Chapter 359: translated
I Killed the Demon King. It Was a Mistake.
Chapter 359
Caesar shuddered as soon as he read Noah's thoughts in the letter that Denver had handed him.
Dropping the Ark over Niflheim's airspace. Wasn't the Ark the lifelong aspiration of the Arch Duke family?
"I have regressed a total of 36 times. Then, why do you think I would have regressed?"
"To find the answer, I suppose."
"To be more precise, it was to ask."
Raven frowned.
"Ask? To whom?"
"To all the previous Arch dukes."
Noah pointed to the Akashic Record with a laborious gesture. Caesar picked up the Akashic Record and handed it to Noah.
Noah slowly turned the pages backward.
"I already noticed that Denver had come here through the devil summons I had placed in various locations. In other words, I thought he would destroy Sapientia while you, Caesar, were away."
"And I thought. What if, by any chance, this Akashic Record falls into Denver's hands? Wouldn't the most terrible future come upon us? I thought I could never find this answer alone, so I decided to go and ask all my ancestors."
Noah couldn't attend the 'Arch Duke Conference' that opened regularly every minute. So to ask the wise ancestors, he had no choice but to ask them by regressing in person.
"I first went to my father. About how to protect the ark and the Akashic Record. What do you think my father answered?"
What would Laar Arch have said?
Caesar recalled the 'Arch Duke Conference.' When the votes to imprison or kill Caesar and the votes to save him came out similarly, Laar Arch decided to give Caesar free will and save him. And the other Arch Dukes respected Laar's decision.
-Laar Arch. What are you planning to do? We have no choice but to follow your decision anyway. Because you are the last Arch carrying the future of us all.
The last Arch carrying the future of all. At that time, it was Laar, but now it's Noah.
"Since it's Lord Noah's future, I think he would have told you to make your own choice."
"Correct."
Noah opened the very first page.
"Afterward, I went to the first Prime Arch Duke and asked. We might lose the Akashic Record and the Ark, so what should we do? When I asked like that, he also said that I had to make my own decision about my future. But when I asked for his wise opinion, he asked me to explain about you."
-He received the blessing of the Baptism Sword? Then, have him fight Denver. Caesar will definitely win.
"The first Arch Duke, who experienced the power of the first Emperor, trusted your military prowess. So I decided to tell Denver your location and make you two fight."
"What if I had died? Or if I had been isolated on some remote island like a month ago after being hit by the fan of rejection?"
"You're not the type to fall for the same trick twice, are you? I thought you would definitely have prepared a countermeasure."
It's absurd. I don't know whether to call this remarkable or insane.
"I went to the second Arch Duke and asked again. How can I protect both the Ark and the Akashic Record?"
"What did he say?"
"He told me to recall the purpose of building the Ark. The reason for building the Ark is to save as many people as possible from Niflheim, not to escape."
Noah continued to meet with the Arch Dukes after that. He asked the same question, and they gave similar or different answers.
"Some said to take out the Akashic Record to save it at least, and some said to protect the Ark by any means. But there was something everyone said in common."
Noah opened the last page.
"If Niflheim can be destroyed, it should be destroyed."
Noah handed the Akashic Record to Raven.
Raven received it in bewilderment.
"The reason why it's difficult to kill Denver is partly because he's strong and partly because it's difficult to kill him. His unique ability called the Fountain of Life is a prime example."
"Is that why you wanted to drop the Ark?"
"Yes. According to my calculations, to drop it exactly on the capital of the Niflheim Kingdom where the Fountain of Life is located, the Ark would need to travel east for 8 hours. So I made up my mind. Assuming you kill Denver, if I destroy the Fountain of Life, couldn't we completely kill Denver?"
"It was a plan that could never be realized unless every single piece fit perfectly."
"The Arch family has prospered until now because it has adapted well to predetermined futures. Not because it pioneered uncertain futures."
Noah sat in the armchair and looked at the red dot.
"So this is the first time our Arch family is reaching out to an unknown world and challenge. You wouldn't know how much agony I went through to make this decision."
Noah waved his hand. Raven saw the dragon language『Out of the Great Library.』
"I want to ask you a favor."
"What favor?"
"Please return the Akashic Record to its original place."
"Its original place?"
"The first Duke said so. The Akashic Record originally belonged to the unopenable library in the underground of the Demon King's castle."
