Chapter 214: An Annoying Person
The lands of the Heinkel Kingdom, located in the central-western region of the continent.
The weather was bright and cloudless.
Yet despite that, the kingdom itself was shrouded in a deep gray gloom, as though dark storm clouds hung overhead.
Even in the height of summer, when life should have been abundant, the moss clinging to the walls had withered away and fallen to the ground. Not even a single weed remained.
There wasn't a rat, an ant, or any other living creature in sight.
Only the desolate sound of the wind echoed through the empty streets.
That place was dead.
"There was a time when this land was called the Land of Peace."
The man overlooking the kingdom from the highest point of Heinkel Castle was Sigmund Heinkel.
"But it wasn't meant as praise. They mocked the king for loving peace so much."
He glanced over his shoulder.
Standing silently behind him was a lone man, watching him.
"But do you know something?"
"Even that ridicule was fine with me. I believed that if enduring insults meant avoiding war, then it was worth it."
A bitter smile appeared on his face.
"But it was meaningless. I never imagined that resolving everything peacefully could be such an illusion... that everything... could be so utterly meaningless."
The King of Heinkel quietly walked toward the man and knelt before him.
"Allow me to express my gratitude once more. Thank you for enlightening this ignorant king and his foolish people."
The man before him was a member of the Demon Race with snow-white skin—
Curved Demon.
"There's no need to thank me. Everything happened according to your own will. It was only possible because you truly wished to change."
"Having the will alone isn't enough to change. It was only because the great attendant of Godwin guided me without reservation that I was able to stand where I am today."
The King of Heinkel stretched out his hand.
A black book appeared in his grasp.
Running his fingers over the cover, Curved Demon murmured,
"Gamigin's Legion is an exceptionally troublesome spell."
Gamigin—the demon of immortality and domination.
The largest among all demons, a Great Demon that turned its own body into a domain from which it observed everything.
Even that Great Demon had regarded this spell as the ideal magic, yet had failed to perfect it time and time again.
"All lives beneath heaven are equal, and because they are equal, anyone may replace another..."
Curved Demon slowly clenched his hand.
"A monarch is one who reigns while holding the lives of all within his grasp. Therefore, those who follow him shall receive power worthy of their sovereign."
Those were the words written on the very first page of the book—
A sentence that explained the entirety of the spell.
Looking down at the King of Heinkel, Curved Demon said,
"As the one who now holds the lives of everyone in the Heinkel Kingdom, you can wield the power of a Six-Circle Opener."
"Even now, I can hardly believe it. That someone as incompetent as I was can now be called a Grand Mage..."
Unable to contain himself, the king shed tears.
Watching him, Curved Demon spoke.
"I think you'll have to postpone expressing your emotions."
He nodded toward the window.
"Your friend has arrived."
The king turned toward the window.
Just as Curved Demon had said, a massive army was advancing from the direction of the Duchy of Yurei.
"Perry..."
The king sighed as he spoke the name.
They had spent decades together.
Yet even after all that time, they still couldn't understand one another.
It felt like he had become the protagonist of some tragic tale.
"They are your people as well. If they come to understand you... you'll reach the Seventh Circle."
Curved Demon said casually.
"The Seventh Circle... that would put me on the same level as the head of the Magic Association. Do you think I could surpass her?"
"Why not? Your magic isn't something ordinary humans can break. Even the dragons they fear so much won't be able to touch you easily."
"No one will be able to touch me..."
The memories flooded back.
Every time neighboring kingdoms provoked him, all he could do was sigh.
He looked back on that powerless life.
No one will be able to touch me.
It was an ideal he had believed impossible to reach.
Yet now...
It rested upon his shoulders.
Because he possessed power, everything looked different.
He truly believed he had finally become the king he had always wanted to be.
"Prepare for deployment."
The King of Heinkel rose to his feet.
"You're going personally?"
"I must."
Amid the countless soldiers approaching, his gaze locked onto a single man.
Ordinarily, they should have appeared as little more than dots in the distance.
Instead, he could clearly make out even the tiny mole on Perry Yurei's face.
He understood then.
He had become a monster that had surpassed the limits of humanity.
"My dearest friend is walking down the wrong path. If I don't guide him myself, then what's the point?"
