Jahar of the Four Heavenly Kings (1)
“The demon tribe will come pouring in again starting this winter.”
The people of Liannen all wore bright expressions. Though the truce was now over, leaving only that hellish war ahead, they brimmed with pride and a clear conscience.
The kingdom had become an empire. Every day brought news of the nation where they lived growing ever stronger and more prosperous—what was war compared to that?
“We're living in the greatest era since the founding of our nation!”
“No worries! With Liannen as it is now, demons are nothing!”
“You got it! Barkeep, another round of beer!”
As the people's laughter rang out without end—to safeguard that very laughter, the Windsor Knights headquarters buzzed with urgent activity.
“Subjugating the Four Heavenly Kings is our top priority. This is the perfect moment, right after inflicting such devastating losses on the Demon King's army.”
Edward pushed forward with the Four Heavenly Kings Subjugation operation.
Normally, such an opening wouldn't have appeared. Liannen had always teetered on the knife's edge of battlefield balance, with no spare forces to divert toward taking down a Heavenly King.
But the recent empire operation had dealt a fatal blow to the Demon King's army. They'd captured one of the Seven Deadly Sins and subjugated a legion commander, no less.
Defections due to the Demon King's replacement, plus these losses— the demons lack the strength to reinforce the northern front. If not now, there won't be another chance for a full-scale subjugation.
“We'll launch this operation the instant Sisilia recovers.”
“His Majesty was planning to use Sisilia all over the place. You sure that's okay? Feels like we're piling too much on the poor girl—”
“He's right, Captain. As a great mage-engineer, I can tell you Sisilia's not got a cold this time—it's straight-up exhaustion.”
The high knights all looked uneasy. And who could blame them? They knew full well how much burden was falling on Sisilia's shoulders.
Edward knew it too, but he couldn't argue with Lude's point.
“...You wouldn't know, rotting away at the academy lately—but Lude, Sisilia's lazier than she's ever been.”
“What?!”
Lude shot to his feet, pounding the table with his tiny arms.
“Our sweet little Lia would never! You must've seen wrong! Tell 'em, guys! My little sister's getting insulted here!”
But everyone avoided Lude's gaze. Edward was right, after all.
She handled the big stuff, sure—but she was dumping every miscellaneous task on her vice-captain authority, day after day.
“You guys...?”
As Lude looked hurt, Edward rubbed his chin and continued.
“The Heavenly Kings in the south, east, and north are lower priority. The first one we take down is here.”
Edward pointed to the western edge of the map. The area circled in red sat at the far end of the west, closest to the Eldrashion Empire they'd now made a vassal state. It was the demon they had to watch most closely first—geographically, his stronghold and the empire were right next door.
“Jahar of the west. We'll subjugate Jahar in the shortest time possible.”
“...Jahar? That guy?”
Jerryway broke into a cold sweat, his leg jiggling nervously.
“Even Lord Chiron couldn't stop—”
“Jerryway. Watch your mouth.”
Edward's warning was sharp.
“That incident was beyond the previous captain's control. It happened while he was away. What went down then... it could have happened to any of us.”
Jahar of the Four Heavenly Kings. The demon who massacred Chiron's family and territory, then slaughtered tens of thousands more humans.
Edward had set his sights on subjugating him.
Already, a thick aura of war hangs in the air.
He closed his eyes briefly, then opened them and spoke.
“Forget his raw power for now. To take him down, we need a flawless plan.”
Among the Heavenly Kings, Jahar was the only one whose info was fully out in the open.
Jahar. His Authority dealt with souls—a soul-manipulating sorcerer, with two known powers.
Soul-shattering spells that directly destroyed souls. And summoning spells fueled by sacrificed souls.
Records showed that after his massacres, Jahar had used corpses as offerings to summon mighty demon beasts.
“His Authority is bad enough, but his personality is pure evil. ...You saw what happened back with the previous captain.”
What grated most was Jahar's temperament.
Demons with immense power usually flaunted it head-on. But Jahar loved striking when foes were weakened, then tormenting them with words afterward—a demon with a twisted hobby for psychological cruelty.
“An enemy's strongest tactic is often the one they fear most themselves.”
So Edward opted for a preemptive strike.
“Here's the op outline: Advance to Londinium by magitech train, then proceed on foot from there. A subjugation squad of high knights only—simultaneous ambushes from multiple angles. The finisher—”
Edward sketched a quick caricature on the map with his pen.
“Whoa.”
Jerryway whistled in admiration. Five seconds, and even a passing four-year-old could've told it was Sisilia.
“—Sisilia handles it. She stays hidden till the last moment, then seals it with Wind Shear. To set that up, the high knights fight like hell to wear him down to near-death.”
“Piece of cake. That includes Gallerhead, right?”
“Naturally. He's rested long enough—time to come back. If needed, we pull in Reaper Windsor too.”
“Solid strategy. Could work on the other Heavenly Kings too.”
The plan was simple. But above all, effective. And easy to grasp.
Truth was, the Windsor Knights—minus a few—weren't the sharpest tools in the shed.
