313. The second round begins, XX (2)
Even in the pouring rain against a cloudy sky, the golden hair clearly showed its presence.
It is a color that can never be confused. It’s not an illusion.
Why on earth did the royal family come to this dangerous place? Red eyes stared at the other person persistently, as if trying to dig into their intentions.
She only made eye contact and spoke to the other person, but it seemed as if she felt threatened by that alone, and several heroes stepped forward as if to hide her.
“It’s okay, please step back.”
“but.”
“Do you think I came all this way to receive help as a member of the royal family?”
“….”
Alethea walked past them. Without turning off the connected communication device he was holding in one hand, he put it in his arms and calmly raised his head and made eye contact with Deon.
“long time no see. It’s been so long that I don’t know what to say first…” “
…”
“First of all, let me answer the question of why you came here… As a member of the royal family of the empire and a hero, I came to a place where I should have come. “I just came here, but I’d like to ask if there’s any problem.”
Is it that damn noblesse oblige? No, rather than that…
there is a word that is annoying to the ears. Deon tilted his head crookedly.
“…hero?”
“Your hero.”
her.
Why did the royal family become heroes during this period? The timing is odd.
What kind of joke is this? Deon adjusted his expression of absurdity and opened his mouth sarcastically.
“Anyway, isn’t that too reckless? “Her Royal Highness, war is not something to be trifled with.”
“You couldn’t have come this far without knowing that. And I’ve been calling you the wrong person since a while ago, but it’s not the princess, it’s the emperor.”
I know something like that. We obtained relevant information a long time ago, and seeing that the crown prince became emperor, it is easy to infer that the princess, who was the only successor, became the emperor.
This is just a provocation. Deon grinned.
“I was rude.”
A more dignified attitude than the last time we met.
Alethea frowned for a moment, feeling even more upset that they were still treating her with respect and respect as if she were a noble of the empire. Of course, it was only for a moment and it quickly returned to normal as if it had never happened.
It’s not just that side that can upset the mind. She lightly accepted his apology with an empty reply that it was okay and smiled with a smooth face.
“Is that really okay?”
“…?”
“I heard the news from the last battle. They say a plant-type monster sacrificed itself for you. I heard it was a pretty pathetic sight…”
Ah.
A topic I didn’t really like came to the surface. Deon was silent for a moment as the memories of that time came flooding back to him.
Alethea’s voice continued as if filling in the gap in the interrupted conversation.
“I’m sorry you lost your lover like that.”
“…yes?”
What did I just hear?
“Your tastes have become very unique. From sodomy to now coveting something that is not human at all. Is that what happens to everyone who lives in the demon world for a long time?…”
Even the added self-talk is perfect. Deon’s eyes fluttered at the mind-boggling nonsense.
“What kind of nonsense is that?”
The words flew out, throwing everything away, including politeness.
Except for the part about a monster being sacrificed, it was just nonsense from start to finish, so much so that I couldn’t believe my ears for a moment. The same goes for the strange plant, especially the previous remarks regarding sodomy…
“…Didn’t you say that Elpidius Desert was a misunderstanding?”
“It’s okay, I respect your taste.”
Don’t respect me.
“and.”
Alethea’s expression, which had been light all along, suddenly hardened.
The playfulness leaks out of Geum, and cold anger fills its place. At the same time.
Cheaeng!
A sound rang out, raising everyone’s tension.
Deon, who blocked the sharp attack, looked at the dagger that was still whining, then shifted his gaze and caught Alethea in his eyes. She withdrew her sword with an expressionless face and let out a cold voice towards the person who dared mention the emperor’s name.
“It is ‘Your Majesty the Emperor.’ “Be careful what you say.”
“…haha.”
It seemed like he was trying to shake his mind with a mesmerizing remark, but wouldn’t reacting like this serve as an opportunity to bring him back to his senses, which was already in a stupor? What should we do if the topic that took the lead in the provocation is caught in the crossfire by a remark thrown in from this side?
If he was emotionally shaken, he could be said to have been shaken, so he knew that if he fought now, he could start the battle in a slightly more advantageous position, but… Deon did not hastily aim his dagger.
Because there came a part where I wanted to be a little more sarcastic. If successful, one hero named ‘Alethea’ will be easily ruled out.
“Elpidius Desert is ‘emperor’?”
I opened my mouth without hesitation.
“The power, the spirit, the political sense, and even the sense of responsibility. “An emperor who is nothing better than the previous emperor and has nothing worthy of an emperor?”
“I would have told you to be careful what you say.”
Alethea growls sharply as if stabbed.
…Isn’t this a large scale? The moment Deon widened his eyes slightly at the stronger reaction than expected, a low voice whispered from within her arms.
– Alethea, calm down. It’s not wrong.
When you become emotionally intense, gaps appear in your movements. If she was so upset and tried to run at him, there would be a high probability that she would die in a single blow. Originally, I wasn’t going to open my mouth, but I couldn’t lose my younger brother like this.
Elpidius, who was listening to their conversation through the communication device in Aletea’s arms in the quiet room, opened his mouth. As if to show that nothing was wrong, he smiled and answered quietly to someone who might or might not be able to hear.
“Yes, I am not the emperor.”
– ….
“That’s why I can bow my head without any worries.”
