Campione 10

by War God of the Lance

  "The ones you found concerning, are probably the Cisternian Chrétien de Troyes, Hartmann who joined the Crusaders, as well as Wolfram von Eschenbach, Robert de Boron... These poets, right?"

  Alice listed the names of many poets in detail.

  "Scattered amongst their works -- especially the parts related to chivalry and the Holy Grail -- is a substantial amount of occult knowledge inherited from the Knights Templar."

  "From the fact that many of these people belonged to the Knights Templar, evidence can be found that the parent organization was formed from members of the Priory of Sion and the Cisternians. Furthermore, the majority of nobles who sponsored the poets were intricately linked to knightly orders of the English royal family."

  The Knights Templar. Officially known as the "Poor Fellow-Soldiers of Christ and of the Temple of Solomon."

  The mage organization which established the foundations of Europe's magic associations.

  "The Knights Templar most likely had some sort of connection to the first Guinevere. I fear it was probably along the lines of her providing instruction about the spells and knowledge of Divine Ancestors... In actual fact, the spell words of David and the essence of smiting-level combat magic, these techniques that only paladino-ranked knights are permitted to read should have many portions influenced by witchcraft..."

  Two years after his first encounter with Guinevere--

  Alec and the Divine Ancestors had apparently devoted themselves like idiots to unraveling the mystery of the 'King of the End.' This probably contributed to making him so talkative on this occasion.

  "Alexandre. According to the secret records of witches I investigated, the previous generation's Guinevere-sama was murdered around the end of the twelfth century during a chance encounter with a Campione."

  Alec nodded proudly at the information Alice provided.

  "I knew it, the same time period. But I have a different interpretation. It is likely that the previous Guinevere died before her conspiracy could bear fruit, as a result of running into obstacles during the summoning of the 'King of the End.'"

  "...Can we be certain that the present Guinevere-sama intends to resume the plans of the previous generation?"

  The Black Prince and White Princess had discreetly entered Brittany due to finding out that Guinevere was about to begin the ritual for summoning the "King of the End."

  "Well yes, and it most likely failed already..."

  "What are you talking about?"

  "Rather, purely in terms of summoning Arthur, the ritual was a success. Even though she is a narrow-minded woman who overlooks everything she doesn't want to see, her abilities are special as a Divine Ancestor. Nevertheless, it's probably too late."

  Alec seemed to be showing a kind of lonely expression. The answer to the mystery he had devoted so many years to pursuing, was finally in sight. Losing his all-consuming goal and passion seemed to be filling him with a sense of forlornness.

  "Almost a thousand years have passed from the time the plan was put into motion. This interval is sufficient for a 'new god' to be born. Try recalling Thomas Malory's origins."

  The fifteenth century English knight, Sir Thomas Malory.

  This was the time period when the main role on the battlefield held by knights was being displaced by firearm-equipped infantry.

  In a society where the knighted gentry was in decline and centralized royal authority was expanding, Malory was one of those fallen knights. Fallen into depravity, he escaped prison many times and was repeatedly jailed for committing various crimes such as failed assassination, rape, robbery, stealing domestic animals, etc.

  But in the modern world, he would be remembered as the author of Le Morte d'Arthur, a work renowned as the definitive compilation of Arthurian legends.

  "Malory was not a mage. He referenced earlier existing works -- rather, he was a rascal who connected them together superficially. However, his definitive edition was indeed widely circulated amongst the people, and received independent development."

  "So throughout this millennium, King Arthur became a new war god instead of the 'King of the End'?"

  "Ah yes. Even writers of Templar descent added commandments and philosophies of taboo, causing the story content to surpass the intentions of the previous Guinevere, and thus the legends became bloated."

  Alec seemed to be speaking in tones of regret.

  "The French royal family used the legend of Charlemagne to publicize their prestige and authority. Attempting to do the same, the English royal family used the Arthurian legends thoroughly as a tool to strengthen royal authority. The end result was, embellishment of the hero King Arthur continued unabated, producing an image that deviated greatly from the original."

