260
I Killed the Demon King. It Was a Mistake
Chapter 260
Finally, I get to meet this person.
Caesar calmed his trembling heart and took Noah's hand.
"Pleased to meet you, Noah Arch."
Caesar's deep red eyes sparkled.
"I am Caesar El Lindger."
Noah Arch.
The last head of the Arch Duke family and a specialist in devil hunting. Because it was prophesied before his birth that he would wage war with devils, Noah is a being who has mastered every magic capable of hunting devils. The reason Caesar is so excited lies in Noah's exceptional abilities.
To explain it in gaming terms, the moment the devil outbreak scenario triggers, 'devil hunting exclusive artifacts' are unlocked as if they had been waiting in the Gale Magic Tower shop. Starting from artifacts that can detect devils with 'stealth' abilities, to artifacts that can block attacks from mental devils, and artifacts that can produce effects similar to holy oil.
Based on these protective gear and weapons, even ordinary people can venture out to hunt devils, and thanks to this, Sapientia and Homigraph are able to hold out under the pretext of being devil hunting outposts despite being close to the Kingdom of Dior. What was the reason these devil-exclusive artifacts could be unlocked so quickly?
It was all thanks to Noah. Noah Arch's specialties are devil hunting magic and artifact creation. Isn't it mind-blowing just imagining what synergy these two combined could produce?
Since Caesar has sworn to prevent the devil outbreak, Noah would be no different from a reliable supporter who would provide all the devil-exclusive weapons Caesar would need going forward.
"Do you need weapons to kill the devils of Niflheim?"
What an appropriately direct first statement. Quite fitting for such a favorable NPC, isn't it?
"Having unwittingly become a target of devils, I have no choice if I want to survive."
"Who did you kill in the demon realm?"
"Just before coming here, I killed Belial in the demon realm."
"Belial? He shouldn't be able to die."
"He dissolved quite well when I submerged him in seawater."
Noah stroked his chin and nodded.
"Hmm... So there was such a method."
Noah tapped his staff once. A twisted space opened, revealing a portal to a small workshop.
"Follow me. I'll gift you several items that might be useful."
Caesar's heart pounded. Finally, I'm going to receive Noah's specially made devil-exclusive artifacts. What could he be planning to give? Before departing, Noah observed Laar for quite a while.
Laar also looked at Noah with complicated eyes.
"I'm sorry to leave you with such a heavy burden."
Noah hesitated for a moment before bowing his head in greeting.
"You must have had a difficult long journey."
Laar looked at the shining Akashic Record. He looked lonely, like an old man spending time staring blankly at a campfire.
After finishing his greeting, Noah led the way into the portal. Caesar hurriedly decided to follow.
"Then I'll see you later, Duke Laar Arch."
"There won't be a later, Caesar."
Laar smiled slightly.
"Because I die tonight."
"...Pardon?"
"You should go now. I'm getting tired."
Laar turned his head to look at the Akashic Record. Noah glanced at Laar briefly before entering the twisted portal.
"Welcome. There are quite a few things I need to hear from you."
Caesar followed Noah into the space as instructed.
"What did he mean by that?"
"Exactly what it sounds like. Arch Duke will pass away tonight in that armchair."
Noah's tone was dry and clean. However, Noah did not show his expression to Caesar.
"It was written so in the Akashic Record."
Noah pointed to a chair nearby and said,
"Sit there. Some preparation is needed."
***
Caesar sat in the chair and looked around.
'Is this Noah's workshop?'
Caesar sensed Noah's workshop with all five senses.
First, the smell. An acrid scent had permeated the wooden walls everywhere. It must be the smell created from grinding and activating magic stones. Just like the walls were made of wood, most of the surrounding furniture was also made of wood. Only items that absolutely required steel - like hammers, saws, scissors, and tweezers - were made of steel. Judging by how worn the hammer and saw handles were, it seemed they didn't replace tools very often once they started using them.
Bang!
The door opened and Noah came in. Noah was carrying a large box that contained things like magic stones and coal.
"Shall we begin?"
"Begin what?"
"Tell me everything that happened in the demon realm, from beginning to end, in detail."
"...Shouldn't you be with father instead? You said it was his final moments."
Noah took out a highest-grade magic stone from the box and placed it on the table.
"Didn't father speak as if he knew everything that happened in the demon realm?"
"...I suppose he did."
"The reason father knew everything was because he heard about the demon realm situation from my own mouth, after you explained it."
Caesar understood immediately.
The Laar sitting in front of the Akashic Record right now is the Laar from the future.
He must have met Caesar after hearing everything about what happened in the demon realm and what Caesar did from Noah Arch.
"Where is Duke Laar Arch right now?"
"He's in his office preparing the funeral procedures."
"...You mean he's preparing his own funeral?"
"Yes. His Grace will be alive until the day after tomorrow. We need to call Viscount Bellum to organize his belongings and invite people who should attend the funeral."
This must be quite bewildering from Viscount Bellum's perspective. After all, he'll see Arch Duke alive even though Arch Duke is supposed to be dead.
Noah put coal into the furnace.
"Then without further ado, shall we hear about what happened in the demon realm?"
***
Perhaps Caesar's words were like a radio to Noah.
Starting from how Pepe received information that Luxhope was in danger of being attacked by rebels before Caesar arrived at Luxhope. The attack on Luxhope by the rebels.
Sith unifying the rebels and creating Home Town. Defeating the devilized Twin-headed Ogre.
Meeting Elijah Friedrich.
Making a deal with Elijah to let Agatha occupy Eagle valley
Agatha establishing herself in Eagle valley.
