Chapter 130: Walking a Tightrope (4)
Chapter 130: Walking a Tightrope (4)
Dan smiled brightly at me. 'That kid's personality changes every time I see him. Am I just getting used to it, or did the people at the marquis' estate affect his personality?'
'No, now's not the time to think about that.' I pushed aside the useless thoughts and stared fixedly at Dan. I didn't forget to harden my expression.
"......What's your intention in saying that?"
"I'm simply informing you that such a rumor exists. I thought you should know as well, Marquis."
"......."
I relaxed my gaze.
'I have no idea what that guy is thinking. Enemy or ally? He's gotten ambiguously close, become ambiguously comfortable, and ambiguously become one of my people — what am I supposed to do with him?'
'......No answer will come no matter how much I worry now.' I lowered my gaze back to the documents and muttered.
"I'm the only one at peace. If this weren't a military tent, I might have mistaken it for no war breaking out."
"I don't think that would have happened. The opening of the war was too spectacular."
"......That's true."
'Ah, stress.'
I quietly took out a handkerchief and pressed it to my mouth. This cloth, which Dan's trading company had procured with great effort and touted as highly absorbent, was true to its word — the blood that gushed out soaked into the handkerchief instantly without a single drop dripping.
I neatly tidied it up, tucked it into my pocket, and grumbled to myself.
'The frequency of coughing up blood decreasing, my ass. It's no different from before.'
'This is all because of stress. When I was dragged around frequently in the early stages of the war, I puked blood relentlessly — it's definitely that.'
I felt a stinging gaze from one side. I turned my head and met Dan's eyes, narrowed as he looked at me. Right, I was in the middle of a conversation with him. How far did we get?
'......Right, about the war's opening being spectacular or whatever.'
"The verbal battle between the two monarchs was quite spectacular, though."
"Their looks were spectacular too."
"......."
"It's a joke."
"......You'd better keep your distance from Rememver."
I snapped coldly and grabbed my pen. However, my hand merely held the pen without moving it immediately.
The day's declaration of war, which had been quite impressive, came to mind, and before I knew it, I was tapping my fingers on the desk, lost in thought.
* * *
Contrary to expectations, the Demon King had gone through a very standard procedure to declare war.
I wasn't sure if this could be called standard, but since they hadn't attacked abruptly, it was roughly similar.
Where had he sold off his own Magic Prohibition Decree? As if showing off his demonic energy, he displayed an image spell over the entire continent. Not just the Empire, but every kingdom, even small rural villages could see it.
While everyone's attention was fixed on the unfamiliar magic, the 1st Legion Commander Jeikar appeared on the screen, as if acting on behalf of the Demon King.
- From the Demon Realm to the human world, an announcement.
It was a start that dispensed with formalities.
- From the standpoint of the Demon Realm, which loves balance and peace, we have determined that the Empire's continental conquest war has overheated beyond acceptable limits and poses a danger; therefore, for the purpose of preventing the Empire's excessive actions from destroying the human world, we declare war on the Empire.
Honestly, I burst out laughing here.
'Balance... pfft, and pea— ... love... khhk, the Demon Realm loving...' It'd been so long that those who fought the Demon Realm in the past were no longer alive, but still, people weren't stupid enough to fall for such a lie.
'Even just looking at the history books...'
'......Do commoners ever have a reason to look at history books...?'
'Ah, ah?'
I quietly covered my mouth. I'd burst out laughing on my own and covered my mouth on my own, so the people around me made a fuss asking if I'd coughed up blood again, but their voices didn't reach my ears.
They weren't a noble house that forced education with talk of noble dignity or whatever; there was no way commoners, who were satisfied just eating well and living well, would care about history! Was Jeikar, no, the Demon King, aiming for this!?
- Given our purpose, we are also willing to 'withdraw' readily if the Empire promises not to act any further.
'Wow, crazy. He just provoked them.'
I felt like I could see the emperor's expression without looking, as I stared at the screen with a bitter look. After a moment, Jeikar, who had glanced off-screen, faced forward again and gently raised the corners of his mouth.
'It was definitely a smile I'd never seen before, yet why was it so familiar?'
'I know who he was imitating with that smile.......'
The Demon King.
'That guy is good at smiling prettily, at least. Should I call it a smile that relaxes you?'
- Are you watching, Emperor? You must have sorcerers there. His Majesty the Demon King has permitted it. If you can, go ahead and try interfering with this magic and answer. We deliberately lowered the barrier, so it shouldn't be difficult.
'......That too would only work if spoken nicely. Jeikar's tone alone disqualifies him.'
'More importantly, this proved that sorcerers can reach into the domain of magic. The imperial court has an exclusive sorcerer, so at least there's no worry about procuring one.'
'Then the question is whether the sorcerer's skill is enough to interfere with that magic, and whether the emperor will respond to those words...'
The emperor was not one to avoid a provocation. He would surely summon a sorcerer and have him interfere.
Sure enough, whether because the barrier really had been lowered or the sorcerer's skill was outstanding, it didn't take long before the screen floating in the air flickered with a 'hisss—' and then changed to the emperor's face.
A young man, young for a blond, golden-eyed emperor, rested his arm on a book placed on the armrest of his throne and glared at the screen as if it were preposterous.
- I heard you barking well. I've gained new information that demons can bark uniquely instead of human speech. I must have the scribes record it properly.
Laughter erupted here and there.
False laughter to relieve the tension. Everyone probably felt it: that the Empire could become completely isolated in the human world at any moment. That they would have to fight the Demon Realm all alone, without any support.
So I couldn't laugh.
'This is completely screwed.'
I was certain, knowing the emperor a little better than others. The emperor would never give up continental conquest. As long as he drew breath, he would try to grasp his sword.
