Chapter 129:

Chapter 129:

Chapter 129. The Brant Family’s Concern (2)

“This is that... the historic castle.”

Isaac stepped into the red fortress, muttering impressively.

Rougeberg meant ‘red mountain’. While it was common for the castles of great nobles to be renamed after the family name, Rougeberg was a place too historic for such changes.

“You could just say it’s the castle where Elil lived. It’s a well-known story.”

Isaac deliberately avoided mentioning ‘that’ Elil’s domain, but Dietrich spoke of it nonchalantly.

During the era when the Codex of Light was spreading its influence while building a great empire, Rougeberg was the central city bestowed upon Elil, who had achieved numerous feats enough to be granted the status of a living angel.

The castle, which was later passed down to his daughter, the dancer, had since changed hands through countless people and now belonged to the Brant Ducal Family. In some ways, it was a place with a deeper history than the imperial capital, Ultenheim.

However, Isaac had no time to be immersed in the nostalgia of such a famous historical site.

Dietrich immediately led Isaac deep into Rougeberg. As they went further, Dietrich’s steps quickened, and eventually, he was almost running. The smile that had been constant on the ship had completely disappeared, making Isaac think the situation must be quite serious.

After passing through several heavily guarded gates, they arrived in front of a tower with a small garden. An odd and somewhat awkward sight awaited him in front of the narrow and diminutive tower.

“Have you arrived?”

A group of women was guarding the front of the tower.

They had an air of dignity not typical of maids, and their attire was not uniform. Seeing that they did not show formal respect even to Dietrich, they seemed to be relatives or acquaintances.

What was strange was that all of them were holding weapons like swords, spears, or bows. They did not seem particularly skilled at holding them.

Dietrich approached the women without concern.

“Where is Isolde?”

“She became somewhat disheartened after hearing about her condition, but she is healthy. She’s eating well too.”

Dietrich looked up at the tower with a troubled face. A silhouette was moving about at the window above.Upttodated from n(0)/velbIn/.(co/m

It was clearly Isolde.

“Understood. Please step back for a moment.”

The women withdrew as instructed, dragging their heavy weapons away. Dietrich then turned to Isaac after scanning the surroundings.

“From here, it seems Sir Issacrea will have to go alone.”

“The situation feels increasingly strange.”

“Have you ever asked what kind of ‘blessing’ Isolde has? I think I can finally tell you.”

The content had been so securely guarded that not even hints were given.

Dietrich opened his mouth with difficulty.

“It’s presumed to be some kind of ‘charm’ effect.”

“...Charm?”

“I don’t know the exact doctrine. But I’ve heard that the Red Chalice Club has a relic or a similar type of miracle called ‘love potion.’ It’s suspected that a similar miracle has been cast upon Isolde. Not to fall in love, but to make others fall for her. It’s said to grow stronger over time.”

Isaac was shocked.

He too had played the Red Chalice Club and knew what kind of miracle it was.

Although it was classified as a trash skill because it was non-mainstream and unhelpful in combat, it was also a miracle mentioned in countless legends and traditions.

Charming someone or mentally controlling them was a specialty of the Red Chalice.

“How long has it been cast?”

“About three months now. We’ve been looking for a way to purify it, but the matter is such that it’s difficult to reveal openly, and it’s more troublesome because it’s not a curse but a blessing.”

Some types of blessings are hard to distinguish from curses.

Beauty is one of them.

“Originally, we thought it would be enough to be cautious of men and had only maids serve her. But, um, as the blessing became more serious, even the maids had to be forbidden from visiting.”

“...Did a problem arise?”

“Fortunately, Isolde has the skills to defeat any decent knight.”

It was dark, but Isaac realized that the lady’s face bore a resemblance to Isolde.

“Are you the Duchess?”

The lady looked at Isaac with a haggard face. Then, as if realizing her mistake, she sighed.

“Ah, I haven’t introduced myself. I haven’t slept well for a while. I am Freya Brant. Her mother.”

It was a modest introduction, but she was the Duchess.

Isaac felt a strange feeling seeing the Duchess with chains around her ankles, standing guard all night in a narrow tower.

Even the family that ruled the empire was, after all, just a mother and father to someone.

Then Freya bowed her head and said,

“I trust that a Grail Knight of your renown will not allow any disrespect.”

“...You don’t need to worry.”

“Yes. Thank you. However, if it really can’t be helped, please ensure that she does not suffer any severe indignity.”

Isaac thought that the parents were overly worried because they cherished their daughter so much. Of course, Isolde couldn’t be left to suffer from this insane blessing, so it had to be lifted, but Isaac didn’t want to cause any unpleasant incidents in the process.

‘After all, doesn’t the condition have to be fulfilled with someone you love? Isolde has never shown that kind of affection for me.’

“Don’t worry.”

But all Isaac could do was reassure the worried parents.

Isaac already knew how to lift this blessing.

And it wasn’t a difficult method.

***

As he opened the door and entered, the sweet fragrance intensified.

Isaac felt a slight dizziness, but that was all. The room was small, and Isolde was not visible.

“Inquisitor?”

When Isaac called out, there was a rustle from somewhere. Isolde cautiously peeked out from behind a curtain hidden by a pillar. She looked much more disheartened than before.

“...Grail Knight?”

A mix of emotions—joy, surprise, worry, hope, anxiety, fear—flitted across her face. And at the same time, Isaac felt a throbbing in his head.

He finally understood the impulse that men who saw Isolde felt.

‘This must be the effect of the love potion or whatever it is.’

All of Isolde’s charms seemed maximized and overwhelming.

This was not a sensation that could be resisted. He had thought she was pretty before, but this charm was incomparable.

If the charm of a Nephilim caught the crowd’s attention with the charisma of a leader, then the blessing created by the Red Chalice was a violent charm that made one imagine even the unseen.

Contrary to the confidence he had before entering, Isaac realized that there was no way to overcome this blessing.

When Isaac didn’t respond, a look of anxiety crossed Isolde’s face.

Isaac took a deep breath.

[ Nameless Chaos watches over you.]

In that moment, Isaac rushed forward and stabbed Isolde in the solar plexus with the prepared knife. Isolde’s eyes widened in disbelief, and then she collapsed, rolling her eyes back.

As Isolde fell, Isaac felt his head clear somewhat compared to before. But it still throbbed.

Isaac hurriedly opened the window and sent out his will.

‘Hesabel.’

Then, as if waiting for it, a red mist seeped in through the bars of the window. Soon, the red mist took the form of Hesabel and revealed itself.

“I’ve been waiting for you, Isaac!”

–TL Notes–

Hope you enjoyed this chapter. If you want to read up to advance 20 chapters or support me, you can do it at /Akaza156