Chapter 226

The practitioners from the Eastern Continent said that everything in this world has a bright side and a dark side.

When war breaks out, a mother whose son has been conscripted sheds tears, and a farmer whose grain has been requisitioned collapses, but the blacksmith who runs an armor workshop in the city, the master of the arrow workshop, and the surgeon raise a toast.

Aside from the sorrow that humanity should inherently bear, no matter how bad things get, there are those who benefit from it.

Therefore.

Even in a situation where the capital of the richest country in the world lies in ruins and 600,000 citizens are driven into makeshift villages in the fields during early winter, there were those who held back their laughter.

“We’re rich now!”

“Gather the kids in advance. Go to the Academy’s camp and secure some earth magicians too.”

“Does anyone know Lady Trentia? She’s a close guard knight of Duke Valenciaunos.”

It was none other than the high-ranking officials of the Construction Guild, Civil Engineering Guild, and Materials Guild.

They were the upper echelon among the bourgeoisie of the capital, representing the wealthy commoners and intellectuals while maintaining a strange rivalry with the court nobles who inherited power through bloodlines.

They had accumulated wealth and influence to the extent that they could confront the nobles of heterogeneous bloodlines solely based on knowledge, disregarding ethics.

From their perspective, the imperial court had already escaped the crisis of collapse.

“Duke Valenciaunos hasn’t left the capital, which indicates that he has something on his mind.”

“Let’s speak frankly. No matter how much of a bandit and a saint kidnapper he is, have you heard of him facing any significant punishment or failure so far?”

“I acknowledge that he’s a strategist who killed two dukes without drawing the suspicion of revolt.”

“I heard that the magicians from the Ivory Tower and the imperial magic guild have completed over 80% of the magic to reopen the Magical Realms.”

“The high nobles are also staying in the capital.”

“If we just hold out for now, there will be a massive public works contract next spring. Then, we will become several times richer.”

They quickly calculated to that point and mobilized all their networks to contact trading posts in all directions.

“Are you the owner of the quarry? I would like to place a large order for stones, but I’m a bit short on cash. I’ll pay you as soon as the funds are processed, so just trust me this once.”

“Did you get logging permission from the baron? Make planks right away.”

“Were you not running a brick factory in the old slums, Councillor Konel? Let’s meet first. Tell him he can clear out his stock.”

Despite Solletaraon’s vastness, the scars left by the battle between 20,000 infiltrators and 1 km-level invaders were deep.

Due to the city’s unique nature with sewers sprawling everywhere, there were numerous buildings that had completely collapsed and would require ground work to be redone.

Hadrian and the Minister of Finance, who calculated the estimated budget for the sewer restoration, were stifling fake laughter.

“A house is not a luxury but a necessity, and even a slight shortage in supply drives prices sky-high.”

“I must enter as soon as the Magical Realms close and speak with Duke Valenciaunos. If I slip him some gold coins, he might overlook some profit.”

“We are rich now.”

Thus, it was very natural for the high-ranking officials of each guild to think, “First, let’s secure materials even if it means going overboard; once the Magical Realms close, we’ll immediately start construction and secure a distributable quantity, then sell it for an exorbitant price.”

They had so much money and a dense network of connections.

When Valenciaunos stated he would close the Magical Realms, they entered the capital’s walls and discussed who would secure which contracts, pointing to various buildings and streets that had collapsed.

But.

“Your Majesty?”

The emperor Jeilliris emerged from the Magical Realms.

Under the blue sky, the emperor drew forth a golden aura.

Saaah—

A brilliant array of light spread in all directions, making the collapsed and damaged buildings tremble.

* * *

The completely collapsed stone buildings writhed.

Bricks stuck together, stone pillars rose, and shattered glass reunited.

Rumbling!

The earth and road-paved bricks that had fallen into the sewers sprang up again, and the abandoned pier surged from the canal floor.

Cha-Chaak.

Bent nails straightened out, marginally rejoined, and torn flags soared back up the flagpole.

Flap!

The originally three-story building became five stories; the five-story building became eight.

