started bleeding from various places, and I knew I had broken more than a few bones. But I gritted my teeth and endured the pain, somehow dragging myself outside to a long plume of white smoke and the starry sky.

“Urgh…”
“It hurts…someone…help me…”
“Someone..! Is anyone there! Can someone get me out of here!”

I heard countless voices all around me. They were probably injured people, or those who had gotten trapped under the rubble. There was no point in thinking about them. Figuring out what had happened took precedence.

I picked up a sword from amongst the rubble before flying into the air, quickly heading to a high spot. From there I surveyed the palace I was used to living in, which had taken considerable damage.

“…No natural disaster can cause this. And I know I felt mana before it all happened, this is certainly an enemy attack. But just who could’ve..?”

There were countless disfigured bodies scattered amongst the rubble. They were of little importance, the empire belonged to me, and there was no empire without me. It did not matter if others died or not. But I had to stop whoever caused this, they had sullied my honor. I would snap the necks of everyone involved, and that of their relatives.

“Hm?”

I noticed a shadow moving in the corner of my eye. At first I thought it was a bird, but there were barely any birds that flew at night, and it was too large to be a bird. It was a person, multiple in fact.

“…So those are the perpetrators. Do they really think they’re safe in the air? You won’t get away alive!”

Filled with rage, I channel mana into my entire body and fly towards them.