Chapter 123
Chapter 123
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Translator: penny
Chapter: 123
Chapter Title: The Emperor's True Motive and the Dragon's Shadow
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The real reason Kaykilia had massacred the other royals was that all her relatives, except herself, had become entangled with demons.
One of the royals had fallen to a demon's influence and secretly begun corrupting those around them.
By the time Kaykilia realized it, it was far too late. Almost everyone except her had already become the demon's slaves, or were on the verge of it.
In the end, with Minerva's help, Kaykilia secretly slipped away to the Holy Kingdom alone. To obtain the holy sword that granted divine power to those who proved worthy.
The imperial palace had become little more than a demon den, so logically, she should have mobilized the Inquisition to purge it. But Kaykilia refused the suggestion.
If word got out that the royals were tied to demons, the entire empire would turn its attention to those beings. She had to avoid that at all costs.
Fortunately, Kaykilia succeeded in drawing the holy sword and claimed its power. She returned to the empire openly and cut down her demon-dominated kin with her own hands.
She even allowed rumors to spread that she had gone mad with power. Only she herself, Minerva, the Pope, and a few high-ranking Holy Kingdom officials knew the truth.
The most surprising part was that Aurora's father, the former lord, hadn't been tainted by demons. That was why he survived while everyone else died.
He probably thought his reckless antics had convinced everyone he had no interest in power, but in reality, Kaykilia had simply spared him.
Minerva's guess was that he was too dim-witted and useless to even interfere with their plans, so they left him alone. It was a pretty plausible theory.
That was the truth, but I still couldn't see how it connected to Kaykilia's interest in me.
“But that is why Your Majesty is interested in m—”
“Ye's words are not yet finished. Be silent.”
Kaykilia's finger pressed firmly against my lips. I obediently shut my mouth.
“After that incident, Ye resolved that no matter the sacrifice or method, demons must be eradicated. That is also why Ye permitted the Holy Kingdom's battle nuns free entry into the empire for the sake of the holy war.”
That explained it. Arachne's lair was squarely on imperial soil, so why had the Inquisitors shown up? So that's what was going on.
It was an event never depicted in the game, so of course I wouldn't know.
No, it wasn't even certain such an event had happened. The info ended with the emperor wielding the holy sword, leaving players to speculate.
“Then, one day, a letter arrived requesting that Ye deal with one of my blood kin who had become entangled with a demon.”
That was when I had dealt with the former lord. Back then, I never imagined I'd catch the emperor's attention like this.
“Ye's first thought was suspicion. He is the sort who doesn't value others' lives but cherishes his own. He is not the type to willingly tangle with demons. You think the same, do you not?”
I nodded. I agreed on that point. When I showed him the demon-possessed book, deep unease was etched into the lord's face and actions.
Before I tricked him with the lie that I could do whatever I wanted to his daughter, he hadn't let the demon dominate his mind despite seeing the book. That was proof of how great his fear was.
“And Ye confirmed that his body bore scars from a weapon infused with holy power.”
‘She noticed the marks from the blessed dagger?’
That wasn't mentioned in the game either. Even if you beat him with a blessed weapon, the emperor's dialogue never changed.
In other words, I'd been wrong from the very start.
“Aurora is an ordinary human who wields neither mana nor holy power. The other knights can handle mana but not holy power. And among the battle nuns who roam beyond the Holy Kingdom, none use daggers.”
“……”
“So Ye asks you this: Who turned the one who feared demons into a demon himself, then slew him with a dagger infused with holy power? Who orchestrated it all? No silence allowed—answer.”
Kaykilia's face showed she was already convinced I'd done it. Since she was right and I had no excuse, I quietly affirmed it.
“It was…… me, Your Majesty.”
“That is your answer to the question.”
“……”
Now it all fit together.
I could guess why Kaykilia had taken an interest in me. As she said, from the moment I framed and killed that lord as a demon, she had no choice but to notice me.
After slaughtering her own family because of demons, how could she ignore news that her last blood relative had turned into one?
Her attention naturally shifted to me, the near-certain culprit. Excluding Aurora and the knight commanders, no one else could have pulled it off.
In the game, even after handling the lord that way, the emperor brushed it off to avoid a fuss, so I never imagined the story branched like this.
