Chapter 506 – Intervention 5
Chapter 506 – Intervention 5
Although the Archduke of Cabrera faced his deepest cowardice head on under Mariana’s mention, the sudden opening up to the series of measures she had mentioned still made the Archduke hesitate for a long time.
Understanding his difficulties, Mariana continued to suggest, “Immediately recognizing all the rights of spellcasters is indeed a bit too sudden, so you can start with the army first, let the spellcasters become a force for the defense of Eden, and after building up a certain amount of merit, let your citizens see their dedication and contribution, and then grant them the rights based on that, and the resistance from the populace will be much smaller .”
“You are right, Ms. Mariana. If the mages can protect Eton from the iron heel of war, the people of Eton are definitely not ungrateful.”
Archduke Cabrera had been impressed by the red-haired lady, who was worthy of the powerful sorceress who had taught his wife.
Mariana smiled slightly and said, “This brings us back to the topic we started with, using magic to solve the critical situation at hand with the Protectorate approaching Eton.”
Helen anxiously asked, “But teacher, how can we recruit a sufficient number of spell casters in a short period of time? Under the Church’s vigorous search in the past few years, they have died and run away, those who are lucky enough to still be hiding in Eton will also try their best to hide their identities, and even in the face of solicitation, they will suspect that it’s a trap, what’s more, not everyone of the casters is capable of casting killing spells, and very few are proficient in combat, and most of them are not as good as an ordinary soldier on the battlefield.”
Mariana replied to the students with a confident voice, “Since I have come to you, I am partially prepared. I can gather about two hundred casters who are proficient in combat, and fifty casters who are proficient in enchantment as well as …… a few other auxiliary types of casters, and I was able to contact a nearby mercenary group that will be able to gather in Hydra within a week.”
“Whoa! That fast?”
As if he had grabbed a lifesaver, Cabrera said with great gratitude, “Ms. Mariana, before you arrived, I thought that I could only rely on Silonimus to face an unknown fate!”
“Silonimus?” Mariana asked, “Does Your Majesty mean the holy sword that has been passed down from generation to generation in the Duchy of Eaton?”
“Yes.” A trace of pride surfaced on Archduke Cabre’s face, “It is that sacred sword that has been blessed by the gods and upon which my ancestors opened up the Eton frontier.”
The Holy Sword of the Duchy of Eton, Silonimus, was one of the legends circulating in Horn Bay, and it was said that this magical sword had been blessed by the Lord of Light, and that not only did it sharpen iron itself, but that even those who held it would feel themselves filled with great power and an exuberant will to fight.
Of course, the Grand Duke also knew that no matter how powerful one’s martial arts skills were, they would be of little use in a battle between two armies, so he was quite pessimistic even with this sword.
“Hahaha!”
Mariana laughed.
Archduke Cabrera and Helen looked at her in confusion.
“Your Majesty, please forgive my rudeness.”
Mariana stopped laughing and resumed her previous composure.
“Although I don’t want to strike you down, the so-called Holy Sword Silonimus …… right now it’s just an ordinary sword with excellent workmanship.”
“No way!”
Cabrera looked at Mariana somewhat angrily, “Several generations of my ancestors have used it to defeat enemies originally stronger than themselves, and they have left records in their own handwriting that tell of the sword’s wonders.”
Mariana: “Those records are true, and in their time, such a sword was indeed as magical as it was recorded to be – in the eyes of the world, of course, but in your generation, not so much.”
Cabrera was confused by what she said, “What do you mean?”
“That sword …… was not blessed by the gods, the reason why it can show such power is because of the magic. And the magic on that sword has a statute of limitations, and by this point in time the potency should have very little left.”
Magic? It’s magic again.
“How did this happen?”
Cabrera was shocked; had his family always revered an item with magic?
“If you don’t believe me, you can use Silonimus with another sword of better quality – I’m sure there should be no shortage of swords in your treasury – and let them clash edge to edge to see if Silonimus’s blade will show an opening, which should not occur if it is as powerful as the legend describes.”
The Archduke’s face swam as he walked over to the tabletop where the holy swords were placed and slowly stroked the hilt of Silonimus, who had been with him ever since he came out of the treasure room. He suddenly turned to Mariana and asked, “If the truth is as you say, then how do you know?”
Mariana smiled and said, “I also heard about it from my mentor, and the truth about this sword has always been passed down in our lineage.”
Helen on the side cocked her head a bit in confusion, but she had never heard her mentor talk about this before. Of course it could be that Ms. Mariana had parted ways with her before she could say anything.
But was Mariana-sensei so sure that what her mentor had said was true? After all, it had been so long ago.
“Fine!” Archduke Cabrera seemed to have made up his mind.
“Someone come!” He summoned the attendant who had been guarding the outside.
“Go and bring me my Argee.”
Arjet was one of Archduke Cabrera’s beloved swords, and a good sharp sword.
It didn’t take more than a few minutes of effort for Arjet to appear in the Archduke’s right hand.
With a shimmering sound, Cabre’s left hand drew the holy sword Silonimus.
He silently scrutinized the holy sword for a few seconds, then both hands fired at the same time, and the two rapiers slashed into each other edge-to-edge.
Archduke Cabrera’s brows furrowed tightly, and Helen on the side let out a gasp of surprise.
Only the red-haired lady had a look of understanding.
The holy sword, Silonimus, had actually been slashed with a gaping hole by another sword, and although the other sword also had a gaping hole, it was obviously smaller than Silonimus’s.
“So this is the truth.” The Archduke muttered.
The holy sword that had lost its magical enchantment was surprisingly inferior to an ordinary good sword.
“Yes, Your Majesty, this is the truth.”
Mariana said, “If you allow me, I can temporarily restore it to the legendary Silonimus – the divine sword that cuts iron like clay, but of course, the effectiveness is only for about a minute.”
“Please, Ms. Mariana!”
The Archduke set the sword on top of the table top, he wanted to see the magic’s magical effect with his own eyes.
Mariana nodded, “As you wish, please stand away.”
The Archduke did as she was told while Helen stared intently at her lead as she studied.
So Mariana began her own movements.
The purpose of this visit to the Duchy of Eton had been largely accomplished.
Next, she was going to completely make this ruler of the duchy fall under the greatness of magic.
(End of chapter)