  Charlemagne. The King of the Franks during the eighth and ninth centuries. Also known as Charles the Great.

  His territory not only included modern France, but extended to Germany, Spain and Italy. The greatest conqueror in medieval Europe.

  However, the great king Charlemagne was not only a ruler recorded in history, he was also served by twelve great heroes.

  He was the subject of magnificent heroic legends rivaling those of King Arthur and the Knights of the Round Table.

  "Myths are what forms the body and spirit of a deity. Since the myths of King Arthur the hero have been altered, the hero who descends from those myths will also change. If you look at it that way, it is only natural."

  Draining his wine glass in one gulp, Alec ended the conversation.

  A fortnight later, the summoning of [Heretic Arthur] proved the correctness of his hypothesis, causing the current generation's Guinevere to enter a state of partial insanity.

  Godou listened to Erica and Liliana as they explained the hypothesis regarding King Arthur.

  Having read the report, the knights recounted its contents to Godou on the return flight. Yes, it was the return flight leaving England and bound for Japan.

  Changing their plans due to the emergency, Godou and his group decided to hurry back home. On the following day after the visit to Cornwall, they managed to obtain tickets for a flight to Haneda Airport.

  "So this is the 'principle' Alice-san mentioned."

  Godou nodded. As a side note, Yuri was not present.

  In order to solve the mystery of Lancelot, she had stayed back with Princess Alice. It was a difficult decision taken only because neither the Black Prince nor Lancelot could be left unchecked.

  "By the way, Mariya said something about Sarmatae? What is that?"

  "In all the battles you have experienced so far, Godou, you've heard the name of the Scythians many times, right?"

  "Sarmatae is one of the equestrian tribes under the Scythian lineages... A belligerent tribe that went into decline despite being as battle-capable as their ancestors the Scythians."

  Erica and Liliana simultaneously provided explanations.

  "Compared to the Scythians, the Sarmatians had the advantage of armor and spears forged from iron. They possessed the stirrups to support heavy armament, and established squadrons of heavily armed knights which surpassed the lightly equipped Scythians."

  "Iron armor and spears? Somehow that doesn't feel very nomadic?"

  Godou remarked at Erica's explanation.

  His impressions of equestrian tribes consisted of people lightly equipped with leather protective gear and wielding bows and arrows as their primary weapons. Hence Liliana joined in:

  "During the second and third centuries, their heavy armaments ushered in a new age. The other tribes that had fought against the Sarmatians -- the Goths began to use the same armaments. The Roman Empire recruited Sarmatians as mercenaries and volunteers, assigning them to various provinces across Europe. This resulted in their armaments being promoted throughout Europe..."

  "Their armor and spear became the prototype for the fully armed knight. Such speculation has been proposed."

  "So Lancelot is the war god of that equestrian tribe?"

  Erica contemplated Godo
u's question for a moment before answering.

  "It's possible. However, Sarmatians and Scythians are both peoples who have died out a long time ago. Even though there are small groups of people who are considered their descendants, the myths they circulate are different from their ancestors."

  "So in the end, it is impossible to judge until we receive notice from Mariya Yuri and the Princess."

  Liliana sighed as she spoke.

  Burdened by these mysteries, Godou and his companions sank deeper into their airplane seats.

  Part 2

  "Traveling back and forth between Japan and England over four days and two nights, is really tiring after all..."

  Godou could not help but grumble as he finally stepped out from the airport floor tiles and onto Japanese soil once more.

  Even though he was young and vigorous, this was indeed a very hectic itinerary. When gods traveled to Europe, it was probably like normal everyday travel for them...?

  "Sometimes I think to myself, one way to go on such trips would be to become a player on the national team representing Japan or something like that."

  Or perhaps, a lightning fast trip necessitating a weekend in Europe.

