Chapter 270
Chapter 270
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Translator: Ryuma
Chapter: 270
Chapter Title: The Demon Emperor Got Angry
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After a brief commotion and introductions at the Lion Squad,
Krash was now at the special academy.
The person sitting in front of him was none other than the daughter born between the Demon Emperor and the Barrier Master.
Bio Ren Sedni.
Her real name was Bio Ren Jeblram.
"...What the hell is that nonsense?"
Still making no effort to change her clothes, Bio Ren propped her chin with a hand poking out from her oversized sleeve, tilting her head.
It was a reaction that said she couldn't comprehend what she'd just heard.
Krash had no choice but to explain it to her once more.
"The son of the Demon Emperor who enrolled this year is the Demon Emperor himself."
Bio Ren stared at Krash with blank eyes.
Even after the explanation, her gaze screamed disbelief.
Well, if Krash were in her shoes and didn't know the full story, he'd probably react the same way.
"I'm dead serious. You can go confirm it with your own eyes if you want."
"...I'd rather it was just nonsense."
Krash was speaking with such sincerity.
No matter how skeptical Bio Ren was, she couldn't outright dismiss it.
"What the hell is that guy thinking?"
He was her father, but Bio Ren couldn't make heads or tails of him.
"No idea. But one of the reasons he stopped by Raheln Academy seems to involve me."
"What?"
Bio Ren's eyes widened in shock as she looked at Krash.
She blinked a few times, then suddenly grabbed his collar tight.
"You told me back then that even if you met that guy, you could get out without a hitch. That still holds, right?"
If not, her eyes were urging him to run right now.
To reassure her, Krash nodded.
"Yeah, it does. So don't worry."
Bio Ren looked a bit dubious,
but since Krash said so, she decided to trust him.
"So what're you planning to do?"
They'd originally planned to head to Jeblram, but everything had gone off the rails.
No matter how insane he was, you couldn't just barge in and expose a whole kingdom's king for enrolling at Raheln Academy.
One wrong move, and it'd spark an international incident.
"I was thinking of borrowing your help."
"My help?"
She'd figured there must be some reason since he'd come to her specifically,
but Bio Ren doubted she'd be much use in uncovering the Demon Emperor's true identity.
"You're his daughter, after all."
"True, but..."
"You approach him, since you know his insides better than anyone. Ask if it's true that he has a son."
Bio Ren had a solid pretext for getting close to the Demon Emperor.
Even if he hadn't raised her himself, blood was blood.
She knew full well he had no son.
So she could use that to probe his identity.
Then, pick up on anything suspicious in his denial and come consult with Krash.
"And while talking with me, we reach the conclusion that it might just be him in disguise—the Demon Emperor himself."
After drawing that conclusion, she approaches him again to grill him on his identity.
Even if he stubbornly denies it, she can mention the bargaining chip Krash has to put him on the negotiation table and pass it along.
That way, she could deliver the offer without any issues.
"You think it'll go that smoothly?"
Bio Ren spoke with a hint of unease.
She seemed worried about how unpredictable the Demon Emperor could be.
"At the very least, if things follow this flow, it should be fine."
"Tch. Can't back out now that I've agreed to help."
Bio Ren clicked her tongue as she eyed Krash.
"Just one thing—keep it in mind. If that guy's eyes go red and he starts acting crazy, you run like hell."
"Got it. I'll keep that in mind."
Krash had successfully gotten Bio Ren's buy-in.
All that remained was to put the plan into action.
And luckily, the opportunity came sooner than expected.
The Lion Squad had received a mission, and the new students could join in.
"Want me to tag along, little brother?"
"No need. I'll be back soon."
Charlotte subtly offered to come midway through,
but Krash politely declined.
This mission was to close a World Erosion outbreak in Demoran, a village in the world's largest mountain range, the Freyja Mountains.
The difficulty wasn't particularly high.
So the team wasn't large either.
Four second-years and two third-years.
The second-years included Krash at the center, Aslan Igrit, Haring Lagren, and the newly joined Bio Ren Sedni.
The third-years were Bianca and Temarin Jeblram—the real Demon Emperor in disguise.
"Don't get hurt again. Come back safe."
Krash listened to Astria's warnings, then took the Empire's teleport gate straight to Demoran Village.
"So."
During the journey, they stopped at an inn,
and Krash quietly watched Bio Ren grumbling beside him.
"When the hell are you gonna approach him?"
"Shut up, I'm trying, okay?!"
Her usual foul mouth on full display, she yelled at Krash in protest while covering her face.
It had already been a week since they set out for Demoran Village.
They'd arrive tomorrow, but Bio Ren still hadn't even spoken to the Demon Emperor.
Krash let out a short sigh and glanced out at the scenery.
Demoran Village was built in the high altitudes of Freyja, the world's grandest mountain range.
