276. Mermaid Hunt (3)
276. Mermaid Hunt (3)
- 1 -
In the capital of the Kingdom of Hilsa, at North Wind Castle in Zehir.
Past noon, an emergency meeting in the royal palace was proceeding with urgent discussion.
"Though we have repelled the Norn Empire's invasion, it was not an achievement accomplished by our strength alone."
A duke spoke calmly before King Martinell.
But his full white beard trembled with suppressed fervor, so sudden had the Norn Empire's attack been.
"It was only possible because of Orbis's aid. They will certainly demand something in return."
Seated on the throne, the king propped his chin on his hand in deep thought.
His dark brown eyes, nearly black, held profound anguish, while the sapphires set in his crown glittered in the sunlight streaming through the window.
"... What they will want in exchange for that aid..."
The king's composed voice resonated through the council chamber.
The question was laced with tension.
A white-haired old scholar in a blue robe cleared his throat and stepped forward.
The scroll in his hand rustled softly.
"They have made no specific demand, but an estimate is possible, Your Majesty. That we of Hilsa join the Grakheizen Fate Alliance, to which Orbis, Haisen, and Leoper already belong."
"Your Majesty! This is a trap!"
Another count, standing opposite, cried out vehemently.
"All of this is clearly their scheme! Leading Norn to invade, then appearing as saviors—it must have all been a plot to win us over!"
Yet despite his argument, the atmosphere of the council chamber was cold.
This count was someone who had consistently advocated for an alliance with the Norn Empire.
"Please bear in mind, the Norn Empire has maintained peaceful relations with us for the past ten years. That they suddenly invaded..."
"Peaceful relations!"
The old duke who cut him off was red-faced with fury.
His cloud-like beard quaked with passion as a thunderous roar erupted.
"You intend to turn a blind eye to repeated small-scale conflicts and the pillaging of our merchants, Count!?"
Anger burst forth with scorn.
The candles in the chamber seemed almost to flicker under the force of his voice.
"They have merely been watching for an opportunity to invade us all along!"
The duke's fist slammed the table. The water glasses atop it shook.
"This incident is but the beginning!!"
At that moment, a figure who had been standing at one side of the chamber slowly stepped forward.
It was the diplomatic advisor Serilia Black, whose graceful gait and sharp eyes commanded attention.
Brushing her gray-tinged indigo hair over her shoulder, she bowed to the king with perfect etiquette.
"Your Majesty."
Her beautiful voice silenced the council chamber.
"The only thing I wish to tell Your Majesty is this. Whatever the case, Orbis's army drove the several-times-larger Norn Empire back from the Seberun Jungle."
Serilia continued slowly.
"They are now in the final stages of forging a political Fate Alliance. Haisen, Leoper, Orbis, and even the Minor Kingdom of Kiza are preparing to speak with one voice."
She raised four fingers.
"If those four join as an alliance, that power will be enough to stand against the Norn Empire, Kakia, or Zenota. But Hilsa is the thorn wedged between them."
The count interjected.
"Therefore, all the more reason to side with the Empire—!"
"The Empire will not be able to threaten us for the next several years."
At Serilia's firm words, the chamber fell silent once more.
"Their 4th Expeditionary Force has been completely shattered. A quarter of the Empire's military strength has vanished. And their prestige has taken a blow as well, of course. Its recovery will require considerable time."
The king thought deeply in the silence.
His gaze swept over the nobles one by one.
"... If we join the Fate Alliance, what price will we have to pay?"
"Your Majesty!!"
The count raised his voice one last time, but the king raised a hand to stop him.
Serilia answered in an elegant tone.
"They approach us from the perspective of mutual benefit, not threats or coercion. The justification is to build an alliance army to stabilize the center of the continent—for the sake of national border security, securing trade routes, and..."
A meaningful smile touched the corners of her lips.
"Preparing for the attacks of the Demon Realms."
"The Demon Realms..."
Several nobles murmured.
The recent fierce attacks by Eligor and Agares had put Norn and Zenota on edge.
For Norn, the united kingdoms of the Tailrand Alliance to the east had served as a buffer, but Zenota bordered many small states directly and suffered greater chaos.
Hilsa had to observe those battles with complicated feelings.
After all, if Tailrand sustained a fatal blow, the Norn Empire would no longer have to bother with them.
Not that they thought of it as anything humane.
"Not only the two Demon Realms that acted recently. On the Eastern Continent, two Demon Realms still exert their influence. Those are Dantalion of the North and Astaroth of the Eastern Sea."
"Are you saying those two Demon Realms will also begin their assault?"
"It is not certain, but two Demon Realms have already begun their activities. Where is the guarantee that the other two will not do the same?"
King Martinell, who had posed the counter-question, continued with a grave expression.
"In any case, our options seem clear."
His gaze held resolve.
"It has become an era in which it is difficult to remain independent and belong nowhere. I dislike admitting it, but Hilsa is a small state. If so, we must find a force suited to that..."
The count and several other nobles showed signs of discontent, but the king paid them no further heed.
"However, several conditions must precede this. First, Hilsa's sovereignty must be fully respected. Second, all lands reclaimed from the Norn Empire shall remain ours. Third..."
A faint smile surfaced on Serilia's lips.
'It fits my lord's plan.'
The woman who had been rescued from a difficult situation with Libertas's help and was newly establishing a dungeon deep in the Eisenlight Mountains.
The eyes of Serilia, the lady-in-waiting Dungeon Lord of Libertas, were filled with certainty of the coming glory.
- 2 -
The heart of the Northern Demon Realm, the dungeon of the Secret Duke.
