[Vol. 7] Chapter 200: Rootless Seed
In this world’s current level of development, whether it’s the holy light magic from the Holy Empire or the healing techniques from Sainz, they are, in the end, just methods for fixing the physical body. But the true power of laws doesn't need magic energy as a medium. It’s something normal people can’t understand, let alone notice or defend against.
Someone like Frederica, who owns a sacred-tier artifact, seems to vaguely sense something. Lucine might be a bit stronger, maybe she can actually see the effects directly. But even she clearly can’t treat it, or at least it’s hard for her to do so. No wonder she asked her own maid to call Violet for help, and even named her directly.
But… something still feels off. Like something just isn’t right.
Just like that time with the [Fantasy Sky Courtyard] incident, what is the enemy trying to gain by doing this? Why would they show off such a strange ability on purpose? If they just wanted to hurt Sainz or Lucine, wouldn’t it have been easier to just kill these people?
If you don’t know the enemy’s true goal, then no matter how strong you are, you’re just reacting to what they do. That means they’re the ones leading, and you’re just following. That’s clearly not a good situation.
“……”
Seeing that the black-haired girl was still silently staring at the patient, Saintess Frederica, who didn’t know her full background, thought she was simply confused by the strange situation. She quickly tried to comfort her.
“It’s alright, Miss Violet. The goddess once taught us in the Holy Words, [Do what you can, give what you have. Don't force something if you yourself are confused]. Even if one person’s power is not enough, we can always gather more smart and capable people to come up with a solution. There will always be a way.”
“Oh… huh?”
Interrupted by that voice, the priestess looked up at Frederica in surprise.
“You just said... Ahem, never mind. Sorry, I misspoke.”
“?”
Even though she held back from asking out loud, Violet couldn’t help feeling confused.
Holy Words of the Goddess? Did the Holy Empire ever have something like that?
Faith-based magic had already disappeared completely. The imaginary Goddess of Light should’ve been erased from history a long time ago. That [Tree of Creation] didn’t seem like the type to speak in sarcastic sayings, either.
Could it be… that after history was changed, the upper levels of the church made up a bunch of new holy texts to keep their power?
Come to think of it, the fact that terms like “Goddess Church” still exist even though history has already been changed… is already strange. Violet had never really had a chance to interact with the upper ranks of the Holy Empire, so she had forgotten to ask about it. The current Pope… should be the newly crowned Edwina, right? Just what is that little girl up to?
Violet quickly pushed those passing thoughts to the back of her mind. She was someone who knew how to set priorities, so she gave a small shake of her head and replied with a calm smile.
“Thank you for your concern, Your Holiness. But it’s alright, I've seen a similar condition before, so I do have a few ideas.”
“Eh? Really!?”
“Mhm…”
The priestess nodded slightly.
Laws are a kind of force that doesn’t follow normal logic. In nicer terms, they’re called “authorities” or “divinities,” but if they lean toward the strange, they can cause bizarre things like supernatural urban legends.
Take fire for example. Normally, fire is created by burning fuel or by using magic to convert mana into flames. But if someone has control over the Law of Fire, they could cause anything, flammable or not, to burst into flames out of thin air, just by thinking about it. This kind of power completely breaks the normal laws of energy and physics.
It’s the same with Violet’s own Divinity of Radiance, or Sethlin’s Divinity of Life, their effects also seem to come from nowhere. While the surrounding environment might have some small influence, it’s not like Violet can’t use light magic just because there are no light elements nearby.
And this current situation is no different. There’s no normal reason these people should be asleep. But the one controlling the law can just skip over the "cause" and directly bring the "result" into reality. This kind of power is so strange that if it could be detected with ordinary methods, that would be the real miracle.
That said, this is only from a normal person’s point of view. In truth, even laws have their own kind of logic. Even power that comes from gods still needs some kind of basic medium to work.
Lifting her staff, Violet activated her [Yin-Yang Eyes], and the spiritual state of the unconscious holy knight was instantly revealed in her vision.
Sure enough, using this special ability, also powered by the laws, she could clearly see the true cause of his unconsciousness, or rather his deep sleep, a small black seed buried deep in his soul, giving off a faint, eerie energy.
This was the medium and physical form through which the law’s power took effect.
Quietly studying the way the strange seed’s energy pulsed, the black-haired girl slowly shook her head.
This kind of power… wasn’t something Violet was familiar with. The gods she had encountered before, including the one suspected to be behind all this, the so-called God of Subversion and Paradox, had laws that worked very differently from this.
Could it be that some other evil god had teamed up with that one and was now messing around in the real world again, just like what happened with the Holy Empire?
If that was true… then maybe the world barrier at the Origin Realm was way too weak?
Oh well. No matter what’s really going on, she had to deal with the problem in front of her first.
“Miss Yulia, can I ask you to clear the room of everyone who’s not directly involved? The next part of the treatment needs a calm and quiet space.”
“Huh? Oh, yes! Understood, please wait a moment!”
Hearing that, Miss Secretary's eyes lit up. Violet’s words clearly suggested that she had a way to treat the patient, and Yulia quickly got to work, moving efficiently.
Visitors and friends who had come to see the patient were politely escorted out by the guards. Even though some of them seemed confused or slightly annoyed, they were important people with good manners. Once they heard it was for treatment, they didn’t cause any trouble.
Very soon, the large medical room quieted down. When everyone had left, even the Saintess, who had been standing nearby, glanced at Violet and turned as if to leave too.
But at that moment, Violet suddenly spoke up to stop her.
“Wait, Lady Frederica, I’d like you to stay in the room. For what comes next… I might need your help.”
“…Help? Me?”
The blonde girl paused mid-step, looking back at Violet with a puzzled expression. But when she saw Violet’s meaningful look, she didn’t ask anything else. Instead, she simply nodded and gave a short reply.
“Alright.”
No matter what, a priest doesn’t need a reason to save someone, and for a saintess, it’s even more so.
Once everyone, including the guards, had left the room, Yulia was the last to go. She gave Violet a questioning look, but after a small signal from the black-haired girl, she nodded and quietly closed the door behind her.
Violet then waved her hand and cast a barrier, sealing off the room and even the healing chambers inside. Only after that did she turn to face the last person left in the room, the Saintess.
As expected, confusion was clearly written on Frederica’s face. She didn’t seem to understand what Violet was planning. Still, she seemed to trust Violet, especially since Violet had once helped her younger sister, and didn’t act defensive. She just hesitated and asked carefully:
“Miss Violet, if you’re planning to use some kind of secret treasure or powerful artifact… maybe I should avoid being involved? Honestly, if it’s something that seriously goes against the teachings of the Goddess, as a Saintess… I might not be able to promise I’ll keep it completely secret…”