He wanted Perry to understand what this power truly was.
***
Inside Ferda's office in Valdrova Castle.
- As Your Highness the Regent already knows, I should say it once more.
A pleasant voice came from the communication crystal.
It belonged to Imperial Princess Olivia Arken, who immediately got to the point.
- It has now been officially announced that the Heinkel Kingdom truly joined hands with the Demon Race.
The news that Duke Yurei's army had attacked the capital of the Heinkel Kingdom had been the spark.
On the surface, it looked like nothing less than open rebellion.
But while investigating everything that had happened before and after the uprising, an astonishing truth came to light.
The Heinkel Kingdom really had fallen under the control of the Demon Race.
"Haven't people been saying that all along?"
- An official announcement carries weight, doesn't it? Before this, everyone thought it was just the ravings of some doomsday prophet shouting that the end of the world was near. Besides, without knowing the whole story, it all sounded like incoherent nonsense.
Ferda quietly nodded.
How exactly could anyone summarize this absurd chain of events?
Duke Yurei had been imprisoned and tortured as a traitor.
Then, the moment he escaped the Empire, he immediately marched against his own king.
It was so irrational that no one could even believe the Empire had somehow brainwashed him.
- This time, it was Ureas Arken and Valdemar Golt who confirmed everything personally. So there's no room left for debate.
"How are the surrounding nations reacting?"
Olivia smiled.
- They're in quite a predicament. Until just a few days ago, they were all thinking about nibbling away at the Heinkel Kingdom's land and wealth. Now they're looking at a full-scale war.
- And not against ordinary humans, but against the most terrifying beings everyone believed had gone extinct long ago.
Even a glance through the history books revealed no enemy more dreadful than the Demon Race.
Even victory would come at an enormous cost.
- And the outcome of Duke Yurei's battle was utterly hopeless. He led over ten thousand soldiers.
"His opponent?"
- Only one person—the King of Heinkel. Yet all ten thousand soldiers were annihilated.
"The king fought them alone?"
- We're still verifying that part. Even if it's true, it's difficult to accept.
Ferda knew what kind of man the King of Heinkel had once been.
He was a man who wished to resolve everything peacefully.
That was how Duke Yurei had described him.
A king who avoided unnecessary conflict and wished for everyone to live together in harmony.
But a king who pursued peace without strength was always looked down upon.
Neither the King of Heinkel nor his kingdom had ever been considered significant.
Yet now...
That same king possessed enough power to destroy an army of ten thousand by himself.
If the king who had allied himself with the Demon Race had become that powerful...
What about the others?
No one would move carelessly.
"This seems like something the White House should intervene in."
Blancaros, who had declared absolute neutrality for the peace of the continent.
Now that the Demon Race had openly appeared, it seemed only natural that he would act.
- Lord Blancaros tried to convene the council...
- But the Empire beat him to it.
"What do you mean?"
- They stopped the meeting. They declared that the Empire would handle this threat to the continent itself.
Ferda frowned.
"And they simply accepted that?"
- That was the entire purpose of the Grand Ducal Council. They were going to discuss whether humanity could resolve this on its own or whether outside intervention was necessary. Since the Empire insisted humans could handle it, there was nothing left to debate.
Had they really made that judgment after nearly losing half the continent to the Demon Race in the past?
He couldn't tell whether they were being naïve...
Or whether they simply had that much faith in humanity.
- And the Empire wasn't the only one making such a request.
"The King Hudret?"
- Exactly.
Like the Empire, the Hudret Kingdom had been quietly revealing its desire for expansion.
Having captured the duke's castle without bloodshed, their morale was at an all-time high.
They had hoped to ride that momentum straight into the Heinkel Kingdom and expand their territory.
"Even now they're obsessed with grabbing more land."
- Isn't that what nobles do? Even while people die, they're only concerned with filling their own pockets. They're even busy slandering someone as responsible as Duke Yurei.
"What sort of slander?"
- Ureas tried to spread the rumor that Duke Yurei's attack on the Heinkel Kingdom was merely a staged performance orchestrated by the Demon Race.
"His greed truly knows no bounds."
- Want to hear something even more surprising?
- The one who stopped him was Grand Duke Golt.