Agatha and Elijah becoming mortal enemies.
Meeting the beast-people and their forest falling into Geotech's hands.
Caesar revealing to Raven that he was a doppelganger.
Killing Geotech.
Elijah committing treason.
Sith breaking through the Steel Fortress and devastating the Friedrich region.
Parting ways with Yan and Mitchell due to differences in opinion.
Negotiating with Agatha and securing magic stone mining rights.
Gloria being kidnapped by Raum.
Killing Tatiana and obtaining Flawless.
Saving Gloria from Raum's nightmare.
Capturing Elijah's doppelganger.
Belial spreading propaganda that Caesar, Elijah, and Commander Baker were doppelgangers.
Killing Belial and occupying Luxhope.
Baker disappearing with 150,000 allied army soldiers.
Promising Yan and Mitchell to provide everything needed to oppose Elijah.
Finally, escaping Luxhope by ship.
"...That's everything."
Without asking a single question, he just listened as if listening to the radio. It could be because Caesar explained things quite thoroughly, or because Noah's artifacts required careful attention.
Thud! Thud! Thud!
Noah seemed to be doing the finishing work on the exterior with a small hammer. Even after Caesar finished speaking, Noah continued hammering without saying a word. His concentration was so intense that one might doubt whether he had been listening to Caesar at all. Noah wiped the artifact with a cloth and then spoke.
"Father told me something about you."
"What did he say?"
"Father said you're someone who accomplishes more than what was invested in you. Father found that very strange."
"Why did he find it strange?"
"Because despite having opportunities to easily betray us and gain greater benefits, you maintained your loyalty."
Noah placed the newly created artifact on the table and began inspecting it.
"There's only one reason why we sent you to the demon realm. For the stable supply of magic stones. I was quite curious about how you would resolve that issue, and you managed to place quite reliable people in the demon realm."
If he meant reliable people, he must be referring to Mitchell and Agatha.
Caesar had bound Mitchell and Agatha in a way that they had no choice but to cooperate with Caesar and Arch Duke.
Mitchell cannot protect himself from the Redfield family without Arch Duke’s help, and in Agatha's case, she absolutely needs Arch Duke's cooperation to take Elijah's head. Having established relationships where they must cooperate closely for mutual benefit, there was no need to question their credibility. Noah pulled up a chair and sat in front of Caesar.
"To be honest, when I heard the news of Elijah's rebellion, I thought the magic stone mining was done for. All the existing magic stone mines would have been destroyed, and all the infrastructure we had invested in would have been ruined."
Mining isn't just about extraction. The railways to transport the magic stones. Security forces to protect the railways. The mine workers. Facilities to feed and house the workers. And so on...
Mining operations require astronomical amounts of money, time, and labor that are difficult to fully explain. All of that was lost due to Elijah's betrayal, so from the Arch Duke family's perspective, their family business of over 200 years had turned to nothing.
"Most of the nobles who invested in the demon realm business were people from the Eileen Imperial Family, including the Redfield family. They tried to monopolize everything and ended up losing it all."
Why did Miles try so hard to secure distribution rights along the Eileen River? Wasn't it for the Imperial Family and Redfield family to monopolize the magic stone supply chain? But now that this entire business has turned to nothing, the Redfield family and Imperial Family will be shaken to their roots.
"Most of the bankrupt nobles and wealthy individuals fled to the Three Nations of Yel with their valuables. Even nobles who had commanded power within the Imperial Province for over 100 years couldn't dare bear such massive losses. The Eileen Imperial Family has already declared bankruptcy and announced they won't repay the money and resources borrowed from other nobles by any means."
Among the news Caesar heard at the party, this was the most surprising. The Goldmile Imperial Family had essentially declared complete default. And they used Dawn Knights and soldiers to drive out all the nobles and clan leaders who were demanding repayment from the imperial capital of Vex.
"They're headed for ruin."
"Yes. The Eileen Empire will fall."
Would the expelled nobles and wealthy individuals just sit quietly? Behind the nobles and wealthy individuals were investors who had lent money and invested in them, and behind those investors were yet more investors. With so much capital invested in this demon realm colonization project, when it collapsed from its foundation, the Imperial Province no longer had the strength to endure.
"They tried to somehow summon a hero to establish imperial authority, but that was just grasping at straws. Even if a hero supported the Emperor, would that matter to the pack of creditors who lost their money?"
Noah took out a bundle of letters from a box.
"These are all letters from nobles who contacted me wanting to jointly denounce the Emperor."
"I doubt they're simply talking about denouncement?"
"The bankrupt nobles and clan leaders have gone mad. When they first delayed paying the war costs, people could endure it because the magic stone business was still somewhat progressing. They thought they could somehow get their money back once the magic stones were mined."
But when the magic stone business itself turned to nothing, trust in the Emperor completely collapsed, and now there was talk of bringing down the Emperor.
"The Emperor made a wrong choice in forcibly expelling the nobles from Vex. He should have imprisoned them instead. What do you think the nobles will do when they return? Their nobility will all be gone, and they'll become third-rate bandits trying to remove the Emperor from his throne and squeeze money out like wringing water from a dry towel."
Arch Duke took out one letter.
Caesar's eyes widened. There was a lion seal stamped in the middle of the letter. It was the symbol of the Friedrich family.
"And Elijah Friedrich is secretly gathering nobles and clan leaders who swear revenge against the Emperor to form an anti-Goldmile coalition."
The tide of the era had changed. Not an era of survival of the fittest. An era of rebellion had arrived.