Episode 348
“Welcome. King Krahn III, the monarch of our country, is waiting for you.”
Jordan Marlins, the Marquis and Prime Minister of the Kingdom of Liberty, bowed his head politely, but the cold-looking man who received the greeting only nodded.
Despite his rude attitude, there was no sign of displeasure on Jordan’s face. No, rather, he just glanced at his companions with a bald head and profuse sweat and a nervous look.
‘Anyway, what on earth did he do for the empire’s superman to come in person?’
The face of the man standing in front of the secret envoy of the empire kept coming into my eyes.
Pure white skin, an expressionless face, and white hair neatly combed back gave a cold impression. The sharp eyes further accentuated the cold impression, making me feel like I was freezing to the core when I looked into his eyes.
I am 63 years old this year. Grit Einzhein, commander of the 1st Legion in the eastern part of the Empire.
One of the empire’s superhumans had visited Liberty as an unofficial, not official, envoy.
Jordan gently wiped away the cold sweat and opened his mouth again.
“Haha. I have heard of the great name of the Devil Spear. It is an honor to meet you.”
“guide.”
But the only answer that came back was a word as cold as his face.
Jordan urgently lowered his head to hide his expression that hardened without realizing it.
“…Yes. Of course, I have to guide you. Please follow me.”
It was heartbreaking to see that no matter how powerful the empire was, they did not even show respect to the nobles of other countries.
‘What an arrogant bastard you are. Surely you won’t be rude to His Highness?’
It was fortunate that this visit was unofficial. Not many people would have witnessed this outrageous scene.
‘Damn it. Guile, who is that guy….’
Since he couldn’t dare express his dissatisfaction to the envoy, his unpleasant feelings only led to resentment towards Guile Slayer.
And it got even worse with Grit’s attitude, which did not change even after arriving in front of the king’s office.
As he was a secret envoy, it was not possible to welcome him in Daejeon with his subjects. Still, the king’s face had to be preserved, so a knight was stationed in front of his office, the place where he was scheduled to meet him face to face.
But the moment the driver shouted, ‘A distinguished guest has arrived.’
bang.
The red force that extended from Grit’s light gesture violently opened the door to Daejeon.
The expressions of all the Liberty officials who were watching hardened, and Krahn III, who was inside the open door, also glared at him with his brows furrowed.
However, as if that had nothing to do with it, Grit maintained his expressionless expression and turned his attention to the five people who followed him.
“You guys wait outside.”
“…I understand, Your Excellency.”
Jordan thought the way Grit looked at his companions was strange.
Even though it was inside Liberty’s royal palace, the royal palace officials seemed to be wary of the robed robed people who followed him without paying any attention.
‘It must be an illusion.’
It may have been because I was trying to think of other thoughts in an effort to endure the harsh atmosphere.
Jordan quickly followed behind Grit, who was blaming himself for this and entered the office with strides.
“Imperial Count Grit Einzhein meets the Lord of Liberty.”
Grit’s example of slightly bowing his head and pressing his fist to his chest was overly brief.
The expressions of Gunther Liberty and the guards standing behind the king visibly hardened, but King Krahn III nodded with a calm expression.
“…Thank you for your hard work in coming this far, Count. It would have been better if you were seen with good things, but that was not possible, so please understand that we have prepared an excessive number of people.”
A tone of voice that does not lose courtesy even while talking about faults. There was no flaw in King Krahn III’s words. Except that it was definitely excessive to bring the superhuman Gunther Liberty and about 20 escort knights into the office for a secret meeting.
Hearing those words, a faint smile appeared on Grit’s expressionless face.
“I don’t mind.”
Only one corner of his mouth slightly raises, and then he immediately returns to his expressionless expression.
At that sight, the faces of Liberty figures, including King Krahn III, hardened.
Of course, the name of the commander of the Eastern 1st Corps, a famous superman in the empire, cannot be bluff.
However, under the pretext of being an envoy, the weapon that was given the name of the Devil’s Spear had already been tied up outside the royal palace. Even the 20 elite knights, including mid-level Auror user Gunther Liberty, would not have been able to handle even the magic spear with their bare hands.
King Krahn III, whose thoughts had reached that point, bit his lip.
‘You probably know that you can’t do that.’
The difference between Liberty and the Empire now is that they have no choice but to tolerate even the most rude and rude behavior.
He put his uncomfortable feelings aside with a short cough.
“Hmm… then that’s enough. I’ve already received some information, but I’d like to hear the matter officially through an envoy.”
“It’s the head of a man named Guile Slayer and the treasure he took from the Empire’s territory.”
The content of the words was as expected.
However, was the politeness added a beat late after the answer that came out in a cold voice a mistake or intentional?
King Krahn III frowned, his expression becoming even tighter, but he had already thought of a plan to deal with it.
“…Archduke Guille Slayer is our war hero and has infinite freedom in how he conducts himself within our kingdom. So all I can do is provide a place for him.”
At those words, Grit’s expression changed slightly.
“…Are you saying you won’t care what the conclusion is?”
“With authority comes responsibility, so I believe that Grand Duke Gail will take care of it on his own.”
Greet’s eyebrows narrowed slightly after hearing King Krahn III’s answer. This was because it was something he could hardly understand.
“Your Highness. Are you sure you understood me correctly?”
“…I didn’t already tell you.”
Despite Grit’s rude retort, King Krahn III just nodded with a heavy expression.
Grit was speechless for a moment.
Doesn’t this mean that they are willing to throw away the life of their country’s superhumans?
It was completely unexpected precipitation.
– Be sure to retrieve the treasure, but what is more important is Liberty’s surrender.
The voice of the 1st prince pleading with God lingered in his head.
The original plan was so easily derailed.
