Chapter 251. The Gates of Hell (2)
The Sahara.
In the middle of the vast desert of northern Africa, I was flying through the sky with Astolfo on the Hippogriff.
“Your Majesty, how are you feeling?”
“Don’t talk to me! Sand keeps getting in my mouth!”
I covered my mouth with one hand as I answered.
The wind was especially strong today, strong enough to carry sand all the way up to our altitude.
“But no matter how much we search, I can’t find anything.”
“Damn Merlin... why did he hide it in a place like this?”
Merlin had secured the Holy Grail, the greatest holy relic of all.
But he hadn’t kept it near himself.
There was always a chance that some unexpected incident could occur and someone might steal it.
So Merlin had hidden it somewhere no one could easily find, then placed magical seals over it as well.
And the place he had chosen...
was the Sahara Desert.
“What are we supposed to do if even the person who hid it doesn’t know the exact location?!”
“He probably intended to keep it sealed away forever without ever taking it out.”
“Hmm... but this really is difficult to find.”
“It’s literally like looking for a needle in a desert...”
I had hoped Astolfo’s luck would somehow help.
Unfortunately, we had gotten nowhere.
In the end, we gave up and descended to the ground.
“How did it go, Nameless King?”
When we entered the tent to escape the sandstorm, Merlin greeted us while lazily fanning himself.
“Can’t you tell by looking?”
“You seem to be empty-handed. What a shame.”
Watching Merlin speak so leisurely made me feel a brief urge to kill him.
“Can you really not find it with magic?”
“If you give me about ten days, I could.”
“But if I use that much magic, there’s a good chance others will notice.”
"..."
“Pandemonium is also after holy relics, and Christina and Sylvia, who probably consider us enemies now, are dangerous too.”
“There are other Constellations to worry about as well.”
“It’s better if we find it quietly among ourselves.”
“Fine...”
I dropped heavily onto the floor of the tent.
Merlin started fanning me too, but...
it wasn’t particularly cooling.
“Nameless King.”
At that moment, someone lifted the tent flap and poked his head inside.
It was the A-rank Constellation ‘Knight of the Holy Grail,’ Galahad.
In the legends of King Arthur, Galahad had been the knight who successfully completed the quest for the Holy Grail.
That was exactly why I had brought him along.
“Princess Longji seems to have found the location of the seal.”
"...!"
We immediately jumped to our feet.
“I spread water over a wide area with the Mist-Dew Universe Net, then searched for anything that felt unnatural.”
“There was one spot where the water soaked in differently from everywhere else.”
“Excellent work, Princess Longji!”
“No. I merely did what needed to be done.”
Princess Longji opened a parasol as she spoke.
She looked exhausted from the heat and dryness.
“Then Merlin, I’m counting on you.”
“Leave it to me.”
Merlin stepped forward and raised his staff.
A magic circle appeared over the sand dune.
Then the sand suddenly split apart in both directions, revealing an underground passage.
“Astolfo, ride the Hippogriff and keep watch around the area.”
“Leave it to me, Your Majesty!”
After leaving the outside watch to Astolfo, we descended underground.
Galahad took the lead.
I followed behind him with Merlin and Princess Longji.
“You all already know this, but the Holy Grail is said to be the cup that received the blood of the ‘Son of God.’”
“There is also a story that it was made from the jewel once embedded in Lucifer’s head, though I don’t know if that’s true.”
Merlin spoke as we walked down the underground passage.
“Galahad experienced it once before, but the Holy Grail possesses the power to bring about various miracles.”
“However, those miracles are ultimately just phenomena caused by the divine power contained within the Grail.”
“In the end, the Holy Grail is divine power itself.”
“Yes. I believe the same.”
Galahad nodded.
“The Holy Son said at the Last Supper that what was contained in this cup was the blood he would shed to forgive the sins of all mankind.”
“He also called it an eternal covenant.”
“The Holy Spear and Holy Nail were also stained with that blood, but the Grail holds a direct meaning because he personally filled it with his blood.”
“That gives it far greater value.”
“Perhaps that is why it became an object containing such tremendous divine power... enough to absolve humanity’s sins forever.”
Listening to them, I became even more convinced that this wasn’t something that should ever be used carelessly.
We absolutely can’t let the demons get their hands on this.
Thinking that, I continued deeper underground.
After about ten minutes of descent...
a vast underground lake appeared before us.
“I hid it at the bottom of that lake.”
“Princess Longji, could I ask you?”
“I suppose I have no choice.”
Princess Longji moved one hand.
The lake split apart, exposing the bottom.
At the center of the lake stood an altar.
On top of it was a glass sphere.
Inside that sphere...
rested a jeweled cup.
“Is that the Holy Grail?”
I could tell just by looking at it.
This was truly...
a sacred object.
“Now then, I suppose we should decide who will take it out.”
Merlin looked toward me.
“Nameless King, will you do it yourself?”
“Does it matter who does it?”
“If an evil person touches it, something terrible could happen.”
Hearing that immediately reminded me of how Astaroth had transformed into a monster.
“Merlin, am I evil?”
“Hard to say.”
“I don’t think you’re bad enough to qualify. Even someone like me could touch it without any trouble.”
“If you’re worried, shall I retrieve it instead?”
Galahad asked carefully.
He had obtained the Holy Grail once before, so there probably wouldn’t be any problem if he did it.
“No. I’ll do it.”
The Holy Grail was going to belong to me from now on.
Then I should be the one to take it.
Nothing strange had happened when I acquired Joyeuse or the Holy Nail either.
It should be fine.
“Whew...”
I took a deep breath and placed my hand on the glass sphere.
A little force was enough to open the lid.
Then I reached inside...
and grasped the Holy Grail with both hands.
But at that moment...
“Ghk...!”
My mind reeled.
I dropped to one knee.
“Nameless King!”
“What happened?!”
I could hear Merlin and Galahad rushing toward me in alarm.
What... is this?
When I first touched the fragment of the Holy Spear Astolfo had found for me, I had also felt something intense.
But this was completely different.
Back then, I had merely flinched from sensing overwhelming divine power.
This time...
It feels like it’s shaking my mind... no, my very existence itself...
A violent dizziness unlike anything I had ever experienced overwhelmed me.
And right there...
I lost consciousness.
“Yaaawn... this is boring.”
Astolfo stretched on the Hippogriff’s back.
He was supposed to be keeping watch from the air.
But nothing except endless sand stretched in every direction, making it painfully boring.
“You think so too, right?”
“Kyaa!”
“I’ve always wondered about something.”
“A Hippogriff is born from a horse and a griffin, right?”
“And a griffin is half eagle, half lion.”
“So why do you look like a mix of a horse and an eagle?”
“Where did the lion part go?”
“Kyak kyak!”
Astolfo continued talking pointlessly to the Hippogriff.
