Deep within a towering building inside the Empire's branch of the Continental Magic Association, the finest human mages had gathered — all of them waiting in anxious silence for one person to wake.
The Elf known among humans as the God of Magic, Serie, was in a state not unlike deep seclusion.
She meditated continuously — turning over in her mind how one might possibly break that girl's immortality, while also drifting, from time to time, into a quiet current of self-reproach.
That girl she had placed such high hopes in... if only she had noticed her intentions sooner, perhaps she could have stopped everything in time.
But dwelling on hypotheticals was pointless. She still had to face the present as it was.
After a long while, Serie slowly opened her eyes. Today had yielded nothing, as expected — and yet she could already sense a considerable number of people waiting just beyond her door.
Let me hear their reports first, she thought.
It was only natural. In the depths of deep meditation, her range of perception contracted greatly — and there were indeed many things that required her First-Class Mages to brief her on in person.
She pushed the door open with an idle hand, then made her way to the council chamber, surrounded by the respectful escort of her assembled mages.
"Lernen, and Frieren — you've returned, then," Serie said, offering a casual greeting to the figures waiting inside the hall.
"Hm? And this is..."
Her gaze landed immediately on the unconscious human male cradled in Frieren's arms.
"So Fíliya is already capable of something like this."
Serie's brow furrowed slightly, and deep within her, she felt the pressure mount another notch.
No one understood better than she did what it meant to pull a soul back from its resting place — what level of power that required.
Which meant... that during their brief clash, the reason she had managed to hold the upper hand was most likely because Fíliya had not yet grown accustomed to her new body and new abilities.
If they were to fight again now... would the situation reverse itself entirely?
Serie found, for the first time, that she could no longer be certain.
"Edel — could you do me a favor?"
After exchanging a brief look with Serie, Frieren immediately turned her gaze toward the girl standing among the mages arrayed behind her.
"—?!"
Edel startled, not having expected to be called upon at all — but the moment she saw the state of the young man in Frieren's arms, she understood the situation instantly.
"Is it Mind Control Magic...? Even you can't handle it, Frieren?"
As she spoke, Edel jogged over to Frieren, took the young man's body from her arms, and held him carefully.
"—?! Wait... this person's face..."
She had noticed something odd from the very beginning, but it was only at close range that it truly struck her — and she let out an involuntary cry.
"Yes. This is Himmel."
The moment those words left Frieren's lips, every First-Class Mage in the room went rigid with shock.
Raising the dead — whatever the circumstances — was, without question, a miracle.
While Edel set about examining Himmel, Frieren gave the assembled mages a brief account of what had transpired.
"I see... As for the destruction of the defensive line and the mass migration of the Demon Race — we had been receiving reports from various fronts about that... but to think that the one who appeared on the outside and tore the line apart was... the resurrected Hero."
Falsch stepped forward as soon as Frieren finished her report.
"And from what the reports indicate... though the defensive line was destroyed thoroughly, the personnel stationed there suffered virtually no casualties. How is that possible?"
He looked at Frieren with undisguised curiosity, clearly hoping she could provide an explanation.
"I don't know... Perhaps even in a controlled state, Himmel still held true to his own principles."
Frieren said it offhandedly — it was, after all, something she herself hadn't quite worked out.
"Is that so... The Hero, even under Mind Control Magic, would not harm humans. That does fit the legends rather well."
Falsch nodded, though his expression still carried a trace of doubt. He said nothing more.
"In any case, the most pressing matter right now should be restoring the defensive line as swiftly as possible — we can't let those traitors who've turned against humanity exploit the chaos and slip through to bolster the Demon Race's forces."
Genau clearly had little interest in the matter of the Hero's resurrection, and moved straight to proposing a course of action for the current crisis.
"On that point... all of our branches, as well as the city-states and nations under their jurisdiction, have already joined forces. We are doing everything in our power to apprehend those who intend to betray humanity and flee to the Far North. According to the reports coming in — the prisons are already full. Many areas have had to construct temporary camps just to detain them all. Even within our own Continental Magic Association, there have been no small number of traitors."
A note of helplessness crept into Falsch's voice.
"Hmph — why bother imprisoning them? Just execute them on the spot. In this world, treason is an unforgivable crime. Those who are willing to abandon their humanity and defect to the Demon Race deserve nothing less than the death penalty!"
Genau snapped, his voice sharp.
His tone was harsh, but everyone present could understand his feelings — and what he said was, in fact, the correct answer.
And yet... those who had chosen to abandon their humanity and flee their city-states in hopes of joining the Demon Race, only to be caught — there were simply far too many of them.
If every single one were to be executed, the resulting death toll would likely exceed the number of humans the Demon Race had hunted and killed over the past several decades.
"Repairing the defensive line — that's something we can abandon for now. That is the signal Fíliya is sending us... Even if we rebuild it, as long as she chooses to act, it means nothing. Hasn't she already said as much? This is the puzzle she has thrown to humanity — and she is waiting to see what choice humanity makes."
Serie's tone was one of quiet resignation.
Because the truth was — Fíliya had already grown powerful enough that even she could do nothing about her.
"...Then are we simply supposed to stand by and watch? The situation is far from optimistic. We can barely hold things together right now — but as time goes on, who's to say that the leaders of human nations won't succumb to the temptation of immortality and defect? If that happens, the human world truly will crumble into dust."
Genau shouted, frustration plain in his voice.
"Genau. As a First-Class Mage, you should keep your emotions in check."
Serie shot him a mildly displeased glance.
"But you're not wrong. Don't worry — we will not stand by and let that girl run rampant. We will resolve this... before things become truly irreversible."
"And besides — not everything Fíliya has done is a bad thing. Has she not, in effect, sorted out the traitors among us... and revealed those who are genuinely worth trusting?"
As she said this, Serie let her gaze sweep softly around the room.
She was, in truth, deeply glad — because every single First-Class Mage she had chosen was present in this room... and not one of them had chosen to betray humanity.
____
👻🔥Walnut-chan ;)🔥👻
🔥 New history: All My Employees Are Naughty Girls
Help smash these goals:
🎯 100 Powerstones = +1 Bonus Chapter (for everyone)