After negotiating with a strong attitude, they obtained a promise to become a vassal in exchange for sparing the life of a guy named Guile, and took away the treasures of the ruins and one or two of Liberty’s national treasures.
That was the original goal, but it felt like something went wrong from the start.
‘Did I take too hard a stance?’
That thought occurred to him for a moment, but Grit soon composed himself.
‘No, no. What if it’s a little off? ‘It’s more important to show the majesty of the empire.’
There was a request from the 1st prince, but honestly, I wasn’t happy about it.
He was not satisfied with the surrender of such a small nation, even though it was only worth the lives of his faithful subordinate, Yashel, and about 100 elite knights.
so.
“…I will take care of the punishment for him. Then, I will tell you what our empire requires of you.”
If you get an unexpected answer. We had no choice but to add unscheduled requests.
King Krahn III’s face became extremely stiff at Grit’s words.
“What do you mean?”
“He should take responsibility for what he did, but wouldn’t it be right for the royal family of Liberty to compensate for the disrespect that the Grand Duke of Liberty committed against the empire?”
An arrogant expression that says that of course it has to be done.
The answer came from behind the king.
bang!
“Isn’t that too much, Count Grit?”
The marble beneath his feet was broken apart, and at the same time, a force came over Grit’s whole body.
However, the force that was meant to be intimidating could not even properly approach Grit’s body and passed by as lightly as a spring breeze.
A grin appears on Grit’s lips, and Gunther Liberty’s face becomes more rigid.
“…So what more do you want?”
The stern-faced king raised his hand to stop his younger brother.
“I would like to receive a pledge that the Kingdom of Liberty will serve the Empire as a superior country, as well as a hostage or evidence to prove it, Your Highness.”
charge.
It’s too much.
Doesn’t this mean that they want to devour a whole country just because they have an excuse?
Naturally, a disgruntled voice came out from King Krahn III as well.
“What if you can’t agree?”
“You will have to bear the wrath of His Majesty the Emperor.”
An expression that says, “Do you dare to do such a scary thing?”
But to those who heard it, it was just absurd.
In the Kingdom of Liberty, which did not even border the empire, the majesty of the emperor was nothing more than the prosperity of other countries he had heard about. So, to some of the guards, Grit’s words just sounded like crazy sounds that made people laugh.
However, King Krahn III, who knew the power of the empire, could not laugh it off like that.
But at that moment.
– The Empire will use this as an excuse to completely subjugate the Liberty Kingdom. yes? Ah, I apologize that Gail’s actions were unreasonable, but I don’t know…
– …Even if it wasn’t for this incident, they are the ones who would have caught some pod at some point and done that. Evidence? If you try it yourself, you will feel it right away.
As soon as the words from McLane, who could be said to be the culprit of this incident, passed through his mind, the face of Grit in front of him appeared again.
Putting aside his true intentions, the statement that he is completely entrusted with the disposition of Archduke Gayle is a sign of total submission.
‘But it still comes out like this, right?’
Now I can see that what McLane said was not wrong.
‘But…’
This was ultimately a crossroads of choice.
Empire or McLane?
If we were only considering national power, we would naturally have to take the side of the empire, but it could also be like pulling out the beard of a nearby demon beast because of a distant dragon.
And Liberty did not have the strength to overcome a demonic beast that was not a dragon. Even if you don’t think about the hostages, including the heirs who are already at Grand.
‘This is all because our kingdom has no power…’
My fists clenched under the desk suddenly gained strength.
It was truly frustrating.
But contrary to his feelings, he had no choice now.
Unlike the Empire, which still believes that Guile is Liberty’s person, McLane anticipated the Empire’s reaction and even told them how to respond.
“…We will discuss everything after we are done with Archduke Guille Slayer.”
Was that surprising?
“…They say he’s a war hero, and it seems like he has greater power than your majesty.”
Grit spoke in a calm tone and openly offended the king.
But the answer that followed was surprising.
“Indeed, yes.”
It’s McLane, not Gail.
King Krahn III’s true feelings that he could not express out loud.
Those sincere words were enough to surprise not only Grit but also Liberty’s loyalists.
“majesty!?”
“How could you say such a thing…”
And seeing them bewildered, Grit’s expression also fell for the first time.
‘No, what kind of king…’
It is not unheard of in history for a subject to have more power than the king. But has the king ever acknowledged that fact in front of another person, or even in front of an envoy from another country?
‘…don’t you have any pride?’
It was just absurd.
But the surprising words did not end there.
“So, if the matter with Archduke Gail is completed as you wish, I will comply with the empire’s demands. However, if you cannot subdue Archduke Gael, I ask you to give up all demands and step down.”
These words made me inevitably feel hardened.
‘Isn’t this like asking me to treat poison with poison?’
According to rumors, Guile Slayer was an intermediate Auror user. Even if he had very unique characteristics, he was not a difficult opponent for an upper-level person.
But if the king said that
… …? No way.’
A superhuman who suddenly appeared in a small country was stronger than himself.
It was unimaginable, but in the current situation, it was something he couldn’t be confident about.
However, even though he was worried for a moment, Grit soon remembered the envoys from the Eastern Kingdom who came with him.
What was it? He must have been hiding his power, but he was aware of the power of some of them. It was clear
that at least two of the group were magicians. He was so surprised that he even secretly reported it to the imperial family.
However, he only sent a nonsensical message. They were just silent because they had returned.
– These are the people whom His Majesty the Emperor implicitly approved.
If the Emperor also gave permission, then no matter how suspicious they may be, they are still allies.
‘Send those guys out first…’
The mage sent out the hidden companions first. If he steps forward, nothing will go wrong, even if the guy is incredibly talented.
So,
“This is something I can be of great help to your majesty. I will clean up Liberty’s cancer lump.”
Grit smiled cruelly . He answered the king’s words with a confident voice.