  No matter which, none of these were reasonable schedules. Normally, arranging trips for three to five nights would be more appropriate.

  "Even though the exhaustion is quite unpleasant, the complete lack of elegance is the main problem. Traveling should be far more leisurely, an undertaking that should be comfortably enjoyed in a foreign country."

  In a rare moment, the usually cool and magnificent Erica was complaining with a tone of annoyance. Next to her, Liliana also responded with extreme displeasure.

  "Really... Well, if Black Prince-sama's personality is truly as rumored, then his motivations are not impossible to understand."

  The group had departed on Friday night and were now arriving back in Japan on Monday afternoon, the last of their three-day weekend. This was probably akin to a military forced march.

  Nevertheless, dozens of minutes later, Godou and his group were taking yet another holiday flight.

  "Sorry for your troubles. But a picture is worth a thousand words. I think it's best for you to get a firsthand view of the castle of strange rock that has appeared in Tokyo Bay."

  Amakasu explained in the helicopter.

  Due to the noisily spinning rotors, his voice was rather difficult to hear.

  Finally arriving at Haneda Airport to end their long distance journey, Godou and his group had been contacted by Amakasu. Let us survey magnificently from the air -- just as suggested, they headed off to an old staging area near the airport. It was hidden in a corner amongst many decrepit hangars whose ancient age was evident.

  At a spacious vacant lot indicated by Amakasu, several helicopters were waiting on standby.

  "I pulled some strings beforehand to prepare by borrowing some Japan Coast Guard helicopters. In fact, both Coast Guard and news agency helicopters are kept inside this hangar here."

  And so, the helicopter took flight.

  The interior of the mini-helicopter was rather cramped. However, this was Godou's first helicopter ride and his curiosity was piqued as he surveyed the inside of the cabin and peered out at the scenery outside.

  Naturally, Erica, Liliana and Amakasu also came along. There were also two pilots, most likely affiliated with the Committee. They simply acknowledged Godou without saying a word and focused on operating the aircraft.

  The helicopter reached the Tokyo Bay airspace soon after taking off.

  "Getting too close would have troublesome consequences, but we cannot start without looking at the real thing."

  "A castle of strange rock? Will it be the cause of rumors?"

  An island that suddenly surfaced in Tokyo Bay. It was far too ridiculous and abnormal.

  Godou's worried inquiry was met with Amakasu shaking his head.

  "It's a small island, but luckily nothing of that sort has happened yet. Only those related to shipping and a couple fishermen have discovered it so far. Information control is currently under way. Oh yeah, there are Coast Guard facilities nearby, so of course they also know."

  This portion of Tokyo Bay faced Tokyo, Kanagawa and Edomae of Chiba. Not only the shipping industry, but fishery also flourished in these parts.

  Infamous in the past for its murky polluted waters, Tokyo Bay had benefited from multi-decade efforts in ocean purification. Thus great results had been achieved such as vast gains in the fishery yield.

  ...In any case, this sea had many users so information control was very difficult.

  Godou was filled with sympathy as he thought of Amakasu and his crew's labors. Well, the petrification of the Trans-Tokyo Bay Highway the previous week was probably even worse.

  "Late last night, Committee-affiliated personnel sensed a great explosive increase in magical power in Tokyo Bay. They wondered if it was the appearance of a [Heretic God] -- and entered high alert. Flying on helicopters, they attempted all sorts of reconnaissance."

  Godou looked down at Tokyo Bay's great expanse as he traveled in the helicopter flying in the sunny holiday sky. As long as he ignored the exhaustion from the long trip, it was actually quite a pleasant experience.

  "Next, in the very center of Tokyo Bay -- in the sea right between Yokosuka and Cape Futtsu, an island that had never existed until a few hours ago was discovered."

  As a side note, Yokosuka was a city situated in Kanagawa prefecture. It was also the location of the Yokosuka military port and an American military base.