"Then how was the Akashic Record here?"
"Around the time the first Emperor was formally unifying the continent, there was a conflict between the Demon King Diana and the first Emperor. It was the Prime Arch Duke who mediated between them. In return, he received the Akashic Record as a gift from the Demon King, and from the first Emperor, he received the title of Duke, territory, and ownership of the magicians."
Caesar couldn't hide his surprise as he had seen all the endings of the Valent Saga, but he had never heard this backstory before.
"The Akashic Record is of no help to humans. Rather, it only gives birth to confusing futures and pasts. So please return it to the library. Can you do that?"
Raven and Caesar thought for a moment and then nodded.
"We had to go to the demon realm anyway."
"Thank you. If it looks like it might fall into the hands of Elijah or the Emperor, please destroy it altogether."
"Understood."
Dong! Dong! Dong!
The grandfather clock rang.
"It's time."
Noah pointed in the direction of the dragon language.
"One last request, could you possibly move me to the window?"
Caesar moved Noah's armchair to the window.
Caesar bowed his head to Noah.
"Thank you for all your hard work."
"You too have worked hard."
Raven and Caesar moved toward the direction of the dragon language. When Raven and Caesar disappeared, it became quiet.
As the magic of the great library maintained by the Akashic Record was released, complex timelines and space twisted. Then, 36 Arch Dukes sat in identical armchairs next to Noah, looking outside.
"This is my choice, ancestors."
The dukes seemed to be mumbling something, but Noah couldn't hear because he was deaf.
However, he seemed to know what they were saying.
"Thank you for respecting my choice."
***
Denver staggered out from the Fountain of Life. His body was as thin as chopsticks and so wet that it looked like a newborn foal.
"...Caesar."
Denver climbed the stairs, holding onto his trembling legs. He fell over many times, and his knees were covered in blood.
"I will definitely kill you..."
No matter how much time passes, he will not only burn him but also everything he loves. Denver opened the door and left the damp underground.
The Red Paradise that Denver had spent his lifetime creating was revealed. Denver's Paradise, where his soldiers poured out endlessly. Seeing this paradise, new desires arose.
"No... Let's kill Caesar right now. Let's join hands with Elijah and turn Homigraph into a sea of fire. Hehehe..."
Denver was not in his right mind, as if he had just woken up from anesthesia. That's why he belatedly realized why the night was redder than expected.
"Ah..."
It's hot. What is the identity of that red sun flying through the cold night? Denver just trembled with immeasurable fear.
"Ah... Mother."
***
Raven, Caesar, and the surviving Blue Star wizards blankly stared at the vanished Niflheim.
Dust clouds covered the sky and sparkled blue. Since Sapientia was made almost entirely of magic stones, fragments of magic stones scattered everywhere, creating dangerous magical phenomena.
It was chaos itself, with lightning being spewed, hot lava flying through the sky, water gushing upward, and land floating in the air.
Originally, they wanted to check whether Denver was dead or alive, but if they went in there, it seemed like not even their bones would be found.
"Do you think Denver is definitely dead?"
"If he survives in there, I'll have to acknowledge him."
Caesar's mind was complicated.
Denver is dead. That means there will be no world destruction due to devil overflow. If this were inside the Valent Saga game, the ending credits would have rolled up by now with 'The End,' but nothing like that appeared.
In other words, this place is reality, not a game world or a dream.
"Let's go now."
He had known it before, but realized it again. This world is not a game but Caesar's reality.
***
Yan and Mitchell looked at the magnificent city walls from a distance. As the name ‘Steel Fortress’ suggested, it seemed without a single flaw.
"It's time."
Mitchell drew out the kingfisher.
Behind him, soldiers made up of defeated troops were loading guns and cannons, and beside him, knights on horses and service beasts raised their spears and swords.
"We will pass through the Steel Fortress and return home!"
"Oh!"
Mitchell presented them with a future exactly like Hometown. Break through the Steel Fortress, cut off Elijah's head, and return home.
The simple but clear goal made the soldiers move, and the existence of the hero legitimized their actions.
"Yan."
Yan turned his head at the voice calling him.
There was not Mitchell, but the Demon King Agatha.