Silt that had risen from the sewers formed into rocks, split along their grain into bricks and pillars.

As if an earthquake had struck, steel structures stacked onto the sunken sewers, massive slabs interlocked, and gravel, sand, and paving stones were placed on top.

The golden aura enveloped the entirety of the capital, undulating.

I gazed at the scene in awe and disbelief.

“My goodness.”

As if realizing what kind of magic this was, Sererassie and the elders of the Ivory Tower clicked their tongues.

Jeilliris was currently using golem magic.

Of course, conventional golem magic could not exert this level of power.

The strength to raise the entire capital was a feat only possible by Jeilliris.

She stood on one staircase of the completely restored pier, overlooking the city with her characteristic languorous gaze.

It felt like she was standing at the highest point of a semicircular theater.

“It may look all flashy on the outside, but at least it seems like a place where people can live. Though it might be inappropriate for me to say, protecting and creating is greater than seizing and destroying. So, my dear, thank you for protecting my city.”

I just witnessed the lightning rod being erected on the top of the adjacent stone building and nodded absentmindedly.

“Your Majesty.”

Before the return, I had seen Jeilliris destroy an entire city many times, but I had never seen her restore one.

The officials, knights, and magicians wore expressions similar to mine.

Hadrian and the Minister of Finance embraced each other, shedding tears of relief, while knights began to kneel one by one, and the Ivory Tower magicians gazed at Jeilliris with dazed expressions.

At that moment, a proud and resonant voice rang out loudly enough for everyone to hear.

“47th Lady Solletaras! Long live her majesty Jeilliris! Seberik of Septentrion swears eternal loyalty.”

The shield of the North, the Duke of the frigid lands, looked up at Jeilliris and knelt on one knee.

The imperial knights and central region knights whispered among themselves, while other great lords murmured.

“The Duke of the North must bow before the emperor; that’s how it must be.”

Seberik kept his promise to me.

Following him, a breathless laughter came from beside me.

“Really, I can’t even find the words.”

The victor of the East, the daughter of the storm, with her sea-colored hair tied up, knelt on one knee before Jeilliris.

“Cariosa of Asenorta swears eternal loyalty. Long live your majesty.”

An old man who had been watching us from the shadows slowly stepped into the sunlight and knelt before the sun.

“César of Sycarioius dedicates his remaining life and the life he has lived so far. Long live your majesty.”

The shrewd young marchioness, Signain, wore an endlessly overwhelmed expression.

Having inherited the title of marchioness by surpassing her older sister and brother, along with rumors of being next in line for a duke title, she trembled at the miracle of a city being rebuilt by a single spell.

Grace alternately looked at Jeilliris, me, and the citizens outside the castle gate who were cheering.

She bit her painfully red lips, sighed deeply, and bowed her head before Jeilliris.

The Ironblood Party leader, Marcus, who had been incorporated under me, the hailed genius Sererassie, and other major lords gradually knelt one by one and bowed their heads.

“Long live your majesty Jeilliris! May there be glory during the reign of Solletaras.”

“Long live your majesty Jeilliris! May there be endless glory during the reign of Solletaras!”

As her name resounded under heaven, one who had received a mark from the being in the sky repeatedly squeezed his eyes shut and opened them.

“Valenciaunos.”

I poked Matteo’s side.

“Saint, I passed the bill, didn’t I? I ensured that all relief supplies could go out in the name of the church. If something comes in, something needs to go out too.”

Matteo sighed deeply and looked back at the once again radiant city.

He wore a solemn expression on his serene face and handed me the black cloak he had been draped in.

“Uh.”

“Ah!”

Sounds of people taking deep breaths echoed around.

The saint’s purple vestments shone beneath the winter sun.

Matteo swept his jet-black hair back, exposing the shimmering stigmata on his forehead.

Jeilliris smiled at me, and Matteo, with great fortune, broke off a twig from a small tree that had just survived.

Divine power flickered from his hand, and the twig grew long in a circular shape, curling like a crown.

A flower of bright yellow, the size of two finger joints, bloomed so profusely that the twig crown was hardly visible.