This place's alias was the Ice Palace.
The continent was warm year-round, and even though it was the northern Demon Realm, relatively close to the equator, his palace never thawed in the slightest at any time of year.
Rather, as the years passed, its size only grew, and veteran adventurers who properly knew the Northern Demon Realm took it as evidence of his power, believing he would certainly descend south someday.
But in its heart, the audience chamber where Dantalion's crystal throne sat was dark and gloomy today.
Sarak.
The Archduke wearing the silver mask was gazing at the crystal orb in his left hand.
His fingers gently stroked the surface of the orb.
"The second day. There is no contact."
His indifferent voice echoed through the audience chamber.
His tone seemed worried, but everyone in the room knew that he bore no particular emotion.
Wepar had frequently shared his bed, but what of it?
There were many female demons who shared Dantalion's bed, and he also had numerous noble ladies of the Demon Realm bound to him through political ties.
"Could it not be that she betrayed you?"
There were even many women who coveted that position.
"...."
Dantalion, maintaining his silence, looked at the harpy who had just spoken.
She was a baron-level Demon Realm noble who was always angling for the spot beside Dantalion.
"Do not speak out of turn. She is a woman I have kept by my side as a marquess."
"I-I am sorry!"
Her standing was not equal.
Ignoring the apologizing harpy, Dantalion raised his head.
- Your Highness, you have done something foolish. Sending a marquess to the human continent without an army.
The black Demi Lich, Kimaris, sneered scornfully before him, dark energy pouring from his eye sockets.
For an instant the air froze and those present shifted their gazes between the two of them, but Dantalion merely nodded mildly.
"A regrettable matter. I had thought she could break through such a thing."
- Did I not say? That it would be a disaster if you took that small Dungeon Lord lightly.
Dantalion tilted his head aside, casting a sidelong glance at Kimaris, who chuckled as he spewed his reproach.
- Wepar is an opportunist. By now, she will have betrayed you.
It was the same as what the baroness harpy had said moments before, but Kimaris's words carried an entirely different weight.
The Archduke's presence grew heavier, and the Demi Lich wore a pleasant smile at the corner of his mouth.
The smile wrought by the twisting skull was grotesque yet comical.
"Do you truly think she has betrayed me?"
- I merely presented the possibility, Your Highness.
Even as the Archduke's voice flowed out coolly, Kimaris only inclined his head slightly.
- Whether she is dead or taken prisoner... Libertas is a necromancer, is she not. Necromancers need not care whether their opponent lives or dies.
The air in the room grew colder.
Dantalion slowly rose to his feet.
His silver uniform gleamed in the darkness like his palace.
"Assuming Libertas has taken her prisoner. In that case, what should I do, Kimaris?"
Kimaris answered leisurely.
- Naturally, you must rescue her, Your Highness. There are others' eyes to consider as well.
"Indeed. I shall rescue her."
Dantalion slowly began to walk.
A piercing gaze could be felt behind his mask.
"But before that, should I not find out what information my subordinate has handed over to the enemy?"
Kimaris fell silent. His intrigued gaze followed Dantalion's back.
"If my close aide has betrayed me... if she has surrendered all the secrets of this Demon Realm..."
- There is no need for further words. You must kill her.
There was not a hint of hesitation in Kimaris's voice.
For that was the unwritten law that had been upheld in the Demon Realm for ages.
Dantalion gazed once more at the crystal orb. Inside it, a faint blue light flickered.
"... Indeed. I shall deal with the traitor personally."
At that moment, a knock sounded and a figure hurried in.
The demon court communications mage bowed deeply and proffered a parchment to Dantalion.
"Your Highness. A message has arrived. It is marked urgent."
Dantalion took the message and immediately unfolded it to examine its contents.
His eyes swept rapidly from the upper left to the lower right. His eyelids briefly covered faintly quivering pupils.
"Everyone, leave."
At his command, all the nobles in the audience chamber withdrew like the ebbing tide.
Though Kimaris lingered until the very end, he too did not dare disturb the Archduke's mood any further.
Left alone, Dantalion read the letter again. His fingers trembled subtly.
"Wepar..."
The name that came from his lips held only disappointment.
To him, she had only that much weight.
- 3 -
Within the water of the cistern, Wepar felt her mana being slowly but ceaselessly drained away.
The magic circle inscribed on the walls stole her mana bit by bit, yet without end.
A dread crept over her that at this rate, she might one day be reduced to a mere mana battery.
'Is he truly not coming to save me...'
Doubt deepened within her heart.
Had the loyalty she'd offered Dantalion truly been in vain?
If the white-haired werewolf had heard that inner voice, she would have scoffed, 'What you did was not loyalty but a transaction,' but now Wepar could not hear those words.
"You seem to have many thoughts."
At the voice that had grown familiar of late, the mermaid raised her head.
Libertas was standing before the cistern.
"You came."
Wepar's voice was hollow. Her sense of defeat and hostility had already grown faint.
She had tried all sorts of tricks over the past several days to deceive Libertas and escape, but she had not been fooled in the slightest.
In the first place, there had not been much she could do while her mana was being drained.
But the next words she heard stirred hope within her.
"A herald came from Dantalion earlier."
"What?!"
The mermaid's eyes lit up as she pressed her face close to the cistern wall.
"Tell me! What did he say!"
Looking up at her like that, Libertas let a slender smile tug at the corner of her lips.
Seeing that smile, Wepar felt an inexplicable feeling of dread, but the option of not asking this question did not exist for her.
Libertas's mouth slowly opened.