Naturally, the inns along the way to Demoran were perched on the mountainside,
so the view of the peaks was perfectly framed through the first-floor windows.
Up ahead, Bianca and Haring were chatting away amiably.
They'd seemed to have a lot in common from the start.
Maybe that's why, over the past week traveling together, they'd bonded faster than expected.
"Yeah, that's exactly it."
"Right?"
He couldn't make out the topic, but seeing Bianca and Haring chuckle now and then, they clearly clicked well.
Who knew they could get this close.
In the previous regression,
they'd been locked in a kill-or-be-killed relationship.
But now that future was utterly erased,
the two were conversing like sisters.
For some reason, it made the tip of his nose tingle.
At least in this world, that tragedy wouldn't happen again.
Nothing futile about it, then.
Feeling his efforts hadn't been in vain, Krash glanced back at Bio Ren.
Under his pointed look, she finally steeled herself and stood.
"I'll sort it out today."
He hoped so.
The Demon Emperor was upstairs in his room, resting.
It was the perfect chance for a private talk.
Krash watched Bio Ren head off, when someone sat beside him.
"Back from a date?"
Krash tossed out the quip and turned to see Aslan flashing his sharp, handsome smile.
"The views make it worthwhile."
Aslan's features had matured even more lately, drawing stares from every passing woman.
Thinking back to how bandages used to hide it all, it was regrettable in a way.
Suddenly, a little ice doll popped out from the pocket on Aslan's chest.
It was Dorothy, his spirit lover.
"Dorothy says the World Erosion vibe around Demoran feels off. Something about the quality being different from before."
She'd slipped away briefly and come back with intel.
Krash pondered as he admired his teammate's reliability.
Krash mulled over the date slowly.
It's starting already, huh.
He realized the time had come.
The moment when World Erosion flows began shifting across the entire world.
The time when the direst seeds are planted.
The reason for all this was simple.
The world was starting to be overwhelmed by the sheer number of World Erosions.
World Erosion consists of fragments from destroyed other worlds.
Those worlds possess the power to restore themselves.
As a result, their goal is to devour the world where their fragments take root and rebuild their original realm.
Thus, the world steadily loses its sustaining power to World Erosion.
Exploiting those gaps, World Erosion produces the direst seeds to restore their own worlds.
The moment those seeds sprout...
The world and World Erosion wage all-out war.
The world, to preserve itself.
World Erosion, to create their own.
They desperately whittle away at each other's power in a deathmatch.
A fight where one side vanishes forever.
In that struggle, the world eventually loses its power to hold on and perishes.
That was the world's end Krash had faced.
And now's when World Erosion is slowly reaching saturation.
The direst seeds being planted wasn't an issue.
In fact, it was the prime chance to eradicate World Erosion completely.
The direst seeds are World Erosion's power compressed to its maximum to restore their world.
Eliminate those, and even forbidden realms could be uprooted entirely.
That was why Krash hadn't aggressively cleared every World Erosion until now.
Above all...
Exion and the World Erosion beasts knew about the direst seeds too.
They'd gone mad in their final throes, sprouting every last one.
To stop that, no war with the World Erosion forces can happen.
This damn world's precarious balance was hanging by that thread.
Arthur must've known that much.
Krash briefly recalled why Arthur had failed to avert the world's doom.
He wasn't blameless,
but maybe Arthur had assumed the previous regression was doomed from the start and pursued some other goal to clear the next one.
Were the three who regressed with him key to that goal?
No Arthur left to ask anymore.
So Krash focused on the now.
The direst seeds have to be created anyway.
Ending the forbidden realms for good required that process.
The problem is the World Erosion rampage and grade spikes during their emergence.
Ahead lay a full-scale war between the world and World Erosion.
For that reason alone...
Krash needed to grow stronger still.
To excise the direst seeds from the forbidden realms required even greater power.
Grow and grow some more, and the end's still nowhere in sight.
Krash gave a wry smile as he swept his gaze over Aslan, Haring, and Bianca.
Never was something I could do alone.
He wasn't clearing paths for others out of charity.
The world can't be saved solo.
It's something countless people must unite to protect.
As Krash reaffirmed his resolve,
KABOOM!
A sudden explosion rocked the inn from upstairs.
Krash froze and jerked his head up.
There, Bio Ren was plummeting down, wrapped in a barrier.
"Bio Ren!"
Krash dashed over and caught her.
"Cough, hack."
After landing with her coughing fit, black smoke began billowing from the ceiling.
Amid heavy footsteps, a boy leaped down.
The silver-haired boy glanced below and clicked his tongue.
Temarin Jeblram.
His true identity: the Demon Emperor himself, Terasius Jeblram.
Seeing that, Krash turned to Bio Ren.
She met his eyes, hesitated, then spoke.
"...Sorry. I poked the wrong bear."
Bio Ren had screwed up.