I recognized that Matteo had just created a holy relic.

That flower would never wither.

Matteo stood beside Jeilliris.

Whispers and gasps erupted among the priests and court nobles.

When a saint hands over the priestly vestments, it signifies representing the Divine, so it had been tradition until now to receive it from the lower steps, no matter if it was a king or an emperor.

“Jeilliris.”

Matteo raised the holy crown as he called out her name.

A halo made of divine power arose above his black hair, shimmering gently.

“Will you uphold justice with law and sword?”

“I will.”

“Will you be faithful to the church with faith and practice?”

“I will.”

“Will you always protect the weak?”

“I will.”

Jeilliris smiled with satisfaction as she answered all three questions.

“Then, in the name of my father, I grant you the authority to govern this land.”

Matteo placed the holy crown on Jeilliris.

Now she was recognized as an emperor by the lower lords and great lords, as well as by the divine above.

I shouted as if the heavens would fall.

I would make her a beloved empress and enjoy wealth and glory under her rule.

It seemed that more than half of that had succeeded.

An overwhelming satisfaction welled up within me.

“Long live your majesty Jeilliris!”

Now, no one would dare to call her a tyrant.

The great lords wouldn’t question her ascension, nor would they incite endless revolts or support a traitorous prince like Justianus.

Unlike before, they had sworn their loyalty.

If they labeled her a tyrant, it would undermine their own legitimacy and righteousness.

Furthermore, to call her a tyrant, when it was a saint who personally placed the holy crown upon her, would be tantamount to disregarding the church.

From that day onward, I began to hear the words people used to refer to Jeilliris.

“They say that she is called the Divine Emperor, embodying the strength that restored the capital in an instant and the holy crown that the saint gave her, bringing together the meaning of both.”

“What did you say?”

“Divine Emperor.”

* * *

The lengthy oath of loyalty period came to an end.

It had stretched out nearly five months longer than originally planned.

As a result, as soon as the great lords finished their oaths of loyalty, they fled as if in a hurry.

“Friend. Thank you.”

“No, Seberik. Thanks to you, we could protect the imperial palace.”

Duke Seberik of the North gained a safe harbor and grain.

“I had intended to call you sister-in-law, your majesty.”

“Isn’t it great that you recognized the title of the Nayt Archipelago? Please head back quickly before your majesty touches you.”

Cariosa was promoted to a duchess, becoming a queen of the Nayt Archipelago, aside from her title within the empire.

On the last day, Jeilliris smiled at her, but I didn’t know what that meant.

“Well then. I’ll see you again soon.”

Signain was the biggest beneficiary.

She had the opportunity to multiply her territories by several times and received promises of promotion to a duchess.

“I’ll say this in advance; I still dislike you.”

“Just don’t say it.”

Grace received slightly reduced tariffs from trading with the imperial court.

“Ah, that maid has talent. If only I had more time, I would have wanted to take her as an apprentice.”

“…One or two instructors are always welcome.”

Caesar received permits for fortification and tracking nomadic tribes, specifically promising that they wouldn’t hold Sycarioius responsible for any issues that may arise if they crossed borders during the subjugation.

Of course, there were still some great lords lacking legitimacy who were compelled to give something up.

These mostly included usurpers or those who clashed with the church, needing to keep good relationships with the imperial court, or great lords weary from civil war.

Thus, strange rumors began circulating in the capital as everyone returned.

Interestingly, the sources of these rumors weren’t the slums or the mouths of day laborers but rather the intellectuals and bourgeoisie from the middle class and above.

“Duke Valenciaunos might be a better person than expected.”

“He didn’t flee like the nobles and stayed in the makeshift village until the end. His efforts to bring back the emperor never ceased.”

“All the merits were directed towards the emperor, weren’t they? Rationing was all in the emperor’s name, while requisitions were in his own name.”

“To be honest, it is true that the city was restored thanks to the emperor, but the one who saved us was Duke Valenciaunos.”

I felt cold sweat running down my back.

This shouldn’t be happening!