Silence returned from the communicator that was lying there. Nothing is turned off, but the only sound is the communicator connected to Alethea.
Anyway, it started out as something close to talking to myself. Elpidius finished his sentence without paying attention.
“Thanks to that, I was able to form an alliance with such great people and get a second chance.”
They were called ‘great people’ so that no one would feel left out, but no one knew that they were actually referring to Rweche.
Rweche provided a second chance by offering up the heroes it had collected, and before that, Elpidius personally apologized to Rweche, making a reunion with them possible.
– ….
The king of Rweche was silent.
Meanwhile, Alethea, who calmed down her emotions a little due to Elpidius’ whisper, looked at Deon Hart. Her beauty, which was soaked in the rain and looked shabby, but not dead at all, struck my eyeballs.
…What little anger remained disappeared.
‘…If I had somehow gone ahead with marrying him back then…’
The situation like now wouldn’t have come about. She, who had been silent as she recalled her meaningless family, suddenly let out a faint sigh.
“How did a loyal hero of the Empire end up here?…”
Deonhardt remains silent, as if he wants to listen for now. Looking directly into the motionless red eyes, Alethea smiled faintly and made a final proposal that would never happen again.
“There’s one thing I’d like to ask.”
“….”
“If you offer to erase the sins you have committed so far… can you become a hero of the empire again?”
One of the nearby heroes could be heard taking a breath. She paid no attention and focused on Deonhardt.
Anyway, this is the last struggle of humans. An extremely weak and desperate struggle to kill at least the hero and save the next generation even if it means dying.
So, if even just in the unlikely event that Deon Hardt changes his mind and joins our side again, it would be of great benefit. Because the survival of the human world will be confirmed. If you do well, you might even be able to kill the Demon King.
‘Of course, Deonhardt’s sin is big and heavy enough to be engraved in history, but…’
Considering that ‘the survival of the human world’ is at stake, it is not something that cannot be eliminated. ─No, rather, I had to hold on to the sin by eliminating it, so I risked criticism and asked…
“No.”
The answer that came back was resolute.
Deon Hardt spoke in a dry voice as if asking if he was calling it a suggestion.
“It is too late to turn back now. The same goes for stopping. “You know.”
Anyone who has seen Emperor Edoardo Desert would know roughly what the situation is.
As expected, Deon smiled bitterly as his eyes changed.
Corpses piled up like traces along the way.
Its size is truly like a mountain.
If I stop here, I will be crushed by a pile of corpses that collapsed like a landslide, and if I turn around, I will clearly see and experience with my own eyes the entire process of how I became trapped in sinful karma. There is no reason to persevere without achieving your goal.
I don’t have the confidence to hold on.
“Okay…”
I expected it. Alethea agreed without much disappointment and soon smiled the prettiest smile she knew.
“Even if I give you a seat next to the next emperor?”
– I am against this marriage.
Brother, please be quiet.
No matter how much you whisper, you just listen quietly all the time, so what’s the point of opening your mouth at a time like this? I was dissatisfied and tapped the area where the communicator was, but Deon Hardt, who was watching quietly, smiled brightly.
“Don’t do that.”
“….”
“How about your highness being on my side?”
It’s strange… Why does it seem like the sun is shining when it’s obviously gloomy and raining?
Strangely, the surroundings are bright. Alethea blinked blankly. Even though it was rare bullshit, she didn’t reject it right away, so a small voice called out to her from inside her arms, as if she was uneasy.
– Alethea…?
Deon chuckled after seeing this.
Through my encounter with Lirinel, I experienced that any nonsense can make sense if this face is the background… but I never thought it would work here as well.
Of course, I came to my senses quickly.
Alethea frowned as if asking when she had been possessed.
“You have to say something that makes sense.”
“Of course I’m joking. Rather, it is the connected communication device in your pocket.”
He ignored the sharp answer and smiled softly.
“Are you connected to your brother?”
“…I don’t think there’s any need to answer.”
“You don’t have to answer. It’s just a confirmation process. “The communication devices held by the heroes on both sides of Your Majesty are probably connected to the kings of Rweche and Shanguk, respectively.”
“….”
“It just turned out well. How did a loyal hero of the Empire end up here? Anyone who knows this will know it to some degree, so let’s move on…”
At least the crown prince, or rather Elpidius, who took over from the former emperor, probably knows at least roughly.
“It’s similar, but I’ll go into a more fundamental question. Do you know why the situation has come to this point?”
This is a question to the monarchs who will be listening.
Of course, all that comes back is silence. Faced with no answer, Deon continued calmly.
“You probably want to answer that I am the cause.”
“….”
“Yes, I won’t deny it. “This is just something that happened because of the stubbornness of a child who was throwing a tantrum because reality was difficult.”
It may be a bit harsh to say this about yourself, but that’s true.
Too many innocent people died for it to be revenge. Because that’s the same as losing direction.
Deon, who dismissed this war as a bunch of brats, said with a smile to the monarchs who hoped that there would be some understandable reason for this hopeless war to be fought without any meaning.
“If the same thing had happened to someone other than me, it would have been buried as just one person’s unfortunate incident. So, to sum this up more briefly….”
“….”
“You just messed with the wrong person.”
You guys are just unlucky.
