Sword Saint Story: Starting from Zero Attack Power ~After being abandoned by my childhood friend, the princess, I enrolls in a magic school and ends up making a contract with the Demon Lord~ Volume 1 Intrulde 2

 Intrulde 2: From the Empire

◇ The Glenflare Empire ◇

At the heart of the imperial capital stands Einherjar Palace.

It is the largest man-made structure in the Southern Continent, a symbol of the empire’s prosperity.

Deep within the palace lies the “Audience Hall,” where one meets the emperor. From the grand doors leading to it, a noble female knight emerged. On her chest gleamed the emblem of a golden Pegasus.

This was proof of her status as one of the empire’s highest-ranking knights, a “Celestial Knight.”

—Princess Airi Areus Glenflare.

She had just returned from reporting to her father, His Majesty the Emperor, about suppressing a minor rebellion in one of the empire’s vassal territories.

(Honestly, Father uses his daughter so harshly!)

Airi sighed inwardly.

“I have no intention of letting capable people rest. Well done, Airi. I’ll reward you later.”

Those were the gracious words from His Majesty, who appeared far younger than his age.

There was no doubt she was being recognized. For Airi, who aspired to become emperor, this was necessary. But it kept her so busy.

(I’ll rest tomorrow…)

Her subordinates had handled the rebellion suppression with remarkable skill. She’d ensure they got plenty of rest too.

With such thoughts, she walked down the wide, straight corridor stretching through the palace.

She passed nobles and high-ranking knights, all of whom turned their eyes toward her.

“Look, it’s Princess Airi-sama.”

“She’s as dignified and beautiful as ever.”

“They say she and her lover, General Berthold, are eyeing the throne.”

“Seventh in line to the throne, yet her ‘Ability’ is unmatched.”

“Oh, if Airi-sama becomes emperor, the empire will be secure!”

Such whispers filled the air.

(I can hear you… Keep your voices down.)

But she didn’t bother pointing it out. It would be endless. To Airi, this was just daily life.

(Honestly, it’s the fate of royalty, but being watched everywhere I go…)

She still wasn’t used to it.

His Majesty the Emperor once said, “Do you fret over every chirp of a bird?” She hadn’t yet reached that level of thick-skinned indifference.

(If only he were here…)

Her thoughts drifted to her childhood friend.

When he was by her side, she felt she could live with more peace of mind.

But that was wishful thinking.

Airi quickened her pace toward the palace exit, trying to ignore the noise.

Then, a snippet of conversation caught her ear.

“Hey, did you hear? Someone soloed the ‘Beast of the Trial’ in the Last Dungeon!”

“Whoa! Who the heck was it? A Holy Knight from the Sacred Alliance? Or maybe a Dragon Knight from the Azure Sea Federation?”

“No, they say it was an imperial swordsman.”

“Huh! That’s impressive!”

“Who could’ve taken down the ‘Beast of the Trial’? Someone famous?”

“An imperial citizen becoming an explorer? Probably some fame-hungry commoner.”

“Get this—it’s the heir of the Santafield House.”

“You mean that guy rumored to only have White Mana?”

“Yup, the oddball who graduated top of the Imperial Military Academy but went to study at Lykeion Magic Academy.”

“They said he could’ve been the empire’s best if he’d mastered Barrier Magic or Healing Magic. Such a waste.”

“Well, he always wanted to be a swordsman.”

“His father’s the empire’s pride, the ‘Imperial Sword.’ No wonder he’d follow the same path.”

“But defeating the ‘Beast of the Trial’? That’s a solid achievement. His father must be relieved.”

“No doubt.”

Hearing this, Princess Airi strode toward the knights chatting idly.

“Tell me more about that story.”

“““Airi-sama!”””

The knights snapped to attention and saluted her.

◇ Imperial Army Intelligence Division ◇

“Sorry to barge in.”

“Well, well, Princess Airi-sama. To what do we owe the pleasure?”

Airi had arrived at the Imperial Army’s Intelligence Division, a hub for gathering information from across the continent.