"Grand Duke Golt?"
That was indeed shocking.
It wasn't only Ureas who loved war.
- He said they shouldn't dishonor the heroic dead any further. Isn't that ridiculous? The ones who tortured Duke Yurei were Golt's own subordinates, yet somehow Ureas ended up looking like the only shameless warmonger.
"It seems the Grand Duke's love extends not only to the Empire, but to the entire continent."
- Seriously. If he has so much love to spare, you'd think he'd let someone like me go.
Olivia let out a tired sigh.
The old man truly was formidable.
The moment he sensed public opinion might turn against him, he responded with incredible speed.
"Now then, about our own situation."
- The Second Prince has finally obtained a legitimate reason for war.
- He'll probably want Your Highness the Regent to become involved.
"He'll demand Magitech weapons."
- Yes.
When Ferda had previously refused to participate in the war, he had justified it by saying innocent civilians might still be inside and that it violated his beliefs.
But now...
The kingdom had become the Demon Race's stronghold.
That justification no longer worked.
Ferda still disliked the idea of participating.
But just as Ureas had once said...
Throwing a tantrum wouldn't solve anything.
What should he do?
- May I give my opinion first?
Olivia asked.
"Please."
- I think you should produce and distribute the Magitech weapons. Since our attempt to undermine the Empire failed, we should instead accelerate our next plan.
"And that would be?"
- Earn tremendous merit and weaken Alexander's political position.
"So... you want to create the impression that Ureas is the rightful heir to the throne?"
- As you know, that fat bastard is already working together with Golt. I'd rather not sit back and watch those two cooperate.
"That's true."
- Ureas is weak at domestic administration. So he should earn overwhelming military achievements in this war, making him an even stronger candidate for the throne. New weapons would let him demonstrate overwhelming power.
It was a convincing argument.
If Olivia and Ureas were one side...
Then Alexander and Valdemar formed the other.
If those two factions were destined to compete, supporting Olivia made perfect sense.
Ferda was about to agree.
Then...
His words caught in his throat.
He didn't understand why.
But his instincts whispered to him.
Is this really the right thing to do?
He had tried to prevent war.
Now that war seemed inevitable...
Should he help it?
Since he couldn't support Alexander...
Should he simply support Ureas instead?
Something felt fundamentally wrong.
Before he could fully understand why, the answer left his lips.
"No."
Ferda spoke firmly.
"No?"
"As I've already said, the Magitech Rifle was created to protect the Far East. I cannot provide it directly to the Imperial Army."
- If you do that, you'll only give them an excuse to punish the Grand Duchy of Valdrova.
"There's a way to prevent that."
- What is it?
Ferda presented an alternative.
"Instead... I'll participate in the war myself."
- You'll personally join the campaign?
Olivia thought for a moment before nodding.
- If that's your decision... then no one in the Empire can complain. That's an even greater form of support than simply providing weapons.
"There's more."
Ferda also knew how to use this opportunity against Alexander.
"Princess."
"You've already commanded the Tactical Infantry once before."
-...Don't tell me...
"What if, this time, you demonstrated your command ability before everyone?"
"..."
With the entire Imperial Army witnessing it firsthand, no one could deny her abilities.
It would create an opportunity for Olivia—not Ureas or Alexander—to shine.
Ferda thought it was an excellent proposal.
Yet...
Olivia's response came strangely late.
- You really...
She muttered something so softly he couldn't make it out.
"Pardon?"
"I was distracted for a moment."
- So, in short, you're saying I should prove once again the abilities I displayed during the suppression campaign?
"Exactly."
- I understand. I'll develop a more detailed plan in that direction. Ureas is an extremely prideful man, after all. If I suddenly announced that I'd be commanding his army, he'd be furious.
With those words, Olivia softly whispered,
- I hope you have a wonderful day, Your Highness the Regent.
The mana within the communication crystal faded.
Ferda finally let out a breath.
Then, without thinking, his eyes drifted toward Luri.
She was glaring at him with obvious displeasure.
He recognized that look.
It was exactly the same expression she wore whenever she looked at Zed Swallow or Penelope.
"There is no one for me except Her Highness Valdrova."
"Who said anything?"
What an annoying person.
