Chapter 132
Rank 8 – Part 1
『 Translator – Divinity 』
The one who approached the Archbishop and me was a young man with a faint presence.
An extremely ordinary face, an extremely ordinary aura, an extremely ordinary appearance.
He looked so utterly ordinary, like someone you would find in any village or town, someone you would forget immediately even if you saw him, that…
Even though I was facing him, I would forget his face if I blinked or turned my head away for a moment.
He felt more than just ordinary; he felt strange. But even that feeling was quickly forgotten.
Amidst that indescribable, bizarre sensation,
“Step back! Now!”
“Captain Marx, what…”
“This is why Rank 1s are…! Can’t you see that damn monster!!”
A damn monster? This young man?
He looked like nothing more than a harmless and ordinary young man.
Harmless and ordinary. Unremarkable. Forgettable. Passing by without a trace…
“…Ah, sorry. This is a special sculpture, so your senses might be confused.”
“…Sculpture?”
“How is it? Not bad, right? The title is ‘Untitled.’ I tried to sculpt an utterly ordinary, forgotten existence, so ordinary that even its name couldn’t be remembered.”
So that thing, moving, talking, and smiling so naturally, was a sculpture? Was that even possible?
While I was speechless with disbelief, the Archbishop drew his greatsword and rushed in front of me, as if to protect me.
And then, without any hesitation,
Slash!!
“Be careful! This isn’t a sturdy sculpture!”
“…Damn it.”
He swung the greatsword down. The Sword Qi that formed in an instant enveloped the greatsword and struck the young man, who was supposedly a sculpture, but…
The young man, losing an arm, continued speaking nonchalantly. Even his surprised expression was strangely ordinary. The arm, struck by the greatsword, cracked and crumbled like a broken marble statue.
The inside of the revealed arm was empty. And it was clearly marble, yet it pulsated and moved like skin.
…I had a headache.
“Don’t look at it directly. You’re a Rank 1, you won’t even be able to resist mental erosion.”
“What… is that?”
“There are many damn things on this continent. But at least there’s only one crazy bastard who introduces himself as a sculpture.”
“Don’t tell me.”
“It’s the Sculptor. What terrible luck.”
The Sculptor. A Rank 8 known as the biggest eccentric along with the Surveyor, and a Rank 8 of the Empire.
He was an 8th-rank affiliated with the Empire, but he was a madman who prioritized things that inspired him. From the Empire’s perspective, he was the most likely to defect among the Rank 8s and thus dangerous, but due to the nature of his abilities, they couldn’t stop him and ultimately left him alone.
But why was such a Rank 8 here?
“Hmm, you’re quite skilled. But too common. A soldier who experienced tragedy? It’s not inspiring at all, just a cliché, so I’m not interested.”
“What are you doing here, Sculptor?”
“I could sculpt a cliché like you sometime, but not now. Could you step aside?”
The conversation wasn’t going anywhere. The Sculptor was speaking casually with a smile, but he didn’t seem interested in having a proper conversation with the Archbishop.
He didn’t even seem to care much about the Archbishop, so I, who was clearly his target, was about to step forward, but…
“Stay still.”
“Yes? But…”
“Even talking to that lunatic is a waste of time.”
“But if he keeps causing a commotion here…”
“Don’t you understand? No one noticed when I unleashed my Sword Qi without permission in the place where the acting king is staying.”
Ah.
Now that he mentioned it, that was true.
“He said the sculpture’s name was ‘Untitled.’ An ordinariness that can’t even be remembered by its name… If that’s true, it’s highly likely that the surroundings seem extremely ‘ordinary.'”
“Hey, how long are you going to block the way? I’m getting impatient.”
“So…!!”
Dash!
The Archbishop, who had been keeping the Sculptor in check with his greatsword, suddenly grabbed me and ran.
With aura surrounding his entire body, he quickly distanced himself from the Sculptor, passed through the streets filled with soldiers, and approached the castle where we had met Crown Prince Zeke.