As my head grew complicated, Kaykilia looked down at me and spoke again.
“Ye has a task. Aspiration, hope, purpose—interpret it as you will.”
“……?”
“To wipe every last one of those damned beings from this world.”
Kaykilia's face thrust close to mine. Warm breath tickled my lips.
“From Minerva, Ye heard that those pope wenches personally brought you here. You must have accomplished something in the Holy Kingdom. Otherwise, those women who had secluded themselves in their cathedrals for years without stirring wouldn't have carried you here themselves. Hearing that confirmed it.”
The hands gripping my shoulders tightened.
“Ye sees potential in you. Special abilities. The hope to make the impossible real. Whether you realize it yourself or not is irrelevant.”
“……”
“Even Minerva affirmed it. She said she couldn't even measure the power latent within you. That if you wished, you could become anything. And Minerva said this of you.”
Anything at all. That described Brenak 4's protagonist perfectly. Depending on how you cherry-picked past actions and allocated stats, your build diverged wildly.
Though at ultra-high levels, such distinctions hardly mattered.
“So, as emperor of the empire, Ye asks: Do you possess the ability to fulfill what Ye desires? Can you achieve the aspiration even the Holy Kingdom's Pope deemed impossible?”
Could a player do what she described?
Yes.
Of course.
Brenak 4 had four DLCs total, and the third one released was called "Sanctuary of Demons."
In that DLC, the player gets dragged to hell, slaughters countless demons on the way back to the real world, and ultimately beheads the final boss, "The Guide to Evil."
Clearing that final boss counts as defeating all demon-type bosses, granting loot and ensuring no more demon enemies appear in that playthrough.
So fulfilling Kaykilia's aspiration was entirely possible.
But I planned to leave that DLC untouched.
‘No world-ending catastrophe if I skip it, and the rewards aren't worth the risk, so no reason to bother.’
Unlike the "Awakening Evil" DLC's final boss, the forsaken creation of god, ignoring an active DLC didn't cause demons to overrun and destroy the world.
The player getting pulled into hell wasn't due to some grand reason—it was just getting caught in a demon worshipper ritual.
No impact on the ending if skipped, and while doable, was it really worth it? So I'd avoided demon worshipper spots altogether—
“You do have it.”
Kaykilia gazed down at me with a chilling smile. Her eerie expression snapped me out of my thoughts.
Damn, I thought. I'd lingered in my head too long.
“Indeed, you do.”
With a thud, her hand shoved me back. My upper body collapsed onto the bed.
Kaykilia braced against the bed and crawled over me on her knees. Her lingerie-clad breasts swayed heavily below, arms planting one on either side of my face.
“One who cannot do it would not wear such an expression. Ye's eyes do not deceive. You can fulfill Ye's aspiration.”
Her golden pupils blazed with desire for me. Ecstasy filled her face. Something ominous stirred.
“No more words. Become Ye's. Then—”
“Kaykilia!”
A desperately shouted voice cut her off. Kaykilia turned her head with an irritated scowl. I looked in the same direction.
It was Minerva. Gone was her usual poised, mystical demeanor; she was panting heavily.
“Trouble's arisen. Prepare for battle at once.”
Seeing Minerva's uncharacteristically flustered face and ragged breaths, Kaykilia sensed it was no ordinary matter. She erased her irritation and slowly raised her upper body.
“What is it, Minerva?”
“A dragon has appeared. It's just flying around for now, but the aura is far from normal.”
“……A dragon?”
Kaykilia's voice rose slightly.
In the Brenak worldview, dragons were treated as walking natural disasters. Documents brimming with dragon terror abounded.
Of course, to the protagonist, they were just tedious boss fights.
‘Why are those things here……?’
Mentally reviewing Brenak 4's dragon boss list, a sudden possibility jolted me upright.
“Lady Minerva!”
“What is it?”
“That dragon—did you happen to see what color its scales were?”
“The scales? They seemed…… a mix of black and dark blue.”
Shit. I cursed inwardly the moment I heard it.
A dragon with scales blending black and dark blue. That alone was enough. Brenak 4 had only one such dragon.
The World-Eater.
Brenak 4's final boss.