116. In fact, they knew (10)
Now, we know that Deon had a hard time knowingly or unknowingly in the Hart family, who were naturally blunt and showed little emotion on their faces and were not good at expressing themselves.
When I went to war due to a document error, I had no idea that there would be a problem and immediately blamed my family, so I couldn’t help but realize how little trust my family had in me.
However, while Cruel acknowledged Hart’s partial responsibility for the extinction incident, he did not place all of the blame entirely on me and my family. Because there was a more direct culprit for which full responsibility could not be placed.
Peacock.
He sent Deon Hardt to war.
I don’t know why or why they did what they did, but they changed the list where Cruel Hart’s name was supposed to be on and sent people they couldn’t communicate with to pull Deon Hardt out of the mansion.
Even my father’s gentle persuasion didn’t work. Despite the acceptable alternative of sending Cruel instead, they only looked for Deon Hart, as if they had been brainwashed.
I couldn’t understand.
‘Because that child did something wrong.’
Cruel, who belatedly learned that this incident was related to the Duke, has been quietly keeping an eye on the Duke from then on.
An unexplained malice towards Deon Hardt. It showed no signs of abating even after the war ended. No, on the contrary, it has become stronger.
That’s why I went under him on purpose…
‘That’s later.’
Now is not the time to think about that.
The duke’s head rose at the rare question. There was a faint suspicion in his eyes.
He usually only answered questions without speaking first. Did he really want to save Deonhardt?
As the duke’s eyes narrowed, Cruel seemed to realize that he had asked the wrong question, and added a little later.
“I have every reason to kill him. “But Your Excellency, it seems that the reason is not sufficient.”
“Is it not enough that, as a representative of the noble faction, I must kill the emperor’s dog?”
“….”
“It seems like it’s not enough.”
I have a good feeling.
I’m certainly not trying to get rid of him for that reason alone. Deonhardt is a threat to the Empire.
The duke simply could not ignore such a threat from the perspective of the future ruler of the empire.
Why is Deonhardt a threat to the Empire?
“The reason may be to recall the order I gave to Sir Deonhardt when he was on his way on a mission from the Emperor.”
[If you follow the traces of the revolutionary army, there will be someone watching Deon Hardt’s back under the emperor’s orders. Kill him. And if you have the means to chase after Deon Hardt, check where he is going and then come.]
“….”
“Ah, you don’t know.”
By the time he finished the job, Deon Hart had already left.
I don’t know if he really doesn’t know or is just pretending not to know, but if he had followed Deonhardt and checked where he was going, he would have inferred to some extent that he had something to do with the demon world.
The duke touched the area around his heart and smiled.
“If you don’t know, there’s nothing you can do. “That’s all I have to say.”
He knew that Deonhardt was the commander of the Demon King’s army.
If anyone found out about this, they would be curious.
If you are a person with a working mind, you will first consider ‘since when?’ before asking ‘how and why’.
The answer to that is simple.
‘From the beginning.’
The Duke returned to his office after refusing Cruel’s offer to take him there, sat down and leaned his upper body against the backrest.
A faint sneer appeared on his lips.
‘I knew it from the beginning. ‘It was because of me that Deonhart came to the attention of the Demon King in the first place and went to the Demon King’s Castle.’
Why did the duke send Deon Hardt to the battlefield during the Eight Years’ War?
Why did they block the count’s request to the imperial family to bring him back, and why did they come up with the opinion that Deonhardt should be sent to the Demon King’s Castle as a companion of a warrior?
Why did Deon Hardt, the son of a nobleman, start out as an ordinary soldier, and who made him become a vanguard?
The root of all of this ultimately boils down to one thing.
“A contract with the devil.”
Deonhardt was the duke’s bait to draw the interest of the bored demon king.
What kind of ill feelings could there have been towards the other person who lived only in the mansion and had no contact whatsoever? It was just bad luck that Deonhardt was dragged into the battlefield.
It’s not even malicious intent, it’s just bait out of necessity. The Duke put his hand over where his heart was, ignoring the thought that if Cruel found out, he would have clenched his fist to the point of bleeding. I feel like I have the power to defy the rules of the world if I just put my mind to it.
The Duke’s heart contains the demon king’s contract and the magical power gained through it.
Contrary to my expectations that I could make a contract by simply summoning him, I was so embarrassed when the Demon King refused, saying he was not interested.
[I would like to propose a bet.]
[Bet?]
[Yes, it would be quite interesting.]
In that situation, the Duke thought of a boy he had happened to meet at Count Hart’s residence a long time ago when he was visiting on official business.
***
“Red eyes, white hair, pale skin.”
“I thought there were no red eyes among humans.”
“As far as I know, he is a human. Even young.”
“That’s a bit interesting, but what does that have to do with betting? “If you just threw something out there that might pique my interest….”
“That’s not possible. First, let’s listen to the end. “The child is said to have been weak and has never been outside the house since he was born.”
The duke widened his eyes as he faced the reversed white and black eyes.
“If such a nobleman were to go to war, how long would he be able to endure?”
“…Hoo?”
“These are the betting conditions.”
A child known to be human despite his unique appearance.
A cruel bet proposal that threw away my conscience and the uniqueness of having never left the house due to my weak body.