Behind and beside Agatha, demon race members were preparing to deploy in ranks. If you combined all the combat forces of the Demon King’s army and the allied forces, it was about 60,000 people.
According to Sith, the number of troops deployed at the Steel Fortress was 10,000. The remaining 140,000 had been dispatched to block Sith's forces attacking from the north.
The important thing is Elijah location. Sith had compiled various information, but Elijah’s location was not specified. Like a doppelganger who could use the ability to create doubles, he seemed to be confusing the information.
Where will Elijah appear?
Is it with Sith's forces that are coming while burning Friedrich border’s granary area? Or is it at the Steel Fortress, the symbol of Friedrich?
"Elijah will come to the Steel Fortress."
"How do you know?"
"If I were Elijah, I wouldn't let go of my pride even if it meant no bread would enter my mouth."
Sith somehow managed to hide soldiers throughout the city and destroyed five cities at once. They were all areas with concentrations of granaries or military factories responsible for Friedrich border supplies, and Sith burned all the wheat instead of harvesting it.
"I think you're right."
Yan saw Elijah appear on the castle wall. Elijah was wearing the armor that had troubled Yan, and had a massive greatsword on his back.
"Could it be real?"
"It must be real."
Agatha and Mitchell might not feel it now, but Yan could fully sense that subtle killing intent directed only at him.
As proof, the hair on Yan's neck stood on end. What was Elijah wanting?
Suddenly Elijah and the steel lion jumped down from the wall.
In mid-air, Elijah sat on the steel lion's back, and amazingly, the steel lion landed on the ground softly without making a sound.
Yan walked toward Elijah.
"Where are you going?"
"He's calling me."
"You?"
"Yes."
Yan walked forward, meeting Elijah's eyes. Elijah also moved forward, looking at Yan.
Elijah, mounted on the steel lion, looked even more enormous up close than from a distance.
Although Yan had become a warrior, he thought that the mature charisma emanating from that body would be difficult to imitate. Elijah and Yan stopped as if by mutual agreement. This distance was half a step beyond the distance where Yan could cut Elijah's neck in one swift move.
They stared at each other silently for a while. Yan thought anger would rise within him when he saw Elijah. Indeed, he was angry. Elijah had killed all of Yan's White Knights, had become a traitor to the Empire, and had approached him while hiding his true identity as a doppelganger from the beginning.
Just as Yan's anger was justified, Elijah's anger toward Yan was equally justified.
Elijah had taken Yan as a disciple and taught him swordsmanship, and had even intended to make him his adopted son to bequeath him the border territory of Friedrich.
However, Yan eventually betrayed Elijah and gave himself to the Redfield family and the Empire. Elijah had sufficient reason to be angry with Yan, and Yan had sufficient reason to be angry with Elijah.
The reason why a problem that could have ended as a personal matter erupted into such a large-scale war was probably because of the enormous influence both Yan and Elijah had.
The faces of the dead White Knights flashed through Yan's mind, but strangely, rather than his head growing hot, it became cold instead.
Was it because Elijah was not an opponent to be taken lightly?
Or did he think that Elijah's confident appearance concealed some hidden move?
Or was it Yan's survival instinct created by this tense situation itself?
Elijah broke the taut tension that could not be predicted with a casual remark.
"Surrender."
Looking at the big picture or just this war alone, Elijah was in a very disadvantageous position. Nevertheless, at Elijah's confident demand for surrender, rather than feeling incredulous, Yan felt strong pressure.
"I'll say the opposite. Please surrender. I don't want to spill needless blood."
"No further dialogue is necessary, then."
Elijah drew his greatsword. Yan reflexively drew his sword as well. Elijah glanced at Yan's sword and said:
"I'll show you that there are things that even the strongest shield cannot block."
With the hand not holding the greatsword, Elijah threw something into the air.
The object thrown into the air looked like a mirror. That mirror gradually increased in size until it became as large as the sun. Yan saw himself reflected in that mirror.
The Yan reflected in the mirror slowly walked out and stepped on the dew-covered grass.
"What...?"
Following him, Mitchell, Agatha, and numerous troops began to emerge from the mirror.
"The Demon Realm War or the First Emperor's Continental Conquest War, all of those are no different from child's play compared to the Dragon's War."
The Yan who came through the mirror raised his sword toward Yan.
"I'll make you feel why mortals were helpless before dragons."