In such a situation, Jeikar — no, the Demon King — had provoked him by saying they'd 'withdraw' in case the emperor backed down gracefully. What could possibly happen?
'Our Majesty, who never avoids a fight that comes and willingly responds to provocations — what choice do you think he'll make, I ask you...!'
Fortunately, the emperor also had a quite capable mind, so instead of replying directly with "I'm not stopping the conquest war? I'm going to continue?", he first poked at the weak point in the other side's words.
- Demons loving balance and peace — the world turns upside down. The whole world knows how cruel you are, yet you shamelessly spout lies. Right now, I am revealing my face, whereas the Demon King hides behind the 1st Legion Commander and controls him. The character of those who have such a ruler is obvious even without looking.
They put on a friendly mask, engage in deceit, sow internal division, or stab you in the back.
"......Oh."
"......."
The tide shifted again. The distrust toward the demon race that had been scattered since who-knew-when became fertilizer and sprouted. In the eyes of people who had been uneasy, firm resolve and vigor glazed over.
From the standpoint of a mere imperial citizen, that was fortunate, but I didn't understand. The Demon King didn't completely lack knowledge of the emperor, so why had he permitted interference? There was no way he hadn't foreseen this situation.
...Just as my thoughts reached that point, a new screen appeared right next to the one floating in the air.
- Hiding, you say? That hurts my feelings.
Inverse Eyes, with the colors of the sclera and iris reversed. A familiar face, smiling lightly.
It was the Demon King. He'd looked like he wouldn't, but in the end, he too had taken the emperor's bait.
Not blocking the interference, but making an entirely new screen...
'No, does he have mana to spare? More importantly, did he really throw away the Magic Prohibition Decree?'
- To think the emperor would personally step forward. Thanks to that, I get to see your face directly for the first time. Well, calling it direct is a bit ambiguous, but it's the first time I'm seeing a living, moving image rather than a painting. I knew your age, but you look far younger than I thought. Truly surprising.
- ......You're clouding the main point. Was there something in my remarks that caught you?
- Caught me? How so?
The Demon King smiled a picture-perfect smile, folding his eyes into crescent moons. His approachable appearance, little different from a human except for his eyes, shone.
- There's no lie in what we said.
The sound of maids expressing admiration could be heard.
That was definitely intentional. He deliberately made an eye-smile to hide the part that was different from humans.
"With that face, no matter what he does......"
"That person, no, that demon... that's the Demon King? I believe him, Lord Demon King......"
The emperor seemed to catch the intent of that smile as well, narrowing his brow slightly.
'The counterplay that could deliver a blow here would be for the emperor to smile radiantly in return, but there was no way the emperor would smile radiantly... Ugh, just imagining it gives me goosebumps.'
While I rubbed my goosebumped arms, the emperor, as expected, seemed to have chosen logic over a counter with his own face; he growled, his throat rumbling, and spoke.
- You hypocrite......
- Hmm?
- It's disgusting, so take off that pathetic mask. Did you say that if I retreat, the Demon Realm will retreat too? Don't be ridiculous. Did you think that because a long time has passed since the war between the Demon Realm and the human world, your past deeds and words would be buried? As if!
His voice rose. The world fell silent.
Piercing through the quiet space, the emperor's voice soared high into the sky.
- Knowledge, wisdom, and the events of the past are passed down to descendants through records. To prevent the same mistakes, and through them, to advance further! This is exactly the proof of that!
He picked up the book he'd placed on the armrest and waved it at the screen.
- This is a historical record that lay dormant in the palace library. It records the war with the Demon Realm in considerable detail. It had quite a lot of interesting content. To read just a part of it......
He opened the book, flipped through pages with a rustle, and once he found the desired part, fixed his gaze on one spot.
- There is a desperate cry that a human king cornered during the war let out. He asked why they invaded the human world that had been staying still. Then the Demon King answered with a light sneer.
The emperor stopped there and raised his head.
As if looking at someone beyond the screen, he stared straight at it with fierce golden eyes and slowly continued. His slow but solemn voice resonated through the world.
- "As a demon, isn't it only natural to covet lands where the sun shines?"
As if someone had cast magic, at that moment, no one could open their mouth.
A truly chilling silence.
Even I stared endlessly at the golden eyes on the screen, until the emperor broke the seemingly endless silence and drove the nail in.
- In the end, the Empire's movements are just an excuse and merely meant to sow division within the human world; haven't you been aiming for the human world all along, waiting for an opportunity?
- An excuse, you say? The statement that we will retreat if the Empire retreats is sincere, you know? Try retreating once, as if you're humoring us. If the Demon Realm doesn't retreat even then, you can move again — it won't be too late.
Both monarchs seemed to speak to each other, yet in the end, they never forgot their purpose of agitating and persuading the majority of humans watching this screen.
Probably, not a few people would nod at the Demon King's last statement. For example, people of other kingdoms who had been eyeing the Empire's aggressive conquest war with unease, or those within the Empire who opposed the war with the Demon Realm right now.
The emperor, who could not be unaware of this, spoke again without backing down.
- For now, perhaps. This book also speaks of the demons' lifespan. It is incomparably longer than humans. So it wasn't difficult to speculate. That because the Empire is the most troublesome opponent in the current human world, you are restraining it like this and dragging out time; and once years pass, generations change, and the Empire declines, you intend to swallow it easily. That's a rather plausible speculation. In the end, for me, and for the humans of this generation, there are only two choices.
I could only understand what the emperor intended by those words after hearing what came next.
- Do we use the present Empire, strong enough to make even the Demon Realm uneasy, to wage war now and ensure the safety of our descendants? Or do we cling to a vain hope that will someday disappear, evade, and delay, driving our descendants to extinction?
He had completely flipped the cause of the war with the Demon Realm.