This works. Usually, people who are dull from boredom look for things that are stimulating. Even excluding the special setting of the child itself, none of the Demon King’s contractees, which may not be many, would have made such a bet.
“I heard that the situation in the human world is unusual… but is a war really going to break out?”
“Yes, because our king, who ascended the throne this time, launched a provocation against all kingdoms by naming the kingdom ‘Empire’. “There are already large and small armed conflicts taking place with neighboring kingdoms.”
So what’s the answer to the bet?
The Demon King, who was lost in thought for a moment at the unexpected information, nodded.
“good. “I bet on ‘survival.’”
“yes?”
‘Survival’, not ‘how long can you endure’.
“You set the condition in the first place as ‘how long can I hold out’, so you will choose ‘death’, right? “The deadline is until the end of the war in which the child participated.”
“yes? yes.”
weird. The story was turning in this side’s favor.
He must have clearly said that the child was weak and had never been outside the world.
The Demon King laughed as if he sensed the Duke’s confusion.
“Betting is only fun if you bet on the unfavorable side.”
***
After that… it was obvious.
Deonhardt must be killed before the war ends. Since the Demon King was watching, the duke was unable to take direct action, and indirectly tried to create a situation in which he could easily die.
For example, having a nobleman’s son participate in the war as an ordinary soldier like conscripted commoners.
However, since he did not die, they made him the leader of the vanguard.
It was easy to manipulate documents because issues such as transfers had not been resolved not long after the king came to the throne by force, and war broke out almost immediately after his accession to the throne.
‘It was obviously a hastily constructed vanguard made up of commoners and poor people, so I thought they would die soon…’
Deon Hardt managed to survive. No, rather, it became famous for its cruelty and ‘immortality’.
A vanguard that never dies. These murderers brutally kill as many people as they can, making people reluctant to even get close to them. Master Deonhardt, who commands and leads them.
He became a hero and the eight-year long war was over.
It was the duke’s defeat.
‘The contract… should I give up?’
His theory is that the more power and power the better, and his instinct to rise to higher ground.
It made me want to make a contract with the devil, but that’s okay. It’s a little disappointing, but the contract was just a strength to prepare for an unexpected situation.
Even if I had signed the contract in the first place, I had no intention of using it unless it was a truly urgent situation.
[I’ll put another condition on it.]
Nevertheless, the Demon King extended his hand to him who lost his appetite in disappointment.
[Send Deonhardt to me. Then, I will give you a portion of my magical power.]
[….]
[It is not a complete contract… Yes, it can be considered a half-contract.]
Ah. A smile slowly spread across the Duke’s expressionless face.
The bet was a loss, but the duke did not fail. The ground food he had laid was clearly demonstrating its power.
A bait offered to attract the interest of the Demon King. For eight years, the Demon King received news of Deonhardt in various ways, and sometimes used magic to observe him personally. It’s not surprising that you become interested in him in the process.
[I think it would be possible with my own strength to send him to the Demon King’s Castle, but to capture him…]
[It’s my role. know. That’s enough.]
And.
The duke insisted that Deonhardt be selected as a warrior’s companion and sent to the Demon King’s Castle, and for some reason, the Emperor accepted this and sent him to the Demon King’s Castle.
He might die on the way, but looking at his luck so far, he probably won’t die. Well, there’s nothing you can do if you die.
Either way, he will never see Deonhardt again. There’s no way the devil would easily let go of something he got his hands on.
I thought…
[The hero’s body has been recovered!]
Deon Hart has returned alive. And carrying the hero’s body!
On this day, the duke uttered a double curse for the first time in his life.
‘At first, I wondered how this happened…’
As time passed, the doubts were gradually resolved.
The commander of the 0th Corps of the Demon King’s Army, who gradually began to be mentioned at some point. Deonhardt periodically travels to and from somewhere under the name of a secret mission from the emperor. And the identity of the commander of the 0 Corps is kept a complete secret both in the demon world and the empire.
──Deon Hart is the commander of the 0 Corps. Even though the emperor knew about this, he turned a blind eye to it.
A person who holds a place in the demon world is also considered an important figure in the empire? Dangerous. The Emperor even cared for Deonhardt a lot. What would happen if such a person turned to the devil’s side?
‘I have to kill him.’
You must put aside the emperor and kill for the sake of the empire.
It was a natural conclusion.
‘I don’t know if I can kill you, but…’
If you keep knocking, you will die someday.
He is a man who went to war and became a hero at a young age, having never even held a sword. I’m a little worried, but I suppress my anxiety, saying that if I keep trying, one day I will break through the shield of luck.
smart.
“Duke Daniel has come to visit.”
There was news of an unscheduled visit by a guest.
….
“I found someone with good writing skills in Ireon. “I plan to use this to sway public sentiment.”
This was what Daniel, who had asked to meet on a whim, said before he even sat down.
“…Are you planning to leave a message on the street?”
“yes.”
“….”
The duke closed his mouth, not knowing what to say.
I can be sure of one thing. The man in front of me right now is out of his mind.
Pale complexion. Eyes trembling as if nervous.
…Now that I think about it, I once heard that his mother had begun to bleed. I heard that they were hiding it from the leader, but as time passed and there was no news, they tried to hide it well, but it seems they were eventually found out.