  On the other side, Cape Futtsu was in Chiba prefecture. Godou recalled the map of the Tokyo Bay area. Compared to the commotion centered at the artificial island of Umihotaru last time, the current position was further south and closer to the outer sea.

  "Also, this is an island holding a terrifying amount of magical power. When I found out from Kusanagi-san that it was basically the doing of Prince Alec, I thought to myself, that explains everything."

  "...What is that?"

  Liliana narrowed her eyes as she gazed at a certain spot in the air ahead.

  "Is that a cloud...? Feels very unnatural."

  "What sharp vision, as expected of a witch. If all that happened was simply the surfacing of a terrifyingly shaped island, then there's no actual harm done. However, things are not so optimistic. Ah yes, it should be visible now."

  Prompted by Amakasu's words, Godou began to focus his eyes as well, forward beyond the pilots.

  A spiral of clouds stacked together lay ahead. It resembled the type of dark cloud cover which heralded the arrival of a thunderstorm. Shifting his gaze downwards from there, Godou figured it out.

  I see, it's the castle of strange rock. An exceptionally terrifying island was floating right there.

  It was covered by unevenly shaped rock. From a distance, greenery and soil were completely absent. All that could be seen were black walls of rock, rock beds and rock surfaces. It was really like a small island.

  "In terms of area, ah yes... About ten hectares or so. It's probably easier to grasp if I describe it as the size of an amusement park."

  As expected from the appearance, it was not very large.

  The center of the small island rose up like a mountain. A mountain of black rock almost fifty or sixty meters tall. This uneven mountain was also reminiscent of an ogre's face, which must be why Amakasu called it the 'castle of strange rock.'

  Furthermore, completely surrounding the island--

  There were rocky reefs which would cause ships to easily run aground.

  "...Could it be that no one has successfully approached the island so far? I can feel an extremely unsettling presence coming from those reefs."

  "Oh, right on the money, Liliana-san."

  Amakasu praised the silver-haired knight for her question.

  "All the boats sent to approach the island for investigations have been wrecked. Very clearly, the reef is an impediment. When the passengers jumped into the sea
with their lifejackets and began swimming furiously, somehow they all ended up far away from the island."

  "So there were no casualties?"

  "Fortunately none so far. Due to the quick action of the rescue boats, all personnel were successfully saved."

  Godou was relieved to hear Amakasu's report.

  "Not sure what kind of mechanism it is, but lingering in the immediate waters of the island results in drifting to the coast -- various places at Kanagawa and Chiba."

  "Doesn't that make it something like the Devil's Sea?"[6]

  "Yes, indeed. But for a Devil's Sea to appear in Tokyo Bay, it's really no joking matter."

  "Perhaps, this could be the [Labyrinth]'s doing."

  Listening to Godou and Amakasu, Erica spoke up.

  "What's that?"

  "An authority of Prince Alec's. From a report personally written by Princess Alice, it is the power usurped from Minos the god of the land and the labyrinth."

  The authority to create labyrinths above and underground.

  In addition, it was not limited to creation. Existing places and structures -- whether official residences, buildings, underground tunnels, forests or even mist, anything could be turned into a labyrinth in accordance with Alec's wishes, Erica explained.

  "It is well within reason that the use of this authority on the sea can produce something like the Devil's Sea."

  "Ah... So we really should have gone with this possibility that we had suspected. Actually, there's yet another troublesome concern."

  Amakasu was muttering emphatically when Liliana suddenly cried out.

  "Ex--calibur? No, Divine Sword of Salvation! The same light as the lance of Sir Lancelot!?"

  "What's up, Liliana?"

  Godou asked the knight who was staring in shock at the island surrounded by dark clouds and rocky reefs.

  "Is it really some kind of spirit vision?"

  "Y-Yes. Sir Lancelot's holy lance -- the same light could be seen being released from the island for an instant. Also, there was the name of the sword."