Inside, intelligence agents bustled about their tasks. The shelves were lined with classified documents, and only a select few were permitted entry. As a princess, Airi was one of them.

“Has anything happened in the Last Dungeon?” she asked.

At her question, the eyebrow of the man seated in the center of the room twitched.

He was the head of the Intelligence Division.

“So you’ve heard the rumors, have you? Your childhood friend is making a name for himself in the Dungeon City.”

“I want to see the footage.”

“Right this way.”

The Intelligence Division recorded explorer footage from the Last Dungeon’s Satellite System around the clock using preservation magic.

This was to scout promising explorers for recruitment into the Imperial Army.

As such, they maintained close contact with imperial explorers dispatched to the Dungeon City.

The footage displayed the twentieth floor of the Tower of Babel.

At first, Eugene was merely fleeing from a massive three-headed beast—the Hellhound Cerberus.

Carrying a girl in his arms, he ducked into the hollow of a great tree, looking somewhat pathetic.

Then, the footage showed Eugene facing the Hellhound alone.

Wielding a blazing red sword, he challenged Cerberus with valor.

One detail caught Airi’s attention.

“That magic sword…?”

Eugene was supposed to be limited to White Mana. Airi had seen it with her own eyes.

Yet the sword he held glowed a brilliant red.

“It’s likely the Mana of his companion, a girl named Sumire,” the division head explained. “It seems she was reincarnated into the body of an Ifrit, a Fire Godkin. On the tenth floor, she defeated a Floor Boss with a similar magic sword.”

—A reincarnated Ifrit Fire Godkin.

Airi hadn’t known such a person existed.

Though Eugene was briefly overwhelmed, he ultimately defeated the Hellhound. It was a masterful strike.

(The ultimate technique of the Niten Enmei Style, ‘Kirin’…)

Nostalgia hit her. They’d trained together, but Airi never reached Eugene’s level.

Part of it was that, as a princess, she had much to learn beyond swordsmanship, but Eugene’s skill stood out even among their peers at the Imperial Military Academy.

His talent hadn’t dulled at the Magic Academy. And another thing caught her eye.

“What was that final magic sword? It looks like plain Black Mana at a glance, but…”

“It’s the sword that felled a Divine Beast’s head. We’re investigating, as it likely holds some secret. We suspect King Uther of the Dungeon City is involved, but… that man’s a secretive one.”

The division head stroked his beard, looking troubled.

Airi paused, thoughtful, before speaking.

“What’s the Imperial Intelligence Division’s opinion on that battle?”

She directed the question to the division head.

“Remarkable,” he replied. “However, this ‘Beast of the Trial’ appeared irregularly, not on the hundredth floor. It’s not quite the same as clearing the hundredth floor outright, but given his skill, he’ll likely reach it on his own merit eventually.”

“…I see.”

Airi’s voice was calm.

On the screen, Eugene and the reincarnated girl were talking about something.

“We’ll stop the footage here,” the division head said.

“Wait. Can you pick up their conversation?”

“Of course.”

The audio volume increased.

In the footage, Eugene was comforting the sobbing girl—the Ifrit Fire Godkin.

Then, her tears gave way to a smile.

—Sumire. Be my partner. Let’s aim for the five-hundredth floor together!

—Yeah! Let’s do it!

Eugene and the Ifrit girl shook hands.

Airi watched the scene unfold.

“The five-hundredth floor, eh? Quite the ambition, Eugene-dono. If he achieves it, it’ll be a feat to shine in imperial history,” the division head chuckled.

He didn’t seem to take Eugene’s words seriously.

On the screen, those killed by the Divine Beast Cerberus were being revived with the “Drops of Revival.”

The reincarnated girl reacted with exaggerated surprise.

The explorers were chattering noisily—about the cost of the “Drops of Revival,” debts, and so on. Hardly information valuable to a princess.

The division head was about to suggest stopping the footage but held back.

Princess Airi-sama’s expression was far too serious.

(Seeing her childhood friend doing well after so long must be reassuring)

Princess Airi continued to stare intently at the footage of the Tower of Babel’s twentieth floor.

——.