“Even with perception interference, he can’t physically trap people. It’s best to just run away.”
“You seem to know quite a lot about the Sculptor.”
“Well, a few bishops from our cult were also victims. He caused us trouble by saying he wanted to create a fanatic sculpture series and even targeted the Cult Leader and me. Fortunately, he lost interest in his sculpture series, so we survived… but…”
Pant.
The Archbishop, gritting his teeth, continued to glare in the direction where the Sculptor was while running without rest.
Maintaining his Sword Qi without letting his guard down was a skillful and practiced response.
“It would be safer to go to the Crown Prince. If he’s around my level, he can oppose him.”
“But the Sculptor is Rank 8. The Rank 8s I know are…”
“Of course they’re all dangerous. But the Sculptor is an exception. He—”
“Oh? Who are you?”
As we finally arrived at the castle, one of the maids who was hurriedly carrying things looked at the Archbishop and me with a puzzled expression.
Outsiders couldn’t enter without an appointment, but the irregular known as the Sculptor had appeared. Using that as an excuse, we could meet Crown Prince Zeke.
“I’m Karl Marx, accompanying Her Highness Beatrice! I have an urgent matter to discuss with Crown Prince Zeke.”
“Ah, you’re that person! But wouldn’t it be better to go after becoming a model for the sculpture?”
“…What?”
“This is the ‘Pure Maid’ sculpture. It’s quite good, isn’t it?”
Now.
What did he just say?
“Get a hold of yourself. Karl… Marx.”
“Captain Marx, what’s…”
“The Sculptor is the most unique Rank 8. Each of his sculptures is at most Rank 7, not even Rank 8. They’re still monsters, but the problem is that he doesn’t have a main body.”
“What?”
“No main body, you say? That’s rude! All the sculptures represent the Sculptor! Don’t you think so?”
“Of course they do.”
A guard passing by…
“That’s true.”
…an elderly man with a kind smile…
“That’s right!”
…a child smiling brightly…
“It’s an obvious fact.”
…and even a soldier who seemed to be an officer…
All these people who suddenly approached…
…were all sculptures, and…
“They’re all… the Sculptor.”
“That’s why even the Empire couldn’t stop him. As long as his sculptures are scattered throughout the continent, the Sculptor is immortal.”
“How is this possible? You’re saying you didn’t know even though he infiltrated this much?”
“The only places without his sculptures are the Imperial Palace, where Rank 8s are always stationed, the Akendelminos Royal Palace, the Imperial Mage Tower, and Grandis Academy. Just recently, there was a commotion in the Empire because a count-level noble turned out to be a sculpture.”
“That sculpture was a shame. It’s not easy to create an ‘Arrogant Noble’ sculpture.”
“Haha! That’s right. It’s hard to find a noble who’s so stereotypically arrogant. It was a shame after I put so much effort into making it.”
“Shouldn’t you have used a more durable material?”
“Even then, the Empire has too many Rank 8s, so I would have been caught eventually!”
“It can’t be helped, sculpting is a repetition of trial and error.”
The maid, the guard, the old man, the child, the officer, they were all conversing with each other.
They were all sculptures and the Sculptor, but at the same time, they weren’t completely the same being. Each acted according to the purpose and inspiration they were created with.
And because of that, they felt even more human, which was eerie. I still couldn’t believe they were sculptures.
“Oh my, it took me a while to catch up.”
Even ‘Untitled,’ who finally caught up while I was surrounded by sculptures,
…looked like we were screwed.
“Isn’t this a dead end?”
“Damn it. I didn’t know his sculptures had infiltrated this much.”
What should I do? Should I use my trump card?
I didn’t hesitate to use it, but if there were more sculptures besides these, it would be troublesome.
While I was pondering what to do,
“Then shall we talk about sculpting again? Karl Marx, as I said before, I’m interested in you.”