“We launch the moment Sisilia's fully recovered. ...She's got a nasty cold, but we've got a way.”
“A way?”
A knight's mana. It fueled their Blessings, but also shielded their bodies from illness like an iron wall.
But Sisilia had let her guard down briefly, caught a cold—and her mana snapped back, trapping the sickness inside instead.
In short: Knights recovered from colds slower than civilians.
“Heard she'd be bedridden at least a month. Potions don't even touch it—what's the fix?”
Edward smirked. Who'd have thought a single user, just chasing their own thrills, would pull off something like this?
“One of the new users is pretty capable. Talented alchemist—developed a cold cure.”
“Huh, a user?”
“Tested it myself. Might have side effects, so we're monitoring, but...”
It was for Sisilia, of all people. Safety checks were thorough.
Viaton from the imperial mages says it'll be fine, so Ian's probably the one who scored big here.
Dubbed penicillin, it had passed multiple verifications from the imperial mage corps and the Tower of Truth.
Results were imminent, and Sisilia would rise from her sickbed soon.
“Alright, let's form up a squad tailored for Jahar. Leo Ric and Gallerhead up front, Jerryway in support. And—”
As Edward fully immersed himself in captain mode, the conference room doors burst open amid a clamor. A sweat-drenched knight staggered in.
“C-Captain.”
“What is it?”
“A-an attack.”
He gasped for breath. Edward stayed ice-calm, cutting straight to it.
“The capital? Enemy numbers?”
“N-not the capital. The attack's on Roendel territory.”
Roendel. The territory closest to Terezia. A week's hard ride west.
“Roendel...?”
Edward's gut twisted. A Windsor knight panting like this meant dire straits—Roendel couldn't hold on its own.
That scale ruled out the Demon King Castle. Had to be local demons.
And the highest-ranking demon nearest Roendel? Just one.
“It's Four Heavenly King Jahar, Captain. The lord there said to abandon Roendel and fight from the capital—”
“...I see.”
Edward stood without hesitation.
“Revise the Heavenly Kings subjugation op.”
He straightened his uniform crisply.
“Not the vice-captain—I'll go personally. I'll cover Sisilia's role.”
**
“Why're the Windsor Knights all bunched up like that?”
The Windsor Knights were elite few by nature. Seeing them massed was rare—especially their top four high knights leading the charge on horseback.
“Heard Roendel's under invasion.”
“Man, hope everyone's okay...”
As murmurs of worry rippled through the crowd, Edward pondered.
Why target Roendel, Jahar?
Jahar's motives were murky. Better picks abounded for him.
And Lord Chiron's reaction is off.
Chiron's hatred for Jahar was beyond imagining. Yet he hadn't stirred at the news.
...A feint? Pretending to hit Roendel while the real Jahar eyes Terezia?
He loved undefended prey. But it could be genuine—Roendel was no backwater. A thriving imperial direct territory, practically the second capital.
If no trap, it'd fall.
...Calm down. Terezia's fine.
He'd left Lude behind as insurance. Plus Erterion and Chiron. A Sword Saint and the strongest Sword Sovereign? No reason to hesitate.
“Push to Roendel at max speed! We can't be late!”
Edward roared to shake off his unease, spurring his mount forward.
“And so the hero, in the end, drew his sword of victory and roared toward the world.”
“Wooow!”
“So fun!”
“Kahaha! You've got a gift for tales, friend. Best storyteller I've seen!”
There was a man. A minstrel with a friendly face, wandering places to spin yarns for children.
The kids loved it. Adults too. Tales of world-saving heroes never got old.
“What happened to the hero after?”
“He saved the world!”
The smiling man patted their heads fondly.
“The hero who saved the world turned after felling the Demon King. There stood his comrades who'd fought beside him, the countless people he'd saved, his beloved family.”
His smile deepened. Ear-to-ear, almost grotesque.
“All— dead.”
“...?”
“...”
A chill silence blanketed the square. The great flame behind him—the Sacred Flame shielding Terezia—flickered wildly, on the verge of snuffing out.
“In the most wretched states imaginable. And the killer? Not the Demon King or demons, but the hero's own power.”
The smiling man pressed on. A passerby couldn't take it.
“What the hell? Kids are listening—don't spout that gruesome crap!”
The storyteller's face twisted hideously at the interruption. He reached toward the man, who went blankly slack.
“The hero who swung his sword at demons to protect people ultimately self-destructed with that mighty power. Yes.”
Jahar's face hardened coldly.
“He was too strong. Too strong for himself, or those around him, to handle.”
“S-scary.”
“Mommy...”
The children shrank back, looking to their parents. But the adults didn't stir. No one did—except the kids, all their eyes were vacant.
“So they die.”
Fwoosh—
The flame—once holy, forged by the empress to protect Terezia—went out.
Jahar extended his hand forward, clenching his fist.
“They slaughtered demons without a shred of guilt, so it's only fair they get some back. Everything from now on—”
The children stared blankly at the adults.
Pfshk!
Blood sprayed from their mouths in unison, bellies heaving.
“—is your fault, Sisilia Windsor.”
Demon beasts forged from human souls lunged at the children.