70

A tomb under the destroyed land with nothing but soil, a hand came up under the ground. A muffled voice could be heard yet no one heard it. The place was devoid of people. 

Another hand appeared and crawled up, Christopher breathed of fresh air. He was terrified when he found that he was in a coffin! Heck, he immediately kicked the wood causing the soil to enter the coffin. He thought he would die again, thankfully, it didn't happen. 

He started to stand, he looked around the place. He didn't care about his appearance and focus his attention on the surrounding. 

"Shit… Even my deduction was spotted on. Fuck I even made simulations inside my head to prevent this to happen but looks like I don't have to use it... I'm late." 

He found that the place was gone…… The whole Capital was gone. Only destruction could be seen. 

"However, the Secret Passage was still intact beneath."

Christopher said. Since his revival, he felt the existence of Abomination's lair under the rubble. Well, the Secret Passage was once the main hideout of the followers of Abomination. Though the Cransia take over the place and built the Capital on the top. 

Only small numbers of people knew about this, the Mellwood was part of the people who kept this secret. 

Christopher tried to tidy himself but he stopped, he didn't have to. No one would judge his appearance since no one was here. 

"How long did I die?"

He questioned himself. The sun was blazing hot so he could see that it is summer but he wanted to know what month. The month in the Auburn War is twelve just like Earth but it was called as 1st month of Winter or the 3rd month of Autumn, or such. 

"I hope that it didn't take years…"

Based on what Christopher knew, the time on the Goddess Space and mortal world was different. That's why he was not shocked that he revived late. But he wasn't sure if his knowledge was the same as this version. Maybe he was resurrected a year after. 

He hopes that his family and Aria are fine. He walked, he wanted to know if there were people around. After a few minutes, he found some people. Their face was dirty and their clothes full of stains and holes. Three children were scrapping any metals that they see, they were scavengers. 

Christopher could see they were young, around 8 to 14 years old, he thought. He decided to come out, believing the kids won't hurt him.

"Hello…"

He greeted them. 

"Kyaaa!"

The girl screamed and the two boys ready their weapons. These were rustic swords that they found in the junk but for them, it was their lifeline. 

"Who are you!?"

They roared, being vigilant. Christopher waved his hands and apologized. He quickly said his name not making any suspicious movement. 

"I'm Christopher Mellwood, I was lost and I don't know where this place is."

The children were skeptical, no one would go into a war area even if they were lost. Anyone could guess that this land was in a state of war. 

Ben squinted his eyes, he witnessed a lot since the start of the civil war. The nobles rally themselves to fight each other and it was horrible. Even Yuusha, their benefactor was missing. As for Ben's siblings…… they were gone. He, Rachel, and Moss were the only kids who survived. 

"You are lying. We can see that you are wearing a wealthy suit, you're a noble aren't you?"

Moss shouted and Rachel nodded, they could see that Christopher was a noble just by his appearance. His clothes were dirty but the beautiful designs of sewing and the stitches were one of a kind. Even his posture greatly said that he's a noble. 

Ben and Moss held their weapons tightly. Christopher saw this and shook his head. 

"Okay, okay, you don't have to do that. I don't have any bad intentions. See? Except for this dagger, I don't have any weapon."

Christopher tossed out the blade. The children were not sure if they could trust him. The war caused them not to easily believe someone. 

"… Wait, you said your name is Christopher Mellwood?"

"Yes, I am."

"Then you are a liar!! that man is already dead!"

After the Emperor's death, they heard another news that another man died. His name was Christopher Mellwood. They remember the man's name because Yuusha said this name before he disappeared. 

"W- Wait! I am Christopher, so please don't look at me like I'm a swindler!"

"Liar!"

Their bickering ended till Christopher was on the ground. He didn't fight because he didn't want to hurt the kids. As for Ben and the others, they didn't have the guts to kill. That's why they decided to tie Christopher. 

While on the ground, Christopher asked them. He was eager to find the answer to his question.

"What happened?"

He was in a weird position where his two arms and feet were tied together. 

The three looked at each other, Ben decided to talk. 

"Six days after the death of the Emperor, Duke Obata attacked the Capital."

"What!?"

Christopher was shocked. 

"Then what happened to Entei City!?"

He wanted to know if his parents were fine. The Entei was closed to the two kingdoms that were hungry to get their land. 

"Entei? I think that place was still alive but it will only take one more week to destroy it. No reinforcement will come because almost all of the forces are busy confronting the main army of the enemies. It's the farthest so no one would rescue them."

Ben heard that Entei was still alive because Count Mellwood protected it. But the place was surrounded by enemies and the reinforcement was none. The kid believed that at any moment, the City would fall. 

Christopher realized that his parents were in a dangerous situation. He closed his eyes, volume two focused on the internal conflict of the Empire and volume three focused on the counter-attack of Cransia. This would be the end of the Empire's Arc.