“Interested?”
“To be precise, I’m interested in your heart. I can sense something familiar and unpleasant. Would it be alright if I take a closer look?”
My heart? Come to think of it, he did say something about my heart looking impressive earlier.
And if it was my heart, was he referring to the Scabbard of Dark Sword or the fragment of the sacred relic?
‘The Sculptor is a problem, but it’s also a problem if the Archbishop finds out about the scabbard or the sacred relic here.’
If I used my trump card, I could secure my safety even if the opponent was the Sculptor. But it was a separate issue if the Archbishop learned about the scabbard or the sacred relic.
The entire Wish Cult, including the Archbishop and Milia, would target me immediately. The danger was one thing, but losing a Finance Department slave and a valuable subcontractor was a bigger problem.
…Oh well, I don’t know.
“If you wish, I can be a model for your sculpture.”
“Karl Marx! Are you crazy!”
“Oh! I knew I could count on you! Then right away…”
“But shouldn’t I receive compensation as well?”
“Hmm…?”
“Seeing the sculptures gathered here, they’re all wonderful pieces. Don’t tell me a sculptor who creates art of this level isn’t planning on paying his model?”
I felt a gaze. The Archbishop was looking at me with a “What is this crazy bastard doing?” look.
I could do this crazy thing because I had a trump card. If the Sculptor, enraged by my words, attacked me, I could use my trump card and escape.
The Archbishop? The Sculptor said he wasn’t interested in the Archbishop. And the Archbishop could have escaped long ago if he were alone.
While Beatrice and Crown Prince Zeke were facing a crisis, my safety was the priority.
At my shameless remark, ‘Untitled,’ who had been speechless,
“Now that I think about it, you’re right. What do you all think?”
“‘Pure Maid’ thinks it’s the right thing to do!”
“‘Lazy Guard’ doesn’t care.”
“‘Benevolent Elderly Man’ thinks we should accept it benevolently.”
“‘Innocent Child’ will just smile!”
“‘Cunning Officer’ feels a sense of displeasure at that obvious provocation, but if it’s in the name of the Sculptor, it can’t be helped.”
“‘Untitled’ is too ordinary to have an opinion. Then it’s unanimous!”
…Huh?
Did that actually work?
“I’ll pay you a fair price for being a model. But it seems difficult to pay with the sculptures I currently have in the Delphia Kingdom.”
“What do you mean?”
“Wait in the studio with the other sculptures! I’ll summon the others!”
As Untitled smiled and waved his hand, the Archbishop and I made eye contact. What now, you crazy bastard. What else could we do but follow?
We followed the maid, the guard, the old man, the child, and the officer. The moment Untitled was out of sight, I couldn’t remember his face again.
Wait, I felt like I was forgetting something.
‘…Ah, Beatrice.’
No way.
She wouldn’t misunderstand… would she?
***
“…Suzanne, where’s the Finance Director?”
“He’s nowhere to be found. As expected…”
“Brother… is this how you’re going to act?”
Beatrice gritted her teeth as she heard Suzanne’s report.
The Finance Director and Captain Marx, who went for a walk after confronting Crown Prince Zeke and then disappeared…
It was so blatant that she couldn’t help but laugh hollowly.
“It can’t be helped. Please contact him.”
“Should I inform His Highness the Crown Prince?”
“That as well, but…”
“Yes?”
“It seems like I’ll have to meet the Duke of Wei.”
“Y-Your Highness!”
“I need to talk to General Cartea. I’ll be able to contact the Duke of Wei through him.”
In this chaotic civil war,
“Confirming my brother’s true intentions and rescuing the Finance Director through him is the priority.”
Beatrice…
“…Because the kingdom could be destroyed by the Mad Dragon.”
…was clearly prioritizing.
Beyond the civil war, the Duke of Wei, Crown Prince Zeke, and their schemes,
Stopping the Mad Dragon was her top priority.